Markets managed to absorb a somewhat hotter-than-expected U.S. consumer inflation reading for December without much drama. Now more attention can turn to the corporate earnings season, which slips into gear on Friday, led by financials.If company results and forecasts are reasonably well-received by investors then the S&P 500 may reach a new closing record. The benchmark on Thursday closed just 16 points, or less than 0.4%, off its previous peak of 4796.56, set at the start of January 2022. So, given no sig ...

Group 1 - BlackRock Inc. has agreed to acquire Global Infrastructure Partners for $3 billion in cash and approximately 12 million shares [1] - The infrastructure market is currently valued at $1 trillion and is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years, driven by long-term structural trends [1] - Key trends supporting infrastructure investment include increased global demand for upgraded digital infrastructure, renewed investment in logistical hubs, and a shift towards decarbonization and energy security [1] Group 2 - Global Infrastructure Partners has over $100 billion in assets under management and a strong reputation for enhancing portfolio companies [1] - GIP operates with around 400 employees and manages more than 40 portfolio companies that generate over $75 billion in annual revenue [1] - BlackRock plans to finance the cash portion of the acquisition by raising approximately $3 billion in additional debt [1] Group 3 - The acquisition is expected to modestly increase adjusted EPS and operating margin in the first full year after the deal closes, anticipated in the third quarter [1] - BlackRock's stock has increased by 5% over the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 20% during the same period [1]

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Inc. UNH, +0.38% slipped 0.2% in premarket trading Friday, after the health insurer reported higher-than-expected fourth-quarter medical costs, but earnings that beat forecasts. Net income rose to $5.46 billion, or $5.83 a share, from $4.76 billion, or $5.03 a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of $6.16 beat the FactSet consensus of $5.98. Revenue grew 14.1% to $94.43 billion, well above the FactSet consensus of $92.13 billi ...

The current scrutiny of anti-competitive business tactics by Amazon.com Inc. by both U.S. and European Commission regulators has put its pending acquisition of Roomba maker iRobot at risk, but there are hopes that tech M&A will come back this year nonetheless.This week, Amazon AMZN, +0.94% missed a deadline to file concessions to the EU that would allay any concerns the regulators have about its pending $1.4 billion acquisition of iRobot Corp. IRBT, +4.37%. IRobot makes the popular Roomba robotic vacuum cle ...

CVS Health Corp. on Thursday said it would close “select” pharmacies set up in Target Corp. stores starting next month, as it tries to shrink its store counts and become more of a health-services provider amid thinner profits for drugstores. A representative for the chain said the closures would begin in February and run through April. She declined to provide specific numbers and locations. The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news, said that “dozens” of those pharmacies would be closed. Patien ...

Shares of Boeing Co. BA, -1.47% dropped 1.7% toward a six-week low in midday trading Thursday, after the Federal Aviation Administration said it launched investigation into whether the aerospace giant failed to complete safety tests on the certain products. The selloff erases an earlier intraday gain of as much as 0.2%. “This investigation is a result of an incident on a Boeing Model 737-9 MAX where it lost a ‘plug’ type passenger door and additional discrepancies,” The FAA said in a statement. The FAA has ...

On Wednesday, Oppenheimer & Co. analyst Dominick Gabriele upgraded Mastercard Inc. to an “outperform” rating with a 12-18 month price target of $510, which was 19% higher than the stock’s closing price of $428.27 that day.In a note to clients, Gabriele wrote that there was some concern over his estimated annual earnings-per-share growth rate of 17% for Mastercard MA, -0.22% over the next three to five years, because this was slower than the growth pace before the COVID-19 pandemic. But he concluded that the ...

For the first time in 539 trading days, there’s a new market-value leader in town. Microsoft Corp. MSFT, +0.69% has overtaken Apple Inc. AAPL, -0.97% in terms of valuation for the first time since late 2021, based on intraday stock moves. Microsoft, with its shares up 0.9% early in Thursday’s session, has a market value of $2.87 trillion, while Apple, with its stock down 1.1%, has a market value of $2.86 trillion. ...

Tesla Inc. TSLA, -1.85% has told employees at its California car plant that it plans to boost wages across its U.S. factories in what the electric-vehicle maker described as a “market adjustment pay increase,” Bloomberg reported Thursday. The announcement was posted on a poster at Tesla’s facility in Fremont, California and seen by Bloomberg, the news service said. The company did not comment, the report said. Tesla’s stock was down 1.3% in premarket trading. ...

Salesforce Inc. has been in the midst of a big pivot, focusing more on profits and margins after years of doing flashy deals meant to drive growth. Wall Street has taken notice, driving Salesforce shares CRM, +1.07% up nearly 100% last year and making them the best performer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average for 2023. Read: If Nvidia looked more like Salesforce, it might unlock billions more in cash, analyst says But while the stock had a big year in 2023, there could be more gains in store, accordin ...