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Legal

DWAC

SPY

The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected a case seeking to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 primary ballot based on the 'insurrectionist ban' in the US Constitution. This decision contrasts with Colorado's Supreme Court ruling, which removed Trump from its ballot. The Michigan case was dismissed on procedural grounds without addressing whether the January 6 event was an insurrection or if Trump was involved. The Michigan Supreme Court did not release a vote count, and the decision was unsigned. Justice Elizabeth Welch highlighted differences in election laws between Michigan and Colorado.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 27, 2023 | 2:03 pm

AULT

MICS

Ault Alliance Inc (AULT) has filed a derivative lawsuit against Singing Machine Co Inc (MICS) CEO Gary Atkinson and other directors, alleging breach of fiduciary duties in a recent share sale to Regalia Ventures, LLC and Stingray Group, Inc. The sale involved approximately 2.197 million shares, or 34% of MICS' outstanding shares. Ault Lending, a subsidiary of Ault Alliance, which owns about 28.2% of MICS shares, seeks to rescind the transaction and obtain damages. AULT's stock showed a slight increase in premarket trading.

Portfolio Pulse from Lekha Gupta

December 27, 2023 | 1:30 pm

IOVA

Iovance Biotherapeutics' stock is trading lower following the FDA's clinical hold on the IOV-LUN-202 trial due to a Grade 5 adverse event potentially related to the trial's pre-conditioning regimen.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 27, 2023 | 1:25 pm

MSFT

NYT

The New York Times has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging that millions of its copyrighted articles were used to train chatbots, which are now competing with the newspaper. The lawsuit claims infringement of copyright and seeks to address the competitive implications of AI-generated content.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 27, 2023 | 1:19 pm

GOOG

GOOGL

The Chameleon banking trojan, first identified in January 2023, has evolved with new capabilities to disable biometric authentication on Android devices, allowing it to steal passwords and PINs. The malware, which initially targeted users in Australia and Poland, is now also affecting users in the U.K. and Italy. It disguises itself as Google Chrome apps and exploits Android 13's 'Restricted Settings' to bypass security measures. Alphabet Inc. (GOOG, GOOGL) is mentioned as the trojan masquerades as its Google Chrome apps.

Portfolio Pulse from Rounak Jain

December 27, 2023 | 12:57 pm

SQ

The cannabis industry saw significant milestones in 2023, including Ohio legalizing recreational marijuana and President Biden pardoning cannabis possession convicts. A lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland by cannabis operators challenges the Controlled Substances Act's enforcement. Jane Technologies partnered with Square (NYSE:SQ) for online cannabis dispensary services. The industry faces capital challenges due to lack of federal legalization, affecting liquidity and innovation. 24 states have enacted record clearance laws, and 10 have resentencing laws for cannabis offenses.

Portfolio Pulse from Nina Zdinjak

December 27, 2023 | 12:46 pm

HTZ

TSLA

Italian rally driver Piero Longhi shared his positive experience with his Tesla Model S, having driven over 236,000 miles in 6 years with minimal maintenance. This counters concerns about high EV maintenance costs, particularly for Tesla, which has faced scrutiny over repair costs and a DOJ investigation for exaggerating vehicle range. Meanwhile, Hertz Global Holdings Inc plans to reduce its Tesla fleet due to high repair costs and low resale value, opting for EVs from other manufacturers with cheaper parts and established supply networks.

Portfolio Pulse from Anan Ashraf

December 27, 2023 | 11:00 am

META

MSFT

Yann LeCun, Meta Platforms Inc.'s chief AI scientist, criticized OpenAI for its lack of transparency in research, suggesting the research world is losing interest in the company. He highlighted the instability caused by recent events at OpenAI, including the temporary ousting of co-founder Sam Altman. Despite this, OpenAI is reportedly in talks to raise funds at a $100 billion valuation. LeCun contrasted OpenAI's approach with Meta's open-source Llama 2 model, aligning with his belief in keeping AI research open and secure.

Portfolio Pulse from Rounak Jain

December 27, 2023 | 10:09 am

AAPL

AMZN

BBY

T

TGT

Apple Inc.'s Series 9 and Ultra 2 watch models are banned from sale in the U.S. due to a patent violation ruling by the ITC. Despite this, third-party retailers like Best Buy, Target, AT&T, and Amazon are still selling the watches. Apple faces potential holiday sales losses of $300 million to $400 million but is fighting the ban with an emergency motion for a temporary suspension while appealing the decision. The ban's impact on Apple's sales and its efforts to overturn the decision highlight the significance of the ITC ruling and the ongoing legal battle with Masimo.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Neuro

December 27, 2023 | 8:12 am

TM

Toyota Motor Corp (NYSE:TM) reported an 11% increase in global production for November, setting a new record fueled by strong consumer demand. The growth signifies a recovery from supply chain issues experienced the previous year. Domestic sales in Japan rose by 27%, with the U.S. and China seeing a 17% increase, and Europe a 15% rise. Despite a recent production halt at subsidiary Daihatsu and a recall of about a million vehicles in the U.S. due to airbag issues, Toyota is on track for record global sales, with a significant portion being gasoline-electric hybrids.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Neuro

December 27, 2023 | 7:50 am