Levi Strauss has agreed to sell Dockers to brand management firm Authentic Brands Group for $311 million, the companies announced Tuesday. 

Under the terms of the deal, Authentic will own Dockers’ intellectual property while Centric Brands will take on operations, handling manufacturing, sourcing and distribution. Under the brand management business model, Levi’s stands to make up to $391 million in future years based on how well Dockers performs under the Authentic umbrella, which also includes Forever 21′s intellectual property and brands like Reebok and Nautica.

“The Dockers transaction further aligns our portfolio with our strategic priorities, focusing on our direct-to-consumer first approach, growing our international presence and investing in opportunities across women’s and denim lifestyle,” Levi’s CEO Michelle Gass said in a statement. “After a robust process, we are confident that we maximized the value of the business and that Authentic is the right organization to usher in the next chapter of growth for the Dockers brand.” 

In October, Levi’s announced it was considering selling Dockers as it looked to focus on growing its namesake line and its athleisure brand, Beyond Yoga. Levi’s created Dockers in 1986 as a hedge against denim and to offer consumers an alternative: khakis. The brand was hugely popular throughout the 1990s and 2000s, but khakis have since fallen out of fashion in the U.S., especially recently as denim makes another comeback. 

To grow Dockers, Levi’s needed to offer more tops and bottoms, but the company is doing the same thing at its namesake banner and there was too much overlap between the two brands. Dockers’ performance was also dragging down Levi’s results and Gass, who took the helm of the company a little over a year ago, has been working to cut off extraneous businesses to fuel growth and focus on direct selling. 

In the three months ended March 2, Levi’s reported $67 million in revenue related to Dockers. The figure isn’t comparable to the year-ago period because Levi’s only recently started breaking out the performance of each individual brand. 

While khakis have fallen out of favor in the U.S., Dockers is still popular abroad, which is what makes a brand management company a strategic fit, according to people who have seen Dockers’ financials and spoke on the condition of anonymity because the details were private. Firms like Authentic are skilled at rapidly licensing and deploying brands internationally.

In a press release, Authentic said it plans to “unlock new opportunities” for Dockers through its global network of 1,700 licensing partners. It said it is in active discussions with regional operators in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia to expand Dockers’ existing businesses across those markets. 

“Few brands own a category the way Dockers does, yet still have so much room to grow,” said Matt Maddox, president at Authentic. “Its legacy in casualwear gives it a strong foundation, but the real opportunity lies in reimagining the brand for a new generation. Through our global platform and deep licensing network, we’re committed to stewarding the brand into its next era of growth and relevance.”

BEIJING — One Chinese baby products company announced Tuesday it is officially entering the United States, the world’s largest consumer market — regardless of the trade war.

Shanghai-based Bc Babycare expects its supply chain diversification and the U.S. market potential to more than offset the impact of ongoing U.S.-China trade tensions, according to Chi Yang, the company’s vice president of Europe and the Americas.

“Even [if] the political things are not steady … I’m very confident about our product for the moment,” he told CNBC, adding he anticipates “very fast” growth in the U.S. in coming years. That includes his bold predictions that Bc Babycare’s flagship baby carrier can become the best-seller on Amazon.com in half a year, and that U.S. sales can grow by 10-fold in a year.

The $159.99 carrier, eligible for a $40 discount, already has 4.7 stars on Amazon.com across more than 30 reviews. The device claims to reduce pressure on the parent’s body by up to 33%. A far cheaper version of the baby carrier is a top seller among travel products for pregnancy and childbirth on JD.com in China.

Bc Babycare already has the carrier stocked in its U.S. warehouses, and has a network of factories and raw materials suppliers in the Americas, Europe and Asia, Yang said. “The global supply chain is one of the things we keep on building in the past couple years.”

The Trump administration has sought to reduce U.S. reliance on China-made goods and to encourage the return of manufacturing jobs to the U.S. In a rapid escalation of tensions last month, the U.S. and China had added tariffs of more than 100% on each other’s goods. Last week, the two sides agreed to a 90-day pause for most of the new duties in order to discuss a trade deal.

Baby gear is particularly sensitive to tariffs since the majority of those sold in the U.S. are made in China, said U.S.-based Newell Brands, which owns stroller company Graco, on an April 30 earnings call. That’s according to a FactSet transcript.

The company said it raised baby gear prices by about 20% in the last few weeks, but had not incorporated the additional 125% tariffs announced in mid-April. Newell said on the call it had about three to four months of inventory in the U.S., and had paused additional orders from China.

The company did not respond to a request for comment about whether it had resumed orders from China and whether it planned more price increases.

Bc Babycare declined to share how much it planned to invest in the U.S. But Yang said the company plans to open an office in the country and hire about five to 10 locals.

The company initially plans to sell online, spend on marketing and eventually work with major retailers for offline store sales. Its partners for raw materials and research include three U.S. companies: Lyra, Dow and Eastman.

The Chinese company, which entered the baby products segment in 2014, in 2021 claimed a 700 million yuan ($97.09 million) funding round from investors including Sequoia Capital China.

Yang said the company scrutinizes the comments section on Chinese and U.S. e-commerce websites to improve its products. As a result, the U.S. version of the baby carrier is softer and larger than the Chinese version, he said.

Bc Babycare’s U.S. market ambitions reflect how large U.S. and European multinationals not only face growing competition in China, but also in their home markets.

“After experiencing substantial growth due to the premiumization of consumption in the Chinese market, multinational brands are now entering a challenging second phase where they compete fiercely for market share,” Dave Xie, retail and consumer goods partner in Shanghai at consultancy Oliver Wyman, said in a statement last week.

Oliver Wyman said in a report last month that the Chinese market has become the incubator for premium product innovations that are being exported. The authors noted, for example, that Tineco floor scrubbers have become Amazon best-sellers.

The Justice Department isn’t planning to prosecute Boeing in a case tied to two crashes of the aerospace giant’s 737 Max, a person familiar with the matter said, a tentative agreement that would allow the plane-maker to avoid a guilty plea.

Boeing agreed to plead guilty in the case last summer in a deal with the Justice Department after the Biden administration found earlier that year that the company violated a 2021 agreement tied to the crashes. A judge rejected that plea deal last year, citing concerns about diversity, equity and inclusion, and opened the possibility that Boeing could face trial.

The fraud charge stems from Boeing’s development of the 737 Max. The U.S. had accused Boeing of misleading regulators about its inclusion of a flight-control system on the Max that was later implicated in the two crashes.

A final, non-prosecution agreement hasn’t been reached yet, the person said. The Justice Department and Boeing didn’t immediately comment.

Under the new agreement, Boeing could pay family members of victims of the two Max crashes. In total, the two crashes of the best-selling Boeing jet killed all 346 people on board the planes.

The new tentative agreement, which was reported earlier on Friday by Reuters, would mean Boeing wouldn’t be labeled a felon. That label could have come with restrictions on defense contractor work.

Boeing is the country’s biggest exporter and, in addition to making commercial jetliners, it’s a major defense contractor. The Trump administration recently awarded the company a multibillion-dollar contract to build a next-generation fighter jet.

Cava on Thursday reported better-than-expected sales in its latest fiscal quarter, shaking off the malaise the broader restaurant industry has felt as consumers have cut back on dining.

The Mediterranean chain said its same-store sales grew 10.8% in the three months that ended April 20, lifted by traffic growth of 7.5%. Analysts surveyed by StreetAccount were projecting same-store sales growth of 10.3%.

“When we look at our consumers in the quarter, we saw an increase in premium attachment on higher priced items, like our pita chips or amazing housemade juices. We also saw that our per person average continued to increase, and then when we look at our results, there’s positive traffic across all of our geographies, across all of our income cohorts, as well as the different formats of our restaurants and dayparts,” Chief Financial Officer Tricia Tolivar told CNBC.

She added that diners have been trading up from fast food and down from casual-dining restaurants into Cava’s bowls and pitas, a trend the company has seen for several quarters.

Elsewhere in the restaurant industry, companies have been reporting very different behavior from consumers, although many companies’ results did not include any time in April, when the industry’s sales and traffic performance improved.

Fast-casual rival Chipotle said its transactions fell 2.3% in the first quarter as consumers pulled back their spending in February, spooked by economic uncertainty. Sweetgreen reported its first quarterly same-store sales decline since it went public in 2021. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said fast-food industry data showed both low- and middle-income consumers spending less. The burger giant said U.S. same-store sales declined 3.6% for the first quarter.

Despite the strong quarterly performance, Cava reiterated its same-store sales forecast, sticking with its projections of a 6% to 8% increase. The chain said last quarter that it is expecting slower growth in the back half of its fiscal 2025.

The stock fell 5% in extended trading. As of Thursday’s close, Cava shares have slid 11% so far this year, hurt by investor concerns over its conservative outlook for the fiscal year and the economic fallout from the Trump administration’s tariffs.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

The company reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $25.71 million, or 22 cents per share, up from $13.99 million, or 12 cents per share, a year earlier. Cava reported an income tax benefit of $10.7 million related to stock-based compensation, which boosted its earnings this quarter.

Net sales climbed 28% to $332 million. On a 12-month trailing basis, Cava’s revenue has surpassed $1 billion, representing a major milestone for the company.

The company did raise some of its projections for the fiscal year.

Cava now anticipates adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $152 million to $159 million, up from its prior forecast of $150 million to $157 million. The company also plans to open between 64 and 68 new locations, higher than its previous outlook of between 62 and 66 restaurant openings.

Bombas founder David Heath is stepping down from his role as CEO as the socks and apparel company looks to expand beyond its direct-to-consumer roots.

Bombas President Jason LaRose, a former Under Armour and Equinox executive, will take over as the company’s next CEO effective Thursday. Heath said he realized it was necessary for a retail veteran to lead the company through its next phase of growth.

“We’ve reached a size and scale that is beyond my expertise. I didn’t come from a big apparel company before … I found myself more so over the last 18 months saying, ‘I don’t know what to do next,’” Heath, who is staying at Bombas as its executive chair, told CNBC in an interview. “So then, when I looked at someone with Jason’s background … having that tried and true experience is what will set Bombas up to succeed for the next chapter and I think I feel more comfortable having someone with Jason’s experience in the driver’s seat.” 

LaRose, who spent six years at Under Armour and oversaw its North America business, takes the helm at a critical point in Bombas’ growth story. 

Bombas’ revenue has grown 22% in its current fiscal year through April, it’s reached more than $2 billion in lifetime sales and its EBITDA is at a “super healthy, double digit” margin, LaRose told CNBC. The company’s footwear segment, such as its ultra-popular Sunday Slipper, is expanding the fastest. The company expects footwear revenue will soar more than 70% this year, but socks are still growing steadily, with sales up 17% in April compared to the prior year. 

But in order to reach its goal of growing from a “Shark Tank” startup into a multibillion dollar company over the next five-to-10 years, Bombas needs to expand its wholesale presence. Retailers that primarily sell online like Bombas tend to reach a growth ceiling and need to turn to other channels to keep scaling profitably.

Under LaRose’s direction, Bombas is looking to grow its wholesale revenue from around 7% of sales to between 10% and 20%. The company also wants to test out physical stores. 

“More than 60% of socks in this country are sold in physical locations, you know, whether that’s stores we could open, or stores that we fill with our partners … the wholesale opportunity is big for us,” said LaRose. “It’s also a billboard for us, right? It’s a chance to tell our story. When the customer walks by, we have a chance to tell them about the mission every time, why we’re here, let them touch and feel the product, which is always important when you’re introducing somebody to a new apparel brand.” 

Bombas currently sells in Nordstrom, Scheels and Dick’s Sporting Goods, and unlike some of its peers, it isn’t considering Amazon as a wholesale channel. Instead, it’s looking to expand its assortment offered by its current partners, try out its own stores and perhaps bring on some new wholesalers — if they’re the right fit. 

Digitally native brands that have long enjoyed the benefits of a direct model, such as customer data and the ability to stay close to customers, are often wary about expanding too deeply into wholesale because it’s less profitable and it’s harder for brands to tell their stories. For a company like Bombas, which spent years developing what it calls the “most comfortable socks, underwear, and T-shirts” on the market, that storytelling is extremely important — especially at a price point of around $15 per pair of socks. 

However, it’s that very attitude that has led some to criticize the direct selling model because of how it can stymie growth and lead to unsustainable business models. Many of the early direct-to-consumer darlings have seen their valuations shrivel up as they chase profitability years after they were founded. E-commerce has become harder to do profitably, and at a certain point, stores and wholesale are a more effective and profitable customer acquisition tool for some companies than marketing online. Selling goods through wholesale channels allows brands to scale and acquire customers more profitably than just selling online.

Brands like Bombas that were early to move to wholesale — Heath joked that the company “focused on profitability before it was cool” — understand the need for expansion but have looked to be strategic about who they partner with. Growth is important, but so is maintaining a brand, which is critical to staying ahead of rivals. 

“As a DTC brand, we care so much about our brand and our story, it has to be somebody who’s going to do an excellent job taking care of our brand. We’re not out there to be out there,” said LaRose. “We’re looking at some other partners. We’ll continue to always look for people who we think strategically give us access to the right customer, you know, nothing to announce yet on that front, but we’ll keep looking.” 

Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank.”

Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has purchased a minority stake in Chelsea FC Women, giving him an ownership stake in two of the most-valuable teams in women’s sports.

The founder of venture capital firm Seven Seven Six and husband of tennis legend Serena Williams paid 20 million pounds for a 10% stake in the English soccer team, according to a person familiar with the deal. Ohanian is also a part owner in the National Women’s Soccer League’s Angel City FC alongside Disney CEO Bob Iger and his wife, Willow Bay.

Ohanian’s Chelsea deal values the women’s club at 200 million pounds, according to the person familiar, making it the most valuable women’s team in the world based on current foreign exchange rates. As part of the deal, Ohanian will be given a seat on the team’s board.

“I’ve bet big on women’s sports before — and I’m doing it again,” Ohanian said in a post on social media site X confirming the stake.

Chelsea FC Women have won six consecutive Women’s Super League titles. Ohanian says he see the opportunity to grow a worldwide brand within women’s football.

“I’m confident Chelsea FC Women is the next global women’s sports brand,” he said.

Ohanian told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Thursday that one of the things that drew him to Chelsea was the team’s large social media following. Chelsea FC Women have 4 million followers on Instagram.

“As a social media guy, I look for heat online in the free market of attention,” Ohanian said. “If this were any other type of brand, there is a lot of revenue opportunity there.”

Ohanian also said he believes in the business model and that women’s sports have been undervalued too long. He said brands are only now starting to wake up to that value.

“We will see billion-dollar clubs in women’s soccer one day in the not-too-distant future,” he predicted.

Ohanian left Reddit in 2020 to focus on building a legacy for his two young daughters through sports and other investments.

He said in 2024 he had invested $250,000 from his daughters trust fund into Angel City FC. Ohanian said the investment made them the youngest owners in professional sports and multi-millionaires.

Williams also recently became part owner of WNBA expansion team the Toronto Tempo, and Ohanian has started a women’s track competition.

American Eagle on Tuesday said it is writing off $75 million in spring and summer merchandise and withdrawing its full-year guidance as it contends with slow sales, steep discounting and an uncertain economy.

The apparel retailer said it expects revenue in the first quarter, which ended in early May, to be around $1.1 billion, a decline of about 5% compared to the prior-year period. American Eagle anticipates comparable sales will drop 3%, led by an expected 4% decline at intimates brand Aerie. American Eagle previously expected first-quarter sales to be down by a mid-single-digit percentage and anticipated full-year sales would drop by a low single-digit percentage. 

Shares plunged more than 17% in extended trading. 

When it reported fiscal fourth-quarter results in March, American Eagle warned that the first quarter was off to a “slower than expected” start, due to weak demand and cold weather. Conditions evidently worsened as the quarter progressed, and the retailer turned to steep discounts to move inventory.

As a result, American Eagle is expecting to see an operating loss of around $85 million and an adjusted operating loss, which cuts out one-time charges related to its restructuring, of about $68 million for the quarter. That loss reflects “higher than planned” discounting and a $75 million inventory charge related to a write-down of spring and summer merchandise, the company said. 

“We are clearly disappointed with our execution in the first quarter. Merchandising strategies did not drive the results we anticipated, leading to higher promotions and excess inventory. As a result, we have taken an inventory write down on spring and summer goods,” said CEO Jay Schottenstein.

“We have entered the second quarter in a better position, with inventory more aligned to sales trends,” he said. “Additionally, we are actively evaluating our forward plans. Our teams continue to work with urgency to strengthen product performance, while improving our buying principles.” 

The company added it is withdrawing its fiscal 2025 guidance “due to macro uncertainty and as management reviews forward plans in the context of first quarter results.” It is unclear if recent tariff policy changes had an effect on American Eagle.

Some companies bought inventory earlier than usual to plan for higher duties, but American Eagle repeatedly said in March that it was in a solid inventory position and was able to go after trends as customer preferences shifted. 

At the start of the first quarter, the company said it had some inventory outages and needed to supplement stock in a few key categories, particularly at Aerie, one of its primary growth drivers. 

Uber is giving commuters new ways to travel and cut costs on frequent rides.

The ride-hailing company on Wednesday announced a route share feature on its platform, prepaid ride passes and special deals week for Uber One members at its annual Go-Get showcase.

Uber’s new features come as the company accelerates its leadership position in the ride-sharing market and seeks to offer more affordable alternatives for users. It also follows last week’s first-quarter earnings as Uber swung to a profit but fell short of revenue estimates.

“The goal for us as we build our products is to put people at the center of everything, and right now for us, it means making things a little easier, a little more predictable, and above all, just a little more — or a lot more — affordable,” said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi at the event.

Here are some of the big announcements from the annual product event.

Users looking to save money on regular routes and willing to walk a short distance can select a shared ride with up to two other passengers through the new route-share feature.

The prepopulated routes run every 20 minutes along busy areas between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. on weekdays. The initial program is slated to kick off in seven cities, including New York, San Francisco, Boston and Chicago.

Uber said its new route-share fares will cost up to 50% less than an UberX option, and that it is working to partner with employers on qualifying the feature for commuter benefits. Users can book a seat from 7 days to 10 minutes before a pickup departure.

Riders on Uber can now prepurchase two different types of ride passes to hold fares on frequented routes during a one-hour period every day. For $2.99 a month, riders can buy a price lock pass that holds a price between two locations for one hour every day. The pass expires after 30 days or a savings total of $50.

The feature gives riders a way to avoid surge pricing.

Ride Passes roll out in 10 cities on Wednesday, including Dallas, Orlando and San Francisco, and can be purchased for up to 10 routes a month. Uber will charge users a lower price if the fare is cheaper than the pass at departure time.

The company also debuted a prepaid pass option, allowing users to pay in advance and stock up on regular monthly trips. Uber’s pass option comes in bundles of 5, 10, 15 and 20-ride increments, with corresponding discounts between 5% and 20%.

Both pass options will be available on teen accounts in the fall, Uber said. The route share and ride passes will be available in a new commuter hub feature on the app coming later this year.

Uber is also expanding its autonomous vehicle partnership with Volkswagen.

The company will start testing shared AV rides later this year and is aiming for a launch in Los Angeles in 2026.

Uber rolled out autonomous rides in Austin, Texas, in March through its agreement with Alphabet-owned Waymo and is preparing for an Atlanta launch this summer. The company announced the partnership in May 2023. Autonomous Waymo rides are also currently offered through the Uber app in Phoenix, but the company does not directly manage that fleet.

Khosrowshahi called AVs “the single greatest opportunity ahead for Uber” during the company’s earnings call last week and said the Austin debut “exceeded” expectations. The company previously had an AV unit that it sold in 2020 as it faced high costs and a series of safety challenges, including a fatal accident.

Along with Volkswagen and Waymo, Uber has joined forces with Avride, May Mobility and self-driving trucking company Aurora for autonomous ride-sharing and freight services in the U.S. The company has partnerships with WeRide, Pony.AI and Momenta internationally.

Uber is taking a page out of Amazon’s book by offering its own variation of the e-commerce giant’s beloved Prime Day, with special offers between May 16 and 23 for Uber One members.

Some of those deals include 50% off shared rides and 20% off Uber Black. The platform is also adding a new benefit of 10% back in Uber credits for users that use Uber Rent or book Lime rides.

UberEats also announced a partnership with OpenTable to allow users to book reservations and rides.

The new feature, powered by OpenTable, launches in six countries including the U.S. and Australia.

Through the partnership, users can book restaurant reservations and get a discount on rides. OpenTable members will also be able to transfer points to Uber and UberEats. The company is also offering OpenTable VIPs a six-month free trial of Uber One.

Financial technology company Chime on Tuesday filed paperwork to go public on the Nasdaq. The company intends to file under the ticker symbol “CHYM.”

“Chime is a technology company, not a bank,” the company said in its prospectus, noting it’s not a member of the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Still, the company cited Bank of America, Capital One, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, PNC Bank and Wells Fargo as competitors.

Most of Chime’s new members who arrange for direct deposit previously did direct deposit elsewhere, “most commonly with large incumbent banks,” the company said.

According to the filing, Chime picks up revenue from interchange fees associated with purchases that members make with Chime debit cards and credit cards. Banks collect interchange fees, which are generally a percentage of the transaction value, plus a set amount for each transaction depending on the rates determined by card networks such as Visa. The banks then pass money on to Chime.

In the March quarter, Chime generated $12.4 million in net income on $518.7 million in revenue. Revenue grew 32%. At the end of March, Chime had 8.6 million active members, up about 23% year over year. Average revenue per active member, at $251, was up from $231. It has members in all 50 states, and 55% of them female. The average member age is 36.

Around two-thirds of members look to Chime for their “primary financial relationship,” Chime said. The term refers to those who made at least 15 purchases using its card or received a qualifying direct deposit of at least $200 in the past calendar month.

Chime offers a slew of other services in addition to its cards. Eligible members with direct deposit can borrow up to $500 with a fixed interest rate of $5 for every $100 borrowed. The company doesn’t charge late fees or compound interest.

Following an extended drought, IPOs looked poised for a rebound when President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. CoreWeave’s March debut provided some momentum. But Trump’s tariff announcement in April roiled the market and led companies including Chime as well as trading platform eToro, online lender Klarna and ticket marketplace StubHub to delay their plans.

EToro is now scheduled to debut this week, and digital health company Hinge Health issued its pricing range for its IPO on Tuesday, win an expected offering coming soon. Chime’s public filing is the latest sign that emerging tech companies are preparing to test the market’s appetite for risk. Last month Figma said it had filed confidentially for an initial public offering.

Chris Britt, Chime’s co-founder and CEO, told CNBC in 2020 that it would be ready for an IPO within the next 12 months. But in late 2021 markets turned negative on technology as inflation picked up, prompting central bankers to ratchet up interest rates.

Chime was founded in 2012 and is based in San Francisco. It ranked 22nd on CNBC’s 2024 Disruptor 50 list of privately held companies.

Investors include Crosslink Capital, DST Global, General Atlantic, Iconic Strategic Partners and Menlo Ventures.

— CNBC’s Ari Levy contributed to this report.

Microsoft on Tuesday said that it’s laying off 3% of employees across all levels, teams and geographies.

“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC.

The company reported better-than-expected results, with $25.8 billion in quarterly net income, and an upbeat forecast in late April.

Microsoft had 228,000 employees worldwide at the end of June, meaning that the move will affect thousands of employees.

It’s likely Microsoft’s largest round of layoffs since the elimination of 10,000 roles in 2023. In January the company announced a small round of layoffs that were performance-based. These new job cuts are not related to performance, the spokesperson said.

One objective is to reduce layers of management, the spokesperson said. In January Amazon announced that it was getting rid of some employees after noticing “unnecessary layers” in its organization.

Last week cybersecurity software provider CrowdStrike announced it would lay off 5% of its workforce.

In January, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told analysts that the company would make sales execution changes that led to lower growth than expected in Azure cloud revenue that wasn’t tied to artificial intelligence. Performance in AI cloud growth outdid internal projections.

“How do you really tweak the incentives, go-to-market?” Nadella said. “At a time of platform shifts, you kind of want to make sure you lean into even the new design wins, and you just don’t keep doing the stuff that you did in the previous generation.”

On Monday, Microsoft shares stopped trading at $449.26, the highest price so far this year. They closed at a record $467.56 last July.