Macy's, Coty, American Express: Stocks That Defined the Week -- WSJ
November 23 2019 - 3:02AM
Dow Jones News
By Francesca Fontana
This article is being republished as part of our daily
reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S.
print edition of The Wall Street Journal (November 23, 2019).
Macy's Inc.
Some air went out of Macy's Inc.'s balloon before its annual
Thanksgiving Day parade and the start of the holiday shopping
season. Sales declined in the third quarter and the retailer on
Thursday l owered its guidance for the year, highlighting the
continuing struggle to attract shoppers to traditional department
stores. Macy's joined Kohl's Corp. and J.C. Penney Co. in reporting
weaker results ahead of the holiday shopping season, while other
retailers have figured out how to succeed in a rapidly changing
landscape. Walmart Inc., Target Corp. and TJ Maxx parent TJX Cos.
all reported strong results. Shares fell 2.3% Thursday.
Coty Inc.
The producer of CoverGirl is turning to Kylie Jenner for a
makeover. Coty is paying $600 million for a controlling stake in
Ms. Jenner's cosmetics startup, wagering that the celebrity's brand
can revive a struggling beauty business based on CoverGirl and
MaxFactor. The fragrance and cosmetics company said it plans to buy
51% of Kylie Cosmetics, valuing it at $1.2 billion. Ms. Jenner, the
youngest of the five Kardashian-Jenner sisters, founded the brand
in 2015 and promoted it on Instagram where she has amassed more
than 150 million followers. She will remain the public face of the
brand. Coty shares gained 2.6% Monday.
American Express Co.
American Express wants more businesses to accept its cards -- so
it is paying them, at times nearly a half-million dollars, to do
so. The Wall Street Journal reported late in Monday's session that
the company is offering sign-on bonuses to some businesses that
don't take its cards in a bid to catch up to rivals Visa and
Mastercard. The payments range from under $10,000 to about
$450,000. Known more for its focus on upscale customers than its
mass-market appeal, AmEx has lagged behind its competitors in the
race for American businesses. American Express shares fell 0.9%
Monday.
T-Mobile US Inc.
John Legere will make his last call as chief executive of
T-Mobile this spring, when the mobile giant will hand the top job
to operating chief Mike Sievert. The company faces a litany of
challenges, including an antitrust lawsuit brought by a coalition
of state attorneys general against T-Mobile's planned $26
billion-plus takeover of Sprint Corp. The leadership change comes
after the Journal reported that Mr. Legere was in negotiations to
take over as chief executive of We Cos., the parent of WeWork. Mr.
Legere said Monday he was "never having discussions to run WeWork"
but made it clear he was contemplating his next act at another
company. T-Mobile shares gained 0.2% Monday.
General Motors Co.
The demolition derby between General Motors and Fiat Chrysler is
moving into the courts. General Motors filed a federal racketeering
lawsuit late Wednesday in which the Detroit auto maker alleges Fiat
Chrysler executives obtained advantageous contract terms from the
United Auto Workers by paying off union leaders, a corruption
scheme that federal prosecutors have been investigating for several
years and that led to guilty pleas by three Fiat Chrysler
employees. Fiat Chrysler said it would defend itself against what
it called a "meritless lawsuit" and accused GM of trying to
interfere with ongoing UAW negotiations and the Italian-American
auto maker's proposed merger with France's PSA Group. GM shares
fell 1.7% Thursday.
Xerox Holdings Corp.
Xerox is threatening to go hostile with its HP takeover bid. The
company told HP Inc.'s board of directors Thursday that it would
take its $33 billion bid to HP's shareholders if the company
doesn't reconsider Xerox's acquisition offer by Nov. 25. Xerox
Chief Executive and Vice Chairman John Visentin said that Xerox is
"very surprised" that HP's board rejected the buyout offer of $22 a
share, which comprises $17 in cash and 0.137 Xerox share for each
HP share. HP rejected Xerox's offer Sunday as too low, but
expressed a willingness to discuss a deal to combine with its
smaller rival. Xerox shares rose 1% Thursday.
TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.
Charles Schwab Corp. is in talks to buy TD Ameritrade in a deal
that would reshape the market where millions of individual
investors buy and sell stocks. The companies have held on-and-off
talks for months and were close to a deal Thursday, the Journal
reported. Schwab is the largest discount broker while TD Ameritrade
is No. 2, and these firms have traditionally catered to lower-end
clients with cheap online offerings, a business model that big Wall
Street brokers like Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Corp. are
increasingly emulating. TD Ameritrade shares were up 17% Thursday,
while Schwab shares gained 7.3%.
Write to Francesca Fontana at francesca.fontana@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 23, 2019 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)
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