Streetbeat News

Labor Issues

ATVI

Activision Blizzard has laid off around 50 staff from its esports division, despite record sales of Diablo 4 which helped boost its net bookings to $2.46bn. The layoffs were unexpected and have led to speculation that the esports division may be closed. Despite the success of Diablo 4, Blizzard is beginning to release some of its games on Steam, including Overwatch 2 in August.

Portfolio Pulse from Happy Mohamed

July 20, 2023 | 3:48 pm

DIS

Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) shares have fallen by 4.3% over the past five sessions, possibly due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA union strike and commentary from streaming peer Netflix. The strike could increase production costs and disrupt content production, potentially impacting Disney's profitability, cash flow, and ability to generate revenue.

Portfolio Pulse from Henry Khederian

July 20, 2023 | 3:40 pm

UPS

United Parcel Service (UPS) is reportedly planning to return to negotiations with a better offer for its 340,000 Teamsters-represented U.S. workers to avoid a potentially economically damaging strike on August 1. The main sticking point in the negotiations is pay hikes for experienced part-time workers. UPS shares are trading higher by 0.25% at $186.50.

Portfolio Pulse from Akanksha Bakshi

July 20, 2023 | 1:34 pm

GLD

NFLX

TSLA

UUP

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits was lower than anticipated last week, indicating the strength of the U.S. labor market. However, investors expect the Federal Reserve to conclude its tightening cycle after hiking for the last time next week. Futures on the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq 100 Index were in the red due to disappointing earnings reports from Tesla Inc. and Netflix Inc. The U.S. dollar index, tracked by the Invesco DB USD Index Bullish Fund ETF, was 0.2% higher, while gold, tracked by the SPDR Gold Trust, ticked 0.1% lower.

Portfolio Pulse from Piero Cingari

July 20, 2023 | 12:49 pm

PHUN

Phunware, Inc. (NASDAQ:PHUN) has announced a series of strategic cost-saving measures, including a 33% reduction in workforce, to improve its financial performance and accelerate its path to profitability. The company expects to realize annual run-rate cost savings of over $5.0 million. The measures also include streamlining operations, reducing non-essential expenses, and optimizing use of existing resources.

Portfolio Pulse from Happy Mohamed

July 20, 2023 | 12:43 pm

SPY

The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's employment index for July came in at -1, compared to estimates of -4.5 and a prior figure of -0.4. This indicates a slight contraction in employment.

Portfolio Pulse from Happy Mohamed

July 20, 2023 | 12:31 pm

SPY

The USA initial jobless claims have come in at 228K, which is lower than the estimated 242K and the prior figure of 237K.

Portfolio Pulse from Happy Mohamed

July 20, 2023 | 12:30 pm

PASG

Passage Bio is planning to decrease its operating expenses through ongoing cash management initiatives and by reducing its workforce by approximately 26%.

Portfolio Pulse from Charles Gross

July 20, 2023 | 11:10 am

PASG

Passage Bio announced an organizational redesign to extend its cash runway. Simona King will resign as CFO, with Kathleen Borthwick stepping in as interim CFO.

Portfolio Pulse from Charles Gross

July 20, 2023 | 11:09 am

NFLX

Netflix has revised its 2023 cash content spend expectations downwards due to delays in production starts and ongoing strikes by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild‐American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).

Portfolio Pulse from Bill Haddad

July 19, 2023 | 8:03 pm