Earnings season. The Home Depot, Sea Limited, NIO Limited, Experian, Fortum, Imperial Brands, Iliad, Eurazeo, Paradox Interactive and Zooplus are among companies reporting their results today.
A few results:
- Baidu: the Chinese search engine achieved better-than-expected results, with a return to growth in Q3.
- The Home Depot recorded a 24.1% increase in sales on a comparable basis for the third quarter, well above expectations. The group of DIY and home improvement department stores announced plans to increase employee compensation by $1 billion per year.
- Kohl’s, the department store chain, announced a 13.3% decline in same-store sales in the third quarter.
- Walmart saw a stronger than expected 6.4% increase in its U.S. same-store sales excluding fuel in the quarter ended October.
- Zooplus: Nine-month revenues were up 18% and Ebitda increased sevenfold compared to the same period in 2019. The forecasts raised in October are confirmed.
In other news:
- Amazon.com launched today an online pharmacy offering in the U.S. that includes prescription drugs, which represents new competition for the major drugstore chains.
- Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria is negotiating a merger with Banco de Sabadell, a new stage in the consolidation of the banking sector in Southern Europe, which would give rise to a group worth some €27.5 billion.
- Banco Santander will acquire Wirecard's European activities for an unspecified amount. The Süddeutsche Zeitung had recently reported €100 million.
- Volkswagen has not taken a decision on the future of Lamborghini and Ducati, but is modifying their shareholder structure with a view to an operation that could constitute a demerger.
- Berkshire Hathaway is investing in healthcare: Merck, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, AbbVie are among the recent investments.
- Ryan Cohen (Chewy) owns nearly 10% of Gamestop and wants the company to think about its strategy.
- Costco Wholesale will distribute a special dividend of USD 10 per share.
- Tesla will enter the S&P 500.
- The bosses of Facebook and Twitter are heard again in the U.S. Senate today.
- Airbnb launches its initial public offering on the Nasdaq.
- Huawei sells its Honor brand to a consortium of Chinese distributors not including Digital China, contrary to rumors, for an undisclosed price.
- Komax will cut 70 jobs in Switzerland.