Clean Energy Ventures closes second funding round - The Boston Globe (2024)

ATHLETIC GEAR

Dick’s sees a brighter year ahead

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. raised its outlook for the year and reported sales that surpassed analysts’ estimates with strong demand for sports gear across categories. Comparable store sales, a key retail metric, rose 5.3 percent for the quarter ended May 4, the company said Wednesday in a statement. That was higher than the 2.5 percent growth that Wall Street projected. The retailer now expects that comparable sales will be up between 2 percent to 3 percent for the full year, with earnings per diluted share within a range of $13.35 to $13.75. Chief executive Lauren Hobart has been expanding a new retail concept by renovating or relocating stores as House of Sport locations, with amenities such as batting cages and golf club repairs. Management plans to boost spending on both e-commerce and physical locations. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Joining news organizations that have chosen to collaborate rather than fight with the best-known artificial intelligence company, News Corp. has struck a multiyear deal to share news content with OpenAI for both training purposes and to answer questions from users. As part of the deal, OpenAI will have access to both fresh and archived material from News Corp.’s major news publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, the New York Post, Australian publications such as The Daily Telegraph, and others. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

Junior doctors in England to strike next month

Junior doctors in England are set to walk out for five consecutive days ahead of the general election, having failed to reach an agreement with the Conservative government in an ongoing dispute over pay. The doctors will strike from June 27 to July 2, ending just two days before the country heads to the polls, according to a statement from the British Medical Association. It represents a blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who made cutting National Health Service waiting lists a key pledge after taking office. The number of people waiting for care currently stands at more than 7 million. This month, senior doctors in England accepted an improved pay offer, ending their strikes that dragged on for more than a year. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

Royal Mail has a new owner

The owner of Britain’s Royal Mail said Wednesday it has accepted a 3.6 billion pound ($4.6 billion) takeover offer from Czech investor Daniel Křetínský. Under the deal, Křetínský's EP Group would buy International Distribution Services, which owns Royal Mail, for 370 pence ($4.72) per share. Long state-owned, Royal Mail was privatized by the UK’s Conservative government in 2013 and has struggled financially. — ASSOCIATED PRESS

INTERNATIONAL

Samsung union to go on strike for the first time

Samsung’s labor union said it plans to carry out its first strike ever, adding to the challenges for South Korea’s largest company as it seeks to recover from setbacks in its semiconductor business. The National Samsung Electronics Union, the largest of the tech giant’s several unions with about 28,000 workers, announced the decision Wednesday after wage negotiations with management stalled. The two sides have been in discussions since the start of this year but have failed to resolve their differences. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

BITCOIN

BlackRock wins the Bitcoin ETF sweepstakes

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust has become the world’s largest fund for the original cryptocurrency, amassing almost $20 billion in total assets since listing in the United States at the start of the year. The exchange-traded fund held $19.68 billion of the token Tuesday, dethroning the $19.65 billion Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The third-largest is the $11.1 billion offering from Fidelity Investments. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

RETAIL

Abercrombie continues gaining ground

Abercrombie & Fitch shares jumped more than 24 percent after the retailer blew past first-quarter sales estimates, extending its bounce back from the teen fashion graveyard. Abercrombie shares were already trading at an all-time high and have now more than doubled this year. The company continues to cater to the rapidly changing tastes of Gen Z and millennial consumers, with expanded offerings spanning wedding attire to office wear. Women’s dresses and new trends in denim including wide legs and low-rise baggy jeans helped fuel sales, chief executive Fran Horowitz said on the earnings call. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

PETS

Chewy stock rises with earnings better than predicted

Chewy shares rallied after earnings eclipsed estimates, the company announced its first buyback program and said the pet industry is showing signs of recovery. The stock surged more than 27 percent Wednesday. Before Wednesday it had lost 28 percent this year. First-quarter adjusted earnings per share reached 31 cents on revenue of $2.88 billion, beating the average analyst estimates of 16 cents and $2.85 billion, respectively. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

MEDIA

Everyone doesn’t need the Standard anymore

London’s nearly 200-year-old Evening Standard newspaper plans to abandon its daily print publication, switching to a weekly edition, according to a memo sent to staff, following a tough period for free UK newspapers. The company blamed home working and widespread Wi-Fi on London trains for reduced readership and said it has to look for ways to stem unsustainable losses, according to an email to staff on Wednesday, which was seen by Bloomberg News. The Evening Standard, handed out for free at bus and train stations across the city, was once a staple of the London commute. However, the pandemic meant more people worked from home and caused advertising income to plunge. Circulation fell to about 300,000 last year from more than 1 million on some days before lockdowns began. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

PHARMACEUTICALS

Merck to buy UK biotech

Merck agreed to buy drug developer Eyebiotech Ltd. for as much as $3 billion, scooping up the UK biotech as it prepares for increasing price pressure on Keytruda, its top-selling cancer therapy, in the coming years. Merck will pay $1.3 billion upfront and as much as $1.7 billion if the closely held company meets future business goals, according to a statement. EyeBio’s leading asset is Restoret, an experimental antibody hoped to treat diseases such as neovascular age-related macular degeneration, which occurs when abnormal, leaky blood vessels form in the retina, and diabetic eye disease. The drug is still in early-stage trials. — BLOOMBERG NEWS