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Sales automation platform, LeadSquared recently announced that it has secured an investment of USD $153mn in the Series C funding round from WestBridge Capital.

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Founded by Nilesh Patel, Prashant Singh, and Sudhakar Gorti in 2011, LeadSquared's vision is to make high-velocity sales execution software a growth engine for companies around the globe.

LeadSquared has built a global, best-in-class sales platform that takes away the guesswork from sales execution and makes efficiency the focus of every customer interaction, no matter how complex the customer journey. It now serves more than 2,000 customers globally.

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"We are grateful for the support of our investors as we strive to build LeadSquared into a globally significant business. With this financing, we will double down on growth investments in India and North America, start building in APAC and EMEA, add new offerings to our product portfolio, and fund acquisitions. To support our growth, we plan to double our headcount in the next 18 months," shared Nilesh Patel, Founder & CEO, LeadSquared.

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Remarking on the investment, Sumir Chadha, Co-founder and Managing Director at WestBridge Capital, said, "LeadSquared has shown a remarkable ability to scale and grow efficiently. Its core SaaS metrics are unique and best-in-class in the industry. Its focus on building an easy-to-use platform that transforms sales processes through automation delivering unparalleled efficiency, has significant potential for growth in the global market. Future of LeadSquared is very exciting to us and we look forward to a long partnership with the company."

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Gaja Capital's Managing Partner, Gopal Jain opined, "LeadSquared is fast emerging as a category leader in high-velocity sales execution software. Nilesh and the team have built a strong platform with robust unit economics. With this round, the company has the balance sheet strength to further invest for growth in India as well as international markets, especially the US. We look forward to LeadSquared being the engine of growth for ambitious companies in India and around the world."

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LeadSquared is the growth partner for organizations in higher education, edtech, professional education, healthcare, financial services. LeadSquared is headquartered in Bengaluru, India alongside its presence in the United States, APAC and EMEA.

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The company's existing investors include Gaja Capital, IFC, and Stakeboat Capital.

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Barclays acted as the exclusive placement agent for the Series C funding.

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LogicSource's recent expansion to Charleston County, South Carolina provides our organization with a wealth of opportunities to enhance our services, offerings, and the businesses we serve. But it also offers a unique opportunity to lend our support to a new community and align ourselves with those looking to make a difference. As we establish our new roots in the Lowcountry, LogicSource was proud to be a premier sponsor of this year's Women for Women Summit presented by the College of Charleston School of Business.

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At LogicSource, we wouldn't be the company we are today without the strong, powerful women throughout our ranks. Comprised of more than 45% women, with an even higher percentage represented in leadership roles – women have been instrumental in driving our organization forward. LogicSource benefits greatly from a focus on gender diversity, and as a result, we wanted to continue to amplify female leadership voices and showcase Procurement's potential to set the pace for gender diversity in leadership.

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"This was an inspiring event that we hope to be a part of in Charleston for years to come," said Jessica Buchok, LogicSource's General Counsel and one of many from LogicSource to participate in this year's event, including Niki Heim - CFO / CAO, Teal Williams - Managing Director, Marketing Sourcing Practice, Malinda Long - Director, Talent Acquisition, Crystal Malin - Managing Director, Sourcing and Procurement, and Adrienne Moreland - Director, Procurement. "Each one of us left the Women for Women Summit feeling a stronger sense of purpose, empowered to take bold new steps, and help each other along our unique leadership journeys."

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Created for women by women, the Summit aims to celebrate, elevate, and build connections with women from all industries and backgrounds, and provides a catalyst for those looking to advance in their personal and professional lives. The event highlights women's accomplishments in their fields while sharing the insights, wins, and lessons learned to inspire the next generation of female leaders.

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All across the globe, women have been breaking barriers and shattering the glass ceiling. Yet the impact of the pandemic has provided even more evidence of the determination they show every day in navigating a new set of challenges, both at home and in the workplace. It's no surprise that this year's Summit theme was focused around "grit" and the strength of character women have shown as they pursue their career and personal aspirations.

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This year's event included a wide range of insightful speakers who are blazing the trail for women in leadership roles, including South Carolina Lt. Governor - Pamala Evette, Lau Acquisition Corporation Founder and CEO - Joanna Lau, 2022 Woman of Courage Award Recipient and South Carolina Ports Authority COO - Barbara Melvin, Nephrom Pharameuctical CEO - Lou Kennedy, and many more.

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LogicSource prides itself in aligning our organization with causes that help the communities we serve, from the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, The Boys and Girls Club of America, The Multiple Myeloma Foundation, and more. We are proud to include the Women for Women Summit and the College of Charleston as our most recent partners and look forward to continuing to strengthen our mission of service and support.

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The Allspring Income Opportunities Fund (NYSE American: EAD), the Allspring Multi-Sector Income Fund (NYSE American: ERC), and the Allspring Utilities and High Income Fund (NYSE American: ERH) have each announced a distribution.

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These funds make distributions in accordance with a managed distribution plan that provides for the declaration of monthly distributions to common shareholders of the fund at an annual minimum fixed rate of 7% for the Allspring Utilities and High Income Fund, 8% for the Allspring Income Opportunities Fund, and 9% for the Allspring Multi-Sector Income Fund based on the fund's average monthly net asset value (NAV) per share over the prior 12 months. Under the managed distribution plan, distributions are sourced from income and also may be sourced from paid-in capital and/or capital gains. The fund's distributions in any period may be more or less than the net return earned by the fund on its investments and therefore should not be used as a measure of performance or confused with yield or income. Distributions in excess of fund returns will cause the fund's NAV to decline. Investors should not draw any conclusions about the fund's investment performance from the amount of its distribution or from the terms of its managed distribution plan.

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The Allspring Income Opportunities Fund is a closed-end high-yield bond fund. The fund's investment objective is to seek a high level of current income. The fund may, as a secondary objective, seek capital appreciation to the extent it is consistent with its investment objective.

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The Allspring Multi-Sector Income Fund is a closed-end income fund. The fund's investment objective is to seek a high level of current income consistent with limiting its overall exposure to domestic interest rate risk.

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The Allspring Utilities and High Income Fund is a closed-end equity and high-yield bond fund. The fund's investment objective is to seek a high level of current income and moderate capital growth with an emphasis on providing tax-advantaged dividend income.

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For more information on Allspring's closed-end funds, please visit www.allspringglobal.com.

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These closed-end funds are no longer available in public offerings and are only offered through broker-dealers on the secondary market. A closed-end fund is not required to buy its shares back from investors upon request. Shares of a fund may trade at either a premium or discount relative to the fund's net asset value, and there can be no assurance that any discount will decrease. The values of, and/or the income generated by, securities held by a fund may decline due to general market conditions or other factors, including those directly involving the issuers of such securities.

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Equity securities fluctuate in value in response to factors specific to the issuer of the security. Debt securities are subject to credit risk and interest rate risk, and high-yield securities and unrated securities of similar credit quality have a much greater risk of default and their values tend to be more volatile than higher-rated securities with similar maturities. Foreign investments may contain more risk due to the inherent risks associated with changing political climates, foreign market instability, and foreign currency fluctuations. Risks of international investing are magnified in emerging or developing markets. Funds that concentrate their investments in a single industry or sector may face increased risk of price fluctuation over more diversified funds due to adverse developments within that industry or sector. Small- and mid-cap securities may be subject to special risks associated with narrower product lines and limited financial resources compared with their large-cap counterparts. Each fund is leveraged through a revolving credit facility and also may incur leverage by issuing preferred shares in the future.

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The use of leverage results in certain risks, including, among others, the likelihood of greater volatility of the net asset value and the market price of common shares. Derivatives involve additional risks, including interest rate risk, credit risk, the risk of improper valuation, and the risk of noncorrelation to the relevant instruments they are designed to hedge or closely track. There are numerous risks associated with transactions in options on securities.

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Allspring Global Investments™ is the trade name for the asset management firms of Allspring Global Investments Holdings, LLC, a holding company indirectly owned by certain private funds of GTCR LLC and Reverence Capital Partners, L.P. These firms include but are not limited to Allspring Global Investments, LLC, and Allspring Funds Management, LLC. Certain products managed by Allspring entities are distributed by Allspring Funds Distributor, LLC (a broker-dealer and Member FINRA/SIPC). Associated with Allspring is Galliard Capital Management, LLC (an investment advisor that is not part of the Allspring trade name/GIPS firm).

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This material is for general informational and educational purposes only and is NOT intended to provide investment advice or a recommendation of any kind—including a recommendation for any specific investment, strategy, or plan.

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Some of the information contained herein may include forward-looking statements about the expected investment activities of the funds. These statements provide no assurance as to the funds' actual investment activities or results. Readers must make their own assessment of the information contained herein and consider such other factors as they may deem relevant to their individual circumstances.

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The Players’ Lounge (TPL), a Web 3.0 focused platform built to empower relationships between current and former college athletes and their respective fanbases, today announces its expansion with student-athletes at seven new universities: Auburn University, Clemson University, University of Alabama, Louisiana State University, University of Oklahoma, University of Tennessee and University of Texas. To celebrate the launches and growth into eight total markets, The Players’ Lounge will host The TPL Kick-off, the ultimate fan experience event, at the College Football Hall of Fame on July 23, 2022, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. featuring more than 60 athletes from all nine TPL schools, along with special guests including former college football greats from each of the schools.

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“When we first concepted The Players’ Lounge last Fall, I never thought we’d be where we are today, partnering with some of the best college athletes in the country, and providing unforgettable experiences to some of the biggest fan bases in all of sports,” states Keith Marshall, Co-CEO of The Players’ Lounge. “This event is the culmination of the incredible work of our team, our school ambassadors and the student-athletes that have entrusted us through NIL. We look forward to an amazing event that hopefully captures the essence of what TPL is all about; athlete empowerment, engagement, and community.”

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Student-athletes attending the TPL Kick-off include the following schools:

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Alabama
Rashad Johnson
Brian Branch
Trey Sanders
Demarco Hellams
Kristian Story
Cameron Latu
Malachi Moore
Terrion Arnold
Dallas Turner
Myra Gordon
Khyree Jackson
Tyler Booker

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Auburn
TJ Finley
Keiondre Jones
Nehemiah Pritchett
Jaylin Simpson
Derick Hall
Shedrick Jackson
Owen Pappoe
Tyler Fromm
Jaylin Williams
Wendell Green
Zep Jasper

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Clemson
BT Potter
Ben Boulware
Trenton Simpson
Tyler Davis
Tyler Venables
Jordan McFadden
KJ Henry
Joseph Ngata

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Oklahoma
Joshua Eaton
DJ Graham
Danny Stutsman
Trey Morrison
Jalen Redmond
Olivia Trautman
Ragan Smith

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Texas
Luke Brockermeyer
Derrick Johnson
Bryan Jones
Byron Murphy
Justice Finkley
Roschon Johnson
Jordan Whittington
Jaylon Guilbeau
Tanner Witt

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Tennessee
Brandon Turnage
Jabari Small
Jeremy Banks
Tyler Baron
Tre Flowers
Cooper Mays
Cedric Tillman

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The Players’ Lounge utilizes Web 3.0 technologies to connect communities of fans and their respective student-athletes through the purchase of NFTs, which serve as fans' subscriptions and unlock a variety of utilities from exclusive message boards to in-person events. Fifty percent of the proceeds from the sales go directly to the student-athlete partners.

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More information around how fans can attend the event is to come. What we know for sure is that fans who hold TPLs DGD Mafia NFT as well as a Bayou Cat Crew NFT from the pre-sale on June 25th will be entered for a chance to attend the event which will feature:

• Exclusive speakers from across the schools, the college sports landscape and favorite college football broadcasters
• A lounge featuring pool tables, arcade style games, and more
• A Madden tournament featuring players vs. fans
• Open bar and light bites, and more

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“At the College Football Hall of Fame, we pride ourselves on hosting some of the most exclusive events in the country. This TPL Kick-off party will certainly join the ranks of one of our best experiences connecting fans with their favorite athletes,” says Kimberly Beaudin, CEO and President of the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame. “We believe in celebrating excellence on and off the field and these student-athletes are among the best and brightest of their generation. It is an honor to participate in bringing these athletes together to share exclusive experiences with their die-hard fans.”

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More details will be unveiled in the coming months including speakers, attendees and sponsors.

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To learn more about the event, become a sponsor or sign up to attend, visit: https://www.theplayerslounge.io/kickoff-party

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To join The Players’ Lounge community, visit https://www.theplayerslounge.io/.

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EZ Newswire
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JDC Group, a Consulting Solutions Company, announced today that it has been named as one of "Atlanta's Best and Brightest Companies to Work For®" in 2022 by the National Association for Business Resources (NABR).

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Since 2005, JDC Group has earned a national reputation as one of the leading technology workforce solutions providers, helping companies drive successful SAP transformation initiatives by delivering scalable, flexible solutions. A silver partner in the SAP® PartnerEdge® program, JDC Group provides architecture, migration, and implementation programs utilizing highly specialized SAP consultants and practitioners with a focus across multiple industries.

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Companies receiving the NABR Best and Brightest recognition were assessed by an independent research firm, with applicants scored on: Compensation, Benefits, and Employee Solutions; Creative, Wellness, and Wellbeing Solutions; Employee Enrichment, Engagement, and Retention; Employee Education and Development; Recruitment and Selection; Employee Achievement and Recognition; Communication and Shared Vision; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Work-Life Blend; Community Initiatives and Corporate Responsibility; and Leadership, Strategy, and Company Performance.

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"We're honored to be recognized as a 'Best and Brightest' company for 2022 and view it as a validation of our ongoing commitment to our employees," said JDC Group President Greg Beyer. "We're able to provide exemplary technology workforce solutions because of our highly skilled teams, so it's a core mission of our organization to ensure their continual job satisfaction, career fulfillment, and wellbeing."

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"JDC Group as well as the entire family of Consulting Solutions companies are laser-focused on exceptional HR practices to ensure that we continue to keep top talent with us to support our clients," said Michael Werblun, CEO of Consulting Solutions. "We're excited that JDC Group has received this year's Best and Brightest recognition for its Atlanta operations. Every employee is important to us, and we look forward to continuing to raise the bar in terms of the work environment we create for our teams."

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"These 2022 winning organizations have stood out during unpredictable times and have proven they are an employer of choice," said Jennifer Kluge, President and CEO of NABR and The Best and Brightest Program. "They continue to keep the needs of their employees first and provide perks that include development, wellbeing, work-life balance, rewards, and recognition. In addition, these winning companies offer a fantastic work culture and workplace environment that attract and retain superior employees."

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To see all winners of the 2022 Atlanta Best and Brightest Companies to Work For, click here.

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Georgia Power today filed a request with the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) that would enable the company to continue making investments in strengthening and further securing the electric grid, transforming its power generation to include cleaner and more economical energy resources and continue improving the customer experience.

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"We take our responsibility to plan, prepare and make the investments needed to meet our customers' energy needs today, tomorrow and for years to come seriously, and Georgia Power's request to the Georgia Public Service Commission today outlines and supports that focus," said Chris Womack, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power. "As our state continues to grow and the energy landscape rapidly evolves, we recognize and respect our customers' focus on the reliability and resiliency of Georgia's electric system, the expansion of our clean energy resources and Georgia Power's continued ability to safely and reliably meet their energy needs. This request reinforces our commitment to meeting those needs while continuing to provide clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy for generations of Georgians."

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The request supports Georgia Power's focus on the following:

• Strengthening the electric grid through investments in the company's transmission and distribution systems and the continuation of its Grid Investment Plan (GIP) to support customers' long-term reliability and resiliency needs. Many of these investments are required to protect the reliability and resiliency of our electric grid.
• Transforming how it makes energy, including the continued transition of the company's power generation to cleaner and more economical resources for customers, including renewables such as solar.
• Enhancing operations and improving customer experience through investments in technology that will help enable Georgia Power to continue delivering exceptional service to customers while meeting their evolving energy needs.

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If approved, customer rates would increase a total of just under 12% over the next three years, which is lower than the current projected rate of inflation. As outlined in the filing, the typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatthours per month would see an increase of $14.32 per month on their bill in 2023, $1.35 per month in 2024 and $0.62 per month in 2025, for a total increase of $16.29 over the three-year period. The company has helped offset the rising cost of doing business through reduced operating costs, managing storm cost recovery and making smart financing decisions.

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Strengthening the Electric Grid

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Georgia Power is continuously investing in the power grid to make it smarter and more reliable, and today's filing looks to continue those efforts. The company is seeking to build upon its ongoing investments in its transmission and distribution system to further provide safe, reliable and secure electric service to its customers. Over the next three years, the company expects to invest nearly $7 billion more in transmission and distribution improvements, including $2.2 billion in the company's on-going multi-year GIP.

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Over the last ten years, Georgia Power has invested nearly $10 billion to strengthen the reliability and resiliency of its network for the benefit of the communities and people it serves. This amount includes approximately $4.9 billion invested in transmission and distribution infrastructure since January 2020 and projected through December 2022, of which $1.5 billion relates to the company's GIP. Examples of critical investments the company has made and look to continue include:

• deploying advanced control and monitoring technologies, including additional self-healing distribution networks, to enhance the company's ability to sectionalize parts of the electric grid to isolate issues and reroute power to serve customers;
• replacing framing hardware to improve insulation levels and protect equipment; and
• enhancing substations, replacing transformers and moving powerlines underground.

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These investments have improved reliability, reduced both the number and duration of outages, minimized repair time and contributed to a better customer experience. The investments proposed in this request are a continuation of these enhancements that have increased reliability.

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Investing in Renewables and Cleaner Energy Resources

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As presented in the company's 2022 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) filed earlier this year, Georgia Power is looking to continue transforming how it produces energy, transitioning its power generation fleet to more economical and cleaner generation resources that will produce significant, long-term benefits for customers. The company is deploying new and expanded resources in solar, wind, hydro and energy storage to continue reducing carbon emission. This rate request would support that transformation and the proposed retirement of approximately 3,600 megawatts (MW) of coal- and oil-fired generation by 2028, replacing it with more economical generation and supporting investment in the transmission infrastructure necessary to facilitate the continued growth of renewables and to provide customers access to these lower cost and lower-carbon emitting resources.        

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To support the transition, Georgia Power will continue serving customers with a diverse, balanced generation fleet of reliable, resilient and economical resources, which includes adding cost-effective renewable resources. Working within the state's constructive regulatory framework, Georgia Power has continued developing renewable resources in a way that benefits customers, positioning the company as a national leader in renewable energy growth. Georgia Power currently has one of the largest voluntary renewable portfolios in the country, with more than 3,100 MW of renewable resources already online and an additional 2,400 MW under development. The company is also planning to double its renewable generation by adding 6,000 MW by 2035, which includes a request for approval of 2,300 MW* in its 2022 IRP. This new capacity would expand the company's renewable resource portfolio to approximately 11,500 MW by 2035.

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The addition of these renewable resources and the retirement of uneconomic coal- and oil-fired units will enable Georgia Power to continue to operate its generation fleet efficiently, reliably and affordably for customers. To read more about Georgia Power's energy plans for the future, visit www.GeorgiaPower.com/IRP.

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Enhancing the Customer Experience

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Georgia Power is focused on continuously improving for the benefit of customers, including enhancing how customers can communicate with the company, pay their bills and manage their energy usage. In response to customers' changing preferences, the company has enhanced customer communications and provided additional and more flexible payment options, enrolling nearly 500,000 customers in outage alerts, eliminating credit and debit card payments fees, increasing the number of Authorized Payment Locations across the state, extending the bill payment timeframe by five days and more.

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Over the next three years, Georgia Power will continue this focus and plans to invest nearly $700 million in technologies that will enhance operations and benefit customers. These include:

• Customer Information System (CIS) – Implementation of a new CIS will integrate customer information into a single platform that enables customer service employees to quickly access customer information, thereby allowing them to provide customers with more comprehensive and timely solutions.
• Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS) – DERMS is an integrated software resource platform that offers real-time visibility into the impact of distributed energy resources on the electric system and allows for enhanced monitoring and operational capabilities. A robust DERMS platform will enable Georgia Power to integrate distributed energy resources with both system and fleet operations.
• Technologies to support the continued electrification of transportation – Over the next three years, Georgia Power will increase investments in community electric vehicle (EV) charging facilities and necessary electric transportation infrastructure upgrades to support customer EV charging. In addition to these capital infrastructure upgrades, the rate request continues various rebates for homebuilders and residential and commercial customers to accommodate growth in EV charging across the state.

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Additionally, the company is working on developing a new, enhanced mobile app that will simplify mobile transactions, provide direct communications with customers impacted by service outages and notify customers regarding company offerings for which they qualify. Georgia Power is also developing a virtual platform that will help customers by answering general questions and processing a variety of customer transactions and plans to release a digital wallet option later this year, which will allow customers to make payments conveniently from their mobile devices and more.

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Energy Assistance

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Georgia Power has a long-standing history of assisting income-qualified customers with programs and resources to aid them in lowering and paying their bills, and those will continue in this rate request. Program details are available at www.GeorgiaPower.com/EnergyAssistance, including details on:

• Senior citizen discount – Georgia Power offers a senior citizen discount of up to $24 per bill to customers 65 years of age or older who qualify based on their income. In this rate request, the company is proposing to increase this discount by $2.27 in its filing for a total discount of up to $26.27 per bill.
• Project SHARE – In partnership with the Salvation Army, customers can donate $1, $2, $5, or $10 on their monthly bill to support their neighbors in need. Georgia Power matches each dollar donated with $1.50 up to a total match of $1.5 million annually. Since its inception in 1986, Georgia Power and its customers have donated more than $72 million to the program.
• Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) – Georgia Power supports the Division of Family & Children Services through LIHEAP, which is available every year from November to May, and helps low-income households pay for heating and cooling their homes.
• Home Energy Efficiency Assistance Program (HEEAP) – Income-qualified Georgia Power customers may be eligible for free, energy-efficiency home improvements. From improved attic insulation to smart thermostats that can help manage their home's temperature, these type of home improvements can help qualified customers save energy and reduce their bills.

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Additionally, the company offers a variety of flexible and customizable rate plans and payment options to help manage electric bills. Being on the most economical rate plan for a customer's use is one of the most effective ways to keep energy costs low. Customers can explore Georgia Power rate plans and billing options on www.GeorgiaPower.com, including:

• FlatBill –This plan offers a 12-month fixed price that will not vary as usage does – eliminating surprises and preventing higher bills during the summer and other peak usage months.
• PrePay – Customers can take control of when and how much they pay with PrePay. This program provides customers with more flexibility to manage their budget and energy use, while also enjoying the benefits of no deposit requirement, credit check, or reconnect fees.
• Budget Billing – Offered to Georgia Power customers to reduce large fluctuations in their bill due to seasonal peaks, Budget Billing spreads a customer's total annual electric costs over 12 equal monthly payments.

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Rate Case Process

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Today's filing initiates a series of additional filings and public hearings with the Georgia PSC. At the conclusion of this open and transparent process, the Georgia PSC is expected to vote on the company's rate case in December. The request seeks to continue the investments approved in Georgia Power's 2019 Rate Case, so that the company can continue to deliver clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy to customers. If approved, the proposed rates would take effect beginning January 1, 2023.

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* REC Disclaimer: Georgia Power purchases only the null energy output from some renewable generating facilities that have contracted to sell that energy to Georgia Power. Ownership of the associated renewable energy credits (RECs) is specified in each respective power purchase agreement. The party that owns the RECs retains the right to use them.

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Sonida Senior Living, Inc. (the “Company” or “Sonida Senior Living”) (NYSE: SNDA), one of the nation’s leading senior living owner-operators, announced the appointment of Tim Cober, CPA, as Chief Accounting Officer, effective July 1, 2022. Cober joins Sonida Senior Living from Spire Hospitality, a national third-party hospitality management company, where he most recently served as Vice President of Accounting. Cober will succeed Howard Garfield whose last day with the Company will be July 1, 2022.

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“Tim is a hands-on and results-driven accounting and finance executive with extensive experience leading large teams through organizational change to improve internal processes and systems. Tim has proven business acumen in mergers, acquisitions and portfolio optimization encompassing the full business lifecycle,” said Kevin Detz, Chief Financial Officer. “We are delighted to welcome him to the Sonida team.”

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During his time at Spire Hospitality, Cober was involved in multiple strategic initiatives, including the accounting oversight of complex hotel joint venture structures and corporate accounting with varying bases of accounting, including U.S. GAAP, tax and cash. He was responsible for cash management, forecasting and reporting for all Spire Hospitality entities, and he oversaw the status and completion of annual financial and internal audits performed by various national and regional audit firms.

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Prior to that, Cober held roles as a Vice President and Corporate Controller and Vice President of Accounting Operations for two leading healthcare organizations. Notably, he transformed the accounting departments at both companies to reduce contract labor, streamline processes and support organizational growth and efficiency.

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Earlier in his career, Cober served as Vice President of Central Accounting for Aimbridge Hospitality and was responsible for the Hotel Accounting Department, encompassing approximately $5 billion in revenues, 800 hotels and a staff of 100 professionals.

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At the beginning of his career, Cober spent several years as an Assurance Senior for Ernst & Young primarily serving private and public clients in real estate, hospitality and private equity and a Financial Services Associate for Chapman Hext, & Co. P.C.

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“This is a time of significant opportunity for Sonida and its stakeholders. I’m honored to accept the role of Chief Accounting Officer,” said Cober. “I look forward to joining the Company and being part of this exceptional team as we contribute to the Company’s important mission.”

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Cober graduated with a degree in Accounting from University of Texas, Arlington, and is a Certified Public Accountant.

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EZ Newswire
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Best-selling children's author Emberli Pridham will preview her new book series - A Real Life Fairy Tale (www.areallifefairytale.com) Princess Diana with a celebration event to take place at renowned fashion destination Veronica Beard Southampton, New York on Saturday June 25 from 2 to 4pm. Ms. Pridham will read excerpts from her book as well as sign copies with proceeds benefitting Centrepoint, a UK charity that provides shelter and support to homeless teenaged girls and young women.

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Princess Diana: A Real-Life Fairy Tale The first in a series of illustrated biographies that chronicles the lives of renowned women who went from relative anonymity to become global icons whose contributions changed the world.

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Ms. Pridham gained national recognition as co-author If Not You, Then Who? (www.ifnotyoubooks.com) the highly regarded and top-selling book series that introduces children to the magical world of inventors and inventions - all the while helping to build imaginations and encourage their own creativity.

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Combining thought-provoking text and original illustrations, each book in Ms. Pridham's Real-Life Fairy Tale series is designed to introduce children to several of the most distinguished women in contemporary history and inspire them with their lives and legacies.

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Princess Diana: A Real-Life Fairy Tale takes young readers through her growing up years as a spunky girl in Norfolk, England to her courtship by Queen Elizabeth's son, Prince Charles and her emergence as one of contemporary history's most accomplished fighters for social change, taking her place on the world stage where she made a profound difference to the lives of millions by leading with grace, compassion and empathy.

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Prior to launching into her Real-Life Fairy Tale biography series, Ms. Pridham has co-authored five titles in the popular If Not You, Then Who? series which have gone on to achieve #1 rankings in key Amazon Best Seller categories including How Things Workbooks, Children's Inventors Books, Children's Jobs & Careers Books, Children's Technology Fiction Books, and Children's Girls and Women's Books.

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Princess Diana: A Real-Life Fairy Tale will be available at Barnes&Noble.com, Amazon, www.reallifefairytale.com and through all other online booksellers, as well as at select booksellers and retailers nationwide.

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Veronica Beard Southampton is located at 84 Main Street, Southampton, New York.

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EZ Newswire
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Jeff McElfresh, chief operating officer, AT&T Inc.* (NYSE:T), spoke today at the Bank of America C-Suite TMT Conference where he provided an update to shareholders.

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McElfresh reiterated that AT&T has taken a disciplined approach to growth and investment and made the following points:

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• The company continues to grow customer relationships in its strategic focus areas of 5G and fiber. McElfresh stated the company continues to see healthy consumer demand even with continued expectations that 2022 postpaid wireless industry demand is unlikely to replicate 2021 levels. AT&T continues to successfully attract high-value customers with its consistent, simple go-to-market strategy and efficient distribution.

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• McElfresh remains comfortable that the company can deliver improving postpaid phone ARPU trends in 2022. He reiterated prior commentary from the company that postpaid phone ARPU could edge up sequentially in the second quarter.

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• McElfresh stated the one of the company’s top priorities is improvement in profit trends, particularly as select transformation investments drive incremental efficiencies throughout AT&T. As noted previously, the company continues to anticipate gradual improvement in year-over-year mobility EBITDA trends throughout 2022. The company expects a more pronounced impact from the previously announced 3G network shutdown and the absence of approximately $100 million in CAF II and FirstNet related reimbursements in the second quarter. However, the revenue and EBITDA impacts of these items are expected to be more than mitigated in the second half of year by organic service revenue growth and the lapping of 3G shutdown costs in the second half of 2021.

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• AT&T’s fiber build continues to progress with expectations to achieve 30+ million total customer locations by 2025. McElfresh noted that AT&T is acquiring new customers and seeing strong penetration rates thanks to its straightforward go-to-market approach.

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• AT&T continues to work through its business wireline portfolio rationalization process and focus its efforts on core transport and connectivity solutions. As previously noted, the company has yet to see a recovery in government sector demand trends, which impacted the business during the first quarter

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NexPoint Advisors, L.P., investment adviser to the NexPoint Diversified Real Estate Trust ("NXDT" and together with affiliated entities "NexPoint"), today announced the extension of the offering period for its previously announced offer to purchase Shares of Beneficial Interest (the "Shares") of United Development Funding IV ("UDFI" or the "Company") at a price of $1.10 per Share upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Offer to Purchase and in the related Assignment Form for the offer (which together constitute the "Offer" and the "Tender Offer Documents"). The Offer is now scheduled to expire at 12:00 midnight, Eastern Time, at the end of the day on July 22, 2022, unless the Offer is extended or earlier terminated. The Tender Offer Documents are available at www.UDFITenderOffer.com, or from the information agent for the Offer, as discussed below.

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As previously announced on December 14, 2020, the Offer is conditioned upon, among other things, the satisfaction or waiver of the following conditions: (i) there shall not have been threatened, instituted, or pending any action or proceeding before any court or any governmental or administrative agency (a) challenging the acquisition of shares pursuant to the Offer or otherwise relating in any manner to the Offer, or (b) in the sole judgment of NexPoint, otherwise materially adversely affecting the Company; (ii) NexPoint shall have received all required governmental approvals, if any, for the Offer; (iii) NexPoint shall have had the opportunity to conduct sufficient due diligence to determine whether the offered price per share is reasonable given the current financial condition and results of operations of UDFI; (iv) the Board of Trustees of UDFI shall have waived in writing the ownership limitations set forth in Article VII of the Declaration of Trust of UDFI as such limitations would otherwise apply to the Offer; and (v) NexPoint shall have received satisfactory evidence that UDFI has continued to qualify as a real estate investment trust ("REIT") under federal tax laws and thereby to avoid any entity-level federal income or excise tax.

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NXDT is in the process of converting from an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 into a real estate investment trust ("REIT").  In connection with that conversion, NXDT dropped down certain of its investments to a single-member, wholly owned limited liability company subsidiary, NexPoint Real Estate Opportunities ("NREO"), which is reflected as a portfolio company of NXDT.  NexPoint Advisors, L.P., external adviser to NXDT and NREO, continues to have investment and voting power over the UDF IV Common Shares.  Accordingly, NexPoint continues to beneficially own the UDF IV Common Shares it had previously reported to the SEC on its last Schedule 13D.

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On January 8, 2021, UDFI announced that it had reduced the percentage of outstanding Shares that a shareholder may own from 9.8% to 5.0%. The Company took such action in an effort to frustrate the Offer. It also announced it amended the Company's bylaws to require that certain legal actions could be brought on behalf of or against UDFI only in certain courts in Maryland. NexPoint is reviewing these actions and their legality under applicable law.

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Shareholders should read the Offer to Purchase and the related materials carefully because they contain important information. Shareholders may obtain a free copy of the Offer to Purchase and the Assignment Form from D.F. King & Co., Inc., the information agent for the Offer (the "Information Agent"), by calling toll-free at (800) 331-7543. THE OFFER WILL EXPIRE AT 12:00 MIDNIGHT, EASTERN TIME, AT THE END OF THE DAY ON JULY 22, 2022, UNLESS THE OFFER IS EXTENDED OR EARLIER TERMINATED.

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Primoris Services Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select: PRIM) (“Primoris” or the “Company”) today announced a solar project with an estimated value of $260 million. The contract was secured by the Company’s Energy/Renewables Segment.

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“The organic growth of our utility-scale solar business is one measure of the success of our energy transition strategy,” said Tom McCormick, President and Chief Executive Officer of Primoris. “With over 3,200 megawatts of solar power projects under construction currently in 2022, Primoris ranks as one of the leading EPC contractors in the space. This contract brings our year-to-date total of new solar business to more than half of a billion dollars.”

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The award is for the engineering, procurement and construction of a utility-scale solar facility in the South. Initial project construction will begin in the third quarter of 2022 with completion of the project expected in the fourth quarter of 2023.

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Please see the statement below from David Smith, CEO of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (“Sonic'' or the “Company”) (NYSE:SAH), on the passing of the Company’s founder and executive chairman Bruton Smith.

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“Yesterday, our company’s founder, executive chairman, and my father, Bruton Smith, passed away. He lived a truly remarkable life fulfilling his love for the automobile business, motorsports, philanthropy and most of all his family. I’m forever grateful for the countless opportunities he gave me and invaluable lessons he taught me about life, business, leadership, and the importance of giving back. I’m honored to work with our company’s Board of Directors, leadership team, and over 10,000 teammates to continue executing the vision he had for our company. Today and in the years ahead, Sonic Automotive will honor my father’s legacy through our company’s commitment to our guests, teammates, manufacturer partners, and communities we serve. Bruton Smith was not only an amazing entrepreneur and businessman, he was an even greater dad and my best friend. I used to tell him often that if everyone had a dad like him the world would be a much better place.” David Smith, CEO of Sonic Automotive, Inc.

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Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) today announced three changes in the company's executive management team.

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• Nabanita Nag is appointed Executive Vice President & Chief Legal Officer.
• Jason Morris is appointed Vice President Law.
• Wai Wong is appointed Vice President Labor Relations.

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"These moves enhance the leadership of our Law Division, strengthen our ability to deliver long-term shareholder value, and demonstrate our deep bench of executive talent," said President and CEO Alan Shaw.

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Nabanita Nag joined Norfolk Southern in August 2020 as General Counsel Corporate. She was elevated to Senior Vice President & Chief Legal Officer in March 2022. In her new role, Nag will oversee Law, Government Relations, and Audit & Compliance, as well as the Corporate Secretary's office.

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"Nabanita is a strategic thinker and collaborative leader who has made an immediate impact on our company," Shaw said. "By bringing our Law, Government Relations, and Audit & Compliance teams together under Nabanita's leadership, we strengthen alignment across these departments as we engage with stakeholders on issues of importance to our company and the nation's economy."

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Prior to joining Norfolk Southern, Nag served as Vice President & Corporate Counsel in the Financial Management Law Group at Prudential Financial. Before that, she was Vice President & Associate General Counsel in the Finance & Corporate Legal Group at Goldman Sachs and associate attorney with Shearman & Sterling. She is a graduate of New York University School of Law and holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Government from Georgetown University.

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Jason Morris joined Norfolk Southern's Law department in 2010, handling safety, labor, and employment issues. He later moved to the company's Safety & Environmental Department, serving as System Director Safety before being promoted to Assistant Vice President in 2018. In June 2021, he was named Vice President Labor Relations.

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"Jason is a skilled lawyer and effective leader who returns to the Law department with strong institutional knowledge and a broad range of experiences at Norfolk Southern," Shaw said. "His experience in Labor Relations will be especially valuable in his new role."

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Morris, a U.S. Air Force veteran, previously served as a legislative director in the U.S. House of Representatives and as a logistics readiness officer in the Virginia Air National Guard. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, the University of Virginia School of Law, and the Executive Development Program at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

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Wai Wong, currently Assistant Vice President Human Resources, joined Norfolk Southern in 2015 as Assistant General Solicitor, where he handled labor and employment law. He then progressed through a series of roles including Counsel, Technology and Strategic Communications, and Director Employee Experience.

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"Wai's legal background, coupled with his experience in Human Resources, position him well to lead our Labor Relations team," said Executive Vice President & Chief Transformation Officer Annie Adams. "During his time in HR, Wai has focused on enhancing the employee experience and driving engagement – including important efforts to support our Operations Division and craft railroaders."

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Prior to joining Norfolk Southern, Wong was an associate attorney with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. He graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Princeton University.

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All three of the appointments are effective July 1.

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In recognition of its efforts to encourage the evolution within the natural gas industry toward a sustainable future, Southern Company Gas has been honored with the 2022 Southern Gas Association Environmental, Social & Governance Award.

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Southern Company Gas' Next Generation Natural Gas Initiative leverages the company's leadership voice, collaborative spirit, and low-carbon ambitions to rally industry peers to work together to accelerate meaningful emissions reductions across the natural gas value chain. The company convened a collaborative of natural gas distribution companies working to grow and support the market for responsibly sourced, low emissions, differentiated natural gas products by identifying best practices and sharing knowledge and experiences.

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"Differentiated natural gas is an opportunity within our industry to support emissions reductions across the natural gas value chain. By encouraging greater use of Next Generation Natural Gas, natural gas distribution companies like ours can support the reduction of the carbon intensity of the natural gas supply chain for the benefit of our customers," said Joanne Mello, vice president of corporate sustainability for Southern Company Gas. "We are proud to be honored by the SGA and to be among such esteemed companies that are doing important work in sustainability."

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The SGA Awards recognize individuals and teams for their technical contributions, professional excellence, career achievement, service to colleagues, industry leadership and community service. In all, six member companies were selected for awards out of 68 submissions, with more than 2,000 votes cast from Southern Gas Association members. Since Southern Company Gas helped convene the Next Generation Natural Gas collaborative effort in 2021, the group has grown to 11 companies dedicated to advancing environmental transparency and sustainability in the natural gas industry. With a commitment to continuous improvement and market transparency, the group continues its groundbreaking work through collaboration and educational efforts.

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Complete details on the award winners can be found here.

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Worldwide Express (WWEX) and Richmond Raceway have partnered on the entitlement of the summer NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoff race on Saturday, Aug. 13. The official name of the first-ever Camping World Truck Series Playoff race at America's Premier Short Track will be the Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation. As part of the entitlement, Worldwide Express will share their gratitude to their freight and parcel carrier partners.

"We welcome Worldwide Express for their first entitlement partnership in NASCAR with the Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoff race at Richmond Raceway," said Lori Collier Waran, Richmond Raceway President. "As Worldwide Express continues to grow its presence in NASCAR as part of its 3anniversary, we look forward to introducing their brand as part of the iconic fan experience at America's Premier Short Track."

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To download the Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation logo, click here.

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"As we deepen our relationship with NASCAR and work toward further involvement in the sport, we are excited to put our name on the race in Richmond," said Worldwide Express President Rob Rose. "Our CEO Tom Madine and I both have ties to Virginia and many of our carrier partners have their homebase in the region, so the entitlement just makes good sense for us. The logistics and supply chain world have been chaotic the past year and our business wouldn't be possible without those carriers, so this is a unique opportunity to say thank you to them leading up to and during the race."

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Through its WWEX Racing program, Worldwide Express, along with its sister brands GlobalTranz and Unishippers, earlier this year announced a multi-year partnership with Trackhouse Racing as a primary sponsor on the No. 1 driven by Ross Chastain and No. 99 driven by Daniel Suarez. The brands also serve as the full-season, primary partner with Niece Motorsports on the No. 40 driven by Dean Thompson, the No. 41 driven by Ross Chastain for four Camping World Truck Series races and the No. 42 driven by Carson Hocevar in eight Camping World Truck Series races, which includes the Worldwide Express 250 for Carrier Appreciation at Richmond Raceway. For more information on WWEX Racing, visit www.wwexracing.com.

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Founded in 1992, Worldwide Express began as a franchisor with the goal of providing unmatched shipping logistics services to the small and medium-sized business (SMB) community. In the three decades since, the Worldwide Express family of brands has become a top-ranked, full-service logistics provider and the second-largest privately held freight brokerage in North America, with customers spanning from SMBs to the Fortune 100.

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Together, Worldwide Express, GlobalTranz and Unishippers offer market-leading solutions for parcel, less-than-truckload (LTL) and truckload shipping and managed transportation services delivered through proprietary technology. With the company's unique data assets and business intelligence capabilities, more than 115,000 shippers benefit from enhanced visibility and efficiency for their supply chains. The company will manage more than 35 million shipments in 2022 through its network of carrier partners, including over 65 leading LTL carriers and more than 85,000 truckload carriers. To learn more about Worldwide Express, visit wwex.com.

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Producers Midstream II, LLC ("Producers Midstream" or the "Company"), a Dallas-based portfolio company of Tailwater Capital focused on providing a full suite of turnkey midstream solutions to producers across the U.S., today announced that it has secured a new syndicated credit facility led by Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc., Bank of Oklahoma and Cadence Bank. The credit facility will allow the Company to borrow up to an additional $200 million assuming certain conditions are met.

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Following the successful acquisition and integration of Midcoast Energy's gas gathering and processing assets in the Anadarko Basin earlier this year, Producers Midstream has continued to optimize and integrate its operations and grow its geographic footprint. This integration effectively combines the Anadarko Basin to midstream operations in the Permian Basin and creates extensive running room for further growth behind the consolidated system. The credit facility will provide additional resources to further support the Company's operations and ability to capitalize on the growing opportunity set within the Eastern Shelf of the Permian Basin as production continues to increase with best-in-class well results. Operators behind the Company's midstream system, targeting the Strawn Sands, have increased production by over 400% since the beginning of 2019 due to breakevens on par with or exceeding the core of the Midland Basin.

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"We continue to see strong momentum across our business and remain intently focused on solidifying our role as the midstream infrastructure partner of choice for operators targeting the Strawn Sands within the Eastern Shelf," said Matt Flory, Chief Executive Officer of Producers Midstream. "The integration of the Midcoast assets expanded our capabilities in key geographies, and this commitment underscores our growth potential as we continue to provide a high quality and effective midstream infrastructure solutions for our customers."

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"This financing further positions Producers Midstream to capitalize on significant long-term opportunities in an increasingly attractive area," said Stephen Lipscomb, Partner at Tailwater Capital. "Our customers continue to deliver outstanding well results, and we will continue providing them with reliable, responsive and innovative service offerings."

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Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Producers Midstream and Tailwater Capital.

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Legendary beauty icon Kim Baker is making history with the launch of her GLAMAZON Beauty cosmetic line on ShopHQ - June 30th. Glamazon Beauty is a premier cruelty-free, high-quality beauty line catering to all skin types and features an array of nourishing face, lip and eye products such as hydrating lip gloss, vegan foundation and concealer.

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"ShopHQ is excited to announce GLAMAZON Beauty as their newest retail partner in this monumental month celebrating Juneteenth," states a ShopHQ senior executive. "GLAMAZON Beauty will be the first Black-owned beauty brand to launch on Shop HQ on Thursday, June 30th 2022."

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Kim states: "I am excited to align with ShopHQ and make history by becoming the very first Black-owned beauty brand to launch on its network." "Together we are creating the change we wish to see in the world."

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In addition to being the Founder and CEO of Glamazon Beauty, Kim is also a celebrity makeup artist whose client roster includes Angela Bassett, Toni Braxton, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Tom Cruise. She entered the beauty world as a 13-year-old model, later garnering huge success as a plus size model in the 90's. 30 years later Kim continues to be a trendsetting innovator and a legendary figure in the world of beauty.

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"I established the GLAMAZON Beauty brand out of my frustration in not being able to find products that match my skin tone and that felt weightless. I wanted a skin-like finish to look and feel like myself but a little prettier."

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Follow ShopHQ's Facebook (@ShopHQOfficial) and Instagram page (@ShopHQ) to catch Kim Baker live on June 29th. A full suite of GLAMAZON Beauty cosmetic products will be immediately available on ShopHQ.com, on June 30th.

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With prices of both consumer and business goods and services on the rise, many software companies are debating whether they, too, should implement price increases. For companies struggling with that question, industry consulting firm Software Pricing Partners offers key insights.

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"This is a tricky time for software companies regarding their pricing," said Chris Mele, managing partner at Software Pricing Partners. "While other industries can leverage commodity shortages and cost increases to raise their own prices and, in some cases, generate additional profits, software companies can't exploit such factors,"

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U.S. software companies are seeing a rise in the wages of experienced software engineers, architects and developers–a Robert Half survey suggests a 3.8% increase in average salaries for software engineers in 2022. "But wages aren't a commodity, and the disparity in how they affect individual software companies—due to differences in geography, work structure or even willingness to subsidize growth—makes using them as the basis for raising prices especially difficult," said Mele.

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Many software companies have added great value to their solution over time but have resisted, neglected, or had no mechanism to determine price increases. They may view the current environment as an opportunity to catch up.

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"But underpinning a company's price increase with an inflation bump is like setting its initial pricing model based on how its competitors do. It's a trap—a shortcut with no foundation in actual performance," said Mele.

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Instead, companies need to evaluate the right time and the right way to do a price increase. Here are the key factors to consider:

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1. Software pricing must reflect the value of the company's solution.

a. It is not a game of, "how much can we get away with", but rather the company's pricing model must align with how companies and customers use the product and generate value from it. For more information on this, visit the article: An Introduction to Successful Software Pricing.

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2. Timing is a key consideration when increasing prices, specifically:

a. For whom will prices increase and when? Choosing to increase prices only for low-probability-to-churn customers is risky, and violates important Market Fairness principles.
b. Will the price for existing customers and new customers go up at the same point or will companies start with new customers only?
c. Will all legacy customers get the price increase at the same time, or will companies stratify based on length of relationship or some other criteria?

How companies handle the timing can have a large impact on customer churn and must be well-planned.

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3. Communication is the most impactful consideration of all.
Achieving a successful price increase, with minimal customer churn, requires effective communication to customers. Companies will need to clearly and thoughtfully explain the rationale—why they are increasing prices—and the process—how and when companies are going to go about it. The process component will address decisions companies make about the roll-out timing and phase-in or all-at-once elements above. Moreover, the communication edict also extends to each company's internal marketing, sales and customer service staff, as they must be able to understand and convey the rationale and the process.

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4. When it comes to price increases, a "soft-land" approach is key to the company's overarching objective.
Not only will careful planning, open communication, and fair-minded implementation help companies accomplish that, but they will also protect companies from using inflation as the excuse to claw back revenue from past pricing mistakes. And in the end, companies will be able to minimize customer churn and sales friction and even strengthen customer relations.

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For more information, please visit: softwarepricing.com

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LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ: TREE), the nation's leading online financial services marketplace, today announced revised guidance for the current quarter.

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"Our variable marketing model continues to serve us well as difficult economic forces have persisted, and in many instances worsened, so far this year.  Despite rapid increases in interest rates, rampant consumer price inflation, and looming recession fears presenting persistent headwinds for some of our operating segments, our diversified business model and strong balance sheet allow us to continue to strengthen our competitive position while navigating shorter-term macro driven challenges," said Doug Lebda, Chairman and CEO.  "This year we remain focused on our key strategic initiatives to create even more useful, usable, and desirable experiences for consumers that come to LendingTree for their borrowing and insurance needs.  We are happy with the pace of execution on these plans and expect the positive impact from them to begin to manifest in the quarters ahead."

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Chief Financial Officer, Trent Ziegler added, "The challenging interest rate environment that progressed through this quarter combined with annual inflation persistently running above 8% has presented additional challenges for many of our mortgage lending and insurance partners.  We have seen the most significant impact in our Home segment as mortgage rates have nearly doubled over the last six months, causing a sharp decline in refinance volumes and more recent pressure on purchase activity.  Although our Insurance segment continues to rebound from the trough in 4Q 2021, the recovery has been slower than expected as demand from our carrier partners remains volatile as premium increases continue to chase inflation.  On a positive note, our Consumer segment continues to perform quite well, as we expect approximately 40% growth in the quarter.  Annual guidance provided in our 1Q earnings announcement is under review, and we intend to provide a revised outlook when we announce formal 2Q results next month.  Despite near-term headwinds, our balance sheet remains incredibly solid, we expect continued positive cash flow generation, and we continue to operate from a position of strength."

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2Q 2022 Preliminary Results

• Revenue is now anticipated in the range of $259 - $264 million vs prior range of $283 - $293 million.
• Variable marketing margin is now anticipated to be $88 - $92 million vs prior range of $100 - $106 million.
• Adjusted EBITDA is now anticipated to be in the range of $26 - $29 million vs prior range of $35 - $40 million.

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LendingTree is not able to provide a reconciliation of projected variable marketing margin or adjusted EBITDA to the most directly comparable expected GAAP results due to the unknown effect, timing and potential significance of the effects of legal matters and tax considerations. Expenses associated with legal matters and tax considerations have in the past, and may in the future, significantly affect GAAP results in a particular period.  

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LendingTree's Principles of Financial Reporting

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LendingTree reports variable marketing margin and Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization, as adjusted for certain items discussed below ("Adjusted EBITDA") as non-GAAP measures supplemental to GAAP.

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Variable marketing margin is defined as revenue less variable marketing expense.  Variable marketing expense is defined as the expense attributable to variable costs paid for advertising, direct marketing and related expenses, and excluding overhead, fixed costs and personnel-related expenses.  The majority of these variable advertising costs are expressly intended to drive traffic to our websites and these variable advertising costs are included in selling and marketing expense on the Company's consolidated statements of operations and consolidated income.  Variable marketing margin is a measure of the operating efficiency of the Company's operating model, measuring revenue after subtracting variable marketing and advertising costs that directly influence revenue.  The Company's operating model is highly sensitive to the amount and efficiency of variable marketing expenditures, and the Company's proprietary systems are able to make rapidly changing decisions concerning the deployment of variable marketing expenditures (primarily but not exclusively online and mobile advertising placement) based on proprietary and sophisticated analytics.  Variable marketing margin is a primary metric by which the Company measures the effectiveness of its marketing efforts.

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EBITDA is defined as net income from continuing operations excluding interest, income taxes, amortization of intangibles and depreciation.  Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA excluding (1) non-cash compensation expense, (2) non-cash impairment charges, (3) gain/loss on disposal of assets, (4) gain/loss on investments, (5) restructuring and severance expenses, (6) litigation settlements and contingencies, (7) acquisitions and dispositions income or expense (including with respect to changes in fair value of contingent consideration), and (8) one-time items.  Adjusted EBITDA is a primary metric by which LendingTree evaluates the operating performance of its businesses, on which its marketing expenditures and internal budgets are based and by which management and many employees are compensated in most years.

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The most directly comparable GAAP measure for both variable marketing margin and adjusted EBITDA is net income from continuing operations.

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LendingTree endeavors to compensate for the limitations of these non-GAAP measures by also providing the comparable GAAP measures with equal or greater prominence and descriptions of the reconciling items, including quantifying such items, to derive the non-GAAP measures.  However, LendingTree is not able to provide a reconciliation of projected variable marketing margin or adjusted EBITDA to the most directly comparable expected GAAP results due to the unknown effect, timing and potential significance of the effects of legal matters and tax considerations.  Expenses associated with legal matters and tax considerations have in the past, and may in the future, significantly affect GAAP results in a particular period.  These non-GAAP measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.

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Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

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The matters contained in the discussion above may be considered to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Those statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations or anticipations of LendingTree and members of our management team.  Factors currently known to management that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include the following: uncertainty regarding the duration and scope of the coronavirus referred to as COVID-19 pandemic; actions governments and businesses take in response to the pandemic, including actions that could affect levels of advertising activity; the impact of the pandemic and actions taken in response to the pandemic on national and regional economies and economic activity; the pace of recovery when the COVID-19 pandemic subsides; adverse conditions in the primary and secondary mortgage markets and in the economy, particularly interest rates; default rates on loans, particularly unsecured loans; demand by investors for unsecured personal loans; the effect of such demand on interest rates for personal loans and consumer demand for personal loans; seasonality of results; potential liabilities to secondary market purchasers; changes in the Company's relationships with network lenders, including dependence on certain key network lenders; breaches of network security or the misappropriation or misuse of personal consumer information; failure to provide competitive service; failure to maintain brand recognition; ability to attract and retain consumers in a cost-effective manner; the effects of potential acquisitions of other businesses, including the ability to integrate them successfully with LendingTree's existing operations; accounting rules related to contingent consideration and excess tax benefits or expenses on stock-based compensation that could materially affect earnings in future periods; ability to develop new products and services and enhance existing ones; competition; allegations of failure to comply with existing or changing laws, rules or regulations, or to obtain and maintain required licenses; failure of network lenders or other affiliated parties to comply with regulatory requirements; failure to maintain the integrity of systems and infrastructure; liabilities as a result of privacy regulations; failure to adequately protect intellectual property rights or allegations of infringement of intellectual property rights; and changes in management. These and additional factors to be considered are set forth under "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2021, in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2022, and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  LendingTree undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes to future operating results or expectations.

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Goodnight Midstream LLC ("Goodnight"), a leading midstream produced water infrastructure company, today announced two new initiatives with industry-leading partners aimed at expanding the utilization of renewable energy and supporting grid reliability.

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Goodnight has signed a definitive agreement for the installation of a 500-kilowatt solar generation system at one of its Llano pipeline receipt points in Eddy County. Goodnight will lease the photovoltaic supplemental power system from Priority Power, a leader in energy optimization and infrastructure, offering smart energy solutions and streamlined transitions to carbon neutrality. The system is expected to begin commercial operations during the fourth quarter of 2022, and Goodnight's ongoing produced water operations will enable an estimated 750 MWh of solar energy annually to be sold back to the New Mexico power grid for use by other customers in the region.

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The Company today also announced that it has entered into a groundbreaking demand response program in North Dakota, in partnership with Power-on-Demand, LLC, which will provide a 500-kilowatt battery energy storage system for temporary power that can be utilized during operating peaks and demand changes. The program is designed to support the Southwest Power Pool Operating Reserves in improving the reliability, resiliency and sustainability of the grid, and managing peak demand for customers across a multi-state footprint. The program is expected to be operational by the end of 2022 and to expand to up to 14 additional sites in the state in the coming two to three years.

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The program builds on Goodnight's current participation in the ERCOT demand response program that is increasingly critical to enhancing electrical reliability and combatting intermittency issues in the state of Texas.

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"At Goodnight, our business is centered around an environmentally conscious approach and these recent initiatives underscore our commitment to expand our ESG efforts even further," said Patrick Walker, CEO of Goodnight Midstream. "As we provide safe, efficient and sustainable produced water services, we are continuously evaluating and identifying new ways to reduce emissions and have a positive impact on the environment. We look forward to continue working with industry leaders and innovators to enhance the amount of renewable energy that supports our infrastructure and operations, while simultaneously facilitating the delivery of reliable, sustainable energy to the communities in which we operate."

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In 2021, Goodnight transported over 100 million barrels of produced water through its pipelines, resulting in 18,600 metric tons of reduced carbon dioxide emissions. That is equivalent to avoiding more than 11.9 million truck miles or removing 4,046 cars from the road.

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