Nintendo shares pop after Splatoon 3 breaks Japan’s sales record

In today’s top stories, Nintendo’s Splatoon 3 breaks its domestic sales record in the first three days since its launch, Twitter shareholders vote on Elon Musk’s takeover deal and Peloton undergoes a leadership reshuffle. Meanwhile, Apple and Netflix shares are unchanged despite Emmy wins and AppLovin pulls its bid for Unity.

Nintendo’s record game launch

Splatoon 3 has broken Nintendo [7974.T] Switch records in Japan, shifting 3.45 million copies since launching on 9 September. Serkan Toto, CEO of consultancy Kantan Games, isn’t surprised. “I’m not a big subscriber of the theory that the recession really puts a dent into the video game industry. I think it was really a drought of blockbusters,” Toto told CNBC. The Nintendo share price closed 5.5% higher on Tuesday.

Musk’s Twitter deal gets shareholder approval

Twitter [TWTR] shareholders were expected to vote in favour of approving Elon Musk’s $44bn takeover on Tuesday, as first reported by TheWall Street Journal. The social media company has said that Musk’s ongoing attempt to terminate the agreement is invalid. In the latest move to wriggle out of the deal, his lawyers have argued that the severance payout received by the whistleblower violates the terms of the deal.

Peloton’s chair and co-founder departs

John Foley, chair and co-founder of beleaguered Peloton [PTON], is out as part of a shake-up by CEO Barry McCarthy, brought on board to turn its fortunes around. In August, it reported a quarterly loss of $1.2bn. A source told Yahoo Finance that Foley might sell stake following a cooling off period – Foley, his wife and other insiders control 60% of voting shares. The Peloton share price closed 7.2% higher on Monday and was trading upwards in premarket on Tuesday following the news.

AppLovin pulls Unity bid

Game developer AppLovin [APP] has decided not to pursue a merger with Unity [U], whose software is behind some of the biggest video games. AppLovin, which had an initial $20bn bid rejected in August, said in a statement that it had “concluded that its path as the independent market leader is better for its stockholders and other stakeholders”. The abandoned bid paves the way for Unity to complete a $4.4bn with IronSource [IS].

Apple and Netflix’s Emmy wins

Monday night saw streaming giants vie for Emmy awards. Apple [AAPL] came out on top, with its comedy Ted Lasso taking home four awards. Netflix's [NFLX] Korean language hit Squid Game and drama Ozark also picked up awards. While neither stock reacted to the wins, streaming success is key to attracting and retaining new subscribers. Netflix has also recently partnered with Ubisoft [UBI.PA] to boost its gaming offering amid falling subscriber numbers.

Clean energy tailwind lifts ITM Power

ITM Power’s [ITM.L] share price has struggled this year, despite the electrolyser manufacturer being at the forefront of the UK’s green hydrogen revolution. Investors will be hoping that full-year results released on Wednesday will shed light on the company’s long-term growth prospects amid the rush for clean energy. A joint venture with industrial gases company Linde [LIN] is enabling it to “concentrate more directly on its key manufacturing capabilities”.

Tullow’s Capricorn merger in focus

Tullow Oil’s [TLW.L] proposed merger with Capricorn Energy [CNE.L] will be on the minds of investors when it announces interim results this Wednesday. Some of Capricorn’s biggest shareholders have objected to a combined entity, but Tullow CEO, Rahul Dhir, has said the benefits are “blindingly obvious”. In an operational update in July, the company reiterated production guidance of 59 to 65 barrels of oil per day.