FT : TomTom: off the map

TomTom: off the map
Sat-nav pioneer reaches fork in road as competition heats up

TomTom put an end to countless rows over map-reading. The Dutch satellite navigation pioneer found its own way out of tight spots too. When its consumer business was hit by the take-off of smartphones a decade ago, it switched to supplying built-in dashboard devices to carmakers. More recently, it has focused on the high-definition maps that will guide self-driving cars. But as Silicon Valley pushes for more control over mapping technology, competition is intensifying. TomTom’s way forward is unclear.

The company has not hit a dead end yet. Deals with carmakers BMW and Peugeot for its digital maps and traffic information were unveiled at this week’s Paris Motor Show. Its share price was buoyed in late September by talk of a sale of its profitable telematics unit, which helps businesses manage their fleets. This might be worth as much as €1bn, based on Verizon’s 2016 acquisition of rival Fleetmatics Group. Given TomTom’s market capitalisation of €1.8bn — down more than 75 per cent from its 2007 peak — the rest of the business looks an inexpensive bet on the navigational technology of the future.

But can a European minnow compete with Silicon Valley giants? In June, TomTom’s shares fell on news that Apple was rebuilding its map app with its own data. September brought unwelcome news that Renault, in alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi, planned to use Google’s operating system and maps on its dashboards. That knocked TomTom’s share price by nearly a quarter in just one day.

Other carmakers might well follow Renault in giving drivers easy access to voice-controllable calls, messages, and music. Yet they should be wary. Fears that the tech sector could monopolise the data prompted VW, BMW and Daimler to stump up €2.8bn in 2015 for Here, Nokia’s digital mapping business.

TomTom has reached a fork in the road. Despite saying in March it was not up for sale, its best hope might be a similar deal to Nokia’s. Otherwise, it may end up navigating its own declin

(BN) Sequoia Bought More Facebook, Sold More Amazon in Third Quarter

Sequoia Bought More Facebook, Sold More Amazon in Third Quarter
2018-10-05 14:31:53.119 GMT


By Arie Shapira
(Bloomberg) -- The Sequoia Fund bought more shares of
Facebook Inc. in the third quarter, according to Ruane, Cunniff &
Goldfarb.
"We added slightly to our position in Facebook," Ruane’s
investment committee wrote in a letter dated Oct. 3. The fund,
which managed $4.5 billion as of August, had initiated a small
stake in the social-media giant during the first quarter, when
shares plunged in reaction to the Cambridge Analytica data
scandal.
New York-based Ruane also announced that partner and former
Chief Executive Officer David Poppe will retire at the end of
the year.
Facebook sank 15 percent in the third quarter on concerns
over slowing user growth stemming from a disappointing earnings
report. The underperformance was a stark contrast to the
strength exhibited by other members of the FAANG complex: Apple
Inc. surged 22 percent in the same period while Amazon.com Inc.
rose 18 percent.
Sequoia, the mutual fund seeking to rebound after holdings
in Bausch Health Companies Inc., formerly Valeant
Pharmaceuticals, dragged down returns in 2015 and 2016. The
fund’s largest position at the end of the third quarter was
Alphabet Inc., which accounts for almost 12 percent of the
portfolio, while Amazon is its sixth-largest holding, a stake
that it has been trimming over the past two quarters, according
to the quarterly letters.
Other reduced positions in the third quarter were
Mastercard Inc., TJX Companies Inc., Rolls-Royce Holdings and
Constellation Software Inc. The fund also took a new position at
the end of the quarter that it won’t disclose until all
purchases are complete.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Arie Shapira in New York at ashapira3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Chris Nagi at chrisnagi@bloomberg.net
Vincent Bielski, Melissa Karsh

Reuters : Tesla's Musk mocks SEC as judge demands they justify fraud settlement

Tesla's Musk mocks SEC as judge demands they justify fraud settlement

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Tesla Inc’s Elon Musk on Thursday mocked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, just hours after a federal judge ordered him and the regulator to justify their securities fraud settlement, which let Musk remain chief executive.

FILE PHOTO: Tesla Chief Executive Office Elon Musk speaks at his company's factory in Fremont, California, U.S., June 22, 2012. REUTERS/Noah Berger/File Photo
“Just want to [sic] that the Shortseller Enrichment Commission is doing incredible work,” Musk, a frequent critic of investors betting against the electric car company, wrote on Twitter. “And the name change is so on point!”
The tweet came five days after Musk settled SEC charges that he misled investors in tweets on Aug. 7, including that there was “funding secured” to take his Palo Alto, California-based company private at $420 per share.


Musk agreed to pay a $20 million fine, and step aside as Tesla’s chairman for three years, to settle charges that could have forced his exit from Tesla. The company also accepted a $20 million fine, despite not being charged with fraud.
Tesla and the SEC declined requests for comment.
Former SEC lawyers questioned the wisdom of Musk’s latest tweet, but said it was unlikely to jeopardize the settlement, which prevents Musk from denying wrongdoing or suggesting that the regulator’s allegations were untrue.
“I don’t think the SEC would look at this as a denial of the facts alleged,” said Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University in Detroit. “But you don’t take gratuitous shots at the SEC. There’s no real upside.”


FILE PHOTO: Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk stands on the podium as he attends a forum on startups in Hong Kong, China January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip/File Photo
Shares of Tesla closed down $12.97, or 4.4 percent, at $281.83, and fell another 2.1 percent to $276 following Musk’s tweet after market hours.
The tweet came less than four hours after U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan ordered Musk and the SEC to explain by Oct. 11 in a joint letter why their settlement was fair and reasonable and would not hurt the public interest.
Nathan said it was her regular practice to request such letters.
“She may want to know why Tesla is paying a fine because the CEO doesn’t know when to shut up,” said Adam Pritchard, a University of Michigan law professor and former SEC lawyer.

Musk’s tweet on Thursday received more than 2,500 responses, with some users questioning the billionaire’s judgment.
“Seriously? You know you still need their help convincing a judge that your penalty was sufficient... Maybe a 420M fine would have been more appropriate?” one Twitter follower said. The proposed take-private price was $420 a share.
Musk replied, “the opposite is true.”
He has used Twitter to criticize short-sellers betting against his company.


In a separate rambling tweet, he took another shot at short-sellers and accused BlackRock Inc of enabling them by saying, “The big funds can & will [sic], as they’re suffering a net loss. Index managers like Blackrock pocket [sic] make excessive profit from short lending while pretending to charge low rates for ‘passive’ index tracking.”
BlackRock declined to comment on Musk’s tweet.
DEFERENCE TO SEC
The settlement also required Tesla’s board to implement procedures for reviewing Musk’s communications with investors, which include tweets.

Thomas Gorman, a partner at Dorsey & Whitney in Washington, D.C., said Musk might argue that the latest tweet might be a mere “personal lament,” and not a violation of the settlement.
For her part, Nathan may have limited room to intervene, after a federal appeals court curbed the ability of judges to reject SEC settlements.
One such judge was Jed Rakoff, a colleague of Nathan’s who objected to the SEC policy of letting some corporate defendants settle without admitting or denying wrongdoing, as Musk did.
But in 2014, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Rakoff’s rejection of a $285 million SEC settlement with Citigroup Inc, saying he should have given “significant deference” to the regulator.

The 2nd Circuit has jurisdiction over Nathan’s court, and lawyers said Musk’s settlement would likely win approval, though orders such as Nathan’s are not too common.
“In and of itself it’s not an ominous sign,” said Jordan Thomas, a partner at Labaton Sucharow and former SEC lawyer. “The vast majority of settlements like this are approved by courts.”
Pritchard said before Musk’s tweet that he saw no “serious chance” for a rejection of Musk’s settlement, based on 2nd Circuit precedent. “This is just a hoop to be jumped through,” he said.
The case is SEC v Musk, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 18-08865.

(DigiTime) Apple to face iPhone pricing issue during transition to 5G

Apple to face iPhone pricing issue during transition to 5G

Max Wang, Taipei; Steve Shen, DIGITIMES Friday 5 October 2018

With the global communications industry beginning to migrate from 4G to 5G from 2019 onwards, Apple may find it difficulty to determine its iPhone product mix and pricing strategy, according to sources from Taiwan's handset supply chain.

Although most telecom operators are unlikely to officially kick off 5G commercial operations until 2020, handset vendors including Samsung Electronics, Huawei, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo will be eager to release 5G smartphones in 2019, the sources asserted.

But it remains to be seen whether Apple will also roll out 5G iPhone devices next year and adjust its pricing strategy, commented the sources.

Apple has maintained a policy of launch new iPhone models every year, but it would be quite pointless for the US-based vendor to continue to release new 4G models carrying high prices in late 2019, when competitors' 5G phones are already available at lower prices, argued the sources.

Apple may move in line with fellow vendors and roll out 4G/5G dual-mode smartphones in 2019, upholding its current higher pricing strategy with its first 5G iPhone available starting possibly at US$1,299.

Of course, Apple may also apply the same policy of lower the prices of the current iPhone lineup when it launches the 5G models, as it did for the iPhone X and iPhone 8 in 2018 and for iPhone 6s and Phone 7 in 2017. But such a practice might undermine the strength of its 5G phones.

There is also a possible alternative: Apple might roll out an entry-level 4G/5G lineup in 2019 available at US$899-999 in order to enhance its deployment in the 5G sector, suggested the sources. But then this alternative might stave off the sales momentum for the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max, affecting overall shipments of iPhone devices, said the sources.

But total shipment volume might not be a crucial factor for Apple to decide its pricing for 5G phones as it has been able to maintain or ramp up its profits leveraging high product prices although overall iPhone shipments have become stagnant.

The release of the iPhone X was rather impressive, but shipments of the iPhone X accounted for less than 30% of total iPhone shipments in the latest three quarters, and that Apple was able to maintain a 15% market share globally during this period thanks to brisk sales of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7.

As a result, the forthcoming iPhone XR is likely to be the major force driving overall iPhone shipments in 2019 and is likely to account for 70% of combined shipments of the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR, estimated the sources.

It remains to be seen how Apple is going to handle its produce mix and pricing strategy during the transition from 4G to 5G next year.

(BFW) Casino Unions Say Co. Confirmed Sale About 20 Hypermarkets: AFP

BN 10/05 13:03 *CASINO UNIONS SAY CO. CONFIRMED SALE ABOUT 20 HYPERMARKETS: AFP
Casino Unions Say Co. Confirmed Sale About 20 Hypermarkets: AFP
2018-10-05 13:14:15.897 GMT


By Angeline Benoit
(Bloomberg) -- Agence France-Presse cites unions following
meeting with management on Friday/
* Says 2,000 employees concerned


To contact the reporter on this story:
Angeline Benoit in Paris at abenoit4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Jerrold Colten at jcolten@bloomberg.net

>>> US Gapping down

Gapping down
In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance:

  • LMAT -16.6% (reports prelim Q3 sales below consensus and downside Q4 guidance), CUTR -16.3% (guides Q3 below consensus, lowers FY18 revenue outlook), COST -2.5% (also expects to report a material weakness in internal in its upcoming fiscal 2018 Annual Report on Form 10-K)

Other news:

  • IGC -21.5% (extending yesterday's pull back)
  • TSLA -3.3% (continued weakness as Elon Musk comments on SEC)
  • AZRE -2.8% (prices 14.8 mln equity share offering at $12.50/share)
  • AZUL -1.2% (preliminary traffic results for September)

Analyst comments:

  • HPQ -2.1% (downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan)
  • EMN -1.6% (downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan)
  • MYL -1.2% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho)
  • COMM -1.1% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Nomura)
  • HCLP -0.8% (downgraded to Neutral at UBS)

>>> US Gapping up

Gapping up
In reaction to strong earnings/guidance:

  • SGH +14.5%, EMKR +13.8% (raises Q4 revenue guidance), HIMX +5.9% (Q3 guidance)

M&A news:

  • PDS +0.9% (to acquire all shares of Trinidad Drilling in deal worth $1.028 bln)

Other news:

  • GPRO +6.9% (announces that HERO7 Black has achieved the highest week-one retail unit sell-thru of any new camera in the company's history)
  • PXLW +6.5% (after announcing the new Nokia 7.1 smartphone incorporates Pixelworks' latest Iris PX8418 mobile processing chip)
  • NBEV +6% (preparing CBD-infused beverage launch with pre-order discussions, according to Bloomberg)
  • AKCA +4.9% (Akcea Therapeutics and Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS) announce that TEGSEDI has been approved in Canada)
  • TLRY +4.7% (prices an upsized offering of $450 mln aggregate principal amount of Convertible Senior Notes due 2023)
  • SNAP +4.5% (reports that CEO Evan Spiegel emailed employees outlining priorities, discussed flaws of 'rushed redesign', and established goal of profitability in 2019)
  • MNOV +4.4% (confirms being granted FDA orphan-drug designation to MN-166 as adjunctive therapy to temozolomide for the treatment of glioblastoma)
  • VSTM +3.8% (indicated higher following the publication of the Phase 3 DUO study results evaluating COPIKTRA in peer-reviewed journal Blood)
  • PRTK +3.4% (announces acceptance of European Marketing Authorization application for oral and intravenous omadacycline)
  • FOLD +3.1% (announces positive 18-month data in Pompe disease phase 1/2 study)

Analyst comments:

  • BJRI +2% (upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at Piper Jaffray)
  • LLY +1.3% (upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets)
  • QNST +0.6% (initiated with Outperform at William Blair)

>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers

Gapping up:

  • SGH +15.4%, EMKR +9.8%, GPRO +7.8%, PXLW +6.5%, AKCA +4.9%, TLRY +4.6%, MNOV +4.4%, VSTM +4.3%, HIMX +3.6%, PRTK +2.8%, PTEN +1.1%, PDS +0.9%, IONS +0.7%, QNST +0.6%

Gapping down:

  • IGC -17.3%, LMAT -16.6%, CUTR -16.3%, TSLA -2.8%, COST -2.4%, PENN -0.7%, LUV -0.7%, FTNT -0.6%

DigiTimes : 3D sensing component demand set to boom (--> LITE US )

3D sensing component demand set to boom

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) component demand for 3D sensing modules is set to boom in 2019 and 2020, as more non-Apple smartphone vendors will be adopting the solutions in their devices, according to industry sources.

Apple's adoption of VCSEL-based 3D sensing modules in its new iPhone series is expected to prompt other smartphone vendors to follow suit, the sources indicated. Suppliers of VCSEL components are generally optimistic about demand coming from the Android camp, as well as demand for other applications, the sources said.

Win Semiconductors, for example, has seen its US-based clients get involved in the development of VCSEL-based 3D sensing devices for non-smartphone devices, the sources continued. The pure-play gallium arsenide (GaAs) foundry has reportedly cut into the supply chain for the most recent iPhones by providing Lumemtum VCSEL components for 3D sensing modules.

Win Semi has declined to comment on the report.

In other news, Win Semi reported consolidated revenues of NT$1.32 billion (US$42.6 million) for September 2018, down 2.3% sequentially and 18.2% on year. Revenues totaled NT$4.06 billion for the third quarter of 2018, down 11.2% on quarter and 7.7% from a year earlier. However, the company saw its cumulative 2018 revenues through September increase nearly 14% from a year ago to NT$13.09 billion.