Streetbeat News

Acquisitions Mergers

Thyssenkrupp is reportedly in discussions with a small group of potential buyers, including Carlyle Group, about selling a stake in its marine systems unit, TKMS. The news was reported by Reuters citing sources.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

September 08, 2023 | 2:51 pm

AAPL

CVX

GOOG

HOFT

ILMN

LLY

PVH

SPOT

STLA

TWTR

Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter (now X) has reportedly lost 90% of its value. General Motors' wage offer has been branded as 'insulting' by UAW President Shawn Fain. Stellantis has opened its first Battery Technology Center in Italy. Kroger and Albertsons have agreed to sell select assets to C&S Wholesale Grocers for $1.9 billion. Kroger also reported a Q2 sales decline and reached a settlement for opioid claims. UK's NICE has endorsed Eli Lilly's diabetes medication, Mounjaro. Hooker Furnishings reported a Q2 sales decline. PVH Corp's subsidiary, Calvin Klein, has signed a licensing deal with Revman. Apple has responded to the discovery of zero-day exploits. Workers at Chevron's LNG projects in Australia have gone on strike. Zoom has engaged with regulators over Microsoft's perceived anticompetitive behavior. Google has cut ties with Joshua Wright over sexual harassment allegations. Goldman Sachs is preparing for another round of job cuts. Spotify plans to offer free audiobooks to its paying subscribers. Carl Icahn has shown support for Illumina's new CEO.

Portfolio Pulse from Vandana Singh

September 08, 2023 | 2:32 pm

ABG

Asbury Automotive Group Inc (NYSE:ABG) has agreed to acquire Jim Koons Automotive Companies, the ninth largest privately-owned dealership group in the U.S. The deal includes 29 franchises, six collision centers, and 20 dealerships in Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware. The transaction is expected to close in Q4 FY23 or early Q1 FY24. Asbury's President and CEO, David Hult, expects the Koons dealerships' profitability to be in line with Asbury's dealerships.

Portfolio Pulse from Lekha Gupta

September 08, 2023 | 2:31 pm

ILMN

Activist investor Carl Icahn has expressed his support for Illumina Inc's (NASDAQ:ILMN) new CEO, Jacob Thaysen. This comes as a relief for the company, which is recovering from a proxy battle with Icahn over its $7.1 billion acquisition of Grail in 2021. Icahn, who still holds a stake in Illumina, had been critical of the company's former CEO, Francis deSouza, under whose leadership the company's share price fell by 63%. Investors will be watching Thaysen's management of the Grail business and his efforts to rebuild the company's market value.

Portfolio Pulse from Vandana Singh

September 08, 2023 | 2:04 pm

COIN

Coinbase Ventures, the investment arm of Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN), has announced an initial round of investments into six projects from the Base Ecosystem Fund. The projects include Avantis, BSX, Onboard, OpenCover, Paragraph, and Truflation. The investment amounts remain undisclosed. This move marks Coinbase Ventures' interest in promoting economic freedom and innovation, and expanding the reach of decentralized technologies. Additionally, Coinbase launched a new cryptocurrency lending service for U.S. institutional investors, which received a significant $57 million investment from institutions.

Portfolio Pulse from Khyathi Dalal

September 08, 2023 | 1:48 pm

ACI

SFBQF

Kroger Co (KR) and Albertsons Companies Inc (ACI) have agreed to sell select stores, distribution centers, offices, and private label brands to C&S Wholesale Grocers for $1.9 billion as part of their proposed merger. The deal, reportedly backed by SoftBank Corp (SFBQF), includes the sale of 413 stores, 8 distribution centers, 2 offices, and 5 private label brands across 17 states and the District of Columbia. The merger is expected to close in early 2024.

Portfolio Pulse from Akanksha Bakshi

September 08, 2023 | 1:45 pm

GSAT

MARK

NBSE

Insiders at Remark Holdings, NeuBase Therapeutics, and Globalstar have recently made significant purchases of their companies' stocks. Remark Holdings posted a narrower Q2 loss, Symetryx Corporation acquired a 20% stake in NeuBase Therapeutics and urged a special $1 per share dividend, and Globalstar appointed a new CEO and announced a licensing agreement with XCOM Labs.

Portfolio Pulse from Lisa Levin

September 08, 2023 | 1:03 pm

CSX

CSX Corp. has appointed Mike Cory, a seasoned railroad executive with over 40 years of experience, as the company's executive vice president and chief operating officer. Cory, formerly of the Canadian National (CN) Railway, is expected to help CSX achieve new levels of safety, service, and operating efficiency. CSX also announced that Kevin Boone, previously executive vice president of Sales and Marketing, is named executive vice president and chief commercial officer.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

September 08, 2023 | 12:36 pm

BREZ

Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:BREZ) has announced that it has received proxies representing approximately 75.8% of the company's total outstanding shares to approve the proposal to extend the date by which the company must consummate a business combination until as late as June 26, 2024. The company has entered into a merger agreement with TV Ammo, Inc., and upon closing of the transaction, the company will be renamed 'True Velocity, Inc.' and its common stock is expected to trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market. The transaction is now expected to close in the first quarter of 2024.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

September 08, 2023 | 12:32 pm

HOFT

Hooker Furnishings Corp (NASDAQ:HOFT) shares dropped over 13% following worse-than-expected Q2 FY24 results. The company reported a 36% Y/Y sales decline to $97.8 million, missing the consensus of $134.75 million. Revenue was impacted by lower demand for home furnishings and the company's planned divestiture of unprofitable operations in the Home Meridian segment. The company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.22 per share. In Q2, the company acquired BOBO Intriguing Objects, broadening its product diversity.

Portfolio Pulse from Lekha Gupta

September 08, 2023 | 12:24 pm