CSRA Inc (NYSE:CSRA) (Bloomberg)
General Dynamics Corp., the maker of Abrams tanks and nuclear submarines, is making a record bet on reinvigorating its information-technology business. The U.S. defense contractor agreed to buy CSRA Inc. for about $6.8 billion to expand its computer-services offerings for government agencies and military customers. CSRA holders will receive $40.75 a share in cash, General Dynamics said in a statement Monday, a 32 percent premium over the closing price at the end of last week. “What we’re doing with this transaction is taking our good GDIT business and making it better, stronger, a more viable competitor,” General Dynamics Chief Executive Officer Phebe Novakovic said on a conference call with analysts and investors. “It’s low risk. It’s got terrific return on invested capital and great cash flow.” General Dynamics fell less than 1 percent to $210.70 at 10:51 a.m. in New York. CSRA surged 31 percent to $40.47.
Ulta Beauty Inc (NASDAQ:ULTA) (MarketWatch)
Ulta Beauty Inc. ULTA, -4.42% shares are down 4.3% in Monday trading after a lawsuit filed in Chicago federal court alleges the chain sold used cosmetics. A Chicago Tribune report says a California woman is seeking class-action status for the suit, which accuses Ulta of repackaging returned cosmetics and selling them alongside never-opened merchandise. Former employees have tweeted alleging the practice. “The suit is not based on evidence of a health outbreak or product efficacy, which may ultimately make it easier to defend,” wrote Jefferies analysts in a note. “But in the court of public opinion, any sort of social driven campaign that challenges consumer perception of safety is a risk.”
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Sapiens International Corporation N.V. (NASDAQ:SPNS) (Benzinga)
Sapiens International Corporation N.V. dropped 14.4 percent to $10.10. Sapiens Intl narrowed its FY2017 sales guidance and issued a weak FY18 sales forecast.
Stamps.com Inc. (NASDAQ:STMP) (The Motley Fool)
What happened: Shares of postage payment facilitator Stamps.com (NASDAQ:STMP) dropped as much as 11% in early trading Monday, before reviving to book “only” a 7.1% loss as of 12:15 p.m. EST. Stamps.com hasn’t reported anything noteworthy today, nor are its earnings out just yet. So what: Instead, I think you can blame Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) for this one. Three months ago, Stamps.com reported a big earnings beat, but said Amazon was bringing some of its “Fulfillment by Amazon” postage billing in-house and that might affect Stamps.com’s business going forward.
Restaurant Brands International Inc (NYSE:QSR) (CNBC)
Shares of Restaurant Brands International rocketed up Monday after the company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit on the back of new menu items and affordable burgers. Shares were recently trading up more than 6 percent. The company, which owns Burger King, Tim Horton’s and Popeye’s, said net income in the fourth quarter rose to $395 million, or $1.59 a share, up from $118.4 million, or 50 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding items, the company earned 66 cents per share, beating analysts’ average estimate of 57 cents, according to Thomson Reuters consensus.
Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (NYSE:LL) (MarketWatch)
Shares of Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc. LL, -9.16% slumped 2.6% in premarket trade Monday, after the wood floorings seller was downgraded at Wedbush, citing concerns the company’s fourth-quarter results will miss expectations because of accelerating promotions and increased competition. Analyst Seth Basham cut his rating to neutral, after being at outperform the past nine months. He slashed his stock price target to $28 from $39. Basham said he is also concerned that sales gains driven by inventory growth and a “healthy assortment” are slowing, that interest rates are rising, transportation costs are increasing and the benefits of installation services to same-store sales wane.
Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALXN) (Seeking Alpha)
A Phase 2 clinical trial assessing Ra Pharmaceuticals’ (RARX +2.4%) subcutaneously administered RA101495 in patients with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) showed a positive effect in patients who were naive to Alexion Therapeutics’ (ALXN +5.3%) Soliris (eculizumab). The data weren’t so good for patients on Soliris therapy, however. In 10 PNH patients naive to Soliris, treatment with RA101495 met the primary endpoint of a sustained reduction in lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels from baseline to the mean of weeks 6 – 12 (p=0.002) with near-complete suppression of complement activity. Half (n=3/6) of the transfusion-dependent subjects prior to enrollment remained transfusion-free during the study period.
Amber Road Inc (NYSE:AMBR) (Benzinga)
Amber Road Inc shares surged 43.4 percent to $9.88. E2open proposed to acquire Amber Road for $10.50 per share in cash in a transaction valued at over $300 million.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) (The Seattle Times)
Amazon is laying off hundreds of corporate employees, a rare cutback for a company that has spent most of the last few years in a frantic growth spurt. The layoffs, underway now, will fall on several hundred employees at the online retailer’s Seattle headquarters, along with hundreds more elsewhere in Amazon’s global operations, one person familiar with the cuts said. The layoffs are primarily focused on Amazon’s consumer retail businesses, according to two people familiar with the matter.
