Charter Communications & Time Warner Cable
Charter Communications and Time Warner Cable both moved today on deal speculation. Charter is in talks with Time Warner Cable about a bid that’s likely to be well above $170 a share, that’s according to the Wall Street Journal. Charter originally offered around $132 a share, until Comcast beat that offer, but later abandoned the bid. Charter was off almost two percent to $175.29. Time Warner Cable was 3.5 percent higher to close at $171.18.
Quest Diagnostics
Shares of Quest Diagnostics spiked after a brief trading halt. Some reports say the stock moved on talks of a buyout of the diagnostic testing and information service provider. Shares popped almost eight percent to $79.60.
Target & Mastercard
A proposed $19 million settlement between Mastercard and Target over the retailer’s 2013 data breach fell through today. This as not enough banks accepted the deal, that would have paid the banks to cover fraud-related losses. Both stocks were off a fraction. Target closed at $79.29. Mastercard ended the day at $92.69.
Ann Inc.
Ann Inc. reported a moderate rise in first quarter sales as strong performance at its loft stores made up for sluggish returns from its namesake chain. Still, the retailer is struggling with weak traffic and competition. Shares were off slightly to $46.97.
Campbell’s Soup
Campbell’s Soup reported earnings that easily topped estimates, but revenue fell short because of currency effects. The company also said full-year sales would fall towards the lower end of estimates, but earnings would be at the upper end of its projected range. Shares popped two percent to $47.91
Foot Locker
Foot Locker says its last quarter was its most profitable in history. Earnings, revenue and same-store sales all topped consensus. Despite that, shares were off a fraction to $63.46.
Actavis
Today a court ruled that Actavis cannot pull its top-selling Alzheimer drug from the market in favor of a more expensive extended release version. Lawyers for the drug maker say the company would suffer $200 million in lost sales if it couldn’t withdraw the older drug version. The stock was up a little to close at $301.35.
