Stockwinners Market Radar for August 18, 2017 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

17:45 EDT Kansas City Southern director Henry Maier buys 3,000 shares - Kansas City Southern director Henry Maier disclosed in a filing after the close on Friday that he had purchased 3,000 shares of company stock at an average price at $106.19 per share on August 17.

17:25 EDT ValueAct raises stake inTrinity Industries to 11% from 9.8% - As of this date, ValueAct beneficially own 16,722,019 shares of Trinity common stock, representing approximately 11.0% of Trinity's outstanding common stock.

17:08 EDT Progressive CFO sells 50,000 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Progressive VP and CFO John P. Sauerland disclosed the sale of 50,000 common shares of the company at a price of $48.647 per share. The transaction brings Sauerland's total direct common stock ownership to 370,364.115 shares.

17:06 EDT Southern Missouri Bancorp and Southern Missouri Bancshares to merge - Southern Missouri Bancorp announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement whereby SMBC will acquire Bancshares in a stock and cash transaction. Bancshares operates two locations in Marshfield, Missouri. At June 30, Bancshares' consolidated assets were $91.6M, including loans, net, of $69.1M, while deposits totaled $73.6M. SMBC reported consolidated assets at June 30, of approximately $1.7B, including loans, net, of $1.4B, and total deposits of $1.5B. On a pro forma basis, following the acquisition, the combined company's total assets will be approximately $1.8B, with total loans, net, of $1.5B, and total deposits of $1.5B. The combined company will operate 43 locations in Missouri, Arkansas, and Illinois. Subject to adjustment for Bancshares capital at closing, Bancshares shareholders will receive 9.04 shares of SMBC common stock and $95.82 in cash for each share of Bancshares common stock. Based on the average closing price of $31.80 per share for SMBC stock over the most recent 20 trading days ending on and including the fifth trading day prior to execution of the definitive merger agreement, the deal is valued at approximately $15.1M. SMBC and Bancshares anticipate completion of the transaction in the first calendar quarter of 2018.

16:57 EDT Icahn says ending advisory role 'out of an abundance of caution'

16:56 EDT Icahn no longer special advisor to President Trump on regulatory reform issues - Carl Icahn, founder of Icahn Enterprises, issued an open letter to President Donald Trump, saying that he and the president agreed that Icahn would cease to act as special advisor to the President on issues relating to regulatory reform. "As I discussed with you, I've received a number of inquiries over the last month regarding the recent appointment of Neomi Rao as Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (or "regulatory czar," as the press has dubbed her) - specifically questions about whether there was any overlap between her formal position and my unofficial role," the letter reads. "As I know you are aware, the answer to that question is an unequivocal no, for the simple reason that I had no duties whatsoever. I never had a formal position with your administration nor a policymaking role. And contrary to the insinuations of a handful of your Democratic critics, I never had access to nonpublic information or profited from my position, nor do I believe that my role presented conflicts of interest. Indeed, out of an abundance of caution, the only issues I ever discussed with you were broad matters of policy affecting the refining industry. I never sought any special benefit for any company with which I have been involved, and have only expressed views that I believed would benefit the refining industry as a whole. Nevertheless, I chose to end this arrangement (with your blessing) because I did not want partisan bickering about my role to in any way cloud your administration or Ms. Rao's important work. While I do not know Ms. Rao and played no part in her appointment, I am confident based on what I've read of her accomplishments that she is the right person for this important job. I sincerely regret that because of your extremely busy schedule, as well as my own, I have not had the opportunity to spend nearly as much time as I'd hoped on regulatory issues. I truly appreciate the confidence you have in me and sincerely hope that the limited insights I shared have been helpful to you. I love our country which has allowed me to achieve so much and I thank you for the informal opportunity you have given me to aid it." Reference Link

16:42 EDT Insys agrees to pay $4.45M to settle opioid marketing suit - Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan today announced a $4.45M settlement with the pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics for deceptively marketing and selling a highly addictive opioid drug for an array of treatments that were not approved by the Food And Drug Administration. The settlement resolves Madigan's 2016 lawsuit against Insys for its sale of Subsys, which is significantly more powerful than morphine and intended exclusively for the treatment of breakthrough cancer pain. Madigan alleged Insys deceptively promoted and sold Subsys to treat a wide variety of pain, such as back and neck pain, even though the drug was not approved for those uses. "Insys pushed a highly addictive opioid in complete disregard for patients' health to increase company profits," Madigan said. "It's unethical, greedy behavior by companies like Insys that is responsible for creating the opioid epidemic and resulting overdose deaths in our state." Madigan will use the $4.45M from the settlement to address the significant increase in opioid abuse in communities throughout Illinois.

16:31 EDT Hill International receives NYSE notice regarding late Form 10-Q filing - Hill International announced that, as a result of its failure to timely file its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, it has received a notice from the New York Stock Exchange that the company is not in compliance with the NYSE's continued listing requirements under the timely filing criteria established in Section 802.01E of the NYSE Listed Company Manual. The reason for the delay is that the Company is continuing to compile information regarding, and complete the proper accounting and related tax treatment of, the sale of the Company's Construction Claims Group which was completed during the second quarter of 2017, and to assess the Company's accounting for comprehensive income (loss) in conjunction with the accounting for the sale of the Construction Claims Group. The Company is currently uncertain as to the scope or size of any adjustment that may be required from its assessment of comprehensive income (loss). The Company will not be able to file the Form 10-Q until the compilation, accounting and assessment are completed. The Company will file the Form 10-Q as soon as practicable. The NYSE informed the Company that, under the NYSE's rules, the Company will have six months from August 15, 2017 to file the Form 10-Q with the SEC. The Company can regain compliance with the NYSE listing standards before that date by filing the Form 10-Q with the SEC.

16:24 EDT Atwood Oceanics, Ensco file proxy materials in connection with pending merger - Ensco (ESV) and Atwood Oceanics (ATW) announced the filing of definitive proxy materials with the U.S. SEC in connection with the previously announced merger agreement under which Ensco will acquire Atwood in an all-stock transaction. Ensco and Atwood will hold their respective shareholder meetings related to the merger on October 5. The Ensco and Atwood boards of directors unanimously recommend that shareholders vote "FOR" each company's respective proposals set forth in the joint proxy statement/prospectus at their respective shareholder meetings.

16:08 EDT Flex gets approval for additional share repurchases - Flex announced that on August 15, it received shareholder approval to purchase up to 20% of its outstanding shares. Since the beginning of fiscal 2012 through the first quarter ended June 30, the company repurchased approximately 298M shares for approximately $2.6Band retired all of these shares. Under the company's current share repurchase program, the Board of Directors authorized repurchases of its outstanding ordinary shares for up to $500M in accordance with the share repurchase mandate approved by the company's shareholders at the date of the most recent Annual General Meeting held on August 15.

16:03 EDT Par Investment reports 5.8% passive stake in Red Rock Resorts

15:40 EDT Retractable Technologies trading resumes

15:34 EDT J.C. Penney bounces off lows after chairman Ellison buys 100K shares - Shares are now near flat on the day at $3.57 after hitting a low of $3.45 earlier.

15:23 EDT MGE Energy raises quarterly dividend to 32.25c from 31c per share - The dividend is payable Sept. 15 to shareholders of record Sept. 1. This increase, which is the largest in the last 30 years, raises the annual dividend rate by 6 cents from $1.23 per share to $1.29 per share.

15:05 EDT Caxton Corp. reports 5.3% passive stake in Agile Therapeutics

14:35 EDT Breitbart's Pollak blames local police for Charlottesville violence - Joel Pollak, senior-editor-at-large for Breitbart News, is speaking in a CNBC interview.

14:27 EDT Pacific Road reports 12.5% passive stake in Uranium Energy

14:11 EDT MiMedx in pact to divest Stability Biologics, focus on biopharma

13:56 EDT Matson drops after competitor TOTE enters Hawaii trade route - Matson (MATX), which provides ocean transportation and logistics services to Hawaii, Alaska and Guam, as well as in Micronesia and in the South Pacific, is down over 23% after an announcement from competitor TOTE that it intends to establish a new domestic shipping service to Hawaii that would compete with Matson. TOTE ANNOUNCEMENT: TOTE announced on Thursday that it plans to establish a new domestic shipping service to Hawaii. TOTE, which currently ships to Alaska and Puerto Rico, has signed a letter of intent to acquire up to four newbuild containerships, and has already secured terminal space in Honolulu. The first two of TOTE's ships are scheduled for delivery in 2020 and 2021. TOTE CEO Anthony Chiarello said, "TOTE will bring the same commitment to our Hawai'i operations to ensure maritime transportation is industry leading." ANALYST REACTION: Stephens analyst Jack Atkins downgraded Matson to Equal Weight and lowered his price target to $23 from $36 following the news. Atkins said he sees risk to Matson's market share and thinks it could be a material headwind to profitability, if it materializes. However, Stifel analyst Ben Nolan upgraded Matson to Buy from Hold, saying competitive concerns are being overstated. Nolan did, however, lower his price target for Matson to $30 from $38. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Matson are down over 23% to $22.53 in Friday afternoon trading.

13:40 EDT Teva announces exclusive launch of generic Axiron in the U.S. - Teva announced the launch of generic Axiron topical solution CIII, 30 mg/1.5 mL, in the U.S. Testosterone topical solution CIII is a prescription medicine used to treat adult males who have low or no testosterone due to certain medical conditions. It is supplied in a metered dose pump with an underarm applicator. Axiron had annual sales of approximately $247M in the U.S., according to IMS data as of May 2017.

13:37 EDT Box Office Battle: 'Annabelle: Creation' to remain in first place - The major film release opening this weekend is Lionsgate's (LGF.A) "The Hitman's Bodyguard," an action comedy starring Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson which is expected to achieve a domestic gross of $15.5M-$18M this weekend after raking in $1.65M from Thursday preview screenings. Also opening this weekend is Bleecker Street's heist comedy "Logan Lucky," which is anticipated to make third place at the box office this weekend with a domestic gross of $8M-$10M. Warner Bros. (TWX)/New Line's horror prequel "Annabelle: Creation" is expected to achieve the top spot at the box office for the second weekend in a row with a gross of about $15.8M, while Warner Bros.' war epic "Dunkirk" and Disney's (DIS) "Spider-Man: Homecoming" should round out the weekend's top five, grossing about $6.9M and $4.7M, respectively. Other publicly traded companies in filmmaking include Viacom (VIA), 21st Century Fox (FOXA), Sony (SNE), and Comcast (CMCSA).

13:17 EDT WH Press Sec.: Kelly, Bannon 'mutually agreed today would be Steve's last day' - A statement from the White House Press Secretary says: "White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and Steve Bannon have mutually agreed today would be Steve's last day. We are grateful for his service and wish him the best." Reference Link

12:19 EDT U.S EEOC sues Macy's for disability discrimination - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or EEOC said in a tweet: "EEOC sues Macy's for #disability #discrimination. Retailer refused to excuse asthmatic employee's one-day absence and fired her." Reference Link

12:00 EDT Farmers & Merchants board declares two-for-one stock split - Farmers & Merchants Bancorp has authorized a two-for-one stock split. The two-for-one stock split is payable on September 20 for shareholders of record on September 5 and the per share price will adjust accordingly. As a result, the number of outstanding shares will increase to approximately 9.3 million shares.

11:54 EDT Carvana drops 3% to $14.70 after cautious Copperfield Research report

11:42 EDT Applied Materials CEO says much less volatility in chip sector - The Applied Materials CEO is speaking in a CNBC interview.

11:11 EDT Citing 'irreconcilable differences,' Glenview reps step down from Tenet board - Shares of Tenet Healthcare (THC) jumped in morning trading after two of the company's directors said they were resigning, effective immediately. The directors, representatives of Tenet's largest shareholder, cited "irreconcilable differences" over strategy. DIRECTOR RESIGNATIONS: Tenet said in a regulatory filing on Friday morning that Randy Simpson and Matt Ripperger had resigned from the board. Simpson and Ripperger, two representatives of Glenview Capital Management, Tenet's largest shareholder, had joined the board in 2015. Glenview currently holds an 18% stake in Tenet. In a letter to Tenet's board, Simpson and Ripperger said they were resigning "due to irreconcilable differences regarding significant matters impacting Tenet and its stakeholders." Simpson and Ripperger further said they had decided "the most effective way forward to promote strong patient satisfaction and long-term value creation for Tenet is to step off this board." They also noted that the move triggers the expiration of a standstill agreement Glenview had signed with Tenet. "Glenview may evaluate other avenues to be a constructive owner" of the company, they added. According to today's letter, Glenview "remains fully committed to its ownership stake in Tenet and its desire to drive improved performance, culture and value." WHAT'S NOTABLE: Earlier this month, Tenet reported a larger than expected loss for its second quarter and cut its outlook for fiscal 2017. Following the earnings report, Baird analyst Whit Mayo said earnings were better than they appeared, but noted that the environment is tough and Q3 is historically not a time to be overweight medical providers. Mayo, who also said the company has made some progress on a turnaround, maintained his Outperform rating and $23 price target on Tenet. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Tenet Healthcare are up 9.8% in late morning trading to $13.89, though the stock is down 7% year-to-date. OTHERS TO WATCH: Tenet peers include Community Health (CYH), HCA Holdings (HCA), Universal Health (UHS), and LifePoint (LPNT).

10:45 EDT Deere sees constructive signs for large farm eqipment in 2018

10:29 EDT Analysts upbeat on TherapeuticsMD after large NIH study - Analysts this morning viewed positively for TherapeuticsMD (TXMD) the results of a study on the impact of vaginal estrogen. The results of the trial were released yesterday. The company has developed a drug called TX-0004 which contains estrogen and is supposed to relieve vaginal pain and discomfort in post-menopausal women. NEWS: The study, conducted by the National Institute for Health, showed that postmenopausal women who took vaginal estrogen did not have significantly higher risk of adverse events, including breast cancer, endometrial cancer and stroke, while those who received vaginal estrogen had lower risk of cardiovascular disease, hip fracture, and death than women who did not receive the treatments. The Women's Health Initiative Observational Study, conducted from 1993 to 2005, enlisted 93,676 postmenopausal women between the ages of 50 to 79 to give reliable estimates of the extent to which known risk factors predict heart disease, cancers, and fractures. OPPENHEIMER: Worries about the safety of TX-004 are the only barrier to the approval of the drug, according to Oppenheimer's Jay Olson. The analyst said that the NIH study provided "large real world" data that could not be equaled. Olson noted that the authors of the study wrote that the data did not support the need for a boxed warning on the impact of vaginal estrogen. He kept a $10 price target and an Outperform rating on the shares. JEFFERIES: The size of the data "appears to be robust" and should "satisfy" the FDA, wrote Jefferies analyst Matthew Andrews. He believes that TX-004 is "approvable," and kept a $15 price target and a Buy rating on the shares. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, TherapeuticsMD added 0.15% to $6.30.

10:11 EDT General Dynamics awarded $115.3M contract modification by Navy - General Dynamics Electric Boat has been awarded a $115.3M contract modification by the U.S. Navy to provide research and development and lead-yard services for Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarines. Under the contract modification, Electric Boat will undertake development studies and other work related to Virginia-class submarine design improvements. The contract was initially awarded in 2016 and has a potential value of $431M.

09:45 EDT Gap climbs as Old Navy performance, fewer promotions boost earnings - Shares of Gap (GPS) jumped in early trading after the retailer reported quarterly results, including same-store sales, that beat analysts' expectations, bucking the trend of disappointing results in the retail sector. Gap's performance in the quarter was again helped by Old Navy, a consistent bright spot for the retailer, as well as fewer promotions. EARNINGS BEAT, GUIDANCE RAISE: After the market close on Thursday, Gap reported second quarter adjusted earnings per share of 58c on revenue of $3.8B, handily beating analysts' estimates calling for EPS of 52c and revenue of $3.77B. Comparable store sales for the quarter were up 1%, compared with a 2% decrease in the year-ago period. Same-store sales at Old Navy were up 5% vs. flat last year, while Gap Global SSS fell 1% vs. a 3% decline last year and Banana Republic SSS dropped 5% vs. a 9% decrease last year. Looking ahead, Gap raised its fiscal 2017 adjusted EPS view to $2.02-$2.10 from $1.95-$2.05, with comp sales still seen flat to up slightly. Net sales for the fiscal year are expected to be slightly below the comp sales range driven by an expected negative impact from foreign currency fluctuations year-over-year, Gap said. "With a third consecutive quarter of comp sales growth, we are seeing our investments in product, customer experience, and brand equity begin to pay off," President and CEO Art Peck said in a statement. On the earnings conference call, Peck called out the Athleta and Old Navy as "growth brands" with "significant runway in front of them." Peck also noted that Old Navy is now the fastest growing apparel brand in the U.S. Additionally, Peck called out Gap's supply chain, noting that the company is reducing the time taken to bring fashion to stores and relying less on promotions. For example, Peck said Athleta now has "more than half of its bottoms business on responsive. And by responsive, I mean back into style in 8 weeks or less." INDUSTRY PEERS: Gap's upbeat results come amid a disappointing quarter for many retailers on the comp line. Macy's (M) last week reported another quarter of declining comps, though its EPS and revenue were above analysts' estimates. While Macy's backed its guidance for FY17, it forecast Q3 comp sales on an owned plus licensed basis down 2.5% "or worse" and fall season comp sales on an owned plus licensed basis to be down 0.8% to down 2.6%. Kohl's (KSS) also reported earnings last week, with EPS and revenue narrowly beating estimates, though its comp sales declined 0.4% from the year ago period. J.C. Penney (JCP) reported a larger than expected loss for the latest quarter, with its comp sales dropping 1.3%. Another peer, Urban Outfitters (URBN), reported a quarterly earnings beat, though its comp sales declined. "While we are disappointed in our second quarter performance, we have a number of initiatives underway including: speed to customer, international growth, wholesale expansion and digital investments," CEO Richard Hayne said. Retailers have been hurt by the increasing popularity of fast-fashion retailers, as well as an increase in online shopping on sites such as Amazon (AMZN). Nordstrom (JWN) said in June that members of its founding family formed a group to explore the possibility of pursuing a "going private" transaction, but WWD recently said that the retailer is not in negotiations with "anybody" regarding a potential sale. ANALYST COMMENTARY: Following Gap's "solid" Q2, UBS analyst Michael Binetti acknowledged that he does not see signs of a "sustainable" acceleration in EPS. Binetti, who reiterated his Sell rating and $23 price target on Gap shares, still sees downside risk from gross margin and SG&A pressure in the second half of the year. Jefferies analyst Randal Konik also called Gap's results "solid" in a tough operating environment, calling the retailer's beat "high quality," with upside on comps and gross margin. Konik, who said "don't doubt the strength of Old Navy," reiterated his Buy rating on Gap and $35 price target. JPMorgan analyst Michael Boss, who maintained a Neutral rating and raised his price target to $28 from $27, noted signs of "more stable footing" at Old Navy and "encouraging" underlying signs leading to core Gap product "slowly resonating" with customers. OTHERS TO WATCH: Additional Gap peers include Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) and The Buckle (BKE). PRICE ACTION: Gap is up about 4.5% to $23.68 in early trading.

09:31 EDT Shake Shack plans to open stores in Shanghai - After announcing in July that the first-ever Hong Kong location will open in 2018, plans are now underway for Shake Shack and its licensee, Maxim's Caterers Limited, to open the first restaurant in mainland China by 2019. Maxim's is perfectly fit to bring Shake Shack to Shanghai and Shake Shack is proud to partner with Maxim's Caterers Limited to open 25 total Shacks in Shanghai and East China through 2028. The menu will feature Shake Shack's signature items including the ShackBurger, Shack-cago Dog, classic crinkle-cut fries, beer, wine and frozen custard ice cream. In keeping with its mission to Stand For Something Good, Shake Shack intends to work with local purveyors and producers to create a one-of-a-kind Shack for the Shanghai community.

09:28 EDT Foot Locker says expects gross margin to decline 230-250 bps in Q3 - Expects gross margin to decline 150-170 bps in Q4.

09:25 EDT Diana Containerships announces time charter contract for m/v Domingo - Diana Containerships announced that, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, it has entered into a time charter contract with CMA CGM, Marseille, for one of its Panamax container vessels, the m/v Domingo. The gross charter rate is $8,500 per day, minus a 3.5% commission paid to third parties, for a period of minimum eight months to maximum eleven months. The charter will commence on September 15, 2017. The m/v Domingo is currently chartered to Nile Dutch Africa Line B.V. at a gross charter rate of $6,000 per day, minus a 5% commission paid to third parties. This employment is anticipated to generate approximately $2.04M of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the time charter.

09:15 EDT Foot Locker says expects to close more than 100 stores in FY17

09:12 EDT Foot Locker says not losing market share for premium apparel - Says believes tremendous opportunity exits for premium apparel category over long term. Expects some trends from Q2 to continue for remainder of year.

09:03 EDT Rayonier, Tembec announce antitrust clearance from Competition Bureau of Canada - Rayonier Advanced Materials and Tembec announced today that they received clearance from the Competition Bureau of Canada, without condition, of the previously announced proposed statutory arrangement under Section 192 of the Canada Business Corporations Act involving the acquisition by Rayonier Advanced Materials of all of the outstanding shares of Tembec. In addition to clearance by the Competition Bureau, the Transaction already has received antitrust clearance from the Anti-Monopoly Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, Germany's Federal Cartel Office, and the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. As such, Rayonier Advanced Materials and Tembec have now received all required antitrust clearances. The Transaction has also been approved by Tembec's shareholders and by the Quebec Superior Court. Subject to obtaining other necessary approvals, as well as the satisfaction or waiver of other conditions to the Transaction, it is expected that the Transaction will be completed in Q4.

09:01 EDT Ligand to receive $2M from WuXi for licensing GLS-010 antibody - Ligand Pharmaceuticals announces that it will receive a $2M payment from WuXi Biologics subsequent to their licensing of exclusive rights to the anti-PD-1 antibody GLS-010 to Arcus Biosciences in North America, Europe, Japan and certain other territories. Ligand is also entitled to future milestones and royalties from this antibody. WuXi Biologics was previously contracted by its Chinese partner Harbin Gloria Pharmaceuticals to discover and develop GLS-010 using Ligand's OmniAb technology, specifically the OmniRat transgenic rat platform. GLS-010 is currently being evaluated in cancer patients in Phase 1 clinical studies in China. Arcus Biosciences is a privately held cancer immunotherapy company with headquarters in Hayward, Calif. Arcus plans to develop GLS-010 in combination with other immuno-oncology product candidates in its portfolio.

08:36 EDT Trump says Homeland Security, law enforcement 'are on alert' - President Trump just tweeted, "Homeland Security and law enforcement are on alert & closely watching for any sign of trouble. Our borders are far tougher than ever before!"

08:34 EDT ePlus announces 500,000 stock repurchase program - ePlus announced that its board has authorized the company to repurchase up to 500,000 shares of ePlus' outstanding common stock over a 12-month period commencing August 19. The company's former repurchase plan will expire on August 18. ePlus had approximately 14.2M shares of common stock outstanding as of July 31.

08:31 EDT Tenet: Simpson, Ripperger resign from board due to 'irreconcilable differences' - In a regulatory filing, Tenet Healthcare said that on August 17, Randy Simpson and Matt Ripperger jointly submitted a letter to Tenet's board notifying the board that Simpson and Ripperger were resigning from the board, effective immediately. At the time of their resignations, Simpson served on the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Quality, Compliance & Ethics Committee of the board and Ripperger served on the Human Resources Committee of the Board. As further described in the Letter, Simpson and Ripperger stated that their resignations are "due to irreconcilable differences regarding significant matters impacting Tenet and its stakeholders". In the letter, the two said, "Prior to joining the Board, and in an even deeper manner today, we developed great respect for the core mission of Tenet in improving health outcomes and for so many of the 130,000 employees of Tenet who are directly engaged daily serving patients and communities in need. We joined the Board nineteen months ago as nominees of our employer, Glenview Capital Management, in the interests of serving all of Tenet's stakeholders and with a view towards building value for all shareholders. Both we as individuals, and Glenview as an owner, have determined that the most effective way forward to promote strong patient satisfaction and long-term value creation for Tenet is to step off this Board, which also triggers the expiration of Glenview's restrictive 'standstill' agreement in 15 days, after which Glenview may evaluate other avenues to be a constructive owner of Tenet. Glenview remains fully committed to its ownership stake in Tenet and its desire to drive improved performance, culture and value. On a personal note, we both hope that you as individuals have come to respect and appreciate our methodical approach and our genuine desire to work constructively and cooperatively to find mutually agreeable solutions and strategies to enhance Tenet. While our resignation does confirm that this path has been fully exhausted as co-Directors, we all share a continued responsibility to move Tenet forward with urgency and veracity."

08:03 EDT Zayo establishes additional points of presence in Asia-Pacific - Zayo Group's expanded Asia-Pacific capability, part of its Global Reach business unit, is attracting customers in multiple sectors, including multinational financial and professional services companies, global retailers, healthcare, pharmaceutical, telecommunication companies and large CDN providers. As a result of the demand in the region, Zayo has established two additional points of presence in the key Asian markets of Tokyo and Sydney, complementing existing Zayo PoPs in Hong Kong and Singapore. All four markets are key centers for finance and commerce, and serve as gateways to China and Southeast Asia. With these expanded capabilities, Zayo can now provide integrated infrastructure services across five continents. Customers benefit from the combination of strong and growing fiber footprint and carefully negotiated strategic partnerships with local providers, resulting in end-to-end global solutions.

07:47 EDT Sports retailers down after Foot Locker earnings report - The weaker than expected earnings report this morning from Foot Locker (FL) is pushing down the stocks of companies exposed to athletic apparel and footwear. In premarket trading, shares of Under Armour (UAA) are down 3% to $17.30, Nike (NKE) is down 3% to $55.75, Hibbett Sports (HIBB) is down 7% to $10.65, Finish Line (FINL) is down 5% to $11.99 and adidas (ADDYY) has turned negative in European trading.

06:51 EDT Foot Locker sees SSS down 3%-4% over remainder of year - Richard Johnson, Foot Locker Chairman and CEO said, "sales of some recent top styles fell well short of our expectations and impacted this quarter's results. At the same time, we were affected by the limited availability of innovative new products in the market. We believe these industry dynamics will persist through 2017, and we expect comparable sales to be down three to four percent over the remainder of the year." Johnson continued, "We are obviously disappointed in the results for the quarter, and our team is working quickly to adjust our operations to a changed retail landscape in which we are seeing our consumers move faster than ever from one source of inspiration or influence to another. In addition to working with our vendor partners to identify and capture new trends faster, we are also evaluating a realignment of our capital expenditure priorities and additional expense reductions so we can regain our momentum on both the top and bottom lines and deliver long-term value for our shareholders."

06:48 EDT Calpine: Transaction the result of 'exhaustive' review of strategic alternatives - "We are very pleased to announce this proposed transaction and are confident it is in the best interests of our shareholders and stakeholders," said Frank Cassidy, Chairman of Calpine's Board of Directors. "This transaction is the result of an exhaustive review of strategic alternatives undertaken by our Board, with the assistance of outside advisors, to maximize shareholder value and unlock the company's intrinsic value, while eliminating execution risk. We are confident that this is the best outcome of that review and look forward to shareholder approval."

06:45 EDT Calpine to be acquired by Energy Capital Partners for $5.6B

06:33 EDT Hibbett Sports CEO says 'experienced a very difficult retail environment' in Q2 - Jeff Rosenthal, President and CEO, stated, "We experienced a very difficult retail environment in the quarter, with a significant decline in transactions and resulting pressure on gross margin. Expenses were well controlled, while maintaining proper staffing and customer service levels in our stores. Looking forward, we expect the external environment to remain challenging, although we are encouraged with the progress we are making on our internal initiatives, most notably our new e-commerce website. Our early e-commerce sales have exceeded expectations and user feedback has been very positive. We will continue our efforts to grow our online business aggressively in the future, while continuing to improve our stores to provide a great overall customer experience." For the quarter, Hibbett opened six new stores, expanded four high performing stores and closed eight underperforming stores, bringing the store base to 1,080 in 35 states as of July 29, 2017.

06:22 EDT Sinclair announces carriage agreement with YouTube TV - Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI) yesterday announced an agreement for all of its ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC affiliates to be carried in their respective markets as YouTube TV (GOOG) launches in those markets. As part of this agreement, YouTube TV will also deliver Tennis Channel to all of its members. The companies also expect YouTube TV to expand its offering to include Sinclair's CW and MyNetworkTV stations, as well as the 24-hour science fiction channel, Comet TV.

05:52 EDT Corvex raises CenturyLink stake to 6.6% from 5.6% - Keith Meister's Corvex Management last night in a regulatory filing disclosed an increased stake of 6.6% in CenturyLink (CTL). The stake represents over 36.5M shares, including call options. Corvex bought additional shares and options on August 3 and August 17. The activist fund reported a 5.6% on June 16. CenturyLink said yesterday in a statement to The Fly regarding its planned acquisition of Level 3 Communications (LVLT): "The companies continue to work diligently to finalize the remaining state, federal and international approvals in time to complete the acquisition by the end of the third quarter 2017."

05:33 EDT Infosys announces resignation of Vishal Sikka as CEO - The board of Infosys announced that it has accepted the resignation of Dr. Vishal Sikka as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company with immediate effect. Dr. Vishal Sikka has been appointed as Executive Vice-Chairman and U B Pravin Rao as the Interim-Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. "The succession plan for appointment of a new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer has been operationalised by the Board and a search for the same has been commenced," the board said in a statement. Shares of Infosys are down 10% to $14.37 in premarket trading.