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Stock in Downers Grove-based Sara Lee Corp. took a dive Wednesday amid uncertainty about the company’s future. It closed down 5.7 percent, to $18.52.
Investors have been lifting the stock to 52-week highs since early December on reports that the company is likely to be broken up or sold. Get the full story »
Nielsen Holdings, the consumer measurement firm known for its dominance in TV ratings, priced shares in its initial public offering above the expected range Tuesday.
Nielsen sold 71.4 million shares for $23 each, raising about $1.6 billion, an underwriter said. The company sold $250 million worth of mandatory convertible subordinated bonds alongside the IPO. Get the full story »
Shares of Navistar International Corp. rose in early trading Tuesday, after the truck and bus manufacturer said it sees a stronger economy ahead and raised its fiscal 2011 earnings guidance. Get the full story »
Barron’s | Tellabs’ shares dropped 19 percent Tuesday on fourth quarter earnings that came up short, a forecast for continued weakness in the first quarter and a stock downgrade amid intense competition in the telecommunications sector.
CVS Caremark Corp. said Monday that Larry Merlo will take the reins as the drugstore chain operator’s chief executive in March, two months earlier than expected.
Merlo, who is CVS’ chief operating officer, will become CEO March 1, replacing Thomas Ryan. He had been expected to become CEO in May, according to a succession plan laid out last year. The company did not explain why Merlo’s start date had been moved up. Get the full story »
Crain’s Chicago Business | Shares in Sara Lee hit a 52-week high Friday on talk that the food company could be sold soon.
U.S. stocks opened higher Friday, bouncing back after two days of declines, as strong earnings from General Electric Co. and Google Inc. lifted investor hopes.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 64.63 points, or 0.55 percent, at 11,887.43. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 7.15 points, or 0.56 percent, at 1,287.41. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 14.80 points, or 0.55 percent, at 2,719.09.
Shares of department-store operators climbed Thursday as investors made bets on which retailers may follow Dillard’s Inc. in its plan to form a real-estate investment trust.
Dillard’s said in a regulatory filing late Wednesday it believes the formation of a REIT may enhance its ability to access debt or preferred stock and improve its liquidity. The retailer said it plans to transfer interests in certain properties to the REIT and will then lease back the properties. Get the full story »
Abbott Laboratories this morning said it will hold off seeking U.S. approval of an experimental psoriasis treatment following feedback from federal regulators who have concerns about the drug.
Abbott would not disclose exactly what the concerns of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are. The agency, however, has in recent years stepped up its scrutiny of the safety and efficacy of drugs and increasingly orders more study in clinical trials, particularly for safety risks to the heart.
The news hit the company’s stock. The price of Abbott’s shares lost 1 percent of their value or 49 cents, dipping to $46.88 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Get the full story »
A Redbox kiosk at Walgreens. (Handout)
Shares of Coinstar Inc. fell 26 percent on Friday morning, a day after the electronic kiosk company said delayed releases of DVD titles hurt sales at its unit Redbox during the crucial holiday season.
“This was Redbox’s first holiday season with 28-day delayed titles, and we underestimated the impact that the delay would have on demand during the fourth quarter,” Chief Executive Paul Davis said.
As part of a settlement last year, Redbox had agreed with News Corp.’s Twentieth Century Fox, Universal Pictures owned by General Electric and Time Warner’s Warner Bros, to wait for 28 days after a DVD title is released before offering them for rent. Get the full story »
Shares of North American agricultural companies, from fertilizer makers to grain handlers, will likely surge this year as weather-related crop damage causes global food price inflation.
Potash Corp. shares in New York have shot up more than 20 percent since mid-December to about $168, far exceeding the $130 per share offer it rejected last year in a hostile takeover bid by BHP Billiton. Get the full story »
U.S. manufacturer ITT Corp. plans to split itself into three companies to take advantage of the growing water and industrial markets as its defense unit prepares for U.S. military spending cuts.
Its shares rose 18 percent Wednesday, reaching their highest point since the fall of 2008. Get the full story »
Sears' flagship store on State Street in Chicago. (PRNewsFoto/Sears Holdings Corporation)
Sears Holdings Corp. projected fourth-quarter earnings that topped analysts’ expectations because of a lower tax rate, sending shares of the retailer higher.
However, the company also reported its domestic same-store sales declined during December due to continued weakness at its U.S. Sears stores, particularly in consumer electronics.
The retailer has struggled as it continues losing business to rivals and worries remain that consumers are keeping a tight grip on their wallets amid economic uncertainty and high unemployment. Get the full story »
Shares of American Airlines parent AMR Corp. dropped more than 3 percent on Tuesday after UBS downgraded the carrier to “neutral” from “buy,” saying the company’s efforts to cut distribution costs with online travel agencies could hurt profits. Get the full story »
Businesses at the wholesale level trimmed their stockpiles in November for the first time in nearly a year, even though sales rose for a fifth consecutive month.
