BuzzFeed launches app and cooktop product for popular video cooking series Tasty

BuzzFeed on Thursday launched a new iPhone app for its popular Tasty web series. The Tasty video series, which shows quick and relatively easy step-by-step recipes, has been a boon for the media company, reaching one in four Facebook users and generating 2.3 billion monthly video views. “Tasty’s strong brand and massive fan base give it almost limitless avenues for expansion — from cookbooks to licensing to consumer tech,” said head of BuzzFeed Product Labs Ben Kaufman in a statement. Tasty already has nine additional brands in its portfolio. Along with the launch of the Tasty app, BuzzFeed announced a bluetooth-enabled cook top that connects with the app, the Tasty One Top.

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From:: Stock Market News

Record Mortgage Production at Waterstone

A small increase in home-lending volume at WaterStone Bank SSB was enough to push residential loan production to “a quarterly record.”

Parent Waterstone Financial Inc. reported $9 million in net income for the second quarter, up from $8 million during the same three-month period in 2016.

The Wauwatosa, Wisconsin-based company’s chief executive officer noted in the report that loan growth was strong in its community banking segment.


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From:: Financing

Bank of England names Dave Ramsden as new deputy governor

The Bank of England on Thursday named Dave Ramsden as its new deputy governor, effective Sept. 4. Ramsden, a chief economic adviser at the U.K.’s Treasury department, will succeed Charlotte Hogg. Hogg resigned in March for failing to disclose her brother’s senior role at lender Barclays PLC. Ramsden will oversee management of the central bank’s balance sheet and be a member of the Monetary Policy Committee, among other roles. A five-year term was given to Ramsden, who will work alongside Gov. Mark Carney.

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From:: Stock Market News

EU’s Barnier warns Brexit talks face delay over divorce bill: reports

The European Union could delay Brexit talks if more progress isn’t made on key issues including how much the U.K. needs to pay to depart the bloc, according to media reports Thursday. The EU’s lead Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, told ambassadors from other EU member states the likelihood of further talks with the U.K. in October appears to be diminishing, The Telegraph newspaper reported. Barnier wanted to make more progress on items such as citizens rights and a so-called divorce bill to be paid by the U.K., before talking about the future trading relationship between Britain and the EU. European officials estimated the divorce bill at roughly 60 billion euros and higher, although how that amount should be calculated need to be ironed out, Reuters reported.

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From:: Stock Market News

Stock market opens at all-time intraday highs

U.S. stock-index benchmarks on Thursday jumped to records at the open, supported by the latest round of upbeat corporate results. Most recently Facebook Inc. reported second-quarter results late-Wednesday that beat expectations, helping it approach a market value of $500 million. Enthusiasm around Facebook helped to lift the broader technology industry . The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose to an all-time intraday high and was most recently up 0.2% at 21,763, the S&P 500 index climbed 0.2% at 2,481, while the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.5% at 6,453. Separately, Twitter Inc. shares were plunging after it reported lackluster user growth in its recent quarterly report. Shares of the microblogging platform were down about 13%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Marijuana media company High Times is going public

High Times, the publisher of the marijuana culture magazine of the same name, said on Thursday it is seeking a public listing through a business combination with already listed Origo Acquisition Corp. . High Times’ existing equity is valued at roughly $250 million in the merger, according to a news release. Origo, whose shares were halted for news, will acquire 100% of the equity of High Times in exchange for 23.5 million shares of Origo. Following the transaction, High Times will become a publicly-traded company under the Origo ticker, with High Times controlling 83% of the company. “High Times is one of few household names in the cannabis industry,” said High Times Chief Executive Adam Levin. “We believe that the barriers to entry are substantial, given the respect and trust associated with our brand that comes from informing and entertaining people for over 40 years.” With the legal marijuana industry gaining traction, High Times is looking to diversify its business and capitalize on the industry.

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From:: Stock Market News

New York Times beats profit expectations as subscriber and ad revenue rise

New York Times Co. reported Thursday a second-quarter net profit of $15.6 million, or 9 cents a share, after a loss of $211,000, or breakeven on a per-share basis, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to 18 cents, beating the FactSet consensus of 13 cents. Revenue rose 9.2% to $407.1 million from $372.6 million, above the FactSet consensus of $393.1 million. Subscription revenue increased 13.9%, as a 46.4% jump in digital-only subscription revenue and an increase in home-delivery prices for The New York Times paper offset a decline in print copies sold. Advertising revenue rose 0.8%, as 22.5% growth in digital-only revenue offset a 10.5% decline in print. For the third quarter, the media company expects total subscription revenue to increase at rate similar to the second quarters, while ad revenue is expected to decline in the mid- to high-single digits percentage range. “We believe that more and more people are prepared to pay for high quality in-depth journalism that helps them make sense of the world,” said Chief Executive Mark Thompson. The stock, which was still inactive in premarket trade, has soared 38% year to date through Wednesday, while the S&P 500 has gained 11%.

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From:: Stock Market News

Pinnacle Foods shares fall after sales miss

Pinnacle Foods Inc. shares were down 1.3% in Thursday premarket trading after the company reported second-quarter sales that missed estimates. Pinnacle Foods’ portfolio of brands includes Birds Eye, Duncan Hines, Hungry-Man and Log Cabin. Net income for the quarter was $18.7 million, or 16 cents per share, down from $45.8 million, or 39 cents, last year. Adjusted EPS was 53 cents, beating the 52-cent FactSet consensus. Revenue was $744.6 million, down from $756.4 million and below the $764.0 million FactSet consensus. The company attributed the decline to a number of factors such as the business exit, including a recall, of some Aunt Jemima products. Pinnacle Foods reaffirmed its full-year outlook for adjusted EPS of $2.55 to $2.60, and now expects to come in at the low end of the range. The FactSet consensus is $2.59. Pinnacle Foods shares are up 15.6% for the year so far while the S&P 500 index is up 10.7% for the period.

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From:: Stock Market News

Charter Communications reports declining Q2 profit, revenue falls short of expectations

Charter Communications Inc. reported second-quarter earnings that declined sharply as revenue fell short of Wall Street expectations. Shares were down slightly on light volume in premarket trade. The company reported net income of $139 million, or 52 cents per share, compared with $248 million, or 91 cents during the same period a year ago. FactSet’s consensus for per-share earnings was 79 cents. Revenue for the quarter hit $10.36 billion, compared with $9.97 billion on a pro forma basis in the same quarter a year ago. Revenue was just below FactSet’s consensus of $10.38 billion. Charter lost 90,000 video subscribers in the quarter, compared with a larger loss of 152,000 a year ago, but reported net customer adds of 155,000 thanks to its internet business. Revenue in the video segment, $4.12 billion, remained relatively unchanged year-over-year despite the loss in subscribers. Shares of Charter have gained more than 21% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 index is up more than 11%.

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From:: Stock Market News