UPDATE: Teva shares jump 14% premarket as company says it will cut 14,000 jobs in restructuring

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. shares jumped 14% in premarket trade Thursday, after the company announced further restructuring moves aimed at improving its financial performance. The Israeli generic drug maker has been hit by competition from cheap generics and announced a major overhaul of its management structure in November. The company said it is now planning to cut 14,000 jobs, or 25% of its workforce, in the next three years, as part of measures aimed at cutting costs by $3 billion by end 2019. The company is expecting to book a restructuring charge of at least $700 million in 2018. “Today we are launching a comprehensive restructuring plan, crucial to restoring our financial security and stabilizing our business,” Chief Executive Kare Schultz said in a statement. “We are taking immediate and decisive actions to reduce our cost base across our global business and become a more efficient and profitable company.” The company will immediately suspend its dividend and cancel its 2017 bonus program. It is also reviewing the possibility of selling non-core assets. Shares have fallen 57% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.

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Criteo stock plunges on lowered outlook following Apple’s iOS update

Shares of ad-retargeting firm Criteo S.A. fell 12% in premarket trading Thursday after the company dramatically lowered its 2018 revenue forecast due to changes Apple Inc. made to its mobile operating system. Apple’s new iOS 11.2 software “disables the solution that some companies in the advertising ecosystem, including Criteo, currently use to reach Safari users,” according to a release from Criteo. The company projects this change to reduce 2018 revenue by 22%, excluding traffic acquisition costs, if the firm can’t effectively work within the new iOS landscape. Management had previously projected a 9% to 13% “net negative impact.” Criteo said that it had a new solution “under development” but also that “its effectiveness cannot be assessed at this early stage.” Criteo shares are down 23% this year, while Apple’s stock is up 49%. The S&P 500 Index has gained 19%.

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Danaher provides somewhat downbeat 2018 profit and sales outlook

Danaher Corp. said Thursday it expects 2018 net earnings per share to rise to $3.50 to $3.60, which is 2.9% to 5.9% above the FactSet 2017 EPS consensus of $3.40. The diversified industrial company expects 2018 adjusted EPS of $4.25 to $4.35, the midpoint of which is below the FactSet consensus of $4.34. The company said the adjusted EPS outlook assumes core revenue growth of between 3.5% to 4.0%. The FactSet 2018 revenue consensus of $19.08 billion implies growth of 4.9% from the 2017 consensus of $18.20 billion. The stock, which was inactive in premarket trade, has rallied 21% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.

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Sanderson Farms shares slump premarket after profit miss

Sanderson Farms Inc. shares moved lower premarket Thursday, after the company posted weaker-than-expected profit for its fiscal fourth quarter, hurt by weak poultry prices, hurricane disruptions and higher-than-expected chicken production. The company said it had net income of $72.9 million, or $3.20 a share, in the quarter, down from $76.0 million, or $3.36 a share, in the year-earlier period. Sales rose to $919.9 million from $790.8 million. The FactSet consensus was for EPS of $3.49 and sales of $911 million. “Market conditions weakened during our fourth fiscal quarter of 2017, as market prices declined seasonally after Labor Day. The seasonal decrease in demand was exacerbated by hurricane disruptions and higher than expected chicken production caused by higher than expected live weights. Despite this weakness, we performed well during the quarter,” Chief Executive Joe Sanderson said in a statement. Shares have gained 78% in 2017, outperforming the S&P 500 , which has gained 19%.

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Harry Potter publisher Scholastic profit, sales fall from a year ago

Scholastic Corp. , which publishes the “Harry Potter” series of books, reported fiscal second-quarter net income that fell to $57.1 million, or $1.60 a share, from $67.9 million, or $1.92 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to $1.92, which compares with the estimate of one analyst surveyed by FactSet of $1.75 a share. Revenue declined to $598.3 million from $623.1 million, below the analyst’s estimate of $601.4 million. Children’s book and publishing and distribution revenue fell to $411.8 million from $432.5 million, which was expected given the release of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts One and Two” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themâ„¢: The Original Screenplay” a year ago, which was partially offset by the release of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: The Illustrated Edition” this year. The company affirmed its fiscal 2018 revenue outlook of $1.65 billion to $1.780 billion and ongoing EPS outlook of $1.20 to $1.30. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has lost 11% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.

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Linn Energy to split into three standalone companies in 2018

Linn Energy Inc. said Thursday it is planning to split into three standalone companies by mid-2018. The company, which currently trades on the over-the-counter market under the ticker symbol ‘LNGG’, will serve as holding company for the existing 50% equity interest of Roan, a company focused on developing assets in Oklahoma, and will apply to list on the NYSE and Nasdaq next year. Separately, it is in talks with Citizen Energy II, LLC to consolidate 100% of the equity in Roan into LNGG. The board is reviewing options for Blue Mountain Midstream LLC and will divest non-core assets at the time of the separation. Linn is also planning to tender for at least $250 million of its own shares, which were not active premarket.

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Disney to buy 21st Century Fox in a deal valued at $52.4 billion

Shares of 21st Century Fox Inc. rallied 1.0% in premarket trade Thursday, after the TV and film studio company agreed to be acquired by Walt Disney Co. in a deal that valued at about $52.4 billion. Disney’s stock gained 0.8% ahead of the open. Under terms of the agreement, which has been anticipated in recent weeks, 21st Century shareholders will receive 0.2745 Disney shares for each 21st Century share they own. Based on Wednesday’s closing prices, that would value 21st Century shares at $29.54 each, which is 9.8% below Wednesday’s closing price of $32.75. Disney will also assume $13.7 billion of net 21st Century debt. After the deal closes, 21st Century will spin off Fox Broadcasting network and stations, Fox News, Fox Business, FS1, FS2 and Big Ten Network to its shareholders. Disney will issue 515 million new shares to fund the deal, which is expected to yield at least $2 billion in cost savings and add to earnings for the second fiscal year after the deal closes. Separately, Disney said Robert Iger will remain chairman and chief executive of Disney through 2021. 21st Century’s stock has rallied 23.6% over the past three months, while Disney shares have climbed 9.9% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has run up 10.7%.

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Eurozone business activity at its strongest since 2011: IHS Markit

Business activity in the eurozone revved higher in December, led by strong factory output and an upturn in the service sector, data firm IHS Markit said Thursday. The preliminary, or flash, composite purchasing managers’ index came in at 58.0, the highest since February 2011, and above FactSet’s consensus estimate of 57.2. “The PMI is signalling an impressive 0.8% GDP increase in the fourth quarter,” said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, in a statement. The manufacturing PMI rose to a record of 60.6 in December. Overall, French business-activity growth outpaced that of Germany’s for a third straight month, said IHS Markit. “France has been the big surprise this year, rapidly pulling out of its malaise to help shift the eurozone expansion into a higher gear,” said Williamson.

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Lonmin agrees to takeover by Sibanye-Stillwater

Platinum producer Lonmin has agreed to a takeover by South Africa’s Sibanye-Stillwater , the companies said in a statement Thursday. Lonmin shareholders will receive 0.967 new Sibanye-Stillwater shares for each Lonmin share they own. The deal values Lonmin at £1 per share, compared with a closing price Wednesday of £0.863, a premium of about 35%, according to the companies.

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Three women accuse Russell Simmons of rape: report

Music-industry legend Russell Simmons has been accused of rape by three women in a report released Wednesday afternoon. Four women spoke on the record to The New York Times about violent sexual experiences dating back to the late 1980s involving the hip-hop mogul, who founded the seminal Def Jam Records label. Former Def Jam A&R executive Drew Dixon, performer Tina Baker and former music journalist Toni Sallie levied the most serious accusations, of forcible rape. Simmons, who stepped down from the helm of the businesses he still ran in November after earlier reports of sexual misconduct, denied the rape allegations in a statement to the Times. “I vehemently deny all these allegations,” he said. “These horrific accusations have shocked me to my core and all of my relations have been consensual.” Simmons sold his stake in Def Jam to Universal Music Group in 1999, but has since founded other businesses in fashion and media.

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