the bottomline

NEW YORK:

Goldman Sachs’ profits jumped 44 percent in the second quarter compared with a year ago, driven by the investment bank’s core franchises: advising companies on mergers, acquisitions and other deals, and its trading business.

The New York-based bank said Tuesday that earnings reached $2.35 billion in the second quarter, compared with $1.63 billion a year earlier. On a per-share basis, Goldman earned $5.98 a share, compared with $3.95 a share a year earlier, beating analysts’ forecasts of $4.65 a share.

Separately, Goldman said Chief Executive Officer Lloyd Blankfein will retire as of Oct 1, and be replaced by David Solomon, the president and chief operating officer. Blankfein has been CEO since 2006.

Nearly all of Goldman’s businesses saw double-digit growth in the second quarter. Trading was particularly strong. Goldman’s institutional client services division, which contains the firm’s trading operations, posted net revenues of $3.57 billion in the quarter, up 17 percent from a year earlier. (AP)

NEW YORK:

Fueled by a 20 percent sales jump in its prescription drugs business, Johnson & Johnson posted a 3 percent increase in second-quarter profit.

Still, the world’s biggest maker of health care products trimmed its forecast for 2018.

J&J’s prescription medicine business, which had lagged its medical device business until a couple years ago, accounted for half its $20.83 billion in total revenue.

That business has prospered from wider use of its cancer and immune disorder medicines and its 2017 acquisition of Swiss drugmaker Actelion.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey, company on Tuesday reported net income of $3.95 billion, or $1.45 per share, up from $3.83 billion, or $1.40 per share, a year ago. (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO:

Netflix shares plunged Monday after the leading streaming television service said subscriber growth fell short of expectations in the recently ended quarter.

Membership in the quarter grew 5.2 million to a total of 130 million, matching the same period last year but a million shy of what Netflix had forecast, according to a letter released along with earnings figures.

Netflix shares dropped 14.11 percent to $343.97 in after-market trade, in a setback to the television juggernaut operating in some 190 markets around the world.

“We had a strong but not stellar Q2 (second quarter),” Netflix said in a letter to shareholders. (AFP)

NEW YORK:

UnitedHealth Group’s second quarter earnings beat Wall Street expectations, helped by a surge in government-funded coverage, and the nation’s largest health insurer hiked its 2018 forecast again.

UnitedHealth now expects adjusted earnings to range between $12.50 and $12.75 per share. That’s up from a forecast for $12.40 to $12.65 per share that the company laid out in April. The hike announced Tuesday marked the third increase for the year.

Analysts expect, on average, earnings of $12.63, according to FactSet.

In the second quarter, UnitedHealth added 450,000 more customers to its Medicare Advantage business, which provides privately run versions of the federal government’s Medicare program, and another 330,000 to its UnitedHealthcare Community and State business. That segment runs state- and federally funded Medicaid coverage for the poor and people who have disabilities. (AP)

WASHINGTON:

Walmart said Tuesday it was entering into a strategic partnership with Microsoft on “digital transformation” for the onetime retail industry leader.

The move is aimed at helping Walmart compete better against Amazon, which is taking a growing share of retail sales in the United States and globally.

The two firms said the partnership was focused on using artificial intelligence and other technology tools to help manage costs, expand operations and innovate faster.

“Walmart’s commitment to technology is centered around creating incredibly convenient ways for customers to shop and empowering associates to do their best work,” said Walmart chief executive Doug McMillon, Walmart CEO. (AFP)

NEW YORK:

A former Apple Inc employee pleaded not guilty on Monday after federal prosecutors filed an indictment accusing him of stealing trade secrets.

Federal officials on July 12 indicted Xiaolang Zhang on a single count of trade secret theft, alleging that Zhang had stolen a 25-page blueprint for a circuit board designed to be used in an autonomous vehicle, according to the indictment filed in US District Court for the Northern District of California.

The formal indictment followed a filing by a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent on July 10 describing the charge and Zhang’s arrest at a Silicon Valley airport before boarding a flight to China. (RTRS)

BERLIN:

German industrial giant Thyssenkrupp on Monday announced the resignation of the chairman of its advisory board after a dispute with shareholders.

Ulrich Lehner, 72, had publicly supported Heinrich Hiesinger, who resigned unexpectedly earlier this month following a merger of Thyssenkrupp’s steelmaking business with India’s Tata, creating Europe’s second biggest steelmaker.

Thyssenkrupp has been under pressure from activist investors such as investment firm Cevian, an 18 percent shareholder, and business daily Handelsblatt reported Lehner was one of two advisory board members to have voted against the Tata merger. (AFP)

DETROIT:

Ford has agreed to spend up to $299 million to settle lawsuits filed by owners of about six million vehicles with potentially deadly Takata air bag inflators.

The agreement announced Monday must get court approval. It covers owners who claim that their vehicles’ value dropped because Ford used Takata equipment.

Under the deal, owners are eligible for reimbursement of up to $500 for documented expenses. They also can get rental cars while they wait for recall repairs. Ford also agreed to an outreach program to get the recall repairs done. (AP)