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Third Point builds EssilorLuxottica stake; Amazon: Tesla solar panel caught fire

TOP NEWS

* Third Point LLC built a stake in EssilorLuxottica SA after the eyewear giant faced a boardroom feud that threatened to complicate its €48 billion merger, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The size of the stake was not disclosed. Third Point, which reportedly met with the luxury goods retailer's executive chairman Leonardo Del Vecchio, declined to comment, while a representative for Delfin, Del Vecchio's holding company, also declined to comment on the matter.

* Amazon.com Inc. said a solar panel system installed by Tesla Energy Operations Inc., a unit of Tesla Inc., at one of its warehouses in Redlands, Calif., caught fire in June 2018, Bloomberg News reported. The e-commerce giant said it has since dropped plans to install more Tesla systems, the report added. The news comes days after Walmart Inc. sued Tesla over a series of fires that erupted on the rooftops of several stores across the country.

TEXTILES, APPAREL AND LUXURY GOODS

* Fast Retailing Co. Ltd.-owned fashion brand Uniqlo will launch its print and digital version magazine LifeWear in stores and online in September, Women's Wear Daily reported.

* Foot Locker Inc. reported that adjusted diluted EPS for the second quarter of 2019 came in at 66 cents, down from 75 cents in the year-ago period and slightly below the S&P Global Market Intelligence consensus normalized EPS estimate of 67 cents. Sales for the three-month period ended Aug. 3 decreased 0.4% year over year to $1.77 billion from $1.78 billion, while comparable-store sales grew 0.8%.

* Folli-Follie Commercial Manufacturing and Technical SA, which was charged with fraud and money laundering, has engaged Deloitte and Savigny Partners to look into the possible sale of its unit Links of London, Reuters reported, citing a company statement. The struggling jeweler reportedly said its U.K.-based subsidiary "remains in the process of a turnaround plan that the company continues to support."

MULTILINE RETAIL

* Target Corp. will launch The Walt Disney Co. stores at 25 Target locations in October, as part of a new cross-promotional marketing agreement between the two companies. The big-box retailer and the entertainment giant plan to open 40 more of these "shop-in-shop" sites by October 2020. Target.com will also have a dedicated online store for Disney, which will go live Oct. 4.

* Target Corp. opened 100 small-format stores and completed the remodeling of 500 outlets as part of the $7 billion investment plan it announced in 2017, CNBC reported. The retailer reportedly expects to complete the remodeling of 300 additional stores by 2020, bringing its total to at least 1,000 store remodels out of its more than 1,800 locations.

E-COMMERCE

* Seven U.S. publishers sued Amazon.com Inc.'s audiobook subscription service, Audible, over allegation of the audiobook subscription service's copyright law violation through its planned offering of Audible Captions, a feature that captions some audiobook titles real-time, The Wall Street Journal reported. Audible Captions will allow users to view machine-generated text while they listen to audiobooks.

* Cargojet Inc. entered into an agreement with an Amazon.com Inc. subsidiary after which the e-commerce giant will receive warrants to buy a stake in the Canadian cargo carrier. The cargo service company already provides overnight air network and charter aircraft services for Amazon to ship packages from the retailer's facilities to other Amazon or carrier locations.

* Rakuten Inc. is collaborating with movie production company The H Collective to foray into the movie business, in a move to gain more global recognition, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. The e-commerce company also entered into the partnership to create intellectual property that it can adapt into manga, games, character goods and other merchandise that can be sold online. The 50/50 partnership will see the creation of Rakuten H Collective Studio.

FOOD AND STAPLES RETAILING

* Australian food retailer Woolworths Group Ltd. expanded its low-sensory Quiet Hour program to more than 260 stores across the country.

HOUSEHOLD DURABLES AND SPECIALTY RETAIL

* Tractor Supply Co. announced the resignation of Steve Barbarick as president and COO, effective Aug. 23. The specialty store chain also extended the employment contract of CEO Greg Sandfort for up to one year, while it continues to find a suitable replacement with the help of executive search firm Egon Zehnder.

* Suning.com Co. Ltd.'s convenience store unit acquired more than 60 Circle K stores in Guangzhou, China, operated by Hong Kong's Convenience Retail Asia, in a bid to expand its operations in the country's southern region, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. Suning Xiaodian plans to have 20,000 stores by 2020.

HOTELS, RESORTS AND CRUISE LINES

* Indian lodging company Oravel Stays Pvt. Ltd. and partner Highgate acquired the 657-room Hooters Casino Hotel Las Vegas for $135 million, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The sellers were Junius Real Estate Partners and Trinity Hotel Investors LLC, according to the publication.

LEISURE PRODUCTS AND FACILITIES

* S&P Global Ratings placed Hasbro Inc. on CreditWatch with negative implications following the U.S. toymaker's proposal to buy Entertainment One Ltd. for approximately $4 billion in cash. Fitch Ratings also placed the company on Negative Watch, while Moody's said it will review Hasbro's Baa1/Prime-2 ratings for downgrade on its latest acquisition.

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The day ahead

Early morning futures indicators pointed to a higher opening for the U.S. market.

In Asia, the Hang Seng fell 1.91% to 25,680.33, and the Nikkei 225 dropped 2.17% to 20,261.04.

In Europe, around midday, the Euronext 100 was up 0.32% to 1,038.53.

On the macro front

The Durable Goods Orders, Chicago Fed National Activity Index and the Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey are due out today.

Click here to read about today's financial markets, setting out the factors driving stocks, bonds and currencies around the world ahead of the New York open.

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