Stocks in the U.S. communications services companies lead gainers amid a generally cautious start to the trading week.
The $81 billion merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery hit its first major speed bump when a federal judge in California granted a temporary restraining order that prohibits the companies from closing the deal. The court said that during the 14-day pause it would consider whether the merger should remain blocked, pending the resolution of an antitrust challenge brought by a dozen states.
Shares of AMC Entertainment surged after the theater operator surprised Wall Street with strong second-quarter earnings. Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey isn't hurting the meme-stock either.
The theater operator posted adjusted earnings of 14 cents per share in the quarter ended June 30, well above Wall Street's expectations of a 4 cent loss. Revenue grew 14% to $1.59 billion.
The Odyssey," written and directed by Nolan, opened to an estimated $264.1 million worldwide. Domestically, its $124.5 million debut was the third biggest for any film this year, behind the animated sequels "Toy Story 5" and "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie."
