Business
Elon Musk Wins Tesla Shareholder Lawsuit Over 2015 Tweet
Elon Musk has defeated a shareholder lawsuit alleging tweets claiming he had the “funding secured” to take Tesla private cost investors billions of dollars in losses.
The verdict was delivered on Friday in San Francisco federal court after a three-week trial, in a victory for the billionaire chief executive of the electric-vehicle maker. The nine-person jury took just under two hours to reach its decision, which was unanimous.
“The jury got it right,” Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Musk, said after the verdict.
Representing “thousands” of Tesla investors in the class action suit, lead attorney Nicholas Porritt had framed the case as an important test of rules and regulations for financial markets and society more broadly during closing arguments earlier on Friday in federal court.
“Rules that apply to everyone else should apply to Elon Musk,” Porritt said. “Elon Musk published false tweets, with reckless disregard to the truth, and those tweets caused investors harm. Lots of harm.”
He concluded: “All of corporate America is watching.”
Musk, who had taken the stand as a witness in the case, was in court during closing arguments. The case centered on his August 7, 2015, tweet declaring he was considering taking Tesla private at $420 a share and had funding secured to do so. It spun the shares, with Nasdaq temporarily halting trading in the electric vehicle company due to volatility.
During the trial, and again during the plaintiff’s closing argument on Friday, jurors were shown a chart detailing the leap in Tesla’s share price in the immediate aftermath of the contentious tweets. The stock jumped to $379.57 on the day of Musk’s tweet and later fell to $305.50 when it became clear the go-private move would not happen.
Elon Musk’s Tweet
While Musk had held discussions with Saudi Arabian investors to take the company private, no deal ever materialized. But Spiro said Musk had not misrepresented having funding and that raising the money needed was “not an issue”, since Musk’s shares in his company SpaceX could have been used to cover any shortfall.
Although Musk was serious about taking Tesla private and could have tapped enough funding to do so, the company did not go private because “shareholders wanted to stay public”, Spiro told the jury.
“That was his motive — to do what was right for the shareholders,” Spiro continued. “This was always for the shareholders.”
He added: “Ultimately, whatever you think of him, this isn’t the ‘bad tweeter’ trial. This is the ‘did this man commit fraud’ trial.”
Earlier in the trial, Spiro said the “funding secured” tweets were a “split-second decision” from Musk in response to an article the Financial Times was preparing to publish about Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund building a $2bn stake in Tesla. Musk said he was concerned news of the go-private talks would leak.
Tesla Stock
The court has instructed jurors that it is to be assumed that Musk’s tweets were false. At issue was whether the actions caused material harm by misrepresenting the company’s position in a manner that might prompt a “reasonable investor” to buy or sell Tesla stock.
“When Elon tweets about Tesla, people listen,” Porritt said.
Jurors heard earlier in the trial from Glen Littleton, the lead plaintiff, that he interpreted the tweet to mean Tesla’s going private was “completely definite in my mind”.
Another investor, Tim Fries, bought Tesla stock at $380, believing the company would go private at $420, as Musk had suggested in his tweet. “I lost money,” Fries told the jury, saying Musk’s tweet “gave me the confidence” that his investment was sound.
Harvard Law School professor Guhan Subramanian, testifying on behalf of plaintiffs, described Musk’s handling of the matter as “incoherent” and an “extreme outlier” in corporate dealmaking.
The “funding secured” tweet has already proven costly for Musk. He and Tesla each paid $20mn to settle legal action from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Musk also had to resign as the carmaker’s chair, although he kept his position as chief executive.
Music
Spotify CFO Is One Of Thousands To Leave The Company — After He Moves To Sell $9 Million In Shares
NEW YORK – According to Spotify, its chief financial officer will retire next year, just days after the music streaming giant announced its third round of layoffs for 2023.
CEO Daniel Ek said in a statement announcing CFO Paul Vogel’s departure that the two had “come to the conclusion that Spotify is entering a new phase and needs a CFO with a different mix of experiences.”
Spotify said this week that it would be laying off 17% of its global personnel to cut expenses and become profitable. A representative acknowledged that approximately 1,500 individuals will lose their employment.
Their stock increased by nearly 8% after the layoffs were revealed on Monday. According to securities records, Vogel sold more than $9.3 million in shares on Tuesday.
Spotify CFO Is One Of Thousands To Leave The Company — After He Moves To Sell $9 Million In Shares
According to The Guardian, two additional top executives received over $1.6 million in stock options.
Vogel is leaving Spotify on March 31st. According to a blog post, Ben Kung, presently vice president of finance planning and analysis, will “take on expanded responsibilities” in the interim while Spotify seeks a replacement externally.
Stockholm-based For the nine months ending September, The company reported a net loss of 462 million euros (about $500 million). The corporation declared in January that it was laying off 6% of its workforce. In June, it eliminated another 2% of its workforce, or around 200 people, primarily in its podcast section.
Spotify CFO Is One Of Thousands To Leave The Company — After He Moves To Sell $9 Million In Shares
The company is a popular music streaming service that offers a vast library of songs, podcasts, and playlists for users to access on-demand. With a user-friendly interface, Spotify allows subscribers to create personalized playlists, discover new music based on their listening habits, and explore a wide range of genres.
The platform is available on various devices and offers both free and premium subscription options, allowing users to enjoy ad-supported or ad-free listening experiences.
SOURCE – (AP)
Business
McDonalds Burger Empire Set For Unprecedented Growth Over The Next 4 Years With 10,000 New Stores
McDonald’s aims to open roughly 10,000 outlets over the next four years, an unprecedented expansion rate even for the world’s largest burger business.
In an investor report on Wednesday, the Chicago burger behemoth expects to have 50,000 outlets open globally by the end of 2027. McDonalds had 40,275 locations at the beginning of this year.
It intends to open 900 new stores in the United States and 1,900 in some of its more important international markets, including Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The company intends to have an additional 7,000 outlets in other international markets, with more than half of those in China.
Manu Steijaert, McDonald’s chief customer officer, stated that it took the corporation 33 years to open its first 10,000 outlets and 18 years to develop from 30,000 to 40,000. However, the corporation feels its footprint needs to be improved to meet demand, particularly in faster-growing parts of the United States.
McDonald’s Burger Empire Set For Unprecedented Growth Over The Next 4 Years With 10,000 New Stores
The company also stated that the increasing development of delivery demand necessitates bringing restaurant locations closer to clients to provide speedier delivery times. In 2017, McDonald’s delivery generated $1 billion in global sales, which has since increased to more than $16 billion.
“No matter how the customer chooses to order, out ability to serve them relies on our locations,” he stated.
McDonald’s stock was unchanged on Wednesday.
The company also announced a relationship with Google Cloud on Wednesday, claiming that it will help expedite automated services and minimize complexity for its staff.
McDonald’s Burger Empire Set For Unprecedented Growth Over The Next 4 Years With 10,000 New Stores
McDonald’s same-store sales increased over 9% globally in the third quarter despite a modest drop in traffic in the United States.
The corporation is focused on basic menu items such as Quarter Pounders and fries, which account for 65% of systemwide sales, according to McDonalds.
Burgers with softer, freshly toasted buns, meltier cheese, and more Big Mac sauce will be available in the United States by the end of 2024 and in most other markets by the end of 2025. McDonald’s claims that chicken sales are now on a level with beef and that the McCrispy sandwich will be available in nearly all worldwide markets by 2025.
McDonalds Burger Empire Set For Unprecedented Growth Over The Next 4 Years With 10,000 New Stores
McDonalds is a global fast food restaurant chain known for its hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and french fries. The company was founded in 1940 and has since grown to become one of the largest and most recognizable fast food brands in the world.
With a widespread presence in over 100 countries, McDonalds offers a diverse menu that includes items such as chicken sandwiches, salads, and breakfast options.
he company is also known for its iconic golden arches logo and its commitment to providing quick and convenient service to its customers.
SOURCE – (AP)
Business
Woman Who Assaulted Chipotle Worker Sentenced To Fast Food Job For Two Months
An Ohio woman who was convicted of assault after tossing a burrito bowl at a Chipotle employee was offered an unusual method to shorten her sentence.
Rosemary Hayne, 39, has been ordered by a judge to work in a fast-food restaurant for two months.
In a viral video, Hayne can be seen yelling at a Chipotle employee before throwing her meal in his face.
She was first sentenced to pay a fine and serve 180 days in jail, with 90 days suspended.
But then the judge had another thought.
“You didn’t get your burrito bowl the way you like it, and this is how you respond?” Judge Timothy Gilligan in Parma, Ohio sentenced Hayne.
Woman Who Assaulted Chipotle Worker Sentenced To Fast Food Job For Two Months
“This isn’t the ‘Real Housewives of Parma.'” “This is not acceptable behavior,” he declared, according to local Fox affiliate WJW.
Mr Gilligan told Hayne she could avoid 60 days in jail if she agreed to work at least 20 hours per week for two months at a fast-food business.
Hayne agreed.
On September 5, a bystander recorded the incident and posted it to Reddit, where it quickly went viral.
In court, Hayne apologized and attempted to explain why she screamed at the Chipotle employee, Emily Russell, 26.
“If I showed you how my food looked and how my food looked a week later from that same restaurant, it’s disgusting looking,” Hayne said in an interview with WJW.
“I bet you won’t be happy with the food you’ll get in jail,” Mr Gilligan said.
Emily Russell said in court that the incident had traumatized her and that she had since quit her work at Chipotle.
Woman Who Assaulted Chipotle Worker Sentenced To Fast Food Job For Two Months
She told the Washington Post that she was intervening to defend a 17-year-old employee being shouted at by Hayne. She complained that the dish was too hot and burned her face.
“I was so embarrassed and in shock,” she admitted to the publication. “I couldn’t believe my customers had to witness that.”
As of Tuesday morning, a GoFundMe effort for Ms Russell had raised $7,200 (£5,700).
Chipotle is a popular fast-casual restaurant chain known for its Mexican-inspired menu and customizable options.
Woman Who Assaulted Chipotle Worker Sentenced To Fast Food Job For Two Months
The restaurant offers a variety of burritos, bowls, tacos, and salads, allowing customers to choose from different proteins, toppings, and salsas.
Chipotle is also recognized for its commitment to using high-quality, sustainably sourced ingredients. With over 2,800 locations across the United States, Canada, and Europe, Chipotle has established a strong presence in the fast-food industry.
SOURCE – (BBC)
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