Post Holdings and Conagra Brands Announce Completion of Acquisition of Peter Pan® Peanut Butter Brand by Post Holdings

Bloomberg
Whipsawed Bitcoin Investors Eye Coinbase as Steadier Crypto Bet
(Bloomberg) -- For many investors, Coinbase Global Inc.’s trading debut next week will be an entry into the $2 trillion cryptocurrency market.And for those who have already gorged on Bitcoin, the arrival of the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange on the Nasdaq Stock Market could be what is needed to settle portfolios roiled by the asset class’s notorious volatility.There are other stocks already tied to the bits and bytes of the various blockchains. Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc. and Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy Inc. have both notably added billions worth of Bitcoin to their treasuries. But with Coinbase’s public listing, investors will have the choice of an equity tied to cryptocurrencies that is -- so the hope goes -- less likely to suffer persistent cycles of boom and bust.“For a crypto investor that also buys stocks, it has the ability to diversify risks as there is a very profitable exchange platform that trades on another venue (stock exchange) whose flows of buyers and sellers can be less correlated than many crypto prices,” wrote Greg Foss, a veteran credit trader, Bitcoin investor and chief financial officer for Validus Power Corp., in an email reply to questions.Coinbase is planning to go public through a direct listing in which it will not raise any new capital, it said in an S-1 filing. The direct listing allows current shareholders to trade their shares without a lock-up period that is typical in an initial public offering. It was valued at about $90 billion in its final week of trading on Nasdaq’s private market, Bloomberg News reported.Still, because volume and price tend to go hand-in-hand, Coinbase’s transaction revenue, its largest segment, could remain susceptible to cryptocurrency market gyrations.“In a traditional stock portfolio it gives exposure to an exchange platform that generates trading fees on crypto,” wrote Foss. “Those fees increase with volumes and volumes typically increase with prices, so there is a beta trade there.”Coinbase said Tuesday that it expects to report a first-quarter profit of $730 million to $800 million, more than double what it earned in all of 2020. The bumper quarter for the exchange comes amid surging cryptocurrency prices. The Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index, tracking Bitcoin, Ether and six other cryptocurrencies advanced by more than 100% in each of the last two quarters.Coinbase may have further appeal for investors. The exchange could provide an accessible diversified investment into the space, where there’s a proliferation of cryptocurrency tokens and few passive vehicles to spread bets around, according to Gil Luria, head of institutional research at D.A. Davidson & Co.“Coinbase will win regardless of which crypto asset emerges as a winner, and their revenue is tied more to trading volumes, which are often less volatile than asset values,” Luria wrote in an email.But investors looking to add some stability to their cryptocurrency portfolios may want to exercise patience.Kevin Kelly, global head of macro strategy at research firm Delphi Digital, warns that those seeking a lower volatility investment might want to sit out Coinbase’s first week of trading.“I expect to see a lot of volatility next week once COIN begins trading, but eventually I think we’ll see it trade more in line with the direction of the broader crypto market,” Kelly wrote in an email. “However, I view it as a lower beta play on the continued expansion of crypto with less downside risk to crypto asset prices; in other words, COIN is more agnostic to crypto asset prices and may be an attractive opportunity for investors looking to gain exposure to the continued adoption of crypto without taking on similar levels of price volatility.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
Reuters
Exclusive: BlackRock, Mustier's blank-check firm eye Credit Suisse fund management arm - sources
BlackRock and Jean-Pierre Mustier's blank-check firm are among investors expressing interest in Credit Suisse's asset management arm, three sources told Reuters, as the Swiss lender explores options for the unit after a run of costly scandals. U.S. investment firm State Street Corp is also eyeing a rival bid for all or part of the Swiss bank's fund management business, while European asset managers including Germany's DWS are waiting in the wings, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Former UniCredit boss Mustier's blank-check firm Pegasus Europe, which focuses on financial services investments, is due to list in Amsterdam between the end of April and early May, two sources said.
2d ago
Bloomberg
China Fines Alibaba Record $2.8 Billion After Monopoly Probe
(Bloomberg) -- China slapped a record $2.8 billion fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. after an anti-monopoly probe found it abused its market dominance, as Beijing clamps down on its internet giants.The 18.2 billion yuan penalty is triple the previous high of almost $1 billion that U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. had to pay in 2015, and was based on 4% of Alibaba’s 2019 domestic revenue, according to China’s antitrust watchdog. The company will also have to initiate “comprehensive rectifications,” from protecting merchants and customers to strengthening internal controls, the agency said in a statement on Saturday.The fine -- about 12% of Alibaba’s fiscal 2020 net income -- helps remove some of the uncertainty that’s hung over China’s second-largest corporation. But Beijing remains intent on reining in its internet and fintech giants and is said to be scrutinizing other parts of billionaire founder Jack Ma’s empire, including Ant Group Co.’s consumer-lending businesses and Alibaba’s extensive media holdings.Alibaba used its platform rules and technical methods like data and algorithms “to maintain and strengthen its own market power and obtain improper competitive advantage,” the State Administration for Market Regulation concluded in its investigation. The company will likely have to change a raft of practices, like merchant exclusivity, which critics say helped it become China’s largest e-commerce operation.“The high fine puts the regulator in the media spotlight and sends a strong signal to the tech sector that such types of exclusionary conduct will no longer be tolerated,” said Angela Zhang, author of “Chinese Antitrust Exceptionalism” and director of Centre for Chinese Law at the University of Hong Kong. “It’s a stone that kills two birds.”Alibaba’s practice of imposing a “pick one from two” choice on merchants “shuts out and restricts competition“ in the domestic online retail market, according to the statement.The government action sends a clear warning to the tech sector as the government scrutinizes the influence that companies like Alibaba and social media giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. wield over spheres from consumer data to mergers and acquisitions.The investigation into Alibaba was one of the opening salvos in a campaign seemingly designed to curb the power of China’s internet leaders and their billionaire founders. The company has come under mounting pressure from authorities since Ma spoke out against China’s regulatory approach to the finance sector in October. Those comments set in motion an unprecedented regulatory offensive, including scuttling Ant Group Co.’s $35 billion initial public offering.Alibaba said it will hold a conference call Monday morning Hong Kong time to address lingering questions around the antitrust watchdog’s decree.“China’s record fine on Alibaba may lift the regulatory overhang that has weighed on the company since the start of an anti-monopoly probe in late December,” Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Vey-Sern Ling and Tiffany Tam said, describing the fine as a small price to pay to do away with that uncertainty.”Further ActionStill, it remains unclear whether the watchdog or other agencies might demand further action. Regulators are said for instance to be concerned about Alibaba’s ability to sway public discourse and want the company to sell some of its media assets, including the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong’s leading English-language newspaper.The Hangzhou-based firm will be required to implement “comprehensive rectifications,” including strengthening internal controls, upholding fair competition, and protecting businesses on its platform and consumers’ rights, the regulator said. It will need to submit reports on self-regulation to the authority for three consecutive years.“Alibaba accepts the penalty with sincerity and will ensure its compliance with determination. To serve its responsibility to society, Alibaba will operate in accordance with the law with utmost diligence, continue to strengthen its compliance systems and build on growth through innovation,” the company said in a statement on Saturday.Faced ChallengesChief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang said in a memo to employees on Saturday that Alibaba always reflected and adapted when it faced challenges. He called for unity among staff, saying the company should “make self-adjustments and start over again.”The Communist Party-run People’s Daily newspaper said in a commentary on Saturday that the punishment involves specific anti-monopoly measures regulatory authorities take to “prevent the disorderly expansion of capital.”“It doesn’t mean denying the significant role of platform economy in overall economic and social development, and doesn’t signal a shift of attitude in terms of the country’s support to the platform economy,” the newspaper said. “Regulations are for better development, and ‘reining in’ is also a kind of love.”(Updates with company’s comment from 14th paragraph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
1d ago
Reuters
Analysis: Investors keep faith in U.S. value stocks as tech roars back
A rebound in growth and technology stocks has investors gauging whether a months-long rally in the shares of banks, energy companies and other economically sensitive names is running on empty or simply refueling. The Russell 1000 value index started 2021 with its biggest quarterly outperformance relative to its growth counterpart in 20 years, as investors poured money into the shares of battered companies they thought would benefit most from a vaccine-generated reopening of the U.S. economy. The script has flipped since mid-March, with the Russell growth index gaining over 6% compared to a rise of just over 2% for value.
2d ago
Bloomberg
Bond Market’s Stalled-Out Reflation Trade Needs Actual Inflation
(Bloomberg) -- The reflation trade that dominated the start of 2021 in the bond market has taken a breather, leaving investors bracing for a key set of data in the week ahead that has the potential to reaffirm expectations that price pressures will build as the economy rebounds.All eyes will be on Tuesday’s release of the U.S. consumer price index for March, which is expected to show a significant jump. The number will likely be distorted by the huge slump in year-earlier figures at the outbreak of the pandemic. But traders may be reluctant to dismiss an acceleration -- as they did to some extent with Friday’s stronger-than-projected producer price data -- if there’s a growing sense that it marks the beginning of a trend.The statistics come at a crucial time for bond bears betting on reflation. Market measures of inflation expectations, fueled by ultraloose Federal Reserve policy and immense amounts of fiscal stimulus, have stalled near multiyear highs and have yet to be backed consistently by actual data. The same goes with gauges of the yield curve, which have retreated from recent peaks. It’s not just bond positions at stake: Without follow-through from data, bets on Fed tightening as soon as late 2022 may fade, potentially sapping demand for the surprisingly resilient dollar.“We don’t have strong reflation-trade momentum at the moment because people are waiting for more data,” said Daniel Tenengauzer, head of markets strategy at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. “As the data comes in, we are probably going to see the reflation trade play out again more strongly” toward the middle of the year.Tenengauzer says every inflation reading counts from this point because “the longer inflation stays at 2.5%,” an annual CPI reading last seen before the pandemic took hold, “the more underwater you are from holding fixed income.”Ten-year Treasury yields rose Friday, while finishing below the day’s high, after the PPI report showed a 4.2% increase from March 2020. Although it was relative to a period when the pandemic caused price pressures to crash, it was the biggest annual gain since 2011. The benchmark yield has retreated since approaching 1.8% last month, the highest since January 2020.There are strong arguments on both sides of the inflation debate as the market moves from a phase where it was driven by rising expectations for price pressures, to one where investors are seeking backup from the data. There’s also a view that expectations for growth, not inflation, may end up dominating the narrative for Treasuries later this year, through higher real yields.Inflation ‘Psychosis’Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who’s scheduled to appear on “60 Minutes” Sunday and will also speak Wednesday, has said any pickup in inflation will likely be temporary. Hoisington Investment Management Co., meanwhile, said in its latest quarterly report that inflation fears are a “psychosis” that will fade.But that doesn’t mean that a jump in the consumer price index won’t spook bond investors at least briefly. The March figure is forecast to show a year-over-year increase of 2.5%, which would be the highest since January 2020 and above every point on the yield curve. It’s a development that may also undermine stocks.“The market’s been pricing in a reflation theme already since the second half of 2020, but strong, realized prints would almost add fuel to the fire,” said Shahid Ladha, head of Group-of-10 rates strategy for the Americas at BNP Paribas SA.That, in turn, would produce upside risk to yields on intermediate maturities because of the possibility that the Fed might have to tighten sooner than expected, he says.Investors are also tasked with absorbing a combined $120 billion of coupon auctions next week, including 30-year debt, as they ponder the inflation question. While expectations for an elevated CPI reading may be a concern, the past month has shown that there’s sufficient demand for Treasuries, which should help “grease future bond auctions,” Tenengauzer said.What to WatchEconomic calendar:April 12: Monthly budget statementApril 13: NFIB small business optimism; CPI; average earningsApril 14: MBA mortgage applications; import/export prices; Fed’s Beige BookApril 15: Jobless claims; retail sales; Empire manufacturing; Philadelphia Fed business outlook; industrial production; Langer consumer comfort; business inventories; NAHB housing index; TIC flowsApril 16: Building permits; housing starts; University of Michigan sentimentFed calendar:April 12: Boston Fed’s Eric RosengrenApril 13: Philadelphia Fed’s Patrick Harker; San Francisco Fed’s Mary Daly; Richmond Fed’s Thomas Barkin; Atlanta Fed’s Raphael Bostic, Cleveland Fed’s Loretta Mester and Rosengren at event on racism and the economyApril 14: Dallas Fed’s Robert Kaplan; Powell speaks to the Economic Club of Washington; Beige Book; New York Fed’s John Williams; Vice Chair Richard Clarida discusses new policy framework; BosticApril 15: Bostic; Daly; New York Fed Executive Vice President Lorie Logan; Clarida; MesterApril 16: Kaplan in two appearancesAuction schedule:April 12: 13-, 26-week bills; 3-, 10-year notesApril 13: 30-year bondsApril 15: 4-, 8-week billsFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
12h ago
Bloomberg
Eerie Equity Calm Puts Wall Street on High Alert for Next Spark
(Bloomberg) -- The quietest week in stocks so far in 2021 has Wall Street wondering what will break the calm.Equity trading volume plunged as the S&P 500 marched to an all-time high, with the five-day average across U.S. exchanges dropping to 9.5 billion shares traded -- the lowest since October, according to Bloomberg data. Friday was particularly placid, with just 8.7 billion shares moving, the lowest daily total since Christmas Eve.The lull felt especially abrupt after 13 months of frenzied trading brought the fastest bear market ever and a furious rally not equaled in 90 years. Stuck-at-home traders turned online brokerages into casinos, while vaccine approvals in November sparked more euphoria, spurring investors into stocks they’d shunned for months. Since then, more than $575 billion has poured into the market, exceeding total inflows for the prior 12 years combined, according to Bank of America data.That all changed in April, and theories abound as to what’s behind it. The retail mania has cooled as economic restrictions eased. Stimulus bets got settled. A brief bout of selling sparked higher yields was becalmed by a chorus of Federal Reserve officials. Economic data is starting to help justify valuations. There are just fewer major issues left to drive massive market bets. No matter, say money managers, the tranquility won’t last.“We were going 100 miles an hour and now we’re back within the speed limit,” Arthur Hogan, chief market strategist at National Securities, said by phone. “We’re going to see a resurgence of volumes and volatility because this year is going to be like no other year that people have ever seen in terms of economic growth, earnings growth, inflation, a brand-new framework for the Federal Reserve.”After a 1.4% rally Monday, the S&P 500 ground out three more records to end the week as trading volumes slowed to pre-pandemic averages. The index notched a third straight weekly gain, and the Cboe Volatility Index slipped to its lowest level in 14 months. Fading bets on Fed hikes spurred the biggest weekly drop in 5-year Treasury yields since June.Traders whipsawed by the pandemic tumult are unmoved by the calm and point to signs that more turbulence is to come. Take the VIX. At 17, it’s stubbornly elevated compared to its average of 14.9 in the seven years through 2019. Bets that the summer will bring more market chaos have pushed the spread between the VIX and implied 30-day volatility four months from now to the widest level in almost nine years.Bond markets show similar expectations for fireworks -- short interest in the $14 billion iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond exchange-traded fund as a percentage of shares outstanding rose to the highest level since 2017 this week, IHS Markit Ltd. data show, even as the ETF rallied.Meanwhile, Wall Street prognosticators think the advance that pushed S&P 500 to dot-com-era valuations is likely exhausted for the year. At an all-time high of 4,128.80, the index closed Friday ahead of the average year-end target of 4,099 from strategists tracked by Bloomberg.Skeptics have cited everything from rising yields to stretched valuation and potential tax hikes as reason for caution. Tobias Levkovich, chief U.S. equity strategist at Citigroup Inc. whose 2021 target sat at 3,800, expects the Fed to start rolling back monetary stimulus later this year and earnings guidance to weaken, posing headwinds for stocks and stoking volatility.“Sentiment is in very worrisome territory as is valuation, yet money flows continue to push indices higher,” Levkovich wrote in a note earlier this week. “Huge fiscal stimulus and supportive central banks have created the notion of there being no need to be risk averse,” he added. “Indeed, all developments are perceived as positive news. Yet, such one-sided views are not usually a good starting point.”Kim Forrest of Bokeh Capital Partners is feeling more optimistic. She expects the kickoff of what’s expected to be the best earnings season since 2018 to breathe life back into the stocks, with big lenders including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. set to report next week. First-quarter profits from S&P 500 firms probably expanded 24%, led by carmakers, banks and retailers, data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence show.“Unless there’s some other craziness going, like Covid, earnings always drive the market,” said Forrest, the firm’s chief investment officer. “We are heading into earnings season and the bar has been set really low, and I think the first quarter has been pretty good, so that’s encouraging.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
Bloomberg
BlackRock Scores Biggest-Ever ETF Launch With New ESG Fund
(Bloomberg) -- An exchange-traded fund investing in U.S. companies that BlackRock Inc. considers most likely to prosper in the transition to a low-carbon world lured the most cash on record in its first day of trading.Investors poured about $1.25 billion into the BlackRock U.S. Carbon Transition Readiness ETF (ticker LCTU) on Thursday, making it the biggest launch in the ETF industry’s three-decade history, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.First-day flows on this scale are typically powered by large institutional investors lined up by the issuer before a fund launches.The BlackRock ETF will focus investments in shares of Russell 1000 companies that are deemed to be best positioned for the energy transition, taking into account issues such as clean technology and waste and water management.To have any chance of meeting the Paris climate goals of limiting global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, companies in all industries will need to lower their carbon footprint. This great rewiring of the global economy will affect companies’ long-term profitability and BlackRock “doesn’t see itself as a passive observer,” Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink said earlier this year in a letter to clients.BlackRock said in January it manages $50 billion “in solutions that support the transition to a low-carbon economy,” including green bonds and a renewable power infrastructure business that invests in the wind and solar power markets. The world’s largest asset manager also pledged to expand dedicated low-carbon, transition-readiness strategies to offer investors exposure to companies that are most effectively adapting to transition risks.LCTU’s eye-catching debut comes amid a broad boom for ETFs focused on investments that meet environmental, social and governance standards. They attracted a record $31 billion in 2020, almost four times the prior year. About $6.3 billion was added in January, also the most ever, as investors bet the Democrats clean sweep of the U.S. government would usher in a swath of green policies.That’s all taken ESG ETF assets to a record $74.8 billion, up from less than $10 billion two years ago. The largest ETF in the space is also from BlackRock. The iShares ESG Aware MSCI USA ETF, with $16.3 billion of assets, is trading at an all-time high after returning more than 50% in the past 12 months.The Financial Times earlier reported the introduction of the BlackRock fund.(Updates with extra context.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
FX Empire
U.S. Dollar Index (DX) Futures Technical Analysis – Sitting Inside Main Retracement Zone at 91.870 to 92.510
The index has formed an inside move early in the session. It’s also trading on the strong side of a 50% level at 91.870 and the weak side of a 61.8% level at 92.510.
2d ago
FX Empire
Why Shares Of Johnson & Johnson Are Under Pressure Today?
The stock is trying to settle below the $161 level.
2d ago
Bloomberg
China Fines Alibaba Record $2.8 Billion After Monopoly Probe
(Bloomberg) -- China slapped a record $2.8 billion fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. after an anti-monopoly probe found it abused its market dominance, as Beijing clamps down on its internet giants.The 18.2 billion yuan penalty is triple the previous high of almost $1 billion that U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. had to pay in 2015, and was based on 4% of Alibaba’s 2019 domestic revenue, according to China’s antitrust watchdog. The company will also have to initiate “comprehensive rectifications,” from protecting merchants and customers to strengthening internal controls, the agency said in a statement on Saturday.The fine -- about 12% of Alibaba’s fiscal 2020 net income -- helps remove some of the uncertainty that’s hung over China’s second-largest corporation. But Beijing remains intent on reining in its internet and fintech giants and is said to be scrutinizing other parts of billionaire founder Jack Ma’s empire, including Ant Group Co.’s consumer-lending businesses and Alibaba’s extensive media holdings.Alibaba used its platform rules and technical methods like data and algorithms “to maintain and strengthen its own market power and obtain improper competitive advantage,” the State Administration for Market Regulation concluded in its investigation. The company will likely have to change a raft of practices, like merchant exclusivity, which critics say helped it become China’s largest e-commerce operation.“The high fine puts the regulator in the media spotlight and sends a strong signal to the tech sector that such types of exclusionary conduct will no longer be tolerated,” said Angela Zhang, author of “Chinese Antitrust Exceptionalism” and director of Centre for Chinese Law at the University of Hong Kong. “It’s a stone that kills two birds.”Alibaba’s practice of imposing a “pick one from two” choice on merchants “shuts out and restricts competition“ in the domestic online retail market, according to the statement.The government action sends a clear warning to the tech sector as the government scrutinizes the influence that companies like Alibaba and social media giant Tencent Holdings Ltd. wield over spheres from consumer data to mergers and acquisitions.The investigation into Alibaba was one of the opening salvos in a campaign seemingly designed to curb the power of China’s internet leaders and their billionaire founders. The company has come under mounting pressure from authorities since Ma spoke out against China’s regulatory approach to the finance sector in October. Those comments set in motion an unprecedented regulatory offensive, including scuttling Ant Group Co.’s $35 billion initial public offering.Alibaba said it will hold a conference call Monday morning Hong Kong time to address lingering questions around the antitrust watchdog’s decree.“China’s record fine on Alibaba may lift the regulatory overhang that has weighed on the company since the start of an anti-monopoly probe in late December,” Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Vey-Sern Ling and Tiffany Tam said, describing the fine as a small price to pay to do away with that uncertainty.”Further ActionStill, it remains unclear whether the watchdog or other agencies might demand further action. Regulators are said for instance to be concerned about Alibaba’s ability to sway public discourse and want the company to sell some of its media assets, including the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong’s leading English-language newspaper.The Hangzhou-based firm will be required to implement “comprehensive rectifications,” including strengthening internal controls, upholding fair competition, and protecting businesses on its platform and consumers’ rights, the regulator said. It will need to submit reports on self-regulation to the authority for three consecutive years.“Alibaba accepts the penalty with sincerity and will ensure its compliance with determination. To serve its responsibility to society, Alibaba will operate in accordance with the law with utmost diligence, continue to strengthen its compliance systems and build on growth through innovation,” the company said in a statement on Saturday.Faced ChallengesChief Executive Officer Daniel Zhang said in a memo to employees on Saturday that Alibaba always reflected and adapted when it faced challenges. He called for unity among staff, saying the company should “make self-adjustments and start over again.”The Communist Party-run People’s Daily newspaper said in a commentary on Saturday that the punishment involves specific anti-monopoly measures regulatory authorities take to “prevent the disorderly expansion of capital.”“It doesn’t mean denying the significant role of platform economy in overall economic and social development, and doesn’t signal a shift of attitude in terms of the country’s support to the platform economy,” the newspaper said. “Regulations are for better development, and ‘reining in’ is also a kind of love.”(Updates with company’s comment from 14th paragraph)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
1d ago
Reuters
Wall Street Weekahead: With stocks at record highs, investors look to upcoming earnings
Wall Street is kicking off a crucial reporting season as U.S. companies provide quarterly results a year after the coronavirus pandemic crippled the economy and as investors look for reasons to support a stock market at record highs. Overall S&P 500 earnings are expected to have jumped 25% in the first quarter from a year ago, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. That would be the biggest quarterly gain since 2018, when tax cuts under former President Donald Trump drove a surge in profit growth.
2d ago
Bloomberg
ECB Steps Up Warnings to EU Not to Delay Joint Recovery Stimulus
(Bloomberg) -- European Central Bank policy makers stepped up their pressure on the region’s governments to get on with their joint fiscal stimulus, using stronger language to warn of economic chaos for the region if politicians move too slow.Bank of Italy Governor Ignazio Visco called the European Union recovery fund “crucial” in an interview with Bloomberg TV, and Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel said separately that a long delay would be a “disaster.”ECB Vice President Luis De Guindos said it is “crucial that there not be unnecessary delays.” Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras told Bloomberg TV that he “absolutely” agrees with Schnabel and delays would mean there might not be a recovery this year.The burst of comments suggest escalating concerns, two weeks after Germany’s top court temporarily blocked that nation’s ratification of the 750 billion-euro ($892 billion) fund’s bond issue. All goverments must sign off on that step before the fund can start.The slow timeline for approving spending plans only by the end of this month and starting to disburse funds around the middle of the year is already posing a risk. As the U.S. powers ahead with its own $1.9 trillion stimulus, global bond yields are being pushed higher.The ECB has been forced to accelerate its emergency stimulus to prevent euro-area borrowing costs rising too quickly while the bloc remains bogged down in extended coronavirus restrictions because of a botched vaccine rollout.Read more: Italy’s Draghi Rushing Plans to Borrow Up to $48 Billion MoreStournaras pushed back against suggestions from his Dutch colleague Klaas Knot this week that the ECB could consider paring back its emergency bond-buying in the third-quarter, saying that’s too soon.Both he and Visco said they would rather let stimulus run too long than risk ending it too early.“We see the light at the end of the tunnel but we have to find a way to accelerate the exit from the tunnel,” Visco said, adding that ramping up vaccinations is also “crucial.”The German legal challenge would be an economic disaster for Europe if the disbursement of the funds were to be delayed indefinitely,” Schnabel said in an interview published in German magazine Der Spiegel on Friday. “If that were the case, Europe would have to think about alternative solutions, but that could take some time.”A political group filed an emergency case at the end of March claiming that the EU shouldn’t be allowed to issue the joint debt. In response, the Federal Constitutional Court said it needed to assess whether a preliminary order would be needed -- while that step isn’t uncommon and can usually be done quickly, it has raised concerns that the EU’s cumbersome setup will undermine the recovery.Schnabel, who is responsible for market operations at the ECB, warned that with equity and real-estate prices relatively high, “the risks of a correction are increasing, especially if the economic recovery falls short of expectations.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
Bloomberg
Traveloka Said in Talks to List via Thiel’s Bridgetown SPAC
(Bloomberg) -- Indonesia’s Traveloka is in advanced talks to go public through merging with Bridgetown Holdings Ltd., a blank-check firm backed by billionaires Richard Li and Peter Thiel, according to people familiar with the matter.A deal could value Southeast Asia’s online travel leader at about $5 billion, said the people who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. The potential transaction could also involve raising between $500 million and $750 million through a private investment in public equity, or PIPE, the people said. Details including the amount to be raised could change as the companies start discussions with potential investors, they added.Representatives for Bridgetown and Traveloka declined to comment.Shares in Bridgetown Holdings rose about 6% in pre-market trading in New York, extending their 13% gain on Thursday.The deal would make Jakarta-based Traveloka one of the first Southeast Asian unicorns to go public through a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. Grab Holdings Inc. is in advanced talks to go that route through Altimeter Capital’s first SPAC, which may value the company at about $40 billion, Bloomberg News reported last month.Read more: Traveloka Is Said to Pick JPMorgan for U.S. Listing via SPACTraveloka was valued in 2020 at around $2.75 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.Bridgetown raised about $595 million in a U.S. initial public offering in October. The company’s sponsor is a collaboration between Thiel Capital, Thiel’s personal investment vehicle based in Los Angeles, and Pacific Century Group, a Hong Kong-based investment company led by Li.Founded in 2012, Traveloka has expanded its reach across six Southeast Asian nations and also covers Australia, making it easier for consumers to book flights and hotels across countries. Like other startups in the region, the company has sought to grow its offering with complementary services, extending into finance alongside its travel, lifestyle and accommodation booking portfolio.Traveloka’s backers include Expedia Group Inc., Rocket Internet, East Ventures, Li’s FWD Group Ltd. and Singapore’s GIC Pte.(Adds pre-market trading in fourth paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
MoneyWise
Fourth stimulus check: Lawmakers press Biden to say yes to more payments
The president is being urged to roll more direct aid money into his infrastructure bill.
20h ago
Bloomberg
Credit Suisse Plans Hedge Fund Unit Overhaul After Archegos Hit
(Bloomberg) -- Credit Suisse Group AG is planning a sweeping overhaul of the hedge fund business at the center of the Archegos Capital blow up, as the drama forces Wall Street banks to reconsider how they finance some of their most lucrative clients.The Swiss bank is weighing significant cuts to its prime brokerage arm in coming months, people familiar with the plan said. The lender has already moved to tighten financing terms with some funds, and hopes changes to the unit can allow it to forgo major cuts to other parts of the investment bank, which just had a banner quarter, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.The implosion of Bill Hwang’s family office --which has caused one of the costliest blows to Credit Suisse in its 165-year history -- is the latest reckoning for banks chasing the lucrative business of catering to hedge funds, which present the potential for both outsized gains and huge losses, magnified by large borrowing. Deutsche Bank AG sold its prime brokerage business to BNP Paribas SA in 2019 as part of a retreat from equities during the German bank’s overhaul.Credit Suisse declined to comment.Prime-brokerage divisions cater specifically to hedge funds, lending them cash and securities and executing their trades, and the relationships can be vital for investment banks as well as being a significant source of revenue. Credit Suisse is the biggest prime broker among European banks, in an industry that accounted for about $15 billion of revenue in 2020. Prime brokerage generally accounts for about a third of equities revenue across the industry most years.Since the drama, Credit Suisse has been calling clients to change margin requirements in swap agreements so they match the more restrictive terms of other prime-brokerage contracts, people with direct knowledge of the matter said. Specifically, the bank is shifting from static margining to dynamic margining, which may force clients to post more collateral and could reduce the profitability of some trades.Swaps are the derivatives Hwang used to make highly leveraged bets on stocks at Archegos and which lie at the heart of the losses.Credit Suisse is also concerned the woes at the prime brokerage business will impact morale at other parts of the securities business and that it may spark departures, the people said. The investment bank is keen to take care of top performers, the people said.Deutsche Bank sold its prime business to BNP as part of the German bank’s huge 2019 overhaul that intended to cut its investment banking business, especially in equities. The lender, which became a force on Wall Street after the financial crisis, had struggled to keep hedge funds clients in recent years after a string of missteps, and client balances declined in the run up to Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing’s decision to sell the business.Now, at Credit Suisse, CEO Thomas Gottstein -- who signaled the bank planned to reduce risk in prime brokerage in a Swiss newspaper article -- is facing questions from his own star traders, dealmakers and private bankers on why the bank’s $4.7 billion hit from Archegos was so much bigger than any of its rivals.The bank announced a raft of changes within the investment bank because of the loss, including the departure of Brian Chin, who led the business. The head of equities sales and trading Paul Galietto, is stepping down immediately, though will stay through April to assist in the transition, according to a staff memo earlier this week reviewed by Bloomberg.The lender also announced three additional exits. Ryan Atkinson, head of credit risk for the investment bank; Ilana Ash, head of counterparty credit risk management for that unit and Manish Mehta, head of counterparty hedge fund risk, according to the memo.The bank has seen a run of missteps under the final months of Urs Rohner’s tenure as chairman. Antonio Horta-Osario is set to take over after the bank’s annual general meeting later this month. Known for disciplined cost-cutting during his time at Lloyds Banking Group Plc, he may also make further changes.Gottstein, who pledged a “clean slate” after scandals under his predecessor, is wedged between disgruntled staff and his own bosses who are increasingly taking charge. The board is pushing for a review of the bank’s wider strategy, not just the units that have run into trouble, the people said.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
2d ago
Yahoo Finance
‘This is the single worst time to be a passive investor’: veteran investor
Stock picking is ripe for a shift away from passive investing, which could suffer a decade of low or nonexistent returns, says Bill Smead.
20h ago
TipRanks
JPMorgan Says These 2 Stocks Could Surge Over 80%
After a volatile first quarter, Q2 has kicked off in style, and the major indexes sit at – or hover near – all-time highs. The government bond market has also been steadying as yields have pulled back after rising higher earlier in the year, soothing investor fears that inflation could get out of hand. Moreover, the economic recovery seems to be gathering steam at a faster pace than anticipated. “We had been expecting the data to improve about this time, and early signals are that the recovery is absolutely on track,” said Hugh Gimber, J.P. Morgan’s global market strategist. “This is the period where the forecast of a strong recovery in growth is starting to look more like the fact of a strong recovery in growth.” Against this backdrop, the analysts at J.P. Morgan have pinpointed 2 names which they believe are set for strong growth in the year ahead; both are expected to handsomely reward investors with at least 80% of gains over the coming months. We ran them through TipRanks database to see what other Wall Street's analysts have to say about them. Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) We’ll start in China, where Tencent Music Entertainment is the offspring of China’s giant online venture company, Tencent, and Spotify, the Swedish streaming company that makes music and playlists easy. Tencent Music has seen consistently strong sales and earnings for the past year, with the top line growing year-over-year in each quarter of 2020. The Q4 report showed $1.26 billion in the top line, the highest in the last two years, along with 12 cents per share in earnings, up 33% year-over-year. Strong streaming revenue, which showed 29% growth, helped drive the results. And, Tencent Music, through its variety of apps, is the top music streaming service in the Chinese online market – as shown by the 40.4% yoy increase in paid subscribers during Q4. In its quarterly results, the company reported 4.3 million net new users in Q4, to reach 56 million active premium accounts across its apps. That said, the stock has pulled back sharply recently, as like many other high-flying growth names, worries regarding an overheated valuation have come to the fore. But pullbacks often spell opportunity, and covering the stock for JPM, Alex Yao notes the strong subscription growth, as well as the potential in the company’s other businesses, online ads and long-form audio, for monetization. “We believe TME is entering a healthy development cycle with successive growth engines: 1) music subscription remains the core revenue driver with consistent paying ratio improvement, 2) ads revenue ramps up quickly, and 3) active investments in long-form audio initiative, which could become a new growth driver in 2022 and afterwards," Yao noted. To this end, Yao puts a $36 price target on TME, suggesting a one-year upside of 84%, to back his Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating on the stock. (To watch Yao’s track record, click here) Overall, TME has a thumbs up from Wall Street. Of the 11 reviews on record, 7 are to Buy, 3 are to Hold, and 1 says Sell, making the analyst consensus a Moderate Buy. The shares are priced at $19.50, and their $30.19 average price target implies an upside of 55% for the months ahead. (See TME stock analysis on TipRanks) Y-mAbs Therapeutics (YMAB) The next JPM pick we’re looking at is Y-mAbs, a late-stage clinical biopharma company with a focus on pediatric oncology. The company is working on the development and commercialization of new antibody-based cancer therapeutics. Y-mAbs has one medication – Danyelza – approved for use to treat neuroblastoma in children age 1 and over, and a ‘broad and advanced’ pipeline of drug candidates in various stages of the clinical process, as well as five additional products in pre-clinical research stages. Having an approved drug is a ‘holy grail’ for clinical biopharmaceutical companies, and in 4Q20 Y-mAbs saw considerable income from Danyelza. The company announced at the end of December that it had agreed to sell the Priority Review Voucher for the drug to United Therapeutics for $105 million. Y-mAbs will retain the rights to 60% of the net proceeds from the sale, under an agreement with Memorial Sloan Kettering. Also in December, the company announced a license agreement with SciClone. The partnership gives Y-mAbs and Danyelza an opening for treating pediatric patients in China. The agreement includes Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, and is worth up to $120 million for Y-mAbs. The company has entered other agreements making Danyelza available in Eastern Europe and Russia. Danyelza is Y-mAbs flagship product, but the company also has omburtamab in advanced stages of the pipeline. This drug candidate saw a setback in October last year, when the FDA refused to file the company's Biologics License Application, proposed for the treatment of pediatric patients with CNS/leptomeningeal metastasis. Y-mAbs has been in steady communication with the FDA since then, with a new target date for the BLA at the end of 2Q21 or early in 3Q21. These two drugs – one approved and one not yet – form the basis of the JPM outlook on this stock. Analyst Tessa Romero writes, “Our thesis revolves around the de-risked nature of the pediatric oncology pipeline. Our recent KOL feedback is enthusiastic about use of lead asset Danyelza in patients with high-risk neuroblastoma (NB). For second lead asset omburtamab in NB metastatic to the central nervous system (CNS/LM from NB), while the ‘Refuse to File’ last year and subsequent regulatory delays were certainly disappointing, we still see a high probability of approval for the product in the 2Q/3Q22 timeframe…” Looking ahead, Romero sees an upbeat outlook for the company: “Coupling our anticipation of a healthy launch for Danyelza, with regulatory/clinical momentum expected in the near- to mid-term, we see shares poised to rebound and see an attractive buying opportunity at current levels.” The analyst puts a $52 price target on YMAB shares, implying an upside of 86% for the year ahead, and supporting an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating. (To watch Romero’s track record, click here) Overall, the Wall Street reviews break down 3 to 1 in favor of Buys versus Holds on Y-mAbs, giving the stock a Strong Buy consensus rating. The shares have an average price target of $61.25, suggestive of a 121% upside potential this year. (See YMAB stock analysis on TipRanks) To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
2d ago
Investopedia
Must-Know Rules for Converting a 401(k) to a Roth IRA
You should be able to roll over your 401(k) plan account into a Roth IRA, but be sure you first understand the tax consequences of doing so.
2d ago
MarketWatch
Whether you’re retiring in 30 years or 5 years, you still need to do this one thing religiously
Investing is a crucial part of accumulating enough money in retirement — and the best results come with proper asset allocation. Retirement tip of the week: Check the asset allocation of your retirement portfolios, and if you’ve done it recently, make it a regularly scheduled task once a year. “The time to review your asset allocation and overall retirement investment strategy should be a proactive process throughout the year,” said Jon Ulin, chief executive officer of Ulin & Co. Wealth Management.
18h ago
Bloomberg
Arm Battle With China CEO Escalates, Complicating SoftBank Sale
(Bloomberg) -- The battle for control of Arm Ltd.’s China business is escalating with new lawsuits aimed at keeping the unit’s controversial chief executive in power, further complicating SoftBank Group Corp.’s efforts to sell the business to Nvidia Corp.The dispute erupted almost a year ago in June after the board voted to oust Arm China Chief Executive Officer Allen Wu for conflicts of interest, but he refused to leave. Now the Chinese unit, which remains under Wu’s control, has filed lawsuits against three senior executives the board designated to replace him, according to people familiar with the matter. The previously unreported suits could take years to resolve, suggesting Wu may remain entrenched.Wu fired the three men -- including co-CEO Phil Tang -- but they were subsequently reinstated by the board. In the new lawsuits, Arm China is suing the trio, demanding they return company property, according to the people.Arm China declined to comment on any ongoing legal cases or possible settlement talks. It did say the three executives had caused “material damages” to the company and they had been terminated for legitimate reasons.Tang didn’t return requests for comment. Arm Ltd. declined to elaborate, saying it won’t comment on pending legal matters.The complex tussle has thrown into question the future of Arm, whose semiconductor technology is the world’s most widely used for smartphones and is increasingly deployed in computers. SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son agreed to sell the British chip designer to Nvidia for $40 billion last year, but the path for completing that transaction is growing increasingly difficult.The China dispute also raises questions about Beijing’s willingness to protect foreign investment in the world’s second-largest economy. Arm Ltd. sold a majority stake in the China unit to a consortium of investors, including Beijing-backed institutions. That has complicated the British firm’s efforts to manage Arm China and Wu, who has support from local authorities in Shenzhen.Both sides appear to be at a stalemate. Wu, a Chinese-born U.S. citizen, pulled back from signing settlement agreements worth tens of millions of dollars if he would leave the company, the people said, asking not to be identified talking about legal matters. At the same time, two minority shareholders in Arm China linked to Wu have filed lawsuits to overturn his June 4 dismissal, they said.SoftBank opened negotiations with him last year and had hoped to reach some sort of resolution, they said. Instead the court battles are deepening and the Japanese company has soured over the increasingly complicated dispute, the people said. SoftBank is now resigned to letting the legal proceedings take their course and there are no current negotiations with Wu, according to one of the people.“We are going through a leadership change in China; it’s taking time to resolve,” said Arm Ltd.’s Chief Executive Officer Simon Segars in an interview with Bloomberg Television recently. “It’s hard. But we are confident that’s going to get resolved.”SoftBank and Nvidia declined to comment on the dispute in China.Arm China said in a statement that Wu’s position “is compliant with legal registration and confirmed by China law and regulations.”Read more: Arm Takes Aim at Intel Chips in Biggest Tech Overhaul in DecadeThe standoff accords a relatively unknown executive outsized influence over one of the industry’s most important pieces of technology, in the world’s biggest internet and semiconductor market. Chinese companies need unfettered access to Arm’s products to push forward with the country’s attempts to make itself more independent in chip technology, an area where it’s largely reliant on imports. Beyond resolving the stalemate, Nvidia and SoftBank also need Beijing’s signoff to seal their deal, and it’s unclear whether Wu’s presence would complicate that.Wu’s hold on Arm China is partially due to local laws which make it difficult to change control of a company unless you’re physically in control of the company stamp and registration documents. He’s refused to give them up and has used company funds to pay for legal fees incurred in his attempt to fight off his dismissal, the people said.Arm China said payment of legal fees “is made in compliance with company policies as well as China laws and regulations.”His ultimate goals appear to be a large cash payoff and immunity from subsequent legal action, according to people who’ve spoken with him. Inside Arm China, which is responsible for selling licenses to its chip designs and fundamental technology in the country, Wu has told local staff he’s not going anywhere. He recently gave employees Chinese New Year cash presents in a red envelope with his surname on it.Arm China said the money came from Wu personally to show his appreciation to colleagues, a tradition at Chinese New Year in the country.Hearings in the case against the three executives are expected to take place in late May, one of the people said. Separately, two minority shareholders in Arm China have sued the Chinese entity in Shenzhen to nullify the board’s decision to oust Wu. These two cases are now being merged and hearings are slated for late April, the people said.Son told investors as recently as February that he expects to close the Arm sale and “I don’t have any Plan B.”Arm, for its part is trying to make sure that its technology remains pervasive in China despite U.S. sanctions intended to curb the supply of American technology to major companies like Huawei Technologies Co. While Arm is a U.K.-based company part of its operations are in the U.S. making its products subject to controls.The Chinese government has not stated its position on the Arm China leadership struggle, but the unit has several government-backed shareholders including sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp. and the Silk Road Fund.In his interview with Bloomberg Television, Arm Ltd. CEO Segars said that the ten-month standoff hasn’t hurt Arm’s business in China. Lack of travel for face-to-face meetings during the pandemic has prolonged the process of changing leadership in China, he said.“When we announced the deal in September, we said it would take about 18 months,” he said. “We remain confident in that timeline.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
1d ago

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Post Holdings and Conagra Brands Announce Completion of Acquisition of Peter Pan® Peanut Butter Brand by Post Holdings

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