Microsoft stock dives into the red after forecast misses, CFO warns about deceleration
Microsoft Corp.’s profit declined more than 12% in the holiday season, and executives said Tuesday that a revenue deceleration at the end of 2022 is expected to continue into the new year as the company lays off workers. Microsoft MSFT Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood said in a conference call Tuesday that “we are seeing […]
My mother excluded me from her will — before she died, my sibling cashed out her annuity policy, on which I was a beneficiary. Should I sue my family?
Dear Quentin, My mother recently passed away and I was written out of the will, except for a small amount. She and I had several disagreements over the past two years. This change of will occurred 15 months prior to her death, with her executors present. The remainder of her estate is being divided between […]
Oil pulls back from recent gains, but traders remain optimistic on China demand
Oil futures edged lower on Tuesday, easing back after recent gains but underpinned by continued optimism over the demand outlook from China after the country dropped COVID restrictions. Natural-gas futures moved lower after posting a gain of more than 6% a day earlier on forecasts for colder U.S. weather. Price action West Texas Intermediate crude […]
How a money drain in 2023 could upset the banks again and cause another market meltdown, investor warns
Wall Street is pointing to a weak open ahead of Tuesday’s earnings from Microsoft and other big names. That’s a day after soft-economic landing hopes fueled fresh 2023 highs for the S&P 500 SPX and Nasdaq Composite COMP. Diving straight in, our call of the day taps into a potential market worry that may be […]
I’m still working at 75: Do I need to take RMDs from my 401(k)?
Dear Fix My Portfolio, I retired from the U.S. Postal Service in 2004 and have a yearly pension from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). I also work part time at a big hardware chain and have a portion of my salary placed in the company’s 401(k). I have been working there for four years […]
On eBay, sellers are hawking water from Disney’s shuttered Splash Mountain ride
Walt Disney World DIS, +2.14% shuttered its popular but controversial Splash Mountain boat ride over the weekend, ending the attraction’s three-decade run. But some entrepreneurs are pitching a way to keep the water flowing, so to speak. Namely, they are selling water they say is sourced from the ride. There are dozens of listings on […]
Google execs to get lower bonuses in cost-cutting move following layoffs
Google Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said top executives would take pay cuts following the largest round of layoffs in the company’s history. Speaking at a companywide meeting on Monday, Pichai said employees at the senior-vice president level and above would get lower bonuses as part of cost-cutting measures, according to people who heard the remarks. The comments came after […]
Last year, one woman told MarketWatch she was on hold for 7 hours, but the IRS says customer service will improve this tax season. And now? A big test lies ahead.
Last year, tax preparer Kathy Brown called the Internal Revenue Service, and took her daughter to a gymnastics class while her husband stayed on hold, ready to patch in Brown once an employee picked up.Seven hours later, after sitting through the gymnastics class and returning home, the Warsaw, Ky.-based enrolled agent found her husband still […]
S&P 500’s softening earnings backdrop is a challenge for stocks in ‘very near term,’ says RBC
The S&P 500 earnings backdrop is softening, posing a challenge for stocks in the “very near term” even as companies so far are largely beating expectations for the fourth quarter, according to RBC Capital Markets. “With 10% of S&P 500 results in as of Friday,” the pace of companies exceeding consensus forecasts for earnings has […]
Ending AmazonSmile donations ‘could not come at a worse time’ for nonprofits
The end of Amazon’s charity donation program will be another blow to small nonprofits that are already struggling to make ends meet in an uncertain economy, nonprofit leaders told MarketWatch.Amazon AMZN, -0.11% is scrapping AmazonSmile, the program that lets Amazon customers direct donations to nonprofits while shopping on the online retail giant. Customers who sign […]