Stockwinners Market Radar for April 05, 2019 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

18:45 EDT Starboard to withdraw Dollar Tree board nominations - Starboard Value, a shareholder of Dollar Tree, issued a statement on its investment in Dollar Tree. "We are pleased that Dollar Tree has announced its intention to perform a significant test of multiple price points at Dollar Tree stores. In addition, management appears to have conviction that its proposed turnaround plan at Family Dollar is finally gaining traction as evidenced by greater than 10% comparable store sales at remodeled stores. We continue to enjoy constructive conversations with management and recognize their progress, as well as the significant increase in shareholder value based on the promises made since our involvement. As such, Starboard has decided to withdraw its nomination of director candidates for election at the 2019 Annual Meeting. We believe there is a substantial opportunity for further value creation, and we look forward to a continued dialogue and monitoring of the company's progress on the implementation of a well-designed test of a multi-price point offering at Dollar Tree stores and continued improvement in the operating performance of Family Dollar."

18:30 EDT Ellington Financial reports estimated book value per share $18.86 on March 31 - The company announced its estimated book value per share of $18.86 as of March 31. This estimate includes the effect of the previously announced monthly dividend of 14c per share, payable on April 25 to holders of record on March 29, with an ex-dividend date of March 28.

17:41 EDT Progress Software CEO sells 45K shares of common stock - In a regulatory filing, Progress Software disclosed that its CEO John Egan sold a total of 45K shares of common stock on April 3rd and April 5th. The total transaction size was just over $2M.

17:10 EDT Spirit AeroSystems to maintain shipset delivery to Boeing at 52 per month - Spirit AeroSystems (SPR) announced the company will maintain its 737 deliveries to Boeing (BA) at the current rate of 52 shipsets per month. This follows the announcement by Boeing that it will temporarily adjust its 737 production from 52 to 42 airplanes per month starting in mid-April. Spirit will store accumulated 737 MAX shipsets at its facilities. Those shipsets will then be transferred to Boeing to support their production plan. Spirit said it will minimize any impact to its full-time workforce by reducing contractors and overtime, and suspending hiring to backfill open positions.

17:01 EDT Xtant receives noncompliance notice from NYSE American - Xtant Medical Holdings, Inc. announced receipt of notification from the NYSE American that the company is not in compliance with certain NYSE American continued listing requirements relating to stockholders' equity. NYSE American indicated the company is not in compliance with Sections 1003ai, 1003aii and 1003aiii of the NYSE American Company Guide due to negative stockholders' equity of $43,772,000 as of December 31, 2018 and net losses in five of the most recent fiscal years. The company's stockholders' equity was negatively affected in the fourth quarter 2018 by $48.1M in non-cash impairment charges to goodwill and intangibles attributed to the X-Spine acquisition. The company intends to prepare and deliver a plan of compliance to the NYSE American by May 4, 2019, addressing how the company intends to regain compliance by October 4, 2020. Xtant Medical's common stock will continue to trade on the NYSE American under the symbol "XTNT," with the added designation of ".BC" to indicate that the company is not in compliance with continued listing standards.

16:37 EDT Orbcomm discloses CFO Michael Ford resigned effective April 1st - In a regulatory 8-K filing, Orbcomm disclosed that Michael Ford has resigned from his position as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective April 1, 2019. Mr. Ford's resignation was not the result of any dispute or disagreement with the company on any matter relating to the company's operations, policies, practices or financial statements, including its controls or other financial related matters. The company has appointed Constantine "Dean" Milcos as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer effective immediately. Mr. Milcos has served as the company's Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer since September 25, 2013 and also served as Interim Chief Financial Officer of the company from May to September 2018.

16:22 EDT Vornado names Michael Franco as President - Vornado Realty Trust announced the appointment of Michael J. Franco as the company's President. Mr. Franco has been with Vornado since 2011, most recently serving as Executive Vice President - Chief Investment Officer. David Greenbaum has been appointed Vice Chairman of Vornado. Mr. Greenbaum previously was president of the New York Division. He has decided to cut back while continuing his leadership as Vice Chairman.

16:10 EDT Boeing down over 1% at $387 per share after cutting 737 MAX 7 output rate

16:07 EDT Edison recommends holders reject mini-tender offer by TRC Capital - Edison International has been notified of an unsolicited mini-tender offer by TRC Capital Corporation to purchase up to 2M shares of Edison International common stock from the stockholders of Edison International, representing approximately 0.61% of the outstanding shares of Edison International common stock. TRC stated in the mini-tender offer that its offer price of $61.75 per share is approximately 4.54 percent lower than the $64.69 per share closing price of Edison International common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on March 22, 2019, the last trading day before the commencement of the offer. TRC's unsolicited mini-tender offer is also subject to a number of conditions, including that TRC obtain sufficient financing. Edison International recommends that stockholders reject this unsolicited offer by not tendering their shares because TRC's offer price is below the current market value for shares of Edison International common stock. If stockholders have already tendered shares, Edison International recommends that they withdraw their shares by providing the written notice described in the TRC mini-tender offer documents prior to the expiration of the offer, currently scheduled for 12:01 a.m. ET on April 24, 2019.

16:05 EDT Partner Fund Management reports 6.1% passive stake in Dermira - In a regulatory filing, Partner Fund Management disclosed a 6.1% stake in Dermira, which represents about 3.3M shares. The filing does not allow for activism.

16:03 EDT Boeing confirms crashes linked by failed MCAS function, lowers MAX output rate - The company states: "We now know that the recent Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 accidents were caused by a chain of events, with a common chain link being erroneous activation of the aircraft's MCAS function. We have the responsibility to eliminate this risk, and we know how to do it. As part of this effort, we're making progress on the 737 MAX software update that will prevent accidents like these from ever happening again. Teams are working tirelessly, advancing and testing the software, conducting non-advocate reviews, and engaging regulators and customers worldwide as we proceed to final certification. I recently had the opportunity to experience the software update performing safely in action during a 737 MAX 7 demo flight. We're also finalizing new pilot training courses and supplementary educational material for our global MAX customers. This progress is the result of our comprehensive, disciplined approach and taking the time necessary to get it right. As we continue to work through these steps, we're adjusting the 737 production system temporarily to accommodate the pause in MAX deliveries, allowing us to prioritize additional resources to focus on software certification and returning the MAX to flight. We have decided to temporarily move from a production rate of 52 airplanes per month to 42 airplanes per month starting in mid-April. At a production rate of 42 airplanes per month, the 737 program and related production teams will maintain their current employment levels while we continue to invest in the broader health and quality of our production system and supply chain. We are coordinating closely with our customers as we work through plans to mitigate the impact of this adjustment. We will also work directly with our suppliers on their production plans to minimize operational disruption and financial impact of the production rate change. In light of our commitment to continuous improvement and our determination to always make a safe industry even safer, I've asked the Boeing Board of Directors to establish a committee to review our company-wide policies and processes for the design and development of the airplanes we build. The committee will confirm the effectiveness of our policies and processes for assuring the highest level of safety on the 737-MAX program, as well as our other airplane programs, and recommend improvements to our policies and procedures. The committee members will be Adm. Edmund P. Giambastiani, Jr., former vice chairman, U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, who will serve as the committee's chair; Robert A. Bradway, chairman and CEO of Amgen, Inc.; Lynn J. Good, chairman, president and CEO of the Duke Energy Corporation; and Edward M. Liddy, former chairman and CEO of the Allstate Corporation, all members of the company's board. These individuals have been selected to serve on this committee because of their collective and extensive experiences that include leadership roles in corporate, regulated industries and government entities where safety and the safety of lives is paramount."

16:02 EDT Coherus Biosciences sees Q1 preliminary UDENYCA net sales $36M-$38M - Coherus BioSciences announced that UDENYCA preliminary unaudited net sales for the quarter that ended March 31 are expected to be in the range of $36M-$38M. Coherus will not disclose topline gross sales, discounts, or gross-to-net data until these data are reported in its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31. Coherus introduced UDENYCA in the U.S. marketplace on January 3, with a comprehensive launch across all segments including 340B hospitals, non-340B hospitals and clinics.

15:11 EDT BIO-key CEO sees 'widespread adoption' of Biometrics ahead - BIO-key (BKYI) is a provider of biometric authentication and security solutions. In an exclusive interview with The Fly, BIO-key CEO Michael DePasquale discussed the ongoing adoption of Biometrics: "BIO-key is a small public company, but we've been in business for over 25 years. We've been in this space a long time. After 9/11, we really thought that the uptake in Biometrics would be more significant, that it would happen more quickly. But up until the last three years, it's been a very slow uptake in the commercial sector except for what's happened in the forensic markets with law enforcement. But now, we're seeing that widespread adoption and I think BIO-key is almost like a restart or an upstart company that's been around for a long time. We've matured and have invested tens of millions of dollars in bringing this technology to the point where it is today, and we have a good base of customers. Finger Biometrics as it relates to Enterprise is going to be the dominant Biometric that you'll see deployed for many years. Facial recognition and Iris recognition, voice and even keystroke Dynamics are all certainly a potential to be used for very specific applications within Enterprise, but Finger Biometrics is the most widely adopted and will continue to be going forward. Our patented technology has a lot of runway and our company now has a market that is accepting of Biometrics. We know that the security infrastructure providers are really professing the elimination of passwords. We're at the perfect time, with the perfect technology to really grow our revenues and to create value for our shareholders." "Meet the Company" is The Fly's recurring series of exclusive short interviews with Executive Officers to offer a deeper look inside the company.

14:21 EDT Health Canada advises Allergan of intent to suspend Biocell breast implants - Health Canada announced that it is advising Allergan that the Department intends to suspend its licenses for Biocell breast implants as a precautionary measure "to protect Canadian patients from the rare but serious risk of breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma." This follows the completion of Health Canada's scientific assessment of macro-textured implants, as part of its larger ongoing safety review of breast implants and BIA-ALCL, which was launched in November 2018. Health Canada initiated the review because of an increase in Canadian and international cases of BIA-ALCL. As of today, Health Canada has been notified of 28 confirmed Canadian cases of BIA-ALCL, of which 24, or 86%, involve Allergan's Biocell breast implant, the regulator stated. Reference Link

14:18 EDT BIO-key CEO says relationship with Microsoft 'very important' - BIO-key (BKYI) is a provider of biometric authentication and security solutions. In an exclusive interview with The Fly, BIO-key CEO Michael DePasquale talked about the company's customers and its relationship with Microsoft (MSFT): "We just closed a contract with the Dubai Police Department and police forces where they're going to use our hardware and software for secure access to all their criminal justice and other type of data and information. Last year, we sold to the Singapore police for a similar type. NCR [NCR] uses our software embedded into their point of sale terminals, where no longer does an employee at a fast-food restaurant in particular need to swipe a card to get access to that point of sale terminal. Now, they simply put their finger on a finger scanner that's located on the terminal and they have access to that device. We sell our software to hospitals with AllScripts [MDRX] and Epic, which is one of the largest if not the largest provider today of Electronic Records Management systems for healthcare in the clinical space. Nationwide Children's Hospital, which is one of the largest children's hospitals in the country, utilizes our software. The Robert Wood Johnson Hospital in New Jersey utilizes our software. The Cleveland Clinic utilizes our software for electronic records management and for electronic prescribing. The FBI uses our technology for the finger matching that goes on within what they call their next Generation AFIS system, which is the one that does all of the background checks and manages all the forensic and criminal justice matching for Crime Scene fingerprints. We cut across virtually every sector of the economy and have through the years built a really nice portfolio of references. The larger customers that we've been able to bring on board... They have an opportunity to buy from anyone. We, as a small public company, continually get chosen because of the quality of the platform that we built. We have a product called WEB-key, which is really core and central to being able to allow any of these customers to take and attach a biometric in place of what they're using for their current authentication scheme and that's usually passwords or pins or tokens or cards. That WEB-key infrastructure - which is very secure, very mature, and has infinite administrative capability - is really what is selling. What these larger customers do when they test it, when they try it and then buy ours, is really a true testament to the quality of patented technology that we have brought to market. We have been working very closely with Microsoft over the last few years. We've been engaged with them in a number of their events, including their largest enterprise event, which is called Ignite. We are their "go to finger biometric vendor" for Windows Hello and Window Hello for business, which is the native biometric capability that's built into the Windows 10 operating platform. You can take one of our finger scanners, our site swipe, our site touch or Eco ID, you can plug it into the USB port on any Windows capable laptop or desktop machine and automatically you can replace the pin that you use to access that device and you can utilize that for all of the other biometric integrated websites that Microsoft is now supporting. You can buy our finger scanners on the Microsoft store, you can buy them across various retail platforms for consumers. We make them available because Windows Hello is a consumer product, while Windows Hello for Business is an Enterprise grade product. Our relationship with Microsoft is very, very important. They really continue to promote the retirement of passwords and they're really pushing for the biometric replacement of weaker forms of authentication." "Meet the Company" is The Fly's recurring series of exclusive short interviews with Executive Officers to offer a deeper look inside the company. The remainder of this interview to follow.

13:56 EDT BIO-key CEO says low-end of guidance 'contracted already' - BIO-key (BKYI) CEO Michael DePasquale talked with The Fly in an exclusive interview, in which he discussed the company's 2019 revenue guidance: "Our guidance in a range of $11M-$14M includes approximately $7M-$8M in backlog. That's contracted backlog that we already have in place coming into 2019. So, a fair portion - in particular of the low-end guidance - is contracted already. The remainder of that will come from new business opportunities and a combination of subscription-based software as well as hardware sales and services sales to customers across the broad range of industries that we're serving. We have a very robust forecasted pipeline for 2019. The market is clearly now looking very aggressively to replace passwords. Customers at all levels - whether it be small, medium or large - are looking at multi-factor authentication options. And the real unique value to what BIO-key brings to the table relates to finger Biometrics, which is the dominant biometric for Enterprise Solutions. In that realm, BIO-key has the leading finger biometric attachment to replace passwords, not only within our own capability with WEB-key, but with the integrations that we have with the other security infrastructures, from IBM [IBM] to CA [AVGO], Oracle [ORCL] and others. We have that capability to immediately replace those passwords with finger Biometrics and we have a solution called ID Director for Windows, which allows these customers to easily integrate into their Microsoft [MSFT] active directory venue, which is how they manage all their identities for access to email and all other company portal information. Our forecasted pipeline, by including the market which is very aggressively looking at multi-factor authentication, puts us in a very unique and strong position to achieve our guidance range in 2019." "Meet the Company" is The Fly's recurring series of exclusive short interviews with Executive Officers to offer a deeper look inside the company. The remainder of this interview to follow.

13:02 EDT Baker Hughes reports U.S. rig count up 19 to 1,025 rigs - Baker Hughes reports that the U.S. rig count is up 19 rigs from last week to 1,025, with oil rigs up 15 to 831, gas rigs up 4 to 194, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at 0. The U.S. Rig Count is up 22 rigs from last year's count of 1,003, with oil rigs up 23, gas rigs unchanged at 194, and miscellaneous rigs down 1. The U.S. Offshore Rig Count is down 1 rig to 22 and up 10 rigs year-over-year. The Canada Rig Count is down 20 rigs from last week to 68, with oil rigs down 13 to 22 and gas rigs down 7 to 46. The Canada Rig Count is down 43 rigs from last year's count of 111, with oil rigs down 26 and gas rigs down 17.

13:00 EDT DePasquale sees BIO-key 'at perfect time, with perfect technology'

13:00 EDT DePasquale sees BIO-key in 'very unique' position to achieve 2019 guidance range

12:47 EDT Hudbay Minerals recommends shareholders vote for three new directors - Hudbay Minerals issued its management information circular, a letter to shareholders and an investor presentation ahead of its 2019 Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders, scheduled for May 7, 2019. The Proxy Materials "highlight the positive momentum at Hudbay and how Waterton Global Resource Management, a fairly recent shareholder with a history of value destruction and disruption, threatens future value creation at the company." "Hudbay is operating exceptionally well and is creating value for shareholders today, while positioning the company for sustainable value creation in the future," said Alan Hibben, Hudbay's Board Chair. "Our repeated attempts to constructively engage with Waterton have been met with escalating, changing and self-serving demands that would put Waterton first, at the expense of other shareholders. Given the facts regarding Hudbay's strong performance and experienced and engaged Board and executive leadership, the only rational explanation is that Waterton is seeking control and influence in support of another agenda it has chosen not to reveal." Hibben concluded: "Despite Waterton's refusal to engage constructively on a settlement that would be in the best interests of all shareholders, Hudbay sought a reasonable compromise - right up to the moment Hudbay's proxy materials were issued. In this context, the Board is supporting the election of who we believe to be two qualified director nominees from Waterton's slate, in addition to mining industry leader Richard Howes. We are doing so with the input and support of some of Hudbay's largest shareholders, who believe this is a thoughtful and appropriate solution that balances a number of considerations while protecting shareholder interests. Hudbay and these large shareholders also understand the significant disruption and risk to value creation that would occur if there is any change to the executive leadership team or unwarranted further changes to the Board."

12:41 EDT Babcock & Wilcox trading resumes

12:22 EDT Iliad Research & Trading reports 9.99% passive stake in Hemispherx - In a regulatory filing, Iliad Research & Trading disclosed a 9.99% stake in Hemispherx, which represents about 6.2M shares. The filing does not allow for activism.

12:00 EDT Boston Beer falls -5.0% - Boston Beer is down -5.0%, or -$14.12 to $269.88.

12:00 EDT Sunlands Online falls -11.3% - Sunlands Online is down -11.3%, or -41c to $3.23.

12:00 EDT Triumph Group rises 11.3% - Triumph Group is up 11.3%, or $2.41 to $23.78.

11:14 EDT FTC reports BB&T, SunTrust granted early termination notice - BB&T (BBT) was granted an early termination notice from the Federal Trade Commission related to its deal to acquire SunTrust Banks (STI), according to a post the FTC website. Reference Link

10:32 EDT Lyft rises as Citron advises against shorting stock - Shares of Lyft (LYFT) are up over 5% in early trading as Andrew Left's Citron Research stated in a new research report that the same short thesis that is being passed around on Lyft by the "amateur shorts" would have seen investors short Amazon (AMZN), Netflix (NFLX), Square (SQ) and others. "Shorting disruptive companies that dominate a megatrend simply because they lose money is a sure way to go broke," contends the firm, which acknowledges in its report that the "principal of Citron has been an investor in Lyft for the past 2 years and we have increased our position in the open market." The firm, best known for its short selling, outlines five reasons not to be short Lyft: growth in ridesharing; the fact that "Lyft is in a rare class of businesses along with Amazon and Alibaba where people use the service more and more over time"; evidence that millennials are foregoing car ownership for ridesharing; a "massive valuation discount" to Uber (UBER); and the fact that Lyft "can tell the story of Autonomous Driving and the future of margins." Reference Link

10:00 EDT Anaplan falls -3.6% - Anaplan is down -3.6%, or -$1.35 to $35.75.

10:00 EDT Boston Beer falls -4.7% - Boston Beer is down -4.7%, or -$13.48 to $270.52.

10:00 EDT Franklin Covey rises 8.0% - Franklin Covey is up 8.0%, or $2.12 to $28.46.

09:42 EDT Scientific Games files for potential IPO of minority interest in SciPlay - Scientific Games (SGMS) announced earlier that its subsidiary, SciPlay Corporation, has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to a proposed initial public offering of a minority interest in Scientific Games' social gaming business. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the offering have not yet been determined. The social gaming business will now officially be called "SciPlay". The company has applied to list its Class A common stock on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "SCPL".

09:30 EDT Celgene, Acceleron announce BLA submission for luspatercept to FDA - Celgene (CELG) and Acceleron Pharma (XLRN) announced that Celgene has submitted a Biologics License Application, or BLA, for luspatercept, an erythroid maturation agent, for the treatment of adult patients with very low to intermediate risk myelodysplastic syndromes-associated anemia who have ring sideroblasts and require red blood cell, or RBC, transfusions and for the treatment of adult patients with beta-thalassemia-associated anemia who require RBC transfusions. The submission is based on the safety and efficacy results of the pivotal phase 3 studies MEDALIST and BELIEVE, both recently presented at the American Society of Hematology annual meeting, where MEDALIST was included in the plenary session.

09:28 EDT Hibbett Sports announces resignation of CFO Scott Bowman - Hibbett Sports announced that Scott Bowman, Senior Vice President and CFO, is resigning effective April 26, to pursue another opportunity. Scott Bowman said, "I have accepted another opportunity that will put me closer to family, but I will remain with Hibbett through the end of April to assist with the transition."

09:15 EDT Bank of America says plans to add 350 new financial centers by 2021 - Bank of America said it "continues to make significant investments to modernize more than half of its financial centers nationwide, along with its entire ATM network. The company also continues to expand its retail banking and small business services in new and existing markets." Bank of America has modernized more than 1,000 financial centers over the last three years, and is announcing that an additional 1,500 will be modernized over the next three years - including 500 in 2019 - bringing its total to more than 2,500 modernized centers. Last year, Bank of America announced plans underway to open more than 500 new financial centers across its nationwide network. As part of this commitment, the company has opened 150 new centers over the last three years, and will open more than 350 over the next three years, including 90 this year, with many in new markets. The company also announced plans to add more than 2,700 enhanced ATMs to its network over the next three years. This year, the company will complete a multiyear effort to upgrade its current network of more than 16,000 ATMs. Beginning this summer, the bank will continue its retail banking expansion with the opening of nearly 30 centers in Columbus and Cincinnati, Ohio over the next two years. The company also plans to expand into Cleveland, Ohio and Lexington, Kentucky next year. This overall expansion in new and existing markets is expected to create nearly 5,500 jobs, including certified professionals to help serve clients' diverse needs.

09:07 EDT Babcock & Wilcox trading halted, news pending

08:39 EDT Gilead submits supplemental NDA for once-daily Descovy for HIV PrEP - Gilead Sciences announced that the company has submitted a supplemental New Drug Application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Descovy for pre-exposure prophylaxis to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV-1 infection among individuals who are HIV-negative and at risk for HIV. A Priority Review voucher was submitted with the filing, leading to an anticipated review time of six months. The filing is based on the results of the Phase 3 DISCOVER trial which evaluated the safety and efficacy of Descovy compared to Truvada in men and transgender women who have sex with men at high-risk for sexually acquired HIV infection. Truvada for PrEP is currently the only FDA approved product indicated to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV-1 in individuals who are HIV-negative and at risk for HIV. Results from the DISCOVER trial demonstrated that Descovy achieved non-inferiority to Truvada in study participants who were at substantial and sustained risk of HIV acquisition. Additionally, statistically significant improvements in renal and bone laboratory parameters were observed for participants receiving Descovy versus those receiving Truvada. In the United States, Descovy is approved in combination with other antiretroviral agents for the treatment of HIV infection in patients weighing greater than or equal to25 kg and is not indicated for PrEP. Truvada is indicated in combination with safer sex practices for HIV PrEP to reduce the risk of sexually acquired HIV in at-risk individuals who are HIV-negative and weigh greater than or equal to35 kg. Descovy and Truvada each have a Boxed Warning in their respective product labels regarding the risk of post-treatment acute exacerbation of hepatitis B; the Truvada label also carries a Boxed Warning for the risk of drug resistance with PrEP in undiagnosed early HIV infection. Among DISCOVER trial participants, Descovy and Truvada were well tolerated and had low discontinuation rates due to adverse events of 1.3 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively. The most common drug-related adverse event was diarrhea. The use of Descovy for the prevention of HIV is investigational and has not been determined to be safe or efficacious and is not approved anywhere globally.

08:33 EDT TOP Ships announces delivery of Suezmax vessel M/T Eco Bel Air - TOP Ships announced that it took delivery of the 157,000 dwt newbuilding Suezmax vessel M/T Eco Bel Air, constructed at the Hyundai Samho shipyard in South Korea. CEO Evangelo Pistiolis said, "The delivery of the M/T Eco Bel Air marks our comeback in the Suezmax tanker segment after almost 11 years. As of today, the total tonnage of our fleet on the water is 737,000 deadweight tonnes and our fleet has an average age of two years. The M/T Eco Bel Air is the 13th vessel of our fleet (including our two joint venture vessels) and is one of the first scrubber fitted Suezmax vessels to be delivered worldwide. With our second Suezmax vessel due to be delivered in approximately one month from now our current newbuilding program will have been successfully completed and by then we will have 14 vessels with an average age of two years and a tonnage of 896,000 deadweight tonnes, all placed under profitable long-term time charter agreements with triple-A charterers (namely 5 of our vessels will be employed by oil majors)."

08:10 EDT Aphria awarded provisional approval in Germany for cannabis cultivation license - Aphria announced that its German subsidiary, Aphria Deutschland GmbH, has been selected by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices to receive a license for the domestic cultivation of medical cannabis. The provisional decision announced by BfArM is subject to a mandatory 10-day standstill period for public contracts, which permits unsuccessful bidders to challenge the decision before the final contract is signed. BfArM's decision would grant Aphria 5 of the 13 available lots, each with a minimum annual capacity of 200 kg.

08:05 EDT SkyWest reports combined March traffic - SkyWest Airlines reported 124,447 block hours in March, an increase of 6.9% from March 2018. SkyWest Airlines' higher production was primarily due to the new E175 and CRJ900 aircraft added to SkyWest Airlines' fleet since March 2018. In March, departures were up 7.1%, passengers up 10.5% and load factor up 1 percentage point compared to prior year levels.

07:34 EDT VICI Properties to acquire Jack Cincinnati Casino - VICI Properties announced that it has, together with a subsidiary of Hard Rock entered into definitive agreements to acquire the JACK Cincinnati Casino, located in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $745 million in cash. Pursuant to the agreements, VICI Properties will acquire 100% of the membership interests of a subsidiary of JACK Cincinnati that owns the land and real estate assets of JACK Cincinnati for $558 million, and Hard Rock will acquire the operating assets of JACK Cincinnati for $187 million. Simultaneous with the closing of this transaction, the Company will enter into a triple-net lease agreement with Hard Rock related to JACK Cincinnati. The lease will have an initial total annual rent of $42.75 million, for an implied capitalization rate of 7.7%, and an initial term of 15 years, with four 5-year renewal options. The rent coverage ratio in the first year after closing is expected to be approximately 1.74x and the tenant's obligations under the lease will be guaranteed by Seminole Hard Rock Entertainment, Inc., which maintains an investment grade rating from S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings.

07:06 EDT Avedro announces four new providers issue positive coverage for KXL System - Avedro announced that four new providers have issued positive coverage policies for Avedro's FDA-approved corneal cross-linking procedure, bringing the total number of commercial plans covering the KXL system and its associated Photrexa drug formulations to over 65. These four plans bring the total number of covered lives in the United States to more than 180M. The company estimates that more than 95% of commercially covered lives have access to the Avedro's KXL system.

06:11 EDT EU regulators charge BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen with emissions collusion - The European Commission has informed BMW (BMWYY), Daimler (DDAIF) and VW (VLKAY) of its preliminary view that they have breached EU antitrust rules from 2006 to 2014 by colluding to restrict competition on the development of technology to clean the emissions of petrol and diesel passenger cars. Commissioner Margrethe Vestager in charge of competition policy said: "Companies can cooperate in many ways to improve the quality of their products. However, EU competition rules do not allow them to collude on exactly the opposite: not to improve their products, not to compete on quality. We are concerned that this is what happened in this case and that Daimler, VW and BMW may have broken EU competition rules. As a result, European consumers may have been denied the opportunity to buy cars with the best available technology. The three car manufacturers now have the opportunity to respond to our findings." The Commission's preliminary view is that BMW, Daimler and VW participated in a collusive scheme, in breach of EU competition rules, to limit the development and roll-out of emission cleaning technology for new diesel and petrol passenger cars sold in the European Economic Area. This collusion occurred in the framework of the car manufacturers' so-called "circle of five" technical meetings.

06:02 EDT Harris to sell Night Vision business to Elbit Systems for $350M in cash - Harris (HRS) and Elbit Systems (ESLT) announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Elbit Systems of America will acquire Harris' Night Vision business for $350M in cash. The transaction is conditioned on completion of Harris' previously announced proposed merger with L3 Technologies, (LLL), as well as customary closing conditions including receipt of regulatory approvals. Proceeds from the divestiture are expected to be used to pre-fund the L3 Harris pension and return cash to shareholders.