Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) will sell its ActiveScale object storage business to Quantum (OTCPK:QMCO) for undisclosed terms.
The deal is expected to close by March 31.
Quantum expects the initial financial impact of the transaction to be neutral to slightly accretive to current operations.
The sale of ActiveScale follows Western Digital’s plan to exit from storage systems. Last September, the company sold its IntelliFlash business to DDN.
WDC shares are up 1% pre-market to $66.15.
What to watch as Alphabet reports earnings
Get ready for Alphabet’s (GOOG, GOOGL) first quarterly report since Sundar Pichai, who had already been CEO of Google business, took the top spot as founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin stepped back from day-to-day management.
Wall Street analysts project fourth-quarter revenue of $46.87B (+19.3% Y/Y), with profits of $12.76 per share (-0.1% Y/Y).
Investors are also hoping the tech titan will provide more detailed disclosure around its business lines, Google Cloud and antitrust scrutiny, as well as find a way to scale back losses on non-core “other bets.”
Toyota JV starts EV battery development in April
A new joint EV battery joint venture from Toyota (NYSE:TM) and Panasonic (OTCPK:PCRFF) will begin operations on April 1 with more than 5,000 employees as the Japanese companies gear up for an expected surge in demand.
The products from the new company, called Prime Planet Energy and Solutions, will be available to any automaker.
It will go a long way… Toyota, which pioneered the hybrid Prius in 1997, aims to get half of its sales from electrified vehicles by 2025.
Uber marks first exit in Latin America
Adios Colombia… Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER) has ceased operations in the country after failing to win a government reprieve from a ruling that found its service violated competition norms.
“Colombia’s reputation as being open to innovation just drove off in the back of a taxi,” said Justin Kintz, Uber’s vice president for global public policy.
The ride-hailing service had faced a backlash from taxi drivers ever since choosing Bogota as its entry point to South America in 2013.
Impacts of Apple’s China closure are negligible – Wedbush
How will Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) decision to temporarily shutter its stores in China (through Feb. 9) affect the iPhone maker’s top line?
“We believe with the limited transportation in major cities throughout China and limited foot traffic in Shanghai, Beijing, and other cities that at most ~1M iPhones in the region could be at risk of shifting out of the March quarter into the June quarter if this continues into late February,” according to Wedbush analysts Daniel Ives and Strecker Backe.
That the sum represents less than 3% of annual Chinese iPhone sales and the impact will likely be negligible.
