Archives for April 29, 2019

The UK’s butt-shaped blimp could come back as an EV

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Airlander 10 gets a £1 million injection to go all-electric

The company behind the world’s longest aircraft, Airlander 10, has been awarded more than £1 million ($1.3 million) to convert it into an all-electric vehicle. The test version of the slightly obscene-looking British blimp was retired back in January to make way for a production model, and it looks like said model will scrap combustion for a greener type of flight.

The project has been funded by the UK Aerospace Research and Technology Programme and is nicknamed E-HAV1 after Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), the company that makes the 302-foot combination of airplane and airship. However, as with everything that’s happened to Airlander 10 so far, it probably won’t be smooth sailing.

Aviation consultant Tony Dixon isn’t convinced £1 million will be enough for the ambitious project, which will use the combined expertise of HAV, Collins Aerospace and the University of Nottingham to replace the blimp’s engines with electric propulsion.

This will require creating a full-sized 500kW electric engine, work which will likely take years to complete. When ready, the craft will “support a broad range of activities from passenger travel to fisheries protection,” says HAV.

The test version of Airlander 10 flew just six times, two of which ended badly: it hit the ground on its second ever outing, and on another occasion managed to hurt someone when it broke away and deflated.

The project to turn the aircraft electric is part of HAV’s plan to reduce the carbon footprint of flying and “move us closer to our goal of zero-carbon aviation,” says Chief Executive Stephen McGlennan. The new design for the electric aircraft is underway now, and production will commence shortly.

Chrome exploit uses a fake address bar for phishing attacks

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You might not realize you’re on a bogus site despite your best efforts.

Cyberattackers don’t need to find obscure technical flaws to launch phishing attacks — they might just need a screen capture and some clever web coding. Developer James Fisher has found a relatively simple exploit in Chrome for mobile that takes advantage of how the app displays the address bar. When you scroll down from the top of a page, the approach displays a fake address bar that won’t disappear until you visit another site. The attacker can even craft the page to prevent you from seeing the real address bar when you scroll up.

Fisher’s approach is focused on Chrome and is only a proof of concept for now, but it could theoretically display fake address bars for a variety of browsers and even include interactive elements. In other words, a phishing campaign could produce a convincing site beyond just the content of the page. You’d have to pay attention to the starting address to know what’s happening, and not everyone will catch that irregularity.

We’ve asked Google for comment. It’s not clear how many phishers will use techniques like this. There is a way to double-check, though. The 9to5Google team noted that you can force the real address bar to show by locking and then unlocking your phone again. It’s not bullet-proof as a result, but many people won’t know to try this and might be fooled as a result.

Spotify has 100 million Premium users

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And 217 million users overall.

Spotify has 100 million Premium users, the company has announced in its most recent financial figures. In total, the streaming service has 217 million users, 117 million of which are enjoying the free, ad supported tier.

Despite only launching in India at the end of February, Spotify has already started to build an audience in the country. The company says that more than a million users signed up in the first week, a figure that has more than doubled in the following four weeks.

Unfortunately, despite those numbers going up, Spotify can’t turn that success into profits, losing €142 million ($158 million) in the quarter. That figure really looks bad if you compare it to the €442 million ($493 million) in profit it made back in December.

If there is cause for optimism, it’s that the loss is better than the one sustained in the same period in 2018, where it lost €169 million ($188 million). Unfortunately, Spotify has laid the blame for some of that loss at its employees (who, because the stock price rose, got bigger bonuses) and paying its fair share of tax.

Spotify doesn’t expect to be making crazy profits any time soon, but is expecting to strengthen its grip on the global music market. Between its deals with Google, Samsung and Hulu, people won’t be able to move for offers to sign up to the streaming service.

The company is looking to podcasting as a way of shoring up its future since, as we explained before, podcasts are cheap and have dedicated audiences. Despite just buying Anchor and Gimlet, Spotify has already seen revenue from its exclusive ad-supported podcasts rise, with more expected to come.

It remains to be seen if Spotify’s proxy war with Apple in Europe will come to anything, but these figures make it harder for the company to be painted as the little guy. After all, its better-funded American rival has less than a quarter of its total user numbers, no matter how hard Daniel Ek complains.

Apple poached Intel’s 5G leader weeks ahead of Qualcomm truce

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It may be part of why Intel bailed on 5G modems.

Intel’s decision to bail on 5G modems may have gone hand-in-hand with Apple’s truce with Qualcomm, but it’s now clear there were hints of a shift weeks earlier. The Telegraph has learned that Apple poached Intel’s 5G phone modem leader, Umashankar Thyagarajan, in February. While the departure itself wasn’t a complete secret (Thyagarajan’s LinkedIn profile confirms the switch), the news outlet claims to have email showing that the ex-director was the project engineer for the XMM 8160 chip at the heart of Intel’s plans. He also “played a key role” creating the Intel modems used in the iPhone XS and XR.

Neither Apple nor Intel has commented on the report. It’s also not clear exactly what Thyagarajan is doing in his new role (he describes it solely as “Architecture” in his LinkedIn bio), although wireless chipset design is the most likely explanation given his background.

Apple hasn’t been shy about its intentions to make its own cellular chipsets. The company has been recruiting relevant talent for a while, and went so far as to expand its presence in San Diego in a move interpreted as an attempt to recruit Qualcomm staff. However, Thyagarajan’s hire is a particularly huge coup for Apple — it shows the company is determined to snap up top-level talent as it starts on cellular hardware, including people from its erstwhile partners.

Stocks to Watch: Masco Corporation (MAS) and Mankind Corporation (MNKD) on the Marquee

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The price of Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) went up by $0.98 now trading at $38.48. Their shares witnessed a 42.36% increase from the 52-week low price of $27.03 they recorded on 2018-12-26. Even though it is still -6.55% behind the $41 high touched on 2019-03-01. The last few days have been rough for the stock, as its price has decreased by -3.9% during the week. It has also performed better over the past three months, as it added around 21.7% while it has so far climbed around 3.52% during the course of a year. The stock of MAS recorded 31.6% uptrend from the beginning of this year till date. The 12-month potential price target for Masco Corporation is set at $45.81. This target means that the stock has an upside potential to increase by 19.05% from the current trading price.

81 institutions entered new Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) positions, 256 added to their existing positions in these shares, 327 lowered their positions, and 86 exited their positions entirely.

Masco Corporation (MAS) trade volume has increased by 111.77% as around 7,528,920 shares were sold when compared with its 50-day average volume of traded shares which is 3,555,250. At the moment, MAS is witnessing a downtrend, as it is trading -3.59% below its 20-day SMA, -1.58% below its 50-day SMA, and 8.61% below its 200-day SMA. The company runs an ROE of roughly 0%, with financial analysts predicting that their earnings per share growth will be around 11.64% per annum for the next five year. This will be compared to the 26.9% increase witnessed over the past five years.

The first technical resistance point for Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) will likely come at $39.09, marking a 1.56% premium to the current level. The second resistance point is at $39.69, about 3.05% premium to its current market price. On the other hand, inability to breach the immediate hurdles can drag it down to $37.45, the lower end of the range. MAS’s 14-day MACD is -1.27 and this negative figure indicates a downward trading trend. The company’s 14-day RSI (relative strength index) score is 42.27, which shows that its stock has been neutral. The 20-day historical volatility for the stock stands at 27.05 percent, which is high when compared to that of the 50-day’s 24.3 percent.

The shares of MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) has decreased by -1.87%, and now trading at $1.57 on the Wall Street in the intra-day deal, with their shares traded now around 1,164,651. This is a decline of -2,165,905 shares over the average 3,330,556 shares that were traded daily over the last three months. The stock that is trading at $1.57 went higher by 67.02% from its 52-week low of $0.94 that it attained back on 2018-12-27. The stock recorded a 52-week high of $3.04 nearly 236 days ago on 2018-09-05.

MNKD stock hasn’t performed well over the past 30 days, as it lost -19.07% while its price climbed by 48.11% year-to-date (YTD). Looking at the last few days, it has been good for the stock, as it rose 2.61% over the last week. The stock’s 12-month potential target price is now at $3.5. This means that the stock price might likely increase by 122.93% from its current trading price. 2 out of 2 Wall Street analysts which represents 100% rated the stock as a buy while the remaining 0% rated it as a hold, with 0% of analysts rating it as a sell.

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) has been utilizing an ROE that is roughly 42.9%, with stock analysts predicting that the company’s EPS for the next five years will go up by 26.8% per year, following the 28.4% raise that was witnessed during the past five years. The stock at the moment is on a downtrend, trading -8.61% below its 20-day SMA, -12.49% below its 50-day SMA, and -2.29% below its 200-day SMA. In percentage terms, the aggregate MannKind Corporation shares held by institutional investors is 30.2%. 23 institutions jumped in to acquire MannKind Corporation (MNKD) fresh stake, 50 added to their current holdings in these shares, 42 lowered their positions, and 14 left no stake in the company.

The stock’s 9-day MACD is -0.01 and this negative figure indicates a downward trading trend. The company’s 9-day RSI score is 37.45, which shows that its stock has been neutral. The 20-day historical volatility for the shares stand at 55.99 percent, which is less when compared to that of the 50-day’s 71.17 percent. On the daily chart, we see that the stock could reach the first level of resistance at $1.62, sporting a 3.09% premium to the current level. The next resistance point is at $1.66, representing nearly 5.42% premium to the current market price of MannKind Corporation (MNKD). On the other hand, failure to breach the immediate hurdles can drag it down to $1.51, the lower end of the range.

Stocks to Watch: Focus on Can-fite Biopharma LTD. (CANF), General Mills, Inc. (GIS)

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The price of Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE:CANF) went up by $0.05 now trading at $0.59. Their shares witnessed a 31.11% increase from the 52-week low price of $0.45 they recorded on 2019-04-18. Even though it is still -193.22% behind the $1.73 high touched on 2018-11-21. The last few days have been good for the stock, as its price has grew by 19.54% during the week. It has also performed poorly over the past three months, as it lost around -48.1% while it has so far retreated around -56.81% during the course of a year. The stock of CANF recorded -53.04% downtrend from the beginning of this year till date. The 12-month potential price target for Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. is set at $3. This target means that the stock has an upside potential to increase by 408.47% from the current trading price.

1 institutions entered new Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE:CANF) positions, 4 added to their existing positions in these shares, 4 lowered their positions, and 4 exited their positions entirely.

Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (CANF) trade volume has increased by 303.21% as around 1,605,156 shares were sold when compared with its 50-day average volume of traded shares which is 398,096. At the moment, CANF is witnessing a downtrend, as it is trading -2.2% below its 20-day SMA, -36.4% below its 50-day SMA, and -49.68% below its 200-day SMA. The company runs an ROE of roughly 0%, with financial analysts predicting that their earnings per share growth will be around 0% per annum for the next five year. This will be compared to the 0% decrease witnessed over the past five years.

The first technical resistance point for Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE:CANF) will likely come at $0.68, marking a 13.24% premium to the current level. The second resistance point is at $0.78, about 24.36% premium to its current market price. On the other hand, inability to breach the immediate hurdles can drag it down to $0.44, the lower end of the range. CANF’s 14-day MACD is 0 and this negative figure indicates a downward trading trend. The company’s 14-day RSI (relative strength index) score is 37.81, which shows that its stock has been neutral. The 20-day historical volatility for the stock stands at 116.69 percent, which is low when compared to that of the 50-day’s 118.5 percent.

The shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) has increased by 1.73%, and now trading at $51.09 on the Wall Street in the intra-day deal, with their shares traded now around 2,809,648. This is a decline of -1,646,346 shares over the average 4,455,994 shares that were traded daily over the last three months. The stock that is trading at $51.09 went higher by 40.28% from its 52-week low of $36.42 that it attained back on 2018-12-17. The stock recorded a 52-week high of $52.17 nearly 13 days ago on 2019-04-16.

GIS stock hasn’t performed well over the past 30 days, as it lost -0.41% while its price climbed by 31.2% year-to-date (YTD). Looking at the last few days, it has been tough for the stock, as it tumbled -1.22% over the last week. The stock’s 12-month potential target price is now at $49.93. This means that the stock price might likely increase by -2.27% from its current trading price. 5 out of 17 Wall Street analysts which represents 29.41% rated the stock as a buy while the remaining 64.71% rated it as a hold, with 5.88% of analysts rating it as a sell.

General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) has been utilizing an ROE that is roughly 23.7%, with stock analysts predicting that the company’s EPS for the next five years will go up by 5.36% per year, following the -0.3% drop that was witnessed during the past five years. The stock at the moment is on a downtrend, trading -0.21% below its 20-day SMA, 4.43% above its 50-day SMA, and 13.84% above its 200-day SMA. In percentage terms, the aggregate General Mills, Inc. shares held by institutional investors is 71.4%. 143 institutions jumped in to acquire General Mills, Inc. (GIS) fresh stake, 563 added to their current holdings in these shares, 601 lowered their positions, and 106 left no stake in the company.

The stock’s 9-day MACD is -0.6 and this negative figure indicates a downward trading trend. The company’s 9-day RSI score is 52.05, which shows that its stock has been neutral. The 20-day historical volatility for the shares stand at 12.66 percent, which is less when compared to that of the 50-day’s 16.14 percent. On the daily chart, we see that the stock could reach the first level of resistance at $51.36, sporting a 0.53% premium to the current level. The next resistance point is at $51.64, representing nearly 1.07% premium to the current market price of General Mills, Inc. (GIS). On the other hand, failure to breach the immediate hurdles can drag it down to $50.02, the lower end of the range.