BP Settled Additional Claims of $18.7 B, Centene to Buy Health Net

Mukesh Buch
02 Jul, 2015
New York City

BP settled additional claims of $18.7 billion related to Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Centene agreed to acquire Health Net for $6.8 billion. Delta Air June traffic increased 3.2%. Family Dollar net fell 2%. International Speedway net tumbled 38%. Paypal agreed to acquire Xoom.

[R]12:00 PM New York – BP settled additional claims of $18.7 billion related to Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Centene agreed to acquire Health Net for $6.8 billion. Delta Air June traffic increased 3.2%. Family Dollar net fell 2%. International Speedway net tumbled 38%. Paypal agreed to acquire Xoom.[/R]

Tollbooth Index fell 0.4% or 42.01 to 10,646.56.

Earnings Review

BP Plc] jumped 4.8% or $1.91 to $41.18 after the oil and gas company settled claims with the U.S. government and five other states related to Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010 and decided to pay $18.7 billion.

The company has already spent more than $40 billion for the oil spill cleanup and compensation for damages.

Centene Corporation ((CNC)) declined 6.5% or $5.19 to $75.63 after the healthcare company agreed to acquire Health Net, Inc. in a cash and stock deal for about $6.8 billion, including debt of $500 million.

The deal price represents a premium of 20.7% over the closing stock price of Health Net at $65.06 of July 1.

The deal is expected to close in early 2016.

Delta Air Lines, Inc ((DAL)) slid 2 cents to $40.25 after the air transport company reported total Revenue Passenger Miles traffic in June increased 3.2% to 19.65 billion from 19.03 billion and total system load factor edged up to 88.1% compared to 87.5% from a year ago month.

Domestic traffic jumped 5.6% to 11.55 billion and load factor rose 1 percentage points from a year ago month to 88.9%.

Family Dollar Stores, Inc ((FDO)) rose 5 cents to $79.23 after the deep discount retailer reported net revenues in the third-quarter ending in May increased 2.6% to $2.73 billion from a year ago period.

Comparable-store sales in the quarter rose 0.7%.

Net income in the quarter decreased 1.5% to $79.9 million or 70 cents per diluted share compared to $81.1 million or 71 cents from the same quarter last year.

International Speedway Corp ((ISCA)) plunged 6.1% or $2.24 to $34.74 after the sports events organizer said net revenues in the second-quarter ending in May declined 13.8% to $164 million from a year ago period.

Net income in the quarter tumbled 37.7% to $13.4 million or 29 cents per diluted share compared to $21.5 million or 46 cents from the same quarter last year.

The company forecasted revenues for the year between $625.0 million and $635.0 million and diluted earnings per share in the range of $1.20 to $1.30.

Progress Software Corporation ((PRGS)) soared 6.7% or $1.89 to $30.04 after the software company stated revenues in the second-quarter ending in May climbed 10% to $88.8 million from a year ago period.

Net income in the quarter plunged 55% to $5.8 million or 11 cents per diluted share compared to $12.8 million or 25 cents from the same quarter last year.

Paypal, Inc, the electronic payment services provider agreed to acquire international payment services provider Xoom Corporation for $890 million in cash.

Shares of Xoom surged 22% to $25.24.

The deal is expected to close in the fourth-quarter.

Rite Aid Corporation ((RAD)) fell 5 cents to $8.36 after the retail drugstore chain reported total sales in June increased 2.2% to $2.04 billion and same store sales jumped 2.4%.

Front-end same store sales in the month rose 0.3% and prescription count at comparable stores edged up 0.2%.

Total drugstores sales in the month jumped 2.6% to $8.64 billion.