The Week's Top Stories is a guided tour through the biggest market stories of the week, from winning stocks to brutal dips to the facts and forecasts generating buzz on Wall Street.
WALGREENS CEO OUT
After just 2 years, Rosalind Brewer resigned as the head of Walgreens Boots Alliance, parent company of the eponymous pharmacy chain. During Brewer's tenure, the company acquired preventative care providers, like VillageMD, expanding its focus from just providing medications to more medical care also. Now it sounds like Walgreens is seeking a new CEO with deeper healthcare experience. Prior to Walgreens, Brewer held high-ranking roles at Starbucks, Sam's Club, Walmart, and Kimberly-Clark Corporation. Walgreens stock was down 7 percent on the news and 37 percent for the year so far.
3M EARPLUG SETTLEMENT
3M has agreed to pay $6 billion for earplugs that service members say did not protect their hearing. People who used the devices to mitigate incredibly loud noises, like those of close-range gunfire, say the design actually made them come loose. 3M does not have to admit liability as part of the deal. The settlement seemed to be a pro for investors - the company's stock actually rose with this issue seemingly settled, although it has not been finalized and could end up reaching as much as $12.5 billion. It ended the week up 1 percent.
BEST BUY TRIMS FORECAST
Best Buy says Americans are not spending as much on its electronics these days as prices have risen, but even their drops in sales and profits last quarter were okay with investors. The stock rose as the company's earnings report beat expectations. The rest of the year isn't shaping up to be a slam dunk, though. Best Buy expects the slow-down to continue until 2024, when CEO Corie Barry says she expects the market to stabilize. Best Buy ended the week up 2 percent.
UBS' BILLIONS
UBS announced this week that it will save $10 billion as it integrates Credit Suisse's operation into its own and that will mean losing 3,000 staff members. This cost saving will come on top of the megabank's $29 billion profit last quarter, thanks to a fancy accounting move called negative goodwill. UBS stock ended the week up 7 percent.
JOBS REPORT
The August jobs report, which the Labor Department released on Friday, shows the labor market is still strong. While that has, at times, been bad news for investors, this time it seems to be giving them hope. Hiring is still growing - but at a slower rate - and the unemployment rate is rising - because people who had stopped looking for work are jumping back in. Stock markets rose after the report was released because signs that the labor market is stabilizing is providing hope that the Federal Reserve will rethink the future rate hikes Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned of in Jackson Hole last week.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
U.S. sports betting is booming as NFL and college football fuel massive activity. BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt breaks down trends, growth, and what’s next.
President Donald Trump says a deal struck by Netflix last week to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share. The Republican president says he will be involved in the decision about whether federal regulators should approve the deal. Trump commented Sunday when he was asked about the deal as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. The $72 billion deal would bring together two of the biggest players in television and film and potentially reshape the entertainment industry.
Disney's changes to a program for disabled visitors are facing challenges in federal court and through a shareholder proposal. The Disability Access Service program, which allows disabled visitors to skip long lines, was overhauled last year. Disney now mostly limits the program to those with developmental disabilities like autism who have difficulty waiting in lines. The changes have sparked criticism from some disability advocates. A shareholder proposal submitted by disability advocates calls for an independent review of Disney's disability policies. Disney plans to block this proposal, claiming it's misleading. It's the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while stopping past abuses by some theme park guests.
With a merger this big, creators, studios, and theaters all face uncertain futures. Here’s what experts are worried about and what good could come from it.
With disengagement rising and hybrid work shifting, 'Everybody Matters' author Bob Chapman explains why treating people well could define the future of work.
