Stockwinners Market Radar for July 25, 2024 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:04 EDT Cathie Wood's ARK Investment buys 94K shares of Teradyne today

19:54 EDT Community Healthcare raises quarterly dividend to 46.25c per share from 46c - The dividend is payable on August 23, 2024 to shareholders of record on August 9, 2024.

18:50 EDT ViaSat announces new reporting segment structure - ViaSat outlined additional information about its new segment reporting structure commencing with the quarter ended June 30, 2024. The new segment reporting is designed to better reflect the diverse and attractive end markets the company serves and to provide investors greater insight into Viasat's business lines and growth opportunities. Commencing with its first quarter of fiscal year 2025, the company will report its financial results based on two new reportable segments: Communication Services and Defense and Advanced Technologies. Communication Services is comprised of four primary business lines: Aviation, Government Satcom, Maritime, and Fixed and Other. Defense and Advanced Technologies is comprised of four primary business lines: Information Security and Cyber Defense, Space and Mission Systems, Tactical Networking, and Advanced Technologies and Other. "We are pleased to share our new reporting structure which helps communicate our markets and value drivers and provides greater insight into our progress in each portion of our business portfolio," said Mark Dankberg, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Viasat, Inc.

18:39 EDT Heritage Commerce authorizes $15M share repurchase - Heritage Commerce adopted a share repurchase program under which the company is authorized to repurchase up to $15M of the company's shares of its issued and outstanding common stock. Unless otherwise suspended or terminated, the Repurchase Program expires on July 31, 2025.

18:08 EDT Nvidia CEO sells $28.9M in common stock as part of option exercise - In a regulatory filing, Nvidia disclosed that its CEO Jen Hsun Huang sold 240K shares of common stock on July 23rd as part of option exercise in a total transaction size of $28.9M.

17:35 EDT Terran Orbital receives certificate of ocupancy for California facility - Terran Orbital announced that on July 15, it received the certificate of occupancy for its previously announced new assembly facility, located at 4 Goodyear in Irvine, California. The facility spans 94,000 square feet and is situated on a five-acre site. Upon final interior completion of construction and outfitting, it will significantly increase Terran Orbital's space vehicle assembly, integration, and testing capabilities by over three times the company's current capacity. All of the company's space vehicle assembly will be transitioned to this new facility enabling the dedication of Terran Orbital's existing facilities to the manufacturing of components and modules.

17:21 EDT AptarGroup names Daniel Ackerman as Chief Accounting Officer - AptarGroup announced that Daniel Ackerman has been named Chief Accounting Officer, effective August 1, 2024. Ackerman joined Aptar in 2015 as Vice President, Corporate Controller.

17:18 EDT RTX awarded $1.94B Missile Defense Agency contract - RTX was awarded a sole-source, hybrid contract for $1.94B to perform the manufacture and assembly of Standard Missile-3 Block IIA All-Up Rounds for the U.S. government and Japan Ministry of Defense, or JMOD, Foreign Military Sales, or FMS, case requirements. The work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona; and Huntsville, Alabama, with an expected completion date of February 28, 2031. FY23 and FY24 procurement, defense wide funds in the amount of $583.73M and $383.27M, respectively, will be obligated at time of award. JMOD FMS funds in the amount of $308.45M will be obligated at time of award. The Missile Defense Agency is the contracting activity.

17:10 EDT Eldorado Gold still sees 2024 production 505K-555K oz. of gold

17:06 EDT Summit Hotel Properties declares Q2 dividends - Summit Hotel Properties has declared a cash dividend for Q2 2024 of 8c per share of common stock of the company and per common unit of limited partnership interest in Summit Hotel OP, the company's operating partnership. The company has also declared a cash dividend of $0.390625 per share of the company's 6.25% Series E Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock for the dividend period ending on August 31, and a cash dividend of $0.3671875 per share of the company's 5.875% Series F Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock for the dividend period ending on August 31. Additionally, the Board of Directors has authorized a cash distribution of $0.328125 per unit pertaining to the operating partnership's unregistered 5.25% Series Z Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Units for the distribution period ending on August 31, 2024. The dividends are payable on August 30 to holders of record as of August 16.

17:01 EDT Innovative Solutions acquires additional Honeywell product lines - Innovative Solutions & Support (ISSC) "announced it has entered into an exclusive license agreement and acquired additional key assets for certain Communication and Navigation product lines from Honeywell International (HON). This license complements the previous Honeywell license and asset acquisition completed in June 2023. Under the agreement, IS&S will license the exclusive Intellectual Property rights to manufacture, upgrade and repair additional Honeywell Communication and Navigation products. The purchased assets include existing inventory required to manufacture, repair, and upgrade the products."

16:44 EDT Zymeworks appoints Leone Patterson Chief Business and Financial Officer - Zymeworks announced the appointment of Leone Patterson as Executive Vice President, and Chief Business and Financial Officer, effective September 1 . "After an extensive search, we are delighted to have Leone Patterson join us at this exciting time as we plan for our next stage of growth and development at Zymeworks," said Kenneth Galbraith, Chair and CEO of Zymeworks.

16:43 EDT Norfolk Southern reports Q2 operating ratio 62.8%

16:40 EDT Weyerhaeuser acquiring high-quality timberlands in Alabama for $244M - Weyerhaeuser announced acquisitions totaling 84,300 acres of high-quality timberlands in Alabama for $244M. Secured through multiple transactions, the collective acreage is comprised of mature, highly productive timberlands that are well-integrated with existing Weyerhaeuser operations. Additionally, the acquisitions are expected to deliver portfolio-leading cash flow and harvest tons per acre within the company's Southern Timberlands business. These transactions represent attractive opportunities to enhance our portfolio with high-quality, well-managed timberlands that generate solid returns for our shareholders," said Devin Stockfish, president and chief executive officer. "In addition, they demonstrate our disciplined approach to timberlands growth and reinforce our longer-term outlook that the asset class will appreciate in value over time. Including these transactions, we will have completed approximately $775 million against our target to grow our Timberlands portfolio through $1 billion of disciplined investments by the end of 2025." Of the multiple transactions involved, one closed in the second quarter of 2024 for $48 million. The remaining transactions are under contract and expected to close by year end, subject to customary closing conditions. When all acquisitions are finalized, Weyerhaeuser will own or manage approximately 695,000 acres of timberlands in Alabama, along with two mills, a Timberlands office and seed orchard - employing more than 350 people in the state.

16:39 EDT Air Lease announces delivery of one Airbus A321-200neo to Centrum Air - Air Lease Corporation (AL) announced the long-term lease placement and delivery of one used Airbus (EADSY) A321-200neo aircraft with Centrum Air, one of the leading airlines in Uzbekistan. This aircraft is the airline's first A321neo. "We are very pleased with the placement of this A321neo aircraft with Centrum Air. Centrum and its sister cargo-airline, My Freighter, have been successfully serving the rapidly growing Uzbek air transport market since 2019," said AJ Abedin, Senior Vice President of Air Lease Corporation. "With the addition of this state-of-the-art A321neo, the airline and its passengers will benefit from new destinations, operational efficiencies and a premium travel experience."

16:34 EDT ICF International awarded contract from DoD with ceiling value of $1.4B - The U.S. Department of Defense Defense Human Resources Agency recently awarded a new multiple-award blanket purchase agreement to ICF to design, develop, migrate and deploy cloud-based solutions to modernize the agency's Defense Manpower Data Center. The BPA has a ceiling value of $1.4B across all 10 awardees over a five-year period, including a one-year base and four one-year option periods.

16:30 EDT Phillips Edison acquires shopping center in partnership with Cohen &Steers REIT - Phillips Edison & Company announced its acquisition of Des Peres Corners, a grocery-anchored shopping center in Des Peres, Missouri, with Cohen & Steers Income Opportunities REIT, or CNSREIT. The acquisition was made through a programmatic joint venture targeting $300 million in equity and owned 80% by CNSREIT and 20% by PECO. The joint venture will focus on acquiring open-air, grocery-anchored shopping centers and will leverage PECO's deep sector expertise. James S. Corl, Chief Executive Officer of CNSREIT and Head of the Private Real Estate Group at Cohen & Steers, said: "We are excited to launch our programmatic joint venture with Phillips Edison & Company through this first acquisition. PECO is one of the largest publicly traded owners of grocery-anchored shopping centers in the U.S., and we have watched them operate skillfully for many years in this property segment. We believe their expertise will drive value in this joint venture. More broadly, we believe CNSREIT shareholders will continue to benefit from the superior operating capabilities and access to superior deal flow that our best-in-class partners bring to our investment program."

16:23 EDT Elliott issues statement on Southwest Airlines' revenue enhancement initiatives - Elliott Investment Management L.P. released the following statement on behalf of Partner John Pike and Portfolio Manager Bobby Xu regarding Southwest Airlines and its revenue enhancement initiatives: "Southwest's announcement of revenue-enhancement initiatives, purporting to offer assigned seating, premium-seating options and redeye flights, comes more than a decade late, and after a 50% decline in its share price over the past three years. This new plan is being proposed by the same leadership team that has presided over a series of failed measures to improve performance, repeated operational missteps and poor financial results. Today, Southwest finally conceded that four out of five customers' preferences went unmet in recent years. These preferences did not emerge overnight; management simply was not doing its job. Elliott has engaged in direct dialogue with Southwest's Board on the scale and urgency of change needed at the Company. But this failed leadership team's announced initiatives - obvious attempts at self-preservation - are simply not credible. Too little, too late is not a strategy. It's time for new leadership. Southwest can do far better, and we look forward to offering our fellow shareholders an opportunity to elect a Board of industry leaders that can return Southwest to best-in-class performance."

16:19 EDT Hartford Financial announces new $3.3B stock buyback - Swift continued, "The excellent financial performance in the first half of 2024 reflects the effectiveness of our strategy and on-going investments to differentiate The Hartford in the marketplace. With continued strong capital generation from our businesses, we are pleased to announce a new share repurchase authorization of $3.3 billion. I remain confident in our ability to continue to grow the franchise while enhancing shareholder value with an industry-leading ROE."

16:17 EDT PCB Bancorp announces extension of stock repurchase plan - PCB Bancorp announced that on July 24, 2024, its Board of Directors approved an amendment to its current repurchase program that was approved and announced on August 2, 2023. The original repurchase program authorized the repurchase of up to 720,000 shares of the Company's outstanding common stock, which was then approximately 5% of the outstanding share, through August 2, 2024. The Repurchase Program Amendment extends the expiration date from August 2, 2024 to August 1, 2025. As of July 24, 2024, the Company has repurchased and retired 142,223 shares of its common stock, leaving an aggregate of 577,777 shares in authorized for repurchase under the Repurchase Program Amendment. Under the stock repurchase program, the Company may purchase shares of its common stock through various means such as open market transactions, including block purchases, and privately negotiated transactions. The number of shares repurchased and the timing, manner, price and amount of any repurchases will be determined at the Company's discretion. Factors include, but are not limited to, stock price, trading volume and general market conditions, along with the Company's general business conditions. The program may be suspended or discontinued at any time and does not obligate the company to acquire any specific number of shares of its common stock.

16:13 EDT Texas Roadhouse sees positive comparable restaurant sales growth in FY24 - Sees FY24 capital expenditures $360M-$370M. Sees FY24 tax rate 14.5%. Sees FY24 wage and other inflation 4%-5%. Morgan continued, "We continue to grow our brand globally and now have over 50 international franchise locations. In addition, we recently unveiled our first purpose statement of 'Serving Communities Across America...and the World'. We are confident that through our focus on this purpose and our commitment to providing legendary food and legendary service, we will continue to generate strong operating results that will enhance long-term shareholder value."

16:07 EDT SS&C announces $1B common stock repurchase program - SS&C announced that as part of the company's capital allocation strategy to maximize long-term stockholder value, its Board of Directors has authorized the renewal of the stock repurchase program, which will enable the company to repurchase up to $1B in the aggregate of the Company's outstanding shares of common stock. Under the renewed program, SS&C's proposed repurchases may be made from time to time in one or more transactions on the open market or in privately negotiated purchase and/or through other legally permissible means.

16:05 EDT DexCom announces $750M buyback program

16:01 EDT Banner Corp. announces stock buyback program for 5% of shares outstanding - Banner announced that its Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to 1,722,787 shares of the Company's common stock, which is approximately 5% of its issued and outstanding common stock.

15:53 EDT Video game voice actors in SAG-AFTRA to go on strike over AI protections - SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, acting under the authority delegated by the SAG-AFTRA National Board, and with the unanimous advice and counsel of the Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee, called a strike of the Interactive Media Agreement, effective July 26 at 12:01 a.m. "Today's vote to strike comes after more than a year and a half of negotiations without a deal," said the union. "The convenience bargaining group with whom SAG-AFTRA is negotiating includes Activision Productions Inc. (MSFT), Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc. (DIS), Electronic Arts Productions Inc. (EA), Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc. (SONY), Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc. (TTWO), VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games (WBD). Any game looking to employ SAG-AFTRA talent to perform covered work must sign on to the new Tiered-Budget Independent Interactive Media Agreement, the Interim Interactive Media Agreement or the Interim Interactive Localization Agreement. These agreements offer critical A.I. protections for members. Negotiations began in October 2022 and on Sept. 24, 2023, SAG-AFTRA members approved a video game strike authorization with a 98.32% yes vote. Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their A.I. language." "We're not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live - and work - with, we will be here, ready to negotiate," stated SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher. Reference Link

15:46 EDT Project Energy Reimagined Acqutn Corp trading halted, volatility trading pause

14:46 EDT Allstate falls after DOJ files civil complaint against National General - The Department of Justice said it has filed a civil complaint under the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act against Allstate's National General Holdings and its subsidiaries, alleging that, for over a decade, National General "erroneously force-placed its Collateral Protection Insurance product on vehicles financed through Wells Fargo, despite borrowers already having insurance through other carriers." The government's complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, alleges that, from at least 2008 and through the latter part of 2016, National General "systemically failed to accurately track whether cars financed by Wells Fargo had the requisite insurance coverage from an outside carrier, and thereby knowingly or recklessly force-placed its own, much costlier CPI on at least 655,000 vehicles that already had outside insurance." Shares of Allstate, which acquired National General in 2021, are down 1% to $170.29 following the announcement. Reference Link

14:38 EDT Alphabet falls after OpenAI says testing new search engine - OpenAI said in a statement: "We're testing SearchGPT, a prototype of new search features designed to combine the strength of our AI models with information from the web to give you fast and timely answers with clear and relevant sources. We're launching to a small group of users and publishers to get feedback. While this prototype is temporary, we plan to integrate the best of these features directly into ChatGPT in the future. If you're interested in trying the prototype, sign up(opens in a new window) for the waitlist." Shares of Google owner Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) fell 2% to $169.08 following OpenAI's announcement. Reference Link

14:13 EDT Sonos CEO says fixing app 'number one priority' - Sonos CEO Patrick Spence said in a blog post that the company's "number one priority" is fixing the Sonos app for all customers and partners. "We know that too many of you have experienced significant problems with our new app which rolled out on May 7, and I want to begin by personally apologizing for disappointing you," Spence said. "There isn't an employee at Sonos who isn't pained by having let you down, and I assure you that fixing the app for all of our customers and partners has been and continues to be our number one priority. We developed the new app to create a better experience, with the ability to drive more innovation in the future, and with the knowledge that it would get better over time. However, since launch we have found a number of issues. Fixing these issues has delayed our prior plan to quickly incorporate missing features and functionality. Since May 7, we have released new software updates approximately every two weeks, each making significant and meaningful improvements, adding features and fixing bugs." The company listed the updates and improvements set to come to the app and what months to expect them. "We plan to continue releasing new software updates on a bi-weekly cadence," the CEO added. "With each release, we will share detailed notes on what we've addressed and what we're working on next in our Community. We deeply appreciate your patience as we address these issues. We know we have work to do to earn back your trust and are working hard to do just that." Reference Link

13:31 EDT Viad drops after wildfire prompts evacuation of Jasper - Shares of Viad are moving lower after a wildfire in the Canadian Rockies spread to Jasper overnight. Viad, which provides experiential leisure travel, has eight hotels in Jasper, a municipality of Alberta, Canada. The company's hotels and attractions in Jasper likely represent 10%-20% of total company EBITDA, according to analysts at Craig Hallum. Shares of Viad are down 6% to $35.40 in afternoon trading. "Most importantly, there have been no reported injuries as the result of the Jasper Complex Wildfire. Approximately 25,000 people were safely evacuated from the town of Jasper and Jasper National Park. All residents, visitors and responders are safe," Parks Canada said in a post on X.

13:06 EDT Qilian International Holding Group Ltd trading resumes

13:04 EDT California Supreme Court says gig law does not violate constitution - Reported by Bloomberg.

12:49 EDT Applied DNA Sciences signs five-year license agreement with Indus - Applied DNA Sciences announced the signing of a five-year license and commercialization agreement for its CertainT traceability platform with Indus Group. Financial terms of the Agreement were not disclosed. Under the terms of the agreement, Applied DNA will supply Indus with its CertainT platform for non-home, cotton-based products originating from Indus facilities in Pakistan, Egypt, and Jordan. Indus will have exclusive use of the platform in these countries and non-exclusive use elsewhere.

12:41 EDT Southwest says will hire chief revenue officer for revamped sales strategy - Says results "not where we need them to be." Says was able to recover "very quickly" from recent outages. Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

12:16 EDT Bayer's Monsanto to pay Seattle $160M to settle pollution claims - Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison announced that Bayer's Monsanto will pay the city a $160M settlement for the release of the city's claims against the manufacturer's role in polluting city stormwater and the Lower Duwamish with polychlorinated biphenyls. The lawsuit, which began in 2016, was scheduled for a September trial. Reference Link

12:01 EDT Ford falls -16.5% - Ford is down -16.5%, or -$2.25 to $11.41.

12:01 EDT Edwards Lifesciences falls -28.3% - Edwards Lifesciences is down -28.3%, or -$24.64 to $62.31.

12:00 EDT RPC, Inc. rises 17.4% - RPC, Inc. is up 17.4%, or $1.00 to $6.78.

11:51 EDT Bandai Namco's 'Armored Core VI' sells over 3M units since 2023 release - Bandai Namco (NCBDY) said that its 2023 action game "Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon" has sold over 3M units total. "Thank you to all Ravens, new and old, who have braved the fires and flown on borrowed wings," the company said. The Fly notes the game released for PC, PlayStation 4 (SONY), PS5, Xbox One (MSFT), and Xbox Series X/S. Reference Link

11:17 EDT E&C Republicans open inquiry into NTIA's online domain name registry contracts - In a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chair Bob Latta, and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chair Morgan Griffith requested information about the agency's internet domain name registry agreement with Verisign. "With both a role in advising ICANN and as a party to the Cooperative Agreement, the NTIA bears responsibility for supporting a domain name system that enables the growth of online commerce. Both individual consumers and businesses depend on responsible management of the .com system. Monopolistic elements and excessive domain name price increases stifle the ability of potential .com registrants to conduct business online. As such, we seek more information about the NTIA's process in considering the renewal of both the Registry Agreement and the Cooperative Agreement." Reference Link

11:02 EDT Enhabit confirms one nominee proposed by AREX Capital elected to board - Enhabit announced that the preliminary vote count of its proxy solicitor indicates that its stockholders have voted to elect eight of Enhabit's director nominees at the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Additionally, the preliminary vote count of the company's proxy solicitor indicates that stockholders voted to elect one nominee proposed by AREX Capital Management, Mark Ohlendorf. "The results announced today are considered preliminary until final results are tabulated and certified by the independent Inspector of Elections. Once the voting results are finalized, directors will each serve a one-year term expiring in 2025. Final results will be reported on a Form 8-K that will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission," the company stated.

10:47 EDT Oportun investors Radoff, Schecter call for resignation of three directors - Bradley Radoff and Josh Schechter, together with their affiliates, the "Concerned Shareholders," issued an open letter to the Board of Directors of Oportun Financial Corporation regarding the need for three directors to resign following the 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and the Board to appoint a new CEO. The letter says in part: "We are meaningful shareholders of Oportun who have previously expressed our concerns to you regarding the appointment of a CEO who lacks relevant industry experience, the Company's poor financial results under said chief executive and the apparent lack of independent oversight in the boardroom. Recent developments, including the voting results of Oportun's 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, have only strengthened our conviction that the Board needs to take immediate action to reverse the Company's significant destruction of value since its 2019 initial public offering. Given the fact that just 28.4% of the total outstanding shares supported Ginny Lee's uncontested re-election, shareholders clearly believe that Ms. Lee should assume accountability for her apparent failures as Chair of the Company's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. We believe Ms. Lee should immediately resign from the Board. We also call for the resignations of directors Neil Williams and Louis Miramontes. Following Mr. Williams and chief executive Raul Vazquez's overlapping tenures at Intuit, it appears obvious Mr. Williams is unwilling to hold Mr. Vazquez accountable for Oportun's disappointing operating results and the Company's approximately 80% share price decline over the past 12 years.1 Mr. Miramontes, who has served on the Board for 10 years now, has overseen this destruction of virtually all shareholder value. We believe only a reconstituted Board will make the necessary changes - starting with the dismissal of Mr. Vazquez, whose appointment has proven to be a mistake. We have no confidence in management's ability to fix the business and believe a turnaround can only occur with a new CEO who possesses the right experience. Lastly, we reiterate our demand that the Company use industry-standard GAAP metrics instead of management's concocted Adjusted EBITDA, which only serves to artificially inflate executives' compensation figures. We look forward to managerial and governance changes at Oportun."

10:22 EDT Bleecker Street short Dave, says 100% downside possible - In a recently published report, Bleecker Street Research said it is short Dave and that 100% downside possible as the "regulatory heat turns up the heat" on the lender. "Dave is a predatory payday lender masquerading as a consumer-friendly fintech that protects its users from excessive overdraft charges. However, the company faces several critical threats to its model... Dave is in the hot seat after the CFPB released trial rules interpretations against earned wage access providers, specifically calling out tips. While Dave argued it was outside the scope of this regulation, if it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck.... We believe DAVE is worth $0 to $10/ share, implying 70% to 100% downside." Reference Link

10:17 EDT Dave falls 7% to $32.25 following Bleecker Street short report

10:00 EDT Orion Group falls -20.7% - Orion Group is down -20.7%, or -$2.28 to $8.76.

10:00 EDT Molina Healthcare rises 12.8% - Molina Healthcare is up 12.8%, or $36.94 to $325.65.

10:00 EDT Bally's rises 23.8% - Bally's is up 23.8%, or $3.22 to $16.74.

09:55 EDT Northrop Grumman expects CapEx to decline going foward

09:54 EDT EzFill Holdings Inc trading resumes

09:48 EDT New York Community Bancorp falls -16.1% - New York Community Bancorp is down -16.1%, or -$1.76 to $9.18.

09:47 EDT Molina Healthcare rises 11.9% - Molina Healthcare is up 11.9%, or $34.31 to $323.03.

09:47 EDT Bally's rises 23.4% - Bally's is up 23.4%, or $3.16 to $16.68.

09:44 EDT Northrop Grumman expects book to bill ratio 'over one' by end of year - Sees flat budgets in U.S., but stronger growth from International. Expects International sales to grow faster than domestic.

09:41 EDT LKQ Corp. trading resumes

09:38 EDT Carbon Revolution PLC trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:36 EDT Top Ships announces time charter extensions - TOP Ships announced that its 50% subsidiaries which own M/T Eco Yosemite Park and M/T Eco Joshua Park entered into agreements with their current charterers to extend their time charter employment at higher rates. Specifically, both MRs will commence 7-year time charters on August 1, 2024 at a gross daily hire rate of $19,500, an increase of 12% from the current daily hire rate. All other terms will remain as per the current time charter contracts including the terms of an option of the charterers to extend each time charter for two additional years. The revenue expected to be generated by the 2 subsidiaries from these charters is about $100 million for the firm period.

09:32 EDT AbbVie sees FY24 gross margin 84% of sales - Sees non-GAAP tax rate 16.3%. Sees FY24 Skyrizi revenue $11B, Rinvoq revenue $5.7B.

09:31 EDT QXO Inc trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:24 EDT TOP Ships trading halted, news pending

09:21 EDT ModivCare expands relationship with BayCare Health System - Modivcare announces the expansion of its relationship with BayCare Health System. As a leading community-based health system in West Central Florida, BayCare is committed to meeting the wide-ranging health needs in every community it serves and is leveraging Higi, a Modivcare service, in those efforts. This collaboration strengthens BayCares' commitment to addressing diverse health needs across its communities, through Modivcare's Higi's free, self-service screening, education, health engagement and care navigation tools. Through these stations, community members can quickly understand their risk for common chronic illnesses, choose to participate in educational programs to help them to address their risks and opt-in to BayCare-developed programming, including a social determinants of health or SDoH-focused program that connects community members with relevant low-cost or free resources through BayCare's partnership with All4HealthFL. "Modivcare's Higi service simplifies access to care, equipping underserved communities with the knowledge and support for both immediate and long-term health needs," says L. Heath Sampson, President and Chief Executive Officer at Modivcare. "We're proud to enhance our partnership with great providers such as BayCare, offering our tools to empower their local community outreach efforts."

09:19 EDT Kartoon Studios, VeVe, Multiverse Clothing Company debut 'Phygital' collections - Kartoon Studios, VeVe and Multiverse Clothing Company Inc. debuted the first drop in a series of Stan Lee limited-edition fine art digital and apparel collectible releases this year. These exclusive 'phygital' collections, which blend fine art with smart fashion, will be showcased in VeVe's booth #1630 at San Diego Comic-Con. The artwork featured in the collection is created by three of the most renowned contemporary pop culture artists, Rob Prior, Burton Morris, and Bill Sienkiewicz. All three artists created Stan Lee limited-edition portraits that are being offered for the first time ever as digital, as well as on limited-edition apparel collectibles, including a lined hoodie, lined suede bomber jackets and lined leather jackets. By purchasing a limited release apparel item at Multiverse Clothing's online store, from today through July 28, fans can then redeem two digital collectibles immediately on VeVe using the free redemption codes in the order confirmation. All purchasers will be able to redeem from VeVe a Gold and Silver King of Cameos Stan Lee Chibi style digital collectible, plus the corresponding Stan Lee Fine Art digital collectible associated with the artwork by Burton Morris, Rob Prior or Bill Sienkiewicz based on their apparel item purchased.

09:16 EDT Northrop Grumman provides 2024 segment guidance - For 2024 sees: Aeronautics Systems sales high $11B, OM rate mid to high 9%; Defense Systems sales ~ $9B, OM rate ~10%; Missions Systems sales mid $11B, OM rate low to mid 14%; Space Systems sales mid to high $11B, OM rate low 10%; Eliminations ~($2.7B), OM rate low 13%. Prior view: Aeronautics Systems sales mid $11B, OM rate mid 9%; Defense Systems sales ~ $6B, OM rate low to mid 12%; Missions Systems sales low to mid $11B, OM rate high 14%; Space Systems sales low to mid $14B, OM rate ~9%; Eliminations ~($2.3B), OM rate high 13%.

09:14 EDT AbbVie 'confident' in long-term growth outlook for aesthetics group

09:14 EDT LiqTech's marine scrubber to be distributed in South Korea by Danbee Marine - LiqTech and Danbee Marine, a South Korean-based maritime representative to the shipping industry, entered into a partnership agreement with Danbee to market LiqTech's marine scrubber water treatment solutions within South Korea. Established in 2009, Danbee Marine, has been focused on delivering fuel treatment chemicals to reduce fuel consumption and emissions within the Korean maritime market. LiqTech's solutions remove unburned fuel oil, soot particles, ash, and heavy metals from marine scrubber wastewater and take an active role in reducing world pollution.

09:12 EDT American says will be 'very diligent in assessing' 2025 capacity plans - American CEO Robert Isom said on the company's Q2 call: "Just first off in terms of capacity, again, reason for adjusting capacity supply and demand imbalance in its lead to pricing, the weakness from that perspective, we've taken action as quickly as we can. And from that perspective, you'll see that our total growth in our total capacity in the third quarter is now planned to be actually a little bit less than which where we were in the third quarter of 2019." CFO Devon May added: "We now have August capacity growing by about 2% and September growing by less than 1%." Isom continued: "As we take a look at into the fourth quarter and then beyond, we're going to react to the marketplace and making sure that we're competitive. But at the same time, you're doing what's right for profitability. Since we take a look at into 2025, we're going to be a very diligent in assessing and making sure that we're certainly not out growing demand."

09:11 EDT SU Group awarded new order at Hong Kong International Airport - SU Group was awarded a material new order at the Hong Kong International Airport . Financial terms were not disclosed, the company expects this to have a positive material impact on its sales growth. SU Group began providing security solutions at the Hong Kong International Airport in 1998.

09:06 EDT Agco signs definitive agreement to sell grain & protein business for $700M - Agco has entered into a definitive agreement to sell the majority of its Grain & Protein business to American Industrial Partners in an all-cash transaction valued at $700M, subject to working capital and other customary closing adjustments. Agco expects to use the net proceeds from the transaction consistent with its stated capital allocation priorities, including debt repayment, disciplined investment in technology and organic growth initiatives and return of capital to shareholders. The transaction perimeter to be sold includes the five primary Grain & Protein brands. The transaction perimeter to be sold excludes Agco's Grain & Protein business in China. The company expects to incur a loss on the sale of the business in the range of $450M-$475M. The transaction purchase price implies a transaction multiple of approximately 8.3x based on Grain & Protein's trailing twelve months adjusted EBITDA as of March 31, 2024. The transaction is anticipated to close before the end of the year, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

09:05 EDT Disney+, Hulu, Max Bundle now available at $16.99/month with ads - The new Disney+, Hulu, Max Bundle from Disney Entertainment (DIS) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is available in the U.S. for purchase on any of the three streaming platforms' websites, the companies announced. All qualifying new and existing subscribers can purchase the bundle for $16.99/month with ads and $29.99/month without ads, "a savings of up to 38% compared with the price of the services purchased separately," the companies stated. Reference Link

09:04 EDT Sify Technologies appoints C R Srinivasan as CEO, Sify Digital Services - Sify Technologies announced the appointment of C R Srinivasan as the CEO of Sify Digital Services Limited, wholly owned subsidiary of Sify Technologies Limited. Prior to Sify, Srini led Tata Communications' Cloud and Cybersecurity businesses. He also co-founded Sevenstrata IT Services, a remote infrastructure management company acquired by Mindtree.

09:02 EDT Castor Maritime announces acquisition of its first ultramax vessel - Castor Maritime announces that on July 16, 2024, it entered, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, into an agreement to acquire a 2015-built Ultramax dry bulk carrier vessel from an unaffiliated third-party, for a purchase price of $25.5 million. The acquisition is expected to be concluded by taking delivery of the vessel during the third quarter of 2024 and is subject to the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions. Petros Panagiotidis, Chief Executive Officer of the Company commented: "In continuation of our efforts to renew and develop our fleet, we are excited to announce Castor's entry into the Ultramax segment. We remain committed to our growth trajectory by seeking further opportunities in the shipping space, including opportunities to modernize our fleet".

09:02 EDT Gravity announces release of 'PIGROMANCE' on Steam - Gravity announced the official release of the puzzle adventure 'PIGROMANCE' on Steam on July 25th. The puzzle adventure 'PIGROMANCE' elaborates the story of a pig born with the fate of becoming a sausage, escaping from a sausage factory to find its love. Players can enjoy solving puzzles while escaping from the Cuttingman and navigating the dangerous obstacles lurking throughout the sausage factory. 'PIGROMANCE' features cute chibi graphics with contrasting vibes of dark lighting, gruesome visual and sound effects, and spooky BGMs that almost resemble disturbing fairy tales. The official launch version is now available for play on Steam supporting 9 different languages, including Korean, English, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, and French. Gravity is offering a 20% discount until August 7th to celebrate the official release.

08:59 EDT Instructure to be acquired by KKR for $4.8B - Instructure (INST) has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by investment funds managed by KKR (KKR) for $23.60 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at an enterprise value of approximately $4.8B. The per-share purchase price represents a premium of 16% over Instructure's unaffected share price of $20.27 as of May 17. KKR, with participation from Dragoneer Investment, will acquire all outstanding shares, including those shares owned by Instructure's existing majority owner Thoma Bravo. The Instructure management team, led by CEO Steve Daly, will continue to lead the company in their current roles. The company is committed to broadening its platform and delivering $1B in revenue by 2028. KKR is making its investment in Instructure through its North America Fund XIII. KKR will support Instructure in creating a broad-based equity ownership program to provide all of the company's 1,700 employees the opportunity to further participate in the benefits of ownership after the transaction closes. The transaction, which was unanimously approved by the Instructure Board, is expected to close later this year, subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of required regulatory approvals. Upon completion of the transaction, Instructure's common stock will no longer be listed on the NYSE and Instructure will become a privately held company. The company will remain headquartered in Salt Lake City.

08:57 EDT Netgear announces Kirsten Daru new General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer - Netgear (NTGR) announced several new additions to its leadership bench. The new board member and executives follow the appointment of CJ Prober as NETGEAR's CEO earlier this year, and join the robust group of accomplished leaders at NETGEAR. "These talented executives bring incredible pedigrees, subject matter expertise and track records to our team. Collaborating with the rest of our talented team, they will contribute to delivering exceptional products and services to our customers across the globe," said CJ Prober, Chief Executive Officer, NETGEAR. "As we look forward, these leaders will be instrumental in supporting the transformation of our businesses and driving long...Kirsten Daru joins NETGEAR as the new General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer with a strong background serving in similar roles with top technology companies. She spent over 11 years at Electronic Arts (EA) where she was appointed its first Chief Privacy Officer. After EA, she served as the General Counsel of Tile and when the company merged with Life360 she was appointed General Counsel of the combined company. She brings a reputation as a strategic leader to NETGEAR, focused on fostering a competitive marketplace where innovation can thrive...Fiona Spratt steps into a new role at NETGEAR as the Senior Vice President of People, after being with the company for more than 10 years where she moved up the ranks of the HR department in Europe. She also successfully led the project to relocate NETGEAR's international headquarters in Cork, Ireland, to accommodate a new software development center of excellence. In doing so, she played a critical role in helping the company to accelerate its transformation towards becoming more software-centric by leveraging the pipeline of diverse talent in Ireland. As a global leader, she will be responsible for helping to evolve NETGEAR's culture for the benefit of current and future employees worldwide.

08:56 EDT Instructure to be acquired by KKR for $23.60 per share in cash

08:54 EDT GE HealthCare and AWS announce strategic collaboration - GE HealthCare (GEHC) and Amazon Web Service (AMZN) announced a strategic collaboration to develop purpose-built foundation models and generative artificial intelligence AI applications designed to help clinicians improve medical diagnostics and patient care. GE HealthCare has selected AWS as its strategic cloud provider and plans to use its healthcare and generative AI services to build and implement new, versatile foundation models to transform the future of healthcare. These new generative AI-powered workflows are intended to fast-track the delivery of innovations to streamline healthcare operations, increase diagnostic and screening accuracy, enhance outcomes, lower access hurdles, and promote equitable care, thereby easing provider workload and accelerating industry innovation."...GE HealthCare intends to utilize Amazon Bedrock, a fully managed service that provides secure access to the industry's leading foundation models, to create and deploy bespoke generative AI applications, amplifying the advantages of generative AI for their customers. Leveraging Bedrock's enterprise-grade security and privacy along with a broad selection of industry-leading foundation models, GE HealthCare plans to build and scale its own proprietary generative AI applications for healthcare use cases with an aim to enhance efficiency, care delivery, and the patient experience. GE HealthCare's internal developers are planning to use Amazon Q Developer, a generative AI-powered assistant to accelerate software development by generating real-time code suggestions, securely completing tasks, and more. The company also expects to use Amazon Q Business to explore the intersection of multi-modal clinical and operational data with an aim of reducing the cognitive burden on physicians, enabling personalized care, and increasing efficiency. Leveraging AWS's generative AI technology, GE HealthCare expects to reduce clinical application development cycles from years to months and to accelerate the delivery of new healthcare solutions. "By combining generative AI with our deep expertise, we're igniting a new era in healthcare," said. Dr. Taha Kass-Hout, Global Chief Science and Technology Officer at GE HealthCare. "Our work with AWS is a big step towards helping clinicians make medical care simpler, more efficient, and deeply personalized. It's about advancing the way we care for people everywhere, one innovative solution at a time." Additionally, GE HealthCare plans to modernize its suite of applications with its own foundation models developed on Amazon SageMaker, a fully managed service to build, train, and deploy machine learning ML models...

08:49 EDT Safe and Green Development acquires five lots in in Texas - Safe and Green Development entered into a joint venture for the purpose of developing and constructing single-family homes. Through the joint venture, SG Devco has secured 5 lots for the initial phase of the development, with plans to expand to a total of 24 lots. The single-family lots are shovel-ready enabling development to commence this year on the project. The joint venture anticipates generating revenues from home sales towards the end of 2024 and throughout 2025.

08:47 EDT M2i Global appoints Jeffrey Talley to board of directors - M2i Global announcde the appointment of its President & CEO Lieutenant General Jeffrey W. Talley to the Board of Directors of M2i Global Inc.

08:45 EDT Foremost Lithium approved to list on Upstream - Foremost Lithium Resource & Technology announced the approval to list its shares on Upstream, a securities trading app designed to eliminate barriers for international investment into North America while not competing with other exchanges domestically, such as Nasdaq and the Canadian Securities Exchange.

08:44 EDT Fortress Biotech reduces total debt, enters $35M term loan - Fortress Biotech has entered into a new loan agreement for up to $50 million with funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management. The Company will receive an initial tranche of $35 million and is eligible to draw an additional $15 million at Oaktree's discretion to support future business development activities. In connection with the new loan agreement, the Company repaid its prior $50 million term loan with Oaktree. The new loan has a 30-month interest-only period with a maturity of July 25, 2027, and bears interest at an annual rate equal to the 3-month Secured Overnight Financing Rate plus 7.625%, payable quarterly, with certain additional fees and prepayment terms.

08:43 EDT Turtle Beach appoints Bush to board of directors - Turtle Beach Corporation announced the appointment of Libby Bush, Global Head of Media & Entertainment Partnerships at leading entertainment and sports agency, Creative Artists Agency, CAA, to its board of directors as an independent director, effective immediately. Following her election to the Board, Bush has been added as a member of its Compensation Committee. With Bush's appointment, the Board now includes a total of nine directors. In addition, William Wyatt, who has served as an independent board member since 2023, has been named Chair of the Compensation Committee.

08:42 EDT American CEO sees 'work to do' to get distribution strategy back on track - American Airlines CEO Robert Isom continues presenting during the company's Q2 earnings call.

08:41 EDT Gen Restaurant Group appoints Park to board of directors - GEN Restaurant has appointed David Park to the board of directors and to serve on the audit committee of the board, effective July 24, 2024. With Park's addition, GEN has expanded the board to five total directors with three serving independently. Currently, Park is the founder and chief investment officer of Alpha Park Partners, a long-term oriented investment fund based in New York.

08:40 EDT Apollo Funds to acquire Evri from Advent International, terms not disclosed - Apollo announced that Apollo-managed funds have entered into a definitive agreement with Advent International to acquire Evri, one of the UK's largest parcel delivery companies. Since relaunching as Evri in 2022, the company has grown to become a key leader in parcel delivery, with a strong national network purpose-built for third-party e-commerce parcels and a differentiated last-mile delivery model. Today, Evri reaches nearly every household in the UK and, on average, serves more than 12 million customers per week. The Evri transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2024. Financial terms are not disclosed. Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal counsel to the Apollo Funds.

08:39 EDT Sharps Technology enters into 5-year agreement with medical product company - Sharps Technology has successfully concluded negotiations and signed a contract with a prominent U.S.-based supplier of medical saline and water products to supply them with customized 10mL SoloGard syringes manufactured at Sharps' facility in the EU. The customer initiated an evaluation of Sharps' SoloGard product in light of the recent FDA recalls and tariffs imposed on Chinese supplied syringes. Their successful evaluation of the SoloGard syringes led to the execution of a five-year sales agreement that completely sells out the currently available manufacturing capacity for the 10mL SoloGard product. "Creating a strategic partnership with the customer and selling out production capacity at the Hungary plant for the next five years is a historic accomplishment for Sharps and the future success of the Company," stated Robert Hayes, CEO of Sharps Technology. "The collaboration creates a five-year sales agreement for at least 500 million syringes and essentially consumes the current available manufacturing capacity for Sharps' 10mL SoloGard disposable syringe. This project also provides a clear path for near-term revenue for our company beginning in Q4 2024, with a phased ramp up into 2025."

08:38 EDT Safe & Green receives extension to regain compliance with Nasdaq - Safe & Green announces it has received an extension of time, through November 12, 2024, to regain compliance with Nasdaq's Listing Rule 5550(b), which requires a minimum of $2,500,000 stockholders' equity. The Company expects to regain full compliance with the stockholders' equity requirement as a result of the recent private placement, cost-cutting initiatives aimed at achieving positive cash flow in 2024, ongoing debt reduction, and other strategic initiatives underway. Paul Galvin, Chairperson and CEO of Safe & Green Holdings, commented, "Our team's dedication has driven significant operational progress, and their tireless work has positioned us for further improvement throughout the balance of this year. Maintaining our NASDAQ listing is paramount, and we are fully committed to meeting the listing requirements within the required timeline."

08:37 EDT Heart Test announces MyoVista wavECG selected by Innovation Value Institute - Heart Test Laboratories announced that the MyoVista wavECG has been selected by the Innovation Value Institute as a technology which can drive the radical transformation of healthcare and has been invited to demonstrate and discuss the MyoVista wavECG at the 4th Digital Health Symposium at the United Nations General Assembly to be held in New York, USA in September 2024. Andrew Simpson, CEO of HeartSciences, said, "We are honored that the MyoVista wavECG has been recognized as a technology with the potential to radically transform healthcare and look forward to our demonstration at the United Nations General Assembly Digital Health Symposium in September. This builds on our recent successes that include increasing support from key opinion leaders and establishing relationships in the UK and Ireland for our technology. It also evidences the enormous commercial opportunity for our AI-ECG products."

08:36 EDT SHF Holdings announces new partnership with BIPOCann - SHF announced a new partnership with BIPOCann, a Denver-based consulting firm dedicated to aiding social equity and minority entrepreneurs in the cannabis sector. Under this partnership, BIPOCann will offer its full suite of membership benefits, valued at $600, to all of Safe Harbor's existing social equity clients at no additional cost. Additionally, BIPOCann members will receive a 75% discount on application fees for financial services, complementing Safe Harbor's existing social equity discount program. Sundie Seefried, CEO of Safe Harbor, added: "We're excited to team up with BIPOCann to help create an inclusive, equitable cannabis industry. By combining our expertise and resources, we aim to provide these businesses with the financial support and tools they need to thrive. This collaboration not only reinforces our dedication to social equity but also sets a benchmark for the industry, demonstrating how targeted support can drive meaningful change."

08:36 EDT Nature's Miracle receives $5.1 M grow light order from What Rebates - Nature's Miracle has signed a sales order agreement for $5.1M of grow light products for use by the U.S. energy rebate market with What Rebates, a utility rebate company specializing in product offerings for the agricultural sector. The order by What Rebates is expected to be delivered in late 2024 and will increase Nature's Miracle's 2024 gross revenue by $5.1M.

08:34 EDT Mirum Pharmaceuticals announces label expansion for Livmarli - Mirum Pharmaceuticals announced that the FDA has approved a label expansion for Livmarli oral solution for the treatment of cholestatic pruritus in patients with progressive familial intrahepatic cholestasis, or PFIC. The expanded label includes use in PFIC patients 12 months and older as well as the higher concentration formulation of LIVMARLI evaluated in the MARCH Phase 3 study.

08:33 EDT American Airlines CEO says revenue performance 'not where we want it to be' - American's CEO Robert Isom made the comment during the company's Q2 earnings call.

08:22 EDT Ameresco and Lightsource team on 560 MWp Enipeas solar project in Greece - Ameresco Sunel Energy announced its role in the construction of Lightsource bp's 560 MWp Enipeas solar project in Greece. This flagship project, one of the largest solar sites in Europe, underscores Greece's commitment to sustainable energy and economic resilience. Ameresco Sunel Energy SA is a joint venture between Ameresco, a leading cleantech integrator specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy, and Sunel Group, an international leading solar PV EPC contractor. The joint venture has successfully secured a contract to construct the Enipeas project for Lightsource bp, marking a notable advancement in Greece's solar energy sector..."Our efforts align with Lightsource bp's commitment of delivering cleaner, more secure energy while using local talent as much as possible for Greece," said George Sakellaris, CEO at Ameresco. "We're excited to work with the Lightsource bp -team in supporting the country's decarbonization and energy independence goals as well as the local economy."

08:20 EDT Humana and Google expand partnership to help reduce cost of care - Humana (HUM) announced a new multi-year agreement with Google Cloud (GOOG) to further modernize Humana's cloud infrastructure and leverage cutting-edge AI capabilities to accelerate innovation in healthcare. This agreement builds on an ongoing collaboration between Google Health and Humana to co-develop solutions focused on population health and bringing the best of Google's AI technologies and products to Humana members and patients. The two companies are also exploring potential opportunities to develop new solutions for today's healthcare challenges. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. "Embracing technology solutions in healthcare can help lower costs and improve consumer experiences. At Humana, we plan to use the capabilities offered by Google Cloud to make it easier for our members and patients to have affordable access to the right care at the right time," said Jim Rechtin, Humana Chief Executive Officer. "Google Cloud's technology platform can make our contact centers more responsive, our provider networks simpler to navigate, healthcare coverage easier to understand and primary care better tailored to individual needs." "

08:18 EDT Catheter Precision completes enrollment of 75 patients in LockeT-II study - Catheter Precision has enrolled 75 patients in its Phase II LockeT Study, which is now expected to conclude in October 2024. As previously disclosed, the three phases of the LockeT studies began in 2023 and are intended to show the product's safety and benefits. Phase I was completed in 2023 and showed that LockeT works for its intended purpose and that there were no safety events. Product roll-out began in the first half of 2024, while the Company continues Phase II of the product studies. Phase II compares manual compression, the current standard of care, to LockeT, in a one-to-one randomized study planned to include up to 100 patients and is designed to provide further evaluation of its safety and effectiveness, as well as additional data such as potential pain reduction and cost savings benefits. Enrollment completion is expected in October 2024 when final data analysis will be available for later submission to a peer-reviewed publication.

08:18 EDT Blink Charging selected as official supplier in NASPO ValuePoint's portfolio - Blink Charging has been selected as an official supplier in NASPO ValuePoint's new EV Charging Station Portfolio. Spearheaded by the State of Maryland and funded through NASPO's emerging markets initiative, this portfolio aims to provide public entities nationwide with electric vehicle charging solutions to meet the rising demand for EV infrastructure. This new portfolio offers a comprehensive range of suppliers, manufacturers, and product options for Level 2 and DC Fast Charge EV charging stations, along with value-added services such as installation, maintenance, repair, training, and software support. Through this contract, Blink's advanced EV charging equipment and services are now available for use by state governments, institutions of higher education, political subdivisions, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and other eligible entities, subject to approval and adherence to legal and regulatory compliance. The contract remains active through May 31, 2027, and may be renewed through May 31, 2029.

08:17 EDT KindlyMD submits comment to DOJ regarding cannabis rescheduling - KindlyMD has submitted a comment to the U.S. Department of Justice, following its recent proposed rule to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act, consistent with the view of the Department of Health and Human Services that cannabis has a currently accepted medical use as well as HHS's views concerning cannabis abuse potential and the level of physical or psychological dependence. KindlyMD CEO and Corporate Statement on Cannabis Reclassification: "KindlyMD welcomes the proposed rule to reclassify cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. This reclassification represents significant progress in aligning federal policy with the growing recognition of the medical benefits of cannabis and the validity of the model of healthcare delivered by KindlyMD. However, it is important to clarify what this potential change does and does not mean for our industry. First and foremost, the reclassification does not make marijuana legal, as it remains an illegal substance under federal law. KindlyMD will continue to comply with all applicable federal laws relating to controlled substances, including the CSA, the Bank Secrecy Ac, and the Anti-Money Laundering prohibitions. The reclassification to Schedule III is expected to have several positive impacts on the medical cannabis industry. Most notably, it has the potential to reduce patient costs for medical cannabis products. Currently, plant-touching cannabis businesses cannot deduct many of their operating expenses, leading to inflated tax liabilities. The change to Schedule III will allow these businesses to deduct expenses more akin to standard business operations, potentially adding significant amounts to their balance sheets. Some of this savings is expected to pass through to patients in the form of lower cost for medicinal cannabis products. For example, some large operators could see more than $100 million added to their balance sheets, enabling them to reinvest in research and deliver consistent quality products across multiple states. Overall, the rescheduling of cannabis will create a more favorable business environment for KindlyMD and the patients we serve - with the potential to enable us to expand our services, reduce operational risks, and capitalize on new opportunities to enhance patient care and research. While this does not change the illegality of cannabis or change compliance requirements under federal law, the move to Schedule III represents progress. For KindlyMD, this reclassification underscores the continued relevance and importance of our integrated healthcare model. KindlyMD is among the leaders in providing medical evaluation and pain management services related to treatment recommendations within the medical cannabis program in Utah. KindlyMD healthcare professionals provide patients with medical cannabis education and information to help patients decide whether medical cannabis may be a beneficial alternative treatment option for them. The reclassification is likely to lead to increased access and utilization of medical cannabis among our patients, benefiting KindlyMD through improved patient outcomes, new educational opportunities, and enhanced financial stability."

08:16 EDT Helmerich & Payne to acquire KCA Deutag for $1.97B in cash - Helmerich & Payne and KCA Deutag International announced a definitive agreement under which H&P will acquire KCA Deutag for $1.97B in cash. KCA Deutag has a significant land drilling presence in the Middle East, which represents approximately two-thirds of the company's calendar year 2023 operating EBITDA, with additional operations in South America, Europe and Africa. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been unanimously approved by the H&P board of directors, H&P will acquire KCA Deutag International for $1.97B in cash. The transaction is expected to close prior to calendar 2024 year end, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The transaction will be funded with cash on hand and new borrowings. H&P expects to refinance KCA Deutag's existing debt at a lower cost of capital. Following the completion of the transaction, H&P will remain headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and John Lindsay will continue to serve as president and CEO and as a member of the H&P board of directors. There will be no changes to the existing H&P board of directors. Upon closing the transaction, H&P expects to have three primary operating segments: North America Solutions, International Solutions, and Offshore Solutions. H&P's North America Solutions segment will remain unchanged.

08:13 EDT Windtree Therapeutics provides update on istaroxime development - Windtree Therapeutics announced an update of istaroxime in both clinical and business development. Istaroxime is a novel first-in-class therapy that is designed to improve systolic contraction and diastolic relaxation of the heart while also increasing blood pressure and maintaining or improving renal function. It has been studied in three positive Phase 2 trials enrolling patients with acute heart failure, AHF, and early cardiogenic shock. In line with previous guidance, the Company expects its Phase 2 SEISMiC Extension Study in SCAI Stage B early cardiogenic shock patients to complete enrollment in the next several weeks and report topline data by the end of this quarter. Building upon the positive SEISMiC study results, the Extension Study is focused on dose optimization and additional characterization of SERCA2a effects for Phase 3 planning and is expected to enroll up to 30 patients. Further, the Extension Study is measuring the effects of istaroxime on blood pressure and cardiac function with the two dosing regimens similar to the improvements seen in the previous SEISMiC study. The Company is also progressing the start-up of a parallel study in more severe, SCAI Stage C cardiogenic shock patients. The execution of this study will depend on the Company's ability to obtain adequate resources for its completion. Finally, the Company announced in January 2024 it entered into a license agreement with Lee's Pharmaceutica Limited for the development and commercialization of istaroxime in Greater China, including for AHF and cardiogenic shock.

08:12 EDT Bally's to be acquired by Standard General for $18.25 per share - Bally's (BALY) announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which Standard General, the company's largest common stockholder, will acquire the company's outstanding shares for $18.25 per Bally's share. The price represents a 71% premium over the company's 30-day volume weighted average price per share as of March 8, the last trading day before the public disclosure of Standard General's initial cash acquisition proposal of $15.00 per share. In lieu of receiving the cash consideration, Bally's stockholders may elect to retain all or a portion of their Bally's stock by means of a rollover election. Bally's stockholders electing to retain all or a portion of their Bally's investment will continue as stockholders of the combined company. The transaction values Bally's at approximately $4.6B in enterprise value. The combined company will remain a publicly traded registrant under the Securities Act of 1934. Pursuant to the merger, Bally's will combine with The Queen Casino & Entertainment, or QC&E, a regional casino operator majority-owned by funds managed by Standard General. QC&E is a regional gaming, hospitality and entertainment company that currently owns and operates four casinos across three states, including DraftKings at Casino Queen in East St. Louis, IL, the Queen Marquette in Marquette, IA, and the Queen Baton Rouge and the Belle of Baton Rouge in Baton Rouge, LA. QC&E is in the process of executing on transformational redevelopment projects at two of its four properties which are expected to be completed in 2025 and generate meaningful organic growth. The combination will expand the company's Casino & Resorts segment to 19 gaming, entertainment and hospitality facilities across 11 U.S. states and enhance the company's development pipeline with several exciting projects. In connection with the transaction, in addition to Standard General, Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI), and Noel Hayden have committed to support the merger and to make rollover elections. As a result, at least 47% of Bally's outstanding fully-diluted equity interests will be rolled over into the combined company. A special committee of independent and disinterested directors of Bally's board of directors, which has been advised by its own independent financial and legal advisors in evaluating the merger and the cash consideration, determined that the merger is in the best interest of Bally's and its stockholders and unanimously recommended that the company's board of directors approve the merger. Acting upon the recommendation of the special committee, Bally's board of directors approved the merger and recommends that stockholders approve the merger. The factors considered by the special committee in arriving at its unanimous decision will be outlined in public proxy filings to be made by Bally's. The Bally's special committee and board of directors are making recommendations with respect to the cash consideration and are not making recommendations with respect to the rollover election. Standard General has obtained $500M of committed financing to support the merger. The cash proceeds from the financing, in connection with the company's existing resources, will be used to effectuate the merger and fund the cash consideration to Bally's stockholders. The transaction is subject to receipt of regulatory approvals, the approval by Bally's stockholders, and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions, and is expected to close in first half of 2025.

08:10 EDT ChoiceOne Financial, Fentura Financial enter all-stock merger agreement - ChoiceOne Financial Services (COFS) and Fentura Financial, Inc. (FETM) announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which ChoiceOne and Fentura will merge in an all-stock transaction. The agreement was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies. Once completed, the combination will create the third largest publicly traded bank in Michigan with approximately $4.3 billion in consolidated total assets and 56 offices in Western, Central and Southeastern Michigan. The proposed transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of approval from Fentura and ChoiceOne shareholders and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. Under the terms of the merger agreement, each share of Fentura common stock outstanding immediately prior to completion of the merger will be converted into the right to receive 1.35 shares of ChoiceOne common stock. The proposed transaction is valued at $40.18 per share of Fentura common stock, or approximately $180.4 million in the aggregate, based on the closing price of ChoiceOne's common stock of $29.76 on July 24, 2024. For additional information about the proposed merger, please see the Investor Presentation - Merger, filed as Exhibit 99.4 to ChoiceOne's Form 8-K filed on July 25, 2024. Subject to NASDAQ independence standards and existing corporate governance procedures, upon completion of the proposed transaction, ChoiceOne intends to appoint two members of Fentura's board to join the holding company board of ChoiceOne, which would be comprised of 15 total directors. Two additional members of Fentura's board will also be appointed to join the board of ChoiceOne Bank, which would be comprised of 17 total directors.

08:10 EDT ChoiceOne Financial, Fentura Financial sign merger agreement - ChoiceOne Financial (COFS) and Fentura Financial (FETM) signed of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which ChoiceOne and Fentura will merge in an all-stock transaction. The agreement was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies. Once completed, the combination will create the third largest publicly traded bank in Michigan with approximately $4.3B in consolidated total assets and 56 offices in Western, Central and Southeastern Michigan. The proposed transaction is expected to close in Q1 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including receipt of approval from Fentura and ChoiceOne shareholders and receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals. Each share of Fentura common stock outstanding immediately prior to completion of the merger will be converted into the right to receive 1.35 shares of ChoiceOne common stock. The proposed transaction is valued at $40.18 per share of Fentura common stock, or approximately $180.4M in the aggregate. Upon completion, ChoiceOne intends to appoint two members of Fentura's board to join the holding company board of ChoiceOne, which would be comprised of 15 total directors. Two additional members of Fentura's board will also be appointed to join the board of ChoiceOne Bank, which would be comprised of 17 total directors.

08:09 EDT Atlantic International's Lyneer expands in Rock Hill, South Carolina - Lyneer Staffing Solutions announces the expansion of its operations with the strategic opening of a new location in Rock Hill, South Carolina. This new facility will support one of the largest global supply chain management companies in the world, reinforcing Lyneer's commitment to partnering with industry leaders. The expansion underscores Lyneer's mission to deliver innovative staffing solutions that drive operational efficiency and success for our clients.

08:07 EDT Analog Devices, Flagship Pioneering announce strategic partnership - Analog Devices and Flagship Pioneering announced a strategic alliance to accelerate the development of a fully digitized biological world. This partnership will bridge ADI's expertise in engineering for analog and digital semiconductors with Flagship Pioneering's expertise in applied biology to foster the discovery of biological insights, new and enhanced measurements, diagnostics, and novel interventions. The partnership represents the opportunity to create breakthrough solutions for human health and sustainability. Specifically, the partnership will leverage Flagship Pioneering's unique innovation process and ADI's cutting edge semiconductor technologies, signal processing portfolio and physical world domain expertise to unlock deeply disruptive solutions and create new companies in the digital biology space. Initial areas of focus will include bioelectronic platforms, regenerative agriculture, novel applications of AI/ML, and preemptive health and medicine. Potential advancements may further drive next-generation protein sequencing, multiomics, early disease diagnostics, transformation of large biological information to actionable digital data, drug design and optimization, and more. This partnership is the latest in Flagship Pioneering's Enabling Technologies Initiative, which is focused on the development of new therapeutic modalities by enabling and powering advanced technologies.

08:05 EDT Carpenter Technology sees Q1 operating income $114M-$120M - For first quarter of fiscal year 2025, anticipate between $114 million and $120 million in operating income.

08:04 EDT Carpenter Technology board authorizes up to $400M share repurchase program - Carpenter Technology's Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of up to $400 million of its outstanding common stock. The shares may be repurchased in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions.

07:59 EDT ZyVersa selects obesity, related metabolic implications at lead indication - ZyVersa announces that obesity and its related metabolic complications has been selected as the lead indication for Inflammasome ASC Inhibitor IC 100. Following is the rationale behind selection of obesity and related metabolic complications, and an overview of the development program. Rationale for Inflammasome Inhibitors as a Treatment for Obesity and Related Metabolic Complications: Inflammasomes, which are activated by nutrients, such as glucose and free fatty acids, trigger activation and stimulation of downstream inflammatory pathways, leading to chronic inflammation in obesity. Nutrient overload triggers inflammasome-induced inflammation in the brain's hypothalamus, causing increased appetite and food intake, increasing the number and size of fat cells associated with weight gain and obesity. The fat cells become hypoxic, resulting in cell death and macrophage recruitment. This leads to inflammasome activation, death of inflamed cells, and systemic release of proinflammatory cytokines, such as IL-1beta, and ASC specks, spreading inflammation throughout the body. If unresolved, sustained inflammation leads to the metabolic complications of obesity. Why Inflammasome ASC Inhibitor IC 100? Multiple types of inflammasomes, not just NLRP3, are activated in obesity and related metabolic complications. Because IC 100 targets the inflammasome ASC component, it inhibits each of these inflammasomes, including NLRP3, with potential to better attenuate the damaging inflammation associated with obesity and its complications. Inflammation is spread and perpetuated by systemic release of proinflammatory IL-1beta and ASC specks during death of inflamed cells, leading to obesity-related complications. IC 100 disrupts the structure and function of ASC specks, thereby attenuating spread and perpetuation of inflammation. ZyVersa believes that inflammasome ASC Inhibitor IC 100 administered concurrently with GLIP-1 agonists will lead to incremental weight loss, and more importantly, attenuate the chronic tissue inflammation not addressed by GLIP-1 agonists to reduce the long-term micro- and macrovascular inflammatory complications. Inflammasome ASC Inhibitor IC 100 Development Plans for Obesity and Related Complications: IC 100's preclinical program is nearing completion, with a planned Investigational New Drug submission Q4-2024, and Phase 1 clinical trial initiation shortly thereafter. Preclinical scientific collaboration to assess IC 100 as a potential treatment for atherosclerosis, a common obesity-related metabolic complication, is expected to conclude H2-2024. Preclinical scientific collaboration with University of Miami Miller School of Medicine to assess IC 100 as a potential treatment for obesity and metabolic syndrome is expected to begin H2-2024, with a second study looking at concomitant treatment with IC 100 and a GLIP-1 agonist to begin shortly thereafter. ZyVersa has recruited six top-tiered experts in obesity and related metabolic complications for a scientific advisory board to guide clinical development plans for IC 100, which will be announced in the next few weeks.

07:48 EDT Curaleaf adds two medical dispensaries in New York - Curaleaf will open two new medical dispensaries, and will begin co-located adult-use sales at two existing medical dispensaries in New York. Curaleaf Rochester will open July 25 and Curaleaf Syracuse will open in the coming weeks, pending regulatory approval. This expansion will increase the Company's retail footprint in the Empire State to six total, with three co-located adult-use and medical locations, and three medical-only locations. Each new medical dispensary is staffed with a team of three full-time pharmacists.

07:42 EDT CLMBR earns Approved Vendor Partner status from Crunch Fitness - Interactive Strength announced that CLMBR has earned Approved Vendor Partner status from Crunch Fitness and has been invited to exhibit CLMBR at the Crunch Franchise Convention, which starts on July 28 in Phoenix, AZ. The annual Crunch Franchise Convention is an invitation-only event for Franchise Owners, Vendor Partners, Club Managers and other key team members. There is a select group of Vendor Partners that exhibit, which allows Franchise Owners to evaluate and purchase equipment in order to have installations completed before the peak membership selling season begins in January. Crunch Fitness has more than 460 corporate and franchised locations currently open, and there are more than 1,400 franchise locations committed to eventually open. After a successful pilot, Crunch West Hollywood installed CLMBR devices in both a group fitness room previously used for spinning and on the cardio floor, highlighting the versatility of CLMBR.

07:41 EDT AbbVie reports Q2 global revenue from immunology portfolio $6.971B, up 2.3%

07:39 EDT Orezone Gold to commence drill program at Bombore Gold Mine - Orezone Gold announced that it will be initiating a multi-year exploration campaign designed to test the broader size and scale of the Bombore mineralized system. To date, Bombore has been reserve defined over greater than a 14km strike length, with the average depth of drilling to approximately 200m hosting the current stated gold resource of 4.5Moz Measured and Indicated, and 0.6Moz Inferred. Within this Tier 1 mineralized footprint, the Company has designed a program for deeper drilling to: materially expand the reserve and resource base, delineate higher-grade centers of mineralization, and further increase the project's mine life. Patrick Downey, President & CEO stated, "With the oxide operation at Bombore now well-established, and the construction of the parallel Stage I hard rock expansion now underway, we are excited to launch this renewed focus on exploration at Bombore. While we are on track to deliver significant production growth to an overall 225,000-250,000 ounces per year with the Stage I and Stage II hard rock expansions, we view the potential for a further transformational shift at Bombore with successful exploration. With numerous existing high-grade intercepts below the current resource and reserve pit limits, across the greater than 14km reserve defined strike length, we have well-established proof of concept for such a transformational shift. This has clear implications in terms of extending the life of mine at Bombore and providing the basis for an expanded production profile."

07:38 EDT Amesite releases video shareholder update - Amesite has released a video shareholder update to its website, July 25, 2024 at 6:00pm. As part of the update, Amesite's CEO, Dr. Ann Marie Sastry, will review: Progress on New B2C App: NurseMagic; B2C and B2B Offerings and Plan for Revenue Growth; Company Infrastructure and Ability to Scale Users; Financial Standing.

07:36 EDT Purple Biotech receives extension to regain compliance with Nasdaq - Purple Biotech announced that on July 24, 2024, it received an extension of 180 calendar days from the Listing Qualifications Department of The Nasdaq Stock Market to regain compliance with the Nasdaq's minimum $1.00 bid price requirement set forth in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2) for continued listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market. As a result of the extension, the Company has until January 21, 2025, to regain compliance with the Bid Price Requirement. To regain compliance, the closing bid price of the Company's American Depositary Share must be at least $1.00 for at least 10 consecutive business days prior to January 21, 2025. Nasdaq would then provide a written confirmation of compliance and the matter will be closed. Purple Biotech intends to monitor the closing bid price of its ADSs and if necessary, will consider available options to cure the deficiency and regain compliance with the Bid Price Requirement within the compliance period.

07:33 EDT Imax raises 2024 system installation view to 130-150 systems from 128 in 2023

07:30 EDT Signal Gold transitions to OTCQB Market - Signal Gold will transition to the OTC Market's Group Inc.'s OTCQB Venture Market in the United States and will cease trading on the OTCQX effective at the close of market on Thursday, July 25, 2024. The Company opted to the transition to the OTCQB as it no longer met the minimum bid requirements required on the OTCQX platform. The Company's common shares will on the OTCQB under the same symbol "SGNLF" and will continue to trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "SGNL".

07:29 EDT Mira Pharmaceuticals announces insights from additional Ketamir-2 data - MIRA Pharmaceuticals announced new insights garnered from additional, recently received preclinical study data regarding the mechanism of action and toxicology data for its novel oral ketamine analog, Ketamir-2. Ketamir-2 is MIRA's drug candidate being investigated as a potential treatment for neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. The new preclinical study results announced today are the latest in a string of positive research developments which are progressing MIRA's goal of submitting an Investigational New Drug Application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Ketamir-2 later this year. The latest preclinical data reveals that Ketamir-2 is a selective inhibitor of the NMDA receptor of glutamate, the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the human brain, specifically interacting at the PCP-binding site of the NMDA complex. Ketamir-2 has a 30-50-fold lower affinity to the PCP site compared with ketamine. The lower affinity is important because at high affinity, compounds may affect neurobehavioral functions, potentially leading to side effects such as dissociation and hallucinations. Unlike traditional ketamine, which also affects several other sites on the NMDA receptor and interacts with opioid receptors, dopamine and serotonin transporters, and various acetylcholine receptors, Ketamir-2 exhibits unique selectivity and does not interact with these additional receptor sites. This selectivity is notable as it may contribute to a distinct pharmacological profile for Ketamir-2, potentially reducing the risk of side effects associated with these other interactions. The potential benefits of Ketamir-2's selective binding also include: 1. Reduced Side Effects: By targeting only the NMDA receptor at the PCP-binding site, Ketamir-2 appears to avoid the broader spectrum of ketamine interactions with other receptors and transporters. This specificity may help minimize unwanted side effects, such as dissociation, hallucinations, and addictive potential, often observed with ketamine use. 2. Improved Safety Profile: The selective inhibition allows for a cleaner pharmacological profile, potentially leading to better tolerability and fewer adverse reactions in patients. These advantages could enhance patient compliance and overall treatment outcomes. 3. Enhanced Therapeutic Effectiveness: With a selective mechanism of action, Ketamir-2 could potentially deliver more consistent and predictable therapeutic effects, which may be particularly beneficial in treating conditions like depression, treatment-resistant depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Complementing its novel mechanism, recently conducted toxicology studies in rats and dogs have shown no toxicity at very high doses of Ketamir-2. These findings underscore Ketamir-2's excellent safety margin, further supported by its pronounced antidepressant and anxiolytic activities observed at oral doses five to tenfold lower than those tested in the toxicology studies. The substantial therapeutic window of Ketamir-2 offers promising potential for safe and effective use in human therapies. The additional data announced today builds on previous findings highlighting Ketamir-2's superior brain penetration and bioavailability. Unlike traditional ketamine, Ketamir-2 is not a substrate for P-glycoprotein, a membrane protein that pumps drugs out of cells, including those in the brain. This characteristic may allow Ketamir-2 to penetrate the blood-brain barrier more effectively, enhancing its therapeutic potential.

07:27 EDT Vicinity customers eligible for U.S. IRS Commercial Clean Vehicle Tax Credit - Vicinity Motor announced that its customers can now receive up to $7,500 tax credit toward the purchase of the VMC 1200 Class 3 Electric Truck and up to $40,000 for the Vicinity Lightning electric transit bus. This opportunity arises after approval from the United States Internal Revenue Service as a "qualified manufacturer" for the Commercial Clean Vehicle Credit. The Commercial Clean Vehicle Credit as defined in Section30D(d)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, provides credits for qualifying vehicles purchased by businesses and tax-exempt organizations as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. There is no limit on the number of credits a business can claim. Vicinity will be listed as a Qualified Manufacturer on the IRS Qualified Manufactured index

07:22 EDT Microbix Biosystems presents HCV FLOQSwab Format Test Control - Microbix Biosystems announces that it is presenting results of a novel Quality Assessment Product for supporting Point-of-Care-Tests for infection with the Hepatitis C Virus at the American Diagnostic and Laboratory Medicine conference taking place in Chicago, Illinois July 29 to August 1, 2024. At ADLM, Microbix will exhibit alongside leading firms that provide tests to diagnose and direct treatment of HCV and many other infectious diseases. Microbix will thereby showcase its ever-growing portfolio of QAPs that help ensure the accuracy of antigen and molecular tests and their workflows. Also at ADLM, Microbix will present its poster titled "Novel Hepatitis C Virus External Quality Control that is Stable at Ambient Temperature and Suitable for Use in Low-Resource Settings." The poster reviews the performance of a novel PROCEEDFLOQ QAP to support the training for and prospective quality management of POCT PCR tests that use fingerstick whole-blood samples to detect HCV.

07:21 EDT Draganfly appoints Modly, Dunnigan as members of the board - Draganfly announces the appointment of Thomas Modly to its Board of Directors. Additionally, Draganfly welcomes Tim Dunnigan, previously an advisor on the Advisory Board, as a member of the Board.

07:20 EDT Huize partners with New China Life Insurance to launch annuity insurance product - Huize announced a strategic partnership with New China Life Insurance to jointly launch "Bliss", a customized annuity insurance product, designed to cater to a client base with a preference for stable, risk-averse financial solutions. "Bliss" aims to differentiates itself with four offerings: i) rapid cash value growth with flexible payment options; ii) flexible annuity start times, allowing payouts to begin annuity at 5 years, 10 years, or when the insured reaches 60 or 70 years old; iii) a seamless enrollment process with no health declaration required, broad occupational eligibility, and affordable premiums starting at RMB2K annually; and iv) value-added benefits including up to 5 years of complimentary health management services.

07:20 EDT Barrick Gold says Porgera remains on track despite landslide challenges - The company said, "Despite the operational challenges presented by the recent Mulitaka landslide, Porgera Gold Mine has met or exceeded its targets since resuming mining in December last year, with gold production for the first half of the year above guidance and all-in sustaining costs trending lower. Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow, who is in the country to review New Porgera Limited's second quarter results, said keeping Porgera open in the wake of the landslide allowed for a swift response by the mine to the collective recovery effort while sustaining the mine's contribution to the provincial and national economies. During his visit, Bristow met with Prime Minister James Marape, Enga Governor Sir Peter Ipatas and Provincial Administrator Sandis Tsaka to exchange views on the Mulitaka recovery, the New Porgera Community Development Agreement negotiations, and other issues of common interest. It was agreed that the CDA must be consistent with the New Porgera project agreements and ensure that fair and equitable benefits reach all eligible landowners and the wider Porgeran community, as well as provincial and national stakeholders. NPL currently employs 2,500 people, of whom 57% are from Porgera and Enga, 40% from the rest of Papua New Guinea and 3% expatriates. First gold, following the resumption of operations at the mine, was poured in January, electricity from the Hides power plant in Hela Province was restored in April and a throughput performance test agreed to with Papua New Guinea was achieved in June, four months ahead of schedule."

07:18 EDT BioCardia announces confirmatory Phase 3 trial of CardiAMP commenced enrollment - BioCardia announced that the confirmatory Phase 3 trial of its autologous CardiAMP cell therapy product candidate for patients with ischemic heart failure of reduced ejection fraction, HFrEF, has commenced enrollment in the United States. BioCardia previously confirmed alignment with the United States Food and Drug Administration, FDA, on the design of the 250-patient randomized, controlled trial and the minimum of 12-month primary composite endpoint of all cause death, reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events, and improvement in quality of life. FDA granted CardiAMP Cell Therapy a Breakthrough Device Designation for the treatment of ischemic heart failure. Breakthrough designation provides for FDA to expedite development and prioritize review of regulatory submissions intended to help patients have more timely access to these product candidates.

07:17 EDT Chemomab Therapeutics announces Phase 2 trial results for CM-101 - Chemomab Therapeutics reported positive topline results from the Phase 2 SPRING trial assessing its first-in-class monoclonal antibody, CM-101, in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis, PSC. Treatment with CM-101 achieved its primary endpoint of safety and tolerability and demonstrated anti-fibrotic, anti-inflammatory and anti-cholestatic effects across a broad range of disease-related secondary efficacy endpoints, including statistically significant improvement in liver stiffness, a key PSC disease marker. CM-101 SPRING Trial - Overview of Key Results: CM-101 met the primary study endpoint, demonstrating a favorable safety profile over the 15-week treatment period. CM-101-treated patients with moderate/advanced disease showed improvements on a wide range of disease-related secondary endpoints, including assessments of changes from baseline relative to placebo at Week 15 in liver stiffness; in liver fibrosis biomarkers, including the Enhanced Liver Fibrosis score and PRO-C3 levels; in total bilirubin and liver function tests; in pruritis and in markers of inflammation. Dose-dependent responses were observed for multiple disease-related biomarkers. CM-101 in PSC Patients: Chemomab is preparing for an End-of-Phase 2 meeting with the FDA to discuss the SPRING trial results and the design of a proposed Phase 3 PSC trial for accelerated approval. The company anticipates completing these discussions by the end of the year and receiving official written feedback from the FDA in the first quarter of 2025. An Open Label Extension portion of the SPRING trial, which offers patients the opportunity to receive CM-101 for an additional 33-weeks, is ongoing. CM-101's novel CCL24 target has been of interest to potential partners for several years. The company intends to further explore opportunities to collaborate with strategic partners in light of the positive topline data reported from the SPRING trial.

07:17 EDT Novocure presented positive results from the phase 3 METIS trial in June - In June, presented positive results from the phase 3 METIS trial, evaluating the use of TTFields therapy and supportive care for the treatment of patients with brain metastases from non-small cell lung cancer NSCLC following stereotactic radiosurgery at the 2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology ASCO annual meeting. The METIS trial met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in time to intracranial progression for adult patients treated with TTFields therapy and supportive care compared to patients treated with supportive care alone.

07:15 EDT AC Immune's ACI-35.030 granted FDA Fast Track Designation - AC Immune announced that its active-immunotherapy candidate, ACI-35.030, now called JNJ-2056, targeting the pathologic form of the Tau protein, phosphorylated Tau, has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Andrea Pfeifer, CEO of AC Immune SA, commented: "Fast Track designation is an important recognition of the differentiation and potential value for patients of our anti-pTau active immunotherapy, ACI-35.030. The Phase 2b ReTain study is the first time any active immunotherapy is being tested in a preclinical AD population. We believe this modality has the potential to offer therapeutic advantages, as well as benefits in terms of convenience and access. Fast Track designation offers opportunities for more efficient development and regulatory review. More importantly, this underscores and validates the potential therapeutic impact of an active immunotherapy specifically targeting pTau, the key pathologic species of Tau protein. In Phase 1b/2a clinical testing, ACI-35.030 was shown to specifically target this toxic form of Tau and spare normal endogenous forms of the protein. We and our partners continue to drive innovation in the treatment and potential prevention of Alzheimer's disease, developing new mechanisms of action and first-in-class potential therapeutics that are safe and simple to use for the hundreds of millions of people living with or at risk of the disease."

07:11 EDT Flagstar Bank sells mortgage servicing business to Mr. Cooper for $1.4B - Flagstar Bank, the bank subsidiary of New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) announced that it entered into a definitive agreement to sell its residential mortgage servicing business, including mortgage servicing rights and the third-party origination platform to Mr. Cooper (COOP) for approximately $1.4B The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2024. Upon closing, the company expects that the transaction will add approximately 60 basis points to its CET1 capital ratio, as converted for the remaining outstanding Series B Preferred Stock.

07:09 EDT American Airlines on track to reduce total debt from peak levels by $15B - On track to reduce total debt from peak levels by $15 billion by year-end 2025.

07:06 EDT Southwest sees FY24 ASMs up 4% y/y, CASM-x up 7%-8% y/y - Sees FY24 effective tax rate 24% vs. previous estimate 24%-25%. The company continues to expect similar cost pressures for the remainder of the year, driving third quarter 2024 CASM-X to an expected increase in the range of 11 percent to 13 percent, year-over-year. The sequential year-over-year increase from second quarter 2024 is primarily due to lower year-over-year capacity growth in third quarter 2024. The Company continues to expect full year 2024 CASM-X to increase in the range of 7 percent to 8 percent, year-over-year.

07:05 EDT Southwest sees unit revenue inflecting positively by Q4 on y/y basis

07:01 EDT Harley-Davidson plan to repurchase $1B in shares through 2026 - Harley-Davidson announced a new plan to repurchase $1B of its outstanding common stock through 2026. The company will be using a new Board-approved share repurchase authorization, in addition to shares the Board already authorized for repurchase and expects to fund the share repurchases with cash flow from operations. This announcement replaces existing share repurchase plans and is in addition to the $875M in share repurchases since 2022 that the company has completed.

06:55 EDT Carrier Global plans to repurchase $1B of shares in second half - "Carrier delivered another quarter of strong financial performance, while making great progress with our portfolio transformation," said Carrier Chairman & CEO David Gitlin. "We delivered solid sales and roughly 30% orders growth as we continue to outperform in our markets. Our strong operational execution drove 200 basis points of adjusted operating margin expansion and double-digit adjusted earnings growth. Year-to-date, we also closed on two of our four business exits, and the remaining two continue to track well. The proceeds from the exits, combined with our strong free cash flow performance, have enabled us to reduce net debt by about $5 billion in the quarter and we now plan to repurchase about $1 billion of shares in the second half of 2024."

06:30 EDT Lloyds Banking 'confident' in 2026 guidance - The company said, "Based on our current macroeconomic assumptions and confidence in our strategy, the Group is maintaining its medium-term guidance for 2026: Cost:income ratio of less than 50 per cent; Return on tangible equity of greater than 15 per cent; Capital generation of greater than 200 basis points; To pay down to a CET1 ratio of c.13 per cent."

06:24 EDT Sandoz launches biosimilar Pyzchiva across Europe - Sandoz announces the launch of Pyzchiva across Europe, starting today. "Pyzchiva, developed and registered by Samsung Bioepis, is the first ustekinumab biosimilar to launch in Europe with all reference medicine strengths, including the 130mg vial initiation dose for Crohn's disease. The launch strengthens our well-established immunology portfolio in Europe and leverages our existing footprint, with five biosimilars now marketed in this therapeutic area. Pyzchiva is a key biosimilar driver, adding value and contributing to the company's mid-term growth strategy," the company stated. Rebecca Guntern, President Europe, Sandoz, said: "Timely and expanded access to safe, effective and affordable medicines can improve quality of life for millions of people living with chronic inflammatory diseases. Our goal is to make potentially life-changing medicines accessible to patients across Europe. Pyzchiva is one of the first ustekinumab biosimilars in Europe, which marks a significant milestone on that road."

06:08 EDT FirstCash says 'outlook for 2024 continues to be highly positive' - The company's outlook for 2024 continues to be highly positive, with expected year-over-year growth in consolidated revenue and earnings driven by the continued growth in earning asset balances coupled with recent store additions.

06:07 EDT TRI Pointe sees Q3 delivery of 1,450 and 1,550 homes - Sees Q3 home average sales price between $685,000 and $695,000. Expects homebuilding gross margin percentage of 23.0%-23.5% for Q3 and anticipates its SG&A expense as a percentage of home sales revenue will be in the range of 11.0% to 11.5%.

06:02 EDT Ducommun rejects unsolicited indication of interest from Albion River - Ducommun responded to an unsolicited revised, non-binding indication of interest dated July 15 from Albion River, a private direct investment firm, to acquire all outstanding shares of Ducommun for $65.00 per share in cash. The board of directors has unanimously determined it is not in the best interests of the company and Ducommun shareholders to pursue further discussions regarding the proposal. The company said, "Consistent with its fiduciary duties and in consultation with its legal and financial advisors, our Board of Directors carefully reviewed and considered Albion River's revised proposal. Following that review, our Board of Directors concluded that the Company's previously disclosed Vision 2027 Strategy reflects a substantially better long-term value creation opportunity for Ducommun's shareholders. Over the past seven years, our Board and Management team have effectively transformed the Company's business with strategic acquisitions of engineered product businesses with high aftermarket mix, implementation of a value-based pricing strategy, significant facility consolidation, improved operations and customer metrics, a leaner management structure and many other cost reduction actions. Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 737MAX on our markets, Ducommun's revenue has grown from $551M in 2016 to a new all-time revenue record of $767M in LTM Q1 2024. Also, Ducommun's EBITDA margins have expanded from 10.1% in 2016 to 14.4% in the first quarter 2024. As a result, the Company's shareholders benefitted from an increase in market capitalization from approximately $286M at the end of 2016 to approximately $929M as of July 23, 2024. In addition, the Company managed through the COVID-19 pandemic and 737MAX with limited impact on its Adjusted EBITDA despite significant deterioration in the commercial aerospace industry. This was accomplished by growing its military and space business from $278M in 2018 to $421M in 2022 and through proactive cost management. In December 2022, Ducommun management held an investor meeting to lay out Vision 2027 and has been executing on that strategy by consolidating its facility footprint, continuing its targeted acquisition program, increasing the revenue proportion of engineered product and aftermarket content, implementing our offloading strategy with defense primes in high growth segments of the defense budget, and by expanding content on key commercial aerospace platforms. These strategic initiatives already have positioned Ducommun to benefit from the continuing recovery in aircraft production rates over the next several years. Ducommun's market capitalization has increased to approximately $929M as of July 23, 2024, a 28% increase in one year. Our Board of Directors and management team expect that, as previously disclosed in our Vision 2027 Strategy, by 2027 Ducommun will achieve $950M to $1,000M in net revenues (representing a 33% to 40% increase since 2022), with approximately 18% adjusted EBITDA margins. This would represent a gain of approximately 460 basis points since the end of 2023 and approximately 13% adjusted operating income margins (an increase of approximately 480 basis points since the end of 2023). Our Board of Directors believes that Albion River's revised proposal significantly undervalues Ducommun's long-term value for shareholders. We remain committed to our strategy to substantially grow and increase the long-term value of Ducommun for its investors. Our Board of Directors and management will continue to listen to all Ducommun shareholders and act in their collective best interests."

05:50 EDT Coinbase unit fined GBP 3.5M by U.K.'s FCA over services to high-risk customers - CB Payments Limited has been fined GBP 3,503,546 by the U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority for repeatedly breaching a requirement that prevented the firm from offering services to high-risk customers. CBPL is part of the Coinbase Group, which operates a prominent cryptoasset trading platform that is accessible globally. The firm entered into a voluntary requirement in October 2020, which followed significant engagement with the FCA relating to concerns about the effectiveness of CBPL's financial crime control framework. The VREQ prevented CBPL from taking on new high-risk customers while it addressed issues with its framework. Despite the restrictions in place, CBPL onboarded and/or provided e-money services to 13,416 high-risk customers. Approximately 31% of these customers deposited around $24.9M. These funds were used to make withdrawals and then execute multiple cryptoasset transactions via other Coinbase Group entities, totaling approximately $226M. The breaches were the result of CBPL's lack of due skill, care and diligence in the design, testing, implementation and monitoring of the controls put in place to ensure that the VREQ was effective, the FCA said. Therese Chambers, joint executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the FCA said: "The money laundering risks associated with crypto are obvious and firms must take them seriously. Firms like CBPL that enable crypto trading need to have strong financial crime controls. CBPL's controls had significant weaknesses and the FCA told it so, which is why the requirements were needed. CPBL, however, repeatedly breached those requirements." Reference Link

05:43 EDT Teva, Sanofi announce accelerated timeline for duvakitug program - Teva (TEVA) and Sanofi (SNY) announced an update to the timing for the anti-TL1A, duvakitug program investigating the human IgG1-A2 monoclonal antibody targeting TL1A for moderate-to-severe IBD. Patient enrollment in the RELIEVE UCCD Phase 2b trial has completed early due to significant acceleration in patient recruitment. As a result, Teva and Sanofi now anticipate having topline results for both UC and CD in Q4 and detailed results will be presented in a scientific forum in 2025. This adjustment replaces the previously planned interim analysis for the second half of 2024, which will not be conducted. Teva and Sanofi are collaborating to co-develop and co-commercialize duvakitug for moderate-to-severe UC and CD patients

05:14 EDT Indivior announces new $100M accelerated share repurchase program - Indivior announced that its board of directors has approved a new share repurchase program under which the company will commence repurchasing Indivior's ordinary shares of 50c each for up to a maximum consideration of $100M. The new program will be carried out on an accelerated basis and is expected to be completed over the next six months, subject to compliance with applicable trading restrictions. In addition, Indivior is expediting repurchases under its current $100M program, which commenced in November 2023 and which was originally expected to be completed by end of August. Subject to compliance with applicable trading restrictions, the company intends to complete its current program by the end of July and initiate this new program immediately thereafter. In relation to the new program, Indivior has entered into a non-discretionary agreement with Morgan Stanley under which Morgan Stanley has agreed to carry out on-market purchases of ordinary shares, acting as riskless principal, during the period commencing on the business day following the completion of the current program, and ending no later than January 31, 2025, for an aggregate purchase price of no greater than $100 and the simultaneous on-sale of such ordinary shares by Morgan Stanley to Indivior.