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EU's Borrell could choreograph U.S., Iran return to nuclear deal -Zarif

Updated ·1 min read

WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sketched out a path on Monday to overcome the U.S.-Iranian impasse over who goes first in returning to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, saying the EU foreign policy chief could "choreograph" the moves.

"There can be a mechanism to basically either synchronize it or coordinate what can be done," Zarif told CNN in an interview, saying EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell "can ... sort of choreograph the actions that are needed to be taken by the United States and the actions that are needed to be taken by Iran." (Reporting By Arshad Mohammed and Jonathan Landay Editing by Chris Reese)

Originally published

Latest Stories

  • Reddit Traders Declare ‘BioWar’ as Shorted Biotechs Soar

    (Bloomberg) -- BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc. blew past a five-year high as Reddit investors rallied around a call to start a “#BioWar” on the heavily-shorted biotech that develops rare disease drugs.The stock, which recently ended development on a Covid-19 drug, rallied as much as 36% on Monday after a poster on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum called it “the most undervalued stock in the market” while another said a brewing #BioWar was “about sticking it to the shorts in a massive way.”​Biotechs with little to no revenue have long been the focus of short bets on Wall Street and could emerge as a new focal point for small-time investors waging war with elite hedge funds. But the battleground is an already crowded arena with hedge funds positioned on both sides.Indeed, BioCryst is a short target with about 17% of float, or $259 million, sold short, according to financial analytics firm S3 Partners. But it’s also a hedge fund pick held by the likes of Citadel and the well-known biotech outfit, Baker Bros. Advisors LP.Before Monday’s rally, shares of BioCryst had already shrugged off the scuttling of a Covid-19 trial supported by the National Institutes of Health. The company is expected to generate less than $31 million in revenue for all of 2020.Novavax Inc., another heavily-shorted biotech, has also garnered interest across chat forums, which could benefit funds like RA Capital Management and Perceptive Advisors, which hold stakes in the company. The stock has more than doubled in the past few trading days, albeit on key positive results for its Covid-19 vaccine candidate. The short position on Novavax stands at $1.5 billion, according to S3.Meanwhile, the motivations behind Monday’s 150% rally in Healthier Choices Management Corp. powered by Reddit was unclear as Twitter users said it was an opportunity to send hedge funds “on the run.” However, short interest in the sub-penny stock, which makes vaping products and operates health food stores in Florida, appears negligible.The micro-cap’s largest holders were its management team.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Nine Investors Instantly Make $16 Billion On GameStop Stock 'Squeeze'

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  • GameStop retail frenzy ‘is a very poor way to stick it to the man': Interactive Brokers strategist

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  • Reddit Users Are Targeting This Covid Vaccine Maker — Is INO Stock A Buy?

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  • 3 ‘Strong Buy’ Stocks With 8% Dividend Yield

    Let’s talk portfolio defense. After last week’s social flash mob market manipulation, that’s a topic that should not be ignored. Now, this is not to say that the markets are collapsing. After 2% losses to close out last week’s Friday session, this week’s trading kicked off with a positive tone, as the S&P 500 rose 1.5% and the Nasdaq climbed 2.5%. The underlying bullish factors – a more stable political scene, steadily progressing COVID vaccination programs – are still in play, even if they are not quite as strong as investors had hoped. While increased volatility could stay with us for a while, it’s time to consider defensive stocks. And that will bring us to dividends. By providing a steady income stream, no matter what the market conditions, a reliable dividend stock provides a pad for your investment portfolio when the share stop appreciating. With this in mind, we’ve used the TipRanks database to pull up three dividend stocks yielding 8%. That’s not all they offer, however. Each of these stocks has scored enough praise from the Street to earn a “Strong Buy” consensus rating. New Residential Investment (NRZ) We’ll start by looking into the REIT sector, real estate investment trusts. These companies have long been known for dividends that are both high-yield and reliable – as a result of company compliance with tax rules, that require REITs to return a certain percentage of profits directly to shareholders. NRZ, a mid-size company with a market cap of $3.9 billion, holds a diverse portfolio of residential mortgages, original loans, and mortgage loan servicing rights. The company is based in New York City. NRZ holds a $20 billion investment portfolio, which has yielded $3.4 billion in dividends since the company’s inception. The portfolio has proven resilient in the face of the corona crisis, and after a difficult first quarter last year, NRZ saw rising gains in Q2 and Q3. The third quarter, the last reported, showed GAAP income of $77 million, or 19 cents per share. While down year-over-year, this EPS was a strong turnaround from the 21-cent loss reported in the prior quarter. The rising income has put NRZ in a position to increase the dividend. The Q3 payment was 15 cents per common share; the Q4 dividend was bumped up to 20 cents per common share. At this rate, the dividend annualizes to 80 cents and yields an impressive 8.5%. In another move to return profits to investors, the company announced in November that it had approved $100 million in stock repurchases. BTIG analyst Eric Hagen is impressed with New Residential – especially by the company’s sound balance sheet and liquidity. “[We] like the opportunity to potentially build some capital through retained earnings while maintaining a competitive payout. We think the dividend increase highlights the strengthening liquidity position the company sees itself having right now… we expect NRZ has been able to release capital as it's sourced roughly $1 billion of securitized debt for its MSR portfolio through two separate deals since September,” Hagen opined. In line with his comments, Hagen rates NRZ a Buy, and his $11 price target implies an upside of 17% for the year ahead. (To watch Hagen’s track record, click here) It’s not often that the analysts all agree on a stock, so when it does happen, take note. NRZ’s Strong Buy consensus rating is based on a unanimous 7 Buys. The stock’s $11.25 average price target suggests ~20% upside from the current share price of $9.44. (See NRZ stock analysis on TipRanks) Saratoga Investment Corporation (SAR) With the next stock, we move to the investment management sector. Saratoga specializes in mid-market debt, appreciation, and equity investments, and holds over $546 million in assets under management. Saratoga’s portfolio is wide ranging, and includes industrials, software, waste disposal, and home security, among others. Saratoga saw a slow – but steady – rebound from the corona crisis. The company’s revenues fell in 1Q20, and have been slowly increasing since. The fiscal Q3 report, released early in January, showed $14.3 million at the top line. In pre-tax adjusted terms, Saratoga’s net investment income of 50 cents per share beat the 47-cent forecast by 6%. They say that slow and steady wins the race, and Saratoga has shown investors a generally steady hand over the past year. The stock has rebounded 163% from its post-corona crash low last March. And the dividend, which the company cut back in CYQ2, has been raised twice since then. The current dividend, at 42 cents per common share, was declared last month for payment on February 10. The annualized payment of $1.68 gives a yield of 8.1%. Analyst Mickey Schleien, of Ladenburg Thalmann, takes a bullish view of Saratoga, writing, “We believe SAR's portfolio is relatively defensive with a focus on software, IT services, education services, and the CLO... SAR's CLO continues to be current and performing, and the company is seeking to refinance/upsize it which we believe could provide upside to our forecast." The analyst continued, "Our model anticipates SAR employing cash and SBA debentures to fund net portfolio growth. We believe the Board will continue to increase the dividend considering the portfolio's performance, the existence of undistributed taxable income, and the economic benefit of the Covid-19 vaccination program.” To this end, Schleien rates SAR a Buy along with a $25 price target. This figure implies a 20% upside from current levels. (To watch Schleien’s track record, click here) Wall Street’s analysts agree with Schleien on this stock – the 3 other reviews on record are Buys, and the analyst consensus rating is a Strong Buy. Saratoga’s shares are trading for $20.87, and carry an average price target of $25.50, suggesting an upside of 22% for the next 12 months. (See SAR stock analysis on TipRanks) Hercules Capital (HTGC) Last but not least is Hercules Capital, a venture capital company. Hercules offers financing support to small, early-stage client companies with scientific bent; Hercules’ clients are in life sciences, technology, and financial SaaS. Since getting started in 2003, Hercules has invested over $11 billion in more than 500 companies. The quality of Hercules’ portfolio is clear from the company’s recent performance. The stock has bounced back fully from the corona crisis of last winter, rebounding 140% from its low point reached last April. Earnings have also recovered; for the first nine months of 2020, HTGC posted net investment income of $115 million, or 11% higher than the same period of 2019. For dividend investors, the key point here is that the net investment income covered the distribution – in fact, it totaled 106% of the base distribution payout. The company was confident enough to boost the distribution with a 2-cent supplemental payment. The combined payout gives a $1.28 annualized payment per common share, and a yield of 8.7%. In another sign of confidence, Hercules completed a $100 million investment grade bond offering in November, raising capital for debt pay-downs, new investments, and corporate purposes. The bonds were offered in two tranches, each of $50 million, and the notes are due in March of 2026. Covering the stock for Piper Sandler, analyst Crispin Love sees plenty to love in HTGC. “We continue to believe that HTGC's focus on fast growing technology and life sciences companies sets the company up well in the current environment. In addition, Hercules is not dependent on a COVID recovery as it does not have investments in "at-risk" sectors. Hercules also has a strong liquidity position, which should allow the company to act quickly when it finds attractive investment opportunities,” Love commented. All of the above convinced Love to rate HTGC an Outperform (i.e. Buy). In addition to the call, he set a $16 price target, suggesting 9% upside potential. (To watch Love’s track record, click here) Recent share appreciation has pushed Hercules’ stock right up to the average price target of $15.21, leaving just ~4% upside from the trading price of $14.67. Wall Street doesn’t seem to mind, however, as the analyst consensus rating is a unanimous Strong Buy, based on 6 recent Buy-side reviews. (See HTGC stock analysis on TipRanks) To find good ideas for dividend stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

  • 'Spill the beans man:' Tesla's Elon Musk grills Robinhood CEO on GameStop/Reddit trading saga

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  • Kashkari Says Let Market Be: If Investors Lose, ‘That’s on Them’

    (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari on Monday became the latest central bank official to push back against the idea that the trading frenzy in GameStop Corp. and other hot stocks calls for a monetary policy response.“GameStop has gotten a lot of attention. If one group of speculators wants to have a battle of wills with another group of speculators over an individual stock, God bless them,” Kashkari said while answering questions during a virtual town hall event.“That’s for them to do, and if they make money, fine. And if they lose money, that’s on them,” he said. “I’m not at all thinking about modifying my views on monetary policy because of speculators in these individual stocks.”GameStop shares were lower on Monday after rallying 1,600% in January. Hordes of day traders piled into the shares after noticing elevated short interest in the company in hopes that buying would force shorts to cover, driving the price ever higher.Kashkari’s perspective on the potential for froth in financial markets echoed that of some other Fed officials. At a Jan. 27 press conference, Chair Jerome Powell declined to comment on the recent meteoric rise in of GameStop shares and those of similarly beaten-down companies. But he told reporters that the main forces propelling the stock market higher in recent months were vaccine developments and fiscal stimulus.San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly chimed in on Jan. 29, arguing during a virtual event that she didn’t favor tightening up monetary policy, which would potentially slow the economic recovery, “simply to ensure that some people who already have stock market wealth don’t get more.”The U.S. central bank has signaled it will hold interest rates near zero at least through 2023 and keep buying bonds at a $120 billion monthly pace until “substantial further progress” has been made on employment and inflation.“The key now is for the Federal Reserve to keep our foot on the monetary policy gas until we really have achieved maximum employment,” Kashkari said.Speaking at a separate event Monday, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said that while supervisors had good visibility on the capital levels of big banks through stress-testing as they gauge the potential for systemic risks, he was monitoring the situation closely.“Non-bank financials I’m watching very carefully -- potential instability funding risks that might occur,” Kaplan said. “And I’m conscious of the fact that we’ve had to make these extraordinary moves that we’ve had at the Fed with interest rates and bond buying.”(Updates with Kaplan comments beginning in final paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Dow Rallies As Republicans Offer Biden Stimulus Bargain; Microsoft Surges As GameStop Collapses

    The Dow Jones rallied as President Joe Biden got set to meet with Republicans over a stimulus plan. Microsoft stock gained as GameStop stock collapsed.

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  • Inovio Surges On Reddit Call To Action As Investment Firm Boosts Stake

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  • Novavax Surges On Highly Effective Covid Shot; Is NVAX Stock A Buy?

    Novavax said in January its coronavirus vaccine was 89.3% effective in a Phase 3 test. It's also effective against the U.K. variant. Is NVAX stock a buy?

  • Novavax Stock Gets a New Street-High Price Target

    In the race to bring a coronavirus vaccine to market, Novavax (NVAX) looked like a loser -- lagging rivals like Pfizer and Moderna by months. Now, all of a sudden, Novavax looks like a winner -- and its stock doubled over the past two trading sessions. What rabbit did Novavax pull out of which hat to accomplish this? After close of trading Thursday, the company announced that in clinical Phase 3 trials, its NVX-CoV2373 vaccine has shown "strong efficacy" in preventing infection with COVID-19, even when "over 50%" of the cases combated were of the "now-predominant UK variant" of the disease. Furthermore, the company says that Phase 2b trials in South Africa have demonstrated "clinical efficacy" in preventing infection with the "South Africa escape variant" of the disease. Overall, NVX-CoV2373 is looking to be 89.3% effective at protecting patients against coronavirus. In short, said Novavax CEO Stanley C. Erck: "NVX-CoV2373 is the first vaccine to demonstrate not only high clinical efficacy against COVID-19 but also significant clinical efficacy against both the rapidly emerging UK and South Africa variants." In so doing, Novavax has addressed the concerns of multiple medical professionals (and patients) worrying that, no sooner had we invented vaccines to beat coronavirus, than the virus already mutated into forms against which the vaccine could not defend. B. Riley analyst Mayank Mamtani explained the significance of the news, calling the data both "overwhelmingly positive" and "above Street expectations." Indeed, the 5-star analyst points out that at 96% efficacy against the original strain of coronavirus, Novavax's vaccine appears to be the "best-in-class" vaccine. Better than Pfizer's. Better than Moderna's, too. (And probably way better than Sputnik V). In Mamtani's view, the United Kingdom (where the Phase 3 trial was conducted and the "UK variant" is obviously a primary concern), rollout to market of Novavax's vaccine is likely to begin within the "next few weeks." In the US as well, the analyst is predicting rapid Emergency Use Authorization. This seems patently good news -- good enough that Mamtani was willing to jump to the conclusion that "NVAX shares are undervalued and [even after the 3845% jump in share price, over the past 12 months, the stock] doesn't fully reflect the potential of the underlying adjuvant platform that enables rapid creation and large-scale production of vaccine candidates." Regardless of how big the orders end up coming in, explains Mamtani, Novavax's vaccine has significant advantages over the competition, including in particular the ability to be shipped at room temperature. Furthermore, Novavax has demonstrated a facility at employing small doses and combinations with other drugs and vaccines "to remain one of the pioneers in addressing the evolving C-19 pandemic globally," such that even as the virus mutates, Novavax's vaccines can still target it. In fact, that's probably the best news of all. Accordingly, Mamtani reiterates a Buy rating on Novavax shares and bumped the price target up from $223 to a Street high of $334. Investors could be pocketing gains of 23%, should Mamtani's thesis play out over the coming months. (To watch Mamtani’s track record, click here) Novavax has decent support amongst Mamtani's colleagues, but its current valuation presents a conundrum. NVAX's Moderate Buy consensus rating is based on 5 Buys and 1 Sell. However, the share gains keep coming in thick and fast, and the $226.50 average price target now suggests shares will decline by 16% over the next 12 months. (See NVAX stock analysis on TipRanks) To find good ideas for coronavirus stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

  • Apple Selling $14 Billion of Bonds as Share Buybacks Seen Rising

    (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. is selling $14 billion of bonds to take advantage of cheap borrowing costs, tapping the market for a third time since May as it looks to return more cash to shareholders.The company is issuing debt in six parts, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The longest portion of the offering, a 40-year security, will yield 95 basis points above Treasuries, after initially discussing between 115 and 120 basis points, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the details are private.Until 2020, Apple hadn’t borrowed in the U.S. investment-grade market more than once in a calendar year since 2017. But rock-bottom interest rates are proving too tempting for the world’s most valuable company to pass up as it pursues aggressive share buybacks and dividends.Apple’s outstanding 40-year bonds, the 2.55% securities due 2060, widened more than 5 basis points Monday to trade around 89 basis points over Treasuries, according to Trace. Bondholders typically sell out of their positions to make room for the new notes, which often come with a heftier yield to entice investors.The average investment-grade company can borrow at a rate of 1.86% for about nine years, according to Bloomberg Barclays index data. That’s down from 1.94% when Apple was last in the market in August.The tech giant said it will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including buying back stock and paying dividends. It may also be used in funding for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisition and repayment of debt, the person said.After years of hoarding cash, Apple has been working to reduce its net cash position, largely through payouts to stockholders. Still, the company may need to expand its annual shareholder returns to over $100 billion to reach its net-cash neutral target over the next few years, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.Apple is coming off a quarter in which revenue topped $100 billion for the first time. Executives didn’t provide an official forecast in reporting earnings Wednesday, but warned that sales growth from AirPods and other wearables will decelerate in the current period.Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are managing the bond sale, the person said.(Updates to reflect deal size and pricing in first two paragraphs)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

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  • Analyst Raises General Electric Target Following FCF Deep Dive

    General Electric Company (NYSE: GE) shares traded slightly higher on Monday after one Wall Street analyst performed a deep dive into the company’s free cash flow outlook. The GE Analyst: Bank of America analyst Andrew Obin reiterated his Buy rating for GE and raised his price target from $13 to $14. See also: Buy Bank of America Stock The GE Thesis: Last week, GE shares jumped after the company reported a better-than-expected $4.37 billion in fourth-quarter industrial free cash flow and guided for between $2.5 billion and $4.5 billion in industrial FCF in 2021. On Monday, Obin said GE’s 3% year-over-year drop in orders in the fourth quarter was also a pleasant surprise given orders dropped 28% in the previous quarter. The $3.5 billion midpoint of GE’s 2021 industrial FCF guidance was also slightly above Bank of America’s target of $3.3 billion. Obin said investors don’t seem to fully appreciate GE’s multi-year effort to reduce factoring, which was a $3.2 billion outflow in 2020. That process is now coming to an end and Obin said investors can expect working capital levels to begin to normalize. Related Link: ,000, 5 Years Later: How Much Would General Electric Stock Be Worth? Obin understands the caution toward GE given the uncertain economic outlook and the company’s rough recent track record, but he believes the company is being overly cautious with its 2021 Aviation revenue guidance. In the meantime, Obin says GE has plenty of financial flexibility in the near-term, and could actually benefit from rising interest rates. Rising rates would help reduce GE’s $25.5 billion in pension liabilities and GE Capital’s $21.3 billion in long-term care liabilities. “Higher discount rates would lower the value of these long-lived liabilities,” Obin said. Benzinga’s Take: GE appears to have stopped the bleeding by aggressively addressing its liquidity and balance sheet issues, and it has implemented a long-term turnaround plan. However, Obin is forecasting just 62 cents in 2023 earnings per share, suggesting GE is already trading at 17.2 times 2023 earnings even if the company hits Obins growth targets over the next two years. Photo credit: Momoneymoproblemz, via Wikimedia Commons Latest Ratings for GE DateFirmActionFromTo Jan 2021Morgan StanleyMaintainsOverweight Dec 2020DZ BankUpgradesSellHold Dec 2020Morgan StanleyMaintainsOverweight View More Analyst Ratings for GE View the Latest Analyst Ratings See more from BenzingaClick here for options trades from Benzinga,000, 5 Years Later: How Much Would General Electric Stock Be Worth?© 2021 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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  • Zomedica Stock Is up 330% in One Month; Is There Room for More Upside?

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  • Nokia Stock Gets an Upgrade Because Ericsson’s Earnings and 5G Performance Were So Good

    Swedish telecoms giant (ERIC-B)posted such good earnings last week that optimism has spread to (NOKIA) which received an upgrade on Monday from Norway’s largest investment bank. DNB Markets upgraded Finland’s Nokia to buy from sell and raised the target price on the stock from €4 ($4.83) to €4.8. Nokia was thrust into the spotlight last week and its stock was boosted amid a wider retail trading frenzy, but shares in Nokia fell near 2% in Monday trading, hovering around €3.95.

  • Pfizer Earnings: What to Look For From PFE

    Pfizer (PFE) reports Q4 earnings on February 2. Can it reverse falling profits and revenue as it ramps up COVID-19 vaccine production?