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Friday, March 20
Citigroup's Pandit criticizes bonus tax legislation(4:34 pm ET)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Citigroup Inc. (C: news, chart, profile) Chief Executive Vikram Pandit on Friday criticized legislation that would tax bonuses at many financial companies heavily. "The work we have all done to try to stabilize the financial system and to get this economy moving again would be significantly set back if we lose our talented people because Congress imposes a special tax on financial services employees," Pandit wrote in a memo to employees on Friday. "It would affect countless number of people who will find it difficult, if not impossible, to pay back the bonuses that they earned." The House of Representatives passed legislation Thursday that would impose a 90% tax on bonuses given to employees who earn more than $250,000 a year at companies that have received at least $5 billion from the government's Trouble Asset Relief Program.
Energy stocks mixed in early action(9:40 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks traded mixed in early action. The Amex Oil Index (XOI: news, chart, profile) fell fractionally at 886. The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) rose 0.6% to 369.
Directory assistance firm Kgb withdraws $250 million IPO(7:43 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Directory assistance company Kgb late Thursday withdrew its initial public offering to raise up to $250 million. The New York-based company changed its corporate name from Infonxx Inc. to Kgb last year. "The company is requesting such withdrawal because of unfavorable market conditions that would adversely affect the offering of the securities," Kgb said. Goldman Sachs (GS: news, chart, profile) , J.P. Morgan (JPM: news, chart, profile) and Banc of America Securities (BAC: news, chart, profile) comprised the banking team for the IPO.
Xerox cuts first-quarter earnings forecast(7:09 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Xerox Corp. (XRX: news, chart, profile) said Friday that was lowering its first-quarter 2009 earnings expectations to a range of 3 cents to 5 cents a share from a range of 16 cents to 20 cents a share. The reduction includes a 6-cent impact from Xerox's share of Fuji Xerox's restructuring and a lower-than-expected Fuji Xerox profit from an industry-wide slowdown in technology spending.
Sony Ericsson says demand, de-stocking to hurt results(4:05 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications, the mobile phone making joint venture between Sony (SNE: news, chart, profile) and Ericsson (ERIC: news, chart, profile) , said first-quarter sales and pretax profit continue to be affected by weak consumer demand as well as de-stocking in the retail and distribution channels. It expects to ship gross 14 million phones at an average price of 120 euros, with gross margin falling both from year-earlier and the 15% level in the fourth quarter. Sony Ericsson may lose as much as 390 million euros before tax, excluding restructuring charges in the range of 10 to 20 million euros.
Thursday, March 19
Orient Overseas 2008 net income falls 89% to $272 million(10:56 pm ET)
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Container shipping line Orient Overseas (International) (HK:316: news, chart, profile) reported Friday 2008 net profit totaled $272.3 million, down 89% from $2.55 billion a year earlier. The company, which is run by the family of former Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, declared a final dividend of 4.5 U.S. cents, compared to 13.5 U.S. cents a year earlier. Revenue for the year totaled $6.55 billion, up 16% from $5.65 billion a year earlier.
Blockbuster: 'Going concern' language will be common(5:16 pm ET)
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Blockbuster Inc. (BBI: news, chart, profile) Chief Executive Jim Keyes said Thursday an independent auditor's doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern shouldn't hamper its day-to-day operations at a time when so many other companies are having difficulty coping with the economic crisis. "Given the tightness of the credit markets these days, we are not going to be alone," he said on a conference call. Blockbuster has spent "a lot of time" explaining its liquidity position to movie studios and various suppliers, Keyes explained.
Blockbuster CEO: Weaker box office having impact(5:05 pm ET)
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Blockbuster Inc. (BBI: news, chart, profile) Chief Executive Jim Keyes told analysts Thursday that the "single biggest driver" weakening U.S. DVD rentals in the last two months been lackluster new release titles. In last year's first quarter, new DVD titles included "Enchanted" and "I Am Legend," while debuting releases this year have been "good but not great" in comparison, Keyes said during a conference call. "The good news is that we're seeing unprecedented theatrical strength," he added, pointing out that current box office hits like "Watchmen," "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" will be available on DVD in a few months, driving greater domestic DVD rentals.
Blockbuster swings to loss on non-cash charge(4:21 pm ET)
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Video rental chain Blockbuster Inc. (BBI: news, chart, profile) said Thursday that it swung to a fourth-quarter loss on a $435 million non-cash charge related to a decline in the value of its assets. The company also said three of its largest creditors have agreed to extend its revolving credit facility through Sept. 30, 2010, alleviating concerns about a debt payment that would have been due this August. The company said it lost $362.7 million, or $1.89 a share in the fourth quarter of 2008. In the same quarter a year earlier, it posted a profit of $38.1 million, or 20 cents a share. Excluding items, the company would have earned $80.4 million, or 40 cents a share, in the latest three months. Revenue fell to $1.38 billion from $1.57 billion, as the quarter included one less week than the fourth quarter of 2007. Analysts polled by FactSet Research were expecting a profit, excluding items, of 25 cents a share on revenue of $1.54 billion.