Wall Street Brief: Nokia CHALLENGES Apple, Berkshire Hathaway Has an ACTIVE Quarter

Staples (NASDAQ:SPLS) reported is second quarter adjusted earnings per share dropped 18 percent to $0.22, falling in line with estimates. Revenue also declined 6 percent to $5.5 billion, missing consensus. The company attributed the earnings decline on softer-than-expected sales in North America along with Europe and Australia’s continuous weakness. Staples took a conservative fiscal year outlook and now sees sales growth as flat with earnings per share rising in the low single-digits.

Investing Insights: Staples Earnings: Here’s Why Shares are Crashing 16% Now.

Carlyle Group (NYSE:CG) partnered with Getty Images’ management and bought the company for $3.3 billion from Hellman & Friedman. The deal will probably close this year and it comes in lower than the initial $4 billion price.

Nokia (NYSE:NOK) CEO Stephen Elop said the company will introduce a Windows 8 smartphone in the “relatively near term” possibly as soon as Sept. 5-6 its Helsinki trade show. Interesting timing as that comes a week ahead of Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) Sept. 12 event when it may unveil its new iPhone. In other news, Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) CEO Thorsten Heins said the firm’s data network, which is target of IBM (NYSE:IBM) buyout rumors, a “key strategic asset,” reported AllThingsD.

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) had an active second quarter with the sale of its 7.7 million Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) shares nine months after purchasing them. The company also cut its Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Kraft (NYSE:KFT) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) holdings while purchasing Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) and National Oilwell Varco (NYSE:NOV).

Standard Chartered (SCBFF.PK) shares increased almost 5 percent in London after Tuesday’s $340 million settlement with New York’s Department of Financial Services for its Iran dealings. The company could see more fines from additional U.S. regulators, such as the Treasury and Justice Departments; its senior management jobs could also come under fire.

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