Stockwinners Market Radar for May 21, 2018 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:47 EDT Sony targets operating cash flow of Y2T as part of its mid-range plan - The company states: "Over the period of this mid-range plan, operating cash flow (OCF) will be the most important performance metric, and the company will target total OCF of 2 trillion yen or more, excluding the Financial Services segment, for this three-year period. In terms of allocation of cash generated, Sony plans to spend approximately 1 trillion yen on capital expenditure. The priority for the remaining 1 trillion yen will be strategic investment, while also making an appropriate allocation to balance sheet improvement and shareholder returns, in order to further enhance Sony's corporate value. In terms of shareholder returns, the company intends to increase dividends in a stable and long-term manner. The company will seek to maintain a Return on Equity (ROE) level of 10% or more." Reference Link

19:22 EDT Sensata enters $173M deal to sell its valves business to Pacific Industrial Co - Sensata Technologies announced that it has entered into an agreement with Pacific Industrial Co., Ltd. to sell its valves business for a total enterprise value of approximately $173 million. The proposed transaction is subject to customary legal and regulatory requirements and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2018. Sensata's valves business manufactures mechanical valves for pressure applications in tires and fluid control, and assembles tire hardware aftermarket products with manufacturing locations in the United States and Europe. The valves business was acquired as part of Sensata's acquisition of the Schrader group of companies in 2014. For the full year 2017, the business generated approximately $117 million in revenue and $20 million in adjusted EBIT, which excludes intercompany transactions. Sensata's Tire Pressure Monitoring Business and the Global TPMS Aftermarket business are not part of this transaction and will remain with Sensata.

18:55 EDT CFIUS says no unresolved security concerns over Hydro One-Avista deal - Hydro One Limited and Avista Corporation announced that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has completed its review of the proposed merger, and has concluded that there are no unresolved national security concerns with respect to the transaction. Applications for regulatory approval of the transaction are still pending with utility commissions in Washington, Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Montana. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission on March 27, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska on April 3, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Idaho Public Utilities Commission on April 13, 2018. A settlement agreement with the City of Colstrip was filed with the Montana Public Service Commission on May 15, 2018. A settlement in principle with all parties in the Oregon proceeding has been reached and the parties intend to file a full settlement with the Public Utility Commission of Oregon later this month. Hydro One and Avista received the Federal Communications Commission's consent on May 4, 2018 to close their merger and antitrust clearance on April 5, 2018 after the expiration of the waiting period under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended. The transaction received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on January 16, 2018 and from Avista shareholders on November 21, 2017. Also required is the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. Hydro One and Avista continue to anticipate closing the transaction in the second half of 2018.

18:18 EDT PDC Energy Amidon sells 8,045 common shares - In a regulatory filing, PDC Energy SVP, General Counsel, and Secretary Daniel Willson Amidon disclosed the sale of 8,045 common shares of the company at a price of $63.07 per share.

18:02 EDT Akamai and MUFG announce blockchain-based payment network - Akamai Technologies (AKAM) and MUFG (MUFG) announced plans to offer a new blockchain-based online payment network enabling next-generation payment transaction scale and responsiveness. This hyper-scale payment network, powered by an innovative and newly-developed blockchain architecture, is designed to be capable of processing more than one million transactions per second at latencies of less than two seconds per transaction. The underlying blockchain architecture is expected to be extensible to 10 million transactions per second. Transactions executed across the payment network will be accelerated and secured by Akamai's market-leading cloud security offerings. These capabilities will help provide material cost efficiencies and security enhancements to support digital payments at unparalleled scale. MUFG and Akamai intend to leverage the technology, built and deployed on the Akamai Intelligent Platform, to offer a new payment network expected to be available in Japan during the first half of 2020. It will provide a comprehensive set of services, which are expected to include support for current payment processing, pay-per-use, micropayments and other developing IoT-enabled payment transactions.

17:54 EDT SiteOne Landscape acquires Landscaper's Choice Wholesale Nursery and Supply - SiteOne Landscape announced the acquisition of Landscaper's Choice Wholesale Nursery and Supply. Founded in 2000, Landscaper's Choice is a leader in the distribution of nursery and landscape supplies to landscape professionals in the Naples, FL and Bonita Springs, FL markets. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

17:36 EDT Impac Mortgage CFO Taylor to step down, Kuelbs named next CFO - Impac Mortgage Holdings announced that Chief Financial Officer Todd Taylor is stepping down to pursue other professional opportunities. Taylor will remain with the company until June 30, 2018 in order to ensure a smooth transition of responsibilities. The company also also announced the appointment of Brian Kuelbs as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective May 21, 2018. As CFO, Kuelbs will be responsible for overseeing financial aspects of the Company, including capital allocation, treasury services, financial planning and analysis, M&A, accounting, SEC reporting, tax and internal audit. Kuelbs has served as Chief Financial Officer for public and privately held real estate finance companies, depository institutions and private equity backed ventures.

17:32 EDT Andeavor completes acquisition of West Coast asphalt terminals of Delek US - Andeavor (ANDV) announced that it has completed the acquisition of the West Coast asphalt terminals of Delek US Holdings (DK) for a total consideration of $75M, plus working capital. The assets, formerly the Alon Asphalt Company, include four wholly- owned terminals in Elk Grove, CA; Bakersfield, CA; Mojave, CA; and Phoenix, AZ; as well as 50% interest in the Paramount Nevada Asphalt Company joint venture terminal in Fernley, NV.

17:21 EDT SPDR Gold Trust daily holdings fall to 852.04 mt from 855.28 mt - This is the lowest level of holdings since April 4th.

17:14 EDT Trevena names Mark Demitrack as new CMO - Trevena announced the appointment of Mark Demitrack, M.D., as Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Demitrack brings over 20 years of industry experience at large and small biopharmaceutical companies where he has led numerous CNS programs pre- and post-approval. Prior to joining Trevena, Dr. Demitrack was Vice President, Clinical Strategy at Roivant Sciences, Inc. Previously, Mark was the Chief Medical Officer at Neuronetics, Inc., where he was responsible for the development and approval of the NeuroStar transcranial magnetic stimulation system for the treatment of pharmacoresistant depression, and Medical Director at Lilly Research Labs where he was responsible for the development of CNS drugs from early phase to post-market commercialization and oversaw the development and approval of Cymbalta for major depression.

17:09 EDT Mobile Mini director sells 20,000 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Mobile Mini director Stephen A. McConnell disclosed the sale of 20,000 common shares of the company in two transactions of 10,000 shares each. The first transaction was sold at $46.7125 per share while the second transaction was sold at $47.03 per share.

17:03 EDT Micron announces $10B share repurchase authorization - Micron announced at its analyst and investor event that its board has authorized the discretionary repurchase of up to $10B of its outstanding common stock, in conjunction with newly announced plans to return at least 50% of free cash flow to stockholders beginning in FY19. Micron may purchase shares on a discretionary basis, through open market purchases, block trades, privately negotiated transactions and/or derivative transactions, subject to market conditions and Micron's ongoing determination that it is the best use of available cash. The repurchase authorization does not obligate Micron to acquire any common stock.

16:56 EDT Vivo Opportunity reoprts 9.99% passive stake in MEI Pharma

16:49 EDT Seritage Growth Properties names Kenneth Lombard COO - Seritage Growth Properties announced that Kenneth T. Lombard has been appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective on May 20, 2018. Lombard will report to Benjamin Schall, President and Chief Executive Officer and join the Executive Team consisting of Brian Dickman, Matthew Fernand, James Bry, and Mary Rottler. With this appointment, Lombard resigned from the company's Board of Trustees, on which he has served since 2015. A replacement Trustee will be named by the Board of Trustees.

16:46 EDT TerraForm Power disclosed listing requirement notice from Nasdaq - TerraForm Power announced that, on May 16, 2018, it received a notification letter from Nasdaq indicating that the company no longer complied with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) as a result of the company's failure to timely file its Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2018 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company filed its First Quarter Form 10-Q with the SEC on May 21, 2018, and as a result, Nasdaq has informed the company that Nasdaq has determined that the company has regained compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) and that the matter is now closed.

16:41 EDT Park West Asset Management reports 6.3% passive stake in Leaf Group

16:36 EDT Northwest Pipe awarded Southern Water Supply contract - Northwest Pipe was selected by Garney Construction of Kansas City, Missouri to provide a combined total of 108,400 feet of 36- and 32-inch diameter steel water pipe for the Southern Water Supply Project Phase II located in Northern Colorado. Manufacturing is scheduled to begin early next month ahead of deliveries starting in July 2018. The project is anticipated to be substantially complete by the end of January 2020.

16:34 EDT Iridium to be recognized by IMO as a mobile satellite services provider in GMDSS - Iridium announced that the International Maritime Organization's, or IMO, Maritime Safety Committee, or MSC, agreed to recognize that the Iridium network meets all the criteria of the IMO needed to provide mobile satellite services in the GMDSS, and to adopt the "Statement of Recognition" proposed by the United States as a committee resolution. This is an achievement that ends a decades-long satellite industry monopoly in which only one company was authorized to provide satellite GMDSS service and for the first time will bring competition and global coverage, to mariners sailing any of the world's oceans. The MSC also agreed that Iridium and the United States, the delegation sponsoring Iridium's application at the IMO, will work with the International Mobile Satellite Organization, or IMSO, which will monitor progress in Iridium's implementation of the service. The IMSO will report to the MSC once a public services agreement has been entered into between Iridium and the IMSO, likely marking the start of this service. Iridium formally began the process to become a recognized GMDSS mobile satellite service provider in April 2013. Iridium plans to begin providing GMDSS service in early 2020.

16:33 EDT Tapestry announces departure of Stuart Weitzman creative director - Tapestry announced the resignation of Stuart Weitzman Creative Director Giovanni Morelli. The company has commenced a search for a new creative leader. "While we greatly admire Giovanni's creative talents, Tapestry is committed to an environment where every individual feels respected and at times his behavior fell short of these standards. Looking ahead, we have the utmost confidence in the talented Stuart Weitzman design team under the direction of CEO and Brand President Eraldo Poletto, who has a proven track record of developing iconic brands and successfully building global teams," said Victor Luis, Chief Executive Officer of Tapestry.

16:31 EDT Darling Ingredients acquires assets of Kruger Commodities - Darling Ingredients announced that is has acquired substantially all of the assets of Kruger Commodities including protein conversion facilities in Hamilton, MI and Tama, IA along with a protein blending operation and used cooking oil collection business in Omaha, NE to support our low carbon fuel initiative at Diamond Green Diesel.

16:31 EDT Heartland Financial completes FBLB purchase, sees immediate accretion to EPS - Heartland Financial USA announced the completion of its purchase of Lubbock, Texas-based First Bank Lubbock Bancshares and its wholly owned subsidiary, FirstBank & Trust, at the close of business on May 18.Based on Heartland's closing stock price of $55.05 per share as of May 18, 2018, the aggregate transaction value at closing was approximately $203.2M in shares of Heartland common stock and cash (including the cash consideration to be paid to holders of FBLB's stock appreciation rights but excluding Heartland's repayment and assumption of FBLB's. FBLB common shareholders received 3.0934 shares of Heartland common stock and $5.015 in cash for each share of FBLB common stock, subject to certain "tax hold-back" provisions of the merger agreement between Heartland and FBLB relating to the stock portion of the merger consideration. In addition, holders of FBLB's stock appreciation rights will receive cash payments from Heartland in the aggregate amount of approximately $13.3M. Heartland expects the transaction to be immediately accretive to earnings per share. Systems integration is planned for the third quarter of 2018. As of March 31, FirstBank had assets of approximately $972M, gross loans outstanding of $705 million and deposits of $869M.FirstBank serves Lubbock and its surrounding communities from eight full-service banking centers throughout West Texas. Additionally, FirstBank offers mortgage lending services from eight offices throughout Texas through its wholly-owned subsidiary, PrimeWest Mortgage Corporation.

16:25 EDT International Game sees FY18 adjusted EBITDA $1.7B-$1.78B - Sees FY18 CapEx $575M-$625M.

16:19 EDT FlexShopper receives notice of allowance from USPTO for LTO transaction system - FlexShopper announced that it has received a notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, for its patent application directed to a system that enables e-commerce servers the ability to complete LTO transactions through their e-commerce websites. Brad Bernstein, CEO, stated, "The issuance of this notice of allowance represents a significant milestone for FlexShopper. We believe this patent will constitute a significant differentiator for us as we seek to continue to build our position as a leading national LTO retailer and LTO payment solution provider."

16:16 EDT Vince Holding regains compliance with NYSE listing standards - Vince Holding announced that it has regained full compliance with the New York Stock Exchange's continued listing standards, as indicated in NYSE's letter delivered to the company on May 17, 2018. The NYSE's decision came from the company's consistent positive performance with respect to the business plan previously accepted by the NYSE and the company's achievement of compliance with the NYSE's minimum market capitalization requirement for two consecutive quarters. The company regained compliance prior to the end of the NYSE's prescribed 18-month monitoring period scheduled to conclude in November 2018. The company's common stock continues to trade without interruption on the NYSE.

16:13 EDT Micron sees CY18 DRAM growth in line with the industry - Sees CY18 NAND growth somewhat about industry.

16:10 EDT Canada's OLG extends instant games contract with Scientific Games - Scientific Games announced that Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation has extended its Canadian subsidiary's contract as one of OLG's instant games providers until July 31, 2022.

16:09 EDT Libbey suspends quarterly cash dividend - Libbey announced that its Board of Directors has determined to suspend the company's quarterly dividend in order to increase focus on debt reduction and continued investment in strategic initiatives. "We are encouraged by the momentum that the company has demonstrated in the past two quarters as we continue to make progress on key initiatives to improve our performance, and we remain committed to our 2018 guidance. The Board has been studying this issue for some time and based on their analysis, and numerous conversations with current and prospective investors, have taken this action. We expect this will further strengthen our balance sheet and enable us to continue to invest in strategic initiatives," said William Foley, Chairman and CEO of Libbey. In 2017, Libbey paid $10.4M in cash dividends, while reducing net borrowings by $23.5 million largely through use of cash on hand. "We are modifying our capital allocation strategy to assign greater priority to debt reduction and continued investments in strategic initiatives that will improve our ability to increase long term shareholder returns," added Jim Burmeister, CFO of Libbey.

16:06 EDT Adobe to acquire Magento Commerce for $1.68B - Adobe announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Magento Commerce, a commerce platform, for $1.68B, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. The addition of the Magento Commerce Cloud will enable commerce to be seamlessly integrated into the Adobe Experience Cloud, delivering a single platform that serves both B2B and B2C customers globally. The Magento Platform brings together digital commerce, order management and predictive intelligence into a unified commerce platform enabling shopping experiences across a wide array of industries. Upon close, Magento CEO Mark Lavelle will continue to lead the Magento team as part of Adobe's Digital Experience business, reporting to executive vice president and general manager Brad Rencher. The transaction, which is expected to close during the third quarter of Adobe's 2018 fiscal year, is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions. Until the transaction closes, each company will continue to operate independently.

16:04 EDT FibroGen announces updated results from PRAISE study at ATS - FibroGen announced that updated results from the company's randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2b PRAISE study of pamrevlumab in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF, were presented in several poster presentations at the American Thoracic Society, or ATS 2018. In total, the company is presenting four abstracts on pamrevlumab. Pamrevlumab, a proprietary first-in-class antibody targeting connective tissue growth factor, or CTGF, currently being developed for the treatment of fibrotic and fibroproliferative disorders, has demonstrated favorable results in slowing disease progression as measured by forced vital capacity, or FVC in IPF patients in two Phase 2 trials. The poster presentation at ATS presents additional results demonstrating that pamrevlumab treatment achieved a statistically significant reduced rate of progression of lung fibrosis compared to placebo using quantitative high resolution computed tomography, or HRCT. The pamrevlumab findings are consistent with reported results from a prior Phase 2 study in IPF. Quantitative lung fibrosis, or QLF measurements appear to be an objective method for quantifying the change in lung fibrosis captured by HRCT. In PRAISE, the change in QLF volumes in pamrevlumab-treated patients over 48 weeks was significantly less than in patients on placebo, and the treatment difference between pamrevlumab vs placebo was observed as early as six months. The change from baseline in QLF volume for pamrevlumab-treated patients was 24.8 ml vs 86.4 ml for placebo at Week 24, with a treatment difference of -61.6 ml. The change in QLF volume from baseline to 48 weeks was 75.4 ml in pamrevlumab-treated patients vs 151.5 ml from baseline to 48 weeks in patients on placebo, with a treatment difference of -76.2 ml. These QLF results on pamrevlumab's reduction of fibrotic build up in the lungs of IPF patients correlate with attenuation of the rate of decline in FVC % predicted, the primary endpoint of this study, with Spearman's correlation coefficient of -0.64. The PRAISE Phase 2b study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of pamrevlumab in patients with mild-to-moderate IPF. One hundred and three patients were randomized to receive either 30 mg/kg of pamrevlumab or placebo intravenously every three weeks. Lung function assessments were conducted at baseline and at Weeks 12, 24, 36, and 48. Quantitative HRCT assessments were performed at baseline and at Weeks 24 and 48. Additional secondary endpoints of the study were disease progression, health-related quality of life, and safety.

16:04 EDT Ceva expands share repurchase authorization - CEVA announced that its Board of Directors authorized the expansion of the company's share repurchase program with an additional 700,000 shares of common stock available for repurchase. As of March 31, 2018, CEVA had approximately 270,000 shares of common stock available for repurchase under the existing plan, bringing the aggregate to approximately 1M shares available for repurchase.

16:03 EDT 2U names Mark Chernis as COO - 2U announced that Mark Chernis, who has served on the company's board since 2009, will become its new COO. Chernis joins 2U from Pearson, a global education company with employees in more than 80 countries, where he served as senior vice president of strategic partnerships and investments. Chernis has stepped down from 2U's board in order to take on his new role as 2U COO.

15:57 EDT Micron see continued DRAM advancement in stacking technologies

15:50 EDT Micron says 'clear and confident' in DRAM technology roadmap - Says making 'rapid progress' on 1Ynm yield ramp. Says "clear and confident" in its DRAM technology roadmap. Says at most confident point with DRAM in years. Says DRAM technology roadmap ideally enabled with pattern multiplication. Comments taken from 2018 Analyst and Investor Event.

14:56 EDT Wheaton Precious Metals reports 10.8% passive stake in First Majestic

14:19 EDT Sesen Bio reports 'positive' data from ongoing Phase 3 VISTA trial - Sesen Bio announced positive, three-month data from its ongoing Phase 3 VISTA Trial of Vicinium for the treatment of patients with high-grade non-muscle invasive bladder cancer who have been previously treated with bacillus Calmette-Guerin. The efficacy data being reported are based on three-month follow-ups from 111 patients with high-grade NMIBC that is either carcinoma in situ, which is cancer found on the inner lining of the bladder that has not spread into muscle or other tissue, with or without papillary disease, or from patients with papillary disease without CIS, which is cancer that has grown from the bladder lining out into the bladder, but has not spread into muscle or other tissue. "High-grade NMIBC is a devastating cancer that typically occurs later in life and for which treatment options are limited. Over the last 30 years, our industry has seen little innovation for the treatment of this prevalent cancer. The current standard-of-care, BCG, works in many patients, but many will also eventually relapse. For those patients who relapse or who don't respond at all, the standard alternative is radical cystectomy. In a cystectomy, the bladder is removed along with surrounding lymph nodes and other organs that contain cancer. I am very encouraged by both the safety and these three-month efficacy data with Vicinium, and I look forward to continuing to work with the Sesen Bio team to help bring forward this potential treatment as a safe and effective option for my patients," said Rian Dickstein, M.D. F.A.C.S., chief of urology, University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center; medical director of GU oncology, Tate Cancer Center at The University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center; clinical assistant professor, Department of Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine; director, bladder cancer program, Chesapeake Urology; and an investigator in the VISTA Trial.

14:02 EDT Community Bank System names Scott Kingsley COO - Community Bank System and its wholly-ownedy subsidiary Community Bank announced several key senior management promotions. Scott Kingsley has been promoted to the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the company and the bank effective June 1, 2018. Kingsley has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since joining the company in 2004. In his role as Chief Operating Officer, Kingsley will have oversight responsibilities for all banking, wealth management, employee benefit services, and insurance operations and related business activities. Joseph E. Sutaris has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the company and bank, succeeding Kingsley in that position, effective June 1, 2018. Sutaris is currently serving as the bank's Senior Vice President, Finance and Accounting. Joseph F. Serbun has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer, effective June 1, 2018, upon the previously announced retirement of Brian D. Donahue as EVP and Chief Banking Officer.

13:59 EDT Teamsters set to strike against Dr Pepper Snapple subsidiary - Teamsters Local 727 is ready to begin an unfair labor practice strike against the American Bottling Company tomorrow at 3:00 a.m. in advance of one of the busiest holidays for the soda industry giant. Local 727 represents approximately 150 delivery drivers who are employed by the American Bottling Company, a subsidiary of Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (DPS). The Union and its bargaining committee worked in an attempt to reach a fair contract with management, meeting 14 times since March. Throughout negotiations, members of Dr. Pepper management committed unfair labor practices. As a result, six separate unfair labor practice charges have been filed by Local 727 against the American Bottling Company and are currently pending with the National Labor Relations Board. After a detailed discussion of the company's unlawful conduct, Local 727 members authorized a strike to protest the company's unfair labor practices.

13:48 EDT Takeda to sell majority stake in China JV for $280M - Takeda Pharmaceutical announced it has entered into an agreement to sell its majority shareholding of 51.34% in Guangdong Techpool Bio-Pharma Co. The shareholding is to be acquired in an all-cash, combined Stock Purchase Agreement by Takeda's joint venture partner in Techpool: Shanghai Pharmaceutical Holding Co. Ltd. and a fund managed by SFund International Investment Fund Management Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Guangzhou Industrial Investment Fund Management Co.The agreement remains subject to approval from the State Administration for Market Regulation in the People's Republic of China. The Base Payment for the purchase price of Takeda's shareholding is $280M. Upon completion of the transaction, the Fund will purchase approximately 49% of the Takeda shareholding, and Shanghai Pharma will acquire approximately 51% of it.

13:18 EDT John Wiley & Sons names Aref Matin CTO - John Wiley and Sons announced the appointment of Aref Matin as the company's new CTO effective May 21, 2018. In this role, Matin will lead and accelerate Wiley's evolution as a world-class, fully integrated technology organization serving the research and education sectors. Matin was most recently EVP and CTO at Ascend Learning.

13:11 EDT Ategra Capital Management reports 7% passive stake in Fauquier Bankshares

12:49 EDT Steel, aluminum stocks fall after administration says China tariffs on 'hold' - Steel and aluminum shares are not participating in today's strong rally on Wall Street after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said during an interview with Fox News on Sunday that the U.S. was "putting the trade war on hold" and wouldn't' impose tariffs on Beijing while the two countries are in the midst of working on a trade agreement. ABOUT FACE: The Trump administration backed off earlier comments that indicated an all-out trade war with Beijing. In the recent past, Trump has pointed to the huge disparity n tariffs leveled by the two nations against imported goods from the other. He has recently referred to China-U.S. trade deficit as "the largest deficit of any country in the history of our world." Speaking about steel and aluminum specifically, Trump has said that "we're going to be very fair, we're going to be very flexible but we're going to protect the American worker as I said I would do in my campaign." He added that "a strong steel and aluminum industry is vital to our national security. Steel is steel. If you don't have steel you don't have a country." Shares of US Steel (X) are down over 4%, while peers in the steel and aluminum sector are all lower, including AK Steel (AKS), Nucor (NUE), Steel Dynamics (STLD), Alcoa (AA), Century Aluminum (CENX), and Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF).

12:43 EDT Icahn discloses position in Dell Technologies on CNBC - Carl Icahn, while speaking on CNBC, said he owns Dell tracking stock Dell Technologies (DVMT) along with his "sizable" position in VMware (VMW). Icahn said he hopes Dell "pays the right price" for VMware.

12:41 EDT Icahn says 'I hope' Dell pays 'right price' for VMware - Carl Icahn is speaking on CNBC.

12:38 EDT Destination Maternity urges holders to vote for its director nominees - Destination Maternity Corporation issued an open letter to stockholders regarding its upcoming Annual Meeting of Stockholders scheduled for this Wednesday, May 23, 2018. "With the Company's Annual Meeting of Stockholders fast approaching this Wednesday, May 23rd, now is the time for stockholders to cast their votes on the WHITE proxy card FOR each of the Company's four highly qualified and experienced director nominees: Barry Erdos, Melissa Payner-Gregor, Peter Longo and Pierre-Andre Mestre," the letter reads. "Your Board and management team have held numerous discussions with a broad range of stockholders during this proxy season, which have generated meaningful feedback and valuable insights. In light of these conversations, we re-affirm our commitment to increasing our gender diversity at the Board level by identifying and appointing at least one additional highly qualified female director to the Board as soon as possible. We also confirm our commitment to identify and name a permanent CEO as soon as possible, a process that was underway prior to, but interrupted by, the disruptive proxy contest launched by a dissident group of stockholders led by Nathan G. Miller and Peter O'Malley."

12:35 EDT Xerox could fit 'into a number of companies,' Icahn says - Carl Icahn, while speaking on CNBC, said Xerox could be sold and could fit "into a number of companies."

12:31 EDT Icahn has not spoken to Elliott's Singer regarding Energen - Carl Icahn, while speaking on CNBC, said he's not spoken to Elliott Management's Paul Singer regarding Energen. Both Elliott and Icahn own stakes in the company.

12:23 EDT Icahn says he's not the right buyer for Energen takeover - Carl Icahn is speaking on CNBC.

12:21 EDT Consumer Reports says Tesla Model 3 'falls short' of CR recommendation - Consumer Reports said it "found plenty to like" about Tesla's Model 3, which is the company's first attempt at a more affordable mass-market car. However, the consumer watchdog said its testers "also found flaws - big flaws - such as long stopping distances in our emergency braking test and difficult-to-use controls," which "keep the Model 3 from earning a Consumer Reports recommendation." Reference Link

12:10 EDT Icahn files lawsuit against AmTrust over going private transaction - Carl Icahn, who owns 18.4M shares or 9.4% of AmTrust Financial Services, commenced litigation against AmTrust, Chairman and CEO Barry Zyskind, and board members George Karfunkel and Leak Karfunkel. The complaint was filed in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware. The complaint alleges, among other things, that the Zyskind/Karfunkel going-private transaction "undervalues the company and is happening at the wrong price and at the wrong time" and that the company and the families "have manipulated the record date, which could result in a shareholder vote that severely tilts the playing field to advantage the Zyskind/Karfunkel families, while blatantly disadvantaging the public shareholders."Reference Link

12:01 EDT Nordstrom Rack to open stores in Porter Ranch, El Segundo - Nordstrom announced plans to open Nordstrom Rack stores within The Vineyards at Porter Ranch and Plaza El Segundo in Los Angeles, CA. The 25,000-square-foot store at The Vineyards at Porter Ranch is scheduled to open in spring 2019 and will be part of a new mixed-use shopping and entertainment destination that features 335,000-square-feet of commercial space. Other retailers in the shopping center include Whole Foods Market, AMC Theatres and ULTA Beauty. The Vineyards at Porter Ranch is located just off the 118 Freeway in the hills overlooking Los Angeles. Nordstrom Rack will also open a 23,640-square-foot location at Plaza El Segundo in fall 2019 alongside retailers including Whole Foods Market, Dick's Sporting Goods and DryBar. Plaza El Segundo is located off the 405 Freeway on Sepulveda Boulevard in El Segundo and adjacent to beach communities including Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach. In addition to Nordstrom Rack, Nordstrom operates 15 full-line stores in the state, and began serving California customers in 1981 with its store in Fashion Valley in San Diego.

11:53 EDT Oclaro filing seen foreshadowing further optical space consolidation - Needham analyst Alex Henderson said he believes NeoPhotonics (NPTN) is the unidentified entity said to have started a sales process in the S-4 filed by Oclaro (OCLR) related to its agreement to be acquired by Lumentum (LITE). More broadly, he believes the filing suggests more consolidation is likely in the networking and optical technology sector. S-4 M&A FILING: According to the S-4 filed by Lumentum regarding its acquisition of Oclaro discussing the background of the merger, the filing mentioned several unidentified companies that showed interest in acquiring Oclaro. "On May 1, 2017, [Oclaro CEO Greg] Dougherty met with the chief executive officer of Company A to discuss Company A's interest in acquiring Oclaro. During this discussion, the chief executive officer of Company A stated that his company was interested in acquiring Oclaro for an aggregate purchase price of $1.5B. At a meeting of the audit committee of the Oclaro Board on May 5, 2017, the directors and members of Oclaro management discussed, among other matters, Company A's preliminary indication of interest. During this meeting, the directors concluded that Company A's indication of interest was insufficient [...] At a meeting of the Oclaro Board on December 7, 2017, Mr. Dougherty provided the Oclaro Board with an update on potential strategic alternatives. Mr. Dougherty informed the Oclaro Board that, among other things, (i) Oclaro had signed a nondisclosure agreement with Company D and that Company D had begun conducting its due diligence review of Oclaro, (ii) Company F had begun a process to sell Company F and Oclaro had entered into a nondisclosure agreement with Company F with respect thereto and the company had initiated its preliminary due diligence review of Company F, (iii) Company E had expressed a desire to acquire Oclaro and (iv) Lumentum had expressed interest in acquiring Oclaro." MORE CONSOLIDATION LIKELY: In a research note to investors this morning, Needham's Henderson noted that the S-4 M&A document filed by Lumentum paints a picture of the M&A activity in the optical components industry, which is "highly active." The analyst believes the document suggests that further M&A events are likely in the category and there are a number of companies looking to make acquisitions in the category and at least one company "had begun a process to sell" itself. Based on the timeline of events and the contextual information in the S-4, further M&A transactions are likely, said Henderson, who thinks NeoPhotonics is likely to be the next company to be acquired, with 5-6 potential acquirers likely in the mix. He contends that the company that has "started a process to sell" is most likely NeoPhotonics. Another company other than Lumentum offered $9 per share in cash for Oclaro, and the analyst believes this is likely Finisar (FNSR), which could now be interested in NeoPhotonics. Overall, and despite the ZTE (ZTCOY) news, the analyst believes the Lumentum-Oclaro merger is likely to get done and the terms are as originally announced. Further, he sees Oclaro's purchase as "solidly accretive" to Lumentum. PRICE ACTION: In late morning trading, shares of NeoPhotonics have dropped over 1% to $6.43, Lumenum is up 1% to $63.05 and Oclaro is up 2% to $9.07. OTHERS TO WATCH: Other companies in the networking and optical supplier space include II-VI (IIVI), Acacia Communications (ACIA), Ciena (CIEN) and Infinera (INFN).

11:33 EDT FDA approves Doptelet for chronic liver disease patients undergoing procedures - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Doptelet tablets to treat low blood platelet count, or thrombocytopenia, in adults with chronic liver disease who are scheduled to undergo a medical or dental procedure. This is the first drug approved by the FDA for this use, the agency noted. The FDA granted this approval to AkaRx, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dova Pharmaceuticals.

10:51 EDT Google in focus following 60 Minutes report on competitive behavior - Shares of Google parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) are in focus after a 60 Minutes report aired this weekend on the power and competitive nature of Google. 60 MINUTES HIGHLIGHTS GOOGLE'S RISE: On Sunday, journalist Steve Kroft of CBS' 60 Minutes did a report on Google's rise to dominance in the tech industry and the impacts it has had on competition in the space. Google, which is being investigated by the Federal Trade Commission over the data it collects, is currently worth over three-quarters of a trillion dollars, according to the report. Since going public in 2004, the tech giant has acquired over 200 companies, including prominent services like YouTube, Android and DoubleClick, without drawing much concern from Washington regulators. Gary Reback, an antitrust lawyer battling Google, said the Justice Department's antitrust division superficially investigated some of the acquisitions, but challenged none of them and now Google has become a monopoly. According to the report, the company conducted 90% of the world's internet searches last year using computer algorithms known only to Google. Digital media expert Jonathan Taplin said, "They have this phrase they use, 'competition is just a click away.' They have no competition. Bing (MSFT), their competition, has 2% of the market. They have 90%." Taplin added that Google's main business is advertising and its most valuable commodity is highly specialized information about a consumer, which helps it control about 60% of global advertising revenue on the internet. Taplin said traditional companies cannot compete as they do not have the data to do so. Yelp (YELP) co-founder Jeremy Stoppelman said, "The initial promise of Google was to organize the world's information. And ultimately that manifested itself in you expecting that the top links, the things that it shows at the top of that page are the best from around the web...And I could tell you that is not the case...If I were starting out today, I would have no shot of building Yelp. That opportunity has been closed off by Google and their approach. Because if you provide great content in one of these categories that is lucrative to Google, and seen as potentially threatening, they will snuff you out." Yelp and other sites depend on Google to direct web traffic, but Stoppleman said their biggest competitor in the most lucrative markets is Google as it directs users to information owned by itself ranging from maps to reviews. When a user clicks on links at the top of the page, they will still be on Google while the company collects personal information, possibly exposes the user to advertising and makes more money, he said. The company has said the move does not have anything to do with money but rather improvements to the product through faster, easier searches however Stoppleman said it's about impeding competition by putting their results further down the page. WHAT'S NOTABLE: In the past, Yelp, Microsoft, Amazon (AMZN), eBay (EBAY), Expedia (EXPE) and Yahoo (VZ) all complained about Google's dominance to the FTC, which conducted a probe in 2011. At the time, the FTC's Bureau of Competition recommended that an antitrust lawsuit be filed against Google citing theft of competitors' content and imposed restrictions on advertisers and websites; however, the recommendations were rejected. The FTC's commissioners decided that the company's conduct could be solved through voluntary and that Google's decision to move its own products to the top results could benefit consumers, however Reback and others involved in the investigation suspected that the outcome had to do with Google's political muscle in Washington. Currently, EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager is the only one taking aggressive action against the tech firm. Vestager, who levied a record $2.7B fine against Google for anti-competitive behavior said her staff reviewed 1.7B Google search queries and found Google was manipulating its secret search algorithms to promote its own products and services. Google has paid the fine and is appealing the decision. PRICE ACTION: Class A shares of Google parent Alphabet rose 1.6%, or $17.03, to $1,086.67 in morning trading.

10:47 EDT Dova Pharmaceuticals Inc trading halted, news pending

10:19 EDT Tesla shares seen soaring by Berenberg on expected Model 3 profitability - Berenberg analyst Alexander Haissl raised his price target for Tesla to $500 as he believes the company will meet its 25% gross profit margin forecast for the Model 3. The analyst argued that the widespread assumption that Model 3 margins can be directly inferred from Model S/X is "inherently almost totally flawed." STRONG MODEL 3 PROFITABILITY: In a research note to investors, Berenberg's Haissl raised his price target for Tesla shares to $500 from $470, while reiterating a Buy rating on the stock. The analyst noted that investors have largely dismissed the prospect of 25% gross margin on Tesla's Model 3 amid production bottlenecks and quality issues, but he believes the widespread assumption that Model 3 margins can be directly inferred from Model S/X is "inherently almost totally flawed." On capital efficiency, labor efficiency and material use, the Model S has a substantial deficit to industry peers, and for that reason "cannot reasonably be seen as the yardstick" to measure the profitability of the Model 3, Haissl contended, adding that the latter should be produced with efficiency levels at least on par with best-in-class manufacturers. Further, the analyst argued that the Model 3 gross margin target "is not hope, but reality," seeing savings of $28,500 driven by lower labor, depreciation and material costs, and the elimination of premium content set to be a key driver. Regarding competition, Haissl pointed out that strategies from traditional OEMs are still characterized by a low-cost and low-risk approach, which in his view is likely to be uncompetitive compared with Tesla. He expects Tesla to remain the battery technology leader, as traditional OEMs have shown little effort to commit meaningful capital into battery technology. GOLDMAN SEES $10B IN CAPITAL NEEDS: Last week, Goldman Sachs David Tamberrino told investors in a research note of his own that he estimates Tesla may require over $10B in external capital raises and debt re-financing by 2020 to fund current operations, anticipated new product spending, and incremental capacity additions, including his expectations for a new vehicle plant and battery giga-factory in China. The analyst noted that capital needs may be funded through multiple avenues, including new bond issuance, convertible notes, and equity, though he notes that issuing incremental debt may weigh on the credit profile of the company while issuing additional equity or convertibles at lower premiums would dilute current shareholders. Tamberrino reiterated a Sell rating and $195 price target on Tesla shares. PRICE ACTION: In morning trading, shares of Tesla have gained over 3% to $286.06.

10:10 EDT MabVax Therapeutics Holdings trading halted, news pending

10:02 EDT Bandera issues letter to Loews board regarding Boardwalk Pipeline Partners - Bandera Partners LLC, a significant unitholder of Boardwalk Pipeline Partners, LP (BWP), announced that it has issued a public letter to the Board of Directors of Loews Corporation (L) regarding Loews' potential purchase of Boardwalk's outstanding units. "We appreciate that Loews has a contractual right to purchase the common units of Boardwalk in certain circumstances under Section 15.1(b) of the partnership agreement. Whether the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 or the FERC's March 15, 2018 policy statement triggers this right is debatable. What is not debatable, however, is that Loews has an obligation to act in good faith in exercising that right. Last week, we read the public letter from TAM Capital Management accusing Loews of a 'brazen attempt to effect a buyout of [Boardwalk] for a fraction of its fair value,' as well as reported comments from a Barclays analyst questioning the 'poor corporate governance' of Boardwalk. While we respect the need for Loews to carefully weigh its options, we agree completely with TAM Capital that Loews is not permitted to game the timing of the process in order to purchase units at a more favorable price for itself, and we sincerely hope that is not what Loews is doing...We remain hopeful that investors' concerns are misplaced and that Loews will treat unitholders fairly. We believe that you, as stewards of Boardwalk's capital, made a tough but wise decision to slash the partnership's cash distribution, and invest substantial funds into the existing base of assets. While these strategic actions depressed unit prices, they were implemented to drive meaningful long-term returns for investors."

09:33 EDT Blue Lion: HomeStreet 'resorts to disgraceful tactics' to coerce investors - Blue Lion Capital and its affiliates are the beneficial owners of 6.1% of the stock of HomeStreet,. Blue Lion has been soliciting HomeStreet shareholders to vote "against" two of HomeStreet's nominees at the annual meeting. Independent proxy research firms Institutional Shareholder Services and Egan-Jones Proxy Services have recommended that shareholders send a message to the HomeStreet board by voting on Blue Lion's BLUE proxy card. "Unbeknownst to Blue Lion, ISS, Egan-Jones, the SEC and every shareholder, HomeStreet in early March hired its fourth law firm to approach the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions seeking an interpretation of Washington banking law that would make it more difficult for a shareholder to solicit proxies. In response, the DFI issued an Interpretive Statement that, among other things, calls into question whether, if more than 25% of the outstanding shares were voted on Blue Lion's proxy card, Blue Lion could be deemed to be seeking to acquire "control" of HomeStreet Bank in violation of Washington banking law. While counsel for Blue Lion has reached out to the DFI to discuss the Interpretive Statement, which Blue Lion believes should not be read as preventing it from voting the proxies it has been collecting, Blue Lion will likely not be able to obtain a definitive ruling from the DFI in the few days remaining before the Annual Meeting. Moreover, we have learned that if the blue proxy card has more than 25% of the outstanding shares voting on it, HomeStreet intends not to count those votes. Shareholders and their votes, be damned! HomeStreet's despicable efforts, aimed at disenfranchising any shareholder who votes on the blue card against the incumbent Board, are to our knowledge unprecedented."

09:31 EDT AT&T, Honeywell team up on connected aircraft and freight solutions - AT&T (T) and Honeywell (HON) are collaborating to deliver Internet of Things technology to aircraft and freight solutions in countries across the globe, in Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa and Australia.

09:27 EDT Diana Containerships annnounces $20.5M sale of m/v Puelo - Diana Containerships announced that it has signed, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, a Memorandum of Agreement to sell to an unaffiliated third party the 2006-built vessel "Puelo", with delivery to the buyer by latest June 30, 2018, for a sale price of $20.5M before commissions. The company expects to use the whole or part of the net proceeds from the sale of the vessel to prepay existing indebtedness based on the outstanding amount of such indebtedness upon completion of the transaction. Upon completion of the aforementioned sale and the previously announced sale of a Post-Panamax container vessel, the m/v Hamburg, Diana Containerships fleet will consist of 4 container vessels.

09:21 EDT Pebblebrook Hotel responds to LaSalle Hotel-Blackstone merger - Pebblebrook Hotel (PEB) responded to LaSalle Hotel Properties' (LHO) announcement that it has entered into a merger agreement with Blackstone (BX) at a price of $33.50 per share, a lower price than Pebblebrook was willing to pay. "Pebblebrook is proposing to merge with LaSalle at a fixed exchange ratio of 0.9200 Pebblebrook common share for each LaSalle common share, with the option for LaSalle shareholders to elect to receive cash up to a maximum of 20% in the aggregate (subject to pro rata cutbacks). Based on Pebblebrook's closing share price on May 18, 2018, this implies an offer price of $35.89 per LaSalle common share, representing a premium of 7.1% over Blackstone's offer of $33.50 and a premium of 47.1% above LaSalle's closing price on March 27, 2018, which is the day before Pebblebrook publicly disclosed its initial offer of a business combination with LaSalle. Our offer is substantially superior to the merger agreement that LaSalle has reached with Blackstone," said Jon Bortz, chairman, president and CEO of Pebblebrook Hotel Trust. "We continue to believe that our offer maximizes immediate and long-term value for LaSalle's shareholders. The combination of Pebblebrook and LaSalle would create a hotel industry leader, particularly in the independent and lifestyle segment, and it would allow shareholders of both companies to benefit from Pebblebrook's management of the combined portfolio and the synergies that would result from bringing these two highly similar companies together. We are disappointed that LaSalle's board of trustees has chosen not to pursue the unique opportunity that we presented."

09:06 EDT Cabot to expand global carbon black capacity by over 300,000 metric tons - Cabot Corporation announced the addition of significant capacity to its worldwide network of carbon black plants. Through the combination of a plant expansion, operational improvements, and debottlenecking projects, Cabot is expanding its global capacity by over 300,000 metric tons. Cabot will add approximately 160,000 metric tons of capacity through an expansion at its facility in Cilegon, Indonesia. The new capacity will serve the increasing carbon black demand in Southeast Asia, which is growing at four to five percent per year. Cabot anticipates that product from this expansion will be available for sale starting in late 2020 or early 2021. In addition to the expansion at Cilegon, Cabot is investing approximately $50M in debottlenecking projects and operational improvements across 18 of its carbon black facilities. This program will provide an additional 150,000 metric tons of increased carbon black capacity which will be available for tire, industrial rubber and specialty carbon customers. To date, Cabot has completed approximately one-third of this capacity expansion, with full completion expected by 2021. These investments will increase Cabot's global carbon black capacity to approximately 2.5 million metric tons.

09:05 EDT Inpixon, Genwave Technologies partner to offer customers bigger data stores - Inpixon announced the company's reseller partnership with Canadian-based wireless integration specialist Genwave Technologies. Inpixon and Genwave join forces to nurture the indoor technology industry's prosperous growth intertwined with the Internet of Things, RF systems, and Wi-Fi. As a strategic partner in the location-driven and physical arenas, Inpixon's Indoor Positioning Analytics reinforces the shared spectrum bridging the IoT to RF engineering. Business Insider predicts business spending on IoT solutions will hit $6 trillion by 2021. IPA's precise detection of universal IoT devices - found through cellular, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi signals - depicts a complete bird's eye view of indoor zones, refreshing the standard for location-based technology, and supported by Genwave's indoor-centric proficiency of RF design and implementation.

09:03 EDT SenesTech: CDPR proposes to register ContraPest for use in California - SenesTech announced that the California Department of Pesticide Regulation has proposed to register ContraPest for use in California. This proposed action will be posted for thirty days. With approval, the company will then be able to market and sell ContraPest throughout California, which is one of the largest state markets for pest control.

09:02 EDT Boxlight announces exclusive partnership with Multi Touch Interactives - Boxlight announced it has signed an exclusive, global agreement with Multi Touch Interactives, an international software development company, to create the next generation of interactive educational activities for large format, horizontal and vertical classroom-based touchscreens. Effective immediately, MTI will begin developing activities designed for early elementary and special needs education, and intends to have a solid and versatile platform onto which rich, educational collaborative applications will be built for many years to come. The apps will run exclusively for, and in, the Windows 10 environment and will be designed and produced sequentially, while allowing educators to create their own or modify existing activities.

09:00 EDT EP President says Facebook CEO Zuckerberg agrees to live-stream European hearing - Antonio Tajani, the president of the European Parliament, tweeted: "I have personally discussed with Facebook CEO Mr Zuckerberg the possibility of webstreaming meeting with him. I am glad to announce that he has accepted this new request. Great news for EU citizens. I thank him for the respect shown towards EP. Meeting tomorrow from 18:15 to 19:30." Reference Link

08:50 EDT GE Transportation says unit growing across business lines

08:42 EDT Wabtec says its, GE Transportation's product lines 'highly complementary'

08:37 EDT Wabtec says GE Transportation deal a 'once in a lifetime opportunity' - Wabtec (WAB) says to retain name following GE Transportation (GE) deal. Comments taken from the conference call discussing the proposed $11.1B transaction. Wabtec is up 2.2% in premarket trading, while GE is up 2.7%.

08:35 EDT Ameren Missouri to acquire 400-megawatt wind farm in northeast Missouri - Ameren Missouri, a subsidiary of Ameren, announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire, after construction, a 400-megawatt wind farm in northeast Missouri, the largest ever in the state. The facility would be built by an affiliate of Terra-Gen, LLC in Adair and Schuyler counties. Groundbreaking is expected in summer 2019. The wind farm will consist of 175 American-made wind turbines that will stand more than 450 feet above the ground. These types of turbines will be among the most technologically advanced in the state. Energy produced by the wind farm will power an estimated 120,000 homes by 2020. The transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including timely approval from the PSC and obtaining a timely and acceptable Midcontinent Independent System Operator transmission interconnection agreement.

08:34 EDT Baidu to divest Global DU business, terms not disclosed - Baidu announced that it has entered into definitive agreements with certain investors relating to the divestiture of its global ad and tools business - "Global DU business"- which provides DU ads and tool apps, including Du Caller, Mobojoy, Photo Wonder and DU Recorder. Pursuant to definitive agreements, Baidu will divest a majority equity stake in the Global DU business. Upon the completion of the transaction, Baidu will own approximately 34% of Global DU business's outstanding shares and no longer have effective control. The transaction contemplated under the definitive agreements is subject to certain closing conditions and is currently expected to close by the end of the third quarter of 2018. Upon the completion of the transaction, the Global DU business is expected to be deconsolidated from Baidu's consolidated financial statements.

08:33 EDT Harsco renews, extends logistics & packaging contract with AMAL in France - Harsco (HSC) announced that its Harsco Metals & Minerals division has successfully renewed and extended two existing contracts - and has been awarded four new Logistics & Packaging contracts - with ArcelorMittal (MT) Atlantique & Lorraine, one of the largest producers of flat carbon steel in Europe. The six-year contracts, affecting the six downstream sites, extends Harsco's Logistics & Packaging strategic position in both ArcelorMittal Atlantique & Lorraine and ArcelorMittal in France. Harsco has provided onsite Logistics & Packaging services to ArcelorMittal Mardyck, Florange, and Fos-sur-Mer in France. The contracts are effective immediately.

08:32 EDT Deciphera names Agios CCO Steven Hoerter to board - Deciphera Pharmaceuticals (DCPH) announced that it has elected Steven L. Hoerter, Chief Commercial Officer at Agios Pharmaceuticals (AGIO) to its Board of Directors, effective as of May 17, 2018. Hoerter will serve as an independent director and a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The number of Deciphera directors was increased from eight to nine in connection with Hoerter's election.

08:27 EDT GE to receive $2.9B upfront cash payment in Transportation deal - GE (GE) will receive a $2.9 billion up-front cash payment, and GE and its shareholders will receive a 50.1% ownership interest in the combined company. Based on Wabtec's (WAB) stock price on April 19, 2018, the last unaffected trading day prior to media speculation regarding a potential transaction, the value of the transaction is approximately $11.1 billion. When adjusted for the net tax step-up value of $1.1 billion accruing to the combined company, the transaction value is $10 billion. The transaction is expected to be tax free to the companies' respective shareholders. Wabtec and GE Transportation will be combined in a transaction in which GE will (i) sell a portion of the assets of GE Transportation to Wabtec; (ii) complete the spin-off or split-off of a portion of GE Transportation to GE shareholders; and (iii) immediately thereafter merge GE Transportation with a wholly owned subsidiary of Wabtec. Upon closing, Wabtec shareholders will own approximately 49.9%, and it is planned that GE shareholders will own approximately 40.2%, and GE will own 9.9% of the merged company on a fully diluted basis. GE has the right to increase the portion of the merged company owned by GE shareholders.

08:19 EDT Cidara Therapeutics, Rutgers University awarded $5.5M partnership grant from NIH - Cidara Therapeutics announced that it and Rutgers University have been awarded a five-year, $5.5M partnership grant from the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, or NIAID, of the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The grant will fund the continued research and development of Cidara's Cloudbreak antibody-drug conjugate platform to identify novel immunotherapy agents for the treatment and prevention of serious and life-threatening multi-drug resistant gram-negative bacterial infections in high-risk patient populations. The Cloudbreak immunotherapy platform is a fundamentally new approach for the treatment of infectious disease that, in a single molecule, pairs potent antimicrobials with agents that redirect the immune system to destroy fungal, bacterial and viral pathogens.

08:10 EDT Acacia Research sends letter to shareholders regarding director nominees - The board of Acacia Research issued an open letter to stockholders in connection with the company's 2018 annual meeting of stockholders. The letter states: "The Acacia 2018 Annual Meeting of stockholders is less than a month away. We believe this year's annual meeting will have a significant impact on the future direction of your company. On June 14, 2018, stockholders will have the opportunity to elect incumbent directors Louis Graziadio and Frank "Ted" Walsh to our Board, two well-respected business leaders with decades of experience who have been working on your behalf to successfully reposition Acacia. In stark contrast, activist investors Sidus Investment Management and BLR Partners have put forth two nominees with NO applicable business experience and NO plan for the Company other than a proposal that would strip Acacia of its valuable assets and destroy shareholder value. The Board has a clear value-enhancing strategy for the future and collectively owns significantly more Acacia stock than Sidus and BLR combined. Unfortunately, Sidus and BLR have resorted to making false statements and misleading attacks against the Board and our nominees (our Executive Chairman and the Chairman of our Strategy Committee) in a disgraceful and disingenuous attempt to gain your support. They are intentionally omitting important facts about our challenging and complex industry and our Board's independence, business experience, compensation structure and alignment of interests with Acacia shareholders."

08:08 EDT Akari Therapeutics receives Nasdaq notice related to delay in 20-F filing - Akari Therapeutics announced that as a result of its inability to timely file its Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017, on May 17, 2018 it received a notice from The Nasdaq Stock Market that the company is not in compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) for continued listing. Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) requires Nasdaq-listed companies to timely file all periodic reports. Akari intends to regain compliance with Nasdaq's filing requirements for continued listing. As previously disclosed, on May 8, 2018, the former CEO resigned. His resignation followed the results of an investigation conducted, with the assistance of an independent law firm, which revealed that the former CEO incurred personal charges on the company's corporate credit cards in violation of company policy. The notification from Nasdaq notes that Akari is required to submit a plan to regain compliance with Nasdaq's filing requirements for continued listing within 60 calendar days of the date of the Nasdaq notification letter. Upon acceptance of the company's compliance plan, Nasdaq is permitted to grant an extension of up to 180 calendar days from the Annual Report's filing due date, or until November 12, 2018, for the company to regain compliance with Nasdaq's filing requirements for continued listing. The notice has no immediate effect on the listing of the company's American Depositary Shares on Nasdaq.

08:07 EDT Old Dominion announces general rate increase of 4.9% - Old Dominion Freight Line announced a general rate increase of 4.9% applicable to rates established under the existing ODFL 559, 670, and 550 tariffs effective June 4th, 2018.

08:06 EDT NioCorp awards Rockwell Automation contract for Elk Creek mining facility - NioCorp (NIOBF) has awarded a major contract to Rockwell Automation (ROK) to engineer, design and procure process automation and instrumentation for NioCorp's proposed critical minerals, mining and processing facility in Elk Creek, Nebraska. Three superalloy metals niobium, scandium and titanium are expected to be produced by the facility as early as 2021. These critical materials are used in the aerospace, defense, automotive, clean energy, commercial aviation and mega-infrastructure sectors. Generally, these superalloys enable increased strength and lighter weight in transportation and other systems, leading to better fuel efficiency and lower greenhouse gas and other air emissions, according to NioCorp. Rockwell Automation will be the main automation contractor for this project. The system integration will be provided through MAVERICK Technologies, a Rockwell Automation company that specializes in process automation solutions. Endress+Hauser, a strategic alliance partner, will provide field instrumentation including analysis, temperature, pressure, level and flow measurement devices, along with valves and related field devices and services.

08:06 EDT Inovio commences Phase 2 trial for VGX-3100 in third indication to treat HPV - Inovio Pharmaceuticals announced that it has commenced a Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of VGX-3100 in adult men and women with human papilloma virus-related anal dysplasia. Recruitment is ongoing for patients who are HIV-negative with histologically confirmed anal or perianal high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions associated with HPV-16 and/or HPV-18. The study is planning to enroll approximately 24 patients and will administer at least three doses of VGX-3100. Anal HSIL or dysplasia is the precursor to anal cancer, which is estimated to cause more than 1,100 deaths in the United States in 2018. Currently, the only treatments for anal dysplasia consist of surgical excision, electro-cautery or laser therapy, but more than 50% of those treated with these current treatments experience recurrence of the disease. This open-label, multi-center Phase 2 study is designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of VGX-3100 administered by intramuscular injection w CELLECTRA delivery system in adult men and women who are human immunodeficiency virus negative with HSIL associated with HPV-16 and/or HPV-18. Prior study results utilizing Inovio's VGX-3100 immunotherapy, which is also in a Phase 3 trial evaluating treatment for cervical dysplasia, supported expanding treatment indications for patients associated with HPV-16 and/or HPV-18. In a Phase 2 trial for cervical dysplasia, VGX-3100 demonstrated a systemic response and clearance of cervical lesions and eliminating the underlying HPV infection in many patients.

08:05 EDT Kratos Defense receives $38M in unmanned systems contract award - Kratos Defense announced that its Unmanned Systems Division, or KUSD, has recently received approximately $38M in high performance unmanned aerial drone aircraft, systems, and related product contract awards. KUSD is a leading provider of affordable high performance unmanned aerial threat representation target drone systems and tactical drone systems for force augmentation, multiplication, distributed lethality, anti-access/area denied environment survivability and other missions. KUSD is also a leading provider in unmanned ground and unmanned seaborne systems, and command, control and communication systems. Work under these recent contract awards will be performed at secure Kratos manufacturing facilities and customer locations. Due to customer related, competitive, and other considerations, no additional information will be provided related to these contract awards.

08:04 EDT LiveXLive Media, Montreux Jazz Festival sign content distribution partnership - LiveXLive Media and Montreux Jazz Festival have signed a five-year agreement that establishes LiveXLive as the exclusive global livestreaming and content partner for the festival outside of Switzerland. LiveXLive's coverage of the 16-day festival will be shown over two weekends and feature headlining performances, artist interviews, and additional original content bringing the unique setting and history of the festival to life, live from Lake Geneva, Switzerland. Additionally, LiveXLive will create a production and content studio within the festival grounds that will create and deliver additional programming as part of merging on-site activation with digital amplification. Select live performances will also be available in the U.S. via audio streaming on LiveXLive's Slacker Radio platform. The live coverage of the Montreux Jazz Festival will commence on June 29. Music fans around the globe have the ability to access the festival content from nearly any connected screen - from desktop and mobile, to Apple iOS, Android devices, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV as well as via Slacker Radio.

08:02 EDT PriceSmart acquires properties in Panama, Dominican Republic - PriceSmart announced that in May 2018, it acquired land in Panama and the Dominican Republic upon which the company plans to construct new warehouse clubs. In Panama, the site is in the city of Santiago and, upon completion, will be the sixth PriceSmart warehouse club in Panama. In the Dominican Republic, the site is in the city of Santo Domingo and, upon completion, will be the fifth PriceSmart warehouse club in the Dominican Republic. Both warehouse clubs are currently expected to open in the Spring of 2019.

08:01 EDT LaSalle Hotel to be acquired by Blackstone for $33.50 per share in $4.8B deal - LaSalle Hotel Properties (LHO) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with affiliates of Blackstone Real Estate Partners VIII, under which Blackstone (BX) will acquire all outstanding common shares of beneficial interest of LaSalle for $33.50 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $4.8B. The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by LaSalle's Board of Trustees, represents a premium of approximately 35% over LaSalle's unaffected share price of $24.84 as of March 27, 2018, the day before the public announcement of a proposal to acquire the company in an all-stock transaction. The purchase price also represents a premium of approximately 13% to LaSalle's consensus net asset value of $29.64 per share per FactSet as of May 18, 2018. "We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Blackstone, which we believe is in the best interests of our shareholders and represents the culmination of a thorough review of strategic alternatives," said Stuart L. Scott, Chairman of the Board of LaSalle. "As part of the Board's review, the Company and its advisors contacted 20 potential buyers, including strategic parties, brands and private equity firms. As a result, 10 potential buyers executed confidentiality agreements and received non-public information, and the Board engaged in extensive negotiations over price and terms. After careful consideration of multiple proposals received, the Board determined that this transaction represents the most compelling opportunity for LaSalle's shareholders, delivering a significant premium with immediate and certain cash value." Completion of the transaction, which is expected to occur in the third quarter of 2018, is contingent upon customary closing conditions, including the approval of LaSalle's shareholders. The transaction is not contingent on receipt of financing. Pursuant to LaSalle's previously announced dividend policy, the company expects to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.225 per common share of beneficial interest for the quarter ending June 30, 2018.

08:00 EDT Nabriva Therapeutics trading resumes

07:40 EDT Nabriva Therapeutics' lefamulin meets all FDA, EMA primary endpoints - Nabriva Therapeutics announced positive topline results from its Lefamulin Evaluation Against Pneumonia clinical trial, the second of two global, pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials of lefamulin. LEAP 2 evaluated the safety and efficacy of 5 days of oral lefamulin compared to 7 days of oral moxifloxacin in adult patients with moderate community-acquired bacterial pneumonia. In September 2017, the company announced positive results from its first Phase 3 clinical trial, in which intravenous to oral lefamulin was found to be non-inferior to IV to oral moxifloxacin with or without linezolid. In LEAP 2, lefamulin met the U.S. Food and Drug Administration primary endpoint of non-inferiority compared to moxifloxacin for early clinical response assessed 72 to 120 hours following initiation of therapy in the intent to treat patient population. ECR was 90.8% for the 5-day treatment course of lefamulin and 90.8% for the 7-day treatment course of moxifloxacin. Lefamulin also met the European Medicines Agency primary endpoint for non-inferiority compared to moxifloxacin based on an investigator assessment of clinical response (IACR) 5 to 10 days following the completion of study drug dosing in the modified intent to treat and clinically evaluable at test of cure patient populations. IACR rates for the mITT population were 87.5% for lefamulin and 89.1% for moxifloxacin and for the CE-TOC population were 89.7% for lefamulin and 93.6% for moxifloxacin. LEAP 2 was a global, randomized, double-blind, double-dummy trial that compared the efficacy and safety of 600 mg of oral lefamulin twice a day for 5 days versus 400 mg of oral moxifloxacin once daily for 7 days in 738 patients. The lefamulin arm enrolled 183, 145 and 40 patients with a Pneumonia Outcomes Research Team (PORT) class of 2, 3 and 4, respectively. The moxifloxacin arm enrolled 189, 133 and 42 patients with a PORT class of 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Almost all patients completed the study through late follow-up, which occurred 30 days after administration of the first dose of study medication. In this trial, lefamulin was generally well tolerated. The rate of treatment-emergent adverse events was 32.6% in the lefamulin arm and 25.0% in the moxifloxacin arm. Serious treatment emergent adverse events occurred in 4.6% of lefamulin-treated patients and 4.9% of moxifloxacin-treated patients. One related serious adverse event occurred in a moxifloxacin-treated patient. Death within 30 days occurred in three patients in each treatment arm. A low percentage of patients discontinued study drug in the lefamulin arm and in the moxifloxacin arm. TEAEs leading to discontinuation of study drug were uncommon and were observed in 3.0% of patients in the lefamulin arm and 2.2% of patients in the moxifloxacin arm. Adverse events reported in greater than 1.0% of patients receiving study drug were diarrhea/loose stools, nausea, vomiting, hypertension, respiratory tract infection viral, headache, gastritis, pneumonia, COPD, urinary tract infection, increased ALT, increased AST, anemia, and insomnia. All cases of diarrhea/loose stools in the lefamulin arm were mild or moderate and were generally of short duration. No cases were severe, and none led to discontinuation of study drug. One patient who had a positive clinical response to lefamulin was later diagnosed with a C. difficile infection during an extended hospital stay.In addition, hepatobiliary TEAEs occurred in 1.1% and 0.5% of subjects receiving lefamulin and moxifloxacin, respectively. There was a low incidence of liver enzyme elevation in both treatment groups consistent with the CABP patient population. Cardiac TEAEs were reported in 2.2% and 2.4% of patients receiving lefamulin and moxifloxacin, respectively. Changes in QT interval of potential clinical concern were rare and of similar frequency between treatment groups.

07:38 EDT Motus GI Holdings announces issuance of Chinese patent for Pure-Vu system - Motus GI Holdings announced that the Chinese Patent Office has granted a patent that covers the company's flagship product, the Pure-Vu System. The Pure-Vu System is a medical device that cleanses the colon during a colonoscopy procedure to facilitate improved visualization enabling a quality exam.

07:33 EDT MyoKardia announces design of Phase 3 EXPLORER-HCM study for mavacamten - MyoKardia announced the design of its pivotal Phase 3 EXPLORER-HCM clinical trial to evaluate the use of mavacamten for the potential treatment of patients with symptomatic obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The company has incorporated input on the study design from the Division of Cardiovascular and Renal Products of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and plans to conduct this single pivotal study along with a long-term extension study to support registration. MyoKardia expects to dose the first patient in the EXPLORER-HCM trial in the second quarter of 2018 and expects that data from the Phase 3 trial will be available in the second half of 2020.EXPLORER-HCM is a multi-national randomized double-blind study designed to assess the effects of a 30-week treatment of mavacamten versus placebo with a primary endpoint of clinical response. The clinical response endpoint is intended to broadly capture the potential benefits of treatment with mavacamten on how patients feel and function by utilizing both peak oxygen consumption and New York Heart Association functional classification. Clinical response can be achieved by meeting either of two definitions: 1) an improvement of at least 1.5 mL/kg/min in peak VO2 accompanied by a reduction from baseline of at least one NYHA functional class or 2) an improvement from baseline of 3.0 mL/kg/min or greater in peak VO2 without worsening in NYHA functional class. Approximately 220 patients will be enrolled and randomized on a 1:1 basis to receive either mavacamten or placebo. The EXPLORER-HCM trial design includes two opportunities for individualized dose adjustment throughout the 30-week treatment period. Patients in the active treatment arm will start on a once-daily 5mg dose of mavacamten. At Weeks 8 and 14, daily doses may be increased to 10mg or 15mg, or remain unchanged, based on measurements of provoked left ventricular outflow tract gradient conducted at Weeks 6 and 12. A reduction in provoked LVOT gradient under 50 mmHg has been shown in PIONEER to correlate to improvements in several clinical measurements, including NYHA class and peak VO2. All assessments and dose adjustments will be conducted in a blinded fashion. Patients will be allowed to maintain their HCM-related background medications for the duration of the EXPLORER-HCM Phase 3 trial, including beta blockers or calcium channel blockers. Secondary endpoints in the Phase 3 EXPLORER-HCM trial will include the average change from baseline in post-exercise peak LVOT gradient, NYHA functional class, peak VO2, the proportion of patients achieving post-exercise peak LVOT gradient below 50 mmHg or 30 mmHg at Week 30 and patient-reported outcome measures. Exploratory endpoints will include changes in echocardiographic indices of cardiac structure and function, N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptide concentrations, quality of life questionnaire scores and daily physical activity assessed using a wearable accelerometer. Throughout the EXPLORER-HCM study, patients will be monitored for adverse events and certain assessments will be performed. If at any time during the trial, a patient's plasma concentration is above an upper target range or LVEF falls below the normal range, doses of mavacamten may be decreased. Following the 30-week treatment period and eight-week post-treatment wash-out period, patients will be able to participate in a long-term extension study of mavacamten.

07:31 EDT AstraZeneca reports regulatory submission in Japan for Forxiga - AstraZeneca has submitted a supplemental new drug application to Japan's Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency for the use of Forxiga, a selective sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor, as an oral adjunct treatment to insulin in adults with type-1 diabetes. Forxiga is also under regulatory review in Europe for use as an oral adjunct treatment to insulin in adults with T1D.

07:30 EDT Barclays reports dismissal of SFO charges over 2008 Qatari rescue deal - Barclays announces that the Crown Court has today dismissed all charges brought by the Serious Fraud Office against Barclays PLC and Barclays Bank PLC regarding matters which arose in the context of Barclays' capital raisings in 2008. Following application by Barclays to the Crown Court, the following charges have been dismissed: Charges against Barclays PLC of two offences of conspiring with certain former senior officers and employees of Barclays to commit fraud by false representations relating to two advisory services agreements entered into with Qatar Holding LLC in June and October 2008, contrary to Sections 1-2 of the Fraud Act 2006, and Section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977; and Charges against Barclays PLC and Barclays Bank PLC each of one offence of unlawful financial assistance contrary to section 151 of the Companies Act 1985 in relation to a USD 3 billion loan provided to the State of Qatar in November 2008. The SFO is likely to seek to re-instate these charges by applying to a High Court Judge to re-commence proceedings via a new indictment of the same charges.

07:10 EDT uniQure says new data demonstrates favorable immunogenicity profile of AAV5 - uniQure presented data showing successful liver transduction with the AAV5 vector in both non-human primates and humans with pre-existing anti-AAV5 neutralizing antibodies. In a study re-analyzing pre-treatment sera samples of the ten patients in the Phase I/II clinical trial of AMT-060, no relationship was detected between the presence of pre-treatment anti-AAV5 NABs and clinical outcomes of AMT-060 in patients with hemophilia B. In ongoing gene therapy clinical trials using adeno-associated virus vectors, patients who present levels of anti-AAV NABs are excluded from treatment due to concern that the efficacy of AAV vector delivery may be negatively influenced by their presence. In this study, uniQure researchers explored the impact of anti-AAV5 NAB levels on the efficacy of gene therapy delivery by an AAV5-based vector. Using a highly-sensitive, luciferase-based anti-AAV5 NAB assay, uniQure researchers re-analyzed the pre-treatment sera of the ten patients who entered the Phase I/II gene therapy clinical trial of AMT-060. Seven of the ten patients returned results below the limit of detection of the assay, and three of the ten had positive anti-AAV5 NAB titers, of whom two were confirmed positive by additional assays. Yet no relationship was determined between the presence of pre-treatment anti-AAV5 NABs and clinical outcomes in the trial. In particular, the patient with the highest anti-AAV5 NAB titer presented the highest mean FIX activity in his dose cohort. Neither of the two patients with confirmed positive anti-AAV5 NABs experienced elevated liver enzymes. Additionally, no clinically relevant T-cell immune responses to the capsid were detected in any of the ten patients. uniQure also analyzed with the same NAB assay the pre-treatment sera of 14 non- human primates administered AMT-060. Prior to the administration of AMT-060, animals had anti-AAV5 NAB titers ranging from 56 to as high as 1,030. Despite the presence of these anti-AAV5 antibodies, researchers were able to administer AAV5-based gene therapy resulting in successful and comparable transduction in all of the non-human primates at each dose. In summary, anti-AAV5 NAB titers as high as 340 did not impair the clinical outcomes of AAV5-FIX therapy in the Phase I/II trial. These findings are further supported by the results of studies demonstrating that anti-AAV5 NAB titers as high as 1,030 did not impair the efficacy of AAV5-FIX liver transduction in non-human primates. Based on these data, uniQure researchers performed an anti-AAV5 NAB screening of an additional 100 healthy male donors. Using an anti-AAV5 NAB cut-off titer of 1,030, at least 97% of this group would be eligible for AAV5-based gene therapy. Anti-AAV2 NAB and anti-AAV8 NAB titers were also analyzed in the donor group, and based on patient exclusion criteria currently applied in ongoing gene therapy trials, 37% of this group would be excluded from AAV8-based studies and 49% would be excluded from AAV2-based studies.

07:08 EDT Fibrocell Science reports interim results, progress of FCX-007 Phase 1/2 trial - Fibrocell Science provided an update on the interim results and progress of its Phase 1/2 clinical trial of FCX-007 for the treatment of recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa, or RDEB. The results were presented by M. Peter Marinkovich, MD, the trial's Study Director at the Stanford University site and Associate Professor of Dermatology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, at the 7th International Investigative Dermatology meeting on May 19, 2018. Four adult patients aged 20 to 37 have been dosed with FCX-007 in the margins of and across targeted wounds, as well as in separate intact skin sites. Three patients received a single intradermal injection session at baseline. One patient received a second injection session in the remaining unhealed areas of wounds at 25 weeks post-administration, as allowed by the clinical trial protocol. Safety data from these patients show FCX-007 was well-tolerated up to 52 weeks post-administration. There were no serious adverse events and no product related adverse events reported. No type VII collagen autoantibody response was noted. Various COL7 expression signals were detected throughout the data set using either immunofluorescence or immunoelectron microscopy up to 52 weeks post-administration. Anchoring fibril structures have also been observed using IEM. Wounds were evaluated during a monitoring period prior to dosing and they were observed to be open for up to eight months.

07:06 EDT Wabtec to merge with GE Transportation in transaction valued at about $11.1B

07:04 EDT Microbot Medical completes pre-clinical study for Self-Cleaning Shunt - Microbot Medical provided the results of a pre-clinical study assessing the company's Self-Cleaning Shunt. The in-vitro study, which was performed at Wayne State University by Dr. Carolyn Harris, supports the SCS's potential as a viable technology for preventing occlusion in shunts used to treat hydrocephalus. "Initial results from the first phase of the study, conducted in an in-vitro 3D cell culture system built to mimic the ventricular environment, showed that cells attach, grow and spread across the shunt drainage holes of the Microbot SCS," said Harris. "Although further research is necessary, the small-scale study shows that the Microbot SCS can potentially remove this early spreading of cells across the shunt holes, which is a first step towards the main target of the study - occlusion prevention." The company will proceed with the larger-scale studies to support the SCS and prepare it for regulatory submissions in the USA, Europe as well as other regions across the globe.

07:02 EDT Enservco names Kevin Kersting COO - ENSERVCO Corporation announced the appointment of Kevin Kersting to the new position of COO. He will report directly to Ian Dickinson, president and CEO. Kersting will be responsible for operations in all basins in which ENSERVCO provides services. His top priority will be to accelerate implementation of ENSERVCO's initiative to enhance the Company's operating structure and business processes in order to drive full fleet utilization. Prior to joining ENSERVCO, Kersting held several senior positions at CAP Logistics.

07:01 EDT Newpark Resources names Anthony Best as Chairman of board - Newpark Resources announced that Anthony Best has been named Chairman of the Board effective May 17, succeeding David Anderson, following Anderson's previously disclosed retirement.

06:56 EDT Roper Technologies to acquire PowerPlan in $1.1B all-cash transaction - Roper Technologies announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire PowerPlan in an all-cash transaction valued at $1.1B. PowerPlan is a leading provider of software and solutions for asset-centric companies, enabling its customers to optimize their financial performance and achieve regulatory compliance. PowerPlan will continue to manage the business from its Atlanta, Georgia headquarters. PowerPlan's name and brands are not expected to change as a result of the transaction. PowerPlan is currently an investment of private equity firm Thoma Bravo. During the first 12 months of ownership, Roper expects PowerPlan to deliver approximately $150M of revenue and $60M of after-tax free cash flow, excluding the impact of fair value accounting for PowerPlan's deferred revenue and financing costs. Roper anticipates funding the transaction using its revolving credit facility and cash on hand, and expects the acquisition to be immediately cash accretive. PowerPlan has a strong history of growth in revenue, EBITDA, and cash flow, which Roper expects to continue. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter, subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions.

06:36 EDT Avenue Therapeutics: Phase 3 trial of IV tramadol achieved primary endpoint - Avenue Therapeutics announced that its first pivotal Phase 3 trial of IV tramadol achieved the primary endpoint of a statistically significant improvement in Sum of Pain Intensity Difference over 48 hours compared to placebo in patients with moderate to moderately severe postoperative pain following bunionectomy surgery. In addition, the trial met its key secondary endpoints and demonstrated a clear dose response. Avenue plans to initiate a second pivotal Phase 3 trial of IV tramadol in patients following abdominoplasty surgery in the third quarter of 2018.

06:35 EDT Gridsum signs SFbest.com as new client - Gridsum announced that it has signed SFbest.com, a subsidiary of SF Holding, as a new client. SFbest is an online e-commerce platform for selling fresh food in China. SFbest will leverage Gridsum's marketing automation suite to further drive uptake of its mobile application. Gridsum's marketing automation suite leverages cloud-based big-data analytics and AI capabilities to analyze SFbest consumer behavior across multiple marketing channels, including social media, search, news feeds, and app stores, to create highly-targeted marketing content that focuses on individuals rather than broader demographics and optimizes digital marketing spending.

06:33 EDT Monro acquires Free Service Tire Company, terms not disclosed - Monro announced that it has acquired Johnson City, Tennessee-based Free Service Tire Company. The asset acquisition includes Free Service Tire's 12 retail and commercial stores, four wholesale distribution centers and one retread facility, adding to Monro's more than 130 existing retail, commercial and wholesale locations in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. Monro will continue to operate all Free Service Tire locations and retain store-level, wholesale and retread associates. The transaction closed on May 13, 2018, and is expected to add approximately $47M in annualized sales, representing a sales mix of 15% service and 85% tires.

06:14 EDT Microsoft acquires Semantic Machines to advance state of conversational AI - Microsoft announced that it has acquired Semantic Machines, a Berkeley, California-based company that has developed a new approach to building conversational AI. Their work uses the power of machine learning to enable users to discover, access and interact with information and services in a much more natural way, and with significantly less effort. Microsoft AI and research CTO David Ku said in a blog post: "With the acquisition of Semantic Machines, we will establish a conversational AI center of excellence in Berkeley to push forward the boundaries of what is possible in language interfaces. Combining Semantic Machines' technology with Microsoft's own AI advances, we aim to deliver powerful, natural and more productive user experiences that will take conversational computing to a new level. We're excited to bring the Semantic Machines team and their technology to Microsoft." Reference Link

06:08 EDT iClick Interactive Asia announces strategic growth initiative - iClick Interactive Asia announced a strategic growth initiative to extend the company's business scope to providing business intelligence solutions based on big data analytics for enterprises. This is an important step for iClick Interactive as it invests in opportunities beyond its core programmatic marketing operations. Developing BI capabilities meets the latent needs of brands to maximize the value of their proprietary data and to gain actionable insight from such data.

06:03 EDT IHS Markit to acquire Ipreo for $1.855B - IHS Markit (INFO), a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ipreo, a leading financial services solutions and data provider, for $1.855B from private equity funds managed by Blackstone (BX) and the Goldman Sachs (GS) Merchant Banking Division. The acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2018, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory filings and approvals, including with the UK Financial Conduct Authority and under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. IHS Markit also announced that, following a detailed review of its financial services businesses as part of a disciplined capital allocation strategy, it has initiated a process to sell MarkitSERV, its derivatives processing business. MarkitSERV is a leading provider of end-to-end trade processing and workflow solutions across OTC derivatives asset classes. The Ipreo purchase price of $1.855B represents an effective 2019 forward Adjusted EBITDA multiple of 16x. After adjusting for a tax step-up, the effective multiple is 15x. This high-growth business is expected to achieve double-digit organic growth in 2019, and be accretive to 2019 Adjusted EPS. IHS Markit has received committed debt financing for the acquisition. IHS Markit's expected leverage ratio as defined in its credit facility is expected to be approximately 3.6x at close, delevering to below 3.0x by third quarter 2019. IHS Markit will suspend its share repurchase program until leverage returns to its targeted 2-3x leverage range.

06:01 EDT IHS Markit to acquire Ipreo from Blackstone, Goldman Sachs for $1.86B

05:56 EDT Tesla CEO Musk says 'nothing stopping Tesla team from voting union' - Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted: "Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union. Could do so tmrw if they wanted. But why pay union dues & give up stock options for nothing? Our safety record is 2X better than when plant was UAW & everybody already gets healthcare. Also, UAW did nada for job security in last recession. Dropped Fremont like a hot potato to protect their core base in Detroit. UAW *chose* to exit this plant before Tesla even arrived. We had nothing to do with UAW leaving, but everything to do with why people here have jobs." He also commented: "Tesla factory literally has miles of painted yellow lines & tape. Report about forklifts not beeping is also bs. These are both demonstrably false, but were reported as 'facts' by Reveal." Reference Link

05:37 EDT KLX Inc. expects continued strong organic growth in revenues, earnings in FY19