Operator

Hello, and welcome to the Annual Meeting of Shareholders of United Fire Group, Inc. Please note that today’s meeting is being recorded. [Operator Instructions] It is now my pleasure to turn today’s meeting over to Jim Noyce, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of United Fire Group, Inc. Mr. Noyce, the floor is yours.

James William Noyce

The meeting will please come to order. Good morning, and welcome to the Annual Meeting of Shareholders of United Fire Group, Inc., and thank you all for attending. I am Jim Noyce, Chairperson of the Board of Directors. And in accordance with our bylaws, I will be presiding at this meeting.

Today’s meeting is being broadcast by live audio webcast. We believe this virtual meeting option will maximize participation of shareholders regardless of their location. Thank you very much to those who are participating virtually today. We will conduct our meeting in 2 parts. First, we will address our formal business — our formal items of business, followed by a question-and-answer session. You may submit questions through the virtual meeting website. An agenda that outlines the order of business for the meeting has been made available.

The matters on which the shareholders at the meeting are voting include: election of the 5 Class A directors identified in the proxy statement; ratification of the Audit Committee’s appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for 2026, approval on an advisory basis of the compensation of the company’s named executive officers; and approval of the amendment and extension of the 2021 Nonemployee Director Stock Plan.

Sarah Madsen, Senior Vice

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NEW YORK — Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) shares gained modestly in midday trading Wednesday, climbing about 0.58% to $606.08 as the company proceeded with a major workforce restructuring involving roughly 8,000 job cuts tied to its push into artificial intelligence.

The stock traded at $606.08, up $3.47, as of approximately 11:44 a.m. EDT on May 20, 2026, with trading volume in line with recent averages. The move came as Meta began notifying employees of layoffs starting in Asia and rolling out in other regions, part of a broader efficiency drive.

Meta reported strong first-quarter results on April 29. Revenue reached $56.31 billion, up 33% from $42.31 billion a year earlier. Net income rose 61% to $26.77 billion, or $10.44 per diluted share, from $16.64 billion, or $6.43 per share. The earnings included an $8.03 billion one-time income tax benefit.

Excluding the tax benefit, adjusted earnings per share stood at approximately $7.31. Operating income increased 30% to $22.87 billion, maintaining a 41% operating margin. Ad impressions grew 19% year-over-year, while average price per ad rose 12%.

Family daily active people averaged 3.56 billion in March 2026, up 4% year-over-year. Headcount stood at 77,986 as of March 31, up 1% from the prior year.

Mark Zuckerberg, Meta founder and CEO, said in the earnings release: “We had a milestone quarter with strong momentum across our apps and the release of our first model from Meta Superintelligence Labs. We’re on track to deliver personal superintelligence to billions of people.”

The company raised its full-year 2026 capital expenditures forecast to $125 billion to $145 billion from a prior range of $115 billion to $135 billion, citing higher component pricing and additional data center costs for AI infrastructure. It guided second-quarter revenue between $58 billion and $61 billion.

Meta announced plans in April for the layoffs, targeting about 10% of its global workforce, or roughly 8,000 positions. Notifications began Wednesday, starting with employees in Singapore at around 4 a.m. local time, followed by other regions. The company also scrapped plans to fill about 6,000 open roles.

In an internal memo shared with employees on May 18, Meta Chief People Officer Janelle Gale detailed additional changes, including reassigning about 7,000 staff to new AI-focused initiatives and eliminating layers of management to create flatter organizational structures. The restructuring affects around 20% of staff when including transfers.

The layoffs and reassignments aim to improve efficiency and redirect resources toward AI development as the company invests heavily in infrastructure. Meta has projected continued strong operating income growth for 2026 despite elevated spending.

Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $81.18 billion at the end of the first quarter. Free cash flow for the period was $12.39 billion. The company paid $1.35 billion in dividends and dividend equivalents.

Meta maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equating to an annual yield of about 0.35% at recent prices. It has returned capital through dividends and share repurchases in prior periods.

The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $520.26 to $796.25. Market capitalization stands near $1.53 trillion. Analysts have offered varied price targets, with some forecasting potential upside toward $1,000 by year-end based on AI-driven growth.

Meta faces ongoing legal and regulatory matters, including scrutiny over youth safety on its platforms. The company warned in its earnings release that such issues “could significantly impact our business and financial results” and noted potential material losses from upcoming U.S. trials.

The company operates Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, with a heavy emphasis on AI enhancements for content recommendation, ad targeting and new experiences. It has released models through Meta Superintelligence Labs and continues work on AI agents and infrastructure.

Industry-wide, major tech firms have adjusted workforces amid AI investments. Meta’s changes include shifting employees to teams focused on applied AI engineering and agent development. Severance packages for laid-off workers include at least 16 weeks of pay plus additional benefits.

Shares reacted negatively after the April earnings release due to the raised capex outlook but have shown resilience in recent sessions amid broader market conditions. The stock closed at $602.61 on May 19, down 1.41% for that session.

Meta expects full-year 2026 total expenses between $162 billion and $169 billion, unchanged from prior guidance. It anticipates its tax rate for remaining quarters at 13% to 16%, absent changes in the tax landscape.

The next earnings report is scheduled for late July. Investors continue to monitor user engagement metrics, ad revenue trends and progress on AI monetization amid competition from other tech giants.

Meta’s balance sheet remains strong, supporting ongoing investments while returning capital to shareholders. The company employed about 78,000 people at the end of 2025 before the current round of changes.

Broader market factors, including interest rates and sector rotation, have influenced trading in recent weeks. Meta has outperformed some peers in advertising revenue growth despite macroeconomic pressures.

The restructuring underscores Meta’s commitment to becoming an AI-first company, with CEO Zuckerberg emphasizing long-term bets on superintelligence and efficiency gains from AI tools.

Despite triumphant headlines from Wall Street, one prominent economic forecaster is sounding the alarm that the U.S. economy is sitting on a razor’s edge.

In a recent interview with TheStreet, Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi placed the probability of a U.S. recession within the next year at 40%, compared to a historical average of about 15%.

“So, 40% is very elevated, very uncomfortable — it gives you a sense of how close I think things are to the edge here,” he said.

LEGENDARY ECONOMIST KNOWN FOR 1969-70 RECESSION PREDICTION WARNS DOWNTURN MAY HIT IN 2026

Though his comments come on the heels of a better-than-expected April jobs report and stocks reaching fresh highs in recent weeks, Zandi pointed out that real disposable income has stalled year over year, showing 0% net growth.

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York on May 19, 2026. (Getty Images)

“Real disposable income — that’s after tax, after accounting for inflation — is no higher today than it was a year ago. So, there’s been no growth in purchasing power, and that’s going to get worse and start declining,” the economist noted, adding that lower- and middle-class consumers are “living more paycheck to paycheck.”

“You’re gonna have to trade down,” Zandi continued. “You can’t have beef — you gotta have chicken.”

The S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow have posted a modest pullback since those fresh highs, which Zandi attributed to strength in artificial intelligence-related companies. He further explained the divergence between corporate equity gains and the broader U.S. economy.

“The stock market’s not the economy. In my 36 years as a professional economist, the stock market’s never been more disjointed from the economy,” he said.

“What’s driving the stock market train is these big hyperscalers and chip companies,” Zandi added. “Valuations are awfully high… except for perhaps during the internet bubble, which didn’t end so well.”

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When it comes to equity investors banking on political intervention, Zandi said traders are increasingly betting that President Donald Trump will adjust policy levers to support the markets or the economy if a correction begins.

“Stock investors are looking at the president, the president’s looking at the stock market. That doesn’t feel like a stable… equilibrium — it’s kind of like a hall of mirrors,” he cautioned.

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The auction will be held on May 26.

“On a review of current and evolving liquidity conditions, it has been decided to conduct a USD/INR buy/sell swap auction of $5 billion for a tenor of three years,” the central bank said in a circular.

This comes on the backdrop of around 6% depreciation of the local currency since the beginning of the Iran wao on February 28. The rupee on Wednesday saw a new closing low of 96.83 a dollar after recovering a bit from the all time low of 96.96 a dollar. In the one-year forward market, the rupee was seen traded over 100 a dollar.

“The dollar-rupee swap is expected to cool down the forward premium from the recent highs, besides improved rupee-liquidity in the banking system” an economist with a foreign bank said.

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The dollar-sell swap move will also boost the country’s forex reserves, he added.
The RBI has been digging its foreign exchange reserves to sell dollars to reduce the rupee volatility. The reserves stood at $696.988 billion at the end of May 8, ass compared to its all-time peak of $728.49 billion seen on February 27,This will be the first dollar-sell swap by the central bank amid the geopolitical conflict, which started on February 28. It had done two such swaps of $10 billion each on February 4 and January 13,

The swap will be in the nature of a simple buy/sell foreign exchange swap from the Reserve Bank side. Banks will sell dollars to the central bank and simultaneously agree to buy the same amount at the end of the swap period.

The auction cut-off would be based on the premium amount in paisa terms up to two decimal points. The market participants would be required to place their bids with the premium that they are willing to pay to the RBI for the tenure of the swap expressed in paisa terms up to two decimal places. Successful bids will get accepted at their respective quoted premium, the central bank said.

NEW YORK — Guardant Health Inc. (NASDAQ: GH) shares surged more than 10% in midday trading Wednesday, reaching $108.28, up $10.08 or 10.27%, as of 11:46 a.m. EDT, extending gains from strong first-quarter results and an upward revision to full-year revenue guidance.

The precision oncology company reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of $301.7 million on May 7, an increase of 48% from $203.5 million in the year-ago period. The results beat analyst estimates of approximately $278 million to $279 million.

Oncology revenue rose 36% to $205.0 million, driven by approximately 86,000 tests, up 47% year-over-year. Screening revenue jumped more than 600% to $41.6 million, with about 44,000 Shield tests performed compared to 9,000 in the prior-year quarter. Biopharma and data revenue increased 17% to $53.0 million.

Helmy Eltoukhy, co-founder and co-CEO, said in the earnings release: “Our first-quarter revenue increased 48% year over year, reflecting strong momentum across the Guardant portfolio.”

AmirAli Talasaz, co-founder and co-CEO, added: “We are pleased with our progress with Shield, including strong volume momentum exiting the first quarter.”

The company raised its 2026 revenue guidance to $1.30 billion to $1.32 billion, representing 32% to 34% growth over 2025. That compares to the prior outlook of $1.25 billion to $1.28 billion.

Non-GAAP gross margin improved to 66% from 65% a year earlier. The company reported a net loss of $112.1 million, or $0.85 per share, compared with a net loss of $95.2 million, or $0.77 per share, in the first quarter of 2025. Non-GAAP loss per share was $0.45, beating consensus estimates of about $0.47.

Guardant Health ended the quarter with strong test volume growth across segments. It has surpassed $1 billion in trailing 12-month revenue, marking a key milestone.

The stock closed at $98.19 on May 19, up 2.64% for that session. Wednesday’s move pushed the shares well above recent levels, with market capitalization exceeding $14 billion. The 52-week range stands at roughly $36 to $120.

Recent analyst actions have been positive. Piper Sandler raised its price target to $135 from $130. JPMorgan increased its target to $135 from $130. Baird lifted its target to $129 from $120. Multiple firms including Barclays, William Blair, Guggenheim and BTIG maintained buy ratings following the earnings report.

The company has formed several partnerships. It announced a nationwide collaboration with Quest Diagnostics to expand access to the Shield colorectal cancer screening test. It launched Shield Multi-Cancer Detection in Asia through a partnership with Manulife. It entered a multi-year strategic collaboration with Nuvalent to develop companion diagnostics using the Guardant Infinity platform.

Guardant Health also received U.S. FDA approval for Guardant360 Liquid CDx. It continues work on submissions to MolDx for broader reimbursement.

Chief Financial Officer Michael Bell discussed operational improvements on the May 7 earnings call, noting progress in cost discipline and higher selling prices contributing to margin gains. The company expects free cash flow burn of $185 million to $195 million for 2026, better than the prior year.

Headcount and infrastructure investments support commercial expansion, particularly for Shield. The test targets colorectal cancer screening in average-risk adults, addressing a large unmet need where compliance with traditional methods remains low.

Analysts project continued growth in both therapy selection and early detection segments. Oncology test reimbursement has improved, supporting average selling prices in the $3,000 to $3,100 range for Guardant360 Liquid.

The broader precision oncology market has seen increased adoption of liquid biopsy technologies. Guardant Health competes with firms offering similar blood-based genomic profiling while differentiating through its screening pipeline.

Insider activity included sales by executives in recent weeks. Co-CEO AmirAli Talasaz sold shares in May, consistent with planned trading programs. Such transactions do not reflect changes in operational outlook.

Guardant Health, headquartered in Palo Alto, California, employs approximately 2,500 people. It focuses on liquid and tissue biopsies for therapy selection, monitoring and early detection across multiple cancer types.

The company has expanded internationally and through laboratory partnerships to increase test accessibility. Its Guardant Infinity platform supports multiomic analysis for drug development and companion diagnostics.

Investors continue to monitor quarterly test volumes, reimbursement trends and progress toward profitability. The raised guidance reflects confidence in sustained commercial momentum and partnership contributions.

Shares have shown volatility typical of growth-oriented health care stocks but have trended higher year-to-date on execution of clinical and commercial milestones. Upcoming catalysts include further regulatory decisions and additional data readouts from Shield and other programs.

Guardant Health reiterated its long-term strategy of reinvesting in scale initiatives for product innovation, commercial reach and operational efficiency. It aims to maintain leadership in the liquid biopsy space while expanding into multi-cancer early detection.

The midday surge on May 20 came amid broader market conditions and sector rotation toward health care names with strong growth profiles. Trading volume exceeded recent averages as the stock approached levels not seen consistently since earlier in the year.