>>> Palo Alto Networks target raised to $240 at Stifel

Palo Alto Networks target raised to $240 at Stifel
Stifel raises their PANW tgt to $240 from $200 to better reflect their optimism in PANW's ability to sustain improved execution. During the course of the past few weeks, firm has conducted multiple checks on Palo Alto's recently closed F3Q18 (ended April '18). With the company set to report on June 4 (after the close), firm expects PANW to deliver results that point to sustained momentum following a string of strong prints going back to this time last year. While the majority of firm's checks pointed to strength, firm garners the most comfort from their checks into PANW's supply chain, where they again saw PANW slow down shipments into the end of the quarter, a clear indication in firm's view of "cushion building" for F4Q18

>>> US Gapping up

Gapping up
In reaction to strong earnings/guidance:

  • DKS +18.8%, MOV +10%, SPTN +4.9%, CRM +4.7%, CVCO +3.7%, HPQ +2.9%, CMCO +2.1%, SB +1.6%, NOAH +0.8%, BMO +0.7%

Other news:

  • CVNA +4.6% (light volume; files for offering of 744,037 shares of Class A common stock by holders)
  • LPG +3.8% (continued strength after confirming that it has received an unsolicited proposal from BW LPG to combine with Dorian)
  • LGCY +2.7% (10% owner Baines Creek disclosed the purchase of 80K shares worth ~$445K)
  • SAGE +1.5% (FDA has accepted the filing of a NDA for its lead product candidate, an intravenous formulation of brexanolone (SAGE-547))
  • EXEL +1.3% (FDA accepts supplemental New Drug Application for CABOMETYX)
  • NVS +0.9% (FDA expedites review of Novartis drug Promacta for first-line severe aplastic anemia)

Analyst comments:

  • TDC +2.9% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Mizuho)
  • ATI +1.3% (upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman)
  • XOM +1.1% (upgraded to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital Mkts)
  • TGT +0.7% (added to US 1 List at BofA/Merrill)

>>> Inquiétude maximale sur l’Arabie saoudite, MBS, le prince héritier qui s’est

http://www.atlantico.fr/decryptage/inquietude-maximale-arabie-saoudite-mbs-prince-heritier-qui-est-volatilise-raufer-xavier-3408495.html

Inquiétude maximale sur l’Arabie saoudite, MBS, le prince héritier qui s’est volatilisé

Inquiétude maximale sur l’Arabie saoudite, MBS, le prince héritier qui s’est volatilisé

Xavier Raufer est un criminologue français, directeur des études au Département de recherches sur les menaces criminelles contemporaines à l'Université Paris II, et auteur de nombreux ouvrages sur le sujet.

Depuis 38 jours quand s'écrit ce texte, le tout-puissant et médiatiquement hyperactif prince Mohammed bin Salman ("MBS") a disparu. Depuis, nulle personnalité crédible n'a vu le prince-héritier, régent du royaume d'Arabie saoudite ; ni photos, ni vidéos significatives, ni vision publique.

Depuis 38 jours quand s'écrit ce texte, le tout-puissant et médiatiquement hyperactif prince Mohammed bin Salman ("MBS") a disparu. Depuis, nulle personnalité crédible n'a vu le prince-héritier, régent du royaume d'Arabie saoudite ; ni photos, ni vidéos significatives, ni vision publique. Un bruit de fond envahit les réseaux sociaux saoudiens et arabes - moins anxieux désormais que dans l'attente d'une grave révélation - MBS est-il mort ? Blessé ? Victime d' un coup d'état familial - classique dans la péninsule arabe ?

Ce, dans cette électrique seconde part du Ramadan, où les masses - celle de La Mecque en tête - basculent aisément de l'élan mystique à l'émeute fanatisée - la barrière est fragile. D'où, dit-on à Riyad, un gouvernement désemparé jouant la montre  - faute de mieux.

Plus inquiétant encore, la révélation dès le 15 avril d'une disparition inexpliquée de MBS par le quotidien iranien Kayhan proche des Gardiens de la révolution, eux et leur redoutable appareil de renseignement et d'action.

Si la question agite désormais le monde, notons l'étrange absence des médias français de cette grave affaire. Sont-ils si déshabitués d'observer et d'enquêter ? Si asservis par les service officiels que, quand ceux-ci ratent une information importante, leurs zélés journalistes l'ignorent aussi ? Pourtant, le pire advenant, l'élimination de MBS déclencherait la crise moyen-orientale la plus sévère depuis l'invasion du Koweït par Saddam Hussein en août 1990.

Or loin d'être une brutale surprise, cette "occultation" suit, depuis début 2018, maints faits inquiétants. Faits qui, combinés comme l'enseigne le décèlement précoce, avaient conduit l'auteur à prévenir ses interlocuteurs officiels.  Ces faits, les voici.

Début 2018, une amie et ex-étudiante revient affolée de La Mecque. Depuis des années, cette Sahélienne y accompagne en pèlerinage (Haj) des femmes africaines. Le Haram, ce territoire sacré (interdit aux non-musulmans) entourant La Mecque, cette amie le visite tous les ans et le connaît bien. Début 2018 dit-elle, le Haram bruisse d'une rumeur : MBS s'est vendu aux israéliens... Il a confié la gestion du Haj à des sociétés de sécurité israéliennes... Ses gardes du corps sont désormais "des Juifs"... Vrai ou faux ? Comme l'éclair, la rumeur parcourt les trois millions d'habitants du Haram... Indignation, rage, haine - pour les durs du Haram, le "traître doit mourir". Or le Haram est le cœur du réacteur nucléaire islamique, le sismographe d'un milliard de fidèles.

Peu après, le président Trump - novice sur la scène moyen-orientale - adoube en vociférant son copain MBS... Ils feront ensemble de grandes choses. Ce programme des deux compères, Benjamin Netanyahu en coulisse, menace clairement l'axe Téhéran-Damas. 

Une folie : les intéressés ont oublié que de longue date, qui touche à l'axe Téhéran-Damas le paie cher et vite. Retour à la décennie 1980 : la guerre Irak-Iran s'éternise... Téhéran tire la langue... La France suréquipe l'armée irakienne ? Des bombes éclatent dans les rues de Paris, les enlèvements de Français se multiplient au Liban... La France comprend et rééquilibre... Attentats et kidnappings s'arrêtent net. 

En 1990, une guerre civile ravage le Liban depuis 15 ans. Saddam Hussein envahit le Koweït. Pour éviter la guerre sur deux fronts, George Bush senior informe Hafez al-Assad (père de Bachar, l'actuel président syrien) que désormais, le "méchant" du Moyen-Orient, c'est Saddam et non plus lui.  Le lendemain, au coup de sifflet, l'interminable guerre libanaise - massacres, attentats, sournoises trahisons et scissions brutales - s'arrête net. Plus un coup de feu au Liban, les 17 années qui suivent.

Retour en France et aux périlleuses vantardises de M. Fabius en décembre 2012. Pour lui, l'opposition au régime syrien, terroristes y compris, fait "du bon boulot". A-t-on une fois encore marché sur la queue du serpent ? En janvier 2015, une sanglante vague d'attentats débute en France, 240 morts en 18 mois. Coïncidence ? Réponse du berger à la bergère ? Face à de tels adversaires, les meilleurs experts officiels d'Europe conseillent tous une immense prudence et beaucoup de doigté.

Or là, le duo Trump-MBS provoque clairement l'Iran, interdit d'armes balistiques et de séjour au Moyen-Orient arabe ; embargos, sanctions... "changement de régime" si besoin.  

Attendons: retour de MBS au bercail - mais alors, pourquoi cette durable et fort chi'ite "occultation" ? Si c'est bien l'élimination, les cajoleries de Donald Trump à MBS auront bien plutôt été un foudroyant baiser de la mort.

>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers
Gapping up:
  • TXMD +7.3%, MOV +6.2%, CRM +5.4%, SPTN +4.9%, CVNA +4.6%, CVCO +3.7%, LPG +3.1%, LGCY +2.7%, KORS+2.6%, SB +1.6%, EXEL +1.3%, NOAH +0.8%, BMO +0.7%, DKS +0.6%, HPQ +0.6%
Gapping down:
  • TTOO -5.8%, OCN -1.6%, GDS -1.3%

>>> Michael Kors beats by $0.03, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS above consensus, r

Michael Kors beats by $0.03, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus; guides FY19 EPS in-line, revs slightly above consensus; Q4 comps +2.3% (68.22)
  • Reports Q4 (Mar) earnings of $0.63 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.60; revenues rose 10.8% year/year to $1.18 bln vs the $1.15 bln Capital IQ Consensus. Comparable sales increased 2.3%, driven by strong response to fashion luxury offering across accessories, footwear, ready-to-wear and men's categories (guidance called for comps to be down low single digits). Adjusted operating margin of 13.1% versus guidance of 10%.
  • Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.90-0.95, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.87 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q1 revs of $1.135 bln vs. $1.1 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Q1 Comparable sales for Michael Kors are expected to be approximately flat. The Company expects Q1 operating margin to be approximately 15.2%. Q1 guidance includes anticipated benefit from Jimmy Choo of approximately $0.01 to $0.03. This assumes approximately 153 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding and a tax rate of approximately 14.0%.
  • Co issues in-line guidance for FY19, sees EPS of $4.65-4.75 vs. $4.74 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY19 revs of $5.10 bln vs. $5.01 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. FY19 Comparable sales for Michael Kors are expected to be approximately flat. The Company expects FY19 operating margin to be approximately 17.7%. FY19 guidance includes dilution from Jimmy Choo of approximately $0.05 to $0.10. Revenue guidance is including between $570 million and $580 million of incremental Jimmy Choo revenue.

REcode.net : Facebook still doesn’t know what user data Cambridge Analytica actu

Facebook still doesn’t know what user data Cambridge Analytica actually had
Did the Trump campaign have suspicious-looking data sets? “No, not really.”

There are still some (big) rocks to be turned over in Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica drama.

Despite suspending the data firm, which collected the personal data of as many as 87 million Facebook users without their permission, Facebook is still trying to figure how big the Cambridge Analytica problem is.

“To this day, we still don’t actually know what data Cambridge Analytica had,” COO Sheryl Sandberg said on Tuesday at Recode’s annual Code Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.

That’s not really a secret, though it’s an interesting reminder. Facebook was set to conduct an audit of Cambridge Analytica, a data firm used by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign during the 2016 election. But that audit was put on hold when the U.K. government came in to conduct their own investigation.

Facebook has clearly not picked the audit back up — at least not yet.

When asked if Facebook employees, who helped with the Trump campaign, noticed any kind of suspicious data set, Sandberg said, “No, not really.”

Understanding what data Cambridge Analytica had is important because it could be useful in trying to determine how much of a role Facebook may have had in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Here are some other highlights from the conversation:

* Sandberg gently pushed back on recent criticism from Apple CEO Tim Cook about their data troubles, saying Facebook “respectfully disagrees” with his critique. Recall that Zuckerberg said Cook’s comments were “extremely glib.”
* Sandberg said that she expects Facebook to draw more questions from regulators if it makes more multi-billion dollar acquisitions like Oculus or WhatsApp. “Certainly as you get bigger there’s more scrutiny of acquisitions — and there should be,” she said. Sandberg predicted that a major acquisition would “probably be allowed” as long as the acquired company wasn’t related to Facebook’s core business, but rather an expansion of it.
* Facebook is doing more in hardware — check out the new Oculus headset — but don’t expect Facebook to reboot its past failed effort to create an operating system or its own mobile device: “I don’t think we’re talking about going back into phones,” Sandberg said.

REcode.net : Half of all Hulu subscribers pay for the ad-free version, 21st Cent

Half of all Hulu subscribers pay for the ad-free version, 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch says
But does he think Facebook could one day offer an ads-free version? Maybe not.

Hulu has three principal owners at the moment, including 21st Century Fox, and, according to the company, about half of Hulu’s 20 million subscribers pay for the ad-free version.

“There’s an option for the limited-ad experience, and it’s about evens, I think,” Fox CEO James Murdoch explained onstage at Code Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. The ad-free service costs $11.99 a month.

Murdoch was responding to a question about the rapid rise of online video competitors, particularly Netflix, which now has over 125 million subscribers.

“If you look at the kind of investment Netflix is required to make, there are huge costs and huge barriers,” he said. “I think they’ve done a great job and raised the bar for competitors.”

The lack of ads plays a part in Netflix’s appeal, and that also explains the high proportion of Hulu subscribers who pay 50 percent more to watch shows without any advertising, Murdoch said. (While it’s marketed as having no commercials, a few ads still appear for certain shows due to contractual agreements.)

The stark advance of Netflix and the growing dominance of online networks like Facebook have eaten into traditional TV businesses and shaken up the media landscape. That’s led to a few major mergers, including Disney’s $52 billion deal to buy most of Fox’s business.

But, to be clear, that’s not the reason those businesses are merging, according to Murdoch.

“We’re competing really well,” he said, citing as an example the company’s nearly $1 billion winning bid for the rights to India’s cricket league, successfully fending off interest from potential internet rivals Facebook and Google.

“It’s not a question of not being able to compete,” he said. “The reason for the combination is, we think the resulting firm is a very attractive business ... and the combination will be that much more competitive going forward.”

Even so, it’s clear the internet giants have pushed aside traditional media players with consumers, developing direct relationships through ad-driven services.

James’s father, Fox executive chairman Rupert Murdoch, has prevailed on Facebook and Google to consider adopting the cable model as a way to reinforce good content on the service, especially as bad actors have learned to exploit digital networks for political purposes. Facebook and Google could pay content providers like Fox a monthly fee for carrying its shows.

The younger Murdoch doesn’t think that’s likely to happen.

“I would doubt it,” he said. “We work closely with Google and Facebook, more or less successfully depending on the week. But that said, YouTube Live TV has been great.”

YouTube TV is Google’s over-the-top service, which replicates a small bundle of live TV channels for a monthly fee and includes Fox’s networks such as FX.

On whether Facebook could one day offer an ads-free version, Murdoch wasn’t sanguine.

“The question should be more about if the ad model in the network is driving the right behaviors,” he said, going on to describe social networks like Facebook as more of an “attack surface” for foreign adversaries.

“You can buy people’s accounts from these farms,” he pointed out. “It hasn’t been great.”

>>> Derriston confirms acquisition of S4 Capital

Derriston confirms acquisition of S4 Capital
30 MAY 2018
The Board of cash shell company Derriston [LON:DERR] has reached agreement on the terms of a transaction to acquire S4 Capital Limited ("S4 Capital"), a newly incorporated company that has recently completed a GBP 51m equity fundraising.
The transaction with S4 Capital constitutes a reverse takeover under the Listing Rules and as a result the Company has requested a suspension of listing of its shares.
Highlights:
Derriston announces proposals for:
· The conditional acquisition of S4 Capital, a newly incorporated company which has recently completed a GBP 51m equity fund raise, of which Sir Martin Sorrell contributed GBP 40m with the balance of the funds coming from institutional and other investors.
· S4 Capital has received substantial non-binding letters of support from a number of its institutional investors indicating that they would, in principle, be willing to provide over GBP 150m of further equity funding to support S4 Capital's acquisition plans.
· The appointment of Sir Martin Sorrell (as Executive Chairman) and Paul Roy and Rupert Faure Walker as non-executive Directors on Completion (subject, in the case of Paul Roy, to his receiving required consents).
· A new corporate strategy to build a multi-national communication services business, initially by acquisitions.
· The acquisition of S4 Capital will result in the issue of 591,967,000 New Ordinary Shares.
· Changing the name of the Company to S4 Capital plc.
Sir Martin Sorrell, Executive Chairman of S4 Capital, said: "S4 Capital is a company that aims to build a multi-national communication services business focused on growth. There are significant opportunities for development in technology, data and content. I look forward to making this happen."
Background:
A report by Sky earlier on Wednesday said that Toscafund, Schroders [LON:SDR], RIT Capital Partners [LON:RCP], Miton [LON:MGR] and Lombard Odier were all backing Sorrell’s Derriston venture, with Dowgate Capital expected to join them.

>>> Altice will not propose alternative anti-trust remedies for EUR 440m Media C

Altice will not propose alternative anti-trust remedies for EUR 440m Media Capital acquisition

Altice [AMS:ATC] will not propose alternative remedies in its EUR 440m acquisition of Media Capital {ELI:MCP] after Portuguese anti-trust authorities rejection earlier this week of eight proposals for the deal, reported JornalEconomico .
The Lisbon business paper cited an official Altice Portugal statement that said the French telco will not wait for official notification from the AdC Portuguese Competition Authority on the rejection of the eight remedies submitted on 30 April and does not plan to submit alternative proposals for the takeover of Media Capital.
Attice said the eight remedies it had proposed were in keeping with best market practices with other European regulators in similar transactions and criticized the AdC’s leaking of its decision to reject the proposals to the media while an Altice lawyer was in a meeting with senior anti-trust officials in Lisbon.
In its rejection of the eight remedies made on 28 May the AdC said the Altice proposals lacked sufficient details in some areas, were difficult to monitor and could distort markets in Portugal. Altice’s Meo cable operator could potentially deny rivals free access to advertising and cost for this could be significantly hiked, the AdC said.
Elsewhere, an AdC source told Jornal de Negocios that a final decision on the Altice purchase of Media Capital will be announced towards the end of June.
Link to original source.
Jornal de Negocios, print version P 63