By Francesca Fontana 

Amazon.com Inc.

Amazon.com said in a legal filing that President Trump exerted "improper pressure" on the Defense Department to keep a lucrative cloud-computing deal from going to company founder Jeffrey Bezos, a sign of how significant the stakes are in the multibillion-dollar cloud business. Amazon.com is protesting the awarding of the $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract to Microsoft Corp. in October. Amazon shares fell 0.1% Monday.

PG&E Corp.

PG&E has reached a settlement with California wildfire victims. The $13.5 billion settlement removes a significant obstacle to its emergence from chapter 11 protection. The bankrupt utility company bowed to demands for more money for fire victims and gave in to pressure from California Gov. Gavin Newsom to improve its corporate governance and implement stricter safety protocols. Under the settlement, PG&E will pay half of the $13.5 billion in cash and half in stock, an important concession to fire victims who were concerned the utility's stock could be a risky bet. PG&E shares gained 16% Monday, the first trading day after the settlement.

NortonLifeLock Inc.

Lots of companies would like the keys to this seller of identify-theft protection and antivirus software. The $16 billion NortonLifeLock has attracted deal interest from a handful of potential suitors including rival McAfee LLC, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. The consumer-software firm was once known as Symantec Corp. and changed its name after closing a $10.7 billion deal to sell its enterprise-security business to Broadcom Inc. in early November. Permira and Advent International Corp. also proposed a takeover before the Broadcom deal closed. NortonLifeLock shares gained 3.5% Tuesday.

Chevron Corp.

One of the world's biggest energy producers is making a big concession: In an age of abundant oil and gas some of its holdings won't be profitable anytime soon. Chevron said Tuesday it wrote down the value of a number of properties, notably its U.S. shale holdings in Appalachia, by a combined $10 billion to $11 billion. Chevron is also restructuring its operations to focus on fewer prospects in the face of persistently low natural gas prices, and will explore sales of some assets. Chevron shares fell 1.4% Wednesday.

Lululemon Athletica Inc.

Lululemon wants to test how far men will stretch. After building its brand by convincing women to wear its pricey yoga pants outside of the gym, the company says its most promising customers now are men. On Wednesday, Lululemon Chief Executive Calvin McDonald said total revenue for men's apparel grew 38% in the third quarter and reiterated the company's goal of doubling the men's business by the end of 2023. As Lululemon seek to expand that business, the company hopes to persuade male shoppers that its pants are worth a price tag approaching $200 for the costliest pair. Shares fell 3.7% Thursday.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV

Peace in the New Year. That's what the United Auto Workers agreed to Wednesday when it secured a new four-year contract with Fiat Chrysler. The ratification is the last of three deals negotiated this year by UAW, closing a grueling round of labor negotiations for UAW leaders. The union now has new contracts in hand at Fiat Chrysler, General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. The new deal with Fiat Chrysler includes terms that will likely close a longstanding labor-cost gap between the Italian-American car company and its larger rivals, labor experts say. Fiat Chrysler shares added 2.6% Thursday.

Broadcom Inc.

A limited trade deal between the U.S. and China announced Friday didn't immediately help Broadcom, which has struggled amid the ongoing trade war. Shares fell 3.8% Friday. The chip maker posted weaker fourth-quarter figures late Thursday, dented by the U.S. export ban of some items to Chinese telecom giant Huawei Technologies Co. Huawei accounted for about $900 million of Broadcom's sales in its previous fiscal year. Still, Chief Executive Hock Tan said he expects the company's semiconductor business to bounce back later in the fiscal year.

Write to Francesca Fontana at francesca.fontana@wsj.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 13, 2019 17:57 ET (22:57 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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