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Health insurer stocks fall as WSJ says lawmakers set to break up pharmacy-benefit managers

(Reuters) – Shares of health insurers such as UnitedHealth and CVS Health fell on Wednesday after a Wall Street Journal report said a bipartisan group of lawmakers was set to introduce legislation to break up pharmacy-benefit managers. The Senate bill, sponsored by U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley, will force companies that own health insurers or pharmacy-benefit managers to divest their businesses operating pharmacies within three years, the report said. Pharmacy-benefit managers negotiate prescription … Read more…

MicroStrategy’s bitcoin-powered surge takes it closer to Nasdaq 100 doorstep

By Medha Singh (Reuters) – A meteoric rise in MicroStrategy’s shares has made the bitcoin hoarder a likely candidate for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index ahead of an annual reshuffle this week. The loss-making software company, an aggressive investor in the highly volatile cryptocurrency, has seen its shares soar nearly 500% this year, taking its market capitalization to $90 billion. The world’s largest cryptocurrency hit the $100,000 milestone for the first time last week and … Read more…

Tesla shares jump to record high

By Chuck Mikolajczak NEW YORK (Reuters) – Tesla shares climbed to a record high of $415 on Wednesday, topping its prior high of $414.50 set more than three years ago as the electric vehicle maker extended a rally in the wake of the U.S. presidential election. Shares of Tesla previously hit a record on Nov. 3, 2021, but a rally of about 65% since the Nov. 5 election has lifted the stock to new heights … Read more…

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US court blocks Kroger’s $25-billion acquisition of grocery rival Albertsons

(Reuters) -A U.S. judge blocked the pending $25-billion merger of U.S. grocery chains Kroger and Albertsons on Tuesday, siding with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in a win for the Biden administration. U.S. District Judge Adrienne Nelson’s ruling essentially scuttles the merger, Kroger has said in court documents. The FTC argued at a three-week trial in Portland, Oregon, that the merger would eliminate head-to-head competition between the top two traditional grocery chains, leading to higher … Read more…

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Apple to bring satellite communications to smartwatch next year, Bloomberg News reports

(Reuters) – Apple plans to bring satellite connections to its smartwatch in 2025 and is ramping up work on a blood-pressure feature for the device, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday. The satellite feature is expected to come to next year’s version of the iPhone maker’s Apple Watch Ultra, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. The feature will allow users to send messages without cellular or internet connection. Apple began to offer satellite … Read more…

Google parent Alphabet jumps on quantum chip breakthrough

(Reuters) – Shares of Google parent Alphabet rose about 5% on Tuesday after it unveiled a new generation chip that the company said helped overcome a key challenge in quantum computing. Google on Monday introduced a new chip called Willow, which solved in five minutes a computing problem that would take a classical computer more time than the history of the universe. Tech companies are chasing quantum computing in hopes of developing systems that perform … Read more…

Lilly CEO says tax and regulation reform, drug affordability are focuses under Trump

By Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) – Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks on Tuesday said at the Economic Club of Washington that tax and regulation reform and drug affordability were some policy focuses for the company in a second Trump administration. President-elect Donald Trump met with Ricks and the chief executive of industry lobbying group PhRMA in Florida last week. It was also reported that Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla attended. The Lilly CEO did not share details … Read more…

Avast antivirus owner Gen Digital acquires MoneyLion in $1 billion deal

(Reuters) – Norton and Avast owner Gen Digital has agreed to buy fintech firm MoneyLion in an all-cash deal valued at about $1 billion to beef up its consumer finance offerings, the companies said on Tuesday. Gen Digital will pay $82 for each MoneyLion share, a 6.5% premium to MoneyLion’s last closing price. Additionally, MoneyLion shareholders will receive one contingent value right per share, entitling them to $23 in Gen Digital common shares, subject to … Read more…

Tesla aims to launch robotaxi with teleoperator backup, Deutsche Bank says

(Reuters) – Tesla aims to start its robotaxi service with a company-owned fleet backed up by human teleoperators for safety, Deutsche Bank said in a note after a meeting with the company’s head of investor relations. The electric vehicle maker still is shooting for a launch of its cheaper vehicle in the first half of next year and other models later in the year, the bank said after the meeting with investor relations chief Travis … Read more…

Apollo-owned Novolex to take packaging products maker Pactiv private in $6.7 billion deal

(Reuters) -Packaging firm Novolex will buy rival Pactiv Evergreen in a $6.7 billion deal, as the Apollo Global Management-owned firm looks to bolster its business of food and beverage packaging in a cautious economic environment. Novolex will offer $18 per share to take Pactiv private in an all-cash transaction, including debt, the companies said on Monday. The deal represents a 32.4% premium to Pactiv’s closing price on Dec. 2, a day before Bloomberg News first … Read more…

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