Stockwinners Market Radar for August 21, 2019 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:20 EDT Nutrien gets ACCC approval for Ruralco acquisition - Nutrien obtained the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's approval to proceed with its acquisition of Ruralco Holdings. With regulatory approval received from the ACCC, the transaction now requires approval from the Australian Foreign Investment Review Board. Upon securing the necessary approvals from the FIRB, as well as Ruralco shareholders, the transaction is anticipated to be completed on September 30, 2019.

19:37 EDT Trump tweets California will 'squeeze' automakers to business ruin - In response to automakers' deal with California regulator on miles-per-gallon minimums, President Trump tweeted: "Henry Ford would be very disappointed if he saw his modern-day descendants wanting to build a much more expensive car, that is far less safe and doesn't work as well, because execs don't want to fight California regulators. Car companies should know that when this Administration's alternative is no longer available, California will squeeze them to a point of business ruin. Only reason California is now talking to them is because the Feds are giving a far better alternative, which is much better for consumers!"

19:03 EDT Fly Intel: After Hours Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: Nordstrom (JWN) up 11.6%... Keysight (KEYS) up 7.0%... Synopsys (SNPS) up 2.4%... Pure Storage (PSTG) up 1.7%... Splunk (SPLK) up 0.3%. ALSO HIGHER: Jumia Technologies (JMIA) up 4.6% after being upgraded at RBC... Etsy (ETSY) up 2.5% after being upgraded to Buy at Stifel... Wanda Sports (WSG) up 2.3% after being initiated with a Buy at Loop Capital... Wayfair (W) up 1.7% % after being upgraded to Buy at Stifel. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: Huanzhu Group (HTHT) down 5.2%... L Brands (LB) down 0.3%. ALSO LOWER: Avinger (AVGR) down 19.2% after equity offering. Movers as of 18:45ET.

18:22 EDT Paycom CEO: We are very focused on the employee - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, CEO Chad Richison said: We are transforming the HR/payroll industry... We allow employees to have a direct relationship with the database... We allow HR to remove themselves from the data process... We are in growth mode... The economy has been strong... We are getting a lot referrals from rank and file employees who are familiar with our service.

17:57 EDT Pure Storage CFO Officer Tim Riitters to leave company - CFO Tim Riitters will be departing the company this year after a successful five-year tenure. Riitters will remain on into the Fall as the company undergoes the search for a replacement CFO. Riitters first joined Pure in August 2014, assuming leadership of the company's worldwide financial and accounting operations. In that time, he has helped drive an increase in revenue of nearly 10x, while also helping the company achieve profitability.

17:53 EDT Boeing awarded $145.89M Army contract modification - Boeing was awarded a $145.89M modification to a foreign military sales contract for the remanufacture of 11 aircraft and new build Longbow crew trainer and spares. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Mesa, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of March 29, 2024. FY10 foreign military Sales funds in the amount of $145.89M were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command is the contracting activity.

17:46 EDT Boeing awarded $999M Air Force contract for A-10 wing replacements - Boeing has been awarded a $999M indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for A-10 wing replacements. This contract provides for up to 112 new A-10 wing assemblies and up to 15 wing kits. Work will be performed at multiple subcontractor locations in the U.S. and one subcontractor location in South Korea and is expected to be complete by August 23, 2030. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and two offers were received. FY17, FY18 and FY19 procurement funds in the amount of $239.58M and are being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center is the contracting activity.

17:31 EDT Pinnacle West CEO Don Brandt to retire in November - Pinnacle West announced that after 16 years with the company, Pinnacle West Chairman, President and CEO Don Brandt will retire effective November 15, 2019. The board elected current APS President Jeff Guldner to the board effective immediately, and appointed him chairman of the board, Pinnacle West President and CEO, and APS CEO succeeding Don Brandt in those capacities effective November 15, 2019. Guldner will continue to serve as President of APS.

17:26 EDT McGrath RentCorp CFO Keith Pratt sells over $265K in company shares - McGrath RentCorp CFO Keith Pratt disclosed in a filing that he had sold 3,951 shares of company stock at an average price of $ $67.09 per share between August 19 and August 21. The total transaction value of the sale was $ $265,072.

17:06 EDT Tanger Factory director David Henry buys 10K shares of company stock - Tanger Factory director David Henry disclosed in a filing that he had purchased 10,000 shares of company stock at an average price of $14.41 per share on August 21. The total transaction value of the purchase was $$144,090.

17:02 EDT Fiesta Restaurant names Dirk Montgomery as new CFO - Fiesta Restaurant named Dirk Montgomery as its new CFO, effective September 9, 2019. Mr. Montgomery has over a decade of restaurant industry experience, most recently as Chief Financial Officer of Hooters International.

17:01 EDT U.S. Energy receives Nasdaq notice regarding non-compliance - U.S. Energy Corp. notified the company on August 16, 2019 that it is not in compliance with NASDAQ Listing Rule 5250c1 for continued listing due to the delay in filing its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2019. Previously, NASDAQ had granted the company an exception until September 16, 2019 to file its delinquent Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 and until October 14, 2019 to file its delinquent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the periods ended March 31, 2019 and June 30, 2019, subject to the company submitting to NASDAQ the company's plan to regain compliance with NASDAQ's filing requirements. The notification from NASDAQ notes that U.S. Energy is required to submit to NASDAQ an update to its plan to regain compliance with filing requirements for continued listing no later than September 3, 2019 for the NASDAQ staff to review.

16:57 EDT Micron Solutions announces compliance plan acceptance letter from NYSE American - Micron Solutions announced acceptance of its compliance plan by the NYSE American LLC. On August 16, 2019, the company received a letter from NYSE Regulation American stating that they have reviewed the company's July 12, 2019 compliance plan and supplemental submissions, accepted the plan and granted a plan period through December 12, 2020. As previously announced on June 18, 2019, the company is not in compliance with the NYSE American continued listing standards. The company's listing is being continued pursuant to an extension. In order to maintain its NYSE listing, the company must provide quarterly updates to NYSE Regulation staff concurrent with its interim and annual SEC filings and at other times around plan initiative milestones. If the company is not in compliance with the continued listing standards by December 12, 2020, or if the company does not make progress consistent with the plan during the plan period, NYSE Regulation staff will initiate delisting proceedings as appropriate. The company may appeal a staff delisting determination in accordance with Section 1010 and Part 12 of the NYSE American Company Guide. The company's management intends to fully comply with the supplemental reporting requirements of the Exchange.

16:47 EDT American Financial Group increases annual dividend 12.5% to $1.80 per share - American Financial Group has approved an increase in the company's regular annual dividend from $1.60 to $1.80 per share of common stock. The increased dividend, when declared, will be paid on a quarterly basis of 45c per share of common stock beginning in October 2019. The new dividend rate represents a 12.5% increase over the annual rate paid thus far in 2019.

16:41 EDT Julian Singer discloses 4.9% stake in Support.com, urges strategic alternatives - Julian Singer disclosed a 4.9% stake in Support.com, which represents 929.7K shares of common stock and allows for activism. The filing discloses that "the Reporting Persons have engaged, and plan to continue to engage, with the Issuer's management and board of directors regarding opportunities to unlock shareholder value. The Reporting Persons believe that the Issuer's recent grants of restricted stock units to Board members are excessive and without merit, and raise serious concerns as shares of Common Stock are trading significantly below their share price from one year ago, with the Issuer's enterprise value lower than the cash on its balance sheet. Given the $10 million monetary judgment that the Issuer agreed to pay to the Federal Trade Commission (the "FTC") earlier this year as part of a settlement to resolve the FTC's allegations of deceptive practices, and the loss of a substantial contract that the Issuer has yet to quantify, the Reporting Persons believe that the issuance of free stock is even more concerning. The Reporting Persons have questioned the Issuer's inaction with respect to a cash distribution to shareholders and believe that the Issuer did not provide adequate rationale for failing to do so. The Reporting Persons believe that the Issuer should evaluate potential strategic alternatives to maximize value, such as by exploring a sale process."

16:35 EDT L Brands reports Q2 Stores Only SSS down 4% - Reports Q2 Stores Only SSS for Victoria's Secret down 9% and for Bath & Body Works up 4%.

16:33 EDT BeiGene announces FDA acceptance of zanubrutinib NDA to treat MCL patients - BeiGene announced that the FDA has accepted the company's new drug application, or NDA, for zanubrutinib for the treatment of patients with mantle cell lymphoma, or MCL, who have received at least one prior therapy. The FDA granted priority review for the NDA and has set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA, target action date of February 27, 2020. This follows the FDA's breakthrough therapy designation for zanubrutinib in this setting earlier this year. The NDA data package includes data from the global Phase 1/2 trial in patients with B-cell lymphomas and an aggregate of 123 patients in the multicenter Phase 2 trial of zanubrutinib in patients with relapsed or refractory MCL in China as well as safety data on 641 patients from five clinical trials, and non-clinical data.

16:31 EDT Elastic acquires Perched, terms not disclosed - Elastic announced that it is joining forces with Perched, a training and consulting company focused on security analytics, threat hunting and security operations. The acquisition will give Elastic's users training and consulting services for building advanced cybersecurity solutions using the Elastic Stack, including practitioner-level expertise for deploying, managing, and operating Elastic SIEM and Elastic's proposed acquisition of Endgame. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction was completed in Elastic's fiscal Q2 2020 and is not expected to have a significant impact on Elastic's operating results.

16:28 EDT LPL Financial says assets served at July-end up 1% compared to June-end - LPL Financial released its monthly activity report for July.Total brokerage and advisory assets served at the end of July were approximately $713B, a $7B increase, or 1.0%, compared to the end of June 2019. Total net new assets for July were an inflow of $2.7B. This included $0.5B of outflows related to a hybrid firm that set up its own broker/dealer and departed as discussed during the Company's Q1 2019 earnings call. Prior to these outflows, total net new assets for July were an inflow of $3.2B. Total client cash balances at the end of July were $29.9B, a $0.2B decrease compared to June 2019. Net buying in July was $3.3B.

16:24 EDT MVB Financial boosts quarterly dividend payout 25% over prior quarter payout - MVB Financial has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 5c per share payable on September 15, to shareholders of record at the close of business on September 1. This is the third quarterly dividend for 2019 and includes a 25% increase as compared to the previous quarter dividend payout. "At MVB, we have built a strong foundation allowing us to provide positive impact now and in the future for our shareholders, clients, communities and Teammates as our trusted partners. Our four lines of business - Commercial, Retail, Mortgage and Fintech - are firing on all cylinders. Over the past couple years, we have significantly increased our dividend payout as one more way we can create added value for our shareholders," said Larry F. Mazza, CEO and President, MVB Financial Corp.

16:18 EDT SolarEdge CEO Guy Sella takes leave of absence, Zvi Lando named Acting CEO - SolarEdge's Co-Chairman, CEO and founder, Guy Sella's previously disclosed health condition has declined significantly. In that connection, he has taken a leave of absence, effective immediately, to address his health issues. Zvi Lando,has been appointed to serve as Acting CEO. Lando has been a part of the executive management team since 2009. He has served as EVP Global Sales since joining SolarEdge in 2009. Prior to joining SolarEdge, Lando held several different technology and management positions at Applied Materials, including in his last role, as Vice President and General Manager of Baccini Cell Systems Division in the Applied Materials Solar Business Group.

16:17 EDT Paramount Group announces two acquisitions - Paramount Group announced that it has completed the acquisition of a 44% joint venture interest in 55 Second Street in San Francisco. The property was valued at approximately $402.0M, or $1,039 per square foot. In connection with the acquisition, the existing $137.5M mortgage loan will remain in place and be upsized by an additional $50.0M. The $187.5M mortgage loan is interest-only at a fixed interest rate of 3.88% and matures in October 2026. In an unrelated transaction, the company also announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Market Center, a two-building Class A office complex comprising 753,000 square feet, located in San Francisco's South Financial District. The purchase price is approximately $722.0M, or $959 per square foot. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in Q4. In connection with the transaction, the company expects to bring in a joint venture partner prior to closing.

16:16 EDT Community Bank System raises quarterly dividend by 8% to 41c per share - The dividend will be payable on October 10, 2019 to shareholders of record as of September 16, 2019.

16:11 EDT Helmerich & Payne acquires DrillScan, terms not disclosed - Helmerich & Payne announced its wholly owned subsidiary, Helmerich & Payne Technologies, LLC, has acquired DrillScan, a provider of proprietary drilling engineering software, well engineering services and training for the oil and gas industry. DrillScan will operate as part of H&P Technologies, H&P's dedicated business entity focused on developing advanced technologies and directional drilling automation solutions to help customers achieve greater reliability involving wellbore quality, accuracy and performance. DrillScan brings a team of highly respected industry experts who will contribute to research, development and innovation efforts to advance H&P's digital technology portfolio. DrillScan will maintain its headquarters in France and its other international locations, including the United States. The terms of the DrillScan transaction were not disclosed.

16:10 EDT PerkinElmer announces retirement of CEO Robert Friel; affirms FY19 view - PerkinElmer announced that after 12 years as CEO, Robert F. Friel, has decided to retire as chairman and CEO and member of the board of directors as of the end of the company's FY19. After December 29, Mr. Friel will continue as an advisor to the company until March 1, 2020. Prahlad Singh, president and chief operating officer, has been appointed CEO, effective December 30, 2019. Dr. Singh has also been elected as a director of the company, effective today. In addition, Alexis Michas, currently serving as lead director, has been elected to serve as non-executive chairman of the board of the company as of December 30, 2019. The Company also today reaffirmed its financial guidance provided in its July 29, 2019 press release.

16:09 EDT PriceSmart to build new warehouse club in Colombia - PriceSmart announced that on August 21, it acquired approximately 111,000 square feet of land in Colombia upon which the company plans to construct its 47th warehouse club. This club will be located within the city of Bogota, Colombia. The 170th Street Bogota club is expected to open, approximately, in the fall of 2020.

16:04 EDT Splunk reports Q2 annualized recurring revenue over $300M - "With year-over-year revenue growth of 80% and ARR now over $300 million, the strength of our cloud business is driving a faster transition to a renewable software model," said Jason Child, CFO, Splunk. "By the end of the year, we expect that virtually all new software sales will be cloud or term license-based."

16:02 EDT Splunk to acquire SignalFx for roughly $1.05B - Splunk announced a definitive agreement to acquire SignalFx, a SaaS player in real-time monitoring and metrics for cloud infrastructure, microservices and applications. Under the terms of the agreement, Splunk will acquire SignalFx for a total purchase price of approximately $1.05B, subject to adjustment, to be paid approximately 60% in cash and 40% in Splunk common stock. The acquisition is expected to close in the second half of fiscal 2020, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory reviews. "The strength of our balance sheet allows us to pay the majority of purchase price consideration with cash on hand. Total equity consideration plus initial SignalFx employee retention incentives will result in less than three percent total dilution from this transaction," said Jason Child, chief financial officer, Splunk. "Post-closing, we expect to absorb the acquired operational expenses of SignalFx within our existing plan. At this time, we are reaffirming our full year non-GAAP operating margin target," he continued.

16:00 EDT Simply Good Foods trading halted, news pending

15:39 EDT Trinseo raises prices for latex technologies in North America - Trinseo announced that effective September 16, 2019, the company is increasing the prices of all Styrene Butadiene and Styrene Acrylate products sold into the carpet, paper, and paperboard markets in North America. The increase will be 6c/dry lb. for all indexed and non-indexed customers, as contracts allow. This increase is necessary due to changes in market conditions and to offset rising costs to manufacture and transport our products, and to remain a strong and reliable supplier.

15:36 EDT Vista Outdoor CFO Lopez acquires 10,000 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Vista Outdoor SVP and CFO Miguel A. Lopez disclosed the purchase of 10,000 common shares of the company at a price of $4.81 per share.

14:36 EDT American Electric seeks proposals for several coal types - American Electric Power issued a request for proposal for the supply of coal to one or more of its generating stations in multiple coal regions. AEP seeks proposals for the following coal type and delivery years: Central Appalachian Basin in 1Q20; Powder River Basin in 4Q19, 1Q10, CY21, and CY22; Illinois Basin in CY21 and CY22; and Northern Appalachian Basin in CY20, CY21, and CY22. All coal proposal packages should include the provided coal proposal form included in the RFP. This information must be received no later than 5 p.m., Wednesday, September 4, 2019. Proposals are to be kept open until 5 p.m., Tuesday, September 17, 2019.

14:11 EDT Wyndham Destinations to add 140 jobs in Orlando expansion - Wyndham Destinations announced it would add 140 jobs to its South Orlando call center operations as part of an expansion to support the ongoing growth of its vacation club business. The company is nearly doubling the size of its leased offices at 8403 South Park Circle to 42,000 square feet, expanding into space previously occupied by other hospitality companies. It is investing $4.5M to upgrade office spaces, add new furniture and invest in technology to provide a comfortable, modern workspace for its growing workforce. There are currently 40 marketing executive positions open at the call center, with an additional 100 jobs to be filled during the first quarter of 2020. Construction of the new office space will be completed in April 2020.

14:01 EDT Pfizer says FDA grants XTANDI application priority review - Astellas Pharma and Pfizer announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for review the filing of a supplemental New Drug Application for XTANDI to add an indication for the treatment of men with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer. The application has also been granted Priority Review, a designation given to those applications for drugs that, if approved, may offer significant improvements in the safety or effectiveness of the treatment, diagnosis or prevention of serious conditions when compared to standard applications. XTANDI is currently indicated in the U.S. for the treatment of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer. The submission is based on results from the Phase 3 ARCHES trial presented at the 2019 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in February and published in The Journal of Clinical Oncology in July 2019. The study evaluated the efficacy and safety of XTANDI plus androgen deprivation therapy versus ADT plus placebo in men with mHSPC. The primary endpoint of radiographic progression-free survival was met in the study.

13:16 EDT YouTube Premium users can now listen directly within Waze app - In an earlier blog post, YouTube said, "Drivers, rejoice! Never worry again about switching between YouTube Music (to listen) and Waze (to navigate). Rolling out today, YouTube Premium and Music Premium subscribers can safely listen to their favorite music from directly within the Waze app, where they get their directions. All of the albums, playlists, personalized mixes, and more that fans love to listen to are now available with a couple of quick taps as they navigate to where they need to go. With YouTube Music and Waze together in one experience, there has never been a more entertaining way to get around." Reference Link

12:16 EDT Internet Gold announces receipt of Nasdaq non-compliance notice - Internet Gold announced that on August 19 it received a notice from the Listing Qualifications Department of Nasdaq advising the company that it was not in compliance with a listing rule requiring companies on The Nasdaq Global Select Market to maintain a minimum of 750,000 publicly held shares. The company said it has a 45 days period, until October 3, 2019, to submit a plan to regain compliance. If the plan is accepted, the company may be granted an extension of up to 180 calendar days to regain compliance with this particular rule, the company noted.

12:14 EDT Tel Aviv court approves s petition to approve arrangement on Searchlight pact - Earlier on Wednesday, Internet Gold - Golden Lines announces that Tel Aviv-Jaffa District Court has approved the company's petition to approve the arrangement regarding the Searchlight Transaction pursuant to section 350 of the Israeli Companies Law. The Petition was submitted to the Tel Aviv-Jaffa District Court on August 8 following the unanimous approval of the Arrangement by the meeting of the company's creditors held on July 30 and the approval by the meeting of the company's shareholders held on August 8. The meetings were convened in accordance with the Israeli court's decision, as previously announced by the company.

12:00 EDT Cheetah Mobile falls -8.4% - Cheetah Mobile is down -8.4%, or -38c to $4.13.

12:00 EDT MSG Networks falls -12.8% - MSG Networks is down -12.8%, or -$2.15 to $14.70.

12:00 EDT Centrais Electricas rises 14.3% - Centrais Electricas is up 14.3%, or $1.41 to $11.24.

11:54 EDT Jumia CEO says review started 'completely independently' of Citron allegations - Jumia Technologies CEO Sacha Poignonnec is being interviewed on CNBC. Jumia Technologies disclosed earlier that it received information alleging that some of its independent sales consultants, members of its JForce program in Nigeria, may have engaged in improper sales practices. In response, the company launched a review of sales practices covering all countries of operation and data from January 1, 2017 to June 30. In the course of this review, the company identified several JForce agents and sellers who collaborated with employees in order to benefit from differences between commissions charged to sellers and higher commissions paid to JForce agents. Jumia said it terminated the employees and JForce agents involved, removed the sellers implicated and implemented measures designed to prevent similar instances in the future. "The review of this matter is closed. More recently, the company also identified instances where improper orders were placed, including through the JForce program, and subsequently cancelled," the company noted earlier this morning.

11:24 EDT Toll Brothers says demand in August 'off to a good start'

11:07 EDT Toll Brothers says decreased incentives slightly in Q3 vs. Q2 - Comments taken from Q3 earnings conference call.

11:01 EDT Ball Corp. to sell tinplate steel aerosol packaging facilities in Argentina - Ball Corporation announced an agreement to sell its tinplate steel aerosol packaging facilities in Garin and San Luis, Argentina, to Envases del Plata S.A., an Argentinian metal packaging company. The transaction is expected to close later this year and we expect the business will continue to be operated consistent with its successful long-term performance. Financial terms have not been disclosed. Post-close, Ball said in a statement that it will continue to serve the growing demand for sustainable aluminum aerosol containers and aluminum slugs around the world from its eight facilities located in Canada, Czech Republic, France, India, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United States. Ball's global aluminum aerosol business will continue to be led by Stan Platek, vice president and general manager.

10:03 EDT Pfizer announces additional half billion dollar investment for Sanford facility - Pfizer announced an additional half billion dollar investment for the construction of its state-of-the-art gene therapy manufacturing facility in Sanford, North Carolina. This facility is anticipated to support Pfizer's continuing investment in gene therapy research and development, similar to Pfizer's Chapel Hill and Kit Creek, North Carolina research and development sites. This facility would expand the company's presence in North Carolina, where there are currently more than 3,600 Pfizer colleagues, including 650 in Sanford. The expanded facility is projected to add approximately 300 new jobs. In addition to its gene therapy operations, colleagues at Pfizer's Sanford facility also manufacture components for the company's vaccine portfolio, including Prevnar 13 and several vaccines currently in Pfizer's research pipeline. "This investment will further strengthen Pfizer's leadership in gene therapy manufacturing technology," said Mike McDermott, President, Pfizer Global Supply. "The expansion of the Sanford site is expected to create hundreds of highly skilled jobs, which would increase Sanford's high-tech manufacturing environment and is part of our overall plan to invest approximately $5B in U.S.-based capital projects over the next several years."

10:00 EDT Lowe's says seeing increased Pro customer service scores - Says: Has laundry list of improvements on tap to serve the Pro customer... Plans to repurchase $4B of shares in 2019... Underlying macro-economic picture in U.S. remains positive... Still in early days of company transformation... Will be more event-based, targeted with promotions... Does not expect much movement in inventory levels this year.

09:47 EDT MSG Networks falls -6.8% - MSG Networks is down -6.8%, or -$1.14 to $15.71.

09:47 EDT GSX Techedu rises 6.9% - GSX Techedu is up 6.9%, or $1.01 to $15.66.

09:47 EDT Target rises 15.2% - Target is up 15.2%, or $13.04 to $98.57.

09:33 EDT PAVmed announces issuance of U.S. patent - PAVmed announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued U.S. Patent 10,335,189 which covers the technology underlying PAVmed's CarpX minimally invasive device developed to treat carpal tunnel syndrome. The patent, assigned to PAVmed at its founding, lists Lishan Aklog, M.D., PAVmed's Chairman & CEO, and Brian J. deGuzman, M.D., its Chief Medical Officer, as inventors. Aklog stated: "We believe this patent creates significant barriers to entry for current and future competitors in the minimally invasive and percutaneous carpal tunnel release space, and will provide us with the commercial freedom to operate as we pursue the billion-dollar U.S. market opportunity that CarpX represents. It anchors PAVmed's robust and expanding intellectual property portfolio, which includes over 75 patents and patent applications across 10 families."

09:27 EDT Perspecta awarded $1M DARPA to provide AI compact hardware research - Perspecta's applied research arm, Perspecta Labs, was awarded a prime contract from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency - DARPA - to provide Photonic Edge AI Compact Hardware research under DARPA's Artificial Intelligence Exploration program. The contract, which represents new work for the company, has a total value of $1M and work will be performed over 18 months. The goal of the PEACH program is to research and develop novel AI processing architectures in combination with innovative photonic hardware to enable breakthrough AI functionality with significant reduction in hardware complexity, latency and power consumption. The Perspecta Labs solution is aimed at high-accuracy and real-time machine learning from radio frequency data to provide major advances in AI capability for tactical DoD systems.

09:16 EDT Lowe's says average ticket grew 2% in Q2 - Says: Pro sales significantly outpaced DIY in Q2... Taking aggressive steps to improve technology platform... Expects sequential gross margin improvement in Q3, Q4... Plans to deploy new price management system by end of year. Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

09:10 EDT Amazon expands Portland Tech Hub, plans to create 400 new tech jobs - Amazon announced an expansion of its Portland Tech Hub and plans to create 400 new high tech jobs in fields including software development, operations, IT, Support Engineering, Solutions Architects, and Product Management. With a new 84,000 square foot office in downtown Portland Amazon expects to double its tech workforce in the area. The company has created more than 3,500 full-time jobs in Oregon since 2010 and invested over $9B in the state, including customer fulfillment facilities, cloud infrastructure, and compensation to its employees.

09:07 EDT Sirius XM announces new streaming subscription offer for college students - SiriusXM announced a new subscription package built for college students. The "Student Premier" package gives college students all the content in SiriusXM's "Premier Streaming" package for $4 per month, a 69% discount off the regular price of Premier Streaming of $12.99 per month. This new Student Premier Package gives subscribers streaming access to content outside their car, on a phone or tablet, at home on connected devices, and online.

09:06 EDT Cummins COO Rich Freeland to retire, Tony Satterthwaite to succeed - Cummins announced that President and COO, Rich Freeland will retire after 40 years of service with Cummins. Freeland joined Cummins in 1979 as a second shift foreman in the Parts Distribution Center in Columbus, Indiana, the day after his graduation from Purdue University. Tony Satterthwaite, currently the distribution business president that employs approximately 16,000 people worldwide, will succeed Freeland as president and COO of Cummins. Satterthwaite joined Cummins in 1988 and has held leadership positions throughout the company's businesses and operations. Components president Tracy Embree will succeed Satterthwaite as distribution business president. Chief technical officer, or CTO, Jennifer Rumsey will succeed Embree as components business president. Jim Fier will succeed Rumsey as CTO. Fier has been with Cummins for more than 30 years and is a highly accomplished engineering leader. In engine development, Fier is recognized as one of the most technically skilled and experienced engineers in the industry.

09:03 EDT Fly Intel: Pre-market Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: Target (TGT), up 17%... Lowe's (LOW), up 13%... Pinduoduo (PDD), up 14%. ALSO HIGHER: Kinder Morgan (KMI), up 3% after agreeing to sell the U.S. portion of the Cochin Pipeline to Pembina Pipeline (PBA) for $1.55B... Wanda Sports (WSG), up 8% after analysts at Morgan Stanley, Citi and Deutsche Bank started coverage of the stock with Buy or equivalent ratings... On Deck Capital (ONDK), up 8% after Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette upgraded shares to Equal Weight with his price target lowered to $3.50 from $4. The analyst notes that after a 57% decline in the stock since the end of January, valuation is "more evenly" balancing its faster earnings growth with its relatively higher risk of incremental downward revisions. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: Children's Place (PLCE), down 7%... Baozun (BZUN), down 6%... Cree (CREE), down 4%... Jumia Technologies (JMIA), down 19%. ALSO LOWER: Hawaiian Holdings (HA), down 4% after Stifel analyst Joesph DeNardi double downgraded shares to Sell from Buy and cut its price target to $20 from $30. DeNardi sees downside to 2020 consensus earnings estimates due to declining PRASM results starting in 2020 and Southwest's (LUV) announced additional capacity to Hawaii, which will likely lead to further market share losses.

08:54 EDT Target says tariff impacts more of 'a 2020 issue' - Target management says impacts of tariffs are more of "a 2020 issue" and impacts will start to be realized in Q1.

08:43 EDT Target sees SSS increases in Q3, Q4

08:37 EDT Newtek Business Services raises quarterly dividend to 58c per share - Newtek Business Services announced that its Board of Directors declared a third quarter 2019 cash dividend of 58c per share, which represents a 20.8% increase over the third quarter 2018 cash dividend. The third quarter 2019 dividend is payable on September 30, 2019 to shareholders of record as of September 20, 2019. The Company also raised its 2019 annual cash dividend forecast to $2.151 per share, which would represent a 19.4% increase over the Company's 2018 annual dividend payment of $1.80 per share.

08:35 EDT Origin Agritech regains full compliance with Nasdaq listing rules - Origin Agritech has regained full compliance with NASDAQ listing rules. On June 5, the company was notified by NASDAQ that it was not in compliance with the NASDAQ listing rules regarding the minimal requirements for stockholders' equity. Since September 30, 2018, the company increased its stockholder's equity mainly through an equity financing in January 2019. The company also applied to change from the NASDAQ Global Select Market to the NASDAQ Capital Market, the application for which was approved and trading on NASDAQ Capital Market for the ordinary shares of the company commenced August 19.

08:33 EDT Saratoga Investment receives approval of second SBIC license - Saratoga Investment Corp. announced that it has received notification from the Small Business Administration that the Company's application for a second Small Business Investment Company license has been approved. The new license will provide up to $175M in additional long-term capital in the form of SBA debentures. As a result of the 2016 omnibus spending bill signed into law in December 2015, the maximum amount of SBA-guaranteed debentures that affiliated SBIC funds can have outstanding was increased from $225M to $350M. With this license approval, Saratoga will grow its SBA relationship from $150M to $325M of committed capital.

08:32 EDT Capstone executes additional 1.7 MW long-term service contracts - Capstone Turbine announced that E-Finity Distributed Generation, Capstone's exclusive distributor for the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the Caribbean, signed Factory Protection Plan long-term service contracts covering 1.7 megawatts of Capstone microturbines in the Marcellus and Utica shale regions in the Appalachian Basin. This large oil and gas end-use customer of Capstone microturbine energy systems had already placed 3.2 MWs under FPP service contracts in June 2019 and now has their entire fleet of 4.9 MWs operating in the Appalachian Basin covered under Capstone's industry-leading FPP product. The Capstone microturbines, commissioned between 2011 and 2016, are used for 24x7 prime power in nine separate midstream central gathering facilities. "The transition of oil and gas customers to the Capstone FPP service contracts is a strong indicator for the continued top and bottom-line growth of our aftermarket service business," stated Darren Jamison, Capstone's President and CEO. "The aftermarket service business was approximately 47% of Capstone's fiscal Q1 2020 revenue and accounted for approximately 97% of the gross margin."

08:24 EDT Biomerica gets clearance to sell colorectal cancer screening test in Colombia - Biomerica announced the Republic of Colombia Ministry of Health and Social Protection Institute National Surveillance of Drugs and Food has granted clearance for Biomerica's EZ Detect colorectal screening test, which detects an early warning sign of colorectal cancer, to be imported and sold in Colombia. The EZ Detect colorectal screening test is the simplest in-home test to detect fecal occult blood, an early warning sign of colorectal cancer. This in-home test does not require handling of stool or any dietary restrictions.

08:21 EDT Target expects to deliver strong digital sales fulfillment from stores over time - Management says stores can keep up with digital sales volume.

08:18 EDT Target expanded Levi Strauss partnership to 50 stores - Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

08:14 EDT CareDx says survey shows fear of rejection is transplant patient's top concern - CareDx announced results of a national informational survey conducted with The American Association of Kidney Patients of kidney transplant recipients that assessed their key concerns about monitoring kidney health post-transplant. A total of 170 adults who have received a kidney transplant within the last ten years participated in an online survey which aimed to collect self-reported quantative and qualitative insights to better understand key concerns of patients with a kidney transplant and overall health monitoring. Key insights from the study included:Fear of organ rejection was the number one health concern reported, over 50% of respondents were very or extremely concerned about rejection. 35% of patients stated they skip some medications each month, making compliance a significant issue. Lack of health insurance/cost of medications was shown to be the leading barrier in taking immunosuppressant drugs as prescribed. Of the 114 respondents who reported having a kidney biopsy, only 30% confirmed active rejection. 86% of respondents said they'd prefer, instead of a biopsy, a blood test that gave information specifically about active rejection in a timely and non-invasive way. Most respondents felt timeliness, precise information, and minimally-invasive testing were extremely important when monitoring for rejection of their transplanted organ.

08:10 EDT Allscripts business unit enters research partnership with Komodo Health - Veradigm, an Allscripts business unit, announced that it has entered into a long-term strategic partnership with Komodo Health to advance life sciences research. Initially the partnership will focus on linking Allscripts' ambulatory EHR data with Komodo's Healthcare Map, which contains encounter data from more than 150 private and public payers. Using Komodo Health's platform, the collaboration will enable Veradigm to provide a linked dataset containing a complete longitudinal view of nearly 50M deidentified patients to support life sciences companies as they investigate new ways to reduce disease burden. The linked dataset combines detailed clinical and patient lifestyle information along with cost and utilization data captured across all care settings. Veradigm's model for real-world research is built on access to near real-time patient data, analytics and point-of-care programs. By linking the largest ambulatory EHR for life science research dataset with Komodo's Healthcare Map, Veradigm leverages each source to offer researchers opportunities to integrate patient history and behavior, detailed clinical symptoms and outcomes, patterns of drug and health services utilization, along with costs to individuals and payers.

08:07 EDT Teva publishes Phase 3b FOCUS study results - Teva announced that results from the Phase 3b FOCUS study, which examined fremanezumab versus placebo in adult migraine patients who previously experienced inadequate responses to two to four classes of preventive treatments, were published online ahead of print in The Lancet. The study found fremanezumab was superior versus placebo across all primary and secondary endpoints. The primary outcome measure of the trial was mean change from baseline in the monthly average number of migraine days during the 12-week treatment period following the first dose. Treatment resulted in statistically significant reductions in monthly average number of migraine days in participants who received either monthly or quarterly dosing with fremanezumab during the study. Fremanezumab is approved in the U.S. and Europe for the preventive treatment of migraine in adults. The FOCUS study, a randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, placebo controlled study, evaluated the efficacy of two dosing regimens of fremanezumab in a large population of adult patients with episodic or chronic migraine who had documented prior inadequate response within the past ten years to two-to-four pharmacological classes of migraine preventive medications: beta blockers, anticonvulsants, tricyclic antidepressants, calcium channel blockers, angiotensin II receptor antagonists, onabotulinumtoxinA, or valproic acid. Between November 2017 and July 2018, 838 patients with episodic or chronic migraine were randomized by electronic interactive response technology, or IRT, at 104 sites in 14 countries to placebo, quarterly fremanezumab, or monthly fremanezumab. Both patients with and without overuse of acute headache medication were included. Reductions from baseline in monthly days with migraine, moderate to severe headache, or use of acute headache medications were about 3.5 days greater with fremanezumab than with placebo. The odds relative to placebo for achieving a greater than or equal to 50% reduction in migraine days as early as four weeks after starting study treatment were approximately six-fold higher with fremanezumab. Patients treated with fremanezumab had 3.1- to 3.8-day greater reductions in migraine days across dosing and migraine classification subgroups than patients receiving placebo, representing a therapeutic gain of 26 to 39 percentage points. The most common adverse reactions in the study were injection site reactions. Less than 1% of patients in the fremanezumab group experienced an adverse event leading to discontinuation. Patients with major comorbid diseases, including major cardiovascular disease, were excluded from participation in this study.

08:06 EDT Sundial Growers expands into Saskatchewan - Sundial Growers has successfully entered the Saskatchewan market with its recent shipment of high-quality cannabis. As part of the recent approval by Health Canada to amend Sundial's Standard Cultivation and Standard Processing licences, Sundial has added 34 additional purpose-built modular cultivation rooms. Each of these rooms provide the optimal growing environment for consistent high-quality batches of cannabis and nearly double the number of existing rooms in operation. The additional supply will also help meet market demand in provinces, such as Saskatchewan. Sundial cannabis is now available in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.

08:04 EDT Hoth Therapeutics and Zylo Therapeutics finalize agreement on Lupus drug - Hoth Therapeutics has entered into a definitive partnership agreement with Zylo Therapeutics to develop a new treatment for patients suffering from Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus, a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the skin. Zylo Therapeutics has developed a patented topical delivery system using xerogel-derived nanoparticles called Z-pods, Hoth has an exclusive license to develop Anandamide-loaded Z-pods for the treatment of CLE in North America. Anandamide, generally referred to as AEA, is one of the cannabinoids that the human body makes naturally. Hoth also has certain rights related to geographic expansion and to follow-on indications such as psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis. Scientists have demonstrated that topical administration with AEA-loaded Z-pods inhibits the development of CLE lesions in a well-established animal model of lupus. This work reinforces and highlights the utility of targeting the endocannabinoid system for autoimmune rheumatic diseases.

08:03 EDT Chart Industries receives FNTP for Venture Global's Calcasieu Pass project - Chart Industries (GTLS) has received full notice to proceed for the production of cold boxes and brazed aluminum heat exchangers for Venture Global's 10 MTPA Calcasieu Pass liquefied natural gas export terminal project. This week Venture Global announced final investment decision and the closing of the project financing for their Calcasieu Pass LNG facility and associated TransCameron pipeline in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. The proceeds of the debt and equity financing fully fund the balance of the construction and commissioning of Calcasieu Pass. Full site construction began in February 2019 and the Commercial Operations Date is expected in 2022. At the end of March 2019, Chart booked the full equipment order of $135M for the Calcasieu project from Baker Hughes (BHGE). On Tuesday, August 20, 2019, BHGE announced that it has been awarded a contract and granted notice to proceed on the construction of a comprehensive LNG technology solution for the project. Chart will deliver the equipment on a multi-year schedule in conjunction with BHGE and Kiewit.

07:41 EDT JPMorgan says closing Chase Pay app in early 2020 - JPMorgan Chase said on its website that it is closing the Chase Pay app in early 2020. "After that, you'll no longer be able to download or use the app," the company said. It added, "We're partnering with even more of your favorite online retailers and merchant apps to add Chase Pay as an option at checkout. Because customers like you deserve a simple, rewarding and secure way to pay." "Until early 2020, you can continue to use Chase Pay wherever you see the Chase Pay logo in-store, online, and in merchant apps. Once we close the app, you can still use Chase Pay to check out on participating merchant websites and apps." Reference Link

07:35 EDT FIDx announces strategic partnership with Ebix for annuity offerings - FIDx announced a strategic partnership with Ebix. Acting as a bridge between insurance carriers and wealth managers, FIDx and Ebix have partnered to help advisors access a pool of annuity offerings into investment portfolios and address their clients financial planning needs.

07:29 EDT CURE Pharmaceutical signs deal with hemp grower Fytiko Farms - CURE Pharmaceutical announced it has signed a deal with Oklahoma-based hemp grower Fytiko Farms. The deal gives CURE direct, guaranteed access to high-quality plant material for exclusive use in its proprietary oral thin film drug delivery system, CUREfilm. The deal provides access to high-quality organic hemp extracts for use in CURE products through strain improvement, cannabinoid extraction process development, biomarker identification and quality control testing.

07:22 EDT Canadian Solar to provide services for three solar power plants in Australia - Canadian Solar has signed Operations & Maintenance agreements with Gannawarra Solar Farm, Hayman Solar Farm and Daydream Solar Farm for three solar PV plants totaling 300 MWp in Australia. Canadian Solar will be responsible for plant monitoring, performance management, and preventative and corrective maintenance in all three facilities.

07:14 EDT Tonix Pharmaceuticals, MGH enter research collaboration for TNX-1500 - Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding announced the signing of a research collaboration agreement with Massachusetts General Hospital, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, to develop TNX-1500, a humanized monoclonal antibody that targets CD154 for the prevention and treatment of organ transplant rejection. TNX-1500 is another step in the strategic broadening of Tonix's portfolio of high-value programs, whose risk is mitigated by previous clinical data and extensive preclinical science. Although transplantation is the first targeted indication for TNX-1500, it is also a potential treatment for autoimmune conditions including systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. Tonix and MGH have agreed to work jointly under a research agreement which will bring together Tonix's internally developed, proprietary anti-CD154 mAb, TNX-1500, with transplantation experts from MGH, led by Richard N. Pierson III, M.D., scientific director of the Center for Transplantation Sciences in the Department of Surgery at MGH and Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. The goal of the collaboration is to advance TNX-1500 as a potential first-in-class therapeutic for organ transplant rejection. Transplant organ rejection occurs when the immune system of the organ recipient attacks the new organ as if it was an infection or tumor.

07:11 EDT Altimmune announces $3.7M in additional BARDA funding to develop NasoShield - Altimmune announced that the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority is modifying its existing anthrax vaccine development contract with Altimmune by awarding an additional $3.7M. The increase in funding is primarily directed toward a Phase 1b clinical trial of NasoShield to evaluate alternative methods of intranasal dosing in humans. In 2018, BARDA awarded Altimmune $2.5M for further NasoShield development including a comparison of different methods of administration of the vaccine in preclinical models. The data from this study demonstrated that a simple modification to the method of intranasal dose administration had a dramatic impact on the resulting immunogenicity. These results suggest that the 2018 Phase 1 study of NasoShield in healthy adults might have shown a more robust immunogenic effect had a modified administration method been employed. The planned Phase 1b clinical trial will evaluate modified methods of intranasal dosing on NasoShield safety and immunogenicity and is expected to start in 2019.

07:09 EDT Cara Therapeutics licenses Enteris BioPharma's Peptelligence for Korsuva program - Cara Therapeutics and Enteris BioPharma, a biotechnology company developing drug products built around its proprietary oral peptide delivery technologies, entered into a definitive licensing agreement for Enteris' Peptelligence technology in the ongoing development of an oral formulation of Cara's first-in-class KOR agonist, CR845/difelikefalin - Korsuva. Peptelligence is Enteris' proprietary platform for the oral delivery of peptides and BCS class II, III and IV small molecules. The oral tablet formulation of Korsuva was engineered using Peptelligence. Oral Korsuva is currently the subject of three separate Phase 2 clinical trials for pruritis in patients with hepatic impairment due to primary biliary cholangitis, stage III-V chronic kidney disease, and atopic dermatitis. The agreement will allow Cara to continue its Oral Korsuva programs into Phase 3 and beyond. Under the terms of the deal, Enteris granted to Cara Therapeutics a non-exclusive, royalty-bearing license to the Peptelligence technology to develop, manufacture and commercialize Oral Korsuva worldwide, excluding Japan and South Korea. In exchange, Enteris will receive an upfront payment equal to $8M, with 50% payable in cash and 50% payable in shares of Cara's common stock. Cara is also obligated to pay Enteris milestone payments upon the achievement of certain development, regulatory and commercial milestones and low-single digit royalties based on net sales in the licensed territory. Cara retains the right to buy-out the royalty obligation for a period of two years under prespecified conditions.

07:07 EDT Aimmune enrolls first patient in Phase 2 trial of AR201 - Aimmune Therapeutics announced that it has randomized its first patient in a phase 2 clinical trial of AR201 for the treatment of egg allergy. AR201, an investigational biological drug for use in oral immunotherapy for egg allergy, is the second development program that Aimmune is advancing to phase 2 using its Characterized Oral Desensitization ImmunoTherapy platform.

07:03 EDT Vanda Pharmaceuticals names Joakim Wijkstrom as Chief Marketing Officer - Vanda Pharmaceuticals announced that it has named Aranthan "AJ" Jones II as its Chief Corporate Affairs and Communications Officer and Joakim "Kim" Wijkstrom as its Chief Marketing Officer. Jones II and Wijkstrom will report directly to Mihael Polymeropoulos, M.D., Vanda's President and CEO. Prior to joining Vanda, Jones II served as Global Head of Public Affairs for Burson Cohn & Wolfe where he counseled Fortune 500 clients on corporate affairs and communications, investor relations, government relations, public policy and social impact initiatives. Prior to this position, Jones II was a senior executive at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and was formally the Worldwide Head of Government Affairs for Gilead Sciences. Wijkstrom has held Chief Marketing Officer positions at Perry Ellis and One Main Financial.

06:57 EDT Sharps Compliance: 'FY20 should benefit from growth in all solution offerings' - CEO David Tusa concluded, "Looking forward to fiscal 2020, we see the September 2019 quarter shaping up as strong and believe the full fiscal year 2020 should benefit from growth in all solution offerings and markets. Our growth is being driven not only by the Company's successful transformation to a comprehensive solutions provider but also our focus on customer service, reasonable contract terms and fair pricing in markets, which we believe are vastly underserved."

06:48 EDT Wex signs multi-year extension as exclusive provider for Phillips 66 - Wex has signed a multi-year extension to be the exclusive provider of private label and universal fleet card services for Phillips 66. Wex and Phillips 66 have partnered since 2010 to develop a comprehensive sales and marketing engine that relies on emerging payment technologies to support fleet customers and independent marketers and dealers at more than 7,000 fueling locations.

06:47 EDT Pembina Pipeline to acquire Kinder Morgan Canada, pipeline portion for $4.35B - Pembina Pipeline (PBA) announced that it has entered into agreements pursuant to which it will acquire Kinder Morgan Canada and the U.S. portion of the Cochin Pipeline system from Kinder Morgan (KMI) for a total purchase price of approximately $4.35B. The transaction values Kinder Morgan Canada at approximately $2.3B, or $15.02 per share, based on an all-share exchange ratio of 0.3068 of a common share of Pembina per KML security and Pembina's 30-day volume weighted average price on the date hereof; and Cochin U.S. at approximately $2.05B for cash consideration. Subject to closing of the transaction, Pembina's board of directors has also approved a 1c per common share, or approximately 5%, increase to its monthly common share dividend rate. Through the transaction, Pembina will acquire assets including the Cochin Pipeline System, the Edmonton storage and terminal business and Vancouver Wharves, a bulk storage and export/import business. Upon closing, the transaction immediately provides Pembina with business platforms and opportunities for growth. The Cochin mainline system represents a fully contracted cross-border pipeline system that is strategic as it connects Pembina's Channahon, Bakken and Edmonton area assets and is connected to markets in Mont Belvieu, Conway and Edmonton. Further, there is future potential to connect the eastern leg of the Cochin Pipeline System to Pembina's assets and markets in Sarnia, Ontario. As well, the corporate acquisition includes a crude oil storage and terminalling business in Western Canada's energy complex, which connects Pembina's conventional and oilsands pipelines to all export pipelines, providing increased flexibility and greater egress options to customers. Finally, there is potential for further integration of Vancouver Wharves assets into the Pembina value chain. The assets to be acquired under the transaction are predominantly supported by long-term, fee-for-service, take-or-pay contracts, which are underpinned by investment grade counterparties. The transaction strengthens Pembina's financial guardrails and hence Pembina as a whole.The transaction will be immediately accretive to adjusted cash flow per share and increases the company's fee-for-service and take-or-pay component of adjusted EBITDA. The assets being acquired in the transaction are expected to generate adjusted EBITDA of approximately $350M in FY19. Through the integration of these assets with the company's existing businesses, Pembina estimates that incremental run-rate adjusted EBITDA of $50M can be realized within five years with nominal capital investment. In addition, Pembina expects the assets could generate an additional $50M of run-rate adjusted EBITDA through expansion opportunities. The transaction represents a unique opportunity for Pembina to acquire 100% of Cochin, which is one of two cross-border condensate import pipelines. Cochin, which spans 2,900 km from Chicago, Illinois to Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, has a design capacity of up to 110,000 barrels per day and is primarily underpinned by long term, take-or-pay commitments with investment grade counterparties. Cochin complements Pembina's existing condensate infrastructure in Western Canada and extends the company's reach into the U.S., with the potential to provide Pembina and its customers improved market access and tremendous long-term optionality. Cochin has operated both as a condensate import system, and previous thereto, as a propane export system. The transaction also provides Pembina enhanced diversification and an entrance into a new franchise opportunity through a significant crude oil storage terminalling business strategically located in the core of the Edmonton area crude oil complex and underpinned by long-term, fee-based contracts with investment grade counterparties. With 10M barrels of storage capacity, inbound and outbound connectivity and industry fundamentals associated with crude oil storage, Pembina views these assets as attractive in the current environment. The storage business also has a strategic alignment with Pembina's existing conventional and oil sands pipelines and marketing businesses. The storage business also includes direct connectivity to two rail terminals, ownership in which is included in the Transaction. The Transaction also includes Vancouver Wharves, a commodity export and import business in the Port of Vancouver, Canada's largest port. Vancouver Wharves is a 125 acre bulk marine terminal facility, which transfers over 4M tonnes of bulk cargo annually and is supported by fee-based contracts with creditworthy counterparties and is competitively positioned as the facility-of-choice for key agricultural, mining, and petroleum product customers. Under the terms of the arrangement agreement governing the corporate acquisition, Pembina will acquire all of the issued and outstanding restricted voting shares and special voting shares of Kinder Morgan Canada and all of the class B units of Kinder Morgan Canada Limited Partnership by way of a plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act. Pembina is offering to acquire each of the outstanding restricted voting shares and each Class B Unit in exchange for 0.3068 of a common share of Pembina, which represents a 32% premium, based on Pembina and Kinder Morgan Canada's 30-day volume weighted average prices of $48.96 and $11.37, respectively, on the date hereof. The corporate acquisition is valued at approximately $2.3B including the assumption of Kinder Morgan Canada's preferred shares and outstanding net debt. The corporate acquisition is subject to approval of at least 66 and 2/3% of holders of restricted voting shares and special voting shares, voting together as a single class and a majority of holders of restricted voting shares, in each case present in person or by proxy at a special meeting of the holders of restricted voting shares and special voting shares to be called to consider the corporate acquisition, approval of the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta, certain regulatory approvals in Canada and other customary conditions. KMI, who holds all of the special voting shares and a corresponding 70% economic interest in Kinder Morgan Canada's business and assets, has entered into a support agreement pursuant to which it has agreed to vote its special voting shares in favor of the corporate acquisition. The corporate acquisition is also subject to clearance under the Competition Act and the Canada Transportation Act. The Transaction is cross-conditional on the closing of both the corporate acquisition and the Cochin U.S. Acquisition. It has been unanimously approved by the board of directors of the company and is expected to close in the first half of 2020. The arrangement agreement in respect of the corporate acquisition includes customary provisions relating to non-solicitation, fiduciary outs for Kinder Morgan Canada with respect to financially superior alternate proposals and Pembina's right to match such proposals until the date of the Kinder Morgan Canada shareholders' approval of the transaction. The cash consideration associated with the Cochin U.S. Acquisition will be initially funded through the company's $2.5B unsecured credit facility and a new $1B committed term facility. Subsequently, Pembina expects to refinance this with the issuance of medium-term notes.

06:40 EDT Pembina to acquire Kinder Morgan Canada, Cochin U.S. for C$4.35B - Kinder Morgan (KMI) announced that it has agreed to sell the U.S. portion of the Cochin Pipeline to Pembina Pipeline (PBA) for $1.546B, approximately 13 times 2019 expected EBITDA. Also, Kinder Morgan Canada Limited announced that it reached an agreement with Pembina under which Pembina has agreed to acquire all the outstanding common equity of KML (which includes KMI's 70% stake), subject to the terms of the arrangement agreement between KML and Pembina. The closing of the two transactions are cross-conditioned upon each other. The parties expect to close the transactions late in the fourth quarter of 2019 or in the first quarter of 2020, subject to customary closing conditions, including KML shareholder and applicable regulatory approvals. KMI expects to use the proceeds to reduce debt to maintain its Net Debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA ratio of approximately 4.5 times and use the remaining proceeds to invest in attractive projects and/or to opportunistically repurchase KMI shares. Initially, proceeds will be used to reduce Net Debt. With the cash proceeds from the sale of Cochin alone, and assuming the transaction were to close at the end of 2019, KMI would expect to end 2019 with a Net Debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA ratio of approximately 4.4 times, improved from the approximately 4.6 times year-end projection announced in the second quarter earnings release. KMI will receive .3068 shares of Pembina for each KMI held share in KML. This exchange ratio results in KMI receiving approximately 25M shares of Pembina stock for KMI's 70% interest in KML, which equates to slightly less than 5% of Pembina's common equity. KMI views Pembina as a leading infrastructure services provider to the North American energy industry. Pembina has an integrated asset base serving multiple energy commodities. While KMI expects to ultimately convert these shares into cash, the company plans to do so in an opportunistic and non-disruptive manner. Conversion of these shares to cash at yesterday's closing price for Pembina of C$49.27 would yield pre-tax proceeds of approximately $935M. Based on that closing price, the total consideration to be received by KML common shareholders is valued at C$15.12 per KML share, which represents a 38% premium to yesterday's KML closing price.

06:35 EDT Target up 7.2% after reporting Q2 results, raising FY19 adj. EPS guidance

06:31 EDT Covia names Richard Navarre as President and CEO - Covia announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Richard Navarre President and CEO, effective September 1. In conjunction with Navarre's appointment, he will continue to serve as Covia's Board Chair and Matthew LeBaron has been appointed to serve as the company's Lead Independent Director. Navarre has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of Covia since June 2018, and as interim President and CEO since May 2019. He has more than 35 years of leadership in the mining industry, including having previously served as the President and Chief Commercial Officer of Peabody Energy Corporation.

06:09 EDT comScore announces 8% workforce reduction - In a regulatory filing, comScore announced that it is implementing a reduction in force plan that is expected to result in the termination of approximately 8% of the company's workforce. The reduction in force is being implemented following a determination to reorganize the company's technology, product and sales organizations to optimize its focus on core areas of growth. The majority of the employees impacted by the reduction in force will exit the company in the third quarter. In connection with this reduction in force, the company will incur certain exit-related costs, which are expected to range between $1.5M-$2.5M, consisting primarily of one-time termination benefits and associated costs, to be settled in cash. Together with recent attrition, the reduction in force is expected to decrease the company's annualized operating costs by more than $20M, a portion of which will be realized beginning in the third quarter.

06:07 EDT Bright Scholar enters agreement with NCCT, NICTR to reform curriculum - Bright Scholar announced that it has entered into agreements with National Center for School Curriculum and Textbook Development, or NCCT, and National Institute for Curriculum and Textbook Research, or NICTR, to jointly establish a research base for fundamental education curriculum reform. Under this agreement, the partners will collaborate to explore new ideas and build a classic example in advancing education as an ongoing initiative to deepen reforms in China's national curriculum.Through this agreement, NCCT and NICTR will assist Bright Scholar in the development of a systematic five-year curriculum plan and an annual curriculum reform guidance. In addition, they will also assist in the optimization of the company's current curriculum that advocates the five core values of Bright Scholar in education. NCCT and NICTR are divisions of Ministry of Education of People's Republic of China providing platforms for national professional research and guidance for curriculum materials.

06:04 EDT Fitch says GE's insurance business 'below average' in terms of reserves - Many insurers remain under-reserved against the losses associated with long-term care insurance, according to new analysis by Fitch Ratings. "Exposure to the long-term care market remains a plague," says Anthony Beato, Director of Insurance at Fitch Ratings. "It continues to be a risky product despite the adoption of more conservative reserving philosophies that more closely align to its volatile liabilities." Fitch's analysis identifies four insurers with very high exposure to the LTC market and below average reserve adequacy. They include Genworth Financial (GNW), General Electric (GE), UNUM Group (UNM) and Senior Health Insurance Co. of PA. AEGON Americas has moderate exposure but below average reserve adequacy, Fitch said in a statement. Reference Link

05:16 EDT Stellus Capital receives approval for second SBIC license - Stellus Capital announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Stellus Capital SBIC II, LP, has received approval for a license from the United States Small Business Administration to operate as a Small Business Investment Company, or SBIC. This is the second SBIC license granted to the Company through its SBIC subsidiaries. The license will allow Stellus SBIC to obtain leverage by issuing SBA-guaranteed debentures, subject to the issuance of a capital commitment by the SBA and customary procedures. SBA-guaranteed debentures are non-recourse, interest only debentures with interest payable semi-annually and have a ten-year maturity. The interest rate is fixed on a semi-annual basis at a market-driven spread over U.S. Treasury Notes with ten-year maturities. Current statutes and regulations permit Stellus Capital SBIC II, L.P. to borrow up to a maximum of $175M in SBA-guaranteed debentures, subject to required capitalization of the SBIC subsidiary and other requirements.