AT&T Sells DirecTV Stake To Private Equity Firm TPG

AT&T Inc. (T) has reached a deal with private equity firm TPG Capital to make its struggling satellite TV provider DirecTV a new standalone company.

The deal will establish a new company that will own and operate AT&T’s U.S. video business unit consisting of the DirecTV, AT&T TV and U-verse video services. The new company will have an enterprise value of $16.25 billion.

The company will be jointly governed by a board with two representatives from each of AT&T and TPG, as well as a fifth seat for the CEO, which at closing will be Bill Morrow, CEO of AT&T’s U.S. video unit.

Following the close of the transaction, AT&T will own 70% of the common equity and TPG will own 30%.

AT&T will receive $7.8 billion in the deal, which it will use to pay down its mounting debt load. TPG will contribute $1.8 billion in cash to New DirecTV in exchange for preferred units and a 30% interest in common units of New DirecTV.

In 2014, AT&T agreed to buy DirecTV for $48.5 billion, or more than $67 billion including debt.

“This agreement aligns with our investment and operational focus on connectivity and content, and the strategic businesses that are key to growing our customer relationships across 5G wireless, fiber and HBO Max. And it supports our deliberate capital allocation commitment to invest in growth areas, sustain the dividend at current levels, focus on debt reduction and restructure or monetize non-core assets,” said AT&T CEO John Stankey.

European Economics Preview: UK Retail Sales, Flash PMI Data Due

Retail sales, public sector finances and flash Purchasing managers’ survey results from the UK are due on Friday, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.

At 2.00 am ET, the Office for National Statistics releases UK retail sales and public sector finance data. Economists forecast retail sales to fall 2.5 percent on month in January, reversing a 0.3 percent rise in December.

In the meantime, Germany’s producer price data is due. Producer price annual inflation is seen at 0.3 percent in January, faster than the 0.2 percent rise in December.

At 2.45 am ET, the French statistical office Insee publishes final consumer price data.

At 3.15 am ET, IHS Markit releases France’s flash PMI data for February. The composite output index is forecast to fall to 47.5 from 47.7 in the previous month.

At 3.30 am ET, Germany’s flash PMI data is due. Economists forecast the composite PMI to drop to 50.5 in February from 50.8 in January.

At 4.00 am ET, IHS Markit releases euro area composite PMI survey results. The flash PMI score is seen at 48.0 in February versus 47.8 in the previous month.

In the meantime, current account data from the euro area and retail sales from Poland are due.

Half an hour later, UK Markit/CIPS PMI data is due. Economists forecast the composite index to rise to 42.2 in February from 41.2 in the previous month.

At 6.00 am ET, the Confederation of British Industry publishes UK industrial trends survey data for February. The order book balance is expected to improve to -35 percent from -38 percent in January.

Beyond Meat, Inc. Q4 adjusted earnings Miss Estimates

Below are the earnings highlights for Beyond Meat, Inc. (BYND):

-Earnings: -$25.08 million in Q4 vs. -$0.45 million in the same period last year.
-EPS: -$0.40 in Q4 vs. -$0.01 in the same period last year.
-Excluding items, Beyond Meat, Inc. reported adjusted earnings of -$21.36 million or -$0.34 per share for the period.
-Analysts projected -$0.13 per share
-Revenue: $101.94 million in Q4 vs. $98.48 million in the same period last year.

Two people die in Elbert County traffic crash east of Simla

Two people died Thursday in a two-vehicle traffic crash in Elbert County, according to the Colorado State Patrol.

The crash happened at about 6:40 a.m. on U.S. Route 24 at County Road 133, said Trooper Josh Lewis, a CSP spokesman.

Two people, who were in a 2007 Chrysler sedan, died at the scene, Lewis said. The driver of a Kenworth semi-truck, also involved in the crash, was not injured.

The highway was shut down at the intersection by the crash until about 12:45 p.m., Lewis said.

Lyft Introduces ‘request A Ride By Phone’, No App Required

Ride-hailing service Lyft has launched a new option that allows people to order a cab through a phone call without the need to install the app.

The company announced that it launched a special service in dozens of Florida cities to allow people to call a number– 631-201-LYFT– with a phone to book a cab. The service is available only on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The new service is focused to help seniors and those without access to its app. Once a ride is booked, Lyft will communicate via text message.

Sam Bond, regional director for Lyft in the Southeast, said in a statement that the company looks forward to “helping seniors access transportation to essential services and resources that may be currently out of reach without a car.”

Lyft had piloted the service in late 2020 in Miami before expanding to more Florida cities. Last February, Lyft’s competitor Uber had launched a similar service in select markets, including Arizona, Florida and New York City, for rides or meal deliveries. However, ditched the program by late 2020 due to lower number of users for the program.

US launches airstrike against Iranian-backed forces in Syria

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The U.S. military carried out an airstrike against an Iranian-backed militia stronghold in Syria Thursday, a senior U.S. official told Fox News.

Multiple facilities were struck in the air attack, which was sanctioned by President Biden.

The senior official said the strike was a defensive strategy, intended to halt and deter future rocket attacks by the militia group that recently hit Baghdad and Erbil.

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