Newspaper Page Text
Nate McCullough | News Editor
770-718-3431 | news@gainesvilletimes.com
The Times, Gainesville, Georgia
Saturday, June 29, 2019
BUSINESS
TED S. WARREN I Associated Press
Truck and automobile traffic mix on Interstate 5, headed
north through Fife, Wash., Aug. 24, 2016.
Senators offer cap
to big rig speeds
BY TOM KRISHER
Associated Press
DETROIT — Two U S.
senators have introduced a
bill that would limit tractor-
trailer speeds to 65 miles
per hour, a move they say
would save lives on the
nation’s highways.
Sens. Johnny Isakson,
R-Ga., and Chris Coons,
D-Del., introduced the
measure Thursday, saying
it would take the place of
a proposed Department of
Transportation regulation
that has “languished in the
federal process” for over a
decade.
The majority of trucks on
U.S. roads have speed-limit
ing software built in, but it’s
not always used. Most other
countries already use it to
cap truck speeds, Isakson
said in a statement.
The measure also would
circumvent the Trump
administration’s Depart
ment of Transportation,
which has delayed any
action on the proposed rule
indefinitely as part of a
sweeping retreat from reg
ulations that the president
says slow the economy.
The rule, which didn’t
propose a top speed but said
the government had stud
ied 60, 65 and 68 mph, has
been stuck since it moved
through the public com
ment stage in November of
2016 toward the end of the
Obama administration.
The National Highway
Traffic Safety Administra
tion said in a statement
Friday it received many
public comments express
ing concerns about the
analysis supporting it. The
agency “will work to ensure
that any future decision
intended to advance public
safety will be grounded in
sound analysis,” the state
ment said.
When the regulation was
proposed, the DOT wrote
that limiting truck speeds
to 65 mph would save
63 to 214 lives per year.
The bill’s sponsors say
that there are 1,115 fatal
crashes every year involv
ing heavy trucks on roads
with speed limits of 55 mph
or higher.
If approved, the bill
would require all new
trucks to have speed limit
ers activated. It would also
be extended to existing
trucks that already have
the technology installed,
but it would not have to be
retrofitted on rigs without
the technology.
Poker series anyone^ game
JOHN L0CHER I Associated Press
In this July 15, 2018, file photo, John Cynn poses after winning the World Series of Poker main event in Las Vegas.
All backgrounds bet on becoming next world champ
BY REGINA GARCIA CANO
Associated Press
Tens of thousands of pro
fessional and amateur poker
players go on a pilgrimage
to Las Vegas every summer
in hopes of returning home
richer, owning a gold brace
let and having considerable
bragging rights.
They are young and old
and overwhelmingly male.
They are college dropouts
and accountants, entrepre
neurs and CEOs, actors and
athletes, psychologists and
comedians. And they all
have a chance of becoming
world champions.
At the World Series of
Poker — in its 50th edition
— everything is possible.
“The beauty of poker is
anyone can enter and any
one can win,” said Ty Stew
art, the series’ executive
director. “We all love the
stories of overcoming chal
lenges, at defying the odds.
This occurs regularly at the
World Series of Poker.”
Cowboy gambler Benny
Binion probably wouldn’t
recognize the tournament
today. He started it in 1970
as an invitation-only event
with a few men gathered at
his casino in downtown Las
Vegas. They were all elite
players, and Johnny Moss
was declared the winner by
the other men at the table.
Moss got a trophy. There
was no multimillion-dollar
prize pool, no constant tele
vision coverage and defi
nitely no smoking ban.
It has transformed into a
phenomenon that has paid
almost $3 billion in prizes —
minting millionaires, airing
live on ESPN and online.
The series is well posi
tioned to set an atten
dance record this year,
with 122,473 entries so
far. Its marquee contest,
the $10,000 buy-in no-limit
Texas Hold 'em main event,
kicks off Wednesday. The
no-limit betting rules mean
players can wager all their
chips at any time.
The tournament this year
runs through July 16 at the
Rio All-Suite Hotel and
Casino, off the Las Vegas
Strip. It features different
poker variations, with buy-
ins for the events ranging
from $400 to $100,000.
The series saw a record
123,865 contestants in 2018,
when the prize pool of over
$266 million was divided
among 18,105 participants.
Twenty-eight of them
earned at least $1 million.
Every champion received a
gold bracelet under a tradi
tion started in 1976.
“When we started out,
there were very few people
from outside the United
States playing with us,” said
T.J. Cloutier, 79, a six-time
bracelet winner from Rich
ardson, Texas. “And now
there’s a ton of people, and
they are from all over.”
More than 100 countries
were represented in last
year’s tournament.
Poker’s popularity in the
U.S. erupted in 2003, when
Tennessee accountant Chris
Moneymaker entered a
$39 online poker satellite
contest, won an entry to the
main event and emerged
victorious, earning $2.5
million and inspiring other
amateur players. Many had
been honing their skills —
and building a bankroll —
through online games.
A year earlier, so-called
hole-card cameras were
introduced to the series’
broadcasts, allowing view
ers to see the cards partici
pants were holding and play
armchair quarterback.
“When you watched it
on TV, it was like watching
paint dry,” said Cloutier,
who has finished the main
event twice as runner-up
and once each in third and
fifth place. “Now, you could
actually watch the tourna
ment and know what was
going on.”
Facebook’s digital currency, Libra, may flourish where banks don’t
BY KEN SWEET
Associated Press
NEW YORK — Europeans and
Americans have their Visa and
Mastercards. For everyone else,
here comes... Libra?
Facebook’s Libra digital cur
rency is aimed at a huge potential
market for financial services — the
developing world, with billions of
people in areas such as India and
Sub-Saharan Africa, where finan
cial services are often less sophis
ticated and many people don’t use
traditional banking accounts.
Whether or not these billions will
make the switch is anyone’s guess.
The U.S., Europe and most devel
oped economies already have
large, efficient payment systems.
These allow people to buy and sell
goods in real time and send money
person-to-person through services
like Zelle, PayPal and Venmo.
That’s why the companies that
joined Facebook’s Libra associa
tion, as well as nonprofits involved
with similar projects, say Libra’s
potential lies elsewhere.
In developing countries, many
still live far from a bank or money
transfer center, or currently use a
currency prone to inflation or vola
tility. Libra could address this issue
by providing a universal, stable cur
rency easily transferrable between
persons or businesses without
involving setting up a payment
infrastructure. It also potentially
could work at a lower cost.
In the last decade, citizens of
developing countries have widely
adopted cellphones as a way to
store money, sending text mes
sage-based payments either to
businesses or persons. It’s been a
broadly heralded development
among policymakers and nonprof
its focused on poverty because
bank accounts are hard to come by
or are too expensive.
“The entire continent of Africa
skipped right over cards and went
straight into mobile payments,”
said Sanjay Sakhrani, an industry
analyst with Keefe, Bruyette &
Woods, who covers Visa, Master
card, PayPal and Western Union.
But these payment systems are
often constrained by the cellphone
carrier each person is using. It’s not
uncommon in places like Africa to
carry multiple cellphones in order
to have the necessary access to a
money transfer system.
Libra could solve this problem
by creating a universal currency
that can be transferred across
multiple cellphone networks and
across borders. There’s also the
issue of cost, which is cited by the
World Bank as being the biggest
issue with financial systems outside
of developed markets. Facebook
says Libra would have a near-zero
cost attached to it.
The Colombian border city of
Cucuta, is one of the places where
Libra could make a difference.
Every day, thousands of Venezu
elans cross into this sweltering town
to buy food and medicines that are
scarce at home. For many the first
stop is Western Union, where they
line up for hours to pick up cash sent
by relatives living in abroad. The
demand for cash remittances is so
big in fact that migrants sometimes
line up outside Western Unions the
night before the branches open,
sleeping on the sidewalk to keep
their place in the queue.
Digital currencies could make
it easier to transfer funds to these
migrants with no bank accounts,
and save them hours. Using them is
also safer, says Typson Sanchez, a
local software developer, because
it prevents robberies.
The Market in Review
Stock Exchange Highlights
A NYSE
13.049.71 +84.39
1
Nasdaq
8.006.24 +38.49
Gainers ($2 OR MORE)
Name Last Chg %Chg
Gainers ($2 OR MORE)
Name Last Chg %Chg
StoneMor 2.20 +.59 +36.6
OrionGpHI 2.68 +.33 +14.0
Maiden prA 5.75 +.65 +12.7
KeyEngy 2.25 +.25 +12.5
ArdmoreSh 8.15 +.90 +12.4
IDT Cp 9.47 +1.02 +12.1
GMSIncn 22.00 +2.30 +11.7
CapSenL 5.03 +.52 +11.5
LendingClb 3.28 +.31 +10.4
Valhi 2.97 +.28 +10.4
Losers ($2 or more)
AvidBios rs 5.60 +1.60 +40.0
Highpwrlnt 4.24 +1.19 +39.0
XeneticB rs 11.25 +2.92 +35.1
MMTecn 16.83 +3.89 +30.1
Precipio rs 3.38 +.73 +27.5
Puyi inc n 12.90 +2.40 +22.9
ConstPh n 12.28 +2.19+21.7
AcelRx 2.53 +.43 +20.5
Verrican 11.62 +1.94 +20.0
AdaptBio n 48.30 +8.00 +19.9
Losers ($2 or more)
Name
Last
Chg %Chg
Name
Last Chg %Chg
NL Inds
3.65
-.52
-12.5
PhxNMda
3.25
-.39
-10.7
HarteHk rs
2.20
-.24
-9.8
GTT Comm
17.60
-1.86
-9.6
BrghtSch n
9.06
-.92
-9.2
Hi-Crush
2.46
-.21
-7.9
DHI Grp
3.57
-.30
-7.8
ChinGrn rs
5.54
-.46
-7.7
RiteAid rs
8.01
-.56
-6.5
CSS Inds
4.88
-.29
-5.6
Most Active ($1 0R more)
Name Vol (00) Last Chg
HutChMd n 22.00 -8.20 -27.2
SorrentoTh 2.67 -.72 -21.2
Cemtrex rs 3.18 -.62 -16.3
VirTran 2.33 -.33 -12.3
PrevailT n 13.20 -1.80 -12.0
MDJMn 2.54 -.32 -11.2
ChinaSXT n 3.58 -.42 -10.5
Astrotch rs 2.50 -.27 -9.7
TizianaLf n 7.20 -.76 -9.6
WestwtR rs 5.85 -.58 -9.0
Most Active ($1 0R more)
Name Vol (00) Last Chg
BkofAm 1017341 29.00 +.79
ChesEng 546786 1.95 +.07
Nabors 527170 2.90 +.22
Merck 445465 83.85 +.02
GenElec 439567 10.50 +.11
Oracle 425689 56.97 +.20
AT&T Inc 407476 33.51 +.53
MGICInv 397113 13.14
Pfizer 376886 43.32 -.11
FordM 375506 10.23 +.03
Cisco
1029958
54.73
-1.00
MicronT
612936
38.59
+.52
CaesarsEnt587665
11.82
+.16
AMD
499647
30.37
-.37
Comcast s 499374
42.28
+.28
SiriusXM
323937
5.58
+.01
Apple Inc
310645 197.92
-1.82
Microsoft
300170 133.96
-.19
Qualcom
292156
76.07
+.64
SenHous
271092
8.27
-.02
Advanced
Declined
Unchanged
Total issues
New Highs
New Lows
Volume
Diary
1,998
761
69
2,828
153
20
5,248,920,613
Advanced
Declined
Unchanged
Total issues
New Highs
New Lows
Volume
Diary
2,158
810
138
3,106
94
47
4,019,560,535
Stocks of Local Interest
YTD
Name Ex Div Yld PE Last Chg %Chg
AFLAC s
1.08
2.0
17
54.81
+.26
+20.3
AT&T Inc
2.04
6.1
7
33.51
+.53
+17.4
AbbottLab
1.28
1.5
51
84.10
+.41
+16.3
AMD
30.37
-.37
+64.5
Altria
3.20
6.8
15
47.35
-.55
-4.1
Apple Inc
3.08
1.6
19
197.92
-1.82
+25.5
ATMOS
2.10
2.0
20
105.56
+.73
+13.8
AutoZone
201099.47+15.39
+31.1
AveryD
2.32
2.0
33
115.68
+2.65
+28.8
BB&T Cp
1.62
3.3
12
49.13
+.95
+13.4
BPPLC
2.44
5.9
12
41.70
+.08
+10.0
BkofAm
.60
2.1
11
29.00
+.79
+17.7
BarnesNob
.60
9.0
6.69
+.02
-5.6
Boeing
8.22
2.3
34
364.01
-.01
+12.9
BrMySq
1.64
3.6
15
45.35
+.25
-12.8
CNX Resc
.04
.5
9
7.31
+.17
-36.0
CSX
.96
1.2
20
77.37
+.92
+24.5
CaesarsEnt ...
11.82
+.16
+74.1
CampSp
1.40
3.5
15
40.07
+.32
+21.5
Caterpillar
3.44
2.5
12
136.29
+.79
+7.3
ChesEng
3
1.95
+.07
-7.1
Chevron
4.76
3.8
17
124.44
+1.33
+14.4
Cisco
1.40
2.6
24
54.73
-1.00
+26.3
Citigroup
1.80
2.6
10
70.03
+1.88
+34.5
CocaCola
1.60
3.1
96
50.92
-.16
+7.5
Comcast s
.84
2.0
20
42.28
+.28
+24.2
ConAgra
.85
3.2
14
26.52
+1.09
+24.2
Cummins
4.56
2.7
48
171.34
+3.09
+28.2
DPW Hldg
.30
+.07
-85.0
Disney
1.76
1.3
19
139.64
+.34
+27.4
Dupont rs
.30
8
75.07
+1.24
0.0
Equifax
1.56
1.2
23
135.24
+2.81
+45.2
ExxonMbl
3.48
4.5
18
76.63
+.81
+12.4
FordM
.60
5.9
8
10.23
+.03
+33.7
GenElec
.04
.4
10.50
+.11
+38.7
GenuPrt
3.05
2.9
19
103.58
+.74
+7.9
HP Inc
.64
3.1
6
20.79
+.05
+1.6
Hallibrtn
.72
3.2
12
22.74
+.01
-14.4
Haverty
.72
4.2
18
17.03
-9.3
Hershey
2.89
2.2
29
134.03
-.85
+25.1
HomeDp
5.44
2.6
21
207.97
+.95
+21.0
YTD
Name Ex Div Yld PE Last Chg %Chg
Intel
1.26
2.6
16
47.87
+.41
+2.0
IBM
6.48
4.7
14
137.90
-.62
+21.3
JohnJn
3.80
2.7
23
139.28
-1.41
+7.9
Lowes
2.20
2.2
22
100.91
+1.55
+9.3
MGIC Inv
7
13.14
+25.6
McDnlds
4.64
2.2
31
207.66
+1.39
+16.9
Merck
2.20
2.6
31
83.85
+.02
+9.7
MicronT
5
38.59
+.52
+21.6
Microsoft
1.84
1.4
30
133.96
-.19
+31.9
Nabors
.24
8.3
2.90
+.22
+45.0
NorflkSo
3.44
1.7
21
199.33
+5.93
+33.3
NovaGId g
5.91
+.13
+49.6
OfficeDpt
.10
4.9
6
2.06
+.11
-20.2
Oracle
.96
1.7
59
56.97
+.20
+26.2
Penney
1.14
+.04
+9.6
PepsiCo
3.82
2.9
15
131.13
-.56
+18.7
Pfizer
1.44
3.3
17
43.32
-.11
-.8
PhilipMor
4.56
5.8
16
78.53
+.61
+17.6
Primerica
1.36
1.1
15
119.95
-1.43
+22.8
ProctGam
2.87
2.6
25
109.65
-.13
+19.3
CEP Res
.08
1.1
21
7.23
+.24
+28.4
Qualcom
2.48
3.3
76.07
+.64
+33.7
RegionsFn
.56
3.7
11
14.94
+.36
+11.7
SenHous
.60
7.3
5
8.27
-.02
-29.4
SiriusXM
.05
.9
28
5.58
+.01
-2.3
SouthnCo
2.48
4.5
26
55.28
+.20
+25.9
SunTrst
2.00
3.2
11
62.85
+1.34
+24.6
SynovusFn 1.20
3.4
10
35.00
+.91
+9.4
3M Co
5.76
3.3
24
173.34
+1.84
-9.0
Torchmark
.69
.8
7
89.46
+1.02
+20.0
Tyson
1.50
1.9
15
80.74
+1.09
+51.2
Uber Tch n
46.38
+1.25
+11.6
UtdCmBks
.68
2.4
17
28.56
+.39
+33.1
UPS B
3.84
3.7
17
103.27
+1.57
+5.9
UnitGrp
.20
2.1
9.50
-.19
-39.0
VerizonCm
2.41
4.2
7
57.13
-.12
+1.6
Vodafone
1.01
6.2
16.33
+.07
-15.3
WalMart
2.12
1.9
64
110.49
+.39
+18.6
WeisMk
1.24
3.4
9
36.41
+.11
-23.8
WellsFargo 1.80
3.8
10
47.32
+1.03
+2.7
YumBrnds
1.68
1.5
40
110.67
+.11
+20.4
Stock Footnotes: g = Dividends and earnings in Canadian dollars, h = Does not meet continued-listing standards. If = Late filing
with SEC. n = New in past 52 weeks, pf = Preferred, rs = Stock has undergone a reverse stock split of at least 50 percent within the
past year, rt = Right to buy security at a specified price, s = Stock has split by at least 20 percent within the last year, un = Units, vj
= In bankruptcy or receivership, wd = When distributed, wi = When issued, wt = Warrants. Fund Footnotes: m - Multiple fees are
charged, usually a marketing fee and either a sales or redemption fee. Source: The Associated Press. Sales figures are unofficial.
Stock Market Indexes
Dow Jones industrials
Close: 26,599.96
Change: 73.38 (0.3%)
27,000
26,000
25,000
24,000
23,000
J
F M
Ar
M
J
52-Week
Net
YTD
12-mo
High
Low
Name
Last
Chg
%Chg
%Chg
%Chg
26,951.81
21,712.53
Dow Industrials
26,599.96
+73.38
+.28
+14.03
+9.59
11,623.58
8,636.79
Dow Transportation
10,461.98
+153.45
+1.49
+14.08
+1.13
829.25
681.85
Dow Utilities
810.66
+5.31
+.66
+13.71
+13.91
13,261.77
10,723.66
NYSE Composite
13,049.71
+84.39
+.65
+14.73
+4.36
8,176.08
6,190.17
Nasdaq Composite
8,006.24
+38.49
+.48
+20.66
+6.60
1,311.46
1,041.66
S&P 100
1,297.46
+5.21
+.40
+16.48
+8.62
2,964.15
2,346.58
S&P 500
2,941.76
+16.84
+.58
+17.35
+8.22
2,053.00
1,565.76
S&P MidCap
1,945.51
+23.21
+1.21
+16.99
-.32
30,560.54
24,129.49
Wilshire 5000
30,268.05
+198.64
+.66
+17.55
+6.60
1,742.09
1,266.93
Russell 2000
1,566.57
+20.02
+1.29
+16.17
-4.66
26,920
26,480
26,040 ■■■■■10 DAYS
Mutual Funds
Total Assets
Total Return/Rank
Pet
Min Init
Name
Obj
($Mlns)
NAV
4-wk
12-mo
5-year
Load
Invt
Vanguard 500ldxAdmrl
LB
257,672
271.40
+5.2
+10.5/B
+10.7/A
NL
3,000
Vanguard TtlSMIdxAdmrl
LB
210,681
73.04
+5.1
+9.1/C
+10.2/B
NL
3,000
Fidelity 500ldxlnsPrm
LB
183,845
102.66
+5.2
+10.5/B
+10.7/A
NL
0
Vanguard TtlnSIdxInv
FB
136,686
16.93
+5.1
+1.5/C
+2.3/B
NL
0
Vanguard TtlSMIdxIns
LB
130,348
73.05
+5.1
+9.1/C
+10.2/A
NL
5,000,000
Vanguard TtlSMIdxInv
LB
129,659
73.01
+5.1
+9.0/C
+10.1/B
NL
3,000
Vanguard InsIdxInsPlus
LB
108,815
266.32
+5.2
+10.5/B
+10.7/A
NL 100,000,000
Vanguard Insldxlns
LB
108,047
266.31
+5.2
+10.5/B
+10.7/A
NL
5,000,000
Vanguard TtlnSIdxInsPlus
FB
104,550
113.28
+5.1
+1.6/C
+2.4/B
NL 100,000,000
Vanguard TtBMIdxAdmrl
Cl
97,926
10.93
+1.9
+7.8/B
+2.9/B
NL
3,000
Fidelity Contrafund
LG
90,267
13.18
+4.7
+8.1/D
+12.5/B
NL
0
Vanguard WlngtnAdmrl
MA
85,706
71.40
+3.4
+10.5/A
+7.5/A
NL
50,000
Cl -Intermediate-Term Bond, FB -Foreign Large Blend, IH -World Allocation, LB -Large Blend, LG -Large Growth,
LV -Large Value, MA-Moderate Allocation, WS -World Stock, Total Return: Chng in NAV with dividends reinvest
ed. Rank: How fund performed vs. others with same objective: A is in top 20%, E in bottom 20%. Min Init Invt:
Minimum $ needed to invest in fund. Source: Momingstar.