May 1 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
* AT&T has approached DirecTV about a possible acquisition of the satellite-TV firm, the latest sign of a possible shake-up in the television industry. A deal would likely be worth at least $40 billion, DirecTV's current market capitalization, a fraction of AT&T's $185 billion market capitalization. (http://r.reuters.com/qad98v)
* The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it would reduce its bond purchases to $45 billion a month and it was starting to see a growth pickup in recent weeks after a harsh winter that hit the U.S. economy. (http://r.reuters.com/ded98v)
* The Coca-Cola Co likely will revise its executive-compensation plan before it goes into effect next year, bowing to pressure from billionaire investor Warren Buffet. The potential changes come as a surprise after voting shareholders approved Coke's plan last week-and Buffett declined to vote against it. (http://r.reuters.com/fed98v)
* U.S. prosecutors are threatening to use what bank executives consider a nuclear option by filing criminal charges against two large foreign banks. Officials led by the Justice Department, though, are still trying to find a way to defuse the most catastrophic possible outcome of filing criminal charges: driving the banks out of business entirely. (http://r.reuters.com/ged98v)
* Alstom Chairman and Chief Executive Patrick Kron defied France's government by plunging ahead with plans to sell the country's industrial jewels to U.S.-based General Electric . France's economy minister portrayed the move as an act of national betrayal. (http://r.reuters.com/ped98v)
* The Federal Aviation Administration granted Boeing Co's request that the new 777 jetliner to be approved without a lengthy full recertification. (http://r.reuters.com/ked98v)
* Anheuser-Busch InBev NV's union workers Wednesday ratified a five-year contract that calls for wage increases and no plant closings, officials with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters said in a statement posted on the union's website. The contract, which union officials said would add some $2 billion in wages and benefits, is retroactive to March 1. It was the first contract Anheuser-Busch negotiated since its 2008 hostile-bid acquisition by InBev NV. (http://r.reuters.com/hed98v)
* Online-storage startup Box is delaying its plans for an initial public offering after a sudden weakening in demand for technology stocks. Box's March 24 IPO filing made it eligible to list shares as early as April, but people close to the company said the offering may not happen until June, and no timing has been set. (http://r.reuters.com/ned98v) (Compiled by Supriya Kurane in Bangalore)