Dell and Silver Lake’s Bid Refusal, PepsiCo’s Time with Peltz is Up, and 3 More Hot Stocks

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL): Michael Dell and Silver Lake are “prepared to see [their] deal blow up” rather than raise their bid above $13.65 per share, according to what sources told AllThingsD. A stumbling PC industry and rising borrowing costs are the roots of their unwillingness to push the bid above $13.65, with the vote scheduled to go ahead on Thursday morning.

PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE:PEP): Pepsi has reached the end of a timeframe issued by Trian Asset Management’s Nelson Peltz for the company to consider and address a list of possibilities for the soft drink maker. The suggestions include the possibility of a merger with Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ), another food giant that Peltz has a significant stake in. However, some feel that if the company has not placed a firm enough emphasis on discussions, Peltz could take it public.

BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP): Iron ore output has leapt 9 percent for 2013 to a record 187 million tons as a “price-eroding supply glut” draws nearer. However, by digging deeper — and faster — that record could well be broken by the end of this year, as the company has plans to jack up its annual capacity to 220 million tons by December.

Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS): Shares are down slightly after the company reported its second-quarter earnings, which saw a 2 percent drop in adjusted earnings to $3.23 billion versus the consensus of $3.22 billion. Earnings per share are down 4 percent to $1.30, 4 cents off the mark. Net sales grew by 1 percent to $14.49 billion, exceeding the $14.31 billion consensus. The company’s full-year guidance has also been increased to reflect the absence of Ranbaxy’s generic version of Novartis’s Diovan blood-pressure drug.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ): Jim Chanos admitted that he has been shorting HP stock and covering much of his position in the wake of the Autonomy disclosure and write-down from the company’s bumpy integration. Chanos isn’t feeling optimistic about HP, as the company has been reeling from losses across the board, and not just in PC sales — services, too, Chanos points out.

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