Filed under: Before the bell, Analyst reports, Deals, Apple Inc (AAPL), General Electric (GE), Amazon.com (AMZN), Ford Motor (F), Netflix, Inc. (NFLX), Sprint Nextel Corp (S), Comcast Cl’A’ (CMCSA), Merck and Co (MRK), News Corp’B’ (NWS)
Before the bell: Futures blended as oil stayes near $100, ahead of data
According to MacScoop, Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) next software update for the iPhone will be during MacWorld Expo 2008. More interesting, though, is what MacScoop calls “confirmation of recent rumors” about certain features the update will include, most notably a cut and paste feature, “improved Google Maps with localization and hybrid view, mass SMS sending and multi-page editable home screen.”
Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK) has apparently reached a deal with Addex Pharmaceuticals to develop a drug candidate for schizophrenia. Merck will pay the Swiss firm up to $702 million in cash plus royalties.
Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) stated on Wednesday it was developing a set-top box with LG Electronics Inc to let subscribers watch movies streamed directly from the Web to their TVs. I don’t doubt Netflix is desperately looking for ways to find growth, but it is entering an area where two giants are already trying to gain traction among consumers, Apple with is Apple TV, and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) with its TiVo (NADSAQ: TIVO) partnership.
As reports have indicated so far, Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) indeed picked India’s Tata Motors Ltd. as the top bidder for its Jaguar and Land Rover units and entered into more focused negotiation with Tata.
The Weather Channel is up for sale. The channel, privately held, could fetch up to $5 billion according to reports. The potential buyers include: NBC Universal unit of General Electric (NYSE: GE), News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) and cable operator Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA).
UBS kept its Neutral rating on Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) but lowered the target price from $18 to $14.50.
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