Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
PepsiCo – The snack and beverage giant reported adjusted quarterly profit of $1.48 per share, a penny a share above estimates. Revenue missed forecasts amid a drop in North American beverage business sales, although Pepsi did give a full-year forecast that is above Street forecasts.
Amazon.com, Apple – The European Union ordered Luxembourg to collect about $300 million from Amazon, saying the country had given Amazon illegal tax breaks since 2003. Amazon said it is considering its legal options in the case. The EU also referred a similar case against Apple to the European Court of Justice, alleging that Ireland failed to collect proper taxes.
Procter & Gamble – CEO David Taylor urged shareholders to vote against activist investor Nelson Peltz in the upcoming board election and to back the consumer products giant’s turnaround plan. Taylor made his remarks in a Q&A session with investors.
Netflix – UBS increased its price target for Netflix to $225 per share from $190, while maintaining a “buy” rating. UBS said its analysis suggests strong growth momentum is continuing for the video streaming service.
Ford Motor – Ford unveiled a five-year plan which will see it cut costs by $14 billion and shift investment more toward trucks and electric and hybrid cars. CEO Jim Hackett said positive bottom line impact from those moves would not show up until 2019 and 2020.
Mylan– The drugmaker said it received Food and Drug Administration approval for its generic version of the Teva Pharmaceutical multiple sclerosis treatment Copaxone.
Verizon – Yahoo, which was combined with the former AOL by Verizon earlier this year to form a unit called Oath, said all three billion of its accounts were impacted by a 2013 data breach. That’s triple the size of its earlier estimate.
Mattel – Mattel named former Sprint Chief Financial Officer Joseph Euteneuer as its new chief financial officer, replacing Kevin Farr. Farr had served as the toy maker’s CFO for 17 years.
Walt Disney – Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger said the company did consider a purchase of Twitter before purchasing a majority stake in sports streaming site BAMTech.
Office Depot – The office supplies retailer announced the purchase of information technology services company CompuCon from private-equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners for about $1 billion. As part of the deal, Thomas H. Lee will own about eight percent of Office Depot’s shares.
Kraft Heinz – The food maker was cut to “neutral” from “buy” at Goldman Sachs, which also cut the price target on the stock to $87 from $95. Goldman said cost savings from the Heinz acquisition of Kraft are beginning to deplete, and that outperformance compared to the company’s peers is likely to wane.
Cedar Fair – Cedar Fair was removed from the Conviction Buy list at Goldman, which cites a weaker than expected summer season for the amusement park operator. Goldman is maintaining a “buy” recommendation on the stock, however, based on the company’s long-term prospects.
Waste Management – Waste Management was downgraded to “hold” from “buy” at Stifel Nicolaus, which cites recycling prices and hurricane-related expenses. Stifel points out that the “garbage stock” group has vastly outperformed stock market benchmarks and may very well be “priced to perfection.”
Jack In The Box – Jack In The Box was upgraded to “outperform” from “market perform” at Telsey Advisory Group, with the restaurant chain’s management in the process of reviewing strategic alternatives.
Winnebago – Stifel Nicolaus downgraded the recreational vehicle maker to “hold” from “buy,” saying it is still upbeat on the company and the industry in general, but that upbeat expectations are fully priced into the stock.
Source: Investment Cnbc
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