2024-03-09 00:35

March 8 (Reuters) - Ratings agency Moody's said on Friday that U.S. hospitals, physician facilities and other medical providers could see a credit impact resulting from disruptions from the hack at UnitedHealth's (UNH.N) , opens new tab Change Healthcare, which processes medical insurance claims and payments. The unit, which processes about 50% of medical claims in the U.S., was breached on Feb. 21 by a hacking group called ALPHV, also known as BlackCat. "The ultimate credit impact on providers will largely depend on the effect of payment delays on cash flow needed to meet expenses," said Kailash Chhaya, senior analyst for Moody's Ratings. Providers that rely solely on Change face an inability to file any claims, Chhaya said. The expenses can include labor to handle processing claims through slower, even manual methods. Many large providers use multiple systems, mitigating effects of the disruption. The system shutdown has also affected pre-treatment authorization, causing delays in administering certain services. UnitedHealth on Thursday said it expects to restore disrupted services for medical claims and payments platforms by mid-March. UnitedHealth did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Last month, Moody's said the hack was a "credit negative" for the company. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-providers-could-see-credit-impact-change-healthcare-hack-moodys-says-2024-03-09/

2024-03-09 00:01

March 8 (Reuters) - Texas sued the U.S. government over Environmental Protection Agency rules published on Friday, that crack down on the oil and gas industry's releases of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. The lawsuit filed in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit challenges EPA rules first announced last year that seek to reduce methane emissions through measures like bans on routine flaring of natural gas produced at new oil wells. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, said the rules amount to regulatory overreach by the EPA, and usurp the role of states in establishing emission standards. "The EPA is once again trying to seize regulatory authority that Congress has not granted,” Paxton said in a statement. The EPA declined to comment. Methane is a greenhouse gas that can leak into the atmosphere undetected from drill sites, gas pipelines and other oil and gas equipment. It has more warming potential than carbon dioxide and breaks down in the atmosphere faster, so reining in methane emissions can have a more immediate impact on limiting climate change. The new rules ban routine flaring, require oil companies to monitor for leaks from well sites and compressor stations and establish a program to use third-party remote sensing to detect large methane releases from so-called "super emitters," the EPA said in a statement when it announced the rules. The rules would prevent an estimated 58 million tons of methane from reaching the atmosphere between 2024 and 2038 - nearly the equivalent of all the carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector in the year 2021, according to the EPA. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/texas-challenges-us-epa-limits-oil-gas-industry-methane-emissions-2024-03-09/

2024-03-08 23:44

March 8 (Reuters) - Costco's (COST.O) , opens new tab shares closed down 7.6% on Friday for its worst day since May 2022 after the membership-only retail chain missed second-quarter revenue expectations and signaled a negative impact from lower gasoline prices. Still, at least seven brokerages raised their price target on Costco, with Jefferies raising the most to $905 after the retailer's second-quarter revenue rose 6% to $58.44 billion, but fell short of LSEG estimates of $59.16 billion. "Gasoline price deflation negatively impacted total reported comp sales ... the average worldwide selling price per gallon of gas was down approximately 3.5% versus last year," Costco's outgoing CFO Richard Gallanti said. "The stock just had a very strong run into the earnings print, and so we see this a lot with Costco where ... stock will sell off on financial news and then recovers within a few weeks or something," Telsey Advisory Group analyst Joseph Feldman said. For the past several quarters, Costco had seen a pullback in demand for higher-margin goods such as appliances, home furnishings and electronics. U.S. retail sales had fallen by the most in 10 months in January as customers remained cautious heading into 2024. However, comparable sales, excluding fuel and currency fluctuations, saw a 5.8% increase benefiting from strong sales for appliances and the retailer's efforts to lower prices on select products that attracted consumers looking to shop by the penny. "Their underlying same-store sales are very strong, they are getting very good traffic into the stores and that's the biggest sign of health as a retailer," Feldman added. Brokerages believe the retailer is capable of attracting customers in an uncertain environment and driving revenue growth through strong demand, membership fees and lower prices. Costco shares closed at $725.56 and its median price target is at $780, according to LSEG data. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/costco-stock-set-worst-day-near-two-years-quarterly-revenue-miss-2024-03-08/

2024-03-08 23:41

BUCHAREST, March 9 (Reuters) - The Romanian government said on Friday it won an arbitrage trial filed by Canada's Gabriel Resources (GBU.V) , opens new tab which wanted compensation after its plan to build Europe's largest open cast gold mine in the western Romanian town of Rosia Montana failed. Gabriel Resources had sought at least $4.4 billion in damages from Romania when it filed its claim at the World Bank's International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes in 2015 for losses related to its stalled project. The Romanian government, which had a 20% stake in the project, officially withdrew its support for the mine in 2014 after months of country-wide street protests against it. "The Romanian government salutes this decision and thanks everyone involved in defending the interests of the Romanian state," the cabinet of Socialist Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said in a statement. The government had initially expected a negative ruling. Gabriel Resources gained concession rights to the Rosia Montana area in 1999 and fought a decades-long battle with civil rights and environmental groups which argued the project would destroy ancient Roman mine galleries and villages, and could lead to an ecological disaster. The project envisioned using cyanides and carving open four quarries which would have destroyed four mountain tops and wiped out three outlying villages of 16 that make up the Rosia Montana municipality. Rosia Montana's remaining reserves were estimated at 314 tonnes of gold and 1,500 tonnes of silver. Prior to Friday's ruling, Ciolacu wondered whether Romania should revive plans to extract the gold reserves from the area. However, in 2021 UNESCO added the ancient Roman gold mining area of Rosia Montana in western Romania to its list of protected World Heritage Sites. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/canadas-gabriel-resources-loses-damage-claim-against-romania-failed-gold-mine-2024-03-08/

2024-03-08 23:21

March 8 (Reuters) - New York Community Bancorp (NYCB.N) , opens new tab said on Friday incoming CEO Joseph Otting will receive an annual base salary of $1.25 million and as of March 6 received a one-time option to acquire 15 million shares of the company's common stock. The bank named Otting, a former U.S. Comptroller of the Currency in President Donald Trump's administration, as its new CEO replacing Alessandro DiNello, effective April 1. DiNello, the executive chairman of the bank's board, was named to the additional roles of president and CEO on Feb. 29 succeeding Thomas Cangemi, who resigned from those roles on Feb. 23. NYCB has been under pressure since it posted a surprise fourth-quarter loss on Jan. 31, weighed down by higher provisions tied to its exposure to the beleaguered commercial real estate (CRE) sector. On Wednesday, the lender raised $1 billion from investors including former U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's Liberty Strategic Capital and had named Otting as CEO. Along with the base salary, Otting would also be eligible to receive an annual cash bonus with a target amount of $2.25 million and a maximum of $4.50 million. NYCB's former CEO Cangemi's total compensation in 2022 was $6.28 million. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/embattled-lender-nycb-announces-incoming-ceo-ottings-base-salary-2024-03-08/

2024-03-08 23:01

HOUSTON, March 8 (Reuters) - Top European energy companies on Friday asked U.S. regulators to reject Venture Global LNG's request for a one-year construction permit extension to its Louisiana export plant. Shell PLC (SHEL.L) , opens new tab, Italian utility Edison (EDNn.MI) , opens new tab, Repsol (REP.MC) , opens new tab , Orlen SA (PKN.WA) , opens new tab, and Galp Energia SA (GALP.LS) , opens new tab oppose the request because they believe Venture Global LNG has completed its plant but has failed to give them contracted cargoes. Venture Global last month asked for a one-year extension to a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) permit to complete its Calcasieu Pass plant, or to receive assurances it did not need an extension. "Shell LNG respectfully requests that the Commission find the Extension Request, in its conditional form, to be moot and summarily deny it," the company said. Edison asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to compel Venture Global to release commissioning documents to justify the extension request. Repsol and Galp told federal regulators they cannot participate fully in the 15-day intervention period because of their lack of access to commissioning documents. The European companies say they contracted with Venture Global LNG but have not their gas cargoes under long-term contracts. Venture Global LNG has been selling gas from the plant for more than a year to others, costing them billions in lost profit. Venture Global LNG on Friday asked FERC to "reject the myriad claims of BP, Shell and Orlen," saying they are too late to be allowed to join the deliberations and have no basis for seeking FERC information on the plant's operations. Venture Global said it will not provide those documents unless they are compelled by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC),in a February 26th filing with the commission. BP Plc last week urged U.S. regulators to refuse Venture Global LNG's request for an extension of time to build its Calcasieu Pass export plant. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/shell-edison-ask-us-regulators-deny-venture-global-lngs-permit-extension-2024-03-08/