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Market Chatter: Nexstar Media's $6.2 Billion Tegna Merger Faces Restraining Order Extension

Nexstar Media's (NXST) $6.2 billion merger with Tegna is facing fresh hurdles after a federal judge extended the restraining order on the deal by one week to April 17 to review whether a a longer preliminary injunction is needed, Associated Press reported Friday.The merger was approved by the Federal Communications Commission but ran into antitrust lawsuits last month as eight state attorneys general and DirecTV sued to block the merger in a district court in California due to concerns about consumer prices and local journalism.Neither Nexstar Media nor Tegna immediately responded to' request for comment.Shares of Nexstar were up 3.4% in Friday trading.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)Price: $184.98, Change: $+6.16, Percent Change: +3.44%

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Sector Update: Financial Stocks Slipping Friday Afternoon

Financial stocks were lower Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Financial Index decreasing 0.6% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) falling 1.2%.The Philadelphia Housing Index was down 0.5%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was little changed.Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was increasing 1.5% to $72,873, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 2.6 basis points to nearly 4.32%.In economic news, US consumer inflation accelerated to its highest monthly reading in nearly four years in March as the Middle East conflict sent energy prices sharply higher. The consumer price index advanced 0.9% last month, its strongest pace of growth since June 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The latest print met a Bloomberg-polled consensus view. Prices rose 0.3% in February. Annually, inflation grew to 3.3% from February's 2.4% rise, falling short of Wall Street's 3.4% projection.US consumer sentiment hit the lowest on record this month, reflecting heightened worries about higher prices and the overall economic fallout from the Middle East conflict, University of Michigan's preliminary survey showed Friday. The main sentiment index plunged about 11% to 47.6 in April from March. That's the lowest print on record, BMO Capital Markets said in a note. Wall Street expected a 51.5 print, according to Bloomberg's poll.In corporate news, Ares Management (ARES) is planning to launch a flagship US direct lending fund with a preliminary target size of roughly $20 billion, significantly smaller than its previous record-breaking investment vehicle of $33.6 billion, Bloomberg reported. Ares shares fell past 5%.Fair Isaac (FICO) shares dropped 13% after Barclays cut its price target on the stock to $1,950 from $2,400 while maintaining its overweight rating.Blackstone (BX) is mulling an initial public offering that could raise $2 billion for a firm that will acquire data centers, Bloomberg reported. Blackstone shares were down 2.3%.

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Oil & Energy14d ago

EMEA Oil Update: Crude Mixed on Saudi Supply Concerns Ahead of US-Iran Talks

EMEA crude futures diverged in after-hours trading on Friday on concerns over Saudi Arabia supply disruptions and persistent bottlenecks in the Strait of Hormuz ahead of Iran-US talks.Brent crude futures gained by 1.22% to $97.17 per barrel, while Murban oil futures were down 1.66% to $97.97/bbl.ING strategists said crude extended gains for a second session amid fresh Middle East supply concerns.On Thursday, Saudi Arabia said Iranian attacks on its energy infrastructure reduced the country's oil production capacity and East-West Pipeline throughput by about 600,000 barrels per day and 700,000 b/d, respectively.Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Energy said Thursday Iran's continued attacks on energy infrastructure lead to reduced supply and slow recovery, according to local media reports. Kuwait also said it intercepted drone attacks targeting key energy facilities on Friday.Earlier in the week, the US Energy Information Administration said Middle East producers shut in about 7.5 million b/d of crude oil production in March as storage capacity tightened, with outages projected to rise to 9.1 million b/d in April.Fueling bearish sentiment, President Trump intensified his rhetoric against Tehran, saying Iran "doesn't seem to realize they have no cards," the only leverage the country holds is its ability to create short-term pressure by blocking the Strait.The remarks come a day after Trump warned that Iran should stop charging tolls to vessels transiting the strategic waterway, as tanker traffic remains restricted on Friday.ING analysts said while Trump struck an optimistic tone on resolving the six-week conflict, he threatened Tehran over charging fees in the Hormuz.The latest shipping data shows that vessel activity through the Hormuz has increased slightly since the ceasefire took effect on Apr. 8, but flows remain well below normal levels. MarineTraffic said 14 vessels crossed the Strait on Apr. 8-9, including nine crossings on Apr. 9.On Friday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that two agreed-upon actions, a ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of Iran's blocked assets, must be implemented before negotiations begin.Going forward, market participants' focus is now on the sustainability of the US-Iran ceasefire ahead of talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday.Saxo Bank strategists said the Hormuz closure remains a key focus ahead of talks between US and Iranian officials.

US Markets14d ago

ServiceNow's Moat Threatened Amid Growing AI Automation Risks, UBS Says in Downgrade

ServiceNow's (NOW) competitive advantage may have eroded amid growing evidence that workflow automation tasks can be automated by harnessing artificial intelligence models, UBS Securities said in a note e-mailed Friday.The company, which provides both software- and platform-as-a-service offerings, may also be facing headwinds from indications of reduced enterprise spending on non-AI or core software, the brokerage said."Our view to date, and the reason why ServiceNow has been our only buy-rated application software stock, has been that it has a wider moat and a more compelling 'AI winner' narrative than peers such as Salesforce (CRM) and Workday (WDAY)," UBS analysts Karl Keirstead and Claire Gerdes said in a note to clients."Now, we have less confidence in that view given anecdotes that workflow automation tasks can indeed be automated by harnessing AI models, raising the risk that more enterprises may do so instead of upgrading to ServiceNow's Pro Plus/Now Assist stock keeping unit," the duo wrote.UBS downgraded its rating on the ServiceNow stock to neutral from buy and lowered its price target to $100 from $170.The company's shares were down 8.6% in Friday afternoon trade, bringing its year-to-date losses to 46%.UBS said it now sees ServiceNow posting "skinnier-than-normal" beats in the quarters ahead."While ServiceNow has a strong track record of beating its guidance and hence we're not calling for a miss, the most likely scenario now appears to be skinnier-than-normal beats in the coming quarters and more limited upside to the guidance for stable organic (constant-current subscription revenue) growth of 19% in 2026," the analysts said.Earlier this year, ServiceNow agreed to integrate OpenAI's AI models directly into its business software under a multiyear deal aimed at helping accelerate enterprise AI adoption and outcomes.ServiceNow is scheduled to report first-quarter financial results April 22.Price: $82.33, Change: $-7.48, Percent Change: -8.33%

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Financial News · Live Terminal

Market Chatter: Nexstar Media's $6.2 Billion Tegna Merger Faces Restraining Order Extension

Sector Update: Financial Stocks Slipping Friday Afternoon

Market Chatter: Nexstar Media's $6.2 Billion Tegna Merger Faces Restraining Order Extension

Sector Update: Financial Stocks Slipping Friday Afternoon

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ServiceNow's Moat Threatened Amid Growing AI Automation Risks, UBS Says in Downgrade

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