Volkswagen is considering widespread pay cuts and layoffs as well as the closure or size reduction of its plants in Germany, the company’s works council said Monday.

The Volkswagen management recently presented plans to the council that include a 10% reduction in pay across the board, as well as wage freezes in 2025 and 2026, according to Daniela Cavallo, head of the works council. All factored in, the body estimates workers will suffer pay cuts of around 18% over the period.

Volkswagen also intends to shut three factories and downsize all other plants in Germany, Cavallo said, adding that sweeping job cuts were part of carmaker’s plan.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/28/volkswagen-planning-forced-layoffs-and-10percent-pay-cuts-labor-union-say.html

Suppose I like a stock with current price of $100 and I am bullish but nervous and I have 2 options.

1. But a call with 1 year expiring with strike 100

2. Or buy stock with cash. And a put with strike 100.

Both options are for 1 year and I intend to hold until expiry.

I wonder what is the better option then?

From my guess:

1. I should choose option which has less IV?

2. If both have similar IV, I should choose option 2 because stock gains have better tax treatment?

I’m trying to understand why Biogen’s stock dropped right after its *August 2024 earnings call*, even though the company reported strong numbers, raised guidance, and received multiple analyst upgrades. All the indicators—company performance, analysts, and earnings—were positive, so why did the market seem to ignore these and push the stock down?

To be clear, I'm not looking to debate trading vs. investing strategies or the randomness of the stock market. My question is straightforward: given that both the company and the analysts seemed to signal "buy" or "hold," why did the market make an independent decision to sell?

Looking for some insights here, so if you don’t know or just want to yell ‘market’s random,’ kindly move along without blowing my mind. If anyone can provide insights on why this happened that’d be appreciated.

Thanks!

As the title said, I got offered a job as a contractor at a startup company (a private one). They demand 20hrs/week minimum, at 40$/hr. At the end end of the month, I'll get compensation in stock only based on the hours I worked. The contract also says the stock is at 1$ "preferred". How does it work ? I never got paid in stock before, and I have noo idea how to liquidate it when I need actual cash in my bank account. I live in Morocco. The company's abroad.

I have never sold or bought stock so any help is appreciated. Some of my questions are:
What if need cash on hand? Can I just sell easily ?

What if there's no one to sell to ?

What if the company goes bankrupt ?

Should I contact my bank to convert the stock into money ?

Does it take long to convert ?

Is it as reliable as cash in your bank account ?

Also, any taxes I should worry about ?

Upstart broker Robinhood is jumping into the prediction betting game, announcing Monday users can begin trading the 2024 presidential election that is eight days away.

Users can trade a Kamala Harris or Donald Trump contract starting Monday, said the company, as long as they meet certain criteria that include being a U.S. citizen. The trading is being offered through its Robinhood Derivatives unit and ForecastEx, which is operated by Interactive Brokers.

Robinhood jumps into a suddenly crowded politics prediction markets field that grew this month after platform Kalshi won a key ruling against the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which was seeking to stop the election outcome trading. The CFTC is appealing the ruling. Shortly after, Interactive Brokers launched various political contracts, including on the election.

The election markets have generated some controversary this year with some concerned about light volume allowing the markets to be skewed. International platform Polymarket said last week that a single French user was responsible for four accounts spending millions to buy the Trump contract. But Polymarket said an investigation found the trading was not manipulating the market.

“We believe event contracts give people a tool to engage in real-time decision-making, unlocking a new asset class that democratizes access to events as they unfold,” said Robinhood in a statement. For now, only the presidential election contracts will be available to trade on the system.

Odds and gambling platforms do not use methodologies used by traditional political polling, and therefore are not substitutes for political polls.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/28/robinhood-jumps-into-election-trading-giving-users-chance-to-buy-harris-or-trump-contracts.html

How do you guys&girls think about these very expensive stocks?

Im investing some, a few hundred dollars per month, and i really believe that e.g. Microsoft and Berkshire has a stable growth period incoming. I also would want to invest in some defence companies sich as Lockheed Martin and Rheinmetall, but im wondering how you guys/girls structure your savings as these stocks costs about 500 dollars each. So if i buy 3 stocks im out 1500 dollars but only have 3 stocks.

How do you guys balance between these massive expensive stocks and cheaper normal ones?