Business

Elon Musk says deal to buy Twitter ‘temporarily on hold’ – Al Jazeera English

Published

2 years ago

May 13, 2022

The billionaire says the deal was temporarily on hold pending details over spam and fake Twitter accounts.

Billionaire Elon Musk has announced that his $44bn deal for Twitter Inc was temporarily on hold, citing pending details in support of calculation that spam and fake accounts indeed represent less than 5 percent of users.

“Twitter deal temporarily on hold pending details supporting calculation that spam/fake accounts do indeed represent less than 5 percent of users,” Musk wrote on Twitter on Friday.

Two hours after his first tweet, Musk took to the platform again to say he was “still committed to acquisition”.

Shares of the social media company fell 17.7 percent to $37.10 in premarket trading, their lowest level since Musk disclosed his stake in the company in early April and subsequently made a “best and final” offer to take it private for $54.20 per share.

The implied probability of the deal closing at the agreed price fell below 50 percent for the first time on Tuesday, when Twitter shares dropped below $46.75.

Still committed to acquisition

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 13, 2022

Twitter had earlier this month estimated that false or spam accounts represented fewer than 5 percent of its monetisable daily active users during the first quarter, when it recorded 229 million users who were served advertising.

Controversial figure

Musk, the world’s richest man estimated to be worth $240bn by Forbes, is the head of both Tesla and SpaceX.

His entanglement with Twitter – and ensuing legal troubles – go back to at least 2018 when he tweeted that he had enough funds to take Tesla private – a claim that a judge decided was “false and misleading”.

His potential involvement in Twitter has raised many eyebrows since he announced his bid to take over, not least about the future status of former US President Donald Trump.

Trump was kicked off Twitter and other social networks following the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

On Wednesday, Musk said he would be open to lifting a ban on Trump’s account.

The social media company had said it faced several risks until the deal with Musk is closed, including whether advertisers would continue to spend on Twitter amid “potential uncertainty regarding future plans and strategy”.

Musk will have to pay a termination fee of $1bn if he walks away from the deal.

[embedded content]

Adblock test (Why?)

Source link

Business

Cineplex reports $24.7M Q3 loss on Competition Tribunal penalty

Published

21 hours ago

November 6, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.

The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.

The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.

The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.

Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.

Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:CGX)

Source link

Business

Restaurant Brands reports US$357M Q3 net income, down from US$364M a year ago

Published

2 days ago

November 5, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.

The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.

Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.

Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.

On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:QSR)

Source link

Business

Electric and gas utility Fortis reports $420M Q3 profit, up from $394M a year ago

Published

2 days ago

November 5, 2024

Anne Joseph

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.

The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.

Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.

Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.

On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:FTS)

Source link