Wall Street Lunch: Yahoo's AOL Heads To Italy In Potential Sale To Bending Spoons

Group 1: Bending Spoons and AOL Acquisition - Apollo Global's Yahoo is in advanced talks to sell AOL to Italy's Bending Spoons for approximately $1.4 billion, although no final deal has been signed yet [3] - Bending Spoons aims to revitalize struggling digital brands and has over 300 million monthly users across its apps [3] - The acquisition of AOL would provide Bending Spoons with a broad user base and enhanced advertising reach, with AOL's traffic rising 20% year-over-year among younger users [4] Group 2: Music Industry and AI Licensing - Warner Music and Universal Music are nearing landmark AI licensing agreements, with negotiations focusing on how labels will license their songs for AI-generated tracks [5] - Startups and larger companies like Google and Spotify are involved in these discussions, aiming for micropayments similar to those from streaming services [5] Group 3: Berkshire Hathaway and Occidental Petroleum - Berkshire Hathaway is acquiring Occidental Petroleum's chemical business for $9.7 billion in cash, adding a non-insurance asset to its portfolio [6] - Occidental plans to use about $6.5 billion of the proceeds to reduce debt, resulting in over $350 million in annual interest savings [6] Group 4: Tesla's Q3 Performance - Tesla delivered a record 497,100 vehicles in Q3, exceeding Wall Street's estimate of 448,000, driven by demand for the expiring $7,500 EV tax credit [7] - Production for the quarter was 447,000 vehicles, primarily consisting of Model Y and Model 3 [7] Group 5: Caterpillar's AI Boom Benefits - Caterpillar has emerged as a surprising beneficiary of the AI boom, with shares jumping 14% in September and up 32% year-to-date [13] - The company is expected to benefit from increased electricity demand and has multiple growth drivers, including mining equipment and construction machinery [14] Group 6: Potential Tech Acquisition Targets - Wedbush Securities identifies 12 potential tech acquisition targets as AI spending accelerates, with smaller firms becoming prime candidates for takeover [15] - Notable candidates include Tenable, Qualys, SentinelOne, Elastic, C3.ai, and TripAdvisor, which may have strategic value in an AI-driven environment [16]