Stockwinners Market Radar for April 20, 2017 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

19:10 EDT Bot service says shut down by Instagram - Instagram bot service Instagress announced: "By request of Instagram we were forced to close our web-service that helped you so much in your Instagram journey. We are all very sad of that but it looks like there is nothing we can do at the moment." An archived version of the Instagress website states: "The best online Instagram bot on the web. Automate your activity and get more followers, likes and comments on Instagram." Reference Link

19:05 EDT Basic Energy sees gradual improvement in pricing, utilization for rest of FY17 - "Looking forward, we continue to expect a gradual improvement in pricing and utilization for the remainder of 2017," said president and CEO Roe Patterson. "Customer feedback on capital expenditures remains promising, with expected improvements in oily basins for all of our service segments. We currently anticipate additional margin expansion in the second quarter as the impact of payroll taxes fade. Longer daylight hours will benefit our utilization levels as well. We expect to generate positive EBITDA in every month of the second quarter and a sequential increase of 18-20% in quarterly revenues."

19:00 EDT Fed fines Deutsche Bank $156.6M over forex, Volcker violations - The U.S. Federal Reserve announced two enforcement actions against Deutsche Bank AG that will require the bank to pay a combined $156.6M in civil money penalties. The bank will pay a $136.9M fine for unsafe and unsound practices in the foreign exchange markets, as well as a $19.7M fine for failure to maintain an adequate Volcker rule compliance program prior to March 30, 2016. In levying the FX fine on Deutsche Bank, the Board found deficiencies in the firm's oversight of, and internal controls over, FX traders who buy and sell U.S. dollars and foreign currencies for the organization's own accounts and for customers. The firm failed to detect and address that its traders used electronic chatrooms to communicate with competitors about their trading positions. The Board's order requires Deutsche Bank to improve its senior management oversight and controls relating to the firm's FX trading. The board is also requiring the firm to cooperate in any investigation of the individuals involved in the conduct underlying the FX enforcement action and is prohibiting the organization from re-employing or otherwise engaging individuals who were involved in this conduct. Reference Link

18:21 EDT Zion Oil & Gas says 'takes seriously' allegations of fiduciary duty breach - Zion Oil & Gas issued the following statement: "Zion Oil and Gas is aware of press releases made by Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz, and Levi & Korsinsky, whom are law firms investigating the Company for an alleged potential breach of fiduciary duty claim involving the Company's Board of Directors. The Company takes seriously the allegations and will investigate and respond appropriately to such claims. Zion, will vigorously defend its management and Board of Directors against any false or misleading allegation. Zion aims to be transparent with its shareholders with the goal of being above reproach."

18:03 EDT Celanese increasing engineered materials prices in the Americas - Celanese increased prices on its Hostaform and Celcon polyacetal grades and Celanex polyester grades in the Americas. Effective May 1, or as contracts otherwise allow, Hostaform and Celcon polyacetal will increase by 10c/lb in the US and Canada, and by 20c/kg in Mexico and South America, and Celanex will increase by 12c/lb in the US and Canada, and 25c/kg in Mexico and South America.

18:02 EDT Israeli Post terminates relationship with MySize - MySize announced that the company received a letter from the Israeli Postal Service terminating its relationship. On April 18, MySize announced it had entered into a cooperation agreement with the Israeli Post which was mischaracterized by the company as a definitive agreement. On April 19, the company issued a corrective press release explaining that while MySize had submitted a proposal to the Israeli Post, which was initially received favorably, the parties had not entered into or signed any formal or definitive agreement, and did not expect to enter into a formal or definitive agreement with respect to the pilot program or new services until the completion of the development and trial periods. The letter received by MySize from the Israeli Post expressed its discontent with the series of events described above and noted their choice to cease communication with the company.

17:55 EDT Visa sees 2H ramp in client incentive spend, sees 'sustained' payment volume - "The dollar and the euro were relatively stable last quarter, and this headwind has not become stiffer. A couple of trends are worse than we had expected last quarter and bear watching. Currency volatility is tracking below the long-term mean and well below last year's levels. Volumes on Chinese dual-brand cards are declining as cards expire and are not reissued. For the second half, we are assuming payment volume and cross-border growth momentum will be sustained. Client incentive spend is expected to ramp up with the renewals we just completed and deals that are shifting into the second half. Expenses will also step up above second quarter levels as we spend more on marketing and technology initiatives and as well as Europe integration," Visa said.

17:45 EDT Renasant receives all federal bank regulatory approvals for Metropolitan deal - Renasant Corporation, parent company of Renasant Bank, announced that it has received all federal bank regulatory approvals, including approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, necessary to complete the proposed merger of Metropolitan BancGroup, Inc., parent company of Metropolitan Bank, with and into Renasant pursuant to the Agreement and Plan of Merger dated as of January 17, 2017, by and among Renasant, Renasant Bank, Metropolitan and Metropolitan Bank. Subject to the approval by the stockholders of Metropolitan and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions contained in the merger agreement, the merger is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2017.

17:39 EDT Mattel says core brand sales at retail increased single digits in Q1

17:33 EDT Visa: U.S. payment volumes up 'almost' 15% through April 14 - "Through April 14, U.S. payment volumes are up almost 15%. Normalized for Visa Europe, constant dollar cross-border volumes grew 13%, and process transaction growth was almost 17%. A word of caution: Two weeks do not make a trend, and the first half of April is impacted by the shift in Easter," Visa says.

17:31 EDT Great Lakes Dredge awarded $17M award on West Coast - Great Lakes Dredge received a $17M award, with approximately $3M in additional options, for the Corps of Engineers West Coast Regional Contract. The scope of work includes dredging approximately 4 million cubic yards of material from the mouth of the Columbia River and upriver locations as well as the Humboldt Harbor entrance in Eureka, California. Work is expected to commence during Q2 and to be completed by the end of the year.

17:25 EDT Applied Optoelectronics to replace Adeptus Health in S&P 600 at open on April 25 - Adeptus Health has filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code to pursue a plan of reorganization and has been halted by the NYSE effective before the market open on April 20.

17:23 EDT Adams Resources concludes review of strategic alternatives for subsidiary - Adams Resources has concluded its review of strategic alternatives related to the company's exploration and production subsidiary, Adams Resources Exploration. AREC plans to file a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and plans to conduct a sale process. AREC has retained Oil and Gas Asset Clearinghouse to advise it with respect to the sale process. AREC primarily holds non-operated working interest in approximately 470 wells located in the Permian Basin, Haynesville Shale and across the Gulf Coast. The company does not expect this Chapter 11 filing by its subsidiary to have a material adverse impact on any of its core businesses. The company continues to have no debt and held approximately $87M in cash at the end of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

17:15 EDT VBL Therapeutics reports 'positive' DSMC review in GLOBE trial - VBL Therapeutics announced that the Independent Data Safety Monitoring Committee met to conduct its second safety review of the Phase 3 GLOBE Study investigating ofranergene obadenovec in recurrent glioblastoma. The DSMC is an independent multidisciplinary group that conducts detailed reviews of un-blinded study data, discusses potential safety concerns and provides recommendations regarding trial continuation. The committee reviewed the GLOBE safety data collected through a cutoff date in March 2017 and unanimously recommended that the study continue as planned. "We are pleased with the outcome of the DSMC," said Dror Harats, Chief Executive Officer of VBL Therapeutics. "Based on enrollment trends and events that triggered the DSMC review, we currently expect the GLOBE Trial interim analysis to occur in mid-2017, and top-line results from the full dataset to be available in early 2018." The Phase 3 GLOBE study in rGBM is comparing VB-111 in combination with Avastin to Avastin alone and has recruited 256 patients in the US, Canada and Israel. The study is proceeding under a Special Protocol Assessment granted by the FDA, with full endorsement by the Canadian Brain Tumor Consortium. VB-111 has received orphan drug designation in the United States and Europe and was granted Fast Track designation by the FDA for prolongation of survival in patients with glioblastoma that has recurred following treatment with standard chemotherapy and radiation.

17:08 EDT Briggs & Stratton raises FY17 CapEx view to $80M-$90M from $70M-$80M

17:07 EDT Hooper Holmes moving shares to OTCQX marketplace - Hooper Holmes notified the NYSE MKT exchange of its intention to move its listing from the NYSE MKT to the OTCQX Marketplace. The company expects that its common stock will begin trading on the OTCQX Marketplace on or about May 2. Hooper Holmes will remain subject to the public reporting requirements of the SEC following the transfer to the OTCQX. Hooper Holmes has determined that it is in the best interests of the company and its shareholders to move to the OTCQX at this time instead of continuing to pursue efforts to satisfy the NYSE MKT listing requirements under the previously disclosed plan, which has a deadline of May 8, by which time the company must have at least $ 6M of shareholders equity. On March 8, the company announced an agreement to combine with Provant Health Solutions LLC in an all-stock transaction. On a pro-forma basis as if combined, 2016 revenues for the two companies were in excess of $67M, net of $ 3.8M of Provant gift-card pass-through revenue.The transaction, the related stock issuances, and the previously announced term and asset backed credit facilities in support of the merger transaction and the combined companies' working capital needs are on track to close in early May. The parties related to the transaction believe that this move to the OTC does not impact the company's long-term growth and profitability opportunities.

17:04 EDT Aurinia says AURA-LV trial mets CR/PR endpoints at 48 weeks - Aurinia Pharmaceuticals announced additional 48-week results from its global Phase IIb AURA-LV study in lupus nephritis during the National Kidney Foundation 2017 Spring Clinical Meetings in Orlando, FL. In addition to the trial meeting its complete and partial remission endpoints at 48 weeks, all pre-specified secondary endpoints that have been analyzed to date were also met at 48 weeks. These pre-specified endpoints include: time to CR and PR; reduction in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index or SLEDAI score; and reduction in urine protein creatinine ratio over the 48-week treatment period. The data were presented during the late-breaking session by lead author Dr. Samir Parikh, a clinical investigator for the study and Assistant Professor of Clinical Nephrology at the Ohio State University. Each arm of the study included the current standard of care of mycophenolate mofetil as background therapy and a forced steroid taper. Both doses of voclosporin at 48 weeks demonstrated continued improvement over the control group across multiple dimensions. Notably, the voclosporin groups demonstrated statistically significantly improved speed and rates of CR and PR. Of the patients that achieved CR at 24 weeks, in the low-dose voclosporin group, 100% remained in CR at 48 weeks, which demonstrates durability of clinical response. Proteinuria levels and reduction in SLEDAI scores, which include non-renal measures of lupus activity, also continued to significantly separate over time versus the control group. Additional analyses are ongoing and will be presented at future medical and scientific meetings. No unexpected safety signals were observed and voclosporin was generally well-tolerated, with the nature of adverse events consistent with what is expected of patients suffering from highly active LN while undergoing immunomodulation-based therapy. In the voclosporin arms, the renal function as measured by eGFR was stable and not significantly different from the control arm during the 48-week treatment period. Mean blood pressure was also similar between all treatment groups. "The most exciting aspect of this data is that voclosporin is the first treatment candidate to successfully meet all of its clinical endpoints in a global, prospective LN trial," said Dr. Samir Parikh, a clinical investigator for the study and Assistant Professor, Clinical Nephrology at the Ohio State University. "Voclosporin, when added to standard of care, achieved the highest complete remission rate of any global, active LN trial, and this was accomplished with extremely low-dose steroid exposure. The possibility of achieving a better clinical response while avoiding the significant side effects associated with prolonged exposure to high dose steroids has the potential to be a game-changer in the management of LN." "We are pleased by the recognition of the medical and scientific communities of the AURA study results. Beyond the remission rates we've shown with voclosporin, the significant improvement in SLEDAI scores points towards a durable, immunological effect on a broad range of clinically meaningful lupus outcomes," said Neil Solomons, MD, Aurinia's Chief Medical Officer. "This data provides us with tremendous confidence that we can execute a successful Phase III program and make a meaningful impact on patients' lives."

17:00 EDT Electronics for Imaging sees Q2 adjusted gross margin roughly 51%-53%

16:57 EDT Werner says average revenue per tractor per week up 0.2% in Q1 - Average revenues per tractor per week increased 0.2% in first quarter 2017 compared to first quarter 2016 due to a 1.0% increase in average revenues per total mile and a 0.8% decrease in average miles per truck. During second and third quarter of 2016, to take advantage of a strengthening Dedicated market, we moved trucks from One-Way Truckload, lessening the need to find freight for trucks in the more challenged one-way truckload market. The shifting of trucks to shorter-haul Dedicated from longer-haul One-Way Truckload had a favorable impact on revenue per total mile and an unfavorable impact on miles per truck.

16:46 EDT BB&T says 'Main Street" businesses are more optimistic - The CEO see business owners willing to invest in their businesses.The BB&T CEO is speaking on a CNBC interview.

16:45 EDT Community West shareholder opposes increase in authorized shares - Shareholder Philip Timyan, an investor in Community West Bancshares, sent a letter on April 19 to chairman William Peeples reporting that he did not believe a 200% increase in authorized shares was a good idea. The letter that Philip Timyan sent to chairman Peeples follows. "Community West Bancshares recently sent out proxy statements to each shareholder. I don't believe increasing the authorized shares is a good idea... I intend to vote against Proposal 2 on the Proxy Statement to amend the articles of incorporation to increase the authorized shares from 20M shares to 60M shares. If a sufficient number of shareholders vote against Proposal 2, it will prevent the board from issuing more shares when superior share pricing metrics not seen for a decade are now available... I believe the total compensation for Martin E. Plourd, President and CEO of Community West Bancshares and Community West Bank, is materially understated in Community West Bancshares' proxy statement."

16:38 EDT EU antitrust chief: Will follow Google Chrome ad-block closely - Asked by a Twitter user whether she had "anything to say" about Google's reported plans to launch ad-blocking within Chrome, European Commission antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager tweeted, "Yes. We will follow this new feature and it's effects closely." Reference Link

16:34 EDT Caxton Associates reports 8.49% passive stake in International Seaways

16:32 EDT Rambus partners with Samsung to develop 56G SerDes solution on 10nm process - Rambus (RMBS) announced it is partnering with Samsung Electronics (SSNLF) for its recently launched 56G SerDes PHY to be developed on Samsung's 10nm LPP process technology. "Rambus has been a long-term strategic partner with Samsung for high-speed SerDes IP, and this 56G SerDes collaboration will pave the way for the explosive data processing requirements to come," the company remarked.

16:31 EDT ASUR Airports reports Q1 passenger traffic up 8.42% y-o-y - Qq highlights: EBITDA increased by 25.21% to Ps.1,771.21M. Total passenger traffic was up 8.42%. Total revenues increased by 19.23%, reflecting increases of 18.94% in aeronautical revenues and 27.64% in non-aeronautical revenues, partially offset by the 25.52% decline in construction services revenues. Commercial revenues per passenger rose by 18.51% to Ps.117.74. Operating profit increased by 26.90%. EBITDA margin increased to 71.51% from 68.10% in 1Q16 . Adjusted EBITDA margin, excluding the effect of IFRIC12, was 74.73% compared with 73.14% in 1Q16. The 11.98% increase in domestic passenger traffic was driven by the majority of ASUR's airports, with the exception of Cozumel and Minatitlan, where traffic declined by 14.42% and 9.96%, respectively. The 6.22% growth in international passenger traffic resulted primarily from an increase of 6.39% in traffic at the Cancun airport.

16:31 EDT Hoegh LNG raises quarterly cash distribution to 43c per unit - Hoegh LNG Partners announced that its board of directors has declared a quarterly cash distribution with respect to the quarter ended March 31 of 43c per unit. This represents an increase of 4.24% from the fourth quarter 2016 distribution and is related to the acquisition of 51% of FSRU Hoegh Grace. The distribution increase brings the total distribution increase since the Partnership's IPO in 2014 to 27.4% and corresponds to an annualized distribution of $1.72 per unit. The cash distribution will be paid on May 15 to all unitholders of record as of the close of the business on May 4.

16:29 EDT Valero Energy Partners increases quarterly distribution 5.2% - The board of Valero Energy Partners GP, the general partner of Valero Energy Partners LP (VLP), has approved the Partnership's Q1 cash distribution of 42.75c per unit. This distribution represents a 5.2% increase over the Partnership's previous quarterly distribution. The distribution is payable on May 11 to unitholders of record at the close of business on May 2.

16:27 EDT Atara sees further development of autologous ATA188 to trat MS - Atara Biotherapeutics announced that its collaborating investigators at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research and The University of Queensland are reporting interim Phase 1 trial results from the autologous version of ATA188, or autologous ATA188, in patients with primary or secondary progressive MS, at the 69th AAN Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts from April 22-28, 2017. Autologous ATA188 is a targeted Epstein-Barr virus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte product candidate that selectively targets specific antigens of EBV that are believed to be important for the potential treatment of MS. Studies suggest that EBV positive B-cells and plasma cells in the central nervous system have the potential to catalyze an autoimmune response and MS pathophysiology. Atara Bio believes that selectively targeting and eliminating EBV positive B-cells and plasma cells has the potential to benefit patients with MS. The Phase 1 trial is designed to enroll ten patients, including five with PPMS and five with SPMS. In the trial, patients receive four escalating doses of autologous ATA188 over six weeks and are followed for an additional twenty weeks after the last dose. The objectives of the trial were first, to assess the safety and tolerability of autologous ATA188 in patients with progressive MS; second, document preliminary evidence of efficacy through the evaluation of both clinically measured and patient reported changes in MS symptoms during and following treatment; and third, to generate autologous ATA188 at clinical scale from the blood of patients with progressive MS..."This clinical trial directly follows our previously reported findings from a patient with SPMS who showed a durable response to autologous EBV-CTL therapy that lasted for more than three years," said Professor Rajiv Khanna, Coordinator of QIMR Berghofer's Centre for Immunotherapy and Vaccine Development. "At QIMR Berghofer, we have focused for years on elucidating the role of EBV in human disease, and we are excited to be working with Atara Bio to help realize the promise of expanding immunotherapy beyond oncology to autoimmune conditions." "We believe that 2017 will be a pivotal year for Atara Bio," said Isaac Ciechanover, President and CEO of Atara Bio. "We look forward to the further development of autologous ATA188 for patients with MS and to our expected initiation of both the Phase 1 allogeneic ATA188 trial as well as our Phase 3 trials of ATA129 in the second half of the year." In October 2015, Atara Bio obtained an exclusive, worldwide license to develop and commercialize allogeneic CTLs directed against EBV that utilize the QIMR Berghofer technology, including ATA188. Under the license agreement, Atara Bio also received an option to exclusively license the autologous version of ATA188.

16:24 EDT Paycom opens Milwaukee sales office, says looks forward to additional expansions - Paycom Software announced the opening of a sales office in Milwaukee, Wis., growing Paycom's total number of sales teams to 43 nationwide. "Based on the business density and employee demographics, we believe this location presents a great opportunity for Paycom. We also look forward to opening additional offices throughout the year when it makes the most sense for our business," said the company.

16:21 EDT PTC Therapeutics completes acquisition of emflaza - PTC Therapeutics announced it has completed its acquisition of all rights to Emflaza for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy in the U.S. Execution of the asset purchase agreement setting forth the terms of the acquisition was announced on March 16. Financial terms of the acquisition include a total upfront consideration of $140M paid to Marathon Pharmaceuticals. Marathon is also entitled to receive payments from PTC based on annual net sales of Emflaza beginning in 2018, which PTC expects will range as a percentage of net sales between the low to mid-20s on a blended average basis. In addition, Marathon has the opportunity to receive a single $50M sales-based milestone.

16:19 EDT Gannett says acquires SweetIQ Analytics - Gannett announced it has acquired SweetIQ Analytics, expanding the ReachLocal digital marketing suite of products. "SweetIQ is a leading provider of location and reputation management Software-as-a-Service solutions that enable businesses to manage their location data and measure consumer engagement. The acquisition accelerates the company's product roadmap and enhances its ability to help businesses measure results of their digital marketing investments," said Gannett.

16:17 EDT Robert Half CEO says 'pleased' with Q1 results - We were pleased with our financial results for the first quarter, particularly our international staffing operations and Protiviti," said Harold Messmer, Jr., chairman and CEO of Robert Half. "Return on invested capital was 29 percent during the quarter." Commenting further on the results, Messmer said: "While the U.S. economic environment is largely stable, and the job market is strong, the hiring cycle remains uncharacteristically long as employers take more time to make hiring decisions. Recent reports show a noticeable improvement in optimism about U.S. economic prospects, which should shorten the hiring cycle and benefit our business."

16:14 EDT XPO Logistics drivers awarded $855K by CA Labor Commissioner - XPO Logistics' subsidiary XPO Cartage received a ruling by the California Labor Commissioner which issued Orders, Decisions, and Awards in the amount of $855,285.62 to four port and rail drivers working for XPO Cartage. These drivers filed Wage & Hour claims with the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement alleging misclassification as independent contractors. The ODAs included, for the first time, awards for "nonproductive time," such as time spent inspecting the truck, waiting for dispatch, or scanning in paperwork at the end of the day. Each of the four XPO drivers were awarded an average of $38K in wages for unpaid hours, plus liquidated damages for the same amount, amounting to approximately $76K each. XPO has appealed prior ODAs awarded by the DLSE. Port drivers continue to regularly file new claims. These new ODAs for XPO drivers are well above the prior average award of approximately $116K, covering the prior three years of employment.

16:11 EDT Gabelli reports 5.28% stake in Innocoll

16:10 EDT Mattel CEO cites 'retail inventory overhang' for Q1 results - "Our Q1 results were below our expectations due to the retail inventory overhang coming out of the holiday period, but we remain encouraged by strong performance at retail for our key core brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price as well as sustained momentum in high-growth markets like China," said Margo Georgiadis, CEO of Mattel. "We are confident we have worked through the majority of this overhang and look forward to a strong launch of Disney's Cars 3 theatrical release in the second quarter. While we have a lot of work to do to successfully position Mattel for the future, we see a clear runway to improving growth and profitability over time."

16:09 EDT Landmark Infrastructure increases quarterly dividend - Landmark Infrastructure Partners announced that the board of its general partner declared a cash distribution of 35.25c per common unit, or $1.41 per common unit on an annualized basis, for the quarter ended March 31. This quarter's cash distribution, which represents a 6.8% increase year-over-year, marks the ninth consecutive quarter that the Partnership has increased its quarterly cash distribution since its IPO in November 2014. The distribution is payable on May 15 to common unitholders of record as of May 1.

16:07 EDT Navios Maritime Partners agrees to acquire fleet for $113M - Navios Maritime Partners announced that it has agreed to acquire the entire container fleet of Rickmers Maritime for about $113.0M. The acquisition is being financed through a $20M equity investment by Navios Partners and a secured loan facility under discussion. The vessels are expected to be delivered starting May 15. The acquisition is subject to a number of conditions, and no assurance can be provided that the acquisition will close in all or part.

16:06 EDT Senomyx issues shareholder letter urging rejection of dissident investor group - The board of Senomyx mailed a letter to shareholders in connection with the Company's upcoming 2017 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to be held on May 11. "You will face a critical choice that will directly impact the future of your investment in Senomyx. You must decide whether to elect the slate of highly-qualified and experienced Board nominees put forth by the Company, or the slate of nominees put forth by an activist investor group that just recently purchased less than one thousandth of one percent or 300 shares of Senomyx stock. As we have previously stressed, we believe that your investment in the Company will be put at extreme risk should you make the decision to give complete control of the Board to a group that owns such a miniscule amount of Senomyx shares and that has not presented a plan for how its members would improve the Company and lead it forward," the company said.

16:04 EDT Skechers sees FY17 ongoing CapEx roughly $40M-$45M - The company expects its ongoing capital expenditures for 2017 to be approximately $40M-$45M, which includes corporate office upgrades and an additional 50 to 75 company-owned retail store openings and several store remodels, as well as an additional $25M for infrastructure primarily in its China joint venture.

15:24 EDT Nucor sees non-residential construction regaining momentum this year - On its Q1 earnings conference, call Nucor management said: "In the second quarter, our sheet mills should experience further gains in price realizations as a portion of the contract sales are priced on a lagging quarterly basis. We expect our plate mills to benefit from recent trade actions that provide a more level playing field. Our fabricated construction products order books indicate that the nonresidential construction markets have regained momentum in 2017. That, along with seasonal trends, will benefit the second quarter performance of our steel products segment."

15:15 EDT Nucor cautions on global steel production overcapacity - Comment from Q1 earnings conference call.

14:58 EDT Wal-Mart launches 'Project Gigaton' to reduce emissions in supply chain - Wal-Mart announced the launch of "Project Gigaton," an effort to reduce emissions in the company's supply chain. "This initiative will provide an emissions reduction toolkit to a broad network of suppliers seeking to eliminate one gigaton of emissions, focusing on areas such as manufacturing, materials and use of products by 2030... The company aims to reduce its absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 18 percent by 2025. The retailer will also work to reduce CO2e, or carbon dioxide equivalent, emissions from upstream and downstream Scope 3 sources by one billion tons - a gigaton - between 2015 and 2030," the company said. Reference Link

14:53 EDT Orange unveils 'Orange Bank' - Orange today unveiled Orange Bank, "its 100% mobile banking offer that has been conceived by digital experts to meet everyone's needs." The company noted, "The offer will be available in France for Orange employees from mid-May and for the general public from 6 July. Customers can subscribe directly from the mobile application, online or in one of Orange's 140 certified stores. Innovative and specifically designed for mobile uses, the offer will provide customers from launch with a bank account, a debit card, overdraft protection and an interest-bearing savings account. Additional services, such as credit and insurance, will gradually be included in the offer." Reference Link

14:32 EDT Ocwen says will 'vigorously defend itself' against CFPB allegations - Ocwen Financial issued a statement in response to the legal action filed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, related to allegations concerning the company's mortgage servicing business: "Ocwen strongly disputes the CFPB's claim that Ocwen's mortgage loan servicing practices have caused substantial consumer harm. In fact, just the opposite is true. Ocwen believes its mortgage loan servicing practices have and continue to result in substantial benefits to consumers above and beyond other mortgage servicers. The substantive allegations in today's suit are inaccurate and unfounded. Indeed, the Company is unaware of the CFPB conducting any detailed review of Ocwen's loan servicing files. Rather, the CFPB suit is primarily based on the CFPB's flawed review of data and its self-serving conclusion about isolated instances where Ocwen self-identified ways we can do better. Ocwen fully cooperated with the CFPB's inquiries, and sought to find a fair and reasonable solution to the extent the CFPB identified legitimate concerns. Indeed, Ocwen continued to work with the CFPB until the suit was filed. Under these circumstances, Ocwen has a responsibility to its customers, shareholders, and employees to vigorously defend the Company against these unfounded claims...Ocwen fully supports government regulation that promotes principles designed to protect the best interests of our customers and promote consistent best practices across the marketplace. Ocwen believes this suit does not advance any of those principles."

14:26 EDT Lombard Medical appoints Kurt Lemvigh as CEO - Lombard Medical announced that Kurt Lemvigh has been appointed as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. "Lemvigh is a veteran medical device executive with over 30 years of experience creating profitable growth. He... has held senior sales, marketing and operational positions at various public and private companies including Spacelabs, Cardiac Science, GE and Marquette-Hellige," the company said.

14:12 EDT New Residential drops after CFPB sues Ocwen, states take action - Shares of Ocwen Financial (OCN) have plunged after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued the mortgage loan servicer and its subsidiaries, saying it has "uncovered substantial evidence that Ocwen has engaged in significant and systemic misconduct at nearly every stage of the mortgage servicing process." Additionally, over 20 state mortgage regulators earlier today said they sent the company a Cease-and-Desist Order. Shares of New Residential Investment (NRZ) are down as well following the Ocwen news. In New Residential's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, the company stated that regulatory action against Ocwen "could increase our financing costs or operating expenses, reduce our revenues or otherwise materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and liquidity." In afternoon trading, Ocwen shares have plunged $3.23, or 60%, to $2.17 while New Residential has declined $2.32, or 13%, to $15.43.

13:52 EDT NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio announces legislation to curb tobacco usage - Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a series of legislative proposals to reduce the number of smokers in New York City by 160,000 over the next three years. While smoking rates in New York City have declined from 21.5 percent in 2002 to 14.3 percent in 2015, the city still has more than 900,000 smokers, including 15,000 youth. There are also 174,000 adults and 42,000 adolescents using e-cigarettes. These new proposals will decrease smoking rates to a historically low rate of 12 percent. Reference Link

13:49 EDT Mnuchin says tax reform coming 'very soon' - Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin said today in Washington that tax reform is coming "very soon."

13:44 EDT Ocwen halted for volatility after dropping 53% to $2.52

13:41 EDT Mylan launches generic trilafon tablets - Mylan N.V. announced the U.S. launch of Perphenazine Tablets USP, 2 mg, 4 mg, 8 mg and 16 mg, a generic version of the reference listed drug, Trilafon Tablets 2 mg, 4 mg, 8 mg and 16 mg, originally marketed by Schering. Mylan received final approval from the U.S. FDA for its Abbreviated New Drug Application for this product, which is used in the treatment of schizophrenia and for the control of severe nausea and vomiting in adults. Perphenazine Tablets USP, 2 mg, 4 mg, 8 mg, and 16 mg, had U.S. sales of approximately $41M for the 12 months ending Feb. 28, 2017, according to IMS Health.

13:35 EDT Ocwen sinks 40% after state cease and desist orders, CFPB lawsuit

13:30 EDT Tribune Media: FCC UHF decision 'welcome step' toward level playing field - Tribune Media released the following statement regarding today's decision by the Federal Communications Commission to reinstate the UHF discount: "Today's action by the Federal Communications Commission is a welcome step towards creating a more level playing field for all local broadcasters in their relationships with television networks, satellite operators, cable providers, and streaming video services. Ultimately, the FCC's decision will serve the important interest of localism by enabling broadcasters to better serve their communities."

13:13 EDT J.B. Hunt authorizes additional $500M share repurchase - J.B. Hunt announced that its board of directors adopted a new share repurchase program authorizing the repurchase of an additional $500M of the company's common stock. The specific timing and amount of the repurchase will vary based on market conditions, cash flows, securities law limitations and other factors. The repurchase program may be suspended, extended or discontinued at any time without prior notice.

13:10 EDT Gap commits to expand use of sustainable apparel fibers - Gap highlighted "bold new commitments" from it and Athleta to accelerate the use of more sustainable fibers in apparel production within the next five years. The company's namesake brand Gap announced a new commitment to obtain 100% of its cotton from more sustainable sources by 2021. Athleta, whose assortment predominantly features technical fabrics, announced a series of sustainability goals including a commitment to use fibers that are better for the planet -- by 2020, 80% of the brand's apparel materials will be made with sustainable fibers. To achieve its new cotton goal, Gap will continue to partner with Better Cotton Initiative, which works with farmers around the world to improve cotton production. Gap's new commitment will also include the use of other sustainable cotton such as organic, recycled and American-grown.

13:04 EDT SeaWorld says final killer whale calf born - SeaWorld announced in a social media post: "Yesterday afternoon Takara gave birth to her fifth & the final #killerwhale calf to be born at #SeaWorld." Reference Link

12:45 EDT Ocwen sinks after Nebraska issues Cease and Desist Order - The Nebraska Department of Banking and Finance has issued a Cease and Desist Order to Ocwen Financial through its Nebraska licensed subsidiaries, Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC and Ocwen Mortgage Servicing The Order prohibits the companies from the acquisition of mortgage servicing rights and the origination of mortgage loans until they are able to prove they can appropriately manage their consumer mortgage escrow accounts. Shares of Ocwen are down 6% to $5.09 in afternoon trading.

12:41 EDT Trump says U.S. steel companies were 'much bigger' years ago - President Trump, while meeting with steel executives, said U.S. steel companies like U.S. Steel (X) were "much bigger" years ago.

12:32 EDT Google Home adds multi-user support - Google (GOOG) announced: "We're adding the ability for up to six people to connect their account to one Google Home. So now when I ask my Google Assistant for help, it can distinguish my voice from my wife's and I can hear my own personal playlists, my own commute time, my own schedule and more... This feature will start rolling out today for Google Home users in the U.S., but will expand to the U.K. in the coming months." Other publicly traded companies in the smart speaker space include Amazon (AMZN). Reference Link

12:27 EDT Unilever's Q1 sales top estimates, buys upstart condiment maker - Shares of food and consumer product giant Unilever N.V. (UN,UL) are higher in afternoon trading after the Anglo-Dutch company reported better than expected first quarter earnings earlier today. Unilever is a global conglomerate and owner of many household brands including Ben & Jerry's, Hellman's Mayonnaise and Dove soap. The company also announced plans to acquire Sir Kensington's, a New York-based condiment maker. EARNINGS: Unilever said that underlying sales growth of 2.9% for the first quarter beat consensus estimates of 2% and Q1 turnover of EUR13.3B was up 6% year-on-year. The company said rising commodity cost and improving economies allowed price increases in the quarter. In an interview with Reuters, CFO Graeme Pitkethly said, "We are seeing positive signs in the economy overall." Emerging markets contributed the most to growth in the quarter, increasing 6.1%, with price up 5.3% in the geographic sector and volume up almost 1%. Overall company pricing growth was 3%, amidst a slight decrease in volumes over all. Looking ahead, CEO Paul Polman said "The actions we are taking keep us on track for another year of underlying sales growth ahead of our markets, in the 3%-5% range. We also expect an improvement in underlying operating margin this year of at least 80 basis points and strong cash flow. We are raising the dividend by 12%, reflecting the confidence in our outlook." After rejecting a $143B buy-out proposal from Kraft (KHC) this past February, Unilever announced it will restructure parts of its business. As part of the revamp, the company announced its intent to sell its spreads business, which includes Flora margarine and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. FOOD DOLDRUMS: "Foods continued to modernize the portfolio while building its presence in emerging markets," the company noted. However, the Food segment was the weakest for the company this quarter, with underlying sales flat in the quarter as the category was particularly impacted by the later Easter. Excluding spreads, underlying sales grew by 1.7%. Unilever's segments include Food, Personal Care, Home Care, Foods and Refreshments, which include Lipton tea. BUYING HIP, YOUNGER BRANDS: In an effort to modernize its business and capitalize on hip consumer trends, the company announced this morning that it was buying New York-based condiment maker Sir Kensington's. Sir Kensington's can be considered a condiment "disruptor" as it makes natural and non-GMO ketchup and eggless mayo. "We are excited to bring Sir Kensington's into the Unilever family. Their mission to bring 'integrity and charm to ordinary and overlooked food' is very much in line with our Unilever Sustainable Living Plan," said Kees Kruythoff, President, Unilever North America. "Sir Kensington's is an innovative business with outstanding products and a leader in the organic and natural marketplace. We look forward to leveraging our joint understanding of food trends and consumer preferences to significantly grow the business." The purchase price was about $140M, Bloomberg said, citing an individual with knowledge of the matter. Last year, Unilever bought Seventh Generation, a Vermont-based maker of "green" household products like laundry detergent and diapers and Dollar Shave Club. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Unilever are up about 1% in midday trading to $51.40 per share.

12:10 EDT McGuire says Buffalo Wild can hit $400-$450/share with improvements - Marcato Capital founder Mick McGuire is speaking on CNBC.

12:04 EDT Marcato's McGuire says Buffalo Wild Wings metrics are deteriorating - Marcato Capital founder Mick McGuire is speaking on CNBC.

12:02 EDT Gilead says data demonstrates advantages of Vemlidy treatment over Viread - Gilead Sciences announced 96-week results from two ongoing Phase 3 studies evaluating the safety and efficacy of daily Vemlidy in immune active patients and in patients switching from Gilead's Viread. Vemlidy is a once-daily treatment approved for adults with chronic hepatitis B virus infection with compensated liver disease. Gilead presented data from preclinical studies of investigational compounds being studied for their potential role in HBV cure strategies. Data are being presented this week at The International Liver Congress 2017 in Amsterdam. The two randomized, double-blinded Phase 3 studies from which the data are presented evaluated the use of Vemlidy given once-daily versus Gilead's Viread given once-daily in treatment-naive and treatment-experienced adults with HBeAg-negative and HBeAg-positive chronic HBV infection. Results demonstrate continued advantages of treatment with Vemlidy over Viread between Week 48 and Week 96. Virologic response rates at Week 96 were 90 percent and 91 percent in HBeAg-negative patients receiving Vemlidy and Viread, respectively. In HBeAg-positive patients, virologic response rates at Week 96 were 73 percent and 75 percent in the Vemlidy and Viread groups, respectively. In both studies, a greater percentage of patients taking Vemlidy achieved normalization of ALT levels relative to patients taking Viread as measured by both central laboratory criteria, and by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases criteria. Patients receiving Vemlidy also demonstrated ongoing benefits at Week 96 in bone and renal safety parameters, including smaller declines from baseline in hip and spine bone mineral density and smaller declines from baseline in estimated creatinine clearance compared with patients taking Viread in both studies. Similar rates of adverse events and low and similar rates of adverse events leading to discontinuation were observed in both treatment arms. Viral resistance analyses showed no resistance to Vemlidy or Viread at Week 96.

11:47 EDT Comtech awarded $42.7M contract to continue support of BFT-1 - Comtech announced that during its third quarter of fiscal 2017, its Maryland-based subsidiary, Comtech Mobile Datacom Corporation, which is part of Comtech's Government Solutions segment, has been awarded a five-year contract, with a not-to-exceed value of $42.7M, to continue to provide sustainment support for the U.S. Army's Project Manager Mission Command, or PM MC, - Blue Force Tracking, or BFT-1, program. BFT-1 is a battle command real-time situational awareness and control system. Under the new five-year BFT-1 sustainment contract, Comtech will perform engineering services, satellite network operations and program management through a hybrid Firm Fixed Price/Time & Materials contract with Cost Reimbursement CLINs. The base performance period begins April 15, 2017 and ends April 14, 2018, and the contract provides for four twelve-month option periods exercisable by the U.S. Army. The total estimated value of the base year is $8M. The U.S. Army has placed an initial funded order of $3.5M under this contract and Comtech expects to receive an additional order shortly to fully fund the base year.

11:37 EDT Eli Lilly to present galcanezumab migraine data at AAN meeting - Eli Lilly announced that it will highlight Phase 2 data evaluating galcanezumab for the prevention of migraine at the American Academy of Neurology, or AAN, annual meeting, which will take place April 22-28. Lilly will present four abstracts at AAN, including safety and patient outcomes data for galcanezumab in patients with migraine and factors associated with a reduction in monthly migraine headache days among patients with episodic migraine.

11:12 EDT Tesaro drops after Zejula pricing, competing PARPi trial miss - The shares of drug maker Tesaro (TSRO) are falling with two possible headwinds cited by analysts as the potential culprit, namely the pricing of its niraparib treatment and the disappointing trial results of another drug in the same therapeutic space. PRICING: Last night, Tesaro announced that Zejula, its oral, once-daily poly polymerase inhibitor, is now available by prescription in the U.S. with a Wholesale Acquisition Cost of $9,833 for a one-month supply at a dose of 200 milligrams once per day. The approved starting dose of ZEJULA is 300 milligrams once per day, but 200 milligrams/day was the most commonly administered dose over the course of the Phase 3 NOVA clinical trial, Tesaro noted in its announcement. ABBVIE TRIAL: Additionally, AbbVie (ABBV) reported that its own PARP inhibitor cancer treatment, veliparib, failed to meet its primary endpoints in two Phase III trials involving squamous non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, and triple negative breast cancer patients. The primary endpoint for the NSCLC patients was improvement in overall survival, while the primary endpoint for the breast cancer patients was "complete pathological response." Veliparib was combined with chemotherapy for the study. PRICING REACTIONS: Citi analyst Robyn Karnauskas lowered her price target for Tesaro to $216 to reflect the pricing of Zejula. After speaking to management, the analyst expects the net price to be around $9,000, lower than her $10,000 estimate. The price, however, could position the company well for a good launch and future competition, Karnauskas tells investors in a research note. She keeps a Buy rating on Tesaro. Leerink analyst Seamus Fernandez also lowered his price target for Tesaro, to $158 from $186, noting that Zejula's pricing of $14,750/month represents a 7% premium to Clovis' (CLVS) Rubraca, but he estimates an average pricing of $10,350/month given the frequency of dose reductions. Fernandez reiterates a Market Perform rating on the shares. TRIAL REACTIONS: The failure of AbbVie's drug should have "no impact" on Tesaro's niraparib, wrote SunTrust analyst Peter Lawson. Prior analysis has indicated that niraparib could be more effective than veliparib, the analyst stated. Moreover, niraparib's pairing with Merck's (MRK) iimmuno-oncolgy drug, Keytruda, could yield better results, since immuno-oncology drugs could more effectively combat NSCLC and potentially breast cancer as well, the analyst stated. Lawson, who expects Tesaro to report positive data from the trial at the American Society of Clinical Oncology conference in early June, kept a $235 price target and a Buy rating on the stock. Meanwhile, Geoffrey Porges, an analyst at research firm Leerink, said the results "confirm that veliparib has limited activity and is not competitive with other products in this class." He says that the drug now has no chance of success, but he only lowered his medium to long-term revenue outlook for AbbVie by 1% and cut his earnings estimate for it by just 1%-2%. Porges, who continues to expect AbbVie's profit to exceed expectations through 2020, trimmed his price target on the shares to $71 from $72 and kept a Market Perform rating on the stock. Similarly, Jefferies analyst Jeffrey Holford said that before the recent results he expected sales of veliparib to boost the company's revenue by less than 1.6% in the medium term. The analyst continues to predict that Abbvie will report "solid" Q1 results and he says that the company is developing "multiple" potential blockbuster drugs. Holford kept a $90 price target and a Buy rating on AbbVie shares. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, Tesaro fell over 9% to $134.19, while AbbVie was fractionally higher at $63.66 per share.

10:51 EDT Cigna off highs after Anthem denies report on saving deal - Shares of Cigna (CI) are off their highs after Anthem (ANTM) told Bloomberg that CFTN's report of it trying to save its proposed takeover are "not true." CFTN earlier today reported that Anthem is in talks with the Trump administration to "rescue" its deal to acquire Cigna. Anthem subsequently denied the report to Bloomberg. Cigna shares are off their highs but remain up $1.74 to $153.69 in morning trading.

10:36 EDT On 4/20, Cowen downgrades Molson Coors on cannabis threat to drinking - In a research note this morning, Cowen analyst Vivien Azer downgraded Molson Coors (TAP) to Market Perform to reflect expectations for persistent beer volume headwinds. With cannabis adoption accelerating, the analyst believes alcohol volumes will remain under pressure, while the new consumer trends should benefit Kush Bottles (KSHB) and Turning Point Brands (TPB). CANNABIS ADOPTION ACCELERATING: Cowen's Azer told investors that she believes alcohol could be under pressure for the next decade, based on data analysis covering 80 years of alcohol and 35 years of cannabis incidence in the U.S. The analyst pointed out that coming out of the recession, alcohol's recovery has been uneven, while cannabis incidence and legal sales have risen markedly. She believes this sets up the alcoholic beverage category for a cycle of falling per capita consumption. With cycles led by younger consumers, Azer noted that among 18-25-year-olds in the country, alcohol incidence has fallen over the last 7 years, while cannabis incidence has risen. Multiple surveys suggest that cannabis consumers generally reduce their alcohol consumption, reinforcing the substitution risk that it represents, she contended. Given the "robust rates of cannabis adoption" nationally, Azer told investors that she continues to be "very constructive" on the potential for the legal cannabis industry in the U.S. Kush Bottles, which markets and sells packaging products and solutions in the medical and recreational cannabis industries, and Turning Point Brands, a pure-play tobacco company, should both be beneficiaries, she noted, reiterating Outperform ratings on both stocks. MOVING TO THE SIDELINES ON MOLSON COORS: In the same research note to investors, Cowen's Azer also downgraded Molson Coors to Market Perform from Outperform and lowered her price target on the shares to $105 to $120. The analyst noted that as the number two beer company in the U.S. and Canada, Molson Coors is "uniquely exposed" to two "increasingly vibrant and growing" cannabis markets. Further, while Azer acknowledged that she has a "high degree" of confidence in the company's ability to generate its targeted cost savings, she is lowering her volume outlook to reflect her expectations for persistent volume headwinds for the beer industries in both markets. STILL BULLISH ON CONSTELLATION BRANDS: Conversely, the analyst remains bullish on Constellation Brands (STZ), reiterating an Outperform rating on the stock. The analyst told investors that given the company's well balanced alcohol portfolio across beer, wine and spirits, Constellation Brands has "the most defensible" positioning against cannabis. The company's products over-index to higher income consumers, as well as women and Hispanics, all of whom under-index to cannabis use, she argued. WHAT'S NOTABLE: On April 13, the government of Canada introduced legislation to legalize, strictly regulate and restrict access to cannabis. "Following Royal Assent, the proposed legislation would allow adults to legally possess and use cannabis. This would mean that possession of small amounts of cannabis would no longer be a criminal offence and would prevent profits from going into the pockets of criminal organizations and street gangs," the government said. PRICE TARGET: In morning trading, shares of Molson Coors have dropped over 1% to $94.88.

10:26 EDT D.R. Horton says will remain 'disciplined' on M&A

10:21 EDT Tyson Foods names Justin Whitmore as Chief Sustainability Officer - Tyson Foods announced the appointment of Justin Whitmore to the newly-created role of Chief Sustainability Officer. This follows Tyson's recent introduction of a new purpose and strategy that place sustainability at the center of the company's future plans. The appointment is effective May 1. Whitmore, who was most recently a consultant at McKinsey & Company, will be part of the company's enterprise leadership team, reporting directly to President and CEO Tom Hayes.

10:01 EDT Unilever to acquire Sir Kensington's, terms not disclosed - Unilever announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Sir Kensington's, a New York-based condiment maker. Co-Founders Mark Ramadan and Scott Norton will continue in their roles at Sir Kensington's. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close in the next few weeks.

09:56 EDT MGC Diagnostics announces clinical study collaboration with Restech - MGC Diagnostics Corporation announced a new clinical study collaboration with Restech Srl to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the forced oscillation technique to detect lung function abnormalities. Worldwide enrollment, expected to begin mid-year 2017, will include subjects ranging from age six to adult. MGC Diagnostics will sponsor the study and Restech Srl will conduct the study. The multi-center, observational prospective accuracy study objective is to determine the diagnostic accuracy of within-breath FOT parameters, measured or calculated by the Resmon Pro Full, to detect a lung function anomaly as compared to spirometry in a prospective and consecutive cohort of subjects attending a pulmonary function testing lab for diagnostic examination. Sensitivity and specificity analysis along with the results of the trial will be compared with spirometry, considered the "gold standard," to confirm the presence of a lung function anomaly.

09:50 EDT LightPath announces joint development pact for autonomous vehicle optical system - LightPath Technologies announced it has signed a joint development agreement with Hangzhou OLE-Systems Laser Technology, a subsidiary of GreatStar Group, to design and manufacture an optical system assembly based on LightPath's proprietary high power fiber delivery technology. LightPath's President and CEO, Jim Gaynor, stated, "We have a long history as a supplier to OLE and are very excited to now have this opportunity to partner on a development basis. The goal of our new project is to develop a low-cost, high-quality Laser Diode to Fiber Coupling System with 16 multimode fiber arrangements...Our work with OLE will result in the development of a fiber delivery system for production level position mapping for mission critical applications such as for use with autonomous vehicle instrumentation where accuracy and calibration are of paramount concern. We expect this to be the first of many collaborations between the two companies."

09:48 EDT Hospitals lower after CNBC says memo could bring healthcare votes - CNBC's Kayla Tausche tweeted, "NEW: If health care changes in MacArthur memo are in bill text, they'd get 18-20 new @freedomcaucus votes. Brings total to 25-30, per source." Shares of hospital stocks are lower in early trading, including Community Health (CYH), HCA Holdings (HCA), LifePoint (LPNT), Tenet (THC) and Universal Health (UHS).

09:43 EDT Celanese trading resumes

09:32 EDT Rent-A-Center reports March Core U.S. SSS down 9.6% - Rent-A-Center announced the following key operating metrics for its Core U.S. and Acceptance NOW businesses for March 2017: Core U.S. Same Store Sales: (9.6%); Delinquencies: 6.1% and 140 basis points favorable versus prior month; Average Monthly Rate of New Agreements: 6.6% unfavorable versus prior year; Co-worker Turnover: 83.7% and 10.4 percentage points favorable versus prior year. Acceptance NOW: Same Store Sales: 12.4%; Delinquencies: 8.8% and 40 basis points favorable versus prior month. In the Core U.S. segment, March same store sales increased sequentially due to higher merchandise sales revenue following the tax refund delay and continued improvements of the quality of the rental portfolio, as evidenced by reduced delinquencies. Rent-A-Center is executing a new strategic plan designed to restore growth, improve profitability and maximize value for all Rent-A-Center stockholders. As part of this plan, the Company is focused on increasing the mix of aspirational products and has started to shift replenishment towards higher-end products. This will take several quarters to become a meaningful portion of the inventory and portfolio mix and, until that time, the average monthly rate and gross profit margin will remain under pressure. The Company has also aggressively implemented several initiatives aimed at reducing the amount of Acceptance NOW returned product in the Core stores. These initiatives include reducing the remaining inventory value of Acceptance NOW product when it is transferred to the Core, for internal purposes, in order to increase sell through rates. In addition, Acceptance NOW is also reducing returns through a targeted initiative to increase the early payout discount. Rent-A-Center has developed a more frequent and pointed approach to training and development that will enable consistent execution and strengthen customer relationships. The trajectory of turnover remains well ahead of last year. In Acceptance NOW, March same store sales were also favorably impacted by the delay in tax refunds as strong rental and fee revenue of 7.8 percent was coupled with double digit merchandise sales growth. Delinquencies improved sequentially by 40 basis points mainly driven by the high seasonality around tax season. Over the longer term, the previously disclosed exit from Conn Appliances is expected to improve delinquencies and losses as the ANow customer accounts originating from Conn's consistently underperformed compared to the rest of the Company's ANow portfolio in terms of delinquencies, losses and product returns. In March, the first wave of HHGregg stores closed and the nearby Acceptance NOW locations that received merged accounts were removed from the same store sales calculation.

09:31 EDT Gilead to present data on NASH at International Liver Congress 2017 - Gilead Sciences announced that it will present data from 15 abstracts on the pathogenesis and treatment of NASH this week at The International Liver Congress 2017 in Amsterdam. This includes data Gilead will present during the opening session of the congress, which indicate that fibrosis is the primary determinant of NASH clinical disease progression. Gilead will also present data on investigational compounds targeting distinct mechanisms of action being studied individually, and as combination therapies, for the treatment of NASH. While found to be ineffective for reducing liver fibrosis in patients with NASH, Phase 2b studies of simtuzumab, have generated important data on the clinical progression of the disease. These analyses indicate that the primary determinant of progression to cirrhosis in patients with bridging fibrosis or to events of hepatic decompensation in patients with cirrhosis is the fibrosis stage at baseline, and its change over time. Data from the simtuzumab studies also show that modest weight loss, observed in approximately 10 percent of patients, does not reduce progression to cirrhosis in NASH patients with bridging fibrosis, and that weight loss did not prevent hepatic decompensation in patients with cirrhosis.

09:29 EDT Celanese trading halted, news pending

09:28 EDT Whitestone REIT trading halted, news pending

09:27 EDT Bryn Mawr Bank reports Q1 EPS 55c, consensus 54c - Reports Q1 book value per share $22.87. Reports Q1 CET1 capital ratio 10.5%.

09:26 EDT Crown Holdings says potential M&A candidates 'expensive' - Says "happy" to repurchase stock.

09:24 EDT SYNNEX selected to carry Symantec's complete product portfolio - SYNNEX (SNX) is offering the full portfolio of Symantec (SYMC) enterprise security solutions. The SYNNEX security offering includes Symantec endpoint, email, data loss prevention, data center, cloud security and secure web gateway solutions.

09:21 EDT Plumas Bancorp raises semi-annual dividend to 14c per share - Plumas Bancorp, the parent company of Plumas Bank, announced that the board declared a regular semi-annual cash dividend on Plumas Bancorp common stock of 14c per share, payable May 15, 2017, to stockholders of record as of May 1, 2017. This represents a 4c increase from the 10c dividend paid on November 21, 2016.

09:20 EDT Fusion secures $2.1M five-year cloud solution contract for health system - Fusion has secured a $2.1M, five year cloud solutions contract with a leading health system. Fusion will provide a comprehensive suite of cloud services.

09:20 EDT BioScrip appoints Stephen Deitsch as CFO - BioScrip announced the appointment of Stephen Deitsch to the positions of Senior Vice President, CFO and Treasurer, effective April 24. Deitsch succeeds Jeffrey Kreger, who stepped down from his roles. Kreger will be working with the company to ensure a smooth transition.

09:18 EDT On The Fly: Pre-market Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: CSX (CSX), up 6% after reporting quarterly results, announcing a dividend increase, and a new $1B share repurchase program... Select Comfort (SCSS), up 13.5%... Sherwin-Williams (SHW), up 3.7%... American Express (AXP), up 2.3%... Datawatch (DWCH), up 12%... BB&T (BBT), up 1.6%... SLM (SLM), up 3.2%. ALSO HIGHER: KCG Holdings (KCG), up 11.1% after being acquired by Virtu Financial (VIRT). Virtu Financial is up 7.4% following the announcement... Aldeyra (ALDX) up 6.7% after ADX-102 in Sjogren-Larsson Syndrome was granted Orphan Drug designation by the FDA. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: Verizon (VZ), down 2.8%... Plexus (PLXS), down 9.4%... Philip Morris (PM), down 3.7%... eBay (EBAY), down 2.8%... Travelers (TRV), down 1.6%. ALSO LOWER: Whitestone REIT (WSR), down 8.1% after filing to sell 8.1M shares of common stock.

09:15 EDT Crown Holdings says Middle East 'continues to be volatile' - Says lots of tensions in the region. Comments from company's Q1 earnings conference call.

09:13 EDT Nielsen adopting Gracenote ID as standard content identifier - Nielsen is formally adopting Gracenote IDs as the standard content identifier across its audience measurement solutions. Standardization of Gracenote IDs within Nielsen's measurement products will tie together all related media and power more effective cross platform buying and planning. Gracenote's IDs link together video, music and sports content across television, digital, and radio. Nielsen completed its acquisition of Gracenote in Q1.

09:10 EDT GoPro launches pilot program for new 5.2K spherical camera, Fusion - GoPro announced a pilot program for GoPro Fusion, its 5.2K spherical camera designed to be the ultimate capture device for both fully immersive virtual reality content as well as conventional non-VR video and photo formats. Starting today, professional content creators can apply to participate in the pilot program which is expected to roll-out during the summer of 2017. Fusion is compatible with a broad range of GoPro's mounts and handheld accessories. This summer, GoPro will be working closely with a selection of pilot partners - including brands, agencies and content professionals - to further refine the user experience and produce inspiring content that demonstrates the creative potential of Fusion. GoPro plans a limited commercial release of Fusion by the end of 2017. Details on pricing and other specifics will be provided at launch.

09:07 EDT Verizon CFO: Unlimited offering 'certainly resonating' with wireless customers

09:06 EDT Nucor says expects Q2 earnings to improve relative to Q1 - The company said, "Earnings in the first quarter of 2017 were the highest Nucor has had in recent years, and we expect earnings in the second quarter of 2017 to improve compared to the first quarter of 2017. Performance of the steel mills segment is expected to improve in the second quarter of 2017 as compared to the first quarter of 2017 as metal margins are expected to expand at our sheet mills due to the delayed impact of contract pricing. Our plate mills are anticipated to realize the full benefit of higher margins throughout the entire quarter. We expect increased profitability for our downstream products segment in the second quarter of 2017 as compared to the first quarter of 2017 due to seasonal factors as improving weather conditions benefit nonresidential construction markets. The performance of the raw materials segment is expected to improve in the second quarter of 2017 as compared to the first quarter of 2017 due to the improved profitability of our DRI facilities. We also expect intercompany profit eliminations to have a smaller relative impact in the second quarter of 2017. We continue to be encouraged by the renewed growth in demand we are seeing in the energy markets and the nonresidential construction markets. The automotive markets remain strong."

09:03 EDT Allergan partnering with TARGET PharmaSolutions to advance NASH research - Allergan will collaborate with TARGET PharmaSolutions, a clinical data company focused on real world evidence, on its TARGET-NASH study. TARGET-NASH is a five-year longitudinal observational study that looks at patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease or nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. TARGET-NASH was launched in advance of related drug approvals in order to help facilitate a greater understanding of the impact of NASH and future treatment options. TARGET-NASH's first patient enrollment occurred August 1, 2016, and over the course of the five-year study the program looks to enroll 15,000 adults and children with NAFLD or NASH.

09:01 EDT Verizon CFO says 'will look at all opportunities' to meet fiber needs - Responding to a question regarding Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam's expression of interest in adding more fiber to the network, which could potentially be achieved through M&A, Verizon CFO Matt Ellis said "there's multiple ways" to reach its goals. Ellis added: "we look at all those opportunities...We're very comfortable and confident in the assets we have and adding on to them ourselves. But if the right opportunity came along, we would look at that...We believe in a strong balance sheet. But if the right acquisition comes along that allows us to add shareholder value in the long run and it's the right thing to shareholders and all stakeholders in our business, we'd look at doing that but we'd do it in a way that certainly reflected the needs to have a strong balance sheet."

09:01 EDT MicroVision awarded development and supply contract by tech company - MicroVision announced that it has signed a significant contract with a major technology company to develop a Laser Beam Scanning display system and to produce MicroVision specific components. Under this agreement, MicroVision would develop a new generation of MEMS1, ASICs2 and related firmware for a high resolution, LBS based product the technology company is planning to produce. MicroVision would receive up to $24M including $14M in fees for development work that is expected to span 21 months and an upfront payment for other items. The development fees would be paid contingent on completion of milestones in 2017 and 2018. Further details on the milestone timing, amounts related to the milestones, quantity of components and other details of the contract are not being made public.

08:57 EDT Verizon CFO says data traffic increase from unlimited in line with expectations - Verizon CFO Matt Ellis said on the company's Q1 call that first quarter LTE data traffic increased 57% over the prior year. "While still early in the cycle, the increased data traffic resulting from unlimited is in line with our expectations, and network management tools have been effective," Ellis stated on the call.

08:52 EDT Agenus begins Phase 1/2 clinical trial of anti-PD-1 Antibody - Agenus has dosed the first patient in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial of its anti-PD-1 antibody, AGEN2034. The open-label, dose-escalation portion of the trial is designed to evaluate the safety and pharmacological activity of AGEN2034 in patients with advanced solid tumors. Part 2 of the trial is planned to evaluate the recommended dose of AGEN2034 in patients with second line cervical cancer. Preliminary safety and efficacy data are expected to be available within the next 9-12 months. Blocking PD-1 with AGEN2034 may allow T cells to recognize and kill tumor cells.

08:42 EDT Gridsum appoints Ravi Sarathy as its Co-CFO - Gridsum announced the appointment of Ravi Sarathy as its Co-CFO, alongside Michael Peng Zhang, the CFO of the company, effective immediately. The appointment will further strengthen the company's senior management team and enhance its financial reporting, internal control, strategic investment and investor relations capabilities. Ravi Sarathy will also be responsible for the company's global collaborations in the new role. Sarathy served as Chief Strategy Officer of the company from October 2016.

08:36 EDT Verizon IR says cannot answer questions yet on spectrum auction - Michael Stefanski, SVP, Investor Relations, stated that the company will not be able to answer spectrum-related questions on the Q1 earnings call as the company is still subject to the FCC anti-collusion rules related to the spectrum auction.

08:33 EDT Allstate reports Q1 catastrophe loss estimate of $781M - Allstate announced estimated catastrophe losses for March of $516M pre-tax or $335M after-tax, and an estimated $781M pre-tax or $508M after-tax for Q1. Catastrophe losses in Q1 comprised 28 events at an estimated cost of $777M pre-tax, plus unfavorable reserve reestimates of prior reported catastrophe losses. One severe hail event, primarily affecting the state of Texas in March, accounted for over one-third of the catastrophe losses for the quarter.

08:33 EDT Tarena signs strategic partnership agreement with Microsoft - Tarena (TEDU) announced that it has signed a multi-project cooperation agreement with Microsoft (MSFT) and will become Microsoft's strategic partner to provide a wide range of education and certification services to universities, adult students and kid students in China. Pursuant to the partnership agreement, Tarena and Microsoft will work together to provide .Net and H5 technical skills training and certification services to college students, graduates and other individuals. By combining with Microsoft's latest technology and original learning materials, Tarena will further upgrade .Net and Web front end development course to suit different needs of students at all levels. Moreover, the strategic alliance with Microsoft enables Tarena to design and develop the major in data science and artificial intelligence as joint major programs with hundreds of universities and colleges in China. In addition, Tarena invited Microsoft, who is the key founder and donor of a global educational campaign "Hour of Code", to jointly launch and operate "Discovery Cup" National Young People Coding Competition in China. Winners or the graduates who finish Tarena's kid programming course and pass relevant examinations can be awarded the official MTA certificates from Microsoft.

08:32 EDT Shell Midstream raises quarterly distribution by 5.2% to 29.1c per unit - Shell Midstream Partners announced that the board of its general partner declared a cash distribution of 29.1% per limited partner unit for the first quarter of 2017. This represents an increase of 5.1 percent over the previous quarterly distribution of 27.7c per unit and a 23.8 percent increase over the distribution paid with respect to the first quarter of 2016. The distribution will be paid May 12, 2017 to unitholders of record as of May 1, 2017.

08:32 EDT Oramed granted European patent - Oramed Pharmaceuticals announced that the European Patent Office has granted the company a patent titled, "Methods and Compositions for Treating Diabetes: Capsules containing oil-based liquid compositions of combined therapeutic agents for treating diabetes." The patent covers Oramed's invention, a combination therapy including both insulin and a GLP-1 analog in a single oral capsule.

08:31 EDT Iteris awarded conntected vehicle technology review study for OCTA - Iteris announced the Orange County Transportation Authority has engaged with the company to conduct a Vehicle-to-Infrastructure State of the Practice Review. The study will cover connected vehicle technology between vehicles and vehicle-to-infrastructure and will make recommendations for how the OCTA can advance their development and use as the technologies and their applications mature.

08:21 EDT Wells Fargo CEO says will investigate back to 2002 'the best we can' - Asked during an interview conducted by CNN's Poppy Harlow if he will commit to looking back as far as to 2002 in an internal investigation of the sales scandal at the bank, Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan said the bank will look back "the best we can," adding the challenge will be the "quality of the data" going back that far. Sloan also acknowledged in the interview that the bank should have "dealt with and addressed" concerns about its compensation and incentive structure in 2004 and that the bank needs to "move very, very quickly to make improvements in culture, particularly within our retail bank." Reference Link

08:19 EDT Iridium enters partnership with Lindsey Manufacturing - Iridium announced its new partnership with Lindsey Manufacturing. This unique partnership expands Iridium's footprint in the transmission utility day-ahead-power-transfer capacity market, by integrating satellite communications with transmission line analytic solutions.

08:18 EDT Aldeyra's ADX-102 in Sjogren-Larsson Syndrome granted Orphan Drug designation - Aldeyra's novel compound ADX-102 has been granted orphan drug designation by the FDA for the treatment of congenital ichthyosis, a severe skin disease characteristic of Sjogren-Larsson Syndrome. There are no FDA-approved therapies specifically indicated for the treatment of SLS, and ADX-102 is believed to be the only potential SLS therapy in clinical development. In August of 2016, Aldeyra announced that ADX-102 improved ichthyosis in SLS patients in a randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled Phase 2 clinical trial in which ADX-102 was administered to skin for two months. Improvement from baseline was clinically and statistically significant, and the magnitude of improvement was statistically superior to that of vehicle treatment. A global, double-blind, pivotal Phase 3 study is expected to begin later this year.

08:12 EDT iCAD's Xoft system clinical data to be presented at ABS Annual Meeting - iCAD announced that updated clinical data on the use of intraoperative radiation therapy using the Xoft Axxent Electronic Brachytherapy System will be presented during the American Brachytherapy Society Annual Meeting in Boston, MA. At the meeting, Gary Proulx, M.D., Medical Director, Radiation Oncology at Exeter Hospital will present updated findings on his recent clinical experience treating 94 early-stage breast cancer patients with IORT using the Xoft System in a snap oral presentation. Proulx stated, "Early results from our research suggest that this short course of full dose radiation in a single treatment offers a low rate of local failure and a high rate of excellent cosmesis for properly selected patients."

08:09 EDT ClearSign Combustion completes initial installation assessment for Aera Energy - ClearSign Combustion concluded experimental permit status for its first Once Through Steam Generator project provided to Aera Energy and application for a permanent operating permit. Aera applied for "authority to construct," constituting permanent operating status, to the local regulatory body, the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.

08:08 EDT CSX announces new $1B share repurchase program - The CSX board approved a new $1B share repurchase program, which management expects to complete by the end of the first quarter of 2018. This follows the successful completion of CSX's previous repurchase plan, during which the company bought back $2B worth of shares since April 2015.

08:06 EDT Immune Pharmaceuticals signs LOI with Pint Pharma regarding Ceplene - Immune Pharmaceuticals announced that it has entered into a letter of intent with Pint Pharma GmnH, a pharmaceutical company focused on Latin America and other markets, which binds the parties to seek agreement regarding an exclusive license by Pint of the rights to commercialize Ceplene throughout Latin America, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Immune and Pint target closing a final agreement within 30 days. Pursuant to the anticipated final agreement, Pint will be responsible for registration of Ceplene in Latin American countries based on the existing European marketing authorization and will carry out the full commercialization of the licensed product in the territory, including Ceplene registration, pricing and reimbursement, and sales and marketing activities. In conjunction with the anticipated final agreement, Pint will make an investment of $4M into Immune Pharma's oncology subsidiary, Cytovia, to be used by Cytovia exclusively for oncology related activities. Ceplene has been approved in Europe for the maintenance of first remission in patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in combination with interleukin-2. According to Pint, there are approximately 10,000 new cases of AML diagnosed per year in Latin America and there is currently no approved treatment for the maintenance of AML remission.

08:05 EDT Mast Therapeutics expects to adjourn special stockholder meeting on merger - Mast Therapeutics expects to adjourn the Special Meeting of Stockholders scheduled for April 21 to vote on the three required proposals - the merger, the reverse split, and the name change - to achieve a quorum. The three required proposals are exceeding 90% approval based on votes cast to date. However, a quorum for the Special Meeting of Stockholders has yet to be obtained and the business of the meeting cannot be conducted if a quorum is not present. To achieve a quorum for the special meeting, stockholders of more than 50% of the company's outstanding shares as of the record date are required to vote and, as of April 19th, approximately 44% of shares had voted. In the absence of a quorum or the necessary approvals of the proposals to be voted upon, Mast expects to adjourn the special meeting without conducting any business other than the adjournment to allow for the solicitation of additional votes. If adjourned, Mast expects to reconvene the special meeting on Thursday, April 27, at the same location. Mast does not anticipate any change in the record date for stockholders entitled to vote at the special meeting.

08:03 EDT USA Technologies, Gimme Vending announce strategic technology partnership - USA Technologies announced an alliance agreement with Gimme Vending. The combination of USAT's ePort cashless acceptance technology with Gimme Vending's software can equip self-serve machines with cashless and online services capabilities that are integrated with wireless, plug-and-play technology that helps download DEX from the machines. Gimme has agreed to market to its customers USAT's seamless, turnkey cashless payments platform and industry-leading PCI Level 1 secure service.

08:03 EDT MSCI names Arun Sinha Chief Marketing Officer - MSCI Inc. (MSCI) said that Arun Sinha has joined the firm as Chief Marketing Officer and will be a member of the firm's Executive Committee. In his new position, Sinha, who reports to Laurent Seyer, Chief Client Officer, will oversee all marketing and communications functions globally. Most recently, Sinha served as Chief Marketing Officer of J.P. Morgan Global Wealth Management (JPM).

08:00 EDT InVivo Therapeutics announces oral presentations at ASIA meeting - InVivo Therapeutics Holdings announced that the company will be giving two oral presentations at the 2017 American Spinal Injury Association Annual Scientific Meeting to be held April 26-29, 2017 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Alex Aimetti, Ph.D., Vice President, Medical Education and Scientific Support, will present a clinical trial update during the "Clinical Trials 360-degree" session sponsored by Spinal Cord Outcomes Partnership Endeavor on Friday, April 28. Dr. Aimetti will also present an abstract entitled "Relationship of ASIA Impairment Scale Grade to Post-injury Hospitalization Costs in Thoracic Spinal Cord Injury" during a general session on Saturday, April 29. The abstract is co-authored by Dr. Aimetti, Ellen Dukes, Ph.D., Steven Kirshblum, M.D., Sarah Qin, M.B.A., Rebecca Bornheimer, B.A., and Gerry Oster, Ph.D. In addition to the two oral presentations, the company will have an exhibit booth at the meeting.

07:59 EDT Virtu Financial agrees to acquire KCG Holdings for $20 per share in cash - Virtu Financial (VIRT) announces that it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire KCG Holdings (KCG) for $20.00 per share, or approximately $1.4B equity value. The offer, which is 100% cash consideration, represents 1.08x KCG's tangible book value of $18.61 at March 31, 2017. Virtu also reports it has entered into a commitment with JPMorgan Securities to provide up to $1.65B of debt financing for the transaction. $750M will be financed through the issuance of Virtu common stock at $15.60 per share. The anticipated closing is expected in the third quarter of 2017, following receipt of KCG stockholder approval and all required clearances and approvals. The deal is seen creating over 25% accretion to Virtu EPS with fully-phased cost savings and capital synergies. $208M in net cost savings and $440M in capital synergies have been identified, the company noted.

07:53 EDT Virtu Financial agrees to acquire KCG Holdings for $20 per share in cash

07:48 EDT HP Enterprise and 5G Lab Germany partner to develop 5G technology - Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced a collaboration with the 5G Lab Germany, a consortium of researchers focused on delivering key technologies to enable 5G wireless networks. Through this collaboration, HPE and the 5G Lab will research the impacts of 5G wireless networks combined with HPE Edgeline Converged Edge Systems on the telecommunications and mobile industries. Edgeline systems will be deployed at the network edge to enable the next generation of applications to take advantage of 5G network performance. HPE and 5G Lab will partner to build proof points in autonomous vehicle intercommunication and deliver end user applications leveraging 5G wireless networks with HPE Edgeline Systems.

07:42 EDT Enanta reports 99% SVR12 rate in HCV patients treated with AbbVie's G/P regimen - Enanta Pharmaceuticals (ENTA) announced that 99% of chronic hepatitis C virus infected patients with genotype 1, 2, 4, 5 or 6 and compensated cirrhosis achieved sustained virologic response at 12 weeks post-treatment with AbbVie's (ABBV) investigational, pan-genotypic, ribavirin-free regimen of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir. This high SVR12 rate was seen following 12 weeks of G/P treatment without ribavirin. Patients with specific virus strains associated with resistance or with a high quantity of the virus in their bloodstream before treatment initiation were not excluded from the study. These new data, from the Phase 3 EXPEDITION-1 study, will be featured as an oral presentation today at The International Liver Congress 2017 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. In the EXPEDITION-1 study, the majority of adverse events were mild, and no patients discontinued treatment due to an AE. The most common AEs were fatigue and headache. AbbVie is presenting additional data at ILC in patients with specific treatment challenges, including in those with chronic kidney disease, HIV-1 co-infection, post liver transplant, and post renal transplant, as well as in patients who did not achieve SVR12 with previous direct-acting antiviral treatment. Authorization applications for G/P are currently under review by regulatory authorities around the world. G/P has been granted accelerated assessment by the European Medicines Agency, and priority review designations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. G/P is an investigational regimen and its safety and efficacy have not been established.

07:37 EDT SITO Mobile files preliminary consent revocation solicitation statement - SITO Mobile announced that it has filed a preliminary Consent Revocation Solicitation Statement with the SEC in response to the preliminary consent solicitation statement filed on April 12, 2017 by Stephen Baksa, Thomas Candelaria and the other participants in their intended consent solicitation. Both sets of materials are subject to the SEC review process, and solicitation of consent forms or consent revocations is not permitted prior to completion of this process. As previously announced, Messrs. Baksa and Candelaria, who have reported in their filings with the SEC that they own in the aggregate approximately 6.8% of SITO's outstanding shares, intend to solicit consents to remove all but one of the directors on SITO's five-member board, increase the size of the SITO Board to six members and cause their own hand-picked nominees to be elected to the SITO Board. Messrs. Baksa and Candelaria have indicated in their filing with the SEC that they are not seeking to replace current SITO Board member and SITO stockholder Brent Rosenthal who Baksa has a previous association with and who Baksa has previously collaborated with on an activist campaign at another public company.

07:36 EDT Verizon reports Q1 cash flow from operations $1.7B - Including $3.4B in discretionary pension contributions. As a result of the contributions, Verizon's mandatory pension funding through 2020 is expected to be minimal, which will benefit future cash flows and improve the funded status of qualified pension plans. Capital expenditures totaled $3.1B in first-quarter 2017, as Verizon maintained its network leadership.

07:35 EDT Xenetic: PolyXen platform technology accepted for presentation at PEGS - Xenetic Biosciences announced that an abstract highlighting the company's proprietary drug development platform technology, PolyXen, which is designed to improve the half-life and other pharmacological properties of biologic drugs, has been accepted for a scientific poster presentation at the 13th Annual PEGS Boston conference to be held May 1-5th, 2017 in Boston, MA.

07:34 EDT Verizon reports Q1 wireline results - Total wireline revenues declined 0.6 percent, to $7.9 billion, comparing first-quarter 2017 with first-quarter 2016. Consistent with recent trends and on a comparable basis (non-GAAP), this decline was 3.2 percent, excluding revenues from XO Communications in first-quarter 2017. Total Fios revenues grew 4.7 percent, to $2.9 billion, comparing first-quarter 2017 with first-quarter 2016. This supported revenue growth of 0.7 percent in consumer markets and 2.3 percent in business markets. In first-quarter 2017, Verizon added a net of 35,000 Fios Internet connections and lost a net of 13,000 Fios Video connections. At the end of first-quarter 2017, Verizon had 5.7 million Fios Internet connections and 4.7 million Fios Video connections, year-over-year increases of 3.3 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively. During the first quarter, Verizon Enterprise Solutions and Verizon Business Markets entered into new agreements or continued work with a number of clients, including Block Institute, the State of Connecticut, Georgetown University, HRC ManorCare and Xplor. Wireline operating income was $293 million in first-quarter 2017, compared with a loss of $67 million in first-quarter 2016. Segment operating income margin was 3.7 percent in first-quarter 2017. Segment EBITDA (non-GAAP) was $1.8 billion in first-quarter 2017, up 18.3 percent from first-quarter 2016. Segment EBITDA margin (non-GAAP) was 22.7 percent in first-quarter 2017, compared with 19.0 percent in first-quarter 2016.

07:29 EDT Blackstone's Schwarzman says Q1 'best quarter for realizations on record' - Blackstone Chairman and CEO Stephen Schwarzman said, "Blackstone reported outstanding results in the first quarter, marked by strong returns across our major fund strategies as well as our best quarter for realizations on record. The result was a more than doubling of revenue and earnings versus the prior-year period, and our second best quarterly distribution ever, at $0.87 per common unit. In total, we will have distributed nearly $14 per common unit of value since the IPO, including $2.50 per year on average over the past three years, making Blackstone consistently one of the highest yielding large-capitalization companies in the world."

07:24 EDT RedHill Biopharma's Yeliva Phase I results published in peer-reviewed journal - RedHill Biopharma announced the publication of an article describing the positive results from the Phase I clinical study with Yeliva in advanced solid tumors. The article was authored by scientists from the Medical University of South CarolinaHollings Cancer Center and Apogee Biotechnology and was published in Clinical Cancer Research. Yeliva is a Phase II-stage, proprietary, first-in-class, orally-administered sphingosine kinase-2 selective inhibitor with anticancer and anti-inflammatory activities, targeting multiple oncology, inflammatory and gastrointestinal indications. The open-label, dose-escalation, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic first-in-human Phase I study with Yeliva treated 21 patients with advanced solid tumors, most of whom were gastrointestinal cancer patients. The primary objectives of the study were to identify the maximum tolerated dose and the dose-limiting toxicities and to evaluate the safety of Yeliva. Final Phase I results successfully met primary and secondary endpoints, demonstrating that the drug is well-tolerated and can be safely administered to cancer patients. A Phase II study with Yeliva for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma is ongoing. A Phase Ib/II study with Yeliva for the treatment of refractory or relapsed multiple myeloma is ongoing at Duke University Medical Center. Yeliva recently received FDA Orphan Drug designation for the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma. RedHill plans to initiate a Phase IIa clinical study with Yeliva in patients with advanced, unresectable, intrahepatic and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma in Q3. A Phase II study to evaluate the efficacy of Yeliva in patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis is planned to be initiated in 2H17.

07:18 EDT ContraVir's Tenofovir Exalidex featured in two clinical trials at ILC - ContraVir Pharmaceuticals announced new data demonstrating clinical antiviral activity, as well as safety and pharmacokinetic data of tenofovir exalidex. TXL is the company's proprietary liver targeting prodrug of the antiviral agent tenofovir for treating chronic hepatitis B virus, designed to offer equal or better HBV viral load reductions at doses lower than Viread, a commercially available tenofovir prodrug. The data were presented at The International Liver Congress in Amsterdam. The first trial evaluated the effects of multiple ascending oral doses of TXL in healthy volunteers, and a second trial was performed in HBV patients. Interim data in the POC study have demonstrated that a 100-mg dose of TXL resulted in a mean HBV viral load compared to the mean viral load from a 300-mg dose of Viread after 21 days of treatment. The reduction in viral load persisted for up to one month after cessation of treatment. The data demonstrated that TXL at all doses tested, resulted in substantially lower systemic circulating levels of tenofovir in the blood compared to Viread. These results demonstrate the potential for TXL to reduce the risk of bone- and kidney-related toxicities associated with Viread. There were no serious adverse events or discontinuations due to AEs.

07:09 EDT Apple pledges to one day end reliance on mining altogether - Apple is pledging to end its reliance on mining and one day make its products from only renewable resources or recycled material. In its annual Environmental Responsibility Report, Apple commented, "Traditional supply chains are linear. Materials are mined, manufactured as products, and often end up in landfills after use. Then the process starts over and more materials are extracted from the earth for new products. We believe our goal should be a closed-loop supply chain, where products are built using only renewable resources or recycled material. We already have programs in place to ensure the finite materials we use in our products are sourced responsibly through strict standards and programs on the ground that drive positive change. We're also challenging ourselves to one day end our reliance on mining altogether. To start, we're encouraging more customers to recycle their old devices through Apple Renew. And we're piloting innovative new recycling techniques, like our line of disassembly robots, so we can put reclaimed materials to better use in new products. It's an ambitious goal that will require many years of collaboration across multiple Apple teams, our suppliers, and specialty recyclers-but our work is already under way."

07:08 EDT People's United reports Q1 net interest margin 2.82% - Provision for loan losses totaled $4.4M.

07:05 EDT Cubic announces $4.5M award from Canada's Department of National Defence - Cubic Global Defense, a business unit of Cubic Corporation, announced it was awarded a contract worth approximately $4.5M from the Government of Canada to upgrade National Defence's Data Communications Network and Exercise Control Centre for the Canadian Weapons Effect Simulation system, in Wainwright, Alberta, Canada. Under the contract, Cubic will upgrade hardware and software associated with the DCN and EXCON, including replacement of the existing network and EXCON hardware.

07:03 EDT Travelers reports Q1 combined ratio 96.3% vs. 94.8% a year ago

07:01 EDT uniQure will not seek marketing authorization renewal for Glybera in Europe

06:59 EDT Travelers reports Q1 net written premiums of $6.495B - Up 5% from the prior year quarter, reflecting growth in all segments.

06:58 EDT Travelers declares 7.5% increase in quarterly dividend to 72c per share

06:52 EDT PPG backs commitment to deploy at least $2.5B-$3.5B of cash on acquisitions - PPG reported that cash and short-term investments totaled approximately $1.4 billion on March 31, 2017, up about $350 million versus the prior-year period. During the quarter, the company repurchased about $165 million, or approximately 1.6 million shares, of PPG stock, and average diluted shares outstanding were reduced by about 4 percent versus the prior year. The company has approximately $1.7 billion remaining under its current share-repurchase authorization. PPG reiterated its commitment to deploy at least $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion of cash on acquisitions and share repurchases in years 2017 and 2018 combined.

06:44 EDT General Electric completes acquisition of LM Wind Power for EUR$1.5B - GE has completed the acquisition of LM Wind Power, a Denmark-based technology developer and manufacturer of rotor blades to the wind industry. The completion of the transaction follows regulatory approval in the European Union, the U.S., China, and Brazil. GE reached an agreement with the London-based private equity firm Doughty Hanson in October 2016 to purchase the company for EUR$1.5B. The transaction in-sources wind turbine blade design and manufacturing for GE's Renewable Energy business, improving its ability to increase energy output and create value for onshore and offshore wind customers. The deal will be accretive to GE earnings in 2018.

06:37 EDT KeyCorp reports Q1 book value per share $12.71 - Reports Q1 CET1 capital ratio 9.87%. Reports Q1 net charge-offs 0.27%.

06:32 EDT Snap-On CEO says 'encouraged by our first quarter results' - "We're encouraged by our first quarter results," said Nick Pinchuk, Snap-on chairman and CEO. "Net sales growth of 6.3%, including an organic sales increase of 4.1%, coupled with a 10.6% rise in diluted earnings per share, represent a positive start to 2017. We believe these results once again confirm Snap-on's unique capabilities in providing valued productivity solutions to a growing range of professional customers performing critical tasks in workplaces of consequence. At the same time, the improvement in operating margin before financial services further demonstrates our ability to realize ongoing benefits from our Snap-on Value Creation Processes. Finally, this continued progress along our defined runways for both coherent growth and operating improvement would not be possible without the dedication and capability so evident across Snap-on. I thank our franchisees and associates worldwide for their significant contributions and extraordinary effort."

06:28 EDT HBO, Sky partner to develop high-end drama slate - HBO (TWX) and Sky (SKYAY) announced a $250M multiyear partnership in the production of high-end drama series. A panel of executives from both organizations will be responsible for greenlighting the projects. The HBO and Sky partnership will be open to pitches from across the creative community, in both the US and Europe, and is looking for ideas consistent with the content strategies of HBO in North America and the Sky Atlantic brand in Europe. This is an opportunity for production companies to have their content broadcast by two of the leading brands in worldwide television. Within two years, the partnership anticipates reaching a consistent output, green-lighting at least two drama projects per year with the first project coming to screen in 2018. The new venture represents an exciting opportunity for HBO and Sky to work together to offer our consumers 'exclusive' access to some of the world's very best drama and reflects both parties commitment to continued investment in content our customers love. The first projects of the partnership have been initiated in development, with announcements expected in the coming weeks. Reference Link

06:17 EDT Microsoft introduces To-Do, says to retire Wunderlist app - Ori Artman, general manager of Microsoft To-Do, says in a blog post, "We're excited to introduce a new, intelligent task management app that makes it easy to plan and manage your day. Say hello to Microsoft To-Do-now available in Preview. To-Do comes from the team behind the Wunderlist app, and delivers a smarter, more personal and intuitive way to help people stay organized and get the most out of every day. Powered by Office 365 integration and an intelligent algorithm, it is the first step on our journey to simplify task management and help you achieve more. To-Do helps you create a list for anything-for work, home projects or just your groceries. You can keep track of deadlines by adding reminders, due dates and notes, and personalize each list with colourful themes. You can access your lists from anywhere with the To-Do apps for iPhone, Android phone, Windows 10 devices and the web... In the coming months, we'll bring more of the favorite elements of Wunderlist into the To-Do experience, adding features such as list sharing, apps for Mac, iPad and Android tablet, as well as additional integrations with other Microsoft services. Once we are confident that we have incorporated the best of Wunderlist into To-Do, we will retire Wunderlist. While the name and icon may change, the team that brought you Wunderlist continues on. We look forward to making To-Do even more useful, intuitive and personal." Reference Link

06:05 EDT Conn's announces closing of $559M securitization transaction - Conn's announced that it has closed the $559M securitization transaction announced on April 13. The offering included (a) three classes of asset-backed fixed rate notes: (i) Class A notes which were rated BBB by Fitch and Kroll, (ii) Class B notes which were rated BB by Fitch and BB- by Kroll, and (iii) Class C notes which were rated B- by Fitch and Kroll; and (b) one class, Class R, notes of asset-backed pass-through notes which represent the residual equity. The face amount of the Class A, Class B and Class C notes issued in the securitization was approximately $469.8M, with an aggregate advance rate of approximately 84% of the outstanding customer receivables portfolio balance. Conn's received upfront proceeds of approximately $457M, net of transaction costs and reserves. The all-in cost of funds of the Class A and B notes only, including transaction costs, is approximately 5.4%. The all-in cost of funds of the Class A, B and C notes, including transaction costs, is approximately 6.2%. The Class R notes are being retained by a subsidiary of the company.

06:02 EDT United Community Banks, HCSB Financial to merge in all-stock transaction - United Community Banks and HCSB Financial announced a definitive agreement for United to acquire HCSB and its wholly-owned bank subsidiary, Horry County State Bank, in an all-stock transaction. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of each company and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017. Under the terms of the agreement, HCSB shareholders will receive merger consideration consisting of 100 percent stock, with a fixed exchange ratio of .0050 shares of United common stock for each share of HCSB. The transaction is currently valued at approximately $66 million based on United's closing price of $26.70 per share on April 19, 2017. United will recover HCSB's deferred tax assets and other related tax benefits totaling approximately $11 million. Reflecting this recovery will result in a pro forma price-to-tangible book value multiple of 142 percent. The transaction is also expected to be neutral to United's tangible book value per share, including one-time transaction costs, and two percent - or three cents per share - accretive to United's fully diluted earnings per share for 2018, excluding one-time transaction costs. Horry County State Bank will merge into United's bank subsidiary, United Community Bank, and will operate under the United brand. At December 31, 2016, Horry County State Bank had $376 million in assets and $215 million in loans. Horry County State Bank currently operates eight branches in the Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach MSA, including one each in Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach proper, and two in adjacent Conway. The combination adds $313 million of deposits to United's Myrtle Beach franchise, significantly improving its market share in the MSA. On a pro forma basis, United will have the 5th largest franchise in Myrtle Beach by deposits. Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of required regulatory approvals and the approval of HCSB's shareholders.

05:39 EDT Applied DNA Sciences signs 5-year supply agreement for bulk DNA manufacturing - Applied DNA Sciences announced that it has entered into an agreement to supply bulk DNA for a leading chemicals company serving the in vitro diagnostics market. The agreement is for five years with quarterly shipments and includes optional three-year renewals thereafter. The company expects the agreement to generate annual revenues of approximately $500,000 beginning in FY 2018 with a pro-rated amount expected in Q4.

05:35 EDT Elliot management releases Klaus Kleinfeld Letter - Elliott Management, which manages funds that collectively beneficially own a 13.2% economic interest in Arconic, released the following statement: "On Monday, April 17, Arconic explained that Klaus Kleinfeld's mutually agreed-upon resignation was the consequence of a letter he had sent directly to a senior officer of Elliott Management. Having made it clear to the public that there had been such a letter and that it was sufficiently serious to cause Mr. Kleinfeld's resignation, Arconic created a public frenzy for further information, and now various parties are disclosing portions of the letter. So Elliott believes it has no choice but to release Kleinfeld's complete letter and our private responses first to the letter and then to Arconic's public announcement of the letter on April 17." The letters can be viewed [here.]:[http://newarconic.com/klaus-kleinfeld-letter/]

05:22 EDT Correction: Innoviva reneges on accepted deal with Sarissa Capital - Sarissa Capital Management made the following statement regarding its nomination of a minority slate to the board of Innoviva at its 2017 annual meeting to be held on April 20, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. EDT: "Innoviva accepted an offer from Sarissa Capital this afternoon to settle the proxy contest by adding two Sarissa nominees to the board. After requesting and receiving our signature pages to the fully agreed upon settlement contract, Innoviva apparently continued to solicit proxies without disclosing our agreed upon deal. Then Innoviva suddenly informed us that they no longer agreed to the deal. This marks a new low in how to treat shareholders. We urge all shareholders to correct this injustice now. It is not too late to change your vote and vote the GOLD CARD, even if you already voted on the white card."

05:14 EDT Ecology & Environment reaches agreement with Mill Road Capital - Ecology and Environment announced that it has reached an agreement with Mill Road Capital and its affiliates, which own approximately 15.43% of outstanding shares of E & E's Class A common stock, to amicably resolve the proxy contest between the Company and Mill Road. Under the Agreement, two individuals previously nominated by Mill Road, Messrs. Justin Jacobs and Michael El-Hillow, will join the Board as Class A Directors following the 2017 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, which will be held as scheduled at 9:00 a.m., Eastern Daylight Savings Time, on Thursday, April 20, 2017. Mr. Jacobs will be joining the Governance, Nominating and Compensation Committee, and Mr. El-Hillow will be joining the Audit Committee.