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If you receive more Social Security benefits than you are owed, you may face a 100% default withholding rate from your monthly checks once a new policy goes into effect.

The change announced last week by the Social Security Administration marks a reversal from a 10% default withholding rate that was put in place last year after some beneficiaries received letters demanding immediate repayments for sums that were sometimes tens of thousands of dollars.

The discrepancy — called overpayments — happens when Social Security beneficiaries receive more money than they are owed.

The erroneous payment amounts may occur when beneficiaries fail to report to the Social Security Administration changes in their circumstances that may affect their benefits, according to a 2024 Congressional Research Service report. Overpayments can also happen if the agency does not process the information promptly or due to errors in the way data was entered, how a policy was applied or in the administrative process, according to the report.

The Social Security Administration paid about $6.5 billion in retirement and disability benefit overpayments in fiscal year 2022, which represents 0.5% of total benefits paid, the Congressional Research Service said in its 2024 report. The agency also paid about $4.6 billion in overpayments for Supplemental Security Income, or SSI, benefits in that year, or about 8% of total benefits paid.

The Social Security Administration recovered about $4.9 billion in Social Security and SSI overpayments in fiscal year 2023. However, the agency had about $23 billion in uncollected overpayments at the end of the 2023 fiscal year, according to the Congressional Research Service.

By defaulting to a 100% withholding rate for overpayments, the Social Security Administration said it may recover about $7 billion in the next decade. 

“We have the significant responsibility to be good stewards of the trust funds for the American people,” Lee Dudek, acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration, said in a statement. “It is our duty to revise the overpayment repayment policy back to full withholding, as it was during the Obama administration and first Trump administration, to properly safeguard taxpayer funds.”

The new 100% withholding rate will apply to new overpayments of Social Security benefits, according to the agency. The withholding rate for SSI overpayments will remain at 10%.

Social Security beneficiaries who are overpaid benefits after March 27 will automatically be subject to the new 100% withholding rate.

Individuals affected will have the right to appeal both the overpayment decision and the amount, according to the agency. They may also ask for a waiver of the overpayment, if either they cannot afford to pay the money back or if they believe they are not at fault. While an initial appeal or waiver is pending, the agency will not require repayment.

Beneficiaries who cannot afford to fully repay the Social Security Administration may also request a lower recovery rate either by calling the agency or visiting their local office.

For beneficiaries who had an overpayment before March 27, the withholding rate will stay the same and no action is required, the agency said.

The new overpayment policy goes into effect about one year after former Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley implemented a 10% default withholding rate.

The change was prompted by financial struggles some beneficiaries faced in repaying large sums to the Social Security Administration.

At a March 2024 Senate committee hearing, O’Malley called the policy of intercepting 100% of a benefit check “clawback cruelty.”

At the same hearing, Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Georgia, recalled how one constituent who was overpaid $58,000 could not afford to pay her rent after the Social Security Administration reduced her monthly checks.

Following the Social Security Administration’s announcement that it will return to 100% as the default withholding rate, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare said it is concerned the agency may be more susceptible to overpayment errors as it cuts staff.

“This action, ostensibly taken to cut costs at SSA, needlessly punishes beneficiaries who receive overpayment notices — usually through no fault of their own,” the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, an advocacy organization, said in a statement.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Tesla’s selloff on Wall Street intensified on Monday, with shares of the electric vehicle maker plunging 15%, their worst day on the market since September 2020.

On Friday, Tesla wrapped up a seventh straight week of losses, its longest losing streak since debuting on the Nasdaq in 2010. The stock has fallen every week since CEO Elon Musk went to Washington, D.C., to take on a major role in the second Trump White House.

Since peaking at $479.86 on Dec. 17, Tesla shares have lost over 50% of their value, wiping out over $800 billion in market cap. Monday marked the stock’s seventh worst day on record.

Tesla led a broader slump in U.S. equities, with the Nasdaq tumbling almost 4%, its steepest decline since 2022.

The downdraft in Tesla’s stock on Monday was tied to uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump’s plans on tariffs. Canada and Mexico are key markets for automotive suppliers, and increased tariffs, with the potential for a trade war, will likely impact production and lead to higher prices.

Tesla is also dealing with brand erosion due to Musk’s incendiary political rhetoric and his extensive work with the Trump administration, where he’s leading up the so-called Department of Government Efficiency. Musk, the world’s wealthiest person, has become the public face of the administration’s effort to dramatically shrink the federal government’s workforce, spending and capacity.

Meanwhile, Musk has used his social network X to level accusations against judges whose decisions he didn’t like and promoted false Kremlin talking points about Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Activists and former Musk fans have protested at Tesla facilities throughout the U.S., and Tesla vehicles and facilities have been the apparent targets of vandalism and arson attempts. Repeated arson attempts and instances of vandalism occurred at a Tesla store and service center in Loveland, Colorado, most recently on March 7, police told CNBC.

Ben Kallo, an analyst at Baird, told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Monday that recent reports of vandalism could hurt demand.

“When people’s cars are in jeopardy of being keyed or set on fire out there, even people who support Musk or are indifferent Musk might think twice about buying a Tesla,” Kallo said.

Analysts at Bank of America’s wrote in a report on Monday that Tesla new vehicle sales plummeted by about 50% in Europe in January from a year earlier, partly owing to growing distaste for the brand. The firm also noted that some prospective customers are waiting for the new version of the Model Y.

Tesla’s Model Y, which is a small SUV, remained the best-selling battery electric vehicle globally in January. It was followed by China’s Geely Geome, which surpassed the Tesla Model 3 sedan for the month.

Global sales of electric vehicles, including fully electric and plug-in hybrid models, increased 21% in January from a year ago, even as Tesla’s sales declined. The growth was driven by demand in Europe, according to Bank of America.

— CNBC’s Jesse Pound contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

The Schwab US Dividend Equity (SCHD) ETF stock has held steady this month even as the blue-chip indices like the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 crashed. The SCHD ETF stock was trading at $28.45 on Monday, up by about 6% from the lowest level this year. So, is it a good stock to buy this year?

SCHD has headwinds and tailwinds

The SCHD ETF stock has moved sideways in the past few days. It has faced numerous headwinds and tailwinds this year. 

The biggest headwind is that the US has embarked on major changes, including the ongoing tariff issues by Donald Trump. He has announced tariffs on goods from key countries like Mexico, Canada, and China. 

These tariffs will have an impact on most companies in the SCHD. However, the impact of these tariffs will be limited because of its constituents. The biggest firms in the fund are the likes of Abbvie, Amgen, Pfizer, and Bristol Myers Squibb. 

The other top companies in the fund, like Cisco Systems, Chevron, and PepsiCo, will also be less affected by these tariffs. 

The other big headwind is that there is a risk that the SCHD ETF will be impacted the potential slowdown of the American economy. A recent report by the Atlanta Fed estimates that the economy will contract by over 2% this year. 

On the positive side, American companies are expected to continue reporting strong earnings. According to FactSet, the estimated earnings growth of this quarter will be 7.3%, marking the seventh-straight quarter of earnings growth. 

Is SCHD ETF a good investment?

The SCHD ETF has become one of the best-known funds among investors because of its strong dividend growth. Data shows that it has a dividend yield of about 3.50%, providing consistent growth metrics.

The fund has a dividend growth rate of about 11% in the past ten years. Its five-year growth rate was about 11.60%, which is much higher than most dividend funds. 

Still, there are concerns that US bond yields have remained above 4% in the past few weeks. The ten-year yield rose to 4.28%, while the 30-year and 2-year stood at 4.58% and 4%, respectively.

Some investors believe investing in these US Treasuries makes sense because they offer a higher yield. However, the challenge is that these treasuries will remain volatile as the Federal Reserve delivers its interest rate decisions. 

However, the SCHD ETF offers better returns because of the stock performance. For example, $100,000 invested in US Treasury bonds 12 months ago would now be worth about $4,400. On the other hand, a similar amount invested in the fund would be worth over $12,000. 

Read more: SCHD outlook for 2025: blue chip dividend ETF faces turbulence

SCHD ETF stock price analysis

SCHD chart by TradingView

The weekly chart shows that the SCHD ETF stock has been in a strong uptrend in the past few months. It has formed an ascending channel that connects the lowest and highest swings since April 2023. 

The index has moved above the 50-week and 100-week Exponential Moving Averages (EMA), a bullish sign. Also, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) and the MACD indicators have pointed upwards. 

Therefore, the outlook for the SCHD ETF share price will likely keep rising as bulls target the all-time high of $29.38. A move above that level will point to more gains, in the coming months.

The post SCHD ETF stock faces headwinds and tailwinds: is it a buy? appeared first on Invezz

Asana (ASAN) stock price has imploded in the past few weeks, falling by over 34% from its highest point in 2024. It has dropped to a low of $18.3, and is hovering at its lowest swing since December 6. Is ASAN a good company to buy ahead of the upcoming quarterly and annual results?

Asana earnings ahead

Asana stock price will be in focus on Monday as the technology company publishes its financial results.

Historically, its stock tends to have some big moves after publishing its quarterly results. It jumped by over 40% in December when it released strong financial results and boosted its forward guidance. It dropped by 15% in September and May after releasing its numbers. 

Wall Street analysts are optimistic that the company continued growing slowly in the last quarter. The average estimate is that its revenue rose by almost 10% in Q4 to $188 million.

While the last quarter’s numbers are important, investors often look at a company’s guidance to determine the next price action. Analysts expect the guidance for the current quarter will be $190 million, while the annual revenue will be $723 million. 

The most recent results showed that the company’s growth continued. Its revenue rose by 10% to $183.9 million in Q3’25, while its loss continued to narrow. The company had a net loss of $57.3 million, down a bit from the $61.8 million it had lost a year earlier. 

Read more: Expensive Asana stock price could surge by 195% in 2025

Asana growth is slowing

However, while these results were better than expected, they also demonstrated that the era of its strong growth was ending. 

There are two potential reasons for this. First, Asana operates in a highly competitive industry, competing with Wrike, Jira, Smartsheet, Trello, and Monday.com. 

Most companies interested in these solutions already have their service provider, and in many cases, they rarely change. As such, the future growth in terms of customer additions will likely be slow.

Second, companies, especially in the technology vertical are facing substantial challenges, a trend that may continue this year because of Donald Trump’s tariffs. These issues mean that the company will likely struggle adding more customers in the coming years.

The other major challenge is its AI Studio, a solution that enables companies to build and launch AI agents easily. For example, companies are using these agents to translate content across numerous languages and execute complex workflows. 

Asana’s AI Agent is the company’s first consumption-based pricing product, which will provide higher revenues in the future. However, it is still too early to predict whether the business will help to supercharge Asana’s growth trajectory.

Is ASAN stock cheap or expensive ahead of earnings?

Asana is a company valued at over $4 billion, and its annual revenue for 2025 is expected to be $723 million, followed by $802 million in 2026. 

These numbers mean that the company has a forward price-to-sales of about 5, which is higher than other similar companies. 

Asana is not making profits yet, meaning that it does not have a price-to-earnings ratio for now. However, we can estimate its future net profit margin by comparing it with other SaaS companies like Salesforce, Adobe, and Servicenow. CRM has a margin of 16%, while Adobe has 25%, and Servicenow has 13%. 

As such, assuming that it can achieve a 25% profit margin, its annual profit would be $201 million, meaning that it has a hypothetical multiple of 20, which is not all that expensive. 

Asana has a revenue growth rate of 10% and a present net income margin of minus 36%, giving it a rule of 40 metric of minus 26%. That is a sign that the stock is a bit overvalued.

Asana stock price analysis

ASAN stock chart by TradingView

The daily chart shows that the ASAN share price has crashed in the past few months. It has dropped from a high of $24.43 in February to the current $18.25. 

The stock has crashed below the key support at $18.45, the neckline of the double-top pattern. It has dropped below the 50-day moving average and the 50% Fibonacci Retracement point.

Asana share price has found support at the 200-day moving average. Therefore, the key support and resistance levels to watch will be at $16.80 and the 50-day moving average at $20.

The post Asana stock price forecast ahead of earnings: is it a good buy? appeared first on Invezz

The JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPI) stock price has pulled back in the past few weeks as American equities slumped. JEPI has slumped by about 2% from its highest point this year. Its total return rose by 2.30% this year, compared to the S&P 500 index, which has dropped by 1.73%.

What is the JEPI ETF?

The JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF is a popular covered call that has about $40 billion in assets.

It aims to generate returns by investing in 130 American companies in the S&P 500 index, including popular blue-chip firms, including blue-chip names like Abbvie, Progressive, Visa, NVIDIA, Meta Platforms, Amazon, and Analog Devices.

After investing in these companies, JEPI applies the covered call concept to generate returns. It does this by writing or selling the S&P 500 index call options and receiving a premium, which it returns to investors through monthly dividends. 

JEPI is beloved because of its higher dividend payouts to investors. It has a dividend yield of about 7.3%, much higher than the S&P 500 index, which pays about 2% annually. 

The fund is often seen as a better alternative to S&P 500 index ETFs like the Vanguard S&P 500 (VOO) and the SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) ETF in periods when the stock market is facing turbulence. It does this because of the premium it receives when it writes call options on the S&P 500 index.

JPMorgan Equity Premium Income is facing risks

The JEPI ETF is facing several risks that may affect its performance this year. First, there are concerns that Donald Trump’s trade war will affect corporate earnings this year. A good example of this is in the automobile industry, where companies like GM and Ford may see rising costs and weaker demand. 

Companies in other industries will see higher costs. For example, Trane Technology, a company that manufactures HVAC and other related solutions in countries like China and Taiwan will have higher fees.

However, unlike the S&P 500 index, most companies in the portfolio will not be highly affected by these tariffs. These include companies like Salesforce, American Express, ServiceNow, and ExxonMobil. 

JEPI stocks also faces another risk in that corporate earnings may slow down in the next few quarters. This slowdown will likely be because of the ongoing performance of the American economy, which may go through a recession. 

Further, while JEPI pays a higher dividend return than the S&P 500 index, its total return has always lagged. As shown below the total return of the JEPI ETF in the last three years has been 30% compared to the VOO ETF’s 43%. 

JEPI vs VOO ETF chart by SeekingAlpha

JEPI ETF stock has a technical risk

JEPI stock by TradingView

The JPMorgan Equity Premium Income has another technical risk that may push it lower in the coming months. The daily chart shows that the JEPI ETF formed a double-top pattern at $60, and whose neckline is at $56. A double-top is a popular bearish pattern that often leads to further downside.

The stock has crashed below the 50-day moving average, a sign that bears are in control for now. Therefore, the combination of tariffs and the double-top pattern points to further downside in the coming months. If this happens, the next level to watch will be at $56, down by 3.65% below the current level.

The post JEPI ETF is beating the S&P 500 index, but a risky pattern has formed appeared first on Invezz

The USD/CAD exchange rate rose slightly after the latest Liberal Party election in which Mark Carney won to replace Justin Trudeau. It also rose ahead of the upcoming Bank of Canada (BoC) decision and the US consumer inflation data. It was trading at 1.4380,  few points above last week’s low of 1.4340.

Bank of Canada decision

The USD/CAD exchange rate will be in the spotlight this week as the Bank of Canada releases its interest rate decision.

Economists expect the bank to continue with its dovish outlook in this meeting by cutting interest rates by 0.25%. If this happens, the bank will bring its official cash rate to 2.75% from the previous 3.0%.

The BoC has been one of the most dovish central banks in the market in the past few months after cutting rates six times. It has moved them from last year’s high of 5.5% to the current 3%.

These interest rate cuts happened as the Canadian economy slowed down substantially and inflation moved to the 2% target rate. Data released last week showed that the unemployment rate was 6.6%, while the economy added just 1.1k jobs in February. 

There is a risk that the Canadian economy will continue to decelerate now that the country has moved into a trade war with the United States. Trump has added a universal tariff on Canadian goods and 10% on energy products. 

Trump believes that these tariffs will help to balance the trade with Canada. Experts have noted that, while Canada has a trade surplus with the US, it is mostly because of energy products. Excluding these products, the US has a large trade surplus with Canada

Mark Carney, the former Bank of Canada (BoC) governor and the incoming prime minister, has maintained that he will maintain the tariffs that the country has implemented on US goods until Trump caves. 

Read more: USD/CAD forecast: BoC, Fed and the carry trade opportunity

US inflation data ahead

The USD/CAD exchange rate reacted to last Friday’s US jobs numbers. According to the statistics agency, the US economy created 151k jobs in February after adding a downward-revised 125k a month earlier. This job creation was lower than the median estimate of 159k.

The US unemployment rate rose to 4.1%, while the average hourly earnings rose to 4.9%, lower than the median estimate of 4.1%. The ongoing trade war that has affected consumer and business confidence in the US will affect the labor market. 

Looking ahead, the next key USD/CAD news to watch will be the upcoming US consumer inflation data. Economists expect the data to show that US inflation dropped from 0.5% in January to 0.3% in February and from 3.0% to 2.9% on a YoY basis. 

Core inflation is expected to move from 3.3% to 3.2%. While this will be a good report, there are concerns that inflation will tick up over time because of these tariffs.

USD/CAD technical analysis

USDCAD price chart | Source: TradingView

The USD to CAD exchange rate has been in a strong uptrend in the past few years as the Canadian economy has slowed. It moved from a low of 1.2000 in July 2021 to 1.4400 today.

The USD/CAD pair moved above the 23.6% Fibonacci Retracement level. It has also remained above the 50-week Exponential Moving Average (EMA).

The pair has formed a bullish pennant pattern, a popular continuation sign. Therefore, the path of the least resistance for the pair is bullish, with the next level to watch being at 1.4790, the highest level this year. 

The post USD/CAD forecast: signal ahead of BOC decision, US inflation data appeared first on Invezz

Lloyds share price continued its strong surge this year as European bank stocks soared and after publishing strong financial results. LLOY soared to a multi-year high of $74.46 also after analysts upgraded the stock, pointing to its strong positioning. 

Lloyds Bank stock has jumped by over 252% from its lowest level in 2020, giving it a market cap of over $57.8 billion. So, is it a good stock to buy?

Lloyds stock surge mirrors other European banks

The ongoing LLOY share price performance mirrors the performance of other European bank companies that have surged this year. 

Societe Generale share price has jumped by over 50% this year, making it the best-performing major banks globally. 

In the UK, NatWest share price has soared by almost 90% this year, while Barclays has surged by 70% in the last 12 months. 

Other European banking groups like UBS, Santander, Credit Agricole, Unicredit, and HSBC have all surged. These companies have continued to outperform their American peers like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs. 

The ongoing surge is because many of these banks have benefited from higher interest rates in the past few months. Higher rates helped to boost their earnings, which in turn, pushed them to increase their distributions to shareholders.

Lloyds Bank, which has a dividend yield of 4.13%, has boosted its payouts in the past few quarters, helped by its strong balance sheet. The company is achieving this by continually reducing its CET-1 ratio. It has a CET-1 ratio of 13.5%, and the management now hopes that the figure will drop to 13% by 2026.

These actions have led to multiple upgrades of the Lloyds share price. Just last week, analysts at Morgan Stanley and Peel Hunt upgraded the stock, citing its strong performance and the fact that it may play catch up to other banks. 

Morgan Stanley expects that the Lloyds share price will surge to 90p, while Peel Hunt boosted their outlook to 70p. 

LLOY business is thriving

The most recent results showed that LLoyds Bank’s business was doing well. For example, over 20 million customers are now using its mobile applications to handle transactions, up from 15 million in 2021. 

Another key data point is that Lloyds Bank now has over 3 million mass affluent customers, higher than 2 million in 2021. 

Net income has jumped from £15 billion to £17 billion, while the company has addressed the pension deficit that stood at over £7 billion a few years ago.

The most recent results showed that Lloyds Bank’s business did better than expected. Its net interest income came in at £12.8 billion, while its total net income fell by 5% to £17.1 billion. 

The company will likely continue doing well this year as demand continue rising in the coming months.

Read more: Lloyds share price patterns point to a 47% surge ahead of earnings

Lloyds share price forecast

LLOY chart by TradingView

The weekly chart shows that the LLOY share price peaked at 74.55p this month. It has remained above the crucial resistance level at 63.35p, the highest swing in October 2024.

The stock has remained above all moving averages, a sign that bulls are in control for now. Also, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) and the Stochastic RSI have pointed downwards.

Therefore, the stock will likely drop and retest the key support at 63.35p, the highest swing in October 24 last year. This performance is known as a break and retest pattern, pointing to more upside in the coming weeks. This means that the stock will ultimately jump above 80p later this year.

The post Analysts are bullish on Lloyds share price: should you? appeared first on Invezz

Malaysia’s Capital A, the parent company of budget airline AirAsia, has completed its 1 billion ringgit ($226 million) private placement, Reuters reported on Monday.

The move strengthens its efforts to exit its PN17 classification—Malaysia’s designation for financially distressed firms—after the airline group suffered significant losses due to pandemic-related travel restrictions.

CEO Tony Fernandes confirmed the completion of the placement on Monday but declined to provide further details about the investors involved.

The placement follows reports that Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund had been preparing a $100 million investment in AirAsia, with additional discussions ongoing with investors from Singapore and Japan.

The fresh capital injection brings Capital A closer to its goal of restructuring operations and maintaining its stock exchange listing.

Regulatory approvals secured

Capital A has been actively working to restructure its business and improve its financial position after being classified as a PN17 company.

Last Friday, Malaysia’s stock exchange approved its plan to exit the status, which Fernandes expects to be fully completed by May.

To achieve this, the company needs to obtain shareholder approval, secure Malaysia’s high court’s endorsement of its capital reduction plan, and demonstrate two consecutive profitable quarters.

The first step in Capital A’s restructuring plan involves selling its AirAsia aviation business to long-haul affiliate AirAsia X.

This move, announced a year ago, is designed to consolidate short- and long-haul operations under a single AirAsia brand, streamlining the business for better efficiency.

Capital A intends to retain an 18% stake in the resulting airline group while shifting its focus towards its non-aviation businesses, such as logistics firm Teleport and aircraft maintenance unit Asia Digital Engineering.

Profits signal recovery

Despite the challenges faced by the aviation industry, Capital A has reported signs of financial recovery.

Fernandes stated that the company posted a profitable fourth quarter and is on track to remain in the black for the first quarter of this year. If the positive momentum continues, it will meet the profitability requirement for exiting PN17 status.

The completion of the private placement adds further stability to Capital A’s financial outlook, ensuring sufficient liquidity as it navigates the regulatory approval process.

The company is betting on its diversified business model, which includes logistics and digital engineering services, to drive sustainable growth beyond its core airline operations.

Investor confidence grows

The reported interest from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund and investors from Singapore and Japan highlights growing confidence in AirAsia’s long-term prospects.

While the airline sector faced severe turbulence during the pandemic, the resurgence in global travel demand has helped budget carriers like AirAsia regain lost ground.

Founded in 2001 with just two aircraft, AirAsia has since expanded into one of Asia’s largest budget airlines.

With the ongoing restructuring and fresh capital secured, the company aims to position itself for sustained profitability and growth.

The upcoming shareholder vote and regulatory approvals will be key in determining whether Capital A successfully exits PN17 status and moves forward with its new business strategy.

The post AirAsia parent Capital A secures $226M in private placement to boost financial recovery appeared first on Invezz

Novo Nordisk shares declined on Monday after the company reported that its next-generation weight-loss drug, CagriSema, helped obese or overweight adult patients with type 2 diabetes reduce their weight by 15.7% after 68 weeks.

The stock dropped around 6.5% in Copenhagen, marking its biggest intraday decline since December 20.

Novo’s stock has declined 37% over the past year, with concerns about its long-term competitiveness in the weight-loss market.

Meanwhile, shares of rival Eli Lilly, which produces the competing drug Zepbound, rose 1.2% following the news.

The CagriSema trial

The trial involving 1,206 participants with obesity or overweight and type 2 diabetes showed that 89.7% of patients on CagriSema achieved at least 5% weight loss after 68 weeks, compared to 30.3% in the placebo group.

Novo Nordisk noted that in the latest trial, patients could select their dosage, and fewer than two-thirds opted for the highest dose after 68 weeks.

A previous CagriSema obesity study, which disappointed investors last year, also saw a similar trend.

Under the trial’s flexible protocol, 61.9% of patients reached the highest dose by the end.

CagriSema, a combination of cagrilintide and semaglutide, resulted in a 15.7% weight loss among those who adhered to treatment, compared to 3.1% with placebo. Across all participants, weight loss averaged 13.7% for CagriSema and 3.4% for placebo.

The safety profile was consistent with the GLP-1 receptor agonist class, with gastrointestinal issues being the most common adverse events, generally mild to moderate and diminishing over time.

The results fell short of the company’s earlier forecast of 25% weight loss for CagriSema patients. In a separate late-stage trial published in December, the drug showed a weight reduction of 22.7%.

Novo Nordisk is developing CagriSema as a treatment for adults who are overweight or obese and for those with type 2 diabetes. The company expects to file for regulatory approval in the first quarter of 2026.

The weight loss drug race

Novo Nordisk is relying on its new shot, CagriSema, to compete with Eli Lilly’s Zepbound in the growing weight-loss drug market.

Michael Shah, an analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, noted that the latest results appeared “broadly on par” with Zepbound, raising concerns about whether CagriSema offers enough differentiation.

Shah added that the trial design, which allowed patients to choose their own highest dose, may have understated the shot’s potential effectiveness.

Novo said it aims to seek regulatory approval for CagriSema in the first quarter of next year.

Jefferies analysts noted that individuals with diabetes typically lose 30% to 35% less weight than those with only obesity in clinical trials.

They had hoped that CagriSema’s added compound—alongside Novo’s existing drugs Ozempic and Wegovy—might reduce this gap in absolute weight loss.

The post Novo Nordisk shares slide 6% after weight loss drug trial disappoints appeared first on Invezz

Xpeng Inc (NYSE: XPEV) is in focus this morning after reiterating its commitment to mass producing flying cars and industrial robots by 2026.  

Xpeng’s “land aircraft carrier” has already had its first public flight and the company’s factory with capacity to produce 10,000 flying cars annually is expected to go live in the first quarter of 2026.

Additionally, the Chinese firm expects to begin mass producing its humanoid robots over the next 12-14 months that will put it in a more fierce competition with the likes of Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA).

Xpeng stock is still down about 2.0% in premarket on Monday.

Why is Xpeng committed to producing flying cars?

With its land aircraft carrier that was recently showcased at the CES 2025, the company based out of Guangzhou wants to penetrate the fast-growing eVTOL market.

This sector, which includes helicopter air shuttles and drone deliveries, is projected to grow from $184 billion in 2025 to over $550 billion by 2030.

More importantly, following the debut flight at the Zhuhai Airshow last year, Xpeng has already accumulated over 3,000 orders for its flying cars.

However, chairman of the New York listed firm, He Xiaopeng, continues to see a long road ahead to the commercialisation of flying cars.

“Right now, I see many problems. These include official certifications both as a road vehicle and as an aircraft, rules governing how such vehicles should lift off, and licenses for who could pilot it,” he said in a recent statement.

Xpeng stock has significantly outperformed its peers since the start of 2025.

While shares of the EV company don’t pay a dividend at writing, they have soared more than 100% year-to-date.  

What flying cars mean for Xpeng stock in 2025

Xpeng stock has rallied hard this year but none of it is particularly related to the management’s commitment to emerging technologies like flying cars or humanoid robots.

Much of the year-to-date rally in XPEV is attributed to “improving monthly sales figures, demonstrating to investors that its product strategy is working well despite intense competition,” according to UOB expert Steven Leung.

Plus, these initiatives are also unlikely to be meaningful for Xpeng in the near term.

In a recent note, Leung argued that “it’s still distant for those projects [land aircraft carrier and industrial robots] to translate to earnings growth” for the China-based company.  

That said, the firm’s EV segment seems to be doing well. Xpeng delivered over 30,000 vehicles in February that marked the fourth straight month of strong deliveries for the Tesla rival.

Despite a massive year-to-date rally, Wall Street continues to rate the EV stock at “overweight”, signalling analysts see potential for further upside in XPEV in the coming months.  

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