Stockwinners Market Radar for December 06, 2018 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:04 EDT First Midwest to acquire Bridgeview Bank for $145M - First Midwest Bancorp announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Bridgeview Bancorp, the holding company for Bridgeview Bank Group. Bridgeview has approximately $1.2 billion in total assets, $1.1B in deposits, of which nearly 75% are core deposits, and $800M in loans. It operates 13 banking offices across greater Chicagoland, including branches in the Bryn Mawr, Edgewater, Garfield Ridge, Lincoln Park, Lincoln Square and Uptown neighborhoods of Chicago, as well as several suburbs. The merger agreement provides for a fixed exchange ratio of 0.2767 shares of First Midwest common stock, plus $1.79 in cash for each share of Bridgeview common stock, with an overall transaction value of approximately $145M, subject to certain adjustments. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals, the approval of Bridgeview's stockholders and the completion of various closing conditions, and is anticipated to close in the second quarter of 2019.

19:03 EDT Fly Intel: After Hours Movers - UP AFTER EARNINGS: American Outdoor Brands (AOBC) up 16.3%... Comtech Telecom (CMTL) up 9.4%... Broadcom (AVGO) up 4.5%. ALSO HIGHER: Yelp (YELP) up 4.2% after entering S&P Midcap 400 index. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: United Natural Foods (UNFI) down 11.1%... Zumiez (ZUMZ) down 6.5%... Ulta Beauty (ULTA) down 5.1%... Cooper Companies (COO) down 2.5%... Blue Bird Corp (BLBD) down 0.5%... National Beverage (FIZZ) down 0.4%... Lululemon (LULU) down 0.3%. ALSO LOWER: OrthoPediatrics (KIDS) down 11.5% after equity offering... Markel Corp (MKL) down 5.9% after disclosing regulatory inquiry related to loss reserve disclosure... Global Blood Therapeutics (GBT) down 2.1% after equity offering... Quotient Ltd (QTNT) down 1.7% after equity offering.

18:17 EDT S&P announces changes to S&P MidCap 400, S&P SmallCap 600 indices - Gulfport Energy (GPOR) will replace Oclaro (OCLR) in the S&P SmallCap 600, and Yelp (YELP) will replace Gulfport Energy in the S&P MidCap 400 effective prior to the open of trading on Wednesday, December 12. Lumentum Holdings (LITE) is acquiring Oclaro in a deal expected to be completed soon pending final conditions. Gulfport Energy has a market capitalization more representative of the small-cap market space.

18:05 EDT Markel cooperating with U.S. and Bermuda authorities on loss reserve disclosure - Markel Corporation said that after having been contacted on November 30, 2018, it is fully cooperating with inquiries by US and Bermuda authorities into loss reserves recorded in late 2017 and early 2018 at Markel CATCo Investment Management Ltd and its subsidiaries. These inquiries are limited to Markel CATCo Investment Management Ltd and its subsidiaries and do not involve other Markel Corporation companies. Outside counsel has been retained to conduct an internal review.

17:49 EDT HCL Technologies confirms agreement to buy IBM software products for $1.8B - IBM and HCL Technologies confirm the announced definitive agreement under which HCL will acquire select IBM software products for $1.8 billion. The transaction is expected to close by mid-2019, subject to completion of applicable regulatory reviews. The software products in scope represent a total addressable market of more than $50 billion and include: Appscan for secure application development, BigFix for secure device management, Unica (on-premise) for marketing automation, Commerce (on-premise) for omni-channel eCommerce, Portal (on-premise) for digital experience, Notes & Domino for email and low-code rapid application development, and Connections for workstream collaboration. HCL and IBM have an ongoing IP Partnership for five of these products.

17:36 EDT IF Bancorp announces buyback program - IF Bancorp on Thursday said the board increased the number of shares that may be purchased under the company's existing stock repurchase plan. Under the new terms, 290,356 shares of common stock, or approximately 7.5% of the company's outstanding shares, still may be repurchased under the plan.

17:25 EDT SWK Holdings announces $3.5M share repurchase program - SWK Holdings announced that its board has authorized the company to repurchase up to an aggregate of $3,500,000 of the company's common Stock from time to time until May 31, 2019 through a "10b5-1 trading plan" in compliance with Rule 10b-18 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Repurchases pursuant to the program may not exceed an aggregate of approximately 3% of the issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock pursuant to the terms of the Stockholders' Agreement by and among affiliates of Carslon Capital, LP and the Company dated August 18, 2014.

17:19 EDT Gulfport Energy to replace Oclaro in S&P 600 at open on 12/12 - Lumentum Holdings (LITE) is acquiring Oclaro (OCLR) in a deal expected to be completed soon pending final conditions. Gulfport Energy (GPOR) has a market capitalization more representative of the small-cap market space.

17:16 EDT FDA approves Genentech's Tecentriq regimen for treatment of NSCLC - Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, announced that the U.S. FDA approved Tecentriq, in combination with Avastin, paclitaxel and carboplatin, for the initial treatment of people with metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations.

17:13 EDT Textron plan to restructure specialized unit approved - On December 4, Textron's board approved a plan to restructure the Textron Specialized Vehicles businesses within the company's Industrial segment. "We expect to incur pre-tax charges in the range of $60M to $85M under this plan, which will be recorded in the fourth quarter of 2018." "Textron Specialized Vehicles has undergone significant changes since the acquisition of Arctic Cat as we have expanded the product portfolio and integrated manufacturing operations and retail distribution. The restructuring actions under this plan are expected to result in improved operating results for these businesses. Severance and related costs for this plan are estimated to be in the range of $10M to $15M. Contract termination and other facility closure charges are estimated to be in the range of $5M to $15M. Impairment charges are estimated to be in the range of $45M to $55M and largely relate to acquired intangible assets. Expected cash outlays in connection with this plan are estimated to be in the range of $15M to $30M, with up to $10M in the fourth quarter of 2018 and the remainder in 2019. We anticipate that this plan will be substantially completed by the end of 2018."

17:10 EDT Boeing awarded $158.95M Air Force contract modification - Boeing has been awarded a $158.95M firm-fixed-price modification to contract FA8609-18-F-0006 for one KC-46A Japan aircraft. This modification provides for the exercise of an option for an additional quantity of one aircraft being produced under the basic contract. Work will be performed in Seattle and is expected to be completed by June 30, 2021. This modification involves foreign military sales to Japan. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $449.38M. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center is the contracting activity.

17:07 EDT Northrop Grumman awarded $450M Air Force contract - Northrop Grumman has been awarded a $450M indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for U.S. agencies and foreign military sales countries for joint threat emitter production end-items, spares, support equipment, testing, training, etc. Work will be performed in Buffalo, New York, and various contiguous U.S. and outside the continental U.S. locations and is expected to be completed by December 5, 2025. This contract involves foreign military sales to U.S. partner countries. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and one offer was received. FY18 other procurement funds in the amount of $9.15M are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center is the contracting activity.

17:01 EDT Solaris Oilfield initiates quarterly dividend of 10c per share - The dividend is payable on December 27, 2018 to holders of record as of December 17, 2018.

17:00 EDT Cisco's Tan sells 28,000 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Cisco senior VP and chief of operations Irving Tan disclosed the sale of 28,000 common shares of the company at a price of $48.4331 per share.

16:55 EDT Edison International increases annual dividend by 3c per share - Edison International declared a quarterly common stock dividend of $0.6125 per share, payable on January 31, 2019, to shareholders of record on December 31, 2018. This action increases the annual dividend by $0.03 per share. The 2019 annual dividend rate will be $2.45 per share. "The company's top priority continues to be the safety of our customers, communities and employees, particularly given the tragic consequences of recent wildfires," said Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of Edison International. "We will continue to make the investments necessary to deliver safe, reliable and affordable electricity. Over the long term, providing value in the form of earnings growth and dividends, like the one announced today, helps us maintain a lower cost of capital to manage customer rates. In declaring this dividend, the Board considered the likely ability of the company to meet its liabilities as they mature, as well as a broad range of potential negative outcomes related to the Thomas and Woolsey fires. Our dividend rate is within our targeted payout ratio of 45 to 55 percent of Southern California Edison's earnings."

16:51 EDT Loxo Oncology received $275M milestone payment from Bayer - On December 6, Loxo Oncology (LOXO) received its first milestone payment pursuant to its collaboration with Bayer (BAYRY), equal to $275M, which was earned upon the grant of U.S. Food and Drug Administration marketing approval for Vitrakvi, larotrectinib.

16:45 EDT Point72 Asset Management reports 8.2% passive stake in SunOpta

16:44 EDT Point72 Asset Management reports 5.3% passive stake in Boot Barn

16:36 EDT CoreSite Realty raises dividend to $1.10 per share - CoreSite Realty announced a cash dividend of $1.10 per share on common stock and common stock equivalents for the fourth quarter of 2018. The dividend will be paid on January 15, to shareholders of record as of December 31, 2018. The current dividend reflects an increase of 6.8% over the prior quarter dividend of $1.03, and a 12.2% increase over the dividend of $0.98 in the fourth quarter 2017. "We are pleased to be able to again increase cash returns to our shareholders as a result of the growth in our cash flows generated from operations," said Jeff Finnin, Chief Financial Officer of CoreSite.

16:32 EDT McDermott awarded 'sizable' FEED contract by Meridian Energy Group - McDermott International, Inc. announced a "sizeable" contract award for front-end engineering design services of the Davis Refinery Project in Billings County, North Dakota, a grassroots refinery that is being developed by Meridian Energy Group Inc. The new Davis Refinery will leverage the prolific crude oil feedstocks generated from the recent Bakken shale revolution - specifically from the Williston Basin in North Dakota. Capacity of the new refinery is expected to be 49,500 barrels per day and will include the production of ultra-low sulfur diesel and premium gasoline. After conclusion of the FEED study, both parties will endeavor to enter into an EPC agreement to build the refinery. The contract award will be reflected in McDermott's fourth quarter 2018 backlog. McDermott defines a sizeable contract between $1M and $50M.

16:31 EDT Owens Corning raises quarterly dividend 5% to 22c per share - The dividend will be payable on January 18, 2019, to shareholders of record as of January 3, 2019.

16:24 EDT Broadcom sees FY19 CapEx approximately $550M

16:23 EDT Arcosa initiates quarterly dividend of 5c per share - The dividend is payable on January 31, 2019, to stockholders of record as of January 15, 2019.

16:22 EDT Broadcom reports Q4 gross margin 53.9% of net revenue - This compares with gross margin of 51.7% of net revenue, in the prior quarter, and gross margin of or 49.2% of net revenue, in the same quarter last year.

16:21 EDT Amerco announces special cash dividend of 50c per share - The dividend will be payable January 7, 2019 to holders of record on December 20, 2018.

16:20 EDT Axis Capital declares dividends and increases common sharedDividend by 2.6% - AXIS Capital Holdings announced that the Company's Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per common share, which represents an increase of 2.6%. The common dividend will be payable on January 15, 2019 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 31, 2018. In addition, the Board declared a dividend of $0.34375 per Series D 5.50% Preferred Share, and a dividend of $34.375 per Series E 5.50% Preferred Share . The Series D Preferred Share dividend is payable on March 1, 2019 to shareholders of record at the close of business on February 15, 2019. The Series E Preferred Share dividend is payable on January 15, 2019 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 31.

16:19 EDT Ingevity begins production at $20M activated carbon extrusion plant in China - Ingevity has begun production at its newly constructed, activated carbon extrusion plant in Changshu, China. The addition of this facility allows the company to meet the significant growth in global demand for pelletized carbon products, which are primarily used in gasoline vapor emission control systems in cars, trucks, motorcycles and boats. The new $20M facility currently houses one new extrusion line and employs approximately 80 people. The company has also relocated its extrusion line from its Wujiang, China, facility to Changshu, and that line is expected to begin production by late Q2 of 2019. Once both lines are operational, the facility will employ about 120 people. The Changshu facility complements existing activated carbon plants in Zhuhai, China, Wickliffe, Kentucky, and Covington, Virginia, as well as the "honeycomb" scrubber plant in Waynesboro, Georgia. In addition, and as announced previously, the Covington facility is currently undergoing a series of upgrades that include the addition of a new pellet extrusion line that will use the same technology employed at the Changshu facility.

16:19 EDT Zumiez plans to open one more store in 2018 - The company has opened 12 new stores this year through December 1, 2018 including 5 stores in North America and 7 stores in Europe.

16:18 EDT Zumiez sees Q4 comparable sales growth of 0%-2%

16:17 EDT Broadcom raises target dividend 51% to $2.65 for FY19

16:16 EDT Zumiez reports November comparable store sales increase of 2.3%

16:16 EDT Zumiez reports Q3 comparable sales increase of 4.8%

16:14 EDT Lululemon drops 7.9% after Q3 results

16:12 EDT Net 1 UEPS says CPS, SASSA price not subject to Constitutional Court endorsement - Net 1 UEPS announced that it has received an order from the Constitutional Court of South Africa regarding the determination of fees and payment between the company's subsidiary, cash paymaster services, or CPS and SASSA. It is declared that, for the period of six months from April, SASSA and CPS are under a constitutional obligation to ensure payment of social grants to beneficiaries who are paid in cash. SASSA and CPS must ensure that for the period of six months from April payment of social grants is made to beneficiaries who are paid in cash on the same terms and conditions as those in the current contract between them. CPS may in writing request National Treasury during the six month period to investigate and make a recommendation regarding the price to be paid for the service it is to render. National Treasury must file a report with this Court within 21 days of receipt of the request setting out its recommendation. SASSA interpreted the above order to imply that the Constitutional Court had to rule specifically on the matter in order for them to adopt the Treasury recommended rate of ZAR44.35 for cash payments and ZAR16.94 for biometric payments performed by CPS, versus the previously contracted rate of ZAR14.42. The company accordingly filed an urgent application on August 22 with the Constitutional Court to obtain the Court's endorsement of the Treasury recommended rate. The Constitutional Court has now ordered that it will not consider the urgent application, on the basis that "it is not in the interest of justice to hear it because nothing prevents the parties from coming to an agreement on increased payments without court sanction, and if they do not, normal legal processes in other courts must be filed to determine the effects."

16:10 EDT Merchants Bancorp to acquire assets of NattyMac - Merchants Bancorp announced that its subsidiary, Merchants Bank of Indiana, has entered into an agreement with Home Point Financial Corporation, to acquire the assets of Home Point's wholly owned subsidiary, NattyMa, a warehouse lender operating out of Clearwater, Florida. Merchants expects the acquisition to close by the end of 2018. Merchants also fully repaid Home Point the balance of and all interest owed on the $30M subordinated debt it had previously invested in Merchants under the NattyMac structure. Other transaction terms were not disclosed.

16:08 EDT Lululemon sees Q4 SSS up in the high-single to low-double digits

16:08 EDT PAR Technology names Savneet Singh interim CEO - PAR Technology Corporation announced today that Savneet Singh, a member of the company's Board of Directors since April 2018, has been appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer and President of the Company, effective December 4, 2018. The company also announced that Dr. Donald H. Foley has stepped-down as CEO and President, and as a director of the company. The Board's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee has initiated a search process to identify a permanent CEO and has retained a leading executive search firm to assist in its efforts.

16:06 EDT Phibro Animal Health acquires assets of KoVax Ltd. - Phibro Animal Health Corporation announced it has acquired the assets of KoVax Ltd., an Israel-based developer and manufacturer of vaccines for the global aquaculture market. The acquisition strengthens Phibro's position in fish vaccine innovation and expands its portfolio of aquaculture products.

16:05 EDT Ulta Beauty CEO: Q3 saw 'healthy new store traffic, excellent productivity' - CEO Mary Dillon says: "Ulta Beauty's strong performance in the third quarter reflects continued market share gains across all major categories, acceleration in our overall comp driven by healthy traffic, excellent new store productivity, and robust e-commerce growth."

16:05 EDT Eastman Chemical increases quarterly dividend 11% - The board of Eastman Chemical Company has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 62c per share on the company's common stock, an 11% increase from 56c per share. The dividend is payable Jan. 4, 2019, to stockholders of record as of Dec. 17, 2018.

16:02 EDT Capella University's EPP granted accreditation by CAEP through 2024 - Capella University's Educator Preparation Provider unit has been granted accreditation by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation through 2024. Created by the consolidation of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the Teacher Education Accreditation Council, CAEP is the single specialized accreditor for educator preparation in the United States. For an institution or specialized program to become CAEP accredited, it must demonstrate it meets standards set by organizations representing the academic community, professionals, and other stakeholders. CAEP accreditation ensures that there is solid evidence that Capella University's graduates are competent and caring, and that Capella University's EPP staff have created a culture of continuous improvement.

15:18 EDT Cinedigm announces plans to launch OTT and content distribution platform - Cinedigm announced plans to launch "matchpoint," which it calls "an innovative managed-service technology platform that enables content distributors, OTT service operators, web publishers, and OEMs to efficiently and cost-effectively create compelling OTT and media subscription services." matchpoint will be offered at competitive pricing to suit the unique needs of potential customers, the company stated. It will be available for preview at the upcoming CES conference in Las Vegas from January 8-11, Cinedigm added.

15:02 EDT Beneficial Bancorp stockholders approve merger with WSFS Financial - Beneficial Bancorp (BNCL) announced that its stockholders approved the previously announced merger of Beneficial with and into WSFS Financial Corporation (WSFS) at a special meeting of stockholders held today. Subject to the receipt of all required regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, the parties expect to close the merger in the first quarter of 2019.

14:26 EDT Brandywine Realty increases quarterly dividend 5.6% - Brandywine Realty Trust announced that its board declared a quarterly cash dividend of 19c per common share and OP Unit payable on January 22, 2019 to holders of record on January 8, 2019. The quarterly dividend is equivalent to an annual rate of 76c per share representing a 5.6% increase from the previous annual dividend rate of 72c per share.

13:37 EDT Dimon says not a buyer of government bonds at current prices - JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is speaking on CNBC.

13:33 EDT MacroGenics announces license agreement with Trianni for Trianni Mouse - Trianni and MacroGenics announced that they have entered into a license agreement for The Trianni Mouse, a transgenic mouse R&D platform for the discovery of fully-human monoclonal antibodies, to support MacroGenics' discovery programs for monoclonal antibody-based therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. No financial details were disclosed.

13:32 EDT Dimon sees 60% chance of trade resolution between U.S., China - JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is speaking on CNBC.

13:30 EDT JPMorgan CEO says U.S., China still in trade 'skrmish,' not 'war' - Jamie Dimon is speaking on CNBC.

13:17 EDT RBS seeks approval of Transfer Scheme ahead of Brexit move - The Royal Bank of Scotland announced that a petition was presented to the Court of Session in Scotland on December 6, 2018 for an order under Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 requesting approval of a Transfer Scheme for the replication of master trade documentation for non-UK European Economic Area customers and the transfer of certain existing transactions of EEA customers from NatWest Markets Plc to NatWest Markets N.V. As previously announced, in anticipation of the UK's departure from the European Union on March 29, 2019, The Royal Bank of Scotland Group has been making its Dutch subsidiary, NatWest Markets N.V., operationally ready to serve NatWest Markets Plc customers who are incorporated or located in the European Economic Area. NatWest Markets N.V. is currently a subsidiary of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc and, subject to approvals, is expected to transfer to become a subsidiary of NatWest Markets Plc in 2019. The Scheme impacts approximately 30% of NatWest Markets Plc's customers, who account for approximately 20% of the NatWest Markets franchise revenues. In a scenario where there is an expectation of an immediate loss of access to the European Single Market up to circa GBP 6bn equivalent of third party assets and up to circa GBP7B equivalent of third party liabilities are expected to transfer from NatWest Markets Plc to NatWest Markets N.V. During a transition period, the move of non-UK EEA customers to NatWest Markets N.V. may be more gradual and subject to further political developments.

13:01 EDT Cloud software company Cloudera spikes after results, peers folllow - Shares of Cloudera (CLDR), a cloud software company that provides a platform for machine learning and analytics, surged on Thursday after reporting results for its third quarter that blew past analyst estimates. QUARTERLY RESULTS AND GUIDANCE BEAT ESTIMATES: Cloudera reported a loss per share for Q3 of (3c) on revenue of $118.2M. Analysts were modeling an (11c) loss on revenue of $113.88M. "We are pleased with our execution in Q3 and our progress on the strategic combination we have announced with Hortonworks (HDP). Pre-closing merger integration planning is going well. And more importantly, we are very encouraged by the reception that our plans are receiving from customers, partners, and the developer community," said Cloudera Chief Executive Officer Tom Reilly. He added that "Together, we will enhance our competitiveness, accelerate our momentum in cloud innovation, and provide a comprehensive solution-set for customers, from the Edge to AI." Cloudera's guidance for Q4 was also better than analyst projections, forecasting EPS of (12c)-(10c) on revenue of $119M-$122M. The company sees FY19 EPS of (40c)-(38c) on revenue of $450M-$453M. COMBINATION WITH HORTONWORKS: In November, Needham analyst Jack Andrews upgraded Cloudera to Strong Buy from Buy and raised his price target to $31 from $23, citing his deeper review of its combination with Hortonworks, saying it will bring "accelerating operating leverage" and "strategic value" given their respective areas of strength in separate use cases of Internet of Things and AI/Machine Learning. Andrews also notes that some customers prefer to have a single vendor, adding that his review of the synergies suggests a "large valuation gap" for the company relative to its peers. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Cloudera are up 12% to $12.98 in afternoon trading. CLOUD PEERS TRADE HIGHER: On a day when major U.S. indices trade dramatically lower, shares of Workday (WDAY), SendGrid (SEND), Twilio (TWLO), Box (BOX), Instructure (INST), MobileIron (MOBL), Splunk (SPLK), Tableau (DATA) ServiceNow (NOW), Hortonworks are all higher.

12:48 EDT Boeing CEO 'very confident' in safety of 737 MAX - Regarding the crash of Lion Air flight 610, Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg said on CNBC, "Bottom line here, very important, is that the 737 MAX is safe. We're very confident in that, we have not changed our design philosophy."

12:43 EDT Take-Two's Rockstar says making balance changes to 'Red Dead Online' - Take-Two's Rockstar Games said that it is starting to implement the first set of adjustments to "Red Dead Online," the multiplayer component of "Red Dead Redemption 2," including changes specifically geared towards creating a more balanced, fun and rewarding overall experience, across all modes and missions. These include: increasing the cash and gold payments across a number of different activities including Free Roam Missions, Free Roam Events, replays of A Land of Opportunities Missions, Showdown Series modes and more; reducing the prices of most weapons in the Wheeler, Rawson & Co Catalogue and Gunsmiths; for players that have already purchased weapons at the previous prices, the company will automatically deposit the difference to player balances starting today; balancing the values of select pelts, skins and fish as well as horse reviver and pamphlets. "As an added thank you for playing and helping us through the beta period, we're also awarding everyone that joined in to play the Red Dead Online Beta at any point through midnight PST today with a gift of RDO$250 and 15 Gold Bars," the company said. "Gifts should start arriving today and will hit all eligible players by Friday, December 14th." Reference Link

12:20 EDT Micron says Mercedes Johnson, Lawrence Mondry to resign from board - In a regulatory filing, Micron disclosed that Mercedes Johnson and Lawrence Mondry have indicated that they will be resigning from the board of directors of Micron Technology immediately prior to the company's annual meeting of shareholders on January 17, 2019. As a result, they will not be standing for re-election to the company's board. "Neither resignation was the result of any dispute or disagreement with the company or the company's board of directors on any matter relating to the operations, policies or practices of the company," Micron stated.

12:14 EDT Cooperman names AMC, Citi, DowDuPont, Alphabet as stock picks - Leon Cooperman of Omega Advisors is speaking on CNBC.

12:12 EDT Cooperman says market is just correcting as there's no recession signs - Leon Cooperman of Omega Advisors is speaking on CNBC.

12:09 EDT Rexahn updates estimated date of first enrollment in TNBC trial - Rexahn (RNN) is updating the estimated date of first patient enrollment in the trial of RX-5902 and Merck's (MRK) KEYTRUDA in triple negative breast cancer, or TNBC, to the second half of 2019 from the previous estimate of early 2019. "We are encouraged by pre-clinical data showing that RX-5902 makes cancer cells more susceptible to anti-PD-1 therapy. We look forward to making the needed financial commitments to initiate the Phase 2 clinical trial in TNBC in 2019 as additional resources become available," said Douglas Swirsky, president and CEO of Rexahn. The company intends to cease enrollment in the ongoing Phase 2 study of RX-5902 as monotherapy for patients who have failed multiple prior chemotherapeutic regimens in order to focus RX-5902 development activities on the planned combination trial with KEYTRUDA. In connection with its restructuring, Rexahn said it will also eliminate certain pre-clinical activities. Rexahn is continuing its collaboration with Zhejiang Haichang Biotechnology Co., Ltd., to develop RX-0201for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. As of December 2, 2018, Rexahn had $16M in cash, cash equivalents and investments.

12:06 EDT M&T Bank names Glenn Jackson chief diversity officer - M&T Bank has appointed Glenn Jackson, Group Vice President, as Chief Diversity Officer of M&T Bank. He succeeds Carl Jordan, who announced his retirement following a distinguished 32-year career at M&T. Jackson steps into the Chief Diversity Officer role after serving as Chief Operating Officer and Senior Director of Programs of Buffalo Promise Neighborhood.

12:05 EDT Rexahn announces operational restructuring, workforce reductions - Rexahn Pharmaceuticals earlier announced an operational restructuring that it said "will enable a more efficient development of its clinical-stage oncology pipeline. Rexahn is lowering its operating costs, including eliminating six positions, reducing the company's workforce to 10. The company intends to primarily focus its near-term efforts on the ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial of RX-3117 in combination with ABRAXANE in patients newly diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic cancer. "Encouraging preliminary safety and efficacy data from this trial was presented in October at the 5th NCI Pancreatic Cancer Symposium. Updated data from this study will be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium being held January 17-19, 2019 in San Francisco," the company stated.

12:00 EDT VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN rises 10.7% - VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN is up 10.7%, or $5.61 to $58.01.

12:00 EDT ProShares Trust Ultra VIX Short Term Futures ETF rises 16.7% - ProShares Trust Ultra VIX Short Term Futures ETF is up 16.7%, or $9.53 to $66.51.

11:34 EDT Nuvectra reports Algovita SCS system implantations top 3,000 in U.S. - Nuvectra announced earlier that the company's Algovita Spinal Cord Stimulation system has been implanted in over 3,000 patients in the U.S. Nuvectra CEO Scott Drees commented, "We are excited to achieve another significant U.S. commercial milestone with the 3,000th implantation of the Algovita system. Our growth continues to accelerate with an expanded sales force and supportive physician and patient feedback on the efficacy of the system. We look forward to advancing our growth strategy and driving market share gains."

11:29 EDT Hovnanian sees revenue growth, return to profitability in FY19 - Sees FY19 JV income to be similar to FY18, assuming the spring selling season is similar to what was experienced in FY18. Management said sales are traditionally slow from November through January, so sales should pick up in the second half of FY19. Comments provided during Q4 earnings conference call.

11:22 EDT Easton Energy acquires Gulf Coast NGL pipelines from Williams for $177M - Easton Energy announced the acquisition of approximately 416 miles of Gulf Coast natural gas liquids, or NGL, pipelines from The Williams Companies for $177M in cash. The pipeline assets are primarily used to transport natural gas liquids from various supply sources to petrochemical consumers in Texas and Louisiana markets. The transaction was completed in partnership with Easton's financial sponsor, Cresta Energy Capital, an energy infrastructure focused private equity firm based in Dallas.

11:04 EDT Yangtze River Port and Logistics Ltd trading resumes

11:02 EDT Coca-Cola: 'Mel' Lagomasino to succeed Sam Nunn as lead independent director

10:59 EDT Yangtze River Port and Logistics Ltd trading halted, volatility trading pause

10:43 EDT Korn/Ferry says Christina Gold to succeed George Shaheen as non-exec chair - Korn Ferry announced that Christina A. Gold has been appointed Non-Executive Chair of the Board of Directors of Korn Ferry, effective January 1, 2019. Gold will succeed George T. Shaheen in this role as part of a planned succession. Shaheen has served as Non-Executive Chair of the Board since September 2012. He will remain on the Board until the 2019 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

10:18 EDT Daimler to establish joint mobility company with BMW next year - Daimler (DDAIF) says "The planned joint mobility company with the BMW Group (BMWYY) is expected to be established at the beginning of next year. This has been agreed by Daimler AG and BMW Group. Following the approval of the project by the EU Commission, the two partners are continuing talks with the US antitrust authorities. Completion of the transaction, which was originally planned for 2018 and continues to be pursued by both partners, can no longer be achieved in the remaining weeks of this year. In this context, the expected significant positive valuation and earnings effects at Daimler Financial Services will be realized in 2019. Accordingly, the earnings forecast for the Daimler Financial Services division has been reduced for 2018. The division now expects EBIT to be significantly lower than in the previous year. The forecast for the Daimler Group's EBIT in the 2018 financial year remains unaffected and unchanged. As previously announced, the transaction will not have any cash-flow impact on the industrial business."

10:05 EDT State Oil Company of Azerbaijan selects Honeywell for modernization program - Honeywell announced that the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic will use Honeywell UOP's Pressure Swing Adsorption technology to supply high-quality hydrogen as part of the modernization of the Heydar Aliyev Oil Refinery in Baku, Azerbaijan. Pure hydrogen is essential to the refining process, where it is used to decontaminate oil and facilitate catalytic processes that produce clean-burning fuels, including those that meet Euro V standards for vehicle emissions. The PSA technology will help Azerbaijan meet growing domestic demand for transportation fuels that meet the Euro V standards. Honeywell UOP will provide two PSA units to the refinery, both of which will be controlled by Honeywell Process Solutions C300 distributed control systems. When completed, the modernization will enable the refinery to process 7.5 million metric tons per annum of crude oil blended from local sources, including heavier Neft Dashlari and lighter Surakhani and Shirvan crude oils and efficiently produce Euro V gasoline and diesel, jet fuel and asphalt.

10:00 EDT First Bancshares trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:48 EDT Travelport jumps after Reuters says takeover deal nearly done - Shares of Travelport have jumped in early trading after Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that a consortium of Siris Capital Group and Elliott Management is close to an agreement to buy the company. Following the report, Travelport shares are up 95c, or 6.4%, to $15.90.

09:47 EDT Avista falls -13.6% - Avista is down -13.6%, or -$7.00 to $44.40.

09:47 EDT Britannia Bulk rises 8.8% - Britannia Bulk is up 8.8%, or $1.06 to $13.08.

09:47 EDT ProShares Trust Ultra VIX Short Term Futures ETF rises 13.4% - ProShares Trust Ultra VIX Short Term Futures ETF is up 13.4%, or $7.64 to $64.62.

09:36 EDT Och-Ziff Capital expected to effect 1-for-10 reverse stock split - Following the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange on January 3, 2019, it is expected that Oz will effect a 1-for-10 reverse stock split of its Class A shares. Oz's Class A Shares will begin trading on a reverse split-adjusted basis at the opening of trading on January 4, 2019. Upon the effectiveness of the reverse stock split, every 10 Class A shares issued and outstanding on the effective date will be consolidated into one issued and outstanding Class A share, except to the extent that the reverse stock split results in any of the company's shareholders owning a fractional share, in which case such shares will be rounded up or down in accordance with the company's second amended and restated limited liability company agreement. The Class A Shares will continue trading on a split-adjusted basis under the existing trading symbol but, from the opening of the markets on January 4, 2019 they are expected to trade under a new CUSIP number. Based on the number of Class A shares currently outstanding, the reverse stock split will reduce the number of Class A shares from approximately 192M pre-reverse split Class A shares to approximately 19.2M post-reverse split Class A shares. The Class B shares will be subject to a similar reverse stock split.

09:33 EDT Och-Ziff Capital announce plan for equity relocation, change in tax class - Och-Ziff Capital announced a strategic plan that includes a significant equity reallocation by Chairman Daniel Och and former executive managing directors to current executive managing directors, facilitates deleveraging of the company's balance sheet, and converts the company's tax classification from a partnership to a corporation. As part of the plan, Daniel Och and the other holders of Class A Units in the company's operating partnerships will collectively reallocate 35% of their Class A units to current executive managing directors in the form of a new class of interests entitling holders to future profits and gains. The Class E units related to this reallocation will fully vest over a multi-year period to ensure the stability and commitment of the company's key senior investment professionals and senior leadership. In addition, the holders of the existing preferred will forfeit 7.5M of their Class A units which will be reallocated. In conjunction with the foregoing, certain key executive managing directors are expected to enter into certain arrangements with the company, which will include a reduction in current annual compensation. Current and former executive managing directors of Oz are temporarily foregoing distributions on all their common units in the Oz Operating Group to enable the company to pay down its debt and preferred securities and to make distributions to public shareholders. All holders of publicly traded shares are expected to receive distributions, subject to an annual minimum of 20% and an annual maximum of up to 30% of distributable earnings per year or, if the minimum would be 10c or less per Class A share per year, then up to 10c per Class A share per year. The Distribution Holiday will remain in place until the earlier of such time that $600M of cash has accumulated for use as described in this paragraph and April 1, 2026. The company will amend the existing tax receivable agreement to provide that certain payments are no longer due to the recipients for tax years 2017 and 2018. This amendment provides the company with cash of between $50M-$60M, which will be used, along with existing cash, to pay down at closing approximately $100M of the outstanding term loan under the company's credit facility. The existing preferred will be restructured into $200M of new debt and $200M into new preferred with substantially the same terms as the existing preferred, except that the company will have the opportunity to repay both securities at a discount which could result in combined principal savings of up to $60M. The new securities will not accrue interest until February 2020. To the extent the new preferred is not paid in full on or prior to March 31, 2022, then, at the option of the holders thereof, such new preferred may be converted into new debt. Oz will institute a cash sweep arrangement during the Distribution Holiday under which substantially all "economic income" after public distributions, will be applied to repay the outstanding term loan and then to redeem the new preferred. These cash sweep arrangements will not apply if it would result in Oz having a minimum "free cash balance" of less than $200M, except in certain specified circumstances. As of September 30, Och's balances in the Oz funds were approximately 3% of the company's assets under management. In connection with his transition from the company, Och intends to redeem all of his liquid balances in the Oz funds representing approximately 66% of his total balance as of September 30. These liquid balances will, subject to certain exceptions, be redeemed by the end of Q1 of 2019. The plan contemplates a number of corporate governance changes to implement Och's transition. Among other things, the Class B Shareholder Committee is expected to be disbanded and the Class B Shareholders agreement will be terminated; Och and the Conflicts Committee will have certain rights to appoint replacement directors to the company's board, if applicable, prior to the 2019 annual stockholders meeting; and certain transition changes will be made to the boards of the general partners of the Oz Operating Group entities, the Partner Management Committee, the firm's internal committees and the boards of the applicable Oz funds, in each case, on the timelines and subject to the occurrence of certain events as described. In addition, the plan provides that Och will resign as a director at the next annual meeting held at least 30 days following Och's redemptions. The company intends to change its tax classification from a partnership to a corporation effective December 31; provided that there can be no assurance that such date will be achieved and the company will make a public filing confirming the actual date of effectiveness on or before December 31. In addition, the company expects to effect a conversion of its organizational form from a limited liability company to a corporation in 2019 in connection with the implementation of the announced plan. Oz believes that a simplified tax structure and entity conversion has multiple benefits, including a broadening of the potential shareholder base and simplifying shareholder tax reporting. The company expects the strategic actions described in this press release to be completed on or before January 15, 2019. The Conflicts Committee of the company's board unanimously approved the plan and unanimously recommended that the board approve the plan. The board, acting on the unanimous recommendation of the Conflicts Committee, approved the terms of the plan.

09:30 EDT Pyxus' industrial hemp JV launches line of CBD products - Pyxus International earlier announced that its joint venture, Criticality, an integrated North Carolina-based industrial hemp company operating under North Carolina's industrial hemp pilot program, has launched "Korent," its new line of cannabidiol oil products. Korent's full-spectrum oil drops are available in Vanilla Mint and Grape flavors, in multiple sizes and concentrations. Flavors were custom designed for hemp products in partnership with Purilum, LLC, a flavor manufacturer and Pyxus-affiliated company.

09:15 EDT Norwegian Cruise Line announces partnership with Huna Totem for cruise pier - Norwegian Cruise Line announced a partnership with Alaska Native-owned Huna Totem to develop a second cruise pier in Icy Strait Point, Huna Totem's world-class cruise ship destination in Hoonah, Alaska. The pier is scheduled to be completed for the summer 2020 Alaska cruise season and will be built to accommodate Norwegian Cruise Line's breakaway plus-class ships. The partnership will provide Norwegian Cruise Line's brands with preferential berthing rights in the popular port destination and allow the company to increase its calls to Icy Strait Point. Currently Oceania Cruises' Regatta, Seven Seas Mariner, Norwegian Jewel and Norwegian Joy are scheduled to call on Icy Strait Point in the 2019 season. In addition, the new pier will provide more cruise passengers with access to Icy Strait's newly upgraded retail, restaurant and shore excursion amenities.

09:09 EDT Perspecta awarded $23.5M HR systems integration contract by U.S. Army - Perspecta has been awarded the Army Human Resource Systems' Systems Integration Support Services contract from the U.S. Army Program Executive Officer Enterprise Information Systems. The contract, which represents follow-on work for the company, has a 10 and a half month base and a $23.5M ceiling if all options are exercised. The AHRS mission is to provide continued system development and integration of current personnel-related systems and tools. Under the contract, Perspecta will continue to provide various services, including: exercise operations support, risk management, network engineering, application portfolio management, asset management, service desk and security operations.

09:08 EDT Kratos Defense awarded SeaPort next generation contract with $5B potential value - Kratos Defense announced that its defense & rocket support services division has been awarded a SeaPort next generation prime contract to provide engineering and program management support services to the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. This SEAPORT-E follow-on contract vehicle has a five-year base and five-year option ordering period, with a potential value of $5B per year or $50B over the 10 year contract life span for all Seaport NxG awardees, to procure future support services requirements.

09:08 EDT Fly Intel: Pre-market Movers - HIGHER: TheStreet (TST), up 35% after announcing that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its institutional business units, The Deal and BoardEx, for $87.3M to Euromoney Institutional Investor... UP AFTER EARNINGS: Michaels (MIK), up 7%... Land's End (LE), up 6%... Five Below (FIVE), up 2%... Patterson Companies (PDCO), up 2%. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: Children's Place (PLCE), down 11%... G-III apparel (GIII), down 2%... Thor Industries (THO), down 8%... Kroger (KR), down 1%. LOWER: Avista (AVA), down 15% after Washington UTC denies Avista and Hydro One's proposed merger... Lam Research (LRCX), down 3% after its CEO resigned as the company investigates his alleged misconduct.

09:05 EDT FCA names Niel Golightly as Global Chief Communications Officer - Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCAU) CEO Mike Manley issued the following email to FCA employees worldwide: "As you recall, in early October we announced senior executive changes that underscored the depth of expertise we have leading FCA. That team is now fully engaged across our regions, brands, and functional groups, focused on delivering our five-year business plan commitments. To build on those appointments, today I'm pleased to announce additional changes to our leadership team, effective immediately. These moves help bring critical skills to key roles, including external perspectives to broaden our frame of reference as we continue our relentless pursuit of best practices in everything we do. Mark Stewart is named Chief Operating Officer of our North America region. Most recently Mark served as Amazon's (AMZN) Vice President of Operations, overseeing customer fulfillment across 200 facilities with 180,000 employees. Niel Golightly is named Global Chief Communications Officer. Niel joins our company from Shell Oil Company (RDS.A) where he served as the Vice President of External Relations Americas. Mike Keegan is named Chief Audit, Sustainability and Compliance Officer. Mike, who previously served as Global Head of Communications, is replacing Alessandro Baldi who has announced his intent to retire in the first quarter of 2019. During this period, Mike and Sandro will work closely together to ensure a smooth transition."

09:04 EDT Gevo, Renmatix announce development agreement to evaluate renewable jet fuel - Gevo and Renmatix announced a joint development agreement to evaluate the commercial feasibility of creating renewable jet fuel by integrating Renmatix's plantrose process with Gevo's GIFTTM technology and alcohol to jet process. Renmatix's plantrose process converts cellulosic feedstocks such as wood, agricultural residues, or other cellulosic raw materials to cellulosic-based sugars, the basic building blocks of sustainable fuels. Together, Renmatix and Gevo will explore project opportunities for renewable and low-emission fuel, isobutanol, jet fuel and isooctane in markets where there is a convergence of low-cost biomass and low-carbon fuel incentives. This agreement to evaluate the commercial feasibility of developing renewable, low-carbon fuels from cellulosic material also comes at a time when global refiners and airline carriers are working toward reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions by looking to enter into affordable and large-scale agreements for the supply of renewable jet fuel and gasoline.

09:02 EDT Nielsen: Sky Link Media names Nielsen as local TV measurement provider - Nielsen announced that Sky Link Media has named Nielsen its Local TV measurement provider. In this new agreement, Sky Link Media will benefit from Nielsen's enhanced local TV measurement services. Leveraging this resource, Sky Link Media will be able to provide agencies and media buyers with the most sophisticated data to make the most informed buying decisions.

09:00 EDT Supernus trading resumes

08:45 EDT Walgreens launches next-day, nationwide prescription delivery with FedEx - Walgreens (WBA) and FedEx (FDX) announced the nationwide launch of next-day prescription delivery service, bringing together Walgreens extensive network of neighborhood pharmacy locations with the FedEx air-and-ground delivery network to enhance convenience for patients to fill prescriptions. Patients enrolled in text alerts will receive text notification when qualifying prescriptions are ready. Following a simple process on their mobile device, patients can now have their qualifying prescriptions delivered right to their home as early as the next day -- for a $4.99 fee nationwide. Same-day delivery is currently available in select markets and will be expanded in 2019.

08:43 EDT Edison Nation enters agreement to expand Everyday Edisons TV series - Edison Nation announced that it has entered into an agreement with a leading digital media services company to expand distribution of its Everyday Edisons TV series into key global markets. Everyday Edisons is a reality TV series produced under license by Edison Nation, which chronicles the stories of first-time inventors as they launch their unique products into the marketplace in conjunction with the Edison Nation product development platform. The agreement, which covers two existing 13-episode seasons, will include the creation of a professional voiceover-translation in German, French and Spanish and the subsequent release in Europe and the Middle East. The full seasons will also be available for viewing on select streaming platforms worldwide.

08:40 EDT Toro Company authorizes repurchase of additional 5M shares - For the fiscal year, the company returned just over $245M to shareholders through the payment of approximately $85M in dividends and the purchase of approximately $160M of common stock. Additionally, the board authorized the repurchase of an additional 5M shares of Toro's common stock through open-market or in privately negotiated transactions from time to time and in such amounts as management deems appropriate.

08:37 EDT MoviePass announces new three-tier pricing structure - MoviePass, a majority-owned subsidiary of Helios and Matheson Analytics, announced that, after months of determined testing, it will introduce an updated pricing plan for the new year, effective January 1, 2019. Starting at just $9.95 per month, the plans will feature a three-tier pricing structure. In addition to rolling out the new plans, MoviePass is offering two special, limited-time 12 month offers to their subscribers and for gift-giving during the holiday season. The 2019 plans all offer users three movies a month - or the equivalent of up to 36 movies per year in a variety of movie-going options, and will target the casual moviegoer - by far the largest portion of the movie-going public. The new plans are: SELECT, starting at $9.95/month: Subscribers will be able to see three movies per month at some point during their theatrical run through a programming model (announced the week prior), which at launch will exclude Opening Weekends. Title selection in this plan includes standard 2D movies only. As product enhancements take place, more titles will become available, including on Opening Weekends, and this plan will ultimately result in a showtime-driven, inventory model. ALL ACCESS (starting at $14.95/month): Subscribers will be able to see any three movies of their choice per month, at any time during their theatrical run, including Opening Weekend showtimes. Title selection in this plan includes standard 2D movies only. RED CARPET (starting at $19.95/month): Subscribers will be able to see any three movies of their choice per month, at any time during their theatrical run, including Opening Weekend showtimes. Subscribers of RED CARPET may choose to use one of their allotted three movies in IMAX 2D, IMAX 3D, or supported Premium Large Format, or PLF, screenings, including RealD 3D showings at launch. An added element of the new pricing structure is zoning by geographical area. It is designed to reflect the differences in the average ticket price in different areas of the country. MoviePass' limited-time holiday offer features the ALL ACCESS and RED CARPET plans at a reduced-rate for 12 months. Starting on December 6th, users will be able to purchase a single ALL ACCESS subscription for 12 months at $119.95, and two or more ALL ACCESS subscriptions for 12 months at $99.95 per subscription. During the same period, users will be able to purchase a single RED CARPET subscription for 12 months for $149.95, and two or more RED CARPET subscriptions for 12 months at $139.95 per subscription. This pricing program is introductory and for a limited time only.

08:32 EDT On Track Innovations selling non-core legacy MediSmart division for $2.75M - On Track Innovations, together with its South African subsidiary, OTI Petrosmart, have entered into an agreement to divest their non-core legacy division of MediSmart to a current customer, Smart Applications. Smart will acquire MediSmart for total consideration of $2.75M in cash. The transaction is expected to close in January 2019. MediSmart is an information management and claims submission system for the medical sector.

08:26 EDT I.D. Systems, Avis Budget execute 75,000 unit order for wireless vehicle tech - I.D. Systems (IDSY) and Avis Budget (CAR) have executed a new purchase agreement to deploy 75,000 additional units of I.D. Systems' proprietary wireless rental fleet management systems in Avis Budget's vehicle fleet. I.D. Systems' wireless in-vehicle management system permits two-way data communications between a vehicle and various car rental operating systems. Combined with Avis Budget's other existing technologies, I.D. Systems' rental fleet management systems enables Avis Budget to rent and check-in vehicles virtually, all on a mobile device. The system provides Avis Budget with insights into the mileage, fuel level, and condition of a vehicle the minute it is returned to an Avis location. These capabilities significantly streamline and automate the vehicle data collection and billing process. The agreement provides Avis Budget a variation of the technology to test in Europe and enables the device to provide full Zipcar functionality. I.D. Systems expects to begin delivering the hardware in Q2 of 2019.

08:21 EDT Glatfelter acquires first Dreamweaver battery separator technology from Soteria - Glatfelter has acquired the first license of the Dreamweaver battery separator technology from Soteria Battery Innovation Group. The technology uses advanced thermally stable nanofibers in a nonwoven matrix to enhance safety in lithium ion batteries. The license gives Glatfelter global, perpetual, non-exclusive rights to make, use and sell products using the technology. Glatfelter is in the initial stages of a global product launch.

08:17 EDT Adtran acquires SmartRG, terms not diclosed - ADTRAN announced its acquisition of SmartRG Inc, an innovator of carrier-class, open-source connected home platforms and cloud services for broadband service providers. Based in Vancouver, Washington, SmartRG brings long-standing industry leadership and expertise in open-source software development, as well as a comprehensive portfolio of cloud-management, analytics, Wi-Fi-enabled residential gateways and its SmartOS software platform. The company's executive team and employees will remain in place to ensure a seamless transition and accelerated market share growth, while leveraging ADTRAN's global reach and resources. Together, ADTRAN Mosaic and Smart OS provide full end-to-end management and orchestration solutions from cloud edge to subscriber edge. Service providers understand that bandwidth must now be delivered not only to the doorstep but down to every device within a home to meet consumer expectations. This acquisition emphasizes ADTRAN's commitment to helping broadband providers lower operating expenses and connect everyone, everywhere and everything-the internet the way it should be. SmartRG counts more than 3 million devices in service and over 1.3 million devices under management in North America, the Caribbean and South America. The company expects to scale and drive growth through its differentiated software solutions as more customers shift from closed, proprietary options to SmartOS-its open-source-based, cloud-enabled solution suite. As the market has shifted toward Software-Defined Networking, both ADTRAN and SmartRG have delivered market-defining solutions based on open, programmable and scalable designs that interoperate and manage other devices. The combination of ADTRAN and SmartRG will enable broadband providers to improve subscriber experience from the access network into any home or business. Both companies are also philosophically aligned around the need to design for and support third party devices to give operators greater flexibility.

08:15 EDT Cypress expands Internet of Things solutions with Cirrent software offering - Cypress Semiconductor announced that it has expanded its portfolio of Internet of Things solutions with the addition of Cirrent, a leading provider of software and cloud services for consumer Wi-Fi products. IoT companies use Cirrent's software and cloud services to make their products easier to use, more reliable, and more secure. As more and more homes become smart and more devices get connected to the home's Wi-Fi network, the user experience needs to be intuitive and seamless. Cirrent's software allows IoT products to easily connect to a customer's home network and stay connected, providing an outstanding user experience and significant return on investment to product manufacturers by reducing support costs and product returns. Cirrent's software lets users set up products without typing in passwords and ensures products stay connected even when network names and passwords are changed. As more companies develop business models and revenue streams enabled by connectivity, the increase in the connection rate from using Cirrent's solution directly creates business value for customers. Cirrent's ZipKey Wi-Fi Onboarding and IoT Network Intelligence solutions are available today for companies making connected products with a wide variety of Wi-Fi chips and operating systems.

08:11 EDT Costco reports November SSS up 9.2% - Costco reported net sales of $12.77B for the retail month of November, the four weeks ended December 2, an increase of 9.8% from $11.63B last year.

08:11 EDT Natera's Signatera assay shows treatment reponse prediction capacity - Natera presented data from two studies this week at the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, demonstrating the ability of its Signatera research-use-only circulating tumor DNA assay to detect molecular residual disease up to two years prior to clinical relapse and to predict treatment response in breast cancer. In a cohort of 82 high-risk early-stage breast cancer patients receiving neoadjuvant therapy, the change of measurable ctDNA from positive to negative during neoadjuvant treatment predicted therapeutic response, while failure to clear ctDNA after neoadjuvant treatment correlated with poor clinical outcomes. ctDNA levels were also associated with tumor burden as determined by imaging. Personalized serial circulating tumor DNA analysis in high-risk early stage breast cancer patients to monitor and predict response to neoadjuvant therapy and outcome in the I-SPY 2 TRIAL. In a cohort of 49 breast cancer patients who received adjuvant therapy, Signatera detected molecular residual disease with a lead time of up to two years prior to clinical or radiological detection. Overall, Signatera detected clinical relapse with a sensitivity of 89 percent and specificity of 100 percent.

08:09 EDT VBI Vaccines enters license agreement with Brii Biosciences for $11M upfront - VBI Vaccines announced that it entered into a license and collaboration agreement with Brii Biosciences, a company committed to serving patients' needs and improving public health in China, for the development of a functional cure for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B infection, using VBI's recombinant, protein-based immuno-therapeutic, VBI-2601. As part of the collaboration, Brii Bio paid VBI an upfront payment of $11M, consisting of a $4M upfront payment and a $7M equity investment priced at $3.05 per share. VBI is also eligible to receive an additional $117.5M in potential milestone payments, and potential double-digit royalties on commercial sales in the licensed territory, which includes China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. Under the agreement, VBI and Brii Bio will collaborate in the development of the product through to completion of a proof-of-concept clinical trial in China, following which, Brii Bio will be responsible for funding all development in the licensed territory. Brii Bio will retain commercial rights in the licensed territory, while VBI will retain all rights outside of the licensed territory.

08:07 EDT Azul reports November passenger traffic up 14.4% - Azul announces its preliminary traffic results for November 2018. Consolidated passenger traffic increased 14.4% compared to November 2017 on a capacity increase of 12.4% resulting on a load factor of 83.6%, an increase of 1.5 p.p. compared to November 2017. Domestic load factor was 82.5%, an increase of 1.6 p.p. compared to the same period last year and international load factor was 87.7%, up 0.8 p.p..

08:06 EDT Contura Energy approves stock repurchase plan for up to $15M - Contura Energy has approved a stock repurchase plan to acquire up to $15M in the aggregate of the company's common stock. The up to $15M to be expended under the plan represents all available capacity currently allowed under the company's credit agreement. Under the terms of the credit agreement, beginning with 1Q19, the company expects to begin to build additional restricted payment capacity based upon excess cash flows generated during the quarter. Contura expects that the Company Repurchase Plan will be in effect through the earlier of March 8, 2019, or such time as the approved $15M repurchase amount has been reached, subject to certain conditions.

08:05 EDT FDA requests more information on Kiniksa's mavrilimumab, puts IND on hold - Kiniksa announced that the FDA requested additional information regarding the delivery device to be used in the company's Phase 2 clinical trial of mavrilimumab in giant cell arteritis. In light of its device-related information request, the FDA placed the company's recently-submitted investigational new drug application, or IND, on clinical hold. The device-related information request does not pertain to preclinical toxicology data nor the design of the company's Phase 2 clinical trial. The delivery device is 510-cleared, and the company is providing the requested information.

08:04 EDT Lumentum's acquisition of Oclaro receives antitrust clearance in China - Lumentum has obtained antitrust clearance from the People's Republic of China's State Administration for Market Regulation in connection with its pending acquisition of Oclaro. This clearance satisfies the acquisition's closing condition regarding the receipt of antitrust approval in the People's Republic of China. As such, Lumentum currently expects that the Oclaro acquisition will close on or around December 10.

08:04 EDT Kroger reports Q3 identical sales growth, without fuel, of 1.6%

08:02 EDT Meritor enters standard position supply agreement with Wabash National - Meritor announced various products have been selected as standard position and as preferred options on all Wabash National Corp. dry and refrigerated van trailer products. The recently signed three-year agreement takes effect Jan. 1, 2019. The Meritor Tire Inflation System (MTIS) has also been selected as the preferred automatic tire inflation system.

07:54 EDT FedNat Holding authorizes $10M share repurchase program - FedNat Holding Company announced that its Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program to replace its expiring program, under which the company may repurchase up to $10M of its outstanding shares of common stock through December 31, 2019. The company also announced that, effective with the next quarterly dividend, the company is shortening the time between the dividend declaration and record dates relative to the corresponding payment date to approximately 30 days between declaration date and payment date. The payment dates are expected to remain on the same schedule as in prior years.

07:50 EDT Wave Life Sciences announces results from WVE-210201 trial - Wave Life Sciences announced that the safety and tolerability data from the WVE-210201 Phase 1 clinical trial in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, or DMD, who are amenable to exon 51 skipping support initiation of a Phase 2/3 clinical trial. Based on results from four ascending dose cohorts in the Phase 1 trial and pending final analysis, Wave has selected a dose for its planned Phase 2/3 clinical trial of WVE-210201, which it intends to initiate in 2019. In parallel, the independent Safety Monitoring Committee of the Phase 1 clinical trial has endorsed moving forward with a higher dose of WVE-210201 to be studied in a fifth cohort. Wave plans to present the results from the WVE-210201 Phase 1 clinical trial, as well as details of the Phase 2/3 study design, at upcoming scientific meetings. Wave anticipates initiating a global, placebo-controlled Phase 2/3 efficacy and safety clinical trial of WVE-210201 in DMD patients amenable to exon 51 skipping in 2019. The Phase 2/3 trial is designed to measure clinical efficacy and dystrophin expression, and the company intends to use the results of this trial to seek regulatory approvals globally.

07:43 EDT Fastenal reports November net sales up 12.3% to $410.27M - Reports November daily sales up 12.3% to $19.54M.

07:37 EDT Supernus announces both Phase 3 studies of SPN-812 met primary endpoint - Supernus announced positive topline results from each of two pivotal Phase III studies of SPN-812 in children for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. Both trials were successful in achieving the primary endpoint, with SPN-812, at daily doses of 100 mg and 200 mg in study P301 and 200 mg and 400 mg in study P303. Robust statistical significance in improvement in the symptoms of ADHD from baseline to end of study as measured by the ADHD Rating Scale-5 was achieved. Both active doses in each study were well tolerated. The company expects to announce topline data from study P302, the first adolescent Phase III trial of SPN-812, by the end of December. Topline data from the second adolescent Phase III trial, P304, are expected by the end of Q1 of 2019. The company expects to submit a new drug application, or NDA for SPN-812 in the second half of 2019, and to launch it, pending U.S. FDA approval, in the second half of 2020. At the end of the study, SPN-812 100 mg and 200 mg doses reached statistical significance compared to placebo in the primary endpoint. Patients receiving SPN-812 100 mg and 200 mg had a -16.6 point change and a -17.7 point change from baseline, respectively, in the primary endpoint vs. -10.9 for placebo at week 6. This primary result based on mixed model repeated measures, or MMRM, analysis in the intent-to-treat, or ITT, population was confirmed by sensitivity analyses using Analysis of Covariance. With respect to the effect size, patients receiving SPN-812 100 mg and 200 mg had an effect size of 0.54 and 0.57, respectively, within the range of 0.46 to 0.63 in the Phase IIb study results. The study demonstrated fast onset of action, reaching statistical significance for 100 mg and 200 mg doses as early as week 1 with p- values of 0.0004 and 0.0244, respectively. Statistical significance was maintained on a weekly basis through the end of the trial at week 6. In addition, at the end of the study, SPN-812 100 mg and 200 mg reached statistical significance compared to placebo on the hyperactivity/impulsivity and inattention subscales of the ADHD-RS-5 scale with p- values ranging from less than0.0001 to 0.0026. Finally, SPN-812 100 mg and 200 mg met all secondary endpoints, including the important analysis of the clinical global Impression improvement, or CGI-I, secondary endpoint, with p- values of 0.002 and less than 0.0001, respectively, compared to placebo.

07:35 EDT Moleculin Biotech announces FDA filing for orphan drug designation for WP1066 - Moleculin Biotech announced it has filed a request with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Orphan Drug Status for its drug candidate WP1066."Clinical progress with WP1066 has been encouraging," commented Walter Klemp, Moleculin's Chairman and CEO. "Given its potential to address rare and difficult to treat cancers, including glioblastoma, we believe WP1066 is well positioned to qualify for Orphan Drug Status."

07:33 EDT Engility reports $54M in intelligence community contract wins in Q4 to date - Engility received $54M in contract awards with the U.S. intelligence community in Q4 to date. The company will perform intelligence analysis, mission support, and secure systems engineering work.

07:32 EDT RA Pharmaceuticals receives development milestone payment from Merck - Ra Pharmaceuticals (RARX) announced that it has received a development milestone payment under its collaboration agreement with Merck (MRK). The milestone payment is associated with the companies' collaboration for a non-complement cardiovascular target with a large market opportunity. Initiated in 2013, this collaboration leverages Ra Pharma's Extreme Diversity platform aimed at producing macrocyclic peptides that have the diversity and specificity of antibodies, while retaining the pharmacologic attributes of small molecules. Under the terms of the agreement, Ra Pharmaceuticals is eligible to earn up to $59M in additional milestone payments from Merck based upon the achievement of development, regulatory, and commercialization milestones. Ra Pharma is also eligible to receive low-to-mid single digit percentage royalties on any future sales of compounds resulting from the collaboration.

07:26 EDT Unum Therapeutics receives patent for ACTR platform from USPTO - Unum Therapeutics announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, has issued U.S. patent 10,144,770. The patent covers design and use of the chimeric antibody-coupled T-cell receptor, or ACTR, platform technology that enables an engineered immune cell to be targeted via an antibody to attack certain cell types, including cancer cells. An ACTR-expressing T cell offers a number of potential advantages over alternative cell therapy approaches and clinical proof-of-concept for the ACTR technology has been demonstrated in two independent clinical trials sponsored by Unum Therapeutics. ACTR therapeutic programs targeting non-Hodgkin lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and HER2+ advanced cancers are currently in early stages of clinical testing.

07:18 EDT Butterfield announces new share repurchase program - The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son announced that its Board of Directors has approved a new share repurchase program pursuant to which the Bank is authorized to purchase up to 2,500,000 ordinary shares of the Bank through February 29, 2020. The timing and amount of any share repurchases will be subject to a number of factors that include, but are not limited to, general market conditions, Butterfield's share price, and the availability of alternative capital investments. Repurchases under the new share repurchase program will be made in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions, including under Rule 10b5-1 plans, and will be made in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. This new share repurchase program follows the completion of the Bank's prior share repurchase program, which commenced on April 1, 2018, pursuant to which the Bank repurchased the full authorized amount of 1 million ordinary shares of the Bank at an average price of $40.15 per ordinary share.

07:16 EDT L Brands reports November SSS up 9% - L Brands reported net sales of $1.596B for the four weeks ended Dec. 1, 2018, compared to net sales of $1.267B for the four weeks ended Nov. 25, 2017. Comparable sales increased 9% for the four weeks ended Dec. 1, 2018 compared to the four weeks ended Dec. 2, 2017. The company reported net sales of $9.98B for the 43 weeks ended Dec. 1, 2018, compared to net sales of $9.077B for the 43 weeks ended Nov. 25, 2017. Comparable sales increased 4% for the 43 weeks ended Dec. 1, 2018, compared to the 43 weeks ended Dec. 2, 2017.

07:12 EDT Children's Place sees mid-single digit comparable retail sales increase in FY18

07:04 EDT Roadrunner appoints Michael Rapken as CIO - Roadrunner Transportation Systems has appointed Michael Rapken as its Chief Information Officer. Rapken most recently served as Chief Technology Officer at Press Ganey, a leading integrated solutions provider to the health care industry. Prior to Press Ganey, Michael led Application Development at Sprint before joining YRC Worldwide as its Chief Information Officer.

07:03 EDT Neon Therapeutics, Apexigen announce first patient dosed in NT-003 trial - Neon Therapeutics and Apexigen announced that patient dosing has begun in NT-003, Neon's Phase 1b combination trial of NEO-PV-01 in metastatic melanoma. NEO-PV-01 is a personal neoantigen vaccine custom-designed and manufactured based on the unique mutational fingerprint of each individual patient. The Phase 1b trial is evaluating NEO-PV-01 and nivolumab in combination with other agents in first-line patients with advanced or metastatic melanoma. One arm of the multi-arm study will evaluate the vaccine and nivolumab in combination with Apexigen's APX005M, an investigational CD40 agonist. Another will evaluate NEO-PV-01 and nivolumab in combination with ipilimumab.

07:01 EDT General Dynamics authorizes additional 10M share repurchase program - The board provided management with the authority to repurchase an additional 10M shares of the company's issued and outstanding common stock. As of November 30, 2018, there were approximately 2.1M shares still available for purchase under the prior authorization.

06:59 EDT Newmont Mining sees 2019 attributable gold production of 5.2M ounces - Newmont Mining announced its 2019 outlook with attributable gold production guidance of 5.2M ounces at AISC of $935 per ounce. Gold costs applicable to sales, or CAS, guidance is $710 per ounce for 2019 and $750 per ounce for 2020; CAS is expected to be between $690 and $740 per ounce longer-term through 2023. Gold all-in sustaining costs, or AISC, guidance is $935 per ounce for 2019 and $975 per ounce for 2020; AISC is expected to be between $875 and $975 longer-term through 2023. Attributable gold production guidance is 5.2M ounces for 2019 and 4.9M ounces in 2020; longer-term production is expected to remain stable at between 4.4M-4.9M ounces per year through 2023. Total consolidated capital guidance for 2019 is $1.07B and $730M in 2020; capital is expected to be between $500M-$600M longer-term through 2023. Development capital includes the Ahafo Mill Expansion in Africa, Tanami Power in Australia and Quecher Main in South America as well as expenditures to advance studies for future projects. Sustaining capital guidance is $680M for 2019 and $660M for 2020; longer-term sustaining capital is expected to be between $450M-$550M through 2023.

06:55 EDT The Buckle reports November comparable store net sales down 0.6% y-o-y - The Buckle reported November comparable store net sales, for stores open at least one year, decreased 0.6% from comparable store net sales for the 4-week period ended December 2, 2017. Net sales for the 4-week fiscal month ended December 1, 2018 increased 3.9% to $81.3M from $78.3M for the prior year 4-week fiscal month ended November 25, 2017.

06:53 EDT At Home Group sees FY19 comparable store sales up 2.2%-2.5%

06:49 EDT Cross River Bank raises $100M funding round led by KKR - Cross River Bank announced that it has completed a funding round of approximately $100M, led by a $75M equity investment from KKR. KKR is joined in the round by new investors, CreditEase and Lion Tree Partners, and by returning investors Battery Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and Ribbit Capital. The new funding round follows $28M in venture capital secured in late 2016 from Battery Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and Ribbit Capital.

06:39 EDT Volaris reports November traffic up 16.6% - Volaris reported November preliminary traffic results. During November, Volaris increased total capacity, as measured in available seat miles, or ASMs, by 11.3% year over year. Total demand, as measured in revenue passenger miles, or RPMs, in November increased 17.1% year over year, reaching 1.6B. Volaris transported a total of 1.6M passengers during the month, an increase of 16.6% year over year. Network load factor for November was 88.3%, an increase of 4.4 percentage points year over year. During November, Volaris started to operate 12 domestic routes, from its focus cities Mexico City, Bajio and Guadalajara. Additionally, Volaris started to operate three international routes, two from Bajio to Sacramento and San Jose, California and one from Guadalajara to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

06:35 EDT Aphria announces special committee to review LATAM Holdings acquisition - Aphria announced its board has appointed a special committee of independent directors to review the company's previously completed acquisition of LATAM Holdings, which closed on September 27 and confirm the company's belief that it conformed with all company policies and generally accepted corporate governance practices. The company said, "The company's board reiterated its confidence in the process leading to the acquisition, as well as in its Latin American operations and strategy. However, in the face of inaccurate and misleading accusations by certain short-sellers, whose sole interest is in profiting from a decline in the Company's shares, it is undertaking a comprehensive review, led by a Special Committee of independent directors of these, and any other, allegations in the interest of protecting Aphria shareholders. The Special Committee is composed of John M. Herhalt, Shlomo Bibas and Tom Looney. Mr. Herhalt, who is the lead independent director and the Chair of the Audit Committee, will serve as Chair of the Special Committee. Each of these members is independent and joined the Board following the closing of the Acquisition. The Special Committee is authorized to, and expects to, retain independent advisors to assist in its review."

06:32 EDT LSC Communications selected by Elsevier for multi-year book services contract - LSC Communications announced a multi-year agreement with Elsevier, a global information analytics business specializing in science and health. LSC currently prints a significant share of Elsevier's books and journals and, under the new agreement, will begin providing book fulfillment and distribution services in 2019 for Elsevier's US markets. Additionally, LSC has acquired Elsevier's Linn, Missouri Fulfillment and Distribution Center. Consequently, all Elsevier employees will be transferred to LSC in 2019. The addition of this facility will further strengthen LSC's ongoing focus on providing a full range of supply chain services for publishers of both printed and electronic books.

06:15 EDT Intercontinental Exchange reports record trading in TTF and JKM futures - Intercontinental Exchange reported record trading in the TTF Natural Gas and JKM LNG futures contracts. A total of 866 TWh, equating to 1,183,348 lots of TTF futures, traded during November, an increase of 16% compared to the previous record of October 2018, where 749 TWh traded. November marks the third month in a row in which TTF futures achieved monthly volume records. Open interest in TTF futures hit a record 857,528 lots on November 29, a 14% increase on the previous record of 754,669 lots set on October 26, 2018.

06:12 EDT Volkswagen seeing EUR3B savings between 2020 and 2023 - The Volkswagen brand is to significantly improve its earnings performance in the coming years in order to finance investments in future technologies from its own resources. To this end, the model portfolio is being streamlined and the number of variants reduced. At the same time, productivity at the plants is to be increased and the platform orientation for vehicle production extended. In total, the Volkswagen brand will be investing over EURO$11 billion in emobility, digitalization, autonomous driving and mobility services from 2019 to 2023, of which over EURO$9 billion will be spent on Volkswagen's electrification offensive. The brand currently has two fully-electric cars in its program. This number will increase to around 20 by 2025, with planned production set at over one million units. Work on converting the Zwickau plant to be run exclusively as an electric mobility site is already underway, and in addition the plants in Emden and Hanover will switch to the production of electric vehicles from 2022. In order to finance the enormous future investments, the Volkswagen brand will have to realize even higher cost savings than previously planned. The pact for the future will realize cost savings amounting to more than EURO$2.2 billion by the end of 2018. That means the lion's share of the planned total savings of EURO$3 billion by 2020 will already have been achieved. Further massive savings are expected from measures such as the strong expansion of the platform model. Another lever is plant productivity, where an average increase of 30 percent is planned for the period to 2025. At the same time there is to be a massive reduction in the complexity of the model portfolio. In Europe, the brand will be discontinuing 25 percent of the engine-transmission variants with low customer demand in the coming model year, with corresponding positive effects on the complexity of production and the supply chain.

06:09 EDT Engaged Capital urges Del Frisco's to explore strategic alternatives

06:07 EDT Volkswagen says delivered 564,500 vehicles globally in November, up 5% y/y - In November, Volkswagen delivered 564,500 vehicles throughout the world, five percent more than in November 2017. All in all, the brand faces a challenging market environment with strong headwinds in some regions. Nevertheless, Volkswagen has delivered 5.7 million passenger cars to customers throughout the world in the year to date, 1.2 percent more than in the prior-year period.

06:00 EDT JinkoSolar supplies 132 MW to Techren Solar 1 Project - JinkoSolar announced that it supplied 132 MWdc of PV modules to Swinerton Renewable Energy, or SRE, for the construction of the Techren Solar 1 Project in Boulder City, Nevada. SRE is providing the engineering, procurement, and construction services to Clenera, LLC, who selected over 350,000 of JinkoSolar's high-efficiency 1500-volt mono PERC modules to power Techren Solar 1. The project will provide power to the Nevada Power Corporation under a 25-year power purchase agreement. Techren Solar 1 is located in the Eldorado Valley Energy Zone, 25 miles southeast of Las Vegas.

05:33 EDT Sabra Health Care to sell Senior Care Centers Facilities for $385M - Sabra Health Care REIT provided an update regarding Senior Care Centers. As announced previously, we have been pursuing a sale of the 36 Skilled Nursing facilities and two Senior Housing communities we own that are currently operated by Senior Care Centers. On December 5, 2018, we entered into a purchase and sale agreement to sell the Senior Care Centers Facilities for an aggregate purchase price of $385M, all of which is payable in cash by the purchaser at closing. We expect to complete the sale of the Senior Care Centers Facilities in early 2019, though there can be no assurances that the sale will be consummated on the foregoing terms or timing or at all. During the three months ended September 30, 2018, we issued to Senior Care Centers notices of default and lease termination due to non-payment of rent under the terms of the related master leases for the Senior Care Centers Facilities. As a result, deposits were fully exhausted to pay contractual rents and Senior Care Centers is currently operating the Senior Care Centers Facilities on a month-to-month basis. On December 4, 2018, Senior Care Centers filed a petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the Northern District of Texas.

05:29 EDT Japan's Abe vows more Twitter use after meeting with Jack Dorsey - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said via Twitter, "I met with Mr. Jack Dorsey, @jack CEO of Twitter and received a customized T-shirt. Welcome to Japan, Mr. Dorsey. I will continue to use social media even more actively."

05:27 EDT Del Frisco's adopts short-term shareholder rights plan - Del Frisco's announced that its board unanimously adopted a shareholder rights plan to protect the best interests of all Del Frisco's shareholders. Del Frisco's recently observed unusual and substantial activity in the company's shares. The Rights Plan is designed to allow all Del Frisco's shareholders to realize the long-term value of their investment by reducing the likelihood that any person or group would gain control of Del Frisco's through open market accumulation without appropriately compensating the company's shareholders for such control or providing the board sufficient time to make informed judgments. The Rights Plan is not intended to prevent or interfere with any action with respect to the company that the board determines to be in the best interests of shareholders. The Rights Plan, which was adopted following evaluation and consultation with the company's outside advisors, is similar to plans adopted by other publicly held companies and includes a number of recognized shareholder protections that emphasize its limited focus. The rights will initially trade with Del Frisco's common stock and will generally become exercisable only if any person acquires 10% or more of the company's outstanding common stock. The Rights Plan does not aggregate the ownership of shareholders "acting in concert" unless and until they have formed a group under applicable securities laws. If the rights become exercisable, all holders of rights will be entitled to acquire shares of common stock at a 50% discount or the company may exchange each right held by such holders for one share of common stock. Under the Rights Plan, any person which currently owns more than the triggering percentage may continue to own its shares of common stock but may not acquire any additional shares without triggering the Rights Plan. In addition, the Rights Plan does not restrict the ownership of cash-settled derivatives. The Rights Plan does not contain any dead-hand, slow-hand, no-hand or similar feature that limits the ability of a future board of directors to redeem the rights. The Rights Plan has a one-year duration, expiring on December 4, 2019. The Rights Plan may also be terminated, or the rights may be redeemed, prior to the scheduled expiration of the Rights Plan under certain other circumstances.

05:15 EDT Kroger Louisville division recalls Abound Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe dog food - Following a recall by Sunshine Mills, the Kroger Louisville division announced it has removed from sale Abound Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe dog food produced by the supplier. The dog food was sold in one Kroger store located at 2440 Bardstown Road in Louisville, KY. Only Abound Chicken & Brown Rice Recipe dog food with the listed UPC numbers and Best by Dates are affected by this recall. The recall was initiated because the product had the potential to contain an elevated level of Vitamin D, which may cause renal failure. Dogs ingesting elevated levels of Vitamin D may exhibit symptoms such as vomiting, loss of appetite, increased thirst, increased urination, excessive drooling, and weight loss. Vitamin D, when consumed at very high levels, can lead to serious health issues in dogs including renal dysfunction. Consumers with dogs who have consumed any of the products listed above and are exhibiting any of these symptoms, should contact their veterinarian. No reports of illness or injury have been reported to date.

05:12 EDT Washington UTC denies Avista, Hydro One proposed merger - Hydro One and Avista received a regulatory decision from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, or UTC, denying the proposed merger of the two companies. The companies are extremely disappointed in the UTC's decision, are reviewing the order in detail and will determine the appropriate next steps.