Tag: stock market

Rent-A-Center Inc. announced late Monday afternoon that Chief Executive Robert Davis had resigned and been replaced on an interim basis by founder and former CEO Mark Speese. Davis replaced Speese nearly three years ago, but the rental-furnishings chain struggled last year thanks to a large impairment charge and sales declines that Davis blamed on a new point-of-sale system. “I am extremely proud of what our team has accomplished in the past three years, during a dynamic and challenging environment,” Davis said in the news release announcing the change. Speese, who had been serving as chairman of Rent-A-Center’s board, previously served as CEO from 2001 to 2014. Rent-A-Center shares, which had fallen 21.8% in the past year, were steady in late trading Monday afternoon.

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President-elect Donald Trump appointed son-in-law Jared Kushner as a senior White House adviser late Monday. Amid speculation that he would be named to the post, media reports said Kushner planned to step down from executive positions and divest substantial assets. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, will step down as CEO of Kushner Cos. and divest interests in 666 Fifth Avenue as well as other assets with proceeds going into trust, according to Politico. The move is expected to comply with federal ethics statutes. “Mr. Kushner is committed to complying with federal ethics laws and we have been consulting with the Office of Government Ethics regarding the steps he would take,” Kushner’s lawyer told NBC News in a statement. Ivanka Trump, who is not currently slated for a White House position, is also expected to resign from positions she holds within the Trump Organization and divest assets.

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Yahoo Inc. disclosed Monday afternoon that the entity that remains after its merger with Verizon Inc. will be called “Altaba,” and current Chief Executive Marissa Mayer will not be on the board. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Yahoo said that the new company — which consists of Yahoo’s remaining investment in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Yahoo Japan, as well as cash and a few other assets — will only need five board members, and Mayer as well as Yahoo cofounder David Filo will not be among them. The five Yahoo board members who will remain are Tor Braham, Eric Brandt, Catherine Friedman, Thomas McInerney and Jeffrey Smith, Yahoo said, with Brandt serving as chairman of the board beginning Monday. Verizon agreed in July to purchase Yahoo’s core business for $4.8 billion, though recent revelations about hacked Yahoo accounts have put the deal in question. Yahoo shares gained about 0.1% in late trading Monday after closing with a 0.3% gain at $41.34.

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Jared Kushner, the son-in-law to President-elect Donald Trump, plans to step down from executive positions and divest substantial assets in order to become a senior White House adviser, according to media reports Monday. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, will step down as CEO of Kushner Cos. and divest interests in 666 Fifth Avenue as well as other assets with proceeds going into trust, according to Politico. The move is expected to comply with federal ethics statutes. “Mr. Kushner is committed to complying with federal ethics laws and we have been consulting with the Office of Government Ethics regarding the steps he would take,” Kushner’s lawyer told NBC News in a statement. Ivanka Trump, who is not currently slated for a White House position, is also expected to resign from positions she holds within the Trump Organization and divest assets.

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Cray Inc. on Monday said it expects to be profitable in 2016 on both adjusted and GAAP basis but did not provide an earnings outlook for 2017 due to a “lack of visibility for the year.” However, it projected 2016 revenue of $630 million, which fell short of $633.3 million projected by analysts in a FactSet survey. Wall Street also forecast the supercomputer company to post adjusted earnings of 18 cents a share in 2016. Cray shares slumped 5% after hours.

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Parexel International Corp. is expected to book charges of $25 million to $35 million, mostly related to employment separation costs stemming from its effort to restructure its operations, the company said in a regulatory filing on Monday. However, the pharmaceutical services company did not disclose how many employees will be affected nor how it will proceed with the restructuring. Parexel plans to complete its reorganization by the end of fiscal 2018. Shares were flat in late trading after the stock closed down 0.6% to $68.29.

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Williams Cos. said late Monday it would increase its dividend by 50% to 30 cents a share, payable March 2017, adding it would target a 10%-15% annual growth “over the next several years.” In the same statement, Williams Partners LP said it was reducing its quarterly distribution for the quarter ending March 31 to 60 cent per unit, a 30% cut. The companies also announced a plan to increase Williams Cos. ownership of Williams Partners to 72%, and that Williams Cos. expects to buy additional units of Williams Partners in a private placement, funding such purchases with equity. Shares of Williams, an energy company primarily focused on natural gas processing and transportation, had ended the day down 1.5%.

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Barracuda Networks Inc. shares rallied in the extended session Monday after the cloud-computing company topped Wall Street estimates for the fiscal third quarter. Barracuda shares surged 7.2% to $25.47 after hours. The company reported adjusted third-quarter earnings of 22 cents a share on revenue of $88.8 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of 14 cents a share on revenue of $86.6 million. Barracuda said gross billings increased 13% to $100.4 million from the year-ago quarter, and that its number of active subscribers grew 15% to 309,000.

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Consumer credit expanded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 7.9%, or $24.6 billion, in November, the Federal Reserve reported. Revolving credit like credit cards jumped 13.5% while nonrevolving credit such as car and student loans rose 5.9%.

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Oil futures fell Monday, with prices touching new session lows minutes before the settlement to finish at their lowest level in just over three weeks. Data from Baker Hughes released Friday revealed that the number of active U.S. oil rigs rose for a tenth straight week, pointing to the potential for further gains in U.S. crude production. The news fed concerns over the possibility of output increases from other producers, such as Libya, who are also not part of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ production cut agreement. February West Texas Intermediate crude fell $2.03, or 3.8%, to settle at $51.96 a barrel-the lowest finish since Dec. 16, according to FactSet data.

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