Top Stories Monday, Sep. 11: Qualcomm-Apple Chip Supply Agreement, Report On AstraZeneca CEO's Alleged Intention To Step Down, Apple & Google Face Off in Antitrust Showdown - AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN), Boeing (NYSE:BA)

Benzinga

Qualcomm Announces Chip Supply Agreement With Apple

Qualcomm Inc QCOM stock is trading higher Monday after the chip designer forged a deal with Apple Inc APPL.
Under the deal, Qualcomm will supply Snapdragon 5G Modem‑RF Systems for the iPhone maker's smartphone launch in 2024, 2025, and 2026.
The agreement eyes a 20% share of chipset supply for smartphone launch in 2026.

In a strategic move that could potentially reshape its fleet, Vietnam Airlines JSC is nearing a monumental deal with Boeing Co BA.
The agreement involves the acquisition of about 50 Boeing 737 Max jets, a transaction estimated to be valued at a staggering $10 billion.
The prospective deal not only signifies a massive win for Boeing but also marks a departure for Vietnam Airlines from its existing all-Airbus single-aisle jet fleet.
The airline is reportedly looking to replace over 40 older-generation Airbus SE A321 planes with this new acquisition.

Welltower Inc WELL raised its FY23 FFO outlook and provided a business update. The company increased FY23 normalized funds from operations (FFO) per share guidance to $3.51 – $3.60 from $3.48 - $3.59 earlier.
The bullish stance reflects continued strength in the company's Seniors Housing Operating (SHO) portfolio and strong capital deployment activity.
Also, WELL continues to see an increase in recognized renewal rates and improving street rates, accelerating RevPAR growth of 6.7% in FY23.

Sandoz, a generic and biosimilar medicines unit of Novartis AG NVS, has entered a development and commercialization agreement with Samsung Bioepis.
The agreement provides Sandoz exclusive rights to commercialize the biosimilar SB17 ustekinumab in the US, Canada, EEA, Switzerland, and the U.K. Other specific terms of the agreement are confidential.

RTX Corp RTX provided an update on the impact to the Pratt & Whitney GTF fleet (PW1100 GTF engines, which power the A320neo) arising from the previously disclosed rare condition in powder metal used to manufacture certain engine parts.
RTX's pre-tax operating profit impact is estimated to be between $3 billion and $3.5 billion over the next several years, including an approximately $3 billion pre-tax charge in Q3, after partners' share of charges.

Reuters

Shares in European pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca Plc AZN are down amid speculations swirling around the potential departure of AstraZeneca's Chief Executive, Pascal Soriot.
The trigger for this sudden decline can be traced to a report published in the Mail on Sunday newspaper that writes that Soriot privately told friends and trusted advisers that he wanted to leave the biggest company in the FTSE 100.

Wall Street Journal

Online grocery delivery company, Instacart is striving for a valuation between $8.6 billion to $9.3 billion in its forthcoming IPO, a significant decline from its previous worth.
Instacart is slated to kick off marketing for its IPO as early as Monday, with the planned valuation range to be revealed then.
The shares are anticipated to start trading on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker 'CART' the following week. However, the San Francisco-based company's plans could still be adjusted based on feedback during the roadshow.

CNBC

Alibaba Group Holding Limited BABA prepared to part with Daniel Zhang as the Chair and CEO of its cloud business.
In June, Zhang departed as the Chair and CEO of Alibaba Group, and Eddie Wu took charge as the CEO and Joseph Tsai as the Chair, effective September.
Alibaba tapped Wu as the Chair and CEO of the cloud business on an interim basis.

Bloomberg

As the U.S. auto industry and broader economy recover from the pandemic and semiconductor shortages, a potential United Auto Workers (UAW) strike could result in economic damage and higher inflation.
A 10-day strike against General Motors Co GM, Ford Motor Co F, and Stellantis NV STLA could reduce the U.S. gross domestic product by $5.6 billion, potentially pushing the Michigan economy into a recession, according to the Anderson Group, a Michigan-based economic consultancy.
Of the estimated $5.6 billion economic impact, lost worker pay would account for $859 million and lost automaker earnings would be around $989 million, according to Anderson.

In the ever-evolving tech landscape, the dynamic between industry giants Apple Inc APPL and Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGLGoogle has been a mix of fierce competition and strategic collaboration.
Over the years, their interactions have encompassed intense rivalry, epitomized by Steve Jobs' famous "thermonuclear war" threat over Google's foray into smartphones and enthusiastic cooperation.
Since 2005, Google has paid Apple substantial sums to secure its position as the default search engine on Apple's Safari web browser. A trove of internal communications has surfaced as part of the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust case against Google.

UBS Group AG UBS is reportedly planning to cut wealth-management jobs in Asia in the low hundreds.
The move reflects the bank's strategy to address muted client activity and a slowing economy in China.
The company plans to reduce at least 100 positions and axe roles like relationship managers in Hong Kong and Singapore that have been integrated from Credit Suisse.

British chip designer Arm Holdings Ltd. eyes boosting the price range of its initial public offering after its share sale gets subscribed sixfold.
Softbank Group Corp SFTBF SFTBY backed chip designer filed for its IPO at $47 - $51 a share, bagging a valuation of $54.5 billion, slightly below the prior valuation target of $60 billion - $70 billion.
The final pricing of an IPO is likely on Wednesday, and the stock will start trading on Thursday.

Qualcomm-Apple Chip Supply Agreement, Report On AstraZeneca CEO's Alleged Intention To Step Down, Apple & Google Face Off in Antitrust Showdown: Today's Top Stories