The Ticker

FDA OKs Shire drug for binge-eating use

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration yesterday approved Shire Plc's stimulant Vyvanse to treat binge-eating disorder, the first product to be approved for the condition. Shire's U.S. headquarters is based in Lexington.

Vyvanse, which is currently approved to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, generated sales of more than $1 billion in the first nine months of last year.

Dr. Flemming Ornskov, the company's chief executive officer, said in an interview that Shire's goal is to generate overall sales of $10 billion by 2020. Of that, he expects $200 million to $300 million to come from Vyvanse for binge-eating.

Casino license draws 5 applicants

The competition for Massachusetts' final casino license, reserved for the state's southeast region, is slowly coming into focus, as state regulators announced yesterday that Mass Gaming & Entertainment had met the application deadline.

The company, an affiliate of Chicago-based Rush Street Gaming, joins New York-based KG Urban Enterprises, as potential rivals for the license.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission said yesterday that it also is evaluating application extension requests from Somerset On The Move, Crossroads Massachusetts and the Seafan Trust. All five groups will be invited to address the commission at its next meeting Feb. 5.

Applicants were to submit by yesterday detailed financial information about key players and investors in their projects as well as a $400,000 non-refundable fee to defray costs of the commission's background investigation.

But only three of the five possible applicants — Mass Gaming & Entertainment, KG Urban Enterprises and Crossroads Massachusetts — have paid the required fee, the commission said. Applicants must pass the background check before they can continue to the next phase of the process, which focuses on the project proposal itself.

New Connector chief takes over Mon.

Gov. Charlie Baker's pick to head the state's health care marketplace and website is stepping into the job a few weeks earlier than planned.

Baker tapped Louis Gutierrez last week to serve as executive director of the Massachusetts Health Connector, which oversees the state's health insurance marketplace and website. Gutierrez, a principal at the Massachusetts-based IT consulting firm Exeter Group, was scheduled to take over the post near the end of February, but now plans to start Monday.

Interim Executive Director Maydad Cohen is expected to stay on at the connector to help manage the project through the end of the open enrollment period.

Brandeis president to step down

Brandeis University President Frederick Lawrence will step down at the end of the current school year and take a job at Yale. Lawrence made the announcement yesterday in a letter to the university community in Waltham that he looked forward to returning to full-time teaching and scholarship as a senior research scholar at Yale Law School in New Haven, Conn.

Lawrence has served as the eighth president of Brandeis since January 2011.

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Germany's Merkel says she doesn't see another Greek debt cut

BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel has underlined the refusal of Greece's European creditors to consider forgiving part of the debt-ridden country's rescue loans, though she stressed in an interview published Saturday that Berlin's aim is to keep Greece in the eurozone.

Greece's new government insists it will honor pre-election promises to seek a cut on the country's rescue debt and scrap painful budget measures that were demanded in exchange for the loans.

Merkel said in an interview with the daily Berliner Morgenpost that Europe will continue showing solidarity with Greece and other nations hit by Europe's debt crisis "if these countries undertake their own reform and saving efforts," and fended off a question about the new Greek government's moves to reverse reforms and rehire suspended workers.

"We — Germany and the other European partners — will now wait and see what concept the new Greek government comes to us with," she was quoted as saying. She was clear, however, about prospects of a debt cut.

Athens already was forgiven billions of euros by private creditors, Merkel said. "I don't see a further debt haircut."

As for demands that have surfaced in Greece for Germany to pay more compensation for Nazi crimes during World War II, Merkel said that "this question doesn't arise."

Merkel said she wants Greece to be successful and acknowledged that "many people there have hard times behind them."

"The aim of our policies was and is for Greece to remain a part of the euro community permanently," she said.

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Cool Southie condo tops retail space

This stylish South Boston condo isn't what you'd expect to see above a retail store, with its paneled wainscoting, sloped skylighted ceilings and private decks with panoramic city views.

The two-bedroom unit at 634 East Broadway, on the market for $629,900, is one of five condos above a former hardware store, but unlike the other condos Unit 1 has three levels and a private entrance.

The first level is the entry­way to the condo, with a marble foyer, hallway and a coat closet, and the living spaces have a reverse layout, with the living/dining/kitchen spaces on the top floor.

The unit was converted in 2005 with maple floors with cherrywood inlay, paneled wainscoting and high-end window and door moldings.

A maple staircase lined with white-paneled wainscoting leads up two flights to the main living area. The living room has paneled wainscoting and features 12-foot sloped ceilings with recessed lighting as well as speakers­ with built-in surround sound. In one corner sits a gas fireplace with a carved wood mantel and black granite hearth with a chandelier overhead. Glass doors lead out to a 200-square-foot private wooden deck with panoramic city views.

The adjacent dining/kitchen area has three skylights. The dining area also has paneled wainscoting and a chandelier and fronts on a three-part bay window. The kitchen features 22 walnut-stained cabinets and black granite counters. The General Electric refrigerator, dishwasher and gas stove are also black.

Off the living spaces is a storage closet and there's a hallway with a second closet holding a stacked GE washer/dryer and the unit's gas-fired heating and central air-conditioning system.

At the end of the hall is a half bathroom with beadboard wainscoting, a black marble floor and a pedestal sink.

Down the stairs, the second level has a step-up open-style den/home office space with maple floors and cherry­wood inlay, paneled wainscoting and crown molding. It is flanked on either side by two bedroom suites.

The rear-facing master suite features a decent-sized bedroom with recessed lighting and an overhead fan/light as well as a good-sized closet with built-in shelving. A pair of glass doors lead out to a 250-square-foot private rear deck with views of the city. The en-suite master bathroom has a marble-tile floor and ceramic tile surround for a whirlpool tub. There's a brown granite-topped wood vanity and a separate one-piece Fiberglas shower.

The second bedroom is front-facing with a three-part bay window, recessed lighting and an overhead fan/light. The en-suite bathroom has marble tile floors and walls and a brown granite-topped wood vanity. There's also a one-piece Fiberglas shower.

The unit does not come with parking, with the best option being a South Boston residential parking permit.

Home Showcase

• Address: 
624 East Broadway, Unit 1, South Boston
• Bedrooms: Two
• Bathrooms: Two full, one half
• List price: $629,900
• Square feet: 1,438
• Price per square foot: $438
• Annual taxes: $6,380
• Location: About a half mile to main South Boston retail district along West Broadway; a mile via T bus to Broadway Red Line station.
• Built In: 1899, renovated into condo 2005
• Broker: David Murdock of Campion & Co. at 617-236-0711

Pros:

• Paneled wainscoting, high-end door and window moldings
• Living room with 12-foot sloped ceilings and kitchen dining area with three skylights
• Two private decks with panoramic city views
• Both bedrooms have en-suite marble-tile bathrooms

Cons:

• Doesn't come with on-site parking space
• Bathrooms have one-piece Fiberglas showers

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Merger collapse puts Partners in tight spot

Partners HealthCare will have to tread carefully on any future expansion, or risk a takedown attempt by Attorney General Maura Healey, a hospital expert predicted yesterday.

"If Partners keeps on attacking and capturing more land, the AG may say, you know these folks are out of control and they're far too big to allow competition to survive in Massachusetts," said Boston University professor Alan Sager. "If they continue down that road, they may well risk the AG suing to break them up into two parts."

Partners' options are limited after Superior Court Judge Janet Sanders rejected the deal allowing Partners to merge with South Shore, Lawrence Memorial and Melrose-Wakefield hospitals.

It can forge ahead with the merger anyway, engaging in a bare-knuckles legal brawl with an eager new AG. But that could take one to two years in the courts, not including any appeals, said Tasneem Chipty, an antitrust economics expert at Analysis Group.

"If you had two small organizations trying to merge, there would be no issue at all," said Chipty. "You only see close scrutiny, which could become litigious, in situations where one or both parties are quite big. Obviously, Partners is big."

Partners and Healey could also go back to the drawing board on an agreement more palatable to the court than the one former Attorney General Martha Coakley negotiated, but that would also likely be a multiyear process.

Partners could also abandon the deal altogether, or drop individual hospitals from the merger.

Partners CEO Gary Gottlieb is scheduled to step down July 1. It's reasonable to assume Partners would wait to make sure its new CEO is on board with whatever next step it chooses. Partners had no comment yesterday.

Still unknown is what Healey's takedown of the Partners deal could mean for other hospitals, including Boston Medical Center and Tufts Medical Center, which are in talks to merge.

Healey said yesterday she'll be watching the potential deal closely.

"If an agreement between Boston Medical Center and Tufts Medical Center is proposed, our office fully expects to review the transaction," said Christopher Loh, spokesman for Healey. "We remain committed to tackling the challenge of controlling health-care costs while also promoting quality and access."

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Shake Shack shares more than double in stock market debut

NEW YORK — Wall Street went wild for burgers Friday.

Shares of Shake Shack, a burger chain that started as a New York City hot dog cart, more than doubled in their first day of trading.

The company raised $105 million in its initial public offering Thursday, selling 5 million shares at $21 per share. It had initially forecast that its shares would fetch $14 to $16 per share from investors, and raised that prediction to $17 to $19 per share on Wednesday as demand grew.

Shake Shack is known for its burgers, milkshakes and crinkle-cut fries. Its journey from a hot dog cart in Manhattan's Madison Square Park to Wall Street started in 2001. Three years later, Union Square Hospitality Group, a company owned by restaurateur Danny Meyer, opened a kiosk in the same park. Restaurants throughout New York City followed, and in 2010, it ventured out of its hometown for the first time with a Miami restaurant.

It now has 63 locations, mostly on the East Coast, with plans for more.

Shares of Shake Shack Inc. rose $24.90, or 118 percent, to close at $45.90 Friday.

Here's what you need to know about the burger joint's sizzling debut:

WHY DID THE STOCK POP?

Shake Shack feeds into investors' growing appetite for restaurants that are quick but also serve food consumers think is healthier or fresher than what a fast-food chain offers.

Americans' tastes have been changing. They are trading fast-food joints, such as McDonald's, for ones that tout their fresh ingredients, such as burrito chain Chipotle. Shake Shack's IPO comes on the same week McDonald's Corp. announced it is replacing CEO Don Thompson with its chief brand officer, Steve Easterbrook. The world's largest burger chain has been struggling with falling sales as it faces completion from smaller rivals, such as Shake Shack and Five Guys.

Shake Shack cooks its burgers to order and promotes its use of natural ingredients, including hormone- and antibiotic-free beef. Long lines are common, and guests are given vibrating pagers that signal when an order is ready.

Investors view these types of restaurants, known as "fast-casual" chains, as a fast-growing sector. Many tend to be regional chains that plan to expand around the country.

Another likely reason for the huge demand: Shake Shack's New York roots.

"There isn't anyone on Wall Street who hasn't tried their burgers and shakes," said Kathleen Smith, principal at Renaissance Capital, an exchange-traded fund manager that focuses on IPOs. "It's a local favorite."

IN GOOD COMPANY

Other restaurant chains that went public over the past year also had huge first-day gains. Burger chain The Habit Restaurants Inc. soared 120 percent in its November debut. Chicken chain El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. jumped 60 percent in July and Mediterranean-style restaurant chain Zoe's Kitchen Inc. popped 65 percent in its April debut.

SMALL CHAIN, BIG FOLLOWING

Shake Shack's locations are mostly along the East Coast, but its brand has grown beyond that, thanks to social media, TV appearances and some well-known fans. President Barack Obama has dropped by a Shake Shack near the White House. "Saturday Night Live," ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," and other TV shows have featured the burgers. And Shake Shack's fans on social media have swelled. It has 148,000 followers on photo- and video-sharing app Instagram, about 2,000 more than Chipotle.

CEO Randy Garutti said being based in New York helped turn Shake Shack into a global brand. There are now Shake Shacks in London, Istanbul and Moscow.

WHAT'S NEXT

The company wants to use money from the IPO to open more stores. The plan is to eventually have about 450 locations, according to the company's filling with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ten locations will open this year, Garutti said, including its first in Austin, Texas. Others are coming to Orlando, Florida and Baltimore, he said.

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Businesses stay clear of using Super Bowl name

PHOENIX — It is the game that must not be named — at least not without permission.

For most people, the game Sunday between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks is the Super Bowl. But for many business owners, it's simply the "big game" or "game day."

Radio hosts are tripping over their tongues and airport signs are carefully worded to keep from referring to it as the Super Bowl, a trademarked name the NFL strictly polices. Mom-and-pop shops and large companies hoping to cash in on the game — but also don't want to run afoul of league lawyers — have found ways to color inside the lines.

Tyler Ellis, whose Coney Island Grill is located within the downtown Super Bowl Central village, is selling souvenir tie-dye shirts. The garments say "Coney Island 2015" as well as "the big game." The $15 shirts come in pink, red, blue and green.

Fortunately, the restaurant owner was fully aware of the league's reputation for coming down on trademark infringers.

"I'm just an NFL follower. You can't even YouTube their videos. They're just strict with their licensing," Ellis said.

Grocery chain Whole Foods has avoided using "Super Bowl" on in-store signs and social media. The Facebook page for the central Phoenix location offers recipe ideas for "your Big Game party."

Signs at American Airlines ticket counters in Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport greet travelers with "Welcome to the big game." American Airlines spokesman Casey Norton said though it is the official airline for the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee, the company isn't an NFL partner.

"Like any brand, we work to protect our valuable intellectual property and the rights we extend to our partners," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said.

What constitutes a violation is determined on a case-by case basis, McCarthy said. For example, a restaurant writing up a Super Bowl menu on a chalkboard wouldn't be an issue. And according to trademark law, a fair use exception allows for news organizations to use the Super Bowl moniker.

McCarthy said if a potential infringement is discovered, the league will notify the party involved. If nothing changes, then a cease-and-desist letter follows. McCarthy declined to discuss how many companies have received letters in recent months.

One of the participants in the Super Bowl is not a stranger to trademark disputes. Texas A&M University has long held the trademark for the term "12th Man," the nickname for the Seahawks' large and vocal fan base. The Seahawks and university reached a settlement in 2006 that allows the team to use some versions of the phrase.

And the NFL is not the only sports organization to be vigilant about its brand. Congress has created protections for the U.S. Olympic Committee so it has exclusive rights to use "Olympics" and the interlocking rings logo. International soccer governing body FIFA is requiring countries that host the World Cup to create special rights in their constitutions to protect advertisers, said Jeff Greenbaum, a New York-based advertising lawyer with the firm Frankfurt Kurnit.

Roger N. Behle Jr., an intellectual property lawyer with the firm Foley Bezek Behle & Curtis, said the NFL's monitoring is about maximizing revenue.

"They do have a right to police it. They spent a lot of money to build the brand up, make it profitable and not have any Tom, Dick and Harry use the marks," said Behle, who has worked on licensing deals with the NFL and other major sports leagues.

Greenbaum said the NFL's enforcement is also about protecting its sponsors. The league creates "official" beers, chips, sodas and other items, which can give a business a distinct advantage over its competitors.

"The strategy that they're employing is to create enough concern among marketers that they're afraid to even get close to the line," Greenbaum said.

___

Associated Press writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this report from Los Angeles.

___

Follow Terry Tang on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/ttangAP

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Smart Spending: Why investors are applauding Amazon earnings

NEW YORK — Amazon.com Inc.'s fourth-quarter earnings roundly beat analyst expectations, sending the Seattle e-commerce giant's stock soaring 11 percent in premarket trading Friday. Here's a closer look at what investors applauded and hope continues.

SMART SPENDING

Operating expenses rose 15 percent to $28.74 billion but that was less than some analysts had expected Amazon would spend. Investors have long wanted Amazon to show some restraint as it invests in its business, and this metric seemed to be a sign that Amazon is willing to do that. Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said the lower-than-expected costs were related to flat fulfillment expenses — what the company spends on its distribution centers and deliveries — during the holiday season even though Amazon shipped 100 million more free items. The company also spent less on marketing expenses since the launch of its new hardware like Fire TV and the Fire Smartphone are behind it.

"They're getting far more efficient at delivery," said Pachter. "They're spending like slightly tipsy sailors rather than drunken sailors."

PRIME MEMBERSHIP GROWTH

Prime membership grew 53 percent in 2015. Two-day shipping costs Amazon a pretty penny but membership means more revenue from customers in the long run. Pachter estimates there are about 35 million Prime members worldwide. And he pointed out the company is making untraditional efforts to get more members. For example, it cut the price of its Prime membership to $72 one Saturday in January and let non-Prime members stream its Golden Globe winning series "Transparent" starring Jeffrey Tambor.

"Little promotions like that are going to drive prime membership and they'll continue to really promote it," Pachter said.

WILL IT LAST?

Some caution that one quarter of disciplined spending does not a trend make. In a call with investors, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster pointed out that over the past two years it has been a "little bit of a roller coaster" for Amazon's gross margin, a key metric that shows how big a percentage of revenue is spent on investing back into the company.

"There've been points of optimism followed by points of frustration," he said and asked the company how they plan to "smooth out some of this roller coaster mentality."

CFO Tom Szkutak acknowledged that Amazon has been in a "heavy investment cycle." He said the company is being "selective" about its investment opportunities but didn't give any details, saying it is still finalizing spending plans for 2015.

"The question is, is this a one-time hiccup or are they going to repeat it," Wedbush's Pachter said. "If I see this for two, three or four quarters I will believe it."

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Chamber of Commerce to focus on technology companies

The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce is turning over a new leaf, planning to focus on the technology sector and innovation economy as it outlines its priorities in the coming year.

"We need to do more to continue to accelerate innovation and promote innovation everywhere," Jim Klocke, chamber executive vice president, said. "(It's) critical. We have a lot of talent around here, we have a lot of innovation."

The new focus comes as the chamber searches for a leader to replace longtime president and chief executive Paul Guzzi, who announced his retirement in September.

John Fish, who was head of the search committee until he recently stepped down, has said the chamber is looking for someone who could strengthen its connection with innovation businesses.

In outlining its 2015 agenda, the chamber also is emphasizing increasing STEM education and improving entrepreneurial freedom for independent contractors — policies that weren't a priority last year.

"Massachusetts should adopt the federal standard for independent contractors," Klocke said.

"We're going to see more people starting small business, we're going to see more creativity and startups."

The chamber and Boston-based startup incubator MassChallenge also have been working together to increase engagement with fledgling Hub businesses.

C.A. Webb, executive director of the New England Venture Capital Association, said the chamber's agenda for the year represents a good step.

"It's a comprehensive and thoughtful plan that reflects even more of an innovation orientation than last year's agenda," she said. "I'm really supportive of the agenda and look forward to collaborating with them."

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Hot Property: Ocean dreams come true at Seapoint

As we get through the aftermath of the Blizzard of 2015, why not dream of spending summers in this luxurious shingle-style Dartmouth compound at the tip of a peninsula that juts five miles into Buzzards Bay.

Designed by renowned architect Robert A.M. Stern and built in 2007, the 22,000-square-foot property known as Seapoint has a main house with five-bedrooms and 10 bathrooms and a guest house with three bedrooms. It's located on 10 landscaped acres, with 270-degree ocean views and 1,500 feet of water frontage bordered by a seawall.

The current owner, who runs a financial services company and has a home in Boston, used Seapoint as a summer retreat. But he has already moved into another summer home he had built on the Cape. The Dartmouth property has been up for sale since July, listed for a cool $25 million.

"There are very few buyers at this price point," said listing broker Robert Kinlin of Robert Paul Properties, who said the price also includes a buildable lot in the gated community and golf club at nearby Round Hill. "You have people who don't need to sell and people who don't need to buy."

Kinlin said that the eventual buyer of Seapoint will be someone who falls in love with the site. It could easily be a year-round home, he said, although it most likely will be someone's second, third or fourth place. The annual taxes are $178,760.

"It's an amazing piece of earth, first of all," said Kinlin of the waterfront site "You've got views out to Cuttyhunk and Martha's Vineyard. For a property like this, the land is the most important thing, followed by the house."

The site served as a lookout for German submarines during World War II, and there's still a gun turret on the property.

With its wraparound porches, outdoor patios, infinity-edge pool and water dock, Seapoint feels like a hotel resort. Almost every room has a water view.

The enormous second-floor master bedroom suite includes two full bathrooms and two dressing rooms with custom built-ins, a hand-painted, barrel-vault ceiling and a gas fireplace with a baroque pattern of gilt silver. Private staircases from the suite lead to a circular library and home office and there's an outdoor deck with ocean views.

The current owners also hired local artisans to add nautical motifs such as a curved custom fireplace fashioned from stones and driftwood from Buzzards Bay. Craftsmen also made bulls-eye glass windows for the foyer, adorned a living room mantelpiece with shells and mermaids, and carved a rope motif into the dining room floors and seashells into the kitchen floors.

Then there's the unique amenities on the lower level such as a regulation bowling alley, a custom-built stone-fronted circular wine cellar as well as a bar carved to resemble the prow of a ship.

The five-mile Mishaum Point peninsula is a gated community of high-end summer homes 66 miles from downtown Boston.

"Unlike the Cape, you don't have to cross any bridges to get to Dartmouth," Kinlin said. "And it's a quiet, low-key area ideal for someone who wants privacy."

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Barbie blues gave Mattel holiday disappointment

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Slumping sales of Barbie did little to bring a happy holiday to her maker, Mattel Inc.

Mattel's fourth-quarter earnings release Friday drilled down into the details of a weak performance that led to the resignation of its chairman and CEO.

Barbie sales fell 12 percent, though that wasn't as bad as the third quarter's 21 percent drop. Fisher-Price sales fell 11 percent. While American Girl slipped 4 percent, it was better than the 7 percent decline in the third quarter.

Hot Wheels sales rose 5 percent.

Interim CEO Christopher Sinclair said he will spend the next few months evaluating the company's businesses to "revitalize our brands."

The results for the quarter that ended Dec. 31 are important because they include the holiday season, a make-or-break time of year for toy makers.

Mattel's fourth-quarter performance fell far short of Wall Street's expectations when the toy maker provided preliminary results Monday, the same time it announced the departure of CEO Bryan Stockton.

Stockton became CEO in January 2012 and then was named chairman a year later. A former Kraft Foods executive, he served as a Mattel's chief operating officer before becoming CEO. Sinclair has served as a Mattel Inc. director since 1996.

For the fourth quarter, Mattel posted an adjusted profit of 52 cents per share on revenue of $1.99 billion. That was below the 83 cents per share on revenue of $2.07 billion that analysts polled by FactSet predicted.

Drew Crum of Stifel Nicolaus said in a client note that not all was bad for Mattel in the fourth quarter, as it significantly lowered retail inventory in domestic markets and reported better-than-expected revenue from Mega Brands.

But the analyst kept a "Hold" rating, saying he is waiting for evidence of improvement in its core brands.

Mattel's full-year adjusted profit was $1.48 per share on revenue of $6.02 billion.

The company's stock shed 50 cents to $26.40 in premarket trading.

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Chinatown creates land trust

Chinatown residents and activists have formed a land trust in an attempt to buy properties and keep them affordable for residents of the Boston neighborhood, which has been giving way to gentrification.

"What we're really trying to do is preserve as much of the residential stock that exists in Chinatown in a form that is more affordable so the whole neighborhood doesn't become luxury, thus pricing out the Chinese community that is here," said Jeff Hovis, president of the nonprofit Chinatown Community Land Trust. "It's not all going to be ultra-low end properties. There may also be some mixture of more middle-income, condo-type properties really designed for families."

Row houses are the primary target of the trust, which hopes to get funding from sources including the city's Department of Neighborhood Development and foundations, and partner with nonprofit or for-profit developers. Some residents held a rally yesterday on Hudson Street, to protest what they said was a forced relocation of tenants from a row house.

"The city of Boston funds affordable housing development, so it's very conceivable that we would be able to fund, at least in part, a purchase of housing in Chinatown if it was going to remain affordable," DND director Sheila Dillon said.

The Chinatown land trust is getting help from the city's first land trust, the nonprofit Dudley Neighbors Inc., which formed in 1988 and has partnered to develop 225 affordable residential units in Roxbury's Dudley area.

"Funding is a big challenge, because when we started, we were able to access blighted vacant land," DNI director Harry Smith said. "They're in Chinatown. There's not a lot of vacant city-owned land."

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Mohegan Sun casinos report 1Q rise in revenue, profit

UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Revenue at the parent company of the Mohegan Sun casinos in Connecticut and Pennsylvania rose in the first quarter as table games and slot machines brought in more money and the casino's hotel in Pennsylvania completed its first full year in business.

The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority said Thursday that in its fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31, revenue was $316.7 million, up 1.2 percent from the year-ago period. Profit of $14.8 million compared with a net loss of $67.3 million in the same three months of 2013.

Chief Executive Officer Mitchell Grossinger Etess said the quarterly increase in slot revenue was the greatest since the fourth quarter of 2007.

The authority said the profit increase was due largely to payment of debt for refinancing before it was due and rising income.

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Charlie Baker to Keolis: Get on track

Keolis, the French company hired last year to run commuter rail lines, struggled mightily to rebound from the blizzard, canceling 28 trains during yesterday's morning rush hour, sparking a warning from the Baker administration to deliver on their "no-excuses" contract.

The company reported an on-time early-day performance of 36 percent, greatly below its average of 89 percent. The delays left some passengers waiting for more than an hour.

Yesterday's failures to get the commuter rail lines running efficiently after a storm that dropped up to three feet of powdery, dry snow in some areas prompted Gov. Charlie Baker's newly appointed Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack to single out the company.

"We understand the challenges that our operator Keolis faces in operating the system. They signed on to a no-excuses contract and we're going to be looking for a better performance this afternoon and on an ongoing basis over that contract," Pollack said.

Baker was quick to back her up, adding, "I think Secretary Pollack's comments speak for the administration on that one."

Keolis spokesman Mac Daniel said mechanical problems with aging locomotives — from stalled engines to malfunctioning air compressors — were to blame and that snow-covered rails or weather-related track switch issues were not factors in the scuttled trains.

Daniel said 22 of the usual 196 inbound trains heading to North Station during yesterday's morning rush hour had to be canceled, including two disabled trains on the Fitchburg line, which resulted in passengers having to get off one train and reboard another. South Station bound trains fared better, with six of 302 trains getting scratched.

Passengers on the Newburyport-Rockport line endured the longest delay of 74 minutes while waiting for a replacement train sent from Boston to reach the Clipper City after the original train broke down.

Keolis has been hampered by failures with 40 of the new locomotives the MBTA shelled out 
$222 million for being taken off line for major repairs to fix faulty traction motor bearings.

As of 7 last night, Keolis reported it was on time for only 40 percent of the day's runs.

The MBTA has already slapped Keolis with an $804,000 fine in November in part because of a poor on-time record that dropped to 
85 percent in October, as well as unclean trains, and other problems.

Laurel J. Sweet contributed to this report.

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Apple stock ascends after record quarter

Shares of Apple Inc. surged yesterday after the company announced the best financial quarter ever for a public company, and analysts predict there's more growth in the tech giant's future.

Apple stock closed up 5 percent a day after it revealed blockbuster 
$74.6 billion in sales and record-breaking $18 billion profit in the fourth-quarter after it rolled out its newest smartphones, the larger iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus. The company said it sold 74.5 million iPhones in the quarter, which works out to 34,000 smartphones every hour.

"We believe momentum in the current iPhone product cycle remains strong," said Ben Reitzes in a research note for Barclays, "helped by new form factors as well as new products."

Citigroup analyst Jim Suva pointed out that changes in wireless plans allow consumers to upgrade their smartphones without waiting two years to avoid penalties, which he called a big factor in Apple's sales total and a continuing plus for the stock.

"We believe investors do not fully grasp this change in behavior by the wireless carriers and the positive impact to Apple," he wrote.

But Roger Kay, founder and president of Endpoint Technologies Associates, sounded a more cautious note.

"Other factors will make it difficult to match this quarter's growth performance," he said.

Herald wire services contributed to this report.

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Super Bowl halftime: Katy Perry to pitch merch on YouTube, Twitter, Roku and connected TVs

Katy Perry will use her time in the spotlight of the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show as a launchpad to flog limited-edition products to her fans.

The songstress, in partnership with Universal Music Group and halftime show sponsor Pepsi, will reveal the exclusive Perry-branded items across social and Internet channels during her live performance on Feb. 1.

But her product pitch won't be carried in the NBC's Super Bowl telecast, expected to be the most-watched TV event of the year. Instead, the Katy Perry merchandise will be promoted -- and available to purchase -- via Twitter, YouTube, Shazam and Internet-connected TV devices from Roku, Samsung and LG Electronics.

The first "shopping-enabled" Super Bowl halftime is being powered by San Francisco-based interactive commerce provider Delivery Agent, which has inked a deal with Visa to be the exclusive payment service for the promo.

Using Twitter's "Buy Now" feature, tweets sent from @katyperry -- which has 64.1 million followers -- and other accounts including @pepsi and @Visa will let users purchase the products directly from the social service.

On YouTube, videos on Perry's Vevo channel -- which has 14.8 million subscribers -- will be enabled for click-to-buy commerce via overlays. Users of Shazam's app will be presented with the opportunity to buy the Katy Perry products if they Shazam music from the halftime show.

In addition, users of Roku set-tops and certain Samsung and LG Electronics connected TVs will be able to use their remote controls to shop for the products during the halftime show by accessing the ShopTV app on the respective devices. The device partners will promote the Katy Perry commerce stunt within their guides.

For last year's Super Bowl, Delivery Agent worked with retailer H&M to commerce-enable its ad in Fox's broadcast, to let viewers purchase items from David Beckham's Bodywear line. But that was limited to Samsung Smart TVs. This year, the potential buying audience for Perry's goods will be considerably larger: There are 20 million Samsung, LG and Roku devices available with ShopTV, "but if you take into account Twitter, Shazam and YouTube, you get into much bigger numbers," said Delivery Agent CEO Mike Fitzsimmons.

Katy Perry's Super Bowl product promo will encompass other marketing elements, including online ads and an email campaign. The products will be available to buy through Tuesday, Feb. 3, at 5 p.m. PT (or until supplies last).

© 2015 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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After setting iPhone record, what does Apple do next?

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple CEO Tim Cook says consumer demand for new iPhones has been "staggering" and "hard to comprehend." That helped the company report record-smashing earnings for its latest quarter and primed its stock for a rally Wednesday.

But after selling a record 74.5 million iPhones in three months that ended in December, what can Apple do next?

Some analysts worry that Apple depends too much on the iPhone, which contributes two-thirds of its sizable revenue — leaving the company vulnerable if some other gadget comes along to replace the iPhone in popularity. Cook and Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri, however, say they're optimistic about other products in Apple's portfolio. Here's some of what they talked about on Tuesday.

Apple Watch

Apple plans to start selling its highly anticipated smartwatch in April, Cook told analysts on a conference call after the company's earnings report Tuesday. He added that developers are working on new apps called "Glances" — apparently in reference to the way people will view those apps on their wrists.

Cook boasted he's already wearing and enjoying an early model. "I'm using it every day and love it and can't live without it," he said.

Still, some analysts say it's difficult to predict demand for the Apple Watch. "We continue to believe interest from consumers is tepid," said Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster in a recent note to investors.

Apple Pay

Apple introduced its digital payments service last fall, but Cook vowed Tuesday that "2015 will be the year of Apple Pay." He said 750 banks have signed up for the program, which now accounts for two out of every three dollars spent through so-called "contactless" payment systems, as opposed to credit cards that are swiped at the point of sale.

While Apple is believed to collect fees from banks when shoppers use Apple Pay, it doesn't specifically disclose revenue from the service. BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis says he doesn't expect the program will make a "material" contribution to Apple's revenue in the near future.

Other devices

Apple said sales of Macintosh computers were up 9 percent in the last quarter. The company increased its share of the personal computer market at a time when overall PC sales were declining. Apple no longer reports separate numbers for its iPod music players.

But iPad sales fell 22 percent. Even so, Maestri said surveys show consumers love iPads for web-browsing and shopping, and he said new apps produced in partnership with IBM will increase business uses for the devices. The iPad has "a very bright future," Cook added, although he cautioned he doesn't expect sales trends to change in the next couple of quarters.

New markets

Apple says iPhone sales doubled in China, Brazil and Singapore in the last quarter, despite aggressive competition from South Korea's Samsung and the Chinese companies Huawei and Xiaomi. Cook also boasted the company saw record rates of first-time iPhone buyers and former owners of Android phones who are switching to Apple devices, although he didn't provide specifics.

Overall, Apple reported $74.6 billion in sales and $18 billion in profit for the December quarter, which represents a year-over-year increase of 30 percent and 38 percent respectively. Based on those numbers, analyst Bill Kreher of the Edward Jones investment firm said he'll be raising his forecasts for the company's performance this year.

Even so, he added, as Apple keeps setting records, "it's certainly going to be more difficult for them to continue to beat expectations."

Signaling a rally Wednesday, Apple's stock rose almost 6 percent in after-market trading following the earnings report late Tuesday.

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Ford recalls cars, vans for door latch and seat belt trouble

DEARBORN, Mich. — Ford is recalling more than 221,000 cars and vans to fix problems with door latches and seat belts.

The biggest recall covers nearly 205,000 Ford Taurus, Lincoln MKS and Police Interceptor models in North America from the 2010 to 2013 model years. Ford says a door latch spring can become unseated, allowing the door to unlatch in a side-impact crash. The company says it knows of no injuries from the problem. Dealers will inspect the latches and replace door handles if needed.

The second recall covers just over 16,000 Transit Connect small vans in the U.S. from the 2014 model year. Seat belt fasteners can loosen, causing the belts to malfunction. Ford says the problem hasn't caused any crashes or injuries.

Dealers will replace and tighten the seat belt fasteners.

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Crews still working to restore power

Crews were working through the night to restore power to about 28,000 households and businesses, including most of Nantucket, who remained in the dark after heavy snow and falling trees downed wires across the Bay State.

National Grid and Nstar officials said it's likely power could be out for a few days in some areas.

"We're still facing very difficult weather and road conditions on Cape Cod and the South Shore," Nstar spokesman Mike Durand said, "and our 24/7 emergency restoration efforts are continuing."

Nstar had restored power to about 40,000 customers by last night, leaving 17,000 others without electricity, Durand said. Cape Cod and the South Shore between Marshfield and Plymouth were hardest hit, he said.

The utility tapped crews from nearby states, as well as private contractor lineworkers and tree workers. And, to avoid fines like those levied by the state in 2011 for delays, Nstar increased the use of remote switching technology to restore power to customers before crews arrive, Durand said.

National Grid had 13,800 customers without power at the storm's peak and that was down to 11,500 last night, spokesman Jake Navarro said, as crews from as far away as Georgia and Canada tackled downed lines.

"Our infrastructure has performed very well during this storm," Navarro said, "and that resiliency is thanks in part to significant investments in equipment upgrades and increased tree trimming."

Power was beginning to be restored last night on Nantucket — which was almost entirely dark at one point yesterday — with a priority on emergency services, Navarro said. Full restoration on the island, however, could be a lengthy process, Navarro said.

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Business losses accumulate

Bay State businesses are counting their blessings that the monster blizzard of 2015 has brought only minimal losses.

Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, estimated the total loss to his members at less than 
$20 million.

"Compared to some other storms, I think it's relatively minor," Hurst said. "It fell during a notoriously slow sales period — after Thanksgiving and Christmas and before Valentine's Day. And it fell during midweek. If it had been this weekend, or right around Valentine's Day, as in 2013, the impact would have been far more severe."

But he acknowledged some businesses were hit harder, such as convenience stores near office buildings that were closed and retailers who have to pay their employees regardless of whether they make it in to work.

Pat Moscaritolo, president and CEO of the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau, said many Boston hotels fared better than expected. Rooms that had been reserved by travelers who couldn't get to Boston because of canceled flights were taken by people who were stranded here or by employees of Boston businesses, Moscaritolo said.

"So overall, it pretty much balanced out," he said. "What didn't balance out though were retailers and restaurants who lost sales and their staff who would have lost tips."

Stoughton-based Rentals Unlimited, which rents out party equipment, estimates it lost about $10,000 worth of orders. But it expects the majority of those clients to reschedule within the next two weeks, said Jennifer Gullins, vice president of sales.

"We don't expect this to be a significant financial interruption," Gullins said. "Making sure you have a good risk-management plan is the best strategy."

The company began planning for the storm on Sunday. A team of four employees stayed at its Stoughton headquarters, where it has five buildings and three large parking lots, to keep plowing and ensure that none of the buildings suffered damage and it could reopen today, Gullins said.

Auto czar Herb Chambers spent between $10,000 and $15,000 for each of his 54 dealerships just to move cars indoors during the storm — and that's not counting lost sales and service work and paying employees, spokesman George Regan said.

"He still thinks that, despite all the expense, it's worth it," Regan said. "Boston is a great city to do business in."

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Fed is expected to remain 'patient' about a first rate hike

WASHINGTON — As the Federal Reserve ends its latest policy meeting Wednesday, it is widely expected to repeat the pledge it made in December: That it will be "patient" in raising interest rates from record lows.

That pledge could endure well into 2015.

The U.S. economy has steadily improved. Yet inflation has dipped further below the Fed's target rate, thanks to plunging oil prices and a surging dollar. The stronger dollar makes foreign goods cheaper in the United States.

The statement that Chair Janet Yellen and her colleagues will issue after the meeting will be scrutinized for any possible clues to a shift in Fed policy. The statement will be all that investors will have to digest because there will be no Yellen news conference after this meeting and no updates to the Fed's economic forecasts.

At the Fed's last meeting in December, its statement said officials thought they could be "patient" in moving to raise their key short-term rate, which has been kept at a record low near zero for six years.

Most economists foresee no rate hike until June at the earliest. And given recent developments, some economists are starting to push back their predicted timetable for the first rate hike to September or December.

Economists at Morgan Stanley say they now think the first rate hike won't occur until March 2016. Other economists say they still expect the first increase to come this year.

"The Fed does have more latitude, given the rise in the dollar and the collapse in oil prices," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. "But I still think the first rate increase will come in June."

Complicating the Fed's timetable is the European Central Bank's just-announced plan to pump 1 trillion euros into its ailing economy. That flood of cash should keep the eurozone's rates ultra-low. Many investors may respond by shifting into higher-yielding U.S. Treasurys. That would strengthen the dollar even more and could push U.S. inflation further below the Fed's 2 percent target.

Under that scenario, the Fed might find it hard to justify a rate hike, which risks weakening the economy and slowing inflation further.

"Standing pat is the best thing to do right now," said David Wyss, an economics professor at Brown University.

Even before the ECB acted last week, anticipation of its move had helped cut the euro's value to a decade-long low against the U.S. dollar. The dollar is also being driven up by strengthening U.S. economic growth.

The plunge in world oil prices, which have fallen 60 percent since June, has contributed to lower inflation even as the U.S. job market has been reviving.

After years of subpar growth, the economy added nearly 3 million jobs added last year, enough to cut the unemployment rate to 5.6 percent. That is just above the Fed's goal of 5.2 percent to 5.5 percent unemployment.

But Yellen and other Fed officials have pointed to other factors — such as weak pay growth and a still-high number of part-time workers who can't find full-time jobs — as evidence that more must be done to achieve a healthy job market.

Prices rose just 1.2 percent in the 12 months that ended in November, according to the Fed's preferred gauge of inflation. When inflation is too low, consumer spending can slow as people delay purchases on the assumption that the same or lower prices will be available later. The biggest fear is deflation — a broad decline in prices and income that can further restrain spending and even tip an economy into recession.

Yellen, who is completing her first year as Fed chair, has had to deal with scattered dissents — from both "doves" who feel more should be done to spur job growth and "hawks" who worry that prolonged low rates could fuel future high inflation.

Two vocal hawks, Charles Plosser, head of the Fed's regional bank in Philadelphia, and Richard Fisher, his counterpart in Dallas, no longer have votes this year under the rotation system for Fed bank presidents. Both are retiring from the Fed in March. The new set of voters lean to the "dovish" camp.

At her December news conference, Yellen said the use of "patient" in describing the timing of a rate hike meant there would be no increase for at least the next couple of meetings. The next two meetings are in March and April followed by a session on June 16-17.

Sung Won Sohn, an economics professor at the Martin Smith School of Business at California State University, is looking for a delay to September or possibly not until year's end.

"My question is, what's the rush?" Sohn said. "We are not running a lot of additional risks by keeping rates low, while if they raise rates prematurely they could derail economic growth."

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US home price gains slow in November on weaker sales

WASHINGTON — U.S. home prices rose at a modest pace in November, held back by weaker sales and a limited number of houses for sale.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index, released Tuesday, increased 4.3 percent in November from 12 months earlier. That's down slightly from a 4.5 percent pace in October. Home price gains have decelerated for 12 straight months.

The slowdown in price increases should help boost sales this year. Home values rose at a double-digit pace in early 2014, making many homes unaffordable. Sales of existing homes fell 3.1 percent to 4.93 million last year. First-time buyers in particular were priced out of many neighborhoods and accounted for a historically low proportion of sales last year.

Economists are hopeful that home sales and construction will rebound this year, partly because price gains are returning to levels consistent with a stable housing market. Lower mortgage rates, healthy hiring, and lower down payment requirements from mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may also spur sales.

"The housing market is heading in the right direction," said Stan Humphries, chief economist at real estate data provider Zillow. "This year ought to be much more friendly for buyers in general. More inventory ... slowing price gains and continued low mortgage rates will all contribute to buyers feeling more comfortable this year than in previous years."

Home values have risen for lower-priced homes, Humphries said, which gives those homeowners more equity and should encourage more of them to sell. That should bring more modest-priced homes on the market that are affordable for first-time buyers, he added.

Home prices in all 20 cities increased over the past 12 months, the Case-Shiller index showed. San Francisco's increase of 8.9 percent was the largest, followed by Miami at 8.6 percent. Cleveland posted the smallest gain, at 0.6 percent.

The 20-city index fell 0.2 percent in November from October. The index's monthly price changes aren't adjusted for seasonal variations, such as slower home buying in winter. Eleven cities reported price gains in November from the previous month, led by Tampa's 0.8 percent gain. Chicago's price drop of 1.1 percent was the largest.

Other recent data on housing suggests that sales and construction are on the upswing. While sales of existing homes fell in 2014, they picked up in December, increasing 2.4 percent from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 5.04 million. Many economists forecast sales will rise to about 5.2 million this year.

Mortgage rates have fallen for four straight weeks and the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is just 3.63 percent. That makes it easier for would-be buyers to purchase a home. It has also prompted a spike of refinancing applications that could enable many Americans to lower their monthly mortgage payments, freeing up cash to spend or save.

Home construction, meanwhile, jumped 4.4 percent last month to an annual rate of 1.09 million. Builders began construction on 1.01 million new houses and apartments in 2014, the most in nine years and 8.8 percent more than in 2013.

The Case-Shiller index covers roughly half of U.S. homes. The index measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The November figures are the latest available.

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Health connector payment deadline pushed back due to storm

BOSTON — Individuals who have enrolled in new health care plans through the Massachusetts Health Connector have a few more days to make their first payments to guarantee coverage starting Feb. 1.

The payment deadline, originally scheduled for last week, has now been pushed back until Friday, due in part to the storm enveloping the region.

The storm is also forcing the shutdown of the connector's call center offices in Boston and Worcester on Tuesday. Those seeking information can still call the connector's hotline on Tuesday for information on applications and payments.

Last Friday was the deadline to enroll in a plan for Feb. 1.

A final sign-up deadline is Feb. 15, the end of the open enrollment period. That's the deadline for picking and paying for a plan for March 1.

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Facebook blames internal glitch for hourlong global outage

SEOUL, South Korea — Facebook said the outage that made its social media sites inaccessible worldwide for about an hour Tuesday was self-inflicted.

Users of PCs and Facebook's mobile app reported they lost access in Asia, the United States, Australia and the U.K. Facebook-owned Instagram was also inaccessible.

Facebook said the disruption was caused by a technical change and wasn't a cyberattack. "This was not the result of a third party attack but instead occurred after we introduced a change that affected our configuration systems," its statement said.

The temporary loss of service may be Facebook's biggest outage since Sept. 24, 2010, when it was down for about 2.5 hours.

On its website for developers, Facebook said the "major outage" lasted one hour.

The outage occurred at midday in Asia, and after Facebook was restored, some users reported that the site was loading slowly or not functioning fully.

Lizard Squad, a group notorious for attention-seeking antics online, claimed responsibility on Twitter for the outages.

Guillermo Lafuente, security consultant at MWR InfoSecurity, said a technical fault was more plausible. A denial-of-service attack would have made the sites unreachable rather than accessible with an error message displayed, he said. Facebook's use of multiple data centers also meant an attack on one would have affected one region, while this outage was worldwide.

Also, restoring service would be a matter of reversing the technical changes, which matched with the brevity of the outage, LaFuente said.

Facebook has about 1.35 billion active users and Instagram has some 300 million. The outage came a day ahead of Facebook reporting its quarterly earnings.

Lizard Squad on Monday claimed it had defaced the Malaysia Airlines website and would release data from the airline. Its previous hacking claims have been mostly aimed at gaming or media companies.

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Facebook suffers 45-minute outage, blames own technicians

Facebook went offline across much of the world for 45 minutes late Monday (Tuesday in European and Asian time zones). Some users also found it difficult to access photo-sharing app Instagram. Normal service has now resumed.

Facebook blamed its own technicians for the problem, while others pointed to hacking group Lizard Squad.

"Earlier this evening many people had trouble accessing Facebook and Instagram," a spokeswoman told the BBC.

"This was not the result of a third-party attack but instead occurred after we introduced a change that affected our configuration systems.

"We moved quickly to fix the problem, and both services are back to 100% for everyone."

Lizard Squad, which is thought to have been responsible for attacks in December on Sony's PlayStation Network and Microsoft's Xbox Live, had tweeted about Facebook going offline, which led some to believe they had caused the outage.

© 2015 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Orders for US durable goods fell 3.4 percent in December

WASHINGTON — Orders for long-lasting manufactured goods dropped sharply in December, dragged lower by a big decline in demand for commercial aircraft.

Orders for durable goods fell 3.4 percent in December following a 2.1 percent decline in November, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. The decline was led by a 55.5 percent plunge in the volatile category of commercial aircraft.

There was also weakness in a number of areas, with demand for machinery, computer and primary metals all down. A key category that serves as a proxy for business investment plans edged down 0.6 percent in December after a similar decline in November and a 1.8 percent fall in October.

The overall decline was unexpected. Economists had been forecasting a small increase for December and some said the worse-than-expected report could mean that overall economic growth in the October-December quarter will be weaker than expected.

Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist for Capital Economics, said there was now a risk that his 3 percent forecast for overall growth would not be met.

The consecutive declines in durable goods left orders for December at $230.5 billion.

The recent weakness in manufacturing contrasts with earlier months when U.S. factories were enjoying large gains in orders and production. Analysts believe that the recent retreat in orders will be reversed in the new year, although they are watching closely to monitor the impact of the stronger dollar on exports.

The Institute for Supply Management reported that factory activity edged down to the slowest pace in six months, based on declines in orders and production.

The ISM manufacturing index fell to 55.5 in December from 58.7 in November. Any reading above 50 signals expansion. In October, the index had hit a three-year high.

Falling prices for oil and other commodities should help many manufacturers by lowering their costs. But the steep plunge in oil could also trigger a cutback in investment in oil and gas drilling equipment.

Factory production in November surpassed its pre-recession peak, according to data compiled by the Federal Reserve. This gain was spurred by strong output at auto plants. Those gains reflect healthy car sales last year, a trend that is expected to continue in 2015.

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Reinsurers Axis Capital, PartnerRe combining

NEW YORK — Reinsurers Axis Capital Holdings Ltd. and PartnerRe are combining in an $11 billion deal.

PartnerRe Ltd. shareholders will receive 2.18 shares of the combined company's stock for each share of PartnerRe that they own. Axis Capital shareholders will receive one share of the new company's stock for each share of Axis Capital that they own.

PartnerRe shareholders will own about 51.6 percent of the new company once the deal closes. Axis Capital shareholders will own about 48.4 percent.

Axis Capital CEO Albert A. Benchimol will serve as CEO of the new company.

PartnerRe CEO Costas Miranthis is stepping down from his post and as a PartnerRe director. PartnerRe board member David Zwiener will serve as interim CEO until the deal closes.

PartnerRe Chairman Jean-Paul L. Montupet will serve as non-executive chairman, while current Axis Capital Chairman Michael A. Butt will serve as Chairman Emeritus.

The 14-member board will include seven directors from both PartnerRe and Axis Capital.

The deal is expected to achieve at least $200 million in annual cost savings in the first 18 months of operations and to add to earnings per share.

The new company will be based in Bermuda, which is where Axis Capital and PartnerRe have headquarters.

Both companies' boards have unanimously approved the transaction, which is expected to close in the second half of the year. It still needs approval from shareholders of both companies.

Shares of Axis Capital gained more than 3 percent in Monday premarket trading.

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Airlines cancel thousands of flights ahead of Northeast snow

Airlines cancelled thousands of flights into and out of East Coast airports as a major snowstorm packing up to three feet of snow barrels down on the region.

JetBlue, whose flights are largely in the Northeast, has already cancelled about a third of its entire schedule.

Airlines cancelled 2,194 flights Monday, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware. More than 2,000 additional flights have been scrapped for Tuesday.

Problems in the Northeast are rippling outward, however.

In West Palm Beach, Florida, where temperatures are expected to be in the 70s Monday, about 30 percent of all flights have been cancelled. Fort Lauderdale and Orlando are also reporting major cancellations.

Most major airlines are allowing customers whose flights are canceled in the next few days to book new flights without paying a penalty. Customers ticketed on flights to dozens of Eastern airports are generally eligible for the allowance, though specific terms vary by airline.

The National Weather Service predicts 2 to 3 feet of snow for a 250-mile stretch of the Northeast, including the New York and Boston areas. Philadelphia should get 14 to 18 inches.

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Microsoft’s nifty HoloLens kicks Glass

Google Glass — may it rest in peace — has nothing on Microsoft's HoloLens, a game-changing pair of goggles with a see-through screen that projects holograms that the user can manipulate and control.

Unlike Google Glass, the HoloLens isn't meant to go with you everywhere, and it's not reliant on a smartphone. It exists on its own, when you need it — like a "Star Trek" holodeck worn on your head, smacking right up against the laws of physics. Another difference between Glass and HoloLens: This isn't a concept, it's existing technology, developed by Microsoft in secret for years. It's expected to come to market within the next year, and developers will receive a kit allowing them to design apps for it in a matter of months, according to the software giant based in Redmond, Wash.

The HoloLens looks like a pair of ski goggles, and it's meant for a work or home setting. You are not supposed to venture outside wearing one. In short, it projects a virtual, interactive experience onto the world around you. You can watch television on a virtual holographic screen, launch and interact with a virtual PC, and much more. Or it can virtually put other people in your world, as needed.

Let's say I need help fixing my car. I put on HoloLens and patch in a mechanic. The mechanic can see what I see on his iPad via a compatible app. He can draw on my visual space, labeling all the puzzling parts of my car under the hood. I can virtually tap a part, triggering the screen to virtually spill out all components that are inside that part so I can see how it works without having to disassemble it.

Any task that requires an on-site expert can now be reimagined via the HoloLens. Besides remote mechanics, electricians and plumbers, the HoloLens could change the face of job training and education. Forget about digital classrooms, which are often isolating in my opinion. Having an instructor who can see with your eyes? That's mind-blowing. Being able to mark up and label that visual space? Well, that actually makes you closer to instructors than if you were sitting right next to them.

We still don't know the price of HoloLens. Anything below the $500 mark guarantees mainstream adoption. It makes Apple's upcoming iWatch seem almost petty by comparison.

An irony of this technology is that all of its underpinnings are projects that Wall Street analysts and talking heads had been urging Microsoft to abandon for years — such as Bing, the search engine that gave way to the artificial intelligence for this device, and Xbox, which spawned the motion-sensing Kinect, a technological backbone for HoloLens.

Another irony: HoloLens, in a sense, is a stepping stone to something universal and portable, like Google Glass was meant to be. If 50 million people have a HoloLens, all of a sudden it doesn't feel as idiotic to be wearing one in public.

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Medical pot only OK for sick kids failed by other drugs: MDs

CHICAGO — With virtually no hard proof that medical marijuana benefits sick children, and evidence that it may harm developing brains, the drug should only be used for severely ill kids who have no other treatment option, the nation's most influential pediatricians group says in a new policy.

Some parents insist that medical marijuana has cured their kids' troublesome seizures or led to other improvements, but the American Academy of Pediatrics' new policy says rigorous research is needed to verify those claims.

To make it easier to study and develop marijuana-based treatments, the group recommends removing marijuana from the government's most restrictive drug category, which includes heroin, LSD and other narcotics with no accepted medical use, and switching it to the category which includes methadone and oxycodone.

The recommended switch "could help make a big difference in promoting more research," said Dr. Seth Ammerman, the policy's lead author and a professor of pediatrics and adolescent medicine at Stanford University.

The academy's qualified support may lead more pediatricians to prescribe medical marijuana, but the group says pediatric use should only be considered "for children with life-limiting or severely debilitating conditions and for whom current therapies are inadequate."

The academy also repeated its previous advice against legalizing marijuana for recreational use by adults, suggesting that may enable easier access for kids. It does not address medical marijuana use in adults.

Studies have linked recreational marijuana use in kids with ill effects on health and brain development, including problems with memory, concentration, attention, judgment and reaction time, the group's policy emphasizes.

The policy was published online Monday in Pediatrics. It updates and expands the group's 2004 policy.

Since then, the marijuana movement has grown substantially. Recreational and medical marijuana use is legal for adults in four states — Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington. Nineteen other states and Washington D.C., have laws allowing medical marijuana use only and most allow children to qualify, according to Morgan Fox of the Marijuana Policy Project, a national group that advocates marijuana policy reform and tracks state laws.

"The cart is so far ahead of the horse related to this drug," said Dr. Angus Wilfong, of Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. Marijuana has dozens of chemical components that need to be studied just like any drug to determine safety, proper doses and potential side effects, he said.

Wilfong was involved in a recently completed international study involving 30 children with severe epilepsy. About half got an experimental drug made with a marijuana compound that doesn't make users high; the others received dummy medicine. Study results are being analyzed. Wilfong said five children from his hospital were involved and while he doesn't know if any of them got the marijuana drug, none suffered any serious side effects.

Wilfong said he has a young seizure patient in a different, less rigorous study who has shown dramatic improvement after several months on the marijuana-based treatment, "but that doesn't prove it was due to the" experimental drug," he said.

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Online: American Academy of Pediatrics: http://www.aap.org

Medical marijuana: http://tinyurl.com/axxzhrj

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AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner

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Norfolk Southern 4Q profit flat as coal revenue falls 15 pct

OMAHA, Neb. — Norfolk Southern Corp. reported its profit was little changed in the fourth quarter from a year ago because the railroad's coal revenue fell 15 percent on weak demand from utilities and export markets.

The Norfolk, Virginia, based company said Monday that total volume increased 4 percent but that wasn't enough to offset the coal weakness.

The railroad reported it earned $511 million, or $1.64 per share, slightly below last year's earnings of $513 million, or $1.64 per share.

Norfolk Southern said its revenue also dipped to $2.87 billion from last year's $2.88 billion.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected the railroad to report earnings per share of $1.63 on revenue of $2.94 billion. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.64 per share on revenue of $2.93 billion.

Norfolk Southern shares slipped $1.28 to $103.50 in premarket trading Monday about 45 minutes before the market open.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on NSC at http://www.zacks.com/ap/NSC

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Keywords: Norfolk Southern, Earnings Report

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Boston eyes home-rental rules

As Boston considers regulating home-rental services such as Airbnb, legislation has been filed on Beacon Hill that would require homeowners to have insurance and pay a tourism tax if they want to open their doors to paying guests.

"It's trying to create a safe and secure environment while allowing these operations to continue to thrive," said state Rep. Aaron Michlewitz, co-author of the bill. "It's a bill that will regulate short-term residential rentals in a similar fashion as hotels are regulated. This bill would simply level the playing field with short-term rentals."

The bill would require people who list their homes on website services such as Airbnb to:

• Register with their city or town.

• Have $500,000 in liability insurance.

• Pay a 5 percent tax that would go toward funding tourism. Individual cities and towns could implement their own tax as well.

"There would be a registration process that would be made to make sure consumers felt safe during their stays," Michlewitz said.

The tax, he said, would "allow the state and the cities and municipalities the opportunity to tap into unrealized revenues."

In a statement, a spokesman for Airbnb said the company is open to some regulations.

"We strongly support smart regulations and believe any policy should ensure regular people can share their home without unnecessary restrictions," said Nick Papas. He said the company is reviewing the proposed legislation.

If the bill succeeds, Massachusetts would be one of the first states to regulate the industry. Until now, most of the regulation has been at the city level. The Boston City Council, which is considering regulating Airbnb, has scheduled a public hearing tomorrow on the issue.

Airbnb said 33,780 guests stayed in Boston last year, resulting in $51 million in economic benefit to the city.

The regulations in the state bill are almost identical to regulations passed in San Francisco, which require registration, a tax and liability insurance. Last year, the New York attorney general said that three quarters of Airbnb rentals were likely illegal under current state law.

Neighbors for Overnight Oversight, a national group advocating for increased regulations of Airbnb, applauded the Bay State's move to regulate the industry.

"Generally this is a step in the right direction," said spokesman Conor Yunits. "We support legislation that addresses legitimate public safety concerns, prevents illegal hotels from occupying our neighborhoods and institutes some of the regulatory obligations others in the lodging industry adhere to. We welcome this progress and look forward to working with the Legislature on this issue."

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Added protections for consumer information on health website

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration appears to be making broader changes to protect consumer information on the government's health insurance website, after objections from lawmakers and privacy advocates.

The Associated Press reported last week that details such as consumers' income and tobacco use were going to private companies with a commercial interest in such data.

AP also reported that a number of companies had embedded connections on HealthCare.gov, raising privacy and security issues for some tech experts.

An independent analysis of the health care website, released Saturday, showed that the number of embedded connections to private companies had dropped from 50 to 30.

Those changes accompanied another shift by the administration to curtail the release of specific personal information from the website. The AP reported that change Friday.

After failing to respond to interview requests, the administration posted a statement Saturday evening. HealthCare.gov CEO Kevin Counihan acknowledged that privacy questions have been raised, and added: "We are looking at whether there are additional steps we should take to improve our efforts. While this process is ongoing, we have taken action that we believe helps further increase consumer privacy."

Officials have said the sole purpose of embedded connections to private companies was to monitor HealthCare.gov and improve performance for consumers.

The episode could become a blemish on what's otherwise shaping up as a successful open enrollment season for the second year of expanded coverage under President Barack Obama's health care law.

Lawmakers continue to insist on a full explanation.

HealthCare.gov is used by millions to sign up for subsidized private coverage under the law, or to merely browse for insurance plans in their communities.

The changes by the administration mean that the website is no longer explicitly sending out such details as age, income, ZIP code, tobacco use and whether a woman is pregnant.

An independent tech expert said Saturday that a new analysis by his firm also found a sharp drop in the number of embedded connections to outside companies.

Mehdi Daoudi, CEO of Catchpoint Systems, which measures website performance, said that was down from 50 to 30 such connections. Catchpoint had previously analyzed the performance of HealthCare.gov for AP, and found the site was much improved. But Daoudi had raised questions about the high number of third-party connections.

Cooper Quintin, a staff technologist with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group, said the changes are "a great first step," but more needs to be done.

For example, the health site should disable third-party tracking for people who enable the "do not track" feature on their web browsers. "HealthCare.gov should meet good privacy standards for all its users," he said.

Privacy advocates say the mere presence of connections to private companies on the government's website — even if they don't explicitly receive personal data — should be examined because of their ability to reveal sensitive information about a user.

Administration officials did not answer AP's questions about how the government monitors the outside companies. They only said that third parties must agree they will not use the information for their own business purposes.

Third-party outfits that track website performance are a standard part of e-commerce. It's a lucrative business, helping Google, Facebook and others tailor ads to customers' interests. Because your computer and mobile devices can be assigned an individual signature, profiles of Internet users can be pieced together, generating lists that have commercial value.

The third-parties embedded on HealthCare.gov can't see your name, birth date or Social Security number. But they may be able to correlate the fact that your computer accessed the government website with your other Internet activities.

Have you been researching a chronic illness such as coronary artery blockage? Do you shop online for smoking-cessation aids? Are you investigating genetic markers for a certain type of breast cancer? Are you seeking help for financial problems, or for an addiction?

Google told the AP it doesn't allow its systems to target ads based on medical information.

After AP's first report, Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, called the situation "extremely concerning" for consumers. Grassley said Friday it's still unclear how consumers' information is being used and he wants a full explanation.

Officials at the Department of Health and Human Services had at first defended their information-sharing practices. There is no evidence that consumers' personal information was misused, they said.

The website's privacy policy says in boldface type that no "personally identifiable information" is collected by outside Web measurement tools. That is a term defined in government regulations, but other personal details were being allowed through.

HealthCare.gov is the online gateway to government-subsidized private insurance for people who lack coverage on the job. It serves 37 states, while the remaining states operate their own insurance markets. The privacy concerns surfaced just as the president was calling for stronger Internet safeguards for consumers, in his State of the Union speech.

The website was crippled by serious technical problems when it made its debut in the fall of 2013. This year it has worked much better, a marked contrast. The administration is aiming to have more than 9 million people signed up by Feb. 15, the last day of open enrollment.

But the privacy issues were a reminder that the website remains a work in progress, like the underlying law that created it.

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Answers to common questions about cars in winter

There have been numerous articles recently about warming up vehicles before driving in the winter. I understand doing so makes problems for the environment and is not necessary. The best way is to just drive them. But what about folks who only drive three miles to work? My '08 Hyundai Sonata barely gets heat by the time I get to work if I don't at least let it run for a couple minutes. By letting it run, I am allowing the natural moisture in the air in my engine to evaporate due to heat to prevent further problems down the road. Is there any validity to allow the moisture to evaporate?

Absolutely. Short drives in cold weather leave significant moisture condensed into water and not evaporated from the engine crankcase and exhaust system. From a mechanical and environmental perspective, no significant stationary warm-up/idle period is necessary. In fact, engines and components come up to temperature more quickly, producing better fuel economy and lower emissions when driven gently up to temperature.

There are two scenarios where an extended warm-up prior to driving is useful — at the start of a short drive as you've described or due to a medical/age necessity. Both are completely valid reasons to let a car warm up before driving, and will not harm the vehicle.

One option for you is to plan a 20-minute drive at least once a week to completely evaporate any moisture from the engine and exhaust. This will help prolong the life of exhaust system components and the positive crankcase ventilation system (PCV).

On the subject of longevity, why not plan a round trip to the car wash once a week or so (except in subfreezing temperatures) to not only to bring the vehicle up to full operating temperature, but also to remove the ice and salt from the chassis to reduce the potential for rust?

Is it OK to store a car over the winter while connected to a battery tender with the battery not disconnected?

The benefit to leaving the battery connected is no loss of on-board computer memories — radio presets, seat position, HVAC settings, idle learn, etc. All these are quickly re-established once the vehicle is put back in service.

The only potential downside, in my opinion, is the risk of fire due to some type of electrical problem/short circuit.

Is the use of a 9-volt dry cell battery plugged into the cigarette lighter or charging outlet OK when changing the battery? Is it necessary?

Why bother? When power is reconnected, the computer systems re-learn very quickly.

My 2013 Chrysler minivan calls for 35 psi cold tire pressure. A week before Thanksgiving I added air due to a large drop in temp. I watched tire pressure increase from 35 psi to 45 psi as I drove south for the holiday. Back north the tire pressure was back to 35 psi. I would like to know what rule of thumb one should use for an upper limit on tire pressure.

Having raced on high performance street tires for decades, I can tell you there is no risk to a passenger car tire operating at even 50 psi. So, no worries. The short period of higher cold tire pressures theoretically may cause a slightly higher wear rate on the center of the tread, but that is far less of a concern than operating the tire well below its specified pressure due to lower ambient air temperatures.

The rule of thumb is a 1- to 2-pound loss of pressure for every 10-degree F. drop in air temperature.

Paul Brand, author of "How to Repair Your Car," is an automotive troubleshooter, driving instructor and former race-car driver. Readers may write to him at: Star Tribune, 425 Portland Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn., 55488 or via email at paulbrand@startribune.com. Please explain the problem in detail and include a daytime phone number. Because of the volume of mail, we cannot provide personal replies.

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Label case filed vs. Utz products

Two Bay Staters are accusing potato chip giant Utz Quality Foods of mislabeling its products as "all natural," alleging in a complaint that some of them are made from genetically modified ingredients.

Matt DiFrancesco and Angela Mizzoni filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the Hanover, Pa.-based company earlier this month. The suit claims they and others have suffered financial losses because Utz's "'All Natural' representations are deceptive, false, misleading, and unfair to consumers," according to the complaint.

"It's not a secret that consumers want things that are natural — that are healthier — and that's why these companies typically put this type of advertising on their label," said Tina Wolfson, the lead attorney in the case. "That's how they are able to command a higher price."

The plaintiffs are seeking at least $5 million, according to the complaint. They have also asked Utz to stop marketing its products as all natural and "conduct a corrective advertising campaign."

Utz and its attorneys did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

This is not the first false-labeling case that Wolfson has brought. In 2013 she reached a $9 million settlement in a class action against PepsiCo Inc.'s Naked Juice Co. The company was accused of misleading consumers about the "all natural" content of its products.

Utz is also accused of incorrectly labeling more than 40 of its products as "all natural."

"The market for natural products is large and ever growing and consumers are willing to pay a premium for products they believe to be natural, healthy and/or organic," the complaint alleges. "Gleaning more than $89.4 billion dollars in revenue in 2013 alone, the industry grew ten-and-a-half percent from 2012, revealing that consumers' desire for natural products is huge and continues to grow."

The suit claims that Utz's products contain a variety of genetically modified ingredients, including modified corn starch, maltodextrin and others. The complaint says Utz breached an express warranty, was unjustly enriched by its false advertising and violated Massachusetts' unfair and deceptive practices law.

"The problem is that the FDA has not given very specific definitions on what natural means and what standards companies need to meet," Wolfson said. "Unfortunately, products that under any definition would not be called natural are being called all natural."

UTZ has not yet filed a response to the complaint and has until Feb. 23 to do so.

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Consumer agency gets an incomplete on mortgage advice

WASHINGTON — When the federal government's consumer protection agency for financial matters tells you how to shop for a good deal on a home mortgage, you should follow the advice, right?

Maybe some of it. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was created in the backwash of the worst national mortgage disaster since the Great Depression, went online with a new interactive mortgage tool last week. The CFPB's site (www.consumerfinance.gov) offers helpful tips on shopping and has a guide to loan alternatives, closing costs and a "rate checker" feature.

At first glance, the rate checker appears to be a quick way to research prevailing mortgage interest rates in your area. Here's how it works: You enter the state where you want to apply, a FICO credit score estimate, your desired loan amount and the loan term. The rate checker then displays the local daily rate quotes collected from banks and credit unions by its data vendor, Informa Research Services Inc. of Calabasas, Calif.

Say you live in Virginia or California and want to see what rate you might get on a $400,000 house purchase with a $40,000 down payment. You input your estimated credit score. Say you've got a FICO 680. In Virginia, according to the rate checker readout Jan.16, "most lenders" in the survey would quote you 3.875 percent or less for a 30-year fixed-rate loan. Two lenders offered 3.625 percent and six quoted between 4 percent and 4.375 percent.

In California, most lenders also quoted 3.875 percent or less, one quoted 3.75 percent and five came in between 4 and 4.375 percent. None went as low as 3.625 percent.

But something important is missing here: The various fees and charges that the CFPB itself requires lenders to disclose as part of any mortgage quote to a consumer. As regulator of the Truth in Lending Act, CFPB regulations mandate precise disclosures of loan discount fees or "points" and lender closing charges among others. (A point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.) These are included in the Annual Percentage Rate (APR) — the effective rate applicants will be paying over the life of the loan.

When lenders advertise their rates, they must include the APR along with the base interest rate. There may be other charges that come into the total cost picture as well, such as lender-paid mortgage insurance and investor "overlay" add-ons.

So how big a deal could it be when only the interest rate is provided? In a statement for this column, Quicken Loans, the second largest retail lender in the country, said that quoting a rate alone, with no reference to specific points, fees and the APR, "will deliver a cost estimate that greatly differs from what is accurate." Steve Stamets, senior mortgage banker for Apex Home Loans, Rockville, Md., told me "it's inherently misleading because you're not getting all the potential charges" you're going to have to pay.

For example, said Stamets, a loan officer might violate CFPB rules by quoting a 
3 percent rate on a hypothetical $400,000 loan to pull in customers, but not mention that to obtain that rate they will need to pay 5 points — $20,000. Those points could be paid at settlement or financed and included in the interest rate. In the latter case, using one rule of thumb measure, the effective rate on the loan might jump to 
4.25 percent, not the 3 percent advertised.

David Stevens, CEO and president of the Mortgage Bankers Association, said in an interview that CFPB's rate checker's failure to disclose full costs "violates everything a lender must do" to quote rates to borrowers in compliance with the agency's own rules. "It's just a bad idea," he said. "It needs to come down."

But the CFPB shows no signs of yielding to critics. In a statement for this column, the agency said the rates quoted "assume" discount points ranging between one half a point to minus one half a point "and a 60-day rate lock," but do not include lender closing charges. Dave Hershman, a nationally known trainer and author who helps mortgage companies comply with the rules, scoffed at the CFPB's defense: "Could you imagine (the bureau) allowing a mortgage company to be that nebulous? And to quote rates without an APR?"

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