Lowe’s $1.8 billion takeover offer was rejected by Rona, a Canadian rival.  Rona said that it was approached by Lowe’s with a “non binding” offer to pay 14.50 cents a share for the company.  Rona said that it formally rejected the offer.  Lowe’s indicated that it would move forward with its hostile bid two days later. Michelle Laberge, a spokeswoman for Rona, did not directly explain why the company waited for several weeks to announce that it was a takeover target.  She... 

Sony reported a 77% decrease in operating profit for the quarter that ended in June, a result far below analysts’ expectations.  Operating profit for the period fell to ¥6.28 billion, or $80 million.  Analysts had expected a 36% decrease.  Sony reduced its forecast for operating profit in the current financial year to ¥130 billion, from a previous forecast of ¥180 billion.  Analysts forecast annual operating profit of ¥139 billion. The company has been battered by the weak global economy,... 

Royal Bank of Scotland reported a net loss of £1.99 billion, or $3.09 billion, in the first half of the year.  The bank recorded a £1.42 billion loss in the same quarter last year.  Revenue fell 8%, to £13.29 billion.  The bank’s net losses fell to £466 million in the three months through June 30, compared with £897 million during the second quarter of last year.  The British government owns 82% of the bank after it received a bailout during the recent financial crisis. Royal Bank... 

BP reported a $1.4 billion loss for the second quarter.  Investors were already discontented with the performance of the company and its first American chief executive, Robert W. Dudley and the earnings report did nothing to assuage their concerns.  Peter Hutton, an oil analyst at RBC Capital Markets in London, said, “This is a very, very disappointing set of results.  They missed across all fronts by a wide margin.” $4.8 billion in write-downs on refineries, shale gas assets, and a project... 

Pfizer announced that the company’s net income increased by 25% in the second quarter.  The company posted net income of $3.25 billion, or $0.43 a share, in the latest quarter.  This was up from $2.61 billion, or $0.33 a share, a year earlier.  Revenue was down 9% to $15.06 billion, which was above expectations of $14.93 billion. Excluding $2.1 billion in charges before taxes, adjusted net income for the company was $4.67 billion, or $0.62 a share.  Charges affecting the income results included... 

A judge in California ruled in favor of Hewlett-Packard in a lawsuit over a decision by the Oracle Corporation to end support for certain H.P. manufactured servers.  Oracle decided last March that it would no longer make new versions of its database software compatible with H.P. servers based on Intel Corp.’s Itanium chips.  The servers containing Itanium chips are used mostly by large corporations with rigorous computing needs. Hewlett-Packard accused Oracle of violating a contract when it made... 

The Procter & Gamble Company announced that the sale of its snacks division helped its income rise 45% in its fourth fiscal quarter.  Procter’s net income rose to $3.63 billion, or $1.24 a share, from $2.51 billion, or $0.84 a share, in the same quarter a year earlier.  The sale of its snacks business increased income by $0.48 a share. Excluding the benefits of selling its snack division and restructuring costs, the company earned $0.82 a share, higher than analysts’ expectations of $0.77... 

Toyota announced strong profits for the first fiscal quarter of the year.  Net profit for the April-to-June quarter increased to 290.3 billion yen ($3.71 billion), from 1.1 billion yen in the same quarter a year earlier.  The number of vehicles sold nearly doubled.  Toyota said it would leave its annual profit forecast unchanged at 760 billion yen on 22 trillion yen in sales. The rapid sales growth prompted Toyota to raise its global sales target by 180,000 cars, to a record-breaking 9.76 million... 

GlaxoSmithKline announced plans to buy Human Genome Sciences for about $3 billion.  Human Genome is a biopharmaceutical company, which have been in high demand for acquisition in recent years.  As older treatments lose patent protection, large drug makers have been seeking to restock their product pipelines with new offerings. GlaxoSmithKline is paying $14.25 a share in cash under the terms of the deal.  This is nearly twice the amount of Human Genome Science’s shares before news was disclosed... 

Research in Motion has been found liable for $147.2 million in damages for infringing patents held by Mformation Technologies.  Mformation sued RIM in federal court in San Francisco in 2008, accusing it of infringement of two patents.  Mformation is a maker of mobile-device management software.  The software in question is called BlackBerry Enterprise Server. Mformation claimed that during licensing discussions, it had disclosed details of the technology to RIM.  The company said in its complaint... 

A 335-page Senate report  says that executives at HSBC and regulators at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ignored warning signs and failed to stop illegal behavior by Mexican drug cartels looking to get cash back into the United States, by Saudi Arabian banks that needed access to dollars despite their terrorist ties, and by Iranians who wanted to circumvent United States sanctions.  The report indicates that the problems at HSBC, Europe’s largest financial institution, are indicators... 

The European Commission announced a new set of antitrust proceedings against Microsoft.  The European Commission said that the company  failed to live up to a agreement made three years ago to give users of  Windows software better access to competitors’ Internet browser software.  Microsoft immediately apologized, saying in a statement, “We deeply regret that this error occurred and we apologize for it,” and calling it a technical problem that the company had recently learned of. Microsoft... 

Yahoo’s quarterly financial report shows that revenue and net income have stalled at last year’s levels.  Yahoo’s revenue from online display ads rose just 2% in the second quarter compared with a year ago, and it continues to lose market share. With 700 million users, Yahoo draws one of the largest audiences on the Web, but some advertisers have been looking elsewhere.  Advertisers have come under financial pressures, prompting many to buy ads cheaply and quickly through auction-based sales... 

Apple’s slow pace of expansion in China has been causing major headaches for the company.  Apple’s stores in China are usually very crowded and customers often have to wait in long lines for repairs for their iPhones. Apple has recently agreed to settle a lawsuit over the iPad trademark by paying Proview Technology $60 million, freeing it to sell its latest tablet computer throughout mainland China.  Apple earns a nearly 20% of its revenue in China. With six stores in China, Apple has more... 

The Campbell Soup Company announced that it would buy food company Bolthouse Farms from the private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners.  Campbell will pay $1.55 billion in cash to close the deal. Denise M. Morrison, Campbell’s chief executive, said in a statement, “Bolthouse is a great strategic fit with Campbell.  Its business platforms, capabilities and culture are well aligned with the core growth strategies we announced last year.” The deal is the biggest in Campbell’s history. ... 

WellPoint has agreed to buy Amerigroup in a $4.9 billion deal. The deal is one of WellPoint’s biggest since the company was created in a 2003 merger.  The company has also recently acquired 1-800 Contacts, a contact lens retailer, and CareMore, a provider of managed care for the elderly. Under the terms of the deal, the company will pay $92 a share in cash, a significant premium over the closing price of Amerigroup the day before the deal was announced.  . The deal is expected to close in... 

Bank of America reportedly earned $2.5 billion, or $0.19 a share, compared with analysts’ projections of $0.14 for the quarter.  The bank reported revenue of $22.2 billion for the second quarter, slightly less than expected and below the level in the first quarter of this year.  The latest figures are a sharp contrast to Bank of America’s results for the same period a year earlier, when mortgage-related charges contributed to an overall loss of $8.8 billion, or $0.90 a share. The bank... 

GlaxoSmithKline, the British drugmaker, announced an agreement to pay $3 billion in fines for promoting its antidepressants for unapproved uses and neglecting to report safety data about one of its diabetes drugs. The agreement also requires the payment of civil penalties for the improper marketing of a six other medications. GlaxoSmithKline manufactures best-selling drugs Paxil, Wellbutrin, and Avandia. Federal prosecutors announced that the company agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges in... 

Airbus announced plans to invest $600 million over the next five years in building an assembly line in Mobile, Alabama for its A320 single-aisle jet.  This will be the company’s first factory in the United States.  Fabrice Brégier, the chief executive of Airbus, said, “This is the right move at the right time and in the right place for Airbus.  With this step, we will be the only genuine global player in the aerospace industry.” Airbus, a European airplane maker, seems to be moving into... 

Research in Motion announced that its new line of BlackBerry phones will be delayed until next year. The company also announced a $518 million loss in the first quarter and plans to cut about 5,000 of its 16,500 employees.  Issues at the company recently resulted in its co-chief executives giving up management of the company. RIM has staked its future on the BlackBerry 10 phones, but has encountered delays in its release date.  The recent setbacks have increased doubts among analysts and investors... 

Microsoft announced plans buy Yammer, a social network service for businesses.  Yammer’s web-based service allows companies to create private social networks where employees can privately chat, shares files, and collaborate on projects.  The purchase is intended to strengthen Microsoft’s enterprise software business and allow the company to compete directly with Salesforce.com.  Microsoft will pay $1.2 billion in cash for the deal. Yammer allows Microsoft to have a proven social networking... 

Oracle’s reported financial results exceeded Wall Street’s expectations.  Oracle’s results indicate that there is still a strong demand for technology that helps companies automate administrative tasks.  Oracle’s chief financial officer, Safra Catz, said that the company did not think investors would mind hearing about a solid quarter amid fears about Europe’s shaky economy and its effect on business conditions. Oracle reported an 8% increase in net income for its fiscal fourth quarter. ... 

A French court dismissed a copyright lawsuit against Google’s YouTube, an online video-sharing platform that lets people post videos to the site.  French television company TF1 filed the lawsuit and had sought €141 million, or $176 million, in damages.  TF1 is the biggest television company in France. The Tribunal de Grande Instance declared that YouTube had made suitably adequate efforts to remove programs like “Heroes” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” for which TF1 owned French broadcasting... 

Orange juice maker Tropicana has found itself facing lawsuits claiming that the company’s ‘all natural’ claims are false and misleading.  Lawsuits filed across the nation claim that the company’s juice has been so heavily processed that it should not be called ‘natural.’  The first of the approximately 20 lawsuits was filed in New Jersey. Lawyers for the plaintiffs have claimed that the company routinely adds chemically engineered “flavor packs” to its juice in order... 

The Walt Disney Company unveiled its revamped California Adventure park, sporting $1.1 billion worth of improvements.  The overhaul was five years in the making.  California Adventure is under pressure to live up to its promise, as the entertainment company depends on its $12 billion theme park business for growth. California Adventure opened 11 years ago over the old parking lot of the original Disneyland.  The theme park was intended as a complement to its sister park and was expected to turn...