Tag: Amazon

Latest Headlines

Amazon in ready-to-cook food delivery; Hut adding 200 stores in UK; Texas sued over peanuts, and UPS stockholders reject ‘Holy Land’ proposal

A news summary, with a special focus on big Louisville employers; updated 11:01 a.m.

AMAZON and Tyson Foods are close to launching a ready-to-cook ingredients delivery service, akin to what Blue Apron and HelloFresh do, showing the e-commerce company’s growing ambition in the grocery and food business (Business Insider). Restoration Hardware, Land’s End and other retailers are getting into Prime membership-like plans (CBS). As Amazon gets into air delivery, is it time to sell UPS shares (The Street)?

PIZZA HUT is adding 200 stores and about 3,000 jobs across the UK. The expansion will cost £40 million ($57 million U.S.) and a quarter of the stores will be Pizza Hut “Express” formats (Independent). Pizza Hut already has more than 14,100 restaurants and 300,000 employees in nearly 100 countries, excluding the Yum China division; those are about 59% of Yum’s total 505,000 workers (company website).

FORD has filed for a patent for an invention producing artificial noises that make it sound like more cylinders are working, leading drivers to be more fuel-efficient (Markets Daily).

TEXAS ROADHOUSE: In a lawsuit, an Iowa man has accused the company of negligence after he slipped on peanut shells on a Cedar Falls restaurant floor and shattered his knee in February 2015. The steakhouse chain serves buckets of peanuts to customers, and encourages them to throw the discarded shells on the floor, creating a hazard, the suit says (Des Moines Register).

UPS said shareholders re-elected all 11 members of the board of directors during their annual meeting. But stockholders voted down three shareholder proposals, including one on “Holy Land Principles” that would govern the shipper’s Israeli-Palestinian employment practices (SEC filing).

KINDRED has filed its quarterly report with the Securities and Exchange Commission (10-Q filing).

In other news, U.S. stock markets were climbing, with the S&P 500 index at 2077, up 1% (Google Finance). Led by Amazon, nearly all components in the 11-stock Boulevard Stock Portfolio were trading higher.

Latest Headlines

UPS in deal to deliver blood by drone; Ford exec: ending two-tier pay turned out OK, and Derby brings few arrests

A news summary, with a special focus on big Louisville employers; updated 4:54 p.m.

UPS just announced that its corporate foundation will explore using drones to deliver life-saving medicines such as blood and vaccines are delivered across the world. The foundation has awarded an $800,000 grant to support the initial launch in Rwanda (press release). Here’s the foundation’s GuideStar page, including annual IRS tax returns.

FORD: A top executive now says that while dropping the two-tier wage system increased labor costs, it eliminated a major source of anxiety in the automaker’s plants (Automotive News).

Donald Trump cap
Amazon Trump cap

AMAZON: 1,500 Amazon shareholders want the company to stop selling Trump-branded products (Fast Company). CEO Jeff Bezos has sold 1% of his stake — just over one million shares — worth $671 million. The stock was sold last Thursday according to a predetermined schedule called an SEC Rule 10b5-1 plan, and takes his stake down to 17% of the company from 17.5% (New York Post). Regulatory filing. Amazon shares closed this afternoon at $679.75, up less than 1%.

CHURCHILL DOWNS: Only 17 people were arrested in and around the namesake track on Derby Day (Courier-Journal).

KINDRED: Why the healthcare giant isn’t content being the No. 1 home health provider, according to CEO Benjamin Breier (Home Healthcare News).

In other news, Metro Council President David Yates is expected to introduce an amendment today exempting Airbnb and other short-term rentals from some regulations during major events, such as the Kentucky Derby (WFPL). Former state agriculture commissioner and University of Kentucky basketball star Richie Farmer has filed for bankruptcy (Courier-Journal).

Newspaper publisher Tribune Publishing Co. said its board had adopted a shareholder rights plan — popularly known as a “poison pill” — in a bid to thwart Courier-Journal owner Gannett Co.’s unsolicited $815 million takeover offer (Reuters).

The Wild Dog Rose tea shop will open later this month in the Highlands at 1570 Bardstown Road (Insider Louisville). Also, the owners of Magnolia Photo Booth Co. in NuLu have opened a second store right next door, selling custom t-shirts for kids and adults. The new shop, called OSO Goods, is also at 709 E. Market St. (Insider Louisville, too).

Latest Headlines

Haier tiptoes toward union, Churchill in $25M hotel plan, and Amazon’s primed for growth

Latest news, with a special focus on big Louisville employers; updated at 11:46 a.m.

GE: In a letter to employees, new owner Haier is raising potentially fraught labor-management relations with the IUE-CWA union representing workers at the mammoth Appliances Park complex. The China-based company has agreed to buy GE Appliances for $5.4 billion in a deal expected to close this spring (Business First). Also, GE Appliances and Amatrol Inc. have donated $123,000 in funds and equipment for new state-of-the-art lab opening in Bullitt County to help prepare students for a manufacturing career (WLKY).

CHURCHILL DOWNS‘ stock is sinking following yesterday’s first-quarter earnings miss. Shares recently traded for $135.65, down 4.8%, amid an overall decline in U.S. markets. Also, the company plans a new $25 million hotel for its Oxford Casino in Maine. Construction is expected to start in June and be completed in summer 2017. Churchill bought the property three years ago for $160 million. It now employs 400 and will add another 60 jobs with the hotel expansion (press release).

Amazon logoAMAZON‘s Prime memberships grew 51% last year, including 47% growth in the U.S., the company said yesterday in its surprisingly strong first-quarter earnings report. The shipper doesn’t release detailed numbers on Prime, but Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter estimates there are about 50 million members. And he estimates members spend about four times what others do, and account for about a third of all Amazon purchases (ABC News). As always, what’s good for Amazon is good for UPS’ enormous Louisville hub. In pre-market trading this morning, Amazon’s stock skyrocketed 12% to $676 a share.

FORD is developing an electric car competitive with Chevrolet’s Bolt and Tesla’s Model 3, CEO Mark Fields said yesterday (Automotive News and Bloomberg). Also, a transcript’s now available of yesterday’s first-quarter conference call with top executives of the automaker and Wall Street analysts (Seeking Alpha). Ford’s stock jumped 3.2%, closing at $14.10 on the earnings report.

PAPA JOHN’S yesterday declared a regular quarterly dividend of 17.5 cents per share, payable May 20 to shareholders of record May 9 (press release). Shares fell 2.8% to $56.49.

UPS is comfortable with China growth, but concerned about the possibility of Britain leaving the European Union (Reuters). Also, the shipper’s transcript of yesterday’s quarterly conference call with Wall Street analysts is now available (Seeking Alpha).

In other news, Ohio developer Edwards Cos. has cleared up a financial roadblock and will proceed with plans to develop two large apartment complexes along East Broadway near Baxter Avenue at a combined cost of $65 million. The company had previously cast doubt on the project’s future without Metro Louisville incentives beyond the $7.5 million already offered (Courier-Journal). And U.S. stock index futures pointed to a flat to slightly lower open this morning, following hefty losses on yesterday, as traders eyed earnings and data (CNBC).

Latest Headlines

Amazon blows past forecasts; Churchill, not so much; as Ford, UPS disclose cascade of first-quarter earnings

Latest news, with a special focus on big Louisville employers; updated 4:50 p.m.

AMAZON just reported a huge first quarter, and its stock was recently soaring 12% in after-hours trading, to $675 a share (MarketWatch).

CHURCHILL DOWNS just released first-quarter results showing what appears to be a big miss on earnings per share: 16 cents vs. a Wall Street consensus forecast of 48 cents. But the $288 million in revenue was ahead of the consensus $275 million (forecasts). Here’s the press release. The company’s stock was unchanged in late trading.

FORD this morning delivered record first-quarter results amid strong truck sales, with net income more than doubling and operating margins in the core North American unit rivaling those of high-end luxury brands (MarketWatch); shares surged 1.6% to $13.88 in pre-market trading. Separately, Ford supplier Louisville Seating is planning a $13 million expansion in Shepherdsville that could add 170 jobs (Courier-Journal).

UPS beat first-quarter profit forecasts, but whiffed on revenue. (MarketWatch); premarket, shares rose less than 1%, to $106.90. HUMANA: Aetna reported a nearly 4% decline in first-quarter operating earnings as the health insurer lost members in its commercial business; Aetna has agreed to buy Humana for $37 billion, subject to a tough regulatory review (Reuters); Aetna shares were flat at $111.52, premarket.

Gibbs_rt
Gibbs

YUM‘s newly appointed CFO will get additional stock rights worth $500,000, which and will vest in four equal annual installments starting May 20, 2017 (SEC filing). David Gibbs was promoted to the job from CEO of Pizza Hut yesterday. Yum shares closed yesterday at $81.53, essentially flat.

GE: Qingdao-Haier Co. is making written offers to GE employees as the China-based company nears completion of its $5.4 billion purchase of the appliance maker (Business First).

In other news, AT&T is laying ultra-fast Internet fiber lines throughout Norton Commons, the 600-acre Northeast Louisville residential development. Work is expected to be finished by the end of the year, and comes as Google Fiber advances plans to offer the service city-wide (WFPL). And U.S. stock markets were headed for an ugly day; Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were plunging 140 points after the Bank of Japan’s surprise decision to keep monetary policy steady (CNBC).

Latest Headlines

More than ever, local retailers are looking like toast

News about Louisville’s major employers; updated frequently.

AMAZON extends same-day delivery to Louisville — even on Sunday; details. The retail behemoth and big local employer also disclosed executive pay in a filing yesterday, once more revealing virtually all of CEO Jeff Bezos‘ compensation was the $1.6 million cost of his personal and corporate security. Amazon has 6,000 area employees.

KINDRED discloses golden parachutes for the top brass. More Kindred news.

YUM: Worth noting activist investor Corvex added another 1 million shares during the fourth quarter. Founder Keith Meister elbowed his way onto the board in October, when Corvex owned 3.6% of Yum. With the latest buy, Corvex is now No. 2, with 5%. Shares traded recently at $81.64; year-to-date gain: 12%. All major holders. Yum’s 15-member board. More Yum news.

In other news, A reviled former coal baron gets jail time.