State Street to buy GE’s asset management arm for about $485 million

State Street Corp. said Wednesday it has agreed to acquire GE Asset Management from General Electric Co. in a deal expected to cost up to $485 million in cash. GE has been selling all of its financial assets to focus on its core industrial businesses. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter and to boost operating per-share earnings in the first year after closing. The asset manager has more than $100 billion in assets under management and more than 100 institutional clients. State Street said it expects revenue from the deal to come to about $270 million to $300 million in the first year after close. It expects merger costs of $70 million to $80 million through 2018. State Street and GE shares were not yet active in premarket trade. State Street shares have lost 21% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has lost 1.5%.

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U.S. beats Guatemala, stays alive in World Cup bid

The U.S. men’s soccer team stayed alive in its quest to reach the 2018 World Cup, beating Guatemala, 4-0, on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio. The Americans could have been on the brink of elimination had they lost, following a shocking 2-0 loss to the same team last week in Guatemala City. Clint Dempsey, Geoff Cameron, Graham Zusi and Jozy Altidore scored goals in Tuesday’s game, which was never really in doubt. The U.S. has not lost a home game during World Cup qualifying since 2001. With the win, the U.S. is in favorable position to advance to the World Cup in Russia with good showings against last-place St. Vincent and the Grenadines and first-place Trinidad and Tobago in its final two games.

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API data show U.S. oil supplies up 2.6 million barrels: sources

The American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported that crude supplies rose by 2.6 million barrels for the week ended March 25, according to sources who reviewed the report. The closely watched Energy Information Administration report will be released Wednesday. Analysts polled by Platts forecast a climb of 2 million barrels for crude inventories. May crude traded at $38.54 a barrel in electronic trading, up from the contract’s settlement of $38.28 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

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Verint Systems shares plunge on earnings, outlook miss

Verint Systems Inc. shares dropped in the extended session Tuesday after the software company’s quarterly results and outlook fell short of Wall Street expectations. Verint shares dropped 14% to $15.29 after hours. The company reported adjusted fourth-quarter earnings of 90 cents a share on revenue of $281.8 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of $1.16 a share on revenue of $318.5 million. Verint said it expects 2016 adjusted earnings plus-or-minus 2% from 2015’s $3.04 a share, and revenue “similar” to the past year’s $1.13 billion. Analysts had expected 2016 earnings of $3.54 a share and revenue of $1.23 billion. Verint also said its board authorized $150 million in stock buybacks.

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From:: Stock Market News

Verint Systems shares plunge on earnings, outlook miss

Verint Systems Inc. shares dropped in the extended session Tuesday after the software company’s quarterly results and outlook fell short of Wall Street expectations. Verint shares dropped 14% to $15.29 after hours. The company reported adjusted fourth-quarter earnings of 90 cents a share on revenue of $281.8 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of $1.16 a share on revenue of $318.5 million. Verint said it expects 2016 adjusted earnings plus-or-minus 2% from 2015’s $3.04 a share, and revenue “similar” to the past year’s $1.13 billion. Analysts had expected 2016 earnings of $3.54 a share and revenue of $1.23 billion. Verint also said its board authorized $150 million in stock buybacks.

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