DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Meme stock AMC jumps as investors cheer stock conversion plan halt
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Medha Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 24 (Reuters) - Shares of retail traders' favorite AMC Entertainment Holdings (AMC.N) soared on Monday after a U.S. court blocked the theater chain's stock conversion plan that risked diluting investors' holdings. AMC had told investors it was burning cash at an unsustainable rate and warned that an inability to raise capital could force it into bankruptcy. The company has filed a revised petition for the stock conversion plan addressing the Delaware court's concerns, CEO Adam Aron said on Sunday. The highly shorted AMC common shares were the most traded U.S. stocks at 9:41 a.m. "Trying to short AMC during a short squeeze is about as smart as burning money," said Matthew Tuttle, chief executive offier at Tuttle Capital Management, adding that there is "not much juice left in the squeeze."

Persons: Adam Aron, Thomas Hayes, Oppenheimer, Ortex, Matthew Tuttle, offier, Tuttle, Medha Singh, Krishna Chandra Eluri Organizations: AMC Entertainment Holdings, AMC, Great, Great Hill Capital, Tuttle Capital Management, GameStop, Koss Corp, Thomson Locations: Delaware, Great Hill, New York, Bengaluru

☆ AMC can build Dreamhouse on Barbenheimer buzz
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Anita Ramaswamy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

AMC Entertainment (AMC.N), the struggling movie theater chain wrestling with a meme-stock hangover, saw its busiest day since 2019 this past Saturday. The company needs cash to survive, and this weekend might add enough fantasy to help it. AMC has refiled to try again, and in some ways, Barbenheimer helps. The biggest risk to the movie theater business was that it would never return to pre-pandemic levels. AMC Entertainment, one of the U.S.’s largest theater chains, recorded over 7 million moviegoers in attendance over that weekend.

Persons: Barbie, “ Oppenheimer ”, Adam Aron, Aron, –, “ Barbie ”, “ Oppenheimer, ”, Lauren Silva Laughlin, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, Warner Bros, Comcast, Universal Pictures, AMC Entertainment, Monday, AMC, Malibu, Thomson Locations: Barbenheimer, Delaware

☆ AMC shares jump as stock conversion plan halted, preferred shares slide
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 24 (Reuters) - Meme stock AMC Entertainment Holdings (AMC.N) soared in premarket trading on Monday after a judge blocked the theater chain's stock conversion plan that risked diluting investors' holdings in the company. The highly shorted AMC common shares were the most traded across all stocks trading before the opening bell at 05:58 a.m. Preferred shares "APE" fell 2.8% to $1.75. AMC investors had sued the company in February, alleging a plan to convert preferred stock to common stock was enacted to circumvent the will of common stock holders who opposed the issuing of new shares. The company filed a revised petition for a stock conversion plan addressing the Delaware court's concerns over other shareholders, CEO Adam Aron said on Sunday.

Persons: Adam Aron, Oppenheimer, Medha Singh, Krishna Chandra Organizations: AMC Entertainment Holdings, AMC, GameStop, Koss, Thomson Locations: Delaware, United States, Canada, Bengaluru

☆ You won't have to pay extra for a good seat for Barbenheimer. AMC is ditching its controversial plan to charge more for movie theater seats with the best view.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Gabriel Rivera | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

AMC Theatres isn't going ahead with its plan to charge more for the best seats at the movie theater. After trials at select locations, the chain scrapped the plan to ensure "its ticket prices stay competitive." AMC's unpopular tiered-pricing plan would have raised costs for middle seats and charged less for seats in the front row. The US box office dropped from $11.3 billion in 2019 to just $7.3 billion in 2022, according to Box Office Mojo. The domestic box office has grossed just over $5 billion in 2023 to date, per Box Office Mojo.

Persons: Oppenheimer, Adam Aron Organizations: AMC, AMC Theatres, Office, National Association of Theater, Regal Cinemas, National Association of Theater Owners, CNBC Locations: Canada

☆ Celebrities are flooding the market with liquor brands — and some are faring better than others
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Stefan Sykes | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

As more drinkers seek out luxury spirits, a growing number of celebrities are using their star power, and cash, to elevate premium liquor brands. Volume sales of spirits brands at the top end of the distilled spirits market increased 4% last year from the year before, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. "But certainly, the increased consumer interest in great distilled spirits has excitedly generated a lot of celebrity engagement and enthusiasm in recent years." DISCUS tracks celebrity-affiliated brands and said it has counted several dozen on market. Wahlberg joined the team last year with an ownership stake, and since then, "sales have gone up exponentially," Marquez said.

Persons: Chris Swonger, Swonger, Mark Wahlberg, Aron Marquez, wouldn't, Mark, Marquez, Abraham Ancer, Wahlberg, He's Organizations: Consumers, CNBC Locations: United States, American, Canada

☆ Meme investors could spoil AMC’s next act
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMC is already fighting another lawsuit over its attempt to convert preferred stock into common shares, a novel scheme to avoid getting investors’ approval for share sales. It fits with other forays since AMC became a retail-favorite meme stock – like buying into a gold miner – that seem to disregard conventional governance niceties. Attracting a rush of retail traders means there are plenty of investors to call foul. If their push against the preferred stock gambit succeeds, AMC could struggle to raise new funds, which bodes poorly for repaying its $5 billion in debt. It turns out that, for a meme stock’s final act, the audience starts throwing tomatoes.

Persons: Adam Aron, Kevin Barnes, Barnes ’, Anita Ramaswamy, Xavier Niel’s, Jonathan Guilford, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, AMC, Twitter, Xavier Niel’s GAM, Commonwealth Games, Thomson

[1/6] A general view of the Bank of America financial center in New York City, U.S., June 26, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidNEW YORK, June 27 (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) is adding consumer branches in four new U.S. states, it said on Tuesday, bringing its national footprint closer to rival JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N). Bank of America will open new financial centers in Nebraska, Wisconsin, Alabama and Louisiana as part of a four-year expansion across nine markets, including Louisville, Milwaukee and New Orleans. The openings will give BofA a retail presence in 39 states, compared with JPMorgan, the largest U.S. lender, which has branches in 49 states. Holly O'Neill, Bank of America's president of retail banking, said last month that she expects good performance for the unit in the second quarter.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Brian Moynihan, Moynihan, Aron Levine, Holly O'Neill, Saeed Azhar, Lananh Nguyen, Deepa Babington Organizations: Bank of America, REUTERS, Bank of America Corp, JPMorgan Chase &, JPMorgan, Federal Reserve, Consumer, CNN, Reuters, Bank of, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Nebraska , Wisconsin , Alabama, Louisiana, Louisville, Milwaukee, New Orleans

☆ Here are 5 key trends shaping the liquor industry as spirits overtake beer for the first time
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Stefan Sykes | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Jason Koerner | Getty ImagesCHICAGO — The spirits industry is overcoming economic headwinds to meet changing consumer preferences as it chips away at the dominance of beer. Despite supply chain issues and high inflation, the beverage alcohol industry has a lot to toast to these days, said Chris Swonger, president and CEO of DISCUS. "This is a great American success story," Swonger said of the industry's market share supremacy. As the spirits industry works to maintain its top spot this year amid fears of a recession, here are some key trends industry leaders who spoke to CNBC see shaping the business today. The company runs incubator and accelerator programs to develop Black talent within the spirits industry.

Persons: Casamigos, Alo, Jason Koerner, Beer, Chris Swonger, Swonger, We're, George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Wahlberg, Aron Marquez, Ryan Reynolds, Sean, Diddy, Combs, Kendall Jenner, Dwayne Johnson, Michael Jordan, David Beckham, it's, Patrick Shorb, Molson Coors, Tobin Ludwig, Pinkard Organizations: Alo Miami, Getty, CHICAGO, CNBC, Diageo, Chicago, Brands, Heineken, Anheuser, Busch InBev, Molson, Hella, Black Locations: Miami, United States, Chicago, Pennsylvania

☆ Who does inflation hit hardest? Experts weigh in on how higher prices impact households
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Fizkes | Istock | Getty ImagesStubborn inflation has driven households near the breaking point, but the pain of high prices has not been shared equally. The lowest-paid workers spend more of their income on necessities such as food, rent and gas, categories that also experienced higher-than-average inflation spikes. Because higher-income households spend relatively more on services, which notched smaller price increases compared with goods, they came out ahead. Middle-income households see slower wage growthBy other measures, Americans in the middle class are getting especially squeezed. watch nowEconomists' definitions of middle class vary.

Persons: Laurence Kotlikoff, Tomas Philipson, Brian Albrecht, Albrecht, Philipson, Aron Levine, Boston University's Organizations: Istock, Getty, Boston University ., White House Council, Economic, University of Pennsylvania's Wharton, Finance, International Center for Law, Economics, Congressional, Office, Pew Research Center, Bank of America Institute, Bank of, Boston, Consumer Financial, Bureau

☆ Biden, McCarthy work to shore up support for debt ceiling bill ahead of House vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Christina Wilkie | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and White House officials worked to shore up support for a bill that would raise the debt ceiling and cut government spending, as the House prepared to vote Wednesday night on the legislation. Large blocs of Democrats are also expected to vote against the bill, albeit more quietly. Raising the debt ceiling will require that the bill passes both the GOP-majority House and the Democratic-controlled Senate, a reality that made a compromise deal unavoidable. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Wednesday morning that she would vote against the bill on the House floor. Other groups, like the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and the center-left New Democrat Coalition, have praised the bill.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy, Patrick McHenry, McCarthy, Joe Biden, Steve Ricchetti, Shalanda Young, Aviva Aron, Dine, John Podesta, Pramila Jayapal Organizations: WASHINGTON, White, Republican, GOP, CNBC, Democratic, Treasury Department, House Democrats, White House, Management, National Economic, Congressional Progressive Caucus, New Democrat Coalition

☆ Syria's Assad boosted by return to Arab fold
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Tom Perry | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/3] Syria's President Bashar al-Assad addresses the new members of parliament in Damascus, Syria in this handout released by SANA on August 12, 2020. Now, as Arab states bring him back into the fold, the logic appears to have worked for him once again. In exchange for ending Syria's isolation, Arab states want action, notably towards ending trafficking of the highly-addictive and lucrative amphetamine captagon across Syria's borders towards the Gulf. The threat of a U.S. missile strike was averted when Moscow brokered a deal for Syria's chemical weapons to be destroyed by the following year. But while Assad remained a pariah to the West, Arab states which once backed his opponents began opening doors to him.

☆ AMC earnings a hit on Wall Street as 'Ant-Man' attracts more moviegoers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 5 (Reuters) - AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (AMC.N) beat Wall Street estimates for first-quarter revenue on Friday, as a string of hit films including the latest installment of Marvel's "Ant-Man" drove more moviegoers to theaters. Shares of the Leawood, Kansas-based company, which operates over 900 theaters globally, rose nearly 4% in trading before the bell. AMC has been trying different combinations to attract audiences to its theaters, including options where moviegoers can choose different seating options to meet their viewing preferences. Revenue for the quarter was $954.4 million, compared with analysts' expectation of $948.5 million, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta and Yamini Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'SilvaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Robinhood mistakenly told its users that AMC had filed for bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Robinhood accidentally told its users that AMC Entertainment had filed for bankruptcy Monday. The trading app apologized for the error after applying "an incorrect banner" to AMC for three minutes. "At 1:45 pm ET, Robinhood experienced a technical issue leading to an incorrect banner being applied to AMC," Robinhood Help said on Twitter. "I am getting multiple reports that Robinhood briefly posted today that AMC filed for bankruptcy," he wrote. Read more: AMC Entertainment plunges 23% after it settles lawsuit to convert APE units into common stock

☆ Recasting the upcoming GameStop movie: Here's who should play Ken Griffin, Steve Cohen, and the rest of the gang
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Wall Street is getting the Hollywood treatment again. - Paul Giamatti as AMC's Adam Aron (This guy knows his way around Wall Street.) For more on the upcoming GameStop movie, including who is set to play the "pot-smoking retail trader," click here. Here's why the rest of Wall Street might be motivated to help First Republic. Meet the new generation of the ultra-rich on Wall Street.

☆ Two Cheers for Ukraine’s Oligarchs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Leon Aron | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

In late 1991, Russia and Ukraine began their post-Soviet journey from pretty much the same starting point in their political and economic development. Today, Russia under President Vladimir Putin is an autocracy verging on military dictatorship, while the Ukrainian political system, for all its flaws, has retained two important features of democracy: free competition among parties and the peaceful turnover of power. This difference, not any threat of NATO aggression, was the real reason why Mr. Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Had Ukraine been allowed to complete its fits-and-starts transition to a stable, prosperous and Western-oriented democracy, it would have become an imminent threat to Mr. Putin’s regime. Sooner or later, the Russian people would have started to ask why they couldn’t have what Ukraine had.

☆ AMC surges 21% on report that Amazon may be interested in buying the movie theater chain
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

AMC Entertainment surged as much as 21% on Tuesday after a report suggested Amazon might buy the struggling movie theater chain. The Intersect reported that Amazon chariman Jeff Bezos ordered his investment advisors to "explore acquisition plans" for AMC. Shares of AMC Entertainment were already up about 5% Tuesday afternoon, but those gains were supercharged after the report from the Intersect was released. According to the report, Amazon founder and chairman Jeff Bezos has ordered his investment advisors to "explore acquisition plans" for AMC and its 600 movie theater locations. Amazon could essentially use AMC's movie theaters as a way to promote its slate of Amazon Prime movies, cross-sell other Amazon services such as grocery delivery, as well as serve as a local distribution hub for Amazon products.

☆ Rise of the APEs, Coming to a Theater Chain Near You
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Spencer Jakab | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

AMC senior managers such as CEO Adam Aron have undertaken sales of the movie-theater chain’s stock. Tuesday was a lousy day to be an ape and a pretty decent one for some of their sworn enemies. To be clear, the primates involved are all humans. “Apes” are social-media-inspired retail shareholders who took their nickname from the “Planet of the Apes” films—the remakes, not the 1968 original starring Charlton Heston . They are lovers of meme stocks like AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. and haters of hedge funds.

☆ AMC plunges as investors approve reverse stock split, APE share conversion
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

AMC investors voted Tuesday to approve a reverse stock split and the conversion of APE shares into common company shares. The APE stock was issued less than a year ago. The hearing is centered around a class-action lawsuit that claims AMC circumvented shareholders who were against adding more shares by creating the preferred stock APE. Tuesday's vote comes less than a month after AMC posted disappointing fourth quarter earnings. Losses also widened, as AMC posted a net loss of $287.7 million, a steeper fall than the $134.4 million in losses it posted a year ago.

☆ AMC to sell movie theater popcorn exclusively at Walmart in latest attempt to make up for decline in customers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

AMC is going to sell 6 varieties of movie theater popcorn in Walmart starting on March 11. Prices will range from $3.98 for a ready-to-eat bag to $4.98 for a six pack of microwavable popcorn. AMC Entertainment, the largest movie theater chain in the world, announced this week that it will soon sell a new line of microwavable and ready-to-eat popcorn exclusively at Walmart. Starting on March 11 Walmart customers can have their choice of six different varieties of AMC popcorn — extra butter, classic butter, or lightly salted, in popped or kernel form. Meanwhile, the ready-to-eat popcorn bags will cost $3.98, per AMC.

☆ Theater chain AMC falls 8% on worries of slower box-office recovery
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In the United States and Canada, box office collection was above $11 billion in 2019, but since the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers have fallen drastically, with 2022 box office numbers coming in at $7.4 billion, the company said. "It will take years to see box office revenues return to 2019 levels, which they may not ever do at all," said Jamie Lumley, analyst at Third Bridge. Wedbush Securities analysts expect 2023 box office to be down 24% from 2019 levels. AMC, however, said it expects box office will not return to pre-pandemic norms before 2024 or 2025 at the earliest. Still, AMC said it would pay down its debt of about $4.95 billion as it continued to raise cash.

☆ AMC beats revenue estimates as 'Avatar' lures movie fans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 28 (Reuters) - AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (AMC.N) beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter revenue on Tuesday, as box-office hits such as "Avatar: The Way of Water" made movie-goers flock to its theaters during the holiday session. Shares of Leawood, Kansas-based AMC, which operates more than 900 theaters globally, rose 2% in trading after the bell. Revenue for the quarter was $990.9 million, compared to analysts' expectation of $977.7 million, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Net loss widened to $287.7 million, or 26 cents per share, during the quarter ended Dec. 31, from $134.4 million, or 13 cents per share, a year ago. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Shunned by the West, Assad has been basking in an outpouring of support from Arab states that have normalised ties with him in recent years, notably the United Arab Emirates (UAE). On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia sent its first reported plane of aid to Assad-controlled Aleppo, a notable gesture from a Gulf state still at odds with Syria's president. 'BREAK THE SIEGE'The UAE has pledged $50 million in aid to Syria, without saying in which part of Syria it will be spent. Once a backer of Assad's foes, the UAE has been pressing other Arab states to re-engage with Damascus, according to two Gulf sources, despite opposition from its strategic ally the United States. Tunisia, which cut off ties with Syria a decade ago, has said it will strengthen relations with Damascus since the quake.

Damascus has long said aid to the rebel enclave in the north should go via Syria not across the Turkish border. Jordan and the UAE, which once backed Syria's opposition but have normalised ties with Assad in recent years, have sent aid to Damascus, Syrian state media has reported. WRANGLE OVER RESOURCESMoscow has long argued that delivering aid to northwest Syria from Turkey violates Syrian sovereignty. But he said aid flows must be coordinated with the government and delivered through Syria not across the Turkish border. The Damascus-based Syrian Red Crescent called for lifting of sanctions, which Syria's government has long blamed for mounting economic hardship.

☆ Analysis: AMC sets unusual shareholder vote for meme stock sale approval
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Anirban Sen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

loadingNow, AMC is asking shareholders for authorization to further increase its common stock count tenfold. Holders of the preferred stock will be allowed to vote on the matter alongside holders of common stock. "This increases the odds of (the new common stock authorization) passing this time," said Jacob Thomas, a professor of accounting and finance at Yale School of Management. "Given that meme stock speculators can drive prices far from fundamentals, it makes sense for a company like AMC to issue stock when management believes its own stock is overvalued," Harvey said. AMC said in the Jan. 26 filing that it is proposing the conversion of preferred stock to common stock to eliminate the trading discount.

☆ MoviePass CEO Stacy Spikes on his plans to relaunch the service (for real) and bring back an unlimited option
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Jason Guerrasio | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +20 min

Stacy Spikes told Insider he plans to put MoviePass out of beta and make it available for all by the summer. You would think Spikes would want to run as far away as possible from the movie-ticket-subscription startup. Before Stacy Spikes created MoviePass he created the Urbanworld Film Festival. I wanted to put that down because I see so many times people approach me and think MoviePass was my first business. MoviePassThe MoviePass beta version is focused on the credits system, e-ticketing, and fixing bugsWhat have been the biggest challenges in getting this beta version of MoviePass off the ground?

Search resuls for: "aron"

25 mentions found