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Investing.com - Travelers reported third quarter earnings that missed analysts' expectations on Tuesday and revenue that fell short of forecasts....
Early indications showed Whitbread's shares trading about 2% lower. Businesses inside the United Kingdom have been putting off travel this year as they wait for more clarity on what the terms of Britain's divorce deal with the European Union will look like. "Shorter-term trading conditions in the UK regional market have been difficult, particularly in the business segment where we have a higher proportion of our revenue," Whitbread Chief Executive Officer Alison Brittain said....
Swiss drugmaker Novartis boosted its 2019 forecasts on Tuesday after beating third-quarter expectations, a feat helped by the sales debut of gene therapy Zolgensma, the world's most expensive one-time treatment. CEO Vas Narasimhan's bet on the potential cure for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) has drawn scrutiny, initially due to its $2.1 million price and since August over a data manipulation scandal that has prompted a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigation....
British household goods maker Reckitt Benckiser has cut its full-year sales forecast for the second time this year, blaming a drop in retail orders for Mucinex in the United States and a drop in demand for its Enfamil baby products in China. The Durex condom and Lysol disinfectant maker said on Tuesday it now expected full-year like for like sales growth to range from flat to up 2%, down from its previous target of 2% to 3%, which marked its second forecast cut this year. The company also said it expected to see a modest decline in adjusted operating margins for the year as it pours more money into its brands....
Reckitt Benckiser's new chief executive promised on Tuesday to step up spending on its brands and improve performance after the British household goods maker cut its full-year sales forecast for a second time. "We are not pleased with where we are and we must consistently deliver," Laxman Narasimhan, who took over from long-time CEO Rakesh Kapoor in September, said on his first call with the investment community. Narasimhan particularly lamented the performance of the firm's Health business, its largest, where a failed product launch, the nearly $17 billion acquisition of Mead Johnson, and a temporary baby milk factory shutdown in the Netherlands, have all caused significant disruption, some lasting to this day....
Synthos, a chemical group owned by Poland's richest man Michal Solowow, has agreed to work with GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy on developing technology for a small modular reactor (SMR), Hitachi said on Monday. Poland still generates most of its electricity from coal but more and more companies are exploring low-carbon options. "Utilizing small modular reactors to generate clean energy will improve our chances to move away from coal and have a positive impact on our industry and nation," Solowow was quoted as saying....
Germany's Software AG reported on Tuesday a 5% rise in third-quarter revenue driven by strong growth in its Adabas & Natural (A&N) database line and confirmed its 2019 guidance. Operating profit in the business software firm, Germany's oldest listed tech company, rose 8% in the third quarter to 59 million euros ($66 million). "We are pointing in the right direction," said Chief Executive Sanjay Brahmawar, saying a strategy overhaul he launched after starting the job last year was bearing fruit....
