Bristol-Myers Squibb, Macy's, Grubhub: Stocks That Defined the Week
January 10 2020 - 6:33PM
Dow Jones News
By Francesca Fontana
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.
U.S. cancer deaths dropped by the largest amount ever recorded
in a single year, boosting Bristol, Merck & Co., Roche Holding
AG and other drug makers that spent tens of billions of dollars in
recent years developing new therapies. Advances in treatment are
helping improve survival rates in lung cancer and melanoma, experts
say. The record 2.2% drop in cancer deaths happened between 2016
and 2017, according to the American Cancer Society. Bristol shares
gained 2.5% Thursday.
Macy's Inc.
Macy's is trimming its footprint as more shoppers move online.
The department-store company plans to shut nearly 30 locations and
said Wednesday that its sales fell during the holiday months,
though the decline wasn't as sharp as investors had feared. The
company intends to close 28 Macy's stores and one Bloomingdale's
store, according to a company spokeswoman. The retailer said its
digital business and core stores performed well over the holidays
and customers responded to its marketing, particularly during the
10 days before Christmas. Macy's shares fell 2.2% Thursday.
Grubhub Inc.
A sale could be on the menu for Grubhub. The Wall Street Journal
reported Wednesday that the food-delivery provider is considering
that move and other strategic options amid increased competition
and a recent decline in its shares. Competition in the
food-delivery industry has intensified as newcomers try to lure
customers with discounts and promotions. Investors and analysts
have said the industry needs consolidation, and many see room for
little more than two major players in the space. Grubhub denied the
report on Thursday, telling other media that there is
"unequivocally no process in place to sell the company and there
are currently no plans to do so." Shares gained 13% Wednesday.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.
The holidays weren't happy for Bed Bath & Beyond. The
home-goods retailer said Wednesday that it swung to a loss in the
latest quarter, weighed down by weaker sales during the critical
holiday period. The home-goods retailer withdrew its fiscal 2019
guidance and said that it would unveil a new strategic plan soon.
The company also struck a deal Tuesday to sell roughly half its
real estate to a private-equity firm and lease back the space. The
proceeds, estimated to be more than $250 million, will help the
company repay debt, buy back shares and fund its turnaround
efforts. Bed Bath & Beyond shares plummeted 19% Thursday.
Facebook Inc.
Facebook didn't make a lot of new friends with a new policy to
ban "deepfake" videos that are manipulated using advanced tools.
Critics said it didn't go far enough and the policy had too many
loopholes. Facebook said it would remove or label misleading videos
that had been edited or manipulated in ways that wouldn't be
apparent to the average person, but that it wouldn't do the same
with parody or satire or video that "has been edited solely to omit
or change the order of words." Facebook shares gained 1.4%
Thursday.
Beyond Meat Inc.
Plant-based meat makers are coming for pork. Impossible Foods
Inc. said Monday that it will introduce imitation versions of the
other white meat, including a patty for a new sandwich at dozens of
Burger King restaurants later this month. Beyond Meat last year
began supplying plant-based sausage to Dunkin' Brands Group Inc.,
Carl's Jr. and Tim Hortons restaurants, mainly for breakfast
sandwiches. Impossible, Beyond and other meat-alternative
developers say their products spare livestock and are better for
the environment than meat because they require less grain, water
and fuel to produce. Plant-based food makers are also developing
chicken and seafood alternatives. Beyond Meat shares jumped 12%
Tuesday.
Boeing Co.
"Would you put your family on a MAX simulator trained aircraft?
I wouldn't." This was among the internal messages released by
Boeing showing employees displaying a cavalier attitude toward
safety while ridiculing regulators and some airline officials.
Employees persuaded -- and in some cases tried to trick -- airline
and government officials to conclude that flight-simulator training
wasn't necessary for the 737 MAX, according to the messages. In
2018, as the company was contending with problems in its MAX flight
simulators, some employees were concerned about whether regulators
would sign off on the simulators and some complained they had not
been given enough time to resolve the issues. Boeing shares fell
1.9% Friday.
Write to Francesca Fontana at francesca.fontana@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 10, 2020 18:18 ET (23:18 GMT)
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