Boston, MA 06/02/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NYSE:NWL) is gearing up for robust business in the summer where demand for coolers is expected to be high. The company recently announced a new design facility in Kalamazoo. The new design center is a 40,000-square-foot facility that will have about 100 design professionals when in full capacity. In addition to expanding its design work, NWL, an S&P 500 company, also announced layoffs in Winfield. The company’s senior manager of Corporate Communications, Nicole Quinlan, said the changes in the team are carefully considered to match the need of the business especially in enhancing shareholder value. Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NYSE:NWL) said its workforce in Winfield has increased in recent years.
Newell earned $0.35 per share in 1Q2014, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32. Revenue for the quarter was $1.23 billion, missing the consensus estimate of $1.24 billion. Earnings were flat on a year-over-year basis while revenue dropped 7 percent.
Vringo, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRNG) reported last week that Chinese patent authorities upheld the validity of another of its patents that ZTE Corporation sought to challenge. At least seven Vringo patents are being challenged by ZTE of which two have already been withheld in the favor of Vringo. The latest patent to be upheld by the Chinese authorities is Chinese Patent ZL00806049.5, which is the Chinese equal of European Patent 1,166,589. The patent, owned by Vringo’s subsidiary Vringo Infrastructure Inc, was placed into patent re-examination by ZTE in November 2012.
Vringo monetizes intelligent properties and in 2012 won a $30.5 million patent case against Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG).
The hospitality company Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc (NYSE:HLT) is tired of playing catch-up game to rivals in the industry. As such, the company intends to invest in boutique hotels more than it has done before because of the numerous opportunities in the market. The company plans to build independently operated four and five-star boutique hotels under the Curio brand. According to CEO Chris Nassetta, the company will target mature markets of the U.S. and Europe with its new hotel brand. The CEO said the investment will make a significant contribution to the company’s profits in the years to come.
