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ISS Urges Investors to Reject CoreWeave’s $9 Billion Acquisition of Core Scientific

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Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has advised investors to vote against the proposed $9 billion all-stock merger between artificial intelligence infrastructure company CoreWeave (CRWV.O) and data computing firm Core Scientific (CORZ.O). The shareholder vote is scheduled for October 30.

In its recommendation, ISS said that Core Scientific has shown strong independent performance and can continue to grow without being acquired. The firm noted that the company’s current trajectory suggests it could thrive as a standalone entity.

CoreWeave, which provides cloud infrastructure tailored for AI workloads, first proposed the acquisition in July, offering an implied value of $20.40 per share. However, investor Two Seas Capital quickly announced its opposition to the deal, citing concerns about the sale process, valuation, and the fixed exchange ratio, which leaves Core Scientific shareholders exposed to fluctuations in CoreWeave’s stock price.

Since the announcement, CoreWeave’s shares have declined, reducing the total deal value. Meanwhile, Core Scientific’s stock rose more than 5% in post-market trading on Monday, closing at $18.81, as investors appeared to favor keeping the company independent rather than moving forward with the merger.

Ericsson’s shares surge 13% after profit beat and minimal tariff concerns

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Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson saw its shares soar more than 13% on Tuesday, marking its strongest single-day rise since 2018, after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and dismissed concerns over U.S. tariffs.

Adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) — excluding restructuring costs — reached 15.4 billion Swedish crowns ($1.62 billion) for the quarter ending September, exceeding analysts’ forecasts of 14.1 billion crowns, according to an Infront poll.

The company attributed its strong performance to ongoing cost savings and its leading market share in North America, where it has outpaced rival Nokia in the race to deploy 5G infrastructure. Ericsson’s finance chief Lars Sandström told Reuters that while no firm is entirely immune to tariffs, the company currently sees “no additional impact going forward.”

Although total net sales fell 9% year-on-year to 56.2 billion crowns, they still surpassed expectations of 55.7 billion. Sales in the Americas declined 8% compared to 2024’s strong performance, which benefited from major customer investments and network deliveries.

Ericsson also announced a new five-year partnership with Vodafone to modernize programmable networks and confirmed the completion of its Iconectiv sale, generating a one-off profit of 7.6 billion crowns — potentially paving the way for higher dividends or a share buyback program.

Ocado shares sink as Kroger reviews automated warehouse plan

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Ocado’s shares tumbled 13% on Friday after U.S. retail giant Kroger signaled a possible pullback from its investment in robotic fulfilment centres, raising doubts over one of Ocado’s most important international partnerships.

Kroger’s interim CEO Ron Sargent, who launched a strategic review of the company’s e-commerce operations in June, told investors the retailer was conducting a “site-by-site” analysis of its automated warehouse network, developed with Ocado since 2018. He said the company was “taking a hard look” at some facilities and stressed that fulfilling online orders from stores would remain a priority.

The remarks fueled investor concerns that Kroger might slow or scale back its rollout of Ocado’s customer fulfilment centres (CFCs). The 2018 deal had earmarked 20 U.S. sites, but only eight are operational, with two more in Charlotte and Phoenix slated to open in early fiscal 2025–26.

Barclays analysts described Kroger’s tone as “cautious,” noting greater emphasis on leveraging existing store footprints.

Ocado, however, sought to downplay fears, pointing to positive e-commerce growth trends flagged in Kroger’s Q2 results and stressing continued collaboration on technology and operations. CEO Tim Steiner has previously insisted that the U.S. remains a “huge opportunity,” though he declined to confirm whether the exclusivity element of the Kroger deal would remain in place after this year.

Ocado shares are now down 18% over the past year, and Kroger is expected to provide a fuller update on its review in the third quarter.