Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Walmart – The retail giant missed estimates by 4 cents a share, with adjusted quarterly profit of $1.33 per share. Revenue and comparable-store sales did beat forecasts, however. Walmart’s full-year forecast for earnings is $4.75 to $5.00 per share, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.00.
Home Depot – The home improvement retailer came in 8 cents a share, above estimate with adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.69 per share. Revenue topped expectations, as did its comparable-store sales and its full-year earnings forecast. Home also raised its quarterly dividend 15.7 percent to $1.03 per share.
Qualcomm – Qualcomm raised its bid for NXP Semiconductors to $127.50 per share from the prior $110, throwing a further complication into Broadcom’s efforts to buy Qualcomm for $121 billion. Broadcom had maintained that its bid – which Qualcomm has been resisting – was contingent on Qualcomm buying NXP at $110 per share or terminating the deal.
General Electric – GE is exploring the sale of its industrial gas engine business, according to a Reuters report which said the unit could be worth as much as $2 billion.
General Motors – GM has offered to convert $2.2 billion in its South Korean operation’s debt into equity, in exchange for tax breaks and other benefits from the Seoul government, according to a Reuters report. The automaker announced last week that it would be shutting one of its four South Korean plants and would soon decide the fate of the others.
BHP Billiton – BHP reported a 25 percent jump in profit for the first half of its fiscal year, but that was short of analysts’ forecasts. The mining company also announced a dividend hike to 55 cents per share from 40 cents.
HSBC – HSBC reported a lower-than-expected annual profit, although the banking company’s earnings were more than double year-ago levels. HSBC also announced a plan to raise up to $7 billion over the next four months to boost its capital levels.
Apple – Samsung will reportedly slash output of OLED panels in response to weak demand and a cut in production of Apple’s iPhone X, according to Japan’s Nikkei news service.
Cardinal Health – The drug distributor was sued by the state of Kentucky, which accuses to drug distributor of failing to halt or report suspiciously large opioid orders. Cardinal Health said it cares deeply about the opioid crisis, that litigation is not the answer, and that it would defend itself vigorously against what it called baseless lawsuits.
Yum Brands – Yum’s KFC restaurants in the U.K. have been facing a chicken shortage, due to logistics problems with new delivery partner DHL. The problem caused KFC to temporarily close hundreds of its UK restaurants.
Gilead Sciences – Gilead won a reversal of a jury verdict in a patent case involving its hepatitis C drugs Sovaldi and Harvoni. Gilead had been ordered to pay $2.54 billion after it was found to have violated patents held by Merck, but a U.S. District judge in Delaware has now ruled that Merck’s patent was invalid. Merck said it planned to appeal the ruling.
Biogen – CEO Michael Vounatsos told Dow Jones that investors had overreacted to news that it was adding patients to an Alzheimer’s drug trial. Shares of the drugmaker fell nearly 7 percent the day that news was announced, on fears that the trial was not going well, but Vounatsos said the possibility of expanding the patient base had been in place since before the trial began.
Rite Aid – Rite Aid is selling the part of itself that isn’t being sold to Walgreens Boots Alliance to privately held supermarket chain Albertsons. Once the deal is complete, Albertsons would hold 71 percent of the newly combined company, while Rite Aid shareholders would own the rest.
Chipotle Mexican Grill – The restaurant chain was upgraded to “hold” from “sell” at Stifel Nicolaus, based on investor enthusiasm over the appointment of Taco Bell CEO Brian Niccol to be its new CEO.
