–According to Reuters, BP reported a bigger-than-expected profit drop due to the fall in production. This was prompted by the need to sell oil fields to pay for the Gulf of Mexico disaster, raising concerns about the oil group’s turnaround plan. Today, Europe’s second-largest oil company, said that output would continue to decline in the second quarter, with shares already down 8.9 percent so far this year. Analysts at Citigroup said they had doubts about BP’s ability to increase output, keep a lid on costs and maintain its interest in key assets. According to analysts at Bernstein, the financial headwinds also mean BP will struggle to raise its dividend to the level it was at before the spill. BP unveiled plans to sell a number of mature fields in the Gulf, but a spokesman denied the company was making a more general pullback from the region.
–The Wall Street Journal reports, that amid the banking industry’s relentless belt-tightening, even Bank of America Corporation’s moneymakers aren’t safe. The company is planning about 2,000 staff cuts in its investment banking, commercial banking and non-U.S. wealth-management units. Those operations were vastly expanded with Bank of America’s 2009 purchase of Merrill Lynch. The reductions are significant because they target the high-earning employees whose efforts helped Merrill Lynch account for the bulk of Bank of America’s profit since the financial crisis. The cuts come on top of a plan announced last year that will see Bank of America eliminate 30,000 jobs over three years in its consumer banking divisions. The bank employed almost 300,000 people as of March 31.
–Reuters also reports, that Google and its board were sued on Monday by a shareholder who wants to block the company’s stock split plan. Google announced the surprise stock split plan earlier this month, in which shareholders would get one new share of non-voting “Class C” stock for each existing “Class A” share. As a result, Google will be able to issue new shares for acquisitions and employee compensation without diluting the 56.3 percent voting stake enjoyed by co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. The class action lawsuit accused the co-founders and Google’s board, of breaching their fiduciary duty to the company’s shareholders. The complaint stated that, Page and Brin “wish to retain this power, while selling off large amounts of their stockholdings, and reaping billions of dollars in proceeds.” The lawsuit said the stock split will essentially grant billions of dollars of equity to the co-founders, for nothing.
–According to Reuters, BP reported a bigger-than-expected profit drop due to the fall in production. This was prompted by the need to sell oil fields to pay for the Gulf of Mexico disaster, raising concerns about the oil group’s turnaround plan. Today, Europe’s second-largest oil company, said that output would continue to decline in the second quarter, with shares already down 8.9 percent so far this year. Analysts at Citigroup said they had doubts about BP’s ability to increase output, keep a lid on costs and maintain its interest in key assets. According to analysts at Bernstein, the financial headwinds also mean BP will struggle to raise its dividend to the level it was at before the spill. BP unveiled plans to sell a number of mature fields in the Gulf, but a spokesman denied the company was making a more general pullback from the region.
–The Wall Street Journal reports, that amid the banking industry’s relentless belt-tightening, even Bank of America Corporation’s moneymakers aren’t safe. The company is planning about 2,000 staff cuts in its investment banking, commercial banking and non-U.S. wealth-management units. Those operations were vastly expanded with Bank of America’s 2009 purchase of Merrill Lynch. The reductions are significant because they target the high-earning employees whose efforts helped Merrill Lynch account for the bulk of Bank of America’s profit since the financial crisis. The cuts come on top of a plan announced last year that will see Bank of America eliminate 30,000 jobs over three years in its consumer banking divisions. The bank employed almost 300,000 people as of March 31.
–Reuters also reports, that Google and its board were sued on Monday by a shareholder who wants to block the company’s stock split plan. Google announced the surprise stock split plan earlier this month, in which shareholders would get one new share of non-voting “Class C” stock for each existing “Class A” share. As a result, Google will be able to issue new shares for acquisitions and employee compensation without diluting the 56.3 percent voting stake enjoyed by co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin. The class action lawsuit accused the co-founders and Google’s board, of breaching their fiduciary duty to the company’s shareholders. The complaint stated that, Page and Brin “wish to retain this power, while selling off large amounts of their stockholdings, and reaping billions of dollars in proceeds.” The lawsuit said the stock split will essentially grant billions of dollars of equity to the co-founders, for nothing.