SPG Simon Property Group Inc

By Francesca Fontana 

Simon Property Group Inc.

U.S. malls are throwing open their doors in certain parts of the country as some states loosen stay-at-home restrictions. Simon Property Group, the largest U.S. mall landlord, planned to reopen 49 malls and outlet centers in the first days of May, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Macy's Inc. will reopen 68 stores on May 4, some of them located in Simon's properties, while Best Buy Co. will open about 200 in May. Simon shares gained 11% Tuesday.

3M Co.

3M's N95 face masks are still in high demand as health-care workers treat coronavirus patients. The rest of its products? Not so much. The company said Tuesday that demand has fallen for other goods in its vast product line, such as industrial glues, as factory closures ripple through the industrial economy. The maker of Post-it Notes also said that sales of office supplies decreased as many people began working from home. The company is cutting its capital investments this year and is temporarily shutting down some nonmask production lines due to weakened demand. About 25% of the company's factories and warehouses were closed as of April. 3M shares added 2.6% Tuesday.

United Parcel Service Inc.

UPS is doing more but making less. The delivery giant is logging higher revenue as millions of homebound Americans shop online for everything from toothpaste to trampolines during the coronavirus pandemic. However, the more profitable business of delivering big shipments to offices and stores has dried up since nonessential businesses shut their doors. The company said its drivers are traveling 10% farther and making 15% more stops on their daily routes to keep up with rising demand for home deliveries. Those packages are also 33% lighter, generating less revenue than the bulkier shipments that would go to businesses. UPS shares fell 6% Tuesday.

Boeing Co.

The world's biggest aerospace company plans to cut thousands of jobs and raise fresh funds to survive after the near-collapse of global passenger air travel. Already wounded financially by the yearlong grounding of its 737 MAX aircraft, Boeing on Wednesday reported its second consecutive quarterly loss alongside plans to cut jetliner production and shed 10% of its workforce. Chief Executive David Calhoun outlined a modest near-term plan: catering to airliner retirements instead of fleet growth and holding off on designing new aircraft. Boeing also plans to take on more debt and is evaluating federal loans to support a supply chain of about 17,000 companies. Boeing shares gained 5.9% Wednesday.

Microsoft Corp.

The pickup in remote work and entertainment during the pandemic is boosting demand for Microsoft services. On Wednesday, the company reported strong growth in quarterly sales and profit, with gains in areas from cloud computing to videogame consoles. The health crisis has spurred use of Microsoft's workplace collaboration software suite, called Teams, that includes videoconferencing and messaging functions. It now has 75 million daily active users, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said, more than double the number in early March. Microsoft shares added 1% Thursday.

Kraft Heinz Co.

More people reached for the comfort of Kraft macaroni and cheese during the spread of the new coronavirus earlier this year. Kraft Heinz, which makes Kraft cheeses, Oscar Mayer cold cuts, Planters nuts and other food products, said Thursday that boxes of mac and cheese helped sales in the U.S. increase 6.4% to about $4.5 billion. It also reported strong growth in condiments and sauces, ready-to-drink beverages, and nuts. The pandemic has stoked demand for all kinds of grocery items, forcing packaged-food companies to run their factories near their capacities to keep products flowing to store shelves. Kraft Heinz shares fell 0.7% Thursday.

Amazon.com Inc.

The high demand for Amazon's home deliveries is coming at a cost. Quarterly sales soared 26% after a coronavirus-fueled surge in orders -- the highest on record for a typically slow period for the company -- but profit fell 29% from a year earlier. The company hired 175,000 more staffers as the flood of orders taxed its operations, and world-wide shipping costs rose 49% from the year-earlier period. Amazon expects to spend around $4 billion on coronavirus-related costs such as employee testing and increased wages after spending more than $600 million on such costs in the first quarter. Amazon shares fell 7.6% Friday.

Write to Francesca Fontana at francesca.fontana@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 01, 2020 18:43 ET (22:43 GMT)

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