Stockwinners Market Radar for July 12, 2021 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:44 EDT Jeffrey Arnold reports 12.2% stake in Sharecare - In a regulatory filing, Jeffery Arnold disclosed a 12.2% stake in Sharecare, representing 40,739,194 common shares. According to the filing, which allows for activism. Arnold serves as chairman and CEO of the company and may have influence over the company's corporate activities.

19:31 EDT James Hardie names Amy Lamparske global chief digital officer - James Hardie Industries announced the appointment of Amy Lamparske as Global Chief Digital Officer and Vice President of North America Marketing. Lamparske joins James Hardie after 20 years of experience, focused on marketing, digital, social media, e-commerce and communications at world class consumer products companies. Commenting on the appointment, James Hardie CEO, Dr. Jack Truong, said, "I am pleased to announce Amy's appointment as Chief Digital Officer. Amy brings a strong track record of best in class marketing and digital expertise. As discussed in our May 2021 Investor Day, marketing directly to the homeowner and global innovation are two of our key strategic initiatives for Fiscal Year 2022 and beyond. As we continue down our strategic path of accelerating demand creation with homeowners, as well as commercializing exciting innovations, and building a brand, the appointment of a proven digital and marketing leader is critical. Amy and her team will guide our focus on the consumer to drive demand creation and commercialize new innovations."

18:46 EDT MongoDB CEO: Atlas has been huge for our business - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Dev Ittycheria said Atlas accounts for a majority of the company's revenue. It is growing 70% year over year. MongoDB is becoming the standard by which people build applications, he noted. It allows customers to innovate quickly and scale.

18:17 EDT Shineco board terminates Ou Yang as CEO - In a regulatory filing, Shineco said that, on July 7, 2021, its board of directors terminated Ou Yang as the Chief Executive Officer of the company, effective immediately. The company is currently in the process of selecting a new Chief Executive Officer, and will file a subsequent Current Report on Form 8-K when the selection is made.

18:02 EDT Fastly announces conversion of Class B common stock into Class A common stock - Fastly announced that all outstanding shares of its Class B common stock automatically converted into Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, effective at 5:00 p.m. ET on July 12. The conversion had no effect on the economic rights of holders of shares of Class A common stock or Class B common stock, except for the elimination of the different voting powers of the two classes of stock. Fastly does not expect it to have any material effect on its future operations.

17:34 EDT Eldorado Gold reports Q2 preliminary production of 116,066 ounces of gold - Eldorado Gold is pleased to announce second quarter preliminary gold production of 116,066 ounces, in-line with the company's 2021 annual guidance of between 430,000-460,000 ounces of gold. Eldorado is forecasting full year 2021 depreciation expense to be $200M-$215M.

17:28 EDT Gran Tierra restores production and pays down credit facility by $5M - Gran Tierra Energy announced an operations and financial update and updated 2021 guidance. All dollar amounts are in United States dollars and all production volumes are on a working interest before royalties basis and are expressed in barrels ("bbl") of oil per day , unless otherwise stated .End of Colombian Blockades Affecting Gran Tierra: As previously announced by Gran Tierra on May 17, 2021, a number of protests and blockades across Colombia impacted several key transportation routes throughout the country, resulting in the temporary shut-in of some of Gran Tierra's wells and oil fields...Gran Tierra's actual second quarter 2021 total production averaged approximately 23,400 BOPD, down about 4% from first quarter average production of 24,463 BOPD...Gran Tierra forecasts second half 2021 total production to average approximately 30,000-32,000 BOPD...Despite the reduction in second quarter 2021 production, as of June 30, Gran Tierra had paid down its credit facility balance by $5M, relative to March 31, 2021to $175M and had a cash balance of $19M

17:16 EDT Costco VP Roland Vachris sells over $1.6M in company shares - Costco VP Roland Vachris disclosed in a filing that he had sold 4,000 shares of company stock at $409.40 per share on July 12 for a total transaction amount of $1,637,611.

17:13 EDT Landcadia Holdings III: No stockholder redemptions in connection with Hillman - Landcadia Holdings III announced that there were no stockholder redemptions of public shares in connection with Landcadia III's proposed business combination with HMAN Group Holdings, the parent company of The Hillman Group. To date, stockholders who have voted, have overwhelmingly voted in support of the Business Combination and the other proposals to be voted on at the special meeting of Landcadia III's stockholders scheduled to be held on July 13 at 10:00 a.m., Eastern time, and constitute a quorum for the special meeting. Accordingly, it is anticipated that the Business Combination will be approved at the special meeting.

17:01 EDT Franklin Resources reports preliminary AUM $1.552T as of June 30 - Franklin Resources reported preliminary month-end assets under management of $1.552T at June 30, compared to $1.543T at May 31. This month's increase in AUM primarily reflected the positive impact of markets, partially offset by long-term net outflows, inclusive of two equity redemptions (a $3.7B sub-advised mutual fund outflow and a $2.2B institutional redemption that had minimal impact on revenue). Fixed Income flows included approximately $400M of outflows from the non-management-fee-earning India credit funds that are in the process of liquidation.

16:41 EDT Juniper names Manoj Leelanivas COO - According to a regulatory filing, on July 6, 20221, Manoj Leelanivas was appointed as Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer of Juniper Networks, Inc. Leelanivas has served as the company's Executive Vice President, Chief Product Officer since March 2018. There is no arrangement or understanding between Leelanivas and any other person pursuant to which he was appointed as Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer.

16:33 EDT PLx Pharma announces Vazalore to be available in 4,500 Walmart stores in August - PLx Pharma (PLXP) announced that three stock-keeping units, or SKUs, of Vazalore, the first and only FDA approved liquid-filled aspirin capsules, will be available in over 4,500 Walmart (WMT) stores across the United States in mid-August. The three SKUs include: Vazalore 81 mg, 12 count; Vazalore 81 mg, 30 count and Vazalore 325 mg, 30 count. Walmart, one of the largest retailers in the world, has already inserted placeholders to reserve space on shelves and alert customers that Vazalore is coming soon.

16:30 EDT TechnipFMC partners with EDP, others to develop green hydrogen concept study - EDP, TechnipFMC and other research partners are joining forces to develop a conceptual engineering and economic feasibility study for a new offshore system for green hydrogen production from offshore wind power, called the BEHYOND project. The study will include integration of equipment for the production and conditioning of green hydrogen and infrastructure that allows for its transportation to the coast. The goal is to create a unique concept that can be standardized and implemented worldwide, allowing for large-scale hydrogen production. The joint development will allow the consortium partners to position themselves in the hydrogen value chain, developing new business models and creating engineering solutions, new products and services for the hydrogen sector, worldwide. The companies said this consortium will strengthen cooperation between Portugal and Norway and increase Portugal's competitiveness in the growth of the "blue economy." EDP, through the participation of EDP NEW and EDP Inovacao, is the project coordinator and the entity responsible for the implementation of several phases, namely the strategic evaluation of the offshore wind-to-hydrogen market, the definition of viable business cases and the technology roadmap to reach commercial maturity.

16:21 EDT AllianceBernstein reports AUM of $738B as of June 30, 2021 - AllianceBernstein L.P. and AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. announced that preliminary assets under management increased to $738B during June 2021 from $731B at the end of May. Market appreciation and firm inflows, net of a $1.4B net outflow associated with the close of Equitable's legacy variable annuity reinsurance transaction with Venerable Holdings, Inc., drove the 1% increase. Excluding the impact of this transaction, which is expected to be revenue accretive due to the fee mix of affected assets, net inflows to Retail and Private Wealth were partially offset by net outflows from Institutions. There were no outflows resulting from AXA S.A's ongoing redemption of certain low-fee fixed income mandates; these AXA S.A. redemptions, which began in the first quarter of 2020, are now essentially complete.

16:18 EDT Mesabi Trust raised quarterly distribution to 9c per share from 5c - The Trustees of Mesabi Trust (MSB) declared a distribution of 9c per Unit of Beneficial Interest payable on August 20, 2021 to Mesabi Trust Unitholders of record at the close of business on July 30, 2021. This compares to a distribution of five cents 5c per Unit for the same period last year. The 4c per Unit increase in the current distribution, as compared to the distribution announced by the Trust at the same time last year, is primarily attributable to the Trust's receipt of total royalty payments of $ 6,340,032 on April 30, 2021 from Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF).

16:15 EDT Fortive to acquire ServiceChannel for roughly $1.2B - Fortive Corporation announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Bayard Capital and Accel Partners to acquire ServiceChannel, a global provider of SaaS-based multi-site facilities maintenance service solutions with an integrated service-provider network. The acquisition will be subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, and will be financed primarily with available cash. Fortive anticipates that the acquisition will close in the third quarter of 2021. Fortive expects ServiceChannel to generate approximately $125B of revenue in 2021. The purchase price for the acquisition is approximately $1.2B and is expected to be funded primarily with available cash. Upon closing, ServiceChannel is expected to be an independent operating company within Fortive's Intelligent Operating Solutions segment.

16:11 EDT Synchronoss appoints Martin Bernstein to board - Synchronoss Technologies (SNCR) announces that Martin Bernstein has joined its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Bernstein was appointed to the Board in connection with the recent recapitalization of Synchronoss, and serves as a representative of B. Riley Financial (RILY), the company's largest shareholder. "On behalf of our entire Board, I am pleased to welcome Marty to our team," said Stephen Waldis, Founder and Executive Chairman of the Synchronoss Board of Directors. "Marty's extensive experience in capital allocation strategies, corporate governance and financing will serve our organization well. I have no doubt that his impressive knowledge and extraordinary track record will not only benefit our already strong board, but I fully expect his impact will be key to helping Synchronoss achieve its strategic growth objectives."

16:09 EDT J&J says in talks with FDA about rare cases of Guillain-Barre after vaccination - Johnson & Johnson issued the following statement on its COVID-19 vaccine: "The safety and well-being of the people who use our products is our number one priority. We have been in discussions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other regulators about rare cases of the neurological disorder, Guillain-Barre syndrome, that have been reported following vaccination with the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine. The chance of having this occur is very low, and the rate of reported cases exceeds the background rate by a small degree. Any adverse event report about individuals receiving Johnson & Johnson's single-shot COVID-19 vaccine, as well as our own assessment of the report, is shared with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and other appropriate health authorities. We strongly support raising awareness of the signs and symptoms of rare events to ensure they can be quickly identified and effectively treated. Evidence has demonstrated that Johnson & Johnson's single-shot COVID-19 vaccine offers protection against COVID-19 disease and prevents hospitalization and death, including in countries where viral variants are highly prevalent. A single-shot vaccine that provides this level of protection represents an important tool in the global fight against COVID-19, as we strive to help end this deadly pandemic." Reference Link

16:08 EDT Equillium to begin Phase 3 of itolizumab to treat severe autoimmune diseases - Equillium announced the completion of an End-of-Phase 1 meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, for itolizumab in first-line treatment of patients with acute graft-versus-host disease aGVHD. The meeting confirmed a path to advance itolizumab into a single Phase 3 pivotal study to support the Biologics License Application BLA filing for itolizumab in first-line treatment of aGVHD patients. The company plans to initiate the Phase 3 study in Q4. "Following the positive outcome of our meeting with the FDA, we will immediately advance to a pivotal clinical study, moving one step closer to developing the first approved therapy to treat aGVHD patients in the first-line setting," said Dolca Thomas, executive vice president of research and development and chief medical officer of Equillium. "This extremely ill patient population is significantly underserved by today's standard of care - high-dose corticosteroids. Our EQUATE Phase 1b study demonstrated rapid and durable complete clinical responses and a swift reduction in systemic corticosteroid use that are critical for positive longer-term patient outcomes. Itolizumab has received FDA fast track and orphan drug designations for the treatment of aGVHD, and with this feedback from the FDA we are immediately transitioning to late-stage development and look forward to collecting the data needed to support a BLA filing." The meeting provided guidance from the FDA on the pivotal study design, as well as advice on chemistry, manufacturing and controls CMC, nonclinical and regulatory-related topics to support Equillium's proposed single pivotal clinical study and BLA submission of itolizumab for the first-line treatment of aGVHD in combination with corticosteroids. The randomized double-blinded pivotal study will evaluate one dosing regimen of itolizumab versus standard of care and will include complete response at Day 29 as the primary endpoint, with an interim evaluation for futility and efficacy at 50% patient enrollment. Equillium is finalizing details of the Phase 3 protocol based on feedback and guidance from the FDA.

16:05 EDT Anaplan names Vikas Mehta CFO - Anaplan announced that Vikas Mehta has joined its executive team as Chief Financial Officer effective July 19. "We are excited to welcome a progressive financial executive of Vikas' caliber to the Anaplan team," said Frank Calderoni, Chairman and CEO of Anaplan. "I look forward to him working closely with everyone at Anaplan to continue to realize our growth strategy." Prior to joining Anaplan, Vikas held multiple leadership roles at Microsoft in their commercial business, cloud computing and digital transformation efforts specifically with sales strategy, business development, and finance.

16:00 EDT Gatos Silver to retire Los Gatos JV term loan - Gatos silver announced it has reached a definitive agreement with Dowa Metals & Mining Co., Ltd. to retire the outstanding Los Gatos Joint Venture Term Loan. Gatos Silver's attributable portion of the Term Loan and related fees is approximately $154.8M. The Term Loan retirement is expected to close soon. Stephen Orr, the company's Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The successful completion of this definitive agreement is a significant value-catalyst and deleveraging event for the LGJV. This agreement also reaffirms our commitment to creating value for our Gatos Silver stakeholders while continuing to position Gatos Silver as the prominent "go-to" company for silver exposure. We are grateful for Dowa's ongoing support to the LGJV and look forward to continuing our accretive relationship."

15:46 EDT Caesars, Prophet partner to launch sports betting exchange in New Jersey - Prophet, a New Jersey-based sports betting exchange founded in 2018 by Dean Sisun, CEO and Jake Benzaquen, COO, has announced a multi-year market access agreement with Caesars. The agreement with Caesars will see Prophet launch its peer-to-peer sports betting exchange, betprophet.co, initially in New Jersey for the 2021 NFL and college football season, and Indiana in 2022, before future rollouts to additional U.S. states. Prophet will offer its services on web, iOS, Android and via their public API. Prophet was formerly licensed in the UK and operated out of London. Prophet has brought their team and technology stateside in an effort to tackle the U.S. market, which is concentrated on sportsbooks. The company said, "Prophet's exchange technology has many benefits for players over traditional sportsbooks as it allows users to bet spread and totals at even (+100) odds rather than traditional -110 odds, and benefit from lower vig on moneyline markets, all with no limits. Prophet also allows its users the ability to market-make with public API access, should they wish to trade more quickly and in bulk."

14:55 EDT Senator Warren urges DOJ, FTC to review her investigation of Amazon - Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted: "Finding FDA-authorized masks on Amazon is a mess, and Amazon seems to be actively misleading customers. @TheJusticeDept & @FTC need to review my investigation & the new information from Amazon and use their authority to protect consumers and public health." Reference Link

14:11 EDT Civista Bancshares boosts quarterly dividend by 17% to 14c - Civista Bancshares announced Friday that its board approved a quarterly dividend of 14c per common share to shareholders of record July 20, payable August 2. The dividend represents a 17% increase from the prior rate of 12c per share.

12:51 EDT Ubisoft sees 'inappropriate behavior' by staff posing risks to talent retention - According to a recently released Universal Registration Document from Ubisoft, the French game maker said that an "occurence of inappropriate behavior by employees" poses a risk to its retention of talent, as well as its "efficiency" in game development and its overall reputation. "Faced with the inappropriate behavior of several employees, the Ubisoft group has undertaken structural changes in line with its values, which do not tolerate any toxic behavior whatsoever," the company said. Ubisoft noted that the initiatives carried out include: the introduction of mandatory training on harassment and sexism for each team member and, more generally, the annual signing of the code of conduct; regular communication of information by e-mail and on the Group 's intranet to discuss these issues and raise team member awareness; extension of the Group 's secure and anonymous whistleblowing platform to collect reports of inappropriate behavior. The allegations thus raised are received and treated by independent external consultants with all the necessary rigor. Recommendations are issued and may lead to appropriate disciplinary measures. Additional investigations may be launched. Other reporting channels are also available to team members; the inclusion - starting in the 2022 financial year - of a qualitative criterion related to exemplary behavior in the variable portion of team member compensation, in order to increase their responsibility for their behavior; the creation of the position of VP Global Diversity and Inclusion to promote diversity, equity and inclusion within Ubisoft; the recruitment of a new Chief People Officer to restructure and strengthen the HR positions. Reference Link

12:23 EDT Duke Energy boosts quarterly dividend to 98.5c from 96.5c - Duke Energy declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock of 98.5c, an increase of 2c per share. This dividend is payable on Sept. 16, to shareholders of record at the close of business Aug. 13.

12:09 EDT Sinclair Broadcast appoints John McClure as VP, CISO - Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI) announced that John McClure has been named Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer. In this newly created role, Mr. McClure will lead the company's information security program across all business functions. Additionally, Mr. McClure will define and be responsible for creating and executing Sinclair's security vision, strategy, and operating model across its entire portfolio. Mr. McClure will work closely with Sinclair's leadership and business leaders to allow for Sinclair to continue its rapid growth and innovation in the media field while protecting and managing risk to Sinclair's systems and networks. He will report into Brian Bark, SVP Chief Information Officer of Sinclair. Prior to Sinclair, he spent almost 6 years building and leading the information security program at Laureate Education (LAUR). In Mr. McClure's last position, he served as Laureate's Global Chief Information Security Officer

12:00 EDT Virgin Galactic falls -12.7% - Virgin Galactic is down -12.7%, or -$6.24 to $42.96.

12:00 EDT Lithium Americas rises 9.6% - Lithium Americas is up 9.6%, or $1.39 to $15.74.

12:00 EDT Tufin rises 30.1% - Tufin is up 30.1%, or $2.88 to $12.44.

11:36 EDT JetBlue expands use of sustainable aviation fuel at LAX - JetBlue has entered into a new relationship with World Energy and World Fuel Services for sustainable aviation fuel at Los Angeles International Airport. JetBlue's LAX flights using SAF started this month. This increase in the airline's usage of SAF includes 1.5M gallons of blended SAF a year for at least three years, accounting for approximately five percent of JetBlue's LAX fuel. This is the latest step for JetBlue as the airline works to achieve its ambitious and comprehensive environmental social governance targets, including a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.

11:32 EDT Sandvik to acquire metrology and automation company DWFritz Automation - Sandvik has signed an agreement to acquire US based DWFritz Automation, a global provider of precision metrology, inspection- and assembly solutions for advanced manufacturing. DWFritz Automation designs, builds and supports engineer-to-order high-speed, non-contact metrology solutions and automation systems. The company will be reported in the Metrology division, within business area Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions. "This is in line with our strategic focus to grow organically and through acquisitions in the advanced manufacturing space, with special focus on industrial software, industrial metrology- and additive manufacturing solutions," says Stefan Widing, President and CEO of Sandvik. The impact on Sandvik's earnings per share will initially be neutral. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. The transaction is expected to close during the second half of 2021, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

11:30 EDT Broadcom falls 5% to $475 after WSJ says in talks to buy SAS

11:19 EDT Boeing announces 12 additional 737-800 orders from BBAM - Boeing and BBAM Limited Partnership announced that the lessor is expanding its 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter fleet with 12 additional firm orders. The agreement brings BBAM's 737-800BCF orders and commitments to 31, Boeing said in a statement. BBAM will be the first customer to have a 737-800BCF converted at Cooperativa Autogestionaria de Servicios Aeroindustriales, a Costa Rica-based maintenance, repair and overhaul provider, it added. In a separate deal announced in January, BBAM placed six firm orders and six options for the 737-800BCF. The 737-800BCF has won more than 200 orders and commitments from 16 customers, according to Boeing.

11:12 EDT Microsoft acquires RiskIQ, terms not disclosed - Microsoft announced that it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire RiskIQ, a threat intelligence and attack surface manager. "RiskIQ helps customers discover and assess the security of their entire enterprise attack surface-in the Microsoft cloud, AWS, other clouds, on-premises, and from their supply chain. With more than a decade of experience scanning and analyzing the internet, RiskIQ can help enterprises identify and remediate vulnerable assets before an attacker can capitalize on them," Microsoft said in a statement. Reference Link

11:05 EDT Qiagen trading halted, news pending

10:15 EDT Moderna to study Covid vaccine outcomes in pregnant women - Moderna, on ClinicalTrials.gov, posted a study to evaluate the outcomes of pregnancy in females exposed to its Covid-19 vaccine during pregnancy. The company is targeting 1,000 participants with an estimated study completion date of January 6, 2024. Reference Link

10:11 EDT Embraer announces Porter Airlines orders up to 80 E195-E2s - Porter Airlines has unveiled plans to extend its service to destinations throughout North America with a firm order for 30 Embraer E195-E2 jets, with purchase rights for a further 50 aircraft, Embraer announced. "The deal will be included in Embraer's second quarter backlog, and is worth $5.82B, at list price with all options exercised. First revealed in May 2021, this announcement adds the purchase rights and the customer name, which had been undisclosed," the company stated. Reference Link

10:05 EDT BBTV Holdings makes investment in, forms strategic partnership with Nifty's - BBTV Holdings announced its NFT Division has made an investment into Nifty's. Following the official launch of BBTV's NFT division in May, 2021, BBTV has made a $250,000 minority investment into Nifty's and is establishing a strategic alliance as part of its growth strategy. "This investment and strategic alliance is another step forward for our NFT division as it provides BBTV and its creators with the opportunity for new revenue streams while empowering those creators to engage with their fan base in a more authentic way as the fans get to own a piece of the creators' IP," comments Shahrzad Rafati, Chairperson & CEO, BBTV. "We already sit on a massive library of IP from some of the most engaging content creators in the world, we can now start to activate it through NFTs to further grow our higher margin Plus solutions."

10:02 EDT CuriosityStream says now available on PlayStation4 console - CuriosityStream (CURI) announced its entire lineup of films, series and shows is now available to watch on Sony's (SONY) PlayStation4 consoles. "Viewers can download the CuriosityStream app directly from the 'video apps' section of the PlayStation Store on devices in the United States, Canada and Latin America. CuriosityStream is set to launch on PS4 consoles across Europe and Asia in the coming weeks. CuriosityStream's entire library of 4K shows is also available on supported devices including the PS4 Pro console," the company stated.

10:00 EDT Virgin Galactic falls -9.4% - Virgin Galactic is down -9.4%, or -$4.61 to $44.59.

10:00 EDT Ranger Energy rises 7.9% - Ranger Energy is up 7.9%, or 79c to $10.74.

10:00 EDT Verso rises 10.3% - Verso is up 10.3%, or $1.77 to $19.02.

09:52 EDT Virgin Galactic sinks after filing to sell up to $500M shares - Shares of Virgin Galactic are dropping after the company filed a prospectus to sell, from time to time, up to $500M shares of its common stock through Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs. The stock in early trading is down 11%, or $5.46, to $43.79.

09:49 EDT LexisNexis Risk Solutions awarded $1.2B BPA with U.S. Department of Labor - LexisNexis Risk Solutions announced that the United States Department of Labor (DOL) has awarded the company a Blanket Purchase Agreement to provide industry leading digital identity verification for state unemployment insurance programs. The five-year, $1.2B award is the continuation of longstanding relationships with federal, state, and local agencies.

09:47 EDT AG Mortgage falls -5.4% - AG Mortgage is down -5.4%, or -23c to $4.05.

09:47 EDT Onion Global rises 7.2% - Onion Global is up 7.2%, or 24c to $3.59.

09:47 EDT Verso rises 10.7% - Verso is up 10.7%, or $1.85 to $19.10.

09:39 EDT Virgin Galactic trading resumes

09:35 EDT Fossil appoints Holly Briedis as CDO - Fossil Group announced that Holly Briedis has joined the company's executive leadership team as Executive Vice President, Chief Digital Officer. In this new role, Holly will be responsible for leading Fossil Group's digital initiatives. Holly brings more than 15 years of experience in digital marketing and retail to Fossil Group. In her previous role as a Partner at McKinsey & Company, she led the Omnichannel and Customer Experience practice for Retail in North America, advising global consumer companies on driving profitable growth.

09:33 EDT Vistar Media secures $30M Series B investment from Lamar Advertising - Vistar Media announced a Series B funding round of $30M from Lamar Advertising Company. The investment reflects Lamar and Vistar's belief that technology will be the driving factor behind an accelerated growth rate for the out-of-home industry at large. With the adoption of programmatic now widespread, Vistar is focused on helping digital signage networks transition beyond automation to true revenue management, while enabling buyers to leverage data to drive all media decisions and prove ROI through accurate measurement toward all KPIs. The investment by Lamar builds on its eight-year partnership with Vistar, during which Lamar's close collaboration with Vistar helped successfully develop Lamar's programmatic channel. According to the terms of the deal, Lamar will gain a minority equity stake in Vistar and a seat on Vistar's Board of Directors. Vistar will continue to operate as an independent technology partner to buyers and sellers across the global OOH ecosystem. Vistar plans to use the funding to fuel product innovation, accelerate international expansion and strengthen the balance sheet.

09:32 EDT Medexus Pharmaceuticals, medac enter licensing agreement for treosulfan - Medexus Pharmaceuticals announced that it has entered into a licensing agreement, formalizing its relationship with medac GmbH to commercialize treosulfan, a bifunctional alkylating agent, in Canada. Treosulfan will be marketed in Canada under the brand name Trecondyv and indicated in combination with fludarabine as part of a conditioning treatment prior to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Medexus will be responsible for selling and marketing the product, while medac will be responsible for the manufacturing and supply of the product. Medexus has been distributing treosulfan in Canada under the Special Access Program and recently received Health Canada approval to commercialize Trecondyv for the treatment of adult patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Myelodysplastic Syndromes who are at increased risk for standard conditioning therapies, as well as for pediatric patients older than one year with AML or MDS.

09:19 EDT Strong/MDI Screen Systems partners with Illuminarium Experiences - Strong/MDI Screen Systems announces that it has partnered with Illuminarium Experiences on the opening of their first location in Atlanta, Georgia. Illuminarium Atlanta presents WILD, utilizing cinematic immersion to allow visitors to experience the watering holes, sweeping plains and majestic landscapes of Africa and come "face to face" with the world's most exotic animals. To create this realistic encounter, Strong/MDI produced the proprietary, high contrast Orion optical coating applied to all the projection walls within the venue, as well as providing the patented speaker panels which allow the audio to penetrate through a solid projection surface with minimal distortion that is invisible to the human eye.

09:16 EDT GenTech provides mid-year update on acquisitions, debt reduction - GenTech Holdings is pleased to provide current and prospective shareholders with a 2021 Mid-Year Update. Management highlights the Company's recent series of four fully completed value-add acquisitions, including Yourganics, MPB Snacks, NxtBar, and Fizzique. The Company is also in the process of closing a fifth, after signing an LOI to acquire Nature Soothie. The Company expects to close the Nature Soothie acquisition before the end of July. The Company has also been proactively engaged in balance sheet improvements driven by a combination of cash from operations and mutually beneficial renegotiations. During the first half of 2021, the Company has settled with multiple convertible noteholders, removing more than $1 million in convertible notes from the balance sheet. This debt reduction initiative will continue throughout 2021. The Company plans to have no outstanding convertible debentures on its books by the end of Q2 2022. At present, only one major convertible noteholder remains outstanding: 'East Capital Investment Corp'. The Company is actively engaged in proactive discussions with this creditor. The Company announced early in 2021 that it had settled an outstanding judgement of $1.09 million from 2017 at that time. In total, GenTech has proactively reduced total outstanding liabilities by $2 million, or 62%, so far this year, leaving the Company in a significantly strengthened position as management looks forward to explosive growth potential in 2022. In addition, the Company has begun to see dramatic sales growth in 2021. As of June 30, leaving out the contributions of recent acquisitions and only focusing on the core SINFIT Nutrition segment, total revenues were approximately $300k during the first half of the year. If acquisitions are included, that number, expressed as a semi-annualized run rate, grows to well over $650k. However, significant additional commercialization involving acquired products will roll out over coming months, pushing that run rate substantially higher by year end.

09:14 EDT Desktop Metal announces it has acquired Aerosint, no terms - Desktop Metal announced it has acquired Aerosint. Founded in 2016 and based in Belgium, Aerosint offers a unique powder deposition system based on a proprietary digital process that selectively deposits two or more powders to form a single, thin powder layer containing multiple materials. The Company's patented selective powder deposition technology enables full three-dimensional control of material placement during printing and can be integrated into any powder bed AM process, such as laser powder bed fusion, binder jetting, high-speed sintering or selective laser sintering. This new, multi-material approach to powder deposition is designed to support high-speed printing of a broad range of polymers, metals, and ceramics. Aerosint will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Desktop Metal and continue to be led by its founders Edouard Moens de Hase and Matthias Hick, who will serve as Managing Director and Innovation Director of the Aerosint business, respectively. Aerosint multi-material

09:12 EDT Middleby acquires residential appliance brand Novy, no terms - The Middleby Corporation announced the acquisition of Novy, with sales of approximately $90M annually and EBITDA margins in excess of 20%. "Novy is recognized for its market leading innovations and product designs, complementing our expanding portfolio of premium residential brands. The business is well-positioned in the built-in cooking segment of the residential market, a category which is growing globally," said Tim FitzGerald, Middleby CEO. "We believe there are exciting opportunities to realize synergies with our existing residential brands. The introduction of the Novy brand and products into the U.S. and U.K. markets, where Middleby Residential is well-established, will further accelerate the company's sales." Novy is a leading European manufacturer for residential kitchens with a best-in-class reputation. In recent years the company quickly expanded its footprint as consumers adopted their products.

09:09 EDT GrubHub announces launch of Grubhub Guarantee - Grubhub announced the Grubhub Guarantee, the company's newest feature promising diners on-time delivery and the lowest price relative to competitors, or Grubhub will make it right with Grubhub Perks for free food. In a study of thousands of consumers, Grubhub looked at what mattered most to diners, and on-time delivery came in as one of the top factors when choosing a food delivery platform. With the Grubhub Guarantee, Grubhub is standing behind on-time delivery and lowest price in order to facilitate a great diner experience and protect restaurants' reputation. The Grubhub Guarantee builds on the recently-launched Grubhub Direct, which gives restaurants a commission-free option to build their online presence and underscores the company's ongoing commitment to serve restaurants as they recover from a tough year. The Grubhub Guarantee makes it simple for diners to submit claims on eligible orders with a few taps. Once submitted, Grubhub will review the details and, if an order qualifies, provides a Grubhub Guarantee Perk for the diner to use on their next order. Grubhub offers two guarantees: Lowest price Grubhub Guarantee: If a diner finds a better price for their Grubhub order on another third-party delivery service, Gruhbub will make up the difference and then some with Grubhub Perks. On-time delivery Grubhub Guarantee: If an order arrives late, Grubhub will send the diner Grubhub Perks to use on their next order.

09:07 EDT Heartland BancCorp establishes Loan and Deposit Production Office in Florida - Heartland BancCorp announced the establishment of a Northwest Florida Region Loan and Deposit Production Office led by Ashley Vannoy, Senior Vice President. This new market in Destin, Florida, will allow for a focus on strategic growth for the bank.

09:06 EDT Sumo Logic announces availability of Cloud SIEM solution in Tokyo - Sumo Logic announced its Cloud SIEM solution is now available in Tokyo to help organizations modernize their security operations center by fusing analytics and automation to cut through the noise of alert fatigue and provide analysts with automated insights to see the real, priority threats that require immediate attention. The company also announced the appointment of Hiroaki Kawamura, as the new country manager for Sumo Logic Japan K.K., to help further scale growth and leadership in the region.

09:05 EDT Standard Lithium included in VanEck Vectors Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF - Standard Lithium is pleased to announce that it has been added to the VanEck Vectors Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF. Standard Lithium was posted to the REMX on June 30, 2021.

09:05 EDT Petco names R. Michael Mohan as Lead Independent Director - Petco (WOOF) announced that its Board of Directors has appointed R. Michael Mohan as Lead Independent Director. Mohan joined Petco's Board of Directors in March and will continue to serve on its Audit Committee. Mohan is a seasoned retail leader and most recently served as the President and COO of Best Buy (BBY). As President and COO, he was responsible for the operations of Best Buy's U.S. and International businesses and led services, customer experience, category management, merchandising, marketing and supply chain.

09:02 EDT S&T Bancorp names Christopher McComish as CEO, succeeding David Antolik - S&T Bancorp announced that Christopher McComish has been appointed as the company's CEO, effective August 23. McComish previously served as senior executive vice president of consumer banking of TCF Bank. McComish succeeds David Antolik, who has served as interim CEO and president of S&T since April. Antolik will continue as president of S&T and as a member of S&T's board of directors, positions he has held since January 2019.

09:00 EDT State Auto Financial trading resumes

08:50 EDT Nuvista Energy announces proposed issuance of $200M of senior unsecured notes - NuVista Energy announced that it intends to undertake, subject to market and other conditions, a proposed private placement of senior unsecured notes in the amount of $200 million. Subject to the completion of the Offering, NuVista intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering, together with borrowings under its credit facility, to redeem all of the Company's existing $220 million senior unsecured notes due 2023 at a redemption price of 101.625%, plus accrued and unpaid interest, which is expected to be completed shortly after closing of the Offering. CIBC Capital Markets and RBC Capital Markets are acting as joint bookrunners for the Offering.

08:46 EDT SPI Energy subsidiaries launch EF1-T electric pickup truck - SPI Energy announced its wholly owned EdisonFuture and Phoenix Motor subsidiary launched its next-generation electric pickup truck, EF1-T. EdisonFuture's EF1-T e-pickup truck, developed in partnership with Icona and automaker partners, is the first product in a line of advanced all-electric pickup trucks ad last-mile delivery vans incorporating Edisonfuture & Phoenix Motor's vision for human-centered future transportation. The EF1-T standard model comes equipped with total power of 350 kilowatts, or kW, or 470 horsepower, while EdisonFuture's top of the line "Super" model offers 600kW, or 816HP. The EF1-T e-pickup trucks use a uniquely designed solar mosaic technology that provides a visual signature while also harnessing the power of the sun to recharge the batteries, enabling work vehicles to continuously charge while in the field.

08:45 EDT Corcept Therapeutics appoints Amy Flood as Chief Human Resources Officer - Corcept Therapeutics (CORT) announced that Amy Flood has joined the company as Chief Human Resources and Communications Officer. Flood has nearly 25 years of experience in team development and communications in the biotech industry. She previously spent 21 years at Gilead Sciences (GILD), most recently as Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, where she led a global team responsible for corporate brand, employee communications, product public relations, advocacy and philanthropy.

08:43 EDT Global Ship Lease credit rating upgraded by Moody's - Global Ship Lease announced that its Corporate Family Rating has been upgraded to B1 from B2, with a stable outlook, by Moody's Investor Service. In announcing the upgrade, Moody's cited the Company's increased scale and improving credit metrics, refinancing activities resulting in an extended maturity profile, high revenue visibility from long-term charters, the strong container shipping market environment, and an increase in the Company's free float.

08:41 EDT Valaris 16-well floater contract with Woodside offshore Australia, no terms - Valaris Limited announced that it has been awarded a 16-well contract with Woodside offshore Australia for semisubmersible, VALARIS DPS-1. The contract is expected to commence late in the first quarter or early in the second quarter of 2022 with an estimated duration of 300 days.

08:40 EDT StoneCastle announces $10.8M registered direct offering - StoneCastle Financial announced that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with investors to purchase 492,234 of its shares of common stock, in a registered direct offering. The purchase price for one share of common stock was $21.89. The Net Asset Value at the time of the transaction was $21.85. The registered direct offering is accretive to current shareholders. The proceeds from the registered direct offering are expected to be $10,775,000, exclusive of legal and administrative expenses associated with the transaction. StoneCastle anticipates that the net proceeds will be invested in accordance with its investment strategy.

08:39 EDT Veracyte appoints Rebecca Chambers as CFO - Veracyte (VCYT) announced the appointment of Rebecca Chambers as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Chambers will join the company July 19, reporting to Marc Stapley, Veracyte's chief executive officer. Chambers has healthcare leadership experience, most recently serving as chief financial officer for Outset Medical (OM).

08:39 EDT Sypris Solutions unit gets DoD follow-on to test circuit card assembly, no terms - Sypris Electronics, a subsidiary of Sypris Solutions announced that it has recently received a follow-on award from a U.S. DOD prime contractor to manufacture and test embedded circuit card assemblies that will perform certain cryptographic functions for the Army Key Management System AKMS. Production is expected to begin in 2021. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The AKMS is a fielded system that consists of three subsystems: local communications security management software, LCMS", automated communications engineering software ACES and the simple key load device. Under the umbrella of our nation's Electronic Key Management System, the AKMS provides tactical units and sustaining bases with an organic key generation capability and an efficient secure electronic key distribution means.

08:38 EDT Artelo Biosciences expects cash to enable execution on number of key milestones - Artelo ended the third quarter with over $10.0 million of cash and cash equivalents. This level of funding is projected to enable the Company to execute on a number of key upcoming milestones before the end of 2021 and into 2022, including readout of the Phase 1b stage of the CAReS study.

08:36 EDT Kelly Services appoints Darren Simons as Chief Digital Officer - Kelly announced the appointment of Darren Simons as Chief Digital Officer. "In this position, Darren has responsibility for leading an enterprise digitization roadmap, driving digital innovation that transforms and optimizes Kelly's business processes, developing new tech-enabled customer and candidate-facing solutions, creating new business models, and improving both internal and external digital experiences," the company said. He reports directly to Kelly President and CEO Peter Quigley.

08:36 EDT 1847 Goedeker reports June revenue up 47.8% to $55.7M - 1847 Goedeker is pleased to report continued strong growth with record monthly orders and revenue results. June monthly orders increased 19.2% from the prior year period to $73.2M while June monthly revenues totaled $55.7M, representing a 47.8% increase over the June 2020 results. "We are incredibly pleased with the continued strong momentum during the first half of this year, as June marks a record performance for the organization," stated Doug Moore, CEO of Goedekers. "Throughout the past month, we have experienced a significantly improved fill rate of 76.1%, up from 61.4% in June of 2020, along with record shipments. We are encouraged by the sequential progress we made in revenue achievement versus orders as the fill rate of 76.1% is at its highest level for 2021. Suppliers continue to take steps to improve supply, although our fill rate has a significant opportunity for improvement beyond the 76% achieved in June. Speed of delivery and the customer satisfaction levels for delivery remain at the forefront of our strategic plan." Moore continued, "The first month of being a combined company went well. As we continue to pursue our long-term goals and model of investments driving scalable profitable growth, we believe we are in a great position to continue this momentum through the balance of the year." "Let me also add some detail on this week's acquisition announcement. We entered into an asset purchase agreement with Appliance Gallery, a highly regarded Largo, Florida-based luxury appliance retailer and will be able to pay the cash purchase price that is due at closing for the acquisition out of our positive operating cash flow. There will not be any offering or other financing associated with the transaction," concluded Moore.

08:35 EDT Inotiv acquires Genetic Toxicology assets from MilliporeSigma's BioReliance - Inotiv announced that the company has acquired key genetic toxicology assets from MilliporeSigma's BioReliance portfolio, including standard operating procedures, stock cultures, historic control data and client list. While Inotiv did not disclose the specific financial terms, the transaction consists of a sales-based royalty agreement and does not require upfront funding from the company. MilliporeSigma is discontinuing their Genetic Toxicology operations. The agreement with Inotiv is designed to ensure continuity of services for existing clients. Inotiv also plans to offer employment to certain MilliporeSigma employees who otherwise may have been displaced. To facilitate entry into the genetic toxicology business, Inotiv also announced that Gopala Krishna, PhD, MBA, has joined Inotiv as Senior Vice President, Genetic Toxicology, to lead the Company's genetic toxicology service offering.

08:34 EDT FluroTech announces pre-EUA filing with FDA - FluroTech announced it has filed its Pre-Emergency Use Authorization Request with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The Pre-EUA submission is the Company's latest step taken as it seeks authorization of its FluroTest Pandemic Response Platform, designed to facilitate widespread point of access and surge-scale SARS-CoV-2 testing by leveraging the disciplines of robotics automation, biochemistry, fluorescence detection and cloud computing. Notable updates include: Pre-EUA Submission Delivery: Early engagement now progressing between FluroTest and the Agency to facilitate a speedy and fulsome final submission. These interactions help guide the FDA's ability to review and potentially grant the EUA. As described by the FDA, "A Pre-EUA package contains data and information about the safety, quality, and efficacy of the product, its intended use under a future or current EUA, and information about the emergency or potential emergency situation. The pre-EUA process allows FDA scientific and technical subject matter experts to begin a review of information and assist in the development of conditions of authorization, fact sheets, and other documentation that would be needed for an EUA in advance of an emergency and also helps to facilitate complete EUA requests during a current emergency declaration." Immunoassay Development: Positive results obtained on initial testing with the use of an inactivated virus. This is a critical step in immunoassay development. Final optimization of the buffer chemistry, to ensure optimal test performance with clinical samples from the field, is being performed. FluroTest immunoassay incorporates the same inactivation detergent that was also used in Gates Foundation funded immunoassays. Inactivation detergent is used in the sample collection device to make the saliva sample safe for transport, storage and handling. Manufacturing: Pre-production development of three functioning pandemic defense platform systems is now complete. Newly added Biological Safety Cabinets have been built, tested, and approved for use. Clinical Trial Update: Pending added guidance from the FDA on its pre-EUA submission, FluroTest will proceed with sample collections from six clinical site locations across California, Texas, Colorado, Rhode Island and Florida to determine performance detection results alongside a comparator RT-PCR assay. Customer Data and Privacy Protection - protocol now established and in place to manage test taker's required data. FluroTest continues to work with clinical trials partner Toolbox Medical Innovations to fulfill additional requirements to support final submissions for Emergency Use Authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada for an Interim Order Authorization. Toolbox has expertise in helping organizations surpass each step of the submission process from clinical study design and development, all the way up to regulatory planning and support, allowing them to provide a fast and efficient path to FDA and other approvals for diagnostic products.

08:33 EDT Qualcomm names Don McGuire as Chief Marketing Officer - Qualcomm (QCOM) announced that Don McGuire has been appointed senior vice president and chief marketing officer, reporting directly to Cristiano Amon, president and CEO of Qualcomm, effective immediately. Penny Baldwin, senior vice president and chief marketing officer who joined Qualcomm in 2017, will continue to serve in an advisory role to support the transition along with other marketing initiatives until her retirement later in the year. McGuire joined Qualcomm from Intel (INTC) where he led global marketing strategy, campaigns, and messaging supporting their Client Computing Business.

08:33 EDT Enlivex Therapeutics initiates construction process for new cGMP plant - Enlivex Therapeutics announced that it has initiated the design and construction process for a new wholly owned manufacturing plant in Israel. Upon completion, this cGMP plant will provide additional manufacturing capacity for Allocetra, the Company's immunotherapy product candidate. Enlivex intends to use the additional manufacturing capacity to support ongoing clinical trials, future clinical trials and initial commercial production of Allocetra that may occur if Enlivex receives applicable regulatory approvals. The planned new facility will initially be approximately 17,000 square feet, and will have the ability to be expanded to approximately 21,500 square feet in the future. "The planned expansion of our manufacturing capacity represents an important milestone that we expect will position Enlivex at a different level of readiness for larger clinical trials and potential initiation of commercial activities," said Oren Hershkovitz, Ph.D., CEO of Enlivex. "It will allow us to remain well prepared as we continue to advance Allocetra towards regulatory approval in sepsis and COVID-19 and work to leverage its broadly applicable mechanism of action to expand our planned clinical pipeline into solid tumors."

08:32 EDT Berkshire Grey secures over $23M order for grocery picking robots - Berkshire Grey secured a $23+ million multi-phase order with a global retailer for online same day grocery fulfillment. The Berkshire Grey Intelligent Enterprise Robotics solutions robotically pick grocery items from inventory and pack the items into customer bags to fill orders that are placed online and via mobile apps. Berkshire Grey's robotic solutions can operate back-of-store, putting the operation close to current shoppers for rapid pickup and delivery, and in larger dedicated fulfillment and distribution centers. Berkshire Grey solutions support order-online-pickup-at-store, order-online-be-delivered-to-by-store, and similar models which are important high growth models in the grocery and convenience segments. On February 24, 2021, Berkshire Grey entered into a definitive agreement with Revolution Acceleration Acquisition Corp that is expected to result in Berkshire Grey becoming a publicly listed company early in the third quarter of 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including approval by the stockholders of Revolution Acceleration Acquisition Corp.

08:30 EDT First Constitution Bancorp trading resumes

08:27 EDT LMP Automotive announces senior management addition - LMP Automotive Holdings announced Senior Management Addition. Amanda Bailes, a senior executive in accounting and finance with 20 years of experience in public and private industry accounting, has been hired as Senior Automotive Controller of LMP. Bailes will be responsible for directing and coordinating all dealership accounting operational functions, managing the accumulation and consolidation of all financial data necessary for reporting accurate and timely business results, and will manage the Company's Human Resources Department. Bailes will assume the role of Senior Automotive Controller effective July 19, 2021 and report directly to Bellaflores.

08:25 EDT CVRx appoints Martha Shadan to board of directors - CVRx announces the addition of Martha Shadan to the company's board of directors. She currently serves as the president and CEO of Miach Orthopaedics, a developer of bioengineered surgical implants for connective tissue repair. Shadan is actively involved with the Advanced Medical Technology Association, serving on the Board of Directors since 2017, and as a member of the Accel Board of Directors, a division of AdvaMed.

08:24 EDT Opiant Pharmaceuticals appoints Matthew Ruth as CCO - Opiant Pharmaceuticals announced the appointment of Matthew Ruth as Chief Commercial Officer. Ruth will begin his employment with Opiant effective today and report directly to Dr. Roger Crystal, President and CEO. From 2015 until 2019, Mr. Ruth was responsible for building out the U.S. Operational, Commercial, Government Affairs and Medical Affairs team in preparation for the launch and commercialization of a branded nasal naloxone spray.

08:22 EDT Allena expects revised interim analysis for reloxaliase in 1Q22 - Reloxaliase is an investigational, first-in-class, non-absorbed, orally administered enzyme for the treatment of enteric hyperoxaluria, a metabolic disorder characterized by high levels of urinary oxalate, which can lead to kidney stone disease and chronic kidney disease. There are currently no approved therapies for this disorder, which affects approximately 250,000 patients in the United States. Reloxaliase exerts its effect by breaking down oxalate in the gastrointestinal tract, reducing the absorption of dietary oxalate. The Company previously completed the URIROX-1 trial, the first of two pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials of reloxaliase, which demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in UOx levels during weeks 1-4, the primary endpoint of the study. The Company is currently studying reloxaliase in the adaptive-design URIROX-2 trial, the second of two pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials in its URIROX program. URIROX-2 is a multicenter, global, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of reloxaliase in patients with enteric hyperoxaluria over a minimum treatment period of two years. The trial is designed to enroll 200 patients with 24-hour UOx excretion greater than or equal to 50 mg/day and a history of kidney stones, and includes patients with both normal kidney function and reduced kidney function up to Stage 3 chronic kidney disease. The primary efficacy endpoint of URIROX-2 is the percent change from baseline in 24-hour UOx excretion during weeks 1-4, the same primary endpoint as URIROX-1. Secondary endpoints in URIROX-2 include the percent change from baseline in 24-hour UOx excretion during weeks 16-24 and the proportion of subjects with a greater than or equal to 20% reduction from baseline in 24-hour UOx excretion during Weeks 1-4. The primary long-term efficacy endpoint to confirm clinical benefit is kidney stone disease progression, defined as a composite of either symptomatic kidney stones or finding of new or enlarged kidney stones using imaging, over a minimum treatment period of two years. Secondary long-term efficacy endpoints to confirm clinical benefit include change in eGFR from baseline and resource utilization for the management of kidney stones. URIROX-2 incorporates adaptive design elements that could, if necessary, allow for increasing the sample size and/or duration of treatment based upon the results of two interim analyses. As part of the URIROX-2 adaptive design, the Company had previously planned to conduct the first interim analysis after 130 subjects had been treated for at least six months and had estimated the timing of this analysis to be in the second or third quarter of 2022. Given the adverse impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic on the rate of patient enrollment in this global study, and considering as well that enrollment in the study began in early 2019, the Company has modified its plans and now expects to conduct the first interim analysis, which will include all subjects who were enrolled in the trial as of the end of November 2021, during the first quarter of 2022. Based upon the number of subjects enrolled to date, the number of subjects currently in screening, and management's estimate of expected enrollment over the next several months through November, the Company estimates that this revised interim analysis would include UOx data during weeks 1-4 for approximately 80 patients but would not include sufficient data to evaluate UOx levels during weeks 16-24 or the blinded rate of kidney stone events, as previously planned. The Company will submit its revised plan for the first interim analysis to the Food and Drug Administration as part of its planned update to the URIROX-2 statistical analysis plan and adaptive design charter. The revised interim analysis, which will be conducted by an independent data monitoring committee, will assess whether the study continues to be adequately powered to evaluate efficacy against the primary endpoint, the change in UOx levels during weeks 1-4 versus baseline, with the planned enrollment of 200 subjects, or whether the study size should be increased. As a result of conducting an earlier interim analysis with a smaller sample size than previously planned, the Company anticipates that the ultimate size of the study may be larger than would have otherwise been required, but that if this occurs, any such increase would be modest relative to an increase, if any, that would have been necessary had the first interim analysis been conducted with six-month data on 130 patients, as previously planned. Any adjustment in study size would be designed to ensure that the statistical power of the study remains sufficiently robust. As previously planned, the interim analysis will also include an assessment of futility with respect to the primary endpoint. The Company does not anticipate any changes to the planned second interim analysis, which will also include an assessment of the secondary endpoint of change in UOx levels during weeks 16-24 and of unblinded kidney stone events. The second interim analysis is expected to be conducted once 200 subjects have reached six months of treatment and is designed to enable a potential filing for accelerated approval for reloxaliase on the basis of UOx levels. The Company expects to provide revised guidance on its expectations for the timing of the second interim analysis and topline data from the URIROX-2 study following completion of the initial interim analysis in the first quarter of 2022.

08:20 EDT Allena on track to start two Phase 2a studies of ALLN-346 in Q3 - Allena Pharmaceuticals provided progress updates on its clinical programs: ALLN-346, a first-in-class, oral urate degrading enzyme in development for the treatment of patients with hyperuricemia and gout in the setting of chronic kidney disease and reloxaliase, a first-in-class, oral oxalate degrading enzyme in development for the treatment of patients with enteric hyperoxaluria. ALLN-346 is an investigational first-in-class, non-absorbed, orally administered enzyme for the treatment of hyperuricemia and gout, a metabolic disorder characterized by high systemic levels of uric acid that can lead to several complications, including arthritis, kidney stones, and chronic kidney disease. The Company recently completed a Phase 1b multiple ascending dose study of ALLN-346. The study included 18 healthy volunteers, who received either ALLN-346 or placebo for seven days. There were two cohorts consisting of nine subjects each, with the first receiving three capsules of ALLN-346 three times daily, and the second receiving five capsules of ALLN-346 three times daily. ALLN-346 was well tolerated with no evidence of systemic absorption, as confirmed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Evaluation of clinical and laboratory parameters revealed no significant safety signals and no serious adverse events were reported. As previously reported, the Company is preparing to initiate two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2a studies to obtain initial bioactivity data and additional safety data for ALLN-346 in patients with hyperuricemia and gout during the third quarter of 2021. Initial results from the Phase 2a program are expected during the fourth quarter of 2021. An inpatient study is planned to initially enroll 12 patients with hyperuricemia randomized to receive either five capsules of ALLN-346 or matching placebo three times daily during a one-week treatment period. Key bioactivity endpoints will include serum uric acid level, 24-hour urine uric acid level, and renal clearance of uric acid. Following evaluation of the data from the initial 12 patients, the Company will make a determination regarding potentially extending the study to include up to an additional 12 patients, either to obtain additional data at the five-capsule, three-times-daily dose, or to evaluate a different dose. An outpatient study is planned to enroll 24 hyperuricemic patients with gout and mild-to-moderate chronic kidney disease randomized to receive either five capsules of ALLN-346 or matching placebo, three times daily, during a two-week treatment period. Two cohorts of 12 patients each are planned, with the first cohort consisting of patients with an eGFR (estimated glomerular filtration rate, a measure of renal function) of 60-89 mls/minute, and the second consisting of patients with an eGFR of 30-59 mls/minute. Key bioactivity endpoints will include serum uric acid level, 24-hour urine uric acid level, and renal clearance of uric acid. The limitations of existing gout treatments were highlighted in the Company's recent KOL Webinar. Specifically, managing gout in the setting of advanced chronic kidney disease remains a significant challenge for clinicians because currently available agents are either dose-limited or contraindicated in these patients. There are approximately 500,000 patients with gout and advanced chronic kidney disease in the United States.

08:19 EDT Sientra appoints Andy Schmidt as Chief Financial Officer - Sientra (SIEN) announced that Andy Schmidt has been appointed Chief Financial Officer effective immediately. As a key member of Sientra's executive leadership team, Schmidt will lead the company's financial operations. Schmidt brings to Sientra more than 20 years of financial leadership experience and has successfully directed the financial, M & A and capital market strategies of numerous publicly held companies. Most recently, he served as the CFO of Guardion Health Sciences (GHSI).

08:18 EDT Oportun Financial appoints two new independent members to board - Oportun Financial announced the addition of two new independent board members to its Board of Directors. Effective as of September 1, the appointments expand Oportun's board from seven to nine members with the additions of Ginny Lee and Sandra Smith. Lee recently served as the President and Chief Operating Officer of Khan Academy. Smith previously served as Chief Financial Officer for Segment.

08:15 EDT PolyPid appoints Anthony Senagore as senior medical director - PolyPid announced that it has appointed leading colorectal surgeon Anthony Senagore, M.D., as its Senior Medical Director. In his position, Dr. Senagore will be responsible for developing PolyPid's medical infrastructure in the United States, and will contribute to the Company's NDA submission, approval and commercial launch of its lead product candidate, D-PLEX100, a novel drug product candidate designed to prevent surgical site infections by providing local prolonged and controlled anti-bacterial activity directly at the surgical site. Anthony J. Senagore, M.D., is a colorectal surgeon with a long track record of academic surgery practice and significant experience in healthcare start-up companies. He has served as Professor of Surgery at several prestigious academic medical centers, including University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Central Michigan University College of Medicine, the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Spectrum Health/Michigan State University.

08:15 EDT Halozyme: Janssen receives FDA approval of DARZALEX FASPRO - Halozyme Therapeutics (HALO) announced that Janssen Biotech (JNJ) received U.S. FDA approval of DARZALEX FASPRO in combination with pomalidomide and dexamethasone for the treatment of adult patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior line of therapy, including lenalidomide and a proteasome inhibitor. The approval marks Janssen's sixth indication for DARZALEX FASPRO in the treatment of multiple myeloma. Findings from the Phase 3 APOLLO study were recently published in The Lancet Oncology.

08:14 EDT Tailwind Acquisition highlights QOMPLX business growth ahead of merger - In advance of the approaching July 20th shareholder meeting, Tailwind Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company, is proud to highlight the robust growth achieved in 2021 by its business combination company QOMPLX. Since the original announcement on March 2, 2021, the global focus on cybersecurity has immensely accelerated given the increase in ransomware attacks, and QOMPLX has continued to execute well this year, with major accomplishments that include: Winning several large new contracts from premier customers (both new and existing), including the U.S. Navy, NASA, and leading global corporations including banks, insurers, logistics, and professional services firms; Reliably defeating Microsoft's Defender for Identity, Tenable.ad, and Crowdstrike's Preempt identity solutions for long-term contracts in leading global corporations - including one of the world's largest banks; Announcing exceptional post-merger Directors including Chris Krebs, the former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, who will play a key role in QOMPLX's continued expansion defending against modern and critical cybersecurity threats; Signing multiple new partnerships to expand offerings and extending product and data integrations with top technology companies that now include AWS, IBM, Splunk, Twitter, Slack, and Stripe; Expanding its formidable product portfolio with additional SaaS analytics packages and gained more protected intellectual property in real-time analytics and cyber security, with 43 U.S. patents now allowed/issued and 112 more currently pending. Tailwind CEO, Chris Hollod noted that "QOMPLX continues to execute exceptionally well in an environment where the need for cybersecurity and data infrastructure solutions is more pronounced today than ever before. Jason continues to shine as an industry leader and the business results validate how their technology solutions are truly best in class for enterprise level needs."

08:12 EDT INmune Bio announces first patient treated with INKmune - INmune Bio announced that the first patient has been treated in the company's Phase 1 clinical trial of its Natural Killer cell priming platform, INKmune, as a potential treatment for high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome. "The initiation of patient treatments in this trial is a significant milestone for our company as it is the first to study our INKmune platform in a formal clinical setting," stated RJ Tesi, M.D., chief executive officer of INmune Bio. "It is widely understood that dysfunctional NK cells in cancer patients fail to eradicate residual disease after chemotherapy, leading to relapse and poor outcomes. We have shown that by delivering tumor-specific activating signals to NK cells with INKmune, we can initiate autologous tumor killing and this is our first opportunity to test this in MDS patients. We believe INKmune holds promise in solid tumor cancers as well and to that end, we are planning to initiate a second trial, in ovarian cancer soon." This Phase 1 open label study will enroll nine patients with a confirmed diagnosis of MDS with excess blasts in a 3x3 dose escalation protocol. The primary endpoint is the safety and tolerability of INKmune when administered intravenously. Most secondary endpoints are biomarkers and include the change in percentage of blasts in peripheral blood and bone marrow, the change in autologous NK cell activity and functional maturity into tumor-induced memory-like NK cells in vivo. The overall response rate using WHO criteria, and duration of response will also be reported.

08:11 EDT FuelCell receives court case win in case versus Posco Energy - FuelCell Energy announced that it has received a favorable ruling in a court case filed in the Court of Chancery in Delaware by POSCO Energy Co. On July 9, 2021, the Court issued a post-trial ruling denying POSCO Energy's summary statutory demand to inspect the Company's books and records because POSCO Energy lacks a proper purpose. The Court held that the totality of the circumstances, including the fact this was the seventh legal action POSCO Energy initiated against the Company within the span of nine months, confirmed that POSCO Energy's purpose in initiating the books and records demand and filing the complaint was not proper.

08:10 EDT MJardin Group announces suspension of activities at Warman facility - MJardin Group announced that it has decided to suspend construction and certain business activities at the Company's Warman facility, effective July 12, 2021. Additionally, the Company has announced that, as a part of its previously announced restructuring engagement with Restructur Advisors, it has launched a Sales and Investment Solicitation Process relating to the Company, and all its Canadian and US assets. In response to market conditions, the Company is placing Warman into care and maintenance until further notice. The Company will keep the Facility's Health Canada licensing in place and retains the option, at the Company's sole discretion, to take the Facility out of care and maintenance or if circumstances require, completely shut down Warman. The suspension of ongoing construction and certain business activities at Warman required the Company to terminate seventeen employees in Canada and the United States and will enable the Company to preserve cashflow while it facilitates the SISP. The Company remains in constant dialogue with its business partners at Warman, as it works to identify potential transactions in respect of the Facility. Further to the Company's April 30, 2021 press release announcing the formation of a special committee of independent members of the board of directors, the Special Committee has recommended that MJardin conduct a formal, wide ranging SISP in order to identify all potential options to maximize value for all of the Company's stakeholders. In response, RA, with the Company's management team, commenced the SISP on or about July 12, 2021, seeking expressions of interest, in any combination, in respect of the Company, its assets, and the Company's CSE listing.

08:09 EDT Scynexis announces three oral presentations on ibrexafungerp - SCYNEXIS announced three oral presentations demonstrating the potential clinical utility of ibrexafungerp at the 31st European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. "Fungal infections worldwide are becoming increasingly drug-resistant and more deadly, leaving patients with limited treatment options. However, we believe that ibrexafungerp has the potential to be effective against many drug-resistant fungal pathogens, like Candida auris, which has capitalized on the crowded hospital conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic," said Marco Taglietti, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of SCYNEXIS. "These presentations continue to build on the positive responses we've seen in both the CARES and FURI studies and support ibrexafungerp's potential to be the treatment option that patients need. We continue to actively enroll patients in both studies." Presentation titled, "EUCAST Ibrexafungerp MICs for contemporary Danish Yeast Isolates" found an in vitro susceptibility analysis of 967 unique yeast isolates from 794 patients found that ibrexafungerp displayed broad activity. Additional analysis demonstrated that ibrexafungerp was active in most strains harboring mutations in the fks gene, commonly associated with echinocandin resistance. The second presentation is titled, "Outcomes of Oral Ibrexafungerp in 33 Patients with Refractory Fungal Diseases, Interim Analysis of a Phase 3 Open-label Study." In an interim analysis by an independent data review committee of 33 patients from the Phase 3 FURI study evaluating ibrexafungerp for the treatment of patients with refractory fungal disease found that 23 patients achieved clinical improvement, defined as complete or partial response. 7 patients maintained stable disease and 0 patients progressed. 3 patients were considered as indeterminate. Overall, ibrexafungerp was well-tolerated, with the most common treatment-related adverse events being gastrointestinal in nature. The third presentation is titled, "Outcomes of Oral Ibrexafungerp in the Treatment of Ten Patients with Candida auris Infections, from the CARES Study." This reviews an interim analysis by an independent data review committee of 10 patients from the global Phase 3 CARES study evaluating ibrexafungerp for the treatment of patients with invasive candidiasis or candidemia due to Candida auris found that 8 patients had a complete response. One patient was considered indeterminate, and one patient died of other causes.

08:07 EDT Cardiff Oncology names Katherine Ruffner, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer - Cardiff Oncology (CRDF) announced the appointment of Katherine Ruffner, M.D., as chief medical officer. Ruffner has over 25 years of clinical care, oncology biotechnology, and pharmaceutical drug development experience. Most recently, Dr. Ruffner served as vice president, clinical development for ALX Oncology (ALXO).

08:07 EDT Emerson Electric to sell Daniel Measurement and Control Business to Turnspire - Emerson announced an agreement to sell its Daniel Measurement and Control Business to Turnspire Capital Partners. Daniel's ultrasonic flowmeter and fiscal transfer system businesses are not included in the transaction. Daniel has been providing fiscal flow and energy measurement to the oil and gas industry for more than 85 years. This sale demonstrates Emerson's strategic priority to focus its portfolio and management attention on data-rich, software-enabled technologies in diversified and high growth end markets. The transaction is expected to close in Emerson's FY21 and includes all of Daniel's brand rights, facilities, intellectual property and personnel. Emerson will work closely with Turnspire to ensure a transition for customers and employees.

08:05 EDT Cidara Therapeutics presents new analyses from Rezafungin studies - Cidara Therapeutics announced new analyses from multiple studies of rezafungin, Cidara's novel, once-weekly echinocandin, under investigation in Phase 3 development for the treatment of candidemia and invasive candidiasis and prevention of invasive fungal infections, at the 31st European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Cidara's oral presentation discusses new efficacy data from a sub-analysis of the previously completed STRIVE Phase 2 trial. The scientific program includes three e-Posters on rezafungin and real world echinocandin use. Cidara's oral presentation, titled "Analysis of Efficacy from STRIVE Phase 2 Trial of Rezafungin Treatment of Candidemia and/or Invasive Candidiasis: Outcomes During Initial Days of Treatment," highlights a new sub-analysis from the STRIVE Phase 2 trial examining efficacy outcomes in the initial days of rezafungin treatment versus standard of care treatment with caspofungin. Key highlights include: The percentage of patients with negative blood culture at 24 and 48 hours was higher in the rezafungin group than in the caspofungin group, as were rates of mycological cure and overall success at Day 5. There was a statistically significant difference in the time to negative blood culture between rezafungin and caspofungin in patients with more aggressive infection, as defined by a positive blood culture between 12 hours before and 72 hours after enrollment. In the STRIVE trial, in more than 200 patients enrolled, safety and tolerability findings were comparable between treatments, consistent with the established safety profile of the echinocandin class. The ongoing Phase 3 ReSTORE trial will further contribute to the safety and efficacy database on rezafungin. STRIVE was an international, multicenter, double-blind, trial evaluating the safety, tolerability and efficacy of once-weekly intravenous dosing of rezafungin compared to once-daily dosing of caspofungin in patients with candidemia and/or invasive candidiasis. Key findings from Cidara's three e-Poster presentations are summarized below. Title: Analysis of Safety from STRIVE Phase 2 Trial of Rezafungin Treatment of Candidemia and/or Invasive Candidiasis: Assessment of Adverse Events and Laboratory Values: Additional safety endpoints, including liver function tests, were evaluated in patients with candidemia and/or invasive candidiasis treated with rezafungin once-weekly compared with caspofungin once daily. Data demonstrate comparable safety of rezafungin to caspofungin in patients with candidemia and/or invasive candidiasis. Title: Development and validation of a modified EUCAST yeast broth microdilution MIC method for rezafungin to mitigate nonspecific binding through incorporation of Tween20: Modified EUCAST yeast susceptibility testing method for rezafungin diminished variability without impacting the ability to differentiate fks mutant strains. If successfully validated, rezafungin use would be enabled in this standardized broth-based antifungal susceptibility testing methodology. Title: A Multicenter Pharmacoepidemiologic Evaluation of Echinocandin Use: Analysis of real-world echinocandin use, across 20 U.S.-based hospitals, in 1,665 patients with positive Candida culture, showed that a significant proportion of echinocandin courses started during hospitalization and continued after discharge, with outpatient use more common for intra-abdominal related infections and candidemia. Data demonstrated that the main reasons for continuing an echinocandin post hospital discharge were azole non-susceptible Candida and azole toxicity.

08:04 EDT Establishment Labs CFO Renee Gaeta to step down, Raj Denhoy named interim CFO - Establishment Labs announced that Renee Gaeta will step down from her position as CFO for another opportunity outside of the company, effective July 30 and following the planned release of the company's Q2 results. Raj Denhoy, head of strategy and investor relations, has been named interim CFO effective upon Gaeta's departure.

08:03 EDT Penn National to open Hollywood Casino York on August 12th - Penn National Gaming announced that it expects to open Hollywood Casino York to the public on Thursday, August 12th, at Noon, pending final customary regulatory approvals. Located in the York Galleria Mall in Springettsbury Township, the Category 4 casino represents Penn National's third facility in Pennsylvania, joining Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course in Grantville and The Meadows Racetrack & Casino in Washington. A fourth property, Hollywood Casino Morgantown, is scheduled to open later this year. "The countdown to our grand opening begins today," said Ruben Warren, Vice President and General Manager for Hollywood Casino York. "We're very excited to soon welcome patrons to this beautiful new property, where they'll be able to experience premier gaming, dining and entertainment." The roughly 80,000 square foot facility will feature approximately 500 slot machines and 24 table games, with capacity for up to 750 slot machines and 40 table games. Hollywood Casino York will also offer a Barstool Sportsbook and race book; Diner & Drinks, a casual restaurant and bar; and the Classic Grill grab-and-go eatery.

08:03 EDT PolarityTE receives notice of allowance from CNIPA for MPFU-related patent - PolarityTE announced that the China National Intellectual Property Administration, or CNIPA, issued a Notification of Allowance for Chinese Patent Application No. 201580075326.3. The allowed claims relate to skin-regenerative compositions utilizing PolarityTE's minimally polarized functional unit, or MPFU, technology as well as methods of making a skin-regenerative composition utilizing the MPFU technology. Of note, China recently adopted a new law for patent term extension of up to five years to compensate for the time taken for review and approval of a new drug or biologic for marketing, where the total patent term from the approval date of the new drug or biologic shall not exceed 14 years. This most recent allowance further demonstrates the company's steady march forward in acquiring patent rights on a global scale and brings the company's total number of allowed and granted utility patents worldwide to 12, 10 abroad and two in the United States. The company continues to pursue additional patent applications in the United States and abroad related to its regenerative technologies, including SkinTE.

07:59 EDT Laredo Petroleum announces offering of senior notes - Laredo Petroleum announced that it intends, subject to market conditions, to offer $400M in aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes due 2029 in a private offering to eligible purchasers. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering, if completed, for general corporate purposes, including, repaying a portion of the borrowings outstanding under the Company's senior secured credit facility.

07:52 EDT Arch Therapeutics appoints Dan Yrigoyen as VP, sales - Arch Therapeutics announced that Dan Yrigoyen has joined the organization as Vice President of Sales. Yrigoyen will lead the Company's national commercialization effort with a focus on revenue generation and channel development. Most recently, Yrigoyen served as Vice President, Sales & Channel Distribution for Medela, Inc., a global medical device company.

07:46 EDT Verus International CEO says company at 'pivotal point' in turnaround - CEO Andy Dhruv is pleased to provide the following update: "Those of you who have spoken with me know that I am frank and to the point, so today's update will feature that tone. When I took over Verus just four and a half months ago, I came to a company that seemed to have a cloud over its head that would not go away. As Verus experienced closures by its key customers, suppliers, and transportation lines during long stretches of 2020 due to the pandemic, I arrived here with no illusions about the difficult decisions that would be necessary in the early stages of this turnaround. I had a very well-defined road map to return this company to health and to regain a significant amount of shareholder value. That plan included stabilizing the debt, rationalizing current costs and future commitments by rightsizing the operations, and adding new high margin product lines, with a fourth stage to include some pre-arranged M&A. I have largely completed the first three of these action items as I enter month five of my plan...What I did not anticipate, just two months into my tenure, was the filing of shake down lawsuits, which have been accompanied by a drumbeat of more than 50 negative press releases in the last two months. Those of you who know how this game is played understand these short-seller-style tactics, but it is nonetheless disconcerting to investors and partners to be subjected to this kind of unrelenting attack. The sad irony for Verus is that these copycat lawsuits have hurt existing shareholders significantly by delaying our pre-arranged M&A track into the future. While the company fights these lawsuits, this scenario forced me to take a different fork in the road, the one that led to a much longer and harder journey where I must organically grow our way back to health. I begrudgingly committed to that path months ago, starting with some new product lines and with some trade show help selling from our distributor's booths to create demand. I typically leave every trade show with significant orders in hand, so these shows are the lifeblood of our growth. We are very excited to be attending the upcoming Champs show in Las Vegas, Nevada at the end of this month, where we will have our products displayed with one of our major distributors. If history stays true to form, we expect to have an even larger backlog following this event, which is our current conundrum, as we have far more orders than we can currently produce due to working capital constraints." The Company is at a pivotal point in our turnaround where obtaining working capital is essential, in order to convert our growing demand into a cycle of quick turnaround orders that can rebuild our balance sheet and fund future growth. Our backlog is almost exclusively for products with payment terms of two weeks or less and margins at least two to three times higher than our traditional food business, so the path to improved financials is now visible. In our most recent quarter, our gross margin reached 23%, 1,100 basis points higher than the 12% generated as recently as Q4 2020."

07:45 EDT Verus signs third U.S. distributor for Pachyderm CBD, Waffles lines - Verus International announced that it has signed its 3rd U.S. distributor for its Pachyderm CBD and Waffles hemp-based product lines. The company said, "The Company continues to see increasingly strong demand for these lines, with a growing backlog of orders in both product categories. Verus is currently in the process of building out its U.S. sales in an effort to increase its access to working capital."

07:38 EDT Huya announces termination of merger pact with DouYu - Huya (HUYA) announced that according to the announcement posted by the State Administration for Market Regulation of the People's Republic of China on July 10, the SAMR decided to prohibit the proposed merger between Huya and DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU) following SAMR's antitrust review. Huya fully respects and will abide by the SAMR Decision, and will comply with all regulatory requirements, and conduct its businesses in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations. In light of the SAMR Decision, on July 12, Huya, Tiger Company Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Huya, DouYu, and Nectarine Investment Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tencent Holdings Limited (TCEHY), entered into a termination agreement, pursuant to which the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated October 12, 2020, by and among the same parties, including all schedules and exhibits thereto, and all ancillary agreements contemplated thereby or entered pursuant thereto, were terminated with immediate effect. Huya previously announced that, in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, its board of directors approved a cash dividend in an aggregate amount of $200M to be paid on or around the date of the closing of the Merger and in no event later than 20 days after the closing of the Merger to the holders of ordinary shares of Huya whose names appear on Huya's register of members as of the close of business on certain record date after the date when the required DouYu shareholder approval is obtained and prior to the closing of the Merger. In consideration of the termination of the Merger, Huya's board of directors approved the cancellation of the Cash Dividend. Concurrently, Linen Investment Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tencent Holdings Limited, and affiliates of Rongjie Dong entered into a termination agreement on July 12, pursuant to which the Share Transfer Agreement, dated October 12, 2020, by and among the same parties with respect to the purchase by Linen of 1,970,804 Class B ordinary shares of Huya from affiliates of Rongjie Dong, including all schedules and exhibits thereto, and all ancillary agreements contemplated thereby or entered pursuant thereto, were terminated with immediate effect.

07:35 EDT WPD says CNS Pharmaceuticals receives Fast Track Designation for berubicin - WPD Pharmaceuticals (WPDPF) announced that CNS Pharmaceuticals (CNSP), the company that licenses the drug candidate Berubicin to WPD for 29 countries mainly in Europe, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted Fast Track Designation for its lead investigational drug, Berubicin, for the treatment of patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme. As previously reported, CNS had also received Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA for Berubicin for the treatment of patients with recurrent GBM. CNS recently announced the start of patient enrollment in its study of Berubicin for the treatment of recurrent glioblastoma multiforme. WPD would significantly benefit from advancement of Berubicin as a treatment for GBM as it has the rights to produce and sell the drug candidate in 29 countries.

07:34 EDT Exela Technologies expands offering of robotic processing platform with IDP - Exela Technologies expands its offering in AI-enabled automation in the BPA space with Intelligent Document Processing, or IDP, combined with its robotic process automation platform, known as EON. This industry leading automation solution is deployed in the healthcare and public sector and further cements Exela as one of the leaders in the industry. "IDP enables the automation of document classification, data extraction and data routing into a cloud or on-premise hosted service portal that provides a containerized, dynamically scaling solution that can be accessed from anywhere on-demand. Using the IDP system, Exela has begun leveraging an extensive and growing library of machine learning based classifiers that significantly augment the automation of document processing in the healthcare and public sector and has plans to ramp up projects in the finance and legal sectors soon," the company said. In addition, EON can automate simple or complex workflows to achieve efficiency and accuracy gains, as well as free up human capital for higher-value uses. EON provides automation for both attended and unattended automation deployments.

07:32 EDT Dominion, Berkshire Hathaway Energy to terminate sale of Questar Pipelines - Dominion Energy (D) and Berkshire Hathaway Energy, an affiliate of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B), announced they have agreed to terminate the planned sale of Questar Pipelines to Berkshire Hathaway Energy. The decision is a result of ongoing uncertainty associated with achieving clearance from the Federal Trade Commission under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. Termination of the sale, effective July 9, 2021, was a potential outcome provided for in the agreement to sell Questar Pipelines. The decision has no impact on the sale of gas transmission and storage assets to Berkshire Hathaway Energy completed in November 2020. That sale represented approximately 80% of the original transaction value. Dominion Energy is commencing a competitive process for the sale of Questar Pipelines, with a target close of year-end 2021. This announcement does not change Dominion Energy's existing financial guidance. Dominion Energy will continue to account for Questar Pipelines as discontinued operations. Dominion Energy intends to enter into a 364-day term loan. The company will use proceeds from the loan to repay the approximately $1.3B transaction deposit made by Berkshire Hathaway Energy. That loan is expected to be repaid by year-end 2021 with proceeds from the sale of Questar Pipelines to an alternative buyer.

07:23 EDT Original Bark Company appoints Nari Sitaraman as CTO - The Original Bark Company announced that Nari Sitaraman, who brings over 20 years of retail and consulting experience across technology strategy, engineering, and product management, has joined Bark as CTO. In this role, he is responsible for advancing Bark's technology and data driven culture. Prior to joining Bark, Sitaraman served as the CTO at Crate and Barrel., where he oversaw all aspects of technology and helped evolve the digital business to be greater than 65% of overall revenues.

07:18 EDT Seneca Resources, NexTier Oilfield collaborate on emissions testing - Seneca Resources Company, the exploration and production segment of National Fuel Gas Company (NFG), and NexTier Oilfield Solutions (NEX) announced their intent to pioneer an innovative study evaluating the carbon emissions generated by various types of equipment commonly used for hydraulic fracturing of oil and natural gas wells. The results of this study are expected to provide the industry with a comparative insight on the emissions profile of these technologies, including those utilizing Tier 2 diesel and dynamic gas blending engines, Tier 4 diesel and DGB engines, natural gas-powered turbine engines, and electric frac equipment powered by natural gas-fueled reciprocating engines. This carbon emissions assessment is expected to be the most comprehensive testing of real-time well stimulation operations performed within the industry to date, with independent third-party testing to be performed for each of these technologies during Seneca's field operations. The planned emissions testing will follow EPA-recommended procedures, with the equipment and completions solutions to be operated by NexTier.

07:16 EDT Vectivbio nominates Paul Carter, Murray Stewart to board of directors - VectivBio Holding AG (VECT) announced it has nominated Paul Carter and Murray Stewart, DM, FRCP, for election as Independent Non-Executive Directors on its Board of Directors. Paul Carter served in senior executive roles for a decade at Gilead Sciences (GILD), most recently as Executive Vice President of Commercial Operations, leading Gilead's launch and commercialization efforts globally. Murray Stewart, DM, FRCP, is the Chief Medical Officer of Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (RYTM), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of rare genetic disorders of obesity, and guided Imcivree to FDA approval in November 2020. An Extraordinary General Meeting of shareholders will be held on September 2, 2021, at 2:00 p.m. CEST / 8:00 a.m. EDT. The sole agenda item of the EGM will be the election of Mr. Carter and Dr. Stewart as new members of the Board of Directors. The invitation, which will contain the proposals and further details on the EGM, will be published in due course.

07:14 EDT DouYu announces termination of merger agreement with Huya

07:14 EDT Knight Therapeutics announces normal course issuer bid - Knight Therapeutics announced acceptance by the Toronto Stock Exchange of the Company's Notice of Intention to Make a Normal Course Issuer Bid. Pursuant to the NCIB, the Company proposes to purchase, from time to time over the next 12 months, if considered advisable, up to 10,267,956 common shares of the Company, being approximately 10% of its public float of 102,679,567 common shares, as of June 30, 2021. As of June 30, 2021, there were a total of 125,664,970 common shares issued and outstanding. Purchases may commence on July 14, 2021 and will conclude on the earlier of the date on which purchases under the bid have been completed and July 13, 2022. The Company may purchase up to a daily maximum of 80,015 Shares. The common shares may be purchased for cancellation through the facilities of the TSX or through alternative Canadian trading systems at times and in numbers to be determined by the Company. The Company had previously sought and obtained approval from the TSX to purchase up to 10,856,710 common shares under an NCIB and as at June 30, 2021, the Company has purchased 5,825,689 common shares through the facilities of the TSX and alternative Canadian trading systems at a weighted average price per share of $5.33. The Company's NCIB currently in place will be terminated on July 13, 2021.

07:12 EDT Renovacor appoints Jiwen Zhang as SVP, regulatory affairs and quality assurance - Renovacor announced the appointment of Jiwen Zhang, Ph.D., as senior vice president, regulatory affairs and quality assurance. She most recently served as vice president, head of regulatory affairs at Passage Bio (PASG), an AAV-based gene therapy company. Renovacor previously announced that it had entered into a merger agreement with Chardan Healthcare Acquisition 2 Corp. (CHAQ), a special purposes acquisition company.

07:11 EDT View Inc. smart windows selected for renovation of 100 Pearl Street - View announced its smart windows will be installed at the new overbuild at 100 Pearl Street, a Class-A office tower in Lower Manhattan currently undergoing a top-to-bottom transformation by GFP Real Estate and Northwind Group. 100 Pearl Street is being renovated into a downtown New York City office asset with all-glass penthouses offering 360-degree views across the East River toward Brooklyn and south over New York Harbor to the Statue of Liberty. The design of the double-height, 24-foot all-glass penthouses are made possible by View Smart Windows.

07:10 EDT Verano Holdings announces launch of Atlas Thrive - Verano Holdings announced the launch of Atlas Thrive - Powered by MUV branded products in collaboration with Canadian partner Atlas Biotechnologies. Powered by MUV patches, gels and tinctures will be available exclusively through Shoppers Drug Mart's online storefront at launch. Verano and Atlas will bring Powered by MUV products to brick-and-mortar stores across Canada with a launch date of transdermal patches at OCS on July 13. The patented MUV products, including fast-acting patches, gels, and tinctures, will be available for purchase online in July for medical cannabis patients in Canada under the Atlas Thrive brand through Shoppers Drug Mart. Shoppers Drug Mart is the largest pharmacy chain in Canada, which is accessible to over 400,000 patients with medical cannabis prescriptions. The Atlas Thrive MUV THC Tincture and 1:1 Transdermal Patch will also be launching through OCS and available to the Ontario market online, and across over 800 retailers, on July 13, with Alberta following suit in August.

07:10 EDT ISS recommends Tilray holders vote for all proposals at 'special meeting' - Tilray announced that Institutional Shareholder Services has recommended that Tilray shareholders vote for the company's proposals at Tilray's Special Meeting of Stockholders to be held on July 29. "ISS' endorsement affirms our conviction that the proposals to be voted on at the Special Meeting are in our shareholders' best interests," said Irwin D. Simon, Tilray's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "By approving these proposals, our shareholders will be actively participating in Tilray's ability to capitalize on substantial growth opportunities, expand and generate strong performance and, ultimately, drive shareholder value."

07:08 EDT Latham Group joins U.S. small-cap Russell 2000 Index - Latham Group announced that the Company was added to the US small-cap Russell 2000 Index at the conclusion of the 2021 Russell Indexes annual reconstitution, effective after the U.S. market opened on June 28, 2021.

07:07 EDT Electric Last Mile Solutions in long-term supply pact with Wuling Motors - Electric Last Mile Solutions announced that it has signed a binding, long-term supply agreement with electric cargo van-maker Wuling Motors Under the agreement with Wuling Motors, ELMS will have long-term access to EV component systems and parts from Wuling Motors' commercial EV cargo van platform for the manufacture of the ELMS all-electric Urban Delivery vehicle. 'At ELMS, we are reimagining the design of commercial vehicles as efficient, intelligent and profit-driving e-mobility workstations for our customers," said ELMS Co-Founder and CEO, James Taylor. "We are delighted to be collaborating with a company of Wuling Motors' caliber to broaden our long-term, strategic supply base. We believe that this partnership, as a part of our solutions ecosystem model and supplemental to our core vehicle integration and engineering capabilities, will enable us to quickly bring to market, segment-defining and U.S.-made EVs customized to our customers' individual needs and optimized for the qualities that matter most to them: efficiency, reliability and total cost of ownership." The agreement with Wuling Motors adds to the Company's existing and developing strategic partnerships with other industry-leading suppliers and service providers, including CATL for battery packs, Geotab for advanced telematics, Cox Automotive for comprehensive service coverage and Randy Marion Automotive Group for distribution.

07:07 EDT Provention Bio says teplizumab awarded Innovation Passport for delay of T1D - Provention Bio announced that teplizumab, an anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody, was awarded an Innovation Passport for the delay of clinical type 1 diabetes in at-risk individuals. Teplizumab is one of the first investigational medicines to receive this designation under the United Kingdom's Innovative Licensing and Access Pathway launched by The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in January, 2021.

07:05 EDT Novo Nordisk to acquire Prothena's ATTR amyloidosis programme - Prothena Corporation (PRTA) and Novo Nordisk (NOV)) announced that the companies have entered into a definitive purchase agreement under which Novo Nordisk has acquired Prothena's clinical stage antibody PRX004 and broader ATTR amyloidosis programme. PRX004 is a phase 2 ready anti-amyloid immunotherapy designed to deplete the amyloid deposits that are associated with the disease pathology of ATTR amyloidosis. ATTR amyloidosis is a rare, progressive, and fatal disease characterised by the abnormal buildup of amyloid deposits composed of misfolded transthyretin protein in organs and tissues, most commonly the heart and/or nervous system. Prothena has completed a phase 1 study with PRX004 in patients with hereditary forms of ATTR, in which PRX004 was found to be safe and well tolerated. Novo Nordisk will initially focus on the clinical development of PRX004 in ATTR cardiomyopathy - an underdiagnosed and potentially fatal form of ATTR amyloidosis characterised by build-up of amyloid deposits in cardiac tissue. Under the terms of the definitive purchase agreement, Novo Nordisk acquires Prothena's wholly-owned subsidiary and gains full worldwide rights to the intellectual property and related rights of Prothena's ATTR amyloidosis business and pipeline. Prothena is eligible to receive development and sales milestone payments totalling up to $1.2B including $100M dollars in upfront and near-term clinical milestone payments.

07:04 EDT KKR acquires The District at Scottsdale - KKR announced the acquisition of The District at Scottsdale, a 332-unit Class A residential building. Constructed in 2019, The District in Scottsdale is located in the heart of Scottsdale's lifestyle hub. RPM Living will continue to manage the property. The purchase grows KKR's residential real estate footprint in the Phoenix metropolitan area to more than 2,600 units and approximately $650M of value. Including The District at Scottsdale, KKR has acquired approximately $1.2B of Class A apartments for its core plus real estate strategy over the last 10 months with a focus on dynamic, high-growth markets across the United States.

07:03 EDT Nordstrom, ASOS announce joint venture - Nordstrom and ASOS announced that Nordstrom has acquired a minority interest in the Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT brands. This investment will help drive the growth of these brands globally, setting the stage for Nordstrom and ASOS to sit alongside a new wider strategic partnership. This innovative partnership will involve unprecedented collaboration and alignment, redefining the traditional retail/wholesale model. Whilst ASOS will retain operational and creative control of the Topshop brands, a shared ownership model will ensure close collaboration between the U.S. retailer and ASOS, driving a stronger future for the iconic Topshop brands worldwide. Nordstrom is a leading multichannel retailer, with unmatched physical and digital reach in North America, operating two powerful brands with over 350 physical stores and sites that attract almost 2 billion annual visits. The retailer has been the exclusive distributer of Topshop and Topman in the U.S. since 2012 when they became the first to bring the brand to the U.S. market. Nordstrom will now have the exclusive multi-channel retail rights for Topshop and Topman in all of North America, including Canada and own a minority stake globally. The retailer will also become the only brick and mortar presence for these brands worldwide. The investment paves the way for the potential of a wider strategic alliance between ASOS and Nordstrom as they seek to leverage their complementary retail models to give even more 20-somethings the confidence to be whoever they want to be. The companies are in discussions to create a multi-channel showcase for a handful of ASOS brands for Nordstrom customers. Customers will also be able to pick up Asos.com orders at Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack stores this fall.

07:02 EDT FibroGen appoints John Hunter as Chief Scientific Officer - FibroGen announced the appointment of John Hunter, Ph.D., to the position of Chief Scientific Officer, where he will lead FibroGen's research efforts, leveraging 20 years of experience. Hunter most recently served as Chief Executive & Scientific Officer of Keyhole Therapeutics Inc, a private immuno-oncology company.

07:02 EDT ACE Convergence, Achronix mutually terminate merger agreement - Achronix Semiconductor and ACE Convergence Acquisition Corp. announced that both companies have mutually agreed to terminate their merger agreement, effective immediately. The proposed merger, announced in January 2021, was conditioned on the satisfaction of defined closing conditions, including obtaining necessary regulatory approvals within the timeframe contemplated by the Agreement. The parties believe that they will not be able to complete the transaction by the July 15, 2021 deadline or some reasonable time thereafter. "Despite our best efforts to finalize this transaction, we ultimately concluded that going our separate ways was the best path forward for Achronix, ACE and all of our stakeholders. Achronix is in a strong financial and operational position, uniquely situated to provide flexible FPGA-based compute solutions for data-acceleration applications across a nearly $10 billion market opportunity by 2025," said Robert Blake, President and CEO of Achronix. "As the only independent company to offer high-end FPGA and embedded FPGA IP solutions, Achronix is well positioned to execute on high-growth opportunities. Throughout 2021, Achronix has continued to build strong momentum, and it remains committed to pursuing additional options to become a public company." "While we are disappointed by this outcome, we are excited to be in the fast growing industrial and enterprise infrastructure IT sectors, and will be laser-focused on identifying an emerging leader that is well positioned to capture significant value as the market rapidly evolves," said Behrooz Abdi, CEO and Chairman of ACE. "Looking ahead, we have full confidence that we will leverage our deep sector knowledge and industry connections to identify the next compelling and differentiated business combination opportunity and complete the transaction within the tenure of our acquisition platform." Neither party will be required to pay the other a termination fee as a result of the mutual decision to terminate the agreement.

06:57 EDT Pentair names Adrian Chiu to additional role of Chief Human Resources Officer - Pentair announced that it has named Adrian Chiu, currently the company's EVP and Chief Transformation Officer, to the additional role of Chief Human Resources Officer, effective August 1. Kelly Baker, the company's current Chief Human Resources Officer is resigning from the position to pursue an opportunity outside the company. Chiu has served as the EVP and Chief Transformation Officer since March 2021 and will continue in this role in addition to assuming the CHRO position.

06:56 EDT Drive Shack signs definitive agreement with Rory McIlroy - Drive Shack announced it has signed a definitive agreement with global golf superstar Rory McIlroy and his team. Their investment partnership, Symphony Ventures, will make a strategic investment in Puttery, Drive Shack's newest competitive socializing and entertainment golf experience. Symphony Ventures has committed an investment of at least $10M over Puttery's three-year development schedule, in exchange for 10% ownership in the equity of each Puttery venue that is planned to open through 2023 at a price equal to 10% of the total cost to build each venue. Investments will begin with the first Puttery location near Dallas, and continue consecutively on a venue-by-venue basis until the commitment is satisfied. Thereafter, Symphony Ventures will have the right, but not the obligation, to invest on the same terms through all Puttery venues that open by the end of 2023. Drive Shack Inc. plans to open or nearly complete a total of seven new Puttery venues by the end of 2021, with four of the locations previously announced in Dallas; Charlotte, N.C.; Washington, D.C.; and Miami. A pro-rata cash distribution of venue net cash flows equal to the ownership percentage will be made to the investment group on a quarterly basis. In lieu of a cash distribution, the investment group may elect to deposit cash returns into a capital account designated to fund investments in future venues through 2023. Beginning in 2024, the investment group may elect for all or a portion of the venue LLC interests to be converted into common equity of the company.

06:48 EDT Merck, Ridgeback report interim data from Phase 2/3 studies of molnupiravir - Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics announced the presentation of previously announced Phase 2 interim results from two Phase 2/3 clinical trials of molnupiravir, an investigational oral antiviral therapeutic. The data were presented during the late-breaking clinical trials session at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases. The Phase 3 portion of the global MOVe-OUT trial studying molnupiravir in non-hospitalized adult patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 and at least one risk factor associated with poor disease outcomes is underway. In addition, Merck plans to initiate a clinical program to evaluate molnupiravir for post-exposure prophylaxis in the second half of 2021. "It continues to be critically important to advance potential antiviral treatments to address the devastating impact of COVID-19 globally," said Dr. Roy Baynes, senior vice president and head of global clinical development, chief medical officer, Merck Research Laboratories. "If successful, molnupiravir could help address the continued urgent need for therapeutics." "These data are promising, and we are pleased to be able to present the Phase 2 interim results for molnupiravir while we proceed with the Phase 3 portion of MOVe-OUT in non-hospitalized patients," said Wendy Holman, chief executive officer, Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. "There remains a great need for a range of solutions for the pandemic, and we are hopeful that molnupiravir will play a role in helping patients."

06:44 EDT JinkoSolar Solar Module sets new record with conversion efficiency of 25.25% - JinkoSolar announced that, after recently setting a test record of 25.25% for large-area N-type monocrystalline silicon solar cells, the maximum solar conversion efficiency of its advanced high-efficiency solar module reached 23.53% and has outperformed the previous record of 23.01%, also set by JinkoSolar, in January. The result was independently tested and confirmed by TundefinedV Rheinland, one of the world's leading testing service provider on internationally recognized safety and quality standards. The module's performance was the result of adopting JinkoSolar's cutting-edge TOPCon cell technology fused with a new-type of welding and packaging technology. The module design not only reduces the internal resistance loss of the module, but improves power efficiency and module appearance.

06:36 EDT Babcock & Wilcox NREL sign exclusive IP option agreement - Babcock & Wilcox and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory have signed an Intellectual Property Option Agreement that gives B&W field-limited exclusive rights to negotiate a licensing agreement that would allow it to market an advanced, particle-based thermal energy storage technology currently in development. B&W and NREL are also engaged in discussions to develop a prototype heat exchanger that can be scaled-up for a pilot demonstration as part of NREL's Economic Long-Duration Electricity Storage Using Low-Cost Thermal Energy Storage and a High-Efficiency Power Cycle project.

06:31 EDT Lionheart Acquisition Corporation II to combine with MSP Recovery

06:21 EDT Tencent enters partnership with Everest Medicines to optimize digital engagement - Everest Medicines announced that it has entered into a strategic commercial partnership with Tencent to explore novel ways to optimize digital engagement with patients and healthcare providers. As part of this partnership, Everest Medicines will explore a number of capabilities and potential solutions with Tencent, including ways to engage patients and healthcare professionals in disease awareness, particularly in various cancers, kidney diseases and severe infectious diseases, which tend to disproportionately impact people in the Greater China region and have limited treatment options, resulting in significant unmet medical need. In addition, the companies will consider options to build a one-stop patient management ecosystem that spans disease management, from diagnosis to treatment and outcomes, as well as look at ways to leverage artificial intelligence and business intelligence tools to better identify customer profiles and improve treatment adoption.

06:14 EDT Coty to introduce digitally-enabled touch-less fragrance testing device - Coty announced the introduction of a digitally-enabled touch-less fragrance testing device intended for use at beauty retailers within the next 12 months. Real world testing of the units at brick & mortar retail stores begins this month in European markets, followed by a planned trial in Asia later this year. While spray testers oversaturate the air, overwhelming the senses and surrounding environment, this device delivers a single droplet of liquid directly to an arm or a blotter, offering customers a less invasive testing experience. It also uses data to allow Coty, in partnership with retailers, to optimize the placement of the testers and the customer experience by ensuring beauty advisors are on the spot when needed. Coty is partnering with Everie, a French start-up specializing in smart devices, micro-dosing and diffusion technologies, to bring Coty's touch-less fragrance tester to life. A multidisciplinary group from Coty have worked alongside Everie over the past year to develop a connected and sustainable device. This touch-less fragrance tester is able to work for weeks without a battery recharge and reduces perfume loss compared to traditional testers. It will be compatible with all Coty's fragrance testers and can be personalized to each of Coty's brands.

06:07 EDT Select Energy Services acquires Complete for $14.2M in cash, 3.6M in shares - Select Energy Services announced that it has acquired Complete Energy Services, an operating subsidiary of Superior Energy Services. Select has acquired substantially all of the water-related assets and ongoing operations of the business, including working capital. Superior will retain certain non-core and non-water-related assets that were part of complete as part of the transaction. In consideration, Select has issued 3.6M shares of Class A common stock and paid $14.2M in cash, subject to standard post-closing adjustments, to Superior to close the transaction. Complete is a provider of completion and production-related water solutions, including water transfer, flowback and well testing, water heating, containment, fluids handling, produced water gathering and disposal solutions across the United States, including the Permian, Mid-Continent, DJ and Powder River Basins and the Marcellus and Utica Shales.

06:05 EDT Tutor Perini unit awarded $220M design-build contract - Tutor Perini announced that a design-build team led by its subsidiary, Lunda Construction Company, has been selected by the Missouri Department of Transportation for the design and construction of the new I-70 Missouri River Bridge near Rocheport, Missouri. Lunda's design team is comprised of Parsons Corporation, Dan Brown & Associates and HZ United. The project consists of the design and construction of two Missouri River bridges, one in each direction of travel, each with three lanes, which will allow for construction to take place with a limited impact to traffic. Lunda is also replacing the County Road BB Bridge over I-70. Design work is expected to commence shortly after contracts are executed, with construction scheduled to begin later this year and substantial completion expected by the end of 2024. The construction budget for this project is $220M. The contract value is anticipated to be included in the company's third-quarter 2021 backlog.

06:04 EDT Houlihan Lokey acquires Baylor Klein, terms undisclosed - Houlihan Lokey has acquired boutique advisory firm Baylor Klein. Founded in 2008 by managing director Tim Leach, Baylor Klein specializes in providing M&A and corporate finance advisory services to the multinational and independent owners of household, beauty, and personal care, or HBPC, assets globally. The transaction signed and completed on July 8. As part of this transaction, Baylor Klein's team of five advisory professionals led by Tim Leach will join Houlihan Lokey's European corporate finance business in London, bringing the global CFR team to more than 70 financial professionals.

06:02 EDT CME Group reports Q2 international ADV of 5.1M contracts, up 6% - CME Group announced that its international average daily volume, or ADV, reached 5.1M contracts in Q2, up 6% year on year. Reflecting all trading done outside North America, this volume was driven by global growth in Agricultural and Interest Rate products, up 30% and 42% respectively. Agricultural products also established record quarterly volumes in Europe, Middle East and Africa, or EMEA, as well as Asia Pacific and Latin America. In Q2, EMEA ADV hit 3.7M contracts, up 5% from Q2 2020. This was due to a strong performance in Agricultural and Interest Rate products in the region, up 35% and 24% respectively, compared to the same period in 2020. Asia Pacific Q2 ADV hit 1.2M contracts, up 8% from Q2 2020. This was driven by a 67% growth in Agricultural products, and 60% growth in Interest Rate products in the region. Latin America ADV was 114,000 contracts in Q2, up 5% from the corresponding period in 2020. This was led by 41% growth in Agricultural products and 14% growth in FX products in the region. Globally, CME Group reported ADV of 18.4M contracts during Q2, up 5% from the same period last year. This was led by Interest Rate products, up 25%, and Agricultural products, up 24%.

05:55 EDT Sinovac Biotech to provide 380M CoronaVac doses for distribution through COVAX - Sinovac Biotech announced that it had signed an advance purchase agreement, or APA, with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which is on behalf of COVAX Facility, to provide up to 380M doses of inactivated COVID-19 vaccine, CoronaVac for distribution through the COVAX Facility. According to the APA, Sinovac will supply 50M doses of CoronaVac by the end of September. In addition, Gavi has the option to purchase an additional 150M doses in Q4 and 180M more doses in the first half of 2022. In total, up to 380M doses of CoronaVac will be available to both self-financing participants of the facility as well as those supported by the Gavi COVAX AMC.