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Business

Jason Houseworth and David Williams appointed to Jackson Hewitt Board of Directors

Industry Veterans Jason Houseworth, Former H&R Block Executive, and David Williams, Former Intuit, Inc. Executive and IRS Director, Expand Company’s Commitment to Helping the Hardest Working Americans with Their Taxes

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc., the second-largest retail provider of assisted tax-preparation services in the United States, today announced the appointment of two industry leaders to its Board of Directors.

Former H&R Block executive Jason Houseworth and former Intuit, Inc. executive and IRS director David Williams were respectively appointed to the Board on November 9, 2020 and January 15, 2021. Mr. Houseworth and Mr. Williams are both highly respected executives with over four decades of combined tax services experience.

I’m excited to welcome both Jason and David to the Jackson Hewitt Board of Directors,” said Greg Macfarlane, Jackson Hewitt CEO. “Their wealth of knowledge and deep expertise in the tax-preparation services industry and unique perspectives will be invaluable as Jackson Hewitt continues to grow and meet the increasingly complex needs of our hard-working customers. We’re fortunate to have the opportunity to leverage both Jason and David’s backgrounds and experiences.”

Jackson Hewitt is a tremendously strong company with a best-in-class leadership team and the addition of Directors of Jason and David’s caliber to the Board is a testament to the Company’s success,” said Richard E. Thornburgh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Jackson Hewitt and Senior Advisor to Corsair Capital. “The experiences and relationships Jason and David have gained over the course of their careers will be hugely beneficial to Jackson Hewitt as the Company continues to provide unmatched services and solutions to customers across the US.”

Jason Houseworth Biography

Jason Houseworth currently serves as Chief Product Officer at BacklotCars, an online marketplace for auto dealers. Prior to joining BacklotCars in 2020, Mr. Houseworth served as President and CEO of FanThreeSixty, a customer data platform built for sports. He previously held numerous leadership positions at H&R Block between 2008 and 2016, including Chief Innovation Officer, President of US Product Strategy & Development, President of Digital Tax and Vice President and Chief Technology Officer. Before that, Mr. Houseworth also held various positions at Swiss Re, Accenture, Cyrus Consulting and Andersen Consulting. Mr. Houseworth served on the Board of Mylo, a Lockton Company, and Yodlee, and is a current Techstars Mentor for Techstars, a worldwide network that helps entrepreneurs succeed.

David Williams Biography

David Williams most recently served as Chief Tax Officer of Intuit, Inc., a global technology platform powering TurboTax, QuickBooks, and Mint. He has had a long career in both tax policy and tax administration. Prior to joining Intuit in 2013, Mr. Williams served as Senior Tax Policy Advisor to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget and held numerous leadership roles at the IRS, including Director of the Return Preparer Office, Director of Electronic Tax Administration, Director of Refundable Credits and Chief of Communications and Liaison, between 1998 and 2009. Mr. Williams also previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Tax and Budget for the U.S. Treasury Department, Legislative Director for Senator Bill Bradley, Assistant Staff Director of Revenue and Natural Resources for the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget and Legislative Assistant of Intergovernmental Relations Subcommittee for the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs.

About Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc.

Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. is an innovator in the tax industry, with a mission to provide its hard-working clients access to simple, low-cost solutions to manage their taxes and tax refunds. Jackson Hewitt is devoted to helping clients get ahead and stands behind its work with its Guaranteed Biggest Refund or $100 and Lifetime Accuracy guarantees. Clients can choose to file at one of Jackson Hewitt’s nearly 6,000 franchised and company-owned locations, including 3,000 in Walmart stores and online. Jackson Hewitt makes it easy and convenient for clients to file their taxes. For more information about products, services, and offers, or to locate a Jackson Hewitt office, visit www.jacksonhewitt.com or call 1 (800) 234-1040.

Contacts

Media Contacts
Jackson Hewitt

Sard Verbinnen & Co

Danya Al-Qattan/Julie Casale

JH-SVC@SARDVERB.com

Categories
Business

Retail investing hits new highs in Q3 as DriveWealth sees record activity for account openings, number of trades, and volume traded

CHATHAM, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Retail investing hit several new highs for account openings, number of trades, and volume traded in Q3 amid the ongoing global economic uncertainty due to the pandemic, according to new data released today by DriveWealth, a leader in global digital trading technology.

Some of the key Q3 findings from DriveWealth’s proprietary data, which monitors investment activity by individual investors from across its network of global partners including Hatch, MoneyLion, State, Revolut, and Unifimoney into the U.S. equities market, include:

  • 33% quarterly increase in account openings was largely driven by investors under the age of 30.
  • 46% increase in trading volume in the quarter, despite increased market volatility and lower total market returns in the quarter.
  • Investors placed fewer trades on average in 3Q, however the average trade size was much larger.

One notable trading trend shows that it’s not the proverbial “day trader” that’s driving activity on DriveWealth’s platform. Retail investors are not timing the market but rather are investing when they have time and extra cash. DriveWealth is seeing spikes in trades and volume on Mondays as many retail investors place orders over the weekend.

“Embedded finance continues to change market dynamics, with over 32% of our orders being placed outside of market hours,” said DriveWealth Founder and CEO Bob Cortright. “This illustrates how many retail investors are not day trading or trying to time the market. These consumers are genuinely interested in making investment decisions that positively affect their long-term financial health.”

Most traded tickers

As was the case in Q2, the report found that the most frequently traded symbols in Q3 continued to be large, recognizable global brands and technology companies.

Some of the most frequently traded stock symbols were those companies that continued to be impacted in some way by pandemic, including Amazon, Disney, GE, Microsoft, Netflix, Nike, and Walmart.

Investors also traded heavily in Apple and Tesla as the stock splits from those companies drove unprecedented trading activity in those two symbols.

The top 10 traded symbols on DriveWealth in Q3 for self-directed investors were:

US investors

Non-US investors

Tesla

Tesla

Apple

Apple

Amazon

Amazon

Walmart

Nio

Zoom

Microsoft

GE

Facebook

Microsoft

AMD

Nike

Virgin Atlantic

Nio

Nvidia

Disney

Disney

The full report can be accessed on DriveWealth’s website.

About DriveWealth

DriveWealth Holdings, Inc., wholly owns DriveWealth, LLC, a member of FINRA and SIPC. DriveWealth, LLC is a licensed carrying and self-clearing broker offering digital brokerage solutions to broker-dealers, advisors and online partners worldwide through its proprietary investment platform. DriveWealth, LLC delivers access to the U.S. securities markets along with an array of digital products that power both emerging and established financial companies. For more information, please visit DriveWealth.com.

Contacts

DriveWealth
Will Hernandez

drivewealth@backbaycommunications.com

Categories
Local News

NRG Energy Inc. to hold investor call to discuss acquisition of Direct Energy

PRINCETON, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–On Friday, July 24, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time, NRG Energy Inc. (NYSE: NRG) will hold an investor call to discuss its acquisition of Direct Energy, as announced today by Centrica PLC, as well as a preview of the Company’s second quarter 2020 financial results.

A live webcast of the conference call, including presentation materials, can be accessed through NRG’s website at http://www.nrg.com and clicking on “Presentations & Webcasts” in the “Investors” section found at the top of the home page. The webcast will be archived on the site for those unable to listen in real time.

About NRG Energy

At NRG, we’re bringing the power of energy to people and organizations by putting customers at the center of everything we do. We generate electricity and provide energy solutions and natural gas to more than 3.7 million residential, small business, and commercial and industrial customers through our diverse portfolio of retail brands. A Fortune 500 company, operating in the United States and Canada, NRG delivers innovative solutions while advocating for competitive energy markets and customer choice, and by working towards a sustainable energy future. More information is available at www.nrg.com. Connect with NRG on Facebook, LinkedIn and follow us on Twitter @nrgenergy, @nrginsight.

Contacts

Investors:
Kevin L. Cole, CFA

609.524.4526

investor.relations@nrg.com

Media:
Candice Adams

609.455.3777

candice.adams@nrg.com

Categories
Business

Retail investing continues its upward trend in Q2 as DriveWealth sees record retail investing activity

CHATHAM, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DriveWealth’s retail investing hit new highs in Q2 amid the ongoing global economic uncertainty due to the pandemic, with fractional share trades increasing 87% from Q1, according to new data released today by DriveWealth, a leader in global digital trading technology. Data from the DriveWealth platform indicates this surge in retail activity is evidence of a larger paradigm shift in retail investing.

Some of the key Q2 findings from DriveWealth’s proprietary data, which monitors investment activity by individual investors from across its network of global partners including Revolut, Stake and Hatch into the U.S. equities market, include:

  • A 214% increase in Q2 trading volumes compared to Q1
  • Trading activity doubled (100% increase) in Q2 compared to Q1
  • The number of trades placed per account increased by 33%

“In common with other brokers, we’ve seen record levels of retail account openings and trading activity following March’s market correction,” said DriveWealth Founder and CEO Bob Cortright. “While the correction has no doubt attracted many new entrants into the market, we believe that the pandemic and social distancing measures have also served to accelerate the move into digital financial services. Interestingly, account openings among investors aged 60-plus outpaced other age groups, highlighting the move towards digital is far from a millennial-only phenomenon.”

DriveWealth’s data also found a few notable trends regarding trading behavior. Around 70% of all trades on the DriveWealth platform were to buy shares versus sell and the average trade size was $211, up 56% compared to Q1.

Fractional share trades – where less than one share is purchased – also increased in Q2, with a 208% increase in fractional purchases by investors in Latin America compared to Q1. This compares to a 129% quarter-on-quarter increase in fractional trades in the U.S., a 108% increase in EMEA and 65% uptick in APAC.

“Given that single shares of frequently traded stocks such as Tesla and Amazon trade are priced in the thousands of dollars, it’s no surprise that fractional share purchases are proving popular among investors,” said DriveWealth President Julie Coin.

Most traded tickers

The report found that the most traded symbols traded in Q2 continued to be large, recognizable global brands and technology companies, while in the U.S. specifically, Vanguard ETFs proved popular.

Many of the most frequently traded stock symbols are those expected to benefit from trends associated with the global COVID-19 pandemic, including services facilitating the mass shift to working from home (such as Google and Zoom), home entertainment (Netflix and Disney), digital payments (Apple and Google) and online retail (Amazon and Walmart).

In addition to the big-name brands, non-U.S. investors were also investing in more volatile stocks that were featured in the News including Hertz, American Airlines and petroleum companies such as Callon and Oasis.

The top 10 traded symbols on DriveWealth’s platform in Q2 were:

U.S. investors

Non-U.S. investors

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF

Tesla

Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETF

Hertz

Amazon

American Airlines

Vanguard Extended Market ETF

Apple

iShares Short-Term National Muni Bond ETF

Callon Petroleum

Apple

Oasis Petroleum

Whiting Petroleum

Amazon

Hertz

Boeing

Tesla

Whiting Petroleum

Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF

Delta Airlines

The full report can be accessed on the DriveWealth website.

About DriveWealth

DriveWealth Holdings, Inc., wholly owns DriveWealth, LLC, a member of FINRA and SIPC. DriveWealth, LLC is a licensed carrying and self-clearing broker offering digital brokerage solutions to broker-dealers, advisors and online partners worldwide through its proprietary investment platform. DriveWealth, LLC delivers access to the U.S. securities markets along with an array of digital products that power both emerging and established financial companies. For more information, please visit DriveWealth.com.

Contacts

Media:
DriveWealth
Will Hernandez

drivewealth@backbaycommunications.com