Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:
General Electric (GE) – GE has signed a deal to combine its aircraft lease unit, GE Capital Aviation Services, with Ireland’s AerCap (AER). Earlier this week, it was reported that the two parties were in talks. Separately, GE’s board of directors recommends a 1-for-8 reverse stock split to bring the stock level outstanding more into line with those of companies of similar market capitalization. GE was up 2.2% premarket, while AerCap jumped 4.1%.
Eli Lilly (LLY) – The drug company said the combination of Covid-19 antibody therapy reduced the risk of hospitalization and death by 87% in a late-stage study. It was the second study of the therapy – the first had taken a higher dose of the drugs and reduced hospitalizations and deaths by 70%.
Campbell Soup (CPB) – The food producer saw both adjusted earnings and sales match analyst forecasts for its fiscal second quarter. Campbell expects adjusted earnings of $ 3.03 to $ 3.11 per share for the full year, compared to a consensus estimate of $ 3.05.
Express (EXPR) – The apparel retailer lost an adjusted 66 cents a share for the last quarter, less than the 83 cent loss analysts expected. Sales were higher than expected, despite a larger than expected drop in same store sales, and inventory was up 30% in pre-market trading.
Roblox (RBLX) – Roblox goes public today via direct listing on the New York Stock Exchange, after the exchange set a reference price of $ 45 per share for the video game platform company’s stock.
Coherent (COHR) – Coherent announced a revised merger agreement with Lumentum (LITE) in which shareholders will receive $ 175 per share in cash and 1.0109 Lumentum shares for each share they now own. The revised offer for the maker of lasers and laser technology came after optoelectronic component maker II-VI (IIVI) came in with a bid for Coherent that surpassed the original agreement Coherent signed with Lumentum in February. Coherently rose 2.2% premarket.
GameStop (GME) – GameStop rose another 15.2% in pre-market trading after a 5-day win streak where its shares more than doubled. Other so-called “meme shares” also rose in pre-market action, with AMC Entertainment (AMC) up 7.7% and Koss Corp. (KOSS) 11.2%.
Levi Strauss (LEVI) – Levi Strauss Chairman Stephen Neal will step down on March 26 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 72. He will be replaced as chairman of the apparel maker’s board by Robert Eckert, a current board member and former Mattel DIRECTOR. Levi Strauss shares were down 1% for the market.
MongoDB (MDB) – MongoDB reported a smaller-than-expected loss and better-than-expected sales for the last quarter, although the database company also forecast full-year results that lagged analysts’ predictions. The stock won 1.6% in premarket action.
Pfizer (PFE), BioNTech (BNTX) – The drug manufacturers reached an agreement with the European Union to supply 4 million additional doses of their Covid-19 vaccine to EU member states. Doses will be delivered before the end of March. BioNTech shares added 2.1% in premarket trading.
Toll Brothers (TOL) – Shares of the luxury home builder were up 2% in premarket trading after it announced a 54% increase in its quarterly dividend to 17 cents a share from the previous 11 cents.
H&R Block (HRB) – H&R Block posted a larger quarterly loss and lower-than-expected sales, citing a slowdown in the start of the tax reporting season. However, the tax prep company still expects to meet its full-year financial targets and the stock gained 1.2% for the market.
Biohaven Pharmaceuticals (BHVN) – The FDA issued a letter to Biohaven saying a direct-to-consumer video is making false or misleading claims about Biohaven’s migraine treatment Nurtec ODT. The video includes an interview with Khloe Kardashian in which she identifies her as a paid Biohaven spokesperson.
Apple (AAPL) – According to Japanese news service Nikkei, Apple has cut production orders for the iPhone by 20% for the first half of this year. The cuts are said to be concentrated in Apple’s iPhone 12 Mini model.
Conagra Brands (CAG) – Conagra is in talks to sell the Hebrew national hot dog brand to the Brazilian JBS, according to people familiar with the issue and speaking to the Wall Street Journal. A deal can be estimated at around $ 700 million.