Tomorrow is an unofficial crypto holiday known as “Bitcoin Pizza Day,” which celebrates the very first real-world transaction using bitcoin. On May 22, 2010, programmer and bitcoin fan Laszlo Hanyecz offered (at 2010 prices) about $40 worth of bitcoin to anyone who’d be willing to order and deliver two pizzas to him. He got two Papa John’s pizzas and says he has no regrets, though when we calculated the incredible sum it’d be worth now if he’d kept it… well, we’d have major buyer’s remorse. 

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 spent the whole day in the red, each closing down 0.4%. So ends the more than weeklong winning streak for the benchmark US stock index. The Russell 2000 finished marginally higher.

It was a classic risk-off day — except bond yields rose. Every S&P 500 sector ETF declined outside of consumer staples, utilities, and healthcare, the defensive pockets of the market. Financials and consumer discretionary were the worst-performing sectors.

Psst… We’d love to get to know you better!

In recent years, the meat stick has become the fastest-growing product of a protein-fueled snack boom that’s growing at 3x the rate of an already ascendent snacking category. Last year, US consumers spent $3 billion on meat sticks, roughly the same amount as they did on roses and legal March Madness bets. How the meat stick was redeemed from its lowly status as lowbrow macho fuel crowding impulse buy bins reveals a lot about how shopper habits and preferences have evolved in the last decade.

All of this constitutes a significant departure from Slim Jim, the category’s mass market godfather brand, which maintains an association with World Wrestling Entertainment that is both commercial and psychological. The brand’s lineup of meat sticks are offered in three gauntlet-throwing sizes: Giant, Monster, and Savage, the last of which contains roughly the same amount of meat and calories as a McDonald’s double hamburger, along with about twice the sodium. 

If you’re going to hawk meat sticks, they better be good for you: from 2023 to 2024, all categories of meat snacks were flat in year-over-year growth, except “better-for-you” meat sticks, which were up 54% year over year. 

They may not be trading on the Nasdaq yet, but Pacaso just reserved the ticker “$PCSO.”¹ No wonder investors are excited to secure a stake in Pacaso now as a private company.

Co-founded by the man who took Zillow from seed to IPO, Pacaso brings co-ownership to the $1.3T vacation home industry.²

They’ve already generated $1B+ worth of luxury home transactions since inception across 2,000+ homebuyers. Top firms like SoftBank and Maveron even invested.

Now, after 41.6% gross profit growth last year, the firm has surpassed $110M+ in gross profit since 2020, Pacaso is ready for what’s next.³  Best of all? You don’t have to wait to join.

Until May 29, you can become a Pacaso investor for just $2.80/share. Buy Pacaso stock today.⁴

After the shooting of its CEO last year, America’s largest healthcare insurance provider, UnitedHealth, has been under increased scrutiny — becoming a lightning rod for anger and debate over America’s healthcare system.

Now, the company’s sickly stock itself has become a flashpoint.

So, why has UNH grabbed retail traders’ attention?

The simplest answer is that it’s been super volatile — and traders with short-term investing horizons like the opportunity that volatility brings, even if it also means a lot of risk. It seems that UNH was simply a candidate for old fashioned dip-buying: a historically stable, (now) well-known company that’s hit a rough patch.

D-Wave announced yesterday that its Advantage2 quantum computing system is ready for prime time, sending shares soaring. The new model can now be accessed by customers as part of D-Wave’s “quantum computing as a service” business, as well as for on-site installation.

What’s special about this quantum computer?

Want a smart, time-efficient way to invest in companies like Williams-Sonoma, The New York Times Company, Chewy Inc. and more? Tap into the outperformance potential of 400 mid-sized companies in a single trade with MDY — the original mid-cap ETF.

Wherever you’re headed, getting there starts here.⁵

Tariffs sent smartphone shipments from China down 72% last month.

Advertiser's disclosures:

¹ Pacaso recently received their ticker reservation with Nasdaq ($PCSO), indicating an intent to IPO in the next 24 months. An intent to IPO is no guarantee that an actual IPO will occur.

² Pacaso estimates the U.S. market at $1.3 trillion and the European market as $500 billion. See website for further details. 

³ For more details on the Gross Profit for 2021- 2023, please see management discussion of the financial condition section of the offering circular. For more details on the 2024 gross profit, please see the 1-K Financial Statements section.

⁴ The minimum investment is $1,037.45 when including the 3.5% investor fee. This is a paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular and related risks at invest.pacaso.com.

Investing in private company securities is not suitable for all investors because it is highly speculative and involves a high degree of risk. It should only be considered a long-term investment. You must be prepared to withstand a total loss of your investment. Private company securities are also highly illiquid, and there is no guarantee that a market will develop for such securities.

DealMaker Securities LLC, a registered broker-dealer, and member of FINRA | SIPC, located at 105 Maxess Road, Suite 124, Melville, NY 11747, is the Intermediary for this offering and is not an affiliate of or connected with the Issuer. Please check our background on FINRA's BrokerCheck.

⁵ Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. To obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus which contains this and other information, call 1-866-787-2257 or visit www.ssga.com. Read it carefully. Investing involves risk. ALPS Distributors, Inc. (fund distributor); State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC (marketing agent).

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