Stockwinners Market Radar for August 24, 2017 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

19:01 EDT LabCorp's acquisition of Chiltern clears FTC antitrust review - LabCorp. announced that the Federal Trade Commission had granted its request for early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, or HSR Act, applicable to LabCorp's acquisition of Chiltern International Group Limited. As previously announced, LabCorp entered into a definitive agreement with Chiltern's shareholders to purchase Chiltern in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.2B. The early termination of the waiting period under the HSR Act satisfies one of the conditions necessary for the closing of the pending acquisition. Closing of the acquisition remains subject to other customary closing conditions under the share purchase agreement entered into by LabCorp, Covance, Inc. and Galaxy Limited on July 29, 2017. The acquisition is expected to be closed on or around September 1, 2017.

18:40 EDT Honeywell's Gautam sells 5,840 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Honeywell PMT president and CEO Rajeev Gautam disclosed the sale of 5,840 common shares of the company at a price of $136.68 per share. The transaction, dated August 23, 2017, brings Gautam's total direct common stock ownership to 16,597 shares.

18:25 EDT Ulta Beauty says e-commerce grew 72.3% in Q2 - E-commerce sales at Ulta.com were driven by transaction growth. Total traffic growth was up 73%, and mobile traffic 104%, driven by investments in digital marketing, paid channels, including paid searches affiliate, display targeting and paid social, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, said company management on the earnings conference call.

18:17 EDT S&P announces changes to S&P 100, 500 indices - S&P Dow Jones Indices will make the following changes to the S&P 100 and S&P 500 indices: Quintiles IMS Holdings (Q) will replace Whole Foods Market (WFM) in the S&P 500 effective prior to the open on Tuesday, August 29. S&P 100 & 500 constituent Amazon.com (AMZN) is acquiring Whole Foods Market in a deal expected to be completed on Monday, August 28. S&P 500 constituent Charter Communications (CHTR) will replace E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) in the S&P 100, and SBA Communications (SBAC) will replace E. I. du Pont de Nemours in the S&P 500 effective prior to the open on Friday, September 1. S&P 100 & 500 constituent The Dow Chemical Company (DOW) is acquiring du Pont in a deal expected to be completed after the close on Thursday, August 31. Post-merger, the combined company, which will change its name to DowDuPont and trade under the ticker "DWDP", will remain in the S&P 100 & S&P 500.

17:28 EDT Lockheed Martin awarded $547.9M government contract modification - Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando, Florida, was awarded a $547,934,477 modification to contract W31P4Q-15-C-0151 for a Hellfire II missile production requirement that consists of 7,358 Hellfire II tactical missiles in containers, in various air-to ground missiles models. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2020. Fiscal 2010, 2015, 2016, and 2017 other procurement funds in the amount of $547,934,477 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.

17:24 EDT United Technologies awarded $149.9M government contract modification - United Technologies Corp., Pratt and Whitney, East Hartford, Connecticut, has been awarded a $149,931,292 increase modification to a previously awarded contract for F-119 engine sustainment. Work will be performed in East Hartford, Connecticut; Edwards Air Force Base, California; Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska; Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii; Hill Air Force Base, Utah; Langley Air Force Base, Virginia; Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada; Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas; Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma; and Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Work is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2017. Fiscal 2017 operations, maintenance, research and development funds in the amount of $172,456,322 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity.

17:22 EDT Leidos awarded $727.7M government contract - Leidos Innovation Corp., Gaithersburg, Maryland, was awarded a $727,689,796 firm-fixed-price contract to provide support for the Afghan Air Force and Special Mission Wing helicopter/fixed-wing fleets. Bids were solicited via the Internet with one received. Work will be performed in Kabul, Afghanistan, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2020. Fiscal 2017 operations and maintenance (Army) funds in the amount of $126,689,243 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, is the contracting activity.

17:20 EDT Charter to replace DuPont in S&P 100 at open on 9/1

17:17 EDT QuintilesIMS to replace Whole Foods in S&P 500 at open on 8/29 - S&P 100 & 500 constituent Amazon.com (AMZN) is acquiring Whole Foods Market (WFM) in a deal expected to be completed on Monday, August 28.

17:05 EDT GameStop sees 'better' results in 2H17 - GameStop (GME) says Nintendo Switch (NTDOY) launch greatest Nintendo launch ever. Says grew software market share by 30 basis points in Q2. Says consumers' appetite for gaming "healthy." Says all consoles have opportunity for growth. Says taking preorders for Micrsoft's (MSFT) Xbox One X this fall. Says continues to face pressure in pre-owned business. Sees better results in 2H17. Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

17:02 EDT AXIS Capital announces final offer of 715 pence for Novae - AXIS Capital announced that it has made a full and final offer of 715 pence per share for Novae Group. This offer values the entire share capital of Novae at approximately GBP477.6M. Albert Benchimol, President and CEO of AXIS Capital, commented, "This acquisition is fully aligned with AXIS Insurance's international specialty insurance growth strategy and will combine two highly complementary businesses. We firmly believe this combination will create significant value for AXIS's shareholders with limited execution risk. The benefits of this transaction announced with our initial offer have not materially changed with this revised offer. We continue to expect meaningful earnings and ROE accretion within the first year after close. We believe that our final bid represents compelling and full value for Novae, as recognized by the Boards of both companies. By offering Novae Shareholders an improved cash offer, AXIS aims to bring certainty to the transaction."

17:01 EDT Qualcomm president Derek Aberle to leave company as of December 31, 2017 - Qualcomm announced that Derek Aberle has decided to leave the company after a successful 17-year career during which he served as president of Qualcomm Incorporated and helped drive the company's overall global strategy and vision as a member of Qualcomm's Executive Committee. His departure will be effective as of December 31, 2017. As part of its transition plan, Qualcomm announced that executive vice president and QTL president Alex Rogers, who has run QTL since March 2016, and is a member of Qualcomm's Executive Committee, will report directly to Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf. Rogers joined Qualcomm in 2001 and has since held various leadership positions at the company.

16:53 EDT RGS Energy and Sonnen to offer battery storage options to residential customers - RGS Energy and Sonnen are immediately offering U.S. manufactured battery storage options to its mainland residential solar customers. "We believe battery storage provides great value for our residential solar customers," said Chris Gorski, RGS Energy's director of special projects. "We chose Sonnen because of the safety, stability and long lifecycle of their lithium-iron phosphate batteries, and the fact that they have more than 20,000 sonnenBatterie systems installed worldwide. Battery storage is at the forefront of the solar industry as customers are seeking solutions to minimize the impact of power outages and the high cost of time-of-use power rates charged by an increasing number of utilities." RGS Energy is a Sonnen certified installer and expects to begin deploying sonnenBatterie systems this fall.

16:45 EDT Adamas Pharmaceuticals trading resumes

16:40 EDT Adamas announces FDA approval of Gocovri - Adamas announced that the FDA has approved Gocovri extended release capsules for treatment of dyskinesia in patients with Parkinson's disease receiving levodopa-based therapy, with or without concomitant dopaminergic medications. Gocovri, previously granted orphan drug status by the FDA, is the first and only medicine approved by the FDA for this indication. Gocovri is a high dose 274 mg amantadine taken once-daily at bedtime that delivers consistently high levels of amantadine from the morning and throughout the day when dyskinesia occurs. Gocovri's positive benefit/safety profile was established in two Phase 3 controlled clinical trials in Parkinson's disease patients with dyskinesia. Gocovri is expected to be available in Q4 and formally launched with the full deployment of Adamas's sales force in January 2018.

16:31 EDT MSB Financial to pay 43c special dividend - MSB Financial announced that its board has declared a special cash dividend of 43c per share on its outstanding common stock, payable on or about September 20 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on September 7.

16:23 EDT VMware reports Q2 license revenue $732M, up 13.7% y/y - "We are very pleased with our Q2 results, which were driven by broad-based strength across the product portfolio in all three geographies," said Pat Gelsinger, chief executive officer, VMware. "As we continue our multi-year journey from a compute virtualization company to offer a broad portfolio of products driving efficiency and digital transformation, customers are increasingly turning to VMware to help them run, manage, secure and connect their applications across all clouds and all devices." "VMware had a strong quarter and is well positioned for the future," said Zane Rowe, executive vice president and chief financial officer, VMware. "We increased our fiscal year guidance, completed our successful debut debt offering and received authorization for an additional $1.0 billion of stock repurchases."

16:17 EDT Marvell sees Q3 adjusted operating expenses $205M-$210M

16:15 EDT NCR Corp. announces court approval of Fox River consent decree - NCR Corporation announced Court approval of the consent decree settlement it entered into in January 2017 with the United States Government and the State of Wisconsin to effectively resolve the Wisconsin Fox River environmental cleanup and related Superfund litigation. The Court-approved consent decree includes NCR's commitments to complete the in-river cleanup work and to drop a potential appeal. It also incorporates the limitation of Superfund claims brought against the Company by other parties and discontinuation of the Company's own such claims, and it envisions assignments of responsibility to other companies for certain future tasks. The decision, by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, is subject to potential appeal. NCR will not make any settlement payments under the consent decree, but will fund the remediation through contractors and vendors on a pay-as-it-goes basis. The settlement is expected to have no material impact on NCR's free cash flow or its Fox River reserve, which was adjusted to account for the settlement and reported on earlier this year in NCR's Form 10-K for 2016.

16:12 EDT Urban Outfitters authorizes repurchase of additional 20M shares - The board of Urban Outrfitters authorized the repurchase of an additional 20M common shares. Pursuant to this program, the company, at its discretion, may repurchase its common shares from time to time, subject to market conditions and at prevailing market prices. The company has 985,354 shares remaining under the February 2015 share repurchase authorization.

16:11 EDT Capital City Bank increases cash dividend 7c per share - The board of Capital City Bank declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock of 7c per share. The dividend produces an annualized rate of 28c per common share and is payable on September 19 to shareowners of record as of September 5. The annualized dividend yield is 1.37% based on a closing stock price of $20.39 on August 23. The 7c regular dividend represents an increase of 40% over the prior quarter dividend.

16:09 EDT Pure Storage appoints Charles Giancarlo as CEO - Pure Storage has named Charles Giancarlo CEO and a member of the board of directors, effective immediately. Giancarlo previously served in senior executive roles at Silver Lake Partners and Cisco Systems. Giancarlo succeeds Scott Dietzen who is stepping down from his role as CEO and has been appointed Chairman of the Board.

16:06 EDT Martin Marietta increases quarterly cash dividend 5% - Martin Marietta announced that its board approved a 5% increase in the quarterly cash dividend to 44c per share on the company's common stock. This dividend, which represents a cash dividend of $1.76 per share on an annualized basis, is payable September 29 to shareholders of record at the close of business on September 5.

16:05 EDT Platform announces intention to separate into two public companies

16:00 EDT Adamas Pharmaceuticals trading halted, news pending

14:51 EDT CFPB amends HMDA rule for community banks and credit unions - The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, CFPB, issued a rule amending the 2015 updates to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, HMDA, rule. The Bureau has temporarily changed reporting requirements for banks and credit unions that issue home-equity lines of credit, and clarified the information that financial institutions are required to collect and report about their mortgage lending. "The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act is a vital source of information on the health and fairness of the mortgage market," said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. "Today's amendments show that the Consumer Bureau is committed to ensuring that financial institutions are able to comply with the rule, and to promoting transparency across the largest consumer financial market in the world." Names in the community bank space include New York Community Bancorp (NYCB), United Community Banks (UCBI), East West Bancorp Commerce Bancshares (EWBC), PacWest Bancorp (PACW) Bank of the Ozarks (OZRK) and Commerce Bancshares (CBSH). Reference Link

14:36 EDT QV Investors reports 5.33% passive stake in Varex Imaging

14:10 EDT RFID tag maker Impinj jumps higher after Amazon-Whole Foods deal closing - Impinj (PI) has been mentioned as a possible supplier to the retail concept, Amazon (AMZN) Go. Amazon described the concept in late in 2016 as "a new kind of store with no check-out required," which would implement RAIN RFID technology to track inventory. Shares of Impinj are up 8% to $34.13 in afternoon trading.

13:57 EDT Grocery peers slip as Amazon previews Whole Foods price cut plans - Shares of a number of companies that sell groceries, including Kroger (KR), Sprouts Farmers Market (SFM) and Costco (COST), are moving lower after Amazon (AMZN) announced that its acquisition of Whole Foods Market (WFM) will close on Monday August 28. As part of the announcement, Jeff Wilke, CEO of Amazon Worldwide Consumer, said, "To get started, we're going to lower prices beginning Monday on a selection of best-selling grocery staples, including Whole Trade organic bananas, responsibly-farmed salmon, organic large brown eggs, animal-welfare-rated 85% lean ground beef, and more. And this is just the beginning - we will make Amazon Prime the customer rewards program at Whole Foods Market and continuously lower prices as we invent together. There is significant work and opportunity ahead, and we're thrilled to get started."

13:50 EDT Apple confirms plan to build data center in Iowa - Apple confirmed plans to build a 400,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art data center in Waukee, Iowa, to better serve North American users of iMessage, Siri, the App Store and other Apple services. Like all Apple data centers, the new facility will run entirely on renewable energy from day one. Apple's investment of $1.3B will create over 550 construction and operations jobs in the Des Moines area, and the company is contributing up to $100M to a newly created Public Improvement Fund dedicated to community development and infrastructure around Waukee. The new Public Improvement Fund, to be established and managed by the City of Waukee, will support the development of community projects like parks, libraries and recreational spaces, as well as infrastructure needs. The first project the fund will support is construction of the Waukee Youth Sports Campus featuring a greenhouse, playground, fishing pier and fields for high school and public sporting events. Apple will be working with local partners to invest in renewable energy projects from wind and other sources to power the data center. Apple has pledged to power all of its global operations with 100 percent renewable energy, and has already reached that goal in the US and 23 other countries. Construction on the data center is expected to start early next year and Apple plans to bring it online in 2020.

13:31 EDT Plantronics says GSA terminates proposed action against company - Plantronics announced in its Form 10-K filed May 10, 2017, that it had received a Notice of Proposed Debarment by the General Services Administration proposing the company be debarred from participation in Federal procurement and non-procurement programs based on an order of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware issued in civil litigation between GN Netcom and the company, civil case number 1:12cv01318. In response to the notice, the company engaged with the GSA to assure the GSA of the company's present responsibility. On August 23, the GSA terminated its proposed action against the company, subject to the company's assurance that it will inform the GSA of any future violations of the GSA regulations, thereby concluding the restrictions imposed on the company. Such assurances remain in effect until the earlier of the next three years or the end of the GN litigation, whichever occurs sooner.

13:20 EDT WeWork receives $4.4B investment from SoftBank, SoftBank Vision Fund - WeWork Companies announced an agreement for a $4.4B investment from the SoftBank Group (SFTBF) and the SoftBank Vision Fund. This investment will accelerate WeWork's ability to connect more people to WeWork's global community, which currently stands at approximately 150,000 members, as well as further expand WeWork's physical presence across the globe. Overview of SoftBank and the Vision Fund's Investment into WeWork: $3B investment in WeWork's parent company via a primary investment in new shares and a secondary purchase of existing shares; $1.4B investment in three newly created companies, each controlled and managed by local WeWork management teams, which will fund WeWork's expansion in China, Japan and Southeast Asia and Korea. In connection with these transactions, Ronald D. Fisher, SoftBank Group Corp. Director and Vice Chairman, and Mark Schwartz, SoftBank Group Corp. External Director, former Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs (GS), and former Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asia, will join WeWork's Board of Directors.

13:07 EDT CareDx confirms AlloSure will receive Medicare coverage, effective October 9 - CareDx announced that AlloSure qualifies for Medicare coverage effective October 9. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released the final version of the coverage policy issued by Palmetto GBA, the Medicare administrator responsible for the MolDX technology assessment program that evaluated AlloSure. "This is the moment we have all been preparing for, CareDx is ready to begin offering AlloSure to transplant centers across the US, ahead of our original timeline. We are hearing great interest from transplant nephrologists who want to begin using AlloSure as soon as CMS approval is finalized," said Peter Maag, CEO. "We see the coverage decision by the MolDX team as a great signal for the support of kidney transplant patients and an acknowledgement of the unmet medical need. About 80% of kidney transplant patients are covered by Medicare, so many patients will have access to AlloSure, a new milestone in precision medicine in transplantation."

12:13 EDT Infosys appoints Nandan Nilekani as non-executive chairman - Infosys announced that its Board of Directors has unanimously approved the appointment of Nandan Nilekani as the non executive chairman of the Board, effective immediately. Nilekani is one of the co-founders of Infosys and served as its CEO from 2002 to 2007. He replaces outgoing chairman R. Seshasayee, who stepped down from the Board. Also stepping down from the Board, effective immediately, are Vishal Sikka, Jeffrey Lehman and John Etchemendy, each of whom welcomed the appointment of the new Chairman. Upon the appointment of Nilekani as chairman, Ravi Venkatesan stepped down from his role as co-Chairman. Venkatesan will continue on the Board. The Board had, on August 18, appointed Sikka as the executive vice chairman to facilitate a smooth transition. This transition has been expedited with the appointment of Nilekani. Given that the EVC employment agreement with Sikka had not yet been executed, the Board, prior to the induction of Nilekani, decided that the company will complete all resignation formalities as per Sikka's employment contract as MD and CEO as executed on April 1, 2016 and approved by the shareholders. Accordingly Sikka will receive 90 days' base pay in lieu of notice of $246,575, a variable pay of $205,572 and company-paid COBRA for 90 days. All equity awards outstanding as on separation date to the extent such awards are unvested will terminate on the date of separation. All equity awards that vested during his employment with the company will remain as vested as per the terms of the equity plan and award agreement.A separation agreement reflecting this and other terms such as a mutual release and non-disparagement obligation has been approved by the Board. U. B. Pravin Rao who will continue as Interim CEO and MD and the Infosys Board will continue with its earlier stated plan to identify a permanent CEO and MD. Reference Link

12:01 EDT UTC Aerospace Systems to add 260 jobs at Foley, Alabama campus - UTC Aerospace Systems, a unit of United Technologies, unveiled a new 80,000-square foot manufacturing and nacelle assembly facility at its Foley, Alabama campus. The company expects to add up to 260 new jobs at the site, ultimately increasing its Foley workforce to more than 1,000 employees. The campus is part of UTC Aerospace Systems' Aerostructures business unit, which maintains a global footprint of nacelle design, original equipment manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul sites. Expected to be fully operational by year's end, the new building will feature a range of innovative manufacturing technology, including automated material movement to index large nacelle component platforms down the assembly line, an overhead rail system with vacuum lifts and an automated painting system.

11:27 EDT Ackman says 'looks forward' to addressing any concerns ADP board may have - Pershing Square's Bill Ackman said in a regulatory filing that "As often happens in these types of situations, it appears that there have been misunderstandings over the past few weeks which unfortunately have clouded what should have been a productive relationship from the start. That was certainly our goal from the beginning. I am sure that you would agree that it would serve all stakeholders if we can put these issues behind us and focus on what is in the long-term best interests of ADP. To that end, we look forward to the opportunity to meet with you and the rest of the board on Tuesday, September 5th and engaging in a productive and substantive discussion. In order to use the time efficiently, it would be helpful if you would identify any specific areas of interest the Board would like us to address in the meeting. We assume that the board will have already viewed our presentation. We look forward to addressing in detail any questions or concerns that the Board may have in order to facilitate a meaningful dialogue at and after our September 5th discussion. We look forward to seeing you and the rest of the ADP Board on September 5th."

11:14 EDT Citi names Matthew Brodgon, Bruce Cox as co-heads of Energy A&D Group - Citi (C) announced the appointment of Matthew Brogdon and Bruce Cox as co-heads of the firm's Energy Acquisitions & Divestitures Group. As senior investment bankers in the Global Energy Group, Brogdon and Cox will provide A&D and M&A advisory and transaction execution services, as well as deliver broad-based market and strategic advice to oil and gas companies and financial sponsors. Brogdon and Cox will also work closely with their partners in Citi's Global Energy and Capital Markets Origination groups to provide clients with an array of additional advisory services, including capital raising, corporate lending, and debt and equity issuance. Brogdon joins Citi with more than 18 years of experience in energy and finance, most recently serving as COO of a private oil and gas company. Cox joins Citi from Credit Suisse (CS), where he was Global Head of Energy A&D.

11:03 EDT Sears announces plans to close another 28 Kmarts as SSS drop 11.5% - Shares of Sears Holdings (SHLD) gained in morning trading after the company's results were better than analysts were expecting despite a decline in comparable store sales. Sears also announced plans to close an additional 28 Kmart stores. EARNINGS: Before the market open, Sears reported an adjusted loss per share for the second quarter of ($1.16), which beat analysts' ($2.48) consensus. Revenue for the quarter of $4.365B also beat estimates of $4.21B, but comparable store sales declined 11.5%. Kmart comparable store sales decreased 9.4%, with a 6.8% decline excluding the impact of the consumer electronics and pharmacy categories, while Sears comparable store sales declined 13.2%, with a 12.1% decline excluding consumer electronics category, the company said. Sears said in a statement that the retail environment "remained challenging" in the quarter, noting softness in store traffic and elevated price competition. Chairman and CEO Edward Lampert said that the third quarter has historically been Sears' most difficult quarter over the past few years, the company is "encouraged" that July was the best month of the quarter in terms of SSS performance. COST-CUTTING EFFORTS: Lampert said the company is making "significant" progress in its restructuring program. Earlier this year, Sears said there was "substantial doubt" related to its ability to continue as a going concern. The company cited its cost cutting efforts, as well as debt financing actions in the filing. In May, Sears reported a smaller than expected quarterly loss, saying that while Q1 was challenging, it was committed to returning to "solid financial footing." Sears has been trying to cut costs by closing stores, and said that so far this year, it has closed about 180 stores previously announced for closure and an additional 150 stores previously announced for closure are expected to be closed by the end of the third quarter. Additionally, Sears announced plans today to close an additional 28 Kmart stores "later this year." Sears said on its earnings call that it is "committed" to evaluating strategic options across its real estate portfolio to unlock value, including in-store partnerships and sub-division opportunities. WHAT'S NOTABLE: Earlier this week, Sears signed two licensing agreements intended to expand the reach of its Kenmore and DieHard brands internationally. The licensing deals followed Sears' recent decision to launch a Kenmore dedicated brand presence on Amazon.com (AMZN). The Kenmore appliance brand page went live on Amazon last week, marking Amazon's first and only dedicated brand page for home appliances. The company also announced the integration of the full line of Kenmore Smart appliances with Amazon Alexa. Additionally, Sears and other mall-based retailers and department stores have been hurt by the increasing popularity of fast-fashion retailers like Zara, Forever 21 and H&M, as well as an increase in online shopping on sites such as Amazon. Macy's (M), Kohl's (KSS) both recently reported declining quarterly comp sales, though Kohl's EPS and revenue narrowly beat estimates. J.C. Penney (JCP) reported a larger than expected loss for the latest quarter, with its comp sales dropping 1.3%. 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. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Sears are up almost 6% to $9.05 in late morning trading. OTHERS TO WATCH: Peers including Kohl's, J.C. Penney, Macy's and Nordstrom are higher this morning.

10:56 EDT Rockwell Collins tells The Fly road show cancellation due to schedule conflict - Contacted by The Fly, a spokesperson for Rockwell Collins say the company is postponing a planned road show "due to a scheduling conflict." The company is currently "exploring alternative dates."

10:48 EDT Fossil surges almost 12% higher after three executives purchase shares - Shares of consumer fashion accessories retailer Fossil are surging after three executives at the company disclosed in regulatory filings that they purchased shares over the last couple days. On August 23, the COO of the company, John White, purchased 13,000 shares at an average price of $7.26 per share. Also purchasing shares on August 23 was Martin Frey a VP at the company. Frey purchased 7,100 shares at an average price of $7.25. On August 22, Darren Hart, VP of Finance, purchased 14,347 shares at an average price of $6.99 per share. Shares of Fossil are up almost 12% to $8.36 per share in morning trading.

10:38 EDT Battleground: One analyst raises China solar forecast, another sees margin risk - Two research firms had divergent views on the solar energy sector, as Roth Capital significantly raised its forecast for Chinese solar energy installations, but Axiom warned that solar energy margins could hit record low levels. ROTH HIKES ESTIMATE: Roth Capital analyst Philip Shen increased his forecast for 2017 Chinese solar installations to 48 gigawatts from 43 gigawatts, noting that data from China's two electric grid operators indicate that more than 12 gigawatts of solar energy were connected to the country's grid last month, versus a previous estimate of 10.5 gigawatts by the China Electric Counci. Additionally, Shen now expects 19 gigawatts of small solar energy systems to be installed in the country this year, up from his previous forecast of 14 gigawatts. Shen said that he raised his forecast because government subsidies for such systems are now expected to decline in the second half of this year. Separately, the analyst published updated prices for solar energy products, as reported by the website PV Insights. Th price of C-SI modules were quoted at 32c per watt, down 0.6% from last week and down 10.3% this year. The price of multi cells fell 0.9% this week and are unchanged this year. Meanwhile, the price of polysilicon, a raw material used to make the products, was unchanged this week and is up 1.2% this year. AXIOM BEARISH ON JA SOLAR: Analyst Gordon L Johnson III says his recent checks indicate that Chinese and global prices for modules and cells dropped slightly last week. Meanwhile, spot prices for polysilicon and multi wafers, which are also used to make solar modules and cells, rose sharply from July 12 to August 9 and have since been stable, Johnson reported. As a result, the analyst calculates that companies which bought the raw materials at spot prices have seen their margins on solar cells fall to a record low -12.9%, while module makers who bought the raw materials at spot prices have margins of -3.7%, the lowest level since Axiom began tracking the metric. Given these trends, Johnson predicted that JA Solar (JASO) would report a Q3 pretax loss of $10M and warned that the company's results could deteriorate further in Q4. Johnson's Q3 forecast for JA Solar assumes that the company's shipments will come in at 1.7 gigawatts, which is the midpoint of its guidance, and that its average selling price will be "an aggressive" 36c per watt. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, JA Solar rose fractionally to $6.35, JinkoSolar (JKS) was little changed and Canadian Solar added 1.5%. Other publicly traded companies in the solar space include First Solar (FSLR), SunPower (SPWR), Trina Solar (TSL) and Yingli Green Energy (YGE).

10:01 EDT Rockwell Collins tells Bloomberg road show cancellation due to schedule conflict - Rockwell Collins told Bloomberg that it had a scheduling conflict for its planned road show and is looking at alternative dates.

09:42 EDT Ele.me announces merger with Baidu Deliveries - Ele.me, an online food delivery service and local services platform in China in which Alibaba Group (BABA) is a key shareholder, announced its merger with Baidu Deliveries, the food delivery arm of Baidu (BIDU). "Both Alibaba and Baidu will provide the Ele.me and Baidu Deliveries platforms with support in technology, customer acquisition, and food safety. In addition, Alibaba has committed additional capital to support Ele.me's aggressive growth strategies," the company stated. Alibaba Group Executive Vice Chairman Joe Tsai said, "The strategic partnership between Alibaba and Ele.me is a valuable component of Alibaba's vision for the future of commerce and our ecosystem. Alibaba will provide continued support for Ele.me as it strengthens its leading edge in the industry."

09:30 EDT Dollar Tree says all three months of quarter comped positively - Says top performing categories at Dollar Tree in Q2 were snacks, beverage, party supplies, household products, food. Says both discretionary and consumables comped better than 3% for the quarter. Sees ultimately operating 1,000 stores in Canada. The company noted that July strongest month of the quarter and that all three months of the quarter comped positively. Sees completing 350 renovations for FY17. Sees no further impairment charges related to Dollar Express. Sees continued pressure on store payroll from wage increases for remainder of year. Comments taken from the Q2 earnings conference call. Dollar Tree is up 10.6% in early trading.

09:26 EDT Kimball Electronics announces additional $20M share repurchase authorization - Kimball Electronics announced that its board, at its August 23, 2017 meeting, authorized an extension of the current stock repurchase plan that was originally authorized in October 2015, and extended in September 2016, allowing a repurchase of up to an additional $20M of common stock of the company. This extension brings the total amount of authorized share repurchases under the plan to $60M, with no expiration. The Plan may be suspended or discontinued at any time.

09:21 EDT On The Fly: Pre-market Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: Signet Jewelers (SIG), up 18%... Tiffany (TIF), up 2.5%... Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), up 13%... Michaels (MIK), up 13%... Dollar Tree (DLTR), up 10.5%. ALSO HIGHER: Adamas Pharmaceuticals (xxx), up 9.5%. The FDA PDUFA date for ADS-5102 is August 24, meaning today is the deadline by which the FDA has said it will review the company's new drug application. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: Hormel Foods (HRL), down 9%... J.M. Smucker (SJM), down 6%... HP Inc. (HPQ), down 2%.

09:12 EDT Signet Jewelers says sees incrementally more promotions in 2H18 - Says sees slight drop in gross margin in 2H18.

09:09 EDT Signet Jewelers says sees incrementally more promotions in 2H17

09:07 EDT Signet Jewelers says 'aggressively managing' real estate portfolio - Says views retail footprint as a competitive advantage.

09:05 EDT WWE, Flow announce multi-year agreement for Raw, SmackDown - WWE and Flow 1 - the Caribbean's go-to channel for leading local, regional and global content - today announced a multi-year agreement to televise WWE's flagship programmes Raw and SmackDown live beginning this Monday, August 28. Flow 1 will now be the exclusive English-language home of WWE in the Caribbean. Flow 1 will televise Raw live at 8 p.m. ET Mondays and SmackDown live at 8 p.m. ET Tuesdays. Additionally, Flow 1 will air WWE Experience, a one-hour weekly WWE highlights show, on Saturdays at 8 p.m. ET, and This Week in WWE, a 30-minute weekly highlights show, on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.

09:04 EDT Signet Jewelers says Q4 SSS to show 'notable improvement' over Q3 - Says Q4 will be a much larger contribution to FY results vs. Q3.

09:02 EDT Sunrun, Comcast enter into agreement to offer residential solar program - Sunrun (RUN) and Comcast (CMCSA) announced an agreement designed to accelerate the adoption of solar energy through the installation of Sunrun's rooftop solar products and provide consumers with savings on their electric bills. Under the 40-month agreement, Sunrun will be the exclusive residential solar energy provider for Comcast Cable, and Comcast Cable will serve as one of Sunrun's strategic partners through marketing campaigns in selected markets. Comcast plans to begin marketing Sunrun's rooftop solar services to its customers in selected states later this year. This agreement follows a successful one-year solar pilot-program in which participating Comcast customers chose Sunrun's BrightSave offering, paying little to no money down to enjoy 20 years of solar energy at a fixed monthly rate. As part of this agreement, Comcast will receive fees for new customers they bring to Sunrun. Comcast may also earn a warrant of up to 9.99% of Sunrun's outstanding common shares. The warrant is earned pro rata only after 30,000 customers under the agreement are installed by Sunrun. The warrant is fully earned if Sunrun installs 60,000 customers under the agreement.

09:01 EDT Accenture acquires VERAX - Accenture has acquired VERAX Solutions, a Toronto-based technology and systems-integration consulting firm that serves the financial services sector in Canada. Financial terms were not disclosed. VERAX is a privately-owned company founded in 2003 that employs around 180 people at offices in Toronto and Halifax. Its key service areas include IT strategy, enterprise architecture consulting, project and program management, financial risk and compliance solutions, as well as business intelligence and data warehousing. Serving leading banking, insurance and capital markets institutions, VERAX delivers IT consulting initiatives across the full range of financial-services lines of business, including wealth management, brokerage and mutual funds, mobile and online banking, retail and commercial banking, and insurance and capital markets. The addition of VERAX - with its proven technology and systems-integration expertise across the financial services sector - will complement and enhance Accenture's consulting and technology capabilities in Canada.

08:51 EDT Origin Agritech receives RMB152M as first payment of seed business sale - Origin Agritech has received the first payment from the company's RMB421M sale of its proprietary China-based commercial corn seed production and distribution business. The consideration for the first part of the asset sale will be paid by Beijing Shihui Agricultural Development Co. in several tranches aggregating RMB221M, including RMB152M paid today from the buyer in a combination of cash and assumption of debt. Beijing Shihui will make two additional payments totaling RMB69M to be paid prior to November 15. A second and final payment of up to RMB200M, including the initial RMB10M down payment, subject to certain set offs is expected no later than December 15. Under the terms of the Beijing Shihui agreement, Origin will retain its corn breeding and biotech research programs; all intellectual properties, which include an industry-leading corn germplasm collection, GM trait portfolio and modern laboratories; extensive field testing networks; and off-season winter nursery in Hainan, with which Origin plans to expand and pursue germplasm and trait licensing opportunities.

08:50 EDT Tiffany sees increase in EPS in 2H vs. last year, sees all growth coming in Q4 - On the Q2 earnings conference call, Tiffany & Co VP of Investor Relations Mark Aaron says the company is planning to speed up product introduction in all categories. Says still in early stages of growing watch business, says "progressing." Says planning to introduce new women's watch collection later this year. Says experienced "solid" sales growth in fashion and designer jewelry in Q2, but noted underperformance in engagement jewelry and wedding bands. Sees "modest" y/y increase in gross margin for FY. Plans to invest "significant" portion of any savings generated back into the business. Expects SG&A expense to increase at slightly faster rate than sales growth for FY. Sees FY effective tax rate approximately 33%. CFO Mark Erceg said results for 1H of the year "have not fundamentally changed our view for FY17." Tiffany & Co is up 2.1% in premarket trading.

08:47 EDT Signet Jewelers says 'well positioned' for upcoming holiday season - Says "confident" in meeting FY18 targets. Comments from Q2 earnings conference call.

08:32 EDT Sandstorm Gold files early warning report on Mason Resources share disposition - Sandstorm Gold announced the disposition of 10,755,170 common shares of Mason Resources Corp. for gross proceeds of C$2.8M, which reduces Sandstorm's holdings of Mason common shares to zero. Sandstorm still holds 0.2 million share purchase warrants of Mason which if exercised would result in Sandstorm holding 0.26% of the then issued and outstanding Mason shares. The sale of Mason shares represents a continuation of Sandstorm's strategy to monetize non-core assets in order to fund the acquisition of streams and royalties.

08:30 EDT Trump says requested McConnell, Ryan tie Debt Ceiling legislation into V.A. Bill - President Donald Trump tweeted, "I requested that Mitch M & Paul R tie the Debt Ceiling legislation into the popular V.A. Bill (which just passed) for easy approval. They didn't do it so now we have a big deal with Dems holding them up (as usual) on Debt Ceiling approval. Could have been so easy-now a mess!" Reference Link

08:10 EDT Pfizer launches Hemocraft, HemMobile Striiv Wearable - Pfizer announced the launch of Hemocraft, a modification of the popular video game Minecraft, and the HemMobile Striiv Wearable, a custom wristband, to help people living with hemophilia better approach hemophilia education and activity tracking in the US. Hemocraft was created in partnership with the Entrepreneurial Game Studio at Drexel University and representatives from the hemophilia community. This game aims to help younger individuals with hemophilia, 8-16 years of age, learn the importance of integrating treatment into their routine in an educational and fun gaming environment. The HemMobile Striiv Wearable, the first wearable made for patients with hemophilia, offers an easy-to-use, comprehensive tool to track activity. The device, which can be worn on the wrist, has several useful features including tracking daily activity levels and monitoring heart rate to measure intensity. The wristband integrates with Pfizer's existing HemMobile app, which allows users to log bleeds and infusions, monitor their factor supply, and set appointment reminders. The data captured generate personalized reports to provide a user's health care team with insights that can help guide the discussion between a physician and their patient.

08:05 EDT A10 Networks signs agreement to power QuakeCon network - A10 Networks will help connect thousands of gamers at QuakeCon 2017 by providing its A10 Thunder CGN to ensure availability and continuity for all players. QuakeCon, an annual video game competition, is North America's largest BYOC LAN party, taking place Aug. 24 to 27 in Dallas, Texas. A10 Networks is a leader in high-performing solutions that power and secure some of the world's largest gaming companies in the world, with its portfolio of CGN, Threat Protection System and ADC solutions helping accelerate and protect three of the four top gaming companies in the United States. In addition to supporting QuakeCon, A10's Thunder CGN helps cloud providers, service providers, and large enterprises manage IPv4 and IPv6 translation between various devices and networks. Hundreds of the world's top service providers rely on Thunder CGN to preserve existing IPv4 infrastructure investments as well as manage IPv6 migration.

08:04 EDT Infinera: Optical transport networking equipment available to federal agencies - Infinera announced that its full portfolio of optical transport networking equipment and services is now available to all U.S. federal government agencies via General Services Administration Schedule 70, NASA Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement V and Air Force Network-Centric Solutions-2.

08:03 EDT Tuesday Morning sees FY18 SSS up 2%-5% - The cCompany currently expects comparable sales for fiscal 2018 to increase 2% to 5%. Gross margin is expected to show year over year improvement beginning in the second half of fiscal 2018 resulting in significant projected EBITDA improvement. Capital expenditures are expected to be in the range of approximately $25M-$30M in fiscal 2018, with a continuing focus on real estate strategy for new stores, relocations and expansions of existing stores, and IT infrastructure and enhancements.

07:57 EDT ADP in filing: Ackman threatened CEO, company with damaging media coverage - ADP, which has been publicly battling Pershing Square's Bill Ackman over his "transformation plan" to shake up the board and "double" its share price, detailed management's negotiations with Ackman in a regulatory filing. Ackman said that "a formal submission of candidates would require public disclosure on Pershing Square's Schedule 13D and create a perception, which would be amplified by the press, that Pershing Square and the company were at war. In that email, Ackman stated that he was seeking a sufficient period of time to have discussions and that, if he could meet with the board in the third or fourth week in August, 'a 30-45 day extension should suffice.'" Ackman also reportedly stated that "once he nominated directors to the board, he would be committed to a proxy fight and would not consider any settlement. He stated that, if he engaged in a proxy fight, he would use his ability to generate media coverage to damage both Rodriguez and the company, and that that would be bad for the company's clients, employees and stockholders." According to the filing, "Mr. Rodriguez asked Mr. Ackman if he seriously expected a Fortune 500 company to change a published deadline so as to not interfere with his vacation, to which Mr. Ackman replied, 'I'm dead serious.' He added that, if he were not granted the extension, he intended to submit director nominations together with the filing of Pershing Square's Schedule 13D filing on the following Monday. Mr. Rodriguez offered to try to arrange to have Mr. Ackman meet with the board." Reference Link

07:33 EDT IMAX and Cineplex partner to add two IMAX auditoriums in Canada - IMAX and Cineplex announced an agreement that will see the installation of two new IMAX auditoriums as well as the installation of a new IMAX VR Centre. An IMAX auditorium will be added at Cineplex Odeon Eglinton Town Centre Cinemas in Toronto, Ontario, and at Cineplex Cinemas Normanview in Regina, Saskatchewan. With both sites expected to open in November, the addition of these two auditoriums will bring the number of IMAX auditoriums in Cineplex theatres across Canada to 25. Additionally, the companies are also working together to install Canada's first IMAX VR Centre at Cineplex's Scotiabank Theatre Toronto. The company is set to open up to eight additional centres in North America, Western Europe and Asia in 2017.

07:31 EDT Qualcomm extends cash offer for NXP Semiconductors - Qualcomm (QCOM) announced that Qualcomm River Holdings B.V., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm, has extended the offering period of its previously announced cash tender offer to purchase all of the outstanding common shares of NXP Semiconductors (NXPI). The tender offer is being made pursuant to the Purchase Agreement, dated as of October 27, 2016, by and between Qualcomm River Holdings B.V. and NXP. The tender offer is now scheduled to expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on September 22, 2017, unless extended or earlier terminated, in either case pursuant to the terms of the Purchase Agreement.

07:21 EDT Gartner: Worldwide wearable device sales to grow 17% in 2017 - Gartner forecasts that 310.4 million wearable devices will be sold worldwide in 2017, an increase of 16.7% from 2016. Sales of wearable devices will generate revenue of $30.5B in 2017. Of that, $9.3B will be from smartwatches. In 2017, 41.5 million smartwatches will be sold. They are on pace to account for the highest unit sales of all wearable device form factors from 2019 to 2021, aside from Bluetooth headsets. By 2021, sales of smartwatches are estimated to total nearly 81 million units, representing 16% of total wearable device sales. Apple will continue to have the greatest market share of any smartwatch provider. However, as more providers enter the market, Apple's market share will decrease from approximately a third in 2016 to a quarter in 2021.

07:18 EDT Burlington Stores to open 37 net new stores in FY17, sees FY17 CapEx $210M-$215M

07:17 EDT AstraZeneca announces results from new sub-analysis of PEGASUS-TIMI 54 trial - AstraZeneca announced results from a new sub-analysis of data from the Phase III PEGASUS-TIMI 54 trial demonstrating a 29% risk reduction in CV death (p=0.0041) from treatment with Brilinta 60mg twice daily, versus placebo, in patients taking low-dose aspirin but still at high risk of an atherothrombotic event, a major cause of acute coronary syndrome and CV death. The sub-analysis of PEGASUS-TIMI 54 data also showed a risk reduction of 20% in all causes of death, and 20% in the composite of CV death, MI or stroke. As expected, major bleeding rates were consistent with the known safety profile of Brilinta. Elisabeth Bjork, VP, Head of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases , Global Medicines Development, AstraZeneca, said: "The Phase III PEGASUS-TIMI 54 trial continues to provide valuable data and insights with the potential to benefit both healthcare professionals and their patients. The results reinforce the importance of our continued investment in the science, helping to understand better the unique CV and mortality benefits that our medicines, such as Brilinta, can provide for the millions of patients living with cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death globally."

07:13 EDT Select Energy Services announces early termination of HSR waiting period - Select Energy Services announced that Select and Rockwater Energy Solutions have received notice from the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission granting early termination of the waiting period under the HSR Act, with respect to the proposed merger previously announced on July 18 pursuant to which Select and Rockwater will merge in a stock-for-stock transaction. Completion of the merger remains subject to satisfaction or waiver of certain other conditions, including the filing with the SEC of the information statement describing the proposed merger by Select and the subsequent mailing of this information statement to Select's stockholders.

07:08 EDT J.M. Smucker says revised FY18 guidance reflects U.S. retail coffee environment - "Net sales are expected to be down slightly compared to the prior year. Adjusted earnings per share is expected to range from $7.75 to $7.95, based on 113.6 million shares outstanding. The change from previous guidance reflects the lower than anticipated results in the first quarter and lower pricing for the remainder of the fiscal year, primarily attributed to U.S. Retail Coffee. The above guidance excludes any potential impact from the company's previously announced definitive agreement to acquire the Wesson oil brand from Conagra Brands (CAG), which is pending regulatory approval."

07:05 EDT J.M. Smucker says 'volume trends improving' for Folgers - "While our first quarter results fell slightly short of our projections, primarily driven by lower than anticipated volume for Folgers roast and ground coffee, we have taken actions to improve our competitive positioning for Folgers. As a result, volume trends are improving. In addition, we remain pleased with the performance of the remainder of our coffee portfolio and look forward to the launch of new coffee products later this fiscal year," said Mark Smucker, CEO. "We are also pleased with the progress on our cost management programs, as we continue to deliver on our synergy and cost savings targets. Across all our businesses, we are executing on our strategic plan that provides a clear path to sustainable, long-term growth by delivering on current consumer and retail trends."

07:01 EDT Aehr Test Systems receives follow-on production order exceeding $3M - Aehr Test Systems announced that it has received a follow-on production order exceeding $3M for multiple Advanced Burn-in and Test System thermal chambers from an OEM customer. This follow-on order is for a high volume application and includes down payments to lock in capacity and lead times. The thermal chambers are expected to ship through Aehr Test's fiscal third quarter.

06:56 EDT Signet Jewelers calls Q2 performance 'encouraging' - Virginia Drosos, CEO of Signet Jewelers, said, "Our encouraging second quarter performance reflects Signet's fundamental competitive strengths and the progress we are making on our strategic priorities. We delivered positive same store sales performance and managed our cost base to deliver operating margin expansion in a highly promotional environment. Further, today we announced the acquisition of JamesAllen.com to add a leading, fast-growing online jeweler to our portfolio. The acquisition will enhance our innovation and digital capabilities with R2Net's technology to create a best-in-class OmniChannel shopping experience across our banners. Based on this positive momentum, we are increasingly confident that Signet is well-positioned for the upcoming holiday selling season and on track to achieve our financial targets for the year. I am stepping into the CEO role at an exciting time for Signet. Together with my leadership team, I am acutely focused on deepening our understanding of consumers, reinventing our OmniChannel shopping experience, and elevating our brand messaging and product assortment."

06:54 EDT Nomad Foods says Mohamed Elsarky to replace Brian Welch on board - Nomad Foods announced that it has appointed Mohamed Elsarky to replace Brian Welch on its Board of Directors. Welch has resigned from the Board to focus on a new investment at his firm, Pershing Square Capital Management LP, where he is a partner. He has been a Director of Nomad Foods since June 2015.

06:44 EDT Tiffany provides FY17 outlook - Management's outlook for fiscal 2017 calls for: (i) worldwide net sales increasing over the prior year by a low-single-digit percentage as reported and on a constant-exchange-rate basis, (ii) net earnings per diluted share increasing by a high-single-digit percentage over 2016's earnings per diluted share of $3.55 and by a mid-single-digit-percentage over 2016's earnings per diluted share (excluding charges) of $3.75 and (iii) earnings per diluted share in the second half of fiscal 2017 increasing over the prior year's second half, with the growth occurring in the fourth quarter. These expectations are approximations and are based on the Company's plans and assumptions for the full year, including: (i) worldwide gross retail square footage increasing 2%, net through 10 store openings, seven relocations and seven closings; (ii) operating margin in line with the prior year due to an expected increase in gross margin offset by SG&A expense growth higher than sales growth; (iii) interest and other expenses, net of $35-$40 million; (iv) an effective income tax rate of approximately 33%; (v) no meaningful effect in fiscal 2017 from the U.S. dollar versus foreign currencies on a year-over-year basis; and (vi) minimal benefit to net earnings per diluted share from share repurchases.

06:33 EDT Hormel Foods acquires Ceratti brand for approximately $104M - Hormel Foods announced it has acquired Cidade do Sol, a growing, branded, value-added meats company in Brazil. The company offers more than 70 products in 15 categories including authentic meats such as mortadella, sausage and salami for Brazilian retail and foodservice markets under the popular Ceratti brand. The purchase price was approximately $104M, subject to customary working capital adjustments. Cidade do Sol will report into Hormel Foods International Corporation. Hormel Foods was advised by HT Capital Advisors LLC, Faegre Baker Daniels LLP, and TozziniFreire Advogados.

06:31 EDT Wabco to acquire Sheppard for $145M - WABCO announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire privately held RH Sheppard Co., a key supplier of commercial vehicle technologies, including industry-leading vehicle steering capabilities, headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. The transaction is subject to customary U.S. regulatory clearance and it is expected to close by the end of the third quarter 2017. WABCO's purchase price is $145M, subject to customary adjustments. Sheppard had sales of $130M in 2016.

06:16 EDT Baidu completes sale of food delivery subsidiary - Baidu's majority owned subsidiary, Xiaodu Life Technology, which operates the food delivery business, has completed its merger with Rajax Merger Sub Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rajax Holding, which operates the food delivery business under the ele.me brand in China. As a result of the Merger, Xiaodu has become a subsidiary of Rajax. Baidu and Rajax have also agreed to a business cooperation across a broad base of products and services following completion of the Merger.

06:06 EDT Sears says making 'significant progress in our restructuring program' - Management said, "In July, the Company announced our agreement with Amazon to launch Kenmore products on Amazon.com, which we expect will significantly expand the reach of the Kenmore brand. We expect this partnership to drive growth opportunities across three of our divisions - Kenmore, Sears Home Services and Innovel Solutions. Innovel and Sears Home Services will provide white-glove service for delivery, installation and extended product protection for the full range of home appliances from Kenmore sold on Amazon.com. The Amazon Kenmore Store will feature a full range of Kenmore products for purchase across the United States, with select home appliances already available in California. We continue to explore opportunities for our Kenmore and DieHard brands, as well as our Sears Home Services and Sears Auto Center businesses by evaluating potential partnerships or other transactions that could expand distribution of our brands and service offerings to realize significant growth. There can be no assurance that we will complete one or more transactions, and we also intend to take actions on our own that present the opportunity to improve the economics of these brands and business, including potential externalization through non-Sears Holdings channels.We have also continued to achieve significant progress in our restructuring program announced earlier this year, with over $1.0 billion in annualized cost savings actioned to date. Actions taken to date to realize $1.25 billion in annualized cost savings have included simplification of the organizational structure of Sears Holdings, streamlining of operations, reducing unprofitable categories and the closure of under-performing stores. In fiscal year 2017, we have closed approximately 180 stores previously announced for closure, and an additional 150 stores previously announced for closure are expected to be closed by the end of the third quarter of 2017. In addition, later this morning we will be notifying associates at 28 Kmart stores that we will be closing these stores later this year, as we continue to transform our business model so that our physical store footprint and our digital capabilities match the needs and preferences of our members."

06:03 EDT Sears reports Q2 SSS down 11.5% - Management said, "The retail environment remained challenging, with continued softness in store traffic and elevated price competition, however, we are encouraged that the month of July was the best month of the quarter in terms of comparable store sales performance. During the second quarter 2017, we had total revenues of approximately $4.4 billion, compared with $5.7 billion in the prior year quarter, with store closures contributing to approximately $770 million of the decline, and with reductions in the number of pharmacies in open stores and the reduction in consumer electronics assortment continuing to contribute to our overall sales decline. Comparable store sales declined 11.5% during the second quarter of 2017. Kmart comparable store sales decreased 9.4%, with a 6.8% decline excluding the impact of the consumer electronics and pharmacy categories, while Sears comparable store sales declined 13.2%, with a 12.1% decline excluding consumer electronics category."

05:38 EDT Encore Capital unit acquires Wescot Credit Services - Encore Capital Group announced that its subsidiary, U.K.-based Cabot Credit Management, has entered into an agreement to acquire Wescot Credit Services Limited, a leading U.K. contingency debt collection and business process outsourcing services company. Encore acquired a controlling stake in Cabot in July 2013, and preparation for a potential Cabot IPO, announced in February, remains on track. Cabot's acquisition of Wescot expands Encore's strong presence in the U.K., which is the largest mature credit market in the world after the United States. Cabot was already the leading unsecured debt buyer in the U.K. prior to the transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority and is expected to close within three months.

04:56 EDT Papa John's announces development deal in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Poland - Papa John's continues its expansion into new countries with the announcement of signed development agreements for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Poland. PJ Western signed a development agreement to open 16 restaurants over the next five years in Kazakhstan, with the first store scheduled to open in Almaty over the next few months. In addition, PJ Western plans to open its first restaurant in Kyrgyzstan in the fourth quarter of 2017, with a plan to open six restaurants in Bishkek over the next three years. They also will be opening 23 restaurants in Poland beginning in late 2017.

04:52 EDT FDA grants priority review to Genentech's emicizumab - Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, announced that the U.S. FDA has accepted the company's Biologics License Application and granted Priority Review for emicizumab prophylaxis as a once-weekly subcutaneous treatment for adults, adolescents and children with hemophilia A with factor VIII inhibitors. Nearly one in three people with hemophilia A develop inhibitors to standard factor VIII replacement therapies, which limits treatment options and increases the risk of life-threatening bleeds and repeated bleeds, particularly in joints, that cause long-term damage. The FDA is expected to make a decision on approval by February 23, 2018.

04:37 EDT Home Bancorp to acquire St. Martin Bancshares - Home Bancorp and St. Martin Bancshares announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Home Bancorp will acquire St. Martin Bancshares. Under the terms of the agreement, St. Martin Bancshares will be merged with and into Home Bancorp, and St. Martin Bank will be merged with and into Home Bank. Upon consummation of the Merger, shareholders of St. Martin Bancshares will receive 9.2839 shares of Home Bancorp common stock for each share of St. Martin Bancshares common stock. In addition, immediately prior to the closing of the Merger, St. Martin Bancshares will pay a special cash distribution of $94.00 per share to its shareholders. Based on the ten day average closing price of Home Bancorp's common stock through August 22, 2017, the Stock Consideration plus the Special Distribution has a combined value of $457.47 per share to holders of St. Martin Bancshares common stock, or $96.1M in the aggregate. The merger agreement was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2017 or first quarter of 2018, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals and shareholder approvals of both companies. Home Bancorp anticipates the transaction will be over 20% accretive to earnings per share once cost savings are fully realized and accretive to tangible book value per share within 3.5 years of closing. Following the Merger, Home Bank's capital position is expected to remain strong with leverage and total risk-based capital ratios of approximately 9.1% and 12.3%, respectively. No additional capital will be needed by Home Bancorp to complete the transaction.