On Monday, Shares of Energy Transfer Equity LP (NYSE:ETE), lost -12.69% to $20.29.
Energy Transfer Equity and The Williams Companies, declared a business combination transaction valued at about $37.7 billion, counting the assumption of debt and other liabilities. This declaration follows the termination of the formerly agreed merger agreement between WMB and Williams Partners L.P. (“WPZ”). The business combination between ETE and WMB was approved by the Boards of Directors of both entities. The combination will create the third largest energy franchise in North America and one of the five largest global energy companies. The combination will also benefit customers by enabling further investments in capital projects and efficiencies that would not be achievable absent the transaction.
Under the terms of the transaction, Energy Transfer Corp LP (“ETC”), an associate of ETE, will acquire Williams at an implied current price of $43.50 per Williams share. Williams’ stockholders will have the right to elect to receive as merger consideration either ETC common shares, which would be publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol “ETC”, and / or cash. Elections to receive ETC common shares and cash will be subject to proration. Cash elections will be prorated to the extent they exceed $6.05 billion in the aggregate and stock elections will be prorated to the extent the full $6.05 billion cash pool is not utilized. Williams stockholders electing to receive stock consideration will receive a fixed exchange ratio of 1.8716 ETC common shares for each share of WMB common stock, before giving effect to proration. If all Williams’ stockholders elect to receive all cash or all stock, then each share of Williams common stock would receive $8.00 in cash and 1.5274 ETC common shares. In addition, WMB stockholders will be entitled to a special one-time dividend of $0.10 per WMB share to be paid right away before the closing of the transaction. The special one-time dividend is in addition to the regularly planned WMB dividends to be paid before closing.
Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. (ETE) is a limited partnership company. Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. directly and indirectly owns equity interests in ETP and Regency, both of which are master limited partnerships engaged in diversified energy-related services.
Shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), declined -1.06% to $43.75, during its last trading session.
Verizon Communications - As the world becomes more digital, enterprise networks are being stretched by more data traffic. In fact, traffic on Verizon’s public IP network grew nearly 300 percent over the past four years, a compound annual growth rate of 44 percent.
Now, it’s time for businesses to re-think their networks. The digital transformation and its impact on networks is the subject of a first-of-its kind report from Verizon called “Digital Transformation Powers Your Business.” The report looks at issues facing enterprises as the digital evolution marches on, then outlines key drivers of digital transformation, encourages CIOs and leaders across organizations to rethink their network, in order to drive results.
More than two-thirds (67%) of IT leaders surveyed for the report told Verizon that legacy networks can be a bottleneck to success. Nearly 80 percent of them said that it was IT’s responsibility to ensure the network can support a company’s digital transformation plans, and a vast majority of respondents said that the network is integral to the competitive advantage of a connected business.
Verizon Communications Inc. (Verizon) is a holding company that, acting through its subsidiaries, provides communications, information and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses and governmental agencies. Its segments include Wireless and Wireline. The Wireless segment includes the Cellco Partnership doing business as Verizon Wireless.
Shares of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ:CY), declined -4.57% to $8.36, during its last trading session.
Cypress Semiconductor Corporation issued the following statement in response to recent market rumors regarding Atmel Corporation (ATML).
Cypress formerly presented an offer to the Board of Directors of Atmel to acquire Atmel. That offer expired and Cypress has withdrawn its interest in an acquisition of Atmel. Cypress regularly evaluates acquisition opportunities to complement its existing business, and maintains a disciplined approach to ensure that it continues to deliver long-term value to its shareholders.
Cypress Semiconductor Corporation is a provider of mixed-signal programmable solutions. The Company’s offerings include PSoC 1, PSoC 3, PSoC 4 and PSoC 5LP programmable system-on-chip families. It caters to markets, including industrial, mobile handsets, consumer, computation, data communications, automotive and military.
Finally, Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), ended its last trade with -2.26% loss, and closed at $122.18.
Nike stated financial results for its first quarter ended August 31, 2015. Diluted earnings per share raised 23% due to broad-based revenue growth, gross margin expansion, selling and administrative expense leverage, a lower effective tax rate and a lower average share count.
First Quarter Income Statement Review
- Revenues for NIKE, Inc. raised 5 percent to $8.4 billion, up 14 percent on a currency-neutral basis.
- Revenues for the NIKE Brand were $7.9 billion, up 15 percent on a currency-neutral basis driven by growth in every geography and nearly every key category.
- Revenues for Converse were $555 million, up 3 percent on a currency-neutral basis, mainly driven by strong growth in the United States, partially offset by a decline in the United Kingdom.
- Gross margin expanded 90 basis points to 47.5 percent. The improvement was primarily attributable to higher average selling prices and continued growth in the higher margin Direct to Consumer (DTC) business, partially offset by higher product input and warehousing costs.
- Selling and administrative expense raised 4 percent to $2.6 billion. Demand creation expense was $832 million, down 7 percent, reflecting favorable comparisons against higher investment in support of the World Cup in the first quarter of fiscal 2015. Operating overhead expense raised 10 percent to $1.7 billion, reflecting continued growth in the DTC business and targeted investments in infrastructure and consumer-focused digital capabilities.
NIKE, Inc. is engaged in the design, development, marketing and selling of athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and services. The Company sells its products to retail accounts, through NIKE-owned retail stores and Internet Websites (which the Company refers to as its Direct to Consumer or DTC operations), and through a mix of independent distributors and licensees throughout the world.
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