Good Morning! Boeing will officially plead guilty to fraud over 737 Max crashes in a deal some critics think is too lenient. NYC unveiled its first official trash bins after a $4 million McKinsey study. Prices are stabilizing but Chipotle and Walmart are still feeling the heat over high prices. Apple is gearing up to release the iPhone 16 with AI, which could send the company’s market cap to over $4 trillion. Plus what’s next for Paramount after Skydance merger, and how AI is driving the VC market.

Curious about stocks that have increased dividends for over 50 years? Get Sure Dividend’s free list of 53 stocks here.

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Junior Bankers Working 100+ Hour Weeks Again

M&A is picking up... and so are the grueling hours for junior bankers on Wall Street.

We recently spoke to Bloomberg (you can find the full article here) and based on our work conditions survey, 100-hour workweeks are unfortunately all too common. Some bankers even underreport their hours to avoid repercussions from management or HR.

The toll is evident: reports of bankers sleeping at the office, experiencing health issues, and even tragic incidents like the recent deaths of two Bank of America employees. Despite promises of reform following previous incidents, the industry appears slow to change, leaving junior bankers under immense pressure.

Of the over 200 survey responses we received, mental health scored an alarming 2.1 out of 5, and physical health scored 2.5 out of 5.

Interestingly, while junior bankers endure these marathon workweeks, interns this summer are experiencing more humane working conditions, with some banks enforcing a strict 60-hour cap and encouraging early departures. This shift reflects a broader attempt by Wall Street to improve its image and mitigate fallout from past tragedies.

On the other end of the spectrum, one junior banker was spotted doing push-ups on Park Avenue’s sidewalk for screwing up a pitch book.

Takeaway: In light of recent developments, one can't help but wonder if Wall Street will finally address its culture of overwork and its impact on the health and well-being of its junior staff. With deal flow expected to increase as interest rates decline, we’ll be closely monitoring and reporting on the working conditions of junior staff on Wall Street.

_{PRESENTED BY SURE DIVIDEND}

Top 53 Dividend Stocks

Thousands of publicly traded companies have a dividend – that means they pay you just for owning their stock.

However, only some are able to increase their dividend payments year-after-year.

Sure Dividend researches the best dividend growth stocks for investors looking to build rising passive income over time.

And the best-of-the-best are the elite Dividend Kings.

• A stock must have 50+ consecutive years of dividend increases to be included on Sure Dividend’s Dividend King list. 

Only 53 stocks qualify for the exclusive Dividend Kings list. 

These are businesses that have increased their dividend every year since the 1970s, in spite of recessions, wars, pandemics, and changing technology.

Get the free Dividend Kings list here.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• Boeing to plead guilty in DOJ case (YF)

• NYC rolling out its own official trash bin for some residential buildings (CBS)

• Johns Hopkins med school will be free for most after $1B donation (Axios)

• Walmart, Chipotle criticized over prices (CNBC)

• iPhone 16 with AI could send Apple's market cap to $4T (YF) 

• What’s next for Paramount now? (CNBC)

• Apple Watch to get a makeover (MR)

• Fans wary of $8B Six Flags merger (CNN)

• How AI is driving the VC market (Axios)

• NYC’s underground retail problem (NYT)

• Property loans challenge big banks (WSJ)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Nasdaq, S&P 500 rallied to record highs ahead of a busy week.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) IDEAYA Biosciences ($IDYA) +15% after positive cancer treatment data.

• (+) SolarEdge ($SEDG) +9% after Bank of America upgraded the solar company.

• (–) ServiceNow ($NOW) -5% after a downgrade by Guggenheim.

Private Dealmaking

• KKR bought Varsity Brands, a yearbooks and class rings maker, for $4.75 billion

• Eli Lilly bought Morphic, an inflammatory bowel disease drugmaker, for $3.2 billion

• Hebbia, a document search AI startup, raised $130 million

• Myricx Bio, an antibody-drug developer, raised $114 million

• Flux Marine, an electric outboard motors maker, raised $50 million

• Aether Fuels, a sustainable fuels developer, raised $34 million

For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Why We Remember

A new understanding of memory is emerging from the latest scientific research. In Why We Remember, pioneering neuroscientist and psychologist Charan Ranganath radically reframes the way we think about the everyday act of remembering. Combining accessible language with cutting-edge research, he reveals the surprising ways our brains record the past and how we use that information to understand who we are in the present, and to imagine and plan for the future.

Memory, Dr. Ranganath shows, is a highly transformative force that shapes how we experience the world in often invisible and sometimes destructive ways. Knowing this can help us with daily remembering tasks, like finding our keys, and with the challenge of memory loss as we age. What’s more, when we work with the brain’s ability to learn and reinterpret past events, we can heal trauma, shed our biases, learn faster, and grow in self-awareness. 

Including fascinating studies and examples from pop culture, and drawing on Ranganath’s life as a scientist, father, and child of immigrants, Why We Remember is a captivating read that unveils the hidden role memory plays throughout our lives. When we understand its power-- and its quirks--we can cut through the clutter and remember the things we want to remember. We can make freer choices and plan a happier future.

“In this groundbreaking tour of the mind and brain, one of the world’s top memory researchers reveals the powerful role memory plays in nearly every aspect of our lives, from recalling faces and names, to learning, decision-making, trauma and healing.”

_{DAILY VISUAL}

The World’s Richest Countries

Ranked using three GDP measures

_{PRESENTED BY MOSAIC}

CIM to LBO Model in < 5 Minutes

Ever get a CIM on a Friday evening and have to grind all weekend just to get the LBO model in good shape for your VP to review? What if you could build an LBO model in a fraction of the time without sacrificing accuracy? Enter Mosaic.

Mosaic is changing the game for private equity professionals. Transition seamlessly from a CIM to an LBO model in under 5 minutes, without a single error or a faulty template.

Plus you can add all the complexity you’ll need. Want to explore an IPO exit scenario? Just activate the IPO exit module and see the results unfold in real-time. Dividend recaps. M&A. Cost savings. Extended investment hold periods. Mosaic can do it all.

The best part? All Mosaic models can be exported into fully functional Excel models with working formulas so you can audit everything each time.

Already trusted by thousands of professionals at funds like CVC, Investcorp, Onex, Warburg Pincus, and New Mountain, Mosaic is making waves in the industry.

Ready to see Mosaic in action? Request a demo today.

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Focus

In a world of infinite distractions, focus is your superpower.

Warren Buffett says, "The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything."

What deserves your precious attention? What can you eliminate?

Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 and immediately cut their product line from 350 to 10.

This laser focus turned a failing company into the most valuable in the world.

Your time and energy are finite resources - invest them wisely.

Multitasking is a myth; deep work is the reality.

Choose your priorities ruthlessly.

Remember, where focus goes, energy flows.

Direct your attention wisely.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• 4 ways to boost executive presence

• How to get ready for your first leadership position

• Learning to delegate as a first-time manager

• 16 tips to lead effectively in the workforce

• How you should dress to move to a new city

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day