MARKETS
Mass. state pension fund gained 2.3 percent last fiscal year
The Massachusetts state pension fund on Tuesday reported a 2.3 percent investment gain for the fiscal year that ended in June, beating the median return for large funds nationally, in a tumultuous year for the markets. The median gain for all US public pension funds was 1.1 percent, according to the Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service. The $60.6 billion retirement fund for the state’s public workers and teachers outpaced the nation’s largest public pension fund, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, which had a net return of 0.6 percent. The actual return for the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management fund will be slightly lower after expenses, which typically run about 0.5 percent. The state fund currently needs to produce a gain of 7.75 percent over time to avoid the need for additional state funding. That target return is slated to drop to 7.5 percent this year, part of a broader trend of large investment funds grappling with modest investment results. A spokesman for PRIM, Eric Convey, said over the past 20 years, the state fund has averaged a return of 7.55 percent, after fees. The state contributes about $2 billion a year to the pension fund, and the figure is rising each year. International stocks dragged down performance for the Massachusetts fund, falling by double digits. Large US stocks gained 4 percent, while US fixed-income securities jumped nearly 30 percent. — BETH HEALY
TECHNOLOGY
Samsung’s new phone can be unlocked with iris scanner
You’ll be able to unlock Samsung’s new phone by just looking at it. The Galaxy Note 7 will come with an iris scanner, which matches patterns in your eyes with what was detected by your phone during setup. It offers an alternative to fingerprint ID, which doesn’t work well when fingers are wet. Of course, the four-digit passcode will still work. Beyond the iris scanner, the updates in the Note 7 are mostly enhancements, such as a stronger glass screen and more storage — 64 gigabytes, with a slot to add more. Even the iris technology isn’t new, as Microsoft’s Lumia 950 phones had it. The Note 7 comes with a better camera — but it’s the same one that the smaller Galaxy S7 phones got in March, save for interface enhancements to access settings and switch between the front and rear cameras more easily. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
COSMETICS
Avon profits rise as focus shifts overseas
Avon Products Inc. soared the most in more than five months after second-quarter profit topped analysts’ estimates, helped by cost cuts and improving sales. The cosmetics giant is showing signs of recovery after a sales slump prompted it to split off its North American business in March. That’s let the New York-based company focus purely on overseas markets, where its model of door-to-door sales representatives may have more promise. Avon also embarked on a cost-cutting plan that includes eliminating about 2,500 jobs and moving its head office to the United Kingdom. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
HEALTH INSURANCE
Aetna and Humana plan to sell assets to win approval for merger
Aetna Inc. and Humana Inc. said they have a provisional agreement to sell some of their assets to rival Molina Healthcare Inc. in an effort to get US antitrust regulators to approve their $37 billion merger. The transactions are subject to the successful completion of Aetna’s acquisition of Humana, as well as other regulatory approvals. Molina would pay $117 million in cash in the two deals, gaining private Medicare plans that cover about 290,000 people in 21 states, Aetna and Humana said Tuesday in a statement. The Justice Department, which sued last month to block Aetna from buying Humana along with Anthem Inc.’s purchase of Cigna Corp., has been skeptical that divestitures can maintain competition in the health insurance market. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
MORTGAGES
Freddie Mac has net income of $993 million in second quarter
Mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported net income of $993 million for the second quarter, down sharply from the same period of 2015. The company said Tuesday its income from fees received from lenders for guaranteeing mortgages increased in the April-through-June period, but it sustained losses on investments because of the decline in interest rates. McLean, Va.-based Freddie will pay a dividend of $933 million to the US Treasury next month. Freddie will have paid $99.1 billion in dividends, exceeding its government bailout of $71 billion. The government rescued Freddie and larger sibling Fannie Mae at the height of the financial crisis in September 2008, after they suffered huge losses from risky mortgages in the housing market bust. Together the companies received taxpayer aid totaling about $187 billion. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
GAMES
N.J. man sues to keep Pokemon Go players out of his yard
A New Jersey man is going to federal court to keep ‘‘Pokemon Go’’ players off his lawn. Jeffrey Marder of West Orange says strangers began lingering outside of his home after the popular game was released last month. At least five people knocked on his door and asked to get into his backyard to catch a Pokemon placed there virtually by the game, according to a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in California. The suit against game makers Niantic Inc., Nintendo Co., and The Pokemon Co. seeks class action status for others who have had Pokemon stops and gyms placed on their property. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
DRUGSTORES
CVS beats earnings expectations on deals, expensive specialty drugs
CVS Health beat second-quarter earnings expectations and nudged its 2016 forecast higher after the drugstore chain and pharmacy benefits manager reaped gains from a couple of deals and its sales of pricey specialty drugs rose. The Woonsocket, R.I., company said Tuesday that acquisitions of Omnicare Corp. and a separate purchase of the pharmacy and clinic business of retail giant Target Corp. helped revenue for its retail/long-term care business. Meanwhile, new business and specialty drug claims pushed sales up 21 percent to $29.5 billion in the company’s pharmacy benefits management segment. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
GAMES
GameStop buys more than 500 AT&T wireless stores
GameStop Corp. acquired 507 AT&T wireless stores as part of a drive to diversify and reduce its dependence on sales of video games. The stores are located in 26 states, with the biggest share in Texas, Missouri, and Oklahoma, Tony Bartel, GameStop’s chief operating officer, said in an interview. He declined to reveal the purchase price but said it amounted to the bulk of the $475 million the Grapevine, Texas-based company raised in a debt offering this year. GameStop, the largest independent retailer of video games, has been trying to add new businesses as more purchases of video games take place online. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
AUTOMOTIVE
Car sales drop in July
US auto sales wilted in July, as hot weather and softening demand kept many buyers at home. Sales rose less than 1 percent over last July, to just over 1.5 million new cars and trucks, according to Autodata Corp. Sales were strong at the beginning of the month thanks to Independence Day promotions, but weakened after that, Kelley Blue Book senior analyst Alec Gutierrez said. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
