Plus, Moderna has began dosing participants in the trial of its COVID-19 vaccine in children, Google unveiled its second-generation Nest Hub device, and Dick’s Sporting Goods announced a new men’s athleisure line to compete with Lululemon.
Stocks were slightly higher at the open on Tuesday with the Dow rose 13 points, or less than 0.1%. The S&P 500 added 0.1%, while the Nasdaq gained nearly 0.5%.
Ford shares are down 4% this morning after the automaker announced plans to raise around $2 billion through an offering of five-year convertible notes. The notes will be sold through a private offering to qualified institutional buyers, due in 2026, and the net proceeds from the sale will be used for general corporate purposes, including the potential repayment of Ford’s $24 billion in debt. Ford also announced this morning that it has partnered with the University of Michigan to open a robotics development facility for $75 million to house the U-M Robotics Institute. “As Ford continues the most profound transformation in our history with electrification, connectivity and automation, advancing our collaboration with the University of Michigan will help us accelerate superior experiences for our customers while modernizing our business,” Ford chief technology officer Ken Washington said in a press release. “We also will broaden our learning through daily exposure to many robotics activities, such as considering how our Digit robots not only technically can master delivering packages from autonomous vehicles but also become valued parts of our neighborhoods.”
Moderna said that it has begun dosing participants in a trial of its COVID-19 vaccine in children, pushing the stock more than 7% higher in morning trading. The FDA has authorized Moderna’s vaccine for adults aged 18 and older, and there are no vaccines for the coronavirus currently approved for use in children. The Phase 2/3 trial will enroll around 6,750 children ranging in age from 6 months to 12 years. “This pediatric study will help us assess the potential safety and immunogenicity of our COVID-19 vaccine candidate in this important younger age population,” said Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel.
Google unveiled the second-generation Nest Hub this morning. The smart screen and speaker will be the first such device to offer sleep tracking using a built-in radar sensor, and will be available starting March 30 for $99 with preorders beginning today. Google said the sleep sensing feature will be available as a free preview until next year, suggesting the company may begin charging for the service in the future. “A little over two years ago, I was part of the team that created Nest Hub, Google’s first smart display. Since then, we’ve been exploring ways to make these devices even more helpful,” wrote Google Nest Product Manager Ashton Udall in a blog post announcing the device. “We know people already come to Google for information and tools to help them live healthier, happier lives, and we’ve specifically noticed more and more questions about sleep, exercise and health. So we decided to bring these kinds of solutions to our second-generation Nest Hub, while also improving what people already love about it.”
Walmart is upping its fashion game. The retailer has tapped designer Brandon Maxwell—who has is a Project Runway judge and has dressed celebrities including Lady Gaga and Michelle Obama—to serve as creative director of the discounter’s elevated brands, Scoop and Free Assembly. Maxwell will oversee four seasonal collections a year for the two labels, beginning with this year’s holiday range before his full lines appear in spring 2022. The designer will also be involved in marketing campaigns for both brands. “I’m not a person who believes that fashion is just something on the surface. I believe it is a way to say to the world ‘This is who I am’ and that has power to it,” Maxwell told CNBC. “Being able to bring that to so many different people, and communities like mine, that I grew up in, to me always felt like the goal.”
Dick’s Sporting Goods is coming for Lululemon. The retailer will launch its VRST men’s athletic apparel line today on Dick’s website and on a standalone site, with the line rolling out to more than 400 Dick’s stores in the coming weeks. The line will include everything from joggers and shorts to tees, quarter-zips, and hooded sweatshirts, with products retailing from $30 to $120 putting the line in the same category as Lululemon. “When you see VRST, it will be a very different product assortment from when we have with our core vendor partners right now, and it is a white space,” said Dick’s CEO Lauren Hobart on the company’s earnings call earlier this month. “It covers a broad range of activities. VRST will put us in a much stronger position to compete with similar offerings from premium apparel brands and specialty athletic apparel stores.”
Stocks We’re Watching
RumbleOn Inc (NASDAQ: RMBL): RumbleOn shares jumped as much as 65% yesterday after the pre-owned vehicle e-commerce company announced that it has agreed to merge with RideNow, creating the only omnichannel customer experience in powersports and the largest publicly traded powersports dealership platform. “We are creating the only omnichannel solution in the powersports industry – offering an unparalleled customer experience for outdoor enthusiasts across the country. RideNow’s significant physical retail platform provides the missing piece of a ‘bricks and clicks’ strategy for RumbleOn, enabling us to reach consumers wherever they want to shop, whether online, offline, or both,” said Marshall Chesrown, RumbleOn’s Chief Executive Officer. “For us, this transaction is about unlocking incremental sales, capturing additional monetization opportunities such as parts and services, and consolidating a fragmented industry to drive efficiency and improve the customer experience. For our customers, this is about offering the most robust selection of inventory through a simple, safe, hassle-free and flexible experience nationwide.”