NowMyNews

Shares of drug research company Quintiles Transnational Holdings ( id="symbol_Q.N_0"> Q.N ) rose as much as 11 percent in its market debut, valuing the company at as much as $5.73 billion. _0"> The Durham, North Carolina-based clinical trials company's initial public offerings is the largest among the 11 expected to be priced this week. The week could see the highest IPO volume since late 2007, according to market data firm Ipreo.   Other offerings that have been priced this week include those of residential mortgage company PennyMac Financial Services Inc ( id="symbol_PFSI.N_1"> PFSI.N ) and biotech company Receptos Inc ( id="symbol_RCPT.O RCPT.O ). _2"> Quintiles raised $947 million in its IPO, more than planned, as it had priced 23.7 million shares at $40 each, compared with its plan to sell 19.7 million shares at $36 to $40 each. Quintiles, founded in 1982, is backed by private equity players Bain Capital LLC and TPG Capital

Canadian Tire Corp ( id="symbol_CTCa.TO_0"> CTCa.TO ), best-known for its namesake automotive and homeware stores, said it plans to create a C$3.5 billion ($3.5 billion) real estate investment trust through an initial public offering in the fall of 2013. The company, which has one of the largest commercial real estate portfolios in Canada, said it would retain 80-90 percent of the REIT after the IPO, which could raise up to $700 million.   Shares of the company rose as much as 18 percent to their highest in nearly six years on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The REIT would own about 18 million square feet of property after acquiring a majority of the company's real estate, including its namesake retail stores, retail developments and a distribution center. Canadian Tire-owned properties currently occupy about 25 million square feet across Canada. The company had over 1,700 retail and gasoline outlets as of March 30. Canadian Tire currently owns 350 of its 490 names

Optical network equipment supplier Cyan Inc recovered early losses on its heavily traded market debut as investors look to its ability to reduce dependence on a single customer. Nearly 3.5 million shares had been traded by 2.00 p.m. ET, making Cyan the fifth most-traded stock on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday afternoon. The Petaluma, California-based company priced 8 million shares in the offering at $11 each, the mid-point of its planned price range, giving it a market valuation of about $490 million.   Chief Executive Mark Floyd said Cyan planned to reduce its dependence on telephone company Windstream Corp, which accounted for about half of Cyan's revenue in 2012. "Last year, we added 50 new customers and we expect those customers to start turning on this year," he told Reuters. Windstream, which reported lower-than-expected first-quarter profit on Thursday, has been grappling with slowing sales at its fixed-line business. The company cut up to 400 man

Online travel agency Priceline.com on Thursday gave a forecast for second-quarter profit that was below analysts' estimates, as it cited the effects of global expansion costs, and its shares slid 3 percent in after-hours trading. Priceline made the comments as it reported a first-quarter profit that topped estimates on improved hotel and car-rental reservations.   Chief Executive Jeffery Boyd said the second-quarter outlook reflects an expected decline in operating margins as the company invests in global growth. "We've got an opportunity to continue to build out the international franchise of our businesses and that requires investment in marketing and in people in a very competitive marketplace," Boyd said in a telephone interview. "Most of our growth investors are very encouraging of that strategy to really make sure that we're not under-investing in the business," Boyd added. Priceline owes much of its success to international bookings on its

Shares in South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor ( id="symbol_005380.KS_0"> 005380.KS ) slumped 3 percent to their lowest in more than two weeks on Friday, a day after the U.S. dollar broke through 100 yen. _0"> A cheaper yen makes South Korean exports less price-competitive than their Japanese counterparts and has hit automakers hard in particular. The dollar has hit its highest level against the Japanese currency in more than four years.   Hyundai Motor shares were down 2.8 percent, while affiliate Kia Motors ( id="symbol_000270.KS_1"> 000270.KS ) slid 3 percent at 8.34 p.m. ET. (Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Paul Tait)

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc ( id="symbol_GMCR.O_0"> GMCR.O ), maker of Keurig single-serve brewers and K-Cups, raised its full-year earnings outlook on Wednesday after a better-than-expected second quarter and said it had expanded its relationship with Starbucks Corp ( id="symbol_SBUX.O SBUX.O ), sending its shares up almost 16 percent after hours. _1"> The new 5-year agreement, which replaces one first signed in 2011, triples the number of Starbucks drinks to be sold in K-Cups with the addition of Seattle's Best and Torrefazione Italia coffees, Teavana teas and Starbucks cocoa. It also ends speculation that Starbucks might walk away from their partnership following the expiration of certain Green Mountain patents and the launch of Starbucks' own single-serve brewer of espresso drinks. "Starbucks is the largest coffee brand out there. Them coming and saying 'we want a long-term deal with you' is a very good thing for our syst

Shares of Molycorp Inc ( id="symbol_MCP.N_0"> MCP.N ) soared more than 30 percent on Friday, a day after the rare earths producer reported a narrower-than-expected loss for the first quarter. _0"> Byron Capital Markets analyst Jon Hykawy said he believes the market reaction was driven largely by confirmation that the overhaul at Molycorp's Mountain Pass mine is still on schedule. "It's really just the reassurance that they're on track, and they're probably not going to have to go back to the equity markets," said Hykawy. The Mountain Pass expansion and modernization, which Molycorp calls "Project Phoenix," should boost volumes and cut costs at the California site, its flagship mine. A new processing plant is expected to hit full production by mid-year, and a nearby recycling facility that should help cut costs is due to start operating later in the year. A more favorable product mix drove the beat, although results were h

Standard Chartered ( id="symbol_STAN.L_0"> STAN.L ) shares fell and the cost of insuring its debt against default jumped on Monday after U.S. activist investor Muddy Waters said it had bet against the bank because of its "deteriorating" loan quality. _0"> Muddy Waters' founder Carson Block told a conference in Las Vegas last week he had bet against Standard Chartered debt because the market is underestimating the risk that is in the bank's loan book, a spokesman for the short seller said.   Block, whose company says it analyses the true worth of Chinese companies, argued that while Standard Chartered is diversified across emerging markets, a slowdown in China will lead to "considerable stress" at the lender. Block was buying 5-year credit default swaps (CDS) for the bank, which is insurance against a default and yields a profit for buyers on any rise, the spokesman added. Standard Chartered's 5-year CDS jumped almost 13 perce

Medical device maker Theragenics Corp ( id="symbol_TGX.N_0"> TGX.N ) said it had received a takeover offer of $69.9 million to $71.4 million from Juniper Investment Co, representing a premium of 51-54 percent to its closing stock price on Friday. _0"> The company's shares rose about 36 percent to $2.03 in early trading on the Nasdaq . Juniper Investments is offering $2.25 to $2.30 per share in cash, Theragenics said. In a letter dated May 10, Juniper had offered Theragenics $2.05 to $2.10 per share. Theragenics said the latest offer represents a negotiated increase from the initial bid. It also said it would negotiate exclusively with Juniper through June 11 regarding the acquisition. If the two reach a deal, Theragenics would seek interest from potential suitors through a "go shop" provision, the medical device maker said.   Theragenics is being advised by financial advisor VRA Partners and legal advisor Bryan Cave LLP. (Reporting By Vrinda M

SolarCity Corp ( id="symbol_SCTY.O_0"> SCTY.O ) on Monday reported a larger-than-expected quarterly loss, reversing a year-ago profit, due to higher costs related to its business that installs solar panels on rooftops. _0"> The company's shares slid 4.5 percent in after-hours trade following the announcement. The first-quarter net loss was $31 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with a profit of $656,000, or 4 cents a share, a year ago. Analysts, on average, had been expecting a loss of 32 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.   Revenue rose nearly 21 percent to $29.99 million from $24.84 million a year ago, topping Wall Street's estimate of $29.1 million. Operating lease revenue almost doubled to $15.1 million, and deployments were 46 megawatts, up 12 percent. For the second quarter, SolarCity expects to deploy between 48 MW and 53 MW and forecast operating lease revenue of $16 million to $18 million. SolarCity has grown rapidly t

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc ( id="symbol_TTWO.O_0"> TTWO.O ) reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in the fourth quarter driven by strong sales of "Borderlands 2," and assured investors that its flagship "Grand Theft Auto V" title was on track for the holidays. Take-Two Interactive stock rose about 5 percent to $17.19 in after-hours trading after closing at $16.39 on Nasdaq .   For the three months ended March 31, net revenue rose to $299.5 million from $148.1 million in the year-ago period. The games maker forecast non-GAAP revenue for the fiscal year 2014 to end-March to be in the range of $1.75 billion to $1.85 billion and earnings of $2.05 to $2.30 per share. This was in line with the average estimates of Wall Street analysts who expect $1.78 billion in revenue and earnings of $2.26, according to Thomson-Reuters I/B/E/S. The company delayed the release of its much-anticipated new title from its "Grand Theft Auto franc

France's Carmat has won approval to proceed with the first human implantations of its artificial heart in four countries, the company said on Tuesday, sending its shares up 25 percent. _0"> The approval were given by the four international cardiac surgery centers in Belgium, Poland, Saudi Arabia and Slovenia, where the tests will be carried out, but not in France , where Carmat's artificial heart is still to gain approval from the drug safety agency, ANSM. Shares of Carmat rose 24.56 percent at 12.12 GMT to 129.5 euros, valuing the company at 535 million euros ($694.56 million). Among Carmat's competitors are privately-held SynCardia Systems and Abiomed Inc., both of the United States.   The approval is "good news" that allows the French medical devices maker "to make progress on the subject of human implantation despite the growing demands of the ASNM," Portzamparc analysts wrote in a note. The French regulator has asked Carmat to test t

Shares of Sony Corp ( id="symbol_6758.T_0"> 6758.T ) climbed 14 percent on Wednesday in Tokyo trade after hedge fund investor Daniel Loeb on Tuesday called on the electronics company to list its entertainment unit. _0"> Sony jumped 14 percent to 2,146 yen and was the third most traded stock on the board by turnover.   Loeb said his Third Point hedge fund had accumulated a little more than 6 percent of Sony's shares - a stake worth $1.1 billion - making it the largest stakeholder in the inventor of the Walkman portable music player and Trinitron TV. (Reporting by Ayai Tomisawa; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Edmund Klamann)

Shares in Italian carmaker Fiat ( id="symbol_FIA.MI_0"> FIA.MI ) rose strongly in morning trade on Wednesday as traders cited fund inflows after the stock broke through key technical trading levels. _0"> "Yesterday the share went through important resistance levels and short covering ensued, now all the funds are coming on board," one trader said. A second trader said the share was supported by a positive European sector. "There's a technical factor too. The share broke through 5 euros, a level it has not seen for two years," he said. At 0955 GMT Fiat shares were up 7.23 percent at 5.33 euros. The European index .SXAP was up 0.64 percent. (Reporting By Stephen Jewkes and Maria Pia Quaglia, editing by Danilo Masoni)  

Commerzbank ( id="symbol_CBKGk.DE_0"> CBKGk.DE ) shares leapt as much as 17.6 percent on Wednesday as investors bought back stock sold in anticipation of a share placing by Germany's bank bailout fund, which was completed earlier in the day. _0"> Hedge funds have bet heavily on a fall in the German lender's shares in recent weeks, partly also in anticipation of a planned capital increase. Roughly 12 percent of the shares have been used for such bets, according to data provider Markit. Having slumped from a high of almost 13 euros in January, the stock has bounced back strongly from a low of 6.96 euros on Tuesday. At 1055 GMT, the shares were up 14.1 percent at 7.94 euros, the biggest rise by a European blue-chip stock .FTEU3 .   "That is crazy. I have no other explanation for it than short covering", a trader said. Volumes in early trading of Commerzbank shares made up about 60 percent of all trade in German bluechip companies .GDAXI . Ear

SunPower Corp ( id="symbol_SPWR.O_0"> SPWR.O ), which makes solar panels and builds power plants with them, on Wednesday said revenue and profits for the rest of the year would be above most analysts' estimates, sending its shares up 12 percent. The news was the latest bright spot in the solar manufacturing industry, which has struggled mightily with a dramatic slide in prices over the last few years.   On April 9, SunPower rival, First Solar, said revenue and earnings for the next three years would be well above estimates, and its stock logged its biggest ever one-day gain. Since then, solar stocks have been on a tear, with the MAC Global Solar Energy index .SUNIDX rising more than 46 percent. Shares of SunPower, which is majority owned by France's Total SA ( id="symbol_TOTF.PA_2"> TOTF.PA ), have more than doubled. SunPower has slashed costs in recent years as the global glut of solar panels erased profit margins for manufacturers. The compan

HSBC will redouble its cost-cutting efforts, including axing up to 14,000 more jobs, but Europe's largest bank was forced to soften a key performance target in the face of muted revenue.   London-headquartered HSBC is seeking up to $3 billion in additional annual savings by 2016, on top of $4 billion already achieved, but sluggish growth outside Asia, particularly in Europe, means its target to get costs below 52 percent of revenue has been eased. The new goal is to keep the ratio near 55 percent, the level it was at in 2010 - the year before Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver took over and kickstarted a radical retrenchment at a bank that was criticised in the past for "planting flags" around the world. "We're clearly hitting on the costs, but we're missing on the cost efficiency ratio because of revenue, which is hard for us to control," Gulliver told reporters. "Top line growth is clearly a challenge." He added: "We need to have a co

Serbia plans to set up a spot power exchange in the first quarter of 2014 with the aim of later joining it with other regional day-ahead markets, an official of its grid operator EMS said on Wednesday. Milos Mladenovic, EMS's director for international and regulatory issues, said the SEEPEX exchange project would boost competition, increase liquidity and security of supply in the region, as well as develop reliable price indices. Regional grid operators, power utilities and other European power bourses would be offered roles as strategic partners and shareholders in SEEPEX, he added. In the initial phase, neighbouring Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia could join SEEPEX before eventually linking with the Hungarian, Romanian, Czech and Slovak markets, another EMS official said.   "However, it is difficult to say when the market coupling could kick off since this will be an issue for each national market to decide upon," Mladenovic told Reuters. EMS had earlier said i

Pamplona Capital Management said it acquired two U.S.-based companies -- Coinmach Service Corp, a provider of laundry services, and AIR-serv Group, which provides vacuum services and tyre inflation for cars -- for a combined $1.4 billion. _0"> The two companies will be combined to form CSC ServiceWorks Inc, London-based private equity fund Pamplona said in a statement on Wednesday.   The transaction was financed by a $795 million first-lien term loan, as well as a $325 million second-lien term loan that was fully underwritten by Pamplona. Morgan Stanley was the financial adviser and Kirkland & Ellis the legal adviser to Pamplona. Evercore Partners and Deutsche Bank were the financial advisers to CSC ServiceWorks and White & Case was the legal adviser.

The Obama administration on Wednesday announced a $1 billion initiative to fund innovations in federal healthcare programs aimed at cutting costs while improving the health results. The Department of Health and Human Services said the money will be used to award and evaluate projects that test new payment and delivery models for federal programs including Medicare, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program. The announcement marks the second round of innovation initiatives for the administration under President Barack Obama's 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The government is looking for models that can quickly cut costs in outpatient or post-acute settings, improve care for people with special needs, transform healthcare providers' financial and clinical models or improve health conditions by clinical category, geographic area or socioeconomic class. The application period runs from June 14 to August 15.

Switzerland has reached an agreement on details of a free-trade pact with China and expects to sign a deal in coming months, the country's economy minister said on Wednesday. _0"> "What we currently have is a deal at the technical level," Johann Schneider-Ammann told a news conference in Berne. He said exact details of the agreement would be given once it has been signed in the next few months.   China is Switzerland's third biggest trading partner after the European Union and the United States, and the pact covers industry as well as agriculture. More details may emerge when China's Premier Li Keqiang visits Switzerland next week. Any deal is expected to give a boost to Swiss watchmakers such as Swatch and Richemont, after a 31 percent plunge in sales to China in March. China is the third biggest market for watch exports after Hong Kong and the United States, but demand for timepieces has fallen in recent months after the Chinese government cracke

German auto parts and tyre maker Continental said it was kept in the dark about the decision of debt-laden top investor Schaeffler to quit a five-year-old investment accord and does not know how their future relationship will evolve. Family-owned Schaeffler, which makes industrial bearings and transmission parts, said on Monday it would end a 2008 agreement designed to temporarily limit its stake in Continental to 49.99 percent to resolve a past row over control of Europe's second-largest car-parts maker. Hanover-based Continental expects its "well-functioning and goal-oriented cooperation" with Schaeffler to continue even without the agreement but was not briefed about the move, Chief Executive Elmar Degenhart said on Wednesday.   "A joint termination (of the accord) was not discussed," the CEO said at the annual general meeting which was attended by Schaeffler owners Maria-Elisabeth Schaeffler and Georg F.W. Schaeffler who remained silent during the four

After years of urging its financial advisers to sell more life insurance, UBS Wealth Management Americas is bringing in full-time experts and offering financial incentives to prod its tradition-bound sales force outside its comfort zone.   Most advisers are more comfortable dealing with stocks and bonds than life insurance products, and they resist the notion of delivering their clients to the insurance specialists at third-party firms that work with most brokerages, consultants say. But UBS and other big U.S. firms want to expand sales of insurance as well as mortgages and other bank loans because the products can lock in client loyalty and generate fees that are often higher than in conventional investor advisory programs. "They are trying to gently push advisers into a more holistic planning-style relationship," said Bing Waldert, a director at Cerulli Associates, which specializes in wealth management. Financial plans often include insurance components. To push the

Wal-Mart Stores Inc stepped up Bangladesh factory inspections while U.S. and European retailers pursued separate accords to try to prevent another disaster in a garment industry where more than 1,200 workers have died in the past six months. Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, said it does not plan to sign a fire-and-building safety agreement backed by some of Europe's biggest apparel brands because it believes its own safety inspection plans will get faster results.   Wednesday is the deadline for retailers to decide whether to join the consortium, led by labor groups such as Europe's IndustriALL, which said at least 24 garment and retail brands sourcing from Bangladesh had signed up so far. Other U.S. retailers including Gap Inc said they would not join the European pact without changes to the way conflicts are resolved in the courts. U.S. companies have been reluctant to join any industry accord that creates legally binding objectives. "Walmart believes it

Banks are withdrawing from Europe's troubled steel sector, putting the survival of even some of the most established industry players at risk and forcing companies to seek alternative funding sources. Austerity measures to reduce debt in the EU has crimped construction and manufacturing in the region, battering steel demand. Now, the financial sector's reluctance to lend to the steel industry is threatening billions of euros of existing loans, as well as future funding, sources said this week. Stemcor, the world's largest independent steel trader, has given way to the darkening outlook, as expectations for pickup in 2013 have so far failed to materialize.   Having failed to refinance an $850 million loan the company is now seeking a standstill agreement with banks under which banks agree not to ask for repayment and work with the company to restructure the debt or extend its maturity. ID:nL6N0DQ37V] This follows the collapse of smaller steel players such as traders

Zynga Inc. shares jumped 7.6 percent to $3.57 in morning trading Wednesday, shortly after hedge fund manager Barry Rosenstein said his Jana Partners had taken a new stake in the online games developer earlier this year. _0"> The stock price had been under pressure for some time as investors reacted to its slow transformation into a gaming company that's focused on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.   Jana Partners, which often pressures the companies it invests in to adjust their business strategies, released its so-called 13-F filing Wednesday, which describes which U.S. stocks it owned at the end of the first quarter of 2013. Jana owned 24.6 million class A shares of Zynga, according to the filing, which did not say when the hedge fund bought the stock or what it paid for it. During the first quarter, the Jana Partners fund was up 6.1 percent. (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

Lawyers for Formula One chief executive Bernie Ecclestone reiterated on Wednesday he had not bribed a German banker during the 2005-6 sale of a stake in the motor racing business, after a newspaper reported he had been charged by prosecutors. _0"> Prosecutors in Munich have completed an investigation into Ecclestone and German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported on Wednesday they had charged the 82-year-old Briton, who has turned the sport into a global money spinner over the past three decades, with bribery and inciting others to a fiduciary breach of trust. "The documents with the charges from the Munich prosecutor's office have not yet been received by the defense," German law firm Thomas Deckers Wehnert Elsner said, acting for Ecclestone. "Therefore we cannot provide a statement. The defense sticks to its view that Mr. Ecclestone has neither committed bribery nor played any part in committing a fiduciary breach of trust," added the firm, b

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner raised the possibility of jail time on Wednesday for law violations in the growing scandal involving the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative groups for extra tax scrutiny. "My question isn't about who is going to have to resign, my question is who is going to jail over this scandal," Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, told reporters. The Justice Department on Tuesday began a criminal investigation, while a number of congressional Republicans called for the resignation of the acting IRS commissioner, Steven Miller.   Boehner said "there are laws in place to prevent this type of abuse," referring to the IRS giving extra scrutiny to requests for tax-exempt status by Tea Party movement groups and other conservative groups. "Someone made a conscious decision to harass and hold up these requests," Boehner said. "We need to know who they are, whether they violated the l

Farmland values in the U.S. Plains states rose 20 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, with acreage commanding record prices because of red-hot demand for cropland in the world's biggest food-exporting nation, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said on Wednesday. The rise marked the third straight year of double-digit annual increases, setting a survey record, the bank said, but the rate of gains moderated from the fourth quarter, with slower growth in farm income.   "There was a modest slowdown in farmland value growth in the first quarter," Nathan Kauffman, the bank's economist in charge of the survey, said in an interview. "At this point we haven't seen anything to suggest there is going to be a rapid decline. How this plays out going into 2014 is going to be the bigger question if farm incomes fall significantly from 2013 levels." The Kansas City Fed's quarterly survey of 223 regional bankers is a closely watched gauge of t