Stockwinners Market Radar for June 07, 2017 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

18:48 EDT Continental Resources COO Maranto resigns - According to a regulatory filing, on June 5, 2017, Tony C. Maranto resigned as COO of Continental Resources, effective June 5, 2017. Maranto's duties will presently be absorbed by the company's management team.

18:45 EDT Milestone Scientific agrees to sell 40% stake in Milestone China LTD - According to a regulatory filing, on June 6, 2017 Milestone Scientific entered into an agreement in connection with the sale of its 40% percent interest in Milestone China LTD to an unaffiliated United States domiciled purchaser. The purchase price for the Shares is $1.4M, with $125,000 payable at closing and a non-interest bearing $1,275,000 promissory note payable in quarterly installments of $125,000 until paid in full. The payment obligation of the Purchaser is secured by the Shares. The Note precludes the Purchaser from selling all or substantially all of its assets. In connection with the sale of the Shares, the Purchaser has granted the company a ten year option to repurchase the Shares for a price during the initial two years equal to the Purchase Price, and thereafter at fair market value. The sale of the Shares allows the company to continue to expand in the China market by supplying Milestone China with the company's STA Single Tooth Anesthesia System and related hand pieces while eliminating the burden on the company's management of an expanded role in the financial and business affairs of Milestone China. The company believes that the sale will provide Milestone China with a new partner that may accelerate its penetration of the China market.

18:02 EDT Quidel's Thyretain TBI Reporter BioAssay receives CE Mark - Quidel has received the CE Mark for its Thyretain TBI Reporter BioAssay for the qualitative detection of blocking autoantibodies to the thyroid-stimulating hormone receptors in serum. Autoimmune thyroiditis or Hashimoto's disease is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the thyroid gland that is caused by abnormal blood antibodies and white blood cells that mistakenly attack and damage healthy thyroid cells. The assay is currently available for sale in Europe, and not yet available for sale in the United States.

17:56 EDT Friedman Industries names Michael J. Taylor chairman of the board - Friedman Industries said that its board of directors on June 2 appointed Michael J. Taylor as chairman of the board. Taylor was elected to the board in December 2016. Taylor retired in 2014 from a 33 year career in the steel industry. Most recently, Taylor served as president of Cargill Metals Supply Chain from 2003 to 2014. Taylor's extensive knowledge of the steel industry will be a vital asset in this leadership role. Additionally, the appointment of an independent chairman reflects the company's commitment to sound corporate governance.

17:41 EDT Inseego appoints Dan Mondor as CEO, launches new strategy and restructuring plan - Inseego (INSG) announced key additions to the management team and changes to its board of directors as the company embarks on an overhauled corporate strategy and immediately executes a restructuring plan to drive the company to nearterm profitability and reduced leverage. Dan Mondor has been named as CEO effective immediately, replacing Sue Swenson, CEO of Inseego since 2015. Mondor served as CEO of a number of public and private communications-related companies. Philip Falcone has been elected Chairman of the Board of Directors of Inseego. As Chairman and CEO of Inseego's largest shareholder, HC2 Holdings, (HCHC), Falcone has over two decades of experience in leveraged finance, distressed debt and special situations investing. The board decided to terminate the purchase and sale agreement it entered into with TCL in September 2016 with respect to the sale of its MiFi business as market opportunities and the underlying business fundamentals of the MiFi mobile broadband business have significantly improved since the company decided the sale in early 2016. The company will immediately execute a Board-approved restructuring plan that is expected to result in a minimum of $15M of annualized cost savings expected to drive the company to near-term profitability and reduced leverage and to the company achieving positive free cash flow by the end of 2017, positioning the company for profitable growth in 2018 and beyond. The company's new financial targets include positive free cash flow in Q4, a minimum $25M-$30M annualized Adjusted EBITDA run-rate by year-end 2017, minimum $30M-$40M annualized Adjusted EBITDA run-rate by year-end 2018. In addition, the company is reviewing the potential to monetize certain non-core assets, brands and IP.

17:33 EDT Midstates Petroleum CFO Nelson Haight resigning June 15 - Midstates Petroleum Executive VP & CFO Nelson M. Haight will resign from his position effective June 15 to explore other opportunities in the E&P sector. Subsequent to Haight's departure, his duties and responsibilities will be assumed by other members of the company's management team.

17:31 EDT Granite Construction awarded $54M highway rehabilitation project - Granite Construction announced today it has been awarded a $54M contract by the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities for the Sterling Highway Rehabilitation and Passing Lanes Project in Sterling, Alaska. The contract will be included in Granite's Q2 backlog. Construction is scheduled to begin in summer 2017 and is scheduled to be complete by summer 2019.

17:20 EDT DXC Technology director sells 28.6K shares - DXC Technology director Margaret Whitman disclosed in a filing after the close on Wednesday that she had sold 28, 624 shares of company stock at an average price of $77.65 on June 5. The total value of shares sold by Margaret Whitman was $2.2M.

17:11 EDT Intel CFO acquires 13,888 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Intel CFO Robert Holmes Swan disclosed the purchase of 13,888 common shares of the company in two tranches of 6,944 shares each. The first tranche was acquired at $36.3052 per share, while the second was acquired at $36.3048 per share.

17:02 EDT DragonWave granted continued listing on Nasdaq - DragonWave announced that on June 6, 2017, the company was notified that the Nasdaq Hearings Panel has granted the company's request for continued listing on Nasdaq. The company's continued listing on Nasdaq is subject to the company's achievement of certain interim milestones, and ultimately its compliance with the $2.5M stockholders' equity requirement by no later than October 17, 2017. The company is diligently working to timely satisfy the terms of the Panel's decision.

17:02 EDT Hudbay Minerals receives Final Record of Decision for Rosemont Project from USFS - Hudbay Minerals announced that the U.S. Forest Service has issued the Final Record of Decision for Hudbay's Rosemont Project. Receiving the FROD concludes a thorough process. Having received the FROD, Hudbay will now commence the administrative process working with the USFS to complete the Mine Plan of Operations over the next several months. The other key federal permit outstanding is the Section 404 Water Permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

16:44 EDT Gilder, Gagnon, Howe & Co reports 15.04% passive stake in Solaris Oilfield

16:42 EDT Greif down 9% to $54.45 after Q2 results, FY17 guidance

16:40 EDT Perceptron awarded gauging project in Mexico - Perceptron has been selected by a prominent Japanese automotive manufacturer for their compact vehicle program. The project includes two in-line gauging stations. These two flexible robotic systems will be configured to measure one vehicle model manufactured at the plant. The gauging stations are currently in the final stage of installation.

16:37 EDT Gilder, Gagnon, Howe & Co reports 10.27% passive stake in Impinj

16:34 EDT RBC Bearings promotes Daniel Bergeron to COO - RBC Bearings announced internal promotions in line with a longer-term succession plan for the company's senior leadership team. The plan addresses the roles of Daniel Bergeron, VP and CFO, and Ernie Hawkins, Corporate Controller of the Sargent Aerospace & Defense Division. Bergeron has been promoted to COO and will remain Director, VP and CFO. He will no longer perform the duties of the Assistant Secretary. As COO, Bergeron will increase his management responsibilities of more operational divisions, will continue his responsibilities as CFO, assisted by Ernie Hawkins. Hawkins has been promoted to VP of Finance, Chief Accounting Officer. Hawkins will now be responsible for overseeing Corporate Accounting and SEC Reporting, and the company's Information Technology Group. He will also support Bergeron on Mergers and Acquisitions, Investor Relations, and Treasury. These promotions will allow Dr. Hartnett to maintain his focus on executing the company's strategy, while remaining chairman and CEO.

16:32 EDT Amazon to open first Oregon fulfillment center, will create over 1,500 jobs - Amazon announced plans to open its first Oregon fulfillment center in Troutdale which will create more than 1,500 full-time positions. The company currently operates a sortation center in Hillsboro and Prime Now hub in Portland. Additionally, there are more than 40,000 authors, sellers, and developers in Oregon growing their businesses and reaching new customers via Amazon products and services. Amazon employees at the 855,000-square-foot Troutdale fulfillment center will pick, pack, and ship smaller customer items, such as books, electronics and toys.

16:30 EDT Centrue FInancial holders vote in favor of Midland States deal - Centrue Financial (CFCB) announced that Centrue's shareholders voted in favor of the approval of the merger agreement between Centrue and Midland States Bancorp (MSBI). Under the merger agreement, and subject to the satisfactory of customary closing conditions, Centrue will merge into Midland, with Midland as the surviving corporation.

16:27 EDT Lightyear Fund II reports 5.2% passive stake in First Interstate

16:21 EDT Payment Data Systems announces LOI to acquire Singular Payments - Payment Data Systems announced that it has amended the terms of its non-binding Letter of Intent to acquire Singular Payments, to extend its expiration until August 1. The amendment was agreed upon by both Payment Data and Singular, in order for Payment Data to finish its due diligence and for Singular to conclude its audit. Louis Hoch, President and CEO of Payment Data Systems stated, "We continue to believe the acquisition of Singular is in alignment with our growth strategy and should provide enhanced value to our shareholders. We need additional time to finalize the acquisition process, and Singular needs additional time to conclude the audit of their financials. We look forward to welcoming the Singular team to Payment Data later this summer."

16:18 EDT Tyson Foods sees AdvancePierre acquisition to contribute to earnings - Tyson Foods has successfully completed the acquisition of AdvancePierre Foods Holdings, a move aligned with Tyson Foods' strategic intent to sustainably feed the world with the fastest growing portfolio of protein packed brands. The company completed a tender offer to buy all the outstanding shares of common stock of AdvancePierre for $40.25 per share in cash, without interest. The offer expired at 12:00 midnight at the end of June 6,, and was followed by a merger of a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tyson Foods into AdvancePierre. The total value of the transaction was approximately $4.2B. AdvancePierre is a leading national producer of ready-to-eat lunch and dinner sandwiches, sandwich components and snacks. Its customers include foodservice, retail and convenience store providers. AdvancePierre, which employs approximately 4,500 people, generated revenues of $1.6 billion in 2016. "AdvancePierre is a natural, strategic fit that will extend our capabilities in new and growing food categories," said Tyson Foods President and CEO Tom Hayes. "We expect the acquisition to immediately contribute to earnings and are also confident it will result in cost synergy benefits of $200M within three years."Hayes added that integration teams have been formed and that the company will remain focused on maintaining high quality customer service during the transition.

16:15 EDT Karyopharm Karyopharm doses first patient inl Phase 3 Boston study - Karyopharm Therapeutics announced dosing of the first patient in its pivotal Phase 3 study, named the BOSTON-Bortezomib, Selinexor and dexamethasone-study, which will evaluate selinexor , the company's lead, novel, oral Selective Inhibitor of Nuclear Export compound, in combination with Velcade in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.This pivotal, multicenter, randomized, open-label Phase 3 clinical trial is designed to enroll approximately 360 patients and will evaluate the efficacy and safety of selinexor in combination with SVd, compared to Velcade and low-dose dexamethasone, in patients with MM who have had one to three prior lines of therapy. Patients randomized to the selinexor arm will receive selinexor, Velcade and dexamethasone, which is the standard "low-dose dexamethasone" commonly used in the treatment of MM. To Karyopharm's knowledge, this is the only Phase 3 study to date to utilize once weekly Velcade dosing. The primary endpoints of the study are progression-free survival and overall response rate, and secondary endpoints include duration of response (DOR) and overall survival, among others. Importantly, the BOSTON study allows for patients on the Vd control arm to crossover to the SVd arm following objective (quantitative) progression of disease. The Company expects to include over 100 clinical sites internationally in the BOSTON study and to complete enrollment in 2018, with top-line data anticipated in 2019. "Based on clinical and preclinical data to date, we believe that the combination of selinexor, Velcade and dexamethasone could have multiple benefits for patients," said Michael G. Kauffman, MD, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Karyopharm. "The SVd regimen with once-weekly Velcade dosing utilizes 40% less Velcade and 25% less dexamethasone than the standard Vd dosing regimen. In the studies to date, the dosing schedule and regimen required fewer clinic visits for patients and had a manageable side effect profile, including rates of peripheral neuropathy, which have been significantly lower in SVd clinical data to date, compared to the historical rates of peripheral neuropathy in the standard Vd dosing regimen. We also believe that the SVd combination may resensitize myeloma cells to Velcade and other proteasome inhibitors. Clinical data to date have demonstrated a significantly higher response rate in patients who have been exposed to a proteasome inhibitor and then receive a combination of a proteasome inhibitor, selinexor and dexamethasone, compared to historical response rates with the retreatment of a proteasome inhibitor and dexamethasone alone."Patient dosing is now underway in our pivotal Phase 3 BOSTON study, and the initiation of this study marks an important milestone for Karyopharm," said Sharon Shacham, PhD, MBA, President and Chief Scientific Officer of Karyopharm. "The design of this important study was informed by the encouraging response data and durable responses observed in the SVd combination arm of the STOMP study, including in patients whose disease is already refractory to proteasome inhibitors. Assuming a positive outcome from the BOSTON study, we intend to use the BOSTON study data to support an NDA filing for selinexor for the treatment of relapsed or refractory myeloma."

16:08 EDT BCB Bancorp to acquire IA Bancorp - BCB Bancorp, the holding company for BCB Community Bank, has announced it has entered into a definitive merger agreement , with IA Bancorp, pursuant to which the Company will acquire IAB and its wholly owned subsidiary, Indus-American Bank. Upon consummation of the merger, Indus-American Bank will merge with BCB Community Bank and will operate as a division of BCB Community Bank. Following the closing of the merger, BCB will form an advisory board which will consist of current members of the IAB board of directors and other prominent community members. Indus-American Bank, which has its headquarters in Edison, New Jersey, operates full-service branches in Edison, Jersey City, Parsippany and Plainsboro, New Jersey, and Hicksville, New York. Indus-American Bank was founded primarily to meet the banking needs of the South Asian-American community. Indus-American Bank specializes in core business banking products for small- to medium-sized companies, with an emphasis on real estate-based lending. Mark D. Hogan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company, stated, "We are extremely excited and pleased to welcome Indus-American customers and employees to BCB. Our partnership with Indus-American is consistent with BCB's strategic plan of executing smart growth via expansions and organic branching. This transaction will allow the combined entities to further develop our existing markets in Jersey City and Edison, and will provide further opportunities in Parsippany, Plainsboro and Hicksville, New York, three new, attractive markets for BCB." The total transaction value is approximately $20 million, including the assumption by BCB of approximately $7.5 million of IAB preferred stock, outstanding shares of IAB common stock of approximately 4.18 million and based on a 10-day volume weighted average price of BCB common stock. Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, which both boards of directors have approved, IAB shareholders shall be entitled to elect to receive either 0.189 shares of BCB common stock or $3.05 in cash for each share of IAB common stock, subject to an overall allocation of exchanged IAB shares into 80% BCB common stock and 20% cash. The closing and the systems' conversion is anticipated to occur in the fourth quarter of 2017, subject to approval by IAB shareholders, regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. On a pro forma basis, the transaction is expected to be accretive to the Company's 2018 earnings by approximately 10% per share, with tangible book value per share dilution of approximately 1.3% and an earn-back period of approximately 1.2 years.

16:06 EDT DAVIDsTEA CFO Luis Borgen leaving company - DAVIDsTEA announced that CFO Luis Borgen has notified the company that he will be leaving, effective July 31, to pursue other interests. DAVIDsTEA has begun a comprehensive search for its next CFO.

16:04 EDT AveXis, Regenxbio in pact for licenses using NAV AAV9 vector - AveXis (AVXS) and REGENXBIO (RGNX) announced an exclusive worldwide license agreement for AveXis to develop and commercialize gene therapy treatments using REGENXBIO's NAV AAV9 vector to treat two rare neurological monogenic disorders: Rett syndrome and a genetic form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, ALS, caused by mutations in the superoxide dismutase 1 gene. Under the terms of the license agreement, REGENXBIO will receive an upfront payment upon execution, ongoing fees, milestone payments and royalties on net sales of products incorporating the NAV AAV9 vector. "Building on our experience and the success we have seen to date with the use of REGENXBIO's NAV AAV9 vector in our spinal muscular atrophy clinical trials, this new license agreement reflects progress on executing our corporate strategy and our vision of becoming the leader in the treatment of rare and life-threatening neurological genetic diseases," said Sean Nolan, President and Chief Executive Officer of AveXis. "While we remain intensely focused on the development and commercialization of AVXS-101 for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy, we are excited by the potential for gene therapy to address the needs of patients with RTT and ALS - two devastating diseases for which there are no cures and insufficient existing treatments." "This license agreement for our NAV AAV9 vector highlights the strength of our relationship with our existing NAV Technology Licensee, AveXis, and our commitment to bringing important new NAV-based gene therapies to patients with severe diseases with significant unmet medical need," said Kenneth T. Mills, President and Chief Executive Officer of REGENXBIO. "As a leader in AAV-based gene therapy, REGENXBIO continues to selectively and strategically license our NAV Technology Platform for specific vector and indication combinations in a way that allows us to maintain our focus on internal product development while at the same time advancing the overall field by expanding the pipeline of NAV-based gene therapies." Preclinical data demonstrating promising efficacy and safety of gene therapy treatments for RTT and ALS using NAV AAV9, generated by AveXis' Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Brian Kaspar at Nationwide Children's Hospital, has been licensed by AveXis. AveXis intends to move forward with initiating IND-enabling studies in both RTT and ALS and plans to provide more details on these programs in the second half of 2017.

15:59 EDT Northern Oil and Gas holder requests board seat, urges non-core asset sales - In a letter sent to Northern Oil and Gas Chairman Richard Weber that was disclosed in a regulatory filing, Bahram Akradi, the company's second largest shareholder, confirmed that he has requested a seat on the company's board of directors. In the letter, Arkadi writes that the company's goal "should be to become the largest owner of non-operating properties in the region" and that it "must re-align its capital structure to reduce its leverage." Also, Northern should divest from its non-core assets to further increase its liquidity and its ability to deploy capital strategically to non-operating properties and acreage swaps, stated Arkadi in his letter.

15:51 EDT Molson Coors sees EBITDA margin up 30-60 bps/year for next 3-4 years - Molson Coors sees its underlying EBITDA margin up 30 bp to 60 bp per year on average over the next 3-4 years, the company stated in slides for its investor day meeting.

15:50 EDT Correction: Molson Coors sees EBITDA margin up 30-60 bps/year for next 3-4 years - Molson Coors sees its underlying EBITDA margin up 30 bp to 60 bp per year on average over the next 3-4 years, the company stated in slides for its investor day meeting.

15:30 EDT Molson Coors reverses lower, now down 5% as investor meeting continues - Molson Coors shares, which were higher earlier, have reversed and are now down $4.94, or 5.1%, to $91.08 as the company hosts a Q&A session at its investor meeting.

14:36 EDT Molson Coors says 'remains committed' to current dividend - Comments made during Molson Coors' investor and analyst meeting.

14:22 EDT JCP 'disappointed' by Fiesta Restaurant board election results - JCP Investment Management, a significant stockholder of Fiesta Restaurant Group with ownership of approximately 3.0% of the company's outstanding shares, stated following Fiesta's annual meeting that it was "disappointed with the election results" but "pleased that its campaign has served as the catalyst" for what it called "positive developments," including the selection of a new CEO, the addition of three new directors with restaurant industry experience and Fiesta's plan to put forward a proposal to declassify the Board at the 2018 meeting. "JCP continues to believe that accountability is lacking in the boardroom. JCP intends to closely monitor Fiesta's performance and the execution of its Strategic Renewal Plan," the investor added.

14:19 EDT Molson Coors rallies 1% to $97.19 as analyst meeting continues

14:02 EDT BMO sees 'higher upside potential' in Dr Pepper than beverage giants - BMO Capital downgraded Coca-Cola (KO) and PepsiCo (PEP) and upgraded Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS) as the firm shifts its focus to stocks with "higher upside potential". "NEAR-PEAK" VALUATION: BMO Capital Analyst Amit Sharma downgraded Coca-Cola to Market Perform from Outperform based on valuation, saying a meaningful expansion is unlikely as the stock is already trading at the top of its historical range. He added that while the new CEO's plan to decrease reliance on carbonated soft drinks and realign the portfolio around consumer demand may be positive for operations, it is unlikely to drive upside to estimates in 2017 and 2018. Sharma also said he believes that the expected positive margin impact from the company completing North America bottler refranchising in 2017 is already factored into the stock price. In addition, he said he does not see any transformative transactions for Coca-Cola in the near-term. He maintained a price target of $46. "PEAK" VALUATION: Sharma also downgraded PepsiCo to Market Perform from Outperform based on valuation, saying while the stock remains "well-positioned" to generate returns, it is already trading at its peak multiple, making meaningful expansion less likely. He added he sees limited earnings upside as the company already operates at "relatively high levels" and has been hesitant to push its cost savings programs to increase earnings growth. Sharma also said transformative M&A is unlikely for the company in the near-to-intermediate term. He raised his price target on Pepsi to $120 from $118. "DEPRESSED VALUATION": In addition, Sharma upgraded Dr Pepper Snapple to Outperform from Market Perform, based on his belief that its "attractive earnings growth outlook" makes its stock more likely to rise than a number of its peers' shares. He thinks that concerns about the sales growth of its Bai unit have resulted in an "attractive entry point" and should dissipate. Sharma said he believes Bai's sales growth outlook is achievable and could be sustained over the next several years through Dr Pepper's distribution network, a streamlined approach to stock keeping unit expansion, product innovation and development in adjacent beverage categories. Sharma raised his target on the stock to $105. NOTABLE: Sharma also upgraded Cott (COT) to Outperform and raised his price target to $17 citing increasing visibility to the home and office delivery water/coffee business. In addition, he reiterated Outperform rating on Monster (MNST) and Primo Water (PRMW). PRICE ACTION: Coca-Cola fell 0.7% to $45.64, PepsiCo dropped 0.4% to $117.28 and Dr Pepper Snapple rose 1.7% to $93.81 in afternoon trading.

13:44 EDT Wins Finance halted for additional information requested - Trading in shares of Wins Finance was halted earlier, pending receipt of additional information requested by NASDAQ. Shares of Wins Finance were up $124.01, 153%, to $205.01 today prior to being halted and the stock, which has previously been highlighted for its suspicious trading patterns, is up about 900% since June 1.

12:44 EDT United says not clear about what impact laptop ban would have on business

12:32 EDT United's Kirby sees strong near-term demand from U.S. point-of-sale to Europe - United Continental president Scott Kirby said that demand in China and Hong Kong is not keeping up with supply. Says Chinese, Hong Kong economices may have weakened. Says capacity to and from China should moderate later in 2017. Says attacks in U.K. not having much impact on bookings. Sees United continuing to outperform across the Atlatnic. Sees strong near-term demand from U.S. point-of-sale to Europe. Says transatlantic capacity from ULCCS will hurt in the short term. Says low-cost transatlantic routes won't work long term. Comments taken from Deutsche Bank Global Industrials and Materials Summit.

12:16 EDT DHT Holdings says Court denies Frontline request for preliminary injunction - DHT Holdings (DHT) announced that the High Court of the Marshall Islands has denied Frontline's (FRO) request for a preliminary injunction relating to transactions contemplated by the previously announced Vessel Acquisition Agreement between DHT and BW Group Limited. On June 7, the Court rejected Frontline's arguments and issued an order denying Frontline's motion for a preliminary injunction. The Court cited Frontline's failure to demonstrate a probability of success on the merits of its claims. In particular, the Court noted that the acquisition of BW's fleet fell within the sound discretion of the DHT board of directors' business judgment, and that Frontline "has no likelihood of success" on any challenge to the rights plan implemented by the DHT Board, as the rights plan was a reasonable response to Frontline's actions. Both the High Court of the Marshall Islands and the Supreme Court of the State of New York have now rejected Frontline's attempt to interfere with DHT's acquisition of BW's fleet.

12:09 EDT Facebook introduces diasaster maps, utilizing Facebook data - In a statement Facebook said: "Today, we are introducing disaster maps that use aggregated, de-identified Facebook data to help organizations address the critical gap in information they often face when responding to natural disasters. Many of these organizations worked with us to identify what data would be most helpful and how it could be put to action in the moments following a disaster." Reference Link

11:38 EDT Coach says doesn't see doing another large M&A transaction in short-term - Comment taken from the Baird Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference.

11:33 EDT Novartis reports 3 month ORR 45% in CTL019 trial, says met primary objective - Novartis announced findings from an interim analysis of its multi-center Phase II JULIET study of CTL019 in adult patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, which will be presented at the International Conference on Malignant Lymphoma meeting, Lugano, Switzerland. The global, pivotal study showed a three-month overall response rate of 45%, with 37% achieving a complete response and 8% achieving a partial response, respectively. CR remained stable from three months through data cutoff among the patient group. JULIET is the first multi-center global registration study for CTL019 in adult patients with r/r DLBCL and the second global CAR-T cell therapy trial, following the Novartis ELIANA study of CTL019 in pediatric and young adult patients with r/r B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. JULIET was conducted in collaboration with Penn and enrolled patients from 27 sites in 10 countries across the US, Canada, Europe, Australia and Japan. It is the largest study examining a CAR-T cell therapy exclusively in DLBCL patients. The study met its primary objective at interim analysis. Among 51 patients with three months or more of follow-up or earlier discontinuation, best ORR was 59%, with 43% achieving CR and 16% achieving PR. The full JULIET primary analysis is expected to be available later this year and will serve as the basis for US and EU regulatory submissions

11:24 EDT Southwest CFO says May unit trends were positive

11:21 EDT Midatech Pharma signs global license agreement with Novartis for panobinostat - Midatech Pharma (MTP) announces that it has signed a global licensing agreement with Novartis (NVS) for the oncology compound panobinostat. Panobinostat will be developed by Midatech for the treatment of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma as a continuation of its existing MTX110 program, and potentially for Glioblastoma.In pre-clinical test models, panobinostat, which is a pan-HDAC inhibitor, demonstrated very high potency against DIPG tumour cell lines. In one such study panobinostat was the most effective of more than 80 anti-cancer agents tested.Midatech's MTX110 program is focused on the treatment of DIPG, a childhood brain cancer that is nearly always fatal, with a median survival of approximately 9 months. Using a technique called Convection Enhanced Delivery, MTX110 is infused directly into the brain tumour, and diffuses through and around it. This technique allows for elevated drug concentrations to be delivered to the tumour, while at the same time minimizing systemic toxicity and peripheral side-effects. MTX110 has been used to treat 5 patients to date in the USA and UK under its compassionate use program. In these patients MTX110 has been well tolerated thus far. We believe it holds promise as a potential therapeutic treatment for DIPG, for which there are currently no approved or effective therapies. Clinical studies in patients are planned to commence during 2017. Financial terms have not been disclosed.

11:18 EDT Southwest reiterates FY17 capacity growth view of about 3.5%

11:13 EDT Owens-Illinois sees one percent growth rate for Europe this year - Sees Q2 flat for Europe. Says Europe division is having more efficiencies this year.

11:09 EDT Southwest sees FY17 CASM ex-fuel up approximately 3% - CFO Tammy Romo says demand for low fares "quite strong." Says current bookings, revenue trends "encouraging." Says y/y cost pressures largely due to increase in labor contracts, expects cost of inflation to abate "dramatically" in 2H17. Expects CASM ex-fuel to come down from about 6% in Q2 to roughly flat y/y by Q4. Sees FY17 CASM ex-fuel, profit sharing up approximately 3%. Comments taken from the Deutsche Bank Global Industrials and Materials Summit.

11:06 EDT Owens-Illinois says margin growth and expansion is 'happening' - Comments are from Owens-Illinois presentation at Deutsche Bank Global Industrials and Materials Conference Presentation.

11:02 EDT Ford to shorten two-week summer shutdown at Lousiville Assembly Plant - Ford Escape and Lincoln MKC sales are off to their best start in company history during the first five months of the year, prompting the company to shorten the traditional two-week summer shutdown at Louisville Assembly Plant to build more than 8,500 additional vehicles there. "The record sales for Ford Escape through May are being driven by strong demand from our retail customers," said Raj Nair, Ford's executive vice president and president - North America. "This is our strongest ever retail start for Escape, with retail sales up more than 6% versus this time last year." Ford Escape sales totaled 129,805 through May of this year, a 3% increase versus the same time period last year and its best ever start to the year for Escape. Lincoln MKC sales totaled 11,161 in the first five months of the year, up approximately 10% over this time period last year. Louisville Assembly Plant is the only assembly plant in North America that will shorten the summer shutdown period. The remainder of Ford assembly plants in North America will have a traditional two-week summer shutdown. Portions of a number of component plants will take a one-week summer shutdown, including: Van Dyke Transmission, Sterling Axle, Chihuahua Engine, Rawsonville, Chicago Stamping, Michigan Assembly Stamping and Woodhaven Stamping. Those plants will be closed the week of July 4 for building maintenance and machine retooling.

10:54 EDT Susquehanna sees Imperva, Proofpoint, Check Point as cybersecurity winners - Research firm Susquehanna started coverage of several names in the cybersecurity sector today. The firm initiated coverage of Imperva (IMPV), Proofpoint (PFPT) and Check Point (CHKP) with Positive ratings. It also started coverage of a number of others - including FireEye (FEYE) and Fortinet (FTNT) - with Neutral ratings. IMPERVA: The company's recurring subscription revenue is growing quickly, driven by strong demand for its cloud-based Web Application Firewall, according to Susquehanna analyst Anne Meisner. As a result, Imperva's financial results have become more predictable, which should boost its valuation, stated the analyst, who set a $60 price target on the shares. PROOFPOINT: Nearly 100% of the company's revenue is recurring, and its revenue is growing quickly, driven by the need for infrastructure replacements as e-mail accounts are moved to the cloud, according to Meisner. Moreover, the company should be able to sell its newer products to existing customers and continue to make deals with enterprises that had been using McAfee products, she stated. The analyst set a $106 price target on the stock. CHECK POINT: The company has shown "considerable stability and financial discipline relative to other cybersecurity vendors," according to Meisner. The launch of its software blade architecture strategy is causing its growth to accelerate and moving more of its revenue into the recurring column, the analyst stated. Meanwhile, its newer products "have been selling well" and its resellers have become more upbeat, added Meisner, who set a $132 price target on the name. FIREEYE: The company's bottoming financial results and new core architecture should improve its competitive positioning, wrote Meisner. Although the company is on the right track, its stock may be volatile going forward, wrote the analyst, who said she would wait to see how its new products fare before becoming more optimistic on its outlook. She set a $17 price target on the shares. FORTINET: The company has "significant technology differentiation" that has enabled its main product to perform extremely well, Meisner wrote. Additionally, it seems to have been able to obtain a greater proportion of higher margin recurring revenue, according to the analyst. However, she calls the stock's valuation "reasonable" and will await more evidence of margin improvements before becoming more upbeat on the stock. She set a $45 price target on the shares. OTHERS: Meisner also initiated Palo Alto Networks (PANW), Symantec (SYMC), Rapid7 (RPD) and Qualys (QLYS), all with Neutral ratings. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, Imperva rose 1% to $51.30, Proofpoint advanced 3% to $93.87, Check Point added 0.75% to $114.57, FireEye fell 1% to $15.64, and Fortinet was flat at $39.10 per share.

10:46 EDT BlackBerry announces launch of QNX Hypervisor 2.0 - BlackBerry Limited announced the launch of QNX Hypervisor 2.0. "This real-time Type 1 Hypervisor based on QNX SDP 7.0, BlackBerry's most advanced and secure 64-bit embedded operating system, enables developers to partition and isolate safety-critical environments from non-safety critical environments, ensuring that no critical systems are put at risk. BlackBerry's QNX Hypervisor 2.0 creates virtual software containers, such that any hiccup or breach in a single car functional domain can be isolated and does not impact or create vulnerabilities in other domains of the car." BlackBerry is also announcing that Qualcomm (QCOM) has adopted QNX Hypervisor 2.0 as part of certain digital cockpit solutions.

10:29 EDT Brown-Forman says FY17 a 'uniquely challenging year'

10:20 EDT Staples rises after web report claims Cerberus upping offer - Shares of Staples have spiked higher in morning trading after Street Insider said that it was told by a "person claiming to have knowledge of the matter" that Cerberus Capital, which was previously rebuffed by Staples, has raised its takeover offer. In early trading, Staples shares remain up 10c, or 1.2%, at $9.19 after having jumped to as high as $9.49.

10:02 EDT Veolia Energy awarded operations contract for biomass facility - Through a new $9M annual operations and maintenance contract with North Carolina Renewable Power - Lumberton, LLC, a subsidiary of Georgia Renewable Power, Veolia Energy Operating Services, LLC will manage a cogeneration plant that converts poultry litter and wood chips into biomass energy - diverting up to 285,000 tons of poultry waste a year, while providing a renewable recycling solution for the poultry industry.

09:56 EDT New York Times names Meredith Kopit Levien as COO, effective immediately - The New York Times announced that Meredith Kopit Levien has been promoted to the position of executive vice president and COO, effective immediately. In this new role, Kopit Levien will oversee the teams responsible for product, design, audience and brand, consumer revenue, advertising and NYT Beta.

09:52 EDT Kite rallies after Novartis study fails to treat 40% of enrollees - Shares of Kite Pharma (KITE) are rallying after a competitive study by Novartis (NVS) failed to treat 40% of the enrolled population without an explanation. Ahead of June 14 release of Novartis' Juliet study results for CTL019 in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, an abstract today suggested the efficacy of the CAR-T cell therapy is "on par" with that of Kite's AxiCel, Cowen analyst Eric Schmidt told investors earlier in a research note. One of the more interesting disclosures from the CTL019 abstract concerns patient disposition, the analyst writes. He points out that the Juliet trial enrolled 141 patients across 27 centers, but only 85 patients received CLT019 cells. The abstract provides no explanation of the failure to treat 40% of the enrolled population, Schmidt contends. He believes the culprit is some combination of "manufacturing issues, consent withdrawals, and early deaths." The analyst points out that Kite's Zuma-1 trial treated 101 patients of the 111 enrolled, or 92%. Novartis is thought to have a slower manufacturing turnaround time, Schmidt tells investors. He has an Outperform rating on Kite Pharma. The stock in early trading is up 6%, or $4.60, to $81.24. Novartis is down 6c to $81.78.

09:49 EDT Delta CFO says believes "worst part is behind us" for 2017 - Commenting on the airline's PRASM recovery, CFO Paul Jacobsen says Delta believes the "worst part is behind us" for 2017. Comments taken from the Deutsche Bank Global Industrials and Materials Summit.

09:30 EDT Diana Shipping announces addendum to time charter contract for m/v Sideris GS - Diana Shipping announced that, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, it has agreed to extend and increase the time charter rate of the present time charter contract with Rio Tinto Shipping Pte., Ltd., Singapore, for one of its Capesize dry bulk vessels, the m/v Sideris GS, for a period of minimum thirteen months to maximum seventeen months. The new gross charter rate is $13,000 per day, minus a 5% commission paid to third parties. The new charter period is expected to commence on June 20, 2017. The m/v Sideris GS is currently chartered, as previously announced, at a gross charter rate of $6,500 per day, minus a 5% commission paid to third parties. The employment extension of "Sideris GS" is anticipated to generate approximately $5.07M of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the time charter.

09:26 EDT Frank's International names Kyle McClure as CFO - Frank's International announced that its board of Supervisory Directors has named Kyle McClure as SVP and CFO, effective June 5. McClure previously served as the company's SVP of Finance and Treasurer since March 2015.

09:23 EDT Yield10 Bioscience starts field tests of C3003 in Camelina and canola - Yield10 Bioscience announced that planting has been completed at study sites in Canada for field tests to evaluate the novel yield trait gene C3003 in Camelina and canola. Following completion of field tests in the fall of 2017, the company plans to report results of the study in the fourth quarter of 2017. In previous studies, C3003 has shown promising improvements in oilseed yield. Yield10 Bioscience is focused on "building better plants" by developing proprietary, breakthrough technologies to produce higher yields in major food and feed crops with lower inputs of land, water and fertilizer to enhance global food security.

09:22 EDT United Continental says involuntary denied boardings down 79% y/y in May - Scott Kirby, president of United Airlines said, "At United, we are running a great airline across the board. This starts with taking off on time, and in May, we were the top performer in the industry for on-time departures for the second month in a row. We are also proud of our number one finish in April baggage performance. Additionally, we're seeing initial progress following our customer-focused policy changes, with involuntary denied boardings down 79 percent year-over-year in May. We will continue to build on this momentum as we head into the busy summer travel season."

09:16 EDT Gardner Denver to acquire LeROI Compressors - Gardner Denver Holding announced today that it has acquired LeROI Compressors for a purchase price of approximately $20M funded by cash on hand. Based in Sidney, Ohio, LeROI is a North American manufacturer of gas compression equipment and solutions for vapor recovery, biogas and other process and industrial applications. LeROI will be part of Gardner Denver's Industrials Segment.

09:06 EDT Amgen and Allergan receive FDA review date for ABP 215 - Amgen (AMGN) and Allergan (AGN) announced that the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee of the FDA will review data supporting the Biologics License Application for ABP 215, a biosimilar candidate to Avastin, on July 13. The Committee will review analytical, pharmacokinetic and clinical data from studies involving ABP 215, including results from a Phase 3 study in patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer. The Phase 3 study met its primary endpoint showing clinical equivalence to bevacizumab. Safety and immunogenicity of ABP 215 were also comparable to bevacizumab. The FDA has set a Biosimilar User Fee Act target action date of Sept. 14 for ABP 215. Amgen and Allergan are collaborating on the development and commercialization of four oncology biosimilars. Amgen has a total of 10 biosimilars in its portfolio, one which has been approved by the FDA.

09:06 EDT Renault-Nissan Alliance selects Amber Road for preferential trade processes - Amber Road (AMBR) announced that the Renault-Nissan Alliance is partnering with Amber Road to help it optimize its European preferential trade processes. The Alliance will use Amber Road's Trade Automation solution to ensure compliance with free trade agreements and maximize its utilization of preferential duties. The Renault-Nissan Alliance is a strategic partnership of Renault (RNSF) and Nissan (NSANY), making it one of the world's largest automotive groups. The solution will support import/export processes from European, Turkish and Moroccan sites, taking into account over 40 Free Trade Agreements.The Trade Automation solution is expected to significantly increase supplier response rates, a critical factor in preferential trade optimization.

09:02 EDT Amazon original kids series Danger & Eggs premieres June 30 on Prime Video - Amazon announced its original animated kids series Danger & Eggs is scheduled to premiere on Friday, June 30 on Prime Video in the US and UK. Danger & Eggs is part of Prime Video's growing line-up of award-winning and critically-acclaimed Originals for kids and families. All 13 episodes from the series will be available to stream and enjoy using the Amazon Prime Video app for compatible TVs, connected devices, including Amazon Fire TV and mobile devices, or online at no additional cost to their membership.

09:01 EDT PVH Corp. announces licensing agreement for IZOD women's sportswear, activewear - PVH Corp. has entered into a new licensing agreement with Sports Products of America, a division of Adjmi Apparel Group, under which the Adjmi division will manufacture, sell, distribute and promote women's sportswear, golfwear and activewear, in all sizes, under PVH's IZOD brand. Products will launch in February 2018 and will be sold primarily in department stores, specialty stores, national chains, sporting goods stores and pure play online retailers throughout the United States and Canada. The initial term of the licensing agreement runs through 2020.

08:41 EDT AstraZeneca enters agreement with Grunenthal to divest rights to Zomig - AstraZeneca (AZN) announced that it has entered an agreement with Grunenthal for the global rights to Zomig outside Japan. Zomig is indicated for the acute treatment of migraines and cluster headaches, an area of medicine outside AstraZeneca's strategic focus.Grunenthal will pay AstraZeneca $200M upon completion. AstraZeneca will also receive up to an additional $102M in future milestone payments. Grunenthal will acquire the rights to Zomig in all markets outside Japan, including the US, where the rights were previously licensed to Impax Pharmaceuticals (IPXL). Impax will continue to market Zomig in the US. AstraZeneca will continue to manufacture and supply the medicine to Grunenthal during a transition period. In 2016, revenues from Zomig outside Japan were $96M, including Product Sales and Externalisation Revenue. The transaction is expected to complete in the second quarter of 2017, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory clearances. The net consideration from the agreement will be reported as Other Operating Income in the company's financial statements. The agreement does not impact the company's financial guidance for 2017.

08:34 EDT Cerus: U.S. PAS supply shortage 'could be less disruptive' than anticipated - Cerus (CERS) announced that the expected Fresenius Kabi (FSNUY) platelet additive solution shortage the company announced on May 23, could be less disruptive to blood center production of INTERCEPT platelets than initially anticipated. This follows a decision by the FDA to review a recent submission by Fresenius Kabi as a Changes Being Effected in 30 Days supplement, which allows ongoing distribution of the product during the review period. The CBE-30 was necessary to address some changes in raw materials used by the manufacturer of the PAS container. For Cerus' customers who produce INTERCEPT platelets on the Amicus collection platform, Fresenius Kabi platelet additive solution is a key component of the manufacturing process. "We are cautiously optimistic that a future supply shortage for our customers has been mitigated by the FDA decision," said William Greenman, Cerus' president and CEO. "Our goal is to continue to support our customers and help minimize potential supply disruptions pending a final FDA approval of the change to the PAS container."

08:33 EDT United Continental reports May traffic up 2.6% - United Airlines reported May 2017 operational results. UAL's May 2017 consolidated traffic increased 2.6% and consolidated capacity increased 3.7% versus May 2016. UAL's May 2017 consolidated load factor decreased 0.9 points compared to May 2016. The company continues to expect second-quarter 2017 consolidated passenger unit revenue to be up 1%-3% compared to the second quarter of 2016. However, the Pacific region is experiencing incremental weakness due to unfavorable supply and demand dynamics in China and Hong Kong.

08:31 EDT Allergan to acquire Keller Medical, terms not disclosed - Allergan announced that Allergan's wholly-owned subsidiary, Allergan Sales, agreed to acquire Keller Medical, a privately held medical device company and developer of the Keller Funnel. The Keller Funnel is a cone-shaped, lubricated plastic funnel that reduces surgeon and patient contact during breast augmentation or reconstruction procedures. Keller Medical launched the original Keller Funnel in 2009 and the Keller Funnel 2 in 2014, and hundreds of thousands of funnels have been used in breast augmentation or reconstruction procedures to date globally.

08:15 EDT Mondelez opens newest R&D hub in Poland - Mondelez inaugurated its newest global Technical Center in Wroclaw, Poland. This facility will support new products and technologies for many of the company's iconic Power Brands, including Milka and Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate as well as Oreo, belVita and Barni biscuits.

08:14 EDT RMR submits draft registration statement for commercial mortgage REIT - The RMR Group announced that a draft registration statement on Form S-11 has been confidentially submitted to the SEC related to a proposed initial public offering of common shares for a newly formed commercial mortgage real estate investment trust which would be managed by an SEC registered investment advisor subsidiary of RMR. The size of the proposed offering has not yet been determined. The initial public offering is expected to commence after the SEC completes its review process and a public registration statement has been filed with the SEC, subject to market and other conditions.

08:12 EDT MagneGas regains Nasdaq compliance - MagneGas announced that it has regained compliance with the minimum bid price requirement for continued listing on the NASDAQ Global Market. On May 19, MagneGas effected a 1-for-10 reverse stock split of its outstanding common stock intended to increase the per share trading price of MagneGas's common stock to satisfy the $1.00 minimum bid price requirement of $1.00 per share for continued listing on the NASDAQ Global Market, as set forth in NASDAQ Listing Rule 5450(a)(1). On June 6, MagneGas received a letter from The NASDAQ Stock Market stating that because MagneGas's shares had a closing bid price at or above $1.00 per share for a minimum of ten consecutive business days, MagneGas's stock had regained compliance with the Bid Price Rule and the matter is now closed.

08:11 EDT Hertz to offer special rental services to Grupo Aeromexico customers - Hertz (HTZ) has signed a three-way and exclusive partnership agreement with Hertz Mexico, operated by Avasa, and Aeromexico (GRPAF). Aeromexico passengers can now book car rental at the best available rates for Hertz and Firefly in Mexico and with Hertz, Dollar, Thrifty and Firefly in any of the airline's rest of world destinations, via the airline's website and call center. The special rates for Hertz and Firefly in Mexico are also available to customers who present an Aeromexico boarding pass at the brands' car rental desks in airports across the country. In addition, Hertz Mexico will display Aeromexico branding and customer offers on its website and at all of the car rental company's airport locations.

08:09 EDT EVINE Live promotes CFO Tim Peterman to COO/CFO - Evine Live announced that Tim Peterman has been promoted to COO/CFO. Peterman has served as CFO for the company since 2015.

08:07 EDT EAG Laboratories licensing Dow AgroSciences' Plextein technology - Time is money in the highly regulated world of agricultural biotechnology, and the ability to quickly quantitate endogenous allergens is significant for developing new products. Progress in this area is being enabled by an agreement announced between Dow AgroSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, and EAG Laboratories. The non-exclusive license enables EAG to utilize Dow AgroSciences' patented intellectual property that includes Plextein, a high throughput method for detecting and quantitating multiple proteins in plants. Historically, testing for food allergens in soybeans required a dozen different tests, while using Plextein allows researchers to determine the required regulatory allergen results in one analysis.

08:07 EDT Protalex CEO Kling issues letter to shareholders - Protalex announced that Arnold Kling, president, and CEO of Protalex, has issued a letter to shareholders providing a business update. The letter includes, "Protalex started 2017 with several advances to our global clinical development programs of our lead product, PRTX-100, a highly-purified form of Staphylococcal protein A, as a potentially safe and effective new treatment for autoimmune diseases, that position us for continued advancement throughout the balance of the year and beyond. We continue to enroll our Phase 1/2 dose escalating studies of PRTX-100 as a potential new treatment for chronic immune thrombocytopenia in the U.S. and in Europe. To meet the challenge of patient recruitment associated with an orphan disease like ITP, we markedly expanded the number of clinical sites in both the U.S. and Europe. Last week we began patient screening in the United Kingdom to augment the 203 Study in Europe. With this expansion, we now have more than 20 sites worldwide open for patient enrollment.....We are encouraged by our initial results in both the 202 and 203 Studies, which thus far show an acceptable safety profile to support continued enrollment into higher-dose cohorts in both trials. We have observed two platelet responses, as defined per protocol, in the trials, as described in part in an abstract published for the American Society of Hematology conference in December 2016. Regulators have granted PRTX-100 Orphan Drug Designation as a potential treatment for ITP in both the U.S. and Europe. This status provides commercial exclusivity benefits, tax credits for certain research, potential research grants and a waiver of the New Drug Application user fee in the U.S. Earlier this year, we applied for a $500,000 grant for our ITP trials with the Office of Orphan Products Development in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. We are pleased to report that our application received a Priority Score of 20, which is a competitive ranking as scores are graded 0-90 with zero being the highest score. We believe that we will likely receive the grant because scores better than 30 received funding in previous grant cycles. We will receive notification by the end of September and, if awarded, will receive the funds shortly thereafter. We recently initiated a study of PRTX-100 in an animal model of Myasthenia Gravis and expect to have top-line results from that study sometime in the Q3.

08:04 EDT PriceSmart reports May net warehouse club sales up 1.8% to $234.2M - PriceSmart announced that net warehouse club sales for the month of May 2017 increased 1.8% to $234.2M, from $230.2M in May 2016. For the nine months ended May 31, 2017, net sales increased 3.0% to $2.199B from $2.134B for the nine months ended May 31, 2016. There were 39 warehouse clubs in operation at the end of May 2017 and 38 warehouse clubs in operation at the end of May 2016. For the five-week period ended June 4, 2017, comparable sales for the 38 warehouse clubs open at least 13 1/2 full months increased 1.5%, compared to the same five-week period last year. For the thirty-nine week period ended June 4, 2017, comparable warehouse sales increased 1.4%, compared to the comparable thirty-nine week period a year ago.

08:04 EDT NXP Semiconductors, Cardtek to collaborate on mobile wallet solution for UAE - Cardtek announced that it is collaborating with NXP Semiconductors to deliver the first nationally sanctioned mobile wallet solution for the United Arab Emirates. Emcredit, a fully owned subsidiary of the Dubai Economy, will launch empay, a secure mobile payment platform that offers all United Arab Emirates residents the ability to easily pay for a wide variety of goods and services using smart wearable technology or multifunctional devices.

08:03 EDT Takeda, Seattle Genetics publishes data highlighting Phase 3 Alcanza results - Takeda (TKPYY) and Seattle Genetics (SGEN) announced that data from the randomized Phase 3 ALCANZA clinical trial evaluating ADCETRIS in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma were published in the journal Lancet. Data were previously presented in an oral session at the 58th American Society of Hematology annual meeting in December 2016. ADCETRIS is an antibody-drug conjugate directed to CD30 which is expressed on CTCL lesions in approximately 50 percent of patients with the disease. ADCETRIS is currently not approved for the treatment of CTCL. ALCANZA is a randomized, open-label Phase 3 study designed to evaluate single-agent ADCETRIS versus a control arm of investigator's choice of the standard of care therapies methotrexate or bexarotene, in patients with CD30-positive CTCL. The manuscript highlights data from the trial which achieved its primary endpoint with the ADCETRIS treatment arm demonstrating a highly statistically significant improvement in the rate of objective response lasting at least four months (ORR4) versus the control arm as assessed by an independent review facility. ORR4, as assessed by Global Response Score, was 56.3 percent in the ADCETRIS arm compared to 12.5 percent in the control arm. Key secondary endpoints specified in the protocol, including complete response rate, progression-free survival and reduction in the burden of symptoms during treatment (Skindex-29), were all highly statistically significant in favor of the ADCETRIS arm. The safety profile associated with ADCETRIS from the ALCANZA trial was generally consistent with the existing prescribing information. The most common adverse events of any grade include: peripheral neuropathy, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, vomiting, alopecia, pruritis, pyrexia, decreased appetite and hypertriglyceridemia. Based on the study results, Takeda plans to begin to submit data from the ALCANZA trial to regulatory agencies in its territories in 2017. The U.S. FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to ADCETRIS for the treatment of the most common subtypes of CTCL, mycosis fungoides and primary cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma . Seattle Genetics plans to submit these data as part of a supplemental Biologics License Application to the FDA in mid-2017. The ALCANZA trial received a Special Protocol Assessment agreement from the FDA and scientific advice from the European Medicines Agency.

07:56 EDT Brown-Forman targeting three-year cost savings of $100M - The company is targeting three year cost savings of $100M for FY18-FY20 through better leveraging prior investments, including production capabilities, route to market initiatives, brand innovation, homeplace assets, and the company's people.

07:39 EDT Illumio closes $125M Series D funding round led by JPMorgan Asset Management - Illumio announced that it has closed a $125M Series D funding round led by clients advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. Existing venture investors Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, 8VC, Accel and Data Collective all participated, alongside new and other existing investors. The round brings the company's total funding to $267M. The new capital will be used to invest in significant global expansion of field sales, marketing and customer support, as well as continued product R&D. These investments will enable the company to accelerate its vision of making adaptive segmentation the foundation for cybersecurity in every enterprise data center and public cloud.

07:32 EDT Mallinckrodt enrolls first patient in Phase 3 trial of StrataGraft skin tissue - Mallinckrodt confirmed enrollment of the first patient in the company's Phase 3 study assessing the efficacy and safety of StrataGraft regenerative skin tissue in the promotion of autologous skin regeneration of complex skin defects due to thermal burns that contain intact dermal elements.

07:24 EDT Spring Bank provides update on STING Platform and lead anti-tumor candidate - Spring Bank announced that an abstract regarding its lead STING agonist candidate was published at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting held June 2-6th in Chicago. The abstract includes results from the efficacy studies of SB 11285 in the syngeneic mouse models of A20 lymphoma and CT26 colon cancer, which both showed "very potent and highly-durable, immune-mediated anti-tumor activity". Spring Bank continues with the goal to potentially submit an Investigational New Drug application and/or a Clinical Trial Application for the first human clinical trials of SB 11285 in certain cancers in 2018. Spring Bank has also conducted additional preclinical studies of SB 11285 and other analogs from its proprietary STING platform using multiple routes of administration in the A20 lymphoma, orthotopic 4T1 breast cancer and CT26 colon cancer syngeneic mouse models. These studies demonstrated the induction of immune memory and abscopal anti-tumor activity, upon intra-tumoral administration of SB 11285 in the A20 lymphoma model. In addition, SB 11285 demonstrated dose-dependent, potent tumor growth inhibition and durable anti-tumor response upon intra-tumoral, intraperitoneal, and intravenous routes of administration in the CT26 colon cancer syngeneic mouse model. In the orthotopic 4T1 breast cancer model, intraperitoneal administration of SB 11285 resulted in significant inhibition of primary tumor growth, as well as inhibition of tumor metastasis.

07:20 EDT InspireMD's MGuard Prime featured in Israel Medical Journal published study - InspireMD announced the publication of an independent clinical study entitled, "Long term Outcomes of MGuard Stent Deployment in Saphenous Vein Grafts and Native Coronary Arteries: A Single Center Experience," in the Israel Medical Association Journal. The study was published by the Rabin Medical Center, affiliated with Tel Aviv University, and followed 163 consecutive patients who underwent MGuard stent deployment during the period 2009 to 2014. The MGuard stent was used in 67% of patients who underwent Saphenous Vein Grafts procedure while 33% were treated for native coronary artery disease, the majority during ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction in the latter group. The authors found MGuard to be "a highly effective solution to prevent no-reflow syndrome. No-reflow syndrome manifests itself by the absence of blood flow in the capillary system after a blocked coronary artery has been opened and is related to heart damage that may increase post-interventional mortality rates" (...) "We have thus concluded that the MGuard(TM) Prime stent remains a very effective treatment option in patients with Saphenous Vein Grafts and in STEMI patients with vessels with high thrombotic content."

07:17 EDT ObsEva announces completion pf phase 1 PK/PD clinical trial - ObsEva announced the completion of a Phase 1 clinical trial aimed at evaluating the PK/PD relationship of OBE2109 combined with different doses of add-back therapy. The present Phase 1 clinical trial reported herein aimed to evaluate the pharmacodynamics, safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of the oral GnRH receptor antagonist OBE2109 alone or co-administered with E2/NETA add-back therapy. This was a prospective, randomized, parallel group study involving 76 healthy, Caucasian women of child-bearing potential. Subjects were randomized to one of five arms for a period of six weeks to receive either 100 mg of OBE2109 alone or with one of two ABT doses, or 200 mg of OBE2109 alone or with the standard dose of ABT. From a safety standpoint, all regimens were well-tolerated and no safety signal emerged. OBE2109 has now been dosed in more than seven hundred women. ObsEva plans to submit detailed results for presentation at a future scientific conference.

07:12 EDT Kratos Defense receives $5M in orders for Satellite Communication Systems - Kratos Defense announced that its Modular System Division, or MSD, recently received $5M in Orders for Specialized Satellite Communication Systems and other Hardware from U.S. National Security related customers. Kratos' MSD is a leading provider of hardware, equipment and systems that support satellite communications, unmanned aerial systems, missile, radar, high power directed energy and other National Security related programs. The products, hardware and systems to be delivered under these recent contract awards will be produced in a secure Kratos manufacturing facility. Due to customer related and other considerations, no additional information will be provided related to these recent contract awards.

07:09 EDT Allegiant Travel says unit leases six Airbus A320 aircraft - In a regulatory filing, Allegiant Travel (ALGT) said that through a wholly-owned subsidiary, the company has executed lease agreements through Alafco Aviation Lease and Finance Company K.S.C.P. for six Airbus (EADSY) A320 aircraft. Each lease is for the benefit of the particular owner for such aircraft. The aircraft are expected to be delivered to the Company between September 2017 and December 2017. Each lease has a 12-year term and includes a purchase option which can be exercised by the company beginning 96 months after the delivery date. Upon delivery, the leases will be recorded as finance leases on the company's financial statements. It is expected that the company will record approximately $155.5M-$158.5M as fixed assets and as a lease liability from finance leases upon delivery of the six aircraft which are the subject of these leases.

07:05 EDT Layne Christensen launches energy infrastructure business and water pipeline - Layne Christensen announced its new energy infrastructure business and the construction of a new high-capacity water pipeline and infrastructure system to serve energy producers in the Delaware Basin of West Texas. The water infrastructure system, which is currently in the final stages of construction, is anchored by nearly 1,000 acres of company-owned, water-producing land near Pecos, TX and will include wells, pump stations and in-ground storage facilities. The system encompasses more than 20 miles of high-capacity water pipeline extending northward towards Orla, TX. The system has initial production and delivery capacity of 100,000 barrels per day of non-potable water. The capital investment for the system is approximately $18M. Water sales are expected to commence during Layne's fiscal third quarter. Once operational, financial returns from the system are anticipated to be immediately accretive to cash flow and earnings.

07:02 EDT ITG reports May U.S. trading volume 3.2B shares vs. 2.6B a year ago - ITG reported May U.S. trading volume of 3.2B shares and average daily volume of 148M shares vs. 2.4B shares and ADV of 127M shares in April 2017 and 2.6B shares and ADV of 124M shares in May 2016. There were 22 trading days in May 2017, 19 trading days in April 2017 and 21 trading days in May 2016.

06:49 EDT Wabtec signs $22M contract to provide PTC for Chicago's Belt Railway Company - Wabtec has signed a contract worth about $22M to design, install, test and commission Positive Train Control for the Belt Railway Company of Chicago. Under the contract, Wabtec will provide its Interoperable Electronic Train Management System equipment for five locomotives, a back-office server, office hosting, wayside and communications design, a track database, construction, training, and system integration. The contract is expected to be completed in 2018.

06:39 EDT Aralez announces U.S. commercial launch of Zontivity - Aralez Pharmaceuticals announced the national commercial launch of Zontivity in the U.S. will commence this week. Zontivity is the only antiplatelet therapy that inhibits PAR-1-mediated platelet aggregation in response to thrombin. Zontivity is a once-daily agent indicated for the reduction of thrombotic CV events in patients with a history of myocardial infarction or in patients with peripheral arterial disease, and should be used in combination with daily aspirin and/or clopidogrel according to their indications or standard of care.

06:37 EDT Nomad Foods announces CFO Paul Kenyon to depart in August - Nomad Foods announced that CFO Paul Kenyon has resigned to accept another opportunity outside of the food industry. Kenyon has been CFO with the company for five years, joining in 2012 as CFO of Iglo Group and then CFO of Nomad Foods since 2015. He will continue to serve in his current role until August and will remain on the board as a non-executive director following his departure. The company has commenced an external search for his replacement.

06:31 EDT Southwest reports May traffic up 3.4% - Southwest Airlines reported its May and year-to-date preliminary traffic statistics. The company flew 11.2B RPMs in May, an increase of 3.4% from the 10.9B RPMs flown in May 2016. ASMs increased 4% to 13.2B in May, compared with May 2016 ASMs of 12.6B. The May load factor was 85.4%, compared with 85.8 percent in May 2016. Based on these results and current trends, the company continues to expect its second quarter 2017 operating revenue per ASM, or RASM, to increase in the one to two percent range, as compared with second quarter 2016.

06:05 EDT Egalet enters partnership with Ascend Therapeutics - Egalet announced that it has partnered with Ascend Therapeutics to co-promote SPRIX Nasal Spray to more than 9,000 women's healthcare practitioners, or HCPs. The agreement leverages the experience and network of the 37-person Ascend sales team by featuring SPRIX Nasal Spray as a priority product to healthcare practitioners in women's health. SPRIX Nasal Spray is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, or NSAID, indicated for short-term management of moderate to moderately severe pain that requires analgesia at the opioid level. Promotional activities will begin in the third quarter and the term of the co-promote relationship is two years. Payments associated with the transaction will not be disclosed.

06:01 EDT Advanced Semiconductor reports May revenue up 17.3% to $746M vs. $636M last year

05:59 EDT Arthur J. Gallagher acquires Total Reward Group, terms not disclosed - Arthur J. Gallagher announced the acquisition of Total Reward Group in Kent, England. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

05:57 EDT Banco Santander acquires Banco Popular; to complete EUR7B rights issue - Banco Santander (SAN) announces that it has acquired Banco Popular (BPESY). The acquisition takes place following an auction conducted by the Single Resolution Board and FROB in which Santander was selected as the successful bidder, paying a notional consideration of EUR1. As part of the transaction Santander will complete a rights issue for a total amount of EUR7B. This will cover the capital and provisions required to strengthen Popular's balance sheet. Existing shareholders will be given preferential subscription rights. The rights issue is underwritten. The combined business, which will operate under the Santander brand, will have a 25% market share in SME lending in Spain. The acquisition is expected to generate a return on investment of 13-14% in 2020, and an increase in EPS in 2019. The combined business will benefit from increased profitability with strong potential for further revenue growth. The expected cost synergies of close to EUR500M per year from 2020 will lead to efficiency ratios that are among the best in both Spain and Portugal. To bring Popular's provisions and capital in line with the rest of the Group, Santander will make additional provisions for non-performing assets of EUR$7.9B, including EUR7.2B for real estate. This will increase coverage for real estate assets and real estate non-performing loans from 45% to 69%, significantly above peer average. The Group expects to reduce Popular's real estate exposure significantly as it has done at Banco Santander in recent years. Following completion of these actions, the impact on the Group's CET1 capital ratio is expected to be neutral, while the transaction will significantly enhance Santander's capacity to generate capital organically going forward. Santander maintains its commitment to increase its CET1 capital ratio to above 11% in 2018. The combined entity will be led by the current management team of Santander Spain with Rami Aboukhair as CEO.

05:54 EDT OMA Airports reports May passenger traffic up 6.6% - OMA reports that terminal passenger traffic at its 13 airports increased 6.6% in May 2017, as compared to May 2016. Domestic traffic increased 7.4%, and international traffic rose 0.4%.

05:34 EDT TerraForm Power announces court approval of settlement of claims with SunEdison - TerraForm Power (TERP) announced that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York authorized and approved the entry by SunEdison (SUNEQ) and its debtor subsidiaries into the previously announced settlement agreement and voting and support agreement with TerraForm Power, as well as the performance by SunEdison of its obligations under these agreements. This Bankruptcy Court approval is a condition to the completion of TerraForm Power's sponsorship transaction with Brookfield (BAM). The terms of the settlement agreement, voting support agreement and Brookfield sponsorship transaction were previously announced on March 7, 2017 and copies of the settlement agreement, voting support agreement and merger and sponsorship transaction agreement with Brookfield and descriptions of their material terms are included in the company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 7, 2017. The TerraForm Power board previously approved the settlement agreement upon the recommendation of the Corporate Governance and Conflicts Committee, each member of which is independent and does not also serve on the board of TerraForm Global (GLBL). The Brookfield sponsorship transaction is subject to certain closing conditions, including shareholder approval by the majority of Class A shareholders, and regulatory approvals.

05:28 EDT TerraForm Global announces court approval of settlement of claims with SunEdison - TerraForm Global (GLBL) announced that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York authorized and approved the entry by SunEdison (SUNEQ) and its debtor subsidiaries into the previously announced settlement agreement and voting and support agreement with TerraForm Global, as well as the performance by SunEdison of its obligations under these agreements. This Bankruptcy Court approval is a condition to the completion of TerraForm Global's merger with Brookfield (BAM). The terms of the settlement agreement, voting support agreement and Brookfield merger were previously announced on March 7, 2017 and copies of the settlement agreement, voting support agreement and merger agreement with Brookfield and descriptions of their material terms are included in the company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 7. The TerraForm Global board previously approved the settlement agreement upon the recommendation of the Corporate Governance and Conflicts Committee, each member of which is independent and does not also serve on the board of TerraForm Power. The Brookfield merger is subject to certain closing conditions, including shareholder approval by the majority of Class A shareholders, regulatory approvals and the resolution of certain litigation against TerraForm Global.