Somewhat Positive Media Coverage Somewhat Unlikely to Impact Bridgford Foods (BRID) Stock Price

Headlines about Bridgford Foods (NASDAQ:BRID) have been trending somewhat positive recently, according to Accern Sentiment. The research group scores the sentiment of press coverage by reviewing more than 20 million blog and news sources. Accern ranks coverage of publicly-traded companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. Bridgford Foods earned a daily sentiment score of 0.09 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave media headlines about the company an impact score of 46.8333900378921 out of 100, meaning that recent press coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the stock’s share price in the near future.

Bridgford Foods stock remained flat at $$13.33 during midday trading on Friday. The company had a trading volume of 842 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,686. Bridgford Foods has a 12 month low of $11.05 and a 12 month high of $21.55. The stock has a market cap of $120.99 million, a PE ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 1.01.

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Bridgford Foods (NASDAQ:BRID) last announced its earnings results on Friday, June 1st. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter. Bridgford Foods had a return on equity of 21.02% and a net margin of 4.68%. The company had revenue of $37.90 million during the quarter.

Bridgford Foods Company Profile

Bridgford Foods Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes frozen, refrigerated, and snack food products in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Frozen Food Products and Snack Food Products. It primarily offers biscuits, bread dough items, roll dough items, and dry sausage and beef jerky products.

Obalon Therapeutics Inc (OBLN) Expected to Announce Earnings of -$0.50 Per Share

Wall Street analysts expect Obalon Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:OBLN) to announce earnings of ($0.50) per share for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Two analysts have issued estimates for Obalon Therapeutics’ earnings, with the highest EPS estimate coming in at ($0.44) and the lowest estimate coming in at ($0.56). Obalon Therapeutics reported earnings per share of ($0.46) during the same quarter last year, which suggests a negative year over year growth rate of 8.7%. The company is scheduled to report its next earnings report on Wednesday, August 1st.

On average, analysts expect that Obalon Therapeutics will report full year earnings of ($2.19) per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from ($2.29) to ($2.09). For the next fiscal year, analysts anticipate that the firm will report earnings of ($2.03) per share, with EPS estimates ranging from ($2.06) to ($1.99). Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are an average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that follow Obalon Therapeutics.

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Obalon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:OBLN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 10th. The company reported ($0.71) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.54) by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $1.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 million. Obalon Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 399.94% and a negative return on equity of 102.17%.

OBLN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity restated a “buy” rating and issued a $10.00 target price (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Obalon Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, March 6th. BTIG Research cut their target price on Obalon Therapeutics to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 6th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating on shares of Obalon Therapeutics in a research note on Tuesday, March 6th. Zacks Investment Research downgraded Obalon Therapeutics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 8th. Finally, ValuEngine upgraded Obalon Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. The company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.40.

Shares of NASDAQ OBLN traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $2.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,004,100 shares, compared to its average volume of 191,734. Obalon Therapeutics has a 12-month low of $2.09 and a 12-month high of $11.16. The company has a market capitalization of $45.34 million, a PE ratio of -1.17 and a beta of -2.67. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in OBLN. Tamarack Advisers LP boosted its stake in shares of Obalon Therapeutics by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Tamarack Advisers LP now owns 604,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,993,000 after buying an additional 56,500 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Obalon Therapeutics by 170.4% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 21,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 13,309 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Obalon Therapeutics in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,571,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.93% of the company’s stock.

Obalon Therapeutics Company Profile

Obalon Therapeutics, Inc, a vertically integrated medical device company, focuses on developing and commercializing medical devices to treat obese and overweight people by facilitating weight loss. It offers the Obalon balloon system designed to provide weight loss in obese patients. Obalon Therapeutics, Inc was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Carlsbad, California.

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Syndax Pharmaceuticals Inc (SNDX) Expected to Post Earnings of -$0.94 Per Share

Wall Street brokerages expect Syndax Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:SNDX) to report ($0.94) earnings per share (EPS) for the current quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Zero analysts have issued estimates for Syndax Pharmaceuticals’ earnings. The highest EPS estimate is ($0.83) and the lowest is ($1.07). Syndax Pharmaceuticals posted earnings of ($0.70) per share during the same quarter last year, which suggests a negative year over year growth rate of 34.3%. The firm is expected to report its next quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 9th.

On average, analysts expect that Syndax Pharmaceuticals will report full-year earnings of ($3.64) per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from ($4.27) to ($3.20). For the next fiscal year, analysts expect that the company will post earnings of ($3.58) per share, with EPS estimates ranging from ($5.03) to ($2.44). Zacks Investment Research’s EPS calculations are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that cover Syndax Pharmaceuticals.

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Syndax Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SNDX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.79) EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of ($0.96) by $0.17. Syndax Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 3,081.07% and a negative return on equity of 67.69%. The firm had revenue of $0.38 million during the quarter.

SNDX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BidaskClub raised shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 24th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals from a “c-” rating to a “d” rating in a report on Friday, April 13th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 15th. ValuEngine raised shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $23.86.

Shares of Syndax Pharmaceuticals traded down $0.03, reaching $8.36, during mid-day trading on Tuesday, according to MarketBeat Ratings. 232,871 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 371,708. Syndax Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $7.35 and a 52 week high of $15.20. The company has a market capitalization of $212.47 million, a P/E ratio of -2.88 and a beta of 1.14.

In other Syndax Pharmaceuticals news, insider Peter Ordentlich sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $112,500.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 15.90% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Syndax Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $4,269,000. Sofinnova Ventures Inc bought a new stake in Syndax Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $173,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Syndax Pharmaceuticals by 266.9% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 10,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 7,686 shares during the last quarter. Opaleye Management Inc. bought a new stake in Syndax Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $3,166,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Syndax Pharmaceuticals by 77.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 397,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,658,000 after purchasing an additional 173,821 shares during the last quarter. 69.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Syndax Pharmaceuticals

Syndax Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the development and commercialization of therapies for various cancer indications. The company's lead product candidate is Entinostat, which is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of hormone receptor positive or HR+, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 negative or HER2-, and breast cancer; and Phase 1b/2 clinical trial.

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Social Security Is Running Dry, And There's Only One Politically Viable Option To Save It

&l;p&g;&l;img class=&q;dam-image shutterstock size-large wp-image-237216019&q; src=&q;https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/dam/imageserve/237216019/960x0.jpg?fit=scale&q; data-height=&q;640&q; data-width=&q;960&q;&g; Shutterstock

Some things you just don&a;rsquo;t question. Social Security is one of them. You pay into it your whole career, and you expect to get paid when you retire.

No politician dares say you won&a;rsquo;t.

Now, if the politicians were honest, they would tell us not to bet on Social Security&a;hellip; or Medicare, for that matter. Both programs are unsustainable without major changes no one wants to make.

The money is simply not there. As it stands, &l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dff/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;the retirement income and medical benefits millions think they already paid for aren&a;rsquo;t going to happen&l;/a&g;.

It&a;rsquo;s a sticky problem that won&a;rsquo;t solve itself.

&l;/p&g;&l;h3&g;&l;strong&g;Social Security and Medicare Are Running Out of Reserves&l;/strong&g;&l;/h3&g;

Over its 83-year history, Social Security has collected roughly $20.9 trillion in taxes and interest, according to&a;nbsp;&l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dfj/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;this year&a;rsquo;s trustee report&l;/a&g;.

It has also paid $18 trillion in benefits, leaving $2.9 trillion in trust fund &a;ldquo;reserves.&a;rdquo; Which are not really reserves, but let&a;rsquo;s use their terms for a minute.

But there&a;rsquo;s something unusual that will happen in 2018. For the first time since 1982,&a;nbsp;&l;strong&g;Social Security&a;rsquo;s total cost will&l;/strong&g;&a;nbsp;&l;strong&g;exceed its income this year&l;/strong&g;. And this time, the trustees project it will keep doing so, as far as the eye can see.

To keep paying benefits at current levels, Social Security must therefore dip into those reserves. But eventually they will run out too&a;mdash;with estimated depletion by 2034.

Medicare is in a similar pickle. The hospitalization program (Medicare Part A) will deplete its reserves in 2026. That&a;rsquo;s three years earlier than the trustees projected just last year.

&l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dfm/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;This is a drag on the economy and will only grow as more Baby Boomers reach retirement age.&l;/a&g;

Last year, Social Security and Medicare were 42% of federal program expenditures. As they grow, either taxes must rise, or other spending has to go down, or the debt will get even further out of control.

&l;h3&g;&l;strong&g;The Least Bad Alternative&l;/strong&g;&l;/h3&g;

This is really just a cash flow problem.

After the trust funds run dry, we&a;rsquo;ll need to match Social Security and Medicare&a;rsquo;s expenses with their income. We can accomplish that by reducing expenses, raising revenue (i.e., increase taxes), or a combination of both.

Let&a;rsquo;s also note, trust fund depletion won&a;rsquo;t mean no money is available. The programs will still be collecting tax revenue. It just won&a;rsquo;t be enough to cover current costs.

Raising revenue means higher taxes. That could happen, but it probably won&a;rsquo;t be enough.

We can reduce expenses by either cutting benefits or making fewer people eligible&a;mdash;both politically difficult. People believe they &a;ldquo;earned&a;rdquo; it, but in fact, they didn&a;rsquo;t.

Yes, money came out of all your paychecks labeled for Social Security, but it&a;rsquo;s not like insurance. You have no contract with the government. Receiving Social Security is not a constitutional &a;ldquo;right.&a;rdquo; It doesn&a;rsquo;t matter that you think you paid for it.

A mostly forgotten 1960 Supreme Court ruling,&a;nbsp;&l;u&g;&l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dfq/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;Flemming vs. Nestor&l;/a&g;&l;/u&g;, said &l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dft/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;the fact that you paid into Social Security creates no obligation for Congress to give you anything bac&l;/a&g;k. They can cut benefits to zero if they want to. Your only recourse is to vote them out.

Now, Congress probably won&a;rsquo;t do that, because they know we&a;nbsp;&l;em&g;would&l;/em&g;&a;nbsp;vote them out. But they&a;rsquo;ll have to find some solution. If raising taxes and cutting benefits are both off the table, what&a;rsquo;s left?

The least bad alternative is to raise the retirement age.

Congress previously did so back in the 1980s, in tiny steps that topped out at 67 for those (like me) born in 1960 or later.

In one sense, this is only fair. Life expectancies were much lower when they made 65 the full retirement age. People collected benefits for only a few years before they died. Many never collected at all. Now people routinely live into their 80s and 90s.

Look, not even Franklin Roosevelt would have agreed to a program guaranteeing all citizens a 20+-year non-working retirement with government-paid healthcare. That was never the idea, but it&a;rsquo;s what we have right now.

&l;strong&g;The Social Security outlook would vastly improve if we raised the full retirement age to 72 or even 75, starting soon.&l;/strong&g;&a;nbsp;It really is the easiest, least painful answer.

Today&a;rsquo;s 75-year-olds are in the same or better health than 65-year-olds were in the 1930s. So that&a;rsquo;s what I think Congress should do.

Which leaves the question: What will&a;nbsp;&l;em&g;you&l;/em&g;&a;nbsp;do?

&l;!--nextpage--&g;

&l;h3&g;&l;strong&g;Getting Somewhere&l;/strong&g;&l;/h3&g;

Well, you can deny it, but it&a;rsquo;s happening anyway.

More and more Baby Boomers reach 65 to find they can&a;rsquo;t afford to stop working. Others can afford to retire, but they just enjoy their work.

As I wrote last year in &q;&l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dfx/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;How to Work in Retirement and Love It&l;/a&g;,&q; this isn&a;rsquo;t necessarily bad. The key is to have enjoyable work that suits your physical condition.

And, as I wrote last week in &q;&l;a href=&q;http://www.mauldineconomics.com/go/v39dg3/FOR&q; target=&q;_blank&q; rel=&q;noopener noreferrer&q; target=&q;_blank&q;&g;To Save the Economy, Don&a;rsquo;t Retire&l;/a&g;,&q; applying retirees&a;rsquo; skills and experience that currently go untapped could boost the economy, creating more and better jobs for younger people.

This idea isn&a;rsquo;t perfect. But the present finger-pointing and worrying are getting us nowhere. Raising the retirement age is a bullet we may have to bite.