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

19:12 EDT HP Enterprise raises share buyback by $5B, raises regular dividend 15% - Given HPE's strong net cash position today and the underlying strength of its normalized free cash flow engine, HPE is committed to returning approximately $2.5B in total to shareholders in FY18, consisting of $2B in share repurchases and approximately $500M in dividends. The company approved a 15% increase in its regular cash dividend to 7.5c per share, up from its prior 6.5c, and also increased its share repurchase authorization by $5B. Over time, the company plans to return at least 75% of normalized free cash flow to shareholders, up from its prior commitment of 50%.

19:04 EDT HP Enterprise plans $2B in share buybacks in FY18, $500M in dividends

18:50 EDT United Continental sees Q4 adjusted pre-tax margin 3%-5%

18:37 EDT IBM CFO: Great start to 2H17 - Says dollar is important because two thirds of company's business is outside U.S. Says companies continue to adopt cognitive technologies. Says new mainframe encrypted, will shut down upon human intervention. Martin Schroeter is speaking on CNBC.

18:12 EDT SEC names JPMorgan exec Redfearn Director of Division of Trading and Markets - The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that Brett Redfearn has been named Director of the agency's Division of Trading and Markets. "Brett's extensive markets experience and his longstanding, active engagement with investors, financial services firms, exchanges, and the SEC make him exceptionally well positioned to lead the Division of Trading and Markets," said Chairman Jay Clayton. "Brett has been a thought leader on a wide range of issues facing our rapidly changing capital markets, and I know he will continuously ask the question, 'are our markets best serving the long-term interests of the investing public?'" Redfearn joins the SEC from JPMorgan, where he was Global Head of Market Structure for the Corporate & Investment Bank. Reference Link

17:53 EDT Pinnacle West raises quarterly divided 6.1% to 69.5c per share - Pinnacle West Capital's board of directors voted to raise the company's dividend by 6.1%, or 16c per common share annually. This action will result in an indicated annual dividend of $2.78 per share - or 69.5c per share quarterly. The declared quarterly dividend is payable Dec. 1, 2017, to shareholders of record on Nov. 1, 2017.

17:37 EDT Potash, Agrium: India approves proposed merger of equals transaction - Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (POT) and Agrium (AGU) announced that India has approved their proposed merger of equals transaction. An Indian appellate court has approved a settlement reached between the merger parties and the Competition Commission of India and has directed the CCI to issue a clearance order. The CCI's approval will be conditioned on the parties' commitment to divest PotashCorp's minority shareholdings in Arab Potash Company, Israel Chemicals, Ltd. and Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. within a period of 18 months from the issuance of the order. The companies are permitted to consummate the merger prior to the divestments. The companies previously received unconditional clearance for the merger in Canada, Brazil and Russia. The regulatory review and approval process continues in the U.S. and China and the parties expect to close the transaction by the end of the fourth quarter of 2017. Upon closing the merger transaction, the new company will be named Nutrien. As the largest global provider of crop inputs and services, Nutrien will play a critical role in "Feeding the Future" by helping growers to increase food production in a sustainable manner.

17:32 EDT On The Fly: After Hours Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: Limelight Networks (LLNW), up 10%... United Rentals (URI), up 2.1%... Kinder Morgan (KMI), up 1.7%. ALSO HIGHER: Adobe Systems (ADBE), up 8.6% after it provided better than expected guidance for fiscal 2018 and reaffirmed its fourth quarter guidance... Conatus (CNAT), up 6.8% after its drug IDN-7314 received orphan drug designation from the EMA. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: eBay (EBAY), down 5.6%... Hexcel (HXL), down 1.6%... Crown Castle (CCI), down 1%. ALSO LOWER: Earthstone Energy (ESTE), down 7% after it filed to sell 4.5M shares... Pattern Energy (PEGI), down 4.2% after it filed to sell 8M shares of Class A common stock... Ignyta (RXDX), down 3.4% after it announced a $125M common stock offering... HCA Healthcare (HCA), down 2.5% after it provided conservative guidance for the third quarter and lowered its guidance for fiscal 2017... KLA-Tencor (KLAC), down 1% after it was removed from the Focus List at Credit Suisse.

17:20 EDT Union Bankshares sees Q418 charge of $3.2M on plan termination - On October 18, the board approved the termination of the company's noncontributory defined benefit pension plan. The Plan covers substantially all employees who had earned benefits as of October 5, 2012. On that date the Plan was closed to new participants and benefit accruals were frozen. Based on the estimated value of assets held in the Plan, the company currently estimates that a cash contribution of approximately $1.1M will be required to fully fund the Plan's liabilities at termination. In addition, the company expects to record a charge to earnings of $3.2M at termination, which is expected to occur during the fourth quarter of 2018. Actual amounts may differ from these estimates. Management of the company is in process of communicating information to Plan participants affected by this decision.

17:16 EDT Oil States lowers Q3 outlook due to impacts of Hurricane Harvey

17:06 EDT Blue Apron to cut roughly 6% of total workforce, inclur roughly $3.5M in expense - Blue Apron said in a regulatory filing that, on October 18, it implemented a company-wide realignment of personnel to support its strategic priorities. This realignment resulted in a reduction of approximately 6% of the company's total workforce across both the company's corporate offices and fulfillment centers. As a result of the realignment, the company expects to incur approximately $3.5M in employee-related expenses, primarily consisting of severance payments, substantially all of which will result in cash expenditures. The company expects to incur such expenses during the fourth quarter of 2017.

17:05 EDT Crown Holdings sees FY17 CapEx approximately $450M - The effective income tax rate for the full year of 2017 is expected to be approximately 26%. Cash provided by operating activities is currently expected to be approximately $875M.

16:51 EDT United Continental sees Q4 fuel consumption 975M-985M gallons - Sees Q4 consolidated average aircraft fuel price per gallon $1.80-$1.85.

16:50 EDT United Continental sees Q4 tax rate 35%-36%

16:41 EDT United Continental sees FY17 CASM ex-fuel, expenses up 3.3%-3.5%

16:38 EDT United Continental sees FY17 adjusted CapEx $4.6B-$4.8B

16:34 EDT Kaiser Aluminum lowers 2017 aerospace applications sales view - Kaiser CEO Jack A. Hockema stated, "While our 2017 outlook for automotive extrusions and general engineering applications remains unchanged, we have lowered the outlook for our aerospace applications due to constraints on throughput during the installation and ramp-up of new equipment and automated controls at our Trentwood facility. For our automotive extrusion applications we continue to expect double-digit year-over-year growth in shipments and mid-single-digit growth in value added revenue as new product growth is predominantly in lower value added parts. As we have previously noted for our aerospace applications, we anticipate headwinds from lower sales margins and commercial aerospace supply chain destocking will continue through the remainder of the year. While we had previously anticipated aerospace shipments would be comparable to 2016, we now expect 2017 aerospace shipments will be less than the prior year due to the slower-than-anticipated Trentwood ramp-up. Longer term, we continue to anticipate solid aerospace demand growth driven by military and commercial aircraft applications in both 2018 and 2019 with isolated instances of the supply chain inventory overhang lingering into 2018 to create a modest drag on overall industry demand growth. As demand strengthens and we implement the improved practices and capacity expansion at Trentwood, we expect increasing benefits from the new equipment and automated controls at Trentwood. Overall, we expect to enter 2018 well positioned to serve industry-wide demand growth across our served markets, and our strong balance sheet and cash flow generation will support continued investments in organic and inorganic growth as well as the return of cash to shareholders".

16:34 EDT Blue Capital sees preliminary Q3 catastrophe losses of $57.5M - Blue Capital Reinsurance Holdings announced preliminary Q3 catastrophe losses of $57.5M, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums and expects September 30 book value per share to be approximately $14.48. The estimated losses reflect the impact of three major hurricanes which made landfall and two earthquakes in Mexico.

16:32 EDT Crown Castle raises quarterly dividend to $1.05 from 95c - The quarterly dividend will be payable on December 29, 2017 to common stockholders of record at the close of business on December 15, 2017.

16:32 EDT United Continental sees FY17 consolidated capacity growth about 3.5%

16:27 EDT Universal Stainless & Alloy trading halted, news pending

16:25 EDT Butterfield chief risk officer Frumkin named COO - The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Limited announced the following changes within its senior management team structure. Daniel Frumkin, previously Group Chief Risk Officer, has been appointed to the new role of Group Chief Operating Officer. In this capacity, he will be responsible for the Group's client-facing businesses, jurisdictions, technology, and operations. Andrew Graham, previously Chief Risk Officer and Head of Fiduciary Risk at Butterfield Bank Limited, has been named Group Chief Risk Officer, and the Bank's Risk Management function becomes part of the Finance division, reporting to Group Chief Financial Officer Michael Schrum. Compliance has been separated from Risk Management, and Sian Dalrymple, Group Head of Compliance, will join the Group Executive Committee, reporting directly to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Collins.

16:24 EDT United Continental says Q3 pre-tax income reduced by about $185M due to storms - During the quarter, the company cancelled approximately 8,300 flights as a result of severe weather in southeast Texas, Florida and parts of the Caribbean. The operational disruption reduced third-quarter pre-tax income by an estimated $185M.

16:22 EDT American Express says Squeri to succeed retiring Chenault as CEO - American Express (AXP) said that its board has appointed Stephen Squeri CEO and elected him Chairman of the Board, each effective February 1, 2018. Squeri will succeed Kenneth Chenault, who will retire after a 37-year career with the company. Squeri has been Vice Chairman since 2015 and prior to that was Group President of the company's Global Corporate Services Group. Chenault has served as Chairman and CEO since 2001. "We are completing a two-year turnaround ahead of plan with strong revenue and earnings growth across all of our business segments," said Chenault. "We've added new products and benefits, acquired record numbers of new customers, expanded our merchant network and lowered operating costs. We've dealt effectively with competitive challenges and redesigned our marketing, customer service and risk management capabilities for the digital age." Warren Buffett, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B), American Express' largest shareholder, said in the press release, "American Express is a very special company, one in which I first invested 53 years ago. Ken built on its storied history - not by abandoning traditional strengths, but by building on them and adding new ones. He's been a great CEO and Berkshire Hathaway shareholders owe him a huge thank you. I've spoken with Steve and have been hearing about him from Ken. From everything I've heard, he's absolutely the right person for the job. He knows the business, has a great track record and appreciates what makes American Express special. Ken and the board have picked someone who is going to build on a great legacy of service and success."

16:21 EDT Mudrick Capital reports 15.3% passive stake in Verso

16:21 EDT Brandywine Realty raises 2017 disposition target by $230M to $430M

16:19 EDT United Rentals to resume pre-existing $1B share repurchase program - United Rentals announced that it will resume its pre-existing $1B program to repurchase shares of its common stock. The Program commenced in November 2015 and was paused in October 2016 as the company evaluated potential acquisition opportunities. The company has already completed $627M of repurchases under the Program, and intends to complete the remaining $373M in 2018.

16:18 EDT American Express says Stephen Squeri will succeed Kenneth Chenault as CEO

16:14 EDT Andeavor Logistics increases quarterly distribution 1.5% - Andeavor Logistics announced the declaration of its quarterly cash distribution for Q3 of 98.52c per limited partnership unit, or $3.94 on an annualized basis. This distribution represents a 1.5% increase over the quarterly distribution of 97.1c per limited partnership unit, or $3.88 per unit on an annualized basis, paid in August 2017. The Q3 distribution will be paid November 14 to all unitholders of record as of November 3. In the prior four quarters, Andeavor Logistics has increased its distribution to limited partners by 13%.

16:12 EDT Conatus gets Orphan Drug Designation for IDN-7314 from EMA - Conatus Pharmaceuticals announced that the European Medicines Agency has granted orphan designation to Conatus' drug candidate IDN-7314 for the treatment of primary sclerosing cholangitis, a disease affecting bile ducts in the liver which can lead to cirrhosis and liver failure. The EMA's orphan designation program is intended to encourage the development of medicines that may provide benefit to patients suffering from rare life-threatening or chronically debilitating conditions. IDN-7314 was granted Orphan Drug Designation for the treatment of PSC by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June 2017.

16:09 EDT American Express reports Q3 Global Merchant Services net income $368M, up 3%

16:08 EDT American Express reports Q3 Int'l Consumer, Network Services net income up 85% - International Consumer and Network Services reported third-quarter net income of $286 million, up 85 percent from $155 million a year ago. Total revenues net of interest expense were $1.5 billion, up 7 percent from $1.4 billion a year ago. The increase primarily reflected higher Card Member spending and net interest income. Provisions for losses totaled $106 million, up 26 percent from $84 million a year ago. The rise primarily reflected continued strong growth in the loan portfolio and an expected increase in the lending write-off rate. Total expenses were $1.1 billion, down 2 percent from a year ago. The decrease primarily reflected lower marketing and employee compensation expenses, partially offset by higher rewards costs. The effective tax rate was 7 percent, down from 25 percent a year ago, due largely to the realization of certain foreign tax credits in the current year and the geographic mix of earnings.

16:07 EDT American Express reports Q3 U.S. Consumer Services net income $475M, up 18% - U.S. Consumer Services reported third-quarter net income of $475 million, up 18 percent from $401 million a year ago. Total U.S. Consumer Services revenues net of interest expense were $3.3 billion, up 13 percent from $2.9 billion a year ago. The increase primarily reflected higher net interest income and Card Member spending. Provisions for losses totaled $459 million, up 67 percent from $275 million a year ago. The rise primarily reflected strong growth in the loan portfolio and an expected increase in the lending write-off and delinquency rates. Total expenses were $2.1 billion, up 6 percent from $2.0 billion a year ago. The current quarter reflected higher rewards expenses related to product enhancements and an increase in Card Member spending, partially offset by lower technology-related costs and a decline in marketing expenses. The effective tax rate was 32 percent, down from 35 percent a year ago.

16:06 EDT Visa increases dividend by 18% to 19.5c - Visa announced that its board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 19.5c per share of class A common stock, payable on December 5 to all holders of record as of November 17.

16:03 EDT Levin Capital reports 6.1% passive stake in NanoString

15:18 EDT Pengrowth Energy announces sale of non-core Alberta assets - Pengrowth Energy announces that it has entered into an agreement for the sale of the vast majority of its remaining non-core legacy assets in Alberta for nominal cash consideration and the assumption of abandonment and reclamation liabilities. The sales package encompasses a collection of widely dispersed, mature legacy assets from 36 properties and over 270 facilities and 1,600 wellbores. The combined assets generated average daily production of approximately 5,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day (weighted approximately 80% towards natural gas) during the second quarter of 2017 and had Proved plus Probable reserves of 21.3M boe assigned to them as at December 31, 2016, according to the independent reserve evaluators GLJ Petroleum Consultants Ltd. The sale is expected to generate material savings in aggregate operating expenses as well as general and administrative costs. These cost savings, when combined with the sale proceeds result in the transaction being neutral to funds flow. The success of its asset sales process has allowed Pengrowth to materially streamline its asset portfolio, resulting in the Company's focus going forward being on its two key, 100 percent operated growth assets at Lindbergh and Groundbirch. These assets will form the foundation of Pengrowth's growth strategy over the next five years and are expected to provide the company with long-term, low cost growth opportunities to drive production and funds flow growth. Upon completion of this sale, Pengrowth's Alberta assets include its Lindbergh thermal oil, Quirk Creek and Fenn Big Valley assets. The effective date of the sale is October 1, and closing is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of 2017, subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.

14:41 EDT Richard Witmer reports 6.4% passive stake in Issuer Direct Corp.

14:38 EDT Wells Fargo CEO says 'didn't lie' to shareholders about cross-selling - Tim Sloan is speaking on CNBC.

14:03 EDT Fed says economic activity increased in September through October - The Federal Reserve says in its latest Beige Book, "Reports from all 12 Federal Reserve Districts indicated that economic activity increased in September through early October, with the pace of growth split between modest and moderate. The Richmond, Atlanta, and Dallas Districts reported major disruptions from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma in some areas and sectors, including transportation, energy, and agriculture. Manufacturing activity and nonfinancial services expanded modestly to moderately in most Districts. Retail spending rose slowly, while vehicle sales and tourism increased in most Districts. Residential construction continued to increase, and growth in commercial construction was up slightly on balance. Low home inventory levels continued to constrain residential sales in many areas, while nonresidential real estate activity increased slightly overall. Loan demand was generally stable to modestly higher. Growth in the energy sector eased slightly. Agricultural conditions were mixed; while some regions were reporting better-than-expected harvests, low commodity prices continued to weigh down farm incomes."

13:48 EDT Cardinal Health moved lower after STAT story on California license - Shares of Cardinal Health moved lower after STAT News reported that California wants to revoke the wholesale license for a facility run by the company for failing to note unusual opioid painkiller sales.

13:15 EDT Cinemark now accepts Chase Pay online - Cinemark Holdings (CNK) announced that guests can now purchase tickets online at cinemark.com using Chase Pay (JPM). Currently, Guests can purchase movie tickets for any of Cinemark's 337 locations using Chase Pay at cinemark.com. Chase Pay also allows Chase credit and debit card customers to transact on the app, at retail and in other apps, order ahead, manage loyalty rewards, and receive offers.

13:05 EDT GN Audio says jury ruled in favor of Plantronics - GN Store Nord announced that a jury today in the Federal District Court in Wilmington, Delaware, ruled in favor of Plantronics in the lawsuit brought by GN Audio against Plantronics. In 2012, GN Audio filed a lawsuit against Plantronics for "unlawful monopolization of the distributors market" in the U.S. The jury has not found that Plantronics' behavior in the market place was unlawful, the company said. GN Audio said it will, upon receipt of the written reasons for the judgment, decide whether or not to appeal the decision. It added that its financial guidance for 2017 is unchanged.

13:04 EDT Discovery reaches content agreement with Snap in Europe for Olympic Games - Discovery (DISCA) Communications' Eurosport and Snap (SNAP) reached a strategic advertising and content agreement that will deliver a new partnership for the Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang 2018, bringing Snapchatters across Europe Olympic Games action through several types of professionally curated content on Snap's Discover platform. This partnership marks the first time that Snap has committed to a European, multi-language deal for covering the Olympics, offering unique opportunities for more brands to engage a younger generation of fans through a fresh, mobile-first look at the Games. This will include behind-the-scenes action from exciting Olympic events such as snowboarding, downhill and freestyle skiing and ice hockey as well as relevant content from the athletes and influencers that fans want to connect with. The original content accessible through Our Stories will be Olympic Games Snaps created by a dedicated team of editors at Snapchat, combined with Eurosport's premium Olympic Games footage, which will capture every minute of the Games action on its fast-growing streaming service, Eurosport Player.

12:57 EDT On The Fly: What to watch in credit card space earnings reports - American Express (AXP), Visa (V) and MasterCard (MA) are scheduled to report quarterly results on October 18, 25 and 31, respectively. What to watch for: 1. OUTLOOK: During the company's last earnings call, American Express backed its 2017 EPS view $5.60-$5.80. Meanwhile, Visa raised its 2017 net revenue growth view to roughly 20% from 16%-18% back in July when the company reported quarterly results, and said it sees 2017 class A common stock EPS growth in low digits on a GAAP nominal dollar basis and approximately 20% on an adjusted, non-GAAP nominal dollar basis. The company also backed its 2017 operating margin view in the mid-60s. On September 7, MasterCard raised its 2017 revenue growth view to high end of low-double digits, and said it still sees 2017 operating expenses, on a currency-neutral basis, excluding the impact of acquisitions and special items, to be up by a high-single digit percentage. The company also raised its net revenue compound annual growth rate view for 2016-2018 to high end of low double-digits on a currency-neutral basis, excluding the impact of acquisitions, and raised its 2016-2018 EPS CAGR view to about 20%. 2. PARTNERSHIPS: On July 20, American Express OPEN announced an extension of the Lowe's (LOW) Business Rewards Card program which will continue to enable small business Card Members to earn rich rewards and get 5% off at Lowe's every day when they use the Card on eligible purchases. Last month, the credit card company also announced that it is launching the new Blue Delta SkyMiles Credit Card with Delta Air Lines (DAL). Meanwhile, Visa and MasterCard said they were enabling payments on Fitbit's (FIT) smartwatch "Fitbit Ionic," and on the new Garmin (GRMN) vivoactive 3 smartwatch. Back in July, Mastercard was selected by Kroger (KR) to be the network for the grocery retailer's 1-2-3 REWARDS co-brand credit card program, which will launch by the end of 2017. Earlier this month, Mastercard and PayPal (PYPL) announced a significant expansion of their partnership into Canada, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean and the Middle East and Africa. 3. COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT: Earlier this month, Buckingham analyst Chris Brendler started coverage of American Express with a Neutral and $92 price target, saying he believes the second half 2017 will be difficult given the current competitive environment. 4. IMPROVING FUNDAMENTALS, CATALYSTS: Last week, Wells Fargo analyst Donald Fandetti resumed coverage of American Express with an Outperform rating, citing improving fundamentals and revenue growth, as well as the worst negative headlines appearing to be behind the company. The analyst also upgraded Visa to Outperform, saying its earnings model for the networks remains very much intact and are supported by pricing power and significant capital return. Fandetti told investors he expects positive earnings revisions in 2018 and for Visa Europe integration to ultimately drive expense synergies as processing systems are consolidated. Stephens analyst Brett Huff was also bullish on Visa last week, starting coverage of the stock with an Overweight rating as he thinks the company and peer MasterCard can beat near- and medium-term consensus expectations and can support higher multiples. While he also started MasterCard with an Overweight rating, he likes Visa "a bit better." 5. DIVIDEND: On September 26, American Express announced that the company's board of directors of approved a 3c, or 9%, increase in the quarterly dividend on its common stock. The dividend was raised to 35c per common share, from 32c, payable on November 10, 2017 to shareholders of record on October 6, 2017.

12:43 EDT Aimco asks court to halt Airbnb activity pending final ruling on lawsuit - Apartment Investment and Management Company, or Aimco, and four of its subsidiaries filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California to halt Airbnb's brokering of short-term rental transactions at four of Aimco's Southern California properties. This action seeks to alleviate the irreparable harm to those apartment communities and their residents caused by Airbnb's transactions pending the final ruling on Aimco's lawsuit to prohibit Airbnb's participation in the unauthorized subletting of Aimco's apartment homes and repeated abuse of Aimco's private property rights. "The most important responsibility we have as owners and operators of apartment homes is to create a community of residents who are invested in being good neighbors," said Aimco Executive Vice President of Operations Keith Kimmel. "That is why Aimco has made the deliberate choice to expressly prohibit short-term rentals to transient, unaccountable Airbnb users and other travelers who have not undergone our background screening and who are more apt to treat our apartments like hotel rooms rather than homes."

12:34 EDT BioMarin says Pegvaliase application remains on track - BioMarin said its Pegvaliase biologics license application remains on track for FDA action during the first half of 2018. The company plans to submit a Marketing Authorization Application to the European Medicines Agency in Q1 of 2018. BioMarin also provided an update on its open-label Phase 2 study of vosoritide, an analog of C-type Natriuretic Peptide, in children with achondroplasia, the most common form of disproportionate short stature in humans. "Vosoritide for achondroplasia demonstrates sustained increase in average growth velocity over 30 months of treatment in 10 children," the company said. It added, "Over this period of time, patients have experienced mean absolute growth increase of approximately 4 cm over what their baseline growth velocity would have predicted. The sustained increase in annualized growth velocity was accompanied by sustained improvements over time in height compared to age- and gender-matched unaffected children as measure by z-scores. In addition, treatment with vosoritide shows continued improvement over time in proportionality as measured by a ratio of the upper and lower body measurements or U/L ratio."

12:20 EDT Nielsen to independently measure subscription-based streaming content. - Nielsen announced that it is now offering the industry a syndicated solution to independently measure subscription-based streaming content including companies such as Netflix (NFLX). With the commercial release of Nielsen Subscription Video On Demand, or SVOD, Content Ratings, eight major television networks and production studios, including A&E Networks, Disney-ABC (DIS), Lionsgate (LGF), NBCUniversal, Warner Brothers (TWX) and others, have already signed on to subscribe to this game-changing service. This new solution takes SVOD measurement to the next level with a significant enhancement to its video on demand content ratings framework, which leverages the rich demographic and household characteristic data of the Nielsen national TV panel, to identify viewing to these programs. These new insights will empower content owners and networks with real data into what was previously a significant and expanding blind spot of consumer behavior. Nielsen's new SVOD Content Ratings solution will provide measurement of programs at the season and episode level in a manner comparable to linear television data-including ratings, reach, frequency and segmentation reporting-as a way for clients and the industry to better understand where this content fits in the larger media ecosystem.

11:55 EDT Adobe announces acquisition of KyleBrush.com; terms not disclosed - Adobe announces in a blog post, "We're excited to announce that Adobe has acquired KyleBrush.com. As of today, all Creative Cloud customers will gain exclusive access to over 1,000 high-quality, digital brushes at no additional cost. Digital brushes offer illustrators, animators and designers a rich digital painting experience when working in Photoshop CC and Photoshop Sketch. As part of the acquisition, Kyle T. Webster, an international award-winning illustrator and leader in the field of digital brush creation, also joins Adobe. He will work closely with Adobe product teams on the development of future brushes for Creative Cloud." Reference Link

11:26 EDT Amazon Studios head Roy Price officially resigns amid harassment claims - Shares of Amazon.com (AMZN) are in focus after the head of Amazon Studios resigned following his suspension over sexual harassment allegations. RESIGNATION OF ROY PRICE: Roy Price, the head of Amazon Studios, has resigned from the media company just days after he was suspended indefinitely. The resignation of Price, who helped launch the Amazon unit and ran it from the beginning, follows allegations of sexual harassment from Isa Hackett, an executive producer of The Man in the High Castle, as well as statements by actress Rose McGowan that Price knew about her rape accusations against fallen Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. Hackett claimed Price made "lewd" comments to her during Comic-Con 2015 in San Diego. Hackett told The Hollywood Reporter that she reported the improper behavior to Amazon at the time, and that while the company took the allegation seriously, she was never told the outcome of that inquiry. "I'm pleased Amazon is taking steps to address the issue," Hackett told THR following Price's resignation. According to Deadline Hollywood, rumors about Price's resignation were flying in the spring, and Paramount TV President Amy Powell had been named as a potential replacement. According to Deadline, she is still in the running "as the new head of Amazon Studios likely would be a woman." For the time being, Amazon chief operating officer Albert Cheng will take over as studio head. WHAT'S NOTABLE: Last week, reports surfaced that Amazon Studios was cutting ties with the Weinstein Co. following allegations against Weinstein, adding that Amazon scrapped a $160M Weinstein Co.-produced television series from Oscar-nominated director David O. Russell. According to reports, Amazon had already spent $40M on the show. Price's exit "raises a question" about the future of Joe Lewis, Price's top lieutenant who has been scrutinized over "potential conflict-of-interest issues," Deadline said. Amazon competes in original video with Netflix (NFLX), Apple (AAPL) and Hulu, a joint venture between Comcast's (CMCSA, CMCSK) NBC Universal, Disney (DIS) and 21st Century Fox (FOX, FOXA), and some believe Price's resignation could be a setback. PRICE ACTION: Amazon is fractionally lower in late morning trading to $1,007.89.

11:17 EDT Nabron International reduces stake in Tile Shop to 6.9% from 9.8% - Nabron disclosed in a regulatory filing that on various dates from September 18 through and including October 17 Nabron sold an aggregate of 1,442,761 shares of common stock of Tile Shop representing 2.8% of the total issued and outstanding shares of common stock of the Tile Shop, as reported in Tile Shop's most recent Form 10-Q filed with the commission on August 4.

10:45 EDT ADTRAN says Service and Support revenue strong, Q3 up 22% y/y - Comments are from the company's Q3 earnings conference call.

10:25 EDT Supervalu says 'on track' to deliver FY18 adjusted EBITDA - Sees FY18 adjusted EBITDA $475M-$495M, does not include acquisition of Associated Grocers of Florida, expected to close by year-end. Remains on track to achieve $33M in synergies from acquisition of Unified Grocers. Expects FY18 CapEx spending $310M-$355M.

10:18 EDT BD says EU clears C.R. Bard acquisition contigent on divesting product line - BD (BDX) issued the following statement regarding clearance by the European Commission for BD to acquire C.R. Bard (BCR), contingent on BD divesting its soft tissue core needle biopsy product line: "We continue to make good progress on the Bard acquisition and the conditional clearance from the European Commission is a positive step forward," said Vincent A. Forlenza, chairman and CEO of BD. "As expected, we have committed to divesting certain assets associated with our soft tissue core needle biopsy product line, which we acquired with CareFusion, to satisfy the conditions to closing requested by the European Commission. We continue to expect that the BD and Bard transaction will close in the fourth calendar quarter of 2017, subject to customary closing conditions and additional regulatory approvals, including the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and other regulatory bodies."

10:15 EDT Ulta drops as Piper survey shows slowdown in teens' beauty spending - Shares of Ulta Beauty (ULTA) dropped in morning trading after the cosmetics retailer was downgraded at Piper Jaffray, which cited a survey showing a slowdown in beauty spending by teenagers. Ulta had been removed from the Conviction Buy list at Goldman Sachs earlier this week and also received a price target cut at Oppenheimer yesterday. SLOWDOWN IN SPENDING: Piper Jaffray analyst Erinn Murphy downgraded Ulta to Neutral from Overweight and cut her price target for shares to $210 from $260. In a note to clients, Murphy said her firm's Fall 2017 Teen Survey results indicated spending declines of 13% in color cosmetics among all female teenagers. While skincare declines were "less bad," down 7% year-over-year, overall beauty wallet was down low-double digits. She also noted that Piper saw broader signs of strength from LVMH's (LVMUY) Sephora, and that Sephora's Beauty Insider program has gained share while Ulta's Ultimate Rewards Program has lost share. Murphy said she is "incrementally concerned" on current category dynamics. REMOVAL FROM CONVICTION BUY LIST: Earlier this week, Goldman analyst Matthew Fassler removed Ulta from the firm's Conviction Buy List and lowered his price target to $267 from $290, telling clients that recent data points suggest a "more complicated path to recovery." Oppenheimer analyst Rupesh Parikh this week cut his price target for Ulta to $210 from $250 as he believes sustained outperformance is "less likely" from here and sees a more competitive brick and mortar landscape in the coming quarters. STILL A BUYING OPPORTUNITY: One analyst still seems positive on the stock, however. William Blair analyst Dan Hofkin said in a note yesterday that while he recognizes concerns surrounding slower industry growth, "the Amazon (AMZN) overhang," and the lull in the beauty industry, he believes Ulta is "differentiated" and positioned to deliver strong earnings and sales growth going forward. He does not believe Amazon is having a materially larger impact on Ulta than a year ago. Ulta also faces competition from department stores like Macy's (M), which are discounting high-end cosmetics and offering rewards, but Hofkin, who has an Outperform rating on Ulta shares, said he has not seen material changes in department stores' approach to beauty and believes they have not impacted Ulta to-date. WHAT'S NOTABLE: In August, Ulta reported quarterly comparable sales that declined from last year. The earnings report followed "softer" commentary from L'Oreal (LRLCY) on its earnings call regarding trends in its North American beauty business, increasing promotional activity from the department store channel and more difficult year-over-year comparisons that "could now signal a potentially more challenging beauty backdrop going forward." OTHERS TO WATCH: e.l.f. Beauty (ELF) is down 2.6% this morning after Piper's Murphy lowered her price target on shares, while Sally Beauty (SBH) is fractionally lower. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, shares of Ulta Beauty are down 1.25% to $199.77. Shares are down nearly 22% year-to-date.

09:58 EDT MannKind granted European patent for Afrezza - Reference Link

09:50 EDT Abbott CEO says does not want company to focus on M&A

09:45 EDT Abbott: Puerto Rico hurricanes had 'modest, not material effect' on operations

09:40 EDT Charter, Viacom reach agreement in principle on network carriage - Charter Communications (CHTR) and Viacom (VIAB) said last night in a joint emailed statement to media outlets: "Viacom and Charter have reached an agreement in principle. Spectrum subscribers will continue to have access to Viacom's networks, without disruption, while we finalize terms."

09:35 EDT U.S. Bancorp says view 'has not really changed' on impact of tax reform - Says in a "wait and see mode" on tax reform.

09:30 EDT U.S. Bancorp says M&A largely focused on card portfolios, payments business - Says M&A emphasis will continue to be on these types of deals. Says "would take a look at" traditional banking deal when consent order is lifted.

09:27 EDT On The Fly: Pre-market Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: IBM (IBM), up 7.1%... Community Trust Bancorp (CTBI), up 1.6%... Abbott (ABT), up 1.3%... Northern Trust (NTRS), up 4.7%... Supervalu (SVU), up 5.3%. ALSO HIGHER: Merck (MRK), up 1.4% after the FDA accepts and grants priority review for its supplemental New Drug Application of Lynparza... Protalix (PLX), up 37.6% after announcing an Ex-US license and collaboration agreement with Chiesi Farmaceutici for pegunigalsidase alfa... CVS (CVS), up 1.2% after announcing a five-year agreement with Anthem (ANTM). DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: M&T Bank (MTB), up 1.2%... Select Comfort (SCSS), down 4.5%... Cree (CREE), down 1.9%... ALSO LOWER: Ulta Beauty (ULTA), down 1.7% after being downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

09:18 EDT eHealth partners with The IHC Group, SASid Insurance to offer ACA alternatives - eHealth announced that the company has partnered with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to offer new medical insurance packages in 39 states and the District of Columbia for customers who cannot afford major medical plans meeting the benefit standards of the Affordable Care Act. In most markets eHealth will offer medical insurance packages with monthly premiums starting below $200 for persons age 35 and under $300 for 50-year-olds. These packages will be available during the ACA's open enrollment period for 2018, which is scheduled to begin November 1. In addition to these new packages, eHealth will also offer major medical health insurance plans in 44 states during open enrollment. eHealth's medical insurance packages were developed in partnership with The IHC Group and SASid Insurance Development to offer a more affordable alternative to major medical health insurance to people who cannot afford Obamacare. These packages will be available in 39 states and the District of Columbia and provide a single point of service when policy holders need to use their benefits. In another 5 states, eHealth will offer medical insurance packages that combine benefits from multiple insurance companies. eHealth will continue to refine the design of these packages to meet varying customer needs and reasonable price points. These packages are not designed to cover pre-existing medical conditions and some are medically underwritten. Others are "guaranteed issue," meaning that a customer's application cannot be declined because of a pre-existing condition, although that pre-existing condition may not be covered by the package.

09:13 EDT U.S. Bancorp sees positive operating leverage in Q4, 2018 - President and CEO Andy Cecere says believes U.S. Bancorp has reached an inflection point and sees positive operating leverage in Q4, 2018. Cecere says the world is changing at a faster pace than ever before, and the bank is embracing the new reality of constant change and changing customer behavior. Says hurricanes adversely impacted sales volumes in merchant processing in Q3. CFO Terry Dolan said he expects Q4 linked-quarter total average loans growing at a pace similar to Q3 and that Q4 NIM will be 'essentially flat" to Q3. Sees Q4 fee revenue essentially flat on a linked-quarter, y/y basis. Expects credit quality to remain stable in Q4. Comments taken from the Q3 earnings conference call.

09:07 EDT Vitamin Shoppe partners with RangeMe platform - Vitamin Shoppe has introduced new online consumer packaged goods platform RangeMe to its merchandise innovation and sourcing process. Vitamin Shoppe has adopted this technology as a means to enhance its sourcing capabilities.

09:03 EDT Chegg acquires German-based Cogeon GmbH for about $15M - Chegg announced that it has acquired German-based Cogeon GmbH, a provider of adaptive math technology and developer of the math app, Math 42. With this acquisition, Chegg will be able to provide self-guided and individualized math solutions to more students, deepening their reach in to the high school market. Chegg has acquired Cogeon for approximately $15M in an all-cash transaction. There are potential additional payments of up to EUR 7.5M, payable in cash or stock in the discretion of Chegg, and up to EUR 3.2M in restricted stock units over the next three years that remain subject to contingencies. As a result of this acquisition, Chegg does not expect any material effect on operations for 2017.

09:02 EDT Shopify to add DHL Express as international carrier to Shopify Shipping - Shopify will be adding DHL Express as a new international carrier to Shopify Shipping, helping hundreds of thousands of U.S. small businesses increase sales around the globe through lower shipping rates.

08:59 EDT Hanesbrands acquires privately-held Alternative Apparel in deal valued at $60M - Hanes has purchased privately held Alternative Apparel in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $60M on an enterprise basis. Alternative Apparel, based in Norcross, Georgia, is expected to have full-year 2017 net sales of approximately $70 million. The post-synergy purchase price multiple is expected to be approximately 3.5 times projected EBITDA. Hanes funded the acquisition with cash on hand and short-term borrowings on its revolving credit facility. The acquisition closed Friday, Oct. 13, 2017. Alternative Apparel, founded in 1995, is a marketer of better apparel basics under the Alternative brand to the distributor, online, direct-to-consumer and traditional retail channels.

08:42 EDT Ford issues safety recall for certain F-150, Super Duty vehicles - Ford Motor Company is issuing a safety recall for approximately 1.3 million 2015-17 F-150 and 2017 Super Duty vehicles in North America to add a water shield to side door latches. In affected vehicles, a frozen door latch or a bent or kinked actuation cable may result in a door that will not open or will not close condition. Ford is not aware of any accidents or injuries associated with this issue. The recall involves approximately 1,344,605 vehicles in North America, including 1,101,107 in the United States and federalized territories, 222,408 in Canada and 21,090 in Mexico. In a regulatory filing, Ford said the cost of the action, which will be incurred by its North America business unit, is estimated to be $267M. The expense will be reflected in fourth quarter 2017 results.

08:38 EDT Spectrum says poziotinib shows ORR of 73% in Phase 2 study - Spectrum Pharmaceuticals announced last night the oral presentation of interim data from a Phase 2 clinical study evaluating poziotinib in EGFR Exon 20 mutant non-small-cell lung cancer by scientists from the MD Anderson Cancer Center which was presented in Yokohama, Japan, October 15-18. Poziotinib "demonstrates evidence of significant antitumor activity in NSCLC patients with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations, with interim data showing an Objective Response Rate of 73%," the company said. "These data are remarkable for NSCLC patients with exon 20 insertion mutations," said John Heymach, M.D., Ph.D., The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. "These patients currently have a poor prognosis, single-digit response rate on first generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and a PFS of about two months. What is truly noteworthy is that all 11 study patients who received poziotinib at a 16mg daily dose and have reached their first scan, have seen some level of tumor shrinkage. Interestingly, we have also seen evidence of CNS activity. Toxicities have included rash, diarrhea, paronychia, and mucositis consistent with those previously described for poziotinib and other TKI's, which led to dose reduction in 55% of the patients. We believe that poziotinib specifically inhibits EGFR with exon 20 insertion mutations because it overcomes steric hindrance caused by exon 20 insertions, due to its smaller size and flexibility. To date poziotinib has shown promising results in patients with exon 20 insertion mutations and we are fortunate to be leading the efforts in the continuing development of this product."

08:37 EDT Capstone Turbine executes agreement to appoint new Russian oil, gas distributor - Capstone Turbine announced that it has executed an agreement that appoints a new exclusive oil and gas distributor in Russia. Under the terms of the agreement, Capstone will grant Turbine International and its affiliate, MTE Service, the sole distribution rights for Capstone products and services in the Russian oil and gas sector in exchange for $6.4M in cash. Under the terms of the agreement, Turbine International will provide multiple cash payments to Capstone totaling $6.4M with three payments totaling $2.5M by February 1, 2018, and the remaining $3.9M paid over a three-year period starting in August 2018. Turbine International has made a good faith payment of $100,000 upfront with the balance being secured by a promissory note and corporate guarantee from Hispania.

08:34 EDT Therapix Biosciences, Assuta Medical Center to conduct OSA trial with THX-OSA01 - Therapix Biosciences signed an agreement with Assuta Medical Center, the largest hospital network and private healthcare provider in Israel, to conduct a Phase IIa, sponsor-initiated trial for the treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea using the company's proprietary cannabinoid-based technology, THX-OSA01. The OSA trial, titled "Examining the Efficacy of a Therapeutic Combination of Dronabinol and Palmitoylethanolamide for Obstructive Sleep Apnea," will be conducted under the leadership of Professor Yaron Dagan, head of the Sleep Medicine Institute at Assuta, and Principal Investigator, Dr. Lilach Kemer. Thirty patients with a confirmed OSA diagnosis will be evaluated for one month with the primary efficacy endpoint evaluating a significant change in the AHI Index, which assesses the quality of sleep before and after treatment.

08:33 EDT RAIT Financial sells, divests 13 properties totaling $128.6M since Q2 - RAIT Financial Trust announced that it has completed sales of 6 properties for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $88.4M and divested an additional 7 properties with an aggregate net carrying value of approximately $40.2M during the period beginning July 1, 2017 through October 16, 2017, totaling $128.6M. RAIT expects these transactions to result in a reduction of related indebtedness by approximately $110.4M. These sales and divestitures align with RAIT's previously announced strategy of transforming RAIT into a more focused and cost-efficient business concentrated on its core commercial real estate lending activities. Since the beginning of 2017 through October 16, 2017, consistent with this strategy, RAIT has sold or divested approximately $339.8M of its property portfolio and reduced related indebtedness by approximately $275.9M. Since January 1, 2016 through October 16, 2017, RAIT has sold or divested $677.7M of its property portfolio and reduced related indebtedness by $571.8M. As previously disclosed, RAIT expects to recognize a $5.5M gain in RAIT's fourth quarter 2017 financial results related to the purchase by RAIT for $20.5M of common share purchase warrants and common share appreciation rights issued by RAIT to an investor pursuant to the exercise of a put right by that investor.

08:32 EDT AbbVie, Harpoon Therapeutics announce immuno-oncology research collaboration - AbbVie and Harpoon Therapeutics announced that they have entered an immuno-oncology research collaboration. The goal of the collaboration is to incorporate Harpoon's tri-specific T-cell activating construct platform with AbbVie's research-stage immuno-oncology targets to develop novel cancer therapeutics. Under the terms of the agreement, Harpoon will engineer TriTAC molecules directed against selected cancer targets using its proprietary platform, evaluate the molecules for pharmacologic properties, and provide AbbVie the right to pursue further development and commercialization of these molecules. Financial terms were not disclosed.

08:22 EDT Navient sees Q4 FFELP NIM in the high 70s

08:19 EDT IGC's IGC-AD1 for Alzheimer's to be commercialized in 2018 - India Globalization Capital provides in vitro data compiled from genetically engineered cell lines within an Alzheimer's disease model, showing that at varying concentrations of IGC-AD1 the expression of GSK3beta is reduced by as much as 62%, leading in turn to a reduction in hyper phosphorylation of tau protein. IGC CEO Ram Mukunda stated, "Based on this and other previously announced compelling data, we are readying IGC-AD1, brand name Hyalolex, in a liquid formulation for commercialization in early 2018." Curtailing abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau, which leads to NFTs, is an accepted strategy for combating AD. The summary in vitro data indicates that at varying concentrations of IGC-AD1, GSK3beta levels decreased between 53% and 62%.

08:17 EDT Lipocine TLANDO scheduled to be reviewed by FDA advisory committee on Jan. 10 - Lipocine announced the FDA has scheduled the Bone, Reproductive and Urologic Drugs Advisory Committee, or BRUDAC, meeting on January 10, 2018 to discuss the New Drug Application, or NDA, for TLANDO, the Company's oral testosterone product candidate for the proposed indication of testosterone replacement therap, or TRT, in adult males for conditions associated with a deficiency of endogenous testosterone, also known as hypogonadism. The FDA has previously set February 8, 2018 as the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA, goal date.

08:15 EDT Navient says share repurchase program suspended through 2018 - Says share repurchase program suspended through 2018, says reinvesting capital for growth.

08:11 EDT Navient says allegations by Pennsylvania AG 'baseless' - Commenting on the recent lawsuit filed by the Pennsylvania Attorney General, Navient said "no one from his office has ever stepped foot in one of our centers," and believes the AG "copied a lawsuit filed by another state." Navient noted that student loan interest rates are fixed and set by Congress and are "never changed by the servicer." Says allegations "baseless." Reiterates that "Navient-serviced borrowers are 37% less likely to default than those serviced by others." Says "disappointing that we have to spend time responding" to these claims. Comments taken from the Q3 earnings conference call. Navient is up 1.2% in premarket trading.

08:09 EDT Neos Therapeutics announces settlement Actavis - Neos Therapeutics announced that it has entered into a confidential settlement and licensing agreement with Actavis Laboratories FL, Inc. to resolve all ongoing litigation involving Neos' patents protecting its Adzenys XR-ODT extended-release orally disintegrating tablets and Actavis's Abbreviated New Drug Application, or ANDA, filed with the FDA to market a generic version of that product. Under the settlement and license agreement, Neos has granted Actavis the right to manufacture and market its generic version of Adzenys XR-ODT under the Actavis ANDA beginning on September 1, 2025, or earlier under certain circumstances. The settlement and licensing agreement is confidential and the agreement is subject to submission to the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice.

08:06 EDT DarioHealth gains CE Mark for iPhone 7, iPhone 8 Smart Glucose Meter - DarioHealth (DRIO) announced that it received the CE Mark for its Lightning-enabled version of the acclaimed Dario Blood Glucose Monitoring System. The news ensures that consumers, beginning in the UK market, will be able to receive the same quality user experience with DarioHealth on the latest Apple (AAPL) devices, including the brand-new iPhone 8. The launch of Apple's smartphones with only a Lightning connector posed a unique challenge to the entire mobile ecosystem. With today's announcement, DarioHealth can now successfully offer its proprietary meter with either a 3.5mm headphone jack or Lightning connector.

08:04 EDT Juno Therapeutics and Trianni sign transgenic mouse platform license agreement - Juno Therapeutics has entered into a license agreement for The Trianni Mouse, a monoclonal antibody discovery platform. Juno intends to use The Trianni Mouse with its proprietary high throughput, single cell sequencing technology and direct- to- CAR screening to identify fully-human binders for conversion to chimeric antigen receptors in its engineered T cell programs. No financial details were disclosed.

08:04 EDT Revance completes patient enrollment in Phase 2 study of RT002 injectable - Revance Therapeutics announced it has completed enrollment of patients in the company's Phase 2 program investigating the use of DaxibotulinumtoxinA for Injection for the management of plantar fasciitis. The study enrolled 59 subjects across five centers in the United States. The company remains on track to report 8-week topline results at the end of this year, including the primary and secondary endpoints, along with safety data. This Phase 2 prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center study conducted at five centers in the US is evaluating the safety and efficacy of a single administration of Revance's investigational drug candidate DaxibotulinumtoxinA for Injection in reducing the signs and symptoms of plantar fasciitis. The study's primary efficacy endpoint is the reduction in the visual analog scale for pain in the foot evaluated at Week 8. Improvement in the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Score is one of several secondary endpoints. Subjects will be followed for a total of 16 weeks post treatment.

08:03 EDT Criteo names Mollie Spilman as COO - Criteo announced the promotion of Mollie Spilman to COO. Spilman joined Criteo in 2014 and leads all commercial teams-revenue, supply, operations and marketing-globally.

08:02 EDT Magna forms E-Powertrain joint venture in China - Magna has entered into a joint-venture agreement with Huayu Automotive Systems, a subsidiary of SAIC Motor. The JV will initially produce an electric-drive powertrain system for a German automaker. For the initial customer order, the JV will leverage Magna's e-drive system with a focus on the production of the system mainly for the Chinese market.

07:53 EDT Abbott sees FY17 net specified items approximately $1.51 per share - Abbott forecasts net specified items for the full year 2017 of approximately $1.51 per share. Specified items include acquisition-related expenses, intangible amortization expense, charges associated with cost reduction initiatives and other expenses, partially offset by a gain on the sale of the AMO business.

07:49 EDT Abbott CEO: Well-positioned to achieve upper end of FY17 EPS guidance range - "We're very pleased with our performance and the steady cadence of innovative new product launches that are contributing to growth," said Miles D. White, chairman and CEO, Abbott. "We're well-positioned to achieve the upper end of our initial full-year EPS guidance range."

07:35 EDT Embraer announces delivery of the first E190-E2 in April 2018 - Embraer confirmed April 2018 as the delivery date of the first E190-E2 to Wideroe, the aircraft's launch operator. Wideroe will begin revenue service with the aircraft shortly afterwards.

07:34 EDT Biogen confirms commitment to tackle MS through comprehensive approach - Biogen confirms its comprehensive approach to tackle multiple sclerosis at the seventh Joint Meeting of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in MS and Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in MS. Key updates at ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS from Biogen include: The latest from the collaboration with Verily and Brigham and Women's Hospital whose goal is to explore the use of digital biosensors to assess patients outside of the clinic. Additional data on the possible utility of predictive biomarkers to inform MS diagnosis and ongoing disease monitoring, with the goal of assisting clinicians with their decisions on how to treat based on the heterogeneic differences of those living with MS, will also be presented. Interim reports from MS PATHS, a collaboration with 10 leading MS centers in Europe and the U.S. to leverage technology deployed in routine care to generate standardized, high-quality data from a diverse, real-world patient population. MS PATHS collects clinical, MRI and biologic data from all patients in real-time, at the point of care, to better understand the disease and ultimately improve the lives of those living with MS. An assessment of the Big Multiple Sclerosis Data Network, comprised of five MS registries and facilitated by Biogen. The network will merge data from large MS registries that have collected longitudinal data on nearly 140,000 people with MS. The scale of this pooled MS data may enable greater understanding of MS and its impact. A comprehensive review of the Phase 2 SYNERGY trial that identified a specific patient population for the investigational molecule opicinumab as a potential therapy to repair damage to the central nervous system caused by MS.

07:33 EDT Axon's AI Research team selected by LAPD as official AI partner - Axon's AI Research team has been selected as the official AI partner for the Los Angeles Police Department. Under the new partnership, Axon will deliver AI-based video analysis to accelerate and enhance LAPD's existing video review processes.

07:17 EDT Navient sees adding over $1B of education refinance loans in FY17 - Including the planned acquisition of Earnest, Navient expects to add over $1B of education refinance loans in full year 2017. Expects Q4 NIM to be in the mid to high 330. Charge-offs are expected to increase in Q4 as a result of the $3B private education loan portfolio acquisition that closed in Q2. Comments from slides that will be presented on the Q3 earnings conference call.

07:11 EDT Attunity's Replicate adopted by large health insurance provider - Attunity announced that a large, multi-billion dollar health insurance company is using Attunity Replicate to facilitate its strategic, large-scale data center consolidation initiative. The customer has the flexibility to use Attunity to enable its heterogeneous data migration effort during the term of its project, with options to extend the subscription term as well as expand the scope of supported data platforms.

07:09 EDT Main Street announces semi-annual supplemental cash dividend of 27.5c per share - Main Street Capital is pleased to announce that its Board of Directors declared its semi-annual supplemental cash dividend of 27.5c per share payable in December 2017. This supplemental cash dividend is in addition to the previously announced regular monthly cash dividends that Main Street declared for the fourth quarter of 2017 of 57c per share, or 19c per share for each of October, November and December 2017, and is consistent with the previous semi-annual supplemental cash dividends paid in December 2016 and June 2017. Including the regular monthly and supplemental cash dividends declared to date, Main Street will have paid $21.39 per share in cumulative cash dividends since its October 2007 initial public offering at $15.00 per share. Based upon the regular monthly dividend rate of 19c per share for the fourth quarter of 2017 and the current semi-annual supplemental dividend rate of 27.5c per share, Main Street's current annualized run-rate for cash dividends is $2.83 per share. Main Street also expects that its Board of Directors will declare regular monthly dividends for the first quarter of 2018 during the last week of October.

07:05 EDT BioLineRx: Genentech initiates Phase 1b/2 trial for BL-8040 - BioLineRx (BLRX) announced that Genentech, a member of the Roche Group (RHHBY), has commenced a Phase 1b/2 study for the treatment of gastric cancer with BL-8040 in combination with atezolizumab, Genentech's anti-PDL1 cancer immunotherapy agent. Up to 40 patients are planned to be enrolled in this multicenter, randomized, controlled, open-label study to evaluate the clinical response, safety and tolerability, as well as multiple pharmacodynamic parameters, of BL-8040 in combination with atezolizumab. Initially, patients will receive BL-8040 injections as priming monotherapy, after which they will receive both BL-8040 and atezolizumab, and continue with multiple treatment cycles for up to two years or, until disease progression, clinical deterioration or unacceptable toxicity. The clinical study collaboration between BioLineRx and Genentech is part of MORPHEUS, Roche's novel cancer immunotherapy development platform. MORPHEUS is a phase 1b/2 adaptive platform to develop combinations of cancer immunotherapies more rapidly and efficiently. This study is being carried out as part of BioLineRx's cancer immunotherapy collaboration with Genentech, which includes several Phase 1b/2 studies investigating BL-8040 in combination with atezolizumab in multiple cancer indications, announced in September 2016.

07:04 EDT Brown & Brown announces asset acquisition of Lapeyre, Staples & Robichaux - Brown & Brown and Chris Lapeyre, Ken Staples and Eldridge Robichaux, announced that Brown & Brown of Louisiana, LLC, a subsidiary of Brown & Brown, Inc., has acquired substantially all of the assets of Lapeyre, Staples & Robichaux. Lapeyre, Staples and Robichaux have each been providing employee benefits insurance solutions for their respective clients for over twenty years in Houma, Louisiana and surrounding areas. The partners have annual net revenues of approximately $2M. Chris, Ken and Eldridge will continue to operate from their Houma, Louisiana location under the direction of Tommy Huval, Regional President of Brown & Brown.

07:01 EDT Alnylam, Vir form alliance to advance RNAi therapeutics for infectious diseases - Alnylam Pharmaceuticals announced an exclusive licensing agreement with Vir Biotechnology, a company dedicated to transforming the care of people with serious infectious diseases, for the development and commercialization of RNAi therapeutics for infectious diseases, including chronic hepatitis B virus infection. As part of this agreement, the companies will advance Alnylam's HBV program and also initiate a research collaboration for the development and advancement of up to four additional RNAi therapeutic programs for the treatment of other infectious diseases with high unmet needs. As part of the agreement, Alnylam will lead ALN-HBV02 to IND filing, with Vir then progressing ALN-HBV02 through human proof of concept; the companies will co-fund the program through this point. Subsequently, Vir will fund and conduct all development through completion of Phase 2 studies. Thereafter, Alnylam retains the right to opt into a profit-sharing arrangement prior to the start of Phase 3. In connection with the companies' research collaboration for up to four additional infectious disease programs, Vir will fund all research and development costs, while Alnylam retains a product-by-product option on each program to opt into a profit-sharing arrangement following human POC. Under the terms of the agreement, Alnylam will receive an upfront payment, comprised of cash and shares of Vir common stock. Alnylam is also eligible to receive more than $1B in potential milestone payments related to the successful advancement of ALN-HBV02 and other infectious disease programs, as well as tiered royalties on products ultimately commercialized by Vir under the collaboration, should Alnylam elect to decline its co-development and profit share option on a per-product basis.

06:58 EDT AstraZeneca's regulatory submission for Lynparza granted priority review by FDA - AstraZeneca (AZN) and Merck (MRK) announced that the FDA has accepted and granted priority review for a supplemental New Drug Application for the use of Lynparza tablets in patients with germline BRCA-mutated, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer who have been previously treated with chemotherapy in the neoadjuvant, adjuvant, or metastatic settings. A Prescription Drug User Fee Act date is set for 1Q18. This is the first submission for a poly ADP-ribose polymerase inhibitor outside ovarian cancer and the third indication submission for Lynparza in the US. The sNDA is based on published positive results from the Phase III OlympiAD trial. Lynparza tablets are currently being tested in a range of tumor types, including breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancers.and are currently approved in the US as a maintenance treatment for adult patients with recurrent, epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy.

06:57 EDT M&T Bank reports Q3 non-GAAP EPS $2.24, consensus $2.40 - Reports Q3 common shareholders' equity per share $99.70. Reports Q3 CET1 capital ratio 10.98%.

06:50 EDT U.S. Bancorp reports Q3 Average total loans grew 3% - Average total loans grew 3.0% over the third quarter of 2016 and 0.8% on a linked quarter basis. Average total commercial loans grew 4.6% over the third quarter of 2016 and 1.0% on a linked quarter basis. Average total other retail loans grew 6.1% over the third quarter of 2016 and 2.6% on a linked quarter basis.

06:49 EDT U.S. Bancorp returned 79% of Q3 earnings to shareholders - Returned 79% of third quarter earnings to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks.

06:47 EDT Merck says Keytruda more than doubled median overall survival of study patients - Merck announced the presentation of updated overall survival, or OS, findings, a secondary endpoint, from the phase 3 KEYNOTE-024 trial evaluating KEYTRUDA, the company's anti-PD-1 therapy, as a first-line monotherapy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors express high levels of PD-L1. The study included patients with squamous and nonsquamous NSCLC with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations. Findings - which are based on more than two years of follow-up - will be presented in an oral presentation at the 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer hosted by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. With an additional six months of available data, results continue to show a reduction in the risk of death by 37% for KEYTRUDA compared to chemotherapy based on more than two years of median follow-up. Additionally, KEYTRUDA increased OS by more than one year, more than double the OS for chemotherapy, Merck said.

06:46 EDT U.S. Bancorp reports Q3 net interest margin of 3.10% - 12 basis points higher than the third quarter of 2016 and 6 basis points higher than the second quarter of 2017.

06:45 EDT EMC Insurance estimates Q3 catastrophe losses at record $29.4M or 90c per share - EMC Insurance expects to report a record amount of Q3 catastrophe and storm losses totaling approximately $29.4M, 90 per share after tax, net of intercompany reinsurance recoveries. On a segment basis, catastrophe and storm losses are expected to total approximately $9.9M - 30c per share after tax - in the property and casualty insurance segment, which includes less than $1M of combined losses from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The reinsurance segment expects to report a record amount of catastrophe and storm losses totaling approximately $19.5M , 60c per share after tax. The reinsurance segment estimates ultimate gross losses from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria of approximately $9.0M, $7.5M and $3.0M, respectively, and that losses from the two earthquakes in Mexico will be approximately $1.5M. These estimates are before factoring in recoveries from the reinsurance subsidiary's annual aggregate catastrophe excess of loss treaty, which has a retention amount of $20M, a limit of $100M , and 20% co-participation. None of the catastrophic events occurring during Q3 are expected to result in recoveries under the reinsurance subsidiary's per occurrence catastrophe excess of loss treaty, as losses from these events are all currently below the $10M retention amount.

06:40 EDT Ares Management announces significant exits in Germany - Management announced that funds managed by its real estate group have completed two significant asset sales that bring the total completed transaction volume in Germany to approximately EUR1B over the past year. The first transaction is the sale of the 74,000-square-meter Kustermann Park office complex in Munich, Germany, to a pan-European fund manager. Specific terms were not disclosed. The second is the sale of a portfolio of 2,500 rental units (comprising of 2,453 multifamily units and 52 commercial units) in the North Rhine Westphalia, Southern Lower Saxony and Bremen, as well as the Schleswig-Holstein catchment area of Hamburg to a listed German residential aggregator for EUR130M.

06:38 EDT Trump: FBI confirms report Comey drafted letter before investigation complete - President Donald Trump tweeted this morning, "Wow, FBI confirms report that James Comey drafted letter exonerating Crooked Hillary Clinton long before investigation was complete. Many people not interviewed, including Clinton herself. Comey stated under oath that he didn't do this-obviously a fix? Where is Justice Dept?" Reference Link

06:36 EDT Supervalu to acquire Associated Grocers of Florida in $180M transaction - Supervalu and Associated Grocers of Florida announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement for SUPERVALU to acquire Associated Grocers in a transaction valued at approximately $180M. This transaction provides SUPERVALU with the ability to expand its operations into a new part of Florida as well as provides new opportunities to bring SUPERVALU's products and services to Associated Grocers' diverse customer base in South Florida, the Caribbean, and other international markets. Additionally, as part of the pending transaction, SUPERVALU has reached a long-term supply agreement with Associated Grocers' largest customer that will go into effect upon the closing of the transaction. The transaction, which was approved by each company's board of directors, is currently expected to close by the end of calendar year 2017, subject to approval by Associated Grocers' shareholders and other customary closing conditions. Following completion of the merger, Associated Grocers will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of SUPERVALU.

06:35 EDT Assurant to acquire Warranty Group in $2.5B transaction - Assurant and The Warranty Group, a leading global provider of protection plans and related programs, and a portfolio company of TPG Capital, announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement to combine operations, with Assurant shareholders retaining majority ownership of the combined company. The transaction is valued at approximately $2.5B and is expected to close in the first half of 2018, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions. The transaction will significantly advance Assurant's strategy in the global lifestyle market with an attractive product and client portfolio, diversified growth profile and a deeper global footprint. With annualized revenue greater than $1B as of June 30, 2017, The Warranty Group will enhance Assurant's scale and market presence in its vehicle protection, extended service contracts and financial services businesses across 35 countries. The resulting geographic footprint also will provide resources to accelerate Assurant's mobile strategy in key markets such as Asia-Pacific. The Warranty Group's U.S. vehicle protection business also brings new client partnerships and distribution channels including dealer networks and national accounts, and positions Assurant to capitalize on emerging trends in the auto market such as digital auto retailers. The transaction values The Warranty Group at $1.9 billion in equity value, or $2.5 billion of enterprise value, including their existing debt. Under the transaction agreement, Assurant, Inc. will become a wholly owned subsidiary of TWG Holdings Limited, whose name will be changed to Assurant Ltd. Assurant shareholders will own approximately 77 percent of the combined entity as existing Assurant, Inc. shares are converted into shares of Assurant Ltd. on a one-for-one basis. TPG and its affiliates will own the remaining 23 percent, equal in value to 16 million Assurant shares, or approximately $1.5 billion at yesterday's closing price. Assurant will also pay approximately $372 million in cash to TPG. Upon closing, Assurant Ltd. shares will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol AIZ. The senior management team of Assurant will lead the combined organization. Assurant intends to finance the cash consideration and repayment of approximately $591 million of The Warranty Group's existing debt through new debt, and preferred securities expected to be issued after closing. Assurant has entered into a commitment letter for a $1.0 billion bridge facility. The transaction is expected to be modestly accretive to Assurant's 2018 operating earnings per share on a run-rate basis. By the end of 2019, Assurant expects to generate $60 million of pre-tax operating synergies by optimizing global operations.

06:33 EDT Akamai enters strategic partnership with Bell - Bell, a wholly owned subsidiary of BCE (BCE), and Akamai Technologies (AKAM) announced a strategic partnership that expands Bell's broad portfolio of web security solutions for Canadian businesses with the addition of Akamai's leading web performance and cloud security products. By joining forces, Bell and Akamai are positioned to identify security threats, proactively prevent attacks, and optimize the performance and availability of network and web services for businesses.

06:32 EDT SAIC awarded $93M USCYBERCOM task order - SAIC was awarded a task order worth approximately $93M by the U.S. Cyber Command awarded to support the Directorate of Operations Joint Operations Center and Special Programs. The task order has a one-year base period of performance and four one-year option periods. Under the contract, SAIC will support USCYBERCOM in securing, operating, and defending the Department of Defense Information Network. SAIC will assist USCYBERCOM by coordinating, synchronizing, and deconflicting Department of Defense cyber forces and DoD Cyberspace Operations.

06:29 EDT Alphabet's Sidewalk Labs to create 'smart' neighborhood in Toronto - Sidewalk Toronto is a joint effort by Waterfront Toronto and Alphabet's Sidewalk Labs to create a new kind of mixed-use, complete community on Toronto's Eastern Waterfront, beginning with the creation of Quayside. "Sidewalk Toronto will combine forward-thinking urban design and new digital technology to create people-centered neighborhoods that achieve precedent-setting levels of sustainability, affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity." Reference Link

06:16 EDT Loxo Oncology announces top-line response rate results of larotrectinib dataset - Loxo Oncology announced top-line overall response rate results from the independent review committee assessment of the larotrectinib dataset. The full dataset is being reserved for a future publication. Loxo Oncology expects to submit a New Drug Application for evaluation by the FDA in late 2017 or early 2018, and a Marketing Authorisation Application for evaluation by the European Medicines Agency in 2018. Consistent with global written regulatory correspondence, the NDA/MAA dataset includes adult and pediatric tropomyosin receptor kinase fusion patients enrolled in Loxo Oncology's Phase 1 adult trial, Phase 2 trial and Phase 1/2 pediatric trial. The primary endpoint for the integrated analysis of efficacy is overall response rate according to the independent review committee assessment. A key secondary endpoint is ORR according to local investigator assessment. The larotrectinib adverse event profile is consistent with data previously presented publicly. The larotrectinib program has continued to enroll and treat newly identified patients with TRK fusion cancers. The anti-tumor activity and safety of larotrectinib in these additional patients are consistent with data reported today and previously. No new patients with CNS metastases have been identified or treated in any setting.

06:07 EDT Eco-Stim Energy starts work under second Oklahoma contract, renews board - Eco-Stim Energy has commenced work under its second customer contract operating out of its Fairview, Oklahoma base. The first stage was executed on October 17. The operational start-up was achieved less than three months following the contract award, exceeding the company's expectations. The work to be performed is with an Oklahoma based exploration and production company, who is currently operating two drilling rigs in the STACK and is considering adding a third rig in early 2018. EcoStim's Board of Directors also recently appointed Timothy L. Reynolds, Todd R. Snyder and Bryan R. Stewart as directors of the company. Reynolds serves as Co-CEO of Dakota Midstream, an independent midstream energy company in the Bakken shale formation. Snyder is an Executive Vice Chairman of Rothschild & Co., international investment banking and financial advisory firm. Stewart retired from Devon Energy Corporation in June 2012 after 35 years of service. During his tenure at Devon, Mr. Stewart served in a variety of leadership capacities, including as Devon's Chief Engineer responsible for the development and integration of company-wide best practices.

06:03 EDT Anthem launches IngenioRx, new pharmacy benefits manager - Anthem (ANTM) announced it is establishing a new pharmacy benefits manager to be named IngenioRx. IngenioRx will begin offering a full suite of PBM solutions starting in 2020, which coincides with the conclusion of the company's current PBM contract. IngenioRx will serve customers of Anthem affiliated health plans, as well as non-Anthem customers, with a seamless, integrated experience by taking Anthem's new model to the national marketplace. The IngenioRx pharmacy leadership team combined has more than 100 years of experience in the PBM industry, which will be invaluable in helping to ensure a seamless transition for members. Anthem has signed a five-year agreement with CVS Health (CVS), for services beginning Jan. 1, 2020. IngenioRx will combine its member and provider engagement initiatives and market leading pricing with CVS' expertise in point-of-sale engagement, such as member messaging and Minute Clinic. CVS will also provide prescription fulfillment and claims processing services.

06:02 EDT Encana targets five-year 25% CAGR in adjusted cash flow - Encana President & CEO Doug Suttles, along with members of the executive and management teams, will outline the company's relentless focus on creating value and its updated five-year plan. "Successful execution of our strategy and strong performance through 2017 has set the stage for the next five years," said Suttles. "We have created a highly resilient business that is unique in our industry. Our updated five-year plan is better on every measure. We are on track to deliver leading corporate returns, strong cash flow growth and substantial free cash flow, without any improvement in commodity prices." Encana's track record and continuous focus on innovation and discipline enables it to create value and manage risk. Through its five-year plan, the company expects its return on capital employed will climb to between 10%-15%. In addition, Encana expects to deliver approximately 25% compound annual growth in non-GAAP cash flow and around $1.5B of cumulative non-GAAP free cash flow.

05:39 EDT Nokia partners with Bosch Connected Devices for industrial IoT - Nokia and Bosch Connected Devices and Solutions GmbH have announced a strategic partnership to enable enterprises and Communications Service Providers to more easily deploy industrial IoT solutions from sensors through to applications. Initial work will focus on asset tracking, predictive maintenance and environmental monitoring use cases, with the companies currently doing several customer trials in Europe, the Middle East and Africa and commercially available solutions expected in early 2018.

05:34 EDT Accenture, SAP announce plans for Accenture Interactive and SAP Hybris team - Accenture (ACN) and SAP (SAP) are expanding their alliance in the area of commerce experiences services. The companies announced plans for Accenture Interactive and SAP Hybris to develop a platform that will help clients build and curate contextual, personalized experiences for customers that span the entire commerce offering - from marketing, eCommerce and offline shopping to customer service and loyalty management.

05:29 EDT PG&E restores 97% of electric customers affected by CA wildfires - After more than a week of around-the-clock restoration work, Pacific Gas and Electric said that it restored electric power to 97% of customers who can receive it. Late today, the company also reported it was granted access by CAL FIRE to an additional 6,000 homes and businesses, reducing the number of customers the company cannot access to about 400. The company expects to restore service to these 6,000 additional customers within the next 24 to 48 hours and get access through CAL FIRE for the remaining 400. PG&E also said it expects to restore gas service to all remaining customers who can receive it by Wednesday evening. More than 4,300 PG&E employees and mutual-aid partners have worked since October 9 to safely restore service to customers. PG&E has worked closely with CAL FIRE, other agencies and first responders to be able to make the necessary repairs as soon as safe access to fire zones was assured. PG&E crews will remain active in Sonoma and Napa Counties as they make the necessary permanent repairs to the company's gas and electric systems. Through Wednesday, PG&E gas service representatives and those from other Western utilities will continue restoring service to the remaining 11,000 customers who do not presently have gas service, but are in a position to accept gas service. This process involves working with the individual customers to relight their pilot lights. Restoration begins once infrastructure is repaired, and areas have been deemed safe by relevant authorities. In all, as a result of the firestorm, more than 359,000 customers lost electric service and more than 42,000 gas customers had their gas service turned off. We took this action with safety first in mind to protect our customers and our communities. As restoration efforts continue around the clock, PG&E is maintaining an absolute focus on customer and public safety and supporting firefighting efforts on these intense wind-fueled wildfires.

05:23 EDT Ignyta says entrectinib showed 78%, 69% confirmed ORR - Ignyta announced updated results from its clinical trials, including the STARTRK-2 trial, of entrectinib - an investigational, CNS-active, potent, and selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor being developed for tumors that harbor NTRK fusions or ROS1 fusions. In this interim analysis, entrectinib demonstrated a 78% confirmed objective response rate, or ORR, and a 69% confirmed ORR in 32 patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, that harbored ROS1 fusions. Entrectinib demonstrated compelling durability in these patients, with a median duration of response, or mDOR, of 28.6 months and a median progression free survival, or mPFS, of 29.6 months. Of the patients evaluated, 11 had CNS metastases at baseline as assessed by Investigator, and 83% of the patients with measurable CNS metastases at presentation had confirmed intracranial RECIST responses to treatment with entrectinib. The data were presented today in an oral presentation at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, or IASLC, 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer in Yokohama, Japan. "Based on these data, we believe that entrectinib has the potential to be a best-in-class therapeutic option as a first-line targeted therapy for patients with ROS1-positive NSCLC," said Jonathan Lim, M.D., chairman and CEO of Ignyta. "The extended duration of response and progression free survival times observed in these interim data are particularly compelling, and we believe may be driven by entrectinib's CNS activity. Entrectinib was designed to cross the blood-brain barrier, allowing it to both address preexisting CNS lesions and have the potential to prevent or delay the onset of metastases to the brain, a common site of progression, particularly in NSCLC."

05:16 EDT Seacor entities awarded contracts to help expedite recovery in Puerto Rico - Seacor announced that three of its entities have been awarded contracts to help expedite Puerto Rico's recovery from the recent hurricanes. Eric Fabrikant, Chief Operating Officer, commented, "Our shipping group's SEA-CHEM 1 vessel has been on station in San Juan for 15 days delivering diesel oil directly into trucks which ferry the fuel to critical care facilities, such as hospitals and dialysis centers. We estimate it will take another 15 or 20 days to complete the mission. Pumping oil directly from a tanker into trucks requires planning and careful oversight. It is a much slower discharge process than emptying into big shore tanks. Our CLEANCOR joint venture is in the process of assembling 21 tank-trailers which carry drinking water. They are being loaded on vessels bound for Puerto Rico tomorrow. These units carry 120,000 gallons of potable water, which will service local communities. We were able to place these containers on our Trailer Bridge affiliate's regular weekly sailing to ensure prompt delivery." In addition to the equipment provided by Seabulk Tankers and CLEANCOR, the landing craft, Bahamas Express, part of the SEACOR Island Lines fleet, will be supporting the Virgin Islands recovery effort, delivering generators and supplies in hard to access locations on the islands.