Benzinga - by Vandana Singh, Benzinga Editor.
Wall Street Journal
Instacart Mulls IPO Price Hike After Arm's Stellar Debut: Targeting $10B Valuation
- Instacart, the popular grocery-delivery platform, is considering revising its initial public offering (IPO) target price upwards following the impressive performance of Arm Holdings Plc's (NASDAQ: ARM) IPO debut. The company is contemplating selling its shares in the range of $28 - $30 per share, up from the prior $26 - $28 target, as it prepares to file an amended offering with the SEC.
- Instacart's shares will likely start trading on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker 'CART' the following week.
- Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) is reportedly gearing up to provide affluent clients a chance to acquire a share of ownership in a private sports team.
- The bank is establishing a dedicated "sports franchise" division within its investment banking segment, merging sports-related mergers and acquisitions with sports financing.
- The U.S. defense manufacturer, RTX Corp (NYSE: RTX), formerly Raytheon Technologies, terminated a substantial multi-billion-dollar agreement with Scopa Defense, a Saudi firm, driven by concerns that Scopa Defense was engaging in business transactions with companies from China, Russia, and Belarus subject to international sanctions.
- The ambitious plan included installing radar and multiple air defense systems, with a total investment of $25 billion in the kingdom and an anticipated $17 billion in sales.
Bloomberg
Byron Allen's Ambitious $10B Offer for Disney's ABC Network and More
- Billionaire media mogul Byron Allen has made a bold $10 billion offer to acquire a significant chunk of Walt Disney Co's (NYSE: DIS) media empire, including the ABC TV network, local stations, FX, and National Geographic cable channels.
- Disney has also begun discussing the potential sale with Nexstar Media Group Inc (NASDAQ: NXST).
- Salesforce Inc (NYSE: CRM) is embarking on a significant hiring spree to bring approximately 3,300 new employees across various departments. This move comes as a notable investment effort following the company's earlier decision to reduce its workforce by 10% as part of a restructuring plan earlier this year.
- During an interview at the annual conference in San Francisco, Salesforce's CEO, Marc Benioff, expressed the company's commitment to growth and achieving solid margins.
Benzinga
UAW Launches Historic Simultaneous Strike: GM, Ford And Stellantis Plants To Face Picket Lines
- The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has kickstarted their simultaneous strike against the Detroit three automakers after failing to reach an agreement on pay hikes and other amenities.
- As per plans outlined by UAW President Shawn Fain in a Facebook live at 10 p.m. ET, workers will stage a simultaneous walkout at three factories- General Motors Co's (NYSE: GM) Missouri assembly plant, Ford Motor Co's (NYSE: F) Michigan assembly plant and Stellantis NV's (NYSE: STLA) Ohio assembly plant. This is a new approach planned by the union instead of all plants striking at once.
- At an Extraordinary General Meeting, Novartis AG's (NYSE: NVS) shareholders approved the proposed 100% Spin-off of Sandoz.
- Novartis shareholders and Novartis ADR holders will receive one Sandoz share for every five Novartis shares and one Sandoz ADR for every five Novartis ADRs.
- Sandoz intends to introduce at least five additional biologic drugs in a strategic move to enhance its attractiveness to investors in preparation for its upcoming public debut as an independent entity.
- T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ: TMUS) is exploring a significant foray into the fiber-optic network arena through discussions with Tillman FiberCo, a Tillman Global Holdings LLC unit. This potential partnership could mark T-Mobile's most considerable venture into fiber-optic infrastructure, positioning it to directly challenge cable providers like Comcast Corp (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Charter Communications Inc (NASDAQ: CHTR).
Reuters
China Sanctions Lockheed Martin And Northrop Grumman Concerning Arms Sales To Taiwan
- The Chinese foreign ministry reportedly said the country is set to impose sanctions against the U.S. aerospace and defense firms Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE: LMT) and Northrop Grumman Corp (NYSE: NOC).
- The decision by China comes after it alleged that the two companies provided weapons to Taiwan.
- Former employees of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (OTC: BBBYQ) reportedly filed a lawsuit against the committee responsible for overseeing its 401(k) retirement plan.
- The ex-employees claim a loss exceeding $5 million from their MassMutual "guaranteed investment account," which was believed to pose minimal risk.
- The MassMutual investment account suffered a 10% loss because rising interest rates hurt the value of its underlying investments.
- Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) is reportedly considering job cuts, with insider sources indicating that support personnel in compliance and risk management are particularly vulnerable. Moreover, there are potential layoffs among technology staff members whose responsibilities overlap.
- According to the sources, Citi's managers are currently discussing potential layoffs with employees. Individual meetings concerning departures have also commenced.
CNBC
Yum China Leverages Technology To Expand Stores Without Adding More Staff
- Yum China Holdings Inc (NYSE: YUMC) is reportedly investing heavily in technology.
- According to Yum China's CEO, Joey Wat, the company is increasing its tech investments, enabling it to expand its number of stores without needing additional employees.
- "From 2016 to now we increased our number of stores by about 80%. However, our number of staff almost stayed flat [around] 430,000 people," mentioned Wat to CNBC in an interview.