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Microsoft Corp. is set to buy London-based smart-keyboard maker Swiftkey for about $250 million, according to the Financial Times late Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the deal. Swiftkey co-founders Jon Reynolds and Ben Medlock, who started the company in 2008, are estimated to both make about $30 million each on the deal, according to FT. The deal is expected to be announced this week.

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The New York Stock Exchange wants to abolish one of its controversial rules, Rule 48, last used during volatile trading in August. The rule allows market makers to delay opening a stock when markets are volatile and was widely criticized and blamed for exacerbating big swings on August 24, when the S&P 500 and Dow industrials plunged shortly after the open. The exchange plans to file proposed revisions with the Securities and Exchange Commission to “enhance and simplify” Rule 15 and Rule 123D, which would eliminate the need for Rule 48, according to an NYSE spokesperson. A revised Rule 15 would require market makers to manually publish pre-opening indications if prices change 5% or more. On extremely volatile days, defined by a 2% price change in E-mini S&P 500 futures as of 9:00 a.m. Eastern, market makers would be required to open individual stocks manually when prices move 10% or more in pre-market trade. A revised rule 123D would allow market makers to open securities electronically unless there is a price change of 4% from the last sale or if the opening trade would be more than 100,000 shares. On volatile days the percentage requirement would be doubled.

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The American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported that crude supplies climbed by 3.8 million barrels for the week ended Jan. 29, according to sources who reviewed the report. The more closely watched Energy Information Administration report is due Wednesday. Citi Futures expects an increase in crude supplies of between 5 million and 6 million barrels. Following the API data, March crude was at $29.70 a barrel in electronic trading, down from the $29.88 settlement on Nymex.

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Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services on Tuesday downgraded Sprint Corp.’s to ‘B’ from ‘B+,’ citing a challenging environment for the wireless industry. “The downgrade reflects our view that Sprint will be challenged to profitability grow its subscriber base and reverse negative FOCF trends sufficiently to improve its longer-term liquidity position,” Allyn Arden, a credit analyst at Standard & Poor’s, in a statement. S&P assigned a stable outlook on the rating, noting that the company’s cost reduction effort will provide it with some stability in the near term. Shares of Sprint were flat in the extended trade after sinking 9.8% in the regular session.

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Shares of IAC fell on Tuesday following a fourth-quarter revenue and earnings miss for the media and Internet company. IAC swung to a quarterly loss of $32 million in the quarter, versus gains of $70.2 million in the year-ago period. Adjusted for one-time items, the company said it earned $64.7 million, or 75 cents a share, in the quarter, compared with $89.7 million, or $1, in the fourth quarter of 2014. Revenue hit $848.7 million, up from $830.8 million a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected IAC to report adjusted earnings of 93 cents a share on sales of $867 million. The company owns Internet brands such as Vimeo and Investopedia, and late last year spun off its dating business, Match Group Inc. , which owns several dating sites, including Tinder and Match.com. Shares of IAC fell 1.7% in late trading Tuesday after ending the regular trading day down 2.1%.

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Yahoo Inc. reported stronger-than-expected revenues late Tuesday and announced plans to cut 15% of its workforce and explore strategic alternatives for its core business. The company reported a net loss of $4.4 billion, or $4.70 a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $166 million, or 17 cents a share. Excluding one-time items, Yahoo said it earned 13 cents, matching the FactSet consensus estimate. Ex-TAC revenue fell to $1 billion compared with $1.17 billion last year, topping average estimates of $948 million. The company said it will shut five global offices and reduce its employee count to 9,000 by the end of 2016.

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Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. slid in Tuesday’s extended trade after the company posted earnings for a quarter which it described as the “most challenging” in its history following an E. coli outbreak at several of its stores. The Mexican-style fast-food chain reported its fourth-quarter earnings nearly halved to $67.9 million, or $2.17 a share, from $120.2 million, or $3.84 a share, in the same quarter last year. Revenue dropped 6.8% to $997.5 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of $1.86 a share on revenue of $1 billion. Same-store sales, a key metric for retailers, sank 14.6% in the quarter. Chipotle shares declined 2% in the after-hours session.

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An International Trade Commission administrative law judge on Tuesday made an initial determination that Arista Networks infringed in three out of five Cisco Systems Inc. patents, part of a Cisco complaint against Arista filed in December 2014. The judge cleared two of Arista’s software features out of four in question, Arista said in a statement. “We strongly believe that we have not infringed any of the patents … and look forward to the final determination” in June, the Santa Clara, Calif., company said. In a blog post on Cisco’s website, Cisco’s top lawyer, Mark Chandler, said “Arista can no longer support claims … that they created products ‘from a clean sheet of paper.'” Arista shares rose 0.2% in late trading Tuesday after ending the regular session down 2.7%. Shares of Cisco rose 0.1% after ending the session down 2.7% as well.

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