

Sterlington is advising the management team of Avanos Medical on its $1.27 billion acquisition by American Industrial Partners, a deal that hands shareholders a 72% premium to the stock's undisturbed price. The law firm is counseling Avanos' executives on all aspects of the take-private transaction, according to a statement Wednesday. Avanos, a medical technology company based in Alpharetta, Georgia, makes surgical solutions and pain management products. The Sterlington team is led by executive compensation partner Jeremy Goldstein and corporate partners Christopher Harrison and Evan Coren. The engagement adds to the firm's growing roster of management-side advisory work in take-private deals. Sterlington has advised management teams in 25% of all US take-private transactions valued at $1 billion or more announced over the past 12 months, the firm said. Previous engagements include Clearwater Analytics, Janus Henderson Group, DigitalBridge, and Heidrick & Struggles. The Avanos deal also marks Sterlington's latest healthcare-sector mandate, following work for Syneos Health, Designs for Health, and Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute. The acquisition by AIP, an industrial-focused private equity firm, shows the continued appetite for healthcare companies among buyout firms. Deal terms, including the expected closing timeline and required regulatory approvals, have not yet been disclosed. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Israel's military chief warned troops must prepare for sustained combat across multiple fronts, signaling the US-brokered June ceasefire framework may not halt deeper Israeli incursions into southern Lebanon. "Military operations across all fronts are not yet complete, and the IDF must be ready for continued combat," Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces, said during a visit to southern Lebanon on Wednesday. "If the situation requires, we will advance deeper into additional areas." The comments came as Brent crude traded near $92 a barrel, up 4.2% this week on supply disruption fears, while gold held above $2,480 an ounce. The shekel weakened 0.6% against the dollar, and Israel's TA-35 stock index fell 1.8%. The last time Zamir used similarly explicit language about ground operations was in April, preceding a 15-kilometer push into southern Lebanon that displaced an estimated 60,000 people. The warning threatens to unravel the US-sponsored framework agreement signed June 26, which envisioned a gradual Israeli withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territory in exchange for Lebanese army deployment and disarmament of armed groups including Hezbollah. With the IDF signaling readiness for deeper operations, the risk premium embedded in regional assets is likely to persist. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet President Donald Trump in Washington this week, with the Lebanon framework and broader Iran strategy atop the agenda. The US and Saudi Arabia conducted joint strikes on Iran-backed sites in Iraq on Tuesday, widening the theater of operations beyond Israel's borders. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, in an interview with Anadolu ahead of his first official visit to Turkey, said Beirut remains committed to the framework agreement but stressed its success depends on "clear guarantees, foremost among them a full Israeli withdrawal that is simultaneous with the deployment of the Lebanese army." He called on Turkey to play a supportive role in the international promotion of the framework. The Strait of Hormuz, through which about 21% of global oil trade passes, has emerged as a flashpoint. Tehran reiterated its vow to control the waterway earlier this week, a threat that has added $4 to $6 a barrel in risk premium to crude prices since late June, according to traders. The VIX, Wall Street's fear gauge, rose 2.3 points to 22.8 over the past three sessions. After the previous major escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, the conflict lasted 34 days and resulted in more than 1,100 Lebanese and 160 Israeli casualties before a UN-brokered ceasefire took hold. The current cycle of violence, which began in late 2025, has already surpassed that duration, with no diplomatic resolution in sight. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

**US stocks suffered their worst session in months as President Trump's threat to strike Iran sent oil prices surging and deepened a selloff in technology shares.** The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 1,000 points, or 2.1%, after Trump vowed to retaliate against Iran's surprise missile attacks on US forces stationed in Jordan. The S&P 500 fell 1.1% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.1%, while the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index tumbled 3.8%. "The market is pricing in a tail risk that was off most investors' radar a week ago — a sustained Middle East conflict that keeps oil above $90 and forces the Fed's hand," said Michael Wilson, chief equity strategist at Morgan Stanley. The Cboe Volatility Index surged above 28, its highest level since January, as declining stocks outnumbered advancers by more than 5-to-1 on the New York Stock Exchange. Consumer staples was the only S&P 500 sector in positive territory, gaining 4.1%, while information technology and industrials led the declines. Trading volume was about 30% above the 20-day average. The selloff erased more than $1.5 trillion in market value across US equities, with the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting now carrying outsized importance. Traders see a 35% chance of a quarter-point rate hike Wednesday, up from 26% a week ago, as higher energy costs threaten to reignite inflation. More than half of traders anticipate a rate increase by September, according to CME FedWatch data. West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 7% to $84.84 a barrel, while Brent crude surged 6.4% to $89.45, after Trump told Fox News the US would retaliate against Iran following the overnight missile attacks. US Central Command said all missiles were successfully intercepted. The US and Saudi Arabia launched joint airstrikes on Iran-aligned targets in eastern Iraq in response to more than 30 drone attacks over the past three days. The Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world's oil flows, has been largely blockaded for months amid the conflict, causing the largest energy supply disruption in history. The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported suspicious activity in the Red Sea on Tuesday, raising fears that a second critical shipping route through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait could also be compromised. **Chip Stocks Extend Slide as AI Worries Mount** Semiconductor shares bore the brunt of the selloff, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index falling 3.8%. Advanced Micro Devices dropped 3.2%, Nvidia lost 2.1% and Broadcom declined 0.6%. The declines extended a rough stretch for chip stocks, which have been under pressure as investors question the sustainability of AI-related spending. Fitch warned this week that an AI market correction, combined with geopolitical uncertainty, could pose a major credit risk. The 10-year Treasury yield was above 4.60%, down more than five basis points from Monday's close, after hitting its highest level since January at nearly 4.72% last week. The US dollar index fell 0.2% to 101.38, while gold futures declined 1.2% to $4,025 an ounce. Bitcoin traded around $63,700, down from overnight highs near $65,000. The selloff comes during the busiest week of the earnings season, with Microsoft, Meta, Apple and Amazon all set to report results. Investors have been punishing tech stocks that beat estimates but signal higher AI spending, a dynamic that could intensify if the geopolitical backdrop continues to deteriorate. *This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.*