STOCK MARKET NEWS: Tesla cuts prices, Norfolk Southern's new safety plan, Powell testimony this week
Tesla cuts prices on several models, Altria buying vape company NJOY for $2.75 billion, Abercrombie & Fitch's profit miss, investors await Fed Chairman Powell’s testimony Tuesday. FOX Business is providing real-time updates on the markets, commodities and all the most active stocks on the move.
Coverage for this event has ended.
Norfolk Southern train rests near the University of North Carolina's energy generation plant, after delivering coal to the facility, in Chapel Hill, N.C., Aug. 11, 2022. (Reuters/Jonathan Drake)
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSC | $222.42 | -5.97 | -2.61 |
Norfolk Southern Corp on Monday said it plans to add about 200 detectors to its tracks that will help identify overheated bearings as the railroad operator came under fire after a derailment in Ohio spewed toxins into the air and water.
The company said it was evaluating the distance between hot bearing detectors, which currently averages 13.9 miles on its "core network", as part of a six-point safety plan based on the preliminary findings of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
The move comes as the company faces criticism from regulators and enraged residents of East Palestine, Ohio, who say their livelihoods had been ruined and that their homes were worth nothing because they live near the derailment site.
The company's chief executive has apologized for the Feb. 3 derailment of its train, which led to cars carrying toxic vinyl chloride and other hazardous chemicals to spill and catch fire.
Toy figures of people are seen in front of the displayed Paramount + logo, in this illustration taken Jan. 20, 2022. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| PARA | $22.04 | -0.55 | -2.43 |
Paramount Global is mulling the possible sale of a majority stake in BET Media Group, which includes the BET cable network, BET Studios and VH1, a source confirmed.
The company believes BET, an entertainment brand focused on the Black community and culture, would attract substantial interest from Black investors or institutions, the source said.
Paramount hopes to maintain a minority stake to benefit from any value that might be unlocked by the transaction.
Previously, the media company partnered with the actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry to launch the BET+ subscription service in 2019, and he retains a minority stake. It also formed BET Studios through a partnership with "Black-ish" creator Kenya Barris, actress Rashida Jones and "S.W.A.T" co-creator Aaron Rahsaan Thomas.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that Paramount was exploring a possible sale.
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| XLK | $140.86 | 0.72 | 0.51 |
| AAPL | $153.92 | 2.89 | 1.91 |
| MRK | $110.76 | 3.88 | 3.63 |
| DLTR | $144.73 | -4.42 | -2.96 |
| BBBY | $1.41 | -0.09 | -5.70 |
All three of the major U.S. stock averages pared gains ending the session mixed as investors prepare for a trio of jobs data points due throughout the week as well as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony on Capitol Hill Tuesday.
Large-cap technology led the S&P 500, as Apple and Merck were top gainers for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Nasdaq Composite slipped as Dollar Tree and embattled Bed Bath & Beyond fell.
The 10-year Treasury rose to 3.981%. In commodities, oil rose nearly 1% to the $80.46 level.
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| SI | $6.08 | 0.31 | 5.37 |
The price of Bitcoin held around the $22K level after hitting a two week low on Friday as the unraveling of Silvergate Capital spooked investors. The firm remains in limbo as it works to provide necessary filings to the Securities & Exchange Commission including its annual report with a March 16 deadline.
AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File
The major U.S. benchmarks are in the green on Monday as commodities like oil and gold flip-flop in early trading.
The Dow Jones Industrial, S&P and Nasdaq are all in positive territory with the tech-heavy index on track for another winning week as shares of Meta, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft rise.
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| META | $185.25 | 10.72 | 6.14 |
| AAPL | $151.03 | 5.12 | 3.51 |
| AMZN | $94.90 | 2.77 | 3.01 |
| MSFT | $255.29 | 4.18 | 1.66 |
In commodities, oil is down again, slipping approximately 0.64% to $79.16 a barrel as gold adds roughly 0.22% to $1,858.70 an ounce.
Meanwhile, silver is up, moving around 0.03% higher to $21.24 an ounce.
Subway has officially opened its new global dual-headquarters in Miami’s Waterford Business District. (Eileen Escarda/Subway via PRNewswire)
Goldman Sachs Group Inc's asset management arm is among the suitors for the U.S. based sandwich chain Subway, which has been put up for sale with an estimated $10 billion price tag, Sky News reported on Saturday.
Bain Capital, TPG and TDR Capital are also among the other suitors, the report added.
Goldman Sachs and TPG declined to comment.
Subway, Bain Capital and TDR did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
The sandwich chain last month said it was exploring a possible sale of its business due to surging costs and mounting competition from deeper-pocketed rivals.
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| SIRI | $4.25 | -0.05 | -1.16 |
Sirius XM is cutting 8% of its workforce, or 475 positions.
“We are entering into a new phase for our Company. The investments we are making in the business this year, coupled with today’s uncertain economic environment, require us to think differently about how our organization is structured,” said CEO Jennifer Witz in a letter to employees.
Witz added the satellite radio company’s decision to reduce its workforce “was required in order for us to maintain a sustainably profitable company.”
Tesla Model S charges at a Tesla supercharger station in Cabazon, Calif. May 18, 2016. (Reuters/Sam Mircovich)
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| TSLA | $197.79 | 6.89 | 3.61 |
Tesla Inc has slashed prices of its electric vehicles in the United States and Europe, doubling down on a discount drive it started in Asia as demand slows against the backdrop of a weakening economy.
In 2022, the Elon Musk-led company missed its target to grow deliveries by 50% annually as it struggled with supply chain constraints and a demand slowdown caused by growing recession fears. Still, Musk has said the carmaker could deliver 2 million vehicles in 2023 as price cuts boost demand.
China-made Tesla car sales rose 18% in January from a five-month low hit in December. February saw a 12.6% rise.
Woman poses with a cigarette in front of Altria logo in this illustration taken July 26, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
| Symbol | Price | Change | %Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| MO | $46.53 | 0.07 | 0.15 |
Altria Group Inc said on Monday it would buy e-cigarette startup NJOY Holdings Inc for about $2.75 billion in cash, in fresh bets by the Marlboro maker on the fast-growing market after losing billions through its investment in Juul.
The tobacco giant said it had exchanged its investment in Juul for certain of the once red-hot vaping company's heated tobacco intellectual property, at a time when it faces thousands of lawsuits and reportedly prepared to file for bankruptcy.
The value of Altria's investment in Juul slid to $250 million as of December last year from $12.8 billion it invested in 2018.
The NJOY deal will include an additional $500 million in cash payments subject to regulatory outcomes related to some NJOY products, Altria said.
NJOY is one of the handful of vaping companies whose products have clearance from federal regulators. It makes NJOY Ace Pods — currently the only pod-based e-vapor product with market authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration — and disposable e-cigarettes under the NJOY Daily brand.
A busy week is on tap for investors with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Capitol Hill, Apple's investor day and a series of key jobs reports all set to move financial markets.
The pressure is mounting to ban TikTok as two key lawmakers lay the ground work to move ahead.
Live Coverage begins here