Opening Bell: 4.29.16
Valeant to Replace Up to Five Board Members This Week (Bloomberg)
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. may replace as many as five directors as soon as Friday, according to a person familiar with the matter, as the company overhauls its strategy and governance and awaits its new chief executive officer.
Carl Icahn Claims Responsibility for Ousting Former Cheniere CEO (Bloomberg)
Charif Souki was a co-founder of Cheniere, the Houston-based company that’s the first to export U.S. shale gas. He was removed as CEO by the board in December, just two months before the first shipment of shale gas set sail. At the time, Souki said he lost his job because he planned to speed up development of liquefied natural gas projects, a strategy opposed by Icahn. “I was very instrumental in getting him out -- no question about it,” Icahn said in an interview on CNBC on Thursday. “I take full responsibility for it.”
Abbott’s $25 Billion Deal Shows Health Care Still Fueling M&A (WSJ)
The deals show health care remains an engine of M&A activity despite a crackdown on tax-lowering maneuvers known as inversions that drove a number of large deals in recent years. Fueled by industry fundamentals more than tax-lowering strategies, health-care companies have announced $121.12 billion in global deal activity this year, second only to the technology industry’s $145.78 billion in deals so far this year, according to Dealogic.
U.S. Earnings Face Longest, Broadest Drop Since Crisis (WSJ)
U.S. corporate profits, weighed down by the energy slump and slowing global growth, are set to decline for the third straight quarter in the longest slide in earnings since the financial crisis. Weakness was felt across the board, with executives from Apple Inc. to railroad Norfolk Southern Corp. and snack giant Mondelez International Inc. saying the current quarter remains tough. 3M Co., which makes tapes, filters and insulation for consumer electronics, forecast continued weak demand for that industry. Procter & Gamble Co. reported sales declines in its five business categories despite price increases.
Drunken Ohio couple busted naked in their car, told police 'the mood' hit (NYDN)
An Ohio couple found naked and drunk in their car was arrested on Sunday, but the boyfriend swore he had a valid excuse for the nude excursion. “‘When the mood hits’ you have to find a place to park,” Glenn Mcie told North Royalton police, just after cops found him knocked out naked from the waist down on top his completely nude girlfriend, according to a criminal complaint from The Smoking Gun. Officers spotted the couple passed out inside a Jeep parked in a handicapped space at about 2:15 a.m. Mcie's lover, Shannon Mulcahy, responded to cops' orders to get dressed by yelling, “f--- you guys” out the window, documents showed. Police said Mcie reeked of alcohol and was stumbling in both his steps and his sentences.
Jeff Bezos just got a whole lot richer (NYP)
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has blown past Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim to become the world’s fourth-richest person after the online giant’s stock soared on surprisingly strong quarterly results. Bezos’ fortune — which consists mostly of his 18-percent stake in the Seattle-based Web retailer — added more than $6 billion, or 12.5 percent, in after-hours trades Thursday, bringing his total to nearly $60 billion.
Atlantic City, America’s Worst-Rated Town, Stares at Default (WSJ)
Atlantic City has so little money left that it could miss a $1.8 million bond payment due Sunday, a step that would make it the first New Jersey municipality to default on debt since the Great Depression. The Jersey Shore gambling destination has endured years of strain as a third of its casinos shut down. But now its cash levels are low enough that bankruptcy is a possibility for the 39,000-population city, according to Mayor Don Guardian. “We’re down to a couple million dollars on any given day,” the mayor said in an interview.
Facebook Spent $12.5 Million to Protect Zuckerberg Since 2013 (Bloomberg)
Facebook Inc. revealed that it spent $4.26 million on security for Mark Zuckerberg last year, its first disclosure of such costs, and the highest among companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index that have filed proxy statements for fiscal 2015. The expense brings the total cost from 2013 to 2015 to $12.5 million, according to a regulatory filing. The cost was “to address safety concerns due to specific threats to his safety arising directly as a result of his position as our founder, Chairman, and CEO,” the company said in the filing.
PayPal Says Federal Trade Commission Investigating Venmo (Bloomberg)
PayPal said it received a civil investigative demand on March 28 from the Federal Trade Commission for documents related to Venmo. The probe focuses on whether the electronic payments company, through Venmo, engaged in unfair or deceptive trade practices, the company said Thursday in a regulatory filing.
Baltimore TV station bomb threat turns out to be candy (UPI)
A man dressed in a panda suit claiming to have a bomb threatened a Baltimore TV station for about 90 minutes until he was shot by police as he walked out on to the street. The unidentified man, 25, is expected to recover. No one else was hurt in the incident. The bomb that appeared to be strapped to his chest was actually a flotation vest with chocolate bars and a motherboard wrapped in wires, with wires running down the sleeve to another device designed to look like a detonator.