New robot analyst recommends 'sell'
While human analysts are still overwhelmingly bullish on Alphabet Inc. and Facebook Inc., a new robot analyst at Wells Fargo says it's time to sell.
Late last month, Wells Fargo analyst Ken Sena introduced AIERA, short for artificially intelligent equity research analyst, a 'bot that does massive automated grunt work to support human analysts as they track stocks and make trade recommendations. And while analysts are known to skew toward buy ratings, the new 'bot doesn't seem to share the bias.
"AIERA's approach this week appears decidedly more conservative [than last week], as she places a 'hold' recommendation on 11 names, and even going so far as to place Google and Facebook in the 'sell' category," Sena says in a new note sent out to clients on Friday.
This is at odds with Wall Street's outlook. Facebook, a stock that has climbed 48 percent this year, has 42 buys out of 47 ratings, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Google parent Alphabet, up 24 percent in 2017, is similarly beloved, with 34 buys out of 41 ratings.
It's also at odds with its inventors. AIERA's pessimism isn't enough to cause Sena and his team to remove their outperform rating on both stocks.
-- Bloomberg News
Microsoft expands rural broadband
FARGO, N.D. -- Microsoft announced late last week it is teaming up with communities in six states to invest in technology and related jobs in rural and smaller metropolitan areas.
Company president Brad Smith launched the TechSpark program in Fargo, a metropolitan area of more than 200,000 people that includes a Microsoft campus with about 1,500 employees. Smith says the six communities are different by design and not all have a Microsoft presence.
Smith says TechSpark is a multi-year, multi-million dollar investment to help teach computer science to students, expand rural broadband and help create and fill jobs, among other things. The other programs will be in Texas, Virginia, Washington state, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
"This is really a blueprint for private-public partnerships," said North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, himself a former Microsoft executive.
Microsoft announced in July that it hoped to extend broadband services to rural America. The company said then it would partner with rural telecommunications providers in 12 states with a goal of getting 2 million rural Americans high-speed internet over the next five years.
-- The Associated Press
Puerto Rico asks Musk for energy aid
The government of storm-battered Puerto Rico has taken to Twitter to engage Tesla Inc.'s Elon Musk to help with solving the island's energy woes.
"Do you want to show the world the power and scalability of your #TeslaTechnologies?" Ricardo Rossello, Puerto Rico's governor, tweeted Thursday at Musk. "PR could be that flagship project."
Musk replied on Friday that he "would be happy to talk." Rossello told reporters he expects to have a conversation with the Tesla chief executive officer and said Puerto Rico needs to consider meeting its energy needs with more environmentally friendly technology.
Tesla is among the U.S. companies sending rooftop panels and batteries to Puerto Rico, where more than 90 percent of homes and businesses remain without electricity after Hurricane Maria destroyed the grid. The storms knocked out power to millions of utility customers who depend largely on fossil-fuel plants and long-distance transmission lines for service. Some in Puerto Rico may be in the dark for months as the grid is repaired.
-- Bloomberg News
Verizon's female media chief to exit
Marni Walden, the head of Verizon Communications' media venture, plans to step down at the end of the year after learning she is unlikely to become the next chief executive officer, according to a person familiar with the situation.
Walden, 50, will move into a strategic adviser role starting Dec. 31 and will leave at the end of February, according to a statement.
The Wyoming native was a rising star at a largely male-run phone company, and one of the top officers under Chief Executive Officer Lowell McAdam. With Walden's departure, John Stratton, the head of operations, and Hans Vestberg, the network and technology chief, are the front-runners to succeed McAdam, 63, said the person, who asked not to be identified, discussing private information. Verizon has never had a female CEO.
"There might be some succession planning to it, but I think her interests are probably a much better fit in the tech world," said Jennifer Fritzsche, an analyst with Wells Fargo. "I think she'll find some great opportunities there."
Walden led Verizon's connected car and telematics division as well as the company's foray into online video, called go90. She negotiated a $350 million price cut for the purchase of Yahoo's internet assets after extensive security breaches were revealed. With the addition of Yahoo, Walden and Tim Armstrong, CEO of Verizon's AOL unit, created Oath, the company's media and advertising group.
-- Bloomberg News
Hybrid-electric flights seen in 5 years
As automakers race to put battery-powered cars on the road, a Boeing-backed startup plans to put a hybrid-electric aircraft into commercial service within five years.
Zunum Aero's 12-seat plane will carry battery packs and a small fuel reserve for a back-up engine. The first model will fly about 700 miles, far enough to ferry travelers from Boston to Washington or Silicon Valley to Los Angeles, the company said.
By applying advances in battery technology pioneered by the auto industry, Zunum aims to eliminate the emissions and roar of combustion-based jet engines. That's a tall order for a company with just 15 employees, especially in a business where breakthrough designs can cost billions of dollars. Zunum, backed by JetBlue Airways Corp. as well as Boeing, is racing competitors such as Europe's Airbus SE and a partnership that includes EasyJet Plc. The U.S. military and NASA are pursuing similar concepts.
"People are surfing that Tesla wave, if you will, with some of the same range anxiety," said aviation consultant Robert Mann. "Everyone is looking at this."
For now, designers of electric or hybrid aircraft are limited to using small planes because of the power density and weight of current-generation batteries. As technology evolves, so too will aircraft concepts and capabilities.
Boeing's 787 Dreamliner, with the most advanced electric generation and distribution system of any commercial jet, is another inspiration for Zunum. The company hired Waleed Said, the lead designer for the Dreamliner system, to develop a similar power train with lighter-weight components.
-- Bloomberg News
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