(Updated with index futures, Take-Two/Zynga, Moderna, Tesla fore quotes, Expedia, Reviva Pharma, Beyond Meat and Lululemon Athletica)
PARIS, Jan 10 (Reuters) – Top stocks to watch on Monday on Wall Street where futures on major indices suggest an opening down around 0.1% for the Dow Jones, 0.4% for the Standard & Poor’s 500 and 0.9% for the Nasdaq:
* TESLA – The automaker fell 1.3% to $ 1,013.8 in pre-market trading, heading for a fifth straight session of declines, after a tweet from its chief executive, Elon Musk, announcing a price hike the autonomous driving assistance option in vehicles sold in the United States, which will increase to 12,000 dollars (10,600 euros) from January 17.
* TAKE-TWO INTERACTIVE SOFTWARE, ZYNGA – The American video game publisher Take-Two will buy the specialist in mobile games Zynga, creator among others of FarmVille, on the basis of an overall valuation of nearly 12.7 billion of dollars (11.2 billion euros), debts included, announced the two groups on Monday. Zynga shares gained 53% ahead of the market, while Take-Two lost 8%.
* MODERNA – The laboratory on Monday raised its sales forecast for its COVID-19 vaccine for this year to around 18.5 billion dollars (16.3 billion euros) against a range of 17 to 22 billion dollars announced in November.
* BOEING – An appeals court in the United States relaunched on Friday evening a legal action brought by a group of shareholders of the aircraft manufacturer in the file of the deadly accidents of the 737 MAX in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019 in reversing the decision of a lower court. The plaintiffs notably accuse Boeing officials of false public statements.
* GENERAL MOTORS announced on Sunday that it recognizes California’s authority on emissions standards under the Clean Air Act, a federal environmental law, which now makes the manufacturer’s vehicles eligible for purchases of public fleets decided by this State.
* META PLATFORMS – The parent company of Facebook announced Friday evening the departure of its director of communications, John Pinette, who will be replaced on an interim basis by Chris Norton, vice-president in charge of the group’s international communications.
* NIKE – The sporting goods maker’s stock fell 0.6% to $156 in trading ahead of the Wall Street open, as HSBC lowered its recommendation on the value to “hold” versus “buy”, with a target price cut from $184 to $182. The intermediary notes continuing problems in supply chains.
* LULULEMON ATHLETICA – The sportswear retailer said on Monday it expects the Omicron variant of the coronavirus to have a negative impact on its fourth-quarter results as the group was forced to reduce store opening times during the end of year celebrations. The action plunged 5% before the market.
* AIRBNB – The action of the tourist accommodation platform fell 1.8% to 163.2 dollars in pre-market after the lowering of the recommendation of Piper Sandler on the value to “neutral” against “overweight “.
* BEYOND MEAT – The group specializing in meat substitutes takes 1.2% in pre-market transactions after the launch by Pizza Hut, a restaurant chain belonging to YUM BRANDS, of a permanent offer of menus based on of its “vegetable sausage”.
* EXPEDIA GROUP – The action of the group of online travel reservations gains 2% in pre-market after the raising of the advice of Piper Sandler on the value to “overweight” against “neutral”, with a price target raised from 197 dollars at 216.
* REVIVA PHARMA – The title of the pharmaceutical group jumped 24.5% in pre-market after the green light from the Food and Drug Administration for the continuation of two late-stage clinical trials of an experimental treatment against schizophrenia, brilaroxazine having achieved its primary objective in an interim study.
* AMAZON – The US e-commerce giant has filed new legal challenges in its dispute with Indian retailer Future Group after the competition authority suspended a 2019 deal between the two groups, the two groups said on Sunday to Reuters four sources familiar with the matter.
* KKR – A group of directors of Telecom Italia (TIM), a company the US fund wants to buy, have asked the telecom operator’s chairman to call a special meeting to appoint a new chief executive, two sources close to the company said folder.
* ROYAL CARIBBEAN CRUISES announced Friday evening the suspension of some of its cruise operations due to the resurgence of cases of contamination by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. (Written by Claude Chendjou, edited by Blandine Hénault and Jean-Michel Bélot)