Starbucks takes another step in the right direction — plus, mixed reviews on cyber stocks
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New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Most Americans can no longer afford even a ‘minimal quality of life,' depressing new study finds
The American dream is slipping away. Most US citizens no longer enjoy 'a minimal quality of life' due to skyrocketing costs, a depressing new study has uncovered. Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity conducted research into the economic well-being of the country's residents, defining 'minimal quality of life' as the ability to pay for a 'basket of American dream essentials': housing, food, transportation, clothing, medical costs and basic leisure expenses. The leisure expenses included access to cable TV and streaming services, as well as the ability to pay for six movie tickets and two baseball tickets per year. The Minimal Quality of Life index goes 'beyond traditional cost-of-living measures to provide a more comprehensive understanding of what it takes to secure a foothold on the bottom rung of the American dream ladder and have a real opportunity to climb it over time,' the authors wrote. The bottom 60% of American households by income fell well short of that threshold, the researchers damningly determined. The bottom 60% of American households by income fell well short of that threshold, the researchers damningly determined. The bottom 60% of American households by income fell well short of that threshold, the researchers damningly determined. 'The MQL reveals the harsh reality that the American dream, with its promises of well-being, social connection, and advancement, is out of reach for many,' the authors concluded. 'Rising costs in essential areas like housing, healthcare, and education significantly outpace wage growth, leaving millions struggling to attain even a minimal quality of life.' An average American couple with two children would need to spend $120,302 per year to cover the minimum quality of life expenses, the researchers determined. Skyrocketing costs over the past two decades are to blame, with medical premiums rising 301% from 2001 to 2023. Transportation, groceries and childcare have all increased in price by more than 50% on average across that same period. Transportation, groceries and childcare have all increased in price by more than 50% between 2001 and 2023. 'I get tired of the 'Stop your Starbucks latte habit' [advice], because in reality it's not people's fault,' financial planner Laura Lynch told CNBC in relation to the study. 'The structures around us have created an expectation of a lifestyle that is increasingly becoming unreachable for folks.'
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
A 30-Year-Old Asks Where's The Best Place To Invest $5,000 Per Month: 'Finally In A Place Where I Can Steadily Invest'
Many people will tell you to invest money if you want to build a nest egg and retire early. Putting your money to work in the stock market can allow it to multiply much faster than the cash in your savings account. However, the stock market can also feel overwhelming when you are getting started. That's why a 30-year-old who's ready to invest $5,000 per month turned to the Investing subreddit for some advice. He wanted to know the best place to put money and was eager to hear everyone's thoughts. "[I'm] finally in a place where I can steadily invest," he stated. Redditors shared their suggestions in the comments. These were some of the top responses. Don't Miss: Maximize saving for your retirement and cut down on taxes: Invest early in CancerVax's breakthrough tech aiming to disrupt a $231B market. Most Redditors recommended ETFs that tracked the S&P 500. This benchmark holds 500 of the largest and most profitable U.S. corporations. The index periodically adds and removes stocks from its holdings to trim the laggards and focus on promising stocks that fulfill the S&P 500's requirements. The index gives investors broad exposure to numerous industries. Tech stocks make up the highest percentage of the fund's total assets, with the Magnificent Seven stocks playing a key part in the S&P 500's overall performance. You don't have to know much about investing to get started with the S&P 500. If the economy continues to grow, the S&P 500 will continue to grow with it. You don't have to risk it all with a single stock pick or monitor a bunch of holdings when an ETF that follows the S&P 500's performance can work for most people. Trending: Invest early in CancerVax's breakthrough tech aiming to disrupt a $231B market. Redditors also recommended ETFs that follow the Nasdaq-100 due to its tech-heavy concentration. Tech stocks may produce outsized gains in the years ahead due to artificial intelligence. Although investors have heard about this technology for years, it's still in the early innings. Even without artificial intelligence, the Nasdaq-100 and other tech-heavy benchmarks have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past few years. For instance, the Nasdaq-100 is up by roughly 118% over the past five years, while the S&P 500 has only gained 97% during the same stretch. The Nasdaq-100 also outpaces the S&P 500 year-to-date and over the past year. When the stock market rallies, funds that track the Nasdaq-100 tend to grow faster than funds that track the S&P the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 are two popular benchmarks for ETF investors, Redditors emphasized the importance of investing in low-cost ETFs. While each investor has a different definition of a low-cost ETF, you'll be OK if you have an ETF with an expense ratio below 0.20%. You'll get the lowest expense ratios if you invest in passively managed ETFs. These funds follow a predetermined benchmark instead of doing anything fancy like selling covered calls to increase the yield. You can find some passively-managed ETFs with expense ratios below 0.10%. The expense ratio indicates how much money you must pay the fund manager to keep your money in the ETF. This expense happens automatically within the fund, so you'll never see the money directly leave your account. If you have $10,000 in a fund with a 0.10% expense ratio, you only have to pay a reasonable $10 to keep your money in the fund each year. However, if that same fund had a 1% expense ratio, you would have to pay $100 per year for that fund. Investors are willing to pay extra for funds that significantly outperform the market, but most actively-managed funds don't hold up to the S&P 500. It's better to invest in low-cost ETFs than it is to try your luck with an actively-managed ETF with a high expense ratio. Read Next: GoSun's Breakthrough Rooftop EV Charger Already Has 2,000+ Units Reserved — Image: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article A 30-Year-Old Asks Where's The Best Place To Invest $5,000 Per Month: 'Finally In A Place Where I Can Steadily Invest' originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
3 Software Stocks to Keep an Eye On
From commerce to culture, software is digitizing every aspect of our lives. This secular theme makes SaaS companies attractive investment candidates but also comes with higher valuations that cause volatility. Unfortunately, the rich prices have haunted them over the past six months as the industry has shed 2.3%. This performance was discouraging since the S&P 500 returned 5%. However, some businesses can support their premium valuations with superior earnings growth, and our mission at StockStory is to help you find them. Keeping that in mind, here are three resilient software stocks at the top of our wish list. Market Cap: $73.9 billion Founded in 2013 by three French engineers who spent decades working for Oracle, Snowflake (NYSE:SNOW) provides a data warehouse-as-a-service in the cloud that allows companies to store large amounts of data and analyze it in real time. Why Do We Like SNOW? Billings have averaged 26.5% growth over the last year, showing it's securing new contracts that could potentially increase in value over time High switching costs and customer loyalty are evident in its net revenue retention rate of 126% Expected revenue growth of 24.4% for the next year suggests its market share will rise Snowflake is trading at $221.49 per share, or 15.4x forward price-to-sales. Is now the right time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it's free. Market Cap: $1.36 billion Started by Oleg Shchegolev while still in university, Semrush (NYSE:SEMR) is a software-as-a-service platform that helps companies optimize their search engine and content marketing efforts. Why Are We Fans of SEMR? Winning new contracts that can potentially increase in value as its billings growth has averaged 24.8% over the last year Projected revenue growth of 18.7% for the next 12 months suggests its momentum from the last three years will persist Prominent and differentiated software results in a premier gross margin of 82.1% Semrush's stock price of $9.15 implies a valuation ratio of 2.9x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? See for yourself in our in-depth research report, it's free. Market Cap: $4.48 billion Founded in Chennai, India in 2010 with the idea of creating a 'fresh' helpdesk product, Freshworks (NASDAQ: FRSH) offers a broad range of software targeted at small and medium-sized businesses. Why Are We Positive On FRSH? Ability to secure long-term commitments with customers is evident in its 19.7% ARR growth over the last year Superior software functionality and low servicing costs result in a stellar gross margin of 84.4% Operating margin expanded by 9.2 percentage points over the last year as it scaled and became more efficient At $15.40 per share, Freshworks trades at 5.4x forward price-to-sales. Is now the time to initiate a position? Find out in our full research report, it's free. Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs. While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025). Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-micro-cap company Kadant (+351% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free. Find your next big winner with StockStory today. Find your next big winner with StockStory today
