March 28 (Reuters) – HP Inc (HPQ.N) said on Monday it would buy audio and video devices maker Poly (POLY.N) for $1.7 billion in cash as it looks to capitalise on the hybrid work led boom in demand for electronic products.Shares in HP, which expects the deal will position it for long-term growth, fell 1.4% in premarket trade.The company has offered $40 for each share of Poly, formerly known as Plantronics, which represents a premium of about 53% to the stock’s last closing price. Including debt, the deal is valued at $3.3 billion.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni and Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. .
“The rise of the hybrid office creates a once-in-a-generation opportunity to redefine the way work gets done,” HP Chief Executive Officer Enrique Lores said.With the global healthcare crisis boosting the need for hybrid work, the market has seen several acquisitions, including business software maker Salesforce.com’s (CRM.N) $27.7-billion purchase of workplace messaging app Slack Technologies Inc last year. read more Poly, whose shares rose 49% in premarket trade, said it would be required to pay a fee of $66 million if the deal is terminated.The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2022.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comNetflix tests sharing accounts outside household
Small toy figures are seen in front of diplayed Netflix logo in this illustration taken March 19, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. .
March 16 (Reuters) – Netflix Inc is testing features including one that will allow accounts to be shared outside members’ household at an extra cost, the streaming pioneer said on Wednesday.The company is testing the features in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru allowing members on its standard and premium plans to add up to two people.Netflix is also studying another feature that will allow members on a basic, standard or premium plan to transfer their profile information to a new account or a sub account retaining data such as viewing history and personalized recommendations. (https://bit.ly/3CLKbF2)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com The company currently allows people who live together to share their Netflix account. However, the plans have created some confusion about when and how accounts can be shared, the company said, adding it is impacting its ability to invest in new content.The company said it would test the features for their utility before making changes in other parts of the world.Netflix in January tempered its growth expectations, projecting customer additions in the first-quarter at less than half of Wall Street’s expectations citing the late arrival of anticipated content. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRetailer Canadian Tire to strengthen game with over $2 bln investment
People walk out of a Canadian Tire Store that is located by a Mark’s clothing store, which is owned by Canadian Tire Corporation in Toronto, May 8, 2014. REUTERS/Mark Blinch Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Deborah Sophia and Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. .
March 10 (Reuters) – Canadian Tire Corp Ltd (CTCa.TO) said on Thursday it would invest C$3.4 billion ($2.66 billion) over the next four years on its physical and online presence, as it looks to build on the gains made from the pandemic-led online surge.To lure more customers and get a bigger share of their spend as competition grows, retailers are beefing up their online business and offering everything from attractive loyalty programs to personalized promotions online.Toronto, Ontario-based Canadian Tire said it would expand its rewards program and rollout its premium annual membership across its stores nationwide, while also introducing over 12,000 new products under its owned brands by 2025.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com The owner of SportChek and Mark’s store banners also said it would invest about C$675 million to boost its supply chain infrastructure by adding more warehouse space and opening a new e-commerce fulfillment center.Shipping delays and product shortages plagued retailers last year, forcing them to look at ways to strengthen their supply chains to ensure well-stocked shelves to meet rising consumer demand.Canadian Tire said about C$1.2 billion of its investment would go toward improving the connection of its digital and physical channels, to boost its same-day pickup options, including curbside.Canadian Tire said it expects to grow same-store sales, excluding fuel, by more than 4% annually by 2025, with a profit target of more than C$26 per share.RBC analyst Irene Nattel said the forecast was likely “well above Street expectations.”The company reported earnings of C$18.38 per share last year and had recorded a nearly 30% surge in e-commerce sales.($1 = 1.2803 Canadian dollars)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBrookfield Aussie coal bid hits toxic smokescreens
Storm clouds can be seen behind chimneys at the Bayswater coal-powered thermal power station located near the central New South Wales town of Muswellbrook, Australia, March 14, 2017. Picture taken Mach 14, 2017. REUTERS/David Gray Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRegisterMELBOURNE, Feb 23 (Reuters Breakingviews) – Brookfield Asset Management (BAMa.TO) and Grok Ventures’ A$5 billion ($3.6 billion) offer for AGL Energy read more has reignited Australia’s dirty climate wars. The asset manager and the investment fund of Atlassian (TEAM.O) co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes want to plough up to A$20 billion into the coal-heavy power company to speed its shift to solar and wind. That ought to be a welcome development for a struggling target read more and for a federal government finally paying lip service read more to net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions. Instead, they’re returning to tired old anti-renewables tropes.The bidders face some deserved hurdles as it is. Success would mean Brookfield part-owning not just Australia’s largest power producer and retailer, but also, thanks to a recent A$10 billion club deal for AusNet, significant parts of the country’s transmission grid. That raises potential but probably not insurmountable competition concerns.To seal a deal, wannabe buyers also need to up their 4.8% premium. Some shareholders may agree that AGL’s plan to demerge its two divisions will destroy value, but Brookfield and Grok have to work off where the shares trade, not where they think they should. AGL Chief Executive Graeme Hunt is overplaying his hand implying he needs at least a 30% premium to start talks. But there’s probably some middle ground.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRegisterTrouble is, Hunt is raising the more serious spectre of Brookfield-Grok disrupting the energy market. That seems disingenuous while pitching for a higher offer, but he’s following the government’s lead: On the back of the bid, Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned early coal plant closures mean “electricity prices go up”. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg asserted it was an “indisputable fact” proved by the 2017 closure of Hazelwood power station.That specific comparison is wielded out of context: French owner Engie only gave six months’ notice before switching Hazelwood off, with no plans to replace production. And rising gas prices and big coal suppliers gaming the system also played a big role in price hikes, according to Australia’s own competition commission and researchers at the University of Melbourne.Brookfield and Grok are giving at least eight years’ notice and will only mothball coal once enough renewables are up and running. Of course, a parliamentary election due by May is fuelling tried and tested populist politics. The buyers could do without the toxic smokescreen.Follow @AntonyMCurrie on TwitterCONTEXT NEWS- AGL Energy Chief Executive Graeme Hunt on Feb. 22 said the A$5 billion ($3.6 billion) offer from Brookfield Asset Management and Grok Ventures offered very poor value for shareholders. He told The Australian newspaper that investors “typically, for a change of control…are looking for premium 30-40 plus per cent over whatever the appropriate share trading range is for the company”.- Hunt also called into question the consortium’s ability to replace AGL’s coal-fired power stations with adequate renewable energy sources by 2030. On the same day federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said it was an “indisputable fact” that energy prices will go up if coal-fired power stations close early, referring to the shutdown of the Hazelwood plant in Victoria in 2017.- Any takeover offer which leaves a foreign company owning 10% or more in an Australian company deemed part of critical infrastructure like energy, financial services, food and grocery, and water and sewage is subject to approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board, which submits its recommendations to the country’s Treasurer.- AGL’s bid represents a 4.8% premium to the stock’s closing price on Feb. 18. The prospective buyers made their approach on Feb. 19. The company’s board said on Feb. 21 that it had rejected the offer.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRegisterEditing by Jeffrey Goldfarb and Katrina HamlinOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. .