Stockwinners Market Radar for May 23, 2018 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

19:39 EDT Canadian court affirms dismissal of suit against Chevron subsidiary - The Ontario Court of Appeal has upheld a lower Canadian court's determination that an Ecuadorian judgment against Chevron Corporation, already found by U.S. courts to have been obtained through fraud and corruption, cannot be enforced against Chevron Canada Limited, an indirect subsidiary. The Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment dismissing all claims against Chevron Canada Limited holding that it is a separate entity from Chevron Corporation and its assets are protected from seizure by those seeking to enforce the corrupt Ecuadorian judgment. The court rejected the Ecuadorian plaintiffs' arguments as contrary to fundamental principles of Canadian corporate law.

19:05 EDT Sarepta granted orphan status for DMD treatment golodirsen - The FDA granted Sarepta Therapeutics orphan status for golodirsen, its treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Drugs are with orphan status are entitled to seven years of market exclusivity if approved by FDA for a rare disease. Reference Link

18:01 EDT Celanese to increase selling prices on acetyl intermediate products - To raise prices on Vinyl Acetate Monomer by 5c/lb. To raise prices on Acetic Acid by 3c/lb. To raise prices on Ethyl Acetate by 2c/lb. The price increases below will be effective for orders shipped on or after June 1, 2018, or as contracts otherwise allow, and are incremental to any previously announced increases.

17:44 EDT KLS Diversified lowers stake in Penn Virginia to 4.7% from 5.8% - KLS Diversified reported a 5.8% in Penn Virginia stake on May 17.

17:13 EDT Lockheed Martin awarded $282M U.S. Army contract modification - Lockheed Martin was awarded a $282,002,333 modification to domestic and foreign military sales - Netherlands; Germany; Japan; Saudi Arabia; Kuwait; Qatar; Taiwan; United Arab Emirates; and Republic of Korea - contract for Phased Array Tracking on Radar to Intercept Advanced Capability-3 Missile Support Center post-production support. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of May 19, 2019.

17:02 EDT Electronic Arts to launch Battlefield V on October 19th - Today DICE, an Electronic Arts studio, officially announced Battlefield V, immersing players in unexpected battles and untold stories of World War 2 as never seen before. Featuring a fresh portrayal of one of mankind's biggest conflicts, Battlefield V allows players to feel the unmatched intensity of all-out war and travel to unexpected but crucial moments of World War 2 through new and signature multiplayer modes, single-player War Stories and the cooperative Combined Arms. In Battlefield V, embark on a continuing, grand journey post-launch in the brand new Tides of War, created to make sure the battlefield is constantly evolving with new events, challenges, battles, and rewards that are always within reach - for all Battlefield V owners. Battlefield V multiplayer will deliver the most immersive gameplay of the franchise in a sandbox environment that portrays the battles of World War 2, allowing players to feel the force of the fight and truly shape the war as the war shapes them. Players' soldiers can now tow stationary weapons, build fortifications and repair war-torn structures to turn the battlefield to the player's advantage. Whether dragging a squad mate to safety or shooting a grenade out of the sky, players will forge a deeper connection to the ever-evolving world around them and achieve victory against the toughest odds. With the freedom to adapt and evolve the battlefield in new and unseen ways, the battlefield will never be the same. Battlefield V will be available worldwide October 19th on Xbox One, PlayStation(R)4 and Origin for PC. Those that order the Battlefield V Deluxe Edition will get access three days early on October 16**, while EA Access and Origin Access members will be able to jump into the Play First Trial on October 11.

16:57 EDT Total's 50% joint venture receives regulatory approval, closes - Total, Borealis and NOVA Chemicals announced they have closed a joint venture in petrochemicals on the U.S. Gulf Coast after receiving all required regulatory approvals. The company named Bayport Polymers is 50% owned by Total and 50% owned by Novealis Holdings, a joint venture between Borealis and NOVA Chemicals. Diane Chamberlain is appointed president of the new entity.

16:49 EDT Hyatt planning to open its first hotel in Ireland - Hyatt Hotel announced plans for the first Hyatt property in Ireland, Hyatt Centric The Liberties Dublin. A Hyatt affiliate has entered into a franchise agreement for a Hyatt Centric hotel in Dublin with Realmside Ltd, an affiliate of Hodson Bay Group, an Irish hotel and property group owned by the O'Sullivan family. The 234-room hotel will be managed by Hodson Bay Group Management Ltd and is expected to open in May 2019.

16:37 EDT Electromed to be refunded approximately $406,000 in medical device excise tax - Electromed announced that the Internal Revenue Services, or IRS, has agreed to refund the company approximately $406,000 related to federal medical device excise taxes paid on revenue associated with the sales of its SmartVest Airway Clearance System during the company's tax periods ended June 30, 2014 through December 31, 2015. This refund from the IRS will be recognized in the company's financial statements during the fiscal quarter ending June 30, and is the result of an examination the company concluded with the IRS on May 22 that determined the SmartVest was eligible for the retail exemption from the medical device excise tax. Furthermore, the company will be exempt from the medical device tax after the conclusion of the current two-year medical device tax moratorium, which is scheduled to end on December 31, 2019.

16:33 EDT Southwest Georgia Financial Corp. raises quarterly dividend 9% to 12c per share - Southwest Georgia Financial Corporation declared a quarterly cash dividend of 12c per common share, an increase of 1c, or 9%, from the previous dividend paid in March. The dividend is payable June 15 to shareholders of record on June 5. The company has approximately 2.5 million shares of common stock outstanding.

16:31 EDT Saga Communications COO Lada to retire at the end of June - Saga Communications announced that its Chief Operating Officer, Warren Lada, will retire at the end of June, 2018. Ed Christian, Saga's President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "Warren has been an integral part of Saga for the past 27 years and we will deeply miss his contributions to Saga and its radio stations across the US." Prior to his current position as Chief Operating Officer, Lada served as President and General Manager for Saga radio station WAQY, Rock 102, in Springfield, Massachusetts.

16:25 EDT Mitek Systems unveils Mobile Deposit version 4.7 - Mitek announced Mobile Deposit(R) Version 4.7. The upgraded Mobile Deposit integrates newly acquired A2iA's award winning artificial intelligence and machine learning-based software, CheckReader, into Mitek's flagship product. This newest version of Mitek's patented Mobile Deposit will feature A2iA's handwritten and printed text recognition to help reduce deposit fraud that costs financial institutions millions of dollars every year.

16:23 EDT Universal Corporation raises quarterly dividend by 36% to 75c per share - The dividend is payable August 06, 2018, to common shareholders of record at the close of business on July 9, 2018.

16:21 EDT L Brands falls over 4% afterhours following Q1 earnings and guidance

16:21 EDT Huntsman increases share repurchase authorization to $1B - Huntsman approved an increase to its previously authorized share repurchase program to $1B. This represents a $550M increase to the existing $450M authorization, to be supported by the company's free cash flow generation and by the monetization of Venator shares.

16:20 EDT Microchip receives antitrust clearance for Microsemi acquisition - Microchip (MCHP) announced, in connection with its pending acquisition of Microsemi (MSCC), that it has obtained antitrust clearance from the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission. Additionally, Microchip announced that the shareholders of Microsemi overwhelmingly approved the merger with 99.5% of the Microsemi shares that voted being in favor of the merger. Microchip currently expects that the merger will close on May 29.

16:16 EDT Kroger, Home Chef agree to up to $500M merger pact - Kroger and private meal kit company Home Chef announced a merger agreement that will significantly accelerate availability of meal kits and position the combined company to "lead the way in revolutionizing how families shop for, prep, and cook their meals." The initial transaction price is $200M and future earnout payments of up to $500M over five years are contingent on achieving certain milestones, including significant growth of in-store and online meal kit sales. The pending merger comes on the heels of Home Chef's 150% growth in 2017, $250M in revenue, and two profitable quarters. Home Chef employs approximately 1,000 employees, is headquartered in downtown Chicago, and operates three distribution centers in Chicago, Atlanta and San Bernardino. Home Chef's distribution centers reach 98% of all continental U.S. households within a two-day delivery window. After the deal closes, Home Chef will operate as a subsidiary of The Kroger Co., maintain its e-commerce business on homechef.com, and assume responsibility for Kroger's meal solutions portfolio. The company will continue to operate its offices and facilities. Following closing, Kroger will make Home Chef meal kits available to Kroger shoppers, both in stores and online. Kroger expects the transaction to have no effect on 2018 earnings, and to be slightly accretive in 2019.

16:16 EDT Leucadia changes name to Jefferies Financial Group - Jefferies Financial Group (JEF), formerly known as Leucadia National Corporation (LUK), announced that its shareholders have overwhelmingly voted in favor of changing the name of Leucadia National Corporation to Jefferies Financial Group, which is effective immediately. As of trading tomorrow, Jefferies Financial Group will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol JEF.

16:09 EDT Bunge increases quarterly dividend to 50c per share - Bunge announced that its board has approved an increase in the company's regular quarterly common share cash dividend, from 46c to 50c per share. The new dividend is payable on September 5 to shareholders of record on August 22. The company also declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.22 per share on its 4.88% cumulative convertible perpetual preference shares, payable on September 1 to shareholders of record on August 15.

16:08 EDT Myriad announces seven new payer coverage decisions for Prolaris - Myriad Genetics announced seven new commercial coverage decisions for Prolaris, the company's market leading prognostic test for patients with prostate cancer.The payers include a top-25 commercial insurer in the United States and in aggregate the payers represent six million new covered lives for Prolaris. These decisions follow the recently updated National Comprehensive Cancer Network NCCN, guidelines that support Prolaris as standard of care in making treatment decisions for patients with low and favorable-intermediate risk prostate cancer."We are extremely pleased to see accelerating commercial insurer coverage for Prolaris based upon the strong supporting clinical evidence which was underscored by recent NCCN guidelines," said Nicole Lambert, general manager, Urology. "These decisions will ensure broader patient access to Prolaris allowing for more informed clinical decision making and lower overall healthcare costs to the system."In aggregate, Prolaris now has insurance coverage for approximately 50% of Prostate cancer patients in the United States. Over 60,000 men have received the Prolaris test to help guide their treatment for prostate cancer.

16:07 EDT Mitek Systems acquires A2iA - Mitek Systems announced that it has acquired A2iA, SAS, a global leader in artificial intelligence and image analysis, for EUR42.5M in cash and shares of Mitek's common stock.

16:06 EDT Anika Therapeutics announces $30M accelerated share repurchase - Anika Therapeutics announced that it will enter into an accelerated share repurchase program to repurchase $30M of its outstanding common stock. The company will enter into an accelerated stock repurchase agreement with Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC pursuant to a Fixed Dollar Accelerated Share Repurchase Transaction to purchase $30M of shares of its common stock. The number of shares to be repurchased will be based generally on the volume-weighted average share price of Anika common stock over a valuation period. The company plans to utilize existing cash on hand to fund the ASR program. Anika expects that the ASR program will commence in late May and that it will be completed in the fourth quarter of 2018.

16:05 EDT NetApp doubles quarterly dividend to 40c per share - The quarterly dividend will be paid on July 25, 2018 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on July 6, 2018.

16:01 EDT DHI Group sells hospitality business for $16.5M in cash - DHI Group announced that it has sold its hospitality business, Hcareers, to Virgil Holdings, for approximately $16.5M in cash. The transaction closed on May 23 and DHI will use the proceeds in accordance with its stated capital allocation strategy, including the reduction of the balance on its revolving credit facility, support of strategic initiatives and potential return of capital to shareholders. DHI previously announced its intention to divest four of its non-tech businesses in May 2017 as part of a strategy to focus on tech and helping technology professionals manage their careers. Consistent with its strategy, this sale substantially completes the divestiture process for its non-tech businesses.

15:31 EDT GE struggles after CEO says dividend a function of free cash flow - According to a MarketWatch report, the CEO of General Electric John Flannery said earlier on Wednesday that while he understands how important the dividend was for investors, "it's ultimately a function of the free cash flow of the company and that's ultimately a function of our operating performance with the assets and things that we do with the portfolio." Flannery was speaking at an industry conference. Shares of GE are currently down 7.5% to $14.15 per share.

15:03 EDT Tesla's Musk says Trump won because nobody believes media anymore - Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted, "The holier-than-thou hypocrisy of big media companies who lay claim to the truth, but publish only enough to sugarcoat the lie, is why the public no longer respects them." The tweet came in response to Electrek.Co tweeting, "Tesla (TSLA) could rally as media negativity is 'increasingly immaterial', says Baird." After The Verge's Andrew Hawkins weighed in with, "Musk continues his slow transformation into a media-baiting Trump figure screaming irrationally about fake news. Hope it works out for you dude!," Musk tweeted, "Thought you'd say that. Anytime anyone criticizes the media, the media shrieks "You're just like Trump!" Why do you think he got elected in the first place? Because no ones believes you any more. You lost your credibility a long time ago." He went on to add, "Problem is journos are under constant pressure to get max clicks & earn advertising dollars or get fired. Tricky situation, as Tesla doesn't advertise, but fossil fuel companies & gas/diesel car companies are among world's biggest advertisers."

14:30 EDT Avinger spikes over 85% higher after getting FDA clearance on PAD device - Avinger (AVGR), a commercial-stage medical device company focusing on "developing innovative treatments for peripheral artery disease," or PAD, announced early Wednesday that it had received 510k clearance from the FDA for its new Pantheris Lumivascular atherectomy system, "the first-ever image-guided atherectomy device for the treatment of peripheral artery disease." According to Avinger, "Lumivascular is the only technology that combines real-time intravascular imaging with highly effective catheters for the treatment of PAD. Peripheral artery disease is projected to affect more than 21M people in the United States alone by 2020." The new version of Pantheris received CE Marking approval in December 2017, and patients have been successfully treated with this new device in Germany since that time. Avinger intends to launch two versions of this product into initial sites in the U.S. immediately. Distribution of the next generation Pantheris will be expanded as the company increases production and gains purchasing approvals in additional Lumivascular sites. CEO COMMENTARY: "We are excited to introduce the next generation Pantheris to our network of physicians here in the United States," said Avinger CEO Jeff Soinski. "After extensive testing by our R&D and operations teams, physician design validation, and successful initial case experience in Europe across a variety of different lesion types, we believe this next generation device will significantly improve the user experience in terms of reliability, efficiency, and ease of use across a spectrum of clinical situation.PRICE ACTION: Shares of Avinger are up over 85% to $2.38 per share in afternoon trading.

14:02 EDT Eli Lilly says Sue Mahony to retire as president of Lilly Oncology - Eli Lilly and Company announced that Sue Mahony, Ph.D., senior vice president of Lilly and president of Lilly Oncology, will retire at the end of August after 18 years of service with the company. Mahony is also a member of Lilly's executive committee. Lilly is considering internal and external candidates to succeed Mahony.

14:00 EDT Google beats Amazonf or first place in smart speaker market, Canalys says - Smart speakers continue to be the world's fastest-growing consumer technology segment, with year-on-year growth in Q1 2018 of 210% as shipments reached 9 million units, Canalys says. Google (GOOG, GOOGL) took the top spot, beating Amazon (AMZN) for the first time, shipping 3.2 million of its Google Home and Home Mini devices, against the 2.5 million Echo devices shipped by Amazon. The US market share fell below 50% for the first time, partly due to Google and Amazon's focus on expanding beyond their home markets, but also because of the increased traction that the technology is seeing with new vendors in markets such as China and South Korea. Vendors shipped 1.8 million smart speakers into the channel in Q1 2018 in China, while Korea overtook the UK to become the third largest market with 730,000 shipments. Alibaba (BABA) finished third overall and retained its number one position in China with 1.1 million Tmall Genie speaker shipments in Q1 2018.

13:28 EDT GE plunges as CEO warns power challenges won't go away soon - Shares of General Electric (GE) have plunged after CEO John Flannery warned that the challenges facing the manufacturer will not go away anytime soon. At an investor event, the chief executive acknowledged that the power unit faces a "soft" market for gas turbines that could last for several years. NO 'QUICK FIX' FOR WOES: Presenting at the Electrical Products Group conference in Longboat Key, Florida, GE's CEO warned that the challenges facing the manufacturer will not go away in the near future. According to Bloomberg, Flannery said the power unit faces a potential "soft" market for gas turbines that could last for several years. While the company's aviation and health-care units remain strong, GE is trying to manage challenges in its insurance operations and fix the power-services business. "This is not going to be a quick fix," said Flannery, who took the job last June. POWER STILL 'BIGGEST' CHALLENGE: During the last earnings call, Flannery had said that, "Power continues to be our biggest challenge. The team is making good progress on execution, but the market is challenging and, as we've said before, this will be a multiyear fix." "With respect to Power, we came into the year expecting the overall market for new gas orders in 2018 to be 30 to 34 gigawatts. Based on what we are seeing in the market, this is trending to less than 30 gigawatts," the CEO noted, adding that "we are seeing lower demand today driven by energy efficiency, renewables penetration and some delays in orders." In slides for the EPG event today, GE stated that it expects a 2018 heavy duty gas power turbines market of about 30-34 GW, but is "planning for lower" and is planning for less than 30 GW/year in 2019 and 2020. PRICE ACTION: In afternoon trading, shares of General Electric have dropped almost 7% to $14.27.

13:15 EDT Canadian National locomotive engineers ratify new contract - Canadian National announced that the company's 1,800 locomotives engineers in Canada have successfully ratified a new collective agreement. The five-year contract with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which runs through Dec. 31, 2022, provides wage and benefit improvements in each year of the agreement, in line with similar contracts in the industry, and modifies work rules that were of concern to both CN and engineers.

13:09 EDT Camping World CEO says company is 'solid and growing' - Camping World Holdings CEO Marcus Lemonis said via Twitter in regards to Camping World, "The company is solid and growing. Will have record profitability in 2018." The stock is down 11.5% to $18.94 in afternoon trading.

13:06 EDT Apple offers $50 credit to those who bought out-of-warranty battery replacement - Apple said it is offering a $50 credit to customers who paid for an out-of-warranty battery replacement for iPhone 6 or later devices between January 1, 2017 and December 28, 2017. Eligible battery replacements were completed at an Apple authorized service location - Apple Store, Apple Repair Center, or an Apple Authorized Service Provider. The credit will be provided as an electronic funds transfer or a credit on the credit card used to pay for the battery replacement service. Eligible customers will be contacted by Apple via email between May 23, 2018 and July 27, 2018 with instructions on how to obtain the credit. Reference Link

12:48 EDT ESPN, UFC agree to five-year rights deal worth $1.5B - Disney's ESPN and the UFC have agreed to a five-year deal that will bring the mixed-martial arts league's entire rights package to ESPN in 2019. The new agreement follows a deal announced earlier this month between ESPN and UFC. The entire package will cost $1.5B over five years. The deal consists of 30 UFC Fight Night events per year, including 10 main cards on ESPN's television networks. The other 20 will stream on ESPN+, the company's newly launched streaming service. UFC Fight Night events consist of 12 bouts. Additionally, ESPN networks will air preliminary bouts prior to 12 pay-per-view events in 2019. Reference Link

12:39 EDT TherapeuticsMD sees FDA action occurring on scheduled PDUFA target action date

12:39 EDT TherapeuticsMD has not been informed by FDA about review status of TX-004HR NDA - TherapeuticsMD commented on media reports that TX-004HR, the company's investigational applicator-free estradiol vaginal softgel capsule for the treatment of moderate-to-severe vaginal pain during sexual activity, a symptom of vulvar and vaginal atrophy due to menopause, has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. As previously announced, the New Drug Application for TX-004HR has a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target action date of May 29, 2018. Contrary to media reports, the company has not been informed by the FDA about the review status of the NDA. The company anticipates FDA action will occur on the scheduled PDUFA target action date and will announce such action at that time.

12:31 EDT RV makers Winnebago and Thor fall after Camping World accounting questions - Shares of recreational vehicle makers Thor Industries (THO) and Winnebago (WGO) are both down about 5% in afternoon trading after RV and camping goods retailer Camping World changed accountants amid RV or recreational vehicle questions. Camping world (CWH) said in a regulatory filing that on May 18 it terminated its accounting services with Ernst & Young and on the same date hired Deloitte & Touche as a replacement. QUESTIONS ON RV BUSINESS: According to the filing out Tuesday night, Camping World said that it "concluded that its internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 31" due to the existence of material weaknesses in the company's internal control over financial reporting related to, insufficient analysis to correctly determine the portion of the deferred tax asset resulting from the company's direct investment in CWGS Enterprises not expected to be realized and the insufficient documentation and/or execution of certain accounting policies and procedures within FreedomRoads Holding, which operates the company's RV dealerships, and also ineffective transaction level and management review controls over the valuation of trade-in unit inventory. E&Y's report on the effectiveness of the company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, which was included in the 2017 10-K, contained an adverse opinion thereon. The committee discussed the material weaknesses in the company's internal control over financial reporting with E&Y, and has authorized E&Y to respond fully to the inquiries of Deloitte concerning such material weakness. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Camping World are down 11% to $91.10 in afternoon trading, while RV makers Thor Industries and Winnebago fell about 5% each.

12:00 EDT Analysts view TJX, Nordstrom as stand-outs among retailers - The TJX Companies (TJX) and Nordstrom (JWN) are in focus after analysts viewed the companies as stand-out retailers, especially since the companies compared like-for-like weeks when calculating first quarter comps. "IMPRESSIVE" TJX RESULTS: On Monday, Morgan Stanley analyst Kimberly Greenberger noted that Macy's (M), Kohl's (KSS) and J.C. Penney (JCP) chose to use a non-restated calendar when calculating 2018 comparable store sales for Q1, while TJX "rightly" compared like-for-like weeks, or February 4-May 5 of this year versus February 5-May 6 of last year. When taking this into consideration, TJX's Q1 results are "more impressive than first meets the eye," said Greenberger. In addition, the analyst said TJX's ability to adjust and recover from 3Q17's execution issues shows the superiority of the off-price business model. She also noted that TJX management reiterated several times that the buying environment remains plentiful, refuting bear case concerns that improving department store sales are driving a lack of quality branded merchandise in the off-price market. Greenberger said the company's scale and strategic and flexible business model support stable growth and she maintained an Overweight rating on the stock with a $99 price target. BUT KOHL'S TO FACE 'DIFFICULT' COMPS: Greenberger also noted that Kohl's will face increasingly difficult comps in the second half and said its "disappointing" 0.4% comp growth excluding the calendar shift in Q1 "doesn't bode well" for the rest of the year. She said the company's merchandise offering has lost resonance with customers over the past five years and is struggling to gain strong national brands for its assortment, leaving Kohl's in a weakened competitive state, especially when compared to the more compelling value of off-price retailers. In addition, drops in sales, declining store margins and revenue shift to the high variable cost e-commerce channel may make it challenging for the company to ever grow earnings again, Greenberg said. The analyst, who questioned if the company can achieve its 2018 guidance, kept an Underweight rating on Kohl's shares with a $45 price target. NORDSTROM "ON SALE": Meanwhlie on Monday, Deutsche Bank analyst Paul Trussell upgraded Nordstrom to Buy from Hold and raised his price target for the shares to $55 from $52. The analyst views the 10% pullback in shares since the retailer's Q1 results as overdone. He said he sees the opportunity for Nordstrom's multiple to recover as the company moves past off-price merchandising execution issues and lack of the clear calendar shift benefit. The analyst also noted that SG&A growth should continue to decelerate as the majority of generational investments have been made. In addition, Nordstrom has the best developed digital strategy within retail, with 29% of sales digitally enabled, Trussell said, and, combined with its relatively small store network and rising penetration of exclusive distribution brands, the company is well-positioned for market share gains as rivals right-size their footprint. The analyst said the stock is now "on sale." WHAT'S NOTABLE: On Tuesday, TJX reported Q1 GAAP earnings of $1.13 on revenue of $8.69B, beating analysts' estimates of $1.02 and $8.47B, respectively. The company also reported consolidated comparable store sales growth of 3% and a 4% comparable stores sales increase for its largest division Marmaxx. On Thursday, Nordstrom reported Q1 earnings per share of 51c on revenue of $3.47B, also exceeding the Street consensus of 44c and $3.46B, respectively. The company reported an increase in comparable store sales of 0.6%. PRICE ACTION: TJX rose 1% to $88.30 while Nordstrom was up about 4% to $47.55 at midday. Other peers, including including Kohl's, Macy's and J.C. Penney, are also higher.

11:51 EDT GE doesn't see profit growth for power unit in 2018, backs EPS, FCF outlook - GE (GE) CEO John Flannery does not see profit growth at the company's power unit this year and is planning for the market for heavy duty gas power turbines to remain weak through 2020, the company said in presentation slides for the 2018 Electrical Products Group Conference. The company affirmed its targets for 2018 EPS of $1.00-$1.07 and free cash flow framework of $6B-$7B, and said profit at GE's Baker Hughes (BHGE) oil and gas unit would rise by 50% or more this year, while profit at the aviation business would be up 15%. The current Street consensus for FY18 EPS is 96c. GE is down 2.6% to $14.90 near noon.

11:39 EDT TherapeuticsMD trading halted, news pending

11:28 EDT Rockwell Medical CEO says instructed CFO to remain in duties - Rockwell Medical issued a letter to shareholders on behalf of Rob Chioini, President and CEO, which states: "I submitted a response to The 8K that the Company issued this morning May 23, 2018, that I signed, Acc-no: 0001104659-18-035192, is true and accurate and represents correctly what has transpired. We have made appropriate disclosures to the Company's auditors, and we are following proper governance measures. As CEO, I have instructed the CFO to remain in his duties. As the 8K states, on May 22, 2018, I called an emergency Board meeting for the purpose of discussing a shareholder demand letter requesting an independent investigation and alleging breaches of fiduciary duties and other possible violations of securities and other laws by various directors. The special meeting was called for the sole purpose of discussing various allegations of misconduct by directors and inform the full Board of steps the non-conflicted independent directors have taken to retain counsel and initiate an independent investigation. The call was convened and the directors whose conduct was the subject of the allegations of breaches of fiduciary duties, with securities counsel present, asserted the position that they voted to fire the CEO. As that action was not the purpose of the special meeting, the termination of the CEO, in the opinion of the non-conflicted independent directors, was not effective. The CEO, through counsel, has notified the SEC of the action taken by the directors whose conduct is discussed in the demand letter that gave rise to the investigation. The CEO continues to serve as the CEO consistent with the terms of his employment agreement. The internal investigation is proceeding under direction of the two non-conflicted independent directors Patrick Bagley and Ronald Boyd who have retained qualified and highly experienced counsel to conduct the investigation. The Chairman of Board issued a second conflicting 8K this morning. Therein is referenced a Board meeting in which it is asserted that the CFO, Thomas Klema, was terminated. I have no information to suggest the governance requirements to call such a meeting were followed. The same 8K states that the Board created a Special Transition Committee comprised of Benjamin Wolin, Lisa Colleran, and John Cooper, to provide board-level oversight of the Company's strategic direction and day-to-day operations during the Company's transition. I have no information to suggest that the governance requirements for the creation of such a committee were followed. I am informed that the independent investigation has commended. Our expectation is that all directors will cooperate fully with the investigation. I remain committed fully to acting in the best interests of all shareholders."

10:53 EDT American Lorain trading halted, news pending

10:47 EDT Communications Systems forms special committee to explore strategic options - Communications Systems announced that the Board has initiated a strategic review of the company's businesses and assets to explore opportunities for enhancing value for the company's shareholders. A Special Board Committee consisting of independent directors Richard Primuth, Randy Sampson and Steven Webster will oversee this process. The Special Committee expects to retain an investment banking firm to advise it in this process. CSI's CEO Roger Lacey commented, "The strategic review will be a thorough process. The company will report on its findings and conclusions at the completion of the review and does not expect to comment on the progress of the strategic review until it is completed. We will consider all reasonable options but cannot guarantee that any actions will be taken as a direct result of this review. CSI currently has several growth initiatives within our operating segments that we believe can grow our revenues and return CSI to positive cash flow. We also fully understand the challenges that these segments face and how those challenges continue to affect the price of our common stock. While it is uncertain what, if any, specific action or transaction may result from this process, we believe the timing is right for the Board to assess all potential opportunities to maximize long-term value for our loyal shareholders."

10:32 EDT Goosehead Insurance plans to open corporate office in Chicago - Personal lines insurance agency Goosehead Insurance announced plans to open a new corporate office in the Chicago area. The rapidly growing firm signed a 5-year lease for 5,200 square feet at Columbia Center I in Rosemont, owned and operated by Adventus Realty Services. The office is expected to open in 3Q18, and has the capacity to hold up to 50 corporate sales agents. The office will continue to be headed by Matthew Hunt, a senior account executive who has been with Goosehead since 2010.

10:18 EDT Camping World slides after reporting change in registered public accounting firm - In a regulatory filing last night, Camping World disclosed that on May 18 the Audit Committee of its Board of Directors dismissed Ernst & Young as the company's independent registered public accounting firm, effective immediately. Also on May 18, the board approved the engagement of Deloitte & Touche as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2018, effective immediately. "In the fiscal years ended December 31, 2016 and 2017 and in the subsequent interim period through May 18, 2018, there were no "reportable events" (as described in Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K), except that, as reported in Part II, Item 9A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 (the "2017 10-K"), the Company reported material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting during such period," the filing states. Camping World shares have fallen 7% to $19.82 in morning trading.

09:48 EDT NYSE to launch FANG+ options on June 11 - The New York Stock Exchange, part of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), announced it will launch a new equity option contract on the NYSE FANG+ Index - a new product that offers exposure to a select group of highly-traded next generation technology and tech-enabled companies. The NYSE FANG+ Index Option contract will trade in the United States exclusively on the NYSE's options markets, NYSE Arca and NYSE American, beginning Monday, June 11. The NYSE FANG+ Option contract will be European style, cash-settled, with a $100 multiplier and will trade under the symbol "FAANG". It follows the NYSE FANG+ Futures contract launched in November 2017, which is listed on ICE Futures U.S. The NYSE FANG+ Index is equal-weighted and consists of ten stocks including five core FANG stocks -- Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX) and Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google, and five actively-traded technology growth stocks -- Alibaba (BABA), Baidu (BIDU), NVIDIA (NVDA), Tesla (TSLA) and Twitter (TWTR).

09:40 EDT Westmoreland halted for volatility after jumping 75c to $2.09

09:33 EDT NYSE to launch FANG+ options on June 4 - The New York Stock Exchange, part of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), announced it will launch a new equity option contract on the NYSE FANG+ Index - a new product that offers exposure to a select group of highly-traded next generation technology and tech-enabled companies. The NYSE FANG+ Index Option contract will trade in the United States exclusively on the NYSE's options markets, NYSE Arca and NYSE American, beginning Monday, June 11. The NYSE FANG+ Option contract will be European style, cash-settled, with a $100 multiplier and will trade under the symbol "FAANG". It follows the NYSE FANG+ Futures contract launched in November 2017, which is listed on ICE Futures U.S. The NYSE FANG+ Index is equal-weighted and consists of ten stocks including five core FANG stocks -- Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX) and Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google, and five actively-traded technology growth stocks -- Alibaba (BABA), Baidu (BIDU), NVIDIA (NVDA), Tesla (TSLA) and Twitter (TWTR).

09:26 EDT Lowe's sees recovering Q1 sales miss over the next two quarters

09:23 EDT Rockwell Medical trading halted, news pending

09:18 EDT HomeAdvisor to help power new home services experience on Facebook Marketplace - HomeAdvisor, an operating business of ANGI Homeservices (ANGI), announced that the company is powering a new way for consumers to book a home services appointment through Facebook Marketplace (FB). Through Facebook Marketplace, consumers can search and be matched with service providers who perform a variety of tasks, including HomeAdvisor service professionals. Consumers can then easily communicate and request quotes directly with their matches via Messenger.

09:13 EDT Inseego announces joint IoT solution with Riverbed Technology - Inseego announced a joint IoT solution with Riverbed Technology for enterprises to deploy reliable and secure business continuity as a safeguard against network outages. The Inseego Skyus DS2 is the enterprise-grade IoT solution certified with Riverbed's software-defined wide-area networking solution, SteelConnect. SteelConnect is the SD-WAN solution that provides unified connectivity and policy-based orchestration spanning the entire distributed network fabric hybrid WAN, branch WLAN/LAN, data centers and the cloud.

09:11 EDT Exxon Mobil expects to achieve 15% reduction of methane emissions by 2020 - ExxonMobil announced greenhouse gas reduction measures that are expected to lead to significant improvements in emissions performance by 2020, including a 15% decrease in methane emissions and a 25% reduction in flaring. The company also announced its intention to improve its industry-leading energy efficiency in refining and chemical manufacturing facilities. ExxonMobil invests in lower-emission energy solutions such as cogeneration, flare reduction, energy efficiency, biofuels, carbon capture and storage and other technologies. ExxonMobil has spent more than $9B on lower-emission energy solutions since 2000. ExxonMobil is undertaking a number of initiatives to significantly reduce methane emissions. XTO Energy's leak-detection-and-repair efforts and operational improvements at U.S. production and midstream sites have reduced estimated methane emissions across ExxonMobil operations by 2 percent in the past year. Combined with additional measures outside the U.S. focused on the most significant sources of methane, ExxonMobil expects to achieve a 15 percent reduction of methane emissions by 2020 compared with 2016. Efforts associated with oil and gas production and processing are expected to lower natural gas flaring across ExxonMobil operations by about 25 percent by 2020 compared with 2016. The most significant reductions are expected to occur in operations in West Africa and include use of third-party infrastructure. ExxonMobil remains committed to mitigating emissions from its operations and helping consumers reduce their emissions, including through efficient fuels, lubricants and lightweight plastics. ExxonMobil continues to support research that leads to technology breakthroughs and participates in constructive dialogue on policy options.

09:11 EDT Nevada Gold reviewing strategic alternatives and sale of South Dakota operation - Nevada Gold is no longer in exclusive discussions to sell the company and its board has initiated a process to evaluate potential strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value. As part of the process, the board will consider a full range of strategic, operational and financial alternatives, which may include a sale or other transaction. The company has retained Rossoff & Company as its financial advisor to assist with the strategic review process, and has retained Hughes Hubbard & Reed as its legal counsel. The company has not set a timetable for completion of the review process and does not intend to disclose developments related to the process. The company also entered into an agreement to sell its South Dakota Route operation to Michael J. Trucano for $400K. The transaction is expected to close on June 30, subject to the approval of the South Dakota Commission on Gaming. This sale will free up approximately $250K in net cash used in the working capital of such business, which together with the purchase proceeds of $400K , will be used to decrease outstanding debt of the company by approximately $650K. The company expects to record a net loss from discontinued operations of approximately $300K.

09:09 EDT Walgreens makes additional investments in expanded offering in Puerto Rico - With its drugstore recovery efforts complete across its 108 drugstores in Puerto Rico, Walgreens is launching an additional investment campaign on the island to expand its offerings in all of its Puerto Rico locations to include, among other features, new patient health rooms, an expanded beauty offering and FedEx OnSite services. When the expansion of services is complete later this summer, Walgreens expects to have invested $35M in Puerto Rico since last year's hurricanes. Walgreens will reopen its drugstore in Toa Baja, its final drugstore to reopen on the island and one of six locations where the company operated a temporary pharmacy while it repaired the store. Walgreens is now upgrading all of its Puerto Rico pharmacies to include patient health rooms that allow pharmacists to provide counseling and services such as immunizations in a private setting. Walgreens also is elevating its beauty offering in all its Puerto Rico stores to include an expanded offering from brands such as No7, Botanics, Soap & Glory and YourGoodSkin. The stores will feature a new beauty consultation area where specially trained beauty consultants are available to help customers discover new offerings that make them look and feel good. In 10 locations, a marquee beauty experience will offer additional prestige beauty brands. All Walgreens drugstores in Puerto Rico also will receive Walgreens updated brand materials to reflect the company's new brand, Trusted since 1901, which launched last December to reinforce Walgreens legacy of caring for communities. When complete, Puerto Rico will be the first market where all Walgreens locations will reflect the new brand materials.

09:08 EDT Rockwell Medical filing says CEO Chioini 'continues to serve' - Rockwell Medical disclosed today in a regulatory filing, "A board meeting called for the purpose of discussing a shareholder demand letter and informing the board that the independent non-conflicted directors had hired independent counsel to conduct an internal investigation in response to the demand letter requiring immediate initiation of an investigation of alleged breach of fiduciary duties by various directors and other possible violations of federal securities laws. The directors who are the subjects of the allegations of breaches of fiduciary duty asserted the position that they voted to fire the CEO. As that action was not the purpose of the special meeting, the determination of the non-conflicted independent directors was that the termination was not effective, and based on that and in accordance with the CEO's employment contract the CEO remains. The CEO through counsel has notified the SEC of the action taken by the directors whose conduct is discussed in the demand letter that gives rise to the investigation, and the CEO continues to serve as the CEO consistent with the terms of his employment agreement. The internal investigation is proceeding under the two non-conflicted independent directors Patrick Bagley and Ronald Boyd." Rockwell's board last night announced that President and Chief Executive Officer, Robert Chioini, has been terminated from his positions, effective immediately. In a subsequent filing this morning, the board also removed Chief Financial Officer Thomas Klema for the "unauthorized" filing described above.

09:05 EDT Lowe's outgoing CEO Niblock says comps in May 'double digit positive'

09:04 EDT Colony NorthStar announces additional $300M stock repurchase program - Colony NorthStar announced that its Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to an additional $300M of its outstanding Class A common stock. The newly authorized program is in addition to the $300M share repurchase program the Company announced in February 2018, which was recently completed. The repurchases may occur from time to time in the open market, in privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. The authorization will expire in 12 months, unless otherwise extended by the Company's Board of Directors. The repurchase program will be utilized at management's discretion and in accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The timing and actual number of shares repurchased will depend on a variety of factors including price, corporate requirements and other conditions.

09:03 EDT Hyatt opens Regency Shenzhen Airport Hotel - Hyatt announced the opening of Hyatt Regency Shenzhen Airport Hotel in southern China's Guangdong province.The 335-room hotel welcomes global travelers passing through Shenzhen airport. As a modern international airport and one of the busiest in China, Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport welcomed over 45M travelers last year, and has become an important transportation hub in the Pearl River Delta Region.

09:02 EDT Jabil expands in Israel with opening of Optics Technology Innovation Center - Green Point, a division of Jabil, announced the opening of its new 2,000 square meter Optics Technology Innovation Center in Haifa, Israel. This development and manufacturing center will provide the Israel tech community - already recognized for driving worldwide innovations - with additional opportunities in computational cameras, projection systems and combined solutions. The new Jabil Optics facility - located in the Matam Park in Haifa - meets the growing demands of Jabil customers who are looking for specialized expertise and resources for complex assembly and integration of optoelectronic systems. This includes optical design; development and manufacturing capabilities for camera modules; and projection systems being produced in this facility. These solutions are important assets for smartphones, tablets, e-readers and laptops as they prepare to serve mobile, virtual, augmented and extended reality products seeing rapid growth and adoption. The Center will also create leading-edge automotive products and solutions including advanced driver-assistance components, DMS systems, head-up display units and LiDAR systems.

09:01 EDT Avid Technology selected by Seneca College for media facilities upgrade - Avid announced that Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology has become an Avid Media Campus site standardizing on Avid's platform-based workflows across its eight campuses for film and television creation, production and distribution. Avid Media Campus schools get significant education discounts on all Avid products.

08:49 EDT Tiffany says it had success in Japan, Europe - Says sales rose 18% in jewelry collection category. Says had success in Japan and Europe. Says global procurement team has recognized new efficiencies. Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

08:45 EDT Esperion trading resumes

08:40 EDT VistaGen Therapeutics granted U.S. patent for osteoarthritis and joint injuries - VistaGen Therapeutics has been granted a U.S. patent related to methods of producing pluripotent stem cell-derived chondrocytes, chondrocyte lineage cells, cartilage-like tissue and cartilage. Additionally, the USPTO allowed claims to the therapeutic administration of these cells and tissues to treat osteoarthritis and joint injuries affecting cartilage.

08:36 EDT Elevate Credit announces service of over 2M non-prime customers - Elevate Credit announced it has served more than two million non-prime customers in the US and UK, saving them more than $3B versus the cost of payday loans. Elevate's three products, RISE, Elastic and Sunny, employ advanced data and analytics to provide safe access to small-dollar credit to the two-thirds of Americans who cannot get personal unsecured loans from their banks.

08:34 EDT PolarityTE appoints Howard Hechler as Chief Business Officer - PolarityTE (COOL) announced the appointment of Howard Hechler as Chief Business Officer. Hechler will lead the company's M&A and partnering efforts, as well as work with Executive Management to develop and execute the company's commercialization strategy. He will also work to align pipeline development efforts with the commercial strategy. Most recently, he was Senior Director of Corporate Development at Smith & Nephew (SNN).

08:33 EDT Lear names Rashida Thomas Chief Diversity Officer - Lear Corporation announced that it has named Rashida Thomas chief diversity officer and director of talent management. Thomas joins Lear from Focus: Hope where she was the director of workforce development and education for the last six years and was involved in leading all fiscal, programmatic and operational business for the Focus: Hope workforce.

08:32 EDT Target says 2017 was 'investment year,' 2018 a 'transition year'

08:31 EDT NuVasive SpineTRACK registry reaches enrollment milestone of 10,000 patients - NuVasive announced that the company's SpineTRACK Registry has reached a significant enrollment milestone of 10,000 patients from more than 50 surgeons in the United States since its inception in 2011. The data collected in SpineTRACK enables surgeon and hospital partners to use this valuable information when negotiating with hospitals and payers, engaging with patients to track their progress to better understand treatment benefits and evaluating outcome variations to aid in providing the highest value of care.

08:21 EDT American Equity confirms preliminary talks for potential transaction - American Equity Investment Life Holding Company notes the recent market rumors and confirms that it is in preliminary discussions regarding a potential transaction. No assurance can be given that such discussions will continue, that any definitive agreement will be reached with respect to a transaction or that a transaction will be consummated. American Equity does not intend to make any further press releases or announcements regarding this matter unless and until a definitive agreement has been reached.

08:20 EDT Esperion's Phase 3 study of bempedoic acid meets primary endpoint - Esperion announced 'positive' top-line results from the third of five pivotal Phase 3 studies expected to be reported this year. This study evaluated the LDL-C lowering efficacy and the safety and tolerability of bempedoic acid 180 mg versus placebo in high-risk patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, or at high risk for ASCVD with hypercholesterolemia, inadequately treated with maximally tolerated background LDL-C lowering therapy who are only able to tolerate less than the approved daily starting dose of a statin and considered statin intolerant. The 24-week study achieved LDL-C lowering totaling 26% in patients on bempedoic acid who remained on treatment at both week 12 and week 24 vs. placebo which had a decrease of 2%. The study met its primary endpoint with LDL-C lowering of 23% at 12 weeks in the intent to treat analysis vs. placebo which had a decrease of 1%. Patients treated with bempedoic acid also achieved a significantly greater reduction of 25% in high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, an important marker of the underlying inflammation associated with cardiovascular disease. Bempedoic acid was observed to be safe and well-tolerated and with no fatalities observed in either group. Esperion plans to present full results from this study at an upcoming medical conference and to publish in a major medical journal.

08:20 EDT Teva extends the goal date of the BLA for fremanezumab - Teva Pharmaceutical confirmed that the FDA has extended the goal date of the biologics license application, or BLA, for fremanezumab, an investigational therapy for the preventive treatment of migraine. The Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA, action date for fremanezumab is set for September 16. There are no additional data requests from the FDA.

08:18 EDT Macy's names Paula Price CFO - Macy's announced that Paula Price will be appointed CFO, effective July 9, 2018. Price will be responsible for leading the company's finance, accounting, investor relations and internal audit functions. She will report to Jeff Gennette, Macy's, chairman and CEO and will be based in New York. Price will succeed Karen Hoguet who, as previously announced, plans to retire at the end of the 2018 fiscal year. Hoguet will remain with Macy's in an advisory role to support the company during a transition period until February 2, 2019. Price joins Macy's with 30 years of finance experience primarily in retail and consumer-facing businesses. She is currently a full-time senior lecturer in the accounting and management unit at Harvard Business School.

08:16 EDT OFS Capital announces $10M stock repurchase program - OFS Capital Corporation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program whereby OFS is authorized to repurchase up to $10M in the aggregate of its outstanding common stock. Under the program, OFS is authorized to repurchase shares in open market transactions, including through block purchases, depending on prevailing market conditions and other factors. The repurchase program may be extended, modified or discontinued at any time for any reason. The program does not obligate OFS to acquire any specific number of shares, and all repurchases will be made in accordance with SEC Rule 10b-18, which sets certain restrictions on the method, timing, price and volume of stock repurchases.

08:14 EDT Materialise to be intergrated into HP Enterprise FitStaion - Materialise (MTLS), through a partnership with RSPrint, has entered into an agreement with HP (HPE) to scale an end-to-end 3D solution to design and manufacture fully customized 3D-printed insoles. FitStation powered by HP will integrate Materialise software for 3D design automation, print preparation and production management. This alliance offers footwear brands the opportunity to express their unique brand proposition by allowing them to produce individualized products on-demand. FitStation powered by HP is a platform that delivers custom-fitted and individualized footwear through innovative 3D scanning, dynamic gait analysis and manufacturing technologies. It provides individual off-the-shelf shoe and insole recommendations, 3D-printed insoles and individualized custom footwear. The Materialise software suite will now be integrated into FitStation, enabling brands to design innovative and customized insoles. The Materialise software suite manages and automates the print preparation and production process of the insoles, allowing manufacturers to scale their 3D printing business.

08:12 EDT Spero reports 'positive' top-line results for two Potentiator product candidates - Spero Therapeutics announced results from the company's Phase 1b drug-drug interaction trial of SPR741, the first product candidate from its Potentiator Platform, demonstrating pharmacokinetic compatibility and tolerability when co-administered with b-lactam antibiotics. Spero also announced results from the IND-enabling studies of SPR206, its second product candidate from the platform in the treatment of serious Gram-negative infections that are supportive of advancement into clinical development. In the Phase 1b trial, SPR741 was administered as a single dose of 400 mg alone and in combination with three commonly used b-lactam antibiotics. The single dose data indicate that the administration of b-lactam antibiotics had no impact on PK or tolerability of SPR741, supporting further development of SPR741 as a combination agent for the treatment of MDR infections. The data provide support for an acceptable safety profile and combined with earlier microbiological and in vivo efficacy testing of SPR206, support its advancement as clinical candidate. The composite data suggest SPR206 has the potential for wide therapeutic margins in the setting of serious hospital Gram-negative infections. The Potentiator Platform molecules are designed to treat Gram-negative bacterial infections.

08:11 EDT Ralph Lauren reports flat Q4 North American SSS - North America revenue in the fourth quarter decreased 14% on both a constant currency and reported basis to $759M. The decline was due to lower sales in the wholesale channel, driven by distribution and brand exits, strategic reductions in shipments and promotional activity to increase quality of sales, as well as lower consumer demand. In retail, comparable store sales in North America were flat in constant currency, as a 6% increase in brick and mortar stores was offset by an 18% decrease in ralphlauren.com, primarily due to a planned reduction in promotion frequency and depth.

08:10 EDT Esperion trading halted, news pending

08:06 EDT Immune Pharmaceuticals provides pipeline update - mmune Pharmaceuticals provided an update on its pipeline. Recently, the company announced updated positive results from the phase 2a bullous pemphigoid study of its lead program, bertilimumab. Subjects in the study had statistically significant improvements in disease activity, pruritus and quality of life, and the safety and tolerability of bertilimumab in the elderly population was 'excellent'. More data from this study is expected to be available in Q3. Immune has begun planning for a randomized, controlled phase 2/3 trial to launch in 2019, which the company expects will serve as a registrational study. The company is preparing for meetings with the FDA and the EMA later this year to discuss the planned phase 2/3 study as well as important manufacturing plans. Immune recently released a new batch of bertilimumab to support its ongoing phase 2a ulcerative colitis study, and expects enrollment to complete in Q3. The company is preparing important patent applications based on the new process. With NanoCyclo, a series of laboratory and animal studies to allow selection of a final formulation launched this quarter, as planned. Immune is currently planning a toxicity study to begin in Q3, which will allow the launch of the clinical development program. Immune expects to commence its planned proof-of-concept clinical trial late in Q4 or early in 1Q19.

08:05 EDT Target CEO Brian Cornell sees 'strong' EPS growth for remainder of year - Sees comp sales growth accelerating in Q2. Comments taken from the Q1 earnings conference call.

08:04 EDT Comcast says 'considering' superior cash bid for 21st Century Fox after spinoff

08:03 EDT Vanda: Hetlioz demonstrates significant improvement in jet lag in JET study - Vanda Pharmaceuticals announced results from the JET Study, a 3-night transatlantic travel study of the effects of tasimelteon on Jet Lag Disorder. Tasimelteon was shown to be effective in treating Jet Lag Disorder in travelers who flew from the US to the UK. "The results of the JET study are supportive and add to the body of evidence of the effects of tasimelteon on Jet Lag in the context of 5 and 8 hour time zone transatlantic travel," said Mihael H. Polymeropoulos, MD, Vanda's President and CEO. The JET study was a two-phase transatlantic travel study, with an observational travel phasefollowed by a treatment phase. Study participants traveled either 5 or 8 time zones from Washington, DC to London and San Francisco or Los Angeles to London, respectively. They stayed in London for 3 nights and 4 days, and during randomization they received tasimelteon 20mg for 3 consecutive nights prior to their bedtime. Efficacy was monitored by polysomnography as well as sleep and wake questionnaire scales. Due to the complexity of the study, the study was terminated before it reached the original enrollment goal of 90 patients, with only 25 patients completing both phases of the study. Despite the small sample size of this study, tasimelteon succeeded in demonstrating significant and meaningful effects across a number of sleep and wake measures. Tasimelteon significantly improved total sleep time of the first 2/3 of the night on night 3, in both objective and subjective measures of sleep. Tasimelteon-treated patients slept 76 minutes longer during their second trip as compared to their first. Cumulatively over the 3 travel nights of their second trip, tasimelteon-treated patients added 131 minutes of sleep as compared to the 3 travel nights of the first trip.

08:00 EDT Nxt-ID announces issuance of U.S. patent for IoT device collaboration - NXT-ID announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued US Patent Number 9,979,724, entitled "Distributed Method and System to Improve Collaboration Services Across Multiple Devices." The patent introduces the concept of collaborative services across multiple devices that may be used to utilize a common data or algorithms to recognize and authenticate a user for purposes of performing a variety of actions across many devices. It enables devices without specific authentication hardware or software components the ability to leverage the capabilities of nearby devices or contribute by sending data to an authentication service.

07:33 EDT Amneal, mAbxience enter into agreement for bevacizumab biosimilar in the U.S. - mAbxience, a company specialized in the research, development, manufacturing and global commercialization of monoclonal antibody biosimilars, part of the Insud Pharma Group and Amneal Pharmaceuticals have signed an exclusive licensing and supply agreement in the United States for mAbxience's bevacizumab, a biosimilar candidate for Avastin. Under the milestone based commercial agreement mAbxience will lead product, clinical development and subsequent manufacture while Amneal will guide the product through regulatory approval and have exclusive commercialisation rights in the United States.

07:31 EDT IBM adding 1,800 jobs in France in next two years, new tech training - IBM is announcing a set of investments and initiatives in France that will create 1,800 jobs during the next two years, in leading-edge areas like AI, blockchain, cloud computing and IoT. IBM plans to hire business consultants, IT architects, developers and technical experts, including both new graduates and experienced professionals. The 1,800 new jobs include 400 AI-related roles IBM announced in March at the French AI for Humanity summit. With this new hiring, IBM is planning to strengthen its national presence by creating local competitiveness hubs with key local public and private partners, as already started in Lille and Strasbourg. IBM has been creating and hiring for "new collar" jobs. They are entirely new roles in areas such as cybersecurity, data science, artificial intelligence and cognitive business that do not necessarily require traditional university degrees, but rather the right skills, often obtained through vocational or on-the-job training. As part of this effort, IBM is partnering with the French government on the company's groundbreaking P-TECH education model. IBM created P-TECH in 2011 to provide young people - primarily from disadvantaged backgrounds - the skills and credentials required for 21st century jobs. By September, P-TECH will be in nearly 120 schools in four countries and is on track to prepare more than 75,000 students for "new collar" jobs. The model - which is built upon deep collaborations between government, education and industry - now includes more than 400 companies, which are investing in their future workforce by providing mentoring, site visits, paid internships and guaranteed job interviews upon graduation. In addition, the company is launching the IBM France Academy. The Academy, based in Paris and supported by online courses, will train IBM France employees, clients and partners to build modern skills for the AI-era.

07:24 EDT Community Health announces extension of early tender deadline of exchange offers - Community Health Systems announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, CHS/Community Health Systems, has amended certain terms of its previously commenced offers to exchange up to $1,925M aggregate principal amount of its new 9.875% Junior-Priority Secured Notes due 2023 in exchange for any and all of its $1,925M aggregate principal amount of outstanding 8.000% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2019 up to $1,200M aggregate principal amount of its new 8.125% Junior-Priority Secured Notes due 2024 in exchange for any and all of its $1,200M aggregate principal amount of outstanding 7.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2020 and to the extent that less than all of the outstanding 2019 Notes and 2020 Notes are tendered in the Exchange Offers, up to an aggregate principal amount of 2024 Notes equal to, when taken together with the New Notes issued in exchange for the validly tendered and accepted 2019 Notes and 2020 Notes, $3,125M, in exchange for its outstanding 6.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2022. The maximum aggregate principal amount of New Notes issued in the Exchange Offers will not exceed $3,125M. The amendment to the Exchange Offers extends the "Early Tender Deadline" for each Exchange Offer as described below. Other than as described herein, all other terms, conditions and applicable dates of the Exchange Offers remain unchanged. The Issuer was advised by the exchange agent for the Exchange Offers that, as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on May 22, 2018, a total of $1,541,748,000 aggregate principal amount of outstanding 2019 Notes, representing approximately 80% of the outstanding 2019 Notes, $957,790,000 aggregate principal amount of outstanding 2020 Notes, representing approximately 80% of the outstanding 2020 Notes, and $2,825,991,000 aggregate principal amount of outstanding 2022 Notes, representing approximately 94% of the outstanding 2022 Notes, were validly tendered in the Exchange Offers. Because the aggregate principal amount of Old Notes validly tendered as of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on May 22, 2018 would, if accepted for exchange, cause the Maximum Exchange Amount to be exceeded, pursuant to the terms of the Exchange Offer, tenders of 2022 Notes accepted for exchange will be subject to proration. The deadline for tendering Old Notes in order to receive the total consideration of $1,000 principal amount of 2023 Notes per $1,000 principal amount of 2019 Notes tendered and accepted for exchange, $1,000 principal amount of 2024 Notes per $1,000 principal amount of 2020 Notes tendered and accepted for exchange and $750 principal amount of 2024 Notes per $1,000 principal amount of 2022 Notes tendered and accepted for exchange has been further extended from 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Tuesday, May 22, 2018 to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Thursday, May 24, 2018. The tender withdrawal deadline has passed. Accordingly, tenders of Old Notes may no longer be withdrawn.

07:15 EDT Strayer University partners with Queen Latifah for education, coaching - Strayer University is partnering with musician, actress, producer, and entrepreneur Queen Latifah to provide students with inspirational support and to help Strayer create and produce confidence-building coursework. Queen Latifah will be featured in educational and motivational programming that builds on Strayer's commitment to provide students with the skills, habits, and mindsets needed to succeed in the real world. As part of her partnership with Strayer, Queen Latifah will be featured in an 11-week online course that focuses on building two essential traits for success in any industry: confidence and perseverance. Additionally, Strayer University will produce a separate "Back to School" no-cost course with Queen Latifah that will provide students with practical tips and skills every student needs to succeed in college. Queen Latifah will also host live Q&A sessions with students to provide individualized guidance, feedback and inspiration. Additionally, she will serve as the keynote speaker at Strayer's Washington, D.C. commencement ceremony held on June 23, 2018.

07:10 EDT Timberland Bancorp to acquire South Sound Bank - Timberland Bancorp signed an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to which South Sound Bank will merge with and into Timberland's subsidiary, Timberland Bank. South Sound Bank shareholders will receive 904,918 shares of Timberland common stock and $6.9M in cash. The proposed transaction is expected to be accretive to Timberland's earnings within the first year following the close and will be immediately accretive to tangible book value per share at close. South Sound Bank is a Washington-state chartered bank with approximately $186.9M in assets as of March 31, headquartered in Olympia, Washington. The companies expect to close the transaction during Q4, subject to approval by South Sound Bank shareholders, the receipt of all required regulatory approvals, and customary closing conditions.

07:08 EDT HomeStreet urges shareholders to vote on company's proxy card - HomeStreet issued the following statement: "As previously announced, Roaring Blue Lion Capital Management and those acting in concert with it failed to apply for, and obtain, approval from the Washington Department of Financial Institutions Division of Banks in conjunction with Roaring Blue Lion's proxy fight against HomeStreet. As a result, there is a substantial risk that, at the company's 2018 annual meeting of shareholders, the company will not be able to count any votes on Roaring Blue Lion's BLUE proxy card, including for quorum purposes. Despite this risk, the company will count votes on BLUE proxy cards at the company's 2018 annual meeting of shareholders on a provisional basis, subject to the final determination as to the validity of the BLUE proxy cards. Nevertheless, due to the risk that votes on BLUE proxy cards will not count for any purpose, the company strongly urges all shareholders to vote on the WHITE proxy card to ensure that their votes will count."

07:05 EDT Cubic's CTS unit awarded contract from SRTA in Atlanta - Cubic Corporation announced that its Cubic Transportation Systems business division was awarded a contract from the State Roadway & Tollway Authority in Atlanta, Georgia to integrate a next-generation farebox system for the Xpress commuter bus service with the back office for the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority Breeze Card. SRTA is the first transit authority in the region to implement this architecture.

07:04 EDT Navigant Consulting, Lumere announce collaboration to reduce clinical variation - Navigant Consulting and Lumere announced a collaboration to help healthcare providers implement evidence-based, technology-enabled consulting solutions aimed at reducing clinical and financial variation. The goal of the collaboration is to assist hospitals and health systems with reducing unnecessary utilization of drugs and medical devices in such areas as orthopedic, spine, cardiac, and surgical services. Research suggests up to a quarter of overall healthcare expenditures are wasteful and not associated with improved quality. A proven way to reduce waste is to target unnecessary variation in clinical processes. However, providers often lack the resources to analyze major clinical cost factors necessary to drive action. By providing both physicians and hospital leaders with clinically derived, evidence-based data, Lumere accelerates their ability to reduce unnecessary and costly clinical variation.

07:02 EDT Anthem to acquire Aspire Health, financial terms not disclosed - Anthem announced that the company has entered into an agreement to acquire Aspire Health. Aspire currently provides services under contracts with more than 20 health plans to consumers in 25 states. The company uses proprietary predictive clinical and claims-based patient algorithms to identify patients with a serious illness who may benefit from an extra layer of support. Once patients are identified, Aspire assigns a comprehensive care team that includes physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers and chaplains. The team works in an integrated approach to address symptom management, patient-family communication, advance care planning and to coordinate care with other medical professionals including primary care, specialty care and in-home care providers. The company also offers 24-7 support to patients, including nurse practitioner home visits any time if necessary. Aspire was founded in 2013 by former U.S. Senator and physician William Frist and Brad Smith, who serves as CEO of the company. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of 2018 and is subject to standard closing conditions and customary approvals required under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act. The transaction is expected to be neutral to earnings in 2018 and accretive to earnings in 2019.

07:01 EDT Southern Power to sell minority stake in solar portfolio for $1.175B to GAFG - Southern Power, a U.S. wholesale energy provider and subsidiary of Southern Company, announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell a 33% minority interest in its solar portfolio to Global Atlantic Financial Group Limited for a purchase price of $1.175B. The portfolio of projects involved in this transaction is comprised of 26 operating solar facilities representing approximately 1.7 gigawatts of capacity. The energy from these facilities is sold under long-term contracts with customers across the country. Southern Power, through its subsidiaries, will act as the general partner in the partnership and will maintain overall operational responsibilities for the projects. Citigroup Global Markets Inc. is serving as the financial advisor and Jones Day is serving as legal counsel to Southern Power. Troutman Sanders acted as supporting counsel for this transaction. Vinson & Elkins is serving as legal counsel to Global Atlantic Financial Group.

06:52 EDT Tiffany up 7.8% after reporting Q1 results, raising guidance, $1B buyback

06:49 EDT Tiffany announces new $1B share repurchase program - Tiffany's board has approved a new share repurchase program that authorizes the repurchase of up to $1B of the Company's Common Stock through open market transactions, including through Rule 10b5-1 plans and one or more accelerated share repurchase or other structured repurchase transactions, and/or privately negotiated transactions. Purchases under this new program are discretionary and will be made from time to time based on market conditions and the Company's liquidity needs. This new program, which expires on January 31, 2022, will replace the Company's existing share repurchase program announced in January 2016. Under this new program, the Company's Board of Directors also approved the repurchase of $250 million of the Company's Common Stock through an accelerated share repurchase transaction which the Company expects to enter into during its fiscal quarter ending July 31, 2018, subject to market conditions.

06:42 EDT Departing J.C. Penney CEO Ellison says 'appropriate' to step aside

06:41 EDT Departing J.C. Penney CEO Ellison says did not seek out CEO role at Lowe's

06:39 EDT Lowe's down 3.6% after reporting quarterly results

06:37 EDT Clementia reports 'positive' Phase 2B data of Palovarotene in FOP - Clementia Pharmaceuticals reported 'positive' data from Part B of the company's ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating palovarotene, an RARgamma agonist, for the treatment of patients with fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva, or FOP. Treatment with palovarotene resulted in meaningful reductions in new heterotopic ossification volume -bone growth in abnormal places -. Data include a statistically significant 91% reduction in new HO at flare-up sites at 12 weeks. Those who had no new HO at 12 weeks also had no new HO at 12 months. These data suggest that flare-up data could potentially be predictive of longer term outcomes. Palovarotene was generally well-tolerated in the trial. Palovarotene has been generally well-tolerated in this ongoing trial, with the majority of adverse events being mild to moderate mucocutaneous events. Enrollment is well underway in Clementia's Phase 3 MOVE Trial of palovarotene for the treatment of FOP. The MOVE Trial will enroll 80 patients age 4 and older and utilizing the chronic/flare-up dosing regimen. Based on current enrollment, Clementia is on track to report the first interim analysis for the MOVE Trial in mid-2019.

06:20 EDT Lilis Energy enters into crude oil gathering agreement with Arm Energy Holdings - Lilis Energy has entered into a crude oil gathering agreement with Salt Creek Midstream, an ARM Energy Holdings' affiliate. Construction of the project is expected to commence immediately with service to begin in 2019. Salt Creek is building a new regional pipeline system and will provide gathering and transportation service for Lilis' oil production in Texas and New Mexico to the terminal in Winkler County, Texas. The project is supported by a dedicated Area of Mutual Interest, which covers all of Lilis' current acreage in Lea County, New Mexico, and Winkler and Loving Counties in Texas. Lilis will provide its acreage dedication with no volume or CAPEX commitments and Salt Creek will provide all capital for the oil gathering system. Salt Creek's system will be constructed, managed and operated by ARM Midstream Management, an affiliate of ARM Energy. Salt Creek, a joint venture of ARM Energy Holdings and funds managed by Ares Management, L.P., is a full-service midstream provider.

06:15 EDT Abbott's Tendyne device shows positive results at 30 days global study - Abbott announced 'favorable' outcomes from the first 100 patients treated in a global study of its Tendyne Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement system, a mitral replacement valve that is repositionable and fully retrievable to allow for more precise implantation. Results at 30 days demonstrated that Tendyne 'is associated with a significant reduction of mitral regurgitation symptoms and low mortality rates'. The data were presented during a late-breaking session at EuroPCR, the annual meeting of the European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions, in Paris. Nearly one in 10 people over the age of 75 have moderate to severe MR1. The global study plans to enroll up to 350 adult patients with symptomatic MR who are not eligible for open-heart surgery to repair or replace the mitral valve. In these early results from the study, investigators successfully implanted the Tendyne system in 97 of the first 100 patients. Treated patients experienced a significant reduction in mitral regurgitation at 30 days, as well as improvements in symptoms. This represented a favorable 0.76 (6/7.9) ratio of observed-to-expected mortality, or a measure of assumed patient deaths due to age or other comorbities beyond a care team's control. Tendyne is currently under clinical investigation in Europe, and Abbott expects to enroll the first patient in the U.S. pivotal trial in the coming months.

06:13 EDT Cara Therapeutics, Fresenius Medical's joint venture enter licensing agreement - Cara Therapeutics (CARA) announced that it has licensed worldwide rights, except in the U.S., Japan and South Korea, to commercialize Korsuva injection for the treatment of chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus in dialysis patients to Vifor Fresenius Medical Care, a joint company of Vifor Pharma Group and Fresenius Medical Care (FMS) that specializes in treatments for CKD. The FDA granted breakthrough therapy designation to Korsuva injection for this indication, for which there are currently no approved therapies in the U.S. or E.U.

06:10 EDT GDS Holdings acquires new data center in Shanghai - GDS Holdings acquired a new data center in Shanghai. The data center is located close to the company's existing facilities in Waigaoqiao district, Shanghai's premier data center hub. It is currently under construction and will enter service by mid-year. The acquisition is expected to close in the current quarter.

06:07 EDT Lowe's says prolonged unfavorable weather delayed spring selling season - "We drove solid performance in indoor categories and continued to grow our sales to Pro customers. However, prolonged unfavorable weather across geographies led to a delayed spring selling season which impacted results in outdoor categories," commented Robert Niblock, Lowe's chairman, president and CEO. "Spring has now arrived and we are encouraged by strong sales in the month of May. As of May 4, Lowe's operated 2,154 home improvement and hardware stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico representing 215.1 million square feet of retail selling space.

05:56 EDT Achieve Life Sciences announces 1-for-10 reverse stock split - Achieve Life Sciences announced a reverse stock split of its shares of common stock at a ratio of 1-for-10. The reverse stock split will become effective on May 23, 2018, and shares will begin trading on the split-adjusted basis on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the Company's existing trading symbol "ACHV" at market open on May 24, 2018. At the effective time of the reverse stock split, every ten shares of the Company's issued and outstanding common stock will be automatically combined and reclassified into one issued and outstanding share of common stock. The reverse stock split will not affect any stockholder's ownership percentage of the Company's common stock, alter the par value of the Company's common stock, or modify any voting rights or other terms of the common stock.

05:53 EDT Medtronic announces data from SPYRAL HTN-ON MED Study - Medtronic announced first-ever-data from the SPYRAL HTN-ON MED Study. Initial study results found statistically significant and clinically important blood pressure reductions in hypertensive patients prescribed anti-hypertension medications treated with the Symplicity Spyral renal denervation, or RDN, system with no major adverse safety events out to six months. The Late-Breaking Trial data, presented at the 2018 EuroPCR Annual Meeting in Paris, was published simultaneously in The Lancet. The Symplicity Spyral system is investigational in the United States and Japan. At six months, patients randomized to the renal denervation procedure experienced an average 9 mm Hg drop in 24-hour mean systolic ambulatory blood pressure, or ABPM, resulting in a 7.4 mm Hg difference compared to patients in the sham control arm. For RDN patients, 24-hour mean diastolic ABPM also declined 6 mm Hg, which is 4.1 mm Hg lower than the sham control arm. Likewise, average office systolic blood pressure, or OBP, in patients in the RDN arm declined 9.4 mm Hg - a 6.8 mm Hg difference from the sham control arm, and the diastolic OBP declined 5.2 mm Hg, a 3.5 mm Hg difference from the sham control arm.

05:45 EDT Agilent agrees to acquire assets from Young In Scientific, terms not disclosed - Agilent Technologies announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Agilent-related business from Young In Scientific. YI Scientific is a leading distributor of analytical and scientific instruments in South Korea and a long-time distributor of Agilent instruments and services. More than 100 employees from Young In and its affiliates are expected to join Agilent Technologies Korea Limited when the acquisition is final. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed.

05:27 EDT Hilton to cut environmental footprint in half by 2030 - Hilton announced it will cut its environmental footprint in half and double its social impact investment by 2030. With this commitment, Hilton will become the first major hotel company to institute science-based targets to reduce carbon emissions and send zero soap to landfill. The company will also double the amount it spends with local and minority-owned suppliers, and double its investment in programs to help women and youth around the world. These goals are part of Hilton's Travel with Purpose corporate responsibility strategy to further the United Nation's 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. Since 2008, the company has reduced carbon emissions and waste by 30% and energy and water consumption by 20%, saving more than $1 billion in operating efficiencies. LightStay, an award-winning performance measurement system calculates, analyzes and reports the environmental impact at each of Hilton's more than 5,300 hotels. Hilton will use LightStay to track its goal of reducing carbon emissions by 61% across its portfolio by 2030.