Category: Stock Market News

Shares of Snyder’s-Lance Inc. rallied 5.6% in premarket trade Monday, after the pretzel and chips company agreed to be acquired by Campbell Soup Co. in a deal that values Snyder’s-Lance at $4.87 billion. Campbell Soup’s stock gained 0.8% ahead of the open. Under terms of the deal, Campbell will pay $50 in cash for each Snyder’s-Lance shares outstanding, which is 6.9% above Friday’s closing price of $46.79. Snyder’s-Lance’s brands include Snyder’s of Hanover pretzels, KETTLE chips, Cape Cod and Pop Secret. Snyder’s-Lance shares had soared 19% over the past two sessions amid reports that Campbell was in advanced talks to buy the company. Cambell said it plans to finance the deal with debt, and said it would suspend share buybacks to pay the debt down. Campbell said the deal, which is expected to close early in the second quarter of 2018, should add to adjusted earnings per share in fiscal 2019. Snyder’s-Lance’s stock had run up 22.0% year to date through Friday, while Campbell shares had lost 18.0% and the S&P 500 had climbed 19.5%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Shares of Amplify Snack Brands Inc. , the parent of Skinny Pop popcorn, rocketed 71% in premarket trade Monday, after the company agreed to be acquired by Hershey Co. in a deal that gives Amplify a market value of $921 million. Under terms of the deal, Hershey will pay $12.00 in cash for each Amplify share outstanding, which is 71.4% above Friday’s closing price of $7.00. Including debt, the deal is valued at $1.6 billion. Hershey said it would fund the deal with cash on hand and new debt, and is not expected to affect Hershey’s current credit ratings. Hershey expects the deal to add to adjusted earnings per share in the first year after closing, which is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2018. “Hershey is a great cultural partner for Amplify and I’m excited for our team who will have access to Hershey’s marketing and go-to-market resources to take our brands to the next level,” said Amplify Chief Executive Tom Ennis. Amplify’s stock had tumbled 20.5% year to date through Friday, while Hershey shares had gained 10.4% and the S&P 500 had climbed 19.5%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Penn National Gaming Inc. said Monday it agreed to buy Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. in a deal valued at $2.8 billion. Under terms of the deal, Pinnacle shareholders will receive $20.00 in cash and 0.42 shares of Penn National shares for each Pinnacle share they own. Based on Friday’s closing prices, that values Pinnacle shares at $32.47 each, which is 4.9% above Friday’s closing price of $30.95. The per-share bid would give Pinnacle a market capitalization of $1.87 billion. As part of the deal, Penn National agreed to sell Pinnacle’s gaming operations in Missouri, Indiana and Ohio for $575 million in cash. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2018. Shares of both Penn National and Pinnacle are halted for news until 7:30 a.m. ET. Shares of both companies have more than doubled year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 19.5%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

AES Corp. said Monday it will sell its 51% stake in the subsidiary that owns its Philippines business interests for $1.05 billion to SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. The deal, which is expected to close in the first half of 2018, includes its interest in the 630 MW Masinloc coal-fired plant, the 335 MW Masinloc 2 coal-fired plant under construction and the 10 MW Masinloc energy storage project. AES said it bought a 92% interest in Masinloc, with International Finance corp. as a minority partner, in 2008 in a deal valued at $1.1 billion. In 2014, AES sold 41% of Masinloc to EGCO Group for $453 million. AES’s stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has lost 7.1% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 19.5%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Republican Sen. John McCain will return home to Arizona and miss his party’s final tax bill vote expected this week, CBS News reported on Sunday. The House is expected to take up the bill on Tuesday. Republicans likely have the votes they need for passage after two holdouts, Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee and Marco Rubio of Florida, pledged their support last week. McCain was hospitalized recently due to side effects from his chemotherapy treatments.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

A major power outage at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, one of the world’s busiest airports, was grounding flights Sunday afternoon and leaving passengers stranded. The outage was affecting several areas of the airport, Atlanta Airport said in a statement on Twitter. Georgia Power officials said they were aware of the problem and working on a solution, according to media reports. The outage was first reported at 1:15 p.m. Eastern. Passengers can check the FAA website for updates.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has sent to the anti-sexual-violence organization RAINN a sum equaling the contributions made in 2007 and 2010 to Gillibrand’s campaign funds by Donald Trump, the New York Daily News reported, saying a spokesman for the New York Democrat had confirmed the development. Gillibrand found herself in a war of words late this week with now-President Trump, as she called for his resignation over the sexual-misconduct claims lodged against him and he responded by ripping Gillibrand for seeking donations from him in the past, saying she had begged and would “do anything” for the requested contributions. The sum Gillibrand reportedly sent to RAINN was $5,850.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Friday he would use the Congressional Review Act as a vehicle to force a Senate vote on the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal this week of Obama-era rules on net neutrality, according to a Reuters report. Those rules barred internet service providers from discriminating against content, content providers or consumers, provided the content in question is legal. The commission voted 3-2, along party lines, on Thursday to repeal those rules. Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, who joined the commission during the Obama administration as a Republican member put forth by Sen. Mitch McConnell, reportedly said the rollback of the rules could benefit consumers as broadband providers such as AT&T and Comcast offer wider ranges of internet service options. Even if Schumer succeeds in getting senators on the record on net neutrality the move is not expected to have an impact on the rollback.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Procter & Gamble Co. shares ticked higher in the extended session Friday after the consumer goods company certified that activist investor Nelson Peltz secured a seat on its board. P&G shares rose 0.8% to $92.58 after hours. In a statement, P&G said “results between Ernesto Zedillo and Nelson Peltz were extremely close, with Mr. Peltz receiving almost 50% of shares voted.” The company continued: “Because the election results were so close, and because a large number of shareholders voted for Nelson Peltz to be a Director, the Board has engaged in numerous discussions with Mr. Peltz regarding a Board seat.” P&G said it will work with Peltz, who will join the board on March 1, as it does not agree with such strategies as “taking on excessive leverage, or substantially reducing R&D spending, or advocating for a break-up of the Company, or moving the Company out of Cincinnati.” Last month, Peltz won an elected board seat, which the company considered to be a preliminary result.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News

Fitch Ratings hiked Portugal’s credit rating two notches to BBB, returning it to investment-grade status. Large institutional investors like pension funds are often required to abstain from buying bonds ranked below investment-grade. The move would also make its sovereign paper eligible for entry in benchmark bond indexes and could, therefore, draw billions of dollars of inflows. The ratings company justified its move saying they expected government debt levels to fall. Portuguese bond yields touched a three-year low on Friday on anticipation of an upgrade. Debt prices rise when yields move higher.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

…read more

From:: Stock Market News