A subsidiary of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings has expanded international arbitration claims against Panama, alleging damages have “escalated beyond US$2 billion” in what it called an “illegal takeover” of ports and property. The expanded claims, announced on Tuesday local time by the Panama Ports Company (PPC), part of Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s family-owned conglomerate, came a...
A subsidiary of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings has expanded international arbitration claims against Panama, alleging damages have “escalated beyond US$2 billion” in what it called an “illegal takeover” of ports and property. The expanded claims, announced on Tuesday local time by the Panama Ports Company (PPC), part of Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s family-owned conglomerate, came a month after authorities took control of terminals at the ports of Balboa and Cristóbal near the...
Meta Platforms Inc. is offering top executives stock options for the first time since its 2012 IPO — an effort to retain and compensate executives as the company continues to spend aggressively to compete in the heated AI race. The new options, outlined in company filings on Tuesday, will be released if Meta hits ambitious stock-price milestones over coming years. They are being offered to executi...
Meta Platforms Inc. is offering top executives stock options for the first time since its 2012 IPO — an effort to retain and compensate executives as the company continues to spend aggressively to compete in the heated AI race. The new options, outlined in company filings on Tuesday, will be released if Meta hits ambitious stock-price milestones over coming years. They are being offered to executive officers and other senior leaders directly responsible for the company’s most consequential and strategic bets, a Meta spokesperson said. The first tranche of options unlock if Meta stock hits $1,116.08 per share — an 88% jump over the current level. Meta shares closed Tuesday at $592.92 in New York. Additional tranches are tied to more aggressive targets — a range that goes all the way up to $3,727.12, more than six times the current price. All options will be released to executives by August 2030 regardless of Meta’s stock performance, and expire in five years if they haven’t been exercised. Read More: Zuckerberg Plans to Cut Metaverse Group’s Budget Up to 30% Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg isn’t getting options, a spokesperson confirmed. “This is a big bet,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “These pay packages will not be realized unless Meta achieves massive future success, benefitting all of our shareholders. As with all stock options, there is only value if the share price meaningfully exceeds the exercise price, and in this case, it must be on an exceedingly aggressive 5-year timeline.” Meta has been spending aggressively to compete in a rapidly evolving AI race against rivals like OpenAI and Alphabet Inc.’s Google . A lot of that has gone toward AI-related talent. Some tech companies, including Meta, are offering AI researchers and executives pay packages that exceed hundreds of millions of dollars. Stock options were added in part to help Meta retain its top talent, a spokesperson said.
(Bloomberg) -- Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Officer Josh D’Amaro hasn’t even been been in his new job for one week and he’s already seen two, billion-dollar technology bets falter —- with one of them unraveling entirely.On Tuesday Epic Games Inc. announced that it was laying off 1,000 employees after new versions of its hit video game Fortnite failed to connect with fans. Disney announced a $1....
(Bloomberg) -- Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Officer Josh D’Amaro hasn’t even been been in his new job for one week and he’s already seen two, billion-dollar technology bets falter —- with one of them unraveling entirely.On Tuesday Epic Games Inc. announced that it was laying off 1,000 employees after new versions of its hit video game Fortnite failed to connect with fans. Disney announced a $1.5 billion investment in Epic two years ago that involves the creation of a whole new digital univers
neiu20001/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Thesis : Walmart ( WMT ) is a well-run company, but currently share prices are simply too high and are pricing in a lot of future growth, thus reducing upside. Kroger ( KR ) remains the better bet owing to its more attractive PE and emphasis on consumer staples at a time when many are struggling with cost-of-living challenges. There’s a lot to like with ...
neiu20001/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Thesis : Walmart ( WMT ) is a well-run company, but currently share prices are simply too high and are pricing in a lot of future growth, thus reducing upside. Kroger ( KR ) remains the better bet owing to its more attractive PE and emphasis on consumer staples at a time when many are struggling with cost-of-living challenges. There’s a lot to like with Walmart’s business model and emphasis on value. No doubt, Walmart is a well-managed company and the king of brick-and-mortar retail. However, the valuation remains too rich even after the recent cooldown. Right now, I believe Kroger offers better value and a product portfolio that pairs well with consumers under financial strain. I last covered Walmart in mid-November (2025) and came away with a hold rating owing to the high valuation. Share prices have climbed more than 15% since then, but the now higher valuation strikes me as unsustainable, and thus I am downgrading my score to sell. I last rated Kroger in September as a buy. KR is up only about ~7.75% since then, but I believe it has more upside than WMT while offering a similar risk profile. Thus, I maintain my buy rating for KR. WMT and KR Fundamentals and Valuation Considerations Let’s call out the bull in the retail shop: WMT is expensive. There’s no doubt about that. The company’s TTM GAAP PE ratio is an eye-watering 43.60, while the non-GAAP PE is 44.91. KR, on the other hand, has a TTM non-GAAP PE ratio of 15.06. That said, Kroger’s TTM GAAP PE ratio is likewise very high at 47.53. This is out of the norm for Kroger, which historically has enjoyed much lower GAAP PE ratios. The GAAP PE ratio factors in a $2.5 billion impairment charge , which reduced EPS by $2.91. The impairment charge is a result of failed efforts to automate warehouses. As such, I am more focused on KR’s non-GAAP PE ratio, which offers decent value at ~15. KR enjoys an exceptionally cheap Price/Sales ratio at just .32 (TTM) to WMT’s respectable...