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Business

Kohl’s Gets $9 Billion Bid From Starboard Value Group

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A consortium backed by activist hedge fund Starboard Value LP has offered roughly $9 billion to buy department store

Kohl’s Corp.

KSS -2.60%

, according to people familiar with the matter.

A group led by Acacia Research Corp., which Starboard controls, offered to buy the department-store chain for $64 a share in cash Friday, the people said. It told the company it has received assurances from bankers that it would be able to get financing for the bid, the people said.

There are no guarantees that the group will ultimately line up all the funding needed and make a firm offer or that Kohl’s will be receptive. Other suitors may emerge too.

Kohl’s shares closed at $46.84 Friday. The bid represents a 37% premium.

Based in Menomonee Falls, Wis., Kohl’s has been under pressure to boost its share price, which rose early last year but is little changed from roughly two decades ago. Two activist shareholders—Macellum Advisors GP LLC and Engine Capital LP—have recently called on the company to explore selling itself.

Kohl’s said earlier this week that its strategy is producing results and that its board “regularly works with specialized advisers to evaluate paths that have the potential to create long-term value.” It said it plans to unveil its strategic plans at an investor day in March.

Little-known Acacia has a market value of just $215 million, but the consortium told Kohl’s it received what is known as a “highly confident” letter from a bank asserting that it will be able to attain a debt-financing package for a portion of the bid, the people said. While such letters are no guarantee, they can be a meaningful vote of confidence.

Led by Chief Executive Jeff Smith, Starboard Value is one of the most visible activist investors.



Photo:

Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg News

Other details of the consortium’s proposal—and who is in the group—couldn’t be determined. Reuters reported earlier this week that Acacia was exploring a possible bid for Kohl’s.

Should it succeed, the group could aim to sell the company’s real estate to another party, which could make pulling off the transaction easier. Activists have proposed that Kohl’s explore sale-leasebacks of its real estate, which they have estimated could be worth $7 billion or more.

Macellum said in an open letter to Kohl’s shareholders Tuesday it has been pushing the company to add additional directors with retail experience or to hire bankers to explore a sale.

Before Starboard invested in the firm and joined its board in 2019, Acacia was primarily a holding company for patents. It now focuses on buying and improving companies. In October, it bought privately held Printronix Holding Corp., a manufacturer of line matrix printers, for $33 million, and it has made offers for other companies including

Comtech Telecommunications Corp.

Starboard, led by Chief Executive

Jeff Smith,

is one of the most visible activist investors. It holds seats on the boards of companies including

Papa John’s International Inc.

and

NortonLifeLock Inc.

Write to Cara Lombardo at cara.lombardo@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

Appeared in the January 22, 2022, print edition as ‘Group Offers To Buy Kohl’s for $9 Billion.’

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Business

Is the Stock Market Open Today? Here Are the Hours for Christmas Eve.

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BRYAN R. SMITH/AFP/Getty Images

Americans are getting ready to celebrate Christmas as the U.S. continues to face the highly contagious Omicron variant, persistent inflation and labor shortages. 

But it’s not all doom and gloom.

The S&P 500 index closed up 0.6% on Thursday, and is up 25.8% so far this year. The index also climbed Tuesday and Wednesday, with gains spurred in part by strong economic data. Consumer confidence surged in December, which has helped ease investors’ concerns about the risks posed by Covid-19 and inflation.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6% percent on Thursday, and has climbed 17.5% so far this year.

While many investors may be taking a break on Christmas Eve this Friday, others may be looking to trade. Here’s what you need to know about the markets.

Is the Stock Market Closed on Christmas Eve 2021?

The New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq will be closed on Christmas Eve. U.S. bond markets and U.S. over-the-counter markets will also be shut.

Are Foreign Stock Exchanges Open on Christmas Eve?

The London Stock Exchange closed at 12:30 p.m. local time on Thursday, and will remain closed Christmas Eve. The Toronto Stock Exchange will be open on Friday until 1 p.m. Eastern.

In Asia, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is slated to close at noon local time on Christmas Eve. The Shanghai Stock Exchange and Tokyo Stock Exchange will be open regular hours.

How Are Retail Stocks Poised to Look This Christmas and Beyond?

While many people started holiday shopping early, November spending didn’t pick up as much as experts anticipated. But the outlook for the next few months is strong, analysts say.

Companies such as


Walmart

(ticker: WMT),


Costco Wholesale

(COST),


Target

(TGT) and


BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings

(BJ) look well-positioned to deal with more consumers staying at home as they wait out the Omicron variant, Jefferies analyst Stephanie Wissink says. Next year could be the year of fashion catch-up, which she says may boost shares of


Macy’s

(M) and


Kohl’s

(KSS).

How Have Stocks Performed on Christmas Eve?

Excluding years when the market was closed on Christmas Eve, the S&P 500 has averaged a 0.2% gain on the occasion–which is higher than index’s daily average gain of 0.03%, according to Dow Jones Market Data. But the S&P 500’s average move on Christmas Eve is 0.48%, lower than its daily average move of 0.74%.

What about New Year’s Day and New Year’s Eve?

The New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq, and U.S. over-the-counter markets will be open regular hours on Friday, Dec. 31. However, U.S. bond markets will close early at 2 p.m. Eastern.

New Year’s Day 2022 falls on a Saturday. And while most global financial markets will be closed on Monday, Jan. 3, 2021, in observance of the holiday, U.S. markets will be open.

The lack of a New Year’s Day respite for stock traders is the result of NYSE Rule 7.2, which stipulates that the exchange will be closed either Friday or the following Monday if the holiday falls on a weekend, unless “unusual business conditions exist, such as the ending of a monthly or yearly accounting period.”

Write to Logan Moore at logan.moore@barrons.com

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Business

Stock Market Today: Dow Rose as Moderna Slumped Again

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The


Dow Jones Industrial Average
had one of its best days this year on Monday, as value and defensive stocks led a rebound from last week’s market declines.

The news Monday was relatively positive, with signs that the Omicron variant of Covid-19 might be less severe than earlier strains and reports that China is considering easing monetary policy. On the Federal Reserve policy front, the latest reporting suggested that the central bank could announce plans at its next meeting to more quickly pull back from its bond-buying program.

The Dow surged 647 points, or 1.9%, for its best one-day point gain since November 2020 and the largest percentage increase since last March. The


S&P 500
closed up 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9%, while the small-cap


Russell 2000
gained 2.1%, for its fourth-straight daily move of 2% or more.

Post-pandemic reopening stocks were among the biggest gainers on Monday. The


U.S. Global Jets
exchange-traded fund (ticker: JETS) added 5.3%, as


American Airlines Group

(AAL) added 7.9% and


United Airlines Holdings

(UAL) jumped 8.3%. Cruise lines


Carnival

(CCL) and


Royal Caribbean Cruises

(RCL) surged 8.0% and 8.3%, respectively.


Marriott International

(MAR) added 4.5%,


Live Nation Entertainment

(LYV) rose 6.1%, and


Cinemark Holdings

(CNK) gained 7.7%.

S&P 500 value stocks as a group gained 1.4% on Monday, versus a 0.9% rise for growth stocks in the index.

Investor attention remains focused on the newly discovered Omicron variant of coronavirus, news of which recently brought about the Dow’s worst day of the year and saw volatility rock markets last week. The latest headline driving sentiment comes from South Africa, where data—though from a small sample size—suggest that symptoms caused by Omicron were milder than with other variants.

Investors aren’t out of the woods yet, however. The broad market will remain sensitive to daily headlines about Omicron—both good and bad.

“It still feels like we’re in the guesswork stage of working out what the impact of Omicron will be,” said Russ Mould, an analyst at broker AJ Bell. “It would be naive to rule out further volatility as markets attempt to work out exactly what’s going on.”

On Monday, the news was positive and investors bought the market. All 11 S&P 500 sectors closed in the green.

Fed policy has been pushing investor sentiment the other way. Chair Jerome Powell indicated last week that the central bank would consider speeding up its slowing, or tapering, of monthly asset purchases, which add liquidity to markets, amid higher inflation.

“We’re really at a fascinating crossroads in markets at the moment,” said Jim Reid, a strategist at Deutsche Bank. “The market sentiment on the virus and the policy makers at the Fed are moving in opposite directions.”

Those trends mean different things for different kinds of stocks and indexes.

If Omicron is less severe than feared, then the economy might hold up better than expected. That would be good for economically-sensitive cyclical stocks, like many of those in the Dow. Higher bond yields and interest rates, however, can put downward pressure on stock valuations, particularly those with nosebleed price-to-earnings ratios, many of which are found in the Nasdaq.

“Like Friday, how the Nasdaq trades will likely determine the day, as markets want to see the tech sector stabilize after intense weakness late last week,” wrote the Sevens Report’s Tom Essaye. “If the Nasdaq can stabilize, the broad market can bounce.”

The tech-heavy index bounced from a loss of about 1% shortly after Monday’s opening bell.

In the commodity space, oil prices rose Monday after Saudi Arabia raised its January prices for Asian and U.S. customers over the weekend by $0.60, in a sign of firmer demand expectations.

Futures contracts for the international oil benchmark Brent rose 4.6%, to above $73 a barrel, with U.S. futures for West Texas Intermediate crude up 4.9% to about $69.50 a barrel.

“Given that OPEC+ is proceeding with its planned 400,000 barrels per day increase this month, it appears that Saudi Arabia is taking a punt that Omicron is a virus in a teacup,” said Jeffrey Halley, an analyst at broker Oanda. “Saudi Arabia’s confidence, along with the South African Omicron article over the weekend, is a boost to markets looking for good news in any corner they can find it.”

Cryptocurrency markets remained depressed after digital assets took a tumble over the weekend.


Bitcoin
and


Ether,
the two leading cryptos, remained off their lows following the stark fall Saturday, but were slipping after steadying Sunday. Bitcoin was trading hands around $49,000—down from more than $57,000 as recently as Friday—with Ether holding above $4,000.

Here are several stocks on the move Monday:


Nvidia

(ticker: NVDA) was among the most actively traded stocks in the U.S. Monday, closing down about 2.1%. Shares of fellow semiconductor firm Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) lost 3.4%.


Lucid Group

(LCID) stock dropped 5.1% after the electric-vehicle startup revealed that it had received a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission, without offering many details.


Kohl’s

(KSS) gained 5.4% after an activist investor said it should explore selling itself.


Moderna

(MRNA) fell 13.5% after its president said that the risk that vaccines don’t work as well against Omicron is high. Pfizer (PFE) stock slid more than 5%.

Alibaba Group Holding (BABA) stock closed up 10.4% after a management shakeup at the e-commerce giant.


Deutsche Bank

(DB) rose 3.6% after JPMorgan upgraded the bank to Overweight from Neutral, adding that the group shows positive revenue developments in key divisions.

Pharma giant


Roche

(ROG.Switzerland) rose 1.5% in Zurich after announcing that it would release rapid antigen tests for Covid-19 and flu viruses next month.

Food delivery group


Just Eat Takeaway.com

(JET.U.K.) fell 4.9% in London following a price target cut and downgrade to Market Perform from Outperform by Bernstein, which sees few positive catalysts in the pipeline for the company.

Write to Jack Denton at jack.denton@dowjones.com

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Business

Is the Stock Market Open Today? Here Are the Hours on Labor Day 2021.

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Labor Day 2021 is here. Some exchanges are closed over the long weekend.


CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images

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Labor Day in the U.S. is here, and that means an extended weekend for traders and investors alike as stocks regularly set fresh record highs.

Heading into the weekend, U.S. equities continued their upward march, boosted by technology stocks after private payrolls data on Wednesday suggested the Federal Reserve might not have to taper its bond purchases as soon as expected. The Fed has kept interest rates low and asset prices high by buying bonds.

The

S&P 500

and

Dow Jones Industrial Average

traded lower Friday after the government’s broader report on August hiring came in far short of expectations. The more contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 weighed on hiring, raising more concerns over economic growth.

While Hurricane Ida this week shut down much of U.S. oil production and refining capacity, boosting oil prices, financials proved to be the dogs of the index. Wells Fargo was the worst S&P 500 component for the week, while Capital One was third-worst. 

The Labor Day holiday harks back to the 19th century labor movement during the height of the Industrial Revolution. New York City celebrated the first Labor Day on Sept. 5, 1882, and two years later President Grover Cleveland made the first Monday in September a national holiday.

Is the Stock Market Open on Labor Day 2021?

The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are both closed on Monday, Sept. 6. The same is true for U.S. over-the-counter markets. They’ll reopen on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. U.S. bond markets will also be closed on Monday.

In Canada, the Toronto Stock Exchange is also closed Monday for what that country calls Labour Day. Generally, other international markets are open, including the London Stock Exchange, Shanghai Stock Exchange, Hong Kong stock exchange, and Tokyo Stock Exchange.

How Will Covid-19 Impact Labor Day?

Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said this week that unvaccinated people shouldn’t travel over the Labor Day weekend, as the U.S. is wrestling with a surge of cases linked to the highly contagious Delta variant. She added that people who are vaccinated—currently adults and adolescents age 12 and over are eligible for shots—can travel but should take precautions such as wearing masks in crowded locations and on public transportation.

Some services will be closed on Labor Day because it’s a federal holiday. Mail, for example, won’t be delivered. Most banks also shut their branches in honor of the holiday. But there are also some festivities normally held on the day that have been canceled because of the pandemic, including New York City’s West Indian Day parade and local parades and celebrations across the country.

Labor Day is a popular weekend for sales, especially because it falls in the middle of the back-to-school shopping season.

Bed Bath & Beyond,

(ticker: BBBY) for example, is offering up to 60% off select bedding, kitchen and bath items, and vacuums.

Macy’s

(M) is also advertising a sale of 20% to 60% off.

Kohl’s

(KSS) is offering 40% off on jeans, and

Wayfair

(W) has discounts up to 70%.

How Have Stocks Performed Historically During the Week After Labor Day?

September is generally considered a bad month for stocks, with the broad market giving up an average of 1% for the month in the years going back to 1928. 

Labor Day week can be particularly brutal. Last year, the S&P 500 fell 2.51% during the holiday week, its worst Labor Day week performance since 2008, when it fell 3.2%.

Write to Liz Moyer at Liz.Moyer@barrons.com

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