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U.N. talks to Ethiopia over 'alarming' report that shots fired at U.N. team

·1 min read

NEW YORK, Dec 8 (Reuters) - The United Nations is "engaging at the highest level" with Ethiopia's government over "alarming reports" that a U.N. team was shot at in the country's war-hit Tigray region, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday.

"These are alarming reports and we are engaging at the highest level with the federal government to express our concern and avoid any such incidents in the future," said Dujarric, adding that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had spoken with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Monday.

He said there were four people in the U.N. team who were doing an assessment of roads in the area for aid deliveries.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Latest Stories

  • 2 Stocks That Are Flirting With a Bottom; Analysts Say ‘Buy’

    Investing is all about profits, and part of generating profits is knowing when to start the game. The old adage says to buy low and sell high, and while it’s tempting just to discount cliches like that, they’ve passed into common currency because they embody a fundamental truth. Buying low is always a good start in building a portfolio.The trick, however, is recognizing the right stocks to buy low. Prices fall for a reason, and sometimes that reason is fundamental unsoundness. Fortunately, Wall Streets analysts are busy separating the wheat from the chaff among the market’s low-priced stocks, and some top stock experts have tagged several equities for big gains. These stocks are trading low now – but the reasons are not necessarily bad for investors.We’ve used the TipRanks database to pull up the data and reviews on two stocks that are priced low now, but may be primed for gains. They’ve been getting positive reviews, and despite their share depreciation, they hold Buy ratings and show upwards of 60% upside potential.Digital Media Solutions (DMS)We will start with Digital Media Solutions, an adtech company which connects online advertisers with customers through performance-based branding and marketplace solutions. DMS boasts a powerful consumer intelligence database, which it uses to fine-tune customer acquisition campaigns – while offering advertisers accountability for the project budget.DMS went public in July of this year, via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, Leo Holdings. The combination took the DMS name for the ticker, and initiated trading at $10 per share. The stock has been volatile since, and is currently down 27% since it started trading.Digital advertising is a huge – and growing – sector, worth $100 billion in 2019 and expected to reach $130 billion by the end of next year. DMS has a solid piece of that cash cow, and the Q3 numbers demonstrate that. Quarterly revenue hit a company record, of $82.8 million, which was up 10% sequentially and 44% year-over-year. Of that total revenue, the company saw a gross profit of $25.1 million, for a 30% gross margin. All in all, DMS’s first quarter as a publicly traded company showed strong results.Covering the stock for Canaccord is analyst Maria Ripps, who is rated 5 stars by TipRanks, and stands in the top 1% out of more than 7,100 stock analysts. “The company saw meaningful volume growth from both new and existing clients, with particular strength from its auto insurance business along with the eCommerce, education, and non-profit verticals… We continue to think investors will gradually come to appreciate DMS’ similarities with other leading digital marketing peers that trade at more premium valuations, and expect multiple expansion over time as the story becomes better understood,” Ripps noted.To this end, Ripps rates DMS stock a Buy, and her $15 price target suggests an upside of 106% from the current share price of $7.20. (To watch Ripps’ track record, click here)Overall, DMS’ Moderate Buy consensus rating is based on 2 recent reviews, both positive. The stock has an average price target of $14, which indicates a 92% upside potential. (See DMS stock analysis on TipRanks)ViaSat, Inc. (VSAT)From digital advertising we move on to digital networking. ViaSat provides customers with high-speed broadband access through a secure satellite network system. The company serves both military and commercial markets, meeting the growing need for secure communications links.The anti-coronavirus shutdown policies have particularly hard on ViaSat. This may sound counterintuitive, as online networking has been busier than ever, but a large segment of ViaSat’s business comes from the airlines, and with air travel first grounded and still facing depressed travel volumes, ViaSat’s shares have yet to recover from their February/March swoon.On a positive note – and one that is indicative of the essential nature of secure satellite communications in today’s networked economy – ViaSat reported $577 million in Q3 contract awards, representing a 29% yoy gain. For the year to date, the company has seen awards totaling $1.9 billion, which is up 5% from this time last year. The third quarter (the company’s fiscal Q2) revenues and earnings were somewhat mixed, reflecting both the increase in contract awards and the decline in airline business. Revenues were $554 million, down 6% yoy, but up almost 4% sequentially. EPS was 3 cents per share, beating the predicted 5 cent loss by a wide margin.JPMorgan analyst Philip Cusick writes of ViaSat: “[We] believe long-term growth levers remain intact highlighted by record segment backlog of $1.1b… We view ViaSat as a satellite innovation leader and believe the company’s future ViaSat-3 fleet will accelerate growth in satellite services over the coming years. At the same time, we see a long-term government systems tailwind driven by the company’s radio portfolio, mobile broadband, and SATCOM.”In line with his bullish comments, Cusick rates VSAT shares an Overweight (i.e. Buy), and his $60 price target implies ~72% upside on the one-year time horizon. (To watch Cusick’s track record, click here)Overall, the stock has 5 recent reviews, including 3 Buys and 2 Holds. Shares are priced at $34.14, and the average price target of $55 suggests a 61% upside potential from that level. (See VSAT stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for 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.

  • A Letter From 9 Million U.S. Expats to Janet Yellen

    (Bloomberg Opinion) -- Dear Janet Yellen: Congratulations! You’re probably the next Treasury secretary of the U.S. That’ll throw you into daunting policy cauldrons — from financing America’s massive deficits to managing China and taming the tax code. With so much in your inbox, we urge you not to forget about one large group of Americans: us.We’re U.S. expats, and there are 9 million of us. If we were a state, we’d be the eleventh-largest. And we’re suffering from a problem that you can fix.We ended up abroad because we got a job in Canada, married someone in France or retired in New Zealand. For others among us, “abroad” is actually home, because we’re “accidental Americans” — we were born in the U.S. but never lived there.No matter how we ended up with U.S. passports, all of us are subject to American taxation, as well as annual bank and asset reporting requirements so onerous and complex that many experts don’t fully understand them. And that’s just the start of our troubles, as we’ve tried to explain before.The U.S. is the only country in the world that practices citizenship-based taxation. All other nations tax individuals based on their residence. OK, Eritrea also taxes its diaspora, but that’s not exactly the same thing.We certainly don’t live abroad to avoid taxes. After all, we already pay tax in our countries of residence, which tend to have higher rates than the U.S. We can take these foreign taxes as a credit on our U.S. returns, so most of us never owe anything to the Internal Revenue Service. But that makes the huge compliance burdens, and the Draconian penalties for innocent mistakes, all the more unnecessary.Many of us can’t lead normal financial lives because we’re snared in two incompatible tax systems simultaneously. We can’t invest or save for retirement like our neighbors or other Americans because either the U.S. or our country of residence won’t recognize the other nation’s financial products and rules. We can’t even open bank or brokerage accounts, because financial institutions won’t take us.Many of us escape by renouncing our U.S. citizenship. But the U.S. has been making that more expensive and difficult in recent years. And most of us would hate to give up our nationality anyway.If we had representation in Congress as a bloc, this problem would have been solved long ago. But we don’t. Instead, we vote in the U.S. state where we lived most recently. And our representatives and senators don’t think listening to our concerns can help them get re-elected. So while a legislative fix is our preferred option, we’re not holding our breaths.That’s where you come in. As Treasury secretary, you will oversee the two bureaus to which we expats must file reports, the IRS and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (doesn’t that name say it all).There are simple tweaks you could make that would cost the U.S. nothing in lost revenue, save you a packet in enforcement expense and make our lives easier. The options are laid out in an essay I commend to everyone on your staff: “A Simple Regulatory Fix for Citizenship Taxation,” by John Richardson, Karen Alpert and Laura Snyder.One option is to change the rules on particular compliance nightmares that have become obsolete. Here’s just one example.In the 1980s, the U.S. adopted harsh rules to discourage Americans from deferring income in overseas finance vehicles (called passive foreign investment companies) that weren’t required to distribute income and gains as they accrued. But that was before the international boom in mutual funds, which are also considered PFICs. Nowadays, U.S. expats often end up owning these without even knowing it — for example, if they’re automatically enrolled in a retirement scheme by their overseas employer.The U.S. taxation of such PFICs — that is, plain-vanilla but foreign mutual funds — is ruinous. Moreover, the reporting requirements are so Kafkaesque that many professional accountants refuse to take clients who own even one. And yet, in most developed countries, mutual funds are regulated almost exactly like their U.S. analogs and must also distribute all income and gains.At a stroke, your Treasury could change the regulations to exempt an entire category of funds from PFIC reporting, starting with these run-of-the-mill retail investments. In the same way, you could tweak dozens of other nonsensical rules.But there’s an even simpler step you could take. Contrary to lore, there’s no U.S. statute that ties U.S. nationality to tax liability. Instead, the Treasury established that link in past regulations. This means you, Dr. Yellen, can break the link again.Our proposal — as laid out in detail by Richardson, Alpert and Snyder — is that you introduce a new category of taxpayers, in addition to the many you already have. It could be called “qualified nonresidents,” and would include U.S. citizens who live permanently in another country and pay taxes there as though they were its nationals.These qualified nonresidents would be exempt from filing returns to the IRS and FinCEN, and from paying taxes on any income that’s not sourced in the U.S. They already don’t owe anything, so the revenue loss would be close to zero. Moreover, the IRS could divert its own resources from this complex and unprofitable enforcement area to others that are more worthwhile.This change would align American taxation of individuals with the systems of all other developed countries. It would free us expats to live, earn, save and invest as other people do. And whenever any of us move back to the U.S., we’re yours again. Never would it have cost so little to help so many with such negligible fuss. Please consider it.This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Andreas Kluth is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. He was previously editor in chief of Handelsblatt Global and a writer for the Economist. He's the author of "Hannibal and Me." For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Cramer Says Time To Take Profit In These Electric Vehicle SPAC Stocks

    Jim Cramer recommended Thursday that investors trim their exposure to auto-related special purpose acquisition company stocks, CNBC reported.What Happened: The host of the CNBC "Mad Money" show termed the stocks of QuantumScape Corporation (NYSE: QS), Luminar Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: LAZR), and SPACs of Arrival and Canoo as speculative."These stocks have gotten out of control, so I'm begging you to take something off the table," urged the former hedge fund manager.Cramer asked investors to be responsible speculators. "Speculative stocks can get overheated, which is why it's important to take profits while you have them," he advised.Why It Matters: The former hedge fund manager has endorsed the four electric vehicle startups which are taking the SPAC route since October, noted CNBC.He recommended the Bill Gates and Volkswagen AG (OTC: VWAGY)-backed QuantumScape in late October, which merged with Kensington Capital to go public.A week ago he recommended Luminar and said the stock was a Buy at $15. The autonomous vehicle sensor company went public through a SPAC earlier this month. United Parcel Service, Inc (NYSE: UPS)-backed Arrival, a U.K.-based EV maker specializing in microfactories, plans to go public through a merger with CIIG Merger Corp (NASDAQ: CIIC). Cramer had recommended the SPAC stock last week at $17.50.Cramer also recommended Canoo Holdings Ltd, a California-based EV startup, set to merge with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp IV (NASDAQ: HCAC). The stock was termed a Buy by Cramer last Friday at $15.64."You can always get back in at lower levels, and I'm very confident that lower prices could be in the cards," Cramer recommends to investors.Price Action: On Thursday, QuantumScape shares closed 1.96% higher at $76.61. Luminar Technologies shares closed 7.45% lower at $34.17 extending the fall in the after-hours session by almost 7% to $31.78.CIIG Merger shares fell 1.63% to $31.38 in the regular session. On the same day, Hennessy Capital shares closed 10% higher at $22 and fell 6.82% to $20.50 in the after-hours session.Click here to check out Benzinga's EV Hub for the latest electric vehicles news.See more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * Cramer Says This EV Startup Has The 'Best Claim To Be The Son Of Tesla,' Gives Blessing To Buy SPAC Stock(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • 3 ‘Strong Buy’ Stocks with Over 7% Dividend Yield

    It’s been up, up, and away for the markets since the end of September. Both the NASDAQ and S&P 500 are trading within 3% of their recent record high levels, after counting for daily fluctuations. It’s a clear sign of a bullish mood among investors.And that bullish mood is finding fertile soil among Wall Street’s stock analysts, who are not hesitant to make buy-side calls. There are some indications that the analysts are hedging their bets, however, as among the recent Buy reviews published several also offer strong dividend yields.Return-minded investors can find a degree of safety in high-yielding equities. The advantage of such a fundamentally defensive strategy is obvious: stocks that are rising now will bring the immediate gains of share appreciation, while strong dividends will provide a steady income stream regardless of market conditions.Using the data available in the TipRanks database, we’ve pulled up three stocks with high yields – from 7% to 9%. Even better, these stocks are seen as Strong Buys by Wall Street’s analysts. Let’s find out why.Energy Transfer LP (ET)First up is Energy Transfer, a major name in North America’s hydrocarbon midstream sector. The company’s primary network of assets covers 38 states and links three major oil and gas production regions – in the Midwest-Appalachian and Texas-Oklahoma-Louisiana regions, along with North Dakota. Energy Transfer has smaller assets in the Colorado Rockies, Florida, and northern Alberta. These assets include pipelines, terminals, and storage tanks for natural gas and crude oil. The value of ET’s services is clear from the company’s $18 billion market cap and $54 billion in annual revenues.That value, along with the effects of the health and economic crises of 2020, are also clear from the company’s recent third quarter earnings release. On the negative side, revenues were down 26% from the year-ago quarter, while EPS was down 18%. In absolute numbers, the top line came in at $9.96 million while the bottom line was reported at 30 cents per share. Both figures beat the forecasts by a wide margin.Beating the forecasts was a positive note. On another, the company reported $400 million in cost savings year-to-date, due to initiatives to control and streamline expenses. Total debt long-term debt remained stable at $54 million.In an announcement at the end of October, Energy Transfer declared its Q3 dividend, at 15.25 cents per common share. This was a 50% reduction from previous payments, and implemented for several reasons. Chief among those reasons is releasing cash for debt reduction. The dividend reduction also keeps the dividend yield in line with historical values (with the shares down this year, the yield was artificially inflated), and affordable at current income levels. The new dividend payment annualizes to 61 cents per common share, and – even after the reduction – gives a high yield of 8.8%.Covering the stock for Raymond James, analyst Justin Jenkins noted, “We still see ET's top-tier integrated midstream footprint as a big positive, but risks are high and will remain so. Ultimately, we believe the core business and long-term free cash flow generation (which will improve dramatically in 2021) will help ET differentiate itself within the midstream space… ET's large valuation discount to peers is unlikely to completely narrow in the near-term, we see the risk/reward as skewing positive in most scenarios.”In line with these comments, Jenkins rates ET a Strong Buy, and his $9 price target suggests it has room for 26% growth in the year ahead. (To watch Jenkins’ track record, click here)Wall Street appears to be in broad agreement with Jenkins, as ET shares maintain a Strong Buy rating from the analyst consensus. There have been 8 recent reviews, including 7 Buys and a single Hold. The stock’s $9.29 average price target is slightly more bullish than the Raymond James position, implying ~31% upside potential from the $7.09 trading price. (See ET stock analysis on TipRanks)Omega Healthcare (OHI)REITs are frequently known for high-yielding dividends, as tax regulations require these companies to return a minimum percentage of profits back to investors. Omega Healthcare, a real estate investment trust, is no different from its peers in that regard, but it does offer investors a twist. The company’s portfolio consists of skilled nursing facilities and senior housing facilities, in an 83% to 17% split. The portfolio is valued at more than $10 billion. It totals 957 facilities in 40 states plus the UK.At the top line, Omega reported declines in Q3 revenues. The $119 million reported was down 53% sequentially and 16% year-over-year. That was the bad news. Adjusted funds from operations (FFO), a common metric used to judge REITs’ income levels, beat the forecast by 5%, coming in at 82 cents per share. In other positive notes this year, Omega has reported collected 99% of rents due in each quarter of 2020, and successfully issued, this past October, $700 million in Senior Notes at 3.375% and due in 2031. The company aims to use the funds raised to, first, repay existing debt, and second, to cover general operations.Omega currently pays out a 67-cent dividend per common share, and as held that payment steady for nearly three years. The company has a 6-year history of reliable dividend payments. The annualized payment is $2.68 per common share, making the yield 7.1%. This company’s performance, including the reliable dividend, prompted JMP analyst Aaron Hecht to rate OHI an Outperform (i.e. Buy). His $43 price target indicates a 14% upside over the next 12 months. (To watch Hecht’s track record, click here)Backing his stance, Hecht writes, “We believe COVID-19 vaccine deliveries will begin to arrive within the next two weeks and skilled nursing facility residents will be prioritized, based on vulnerability. We view this as a major positive for OHI as the largest owner of skilled nursing facilities in the United States. Although OHI’s tenants have generally performed well during the pandemic, an increase in demand would be a derisking event… We believe OHI deserves a slight premium to its three-year, pre-pandemic comps given demand tailwinds. We are buyers of the stock…” In the meantime, OHI has a Strong Buy rating from the analyst consensus, based on 8 reviews breaking down to 6 Buys and 2 Holds. Omega’s share price has risen 28% since the first week of November, in the wake of the Q3 earnings. This has pushed the stock’s trading price, currently $37.69, slightly above the $36.88 average price target. (See OHI stock analysis on TipRanks)Owl Rock Capital Corporation (ORCC)Last but not least is Owl Rock Capital, a specialty finance company based in New York. Owl Rock works in the middle-market finance sector, offering access to capital for mid-market companies to make acquisitions, fund operations, and conduct recapitalizations. The company’s portfolio boasts $10.2 billion in total assets, of which 97% are senior secured assets. Owl Rock has current investments in 110 companies.Owl Rock’s third quarter earnings came in slightly below expectations. EPS was 33 cents per share, down 3% sequentially and missing the estimates by 2 cents. Net asset value per share increased 1% quarter-over-quarter, from $14.52 at the end of June to $14.67 at the end of September. In a move to shore up liquidity, Owl Rock priced a public offering of $1 billion in 3.4% notes in the first week of December. The issue is due in 2026, and provides funds to paydown existing debt in the revolving credit facility and to fund general operations.Also in the first week of this month, Owl Creek confirmed that it is discussions to acquire Dyal Capital. The move would combine Owl Creek’s direct lending platform with Dyal’s access to capital solutions.Owl Creek has a regular share dividend payment of 31 cents quarterly, which has been supplemented since May 2019 by a series of 6 special 8-cent dividend payments. Calculating the yield by the regular dividend, we find it at 9.6%, based on an annualized rate of $1.24 per common share. For comparison, the average dividend among S&P-listed companies stands at 2%.The review here was written by Devin Ryan, 5-star analyst with JMP Securities. Focusing on the Dyal Capital announcement, Ryan noted, “While it is important to distinguish that this merger is between the management companies, not the BDC directly, and ultimately we do not expect much change, we do think a transaction could represent a positive outcome for ORCC shareholders over time.""We continue to view the opportunity in ORCC shares as attractive due to: 1) strong credit performance and expectations; 2) a well-positioned balance sheet; 3) the earnings scale-up as leverage moves to the target 1.0x by 2H21; and 4) an increase in the yield profile of the portfolio through a higher mix of unitranche loans," the analyst concluded. To this end, Ryan rates Owl Creek’s shares an Outperform (i.e. Buy), and his $14.50 price target suggests a 13% upside in the coming year. (To watch Ryan’s track record, click here)Owl Creek’s Strong Buy consensus rating is based on 6 reviews. These show a 5 to 1 split between Buys and Holds. ORCC is trading at $12.78, and its $13.90 average price target implies ~9% upside. (See ORCC 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.

  • 8 Best Monthly Dividend Stocks to Buy Now

    Many investors are drawn to dividend stocks because they offer a regular flow of cash that doesn't depend on the market going up. If you're looking for a steady stream of income in retirement or a regular flow of cash to keep your nest egg growing, a monthly dividend stock could be a good fit. Here are eight top stocks that offer good yields, strong operations and monthly income.

  • Suze Orman says these are the biggest money no-nos

    Avoid making these errors and you'll enjoy a better financial life, the money guru says.

  • Half of those making $100k fear they’ll never retire

    If you want to see how far this year’s crisis is causing a financial panic across the middle-class, look no further. In a recent survey, a third of respondents said they didn’t have enough cash reserves for emergencies. Only one third of the country lives in a household earning more than $100,000 a year (or so, at least, says the U.S. Census).

  • Elon Musk Decries ‘M.B.A.-ization’ of America

    “I think there might be too many M.B.A.s running companies,” Tesla’s chief executive says. Many business-school leaders fire back, arguing his comments don’t match the reality of what is taught in M.B.A. programs.

  • Citigroup Execs Tried to ‘Lessen the Pain’ of $900 Million Error

    (Bloomberg) -- Two days after one of his employees mistakenly approved a $900 million payment to a group of Revlon Inc. lenders, Citigroup Inc. executive Vincent Farrell was looking to report some good news about the bank’s recovery effort.“Quick update, just crossed the 100MM mark,” Farrell, head of North American loan operations, said in an instant message to his boss.“Good,” Brendan Zeigon, who oversees global loan operations and credit risk management services, messaged back. “I would love to get to 200.”The two were in a fix. An executive was “on a war path” over the error -- one of the biggest in the industry in recent memory -- which happened as Citigroup was trying to make a periodic interest payment. Instead the bank wound up sending the creditors the full amount they were owed, more than 100 times what it intended to distribute. And, as administrative agent on the loan, it had come out of its own pocket.Danielle Romero-Apsilos, a spokeswoman for Citigroup, declined to comment.‘Lessen the Pain’The chats were included as exhibits in a trial this week over Citigroup’s efforts to recover the funds, of which it has gotten back about $390 million. It has sued 10 asset managers for creditors that are hanging on to $508 million. The messages shed light on the internal tensions that roiled one of the world’s most important financial institutions in the days after it watched almost a billion dollars fly out the door.The transfer was wired on Aug. 11. By late afternoon on Aug. 13, Farrell and Zeigon still seemed hopeful they’d be able to reclaim most of the money.“Well 15% back on day 1 is good ish,” Zeigon said. “Let’s hope to get 50% by tomorrow..will lessen the pain for you and i.”Read More: Citi’s $900 Million Misfire Happened During Software SwitchCitigroup made the error despite an approval process known inside the bank as “six eyes,” under which three people must be involved in reviewing and executing wire transfers that originate in the asset-based transitional finance group. The final set of eyes on the Revlon transfer was Vinny Fratta, a senior manager in global loan operations who reports to Farrell. Fratta testified that the payment was the result of “human error, and that I was one of the humans responsible for the error.”‘What Would It Take?’When asked whether he had been involved in talks about Fratta’s employment status since the error, Farrell told the court on Wednesday that he had taken part in discussions about Fratta’s performance. Asked if Citigroup was holding off on firing Fratta until after the trial, he said he didn’t know.“It would be good to get at least half back by tomorrow,” Zeigon reiterated in the chat on Aug. 13. “We should get as many people hitting phones as needed.”But by the next day, the outlook hadn’t improved. The funds were digging in, an administrator told Fratta in an email.“They’ve pretty much said they aren’t returning at this time because they aren’t positive it was an error,” he said.In a reply noting that the bank had alerted the lenders to the mistake and that the Wall Street Journal had called it that, too, Fratta asked: “What would it take for them to be positive that it was an error?”Read MoreBank Error in Your Favor: Citi’s Fight to Reclaim $900 MillionQuickTake: ‘Unjust Enrichment’ and Citi’s $900 Million MistakeRevlon Lenders Allege Default With Debt Deal Nearing CloseFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Mnuchin Would Not Have Made $700M Loan To YRC

    In a largely uncontentious commission hearing Thursday over the national security loan program, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin acknowledged the $700 million loan made to less-than-truckload carrier YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW) was "risky" and one that he would have not made.Facing questions from the oversight commission tasked with monitoring the distribution of federal loans established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Mnuchin said he was encouraged by members of Congress to take losses on the loans as the program's intent was to address an immediate liquidity crisis. He said some of the lending programs afforded under the act were done with the analysis that they would lose money.Referring to his former banking and lending days, Mnuchin said, "If my bank had been underwriting this loan, we would have not made this loan."National security designation The point of the hearing was to examine loans to "businesses critical to maintaining national security," a subtitle in the legislation that allotted $17 billion in federal money for companies fitting the designation. Mnuchin said he collaborated with the Department of Defense to establish the criteria for such companies, but it was ultimately former Defense Secretary Mark Esper who recommended and certified YRC met the standard.In prior oversight reports, the commission has called into question YRC's designation as such a company. YRC provides 68% of the Defense Department's LTL services hauling food, electronics and other supplies domestically for the military, a task commission members have suggested could be done by other carriers.Mnuchin referred the commission to the Defense Department for further clarity on the designation as it made the decision.The Defense Department was also invited to testify at the hearing, but stated it was unable to attend. The commission plans to hold a separate hearing for the Defense Department at a future date, but noted that the department is "currently resisting making public" a transcript from the upcoming hearing.Concerns with underwriting guidelines for YRC loanSen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., questioned some of the underwriting standards, noting five of the companies receiving loans lost money in the year prior to the decision, two were startups and some received more in loans than they made in revenue.Mnuchin said that the underwriting criteria established by Treasury was sufficient, noting that of the 74 applicants under the subtitle, only 11 were approved. He said Treasury had a hard time distinguishing between COVID-related impairments to a business' 2020 expectations versus something that could be more structural in nature.On YRC, Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., questioned the collateral on the loan and whether it protected taxpayers. He said the company was allowed to borrow on its accounts receivable and the valuation of its real estate at 100 cents on a dollar. He also wondered if the value of the YRC fleet was reasonable given its age. Hill pegged total collateral pledged on the loan at roughly $1.1 billion, not the $1.6 billion that Treasury previously claimed.Hill continued questioning the rationale of making such a large loan to a company "rated speculatively" for the past 20 years and one that has been "hanging on by a thread since the global financial crisis.""The only way YRC has survived for the last 10 years is through bailouts by the government and the private equity industry," Hill continued. He contended YRC is "staying afloat by providing the cheapest pricing," stating that investment research shows the company charges about 18 cents per pound versus the average of its competitors, which is in the mid-20 cent range.Mnuchin said that the loan was undertaken with the added risk in mind and believes the collateral provided was adequate, pointing to the 30% equity position Treasury received from YRC as part of the loan agreement. That stock is now worth $100 million as the company's shares have tripled since the loan announcement. Mnuchin acknowledged the rebound in the economy and at YRC has been "fortunate."YRC's ties to the White HouseBharat Ramamurti, an attorney tasked with serving on the commission, asked Mnuchin if he had been contacted by President Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, regarding the YRC loan. He asserted Kushner has "close ties" to Apollo Global Management (NYSE: APO), which provided YRC with a $600 million term loan in September.Mnuchin said no one from Kushner's staff had reached out to him. Mnuchin acknowledged the loan was risky but that it was not a bailout of private equity. He said Treasury was tasked with moving very fast in uncertain and tough times and that many lawmakers spoke up on YRC's behalf, noting a loan to the company would save many union jobs.Ramamurti asked Mnuchin if anyone from the White House had contacted him regarding the loan. Mnuchin said he would turn over any correspondence with the White House to the commission.YRC CEO Darren Hawkins was named to the president's Great American Economic Revival task force in April and former YRC Chairman and CEO Bill Zollars was appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate to the U.S. Postal Service board of governors in June.Hindsight on the loan program and next stepsAsked what he would have done differently, Mnuchin said, "I would use the same criteria" all over again. He said he could have made up to $5 trillion in loans in total, but believes Treasury's underwriting decisions were prudent and saved many jobs. He acknowledged many complaints around the handling of the distribution, with some saying he took on too much risk for loss and others saying he didn't take on enough.Mnuchin said he would advise the next Treasury secretary to sell the YRC loan and liquidate the equity position. He sees a "significant profit" to taxpayers in doing so. He also said Treasury doesn't want to be in the long-term business of making these types of loans.Mnuchin advised the Pentagon to look at all its vendors and spread the risk over multiple vendors when possible.The office of the director of National Intelligence responded that it would not attend Thursday's hearing. However, it told the commission that it hasn't designated any company critical to national security and didn't give any input in the Defense Department's designations.Click for more FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden. * Hub Group's $95M acquisition is path to being a last-mile market leader * Daseke turnaround nets ‘positive outlook' from ratings agency * Old Dominion sees tonnage accelerate from August inflectionSee more from Benzinga * Click here for options trades from Benzinga * UPS Begins Nationwide Shipping Of Vaccine Kits * Rehearsal Exposes Gaps In COVID Vaccine Delivery(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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