Stockwinners Market Radar for February 13, 2019 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

19:54 EDT U.S. Steel raises dividend to 62c from 58c per share - This dividend is payable on March 15, 2019 to shareholders of record at the close of business on March 1, 2019.

18:44 EDT Tableau CEO: 'We are trying to lower the barriers to using data' - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Tableau CEO Adam Selipsky said: "We are really excited to partner with Southwest... We have a very close partnership with Pfizer... Pfizer is using our technology to improve patient outcomes... We are trying to lower the barriers to using data."

18:21 EDT International Flavors CEO: 'We delivered on all key metrics' - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, International Flavors CEO Andreas Fibig said: "We delivered on all key metrics in the quarter... Frutarom is accelerating in sales and we know the trend towards naturals is real... We believe we can accelerate growth to 5%-7% on the top line... We believe there are lots of cross selling opportunities into the new customer base... We will deliver on our guidance... Our balance sheet is good."

17:55 EDT SPDR Gold Shares holdings fall to 796.85MT from 798.89MT - This is the lowest level of holdings since January 8th.

17:48 EDT Paramount Group, Harbor Group JV acquires San Francisco building for $227M - Harbor Group and Paramount Group announced the establishment of a joint venture, or JV, that has acquired 111 Sutter Street, a 293,000 square foot office building located in San Francisco's North Financial District, for $227M or approximately $775 per square foot. The LEED-certified property is approximately 70% leased primarily to technology, media, business services and not-for-profit tenants. Paramount currently holds an office portfolio of 2.9M square feet in San Francisco that is 98% leased. Paramount will act as property manager for the building and oversee day-to-day operations. HGI and Paramount have entered joint ventures in the past on debt investments.

17:46 EDT Rowan Companies secures extension with ExxonMobil for Rowan Relentless - Rowan Companies announced that ExxonMobil has exercised the third of four options for the Rowan Relentless, an R-Class ultra-deepwater drillship. The option will be used for operations in the US Gulf of Mexico and has an expected duration of 180 days. The Rowan Relentless has been under contract with ExxonMobil since September 2018.

17:36 EDT Sleep Number says it will add 60-70 stores in FY19 - Says it expects headwinds related to tariffs in 2019. Says guidance reflects continued momentum. Says brand is breaking though to consumers. Says FY19 EPS guidance assumes confident consumer. Says will invest $50M-$60M in new projects and will add 60-70 new stores in 2019. Comments taken from Q4 earnings conference call.

17:32 EDT Caladrius says no improvement in primary endpoint in T-Rex study results - Caladrius announced top-line results from the Sanford Project: T-Rex study, a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind Phase 2a clinical trial of 110 subjects to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the company's CLBS03 as a treatment for recent-onset type 1 diabetes, or T1D, in adolescents. The initial analysis of the one-year follow-up data for all subjects shows that CLBS03 was well tolerated at the doses tested in the study, however, no improvement in the primary endpoint of preservation of C-peptide levels vs. placebo at one year was observed at the group level. As with many Phase 2a trials, the database from this study is large and the analysis and interpretation of all the information will require several months of intensive evaluation and will be critical to the decision regarding the next steps in development of CLBS03. In addition, the data from the 2-year follow-up, once complete, will afford supplemental information and are necessary to complete the evaluation of this therapy.

17:28 EDT NetApp falls 7.2% after Q3 revenue miss to $62.49

17:15 EDT Engility, Lockheed Martin awarded Navy contracts with $235.01M total ceiling - Engility (EGL) and Lockheed Martin (LMT) have each been awarded indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts. The estimated aggregate ceiling for all contracts is $235.01M, with the companies having an opportunity to compete for individual orders. These contracts provide for Air Traffic Control and Landing Systems Operations Onboard Ship and Shore support services for the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, or NAWCAD. Services to be provided include operational, technical, logistical and system engineering support for system certification; technical assistance; systems analysis and engineering; test and evaluation; installation and maintenance; hardware design, development, technical logistics support; configuration management; training support; equipment manufacturing; quality control; and project management of mobile air battle management systems and communication-electronic systems. Work will be performed in St. Inigoes, Maryland and at various contractor locations within the continental U.S. and is expected to be completed in February 2024. No funds are being obligated at time of award, funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. These contracts were competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals, with seven offers received. The Naval Air Warfare Center is the contracting activity.

17:05 EDT CenturyLink down 8% to $13.54 after Q4 results, FY guidance, dividend reduction

17:02 EDT Realty Income names Michael Pfeiffer chief administrative officer - Realty Income Corporation announced that Michael R. Pfeiffer's duties were expanded to include Chief Administrative Officer. He will retain his current roles as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary.

17:01 EDT SiteOne Landscape to buy All Pro Horticulture, terms not stated - SiteOne Landscape Suppl announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire All Pro Horticulture, Inc. All Pro has one location on Long Island, NY and is a leading distributor of agronomics and erosion control products in the metro NY market. Completion of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions.

16:55 EDT Marathon Oil sees 2019 total oil production growth of 10% - For full year 2019, the company forecasts total oil production growth of 10%, with U.S. oil growth of 12%, both at the midpoint of guidance and on a divestiture adjusted basis. Oil growth is expected to outpace boe production growth, consistent with a focus on corporate returns. For first quarter 2019, the company forecasts total oil production of 195 - 215 bopd, with U.S. oil production of 175 - 185 bopd. The first quarter 2019 U.S. production guidance range accounts for extreme weather conditions experienced early in the quarter. The first quarter 2019 International production guidance range reflects a planned triennial shutdown in E.G. to conduct turnaround activity, consistent with prior disclosure.

16:52 EDT GNC receives full funding of $300M investment by Harbin Pharmaceutical - GNC Holdings announced that Harbin Pharmaceutical Group Co has completed the final $150 million investment of Hayao's previously announced $300 million strategic investme in the Company. The Company also announced the formation of the Hong Kong-based China e-commerce joint venture with Hayao. As previously announced, Hayao completed the funding of the first $150M of its strategic investment in GNC in two installments: $100M on November 8, 2019 and an additional $50M on January 2, 2019. The formation of the Hong Kong-based China e-commerce joint venture represents the first and most significant step towards the completion of the China joint venture previously announced by the Company. The parties expect to complete the formation of the second, retail-focused joint venture located in China following the completion of certain routine regulatory and legal requirements, expected in the second or third quarter of 2019. The closing of the Hayao Investment represents the culmination of a year-long effort to complete the partnership between Hayao and the Company and enhances the Company's capital position.

16:49 EDT CenturyLink adopts plan designed to protect NOLs - CenturyLink announced that its Board of Directors has adopted a Section 382 Rights Agreement. The NOL Rights Plan is designed to protect CenturyLink's net operating loss carryforwards available under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code. At Dec. 31, 2018, CenturyLink had $7.3B of NOLs available for use to offset CenturyLink's future federal taxable income. CenturyLink's ability to use its NOLs would be substantially limited if CenturyLink experienced an "ownership change" as defined under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code. In general, an ownership change would occur if CenturyLink's shareholders who are deemed to be owners of 5% or more of its shares under Section 382 collectively increase their aggregate ownership of CenturyLink's shares by more than 50 percent (measured over a three-year period beginning with the completion of the Level 3 transaction on Nov. 1, 2017). To protect CenturyLink's NOLs from being limited or permanently lost under Section 382, the NOL Rights Plan seeks to deter trading that would result in an ownership change and to protect CenturyLink's ability to use its NOLs in the future, in order to prevent the reduction in stockholder value that would result from any loss of the NOLs. The NOL Rights Plan has not been adopted as an anti-takeover measure. Under the NOL Rights Plan, one right will be distributed for each share of CenturyLink's common stock outstanding as of the close of business on Feb. 25, 2019, and will trade with the common stock until the rights expire or detach as noted below. The distribution of the rights is not taxable to shareholders, and shareholders are not required to take any action to receive the rights. The NOL Rights Plan will have a limited term and the rights will expire upon the earliest of (1) Dec. 1, 2020; (2) the first anniversary of adoption of the NOL Rights Plan if shareholder approval is not obtained by that date; (3) the determination by CenturyLink's independent directors that the NOLs have been fully utilized or that an ownership change under IRC Section 382 would not materially adversely affect CenturyLink's ability to use the NOLs in certain specified manners; or (4) certain other events described in the NOL Rights Plan, including if the CenturyLink's independent directors determine that expiration of the plan is in the company's best interest. If at any time after the Board's adoption of the NOL Rights Plan a person or group obtains beneficial ownership of 4.9% or more of CenturyLink's common stock outstanding at the time of such acquisition, or an existing holder with greater than 4.9% ownership acquires additional shares representing at least an additional 0.5% of CenturyLink's common stock outstanding at the time of such acquisition, there would be a triggering event causing significant dilution in the economic and voting interests of that person or group. CenturyLink's independent directors have the discretion to exempt any person or group for purposes of the NOL Rights Plan if they determine the acquisition by that person or group will not jeopardize tax benefits or is otherwise in the company's best interests.

16:46 EDT EyePoint secures $60M debt facility to retire existing debt, support launches - EyePoint Pharmaceuticals announced that it has entered into a $60M debt facility with CR Group to retire existing debt and provide additional working capital to support the recent launch of YUTIQTM and the anticipated launch of DEXYCUTM expected later in the first quarter of 2019. The new facility consists of an initial draw of $35M, of which approximately $23M will repay principal, prepayment fees and other costs associated with the secured term loan obtained from SWK Funding LLC in connection with the acquisition of Icon Biosciences. The remaining net proceeds will provide additional working capital to support EyePoint's two product launches and general operations. EyePoint also has the option, at its sole discretion, to borrow an additional $15M prior to June 30, 2019. An additional $10M will be available on or before March 31, 2020 should the Company achieve certain sales milestones from its two commercial products, YUTIQ and DEXYCU. Throughout the facility's five-year term, the Company is required to make interest-only payments.

16:42 EDT Alliant Energy CEO Patricia Kampling to retire, John Larsen to succeed - Alliant Energy Chairman and CEO Patricia L. Kampling announced her intent to retire from the company effective July 1. Kampling has been with Alliant Energy since 2005 and has served as Chairman and CEO since 2012. The Board of Directors appointed Alliant Energy President and COO John Larsen to succeed Kampling. Larsen was also appointed as a member of the Board of Directors effective February 13. Larsen will become CEO, President and Chairman of the Board of Alliant Energy, effective July 1.

16:37 EDT Laredo Petroleum sees Q1 total production 74 Mboepd - Sees Q1 oil production 27.5 Mboepd.

16:35 EDT Marathon Oil sees total 2019 capital budget of $2.6B, down from 2018 - Total capital budget includes approx. $2.4B of development capital and approx. $200M of resource play leasing and exploration spend. Organic free cash flow positive above approx. $45/bbl WTI, post-dividend .Designed to generate meaningful organic free cash flow at $50/bbl WTI, post-dividend.

16:33 EDT Fidelity National increases quarterly dividend 3% to 31c per share - Fidelity National has declared an increased quarterly cash dividend of 31c per share, a 3% increase from the previous quarterly cash dividend of 30c. The dividend will be payable March 29 to stockholders of record as of March 15.

16:31 EDT Fossil tanks over 17% after quarterly report, guidance - Shares of Fossil are falling 17.37% or $2.74 per share in after-hours trading to $13.03 per share.

16:30 EDT EnPro raises quarterly dividend to 25c per share from 24c - The dividend is payable March 20, 2019 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on March 6, 2019.

16:28 EDT Hyatt says on track to sell $1.5B of real estate by end of 2020 - Hyatt said it remains on track to successfully execute plans to sell approximately $1.5B of real estate by the end of 2020 as part of its capital strategy. To date, the company has sold approximately $1.1B of real estate under the program.

16:27 EDT Sierra Wireless trading halted, news pending

16:26 EDT CenturyLink sees FY19 free cash flow $3.1B-$3.4B - Sees FY19 CapEx $3.5B-$3.8B; effective tax rate ~25%.

16:25 EDT CenturyLink sees FY19 adjusted EBITDA $9B-$9.2B

16:23 EDT Pioneer Natural raises semiannual divided to 32c per share from 16c - Pioneer Natural announced that its board of directors approved an increase in the company's semiannual cash dividend from 16c per share to 32c per share on Pioneer's outstanding common stock. The dividend is payable April 12, 2019, to stockholders of record at the close of business on March 29, 2019.

16:22 EDT Pioneer Natural sees FY19 Permian capital budget $2.8B-$3.1B - The company expects its 2019 Permian drilling, completions and facilities capital budget to range between $2.8 billion to $3.1 billion and be fully funded within expected operating cash flow, based on current commodity prices. Including capital of $300 million related to Pioneer's unique Permian investments in gas processing facilities and water infrastructure, the total capital program4 is expected to range between $3.1 billion to $3.4 billion. The Company plans to operate an average of 21 to 23 horizontal rigs in the Permian Basin during 2019, including approximately five rigs in the southern joint venture area. This program is expected to place 265 to 290 wells on production, compared to 270 wells placed on production during 2018. The average lateral length planned for 2019 is approximately 9,800 feet, with an average estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) of approximately 1.6 MMBOE per well. This activity level is projected to deliver 2019 Permian production of 320 to 335 MBOEPD and 203 to 213 MBOPD, representing approximately 12% to 17% growth over 2018 production levels. The Company expects 2019 forecasted operational cash flow of $3.2 billion5, based on current commodity prices.

16:21 EDT Pioneer Natural sees Q1 Permian production 302-317 MBOEPD - First quarter 2019 Permian production is forecasted to average between 302 to 317 MBOEPD and 194 to 204 MBOPD, while Eagle Ford/South Texas production is forecasted to average between 13.0 to 14.5 MBOEPD and 2.8 to 3.8 MBOPD. Permian production costs are expected to average $8.50 per BOE to $10.50 per BOE. Permian DD&A expense is expected to average $13.00 per BOE to $15.00 per BOE. Total exploration and abandonment expense for the Company is forecasted to be $20 million to $30 million. General and administrative expense is expected to be $95 million to $100 million. Interest expense is expected to be $28 million to $33 million. Other expense is forecasted to be $45 million to $55 million and is expected to include $35 million to $45 million of charges associated with excess firm gathering and transportation commitments. Accretion of discount on asset retirement obligations is expected to be $3 million to $6 million. The Company's effective income tax rate is expected to range from 21% to 25%. Current income taxes are expected to be less than $5 million.

16:19 EDT Trinseo reports Q4 adjusted EBITDA $65M vs. $169M last year

16:18 EDT CenturyLink to reduce annual dividend to $1.00 from $2.16 - After extensive review, the Board of Directors plans to reduce the company's annual dividend to $1.00 from $2.16, beginning with the Board's next dividend declaration. Under this revised capital allocation policy, the company plans to reduce the net leverage target to a range of 2.75x to 3.25x in a specified timeframe of approximately three years and continue to fund its growth and transformation initiatives. The company expects to return more than $1B annually to shareholders through the $1.00 annual dividend.

16:15 EDT Brightcove to acquire Ooyala's online video platform business - Brightcove Inc. announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the online video platform business of Ooyala, a provider of cloud video technology. Brightcove is acquiring Ooyala's OVP technology, including video content management and publishing platform Backlot, Analytics, Live, and its underlying IP and associated patents. As part of the transaction, Brightcove will acquire substantial portions of Ooyala's engineering, support, and sales staff, including the company's Guadalajara, Mexico operations. Brightcove intends to take on all customer, reseller, and partner relationships utilized by Ooyala's OVP business globally. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2019.

16:12 EDT Williams, Targa announce natgas liquids pacts, NGL pipeline projects - Williams (WMB) and Targa Resources Corp. (TRGP) announced new natural gas liquids agreements and NGL pipeline projects that will link the Conway, Kansas, and Mont Belvieu, Texas, NGL markets. Williams will build a 188-mile NGL pipeline, called the "Bluestem Pipeline," from its fractionator in Conway, Kansas, and the southern terminus of Overland Pass Pipeline to an interconnect with Targa's Grand Prix NGL Pipeline in Kingfisher County, Oklahoma. Targa will construct a 110-mile extension of Grand Prix from southern Oklahoma into the Sooner Trend, Anadarko, Canadian and Kingfisher region of Central Oklahoma where it will connect with Williams' new Bluestem Pipeline. In connection with this project, Williams has committed to Targa significant volumes which Targa will transport on Grand Prix and fractionate at Targa's Mont Belvieu facilities. Williams will also have an initial option to purchase a 20 percent equity interest in one of Targa's recently announced new fractionation trains 7 or 8 in Mont Belvieu. Targa's Grand Prix extension will have an initial capacity of approximately 120,000 barrels per day and is expected to cost approximately $200M. Targa and Williams are targeting an in-service date of first-quarter 2021 for both the Grand Prix extension and the new Bluestem Pipeline, respectively. As part of the project, Williams also plans to expand the DJ Lateral of the Overland Pass Pipeline and make improvements at its Conway NGL Storage facility. Williams expects its investment in these NGL logistics projects to be $350M to $400M.

16:11 EDT Cisco CEO says 'very pleased' with 'strong performance' in Q2 - "We are very pleased with our strong performance in the quarter. Our teams are executing incredibly well, aggressively transitioning to a software model and accelerating our pace of innovation. We are redefining and connecting every domain of the networking infrastructure to deliver the agility, operational efficiency and security our customers require to embrace multicloud, edge computing and digital transformation," said Chuck Robbins, chairman and CEO of Cisco.

16:09 EDT Yelp reports Q4 adjusted EBITDA $52.9M vs. $41.7M last year

16:08 EDT Cisco adds $15B for stock repurchase, increases dividend 6% - Cisco has declared a quarterly dividend of 35c per common share, a 2c increase or up 6% over the previous quarter's dividend, to be paid on April 24, 2019 to all shareholders of record as of the close of business on April 5, 2019. Cisco's board of directors has also approved a $15B increase to the authorization of the stock repurchase program. There is no fixed termination date for the repurchase program. The remaining authorized amount for stock repurchases including the additional authorization is approximately $24B. "Q2 was a solid quarter with continued momentum across the business delivering revenue growth of 7% and non-GAAP EPS growth of 16%. I'm also very pleased with our revenue from software subscriptions which is now 65% of total software revenue. Our increased dividend and share repurchase authorization show confidence in the strength of our ongoing cash flows and reinforce our commitment to returning capital to our shareholders," said Kelly Kramer, CFO of Cisco.

16:07 EDT Yelp authorizes additional $250M stock buyback

16:04 EDT NetApp CEO believes company can drive long term growth - CEO George Kurian said: "Although I am disappointed that revenue came in at the low-end of our guidance range, we continue to demonstrate discipline in how we manage the business. We are playing into the big market transitions from a position of strength and are focused on execution to maximize our opportunity in an uncertain macroeconomic environment. Our flash, hybrid cloud infrastructure, and AI solutions are serving as pillars of customers' new architectures and we are seeing adoption of our cloud offerings as part of our customers' foundation for moving applications and data to the cloud. We have conviction in our strategy to drive long-term growth."

16:02 EDT Alaska Air reports combined January traffic up 2.5% - On a combined basis for all operations, Air Group reported a 2.5% increase in traffic on a 0.9% increase in capacity compared to January 2018. Load factor increased 1.3 points to 77.1%.

15:38 EDT Texas Instruments CFO surprised by visibility of peers' guidance - During the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet conference, Texas Instruments CFO Rafael Lizardi said, in response to a question about some peers guiding Q2 up sequentially and asking for comments about Texas Instruments' bookings, "So we didn't comment on that. And we don't comment on the current quarter, we just talk to the quarter that ended and that's been our practice, and it continues to be. We of course provided a range and a midpoint for the subsequent quarter. The information we get from our customers is relatively short term. We have 65% of our revenues on consignment. So we get pretty good visibility at one point ahead on our supplying chain. But beyond that no one has that level of visibility. So it is surprising to hear some of our competitors are making those things up. I think the key point that I mentioned earlier and they build on is that we prefer whatever - we prefer to handle whatever comes to us. So we have lowered our operating plan so that we could handle if things get worse, if they get better they stay the same."

15:30 EDT Goldman Sachs CEO says 'very appropriately reserved' for 1MDB - Solomon says he has been "very, very clear that he is outraged" about the 1MDB scandal, as "are all parties as Goldman Sachs." Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon is speaking in an interview on CNBC.

14:43 EDT Oshkosh CEO Jones sells 16,000 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Oshkosh president and CEO Wilson R. Jones disclosed the sale of 16,000 common shares of the company at a price of $79.04 per share.

14:23 EDT State Street reports 5.3% passive stake in AK Steel - In a regulatory filing, State Street (STT) disclosed a 5.3% stake in AK Steel (AKS), which represents nearly 1.7M shares. The filing does not allow for activism.

13:45 EDT Trio Tech International trading resumes

13:18 EDT SEC confirms insider trading charges against former Apple senior attorney - The Securities and Exchange Commission confirmed that it filed insider trading charges against a former senior attorney at Apple whose duties included executing the company's insider trading compliance efforts. The SEC's complaint alleges that Gene Daniel Levoff, an attorney who previously served as Apple's global head of corporate law and corporate secretary, received confidential information about Apple's quarterly earnings announcements in his role on a committee of senior executives who reviewed the company's draft earnings materials prior to their public dissemination. Using this confidential information, Levoff traded Apple securities ahead of three quarterly earnings announcements in 2015 and 2016 and made approximately $382,000 in combined profits and losses avoided. The SEC's complaint, filed in federal district court in Newark, New Jersey, charges Levoff with fraud and is seeking the return of his ill-gotten trading profits plus interest, penalties, a permanent injunction, and an officer-and-director bar.

13:11 EDT Google will spend $13B on U.S. real state in 2019, expand several key locations - In a blog post, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that the company is building new offices and data centers, and planning to expand several key locations. "Today we're announcing over $13B in investments throughout 2019 in data centers and offices across the U.S., with major expansions in 14 states. These new investments will give us the capacity to hire tens of thousands of employees, and enable the creation of more than 10,000 new construction jobs in Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, Texas, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Virginia. With this new investment, Google will now have a home in 24 total states, including data centers in 13 communities. 2019 marks the second year in a row we'll be growing faster outside of the Bay Area than in it. Our new data center investments, in particular, will enhance our ability to provide the fastest and most reliable services for all our users and customers. As part of our commitment to our 100% renewable energy purchasing, we're also making significant renewable energy investments in the U.S. as we grow. Our data centers make a significant economic contribution to local communities, as do the associated $5B in energy investments that our energy purchasing supports," Pichai said. Reference Link

13:01 EDT Imerys Talc America, related companies file voluntary Chapter 11 petitions - Imerys Talc America, along with Imerys Talc Vermont and Imerys Talc Canada, announced that they have made a determination to initiate voluntary Chapter 11 cases in Delaware. The filing companies have reached this decision "after evaluating a range of strategies to safeguard their long-term business interests and address their historic talc-related liabilities in the United States," they stated. The Chapter 11 filing immediately suspends all outstanding U.S. talc-related litigation against the filing companies, according to Imerys Talc America, which said it is expected that normal operating cash flow will be sufficient to satisfy all of the filing entities' operating obligations during this period. The filing companies will continue to work towards an efficient resolution and expect to emerge in the first half of 2020. "This is an important, meaningful, strategic step for our business. After carefully evaluating all possible options, we determined that pursuing Chapter 11 protection is the best course of action to address our historic talc-related liabilities and position the filing companies for continued growth. The safety of talc has been confirmed by dozens of peer-reviewed studies, as well as regulatory and scientific bodies, and the litigation is entirely without merit. However, it is simply not in the best interests of our stakeholders to litigate these claims in perpetuity and incur millions of dollars in projected legal costs to defend these cases. By deciding to file for Chapter 11 protection, we have laid the groundwork to efficiently resolve our historic talc-related liabilities and focus on our continued success in the industry," said Giorgio La Motta, President, Imerys Talc America, Imerys Talc Vermont, and Imerys Talc Canada. The Fly notes that Johnson & Johnson CEO Alex Gorsky previously said in a video message posted on J&J's website in December of 2018 that "Since tests for asbestos in talc were first developed, J&J's Baby Powder has never contained asbestos." He added that regulators "have always found our talc to be asbestos-free." He said J&J has fully cooperated with U.S. FDA, global authorities over decades. He added that "We stand behind our products." Reference Link

12:21 EDT Occidental Petroleum says focused on pursuing cash flow growth - Says intends to complete share repurchase program in 2019. Says international opportunities. Says expects spending to be higher in 1H of the year. Says 2019 capital program is dominated by short-cycle investments. Says remains on track to achieve the low-end of the 2022 cash flow range of $9B-$9.5B. Says will pursue high-return investment opportunities in 2019. Says balance sheet remains "strong" and company has "ample" liquidity. Comments taken from Q4 earnings conference call.

12:05 EDT Taronis Technologies January 2019 preliminary sales up 468% year-over-year - Taronis Technologies announced its preliminary January sales figures. Total sales generated were $1.42M, which represents a 468% increase as compared to January 2018 sales of $0.25M. On a proforma basis, including the recent East Texas acquisition for the full month, January sales would have increased by 600% as compared to January 2018, to $1.75 million. The year-over-year increase was primarily attributable to the Company's expansion into the California, Texas and Louisiana markets through seven acquisitions completed over the past year. Scott Mahoney, CEO of Taronis, said, "We are successfully executing on our growth strategy." Mahoney continued, "We have increased our annualized revenues by over 700% in just over a year while also increasing our client base by over 1,000% to more than 30,000 active customers. We are now rapidly executing on our goal to become a top five player in the two best industrial gas markets in the US." Mr. Mahoney also addressed recent capital markets activities, commenting, "With our recent capital raise completed, we are now well funded for the foreseeable future, and are laser focused on organic growth of our existing operations. While we realize our recent financings have put significant pressure on the stock, we believe our current strategy and improved balance sheet will enable us to drive significant shareholder value going forward."

12:00 EDT Aquantia falls -22.8% - Aquantia is down -22.8%, or -$2.26 to $7.65.

12:00 EDT Avalara rises 16.4% - Avalara is up 16.4%, or $7.18 to $50.96.

12:00 EDT Diebold rises 34.4% - Diebold is up 34.4%, or $1.79 to $7.01.

11:49 EDT Cerner slides after long-term guidance issued at investor day - Shares of Cerner are lower in late morning trading after the company offered long-term revenue growth guidance as part of its Investment Community Meeting at HIMSS Orlando. Cerner said in slides related to the event that it is targeting 6-9% 5-year CAGR from 2018-2023, noting that it is targeting about $600M from Strategic Growth by 2023 to achieve its 7.5% midpoint. In the slides, Cerner stated that the "federal opportunity is visible, but execution is critical and some risks are beyond our control." Additionally, the company said its "Population Health assumptions [have been] modified compared to prior years to reflect slower shift to risk assumption by providers." The slides also state that the company believes "margins have stabilized, and we are focused on returning Adjusted Operating Margin to over 20% and driving earnings growth greater than revenue growth, [but the] timing and amount of margin expansion may fluctuate based on several factors." Cerner also stated that it expects "strong cash flow growth after 2019, which includes campus related capex increase." Approaching noon, Cerner shares have slid $2.64, or 4.5% to $56.18.

11:34 EDT Cigna, Sentara Healthcare expand blockchain-based ecosystem for healthcare - IBM (IBM) announced that Cigna (CI) and Sentara Healthcare have joined a new health utility network using blockchain. The aim of the network is to convene a broad ecosystem of healthcare organizations in a highly secure, shared environment with the goal of enabling organizations to build, share and deploy solutions using blockchain that drive digital transformation in the industry. The network also includes Aetna, Anthem, Health Care Service Corporation, and PNC Bank. Together they are exploring ways that blockchain can be used to address a range of industry challenges, including promoting efficient claims and payment processing, enabling secure and frictionless healthcare information exchanges, and ways to maintain current and accurate provider directories.

11:07 EDT Saudi's Public Investment Fund held 8.3M Tesla shares at year-end - Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, where His Excellency Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan serves as Managing Director, disclosed owning 8,277,080 shares of Tesla as of December 31, 2018 in a regulatory filing. Tesla is the sole holding in the Fund's quarterly filing with the SEC. The Financial Times, on January 28, reported that Saudi Arabia reduced its exposure to Tesla through hedges. Shares of Tesla are down 1%, or $4.08, to $307.73 in late morning trading.

11:01 EDT IBM, Banco Santander announce five-year $700M global technology agreement - IBM (IBM) and Banco Santander (SAN) announced a five-year global technology agreement valued at approximately $700M to enable Santander Group to accelerate and deepen its business transformation. The agreement will "significantly enable Santander Group to evolve towards the open, flexible and modern IT environment it requires to materialize the pivotal role that technology and digital capabilities play in its business strategy. Together with that modernization journey, essential to provide new efficiencies to the bank's operations, the agreement will also boost Santander's capability to deliver innovative services to its customers."

10:37 EDT Morgan Stanley reports 5.6% stake in Twitter - In a regulatory filing, Morgan Stanley (MS) disclosed it holds a 5.6% stake, or 43,306,428 shares, in Twitter as of December 31, 2018.

10:25 EDT Hilton jumps 6% to $78.86 as conference call moves to Q&A

10:24 EDT Hilton CEO says adjusting FY19 RevPAR view on macro forecasts - Says expects similar to modestly slower trends in FY19 vs. FY18. Says macro indicators continue to support "generally favorable fundamentals." Says group trends "solid," with 2019 bookings up in the mid-single digits. Sees RevPAR growth, net unit growth driving significant free cash flow generation in 2019. Sees positive momentum continuing with recent launches of Motto, LXR. Sees returning $1.3B-$1.8B to shareholders via buybacks, dividends in 2019. Comments taken from the Q4 earnings conference call.

10:01 EDT National Instruments names Carla Pineyro Sublett as Chief Marketing Officer - National Instruments announced marketing veteran, Carla Pineyro Sublett, has joined the company as its first chief marketing officer. Pineyro Sublett brings two decades of technology leadership to NI. Most recently, she served as the CMO at Rackspace. Previously, she was in executive leadership roles in sales and marketing at Dell.

10:00 EDT Aquantia falls -25.4% - Aquantia is down -25.4%, or -$2.52 to $7.39.

10:00 EDT Unisys rises 14.3% - Unisys is up 14.3%, or $1.80 to $14.41.

10:00 EDT Global Indemnity trading resumes

09:55 EDT Global Indemnity trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:47 EDT McDermott falls -19.9% - McDermott is down -19.9%, or -$1.85 to $7.45.

09:47 EDT Avalara rises 8.5% - Avalara is up 8.5%, or $3.72 to $47.50.

09:47 EDT Diebold rises 43.7% - Diebold is up 43.7%, or $2.28 to $7.50.

09:28 EDT Perrigo reaches settlement on patent ligitation case for generic Jublia solution - Perrigo (PRGO) has settled its Hatch-Waxman litigation relating to its first-to-file Abbreviated New Drug Application for the generic equivalent to Jublia Topical Solution 10% brought by Bausch Health's (BHC) Valeant Pharmaceuticals North America LLC, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Ireland LTD., and Dow Pharmaceuticals Sciences, and Kaken Pharmaceuticals. Terms of the settlement are confidential.

09:18 EDT KEYW awarded $34M contract modification for radio frequency processing - KEYW announced a multi-year, prime contract extension with a national security customer to provide software development, systems engineering and integration support for automated and assisted radio frequency processing, analysis and reporting. The contract modification has a total ceiling value of more than $34M.

09:16 EDT Terreno Realty acquires property in Queens, NY for $24M - Terreno Realty acquired an industrial property located in Maspeth Queens, New York on February 12 for a purchase price of approximately $24M. The property consists of one industrial transshipment building containing approximately 18,000 square feet on approximately 2.0 acres adjacent to the intersection of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and the Long Island Expressway. The property is at 56-85 49th Street, provides 36 dock-high loading positions, parking for 22 trailers and is 100% leased to one tenant on a short-term basis. The estimated stabilized cap rate of the property is 5.3%.

09:06 EDT Comtech receives $1.8M delivery order for satellite Earth station equipment - Comtech Telecommunications announced that during Q2, its Tempe, Arizona-based subsidiary, Comtech EF Data, which is part of Comtech's Commercial Solutions segment, received a delivery order in support of the recently awarded contract from the U.S. Naval Warfare Systems Command. This latest delivery order, against the $59M indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract, is for $1.8M. The delivery order specified Comtech EF Data's SLM-5650B Satellite Modems and firmware upgrades. The SLM-5650B Satellite Modem is Comtech EF Data's latest generation modem product targeted for critical government and military applications. The SLM-5650B leverages the heritage and feature set of the SLM-5650A modem. The SLM-5650B supports backwards compatibility/inter-operability for existing SLM-5650A networks while providing enhanced performance and an expanded feature set. The commercially available modems will support satellite communications and interoperability across the Navy's platforms and shore sites.

09:06 EDT Boeing, Safran announce new APU joint venture name: Initium Aerospace - Boeing and Safran announce the name of their 50-50 joint venture to design, build and service Auxiliary Power Units: Initium Aerospace. The creation of Initium Aerospace follows the regulatory and antitrust approvals the joint venture received last November, after an agreement was reached in June.

09:04 EDT Xcel Brands acquires Halston, Halston Heritage trademarks - Xcel Brands announced the acquisition of the Halston and Halston Heritage trademarks. This transaction consolidates ownership of the Halston trademarks under Xcel; the company previously acquired the H by Halston and H Halston trademarks in December of 2014. Xcel has entered into a licensing agreement with Groupe JS International to produce and distribute sportswear and dresses under the Halston label and dresses under the Halston Heritage label, which is currently distributed in premium retailers including Neiman Marcus, Saks, and Bloomingdale's. Xcel will continue to distribute H by Halston and H Halston through interactive TV and better retailers, respectively.

09:03 EDT Johnson & Johnson to acquire Auris Health for about $3.4B in cash

08:49 EDT Teva says in discussions to rework revolving credit facilities

08:47 EDT Marrone Bio receives notice of allowance from USPTO for MBI-110 patent - Marrone Bio has received a notice of allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, for claims covering MBI-110 bacterium as antifungal and growth promotion composition. MBI previously obtained a patent on the cell broth. These additional claims that were allowed include the supernatant and cell fraction. Together, these claims cover nearly all of the potential commercial embodiments.

08:43 EDT State of Nebraska signs new long-term contract with NIC's Nebraska Interactive - The state of Nebraska has signed a new long-term contract with Lincoln-based Nebraska Interactive to continue as the state's provider of digital government innovation. The contract includes an initial five-year term with an option to renewal for an additional two-year period that could extend services through April 2026. Nebraska Interactive is a part of NIC. As with the original contract, Nebraska Interactive will continue to provide services to the state using a sustainable transaction-based funding solution. This model provides for the development, maintenance, security, customer service support, and more to the state typically without the use of appropriated taxpayer budget dollars.

08:40 EDT Teva CEO says 'no plans' to do significant acquisitions 'of any kind'

08:37 EDT McDermott comments on impact of adverse change in Cameron LNG project estimate - McDermott commented on its assessment of the financial position of the Cameron LNG project as of the end of Q4. McDermott's comment follows the release of quarterly financial results by Chiyoda Corp., a member of the joint venture, along with McDermott, working on the project. For Q4, McDermott expects to report an adverse change in estimate of approximately $168M, due to unfavorable labor productivity, and increases in subcontract, commissioning and construction management costs. The change in estimate is expected to impact McDermott's statements of operations for the three months and year ended December 31. McDermott and Chiyoda are executing the project under a 50-50 joint venture arrangement and are fully aligned at the joint-venture level regarding the change in estimate. The Cameron LNG project, currently under construction, is designed to produce nearly 14 million tons per year of liquefied natural gas. Operationally, the project is on track to reach a major milestone with feed gas into the facility later this quarter.

08:35 EDT OSI Systems receives $7M order for CT checked baggage screening systems - OSI Systems announced that its Security division received an order for approximately $7M to provide multiple units of its RTT 110 explosive detection system that will be installed at a European airport for screening passengers' checked baggage.

08:33 EDT Youngevity acquiring all assets of Khrysos Global for $16M - Youngevity has entered into a binding agreement to purchase all the assets of Khrysos Global - a Tampa, Florida based manufacturer of hemp-based CBD extraction equipment. This acquisition is intended to establish YGYI's newly formed wholly-owned subsidiary, Khrysos Industries, in the field-to-finish hemp-CBD oil, isolate, and distillate market, and also would give YGYI ownership of INX Labs and its testing facilities, allowing the company unprecedented capabilities in regards to formulation, quality control, and testing standards with its CBD products. All assets of Khrysos Global are to be acquired by YGYI, including all real property, joint venture agreements, contracts rights, intellectual property, trademarks, copyrights, and service marks in exchange for a total consideration of $16M, of which 1,794,972 shares of common stock and $500K will be paid at closing. In addition, YGYI agreed to issue to the principals of Khrysos contingent consideration warrants to purchase up to 3M shares of Common Stock at an exercise price of $10 per share upon the achievement of certain revenue and net income milestones. The closing of the transactions is scheduled for February 15.

08:31 EDT Teva CFO says plans to meet $3B cost savings target

08:30 EDT Instagram aware of 'issue' with loss of account followers - Facebook's subsidiary Instagram announced in a tweet that it is aware of an issue with accounts losing followers: "We're aware of an issue that is causing a change in account follower numbers for some people right now. We're working to resolve this as quickly as possible." Reference Link

08:18 EDT Teva CEO says focusing on optimizing business, not buying others

08:13 EDT Teva CEO says sees roughly $1B in revenue per quarter for NA generics

08:11 EDT Alipay, Walgreens Boots Alliance announce pact for mobile payment solution - Alipay, operated by Ant Financial Services Group, and Walgreens, announced a collaboration that will bring Alipay's mobile payment platform to thousands of Walgreens locations throughout the U.S. The Alipay collaboration will allow Walgreens to further meet the unique needs of the more than four million Chinese travelers who are in the U.S at any given time. Walgreens will be the largest U.S. drugstore chain to deploy Alipay, providing Alipay users with potential economic savings as credit cards typically have a higher foreign transaction fee.

08:09 EDT Teva CEO says still sees stabilization of U.S. generics industry

08:08 EDT Teva sees FY19 free cash flow $1.6B-$2B - Long-term financial targets include: Operating income margin 27%, cash to earnings greater than 80% and net debt/EBITDA less than 3X. Says committed to utilizing cash to pay down debt. Says does not plan to raise equity. Sees FY19 global copaxone sales about $1.5B, sees continued generic erosion. Sees "significant" ProAir HFA erosion due to introduction of generic Albuterol. Sees continued ramp up of Ajovy sales in the U.S. to about $150M, ramp up of Austedo sales in the U.S. to about $350M. Sees FY19 CapEx at similar level vs. 2018. Sees negative impact from foreign exchange in 2019 of about $0.3B on sales, $0.1B on operating profit vs. 2018. Sees FY19 free cash flow $1.6B-$2B, operating income $3.8B-$4.2B, EBITDA $4.4B-$4.8B. Comments taken from slides being presented on the Q4 earnings conference call.

08:07 EDT EnPro company Fairbanks Morse awarded $13.5M contract from U.S. Navy - Fairbanks Morse, an EnPro Industries company, has been awarded an indefinite delivery/ indefinite quantity contract with the U.S. Navy. The agreement, worth approximately $13.5M, will cover all US Navy ships with Fairbanks Morse engines to enable improved lifecycle support and maximize Fairbanks Morse products in critical Navy applications. The support Fairbanks Morse will provide to the U.S. Navy will include technical and engineering services, logistics, training, and administrative and program management efforts related to diesel engine lifecycles and in-service operations. Fairbanks Morse will provide services, personnel, facilities, expertise, technical information, special tools, supplies and incidental materials necessary to ensure the longevity of the vessels.

08:06 EDT Ametek raises share repurchase authorization by $500M - Ametek announced that its Board of Directors has increased the authorized level for repurchases of its common stock by $500M. This increased authorization will be added to the approximately $1M that currently remains available from an existing authorization approved by the Board of Directors in November 2016.

08:05 EDT Old National Bancorp announces 7M share repurchase program - The board of directors of Old National Bancorp has approved the adoption of a stock repurchase plan that authorizes up to 7M shares of Old National Bancorp stock to be repurchased, as conditions warrant, through January 31, 2020. These shares may be purchased in either the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, in accordance with SEC regulations.

08:04 EDT MasterCard CFO Martina Hund-Mejean set to retire - Mastercard announced that Martina Hund-Mejean, CFO, will retire after more than a decade in the role. Sachin Mehra, chief financial operations officer, will succeed Hund-Mejean as CFO on April 1, reporting to Mastercard president and CEO Ajay Banga. Mehra joined Mastercard in 2010 as group executive and treasurer with responsibility for treasury strategy and operations, global settlement, customer credit risk management and enterprise risk management.

07:56 EDT Nova Measuring trading halted, news pending

07:44 EDT Ebix subsidiary acquires 80% controlling stake in Zillious Solutions - Ebix announced that one of its subsidiaries in India has acquired an 80% controlling stake in India based Zillious Solutions. Zillious is an on-demand SaaS travel technology solution, with market leadership in the corporate travel segment in India. The Zillious Exchange processes over 8M travel bookings annually, which conducting gross merchandise value of approximately $1.4B per annum. Ebix is funding the transaction in cash, using its internal cash reserves. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to Ebix earnings immediately. Ebix intends to keep Zillious as a non-aligned technology platform, that it intends to promote internationally in key markets like the Middle East, U.S. and Asia besides further establishing it as a pure-play on-demand travel technology exchange within India. Towards that extent, Ebix has retained both the promoter founders of Zillious along with all their domain intensive staff, while empowering them to continue to lead Zillious in its mission of non-aligned technology play. Accordingly, the Zillious platform will continued to be offered to the entire travel industry with a glass wall protection for the client base.

07:35 EDT Flir Systems raises quarterly cash dividend 6% to 17c per share - FLIR's Board of Directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of 17c per share on FLIR common stock, an increase of 6% over the previous quarterly dividend of 16c per share. The Board of Directors has declared the dividend payable on March 8, 2019, to shareholders of record as of close of business on February 22, 2019.

07:18 EDT Teva says continues to see 2019 as 'trough' for business

07:15 EDT Youngevity agrees to acquire assets of Khrysos Global - In a regulatory filing, Youngevity disclosed that on February 12, the company and Khrysos Industries, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, entered into an Asset and Equity Purchase Agreement with Khrysos Global, Inc., a Florida corporation, Leigh Dundore and Dwayne Dundore for KII to acquire substantially all the assets of KGI and all the outstanding equity of INXL Laboratories and INX Holdings. The sellers, INXL and INXH are engaged in the CBD hemp extraction technology equipment business and develop and sell equipment and related services to clients which enable them to extract CBD oils from hemp stock. The consideration payable for the assets and the equity of INXL and INXH is an aggregate of $16M, to be paid as an aggregate of 1,794,972 shares of the company's common stock, which shall have a deemed value of $14M for the purposes of the AEPA, and cash.

07:12 EDT Pareteum completes acquisition of iPass - Pareteum (TEUM) announced that it has accepted for exchange all shares of iPass (IPAS), validly tendered in the previously announced tender offer by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pareteum to acquire all of the outstanding shares of iPass for the agreed consideration of 1.17 shares of Pareteum stock for each share of iPass. The shares accepted represent approximately 66.78% of iPass's outstanding shares of common stock. The tender offer expired at 5:00 pm, New York City time, on February 12. Pareteum acquired the remaining outstanding shares of iPass's common stock through a merger of a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pareteum with and into iPass immediately following expiration of the tender offer and acceptance of the iPass shares on February 12.

07:11 EDT AllianceBernstein reports January AUM up 4.3% sequentially to $538B - AllianceBernstein reported that preliminary assets under management increased to $538B during January 2019 from $516B at the end of December. The 4.3% increase was due to market appreciation, partially offset by total firmwide net outflows. By channel, net outflows from Institutions exceeded net inflows to Retail and Private Wealth.

07:10 EDT Sinclair Broadcast, Chicago Cubs announce joint venture - Sinclair Broadcast Group and the Chicago Cubs announced the formation of a joint venture that will own and operate Marquee Sports Network, a regional sports network based in Chicago, Illinois. Marquee will be the Chicago-region's exclusive network for fans to view live Cubs games beginning with the 2020 Major League Baseball season and will also feature exclusive Cubs content and other local sports programming. In addition to the execution of the joint venture agreement, the Cubs simultaneously entered into a long-term rights agreement with Marquee.

07:09 EDT Cubic selected to provide Full Motion Video system for Navy helicopters - Cubic's Cubic Mission Solutions business division was awarded a contract from the Naval Air Systems Command to provide a Full Motion Video system for the U.S. Navy's MH-60S Multi-Mission Helicopter Program.

07:06 EDT Barrick Gold sees 2019 production 5.1M-5.6M ounces of gold - Barrick's production guidance for 2019 is between 5.1 and 5.6 million ounces of gold and between 375 and 430 million pounds of copper. During 2019, the reserves and resources of newly-acquired Randgold will be combined with Barrick's on the basis of common calculation criteria, and will be reported on that basis at the end of the year.

07:03 EDT Taylor Morrison sees Q1 home closings about 1,800-1,900

06:58 EDT Natus Medical trading halted, news pending

06:49 EDT Occidental Petroleum sees FY19 total production 715-730 Mboed - Sees FY19 Permian resources production of 278-288 Mboed. Sees FY19 international production of 278-283 Mboed. Sees FY19 Domestic oil & gas production costs approximately $11.00/ boe. Sees FY19 exploration expense approximately $130M. Sees FY19 DD&A oil and gas approximately $13.50/boe. Sees FY19 DD&A chemical and midstream approximately $700M. Sees FY19 chemical segment pre-tax income approximately $925M-$975M. Sees FY19 domestic tax rate 21%. Sees FY19 international tax rate 45%.

06:43 EDT Occidental Petroleum sees Q1 total production 706-713 mboed - Sees Q1 Permian resources production of 256-261 Mboed. Sees Q1 international production of 293-295 Mboed. Sees Q1 exploration expense approximately $40M. Sees Q1 midstream pre-tax income $150M-$200M. Sees Q1 chemical segment pre-tax income approximately $235M. Guidance provided in Q4 earnings presentation slides.

06:34 EDT EQT Corporation reaches tentative settlement with West Virginia landowners - EQT Corporation announced that it has reached a tentative settlement agreement with West Virginia landowners who are part of a statewide class action lawsuit. EQT believes that the proposed settlement agreement, which will resolve lease royalty claims in a case that has been pending since 2013, demonstrates the company's commitment to fostering good relationships with landowners. To resolve the royalty claims for the class period, which spans from 2009 through 2017, EQT has agreed to pay $53.5M into a settlement fund that will be established to disburse payments to class participants. Each class member will have the opportunity to opt out of the settlement. Under the settlement, EQT has agreed to stop taking future post production deductions on leases determined by the Court to not permit deductions. EQT and the class representatives also agreed that future royalty payments will be based on a clearly defined index pricing methodology. Certain class participants may also elect to adopt EQT's standard lease pooling modification in return for a 2% (up to a maximum of 18%) increase in their royalty. The settlement is subject to Court approval and achieving a threshold minimum percentage of participation by the class members. Following the closing of the settlement, the new deduction and pricing methodology is expected to prevent royalty claims related to the leases subject to the settlement.

06:10 EDT Hilton reports Q4 System-wide comparable RevPAR increased 2% - System-wide comparable RevPAR increased 2% and 3%, respectively, for the fourth quarter and full year on a currency neutral basis from the same periods in 2017.

06:07 EDT Hilton CEO says 'we are pleased with our fourth quarter and full year results' - Christopher Nassetta, President & CEO of Hilton, said, "We are pleased with our fourth quarter and full year results, exceeding the high end of our guidance for Adjusted EBITDA and diluted EPS, adjusted for special items, driven in part by better than expected net unit growth, up roughly 7 percent versus the prior year. In particular, we continued to expand our luxury portfolio with several exciting openings and the launch of our luxury collection brand, LXR Hotels & Resorts. We expect continued strength in room growth, combined with RevPAR growth, to provide a good setup for the year ahead."

06:01 EDT Sentinel Energy, Strike Capital agree to mutually terminate plan of merger - Sentinel Energy Services and Strike Capital announced that both parties agreed to mutually terminate their definitive transaction agreement and plan of merger. In response to current market conditions, both sides concluded it was best not to pursue the transaction at this time.

05:53 EDT Clinigen buys U.S. rights to Novartis' cancer drug Proleukin - Clinigen Group has signed an agreement with Novartis to acquire the US rights to Proleukin or up to $210M in cash, consisting of an upfront and deferred payments along with future sales related milestones. Clinigen already owns the rights to Proleukin outside the US, which it acquired in July 2018. Total consideration includes: Initial $120M payable; $60M deferred consideration over the 12 months following completion; A further $30M consideration based on sales milestones. The completion of the acquisition is subject to US anti-trust clearance and is expected to occur in April 2019.

05:40 EDT NPD: Apple the 'clear market leader' in U.S. smartwatch sales - U.S. smartwatch sales experienced strong growth in the 12 months ending November 2018 compared to the same timeframe a year prior, according to The NPD Group's new Smartwatch Total Market Report. Dollar sales of smartwatches in the U.S. were up 51%, totaling nearly $5B in sales, while unit sales saw a 61% increase. "While Apple (AAPL) is the clear market leader, the new Smartwatch Total Market Report reveals that the top three brands -- Apple, Samsung (SSNLF), and Fitbit (FIT) -- made up 88% of smartwatch unit sales during the timeframe. However, traditional watch manufacturers, like Fossil (FOSL), and fitness-focused brands, like Garmin (GRMN), are working to grow their share of the market, as they continue to expand into the smartwatch category." Reference Link

05:36 EDT Twitter confirms users experiencing issues with notifications, likes, retweets - Twitter said last night that "Some people around the world are experiencing an issue with notifications, Likes, and Retweets. We're working on resolving this and will follow up soon. We apologize for the inconvenience." Reference Link