Citigroup Inc. Purchases 27,221 Shares of iShares Global Healthcare ETF (NYSEARCA:IXJ)Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here . ••• Every month I look forward to reading the columns of contributing columnist Angela Denker. Her Dec. 26 story about the clinical pastoral education graduates in the Stillwater prison and how she experienced the true presence of the Christmas season was my greatest literary gift of the season ( “What can’t be confined,” Strib Voices, Dec. 26). Fifty years ago in Edmonton, Alberta, at a Good Samaritan nursing home, I took a quarter of CPE. Though I was a teacher and not seeking ordained ministry, the supervisor needed a “token” woman in his group, and I agreed to participate. It was the most challenging and intense experience of my life! To read about this rigorous training being offered to inmates at Stillwater prison alongside pastoral candidates, the participants’ experiences and the hope the program provides in a prison setting was truly inspiring! Thank you for publishing this article about the graduation ceremony. It was my best gift this Christmas! Dorothy Meyer, Park Rapids, Minn. What would early DFLers think? Thank you to the Minnesota Star Tribune and Andy Brehm for his Dec. 23 comments on illegal immigrant entitlement in his column criticizing DFL spending ( “Actually, the DFL deserves complete credit for the budgetary mess Minnesota finds itself in,” Strib Voices, Dec. 23). I am currently a DFL voter but disapprove (as do my legal immigrant friends) of enabling unauthorized foreigners who break federal law to live in Minnesota. Our hard-earned taxpayer dollars should go to improve lives of citizens and legal residents, especially children and the vulnerable, not to enhancing the self-image of those who see themselves as humanitarians by passing laws “to provide college tuition support and generous health insurance subsidies for some of the 81,000 illegal immigrants living here,” which is, as Brehm says, “an affront to American sovereignty and ... a magnet” for more illegal immigration. The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party was founded by human rights champion Hubert H. Humphrey, first a senator and later U.S. vice president, and was joined by figures like Sen. and later U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale. I doubt either DFLer would have approved of laws rewarding illegal immigration. We all possess human rights. There is no such thing as “immigrant rights,” an invention of those who want to control the narrative by merging terms. Human rights do not include illegal entry and demand for benefits. Illegal immigrants and their advocates have succeeded in normalizing and rewarding lawbreaking. Citizens of other nations have buddied up to Minnesota’s elected officials and news media, which I saw years ago as a visitor at our State Capitol. The tail should never wag the dog. Will we become a country, like many around the world, where law is not respected and anything anyone can get away with is OK? Linda Huhn, Minneapolis ••• I had told myself not to waste time reading the next column from Brehm. I failed. Oh, well. On Dec. 23, after he agreed that “cheap political blame games are a waste of time,” he blamed automatic inflation increases in K-12 spending as wasteful while student populations are decreasing. Cart before the horse. Students’ families are exiting public schools in large part because schools are not supported well enough financially in the first place. And as a corporate lawyer, he must be at least a little familiar with fixed costs. For example, school buildings themselves have inflationary expenses regardless of student attendance. An obvious reason there are not enough qualified teachers is that, like police, they need pay commensurate with the continually increasing stress they so often face. Of course, Brehm paid no attention in general to what government spending provides — things like no-charge school meals that allow kids and families to avoid shame that distracts students from the learning he wants, and things like paid family and medical leave that helps families focus on what matters, including school. Programs like the North Star Promise scholarship allow people to go to college and continue learning so that they can be effective corporate employees. Brehm criticizes college tuition for illegal immigrants. In the process, he diminishes so-called Dreamers, who are innocent people trying to find a way to earn enough to buy goods and services from corporations that hire lawyers. All the while, Brehm says he’s “all for racial, cultural and political diversity.” Jim Bartos, Maple Grove ••• Brehm’s commentary regarding the DFL’s responsibility for the state deficit was exactly right. One big error he fails to mention, however, was the decision to send out checks instead of keeping the previous budget surplus for a “rainy day” fund ... and here we are; it’s pouring. Dianne Damman, Eden Prairie Neighborliness is a two-way street There were many inaccurate statements in a recent article ( “Dayton family member’s purchase of wooded parcel sparks feud,” Dec. 24) but most of all it incorrectly portrayed the Bryn Mawr neighbors as unwilling to work with Vanessa Dayton. You left out the part where, on a Sunday afternoon, over 30 neighbors got together to clear brush and lay wood chips to reroute the trail around her property and onto the public right of way that goes through the woods so that no one would cross her property. What was her response? She called the police, again. Renee Torbenson, Minneapolis Reform requires funds I do strongly agree with the letter writer of “MPD isn’t hurting for funds” (Readers Write, Dec. 26) who says “We need to invest in both policing and additional, appropriate alternatives.” And the budget for MPD, she suggests, sounds strong. Opengov.com says the Minneapolis Police Department budget jumped from $183 million in 2020 to $231 million in 2024. That’s roughly a 26% increase. However, I disagree with the author that this is a good amount of funding. It’s very little if you consider that inflation from 2020 to 2024 has been about 20%, meaning MPD’s budget has increased only about 5% in real money in the years since 2020. How will 5% pay for steep but necessary increases in city police salaries to keep them competitive with suburban ones (where the job often is safer)? How will it pay for getting a full police force back onto our streets? How will 5% fund sorely needed additional alternatives to prevent lawbreaking before it happens? If we want a safer city, then instead of “defunding,” we must fund more and also reform. Doing both requires a much higher MPD budget. Richard Jewell, Minneapolis Farewell to a stellar state leader I remember when Rep. Mary Murphy was chair of the House judiciary committee ( “Longest serving woman in the Minnesota House,” Dec. 27). The hearing room was always full of people who had strong opinions about criminal justice: cops, prosecutors, social service agencies, victims’ service agencies. I was the state public defender, so I was there pretty often. At the first meeting of the committee she said, “Next meeting, each of you bring in a picture of your family to pass around. We won’t agree about a lot of things in here, but we all should know we are people connected to other people.” So we did. Especially right now, we need more politicians like Mary Murphy. John Stuart, Minneapolis

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Makenzie McGill II ran for 155 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns and North Texas ended a five-game losing streak beating Temple 24-17 on Saturday in a regular-season ender for both teams. The win helped North Texas (6-6, 3-5 American Athletic Conference) reach bowl eligibility. Prior to Saturday, the Mean Green hadn't won since Oct. 12 when they beat Florida Atlantic 41-37. The game's scoring outcome was settled by halftime. Chandler Morris threw a 14-yard touchdown to DT Sheffield on the game's opening drive for a 7-0 UNT lead. Kali Nguma added a 36-yard field 19 seconds later following a Temple turnover. The Owls (3-9, 2-6) got on the board with Maddux Trujillo's 44-yard field goal. McGill made it 17-3 with a 39-yard scoring run. Eight seconds into the second quarter, McGill ran 51 yards to the end zone for a 24-3 edge. Temple got two touchdowns before the half ended when Joquez Smith and Evan Simon each ran it in from the 1 to reduce the deficit to 24-17. North Texas clinched a bowl berth for the 15th time in program history and eighth time since 2013. It's the first time in the Eric Morris era North Texas has qualified for a bowl. Temple hasn't posted a winning season since 2019 when it went 8-5 and ended the season with a 55-13 loss to North Carolina in the Northrop Grumman Military Bowl. The Owls have ended the last four seasons with records of 3-9. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Pangasinan's quarry share nears P300M

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Vishal Mega Mart IPO To Hit Indian Primary Market Next Week | Check Prices, Key Dates InsideShares of Match Group, Inc. ( NASDAQ:MTCH – Get Free Report ) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.68. MTCH has been the subject of several recent research reports. New Street Research downgraded Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $32.00 price target (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. View Our Latest Research Report on Match Group Match Group Stock Performance Match Group declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to buy up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued. Match Group Announces Dividend The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 6th. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.93%. Insider Activity In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total value of $25,319.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $391,900.78. The trade was a 6.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website . Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTCH. Starboard Value LP bought a new stake in shares of Match Group during the third quarter valued at about $361,605,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Match Group by 88.5% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,263,311 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $190,279,000 after acquiring an additional 2,940,667 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Match Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $49,053,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in Match Group by 2,732.1% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,659,718 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $62,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,601,115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Match Group by 75.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,271,787 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $69,018,000 after purchasing an additional 977,090 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock. Match Group Company Profile ( Get Free Report Match Group, Inc engages in the provision of dating products. Its portfolio of brands includes Tinder, Hinge, Match, Meetic, OkCupid, Pairs, Plenty Of Fish, Azar, BLK, and Hakuna, as well as a various other brands, each built to increase users' likelihood of connecting with others. Its services are available in over 40 languages to users worldwide. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Match Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Match Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

3 No-Brainer Growth Stocks to Buy in December

Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF ( BATS:QUAL – Free Report ) by 67.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,355 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,407 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF were worth $8,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Halpern Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Barrett & Company Inc. bought a new stake in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF during the third quarter valued at $27,000. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora bought a new position in shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Stock Up 0.6 % Shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF stock opened at $185.29 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.03 and a beta of 1.03. iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF has a 12-month low of $71.96 and a 12-month high of $88.63. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $174.63. iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Company Profile The iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality index. The fund tracks an index of US large- and mid-cap stocks, selected and weighted by high ROE, stable earnings growth and low debt\u002Fequity, relative to peers in each sector. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding QUAL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF ( BATS:QUAL – Free Report ). Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

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Seeing the red lights flashing behind you while driving on the highway can immediately make your heart sink, so it's no surprise that a lot of drivers are using police scanners to detect nearby police officers and avoid getting into trouble. Before grabbing a police scanner of your own as a game-changing gadget for your next road trip , you may be wondering if it's even legal to use one. The short answer is that like a radar detector , it's probably best to not use a police scanner while driving in some states. Police scanners are actually legal to own and operate in the United States, because the radio frequencies used by law enforcement, like all U.S. radio frequencies, belong to the public. However, most states have restrictions on how police scanners can be used. In Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, and Minnesota, it's against the law to use a police scanner while driving. In other states, like California (which makes many things involving cars illegal) , Michigan, New Jersey, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia, you'll face extra charges if you use a police scanner to aid in a crime. Always check your state's police scanner laws before installing one in your car. People in a lot of cities across the U.S. have noticed police scanners going silent. This is due to police departments choosing to encrypt their broadcasts, no longer letting drivers, journalists, and other members of the public hear police calls anymore. This has rendered police scanners useless in some cities. The FBI has pushed police departments to silence radio calls in an attempt to give Americans more privacy. And police have responded. At the start of 2024, for instance, departments across Kansas started encrypting radio communications, saying that this was to protect residents' information and ensure criminals weren't monitoring the radio to elude responding officers. The New York City Police Department has begun encrypting its broadcasts, too, claiming criminals were listening in. In Colorado, over 30 departments have also decided to encrypt radio transmissions — and the Radio Television Digital News Association argued that this was putting the public at risk by hiding both crime and potentially troubling police behavior. And Las Vegas police have followed the trend, although they allow journalists to listen in. As more and more police departments encrypt their radio communication, the idea of installing a police scanner (which can cost anywhere from about $50 to $700) isn't as appealing for some. Try installing a police scanner app on your phone instead to see if there are public police stations nearby.SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Most ruling party lawmakers were boycotting a parliamentary vote Saturday to deny a two-thirds majority sought by the opposition to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived imposition of martial law , as protests grew nationwide calling for his removal. The likely defeat of the motion is expected to intensify public protests calling for Yoon’s ouster and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president’s impeachment. Yoon’s martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative party, but it is also determined to oppose Yoon's impeachment apparently because it fears losing presidency to liberals. Impeaching Yoon would require support from two-thirds of the National Assembly, or 200 of its 300 members. The opposition parties who brought the impeachment motion have 192 seats, meaning they need at least eight additional votes from Yoon’s People Power Party. The opposition-controlled parliament began a vote earlier Saturday, but only three lawmakers from PPP took part with opposition members. If the number of lawmakers who cast ballots doesn't reach 200, the motion will be scrapped at midnight, according to National Assembly. Opposition parties could submit a new impeachment motion after a new parliamentary session opens next Wednesday. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik urged ruling party members to return to the chamber to participate in the vote, stressing that it was closely watched by the nation and also the world. “Don’t make a shameful judgment and please vote based on your convictions,” Woo said. “I plead to you, for the future of the Republic of Korea.” Earlier Saturday, Yoon issued a public apology over the martial law decree, saying he won’t shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose martial law. He said would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country's political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office." “The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. But in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologize to the people who must have been shocked a lot,” Yoon said. Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through an opposition-controlled parliament and grappled with low approval ratings amid scandals involving himself and his wife. In his martial law announcement on Tuesday night, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” bogging down state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.” The turmoil resulting from Yoon’s bizarre and poorly-thought-out stunt has paralyzed South Korean politics and sparked alarm among key diplomatic partners, including neighboring Japan and Seoul’s top ally the United States, as one of the strongest democracies in Asia faces a political crisis that could unseat its leader. Tuesday night saw special forces troops encircling the parliament building and army helicopters hovering over it, but the military withdrew after the National Assembly unanimously voted to overturn the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before daybreak Wednesday. The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. Eighteen lawmakers from the ruling party voted to reject Yoon's martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. The passage of Yoon’s impeachment motion appeared more likely Friday when the chair of Yoon’s party called for his removal on Friday, but the party remained formally opposed to impeachment. On Saturday, tens of thousands of people packed streets near the National Assembly, waving banners, shouting slogans and dancing and singing along to K-pop songs with lyrics changed to call for Yoon’s ouster. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which still seemed to be in the thousands, rallied in separate streets in Seoul, decrying the impeachment attempt they saw as unconstitutional. Lawmakers on Saturday first voted on a bill appointing a special prosecutor to investigate stock price manipulation allegations surrounding Yoon’s wife. Some lawmakers from Yoon’s party were seen leaving the hall after that vote, triggering angry shouts from opposition lawmakers. If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is removed, an election to replace him must take place within 60 days. Opposition lawmakers say that Yoon’s attempt at martial law amounted to a self-coup, and drafted the impeachment motion around rebellion charges. Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “greatly disappointing” and that the only way forward is his immediate resignation or impeachment. On Friday, PPP chair Han Dong-hun, who criticized Yoon's martial law declaration, said he had received intelligence that during the brief period of martial law Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence commander to arrest and detain unspecified key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities." Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, told lawmakers in a closed-door briefing Friday that Yoon called after imposing martial law and ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit to detain key politicians. The targeted politicians included Han, Lee and Woo, according to Kim Byung-kee, one of the lawmakers who attended the meeting. The Defense Ministry said it had suspended the defense counterintelligence commander, Yeo In-hyung, who Han alleged had received orders from Yoon to detain the politicians. The ministry also suspended the commanders of the capital defense command and the special warfare command over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Former Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun, who has been accused of recommending Yoon enforce martial law, has been placed under a travel ban and faces an investigation by prosecutors over rebellion charges. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho has testified to parliament that it was Kim Yong Hyun who ordered troops to be deployed to the National Assembly after Yoon imposed martial law.

Governors in early Minnesota had pardon power — and they used itEmpty Stocking Fund, Dec. 27, 2024