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Tag: iRobot Corp

  • CNBC Daily Open: Wall Street rattled over Fed worries

    CNBC Daily Open: Wall Street rattled over Fed worries

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    A trader works, as a screen displays a news conference by Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell following the Fed rate announcement, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., January 31, 2024. 

    Brendan McDermid | Reuters

    This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

    What you need to know today

    Wall Street retreats
    U.S. stocks
    lost ground on Monday and Treasury yields rose amid lingering concerns that the Federal Reserve may not cut rates as much as expected. The blue-chip Dow fell over 200 points. The S&P 500 also slumped after hitting a record high last week. The Nasdaq Composite also dropped 0.2%. 

    Oil’s supply crunch
    The oil market faces a supply crunch by the end of 2025 as the world is not replacing crude reserves fast enough, according to Occidental CEO Vicki Hollub. About 97% of the oil produced today was discovered in the 20th century, she told CNBC. 

    Palantir surges
    Shares of Palantir spiked 19% in extended trading after the company reported revenue that topped analysts’ estimates. In a letter to shareholders, Palantir CEO Alex Karp said demand for large language models in the U.S. “continues to be unrelenting.”

    Red Sea tensions
    Higher shipping costs due to tensions in the Red Sea could hinder the global fight against inflation, said the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Clare Lombardelli, chief economist at the OECD, told CNBC that shipping-driven inflation pressures remain a risk rather than its base case.

    [PRO] Banking allure
    The banking sector offers attractive opportunities despite an increase in volatility, according to fund manager Cole Smead. “It’s the banks that made bad decisions that are making [other] banks look attractive in pricing,” Smead told CNBC, who picked two bank stocks that are in play. 

    The bottom line

    Investors are once again getting ahead of themselves on the Fed’s next move.

    Markets were rattled after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated the central bank is unlikely to rush to lower interest rates. 

    Wall Street has been parsing his hawkish comments, yet in essence what Powell said over the weekend was no different than what he shared at Wednesday’s press conference: that he wants to see more evidence that inflation is coming down to a sustainable level.

    Still, the debate over the timing of rate cuts unsettled Fed watchers.  

    This sparked a sell-off spurred by higher bond yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury spiked for a second day, trading around 4.163%. Typically, higher yields tend to indicate investors think the Fed will take longer to cut rates. 

    Fresh data out Monday also didn’t help.  A new survey showed the U.S. services sector expand at a faster-than-expected clip in January. 

    This on top of the booming jobs report released Friday, fueled investor worries that rates may stay elevated for much longer.

    Wall Street will now look ahead to the swath of Fed speakers this week. Perhaps they will shed more light on the path for rate cuts.

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  • iRobot shares tank 30% on report EU plans to block Amazon acquisition

    iRobot shares tank 30% on report EU plans to block Amazon acquisition

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    Roomba robot vacuums made by iRobot are displayed on a shelf at a Target store in San Rafael, California, on Aug. 05, 2022.

    Justin Sullivan | Getty Images

    Shares of iRobot plunged more than 33% in extended trading on Thursday after a report said the EU’s antitrust watchdog intends to block Amazon‘s planned acquisition of the Roomba vacuum maker.

    The Wall Street Journal reported the European Commission met with Amazon representatives on Thursday to discuss the deal and was told the acquisition would likely be rejected, citing people familiar with the matter.

    Amazon declined to comment. A representative from the European Commission didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

    Amazon’s stock fell slightly in extended trading.

    Amazon announced it would acquire iRobot in August 2022 for $61 per share in an all-cash deal that values the smart vacuum maker at $1.7 billion.

    The European Commission, the European Union’s top antitrust enforcer, opened an in-depth probe into the purchase last July. The group warned the planned acquisition raises competition concerns, saying it found Amazon may hinder iRobot’s rivals from competing on its online marketplace. Amazon could delist or reduce the visibility of rivals’ products in search results or other areas, the EC argued.

    The EC is expected to rule on the deal by Feb. 14. Earlier this month, Politico reported Amazon doesn’t plan to offer concessions to resolve the group’s concerns about the acquisition.

    The deal is still under review by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority said in June that the deal would not result in “a substantial lessening of competition” in the U.K.

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  • iRobot shares close up 39% on report Amazon deal set to get EU approval

    iRobot shares close up 39% on report Amazon deal set to get EU approval

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    iRobot’s Roomba.

    Source: iRobot

    Shares of iRobot, the maker of Roomba vacuums, closed up about 39% Friday after a report said the European Union is set to approve Amazon’s $1.7 billion acquisition of the company.

    Reuters said Thursday morning the deal is set to “win unconditional EU antitrust approval,” citing three sources familiar with the matter. The European Commission is expected to rule on the deal by Feb. 14.

    Representatives from the European Commission didn’t immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

    The deal is still under review by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority said in June the deal would not result in “a substantial lessening of competition” in the U.K.

    Amazon shares were flat.

    Amazon announced its intention to acquire iRobot in August 2022 for $61 a share in an all-cash deal.

    The acquisition marks Amazon’s fourth-largest deal, behind its $13.7 billion purchase of grocery chain Whole Foods in 2017, its $8.45 billion purchase of film studio MGM in 2021 and its $3.9 billion acquisition of boutique primary-care provider One Medical, announced last July.

    — CNBC’s Annie Palmer contributed to this report.

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  • iRobot shares surge after UK regulator clears Amazon acquisition

    iRobot shares surge after UK regulator clears Amazon acquisition

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    A vacuuming Roomba model robot is displayed at iRobot headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts

    Scott Eells | Bloomberg | Getty Images

    Amazon‘s planned $1.7 billion acquisition of iRobot, the maker of Roomba vacuums, has been greenlit by Britain’s competition watchdog.

    The Competition and Markets Authority said it determined the deal would not result in “a substantial lessening of competition” in the U.K. The CMA opened its probe into the proposed purchase in April.

    iRobot’s stock surged 21% on news of the CMA’s approval. Amazon shares closed down 1%.

    An Amazon spokesperson told CNBC in a statement: “We’re pleased with the UK Competition and Markets Authority’s decision and are committed to supporting regulatory bodies in their work. We look forward to similar decisions from other regulators soon.”

    Amazon announced last year it would acquire iRobot for $1.7 billion, as part of a move to deepen its presence in the smart home. But the deal is still under review by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, as well as European Union antitrust regulators, who opened a probe earlier this month.

    The CMA said it found in its review that iRobot’s market position in the U.K. is modest and that it faces significant competition from several rivals. It also determined the deal would not limit rival smart home platforms’ ability to compete and that there was no clear incentive for Amazon to favor iRobot’s products on its online store.

    WATCH: Amazon’s smart home dominance and how it could grow with iRobot acquisition

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