Aon Slips After Agreeing To Acquire NFP In $13.4 Bln Deal

Shares of Aon plc (AON) are sliding more than 6 percent on Wednesday morning trade after the company signed a definitive agreement to buy the middle market property and casualty broker NFP for a total consideration of $13.4 billion. Aon plans to fund the acquisition through $6.4 billion of Aon stock and $7 billion of cash.

The acquisition will enable the combined firms to efficiently deliver content and capabilities to the middle-market segment.

Currently, AON shares are at $292.72, down 6.84 percent from the previous close of $313.01 on a volume of 621,064.

Altus Power To Acquire Core Business Of Unico Solar Investors

Altus Power, Inc. (AMPS), a provider of clean electric power, Wednesday announced the acquisition of the core business of Unico Solar Investors consisting of its development platform, pipeline and senior leadership team as well.

The financial terms of this deal have not yet been divulged.

Unico Solar’s dynamic solar development platform is centered on overcoming customer adoption barriers for commercial rooftop and community solar projects as per the company.

“Joining forces with Altus Power brings together market leaders in the commercial and industrial solar energy vertical that will supercharge project development for real estate owners and users on a national scale,” commented Brett Phillips, co-Founder of Unico Solar.

In pre-market activity, Altus Power shares are trading at $6.74, up 0.30% on the New York Stock Exchange.

State Dept. Passport Processing Times Return To Pre-pandemic Level

The State Department says passport processing times in the United States have returned to the pre-pandemic level.

Currently, passport applications are being processed within 6-8 weeks for routine service and 2-3 weeks for expedited service, which costs an additional $60.

“With this update, we have fulfilled our commitment to return to benchmarks from March 2020. This reflects the work of dedicated employees working for the American people,” the State Department said in a release.

The Department revealed that in the past year, it experienced unprecedented demand for passports. Between October 2022 and September 2023, the Department of State issued more than 24 million passport books and cards – the highest amount in U.S. history.

“We have worked hard to modernize and improve the service we provide to the American people. We will continue to do so in 2024.”

In 1990, only five percent of Americans had a passport. From there, that number has grown to 48 percent. Currently, there are more than 160 million valid U.S. passports in circulation, which is nearly double the amount from 2007.

The State Department urged all U.S. citizens traveling overseas to renew their passports early. They have also been advised to enroll in the Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP.state.gov) so they can receive important messages about their destinations directly, including timely Alerts and updates to Travel Advisories.

DXC Technology CEO Mike Salvino Resigns; Names Raul Fernandez Interim CEO; Confirms Q3 Outlook

DXC Technology Company (DXC), an IT company, announced on Wednesday that its President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Mike Salvino resigned, effective immediately. Salvino will remain in an advisory role until March 31, 2024.

He will be replaced by Raul Fernandez, a current board member as the interim President and CEO with immediate effect.

Lead Independent Director David Herzog has been named as Chairman of the Board.

Raul Fernandez is the Vice Chairman and co-owner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, a private partnership that owns some of Washington DC’s sports franchise.

The company is on the look out for a successor CEO.

Further, the tech company affirmed its guidance for the third quarter. It continues to expect Non-GAAP EPS in the range of $0.75 to $0.80 and Revenue in the range of $3.32 billion to $3.37 billion.

On Tuesday, DXC shares closed at $25.03, up 1.83% on the New York Stock Exchange.

SAF-Holland Buys IMS Group

SAF-Holland SE (SFQ.DE), a chassis related components manufacturer, Wednesday announced that it has acquired the Netherlands based IMS Group B.V., for a purchase price in low single-digit million euro range.

On completion of acquisition, the company intends to use IMS Group’s environmentally friendly technologies to strengthen and expand its market position in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.

IMS Group, which currently has 38 employees, was acquired from its former exclusive distribution partner Pon Group, the company said in a statement.

Currently, SAF-Holland’s stock is trading at 15.29 euros, down 1.23% on the XETRA.

Rush Enterprises Up 7% On Joining S&P SmallCap 600

Shares of Rush Enterprises, Inc. (RUSHA) are up 7% on Wednesday following the announcement that Rush Enterprises Inc. will replace RPT Realty in the S&P SmallCap 600.

RUSHA is trading on the Nasdaq at $47.19, up 7.42% or $3.26 per share. It has traded between $33.37 and $48.05 in the past 52-week period.

RPT Realty is set to be acquired by S&P 500 constituent Kimco Realty Co.

Oddity Tech Continues To Gain

Oddity Tech Ltd. (ODD) shares continue to gain on Wednesday morning trade, despite no corporate announcement to influence the stock movement today. The shares have been on an uptrend for the last several weeks.

Currently, shares are at $49.05, up 11.25 percent from the previous close of $44.09 on a volume of 437,881.

Fluence Energy Stock Slips 13%

Shares of Fluence Energy, Inc. (FLNC) are down 13% on Wednesday morning. The company has been selected by AGL Energy Limited (AGL) to deliver a 500 MW /1000 MWh energy storage system for the Liddell Battery Project.

FLNC is currently trading at $23.50, down $3.72 or 13.67%, on the Nasdaq. The stock opened its trading at $25.39 after closing Tuesday at $27.22.

Located at AGL’s Hunter Energy Hub in New South Wales, the project is the biggest energy storage system announced to date that Fluence will be designing, engineering, and constructing in Australia.

The project will use Fluence’s Gridstack energy storage product with a 5-year service agreement contributing to AGL’s planned 850 MW national grid-scale battery rollout.