Stockwinners Market Radar for December 22, 2017 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

18:12 EDT Community Trust announces bonus to employees following tax bill - Community Trust Bancorp announced that in recognition of the contribution of the company's employees to the ongoing success of Community Trust Bancorp, Inc. and the positive impact the changes in tax laws will have on the company, a special bonus for employees. All full time employees will receive a special bonus of $1,000 and employees classified as part time will receive a $500 bonus. Executive Management will not participate in this special bonus. The bonus will be paid to employees as soon as the new tax tables are released in 2018 so that employees may receive the full benefit of the reduction in tax rates.

17:34 EDT Newmont: Tax bill to result in income tax expense boost of $200M-$400M for FY17 - According to a regulatory filing, Newmont Mining said that the new U.S. tax law complex and includes various changes which may impact the company. While the company is currently in the process of assessing the expected impacts of the new law on its financial statements, the company has identified that the reduction in the U.S. corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21% will result in a re-valuation of its deferred tax assets and liabilities. The company is subject to the provisions of the Financial Accounting Standards Board ASC 740-10, Income Taxes, which requires that the effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates be recognized in the period the tax rate change was enacted. The company currently expects the enacted reduction in the U.S. corporate income tax rate, as well as other aspects of the new law, to result in a one-time, non-cash increase to income tax expense of between $200M-$400M for the year ended December 31, 2017.

17:24 EDT Silver Point Capital cuts Basic Energy stake to 13.7% from 15.4%

17:21 EDT Boeing awarded $288.68M government contract - Boeing has been awarded a $288,681,573 firm-fixed-price contract for one KC-46A aircraft for Japan. The face value is not-to-exceed $19,786,279. This contract provides for non-recurring engineering, integrated logistics support and one KC-46A aircraft modified to the Japan foreign military sales configuration. Work will be performed in Seattle, Washington, with an expected completion date of Feb. 28, 2021. This contract involves 100 percent FMS to Japan, and is the result of a sole-source acquisition. FMS funds in the amount of $278,590,571 are being obligated at the time of award. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity.

17:13 EDT Ocular Therapeutix receives subpoena from SEC requesting DEXTENZA documents - Ocular Therapeutix provided an update on legal matters related to the company's manufacture of its product candidate, DEXTENZA 0.4mg. As the Company previously disclosed in its periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including its most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 7, 2017, the Company and certain of its current and former executive officers and board members were named as defendants in a derivative lawsuit filed in the Superior Court of Suffolk County of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, captioned Angel Madera v. Sawhney et al., Case No. 17-2273. As previously disclosed, the court dismissed the Madera lawsuit without prejudice because the plaintiff failed to serve the complaint in a timely manner under applicable court rules. On December 21, 2017, the Company was served with a new derivative complaint that the same plaintiff filed in the same court, captioned Angel Madera v. Sawhney et al., Case. No. 1784cv04126. The new Madera complaint is premised on substantially similar allegations as the previous complaint, purports to assert derivative claims against certain current and former executive officers and board members for breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and waste of corporate assets, and names the Company as a nominal defendant. The new Madera complaint also asserts an unjust enrichment claim against two additional defendants, SV Life Sciences Fund IV, LP and SV Life Sciences Fund IV Strategic Partners LP. Additionally, as previously disclosed, the company and certain of its current and former executive officers were named as defendants in three securities class action lawsuits originally filed in federal court in New Jersey. The court granted the defendants' motion to transfer these lawsuits to federal court in Massachusetts, where the cases are currently pending. Finally, the company has received a subpoena from the SEC, dated December 15, 2017, requesting documents and information concerning DEXTENZA 0.4mg, including related communications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, investors and others. The company intends to fully cooperate with the SEC regarding this non-public, fact-finding inquiry. The SEC has informed the company that this inquiry should not be construed as an indication that any violations of law have occurred or that the SEC has any negative opinion of any person, entity or security. The company does not intend to comment further on this matter unless and until this matter is closed or further action is taken by the SEC which, in the company's judgment, merits further comment or public disclosure.

16:50 EDT Novartis' Tasigna gets FDA approval for treatment-free remission data on label - Novartis announced today that the FDA approved the inclusion of treatment-free remission, or TFR, data in the Tasigna U.S. product label. Tasigna is now the first and only BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor, or TKI, to include data about attempting treatment discontinuation in eligible adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia in the chronic phase after achieving sustained deep molecular response of MR4.5 in its FDA-approved prescribing information. TFR is the ability to maintain a sustained molecular response after stopping TKI therapy in patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia in the chronic phase. TFR requires scheduled monitoring of BCR-ABL1 levels to identify possible loss of molecular response. With this label update, Tasigna is the only TKI that provides defined, approved criteria to attempt and monitor TFR. This approval follows a priority review for a supplemental new drug application for Tasigna seeking the addition of TFR information and is based on safety and efficacy results from the 96-week analyses of two open label trials, ENESTfreedom and ENESTop.

16:41 EDT Marvell enters $72.5M settlement pact over shareholder claims - According to a regulatory filing, as previously disclosed by Marvell Technology, on September 11, 2015, Daniel Luna filed an action asserting class action claims on behalf of the company's shareholders in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. This action was consolidated with two additional, nearly identical complaints subsequently filed by Philip Limbacher and Jim Farno and was transferred to the Northern District of California. The complaints asserted violations of federal securities laws based on allegations that the company and certain of its officers and directors made, caused to be made, or failed to correct false and/or misleading statements in the company's press releases and public filings. The complaints requested damages in unspecified amounts, costs and fees of bringing the action, and other unspecified relief. On December 19, 2017, Lead Plaintiff Plumbers and Pipefitters National Pension Fund and the remaining defendants entered into a written settlement agreement that is subject to the Court's approval and provides for class-wide releases in exchange for a payment by the company of $72.5M, which the company must place into escrow within 20 business days of the Court's preliminary approval of the class settlement. In the settlement agreement, the defendants expressly deny all charges of wrongdoing or liability against them arising out of any of the conduct alleged in the litigation and state that they determined that having taken into account the uncertainty and risks inherent in any litigation, especially in complex cases such as this, it is desirable and beneficial to them that the litigation be fully and finally settled. The settlement agreement was preliminarily approved by the Court on December 21, 2017, and the final settlement approval hearing has been scheduled for April 17, 2018.

16:35 EDT KLX Inc. trading resumes

16:32 EDT Zimmer Biomet reports 'positive' nSTRIDE study results - Zimmer Biomet Holdings announced the publication of positive results from a pilot study demonstrating the safety and promising efficacy of the nSTRIDE Autologous Protein Solution Kit for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis. In the trial, known as PROGRESS II, investigators prepared APS by using Zimmer Biomet's nSTRIDE APS Kit, which concentrates anti-inflammatory cytokines and growth factors from a sample of the patient's own blood, for delivery via a single intra-articular injection into the knee joint. The results, which appeared in The American Journal of Sports Medicine, show significant improvement in the percentage change from baseline in pain scores measured by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, as well as comparable safety to saline. OA, the most common type of arthritis, is a progressive disease of the joints. Often referred to as "wear and tear" arthritis, OA occurs when the top layer of cartilage, the slippery tissue that covers the ends of bones in a joint and helps absorb the shock of movement, breaks down and wears away. The bones under the cartilage then rub together, causing pain, swelling and loss of motion in that joint. Eventually, the joint may lose its normal shape and/or develop bone spurs around its edges.

16:26 EDT HP Inc. chief legal officer Rivera sells 48,954 common shares - In a regulatory filing, HP Inc. chief legal officer Kim M. Rivera disclosed the sale of 48,954 common shares of the company at a price of $21.3414 per share.

16:19 EDT D.E. Shaw reports 5% passive stake in Babcock & Wilcox

16:16 EDT Qiagen to take $110M-$120M after-charge on net income in Q4 - Qiagen announced that, mainly as a consequence of the new U.S. tax legislation, it will take an after-tax charge on net income of approximately $110M-$120M, or about 47c-52c per share, in the fourth quarter of 2017, and an additional after-tax charge in 2018 of approximately $7M, or 3c per share.

16:09 EDT Avista requests lower prices for Washington and Idaho customers - Avista filed Purchased Gas Cost Adjustment, or PGA requests with the utility commissions in Washington and Idaho to reduce overall natural gas prices by 7.1% and 7.4% respectively, to be effective Jan. 26, 2018, if approved. Given the continued decline in wholesale natural gas prices, Avista is proposing to decrease the natural gas rates customers pay to better reflect current market prices for natural gas. If approved by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, residential natural gas customers in Washington using an average of 54 therms per month would see a $3.05, or 6.3%, decrease per month, for a revised monthly bill of $45.39. If approved by the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, residential natural gas customers in Idaho using an average of 49 therms per month would see a $2.73, or 6.4%, decrease per month, for a revised monthly bill of $39.91.

16:06 EDT Avista requests lower natural gas prices for Oregon customers - Avista filed a Purchased Gas Cost Adjustment request with the Public Utility Commission of Oregon to reduce overall natural gas prices by 3.5%, to be effective Jan. 26, 2018. Given the continued decline in wholesale natural gas prices, Avista is proposing to decrease the natural gas rates customers pay to better reflect current market prices for natural gas. If approved by the PUC, residential natural gas customers in Oregon using an average of 40 therms per month would see a $1.59, or 3.2%, decrease per month, for a revised monthly bill of $48.20. The percentage change varies by rate schedule and is dependent upon how much energy customers on the respective rate schedules use.

16:05 EDT Exco Resources trading halted, news pending

16:02 EDT Morgan Stanley reports 5.3% passive stake in Asbury Automotive

15:07 EDT Iconix raises 'going concern' doubt in Form 10-Q - Due to certain developments, including the decision by Target Corporation (TGT) not to renew the existing Mossimo license agreement following its expiration in October 2018 and by Walmart, Inc. (WMT) not to renew the existing DanskinNow license agreement following its expiration in January 2019, and Iconix Brand's (ICON) revised forecasted future earnings, Iconix forecasted that it would unlikely be in compliance with certain of its financial debt covenants in 2018 and that it may otherwise face possible liquidity challenges in 2018, according to a regulatory filing. As a result, the company recently engaged in discussions with its lenders to provide relief under its financial debt covenants and on October 27, 2017 entered into an amendment of its senior secured term loan facility with Deutsche Bank (DB). As a result of those negotiations, Deutsche Bank provided the company with amended financial debt covenants and the company agreed, among other things, to reduce the size of the credit facility by approximately $75M-$225M. The proceeds of the original senior secured term loan facility were escrowed to be utilized to refinance the company's 1.50% Convertible Notes when they come due in March 2018. Prior to entering into the First Amendment, the company had already used $59M of the escrowed proceeds made available under the original senior secured term loan facility to repay a portion of the 1.50% Convertible Notes and accrued interest. In connection with the First Amendment, the remaining escrowed funds from the original senior secured term loan facility were returned to Deutsche Bank and the bank agreed to provide the company with a delayed draw term loan. The delayed draw term loan consists of a $25M First Delayed Draw Term Loan which amount was funded in full in accordance with the terms of the DB Credit Agreement, as amended and a $140.7M Second Delayed Draw Term Loan to be drawn on March 15, 2018. Pursuant to the amendment, in order to receive the net proceeds of the Second Delayed Draw Term Loan on March 15, 2018, the Company will have to raise net cash proceeds of at least $100 million (and/or achieving a reduction in the outstanding principal amount of the 1.50% Convertible Notes) which would provide sufficient funds with the amounts drawn under the Second Delayed Draw Term Loan for the Company to retire the 1.50% Convertible Notes outstanding on their maturity date. If the Company cannot secure additional funds or otherwise satisfy the requirements for availability of the First Delayed Draw Term Loan, the Company will not have sufficient liquidity to repay its 1.50% Convertible Notes which will become due in March 2018, which default may result in a cross-default and acceleration of the Company's other outstanding indebtedness, which could ultimately force the Company into bankruptcy or liquidation. These factors raise substantial doubt about the company's ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the financial statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are issued.

15:06 EDT Valeant announces FDA approval of Lumify - Bausch + Lomb, a wholly owned subsidiary of Valeant Pharmaceuticals, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Lumify as "the first and only" over-the-counter eye drop developed with low-dose brimonidine tartrate for the treatment of ocular redness. Brimonidine, which was first approved by the FDA in 1996 for intraocular pressure reduction in glaucoma patients, is available at higher doses in prescription eye care products.

15:01 EDT Xtera initiates legal action against Nokia, NEC over subsea telecommunications - Xtera announced that it has initiated legal action against Nokia Corporation, including Alcatel-Lucent, and NEC Corporation in order to halt infringement of its intellectual property in subsea telecommunications systems. Xtera has filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission alleging that Nokia and NEC are using its technology illegally and without permission, and seeking to prevent the companies from importing and selling in the U.S. products that infringe on Xtera's patents. Xtera's industry-leading subsea telecoms solutions carry digital data across ocean waters and directly inland to cities, allowing the transmission of data between continents. The company supplies both repeatered and un-repeatered systems, using its high performance amplifiers to deliver traffic through a network infrastructure that optimizes performance, delivers maximum reach and capacity, and reduces costs. Backed by continuous investments in engineering, research, and development, Xtera has remained at the forefront of innovation in the subsea telecoms industry. Its customers include telecoms service providers, content service providers, enterprises, and government entities worldwide. Xtera believes that Nokia and NEC market and sell products that incorporate patent-protected technologies developed by Xtera without license to do so. These products include submarine line terminal equipment and components that are needed to transport optical signals across the ocean. Xtera has asked the ITC to issue a permanent, limited exclusion order that would prevent entry into the U.S. of products that infringe on Xtera's patents. The company also seeks a permanent cease and desist order that prohibits Nokia and NEC from importing, selling, distributing, marketing and/or advertising, and transferring any products within the U.S. that infringe on Xtera's asserted U.S. patents.

14:57 EDT UnitedHealth agrees to purchase Empresas Banmedica for $2.8B - In a regulatory filing this morning, UnitedHealth Group and Empresas Banmedica, a health care provider and insurer serving Chile, Colombia and Peru, announced that a wholly owned subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group has signed a definitive purchase agreement and intends to launch a tender offer for Empresas Banmedica, an initial step toward acquiring the company. UnitedHealth Group will offer CLP$2150 per share for 100% of the outstanding shares of the company, valuing Empresas Banmedica's equity at CLP$1.7T, or approximately $2.8B. The two controlling shareholders of Empresas Banmedica will tender their combined approximate 57% ownership in Empresas Banmedica. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2018, subject to customary terms and conditions. The tender offer is expected to commence on or about December 27, 2017 and conclude on or about January 25, 2018.

14:43 EDT BD sees Bard deal closing in December following FTC approval - Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX) issued a statement regarding today's clearance by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for BD to acquire C. R. Bard (BCR), contingent on the divestitures of BD's soft tissue core needle biopsy product line and C. R. Bard's Aspira product line of tunneled home drainage catheters and accessories: "FTC approval brings us one step closer to full regulatory clearance of the Bard acquisition," said Vincent A. Forlenza, chairman and CEO of BD. "We currently expect that the Bard acquisition will close in December, pending approval by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions."

14:34 EDT Coinbase says buys, sells 'currently operational' - Coinbase states in a status update on its site: "Buys and sells are currently operational. They were temporarily unavailable during these periods: 8:04 - 9:06 a.m. PST and 9:35 - 10:26 a.m. PST".

14:15 EDT FTC requires divestitures as condition of Becton Dickinson acquiring C.R. Bard - Becton Dickinson(BDX) and C. R. Bard (BCR) have agreed to divest two medical device product lines to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that Becton, Dickinson's proposed $24B acquisition of Bard would negatively impact competition in those markets, the FTC announced. According to the FTC's complaint the acquisition, as it was initially proposed, would likely harm competition by combining the top two suppliers in the U.S. markets for tunneled home drainage catheter systems and soft tissue core needle biopsy devices. Under the terms of a settlement with the FTC, Becton, Dickinson's soft tissue core needle biopsy device business and Bard's tunneled home drainage catheter system business will be divested to Utah-based medical device supplier Merit Medical Systems (MMSI), a medical device company with experience manufacturing and selling biopsy and drainage products, "as well as a track record of integrating acquired products into its business," the FTC stated.

13:59 EDT BAE Systems awarded U.S. Army contract valued at up to $1.7B - The U.S. Army has awarded BAE Systems a contract that clears the path to begin full-rate production of the company's M109A7 Self-Propelled Howitzer and M992A3 ammunition carrier vehicles. The contract includes an initial $413.7M award to execute the third and final option for low-rate initial production on the program. Options are also included that would begin the full-rate production phase, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of the award to approximately $1.7B. BAE Systems will initially produce 48 vehicle sets, with the options calling for 60 sets per year for approximately three years of deliveries thereafter during full-rate production. The M109A7 consists of a new chassis design for improved performance, upgraded survivability, and components common to other Army vehicles, as well as additional key features.

13:45 EDT XPO Logistics trading resumes, shares up 7% to $84.44

13:41 EDT Roche, Accenture collaborate to enhance digital healthcare for cancer patients - Roche (RHHBY) announced a collaborative services agreement with Accenture (ACN). Under the terms of this exclusive multi-year agreement, Accenture will provide digital data integration services to Roche's NAVIFY Tumor Board solution. A tumour board is a meeting in which multi-disciplinary healthcare teams review and discuss individual cancer patient cases and available treatment options. The NAVIFY Tumor Board solution streamlines and standardises the tumour board workflow process by aggregating relevant patient data from disparate IT systems into a software solution that fosters efficient team collaboration, reduces errors, and gives the care team more time to evaluate individual patient cases.

13:38 EDT XPO Logistics trading halted, volatility trading pause

13:26 EDT AT&T, Time Warner extend merger deadline to June 21 - According to a regulatory filing from this morning, on December 21, 2017, AT&T (T) and Time Warner (TWX) entered into a limited waiver and agreement, pursuant to which AT&T and Time Warner each waived, until June 21, 2018, its right to terminate the Merger Agreement due to a failure to complete their merger contemplated thereunder by April 22, 2018.

13:07 EDT CSX names James Foote president, CEO - The board of directors of CSX Corporation announced that it has unanimously named James M. Foote as the company's president and chief executive officer, effective immediately. Foote was named acting CEO on December 14, 2017 after E. Hunter Harrison was placed on medical leave. Foote will also join the company's board of directors. CSX Chairman Edward J. Kelly III said, "While we continue to mourn the loss of Hunter Harrison, the Board of Directors is pleased to announce Jim Foote as his successor. Jim has decades of railroading experience and the Board is confident of his ability to lead the company. He has already had a markedly positive impact. The Board looks forward to working with him."

13:05 EDT Chipotle higher after LA says less than 20 workers, patrons fell ill - Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill moved higher after the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, according to Bloomberg, said those affected by an illness at the company's restaurant doesn't exceed 20 for either the patron or worker category. The investigation is ongoing and a specific food item or condition has not been implicated as the cause of infection, the Department of Public Health added, according to Bloomberg. The agency noted that illnesses were also reported at Pizza Rev, which is next to Chipotle, and that some staff worked at both places. Shares of Chipotle are off their lows following the report and are up 75c to $293.15.

13:01 EDT Alpha Capital Anstalt reports 9.9% passive stake in Akers Biosciences - In a regulatory filing, Alpha Capital Anstalt disclosed a 9.9% passive stake in Akers Biosciences, which represents roughly 2.52M common shares.

12:58 EDT Legg Mason enters repurchase agreement with Shanda Asset Management - Legg Mason announced that the company has entered into an agreement with Shanda Asset Management Investment Limited to repurchase the 5,567,653 shares of the company's common stock beneficially owned by Shanda. The company agreed to repurchase the shares for $40.50 per share in a private transaction. The aggregate purchase of $225.5M is effectively an acceleration of the company's authorized repurchase program for the next three quarters and, as a result, the company will not repurchase shares in the market prior to the December 2018 quarter. Until October 2018, the company will apply funds that otherwise would have been allocated to share repurchases to pay down amounts that were drawn under the company's revolving credit line in connection with the repurchase of shares from Shanda.

12:41 EDT The Intersection: Crypto and Wall Street This Week - As bitcoin, ethereum and other cryptocurrencies get increasing attention from investors, Wall Street and its traditional banks continue to adjust to the shift. Catch up on this week's top stories highlighting the intersection of these old guard and new school areas of finance with this recap compiled by The Fly: 1. COINBASE DISABLES, STARTS PROBE: On Friday, Coinbase, one of the largest bitcoin marketplaces in the U.S., said that buying and selling has been temporarily disabled amid a price rout in cryptocurrencies. On Wednesday, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said, "Today we announced support for Bitcoin Cash. It appears the price of Bitcoin Cash on other exchanges increased in the hours before our announcement. While digital currency prices fluctuate quite a lot and we have no indication of any wrongdoing at this time, I wanted to share a few thoughts with our customers... I take the confidentiality of material non-public information very seriously as CEO. Given the price increase in the hours leading up the announcement, we will be conducting an investigation into this matter. If we find evidence of any employee or contractor violating our policies, directly or indirectly, I will not hesitate to terminate the employee immediately and take appropriate legal action." 2. 'BLOCKCHAIN' NAME CHANGE SPIKES LONG ISLAND ICED TEA: Shares of Long Island Iced Tea (LTEA) nearly tripled on Thursday after the company announced that it is shifting its primary corporate focus towards the exploration of and investment in blockchain technology opportunities. In connection with the shift, the company changed its name from "Long Island Iced Tea Corp." to "Long Blockchain Corp". The company will continue to operate Long Island Brand Beverages as a wholly-owned subsidiary and maintain the focus of that business on the ready-to-drink segment. The iced tea maker added, "The company is already in the preliminary stages of evaluating specific opportunities involving blockchain technology. The discussions are only in the preliminary stages but indicate the areas of focus for the company." 3. GOLDMAN TO CREATE CRYPTO DESK: Goldman Sachs (GS) is establishing a trading desk to make markets in digital currencies such as bitcoin, Bloomberg reported. The bank intends to get the business running by the end of June, if not earlier, and is still trying to work out security issues as well as how it would hold, or custody, the assets. 4. SEVEN STARS TAKES DBOT STAKE: On Wednesday, Seven Stars Cloud Group (SSC) announced a 27% purchase of The Delaware Board of Trade Holdings, a blockchain-based alternative trading system fully licensed by the SEC, for 1,627,869 shares of SSC common stock. Subsequently, Seven Stars Chairman and CEO Bruno Wu announced an update on the company's vision, and specifically on how it relates to Blockchain, stating, "Seven Stars Cloud is a next-generation Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain-Powered Financial Technology Company that offers supply chain and digital finance solutions aiming to disrupt and consolidate supply chain finance, risk management and asset-backed digital securitization...However, Seven Stars Cloud is in no way a Bitcoin-related company and it must be highlighted that the opportunities and possibilities of Blockchain extend far beyond the world of cryptocurrencies." 5. SEC SUSPENDS CRYPTO COMPANY TRADING: On Tuesday, the SEC suspended trading in shares of Crypto Company (CRCW). The agency said in an order, "It appears to the SEC that the public interest and the protection of investors require a suspension of trading in the securities of The Crypto Company because of concerns regarding the accuracy and adequacy of information in the marketplace about, among other things, the compensation paid for promotion of the company, and statements in commission filings about the plans of the company's insiders to sell their shares of The Crypto Company's common stock." 6. ICE FILES TO LIST ETF: IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) filed a proposed rule change under NYSE Arca Rule 8.200-E, Commentary .02 with the SEC on Wednesday to list and trade shares of ProShares Bitcoin exchange traded fund and the ProShares Short Bitcoin exchange traded fund. The Exchange proposes to list and trade the shares under NYSE Arca. 8. 'TOTAL INSANITY': Warren Buffett's top lieutenant Charlie Munger called bitcoin and cryptocurrencies "total insanity." "I think it is perfectly asinine to even pause to think about them," Munger said, adding "Believe me, man is capable of somehow creating more bitcoin...They tell you there are rules and they can't do it. Don't believe them. When there is enough incentive, bad things will happen." 9. BITCOIN STOCK PLAYS: Cryptocurrency revenues have been pointed to as reasons to be bullish on Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Nvidia (NVDA) in select research. Overstock (OSTK), Digital Power (DPW), Long Island Iced Tea, Seven Stars Cloud Group, Riot Blockchain (RIOT), Longfin (LFIN) and Social Reality (SRAX) are other stocks that have been touted, or promoted themselves, as a way to play the crypto theme. PRICE ACTION: As of time of writing, bitcoin dropped nearly 27% this week to $13,030 in U.S. dollars according to CoinDesk. Meanwhile, Long Island Iced Tea rose about 178%, Riot Blockchain fell 15%, Social Reality was down 22% and Longfin rose 88%, all on a weekly basis. Bitcoin Investment Trust dropped about 44% this week to $1,616. WANT BITCOIN NEWS ALERTS?: To receive alerts on stories relating to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, Fly subscribers can enter "Bitcoin" into the "Add symbols" box of their portfolios.

12:22 EDT Cannabis Science negotiates for ICO with 'major' Blockchain participant - Cannabis Science, a U.S. company specializing in the development of cannabinoid-based medicines, announces it has negotiated an initial coin offering, or ICO, with a "major asset backed Blockchain participant." This January, Cannabis Science plans pre-launch sales of our own proprietary blockchain and will commence ICO trading with a unique three symbol trading symbol on a number of blockchain currency exchange markets after pre-launch sales have completed. The Cannabis Science blockchain white papers are being finalized now for January 2018 release, the company stated. Cannabis Science shares trade on the "OTC Pink," the lowest tier of the three marketplaces for trading over-the-counter stocks provided and operated by the OTC Markets Group.

11:59 EDT Seven Stars CEO: Company 'in no way a Bitcoin-related company' - Seven Stars Cloud Group Chairman and CEO Bruno Wu announced an update on the company's vision, and specifically on how it relates to Blockchain:"Seven Stars Cloud is a next-generation Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain-Powered Financial Technology Company that offers supply chain and digital finance solutions aiming to disrupt and consolidate supply chain finance, risk management and asset-backed digital securitization. Focusing on Blockchain for a moment I want to be very clear and concise on how Blockchain is powering Seven Stars Cloud business models. With any game-changing emerging technology there is always an adoption curve but also a steep learning curve... However, Seven Stars Cloud is in no way a Bitcoin-related company and it must be highlighted that the opportunities and possibilities of Blockchain extend far beyond the world of cryptocurrencies. Although initially created for Bitcoin, Blockchain provides a more secure and transparent way of managing all kinds of data and therefore, the numerous applications and uses of this technology are infinite. What makes Blockchain unique is that it does not require an intermediary to overlook transactions, the digital database is itself dispersed and decentralized, it can run on numerous computers and it can be updated in real-time. Combining all of these features makes Blockchain much more resistant to cyber-attacks and reduces certain institutional and systemic risks that occur in all facets of business. In this case of Seven Stars Cloud, we are applying Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence to create a hybrid solution for supply chain finance, risk management and asset-backed digital securitization. And these are only the first massive opportunities and markets we are targeting, with more plug and play opportunities to be announced in 2018."

11:38 EDT Texas Capital to give majority of employees special $1,000 bonus - Texas Capital Bank President and CEO Keith Cargill announced that the bank will be giving a majority of its employees a special $1,000 bonus, thanks in part to passage of the federal tax overhaul plan. Cargill said more than 900 employees not already eligible for another performance-based bonus program will receive the payouts, effective in January after the law takes effect. The special bonuses will go primarily to support teams across all locations, including Dallas, Richardson, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Heading into 2018, the company will be looking for additional ways to invest in employees as a result of the tax bill, which includes a permanent cut for corporations and temporary tax relief for individuals.

11:31 EDT Adage Capital Partners GP reports 5.07% passive stake in Mosaic - In a regulatory filing, Adage Capital Partners GP disclosed a 5.07% passive stake in Mosaic, which represents roughly 17.8M shares.

10:47 EDT WWE falls amid speculation McMahon may restart XFL - Shares of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) are falling after chairman and chief executive officer Vincent McMahon sold stock amid speculation that he could be restarting the XFL. Separately, an analyst downgraded the stock to Neutral, saying the benefit from tax reform is insufficient to justify the outperformance of the stock this year. MCMAHON SELLS STOCK: WWE disclosed in a regulatory filing last night that on December 21, McMahon sold 3.34M shares of the company's Class A common stock in a block trade. The WWE said in the filing that McMahon initiated the sale "primarily to fund a separate entity from the company, Alpha Entertainment LLC, which Mr. McMahon established to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football." The shares sold by McMahon represent approximately 4.3% of the company's total outstanding shares of Class A and Class B common stock. After the sale, McMahon beneficially owns about 32M shares of the company's Class B common stock, which represents approximately 82.8% of the company's total voting power and approximately 41.8% of the company's total outstanding shares of common stock. XFL FLOP: McMahon's sale of the WWE stock has increased speculation that the CEO may be looking to re-form his defunct professional football league, the XFL. On December 15, when asked about the XFL, a WWE spokesperson said, "Vince McMahon has established and is personally funding a separate entity from WWE, Alpha Entertainment, to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football." In addition, ESPN reported on Thursday that McMahon and Alpha Entertainment have filed for five different trademarks related to the XFL on December 16 as well as for a "URFL" trademark. The filings are looking to trademark the XFL as a professional football league and cover merchandise following the abandonment of previous XFL trademarks from 2002 to 2005. The original XFL was launched as a joint venture in 2001 by the WWE and NBC to play during the NFL off-season. The league, which included sports entertainment features inspired by wrestling, lasted only one season, halted operations in May 2001 and caused the companies to lose roughly $35M each. CITI DOWNGRADE: This morning, Citi analyst Jason Bazinet downgraded WWE to Neutral from Buy while raising his price target for the shares to $33 from $29. The analyst said that while M&A is certainly possible for the company, it is unlikely even if McMahon is planning to invest in the XFL as he could personally fund the league without selling the WWE. In addition, Bazinet said while he can't rule out a transaction with Formula One (FWONA), investors haven't asked about a potential deal and press reports haven't suggested a deal is in the works. He added while tax reform raised his targets on the name, any benefit from it is insufficient to justify the outperformance of the stock in 2017. The analyst also downgraded Live Nation (LYV) to Neutral for a similar rationale and kept a Buy rating on Formula One Group with a $44 price target. PRICE ACTION: WWE dropped 7%, or $2.25,to $29.59 in morning trading.

10:10 EDT Trump to sign tax, missile defense bills 'in 30 minutes' - President Donald Trump just tweeted: "Will be signing the biggest ever Tax Cut and Reform Bill in 30 minutes in Oval Office. Will also be signing a much needed 4 billion dollar missile defense bill." Publicly traded Defense contractors include BAE Systems (BAESY), Boeing (BA), General Dynamics (GD), Lockheed Martin (LMT), Northrop Grumman (NOC), Raytheon (RTN) and United Technologies (UTX).

10:01 EDT Information Services reports special bonus for U.S. employees due to tax reform - Information Services Group said it will earmark funds for additional investment in global digital initiatives over the next two years to accelerate growth, and make an additional contribution of $500 to every U.S. employee's 401(k) retirement account on U.S. Tax Day, April 17, 2018. The moves are in response to the recent passage of the federal Tax Cut and Jobs Act.

09:35 EDT Icahn Automotive purchases 19 service locations in the U.S. - Icahn Automotive Group LLC announced that it has purchased 19 independently-owned service locations throughout the United States. Icahn Automotive operates nearly 2,000 owned and franchised service locations in 49 states plus Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and Canada.

09:27 EDT Overstock's tZERO subsidiary to take 24% stake in StockCross Financial - Overstock.com (OSTK) CEO and tZERO chairman Patrick Byrne announced his company's intent for blockchain subsidiary tZERO to purchase a minority stake in StockCross Financial Services, a U.S. DTC Clearing Firm. The parties have executed Letters of Intent for tZERO to purchase a 24% stake in StockCross. Under the terms of the agreement, tZERO will take a 24% interest in StockCross, for $12M. Upon closing, the shareholders of StockCross have agreed to reinvest $3M into StockCross for forward strategic investments. Additionally, pursuant to the Siebert (SIEB) and StockCross agreement announced on May 8, 2017, the tZERO stake will entitle tZERO to a one-time distribution of approximately 1.2M shares of SIEB according to the LOI terms. Recently tZERO signed a letter of intent to acquire a 1% stake in Kennedy Cabot Acquisition, LLC, the majority shareholder of Siebert Financial Corp. Upon completion of these transactions, which are expected to close during the first quarter of 2018, tZERO portfolio companies will own approximately 5% of SIEB.

09:18 EDT Sinclair Broadcast announces $1,000 special bonus due to tax reform - Sinclair Broadcast Group announced that, as a result of tax reform legislation, it will pay a special $1,000 bonus to almost 9,000 full-time and part-time regular employees at all of its stations and subsidiaries, excluding senior level executives. "We are grateful to our President and legislature for passing the landmark Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and are excited about the benefits it will provide for our country's economy, our company, and our employees," stated Chris Ripley, Sinclair's President & CEO.

09:16 EDT Canadian National to buy 200 new locomotives from GE Transportation - CN (CNI) announced it will acquire 200 new locomotives over the next three years from GE Transportation (GE) to accommodate future growth opportunities and drive operational efficiency across its system. The order includes Tier 4 and Tier 3 Evolution Series locomotives equipped with GE Transportation's GoLINC Platform, Trip Optimizer System and Distributed Power LOCOTROL eXpanded Architecture to maximize train effectiveness and efficiency. The locomotives will be produced at the GE Manufacturing Solutions facility in Fort Worth, Texas beginning in 2018. CN's order is the largest among class I railways since 2014. The first units are expected to be delivered in 2018 with the balance delivered in 2019 and 2020.

09:12 EDT Arno Therapeutics plans to dissolve by year-end - Arno Therapeutics announced that it has sold substantially all of its remaining assets and will be dissolving by the end of this year. Its last remaining assets were the rights to Onapristone, which it recently sold to Context Biopharma pursuant to the terms of an asset purchase agreement. The proceeds from the sale of Onapristone will be used to satisfy Arno's outstanding liabilities and there are not expected be any assets remaining thereafter. The sale of the Onapristone assets was part of a plan of liquidation and dissolution approved by both the board of directors of Arno and by the holders of approximately 67% of Arno's outstanding common stock pursuant to a written consent. Arno intends to file a certificate of dissolution with the Delaware Secretary of State and to satisfy or otherwise resolve its remaining liabilities from the proceeds from the sale of the Onapristone assets and its remaining cash reserves. The company intends to maintain a small cash reserve to fund wind-down expenses. Context is holding back approximately $0.2M of the purchase price for a period of six months in order to secure certain indemnification and other obligations of Arno under the purchase agreement. Arno has also agreed that any amount it receives from the $0.2M held back in the Onapristone asset sale will be paid to its former CEO in satisfaction of severance obligations, which the former CEO agreed to reduce by approximately 20% from the company's original obligation. Arno expects that the proceeds from the Onapristone transaction will provide the company with sufficient funds to satisfy all of its creditors and to conduct an orderly wind-down of its business. However, Arno does not expect that there will be any assets remaining for distribution to its stockholders.

09:05 EDT Guaranty Federal Bancshares raise quarterly dividend to 12c per share - Guaranty Federal Bancshares announces a dividend per common share of 12c for its fourth quarter ending December 31, 2017. The dividend is a 2c increase from the 10c per common share declared and paid to its shareholders for each of the previous three fiscal quarters in 2017. The dividend will be payable on January 13, 2018 to stockholders of record on January 3, 2018.

09:02 EDT Alpha Natural announces planned capital streamlining - ANR, Inc. and Alpha Natural Resources Holdings, Inc. announced that the Board of each company has approved, in principle, a proposed transaction to streamline the company's capital structure by a reclassification pursuant to which outstanding shares of the existing classes and series of stock would be exchanged for new shares at different exchange ratios. In addition, Alpha has reached preliminary agreement with several large stockholders regarding their support for the proposed streamlining transactions.If approved by the stockholders, Holdings will have a single trading class of common stock, compared to its current capital structure of common stock and two series of preferred stock, all of which trade, and ANR will have two classes of common stock -- one of which would trade, compared to its current capital structure of three classes of common stock, one of which trades, and two series of preferred stock, both of which trade. The capital streamlining of each of ANR and Holdings would be effected by a reclassification of the capital structure of each company pursuant to amendments to each company's current certificate of incorporation. The final forms of these charter amendments and related documentation remain subject to approval by the Boards of ANR and Holdings. Following approval by the Boards, Alpha plans to distribute a Joint Proxy Statement/Offering Memorandum seeking stockholder approval of the proposed reclassifications. If Alpha satisfactorily concludes support agreements with certain large stockholders regarding the proposed reclassifications, Alpha expects to seek stockholder approval at its joint annual meeting to be held on February 15, 2018.

08:57 EDT Caesars announces formation of Caesars Resort Collection - Caesars Entertainment Corporation announced the formation of Caesars Resort Collection and completion of the refinancing of all existing debt at its wholly-owned subsidiaries Caesars Growth Properties Holdings and Caesars Entertainment Resort Properties. The $1.7B gross proceeds from the 5.250% Senior Notes due 2025 issued on October 16, 2017 by CRC Escrow Issuer, LLC and CRC Finco,has been released from escrow. Additionally, CRC Escrow Issuer and CERP have merged into CGPH with CGPH as the surviving entity, with the merged entity renamed Caesars Resort Collection, LLC. Finally, CRC has entered into new $5.7B senior secured credit facilities, which include a five-year $1B senior secured revolving credit facility, $300M of which will be drawn at close, and a seven-year $4.7B senior secured term loan credit facility."The refinancing of the existing debt at CERP and CGPH further lowers our overall cost of capital and meaningfully reduces our interest payments," said Mark Frissora, President and CEO of Caesars Entertainment. "With this refinancing completed, we have now successfully lowered our expected annual interest expense by $290M, improving our free cash flow profile and financial flexibility to drive future growth."

08:33 EDT Global Partners promotes Matthew Spencer to CAO - Global Partners announced the promotion of Matthew Spencer to chief accounting officer, effective January 1, 2018. He will report to Daphne Foster, CFO. Spencer, the partnership's controller since 2012, assumes the chief accounting officer responsibilities from Charles "Chuck" Rudinsky, who announced his retirement as CAO and EVP after more than 30 years with the organization. Rudinsky will thereafter serve as a senior advisor to the CFO through 2019.

08:32 EDT RenaissanceRe expects tax bill to reduce net income by about $40M - RenaissanceRe announced that it has conducted a preliminary assessment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 passed by both houses of the United States Congress as of December 20, 2017. The Tax Bill amends a range of U.S. federal tax rules applicable to individuals, businesses and international taxation, including, among other things, altering the current taxation of insurance premiums ceded from a United States domestic corporation to any non-U.S. affiliate. As a result of the reduction in the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% effective January 1, 2018 pursuant to the Tax Bill, the company anticipates that it will write down a portion of its deferred tax asset and currently estimates that this anticipated write-down will reduce its net income by approximately $40M in the period in which the Tax Bill is enacted. Other than the write-down of the deferred tax asset, the company currently estimates that the economic impact of the Tax Bill to the company will be minimal. However, uncertainty regarding the impact of the Tax Bill remains, as a result of factors including future regulatory and rulemaking processes, the prospects of additional corrective or supplemental legislation, potential trade or other litigation and other factors.

08:31 EDT SodaStream offers to buy French distributor OPM France SAS - SodaStream International announced that it has made an offer to acquire 100% of the share capital of OPM France SAS, its exclusive distributor in France. OPM's annual revenue from the sale of SodaStream products is approximately EUR50M. Should the offer be accepted SodaStream has committed to pay EUR17.5M upon completion of the transaction, subject to customary post-closing price adjustments.

08:11 EDT Mallinckrodt trading resumes

08:08 EDT Mallinckrodt sees deferred tax benefit of $450M-$500M from tax cut act - In a regulatory filing, Mallinckrodt said the Tax Cut and Jobs Act is expected to have "a neutral to slightly positive impact on the non-GAAP adjusted tax expense" of the company relative to current law. Guidance on the impact of the TCJA to the company's GAAP tax expense has not been provided "due to the inherent difficulty of forecasting the timing or amount of items that would be included in calculating such impact," Mallinckrodt added. Assuming that the TCJA is enacted into law, the company estimates the TCJA will result in a deferred tax benefit of $450M-$500M to the company largely associated with a reduction to its interest-bearing U.S. deferred tax liabilities of $1.6B as of September 29, 2017 to reflect the reduction in the corporate federal income tax rate in the U.S. from 35% to 21%, effective as of January 1, 2018. "For purposes of the company's non-GAAP adjusted tax expense prospectively, the beneficial impact from the reduction in the statutory rate will mostly be offset by tighter limitations on interest expense deductions. Notwithstanding the expected offset within the income statement, on the balance sheet, the amount of the interest-bearing deferred tax liabilities will be reduced by the prospective change in statutory rate but not increased by the prospective reduction in the limitation on interest expense," Mallinckrodt added.

08:06 EDT Westport signs MOU with Weichai Power - Westport Fuel Systems announced that it has signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding, or MOU, with Weichai Power at a signing ceremony hosted by Tan Xuguang, Chairman and CEO of Weichai Holding Group in Jinan, Shandong Province, China. This MOU sets the framework for finalizing the development, marketing, and commercialization of the Westport high pressure direct injection technology in China. The MOU states that Westport Fuel Systems will provide support for the Westport HPDI development activities to meet China VI emissions standards and will supply certain components. The parties are expected to enter into a definitive agreement in early 2018.

08:03 EDT McDermott awarded EPCC contract from Mrsk Olie og Gas A/S - McDermott announced a substantial contract award from Maersk Olie og Gas A/S for engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning, or EPCC, services for the Tyra Redevelopment project, located offshore in the Danish sector of the North Sea.McDermott will provide engineering, procurement and construction for two separate work packages for Maersk Oil under the redevelopment project.

07:57 EDT Mallinckrodt trading halted, news pending

07:34 EDT Arrowhead files for regulatory clearance to start ARO-HBV Phase 1/2 study - Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals announced that it filed a regulatory submission to begin a Phase 1/2 study of ARO-HBV, which is being developed as a potentially curative therapy for patients with chronic hepatitis B virusinfection. Pending approval, Arrowhead intends to proceed with AROHBV1001, a Phase 1/2 single-dose escalation study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetic effects of ARO-HBV in healthy adult volunteers, as well as a multiple-dose escalation study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacodynamic effects in HBV patients. The application for approval of the clinical trial was submitted to the New Zealand Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Authority for review by the Standing Committee on Therapeutic Trials, as well as the local Ethics Committee.

07:33 EDT Party City announces repurchase of common stock - Party City announced the purchase of 19,841,694 shares of common stock for an aggregate consideration of $242M from Advent-Party City Acquisition, constituting all of Advent's shares of the company. The company intends to fund the share repurchase with borrowings under its revolving credit facility. Funds associated with Thomas H. Lee Partners will not sell any of their shares in connection with the transaction. Party City CEO Jim Harrison said, "We believe this transaction provides an opportunity to increase shareholder value and is immediately accretive to earnings per share. Additionally, this transaction removes a share over hang associated with Advent's long term shareholder interest in the business. Our business maintains very strong cash flow characteristics, and with the added benefit to free cash flow associated with tax reform, we believe that we can meaningfully increase shareholder return without a material increase in our debt leverage. We remain committed to allocating capital in a manner that appropriately balances our growth objectives with continued focus on the disciplined pay down of debt, providing our shareholders with a strong opportunity for return." On November 9, the company announced a share repurchase program of up to $100M of its outstanding common shares. At the present time, the company has not made a determination as to the timing and amount of additional share repurchases.

07:31 EDT Qualcomm board rejects director nominees assembled by Broadcom, Silver Lake - Qualcomm (QCOM) announced that the Qualcomm Board of Directors, following the recommendation of the Board's Governance Committee, has unanimously determined not to nominate any of the 11 candidates assembled by Broadcom Limited (AVGO) and Silver Lake Partners to replace Qualcomm's current directors at Qualcomm's 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Qualcomm today also filed its preliminary proxy statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with Qualcomm's upcoming 2018 Annual Meeting. After a thorough review of the Broadcom-Silver Lake nominees, the Governance Committee concluded that these nominees are inherently conflicted and would not bring incremental skills or expertise to the Qualcomm Board. Qualcomm's Board is nominating its 11 incumbent directors for re-election at the 2018 Annual Meeting: Barbara T. Alexander, Jeffrey W. Henderson, Thomas W. Horton, Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, Ann M. Livermore, Harish Manwani, Mark D. McLaughlin, Steve Mollenkopf, Clark T. Randt, Jr., Dr. Francisco Ros and Anthony J. "Tony" Vinciquerra. Broadcom and Silver Lake are asking Qualcomm stockholders to turn over control of their Company now to the hand-picked Broadcom-Silver Lake nominees based on a proposal that dramatically undervalues Qualcomm and is not actionable due to its significant regulatory uncertainty, which may not be resolved for 18 months, if ever, and lack of committed financing. Broadcom has made no commitments to resolve the serious regulatory issues inherent in its proposal. Qualcomm's Board is committed to maintaining best-in-class corporate governance. Qualcomm directors are elected annually and 9 of the 11 directors are independent, including 4 directors added in the last 3 years. The incumbent directors have a mix of industry perspectives, operating and financial expertise, corporate restructuring experience and IP/licensing expertise, as well as a long history of collaborative stockholder engagement, all of which collectively drive performance and stockholder value.

07:25 EDT Agile Therapeutics trading halted, news pending

07:07 EDT Corbus Pharmaceuticals initiates Phase 2 study of anabasum for treatment of SLE - Corbus Pharmaceuticals announced the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical study of anabasum for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus, or SLE. SLE is an uncommon autoimmune disease associated with significant morbidity, reduction in quality of life and a 2.4-fold increase in standard mortality rate. The disease affects primarily women of child-bearing age, with increased prevalence and morbidity among African Americans and other minority populations. The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 trial will be conducted at 15 sites in the United States and will enroll 100 adult SLE patients with active musculoskeletal disease, which is the most common disease manifestation of SLE. The primary efficacy outcome assesses pain from active musculoskeletal disease, and secondary efficacy outcomes include other assessments of active musculoskeletal disease, overall disease activity using SLE Responder Index, SLE Disease Activity Index, or SLEDAI, and British Isles Lupus Activity Group, or BILAG, scoring systems, and patient-reported outcomes.

07:02 EDT Cosan announces final results of tender offer - Cosan Limited announced the final results of its tender offer to purchase up to $200M of its Class A common shares, or the shares, at (i) prices specified by the tendering shareholders of not greater than $9.65 nor less than $9.23 per share or (ii) at the purchase price determined in accordance with the tender offer. The tender offer expired at 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on December 19, 2017. Based on the final count by Computershare Trust Company, N.A., the Depositary for the tender offer, a total of 22,025,248 Class A common shares of the company were properly tendered and not properly withdrawn at or below the final cash purchase price of $9.65 per share. Accordingly, the company acquired 22,025,248 shares at a purchase price of $9.65 per share, for a total cost of approximately $212.5M, excluding fees and other expenses related to the tender offer.

07:01 EDT Biostage announce sreverse stock split effective December 22 - Biostage announced a reverse stock split of its shares of common stock at a ratio of 1-for-20. The company's common stock will begin trading on a post-split basis on Friday, December 22, 2017. The reverse stock split was implemented by the company in order to satisfy a condition to closing pursuant to the binding Memorandum of Understanding entered into between the company and a private investor on December 11, 2017 for the private placement of shares of the company's common stock, or a convertible preferred equivalent, and warrants to purchase shares of the company's common stock, or a convertible preferred equivalent, for gross proceeds of approximately $4M.

06:21 EDT Walgreens Boots Alliance to reduce stake in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals - Walgreens Boots Alliance announces that it has entered into an agreement to reduce its stake in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals Corporation, a pharmaceutical wholesaling joint venture in China, following an offer from its joint venture partner Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Holdings. Subject to regulatory review and approval and other customary closing conditions, Walgreens Boots Alliance will sell a 30% interest in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals Corporation to Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Holdings that, following the proposed sale, would own 80%. Upon completion, Walgreens Boots Alliance will own a 20% interest in Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals Corporation and will continue to account for its remaining stake as an equity method investment.

06:04 EDT Correct: Liberty Global to sell Austrian operations to T-Mobile Austria - Liberty Global (LBTYA) announced that it has reached an agreement to sell its Austrian operations, UPC Austria, to T-Mobile Austria (DTEGY). Liberty Global will sell UPC Austria for a total enterprise value of approximately $2.2B, subject to customary debt and working capital adjustments at completion. The sale price represents a multiple of nearly 11x UPC Austria's estimated 2017 adjusted segment operating cash flow, as customarily defined by Liberty Global, or approximately 34x UPC Austria's estimated 2017 operating free cash flow. Closing of the transaction is subject to regulatory approval, which is not expected until the second half of 2018. The proceeds from the sale are expected to be used for general corporate purposes, which may include leverage reduction for the remaining UPC bank group, re-investment into our business, and support for the company's share repurchase program. Liberty Global has agreed to provide certain transitional services for a period of up to four years. These services principally comprise network and information technology-related functions. The annual charges will depend on the actual level of services required by T-Mobile Austria. Liberty Global will also allow T-Mobile Austria to use the UPC brand for a transitional period of up to three years as part of the transaction. LionTree Advisors acted as a financial adviser to Liberty Global on the transaction.

05:46 EDT Staffing 360 appoints Brendan Flood CEO, announces new organization structure - Staffing 360 Solutions announced that Matt Briand, its President and CEO will leave the company effective January 31, 2018, to pursue other business and personal interests. Brendan Flood will become Chairman and CEO of the company, effective immediately. Staffing 360 also announced a new organizational structure that reflects the company's expanding global staffing industry presence and supports management's commitment to achieving sustainable, profitable enterprise-wide growth beginning in 2018. Effective immediately, STAF 360 will re-organize into three distinct business segments: Commercial Staffing (US), Professional Staffing (UK) and Professional Staffing (US). Each of these businesses will be led by a dedicated President, reporting directly to Brendan Flood. These three businesses have distinct marketing strategies, customer profiles, and labor force characteristics. Reflective of this, each will be managed by experienced industry professionals who can address the individual operating requirements of their respective segments, while adhering to STAF 360's high corporate standards of client service and operational excellence. It is expected that these changes will enhance customer focus, drive revenue growth, maximize efficiencies, and support accountability and ownership. Paul Polito has been named President of the Commercial Staffing segment effective immediately. Polito had served as Vice President of Operations for STAF 360's Monroe Staffing subsidiary since 2012. He joined Monroe in January 2001. An executive search is currently underway for the Professional Staffing (UK) and Professional Staffing (US) segments. In the interim, these segments will be led by Flood. Internal candidates are also being evaluated for the roles.

05:38 EDT Roche to acquire Ignyta for $27 per share in all-cash deal valued at $1.7B - Roche (RHHBY) and Ignyta (RXDX) announced they have entered into a definitive merger agreement for Roche to fully acquire Ignyta at a price of $27.00 per share in an all-cash transaction. This corresponds to a total transaction value of $1.7B on a fully diluted basis. This price represents a premium of 74% to Ignyta's closing price on December 21 and a premium of 71% and 89% to Ignyta's 30-day and 90-day volume weighted average share price on December 21, respectively. The merger agreement has been unanimously approved by the boards of Ignyta and Roche. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Roche will promptly commence a tender offer, to acquire all outstanding shares of Ignyta common stock, and Ignyta will file a recommendation statement containing the unanimous recommendation of the Ignyta board that Ignyta's shareholders tender their shares to Roche. Ignyta will continue its operations in San Diego and be responsible for the ongoing pivotal study of entrectinib to ensure this important medicine reaches patients without delay. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Roche will promptly commence a tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Ignyta's common stock at a price of $27.00 per share in cash. The closing of the tender offer will be subject to a majority of Ignyta's outstanding shares being tendered in the tender offer. Following completion of the tender offer, Roche will acquire all remaining shares at the same price of $27.00 per share through a second step merger. The closing of the transaction is expected to take place in the first half of 2018.

05:35 EDT Liberty Global to see Austrian operations to T-Mobile Austria for about $2.2B - Liberty Global (LBTYA) announced that it has reached an agreement to sell its Austrian operations, UPC Austria, to T-Mobile Austria (TMUS). Liberty Global will sell UPC Austria for a total enterprise value of approximately $2.2B, subject to customary debt and working capital adjustments at completion. The sale price represents a multiple of nearly 11x UPC Austria's estimated 2017 adjusted segment operating cash flow, as customarily defined by Liberty Global, or approximately 34x UPC Austria's estimated 2017 operating free cash flow. Closing of the transaction is subject to regulatory approval, which is not expected until the second half of 2018.

05:17 EDT Savara submits IND application to FDA for Molgradex - Savara announced the submission of an investigational new drug, or IND, application to the FDA for its lead product Molgradex, an inhaled formulation of recombinant human GM-CSF, for the treatment of autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, or PAP. The IND submission also adds a blinded interim check of the variability of key secondary endpoints. This is designed to provide an opportunity to confirm or modify the study sample size, if necessary.