Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Cigna — The U.S. health insurer announced plans to buy pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts in a $67 billion cash-and-stock deal, which includes Cigna taking on about $15 billion in debt. Cigna would find a new partner in Express Scripts, after antitrust regulators last year denied a Cigna and Anthem combination as anti-competitive.
Wynn Resorts — Two members of the company’s board of directors stepped down Wednesday, hours after the state of Oregon announced it was suing disgraced former CEO Steve Wynn and the Wynn Resorts board of directors for allegedly failing to stop sexual misconduct at the company’s highest levels.
Costco Wholesale — The retailer reported second quarter earnings of $1.42 per share, missing Wall Street’s expectation by 5 cents according to Thomson Reuters. The membership-based chain saw strong same store sales growth in the latest quarter, while also announcing it would reinvest a portion of the company’s tax reform windfall into employee benefits.
Exxon Mobil — Chairman and CEO Darren Woods told CNBC that President Donald Trump’s tariff proposal threatens to undo some of the improvements business saw from the administration’s tax reform and deregulation efforts. Tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, “takes us back in the opposite direction,” Woods said.
Apple — The company said Wednesday it has found more serious violations of its labor and environmental policies by its suppliers. Apple’s latest annual supplier responsibility report included 197 suppliers for the first time, which are part of one of the largest manufacturing chains in the world.
Tesla — CEO Elon Musk shared photos of a cargo-hauling test drive of two Tesla Semis with his legions of followers on social media. While Tesla has told investors it would start mass-production of its electric semis in 2019, the company has yet to announce where these trucks will be manufactured.
Cisco Systems — President of Cisco’s Southeast Asia division Naveen Menon told CNBC Thursday that he is “not at all” worried that rising trade tensions could dent business optimism in the region. “The macroeconomic or the geopolitical landscape does not worry me at this point in time,” Menon said.
Amazon — A small footnote in the e-commerce giant’s annual report revealed it is on the hook for an additional $22 billion in future purchase obligations following the Whole Foods acquisition. Accounting experts told CNBC that Amazon is showing its commitment to growing its grocery business with this unusual multi-year obligation.
JPMorgan — The bank is one of five working to change the barriers to entry in London’s $6.8 trillion per year gold market. JPMorgan, along with HSBC, Scotiabank, UBS and ICBC Standard, are reforming the rules of the world’s largest bullion clearing house, in a move which may the market more competitive.
Netflix — A GBH Insights note to investors called Netflix a “growth machine showing no signs of slowing down.” The firm raised its price target on shares of the streaming service to $375, a 17 percent premium above Wednesday’s close of $321.16 per share.
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