Top Midday Stories: Goldman Reportedly in Talks to Acquire $37 Billion Credit Firm Palmer Square; Viking Obesity Drug Candidate Showed 'Superior' Results in Study

MT newswire2026/09/22 15:46

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11:46 AM EDT, 09/22/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The Nasdaq Composite was up, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down, and the S&P 500 Index was roughly flat in late-morning trading Tuesday, as Iran reportedly offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if the US meets certain requirements. In company news, Goldman Sachs Group (GS) has emerged as the leading bidder to acquire Palmer Square Capital Management, a credit manager that oversees $37 billion, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The two sides are in talks, but no final decision has been made and the talks could fall through, the report said, citing the people. Goldman shares were down 1.9% around midday. Viking Therapeutics (VKTX) said Tuesday its subcutaneous VK2735 showed "superior weight maintenance" under less frequent dosing regiments compared to a placebo over a 12-week period in a clinical study. Participants randomized to monthly dosing regimens preserved up to 90% of mean weight loss achieved during the induction period, the company said. Viking shares were up 25%. Alibaba's (BABA) Zhenwu V900 AI training and inference processor offers three times the performance of its predecessor, the company said Tuesday. The chip is scheduled for mass production and commercial release in Q1, the company said. Alibaba shares were up 0.7%. Southern Company (SO) unit Georgia Power said late Monday it entered into a partnership with Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google to advance nuclear energy in the state and provide around $900 million in benefits to consumers. Southern shares were up 0.1%, while Alphabet's Class C and Class A shares were up 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively. AutoZone (AZO) reported fiscal Q4 net income Tuesday of $56.05 per diluted share, up from $48.71 a year earlier and above the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of $54.18. Fiscal Q4 net sales were $6.59 billion, up from $6.24 billion a year ago but below the FactSet consensus of $6.70 billion. AutoZone shares were up 5.6%. Price: 941.42, Change: -17.97, Percent Change: -1.87

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01:09 PM EDT, 10/06/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Broad Market Indicators Broad-market exchange-traded fund IWM fell and IVV edged higher. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 0.7%. US equity indexes rose as big-tech names helped the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite hit fresh all-time highs intraday amid declining government bond yields and crude oil. Energy IShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) were each up about 0.8%. Technology The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 0.8%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) added 0.7%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was 0.8% higher. The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) climbed 1.4%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) rose 0.6%. Financial The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) added 0.2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) advanced 0.5%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), declined 0.4%. Commodities Crude oil rose 0.2%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) added 0.3%. Natural gas gained 1.3%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was up 1.2%. Gold on Comex gained 0.7%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was up 0.4%. Silver rose 0.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) gained 0.3%. Consumer The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was 1% higher, and the Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) rose 1.1%. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) added 1.1%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was up 1%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) edged up 0.3%. Healthcare The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) slipped 0.1%, while iShares US Healthcare (IYH) shed 0.2%, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) fell 0.4%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) declined 2.1%. Industrial The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) added 1.2%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) rose 1.1%, and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) gained 1.1%. Cryptocurrency In midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) shed

MT newswire•2026/10/06 17:09

BUZZ - Jefferies raises target price, Pershing Square shares surge

October 6th - Alternative asset management company Pershing Square (PS.N) shares rose 7.49% to $58.98. Jefferies raised its target price from $38 to $58 and maintained a "Hold" rating, stating that performance-based fees are expected to continue rising next year. According to data compiled by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), 9 out of 10 brokers give the stock a "Buy" or higher rating, and one gives a "Hold" rating; the median target price is $42. The current price-to-earnings ratio is 64.03 times expected earnings per share for the next 12 months, far above the industry median of 10.97 times. As of the previous trading day's close, PS has risen 145.4% since its IPO in April.

路透社•2026/10/06 16:41