Snow Lake Capital urges MGM Resorts International to sell 20% of its China business – letter

BOSTON (Reuters) – Investment firm Snow Lake Capital on Wednesday urged MGM Resorts International to sell 20% of its China business to a strategic partner, calling it a “win-win transaction” for all.

The firm, which owns roughly 7.5% of MGM China Holdings Limited’s shares, wrote in a letter to MGM’s board and seen by Reuters that such a move would give MGM Resorts financial flexibility, give the company enough capital to commit to its Osaka, Japan gaming integrated resort project, and bring non-gaming resources to both MGM China and Macau.

NYSE to go ahead with delisting three Chinese telecom firms, reversing course again

Jan 6 (Reuters) – The New York Stock Exchange said on Wednesday it is planning to move forward with the delistings of three Chinese telecom companies, in another U-turn a day after U.S. Treasury Secretary told the NYSE chief he disagreed with its earlier decision to reverse the delistings.

Plans to delist China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom were prompted by a White House executive order banning U.S. investment in Chinese military-linked companies.

Ford fourth-quarter U.S. auto sales fall 9.8%

(Reuters) – Ford Motor Corp on Wednesday posted a 9.8% fall in quarterly U.S. auto sales, partly hurt by lower truck sales during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The No.2. U.S. automaker sold 542,749 vehicles in the fourth quarter, down from 601,862 a year earlier.

Brexit ‘not a threat’ to UK economy says Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey

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U.S. Factory Orders Jump 1.0% In November, More Than Expected

A report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed new orders for U.S. manufactured goods increased by more than expected in the month of November.

The Commerce Department said factory orders surged up by 1.0 percent in November after jumping by an upwardly revised 1.3 percent in October.

Economists had expected factory orders to climb by 0.7 percent compared to the 1.0 percent increase originally reported for the previous month.

The report said durable goods orders advanced by 1.0 percent in November following a 1.8 percent spike in October, with orders for transportation equipment helping to lead the way higher.

Orders for non-durable goods also increased by 1.1 percent in November after climbing by 0.8 percent in the previous month.

The Commerce Department said shipments of manufactured goods also rose by 0.7 percent in November after jumping by 1.2 percent in October.

Inventories of manufactured goods also climbed by 0.7 percent in November following a 0.3 percent uptick in the previous month.

With inventories and shipments both rising, the inventories-to-shipments ratio was unchanged from the previous month at 1.41.

Stock Alert: TEGNA Rises 6% On Q4 Outlook, Share Repurchase Program Renewal

Shares of TEGNA Inc. (TGNA), a Virginia-based media company, are gaining more than 6 percent or $0.86 in Wednesday’s morning trade at $15.05.

Wednesday, Tegna reported preliminary financial results for the fourth quarter and said it expects to record adjusted EBITDA in a range of $424 million to $429 million, an increase of 85 to 88 percent year-on-year. The company projects revenue in a range of $932 million to $937 million, up 34 to 35 percent year-over-year. On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to report revenues of $904.12 million for the quarter.

TEGNA also said that in December 2020, its board authorized the renewal of its share repurchase program which allows the company to repurchase up to $300 million of its issued and outstanding common stock over the next three years. The program was previously suspended on March 20, 2019.

TEGNA will release its fourth-quarter and fiscal 2020 earnings results before the market opens on March 1.

TEGNA has traded in a range of $9.61 to $18.31 in the past 52 weeks.

Allegion Buys Yonomi

Allegion plc (ALLE), a global security products and solutions provider, Wednesday said it acquired privately held technology company Yonomi. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

According to Allegion Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Vince Wenos, Yonomi also holds unique intellectual property that matches well to Allegion’s strategic priorities for accelerating growth through seamless access, innovative solutions and meaningful partnerships.

Yonomi employs nearly 25 people at its operations in Boulder, Colorado, and Austin, Texas.

BoE says it does not aim to set bank dividends under normal circumstances

LONDON, Jan 6 (Reuters) – Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said on Wednesday that he wanted British banks to set dividends freely, and that the BoE’s decision last year to temporarily bar dividend payments was an exceptional decision due to COVID turmoil.

“It is not our intention as regulators to take over setting dividends,” Bailey told a British parliament committee.

“We did it … in a very, very particular and special circumstance,” he added.

The BoE allowed British banks to resume paying dividends in December as the financial stability impact of coronavirus had become clearer.