Streetbeat News

Acquisitions Mergers

VZIO

VIZIO shares have seen an increase in trading volume and price following the announcement that Walmart will acquire the company. This move is significant as it represents a major retail partnership and could potentially expand VIZIO's market presence.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

February 20, 2024 | 7:41 pm

BFRI

FLR

MEDS

MNPR

RAPT

SMMT

U.S. stocks traded lower with the Nasdaq Composite down over 200 points. Consumer staples shares rose by 1.2%, while information technology shares fell by 1.8%. The Conference Board's Leading Economic Index fell 0.4% for January. Monopar Therapeutics, Biofrontera, and TRxADE HEALTH saw significant stock increases due to positive company news. Conversely, RAPT Therapeutics, Summit Therapeutics, and Fluor Corporation experienced notable declines following negative developments.

Portfolio Pulse from Avi Kapoor

February 20, 2024 | 7:33 pm

ACI

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and several states are planning to file a lawsuit against the proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons next week, according to Bloomberg. This legal action could potentially block or delay the merger, impacting the future operations and strategic plans of both companies.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

February 20, 2024 | 7:14 pm

AIG

CRBG

BofA Securities analyst Joshua Shanker downgraded American International Group Inc (AIG) to Neutral from Buy, despite strong Q4 results, due to anticipated difficulties in 2024 including the impact of selling the Validus reinsurance business to RenaissanceRe and a divestiture plan by Corebridge Financial Inc (CRBG) affecting AIG's EPS. Shanker raised AIG's price target to $77 from $75 but expects a slower trend toward higher investment yields and lower EPS forecasts for the coming years.

Portfolio Pulse from Lekha Gupta

February 20, 2024 | 7:11 pm

Citigroup CFO Mark Mason announced at a BOFA Conference, as reported by Reuters, that the company is making good progress on the separation of Banamex. They expect to sell 20-25% in the first tranche of the Banamex IPO.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

February 20, 2024 | 6:49 pm

Citigroup CFO Mark Mason indicated at a BOFA conference, as reported by Reuters, that consumer spending growth is expected to slow. However, there's an improvement in demand for mergers, acquisitions, and debt capital markets. Client sentiment is described as 'cautiously optimistic'. Mason also noted that Citigroup is well-positioned to capture market share in investment banking as the market rebounds.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

February 20, 2024 | 6:48 pm

AMD

DFS

GOOGL

NVDA

WMT

Wall Street experienced a downturn, particularly in technology stocks, with the Nasdaq 100 dropping 1.5%. Nvidia and AMD saw significant declines ahead of Nvidia's earnings report. Alphabet was an exception among major tech stocks, posting a gain. The market's movement reflects a reassessment of stock valuations rather than interest rate concerns. ETFs like SPY, DIA, and QQQ also fell, with XLK underperforming. Walmart's stock rose following strong quarterly results and plans to acquire Vizio, while Discover Financial surged on news of its acquisition by Capital One.

Portfolio Pulse from Piero Cingari

February 20, 2024 | 6:46 pm

AYRWF

MJUS

MSOS

The Amplify U.S. Alternative Harvest ETF (MJUS) rebalancing had a significant impact on cannabis stocks, contributing to their downward trend. Despite its smaller size compared to MSOS ETF, MJUS's trading activity accounted for a notable portion of stock volume, with a correlation of .67 between its trading activity and stock price changes. The article also highlights the influence of rumors and technical events on the cannabis market, advising investors to be cautious. Additionally, it mentions the Viridian Cannabis Deal Tracker, a tool for monitoring capital raise and M&A activity in the cannabis industry.

Portfolio Pulse from Viridian Capital Advisors

February 20, 2024 | 6:43 pm

TLRY

Morningstar reduced Tilray Brands, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:TLRY) price target from $3.30 to $3.10, citing reduced revenue due to market fragmentation, pricing compression, and the illicit market in Canada. Despite these challenges, Tilray's acquisition of Hexo in 2023 is expected to consolidate the market. The company's international operations are forecasted to grow due to limited competition and expanding medical cannabis legalization. The report also highlighted the impact of the illicit market and potential regulatory costs on profitability. Tilray's shares fell 5.2269% to $1.8199.

Portfolio Pulse from Jelena Martinovic

February 20, 2024 | 6:33 pm

CMND

SPRC

SciSparc Ltd. (NASDAQ:SPRC) and Clearmind Medicine Inc. (NASDAQ:CMND) announced the submission of three international patent applications for novel proprietary combinations of psychedelic compounds, boosting their shares. This collaboration has led to 11 patent applications, aiming to strengthen their position in the psychedelic drug development market.

Portfolio Pulse from Erica Kollmann

February 20, 2024 | 6:29 pm