IBT Staff Reporter

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday driven by strong growth at its cable networks and movie studio offset by declines at its publishing business.

Groupon Inc posted a quarterly loss, defying Wall Street's hopes that the fledgling daily deals company had eked out a profit in the final three months of 2011. Its shares tanked.

Visa Inc reported a higher quarterly profit as the world's largest credit and debit card processing network benefited from consumers swiping their cards more, and authorized a new $500 million share repurchase program.

A lawyer suing on behalf of three students who say they were sexually abused at a Los Angeles area school where two teachers have been arrested said Wednesday he represents nine victims and expects many more to come forward.

Groupon Inc reported a loss on Wednesday as user growth slowed from the breakneck pace of past quarters, potentially signaling consumer fatigue with daily deals and wiping 13 percent off its shares.

Groupon shares fell 12.53 percent to $21.50 as of 5:40 EST after closing up 1.61 percent to $24.58.

The pick-up in jobs has caught the eye of two top Federal Reserve officials who said on Wednesday that continued improvement in the beleaguered labor market dampens prospects for more economic stimulus measures from the central bank.

Stocks closed flat in another thinly traded session on Wednesday as Greece remained in a standstill over accepting tough reforms in exchange for a bailout critical to avoiding a chaotic default.

After years of driving bank merger integrations, David Carroll is putting the same kind of energy into fine-tuning the wealth, brokerage and retirement services business he runs for Wells Fargo & Co .

Network equipment maker Systems Inc said second quarter earnings and revenue beat average estimates, leading it to increase its dividend.

The excitement generated by Facebook's IPO filing rubbed off on companies listing on U.S. stock exchanges on Wednesday, with four of them seeing strong first-day gains.

Groupon Inc reported a quarterly net loss Wednesday as the largest daily deal company recorded higher taxes overseas.

Network equipment maker Systems Inc said second quarter earnings and revenue beat average estimates, leading it to increase its dividend.

U.S. prosecutors secured an indictment against a Chinese company for conspiracy to commit economic espionage and other charges in a widening case over the alleged theft of industrial secrets from chemical giant DuPont.

Stocks closed flat in another thinly traded session on Wednesday as Greece remained in a standstill over accepting tough reforms in exchange for a bailout critical to avoiding a chaotic default.

Stocks closed flat in another thinly traded session on Wednesday as Greece remained in a standstill over accepting tough reforms in exchange for a bailout critical to avoiding a chaotic default.

Caesars Entertainment Corp's shares almost doubled in value on their market debut after an unusually small initial public offering, viewed by many as an exit strategy for its private-equity backers to make up some of their losses.

The U.S. central bank may yet need to buy more bonds to bolster the weak recovery, but better-than-expected jobs data makes it a close call, a top Federal Reserve official said on Wednesday.

Greece will likely fail to achieve sustainable debt levels if it only resorts to a 70 percent reduction in the value of bonds held by private creditors, Standard & Poor's warned on Wednesday, putting pressure on the ECB to also take losses.

Cable TV network CNN said on Wednesday it has suspended commentator Roland Martin over a series of Twitter remarks during the Super Bowl game that offended America's gay community.

Rick Santorum, who stunned the nation with his three-state sweep on Tuesday, is known for his hard-line stances on abortion and gay marriage, but where does he stand on a broader range of policy issues?

Former NFL rushing leader Ricky Williams is retiring after 11 seasons, the Baltimore Ravens running back said on Tuesday.

The government blocked an effort on Monday by California to reduce its health-care spending by requiring those enrolled in its Medi-Cal program for the needy to make copayments for medical services.

The Berlin film festival, which last year set Iranian drama A Separation on the path to global fame, has selected an edgier line-up than normal in 2012 with several up-and-coming directors in the main competition.

Iconic 1960s band The Beach Boys will perform together for the first time in more than 20 years at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, organizers said.

Gay marriage proponents in the Pacific Northwest cheered a U.S. court ruling on Tuesday that overturned a California ban on same-sex nuptials, in what they saw as boost to their cause a day before a key vote to legalize such unions in Washington state.

Struggling Finnish phone maker Nokia plans to cut 4,000 more jobs at its plants in Finland, Hungary and Mexico as it seeks to cut costs by moving smartphone assembly work to Asia.

Stocks fluctuated around break-even on Wednesday as investors waited for Greece to accept tough reforms in exchange for a new bailout, but underlying confidence kept the Dow near its almost four-year high notched on Tuesday.

Russia's Kaspersky Lab reported that sales growth slowed substantially last year as the world's No. 4 maker of anti-virus software said its business was starting to mature.