Stockwinners Market Radar for July 20, 2020 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

18:21 EDT EA says 'NHL 21' not getting a PS5, Xbox Series X version - Electronic Arts (EA) confirmed that "NHL 21" will launch "a little later this year," shifting from its usual September window to October. The company added that users will be able to play "NHL 21" on the next-gen consoles through forward compatibility but it is fully focused on launching "NHL 21" on the Xbox One (MSFT) and PS4 (SNE) and look forward to the opportunities the next-gen systems will bring in the future. Reference Link

18:03 EDT Steel Dynamics CEO: We remain in a position of strength - "We entered 2020 in a position of strength with ample cash and available liquidity of $2.8 billion, and we remain in a position of strength maintaining that liquidity at the end of the second quarter 2020," stated CEO Mark Millett. "Our differentiated business model and performance-driven culture have proven our ability to generate strong cash flow during challenging times such as these. We entered 2020 prepared for the capital investment requirements related to the construction of our new state-of-the art, electric-arc-furnace flat roll steel mill. We are excited about this strategic project, and the associated long-term value creation it will bring through geographic and value-added product diversification. This facility is designed to have product size and quality capabilities beyond that of existing EAF flat roll steel producers, competing even more effectively with the integrated steel model and foreign competition, as well as providing a much more environmentally friendly steel production alternative for our customers. We have targeted specific regional markets. Our facility is located and designed to have a meaningful competitive advantage in these regions and in the displacement of imports. We have also now signed long-term agreements with two customers to co-locate on our site, and they plan to represent annual steel consuming and processing capability of over 800,000 tons. Construction is going well within our expected capital costs of $1.9 billion, with plans on schedule to commence operations mid-year 2021. It is still not possible to determine the full scope of the negative impact COVID-19 will cause to global economies and the related impact to domestic steel demand," continued Millett. "As states continue to determine their reopening guidelines and many steel consuming businesses have resumed operations, we anticipate steel and metals recycling demand will improve in the second half of the year compared to second quarter 2020 trough results. The automotive sector and its related supply chain have restarted production, and we have started to see some resulting increase in steel demand and prime scrap production. The construction sector has remained more resilient and related steel demand has been steady, as evidenced by our Structural and Rail Division volume and steel fabrication platform's customer backlog. The weaker sectors continue to be related to energy and general industrial consumers, which likely require a longer recovery period. Our commitment is to the safety of our teams, families, communities and to meet the needs of our customers. Our culture and our business model continue to positively differentiate our performance from the rest of the industry, and we are in a place of strength. We are competitively positioned and focused to deliver long-term value creation for all of our stakeholders."

17:46 EDT Crown Holdings falls 7% to $64.61 after Q2 results, Q3, FY20 guidance

17:41 EDT S&P announces changes to S&P MidCap 400, S&P SmallCap 600 indices - Emergent BioSolutions (EBS) will replace Caesars Entertainment (CZR) in the S&P MidCap 400, and First Hawaiian (FHB) will replace Emergent BioSolutions in the S&P SmallCap 600 effective prior to the opening of trading on Friday, July 24. S&P MidCap 400 constituent Eldorado Resorts (ERI) acquired Caesars Entertainment in a deal completed July 20. Post-merger, Eldorado Resorts will change its name to Caesars Entertainment and its ticker to CZR. It will remain in the S&P MidCap 400.

17:35 EDT IBM says still not providing guidance for 2020

17:19 EDT First Hawaiian to replace Emergent BioSolutions in S&P 600 at open on 7/24

17:18 EDT Emergent BioSolutions to replace Caesars in S&P 400 at open on 7/24 - Eldorado Resorts (ERI) acquired Caesars Entertainment (CZR) in a deal completed July 20. Post-merger, Eldorado Resorts will change its name to Caesars Entertainment and its ticker to CZR. It will remain in the S&P MidCap 400.

17:14 EDT BAE Systems awarded $495.48M government contract - BAE Systems has been awarded a $495,482,136 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee and cost-reimbursable indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the Instrumentation Range Support Program. This contract provides for serviceable components and subsystems for instrumentation tracking systems, worldwide for both foreign and domestic government agencies to include radars, telemetry and optical range mission systems, flight termination systems, data acquisition systems and Global Positioning Systems. Work will be performed on participating ranges in the program, including Air Force, Army, Navy, NASA, Department of Energy, as well as foreign ranges in the United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Republic of Korea and Switzerland. Work is expected to be completed Sept. 30, 2027. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and three offers were received. Fiscal year 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $116,235 are being obligated, on a delivery order, at the time of award. This contract has a ceiling amount of $945,234,462. The 45th Contracting Squadron, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity.

17:11 EDT Crown Holdings to add additional production lines to certain plants in 2021 - The company said, "Early this year, we commenced production on the third production line at the Toronto, Ontario beverage can facility to meet the increasing requirements of customers. During the second quarter, we completed the conversion of two lines in Seville, Spain from steel to aluminum and in June we began commercial production on the third line at our Nichols, New York facility. Earlier this month, we commenced operations at a new one-line plant in Nong Khae, Thailand. We previously announced our intention to construct a greenfield facility in Bowling Green, Kentucky, an attractive location to effectively serve a number of diverse customers in the region. The plant is targeted to start up during the second quarter of 2021. Subsequent to our previous announcement, due to rising demand expectations, the company announces that it will add a second line to that facility with a late third quarter 2021 planned start-up. To meet the expanding requirements of specialty cans in the Pacific Northwest, we will construct a third line in our Olympia, Washington plant which is scheduled to begin production during the third quarter of 2021."

17:03 EDT Crown Holdings CEO says Q2 performance 'solid' - Commenting on the quarter, Timothy Donahue, President and CEO, stated, "The company's overall performance during the second quarter was solid in the face of the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic. Our global food can businesses recorded strong shipments in both Europe and North America. Although global beverage can shipments decreased 5% during the quarter, North America was propelled by double-digit gains. Disappointing results in European Beverage stemmed from soft volumes, particularly in southern Europe, where a steep drop in tourism due to the pandemic significantly curtailed on-premise consumption. The global slowdown in manufacturing activity in several end markets adversely impacted results in Transit Packaging."

16:50 EDT New Age Beverages jumps 114% after pact to create '$500M enterprise' - Shares of New Age Beverages now up almost $114% or $2.00 to $3.72 per share in after hours trading after announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire ARIIX, together with four additional companies in the e-commerce and direct selling channels. The combination will create a global firm with estimated pro forma revenues in excess of $500M across more than 75 countries worldwide. Brent Willis, Chief Executive Officer of NewAge, who will be the CEO of the newly combined company, said, "We are very excited that these companies are coming together to create a powerful global enterprise with tremendous growth potential. We will have the team, the scale, the profitability, the brands, and the reach to drive superior growth and return for shareholders and all of our valued independent representatives and consultants worldwide."

16:42 EDT IBM jump 6.2% after upbeat Q2 results

16:41 EDT Surgalign Holdings sells OEM business for $440M - Surgalign Holdings announced the closing of the sale of the OEM business, effective July 20 for a total consideration of $440M, paid in cash. The Company has fully repaid all of its outstanding indebtedness, including the $80M revolving line of credit with JP Morgan Chase Bank and both the $100M term loan and $30M incremental term loan commitment with Ares Capital. The Company will also redeem all of the outstanding shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock for total cash consideration of approximately $67M. After giving effect to the repayment of debt and transaction expenses, the Company has approximately $190M in cash and cash equivalents, which will be reduced by approximately $137M after the Company redeems the Series A Convertible Preferred and pays tax on the gain from the OEM sale, both of which are expected to occur by September 30. Effective immediately, the Company's name has changed to Surgalign Holdings, and the Company's ticker symbol on the NASDAQ will change to "SRGA." Trading under the new ticker symbol is expected to begin on Thursday, July 23.

16:37 EDT DXC Technology sells healthcare software unit to Dedalus for $525M - DXC Technology announced a definitive agreement to sell DXC's healthcare software provider business to privately held Dedalus Group for $525M in cash. The agreement brings together DXC's software business for healthcare providers with Dedalus, a leading European healthcare and diagnostic software company, to create an even stronger global force in the clinical IT areas of hospital information systems , primary and social care, integrated care and diagnostics. The resulting business will be uniquely positioned to accelerate the digital transformation of clinical activity and consequently the effectiveness of healthcare systems. DXC's healthcare provider software business is a recognized leader in the healthcare sector. Among its innovations is an open digital health platform that helps improve care outcomes by delivering contextual and actionable insights across the healthcare ecosystem. The transaction was approved by DXC's Board of Directors and is expected to close by March 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and the receipt of certain third-party consents and regulatory approvals. The sale is not subject to any financing conditions or shareholder approvals.

16:31 EDT Ulta Beauty expects to open about 30 new stores in FY20 - Ulta Beauty shared further updates to its operations as it continues to navigate the impact of COVID-19. "In navigating the fluid dynamics of COVID-19, we are keeping the safety of our guests and associates at the heart of every decision we make," said Mary Dillon, chief executive officer. "In parallel, we are making decisions to ensure continued strength as an industry leader with an eye towards long-term growth." As of today, Ulta Beauty has completed its phased reopening process. To meet individual comfort levels, guests can shop via Curbside Pickup, Buy Online Pickup in Store, on ulta.com, via the Ulta Beauty app and in Ulta Beauty stores. In addition to our Shop Safe Standards, starting today Ulta Beauty will require all guests and associates to wear facial coverings when in stores. As different parts of the country manage rising COVID-19 cases, the Company will maintain its close monitoring of government and health guidance as well as local case prevalence to inform nimble actions where necessary. Mirroring its reopening approach, the company began welcoming back furloughed employees consistent with individual store operational needs. To date, approximately 50% of those furloughed in April have been reactivated. Given the uncertainty and disruption created by COVID-19, the company continues to refine its near-term new store opening plans and expects to open approximately 30 new stores in fiscal 2020. New store activity was temporarily paused in the first quarter due to COVID-19; openings are expected to resume in August 2020. As new store opening plans are finalized for fiscal 2021, the company anticipates opening additional new stores in the U.S. and in mid-2021, will make its entry to Canada with a number of stores. In addition, after evaluating its existing store portfolio, the company plans to permanently close 19 stores in the second and third quarter of 2020. The company intends to reassign affected store and salon associates where possible.

16:24 EDT Associated Capital announces record and distribution date for Morgan spinoff - Associated Capital Group announced the timing and details regarding its previously announced spin off distribution of its entire controlling ownership position in its substantially owned and controlled subsidiary, Morgan Group Holding Co. The AC board of directors has established the record date of July 30, 2020, and the distribution date of August 5, 2020. The distribution is subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions as set forth in Morgan Group's Registration Statement on Form S-1. Based on the expected distribution ratio, on the distribution date, AC stockholders of record as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the record date will be eligible to receive, approximately 0.022317 shares of MGHL common stock for each share of AC common stock they hold on the record date.

16:19 EDT Genworth reaches sttlement agreement with Axa - Genworth Financial has reached an agreement with AXA to settle the dispute between them relating to liability for payment protection insurance, or PPI, mis-selling losses. Genworth and AXA agreed to the settlement following the High Court's liability judgment dated December 6, 2019 and prior to the High Court issuing its judgment on damages. The court ruled that Genworth was obligated to pay AXA for its losses, per the terms of the sale and purchase agreement. Under the terms of the settlement, Genworth has agreed to pay AXA GBP100, or approximately $125M, by July 23, which amount is in addition to a GBP100Minterim cash payment Genworth made to AXA in January 2020 and expensed in the Q4 of FY19. In addition, Genworth also has agreed to issue a secured promissory note to AXA, pursuant to which Genworth has agreed to make deferred cash payments totaling approximately GBP317M in two installments: the first on June 30, 2022 and the second on September 30, 2022; and to pay a significant portion of all future mis-selling losses incurred by AXA, to be invoiced quarterly by AXA. Under the terms of the settlement and the sale and purchase agreement, if AXA recovers amounts from third parties related to the mis-selling losses, including from the distributor responsible for the sale of the policies, Genworth has certain rights to share in those recoveries to recoup payments for the underlying mis-selling losses. AXA and Genworth have agreed not to enforce, pending satisfaction of certain conditions, appeal or set aside the liability judgment of December 6, 2019 and any judgment in respect of the quantum of AXA's claim subject to a termination right of AXA if the note and related security package is determined to be void and/or unenforceable.

16:17 EDT KKR closes $950M Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners Fund II - KKR announced the final closing of KKR Real Estate Credit Opportunity Partners II with $950M in committed capital. The Fund will continue KKR's strategy focused on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns, primarily through the purchase of junior tranches of new issue conduit commercial mortgage-backed securities. Matt Salem, Partner and Head of KKR's Real Estate Credit business, said: "We are pleased to have the trust of so many investors in our second fund, which speaks to the strength of our strategy, team, and reputation in the market. Having invested over $1.25B into conduit risk retention since 2017, we believe that the market has demonstrated the need for private, long-dated risk retention capital."

16:15 EDT Histogen announces common stock purchase agreement with Lincoln Park Capital - Histogen announced that it has that it has entered into a common stock purchase agreement for up to $10M with Lincoln Park Capital Fund. Upon execution of the purchase agreement, Lincoln Park made an initial purchase of $1.0M of common stock. Under the terms of the purchase agreement, the company will have the right, in its sole discretion, to sell shares of its common stock to Lincoln Park over the 24-month term of the purchase agreement. Any common stock sold to Lincoln Park will occur at a purchase price that is based on the prevailing prices of the common stock at the time of each sale. The company will control the timing and amount of any shares of common stock sold to Lincoln Park, and Lincoln Park is obligated to make purchases at quantities and prices in accordance with the purchase agreement. The company intends to use any proceeds it receives under the purchase agreement for working capital and general corporate purposes. There are no warrants, limitations on use of proceeds, financial or business covenants, rights of first refusal, participation rights, penalties or liquidated damages in the purchase agreement.

16:13 EDT Pieris phase 1 studies of PRS-343 placed on partial clinical hold by FDA - Pieris Pharmaceuticals announced that its phase 1 studies of PRS-343 have been placed on partial clinical hold by the FDA while Pieris conducts an additional in-use and compatibility study requested by the agency. Currently-enrolled patients may continue to receive treatment, although no new patients can be enrolled until resolution of this partial hold. The partial hold follows discussions with FDA regarding the company's in-use study supporting the technical setup for clinical administration of PRS-343. Specifically, FDA has requested that Pieris conduct an additional in-use and compatibility study of PRS-343 with various infusion materials under specific conditions to confirm suitability of PRS-343 for administration in clinical settings. Separately, the company has received a written response from the FDA to its Type C meeting request related to the planned phase 2 proof of concept study of PRS-343 in combination with ramucirumab and paclitaxel. Based on this response, Pieris continues to believe it can initiate this clinical study later this year, pending successful completion of the requested in-use and compatibility study.

16:10 EDT Synaptics to acquire DisplayLink for $305M in cash - Synaptics Incorporated announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire DisplayLink Corp. for $305M in an all-cash transaction. The deal is expected to close in Synaptics' Q1 of FY21, subject to customary closing conditions, and be financed from existing cash on hand. Synaptics expects the transaction to add approximately $94M in annualized sales and be immediately accretive to non-GAAP gross margins, non-GAAP operating margins, and non-GAAP earnings post-close.

16:08 EDT Hibbett Sports not providing FY21 outlook at this time - Due to the uncertain impact on its business from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the expiration of enhanced unemployment benefits, uncertainty surrounding the back-to-school season, and the possibility of additional government stimulus measures, the company is not providing a full-year outlook at this time.

16:07 EDT Hibbett Sports sees 1H total SSS up approximately 20% y/y - For the first half of the year, total comparable stores sales are forecasted to increase approximately 20% versus the prior year, including an approximate 7% increase in brick and mortar comparable sales and an estimated 140% comparable sales growth in digital.

16:07 EDT Hibbett Sports sees Q2 total SSS up in excess of 70% y/y - Total comparable store sales for the quarter are forecasted to increase in excess of 70% versus the prior year. The brick and mortar comparable store sales are expected to increase approximately 60% while digital comparable sales are forecasted to increase approximately 200%. Hibbett said: "In spite of the challenging business environment, the store operations team has been able to reopen nearly all stores to the public. We expect that over 25% of brick and mortar sales will be comprised of new customers and estimate that approximately 40% of our digital sales will also be attributed to new customers. The merchandise team has been working closely with our strategic vendors to manage inventory and make additional purchases to support the increased business. Even with the increased purchasing and improved velocity of the supply chain, inventory is currently forecast at quarter end to be well below prior year levels. The $50.0 million that was borrowed in the first quarter under the Company's credit facilities has been repaid. This amount was originally borrowed in March 2020 as a precautionary measure to provide increased liquidity and financial flexibility due to uncertainty in global markets driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. At no point did the Company use any of these excess funds."

16:05 EDT MagnaChip appoints Kyo-Hwa Chung to board of directors - MagnaChip Semiconductor (MX) announced the appointment of Kyo-Hwa "Liz" Chung to its board of directors, effective July 16. Chung currently serves as the Head of Corporate, External and Legal Affairs, for Microsoft Korea, a position she has held since November 2018. Chung's appointment fills a vacancy on MagnaChip's Board of Directors created as a result of the Board increasing the number of directors on the Board to seven directors from six directors. Prior to Microsoft (MSFT) Korea, Chung was with the Korean law firm Kim & Chang, from April 2003 until November 2018, most recently as a partner focusing on the areas of international disputes, government investigations and crisis management.

16:04 EDT Acadia: Phase 3 CLARITY study did not achieve statistical significance

16:00 EDT Schneider National partners with Mastery Logistics to advance Quest ecosystem - Schneider announced its collaboration with Mastery Logistics Systems, Inc., developers of a new SaaS technology solution led by industry veteran Jeff Silver, to further leverage the expertise it has invested in the Quest ecosystem. Mastery brings to market MasterMind, a cloud-based SaaS technology solution for large complex organizations, built to fuel automation, visibility, and productivity within their supply chains. MasterMind provides modern connectivity to Schneider's supply chain and its supply chain partners, enabling better management, decision making, resource allocation and overall visibility of goods and processes across the organization, across transportation modes, and across work streams. "Our customers rely on us to provide the capacity they need when and where they need it regardless of whether it is a dedicated solution, one-way trucking, brokerage, or supply chain management," said Mark Rourke, Chief Executive Officer of Schneider. "MasterMind will help us accelerate the blending of our asset and non-asset worlds for the benefit of our customers and will provide us a highly flexible and automated solution that will allow our associates to deliver what our customers need." As part of this new relationship, Schneider will make a strategic investment in Mastery Logistics Systems, providing capital and expertise to allow both companies to leverage their shared resources in a future working together, similar to its investment last year in Platform Science. MasterMind will integrate with Quest and Schneider's various other externally provided systems to support the proprietary business intelligence, reporting, and other key technology tools built by the Schneider teams.

15:04 EDT Cigna announces multi-year agreement with Memorial Hermann - Cigna and Memorial Hermann Health System have reached a multi-year agreement that "ensures Cigna customers will have continued access to Memorial Hermann's hospitals, facilities and providers for quality care at predictable, affordable rates," the company announced. "The new agreement is structured for long-term stability and improvement of Houston's health, while further strengthening Cigna and Memorial Hermann's network relationship," the company added.

14:41 EDT Newtek Business Services declares 58.1c per share dividend for third quarter - Newtek Business Services announced that its board of directors declared a third quarter cash dividend of 58.1c per share, which is payable on September 30 to shareholders of record as of September 21. With the payment of the second quarter 2020 and third quarter 2020 dividends, the company will have paid a total of $1.58 per share for the first three quarters of 2020, which would represent a 9.7% increase over the dividends paid in the first three quarters of 2019 of $1.44 per share.

13:43 EDT Johnson & Johnson maintains Q3 dividend at $1.01 per share - Johnson & Johnson announced that its board has declared a cash dividend for Q3 of $1.01 per share on the company's common stock. The dividend is payable on September 8, to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 25. The ex-dividend date is August 24, 2020.

12:49 EDT Caesars, Eldorado Resorts announced completion of merger - Caesars Entertainment, formerly known as Eldorado Resorts, announced that it completed its acquisition of Caesars Entertainment Corporation. "The transaction creates the largest casino and entertainment company in the U.S. The transaction further enhances Caesars' position as the leading regional and destination gaming operator in the U.S. The combined company owns and operates more than 55 casino properties worldwide, including an iconic portfolio of eight casino hotel properties on the Las Vegas Strip," the company stated. "We are pleased to have completed this transformative merger, thus making us the premier leader in gaming and hospitality. We look forward to executing on the numerous opportunities ahead to create value for all stakeholders. Additionally, we are pleased to welcome all of our Team Members to the combined company, and we look forward to implementing all of the strategic initiatives that will position the company for continued growth," added Tom Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment, Inc.

12:00 EDT Designer Brands falls -9.0% - Designer Brands is down -9.0%, or -56c to $5.64.

12:00 EDT Aluminum Corp. of China rises 12.7% - Aluminum Corp. of China is up 12.7%, or 77c to $6.83.

12:00 EDT Daqo New Energy rises 21.4% - Daqo New Energy is up 21.4%, or $18.99 to $107.70.

11:34 EDT Stamps.com up 8% to $235.54 after Citron predicts Shopify buyout

10:15 EDT AstraZeneca shares down 3% after release of COVID vaccine data - Shares of AstraZenca trading in New York are down $1.80, or 2.95%, to $59.30 after the company announced interim results from the ongoing Phase I/II COV001 trial, led by Oxford University, showed AZD1222 was "tolerated and generated robust immune responses against the SARS-CoV-2 virus in all evaluated participants." The shares had run-up on Friday ahead of the anticipated release of the data, which was published in The Lancet medical journal this morning. Adam Feuerstein of STAT News has tweeted about the data: "I am NOT a vaccine expert but the Oxford $AZN data look mediocre to me - disappointing relative to all the hype coming into Monday. Is this how others more knowledgable than me see it, too? What am I missing here?"

10:03 EDT Marriott Vacations implements cleaning protocol program - Marriott Vacations Worldwide announced the implementation of a comprehensive, enhanced cleaning protocol program entitled "Next Level of Clean". The company said, "Marriott Vacations Worldwide has created an extensive new standard in cleaner, safer spaces, to help people vacation with confidence across its seven vacation ownership brands, and focus on what matters most: time together. These enhanced health and safety protocols have been implemented across the Company's diverse portfolio of vacation ownership resorts with more than 21,000 vacation villas and accommodations throughout the U.S., Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. These standards also extend to the Company's sales galleries for its vacation ownership brands, where new practices have been implemented to provide presentations in a manner to allow for social distancing. The Company's enhanced cleaning protocols reflect elevated cleanliness standards, cleaning frequency, and hospitality norms across its vacation ownership brands...The use of enhanced cleaning materials and technologies, including electrostatic sprayers, micro-misting sanitation machines and hospital grade supplies, ensures a new level of clean so that returning Owners and guests can enjoy their family vacations in amazing destinations."

10:00 EDT Virgin Galactic falls -6.9% - Virgin Galactic is down -6.9%, or -$1.65 to $22.40.

10:00 EDT Studio City rises 9.9% - Studio City is up 9.9%, or $1.35 to $14.97.

10:00 EDT Daqo New Energy rises 23.3% - Daqo New Energy is up 23.3%, or $20.67 to $109.38.

09:49 EDT Moderna extends decline, shares down 15% to $80.25

09:47 EDT Tim Participacoes rises 8.7% - Tim Participacoes is up 8.7%, or $1.27 to $15.80.

09:47 EDT Daqo New Energy rises 16.7% - Daqo New Energy is up 16.7%, or $14.84 to $103.55.

09:40 EDT AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID data support large-scale evaluation, researchers say - In an abstract published online by The Lancet on a preliminary report of a phase 1/2, single-blind, randomized controlled trial of the safety and immunogenicity of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 being studied by the Oxford Vaccine Group and partner AstraZeneca, researchers stated that "ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 showed an acceptable safety profile, and homologous boosting increased antibody responses. These results, together with the induction of both humoral and cellular immune responses, support largescale evaluation of this candidate vaccine in an ongoing phase 3 program." The findings section stated in part: "Neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 were detected in 32 of 35 participants after a single dose when measured in MNA80 and in 35 participants when measured in PRNT50. After a booster dose, all participants had neutralising activity, including nine of nine in MNA80 at day 42 and ten of ten in Marburg VN on day 56. Neutralising antibody responses correlated strongly with antibody levels measured by ELISA." Reference Link

09:38 EDT Vista Gold receives $1.5M Guadalupe de los Reyes payment - Vista Gold announced receipt of the final $1.5M payment from Prime Mining and through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Minera Gold Stake, has executed a transfer agreement that assigns MGS's legal title to the claims covering the Guadalupe de los Reyes gold / silver project to a subsidiary of Prime Mining. As previously announced on June 15, 2020, Prime Mining is required to pay Vista an additional $2.1M in lieu of being granted certain royalties and back-in rights: $1,100,000 no later than six months from receipt of the Purchase Price Payment; and $1,000,000 no later than twelve months from receipt of the Purchase Price Payment. If Prime Mining fails to make the two payments, Vista will have the right to reinstate its royalties and back-in rights.

09:36 EDT Ingles Markets to require all customers to wear a face covering - Ingles Markets announces plans to require customers to wear a face covering to help in the fight against COVID-19. Signs announcing the face covering requirement are being posted at all store entrances, and in-store announcements are made repeatedly. This requirement will be effective in all retail locations beginning July 21, 2020 and will not apply to young children or to customers with medical conditions who are not able to wear a face covering. "In addition to requiring a facial covering, we are continuing our enhanced sanitation practices and regularly cleaning all high-touch surfaces to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Our one-way aisles to encourage social distancing remain in place as will our plexiglass sneeze guards," Ingles said in a statement.

09:30 EDT China Rapid Finance announces shareholders approve change in name to SOS - SOS, formerly China Rapid Finance, announces the approval from shareholders at the 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders of the proposal to change the company's name to SOS Limited. The company also announces the relocation of its headquarters to Qingdao City, Shandong, China. As previously disclosed, the company completed its asset injection with Yong Bao Two, the parent company of SOS Information Technology. Following shareholder approval on July 17, the company's name has been changed to SOS Limited and the trading symbol for its ADS changed to "SOS" effective Monday, July 20, 2020. The company's ADS will continue to trade on NYSE under the new CUSIP 83587W106. The company plans to discuss more about its strategic developments during its upcoming earnings release and investor call, SOS noted.

09:26 EDT Eve & Co receives license amendment to sell extracts, edibles, topicals - Eve & Co announced that Health Canada approved on July 17, 2020 an amendment to the licence of its wholly-owned subsidiary Natural MedCo granting the sale of cannabis extracts, edibles and topicals. This licensing amendment will allow the Company to significantly expand its product offering to consumer markets. It has submitted four additional products' Stock Keeping Units to Health Canada. These products are expected to be released in the third and fourth quarters of 2020. The Company plans on submitting more SKUs in the coming months as it expands its product line within female-focused categories. The Company has entered into letters of intent with Colio Estate Wines and Dr Kerklaan Therapeutics as previously announced on November 22, 2019 and January 30, 2020 respectively, for the development of cannabis-infused beverage and topical products, respectively and this licensing amendment permits the sale of such products as and when they are developed and released to consumer markets. The Company is also pleased to announce that it has received Health Canada's approval on July 6, 2020 for the renewal of its licence for standard cultivation, standard processing and sale for recreational purposes under the Cannabis Regulations. The licence has been renewed for a further three years, effective until July 6, 2023.

09:19 EDT Oxford Immunotec enters long-term agreement with Stop TB Partnership-GDF - Oxford Immunotec Global announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement to supply its T-SPOT.TB test and associated accessories to the Stop TB Partnership - Global Drug Facility. This follows the inclusion of the T-SPOT.TB test in the GDF's diagnostics catalog for the detection of tuberculosis infection. The GDF is the largest global provider of quality-assured TB medicines, diagnostics and laboratory supplies since its creation in 2001. GDF has facilitated access to TB medicines and diagnostics in more than 140 countries. In 2019 alone, GDF delivered nearly $264 million worth of TB medicines and diagnostics to 116 countries. GDF has led the introduction of advanced diagnostic and supplies in countries to support TB diagnosing.

09:17 EDT Denbury Resources reports fradulent press release, says received no proposal - Denbury Resources confirmed that a press release issued earlier regarding a purported acquisition proposal for Denbury was fraudulent and not issued by the Company. The Company has received no such proposal and has reported the fraudulent activity to the New York Stock Exchange.

09:15 EDT Norwegian Cruise Line announces full exercise of Greenshoe option - Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings announced that, in connection with its previously announced public offering of 16,666,667 ordinary shares of the Company at a price to the public of $15.00 per share, the underwriters have notified the Company of their intent to purchase an additional 2,500,000 ordinary shares pursuant to the full exercise of their option to acquire additional ordinary shares. The Company will issue an aggregate amount of 19,166,667 ordinary shares in the offering, including the Option Shares. The offering of the ordinary shares, including the Option Shares, is expected to close on July 21, 2020, subject to customary closing conditions. The Company expects to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes.

09:14 EDT GlobalSCAPE and HelpSystems sign definitive merger agreement - GlobalSCAPE and HelpSystems jointly announced they have signed a definitive merger agreement under which HelpSystems will acquire all outstanding shares of GlobalSCAPE for $9.50 per share in cash. The combined company would focus on providing the most comprehensive collection of trusted security and automation solutions to customers worldwide. GlobalSCAPE is a leader in the secure managed file transfer software industry. Under the terms of the agreement between GlobalSCAPE and HelpSystems, HelpSystems has agreed to acquire all of the outstanding shares of GlobalSCAPE for $9.50 per share, which represents a 16% premium to the closing price for GlobalSCAPE stock on July 17. The transaction is structured as a tender offer followed by a merger, valued at approximately $217M, including debt to be refinanced. The transaction will be funded with cash on hand and new debt. Jefferies Finance and credit funds affiliated with Charlesbank Capital Partners have provided a commitment to HelpSystems to provide the necessary debt financing. The transaction is subject to GlobalSCAPE's stockholders tendering a majority of GlobalSCAPE's outstanding shares prior to the expiration of the tender offer, certain regulatory approvals and other customary conditions, and is expected to close in the Q3. Stephens Inc. is serving as the exclusive financial advisor to GlobalSCAPE regarding the transaction, including the go-shop process. B. Riley FBR delivered a fairness opinion to the board of directors of GlobalSCAPE. Olshan Frome Wolosky s serving as legal advisor to GlobalSCAPE. Goodwin Procter is serving as legal advisor to HelpSystems.

09:12 EDT Borqs Technologies receives increased orders for safety, tracking device - Borqs Technologies announced that it has received significantly increased orders from the top level electronics retail chain in the US for its personal safety tracker. Based on the confirmed orders received so far and forecasts from the customer, the Company expects to deliver around 250,000 units in the fiscal year ending December 31, 2020, representing more than three-times the volume delivered in 2019 which was the first year this product came to market.

09:11 EDT Verizon Media enables grocery shopping from email - Verizon Media (VZ) announced the launch of "Groceries from Walmart," (WMT) making it easier than ever to buy groceries online. Yahoo Mail users can now browse, add to cart, and buy essential groceries from Walmart right within Yahoo Mail. This is the first time ever that email users can fill a shopping cart from their inbox, streamlining their shopping experience from within the mail app they use daily to track promotions, coupons, and more. By bringing Groceries from Walmart to Yahoo Mail, people can now tackle all of their grocery needs from one place. Last year, Yahoo Mail debuted a new app which included the launch of Grocery View, which helps users save time and money on the essentials. The view shows users the deals at local grocery stores, lets them save those deals to their shopping lists, as well as connect their store loyalty card to automatically apply saved coupons at checkout. Now, Yahoo will give users the ability to shop Walmart's grocery catalogue at their leisure and add items to a shopping cart within Yahoo Mail for pick-up from their local Walmart store.

09:09 EDT Arcutis Biotherapeutics enrolls last patient in Phase 2b trial of ARQ-154 - Arcutis Biotherapeutics announced the completion of enrollment of the Phase 2b clinical trial evaluating ARQ-154 as a potential treatment for scalp psoriasis. Roflumilast foam is a once-daily topical foam formulation of a highly potent and selective phosphodiesterase type 4 inhibitor that the Company is developing particularly to treat inflammatory dermatoses in hair-bearing areas of the body such as the scalp. The Company now anticipates topline data from this trial in the fourth quarter of 2020. Roflumilast foam is a topical foam formulation of a highly potent and selective PDE4 inhibitor. Roflumilast has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for systemic treatment to reduce the risk of exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease since 2011. Roflumilast has shown greater potency than the two other FDA-approved PDE4 inhibitors. PDE4 is an intracellular enzyme that increases the production of pro-inflammatory mediators and decreases production of anti-inflammatory mediators and has been implicated in a wide range of inflammatory diseases including psoriasis, eczema, and COPD. PDE4 is an established target in dermatology, and other PDE4 inhibitors have been approved by the FDA for the topical treatment of atopic dermatitis or the systemic treatment of plaque psoriasis/ Arcutis believes roflumilast foam has significant potential as a scalp psoriasis treatment. Roflumilast foam is nearly identical to ARQ-151, Arcutis' topical cream PDE4 inhibitor that has demonstrated statistically significant improvements of psoriasis symptoms and a favorable tolerability profile in two separate Phase 2 studies. Psoriasis plaques on the scalp are identical to plaques elsewhere on the body, so the roflumilast cream psoriasis results should be highly predictive. The Phase 2b trial in scalp psoriasis is an 8-week, multi-center, multi-national, double blind, vehicle-controlled, study of the safety and efficacy of topical roflumilast foam 0.3% administered once-daily in approximately 300 adult and adolescent patients with plaque psoriasis that includes plaques on the scalp. The primary endpoint of the trial is achievement of an Investigator Global Assessment score of 'clear' or 'almost clear' plus a 2-grade improvement from baseline on the scalp at week 8. Multiple secondary endpoints will also be evaluated.

09:08 EDT Wyndham Destinations withdraws FY20 adjusted free cash flow view - The company is withdrawing its previous outlook for 2020 full year Adjusted Free cash flow from continuing operations of $100M-$150M and instead is targeting to be Adjusted Free cash flow positive for the full year. The company's previous guidance in early May was based on pre-opening projections. The revised outlook is based on current trends including the continued uncertainty around COVID-19 and related impacts to travel. The company's new guidance assumes a 60% reduction in tour volumes in the second half of 2020 over the prior year and reflects continued elevated level of vacation cancellation activity. New booking activity is in line with prior year levels but cancellations have remained elevated for longer than anticipated and reflects consumer caution around travel in light of the spread of COVID-19 in the U.S. The company had previously withdrawn its normal comprehensive outlook on March 25, 2020.

09:07 EDT Big Lots appoints Jack Pestello as Chief Merchandising Officer - Big Lots (BIG) announced that Jack Pestello has been appointed Executive Vice President, Chief Merchandising Officer of Big Lots, effective July 27. Pestello succeeds Lisa Bachmann who, as previously announced, will be retiring after a transition period. Pestello will report directly to Bruce Thorn, President and CEO of Big Lots. Pestello joins Big Lots following seven years in leadership roles at Walmart and with over 25 years of global retail experience spanning merchandising, sourcing, category and brand development. At Walmart (WMT), he most recently served as Senior Vice President and General Merchandise Manager for Walmart's Grocery business, after having spent five years as Senior Vice President, Private Brands, where he was responsible for nearly doubling sales while significantly reducing sourcing costs.

09:05 EDT Ford promotes John Mellen to general counsel - Ford (F) announced senior leadership changes, naming a new general counsel and promoting another executive to a vice president and corporate officer role. Ford said in a release, "John Mellen, longtime associate general counsel at Ford, will become general counsel effective Aug. 1, assuming responsibility for global legal matters and overseeing the company's legal team. Mellen, a 39-year Ford veteran, will replace Bradley Gayton, who has accepted a position as senior vice president and general counsel at Coca-Cola (KO). Gayton's last day with Ford will be Aug. 31, affording several weeks for transition. Also, Jonathan Jennings has been named vice president, Global Commodity Purchasing and Supplier Technical Assistance, and a corporate officer by Ford's board."

09:05 EDT Flowers Foods announces strategic organizational realignment - Flowers Foods announced organizational structure changes designed to increase focus on brand growth, product innovation, and improving cake business operations. The changes, effective July 17, include the following actions: The consolidation of the company's Fresh Packaged Bread business unit and Specialty/Snacking business unit into a single function responsible for all brands. Mark Courtney, previously president of the Fresh Packaged Bread BU, has been named chief brand officer and leads this function. In this newly created role, Courtney is responsible for managing all Flowers brands, as well as its revenue management, shopper marketing and brand partnership programs.The establishment of a stand-alone innovation function under the direction of Debo Mukherjee, chief marketing officer. The appointment of David Roach, most recently president of the Snacking/Specialty BU, to the newly created position of president of Cake Operations, where he will focus exclusively on improving that area of the business. The repositioning of the company's foodservice business from the Snacking/Specialty BU to the Sales function, which will continue to be led by Keith Wheeler, chief sales officer. McMullian noted that the company has eliminated approximately 250 positions across different departments and job levels to better balance the resources required to support the company's business. Flowers currently employs approximately 9,700 employees.

09:02 EDT Sorrento receives FDA clearance to begin Phase 2 trial of Abivertinib - Sorrento Therapeutics received clearance from the FDA to initiate a Phase 2 trial of Abivertinib in patients with COVID-19 who have moderate to severe pulmonary symptoms. Abivertinib is a novel small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor, or TKI, that selectively targets both mutant forms of the epidermal growth factor receptor, or EGFR, and Bruton's tyrosine kinase, BTK. On May 21 Sorrento announced that it had entered into a binding term sheet for an exclusive license to ACEA Therapeutics' Abivertinib across all indications for all territories outside of China. The parties have since entered into an exclusive license agreement.

09:01 EDT Teligent appoints John Celentano as chairman of the board - Teligent announced that John Celentano, a current independent director of Teligent, has been appointed Chairman of Teligent's Board of Directors, replacing James Gale who opted to not stand for reelection to Teligent's board of directors in order to devote more time to other business interests. Mr. Celentano joined Teligent as a director in March 2015. He will also continue to serve as a member of Teligent's Compensation and Audit Committees.

08:57 EDT WeedMD, CannTx partner to add new cultivars to genetics bank - WeedMD announced it has partnered with Guelph-based CannTx Life Sciences to add new cultivars to its genetics bank and expand the lifecycle of the Company's prized cannabis cultivars using cutting-edge tissue culture techniques via Steadystem Solutions. Tissue culture is an innovative and widely-recognized practice in agriculture used for preserving plant integrity, crop health and genetic accuracy. Under the Steadystem program, nodal segment cultures are collected from WeedMD's mother plants and regenerated using an in-vitro platform to re-produce historical cannabinoid and terpene profiles. In addition to expanding WeedMD's genetics bank and cultivars' lifecycle with its rejuvenation techniques, the Steadystem tissue culture platform also banks genetic material for secure storage and plant asset preservation. In other developments, WeedMD also announced that in accordance with the provisions of its deferred share unit plan its Board of Directors has authorized the grant of an aggregate of 2,688,314 deferred share units to certain directors and officers of the Company. The purpose of the DSU Plan is to promote greater alignment of interests between the Company's shareholders and directors while reducing the cash expense of compensating its directors. Of the DSUs granted 1,441,647 will vest immediately, 623,334 will vest on December 8, 2020, and 623,333 will vest on June 8, 2021. In addition, the Board of Directors has authorized the grant of options to employees company-wide as part of WeedMD's employee compensation plan.

08:55 EDT Enphase Energy, REA Global pair Enphase IQ 7+ microinverters with solar modules - Enphase Energy announced that REA Global is pairing Enphase IQ 7+ microinverters with its proprietary high efficiency, high-density cell solar modules. The solution maximizes performance to provide more solar power production from a smaller space for both residential and commercial customers across Australia. Since 2006, REA Global's solar division, REA Solar, has offered turnkey solar energy solutions to help its customers reduce their energy bills and dependency on the electricity grid. REA Global incorporated the lessons and insights gained in the field to develop the REA Power Series Modules, which employ Enphase IQ 7+ microinverters to deliver peak yields with superior efficiency, reliability, and safety. The innovative solar module solution is trusted by thousands of homeowners and businesses alike, including notable Australian brands such as Beaumont Tiles, Anytime Fitness, Little Scholars Early Learning Centres, A1 Interiors, Pro Plaster Services, and Innovative Steel.

08:52 EDT Jaguar Health invited to expedite AOI section submission from CVM for Canaleva - Jaguar Health announced that it has submitted to the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, or CVM, the second-to-last required technical section to support approval of Jaguar's oral plant-based drug candidate Canalevia to treat chemotherapy-induced diarrhea, or CID, in dogs. Jaguar Health said in a release, "Although this filing was originally scheduled for submission by the end of August, the CVM recently requested that the Company expedite the filing. According to current estimates, more than 230,000 dogs in the U.S. receive chemotherapy treatment for various cancers each year, and roughly one in four (more than 50,000 dogs) will experience diarrhea as a side effect of treatment. There currently is no FDA-approved anti-secretory prescription product to manage this type of debilitating diarrhea in dogs. The filing consists of the All Other Information, or AOI, technical section of Jaguar's application for conditional approval of Canalevia for CID under the Minor Use/Minor Species, or MU/MS, section of The Minor Use and Minor Species Animal Health Act of 2004."

08:49 EDT BioNTech, Pfizer announce update from German Phase 1/2 COVID-19 study - BioNTech (BNTX) and Pfizer (PFE) announced initial data from their ongoing German Phase 1/2, open-label, non-randomized, non-placebo-controlled, dose-escalation trial, that is part of the global mRNA-based vaccine program against SARS-CoV-2. The data are available on an online preprint server at medRxiv and are concurrently undergoing scientific peer-review for potential publication. The preliminary clinical results are for the most advanced investigational vaccine candidate in Pfizer's and BioNTech's BNT162 mRNA-based vaccine program against SARS-CoV-2, BNT162b1. This vaccine candidate is a lipid nanoparticle formulated, nucleoside-modified messenger RNA that encodes an optimized SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain antigen. Overall, the new preliminary data from this German study support and expand upon the recently disclosed early results from the corresponding U.S. trial with BNT162b1. Preliminary data for BNT162b1 in the German Phase 1/2 trial were evaluated with a total of 60 healthy adults 18 to 55 years of age enrolled in the study. Of these 60 participants, 12 subjects per dose level were vaccinated with BNT162b1 on day 1 and day 22. Furthermore, 12 participants received a single injection of 60 microgram. The vaccine elicited high, dose level-dependent SARS-CoV-2-neutralizing titers and RBD-binding IgG concentrations after the second dose. Day 43 SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing geometric mean titers were in the range of 0.7-fold to 3.2-fold compared to that of a panel of SARS-CoV-2 infection convalescent human sera. Furthermore, sera of vaccinated subjects displayed broadly neutralizing activity in pseudovirus neutralization assays across a panel of sixteen SARS-CoV-2 RBD variants represented in publicly available SARS-CoV-2 sequences and against the newly dominant D614G strain. In addition, the initial German trial results demonstrate, for the first time for the BNT62b1 candidate, a concurrent induction of high level CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses against the SARS-CoV-2 RBD. The strength of T cell responses varied between subjects. There was no clear dose level dependency of the T cell response between 1 microgram to 50 microgram, indicating that stimulation and robust expansion of T cells might be accomplished at low mRNA dose levels. All subjects in the prime-boost cohorts, except for two at the lowest dose level, had CD4+ T cell responses. Cytokine profiling of the RBD-specific CD4+ T cells demonstrated a TH1-dominant profile for these cells. 29 of the 36 tested subjects also mounted an RBD-specific functional, CD8+ T cell response that was comparable to memory responses observed against cytomegalovirus, Epstein Barr virus and influenza virus. Overall, the data suggested that BNT162b1 could potentially be administered safely, with a manageable tolerability profile. Local reactions and systemic events after injection with BNT162b1 at all dose levels were transient, generally mild to moderate, with occasional severe events of flu-like symptoms and injection site reactions. All adverse events resolved spontaneously and were managed with simple measures. No serious adverse events were reported, and there were no withdrawals due to adverse events related to the vaccine. Preliminary data from both the German and U.S. Phase 1/2 studies, together with additional preclinical and clinical data being generated, will be used by the two companies to determine a dose level and select among multiple vaccine candidates to seek to progress to an anticipated large, global Phase 2b/3 safety and efficacy trial. That trial may involve up to 30,000 healthy participants and is anticipated to begin in late July 2020, if regulatory approval is received. The BNT162b1 candidate remains under clinical study and is not currently approved for distribution anywhere in the world. If the ongoing studies are successful and the vaccine candidate receives regulatory approval, the companies expect to manufacture up to 100 million doses by the end of 2020 and potentially more than 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021. In that event, BioNTech and Pfizer would work jointly to distribute the potential COVID-19 vaccine worldwide.

08:42 EDT Leaf Group urges shareholders to 'thoroughly weigh' Investor Group's motivations - Leaf Group (LEAF) issued a letter to its shareholders in response to recent public letters from a group of Leaf Group Shareholders. The letter read, in part, "Following the release of our letter to shareholders on July 2, 2020, the appointed Independent Committee of Directors, comprised of Beverly Carmichael and Deborah Benton, participated in a telephone call with the Investor Group. We remain committed to listening to the Investor Group's views and trying to engage them in a constructive, private dialogue, as we would with any shareholder. As such, we have been disappointed that they have continued to attack Leaf Group publicly, attempting to further distract our Board and Management team at a time when the Company is posting outstanding results. We do not intend to respond to every public missive from the Investor Group. Our focus is on executing our business strategy and continuing to drive strong performance. However, we do want to take this opportunity to set the record straight on some points for our shareholders regarding the Investor Group, their history with the Company and their intentions. In their letters, the Investor Group has expressed concerns regarding three primary issues: 1) the thoroughness and integrity of our strategic review process; 2) CEO Sean Moriarty's compensation; and 3) the composition of our Board and relationships among its members. What the Investor Group fails to mention, however, is that several of their own members were long-time Directors of the Leaf Group Board who were involved in making key decisions related to these topics, and were directly responsible for overseeing and helping steer the Company in these areas... It was just two months ago that Leaf Group concluded a thorough 13-month strategic review process. These reviews are always costly and distracting, and the results from our review made clear that the best path to deliver shareholder value is to continue to execute our strategy and deliver sound business results. Just three weeks ago, the Company reported preliminary results for what is shaping up to be its strongest quarterly growth in nearly a decade. Our Board of Directors is always open to reviewing offers for the Company that can potentially deliver shareholder value. However, the Board firmly believes that now is not the time to undertake another time-consuming, costly and distracting strategic review process - just months after we completed a thorough, 13-month strategic review - and potentially disrupt the Company's strong performance. We respectfully ask Leaf Group stockholders to thoroughly weigh the motivations of the Investor Group and consider their communications in light of the Company's current outstanding business performance."

08:38 EDT Sono-Tek annouces passing of chairman emeritus Samuel Schwartz - Sono-Tek announced with great sorrow that Samuel Schwartz, Board Director and Chairman Emeritus, passed away on July 17, 2020 at the age of 100 years.

08:37 EDT Eros Now enters partnership with Sony India - Eros International said in a release, "Eros Now, the digital over-the-top, or OTT, South Asian entertainment platform owned by Eros International (EROS), announced its collaboration with Sony India (SNE) to provide unlimited online entertainment to consumers in India. This alliance between the two renowned household brands enables a large base of existing (BRAVIA E series and newer TV models) as well as prospective Sony BRAVIA customers to access Eros Now's pre-installed app seamlessly on their smart TVs and enjoy its massive content catalogue on high definition, superior quality screens."

08:35 EDT Digirad's KBS signs Phase 2 of $5.2M contract for U.S. Army housing units - Digirad Corporation announced today that KBS Builders has signed Phase 2 of its previously announced $5.2M project with Tocci Building Corporation, a Massachusetts-based general contractor and construction management company. For Phase 2 of this project, valued at $4.4M, KBS will manufacture 84 building modules. Phase 1, valued at $0.8M for the manufacturing of 14 building modules, commenced in June. This $5.2M project in total will result in the production of 22 single-family and townhouse units for the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center in Natick, MA. Deliveries for both phases are expected to be completed before the end of the year. All 98 modular units are being manufactured at KBS's plant in South Paris, ME, which has a production capacity of 500 to 600 building modules per year. As previously announced, the federal government may exercise its option for Phase 3, which would increase the total project size by an additional 26 building modules and 6 living units, bringing the total potential project revenue for KBS to $6.7M.

08:34 EDT Enlivex Therapeutics announces publication on Allocetra - Enlivex Therapeutics announced the publication of "Apoptotic cell therapy for cytokine storm associated with acute severe sepsis" in Cell Death & Disease, a Nature Research Journal. The published studies were conducted in collaboration with researchers at the Rheumatology and Rare Disease Research Center, The Whohl Institute for Translational Medicine, and the Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center. Preclinical data from the studies demonstrate the ability of Allocetra to broadly resolve cytokine storm-associated organ failure and reduce mortality by 90% in a murine cecal ligation and puncture animal model of severe sepsis. The CLP model has been proposed to more closely replicate the nature and course of clinical sepsis, as compared to other models. Highlights from the manuscript. In the CLP model, treatment with Allocetra in combination with antibiotics and fluids decreased mortality by 90% when compared to treatment with antibiotics and fluids alone. Allocetra-induced survival benefits in CLP mice were both dose dependent and statistically significant. CLP-induced sepsis led to widespread organ failure including in the lungs, heart, liver, and kidneys, all of which were resolved with Allocetra treatment. CLP-mice saw broad elevation of cytokines and chemokines across multiple immune modulation subsystems that decreased with Allocetra treatment. A positive effect by Allocetra treatment was shown for the first time both in aerobic and anaerobic metabolism of the immune system leading to significant improvement in both mitochondrial respiration and glycolytic reserve.

08:32 EDT Hudson Technologies appoints Brian Coleman as chairman, president, CEO - Hudson Technologie announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Brian Coleman Chairman of the Board, President and CEO, roles he had assumed on an interim basis following the passing of Kevin Zugibe, the Company's former Chairman of the Board and CEO, on June 23, 2020. Mr. Coleman has been with Hudson Technologies since May 1997 and most recently served as Hudson's President and COO since August 2001.

08:30 EDT Denbury Resources trading halted, news pending

08:29 EDT Bionano Genomics announces publication on Bionano's Saphyr - Bionano Genomics announced that the European consortium led by Laila El Khattabi from the Cochin Hospital in Paris, France and Alexander Hoischen from the Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands, published their first paper on the use of Bionano's Saphyr genome imaging instrument to investigate the performance of Bionano data in comparison to cytogenetic standard of care in constitutional or inherited genetic disorders. Consistent with preliminary reports on this study, the authors reported 100% concordance between optical mapping results from the Saphyr genome imaging instrument and gold standard cytogenetic methods consisting of a combination of karyotyping, FISH, and/or chromosomal microarray in a cohort of patients with a variety of constitutional or inherited genetic disorders. The final results of the study are published in bioRxiv. The data originate from a multi-center effort between the hospitals of Paris-Cochin, Lyon and Clermont-Ferrand in France and the Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands, involving 85 samples from patients with developmental delay, autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disability, congenital malformations, reproductive disorders, familial history of chromosomal aberration or abnormal prenatal test results. The performance of Saphyr was benchmarked on a total of 100 simple or complex chromosomal events with 11 different types of balanced and unbalanced aberrations such as microdeletions, microduplications, translocations, insertions, large copy number variations, aneuploidies and ring chromosomes. The study authors reported that all clinically relevant variants previously detected by a combination of cytogenetic methods were identified by Saphyr, and that Saphyr is capable of comprehensively detecting all classes of chromosomal aberrations without the need of a complex bioinformatic analysis pipeline, while overcoming issues presented by repetitive regions inaccessible to sequencing. Importantly, the multicenter study results support the utility of Saphyr as samples were analyzed in three different facilities and results remained consistent as measured by quality and concordance with conventional cytogenetic analyses. The study authors describe Saphyr as a viable alternative to both karyotyping and CNV-microarray, especially in reproductive disorders as a potential replacement of karyotyping as the primary cytogenetic testing method. Sequencing-based methods have failed to replace karyotyping, especially in prenatal testing, because of a high incidence of false positive findings, which has not occurred with Saphyr. In developmental disorders, Bionano genome imaging could potentially complement next generation sequencing to achieve a better and possibly nearly complete genome analysis and allow for a comprehensive genomic investigation.

08:25 EDT AzurRx closes $15.2M private placement, $6.9M convertible note exchange - AzurRx BioPharma announced that on July 16, 2020, it entered into a Convertible Preferred Stock and Warrant Securities Purchase Agreement with certain accredited and institutional investors relating to the private placement of certain shares of convertible preferred stock and warrants for cash and in exchange for certain outstanding promissory notes as described below. Pursuant to the Purchase Agreement, the Company issued an aggregate of 2,912.583124 shares of Series B Convertible Preferred Stock at a price of $7,700.00 per share, initially convertible into an aggregate of 29,125,833 shares of the Company's common stock at $0.77 per share, together with warrants to purchase an aggregate of 14,562,957 shares of Common Stock at an exercise price of $0.85 per share and a term of five years. The gross cash proceeds of the Private Placement were approximately $15.2 million, before deducting placement agent compensation and other offering expenses. Additionally, in connection with the Private Placement, the Company entered into an exchange addendum to the Purchase Agreement with certain investors, relating to the exchange of, as consideration in the Private Placement, of approximately $6.9 million aggregate in principal amount, plus all accrued and unpaid interest thereon, of its outstanding Senior Convertible Promissory Notes, originally due in September 2020. As additional consideration for entering into the Exchange, the Company also issued to those investors certain additional warrants to purchase an aggregate of 1,772,972 shares of Common Stock. The Exchange Warrants have the same terms as the Series B Warrants. The Company anticipates prepaying the outstanding balance of $25,000 aggregate principal amount of Promissory Notes, together with accrued and unpaid interest thereon through such prepayment date, held by non-participating holders in the Exchange, following which no Promissory Notes will remain outstanding. AzurRx currently intends to use the net cash proceeds from the Private Placement for research and development expenses associated with its continuing clinical development and testing of MS1819 and for other general corporate purposes and capital expenditures.

08:22 EDT IntelGenx, Tilray amend certain exclusivity terms of VersaFilm agreement - IntelGenx Corp. (IGXT) announced that it and Tilray (TLRY) have amended the exclusivity terms of their November 2018 license, development and supply agreement to allow for IntelGenx's co-development and commercialization of CBD products with additional partners. In consideration, IntelGenx shall pay a royalty to Tilray on all CBD products sold pursuant to this amendment. All other terms of the Agreement, including those pertaining to Tilray's exclusive, worldwide marketing and distribution rights for non-CBD cannabis-infused VersaFilm, remain unchanged.

08:18 EDT IQVIA announces collaboration with JDRF - IQVIA announced it is joining forces with JDRF, the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes, or T1D, research, to use non-identified patient-level, real world data and analytics to address unmet needs in the diabetes community. IQVIA said in a release, "The IQVIA-JDRF collaboration will utilize non-identified real world data to answer important clinical research questions and address areas of unmet need in people with T1D, including how to improve diagnostic accuracy, assess the impact of treatments and monitoring devices on outcomes, and optimize future drug development efforts. In the first project, the team is collaborating to help improve distinctions in diagnosing type 1 vs. type 2 or other diabetes. It is estimated that nearly 40 percent of people with adult-onset T1D may be initially misdiagnosed, so helping differentiate diabetes types will better ensure appropriate treatment and patient outcomes."

08:14 EDT Genocea says FDA places GEN-011 IND on clincial hold - In June 2020, the Company submitted the IND to support the initiation of a Phase 1/2 clinical trial and the 30-day FDA review period has just ended. The Company has received verbal notification from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that the agency has completed its review of the Company's Investigational New Drug Application for GEN-011. In this verbal feedback, the FDA informed Genocea that it is placing the IND on clinical hold until it receives additional information pertaining to certain third-party reagents used in the GEN-011 manufacturing process. These reagents are not a component of the final cell therapy product. The Company expects to receive official written communication from the FDA regarding the hold and the FDA's position in the near future and will work with the FDA to resolve their questions as quickly as possible.

08:12 EDT Halliburton reports Q2 North America revenue $1B, down 57% sequentially - North America revenue in the second quarter was $1B, a 57% decrease when compared to the first quarter of 2020. This decline was driven by reduced activity in U.S. land, primarily associated with pressure pumping, well construction, artificial lift, and wireline activity, coupled with reduced activity across multiple product service lines in the Gulf of Mexico. International revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was $2.1B, a 17% decrease when compared to the first quarter of 2020, primarily driven by reduced pressure pumping and drilling-related activity across all regions, partially offset by improved completion tool sales. Latin America revenue in the second quarter was $346M, a 33% decrease sequentially, resulting primarily from decreased activity across multiple product service lines in Argentina, Colombia and Brazil, and lower software sales in Mexico. Europe/Africa/CIS revenue in the second quarter was $691M, a 17% decrease sequentially, resulting primarily from reduced well construction and pressure pumping activity, and lower software sales across the region. These reductions were partially offset by increased fluids activity and completion tool sales in Norway and improved cementing activity and completion tool sales in Russia. Middle East/Asia revenue in the second quarter was $1.1B, a 10% decrease sequentially, largely resulting from reduced activity across the majority of product service lines in the Middle East, Malaysia.

08:10 EDT Exelixis announces initiation of CONTACT-03 Phase 3 pivotal trial - Exelixis announced the initiation of CONTACT-03, a global phase 3 pivotal trial of cabozantinib in combination with atezolizumab in patients with inoperable, locally advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma, or RCC, who progressed during or following treatment with an immune checkpoint inhibitor as the immediate preceding therapy. Exelixis said in a release, "CONTACT-03 is part of a clinical trial collaboration between Exelixis and Roche that includes two additional phase 3 pivotal trials - CONTACT-01 in patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, who have been previously treated with an immune checkpoint inhibitor and platinum-containing chemotherapy and CONTACT-02 in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, or CRPC, who have been previously treated with one novel hormonal therapy - both initiated in June."

08:08 EDT Humana, REACH Kidney Care sign care coordination services agreement - Humana and REACH Kidney Care announced an agreement to provide kidney disease care coordination services to eligible Humana Medicare Advantage and Commercial members in Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. the companies said in a release, "The services are designed to help Humana members with kidney disease improve their health and quality of life through a more customized, integrated approach to care. The collaboration, now in effect, is focused on early detection of CKD, slowing disease progression, and improving the patient experience by coordinating care in conjunction with a member's primary care physician and nephrologist. REACH Kidney Care nurses, pharmacists, and dietitians will provide patient education about in-home treatment options, including home dialysis; and health and medication assessments."

08:07 EDT Albireo Pharma launches expanded access program for odevixibat - Albireo Pharma announced the launch of an Expanded Access Program for investigational lead product candidate odevixibat, a highly potent and selective inhibitor of the ileal bile acid transporter, for patients with progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Europe. Odevixibat is being evaluated in patients with PFIC in the PEDFIC 1 Phase 3 trial, for which topline results are expected in mid-2020, and the PEDFIC 2 open-label trial evaluating the long-term efficacy and safety of odevixibat in patients with PFIC. The PEDFIC 2 trial is the preferred route of access for all patients who qualify, as determined by their physician. Cohort 1 of the trial allows patients from the PEDFIC 1 clinical trial to continue treatment with odevixibat until it is commercially available. Cohort 2 comprises patients who did not participate in the PEDFIC 1 trial and includes other forms of PFIC not included in PEDFIC 1.

08:06 EDT Krystal Biotech appoints Whitney Ijem as SVP, strategy, business development - Krystal Biotech announced the appointment of Whitney Ijem to the newly created position of SVP, Strategy and Business Development. Ms. Ijem joins Krystal from Guggenheim Securities, where she served as Managing Director and Senior Biotechnology Analyst covering genetic medicine and rare disease companies. Ms. Ijem will join Krystal this month and will take a place on the company's leadership team.

08:04 EDT Santa Rosa Junior College, University of Guam leverage BIO-key's PortalGuard - BIO-key International announced that growth of its IAM footprint in higher education continues to accelerate within North America as well as internationally. Santa Rosa Junior College and prior to BIO-key's acquisition of PistolStar, Wesley Theological Seminary and the University of Guam, have chosen the PortalGuard solution to combat the more frequent, more sophisticated cybersecurity threats now facing higher education institutions while also improving the access experience for their end-users. For Santa Rosa Junior College, providing Single Sign-On to the application environment, protected by two-factor authentication, is the main priority for their 21,000 end-users. PortalGuard is tasked with providing secure SSO to applications, including Canvas, G Suite, Escape Online, a custom Student Information System application, Microsoft Office 365, and nineteen Shibboleth enabled applications, among others. Also, with PortalGuard's flexible two-factor authentication capabilities, the SRJC security team is planning to leverage both a mobile authenticator and YubiKey hardware tokens to secure access for web applications and Virtual Private Networks. The IT team at the University of Guam is focused on lowering costs for help desks calls related to password resets and reducing login prompts for their 5,000 end-users accessing enterprise applications. Since the March 2020 adoption of PortalGuard, it is anticipated that the solution will significantly improve end-user access by providing robust self-service capabilities and secure SSO to applications, including Ellucian Colleague, Moodle and Microsoft Office 365, among others. Strengthening security policies for end-user passwords, along with implementing SSO, means better security for the institution without negatively impacting the user experience. Wesley Theological Seminary's IT team has sought an IAM solution that would provide an end-user with a single password across multiple IT systems while enabling the added security and convenience of Single Sign-On. By using PortalGuard, which it contracted to utilize in March 2020, the Wesley IT team anticipates that it will be able to deliver a unified portal experience to improve access to critical applications for over 600 end-users. For this particular project, PortalGuard has enabled SSO for Microsoft Office 365, Ellucian Colleague & WebAdvisor, Blackboard, and Blackbaud. Additionally, to date the school had been able to secure the self-service password reset process and provide 24x7 self-service capabilities while substantially reducing the number of support calls coming into the help desk.

08:02 EDT eBay to expand management of payments around the globe - Starting today, eBay (EBAY)will begin expanding its management of payments around the globe. The company embarked on its journey to manage the end-to-end payments process on its marketplace platform in late 2018 and is already seeing success with its rollouts in the U.S. and Germany. Until now, the rollout has been paced by an Operating Agreement with PayPal (PYPL) that governed how quickly eBay could scale its management of payments. With this agreement now expired, eBay is free to move quickly with fully launching its management of payments, bringing customers one step further toward a more seamless user experience and a more modern managed marketplace. As of the end of the second quarter, eBay is already managing payments for nearly 42,000 sellers and has processed $4.7B in GMV in the U.S. and Germany. Most sellers can expect to see savings in managed payments, with eBay saving sellers $17M in transaction fees so far. eBay is on track to transition a majority of sellers on its marketplace into the experience in 2021 and complete the managed payments roll-out process in 2022. The managed payments platform is expected to deliver $2B in revenue and $500M in operating income in 2022.

07:48 EDT Royalty Pharma acquires royalty interest in risdiplam from PTC for $650M - Royalty Pharma (RPRX) announced an agreement with PTC Therapeutics (PTCT) to acquire a portion of PTC's royalty interest in risdiplam for a one-time payment of $650M. Risdiplam, to be marketed by Roche, is an investigational, orally administered survival motor neuron-2 splicing modifier for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy. SMA is a severe, inherited, progressive neuromuscular disease that causes devastating muscle atrophy and disease-related complications. It is the most common genetic cause of infant mortality and one of the most common rare diseases, affecting approximately one in 11,000 babies. The risdiplam NDA for the treatment of Types 1, 2 and 3 spinal muscular atrophy is under Priority Review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, with a PDUFA date of August 24, 2020. A Marketing Authorization Application is planned for submission to the European Medicines Agency, as well as filings in other international markets. The risdiplam SMA program is a collaboration between PTC, the SMA Foundation, and Roche. Relative to Royalty Pharma's existing business, the risdiplam royalty acquisition is expected to have minimal impact on its Adjusted cash receipts and Adjusted cash flow in 2020 and 2021, with growing accretion beyond 2021 resulting in enhanced long-term growth. Royalty Pharma is purchasing approximately 43% of the royalty up to a specified amount. PTC has previously disclosed that it is entitled to tiered royalties ranging from 8% to 16% on worldwide net product sales of risdiplam.

07:40 EDT Innovation Pharmaceuticals reports data from ongoing lab testing of brilacidin - Innovation Pharmaceuticals reports receiving new data from ongoing laboratory testing being conducted at a U.S. Regional Biocontainment Laboratory. The data is helping to inform the planned Phase 2 clinical trial of Brilacidin for COVID-19, targeted to commence in Q4 2020. Recently released in vitro data showed Brilacidin exhibited a potent inhibitory effect on SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus responsible for COVID-19, in a human lung epithelial cell line-reducing viral load by 95 percent and 97 percent at two efficacious concentrations tested, compared to control. The new data, using the same assay method, reveal Brilacidin exhibited a similarly potent inhibitory effect against SARS-CoV-2 at an even lower concentration in the same human lung epithelial cell line. Brilacidin achieved approximately 90 percent inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 at a drug concentration that was one-half lower than previously tested. The lowest concentration of Brilacidin used in RBL testing to date is well below the clinically-achievable concentration based on the pharmacokinetics observed in the Company's Phase 2b clinical trial of Brilacidin in Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infections. Additional RBL testing will assess Brilacidin's inhibition against SARS-CoV-2 in the human lung epithelial cell line at even lower concentrations to allow for accurate determination of Brilacidin IC50 and IC90 values-the drug concentration at which 50 percent and 90 percent of the virus is inhibited. IC90 rather than IC50 values are considered valuable measures of drug potency as they are more likely to reflect in vitro results translating to comparable results in humans.

07:38 EDT Embraer delivers four commercial, 13 executive jets in Q2 - Embraer delivered a total of 17 jets in the second quarter, of which four were commercial aircraft and 13 were executive jets. As of June 30, the firm order backlog totaled $15.4B.

07:38 EDT Broadridge's Sentry selected by MUFG investor Services - Broadridge Financial Solutions announces that MUFG Investor Services, has selected Broadridge's Sentry loan tracking and reporting technology to service its clients in the private debt space. With recent growth in the private debt, private credit and direct lending market, and the growing demand for software capable of administering and handling loans, MUFG Investor Services has chosen to partner with Broadridge to implement its Sentry Loan Portfolio Management system. This web-based system, which Broadridge added to its solution set with its acquisition of ClearStructure Financial technology, allows MUFG Investor Services to manage all aspects of its loan administration and service clients in a more efficient way.

07:37 EDT Equinox Gold names Doug Reddy as COO, succeeding Attie Roux - Equinox Gold announces that Doug Reddy will transition to the role of COO at the start of September 2020 upon retirement of the company's current COO, Attie Roux. Doug Reddy has been EVP Technical Services for Equinox Gold since March 2020 following the merger with Leagold Mining. Prior to Leagold, Doug was with Endeavour Mining for 10 years in executive and senior management roles focused on technical services and business development and was also Technical Director for AMEC Americas. Attie Roux will remain available in an advisory capacity as needed.

07:35 EDT PTC Therapeutics to monetize portion of risdiplam royalty stream for $650M - PTC Therapeutics (PTCT) announced an agreement to monetize a portion of the risdiplam royalty stream for $650M from Royalty Pharma (RPRX). The capital from the collaboration will enable PTC to further develop and expand its innovative rare disorder portfolio, particularly its validated splicing, Bio-e and gene therapy platforms. Under the terms of the royalty purchase agreement, PTC Therapeutics will receive $650M in upfront cash from Royalty Pharma in return for approximately 43% of the risdiplam royalties, up to a specified amount. PTC Therapeutics maintains the majority of the risdiplam royalty stream and retains all economics associated with up to $400M in remaining regulatory and sales milestones.

07:32 EDT Dollar Tree promotes Michael Witynski to CEO in planned leadership succession - Dollar Tree announced that Michael Witynski, Enterprise President of Dollar Tree, has been promoted to President and CEO. Gary Philbin, who joined Dollar Tree in 2001 and became CEO in 2017, is retiring after a successful retail career of more than 40 years. To facilitate a smooth transition, Mr. Philbin will remain with the Company as an executive and member of the board through September 23.

07:28 EDT Photon Control secures exclusive license for FiSens FBG sensor solutions - Photon Control announced its strategic partnership with Fisens via an exclusive worldwide license and distribution agreement for Fiber Bragg Grating sensor solutions in the semiconductor industry and a non-exclusive distribution license outside the semiconductor industry. This agreement gives Photon Control an exclusive license to FiSens products and patented technology for semiconductor applications and forms an important part of its previously announced growth strategy. Fisens' disruptive technology enables their FBG sensor solution to achieve the smallest form factor in the market while maintaining high quality and performance and furthers Photon Control's strategy to expand its product and technology portfolio. The partnership will also leverage Photon Control's fiber optic sensing expertise and experience in the semiconductor industry to introduce new and innovative products to the market, adding to Photon Control's sensor offerings for wafer fabrication equipment used in critical process steps such as etch and deposition.

07:22 EDT Cardinal Resources' mining license receives sovereign ratification - Cardinal Resources advised that its Namdini Mining Licence has officially received Sovereign Parliamentary Ratification in Ghana. A Large-Scale Mining Licence covering the Namdini Mining Licence was granted to Cardinal Namdini Mining Limited, by the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources under the Ghanaian Minerals and Mining Act 2006 in 2017. Cardinal Namdini is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cardinal Resources Limited. The Large-Scale Mining Licence originally covered 19km2 in the Dakoto area of the Talensi District in the Upper East Region of Ghana and has now been expanded to an area of 63 km2; the maximum allowable. The expanded Large-Scale Mining Licence has been granted for an initial period of 15 years commencing in 2020 and is renewable. Expansion of the Large-Scale Mining Licence will allow Cardinal to improve and de-risk mine and infrastructure design and optimise financial outcomes as the Company continues to progress the FEED programme.

07:19 EDT Wright announces update to medicare transitional device pass-through payment - Wright Medical Group announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published an update to the reimbursement calculation used to determine the transitional pass-through payment for the device category applicable to AUGMENT Regenerative Solutions, including AUGMENT(R) Bone Graft and AUGMENT Injectable, originally implemented on January 1, 2020. Based on this update, when hindfoot and ankle fusions are performed in the hospital outpatient and ambulatory surgical center settings of care, the facility will be paid for the incremental cost of AUGMENT, thereby facilitating Medicare beneficiary access to the advantages of AUGMENT by removing an economic barrier. This update is made retroactive to January 1, 2020, and the existing transitional device pass-through code may be used to bill for AUGMENT for hindfoot and ankle fusion procedures when used in treatment of Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Part B under the traditional Medicare program. Transitional pass-through payments are intended to facilitate Medicare beneficiary access to the advantages of new and innovative devices by allowing for adequate payment for these new devices while the necessary cost data is collected to incorporate the costs for these devices into the procedure Ambulatory Payment Classifications rate. After rigorous vetting, the CMS concluded that AUGMENT is of great clinical utility in the outpatient setting and approved Wright's application for transitional pass-through payment, which became effective January 1, 2020. This marked the first orthopedic implant to secure pass-through payment approval in over a decade1, unlocking access to benefits for patients, physicians and facilities, including: AUGMENT improves patient outcomes by eliminating chronic pain associated with the autograft harvest site, which was found to be clinically significant at 52 weeks in 8.8% of patients and 5.2% of patients at an average follow-up of 9 years. AUGMENT was found to provide two times the odds ratio for fusion success on CT compared to autograft in patients 65 years of age or older. AUGMENT eliminates medically significant surgical complications associated with the autograft harvest from a second surgical site, which were found to occur in 8.9% (15/167) of patients in the AUGMENT clinical trials.

07:14 EDT Baudax Bio enters Pharmacy Supplier Agreement with Vizient for ANJESO - Baudax Bio announced that it has entered into a Pharmacy Supplier Agreement with Vizient, Inc. effective as of July 1, 2020, to offer ANJESO injection, a non-opioid option for managing moderate to severe pain. The agreement offers enhanced savings to Vizient's diverse membership, which includes more than 50% of the nation's acute care providers, including 95% of the nation's academic medical centers, and more than 20% of ambulatory care providers.

07:12 EDT Silvercorp Metals reports results from underground drill hole at DCG Mine - Silvercorp Metals reports that its first underground drill hole at the DCG Mine in the Ying Mining District, Henan Province, China intercepted a 1.90 metre interval grading 15.0 grams per tonne gold. In 2006, Silvercorp acquired the DCG exploration permit, which is adjacent to the north of the TLP Mine. It covers an area of 19.77 km2. A series of drill programs between 2006 and 2011 of 25 drill holes comprised of 9,026 m focused on obvious lead-zinc veins. A maiden resource estimate that complies with Chinese government requirements, but not NI 43-101, was completed in 2014, and Silvercorp successfully converted the exploration permit to a mining permit in 2015. Information regarding the DCG Mine, including a resource estimate, will be contained in the upcoming NI 43-101 update for the Ying Mining District planned to be released this quarter, currently being prepared by the Company with assistance from AMC Mining Consultants Ltd. In late 2018, the Company decided to develop the DCG Mine and bring it into production. At present, 1,670 m of a 4.2 m wide by 3.8 m high access ramp has been developed and the remaining 95 m should be completed by mid-August 2020, which will allow for mining late this year. In addition, a 1,756 m transportation ramp is also under development from the TLP Mine camp area to enable ore haulage. So far, 447 m has been completed, with the remaining 1,309 m expected to be completed by the end of April 2021. Despite the mapping of extensive gold soil geochemical anomalies at the DCG Mine area by the previous owner in 2003, the 2020 underground drill program at the DCG Mine of 8,000 m in 22 holes, like the previous drilling, was focused on extending the previously-identified lead-zinc veins. Three holes have been completed and assay results have been received for one hole. Previously, only very select intervals with obvious lead-zinc mineralization alteration were sampled for the drill holes from the Ying Mining District. Recently, as potential gold mineralization was identified at the nearby LMW, LME and TLP Mines, the Company has decided to sample the full length of the drill core. As a result, hole ZK03AC702 intercepted a 1.02 m interval from 259.01 to 260.03 m grading 1.5 g/t Au and a 1.90 m interval from 406.86 to 408.76 m grading 15.0 g/t Au, with native gold grains observed to be associated with strong silicification, and fine pyrite-ankerite veinlets occurring near the foot wall contact of a diabase dyke with the host Archean gneisses. The gold-bearing diabase contact appears perpendicular to the drill hole orientation, and therefore the 1.90 m interval is believed to be close to true width. The Company was able to make this discovery of gold mineralization only by sampling the full length of the drill core. The extension of this gold discovery will now be the focus of the 2020 drilling program.

07:10 EDT Altair named Ducati Corse technical partner - Altair announced a multi-year technical partnership agreement with Ducati Corse, the racing division of the legendary Italian motorcycle manufacturer. Ducati will expand its use of Altair's computer-aided engineering software for product development, providing Ducati Corse engineers with a vital competitive edge in their 200mph-plus pursuit of racetrack success. Altair will sponsor the team in the MotoGP World Championship, which began in Spain on July 17, 2020.

07:09 EDT Natural Grocers now requires all customers to wear face coverings - The company said, "As COVID-19 cases continue to rise across the country, Natural Grocers has announced that, effective immediately, all customers 10 and older, or per the age limit established by state or local ordinance, are required to wear a face covering while shopping, unless doing so would impair their health. With this new policy, customers will be joining Natural Grocers' good4uSM Crew members, who have been wearing face coverings since April to help slow the spread of COVID-19. Natural Grocers will provide free face coverings, as supplies allow, to customers who do not have one."

07:06 EDT Karyopharm announces FDA acceptance of sNDA for XPOVIO - Karyopharm announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for filing its supplemental New Drug Application seeking approval for XPOVIO, its first-in-class, oral Selective Inhibitor of Nuclear Export compound, as a new treatment for patients with multiple myeloma after at least one prior line of therapy. Karyopharm expects a decision from the FDA regarding this sNDA before the end of the first quarter of 2021. XPOVIO has been previously approved by the FDA for the treatment of patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma and relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Provided marketing approval is granted by the FDA for this third oncology indication, Karyopharm plans to continue to commercialize XPOVIO in the U.S. using its existing commercial infrastructure. The Company also plans to submit a Marketing Authorization Application to the European Medicines Agency later this year for this same indication.

07:04 EDT Orchard receives orphan drug, rare pediatric disease designations for OTL-203 - Orchard Therapeutics announced that the company has received both orphan drug designation and rare pediatric disease designation from the U.S Food and Drug Administration for OTL-203, an ex vivo autologous hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy in development for the treatment of mucopolysaccharidosis type I. Orchard recently announced new interim data from an ongoing proof-of-concept clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of OTL-203. The first primary outcome measure was met with all eight patients achieving hematologic engraftment. Additionally, improved motor skills compared to baseline, stable cognitive scores, and normal growth was seen in the first two patients with at least one year of follow-up. Orchard expects to release full proof-of-concept results and initiate the registrational study for OTL-203 in 2021.

07:03 EDT CoreLogic issues statement on Senator, Cannae request for due diligence - CoreLogic issued the following statement in response to a request for due diligence by Senator Investment Group LP and Cannae Holdings Inc.: "The CoreLogic Board will not provide non-public information to Senator and Cannae unless they first raise their offer to a level that provides appropriate value to our shareholders -- reflecting our strong multi-year outlook recently disclosed to all shareholders. Granting diligence for an offer that significantly undervalues CoreLogic is not in the best interests of other shareholders. We have provided and will continue to provide significant transparency into our business and our prospects so all shareholders can fully appreciate CoreLogic's substantial value-creation potential. We are confident Cannae's multiple, existing positions in large real estate data, technology and services companies enable it and Senator to evaluate our detailed publicly available information to update and refine their views of CoreLogic's value if they so choose. We will provide further information to the market with our second quarter earnings."

07:01 EDT Bio-Techne expands platform with miRNAscope Assay - Bio-Techne announced the expansion of the RNAscope platform with the release of the miRNAscope Assay. The RNAscope technology is an advanced in situ hybridization assay for the spatial visualization of single-molecule RNA with single-cell resolution directly in intact tissues. The miRNAscope Assay extends the RNAscope technology to enable the in situ detection of short nucleic acid targets between 17-50 nucleotides which includes an important class of small non-coding RNAs called microRNAs as well as short synthetic oligonucleotide therapeutics such as small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and antisense oligonucleotides.

06:52 EDT Descartes Systems teams up with UPS Digital Access Program - Descartes Systems Group (DSGX) announced that it has teamed up with UPS (UPS) under its UPS Digital Access Program, or DAP. As a member of DAP, Descartes has enhanced Descartes ShipRush to enable small and medium-sized businesses to be able to access discounted UPS rates to reduce domestic and international ecommerce shipping costs. The UPS Digital Access Program helps level the playing field for SMBs by enabling them to offer many of the same shipping services provided by larger ecommerce companies at competitive rates.

06:49 EDT Halliburton recognized $2.1B of pre-tax impairments, other charges in Q2 - Halliburton recognized $2.1B of pre-tax impairments and other charges to further adjust its cost structure to current market conditions. These charges consisted primarily of non-cash asset impairments, mainly associated with pressure pumping equipment and real estate, as well as inventory write-offs, severance, and other costs.

06:48 EDT Halliburton CEO says 'charting a fundamentally different course' - "Halliburton's second quarter performance in a tough market shows we can execute quickly and aggressively to deliver solid financial results and free cash flow despite a severe drop in global activity. Our results demonstrate a significant and sustainable reset to the power of our business to generate positive earnings and free cash flow," commented Jeff Miller, Chairman, President and CEO. "Total company revenue was $3.2 billion and adjusted operating income was $236 million. Despite the market headwinds, the margin performance of our Completion and Production and Drilling and Evaluation divisions and the $456 million of positive free cash flow generated this quarter show the speed and effectiveness of our aggressive cost actions. We have an excellent international business, an efficient North America service delivery improvement strategy, a disciplined capital allocation approach, and a committed and competitive team. Our continued deployment of leading digital technologies will drive efficiency and cost reductions for our customers and Halliburton. Halliburton is charting a fundamentally different course. The strategic actions we are taking will further boost our earnings power and ability to generate free cash flow as we power into and win the eventual recovery," concluded Miller.

06:46 EDT Halliburton reports Q2 operating cash flow $598M, free cash flow $456M

06:36 EDT Cal-Maine Foods CEO says 'facing an uncertain environment' - "While we are facing an uncertain environment, we will continue to execute our growth strategy in fiscal 2021 - provide a favorable product mix, including cage-free and other specialty eggs, invest in our operations, identify acquisition or other growth opportunities that enhance our production, and manage our operations in a responsible and sustainable manner. On June 29, 2020, we published the Cal-Maine Foods 2019 Sustainability Overview, which includes our corporate initiatives that support environmental and social responsibility throughout our operations. Above all, we are focused on safely meeting the needs of our customers and providing outstanding products and service. We have a strong balance sheet with the financial flexibility to support our growth strategy, and we look forward to the opportunities ahead for Cal-Maine Foods in fiscal 2021," added CEO Dolph Baker.

06:34 EDT Medifast appoints Jim Maloney as CFO - Medifast (MED) announced that it has appointed James (Jim) Maloney as CFO, effective July 20. In his role, Mr. Maloney will be responsible for leading the finance function including all aspects of financial planning and analysis, setting Medifast's financial and capital allocation strategies, and managing investor relations. Maloney most recently served as Senior Vice President CFO of L.B. Foster (FSTR).

06:33 EDT Chevron to acquire Noble Energy in all-stock transaction valued at $5B - Chevron Corporation (CVX) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Noble Energy, Inc. (NBL) to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Noble Energy in an all-stock transaction valued at $5 billion, or $10.38 per share. Based on Chevron's closing price on July 17, 2020 and under the terms of the agreement, Noble Energy shareholders will receive 0.1191 shares of Chevron for each Noble Energy share. The total enterprise value, including debt, of the transaction is $13 billion. "Our strong balance sheet and financial discipline gives us the flexibility to be a buyer of quality assets during these challenging times," said Chevron Chairman and CEO Michael Wirth. "This is a cost-effective opportunity for Chevron to acquire additional proved reserves and resources. Noble Energy's multi-asset, high-quality portfolio will enhance geographic diversity, increase capital flexibility, and improve our ability to generate strong cash flow. These assets play to Chevron's operational strengths, and the transaction underscores our commitment to capital discipline. We look forward to welcoming the Noble Energy team and shareholders to bring together the best of our organizations." "This combination is expected to unlock value for shareholders, generating anticipated annual run-rate cost synergies of approximately $300 million before tax, and it is expected to be accretive to free cash flow, earnings, and book returns one year after close," Wirth concluded. In aggregate, upon closing of the transaction, Chevron will issue approximately 58 million shares of stock. Total enterprise value of $13 billion includes net debt and book value of non-controlling interest. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020. The acquisition is subject to Noble Energy shareholder approval. It is also subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The transaction price represents a premium of nearly 12% on a 10-day average based on closing stock prices on July 17, 2020. Following closing of the transaction, Noble Energy shareholders will own approximately 3% of the combined company.

06:32 EDT Boeing, Etihad to use 787-10 Dreamliner to test ways to reduce emissions, noise - Boeing said in a release, "Boeing and Etihad Airways will use a 787-10 Dreamliner to test ways to reduce emissions and noise as part of the aerospace company's ecoDemonstrator program before the airline accepts delivery of the airplane this fall. The collaboration, which includes extensive sound measurement testing with industry partners, builds on a strategic sustainability alliance Boeing and Etihad formed in November 2019. The ecoDemonstrator program utilizes commercial aircraft to test technologies that can make aviation safer and more sustainable now and into the future. The 2020 program, which will begin testing in August, is the first to use a Boeing 787-10."

06:30 EDT Magal Security announces turnkey security project for Mexican VIP residence - Magal Security Systems announced a new turnkey security project for a Mexican VIP residence. Magal said in a release, "The turn-key project features all the Company's major proprietary products and platforms. Magal Security's Physical Security Information Management, or PSIM, system, FORTIS 4G Command and Control will holistically integrate the customer's Perimeter Intrusion Detection System, or PIDS, installed by Magal Mexican subsidiary. FORTIS 4G's centralized proprietary software completely integrates the entire security and operational systems, allowing the security teams to make effective, real-time decisions on events. In addition to the FORTIS 4G Command and Control platform, the customer committed to a long-term service contract for Senstar's Symphony VMS video management software with video analytics. The customer selected Symphony, which will replace a prior VMS software, for its enhanced analytics capabilities and device-vendor agnostic flexibility. Symphony, with its portfolio of innovative solutions, reduces overall costs of security operations by streamlining inputs into one source and providing more effective surveillance measures. Together, FORTIS 4G and Symphony offer the customer versatility to implement additional technology into the residential security system."

06:12 EDT JinkoSolar N-type monocrystalline silicon solar cells reached 24.79% efficiency - JinkoSolar announced in a release, "the maximum solar conversion efficiency of its large-area N-type monocrystalline silicon solar cells reached 24.79%, and have set a world record for large-size contact-passivated solar cells. This result was independently confirmed by the Institute for Solar Energy Research in Hamelin, or ISFH, Germany. JinkoSolar's R&D teams of experts in silicon wafer, solar cells and solar modules have made significant breakthroughs in the field of high efficiency and high power of cells and modules for many years.The record-breaking mono-crystalline silicon solar cell was fabricated on a high quality CZ mono-Si substrate, with a practical size of 267.72cm2, and several advanced technologies have been implemented to achieve this new record of 24.79%, including passivating contact technologies, advanced diffusion system, surface passivation and advanced anti-reflection technologies, and a series of material upgrade were integrated into the cell process. The record-breaking mono-crystalline silicon solar cell will be gradually applied to product production."

06:02 EDT Quotient reports results from MosaiQ COVID-19 Antibody Microarray study - Quotient reported that an independent study conducted in Madrid, Spain has confirmed the high performance characteristics of the Company's MosaiQ COVID-19 Antibody Microarray. The independent study found the MosaiQ COVID-19 Antibody Microarray demonstrated 100% sensitivity and 99.8% specificity. These findings show the same sensitivity and specificity found in the Company's own earlier tests. The study was conducted at an independent laboratory using over 500 samples. The MosaiQ COVID-19 Antibody Microarray detects two types of antibodies produced in response to SARS-CoV-2 infection--IgM and IgG antibodies. A test that detects both types of antibodies provides clinical advantages, because patients may develop IgM antibodies several days before they develop IgG antibodies. The MosaiQ COVID-19 Antibody Microarray was CE marked as of May 1.

05:36 EDT Luminex receives EUA for COVID-19 antibody test - Luminex announced that the FDA has issued an Emergency Use Authorization, or EUA, for the company's xMAP SARS-CoV-2 Multi-Antigen IgG Assay. Luminex said in a release, "Clinical laboratories can now use this serology assay to identify the presence of antibodies in people who have been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. The test can be run on any of Luminex's xMAP-based high-throughput, gold-standard multiplex platforms, providing a more comprehensive and reliable assessment of immune response compared to conventional serology testing methods. Designed to simultaneously detect antibodies against three antigens, the xMAP SARS-CoV-2 Multi-Antigen IgG Assay delivers high-quality results for up to 96 patient samples in under three hours. The assay detects antibodies of the immunoglobulin class G, or IgG, which are an important component of an adaptive immune response and typically reflect sustained immunity to a given pathogen. The xMAP SARS-CoV-2 Multi-Antigen IgG Assay demonstrated specificity of 100 percent in human serum and greater than 99 percent in human plasma, with sensitivity greater than 96 percent for both human serum and plasma (greater than 14 days post-symptom onset) in clinical studies. The assay uses the advanced multiplexing capabilities of xMAP instrumentation to reduce the risk of false positives and false negatives, giving laboratories increased confidence in the reliability of their test results. The new multi-antigen IgG assay can be run on all xMAP platforms, including MAGPIX, the Luminex 200, and FLEXMAP 3D. The assay reduces time to results, minimizes the volume of sample needed, and accelerates the testing process without the need for excess labor, representing advancements over commonly used ELISA-based antibody assays. The xMAP-based serology test is the third COVID-19 Luminex test to receive an EUA, joining the NxTAG CoV Extended Panel and the ARIES SARS-CoV-2 Assay, which are rapid, RNA-based SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic tests that received EUAs in March and April of this year, respectively. The SARS-CoV-2 Multi-Antigen IgG Assay is the first of several serology tests that Luminex is developing and plans to take to market through an EUA to help during the COVID-19 crisis. Additionally, the company continues to support numerous customers and partners developing innovative xMAP-based serology assays to facilitate vaccine and therapeutic development, perform epidemiologic studies, and better understand the extent and duration of protective immunity."

05:31 EDT Grifols to acquire plasma fractionation facility, plasma collection organization - Grifols announced it has executed purchase arrangements with the South Korean-based GC Pharma whereby Grifols will acquire the Montreal-based plasma fractionation facility and two purification facilities, along with 11 U.S.-based plasma collection centers for a total amount of $460 million. Grifols said in a release, "The transaction is part of Grifols' sustainable global growth strategy to expand plasma collection and fractionation capacity to ensure patients worldwide have safe and secure access to life-saving plasma-derived medicines. Most importantly, this strategic acquisition will strengthen Grifols' presence in Canada, building on a legacy of partnership in Canada's blood system. No additional financing will be required for the acquisition. Upon completion of the transaction certain net worth, working capital and cash targets have been guaranteed. Once the facilities are fully licensed and approved, Grifols will become the only large-scale commercial manufacturer of plasma products in Canada, with a fractionation capacity of 1.5 million liters annually. Grifols plans to be ready to manufacture IVIG and Albumin in the facilities to supply the Canadian market starting in 2023. As part of the transaction, by means of a plasma-supply agreement, Grifols has also committed to supplying certain output of plasma arising out of the Green Cross Collection Centers to GC Pharma for a 24-month period. The collection centers achieved a collection volume of 350,000 litres of plasma in 2019. The completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close prior to the end of 2020."

05:27 EDT Celanese to sell 45% stake in Polyplastics JV to Daicel for $1.58B - Celanese announced it has reached a definitive agreement to sell its 45% equity investment in the Polyplastics joint venture to Daicel Corporation for $1.58B. Following the completion of the transaction, Daicel will own 100% of Polyplastics. "Celanese has been investing in and rapidly growing our base business in Engineered Materials globally over the last 10 years," said Lori Ryerkerk, Celanese Chairman and CEO. "Among the advantages that set Celanese apart from our peers is our ability to leverage our unique business models and flexible strategy to deliver sustainable growth, especially in key markets served by our Engineered Materials business. We plan to use this opportunity to monetize a historically passive investment and allocate significant capital to higher growth businesses within Celanese. At the conclusion of this joint venture relationship with Daicel, we extend our gratitude for their partnership and collaboration over the past 50-plus years in jointly bringing innovative products to customers and consumers worldwide." Celanese is expected to deploy the proceeds from this all-cash transaction in value-generating opportunities, including the increase in share repurchases described below that will be accretive to EPS to offset earnings from the Polyplastics joint venture, investments in organic growth, and the judicious use of cash consistent with Celanese's disciplined capital deployment strategy. Celanese expects to complete this transaction in the second half of this fiscal year, subject to necessary regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Until then, Polyplastics will continue to operate under its current joint venture ownership and management structure.