Stockwinners Market Radar for April 08, 2020 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:33 EDT Energy Recovery board member sells 46K shares of common stock - In a regulatory filing, Energy Recovery disclosed that its board member Arve Hanstveit sold 46K shares of common stock on March 20th-24th. The total transaction size was over $320K.

19:15 EDT RBC says Canada Emergency Business Account enrollment goes live April 9 - RBC announced that the online-only enrollment process to participate in the Government of Canada's Canada Emergency Business Account will be live on April 9, 2020 via RBC Online Banking for Business. Eligible businesses will receive a $40,000 government-funded loan to cover short term operating expenses, payroll and other non-deferrable expenses which are critical to sustain business continuity. "We understand how important and time-sensitive this relief is for businesses across Canada in order to support their workforce and sustain business continuity," said Greg Grice, Executive Vice-President, Business Financial Services for RBC. "We've created a self-serve, digital-only enrollment process so that we can quickly and seamlessly deliver critical funds to eligible businesses through our existing RBC Online Banking for Business channel."

19:01 EDT B2Gold reports Q1 gold production 250.6K oz, up 25% from last year - Reports Q1 gold revenue $380M, up 44% from last year.

18:45 EDT BlackRock not making any layoffs this year due to COVID-19, says CEO - BlackRock chairman and CEO Larry Fink said in a LinkedIn post said that he has told employees that the company won't make any layoffs in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. "We are committed to making sure our people have the support they need during this time," Fink said. "All our employees have the flexibility to take off as much time as they need to care for themselves, their family or a loved one. We've also told our people that we aren't going to make any layoffs this year as a result of COVID-19. Moreover, the BlackRock community includes the individuals who play essential roles supporting our facilities, like cafeteria workers and maintenance staff. We've told them that even if they can't come to work we will continue to support them with full-time pay during this time. Lastly, we look forward to welcoming to BlackRock the summer interns and full-time graduate analysts to whom we've already extended offers. We will continue to manage our business and shift resources around to best serve our clients as we always do, but no one at BlackRock should be worrying right now about losing their job as a result of COVID-19." Reference Link

18:34 EDT Kirkland Lake Gold reports Q1 production up 43% y-o-y to 330,864 oz, - Kirkland Lake Gold reported Q1 production of 330,864 ounces, an increase of 98,985 ounces or 43% from 231,879 ounces for Q1 2019 and 18% higher than 279,742 ounces in the previous quarter. Q1 2020 production included 91,555 ounces related to production in Q1 2020 from Detour Lake Mine, following the company's acquisition of Detour Gold on January 31. Excluding the impact of Detour Lake Mine, Q1 2020 production was 7,430 ounces or 3% higher than the same period in 2019, reflecting a 24% increase in production from Fosterville. Q1 production was 239,309 ounces excluding Detour Lake. Gold poured in Q1 totaled 326,933 ounces, with total gold sold of 344,586 ounces. Production from Detour Lake Mine from January 31 totaled 91,555 ounces despite disruptions caused by COVID-19. The company gained $159M of cash at the closing of Detour Gold acquisition and, subsequently, used $100M to repay Detour Gold's outstanding debt and $30M to close out Detour Gold's hedge positions. The company repurchased 9.7 million common shares through normal course issuer bid for $329M. Cash position was $530M with no debt at March 31. As part of COVID-19 protocols, the company has suspended exploration drilling at all sites.

18:26 EDT Asta Funding trading halted, news dissemination

18:23 EDT PGT Innovations announces cost reduction measures - "To further bolster our solid balance sheet and liquidity, we have taken several actions intended to preserve cash through cost reduction and minimizing capital expenditures, while continuing to produce the products needed by our customers," said Sherri Baker, Senior Vice President and CFO. Selected highlights of the company's liquidity profile are as follows: Current available liquidity of approximately $140M, including cash on hand of $64M and undrawn revolver capacity of $76M; No scheduled debt payments required until maturity of $64M term loan due October 2022; Delaying or canceling planned capital expenditures; Eliminating discretionary spending, with a primary focus on reducing selling, general and administrative expenses; Assessing overall network capacity; Optimizing net working capital; Focusing on preserving cash.

18:09 EDT Orchid Island Capital cuts monthly dividend to 5.5c from 8c per share - The dividend of $0.055 per share will be paid May 27, 2020 to holders of record on April 30, 2020, with an ex-dividend date of April 29, 2020.

18:01 EDT Huntington Ingalls begins work on destroyer Ted Stevens - Huntington Ingalls officially started fabrication of the Arleigh Burke -class destroyer Ted Stevens on Monday. The start of fabrication signifies the first 100 tons of steel have been cut.

17:52 EDT Disney rises 7.1% after Disney+ achieves over 50M paid subscribers

17:39 EDT Microchip announces salary cuts for executives, non-factory workers - Microchip is taking a series of actions to lower its cost structure. Microchip's CEO, president and other executive staff members will take a 20% salary cut effective on April 20, while the rest of the non-factory employees in the company will take a 10% salary cut. The salary cuts will be in addition to the reduction of cash bonuses and other discretionary expenses. The cost reduction actions in U.S. factories will vary with some employees taking salary cuts and others taking rotating time off depending on the factory loading levels for various locations. Cost reduction actions in non-U.S. locations will depend on local law requirements including obtaining works council approval in certain jurisdictions and employee consent for salary cuts in other jurisdictions. The Microchip board of directors will also take a 20% cut in their cash compensation. Microchip expects that its capital expenditures for fiscal 2021 ending March 31, 2021 will be reduced to about $50M-$70M, primarily for maintenance capital and to support new product introductions. "While we see strong bookings and backlog right now, we also see a very high degree of uncertainly in our business due to the impact of the COVID-19 virus," said Steve Sanghi, Microchip's CEO. "With millions of job losses, customer factories shutting down and weakening economic activity, we are taking actions to reduce expenses and capital expenditures to prepare for these conditions."

17:28 EDT Choice Hotels down 2.5% after suspending dividends and buybacks

17:25 EDT Choice Hotels suspends share repurchases and future dividends - In recent weeks, the company has adopted mitigation efforts to alleviate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the business. These efforts include improving its cash position, bolstering liquidity and reducing discretionary costs. The company continues to benefit from its primarily franchise-only business model, which has historically provided a relatively stable earnings stream and low capital expenditure requirements. In addition, the company has $489M in cash and available borrowing capacity through its revolving credit facility and has additional available options to increase capacity, if needed. As a result, the company expects to withstand the impacts of COVID-19 on its business. In addition, management and the Board of Directors have taken steps to adjust the company's cost structure and increase its financial flexibility, which include, but are not limited to, the following actions: Reduced the compensation of the Board of Directors, chief executive officer and other executive officers for the remainder of 2020. Implemented a hiring freeze except with respect to certain critical positions, suspended associates' 401(k) match and implemented a temporary furlough for certain positions in Europe, where government-mandated and other closures have been more prevalent. Eliminated, reduced or deferred non-essential expenditures, discretionary capital expenditures and investments. Suspended the company's share repurchase plan. Determined to suspend future, undeclared dividends for the remainder of 2020.

17:13 EDT Starbucks temporarily suspends share repurchase program - "Given our financial strength as an enterprise, we are confident that we will be able to maintain appropriate liquidity as we manage through the current crisis," Starbucks said in a regulatory filing. "At the end of Q2, we had approximately $2.5 billion of cash and cash equivalents on our balance sheet. To free-up additional liquidity, we executed a $1.75 billion bond issuance on March 10, 2020, with the use of proceeds earmarked for repayment of our outstanding commercial paper, backstopped by our $2 billion, 5-year credit facility and $1 billion, 364-day credit facility. Further, on March 20, 2020, we executed an additional $500 million term-loan facility. These short-term borrowing facilities, totaling $3.5 billion, provide ready access to funding as needed to provide near-term liquidity. To further enhance our financial flexibility, we have also temporarily suspended our share repurchase program and are taking steps to defer capital expenditures and reduce discretionary spending. We do not expect to reduce our quarterly dividend."

17:10 EDT Starbucks to leverage experience in China to inform U.S. COVID-19 response - According to a regulatory filing, Starbucks said in a letter to stakeholders that it is leveraging its experience in China to inform its COVID-19 response strategy in the U.S. "The actions we took in China, beginning in late January, contributed to the steady business recovery we are experiencing, with over 95% of our stores now open, though many are operating with reduced hours and limited seating in compliance with local guidelines," the company said. "We are encouraged to see similar improvements underway in South Korea, which reinforce both the resilience of our brand as well as our success in replicating our recovery model across markets as people are able to return to their daily lives and work. We are leveraging our experience in China to inform our COVID-19 response strategy in the U.S. Although the virus did not begin to materially impact our U.S. business results until mid-March, we took progressive steps to contain the spread of the virus starting in late February. This included elevating our cleaning and sanitizing protocols in stores, temporarily closing mall stores and other locations with high levels of customer congregation, shifting to a "to-go" model and-beginning on March 21-further restricting company operations to drive-thru and delivery channels while maintaining "to-go" service in selected cafes so that we can serve frontline responders and healthcare professionals in our locations near hospitals."

17:05 EDT Black Knight chairman sells 250K shares of common stock - In a regulatory filing, Black Knight disclosed that its chairman William Foley sold 250K shares of common stock on April 6-7. The total transaction size was ~$15.5M.

17:01 EDT Boyd Gaming to place most team members on unpaid furlough - Boyd Gaming announced it is taking additional measures to mitigate the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the closure of all of the company's properties in mid-March. Due to the continued closure of all revenue-generating operations, Boyd Gaming will place most of its team members on unpaid furlough effective Saturday, April 11. For furloughed team members enrolled in the company's health care plans, Boyd Gaming will pay all insurance premiums through June 30 or their return to work, whichever is sooner. A limited number of essential team members will remain on payroll during the closure period. The company also announced that its executive leadership team will be taking significant salary reductions, while the company's Board of Directors has agreed to suspend the Board's compensation. Additionally, all non-furloughed members of the company's corporate and property management teams will take a salary cut. Additional cost-containment measures taken by the company include: Following a thorough review of the company's expenses, all non-essential spending has been postponed indefinitely; All capital projects have been suspended and will be re-evaluated by the Board of Directors; As previously announced, the company's cash dividend program has also been suspended.

16:42 EDT Patterson-UTI executive chairman Mark Siegel to retire - Patterson-UTI announced that its long-tenured Executive Chairman, Mark S. Siegel, has advised the company of his intention to retire after more than 25 years of continuous service to Patterson-UTI Energy and its predecessor companies. Mr. Siegel has decided not to stand for re-election to the Board of Directors and to retire as Executive Chairman, at the time of the company's annual shareholder meeting, when it is anticipated that Mr. Curtis Huff will be appointed Non-Executive Chairman. Mr. Huff has been a member of the Board of Directors of Patterson-UTI and one of its predecessor companies for 23 years and currently serves as the company's Lead Independent Director.

16:33 EDT Newpark to implement cost reduction programs, including workforce reductions - Newpark Resources provided an operational and financial update and announced actions the company has taken in response to the ongoing COVID-19 situation and the recent drop in oil and gas prices. The following specific actions taken to-date have focused primarily on operations supporting the deteriorating U.S. land oil and gas market: The implementation of cost reduction programs, including workforce reductions, the suspension of the company's matching contributions to its U.S. defined contribution plan, and temporary salary reductions effective April 1 for a significant portion of U.S. employees, including a 15% cut to the salaries paid to executive officers and the annual cash retainers paid to all non-employee members of the board; The initiation of additional actions to further reduce the operational footprint of the Fluids Systems business in U.S. land, to better align the company's cost structure with expected declines in market activity levels; and The elimination of all non-essential capital investments, which reduces expected FY20 capital expenditures to approximately $15M-$20M. The company ended Q1 with a cash balance of approximately $49M and a total debt balance of approximately $163M, which includes the remaining $85.5M of convertible notes maturing in December 2021.

16:32 EDT Ulta Beauty announces temporary furlough of many store and salon associates - The company states: "With every intention of bringing its workforce back when it is safe to do so, the temporary furlough will be effective April 19, 2020. In the interim, furloughed associates will be eligible to apply for unemployment benefits, which were recently increased with the passing of the federal CARES Act. All furloughed associates participating in company benefit plans will remain enrolled in their respective coverages. Ulta Beauty has curated relevant resources and information to help guide associates during this interim furlough and offers continued access to its Human Resources Support Center. The company shared these resources internally in tandem with this announcement."

16:31 EDT Franklin Resources reports preliminary AUM $580.2B as of March 31 - Compared to $656.5B at February 29. Assets under management were driven lower by sharp market declines. Preliminary average assets under management for the quarter ended March 31, were $655.7B.

16:28 EDT Rexnord suspends share buybacks, remains committed to sustaining dividend - CEO Todd Adams states: "We finished our FY20 with record annual free cash flow, our net debt leverage ratio below 2x, approximately $575 million of cash on our balance sheet and facing no long-term debt maturities before August 2024. Given the uncertainty, we have elected to suspend share repurchases for the time being, but we remain committed to sustaining our common stock dividend."

16:24 EDT Will Lewis to depart post as CEO of News Corp's Dow Jones and WSJ - News Corp announced that Will Lewis will be departing as CEO of Dow Jones and Publisher of The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Lewis will continue to work with his team through the current COVID-19 crisis for the next month, while a successor will be announced in the coming weeks.

16:22 EDT O-I Glass says most plants operating with minimal interruption - Many governments have implemented new rules and guidelines to combat the virus across the markets that O-I serves. While these requirements can restrict business activity, glass containers have been viewed as a critical infrastructure industry given its support for the important food and beverage value chain. Notably, the specific food and beverage categories deemed as critical infrastructure do vary by market. Currently, approximately 85 - 90 percent of O-I's production capacity is operating uninterrupted. However, some capacity has been curtailed primarily in Europe and Latin America given market and work force disruptions from COVID-19 as well as government public health decrees in some countries. The situation remains fluid and the company anticipates further capacity adjustments are likely over the next several weeks.

16:22 EDT Six Flags down 2% at $14/shr after withdrawing guidance, suspending buybacks

16:21 EDT Extreme Networks announces cost cutting measures - Extreme has already implemented actions to manage and reduce operating costs and further enhance its financial flexibility in Q3, including: Tightening control on discretionary spending, hiring and working capital; Drawing down $55 million of its $75 million revolving credit facility on March 24, 2020; Implementing interest rate swap contracts on slightly more than half of the outstanding Term Loan A debt principal ($370 million) to take advantage of lower LIBOR rates; Seeking a waiver of the covenants pertaining to its Term Loan A due 2024 from its lenders group through July 31, 2020, which was unanimously approved on April 7. Heading into Fiscal Q4 2020 and given the uncertainty around the timing of the recovery of the Enterprise Networking market, Extreme plans to take additional actions in April and May, including: A set of temporary cost reduction measures and continued restriction on all discretionary expenses, including postponing marketing programs and non-strategic capital expenditure plans; The acceleration of actions the company was planning to take to improve R&D and Sales productivity, along with cost reductions in Supply Chain and Operations; Working with its lenders, led by Bank of Montreal, on adjustments to the covenants pertaining to its Term Loan A beyond July 31, 2020.

16:20 EDT Extreme Networks sees Q3 non-GAAP gross margin 56%-57% - The company expects Q3 GAAP gross margin to be in the range of 53%-54%.

16:18 EDT CareDx provides business update amid COVID-19 update - In March, CareDx launched RemoTraC, a remote home-based blood draw solution using mobile phlebotomy for AlloSure and AlloMap surveillance tests, as well as for other standard monitoring tests. To date, more than 140 transplant centers can offer RemoTraC to their patients and over 1,000 kidney, heart, and lung transplant patients have enrolled. Based on existing and new relationships with partners, CareDx has established a nationwide network of more than 10,000 mobile phlebotomists. In April, CareDx partnered with an international consortium, which includes the National Institutes of Health and the European Society of Transplantation, to initiate the C19TxR registry to provide real-time analytics and insights on transplant patients with COVID-19. CareDx is maintaining its testing, manufacturing, and distribution facilities while implementing specific protocols to reduce contact among employees. In areas where COVID-19 impacts healthcare operations, our field-based sales and clinical support teams are supporting providers through telephone and online platforms. To reduce the risk to CareDx employees and their families from potential exposure to COVID-19, most of our employees have been required to work from home. CareDx has also restricted non-essential business travel to protect the health and safety of its employees, patients and customers.

16:18 EDT Costco reports March total comparable sales up 9.6%, up 12.3% excluding fuel - Costco Wholesale Corporation reported net sales of $15.49B for the retail month of March, the five weeks ended April 5, an increase of 11.7% from $13.87B last year. For the thirty-one weeks ended April 5, the company reported net sales of $96.25B, an increase of 9.0% from $88.29B during the similar period last year.

16:17 EDT Six Flags withdraws FY20 guidance - In light of the uncertain operating environment, the company has withdrawn its previously provided 2020 Adjusted EBITDA guidance. For the same reason, the company will not hold its previously scheduled investor day on May 28, 2020, and will reschedule it to a later date.

16:15 EDT Nautilus up over 21% on above-consensus Q1 revenue view, EBITDA guidance raise

16:11 EDT Corning reorganizes operating structure, appoints Eric Musser COO - Corning announced it is reorganizing its operating structure based on extensive analysis and leadership review. The new structure aligns executive management and business teams around five Market-Access Platforms: Mobile Consumer Electronics, Optical Communications, Automotive, Life Sciences, and Display. There will be no changes to Corning's financial reporting segments under the new operating structure. Additionally, Corning has established a new leadership position. Eric Musser has been named to the expanded role of president and COO, effective immediately.

16:08 EDT Stitch Fix withdraws prior guidance due to proliferation of COVID-19 - Stitch Fix announced that it is withdrawing its business outlook for the third quarter and fiscal year 2020 previously provided in its shareholder letter on March 9, 2020, due to the increasing uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Stitch Fix previously announced on March 20 that it had temporarily closed two of its distribution centers in South San Francisco, California and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to comply with local public health orders. The company has continued to ship products through distribution centers across the United States, with significantly increased health and safety precautions as outlined by government and public health guidelines such as those recommended by the CDC and at substantially limited capacity. Katrina Lake, founder and CEO, Stitch Fix, said, "The rapid proliferation of COVID-19 worldwide has had an unprecedented effect on our daily lives. While we anticipated our business would be impacted, we did not have visibility into the extent to which it would disrupt our distribution centers. At this time, with significant constraints on our operations, we feel it is prudent to withdraw our previously issued third quarter and fiscal year 2020 guidance. Even with this challenging macroeconomic climate, we believe our business remains well positioned to succeed long term. Stitch Fix has been cash flow positive since 2014 with a long history of strong unit economics. We believe this foundation, and our unique personalization capabilities, coupled with a convenient at-home model that offers an obvious advantage in the new reality and positive momentum on Direct Buy effectively positions us for the future."

16:08 EDT Dorman Products provides business update related to COVID-19 pandemic - Dorman Products provided an update on its business operations in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the U.S., automotive repair and the related supply and distribution of parts have generally been classified as essential businesses exempted from government shutdowns. Therefore, the vast majority of Dorman's retail and wholesale customers are open for business, and in turn, all of Dorman's U.S. facilities are also open and operating at this time, with modified staffing in certain locations where appropriate. Dorman has taken actions to promote the welfare of its employees by enhancing safety protocols, including encouraging employees to work from home where applicable and implementing social distancing and sanitization practices at its facilities. Dorman has also adopted a COVID-19 sick leave policy providing continued salary and benefits to eligible employees. Operationally, Dorman's global network of parts suppliers is meeting Dorman's current demand levels, including Dorman's suppliers in China that experienced a slowdown in the first part of Q1 of FY20 due to the pandemic. The company will continue to closely monitor updates regarding the spread of COVID-19 and adjust its operations according to guidelines from local, state and federal officials. Dorman exited 2019 with a strong balance sheet and since then, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, took steps to manage its costs and bolster its balance sheet and cash position, including: Drawing down $99M from its $100 million revolving credit facility, which matures in December 2022; Increasing the level of receivables collected under various factoring programs; Temporarily suspending its share repurchase program; Managing inventories and operating costs to quickly adjust to demand dynamics; Limiting non-essential operating expenses and deferring capital expenditures, as appropriate. As a result of these actions, the company increased its cash position and, as of April 7, the company had approximately $300M in cash and cash equivalents. Dorman believes that its asset light model and ample liquidity position it well to navigate the current economic disruption associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

16:07 EDT PriceSmart says COVID-19 to 'adversely affect' traffic, sales in short term - CEO Sherry Bahrambeygui said, "As noted in our March 2020 Merchandise Sales press release, we saw a significant increase in our net merchandise sales in March driven in part by initial stockpiling, primarily of foods and essentials. Following a strong start, sales moderated and later decreased in the second half of the month as various governments in our markets responded to the outbreak with travel restrictions, 'shelter in place' advisories, curfews, and social distancing measures. Many governments have imposed or are experimenting with policies and restrictions affecting the retail sectors of our markets. Many of these policies and restrictions have resulted in limiting access for our members and impacting our club operations, including temporary club closures, limits on the number of days during the week and hours per day our clubs can be open, restrictions on segments of the population permitted to shop on particular days, and limits on the number of people that can be in a club. These restrictions change day-to-day and vary from market-by-market. To best accommodate our members within these developing restrictions, we have introduced an online catalog that enables our members to see, almost real-time, the availability of products for all clubs. For certain warehouse clubs, we have launched curbside pickup and home delivery by us or in coordination with third-party delivery services. We also are launching online ordering and pick-up at club, which we refer to as 'Click and Go. Where we have experienced the most significant limitations, we have offered a "drive-through" alternative with a limited offering of basic goods. We are committed to making sure our members have the essential items they need during this difficult time. However, we expect the impact of the pandemic and the related varied restrictions on our operations to adversely affect traffic and sales over the next few months."

16:07 EDT Sleep Number discontinues buybacks, draws down $262M under credit facility - The company has taken actions to manage liquidity through the challenging economic environment caused by the pandemic. Starting in mid-March, the company took significant measures to preserve cash: Discontinuing share repurchases, reducing capital expenditures and negotiating rent abatements for stores closed due to COVID-19. As previously announced, on March 17, the company drew down $262 million remaining available under its $450 million revolving credit facility and began work to expand the credit agreement with an incremental $75 million under its $150 million accordion. This incremental 364-day term loan was effective and fully funded on April 3.

16:06 EDT Sleep Number to furlough about 40% of total company staff - Complying with state and county government mandates, Sleep Number has temporarily closed most of its retail and home delivery operations across the country. As a result, the company is furloughing nearly 40% of the total company and another 30% of team members are working reduced hours. Additionally, the company is temporarily suspending its 401(K) match and other benefit programs. The CEO will not receive any cash compensation for the balance of the year through a 50% deferral plus the exchange of all remaining salary for restricted stock units. In addition, Sleep Number's board and leadership team will reduce their cash compensation in exchange for restricted stock units. Everyone's compensation has been meaningfully reduced through variable compensation programs and other actions.

16:02 EDT PriceSmart reports Q2 comparable net merchandise sales up 0.4% - For the thirteen-week period ended March 1, comparable net merchandise sales increased 0.4% compared to the same thirteen-week period a year ago. Foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations impacted comparable net merchandise sales negatively by $3.3M, or 0.4% of comparable net merchandise sales. The company had 45 clubs in operation as of February 29, compared to 41 warehouse clubs in operation as of February 28, 2019.

15:47 EDT U.S. should be tough on taxpayers' behalf in negotiating with Boeing, Cuban says - The federal government should be tough, on behalf of American taxpayers, in negotiating any bailout deal or loans to Boeing, Mark Cuban said. If the airplane maker thinks it can get a better deal working with private equity, the federal government should say "go ahead," according to Cuban, who offered his opinion on a Boeing bailout while being interviewed on CNBC.

15:02 EDT Yext announces collaboration with State of Alabama for COVID-19 website - Yext announced its collaboration with the State of Alabama on a custom website, powered by Yext, that "centralizes accurate information and updates" about the COVID-19 pandemic. "Based on the high volume of traffic we've seen on the COVID-19 information hub we built for New Jersey and the number of requests we've gotten from across the country, it's clear that people are turning to their state for accurate information about the coronavirus," said Brian Distelburger, Co-Founder and President of Yext. "Implementing Answers on the State of Alabama's new COVID-19 website has given us yet another opportunity to make a positive impact with our platform during the pandemic." Yext is offering the site search product that powers Alabama and New Jersey's websites, Yext Answers, for free for 90 days to deliver verified information during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company added.

14:42 EDT Google launches Chrome 81 with initial support for Web NFC standard - Google launched Chrome 81 for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS. Some of the more notable updates for Chrome 81 include the following: WebXR hit testing, app icon managing, Web NFC. Google said in part: "You're all about getting stuff done. Chrome is all about helping you get it done quickly. Whether on desktop or mobile, Chrome is designed for speed and efficiency. Optimized, from tabs 1 to 100. Are you one of those that likes to keep 100 tabs open? Chrome is constantly evolving to optimize memory usage and responsiveness, meaning less lag per tab. And its sleek design helps you stay organized." Reference Link

14:39 EDT DoJ clears on Google's FCC application to operate a subsea cable - The Department of Justice filed a petition with the Federal Communications Commission concerning Google's application to operate a subsea cable. On behalf of itself as well as the Departments of Homeland Security and Defense, the department advised the FCC that those agencies do not oppose Google's application - through its subsidiary GU Holdings - to operate the segment of the Pacific Light Cable Network System connecting the U.S. to Taiwan for the next six months, pending a final disposition of the license application, so long as that temporary authority is conditioned on certain obligations. Those obligations are set forth in a Provisional National Security Agreement that was executed by GU Holdings and the foregoing agencies on April 8, 2020. Google applied to the FCC for this operating authority in a Special Temporary Authority on April 2, 2020. In its application for the STA, Google emphasized "an immediate need to meet internal demand for capacity between the U.S. and Taiwan" and that without the sought temporary authority Google would likely have to seek alternative capacity at "significantly higher prices." After discussions with Google representatives, the departments concluded that the obligations undertaken by Google in the Provisional National Security agreement would be sufficient to preserve their abilities to enforce the law, protect national security, and preserve public safety. Under the terms of the Provisional National Security Agreement, Google has agreed to a range of operational requirements, notice obligations, access and security guarantees, as well as auditing and reporting duties, among others. The Provisional National Security Agreement also includes a commitment by Google to "pursue diversification of interconnection points in Asia," as well as to establish network facilities that deliver traffic "as close as practicable" to its ultimate destination. This term reflects the views of the Executive Branch that a direct cable connection between the U.S. and Hong Kong would pose an unacceptable risk to the national security and law enforcement interests of the U.S. Reference Link

14:28 EDT Viveve 2.0 system issued licence by Health Canada - A post to the website of Health Canada shows that the Viveve 2.0 system was issued a licence in Canada on April 6. Reference Link

13:44 EDT Toyota extends output halt at all plants until May 1 - Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and decline in vehicle demand, Toyota is further extending the length of its production suspension at all of its automobile and components plants in North America, including Canada, Mexico and the U.S. The manufacturing facilities will remain closed through May 1, resuming production on May 4. "Our service parts operations and finished vehicle logistics centers will continue to operate in order to meet the ongoing needs of our customers," the company said. "We will continue to monitor the situation and take appropriate action in a timely manner."

13:35 EDT comScore reports 30% year-over-year increase in VOD transactions in March - Comscore said its data show a significant increase in video on demand, or VOD, consumption as millions of Americans seek entertainment while complying with pandemic public health safety measures. "Further driving the March 2020 VOD viewing surge is that in reaction to this unprecedented situation, studios shifted some of their big screen content to on-demand platforms," Comscore stated. Looking at all set-top box-based VOD - including Free on Demand, Subscription Video on Demand, Transactional on Demand and Electronic Sell-Through - the month of March saw a nearly 30% increase in average transactions per household that subscribes to VOD year-over-year, with the average subscribing household accessing, purchasing or renting 16 titles of VOD content over the course of the month. Of the VOD subcategories, Subscription Video on Demand, or SVOD, had the highest growth, with a 53% increase in average transactions per subscribing household from March 2019 vs. March 2020. Free on Demand, or FOD, was next with a 21% increase for the same time period, according to Comscore.

12:47 EDT Philips, U.S. government to team up on ventilator production ramp up - Royal Philips announced that the U.S. Government and Philips agreed to team up to increase the production of hospital ventilators in its manufacturing sites in the U.S. Philips plans to double the production by May 2020 and achieve a four-fold increase by the third quarter of 2020 for supply to the U.S. and global markets. Such ventilators are critical for the treatment of patients with the new coronavirus disease. Philips will invest several tens of millions in its ventilator manufacturing sites in the U.S. "We are actively collaborating with the U.S. government to help save lives in the U.S. and across the globe," said Frans van Houten, CEO of Royal Philips. "There is an unprecedented global demand for medical equipment to help diagnose and treat patients with COVID-19. We welcome the support of the U.S. government in our efforts to aggressively increase the production of hospital ventilators. We believe in fair allocation of scarce medical equipment to those who need it the most, and we are ramping up to deliver 43,000 units to the most critical regions in the U.S. in the coming weeks and months through December 2020."

12:45 EDT Healthcare outperforms after Sanders ends bid for Democratic nomination - Shares of healthcare-related stocks are outperforming a strong move in the broader market on Wednesday after Senator Bernie Sanders ended his presidential campaign, paving the path to for Joe Biden's Democratic nomination. "In a race reshaped, and eclipsed, by the escalating coronavirus crisis, Mr. Sanders faced no realistic path to the nomination after a series of lopsided losses to Mr. Biden, beginning in South Carolina in late February and culminating with a string of losses last month in crucial states like Michigan and Florida," said The New York Times earlier. WHAT'S NOTABLE: Senator Sanders had backed the notion of "Medicare for All," which worried some healthcare investors because of the natural pricing pressures. Biden is leaning towards an expansion of government-subsidized health insurance coverage but would keep the private system. Biden proposes to build on the Affordable Care Act signed into law 10 years ago by President Barack Obama and would look to add a public option to private plans sold on the ACA's public exchange. PRICE ACTION: Shares of health service organizations UnitedHealth Group (UNH), Cigna Corporation (CI) and Anthem (ANTM) are trading higher as is CVS Health (CVS), the owner of Aetna, as well as biotech stocks like Biogen (BIIB).

12:28 EDT Facebook introduces limit on forwarding some WhatsApp messages - Facebook said in a blog post, "With billions of people unable to see their friends and family in person due to COVID-19, people are relying on WhatsApp more than ever to communicate. People are talking to doctors, teachers, and isolated loved ones via WhatsApp during this crisis. That's why all your messages and calls on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted by default to give you a secure place for your most personal conversations. Last year we introduced users to the concept of messages that have been forwarded many times. These messages are labeled with double arrows to indicate they did not originate from a close contact. In effect, these messages are less personal compared to typical messages sent on WhatsApp. We are now introducing a limit so that these messages can only be forwarded to one chat at a time. As a private messaging service, we've taken several steps over the years to help keep conversations intimate. For example, we previously set limits on forwarded messages to constrain virality. At the time, we saw a 25% decrease in total message forwards globally." Reference Link

12:20 EDT Finjan Holdings reports PTAB final decision validates '844 as 'patentable' - Finjan Holdings (FNJN), and its subsidiary Finjan, announce that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board, or PTAB, issued a Final Written Decision finding Finjan's U.S. Patent No. 6,154,844 patentable over prior art. The present IPR was petitioned by Juniper Networks (JNPR) and was the ninth unsuccessful challenge overall to Finjan's '844 Patent, the company said. "The repeated validations of the '844's patentability by the various forums should cement its durability and enormous value in the cybersecurity industry. The '844 Patent is the subject of 25 patent licenses, contributing to over $350 million in licensing revenues for Finjan. And yet, accused infringers continue to delay liability not based on the merits but rather by gaming the patent system and laws with serial, non-meritorious challenges. Finjan nevertheless welcomes the PTAB's decision, which will bolster our litigations where the '844 Patent is asserted, namely, against Cisco Systems, ESET, SonicWall, Check Point, Fortinet, and Qualys," said Julie Mar-Spinola Finjan's Chief IP Officer and VP of Legal Ops.

11:32 EDT Fed eases Wells Fargo growth restrictions to allow for more loans - The Federal Reserve said in a statement, "Due to the extraordinary disruptions from the coronavirus, the Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday announced that it will temporarily and narrowly modify the growth restriction on Wells Fargo so that it can provide additional support to small businesses. The change will only allow the firm to make additional small business loans as part of the Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, and the Federal Reserve's forthcoming Main Street Lending Program. The Board will require benefits from the PPP and the Main Street Lending Program to be transferred to the U.S. Treasury or to non-profit organizations approved by the Federal Reserve that support small businesses. The change will be in place as long as the facilities are active...The changes do not otherwise modify the Board's February 2018 enforcement action against Wells Fargo. The Board continues to hold the company accountable for successfully addressing the widespread breakdowns that resulted in harm to consumers identified as part of that action and for completing the requirements of the agreement." Reference Link

11:20 EDT Nordstrom warns of financial distress with extended store closures - Nordstrom said earlier in a regulatory filing, "While the Company continues to generate sales and clear excess inventory by fulfilling customer online orders from both its physical stores and its fulfillment centers, we are uncertain when we will be able to reopen our physical stores to customers. The longer our stores remain closed to the public, the greater impact it will have on our results of operations and financial condition, and if our physical locations remain closed to customers for an extended period of time our financial situation could become distressed."

11:08 EDT Pinnacle Bankshares, Virginia Bankshares delay strategic merger - Pinnacle Bankshares and Virginia Bank Bankshares jointly announced that consummation of the previously announced strategic merger of Virginia Bank with and into Pinnacle will be delayed. Pinnacle and Virginia Bank have jointly concluded that a delay is necessary due to near-term operational challenges as both institutions respond to the COVID-19 outbreak and the resulting volatility in U.S. financial markets as well as the impact on their local communities and economies. Pinnacle and Virginia Bank remain fully committed to completing this transaction once the uncertainty surrounding this pandemic subsides. Pinnacle and Virginia Bank feel strongly that each bank must prioritize its efforts and resources to focus on the needs of customers, employees and local communities as they address COVID-19, and that attempting to complete the merger during this time of economic uncertainty and market volatility could strain the ability of each bank to meet those needs. Both believe that the merits of the proposed merger remain intact and will survive the COVID-19 outbreak. The steps taken by government bodies to limit social interaction in response to the COVID-19 outbreak have created significant business disruption, and adversely affected customers, employees, and shareholders of both Pinnacle and Virginia Bank. In addition, both are focused on working with the federal government on the administration of the Paycheck Protection Program created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act signed into law on March 27, 2020. Although the impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak are rapidly developing, based upon currently available information Pinnacle and Virginia Bank now anticipate the closing of the merger is more likely to occur at the end of the third quarter or in the fourth quarter of 2020. However, the closing could occur earlier or later depending on how the COVID-19 outbreak develops and on conditions in Pinnacle's and Virginia Bank's markets and the national economy and financial markets.

10:43 EDT FedEx collaborating with PPE supply companies to move critical supplies - FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., announced the delivery of its first shipments as a part of Project Airbridge, a public-private partnership managed by the federal government. FedEx has contracted with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to provide expedited shipping of personal protective equipment, or PPE, and other supplies critical to COVID-19 relief efforts. FedEx Express aircraft are being used to transport critical PPE supplies from manufacturers around the world to the United States. The operation aims to accelerate delivery of PPE and other medical supplies, moving them via air instead of ocean. Once the shipments have arrived in the United States, they will become part of the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile. The FEMA Movement Control Team will then manage distribution to healthcare facilities and workers throughout the country. This week, in coordination with DuPont (DD), two initial shipments were transported from Vietnam to Texas carrying more than 450,000 Tyvek protective suits. In the weeks to follow, 500,000+ suits will be shipped each week, FedEx said. FedEx will also operate several flights this week carrying PPE for Medline Industries Inc. from China to Illinois. Medline anticipates bringing 7 million facemasks, additional PPE and anesthesia supplies to the United States, the company stated.

10:18 EDT NMC Health expects to be placed into administration in due course - NMC Health said its board has written to the court indicating that, "notwithstanding strenuous efforts to address Creditors' concerns, it has not been able to secure their alignment and support and has been advised by its counsel that it is not in a position to oppose the application successfully. Accordingly, it expects the Company to be placed into administration in due course." NMC Health refers to its announcement on April 6 concerning the application by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC for the appointment of administrators in respect of the company at a hearing scheduled for April 9.

10:06 EDT Equity Residential reports 93% of April monthly residential rents collected - Equity Residential announced that through April 7, the company collected approximately 93% of its monthly residential cash receipts for April and the company is working with the remainder of its residents on payment options.

10:02 EDT KLX Energy announces additional workforce reduction of about 170 employees - KLX Energy announced several additional cost reduction measures being taken in response to rapidly deteriorating market conditions as a result of the unprecedented demand destruction being caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in addition to the Saudi Arabia/Russia oil market share price war. On March 9, the company announced that it had initiated a cost rationalization program in which it implemented an approximately 360 person, or 22%, reduction in force. The company is announcing an additional reduction in its workforce of approximately 170 employees, which it expects to complete by April 10. In addition, the company has instituted a widespread wage reduction program. The aggregate impact of the reduction in force plus the wage reduction, together with certain other cost reductions, is an approximate $23M annualized reduction in costs on top of the approximately $45M annualized reduction in costs announced on March 9. KLX Energy Services ended the fiscal year with a cash balance of approximately $124M and maintains an undrawn $100M credit facility with a current availability of approximately $60M and no debt maturities until November 2025. Ongoing efforts to cut costs and preserve liquidity will continue as demand for the company's products and services declines. "A strong financial position will continue to be a key differentiator for us and allow the company to continue to explore strategic combinations," stated Amin Khoury, Chairman, CEO & President of KLX Energy Services.

10:00 EDT Annaly Capital rises 21.3% - Annaly Capital is up 21.3%, or 95c to $5.40.

10:00 EDT Ellington Financial rises 56.3% - Ellington Financial is up 56.3%, or $2.94 to $8.16.

09:53 EDT Nordstrom says majority of workforce furloughed, store reopenings unknown - Nordstrom said in a regulatory filing, "The Company has temporarily closed all physical stores to the public without a firm date on when those stores will reopen. A majority of the Company's workforce has been furloughed or assigned zero hours of work, although any or all of such employees may be called back to return to work at any time as the circumstances permit. The Company is providing benefits through the end of May 2020 to all store employees impacted by the temporary store closures. Furloughed corporate employees will continue to receive enrolled benefits during their six week furlough that started on April 5, 2020. The Nordstrom Executive Leadership Group will forgo a part of their salary, and both Pete and Erik Nordstrom will decline their salary from April through September. Similarly, all members of the Company's Board of Directors will forgo cash compensation for a six-month period."

09:47 EDT GSX Techedu falls -6.8% - GSX Techedu is down -6.8%, or -$2.20 to $30.25.

09:47 EDT Ellington Residential rises 20.4% - Ellington Residential is up 20.4%, or $1.11 to $6.55.

09:47 EDT Ellington Financial rises 47.9% - Ellington Financial is up 47.9%, or $2.50 to $7.72.

09:37 EDT DMC Global expects NobelClad opportunities will materialize as orders in 2020 - The company said, "Throughout 2019, NobelClad saw consistent growth in the number of large project opportunities emerging from both traditional and new end markets. Despite the recent economic downturn, we believe many of these opportunities will materialize as orders during 2020."

09:33 EDT Lam Research commits $25M to COVID-19 relief and recovery efforts - Lam Research announced that it is committing $25M for global COVID-19 relief and recovery efforts. The funds will be for short-term community assistance, including supplies to hospitals, longer-term recovery for communities, and relief funds to employees. Additionally, the company has instituted a 2-for-1 matching gift campaign for employee monetary donations to eligible COVID-19 relief programs. "Every community around the world has been impacted by the spread of COVID-19. The magnitude of these impacts has challenged every aspect of our lives - health care, school systems, and economies of every size. Supporting our employees and our communities is a core part of who Lam is as a company," said Tim Archer, president and CEO of Lam Research. The funds are being distributed to communities in which Lam has a presence and will be directed to that community's specific needs, such as food security, shelter resources, and education as well as personal protective equipment for local hospitals.

09:29 EDT Revive Therapeutics engages Novotech as Asia-Pacific CRO for bucillamine - Revive Therapeutics is pleased to announce that the Company has retained Novotech, the largest biotech clinical research organization specialist in the Asia-Pacific region, to serve as the Company's CRO to pursue future human clinical studies for Bucillamine in the treatment of infectious diseases, including the coronavirus disease in Asia-Pacific Countries. Preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated that reactive oxygen species contribute to the destruction and programmed cell death of pulmonary epithelial cells.1 N-acetyl-cysteine has been shown to significantly attenuate clinical symptoms in respiratory viral infections in animals and humans, primarily via donation of thiols to restore antioxidant and to reduce the activity of cellular glutathione. Bucillamine has a well-known safety profile and is prescribed in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in Japan and South Korea for over 30 years. Bucillamine, a cysteine derivative with two thiol groups, has been shown to be 16 times more potent as a thiol donor in vivo than NAC 6. The drug is non-toxic with high cellular permeability. The basis of the clinical study will analyze if Bucillamine has the potential, via restoration of glutathione activity and other anti-inflammatory activity, to lessen the negative consequences of influenza and SARS CoV2 infection in the lungs and to help treat these conditions. Revive is actively pursuing a product and clinical development plan intending to unlock the full potential of Bucillamine for infectious diseases. The Company will continue to announce its initiatives as they unfold.

09:27 EDT CHF Solutions convene physicians to discuss cardio-pulmonary-renal management - CHF Solutions announced the company will host an interactive, clinician-led webinar to discuss cardio-pulmonary-renal management in real-world COVID-19 patients. Dr. Daniel J. Goldstein, Professor & Vice Chairman, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Montefiore Medical Center, New York will moderate the online discussion on Friday, April 10 at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Clinicians will present COVID-19 Case Studies in a grand rounds format and discuss: Complex fluid balance and fluid overload management; Strategies for managing cardio-pulmonary status and hemodynamic state; Managing the continuum of acute kidney injury through end-stage renal disease; Current strategies for treating ARDS, minimizing ventilation time and the role of prone positioning; Staffing and resource challenges; Lessons learned.

09:26 EDT Intuitive Surgical withdraws FY20 financial, procedure guidance - The Company is withdrawing its full year 2020 financial and procedure guidance. As the COVID-19 pandemic expands, unprecedented measures to slow the spread of the virus have been taken by governments and health care authorities globally, including the deferral of elective medical procedures and social contact restrictions, which have had, and will likely continue to have, a significant negative impact on our operations and financial results. Due to the uncertain scope and duration of the pandemic, and uncertain timing of global recovery and economic normalization, we cannot at this time estimate the future impact on our operations and financial results. The Company is scheduled to report its first quarter 2020 results during a conference call on April 16, 2020, at which point the Company will discuss the first quarter 2020 financial results. Dial-in and webcast access information for both of these events are also available in the Investor Relations section of the Intuitive website.

09:24 EDT Seelos Therapeutics says Pre-IND work continuing for SLS-008

09:23 EDT Seelos Therapeutics working on finalizing protocol for pivotal study in OPMD - Last month, Seelos announced it had received a written response from the European Medicines Agency with guidance to design an open-label, non-placebo controlled, Phase IIb/III pivotal study for the treatment of patients with Sanfilippo syndrome types A and B in the European Union. Seelos is continuing discussions with the FDA regarding the use of Sanfilippo syndrome natural history data as a control for a pivotal study in the U.S. Seelos is currently collecting additional natural history data for that purpose. Requests for Rare Pediatric Disease Designation and Orphan Drug Designation for SLS-005 in Sanfilippo Syndrome have been submitted to the FDA. Seelos is working on finalizing a protocol for a pivotal study in Oculopharyngeal Muscular Dystrophy and expects to provide details after interacting with the FDA.

09:21 EDT Seelos Therapeutics expects additional data on Phase I studies of SLS-002 in Q2 - Seelos Therapeutics provides its first quarter business update and pipeline developments. The company said, "While the COVID-19 outbreak is reaching unprecedented pandemic levels globally, Seelos empathizes with those experiencing the devastating loss of life and the transformation of their daily lives. History has shown that the need for mental health treatment surges surrounding tragedies that have caused a major loss of human life, financial disruptions and increased unemployment. As we work through this crisis, we are acutely aware of the issues that may grow and likely persist in the aftermath. Seelos is on the frontline of mental health research and is progressing on schedule with its clinical development of SLS-002 in Acute Suicidal Ideation and Behavior in patients with Major Depressive Disorder. Addressing ASIB continues to be our top priority and the ongoing pandemic has heightened its importance as healthcare providers continue to work to develop a novel treatment for these patients in need. Seelos expects to release additional safety data on the Phase I studies of SLS-002 in the second quarter, details from the Type C meeting with FDA and updates to other key programs such as SLS-005 and SLS-007."

09:18 EDT Appian helps banks automate lending under CARES Act - Appian announced an application that enables banks to accept and manage PPP loan applications from small businesses, support their unique servicing requirements, and ensure compliance for Payment Protection Program loans under the new CARES Act. The new application can be live in just days, and can be quickly extended with advanced automation features including RPA and AI-powered intelligent document processing. Appian will host two webinars on these topics. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act's $350B Paycheck Protection Program provides loans to small businesses for the purposes of maintaining payroll and employing workers during the pandemic. Small businesses need rapid approval and access to these funds. Financial institutions must respond with fast, efficient processes.

09:17 EDT Winnebago announces furloughs, layoffs, pay adjustments - Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, Winnebago Industries has implemented significant cost containment and financial management measures. The Company continues to take appropriate steps to maintain and enhance its financial flexibility, including the following preemptive actions tailored to each business unit and enterprise function, related to hourly and salaried personnel: Reductions including furloughs and layoffs; Pay adjustments; Contractor reductions Impacted production employees working in business units with return dates after April 13 will not be extended wage payments during time off but will be provided medical and dental insurance benefits during this unpaid leave. The Company will be paying the employee's portion of the medical and dental insurance premiums through the end of April. Any voluntary benefit premium will be the responsibility of the employee.

09:16 EDT Foundation Building Materials withdraws FY20 guidance, furloughing members - Foundation Building Materials announced an operational update on its business and the company's response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) disruption. In addition, the company is providing a preliminary range of net sales, cash on hand and availability on the company's revolving credit facility for the quarter ended March 31. The company is also withdrawing its full year 2020 financial guidance issued on February 24. "The health and safety of the company's employees and customers is of paramount importance as the company seeks to fulfill its responsibility as part of an "Essential Critical Infrastructure Sector." The company continues to operate the vast majority of its branches throughout the United States and Canada utilizing safety precautions based on recommendations from federal, state and local authorities. However, due to certain COVID-19 related restrictions, the company has currently reduced branch operations, mainly in Pennsylvania, Michigan, certain areas of Northern California and the state of Washington. The COVID-19 disruption is impacting the communities in which the company operates. In response, the company is taking steps to support its communities through donations of thousands of N95 masks to local hospitals." Considering the rapidly evolving COVID-19 disruption and uncertain macroeconomic environment, the company is withdrawing its full year 2020 guidance issued on February 24. The company anticipates its future financial performance will be adversely impacted due to the effects of the COVID-19 disruption, but the magnitude and timing of this impact is too dependent on external factors to reliably provide guidance at this time. The company plans to provide an update on the business during its first quarter 2020 earnings call on May 12. FBM entered the COVID-19 disruption with a solid balance sheet. Since then, the company has taken proactive steps to further enhance its financial flexibility, liquidity and cash flow to put the company in a strong position to return to normal operations when conditions allow, including: drawing down an additional $120 million of cash under its revolving credit facility; delaying or reducing capital expenditures that are not anticipated to impact near-term business; deferring or limiting non-essential operating expenses; reducing salaries for exempt employees, led by voluntary salary reductions by certain members of its senior management team, including a 50% salary reduction for its CEO; reducing independent board member compensation, led by voluntary annual cash retainer reductions of 50%; optimizing all areas of working capital; restricting hiring, deferring wage increases and reducing other costs to protect existing jobs; furloughing team members associated with temporary branch closures; and temporarily suspending acquisition-related activity. As a result of the additional draw down under its revolving credit facility, as of March 31, the company had cash on hand of approximately $141 million and approximately $140 million of remaining borrowing capacity under its revolving credit facility. In addition, the company is in the process of assessing the various options that may be available to obtain relief under applicable federal assistance programs.

09:14 EDT LCI Industries announces actions taken in response to COVID-19 pandemic - LCI Industries announced additional actions and support activities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the company will be establishing an emergency fund for team members in crisis. President and CEO, Jason Lippert, as well as Ryan Smith, senior VP of operations, will reduce their base salaries by 25%. The executive leadership team, general managers and other executives across the company will reduce their respective base salaries. The LCI Industries board will reduce their quarterly retainer by 25%. The company will continue to carefully review executive and director compensation, as well as other salaried personnel costs, to identify other potential cost saving opportunities. The company is also rightsizing its workforce to match current demand levels, delaying certain capital expenses and reducing non-critical business expenses. LCI additionally announced temporary hiring freezes in all locations and furloughs for non-critical team members while postponing merit increases for salaried employees until the end of the fiscal year.

09:12 EDT ZK International Group: Production at Wenzhou City running at full capacity - ZK International Group announced an update regarding the impact of COVID-19 on its operations. After longer than usual shutdowns that spanned much of February due to Chinese New Year holidays and subsequently coronavirus-induced government mandated lockdown order, the production at the company's manufacturing facilities in Wenzhou City has resumed since early March and has been running at full capacity. The company experienced increased backlog of orders during the shutdown period and now expects gradual easing of the backlog as its production returns to full capacity. Additionally, ZK International announced that, despite that the company took a slight hit as fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, which has disrupted not only the production but also its product flow starting from early February, the company expects to report flat revenues for the first half of fiscal year 2020 (six months ended March 31, 2020).

09:10 EDT Heartland BancCorp completes acquisition of Victory Community Bank - Heartland BancCorp announced that, effective April 7, 2020, it had completed the acquisition of Victory Community Bank. As previously announced, the terms of the acquisition provide Victory Bancorp 58,934 shares of Heartland common stock and approximately $35.5 million in cash. At December 31, 2019, Victory Community Bank had total assets of $181 million, a loan portfolio of $147 million, and a deposit base of $137 million with three banking locations in Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties in Kentucky. Its former sister company, Victory Mortgage, LLC, which is affiliated with Fischer Homes, has mortgage lending offices in Louisville, Columbus, Indianapolis and Atlanta. As part of the merger, Victory Mortgage entered into a cooperation agreement with Heartland Bank for certain products and services to be provided to Heartland Bank post-closing.

09:09 EDT Comtech receives $1.1M order for SATCOM antenna feeds - Comtech Telecommunications announced that during its third quarter of fiscal 2020, its Mission-Critical Technologies group, which is part of Comtech's Government Solutions segment, received an order for $1.1 million from a major U.S. satellite communications manufacturer for SATCOM antenna feeds for its 1.3 Meter Fly-Away Terminal.

09:08 EDT JetBlue temporarily consolidates service in five metro areas for 8 weeks - JetBlue announced it will temporarily consolidate operations in five major metropolitan areas in the U.S between April 15 and June 10. The revised schedules are aimed at reducing excess flying during a time of unprecedented low demand for air travel while maintaining a critical level of service across the airline's network for those who absolutely must fly. "We face new challenges every day and can't hesitate to take the steps necessary to reduce our costs amidst dramatically falling demand so we can emerge from this unprecedented time as a strong company for our customers and crewmembers," said Scott Laurence, head of revenue and planning, JetBlue. Effective April 15 through June 10, JetBlue will consolidate its operations in Boston, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco and Washington D.C. with flights operating at one or two airports in each metro area. JetBlue also intends to file an exemption request with the U.S. Department of Transportation to temporarily suspend flying at other airports where the airline typically operates only a handful of daily flights and where current demand does not support JetBlue service. As previously announced, JetBlue has reduced flying network-wide by 80% per day in April. Customers whose flights have been canceled will be notified via email by the airline's Customer Support team for rebooking options on other JetBlue flights or the choice of a refund or JetBlue credit for future travel.

09:05 EDT LogMeln launches FAQ Web Widget to help businesses amid COVID-19 - LogMeIn has launched the Bold360 Rapid Response FAQ Web Widget to help businesses manage the increase in volume and complexity of questions related to COVID-19 from both customers and employees. The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation creating numerous challenges providing information and updates to customers, employees, and partners. Policies and procedures are changing rapidly, and many businesses are struggling to communicate updates to customers in real time, which is creating an influx of questions that are bogging down customer support lines. Additionally, employees who aren't used to working remotely have questions that need to be answered immediately, putting additional strain on internal support teams. The FAQ Widget is a simple solution to help businesses to contain the volume of inquiries, provide consistent and immediate answers, and gain insights from the questions that they are getting to optimize the flow of information for both customers and employees. Customers have the option to deploy two separate widgets, one internal facing and one external facing, based on their needs. The widget is initially configured in English, but knowledge bases can be built out in other languages to provide answers in specific languages. Organizations will be able to use the web widget for 6 months for a one-time fee of $10,000.

09:04 EDT eHealth sinks after Muddy Waters takes short position, values shares at $20 - Carson Block's Muddy Waters this morning announced a new short position in eHealth (EHTH). The company's "highly aggressive accounting masks what we believe is a significantly unprofitable business," Muddy Waters said in a report posted on its website. Based on variable costs alone, the firm best known for short-selling estimates eHealth will lose approximately $135 from each Medicare Advantage member it enrolled in 2019. When including fixed costs, the firm estimates the company's per Medicare Advantage member loss is $402. During an interview on CNBC, Block estimated that shares of eHealth are worth around $20. The stock in premarket trading is down 15%, or $17.90, to $99.00. eHealth operates a private online health insurance exchange where individuals, families and small businesses can compare health insurance products from insurers and purchase and enroll in coverage online and over the phone.

09:02 EDT McDonald's reports Q1 global comparable sales down 3.4%, U.S. comp sales up 0.1% - McDonald's reports total comparable sales declined (3.4%) in the quarter ended March 31, with U.S. comp sales up 0.1%, International Operated Markets down (6.9%) and International Developmental Licensed Markets & Corporate comp sales down (4.3%). McDonald's said the company "delivered strong global comparable sales results for the two months ended February 2020, with all segments benefiting from Leap Day. Globally, sales results began to markedly decline during the second half of March due to COVID-19, which caused significant restaurant closures and 'shelter-in-place' guidance. As a result, the company does not expect March full-month comparable sales to be indicative of the near term." In U.S. and International Operated Markets, comparable sales results for the two months ended February 2020 reflected balanced growth in average check and guest counts. In International Developmental Licensed Markets, comparable sales results for the quarter were primarily impacted by China, which had approximately 25% of restaurants fully closed in early February, at the peak of the company's closures in that market.

08:58 EDT Ontario's AG to sllow private sector cannabis stores to do delivery, pick-up - Ontario's Attorney General issued an emergency order on Tuesday night to allow private sector cannabis retail stores to continue business operations by offering products for delivery and curbside pick-up. The order came days after Ontario's legal cannabis retailers were removed from the province's list of "essential" businesses. Publicly traded companies in the space include Aphria (APHA), Aurora Cannabis (ACB), CV Sciences (CVSI), CannTrust Holdings (CNTTF), Canopy Growth (CGC), Cronos Group (CRON), General Cannabis (CANN), India Globalization Capital (IGC), Tilray (TLRY), Trulieve Cannabis (TCNNF) and Zynerba (ZYNE). Reference Link

08:55 EDT eHealth sinks 14% to $100.01 after Muddy Waters details short position

08:54 EDT Carson Block of Muddy Waters announces short position eHealth - Carson Block of Muddy Waters is speaking on CNBC.

08:47 EDT Colliers International appoints Jane Gavan to board of directors - Colliers International announced the appointment of Ms. P. Jane Gavan to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Gavan is President, Asset Management of Dream Unlimited, a Canadian real estate company with approximately $9B of assets under management in North America and Europe.

08:44 EDT Chicken Soup for the Soul says On Point exceeds 12M views on Crackle - Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment announced that the Crackle Original basketball docuseries On Point has driven over 12 million views since its February 13th launch. The 10-part docuseries offers a behind-the-scenes look at the high-stakes world of prep and Amateur Athletic Union basketball, a proving ground for top NBA players for the last several decades. On Point spotlights Romeo Langford, who is now a member of the NBA's Boston Celtics and Scottie Lewis, now at the University of Florida, among other talented young players. Notable appearances in the series include NBA stars Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Zion Williamson.

08:42 EDT BBSI appoints Michael Saverien as executive director, sales and distribution - Barrett Business Services (BBSI) has appointed Michael Saverien to the newly created position of executive director of sales and distribution, effective April 6th. He will be reporting to BBSI's COO, Gerald Blotz. Most recently, he was with CorVel Corporation (CRVL) for over 16 years, with his last role being executive vice president of risk management services. In his new role, Saverien will oversee a variety of sales-related functions, including working with the Company's referral partners and internal operational teams. He will play a key role in developing and driving sales strategies to generate new clients, along with expanding BBSI's current markets.

08:39 EDT Myomo reports 'record' backlog, accelerating growth in MyoPro pipeline - Myomo reported its pipeline of MyoPro candidates continued to grow during the first quarter of 2020, with more than 700 candidates awaiting insurance reimbursement authorization as of March 31, 2020. This compares with 594 candidates as of December 31, 2019. In addition, the backlog of authorized units increased from 53 at the beginning of 2020 to 80 units as of March 31. Paul Gudonis, CEO of Myomo, stated, "Our direct-to-patient online marketing activities continued to reach a growing number of paralyzed individuals or their family members during the first quarter, and we were pleased to add a record of more than 300 new candidates into our pipeline, compared with 193 new candidates in the fourth quarter of 2019. With our emphasis on the Direct Billing channel, over 90% of these new candidates will be served directly by Myomo, up from 81% of new candidates the previous quarter. Our emphasis on direct billing has resulted in both revenue growth and margin improvement over the past year." Despite the record number of MyoPro new candidates and the backlog of authorized units, the Company expects to encounter delays in generating revenue due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Because Myomo provides a custom-fabricated device to each patient, the in-person contact required as part of the fabrication and delivery process is being impacted and likely will continue to be impacted by COVID-19-related public health restrictions on travel and personal interaction. In addition, concern over in-person interactions with pediatric patients under these conditions is expected to delay for several months the timing of the Company's national launch of its MyoPal product, which was targeted for later this year. "With COVID-19 affecting our U.S. and European markets, our primary concern is for the health of our employees and the patients seeking a MyoPro," added Mr. Gudonis. "As a result, revenues for the second quarter and possibly the third quarter of 2020 are expected to be negatively impacted." Until there is clarity on the relaxation of public health measures related to the pandemic, the Company suspends its guidance for significant revenue growth this year. "We believe that Myomo is well-positioned to continue building the patient pipeline and authorization backlog through direct-to-patient online advertising, while conducting patient evaluations via telehealth video conferencing. Importantly, we have sufficient inventory in our supply chain and expect to have the requisite fabrication capacity available to manufacture and deliver devices to patients quickly when public heath restrictions are eased. Our intention is to sustain our front-end marketing and patient evaluation efforts, and maintaining our support staff is integral to these efforts. However, we intend to reduce as many non-payroll expenses and defer other spending as much as possible to mitigate our monthly cash burn over the next several months," Mr. Gudonis concluded. Myomo ended the first quarter with approximately $13.7 million in cash and cash equivalents, including approximately $13.5 million in net proceeds from a follow-on equity offering in February 2020 and the use of $2.0 million to repay 50% of the outstanding balance of its term loan and pay a success fee to the lender. Excluding these items, preliminary cash burn for the first quarter was approximately $2.4 million.

08:37 EDT GM awarded $489.4M contract to make 30,000 ventilators for U.S. - The Department of Health and Human Services announced the first contract for ventilator production rated under the Defense Production Act, to General Motors. GM's contract, at a total contract price of $489.4M, is for 30,000 ventilators to be delivered to the Strategic National Stockpile by the end of August, with a production schedule allowing for the delivery of 6,132 ventilators by June 1. ""Invoking the Defense Production Act to secure ventilator production from GM and other companies is a part of President Trump's all-of-America approach to combating the coronavirus. By rating contracts under the DPA, HHS is helping manufacturers like GM get the supplies they need to produce ventilators as quickly as possible, while also ensuring that these ventilators are routed through the Strategic National Stockpile to where they're needed most," says HHS Secretary Alex Azar. Reference Link

08:34 EDT Bellerophon submits IND application for INOpulse inhaled nitric oxide therapy - Bellerophon Therapeutics announced the submission of an Investigational New Drug application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to study the INOpulse inhaled nitric oxide system for the treatment of patients infected with COVID-19. INOpulse is the only therapy to deliver targeted nitric oxide by autonomously adjusting to the patient's breathing pattern to ensure accurate and consistent drug delivery into the airways. The proposed randomized, open-label study, called PULSE-CVD19-001, will evaluate the efficacy and safety of INOpulse in patients with COVID-19 who require supplemental oxygen. The PULSE-CVD19-001 protocol utilizes an adaptive design and aims to enroll up to 500 patients with COVID-19 who will be treated with INOpulse or standard of care. In parallel, the company has applied for federal funding, through BARDA and NIH, to support the proposed IND study. The IND submission follows agreement by the FDA to allow treatment with INOpulse for COVID-19 patients under an emergency expanded access program. To date, three COVID-19 patients have completed treatment with INOpulse, with several additional patients currently on the INOpulse therapy.

08:33 EDT Stamos says Zoom Video has 'important work to do' in core application security - Advisor Alex Stamos said, "Last week, after I posted a series of tweets discussing the security challenges for Zoom and how they could respond, I got a phone call from Eric Yuan, Zoom's founder and CEO. We talked about the significant challenges his company was facing, both in responding to an incredible growth in users but also living up to the security expectations of the moment. He asked detailed and thoughtful questions of my experiences working at companies facing extreme crises, and I was impressed by his clear vision for Zoom as a trusted platform and his willingness to take aggressive action to get there. He asked if I would be interested in helping Zoom build up its security, privacy and safety capabilities as an outside consultant, and I readily agreed. To be clear, I am not an employee or executive of Zoom and I don't speak for the company. I have refrained from any public comment on Zoom or discussions with journalists since my call with Eric, but in the interest of transparency I think it's important to disclose this work. I don't do a lot of consulting these days; I am generally quite busy with my role at Stanford and I'm proud of the work that team has been doing during this critical time for disinformation. This opportunity to consult with Zoom was too interesting to pass up, however, and I thought I would explain why I have embraced this challenge. First off, Zoom has gone from being a successful mid-sized enterprise IT company to a critical part of the lives of hundreds of millions in the space of a couple of months. As my CV might suggest, I am attracted to difficult problems and this creates some doozies. As someone who has walked through the galaxy of blinking lights and deafening whir of tens of thousands of servers carrying the sessions of millions of users, I appreciate the effort it takes to build a product that scales. To successfully scale a video-heavy platform to such a size, with no appreciable downtime and in the space of weeks, is literally unprecedented in the history of the Internet. It has been clear to many people who have worked on production-scale systems that something special has been happening at Zoom, and the related security challenges are fascinating. It's not just the technical challenges that I am interested in. In a time of global crisis, Zoom has become a critical link between co-workers, families, friends and, most importantly, between teachers and students. The morning Eric called me there were five simultaneous Zoom sessions emerging from my home, as my three kids recited the Pledge of Allegiance in their virtual morning assembly, my wife supported her middle-school students and I participated in a morning standup with my Stanford colleagues. Like many techies I have used Zoom professionally for a while, but I admit that there was still a bit of culture shock as my wife taped a daily calendar full of Zoom meeting codes to our eight year-old daughter's desk. The adaptation of a successful enterprise collaboration tool into virtual classrooms, virtual doctor's offices and a myriad of other applications has created privacy, trust and safety challenges that no company has ever faced. As I told the computer science students in my Trust and Safety Engineering course this last quarter coding flaws and cryptographic issues are important, but the vast majority of real technological harm to individuals comes from people using products in a technically correct but harmful manner. Zoom has some important work to do in core application security, cryptographic design and infrastructure security, and I'm looking forward to working with Zoom's engineering teams on those projects. Still, I'm certain that the real challenge, one faced by every company trying to provide for the diverse needs of millions seeking low-friction collaboration, is how to empower one's customers without empowering those who wish to abuse them. I encourage the entire industry to use this moment to reflect on their own security practices and have honest conversations about things we could all be doing better. This is possibly the most impactful challenge faced by the tech industry in the age of COVID-19, and together we can make something positive out of these difficult times and ensure that communications are safer and more secure for all."

08:32 EDT IHS Markit, S&P Dow Jones Indices announce index collaboration - S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that it has entered into a strategic collaboration with IHS Markit. S&P DJI will construct new multi-asset benchmarks using its own and IHS Markit's leading indices, including the S&P 500 and IHS Markit's iBoxx bond indices and CDX and iTraxx credit indices. In the first phase of the collaboration, the two firms are working to design a liquid multi-asset allocation strategy, expanding S&P DJI's broader multi-asset index strategies globally. These indices help meet investors' growing demand for portfolio allocation, diversification and risk management solutions especially in times of market volatility.

08:29 EDT Linde: U.S. Supreme Court upholds PDI right to sell generic inhaled nitric oxide - Linde is pleased with the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court declining to review the 2019 appeals court decision that affirmed Praxair Distribution, or PDI, right to sell a generic form of inhaled nitric oxide. This decision ends the long-running U.S. patent litigation with Mallinckrodt plc, and affirms the ability of PDI, a wholly owned subsidiary of Linde, to continue supplying inhaled nitric oxide. This drug product is widely used as approved in the U.S. and other countries to improve oxygenation of certain groups of patients. "Nitric oxide is truly a unique and beneficial drug product. We are proud to be doing our part to support healthcare institutions around the world with a reliable, competitive and beneficial supply of inhaled nitric oxide along with our other medical gases and services," said Ben Glazer, President, U.S. Packaged & Specialty Gases. Linde is actively supporting doctors as they investigate the use of nitric oxide to treat COVID-19 patients globally. This includes supplying nitric oxide to Massachusetts General Hospital to support a trial launched by their researchers to test the drug's effectiveness for preventing disease progression in patients with mild to moderate disease, thereby avoiding the need for ventilation. Separately, German authorities have authorized on a temporary basis the use of inhaled nitric oxide specifically to treat patients with severe cases of COVID-19.

08:24 EDT SG Blocks to provide architecture, engineering services for construction project - SG Blocks has signed an agreement to provide architecture and engineering services for a 3,680 square foot restaurant and 24 cottages in 12,160 square foot buildings to be constructed of purpose built modular/container units that will be built on top of a poured in place concrete structure in South Florida. While the parties finalize the contractual terms for the construction of the Project, terms for architecture and engineering services have been agreed to, with plans scheduled to be delivered in June. The company expects to execute the construction contract within 30 days and anticipates construction of the project to commence in Q3.

08:19 EDT Worldwide Express integrates DAT rate forecasting data, market conditions index - DAT Solutions announced that Worldwide Express, the second-largest privately held freight brokerage in the country, will participate in a pilot project with early access to DAT's latest suite of truckload rate forecasting data and analytics tools. The tools leverage DAT RateView, a database of $68 billion in annual market transactions and the industry standard in truckload pricing, to generate truckload rate predictions based on price momentum and five years of historical data. Worldwide Express is also using DAT Market Conditions Index, a new supply and demand indicator based on load and truck post and searches, transaction behavior, and other trends. Worldwide Express joins nearly two dozen 3PLs, freight brokers, truckload carriers, and shippers with early access to DAT's new truckload rate forecasting data and analytics tools. DAT will make its predictive rate and analytics tools commercially available in April. The company recently introduced its new Book Now service, a one-click tendering feature that eliminates phone calls, lengthy negotiations, and manual processes for online booking.

08:16 EDT Microlab wideband products enable wireless coverage in SoFi Stadium - Microlab announced that its wideband products for 5G deployment were designed in and selected for the new indoor/outdoor SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Microlab's products are being used to enable network densification and optimized wireless coverage and capacity for the stadium and entertainment complex, addressing multiple carrier design needs and 5G investments providing reliable, high-quality, unique experiences for over 70,000 fans.

08:14 EDT Standard Diversified to be merged into Turning Point Brands subsidiary - Turning Point Brands (TPB) and Standard Diversified (SDI) announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which SDI will be merged into a wholly-owned subsidiary of TPB in a tax-free downstream merger, in a transaction first announced by the companies in November 2019. Under the terms of the agreement, the holders of SDI's Class A common stock and SDI's Class B common stock will receive in the aggregate, in return for their SDI common stock, TPB voting common stock at a ratio of 0.97 of a share of TPB common stock for each share of TPB xommon stock held by SDI. SDI has divested, or will prior to the merger divest, its assets of SDI other than its TPB common stock and has agreed that its net liabilities at closing will not exceed $25,000. These divestitures include the disposition of SDI's interest in Maidstone Insurance, through a disposition to the New York State Department of Financial Services, or NYSDFS, and the disposition of its interest in Standard Outdoor through a sale transaction. Maidstone is currently subject to an order of liquidation filed by the NYSDFS on January 14 and approved by the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of Nassau, on February 13. At such time, the control and assets of Maidstone vested with the NYS Liquidation Bureau and were no longer under SDI's control, and all Maidstone assets and liabilities were removed from SDI's financial statements. On April 7, SDI entered in a definitive agreement with Billboards, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SDI's largest stockholder, whereby SDI sold all of its equity interests in Standard Outdoor. Each of TPB and SDI appointed a special committee to negotiate the merger, composed of independent, disinterested directors. Each special committee appointed its own independent legal counsel and financial advisors. After receiving the favorable recommendation of their respective special committees, the boards of both companies approved the transaction, which is subject to, customary closing conditions, including approval by holders of a majority of the aggregate voting power of the SDI Common Stock and the receipt of any applicable regulatory approvals. The board of SDI has recommended that its stockholders vote in favor of the transaction. The companies expect the transaction to close in the summer of 2020.

08:12 EDT Axovant 'on track' to achieve key 2020 milestones - Anticipated Milestones: AXO-Lenti-PD: Dosing of all patients in 2nd cohort of SUNRISE-PD dose-escalation study has been completed, and data from the 2nd dose cohort at 6 months is expected in Q4 2020. Completion of the first manufacturing batch using a suspension-based process by year-end 2020. Initiation of a sham-controlled study by year-end 2020, with enrollment of the first randomized subject expected in 2021. AXO-AAV-GM1: Completion of enrollment of Part A in juvenile GM1 gangliosidosis in Q2 2020. Initiation of enrollment of patients with infantile GM1 gangliosidosis in calendar year 2020. Initial data at 6 months is expected from Part A by year-end 2020. AXO-AAV-GM2: Clearance of investigational new drug filing in calendar year 2020.

08:09 EDT Chembio Diagnostics receives second UNICEF order for $1.5M - Chembio Diagnostics announced a second $1.5M purchase order from UNICEF for multiplex Zika, Chikungunya and Dengue Systems, including tests and Micro Readers. The orders follow the successful completion of conditions set forth in the previously announced long term arrangement. Along with the firm purchase commitment of $1.5M, the LTA includes additional potential purchases of up to $2M, for a total potential amount of up to $3.5M. Along with the previous UNICEF order for Chembio's multiplex Zika IgG/IgM System announced in February 2020, the combined LTAs contemplate up to $7M in potential orders. Chembio's multiplex DPP ZCD System allows simultaneous and discrete detection of antibodies for both active and prior exposure to Zika, Chikungunya and Dengue viruses. The DPP ZCD System has received approval from Agencia Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitaria, Brazil's health regulatory agency, and is CE Marked. It includes the DPP ZCD IgM/IgG Assay and DPP Micro Reader, and provides quantitative results in 15 minutes from only 10mul of fingertip blood. The DPP Micro Reader is hand-held, easy to use, and can reduce the risk of human error during test interpretation.

08:07 EDT Dynavax donates 10,000 doses of HEPLISAV-B vaccine to health providers - Dynavax Technologies announced it is donating 10,000 doses of HEPLISAV-B adult vaccine to help protect healthcare professionals on the front lines of the COVID-19 response against hepatitis B, a potentially deadly virus that is spread through contact with infected blood and bodily fluids and can live on surfaces for at least seven days. Direct Relief is administering the donation program on behalf of Dynavax. Interested healthcare providers and facilities throughout the U.S. who are vaccinating surge healthcare workers and hospital staff can visit DirectRelief.org/apply to learn more about accessing the donated vaccine supply of HEPLISAV-B.

08:04 EDT The Other Art Fair introduces 'Online Studios' to spotlight artists - The Other Art Fair presents Online Studios, a new digital art experience created in partnership with global online art gallery Saatchi Art. Debuting Wednesday, April 8, Online Studios gives art lovers around the world the opportunity to discover and buy artwork from The Other Art Fair's 800+ exhibiting independent artists. Over the course of 4 weeks, Online Studios will roll out city-specific features in line with the original Spring Fair schedule. The Other Art Fair and Saatchi Art are united by a shared mission to help audiences discover art-whether in person or online-and support independent emerging artists around the world. With the postponement of its Spring fairs, The Other Art Fair sought alternative ways to support the independent artist community during this difficult time, leading to the creation of Online Studios. Every two weeks, The Other Art Fair will debut two new Fair editions through this online experience, where visitors can view and purchase art from The Fair's hand-selected artists from across the globe. Online Studios will feature exhibiting artists through dedicated programming and weekly doses of interactive content to keep the art community feeling inspired and engaged with artists. Visitors can meet new artists and experience studio tours, as well as discover thousands of artworks with prices starting at $150. The Online Studios art experience kicks-off with the London and Sydney editions on April 8.

08:02 EDT Happiness Biotech receives CE certification for disposable hand sanitizer - Happiness Biotech announced that the company has received the CE certification from Istituto Servizi Europei Tecnologici for disposable hand sanitizer and started exporting this week. The first seven containers of 500,000 bottles of disposable hand sanitizer have been shipped to Malaysia, Australia and Poland. The company has been vigorously developing all kinds of epidemic prevention products including testing kits, masks and hand sanitizer, etc. since the outbreak of the COVID-19. As the pandemic becomes widely spread all over the world, the Company has been trying to obtain the qualification to export as well. On March 24, the company obtained the CE certification for disposable hand sanitizer and was overloaded with orders from overseas since then. By April 8, all four production lines of disposable hand sanitizer were put into production, and the capacity has reached 200,000 bottles per day.

07:48 EDT SuperCom receives $1M e-Gov order from national government customer - SuperCom's e-Gov division has secured a new approximately $1M order from a national government customer. There is a potential increase in the near future of this order to a total of $2M. Per the contract, SuperCom will provide various core elements of its e-Gov secured solutions. This current order of approximately $1M in value is expected to be recognized over the next 3 months.

07:44 EDT Pacific Biosciences works with research teams investigating SARS-CoV-2 - Pacific Biosciences of California announced that it is working with commercial, academic and government research teams that are investigating SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The long reads produced by the company's Single Molecule, Real-Time Sequencing technology can be used to resolve variants of the virus that exist within one individual or across a population of patients, which is critical to developing and maintaining effective diagnostics, vaccines and medicines. LabCorp is actively supporting the response to COVID-19 in the United States and globally through its diagnostics and drug development businesses, launching its internally developed molecular test for COVID-19 in the U.S. on March 5, and applying its deep expertise in support of clinical studies into antivirals, vaccines and immune response modifying therapies. LabCorp will work closely with PacBio to sequence a large number of SARS-CoV-2 viruses from de-identified positive samples. LabCorp's scientific teams will use this information to shed light on virus evolution, mutations found in different geographic regions, and implications for disease severity and outcomes, helping to support more informed patient treatment decisions. PacBio's SMRT Sequencing technology is uniquely able to generate HiFi reads, which are both highly accurate and long. These paired qualities are well-suited for applications like viral sequencing which requires the ability to distinguish variants that may differ by only a handful of single nucleotide variants across an entire viral genome or viral gene. HiFi reads allow the phasing of all variants across entire viral genes with resolution of quasispecies within complex populations of closely related virions. For example, in order to develop a broadly efficacious therapeutic or vaccine, scientists will need to understand how SARS-CoV-2 evolves within a host, over time in a community, and across geographic regions. Scientists at the Vaccine Research Center at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases are planning to use the Sequel II System to study virus population diversity and minor variants in samples collected from infected individuals. The information could ultimately be used to support the design of effective vaccines and antibody-based therapies. At the University of California, San Diego, scientists are using SMRT Sequencing data to analyze SARS-CoV-2 samples. They will utilize targeted sequencing data to study the viral genome as well as shotgun metagenomics to characterize the microbiome of nasal tissues responding to a COVID-19 infection. At the Research Center Borstel, a member of the German Leibniz Association, scientists who focus on lung diseases will be sequencing SARS-CoV-2 samples and other lung pathogens collected from routine diagnostic samples to foster genomic diagnostic applications and study their spread and evolution. PacBio HiFi reads also enable full-length B-Cell Receptor sequencing to support investigations into host response and immune function. Sequencing full-length BCR transcripts allows researchers to not only see variants in the CDR3 domain, but also mutations that arise during somatic hypermutation, which can occur anywhere within the variable domain. Researchers at the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center have used PacBio sequencing technology to study the human B-cell response to the virus, with the goal of identifying therapeutics or protective antibodies from patient samples.

07:40 EDT Teligent announces amendments to existing secured credit facilities - Teligent announced that on April 6, 2020 the Company entered into amendments related to the first lien revolving credit agreement with ACF Finco I LP, a limited partnership affiliated with Ares Management Corporation, as administrative agent, and the lenders party thereto and the definitive second lien credit agreement with Ares Capital Corporation, as administrative agent, and the lenders party thereto. The nature of the amendments is to, among other things, reduce the minimum financial performance required by the Company to comply with quarterly trailing-twelve-month financial covenants for an increase in the cost of capital. The First Lien Amendment amends the First Lien Credit Agreement to, among other things, increase interest rates, reset prepayment premiums and modify the terms of certain mandatory prepayments and modify certain financial covenant levels, each as further described herein and in the First Lien Amendment attached hereto and incorporated by reference herein. Pursuant to the First Lien Amendment, the interest rate on the loans issued under the First Lien Credit Agreement increases from and after the Amendment Closing Date with respect to eurodollar loans, from 3.75% to 5.50%, and with respect to ABR loans, from 2.75% to 4.50%. In addition, from and after the Amendment Closing Date, the interest rate floor applicable to such loans increases by 0.50% with respect to both the eurodollar loans and ABR loans. The First Lien Credit Agreement also provides that in the event of receipt of net proceeds from a disposition triggering a mandatory prepayment under the First Lien Credit Agreement, net proceeds of such disposition will be applied as follows: first, to be retained by the Company or applied to amounts outstanding under the First Lien Credit Agreement until such time as liquidity of the Company and its subsidiaries equals $10 million, next to amounts outstanding under the First Lien Credit Agreement until such amounts are paid in full, and finally, to amounts outstanding under the Second Lien Credit Agreement. In addition, pursuant to the First Lien Amendment, the Company has agreed at all times to maintain book cash of the Company and its subsidiaries not in excess of $10,000,000 with any excess being required to prepay the outstanding obligations under the First Lien Credit Agreement. The First Lien Amendment resets the period during which a prepayment premium may be required under the First Lien Credit Agreement until the date that is thirty months after the Amendment Closing Date. In addition, the following additions and changes to financial covenants set forth in the First Lien Credit Agreement are made pursuant to the First Lien Amendment: a new minimum net revenue covenant is added that is tested on the last day of each fiscal quarter until the quarter ending December 31, 2020, a minimum consolidated adjusted EBITDA covenant that is tested on the last day of each fiscal quarter ending during the period from March 31, 2021 to September 30, 2022 is reset, a total net leverage covenant is eliminated and a minimum liquidity covenant is added and will be tested at all times during the term of the First Lien Credit Agreement. The Second Lien Amendment amended the Second Lien Credit Agreement to, among other things, increase interest rates and modify provisions relating to interest payable in kind, modify the terms of certain mandatory prepayments, modify certain covenants, including financial covenants, each as further described herein and in the Second Lien Amendment attached hereto and incorporated by reference herein. Pursuant to the Second Lien Amendment, the interest rate on the loans issued under the Second Lien Credit Agreement increases from and after the Amendment Closing Date with respect to eurodollar loans, from 8.75% to 13.00%, and with respect to ABR loans, from 7.75% to 12.00%. In addition, from and after the Amendment Closing Date, the interest rate floor applicable to such loans increases by 0.50% with respect to both the eurodollar loans and ABR loans. The Second Lien Amendment extends the period in which the Company is permitted to pay interest in kind on the loans from December 13, 2020 to December 13, 2021 but only if the following occurs: the Company receives a "warning letter close-out letter" from the Federal Drug Administration in response to corrective actions taken by the Company since receipt of the warning letter in November 2019 the Company receives a written recommendation from the Federal Drug Administration setting forth its approval decision in respect of the pre-approval inspection for commercial production on the newly installed injectable line at the Company's New Jersey facility. If only one of those items occurs by December 13, 2020, then the Company may still elect to pay interest in kind during 2021, but only from the time the second condition has been satisfied until December 13, 2021. Thereafter, a portion of interest on the loans accruing at a rate of 4.25% per annum may continue to be paid in kind. The Second Lien Credit Agreement also provides that in the event of receipt of net proceeds from a disposition triggering a mandatory prepayment under the Second Lien Credit Agreement, net proceeds of such disposition will be applied as follows: first, to be retained by the Company or applied to amounts outstanding under the First Lien Credit Agreement until such time as liquidity of the Company and its subsidiaries equals $10 million, next to amounts outstanding under the First Lien Credit Agreement until such amounts are paid in full, and finally, to amounts outstanding under the Second Lien Credit Agreement. Pursuant to the Second Lien Amendment, Ares Capital Corporation will have the right to appoint one non-voting board observer to attend meetings of the Company's board of directors. In respect of financial covenants set forth in the Second Lien Credit Agreement, the Second Lien Amendment makes corresponding changes to those described above with respect to the First Lien Amendment. In connection with the transactions contemplated by the Second Lien Amendment, on April 6, 2020, the Company issued to the lenders party to the Second Lien Credit Agreement certain warrants to purchase shares of the Company's common stock. The Warrants are exercisable for up to, in the aggregate, 5,389,949 shares of the Company's common stock at an exercise price of $0.01 per share of common stock. The Warrants will become exercisable at any time after the Company implements the reverse stock split previously approved by its stockholders and will remain exercisable, in whole or in part, for a period of five years.

07:37 EDT Spirit AeroSystems says balance sheet 'strong' - Spirit has taken the actions to reduce costs and preserve its liquidity in this unprecedented time, while also working to maintain the health and viability of its supply chain to support operations post-production suspension. Spirit maintains a strong balance sheet. As of December 31, 2019, Spirit's cash balance was $2.35B and total debt balance was $3.03B. As of April 2, Spirit's cash balance was approximately $1.83B and total debt balance was approximately $3.04B. Spirit's $800M revolver remains fully drawn. The reduction in cash in the first quarter of 2020 was in line with internal plans and included the price paid for the FMI acquisition as well as the negative impacts of working capital requirements and does not fully reflect the benefit of recent actions that Spirit has taken to further reduce costs and preserve liquidity. In addition, Spirit believes that due to its variable cost structure, it has the ability to take further actions to address future market developments. Based on current business conditions, Spirit believes that it is well positioned to manage its liquidity through this challenging and unprecedented situation.

07:35 EDT Moleculin Biotech active compound reduces Coronavirus replication in vitro 100% - Moleculin Biotech announced that independent research found 2-deoxy-D-glucose to reduce replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, by 100% in in vitro testing. Researchers at the University of Frankfurt, in their article submitted to NatureResearch, reported that inhibiting glycolysis with non-toxic concentrations of 2-DG completely prevented SARS-CoV-2 replication in Caco-2 cells. Moleculin's drug candidate, WP1122, is referred to as a "prodrug" of 2-DG whereby chemical elements are added to 2-DG to improve its delivery in vivo. Once administered, these added elements are removed by normal metabolic processes and what remains is 2-DG. As a result, 2-DG is the active compound in WP1122. Moleculin's Chief Medical Officer - New Projects, Dr. Sandra Silberman added: "The FDA has cleared the way for very rapid development of COVID-19 therapies, so we should be able to move WP1122 into the clinics on an expedited basis. Fortunately, it has a very good safety profile in mice. We are in the process of demonstrating safety in additional species before submitting our Investigational New Drug application. Since it has better drug-like properties than 2-DG, WP1122 also actually works better in the animal tumor models we have been studying. We think this bodes well for its potential as a more potent drug than 2-DG as an antiviral agent against coronavirus."

07:31 EDT Ebix appoints Steve Hamil as global CFO - Ebix (EBIX) announces an addition to its leadership team with the appointment of Steven Hamil as EVP and Global CFO. Steve joins Ebix from Regions Financial Corporation (RF) where he began in 2013 as SVP and Managing Director covering the technology, media and communication and defense and government services sectors. Steve will start at Ebix on April 13, 2020 and will lead the global finance and accounting team reporting to Ebix Chairman, President and CEO Robin Raina. Robert Kerris will remain with the company reporting to Mr. Hamil and will oversee Ebix's SEC reporting and financial planning and analysis.

07:23 EDT Akoustis announces 5G network infrastructure design win - Akoustis Technologies announced its first commercial design win for XBAW filters in 5G network infrastructure and first volume shipment to a tier-1 small cell customer in the March quarter. Akoustis' XBAW filters have been qualified in the initial build of 5G small cell base station systems for characterization and final customer acceptance. Akoustis completed first volume shipments in the March quarter and expects to increase shipments against the current commercial volume order during the June quarter. Upon expected contract award, this tier-1 OEM plans to ramp volume production in the September quarter. This represents the first design win of XBAW filters outside of the military/defense market and the first volume shipment of filters for the 5G small cell network infrastructure market.

07:20 EDT Vir Biotechnology to host Key Opinion Leader call on Phase 1/2 HBV trial - Vir Biotechnology announced that it will host a Key Opinion Leader call and present an update on its Phase 1/2 hepatitis B virus clinical trial with small interfering ribonucleic acid VIR-2218 on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 at 2:00 pm PT. The call will feature a presentation by Dr. Edward J. Gane, Professor of Medicine at the University of Auckland, New Zealand and Chief Hepatologist, Transplant Physician and Deputy Director of the New Zealand Liver Transplant Unit at Auckland City Hospital. Dr. Gane, who also serves as an advisor to Vir, will provide an update on the Phase 1/2 clinical trial of VIR-2218, along with Vir management.

07:16 EDT Intertape Polymer says not changing financial outlook - Intertape Polymer Group provided an update on its operations during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The Company's North American and European manufacturing operations are open and producing as a result of the essential nature of the end markets it serves. "Safety is our highest priority. As such, we are committed to ensuring a safe work environment for our employees, as well as their safety once they return home to their family," said Greg Yull, President and CEO of IPG. "Our employees at the manufacturing facilities are performing work that is critical to the integrity of the supply chain for our end users that provide essential goods and services. The layout of our manufacturing lines allows for social distancing, we are regularly interviewing employees prior to entry and we have increased the cleaning and sanitization of the equipment and facilities. In terms of demand indicators, two of our top four end markets are food & beverage and e-commerce which are critical categories in the face of this pandemic. Ensuring our end users, and their customers, have uninterrupted access to the supply chain is paramount. At this time, we believe we have performed to plan on our revenue in the first quarter of 2020 which is also in line with the same period in 2019. We expect sales into food & beverage and e-commerce markets to hold up well as we move into the second quarter. We will continue to monitor our other end markets that could be more susceptible to softness, but at this time we are not seeing a trend of significant weakness and we have a good open order position as we begin the second quarter. As a result, at this time we are not changing our financial outlook." The Company conducted a detailed review of its product offering as well as the regional requirements under which each facility operates. IPG intends to continue its North American and European manufacturing operations as it believes the vast majority of its businesses qualify as essential under the applicable orders and guidelines. Those areas deemed non-essential, which are immaterial to the overall business, have been temporarily discontinued until the applicable orders are lifted. In India, IPG's four facilities adhered to the complete shutdown announced on March 24th by the Indian government. One of its four facilities has since re-opened and is producing carton-sealing tapes due to the essential nature of those products. The Company anticipates that a second facility could re-open in the near term. "We entered this new environment in a strong financial position. The changes we made to our capital structure in the past two years, such as the $250 million senior unsecured notes offering and the completion of our strategic capex investments, provide us with greater flexibility today. Our key leverage ratio from a covenant perspective is the secured net leverage ratio. As of December 31, 2019, our secured net leverage ratio stood at 1.4 times which is well below the covenant of 3.7 times. We have reduced our capital expenditure outlook significantly for 2020 from the 2019 levels and our gross margins are double the 2008 levels, so we have a much more robust shock absorber this time around," said Mr. Yull. "Our packaging and many industrial solutions serve essential end markets. COVID-19 has changed the way business is conducted in a rapid timeframe. Our strong financial position and the profile of our product bundle places us in a strong position to come through this pandemic well positioned in the market."

07:12 EDT ATIF Holdings to acquire controlling interest in Leaping Group - ATIF Holdings announced that the Company has entered into a debt conversion and share purchase agreement with Leaping Group Co., and a share exchange agreement with the shareholders of Leaping Group to acquire shares of Leaping Group. Leaping Group is a private company mainly focusing on multi-channel advertising, event planning and execution, film and TV program production, and movie theater operation. The Leaping Group operates the largest pre-movie advertising network in three northeast Chinese provinces, namely Heilongjiang, Jilin, and Liaoning. After the completion of the transactions pursuant to the Debt Conversion and Share Purchase Agreement and the Share Exchange Agreement, ATIF shall be the controlling shareholder of Leaping Group, holding approximately 51.2% of the total outstanding shares of Leaping Group. On January 14, 2020, ATIF provided a loan to Leaping and its subsidiary, Yuezhong Media Co. in the amount of $950,000. On December 10, 2018, pursuant to a Consulting Agreement between Leaping and Qianhai Asia Times International Financial Services Co., Ltd., a company controlled by the ATIF's subsidiary via a VIE structure, Leaping agreed to pay QAT $1,500,000 in consulting fees of which $901,000 still remains outstanding. As a result of the Loan and the Unpaid Consulting Fees, Leaping owes to ATIF, directly or indirectly, an aggregate amount of $1,851,000. Pursuant to the Debt Conversion and Share Purchase Agreement, ATIF agreed to purchase, and Leaping Group agreed to issue 3,934,029 new shares of Leaping Group in exchange for the satisfaction of the Debt under the Loan and the Consulting Agreement, and the issuance of 2,800,000 shares of ATIF. To induce ATIF to convert the Debt into shares of the Leaping Group, Sellers and ATIF have entered into the Share Exchange Agreement, pursuant to which the Company shall issue 7,140,002 new shares in exchange for 6,283,001 issued shares held by the Sellers. It is a condition to the closing of the Debt Conversion and Share Purchase Agreement and the intent of the parties that the closing of the share exchange in the Share Exchange Agreement is substantially concurrent with the closing of the Debt Conversion and Share Purchase Agreement. After the completion of the Acquisition, the Company will hold 51.2% of the total outstanding shares of Leaping Group, and Leaping Group will become a controlled subsidiary of the Company. In fiscal year of 2019, Leaping Group's revenue reached $11,679,690, 90% of which was generated from advertising associated business. The rest of the revenue was generated from movie associated business.

07:09 EDT Party City reduces executive salaries, furloughs 90% of store employees - Party City Holdco announced additional measures it is taking in response to the current business environment created by COVID-19. As previously announced on March 27, 2020, the Company extended the temporary closures of its stores until further notice. The Company's e-commerce site, www.partycity.com, remains fully operational and the number of stores offering curbside pickup continues to expand. The Company announced the following additional actions: A temporary base salary reduction of 50% for Brad Weston, CEO, 30% for Todd Vogensen, CFO and 15% to 20% for the remainder of the executive leadership team. The Board of Directors has elected to forgo their respective quarterly cash retainers for the second quarter of 2020. The furlough of approximately 90% of store employees and 70% of wholesale, manufacturing and corporate employees. The Company will continue to provide health benefits to furloughed employees. Non-payroll expense reductions including advertising, occupancy and other store operating expenses, as well as professional and consulting fees. Cancellation of orders and negotiated receipt delays to manage inventory levels. Significant reduction in 2020 capital expenditure budget. Brad Weston, CEO, stated, "As we continue to navigate these unprecedented times, we made the difficult decision to furlough a majority of our team members. We will continue to provide these team members health benefits and have also established the PCHI Employee Assistance fund for employees who are temporarily experiencing economic hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic. We believe our aggressive focus on expense, inventory and capital expenditure reduction will help preserve our financial health and flexibility as we work to ensure readiness to re-open our stores and welcome back our team members and customers as soon as the situation permits. In the meantime, with our fully operational e-commerce site and expanding curbside pick-up, we are here to meet customers' needs, with relevant offerings like our 'Adventure in a Box' and 'Birthday in a Box' assortment, as adults and children alike find new ways to adapt to the current environment and creatively and safely celebrate at home."

07:07 EDT Spirit of Texas Bancshares CEO takes medical leave of absence due to COVID-19 - In a regulatory filing last night, Spirit of Texas Bancshares announced that Dean Bass, the Chairman and CEO of the company and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Spirit of Texas Bank, has contracted the coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19, and is taking a temporary medical leave of absence. In connection with Bass' leave of absence, on April 6, the company's board determined that David McGuire, the President of the company and President and Chief Lending Officer of the bank, will assume Bass' authority and responsibilities as Interim CEO until he returns from his leave of absence. Additionally, Steven Morris, a director of the company and the bank, will serve as the acting Chairman of the board until Bass returns from his leave of absence. In addition to serving as Interim CEO, McGuire will continue to serve as President of the company and President and Chief Lending Officer of the bank.

07:07 EDT Myriad Genetics withdraws FY20 financial guidance - Myriad Genetics announced that due to the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the company is withdrawing its fiscal year 2020 financial guidance. "Prior to mid-March we were experiencing volume trends consistent with our expectations across all products; however, recent social distancing guidelines have had a significant impact on test volume trends in late March and into the fiscal fourth-quarter," said R. Bryan Riggsbee, interim president and CEO and chief financial officer at Myriad Genetics. "Our priority as an organization during the coronavirus pandemic has been to maintain business continuity and access to testing, while ensuring the safety of our employees and customers. As an organization we have taken steps to advance these dual aims, and I am very proud of how the Myriad team has responded to the crisis." In responding to the pandemic, Myriad has made several changes to its business practices to promote the safety of both customers and employees including ceasing in-office sales calls and implementing virtual selling, granting all non-essential personnel the ability to work from home, enabling direct sample collection for patients and implementing policies to improve laboratory personnel safety. While the uncertain timeframe of the Coronavirus pandemic makes it difficult to predict future business trends for the company, the company will provide an update on its business, including the impact of COVID-19, on its next quarterly earnings call.

07:04 EDT The Stars Group: ISS, Glass Lewis urge shareholders to vote for Flutter merger - The Stars Group is pleased to announce that two independent proxy advisory firms, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis & Co., have each recommended that shareholders vote FOR the proposed all-share combination with Flutter Entertainment plc by way of a plan of arrangement at the upcoming special meeting of The Stars Group shareholders on April 24 at 10:00 a.m. EDT. The Stars Group also announced that the Meeting will now be held in a virtual only format, whereby shareholders may attend and participate in the Meeting via live audio webcast.

07:04 EDT Trillium Therapeutics has 'sufficient' drug supply to complete ongoing trials - The company said, "Trillium has sufficient drug supply to complete the ongoing TTI-621 and TTI-622 dose escalation trials, and has not experienced any disruptions in its supply chain to date. The Company is planning multiple manufacturing campaigns in 2020 to ensure drug supply for future clinical studies. While risks in the Company's supply chain have substantially increased, Trillium currently does not expect delays to its clinical trials due to manufacturing disruptions or supply chain issues."

07:03 EDT Trillium Therapeutics to update trial timelines amid more visibility of COVID-19 - The company said, "The Company is following the U.S. FDA and Health Canada COVID-19 guidance regarding the conduct/management of clinical trials during the pandemic, and is addressing COVID-19 derived challenges on a patient-by-patient basis. As of today, all active patients on the TTI-621 and TTI-622 clinical studies are continuing treatment, and the Company expects that these patients will continue treatment on study. On March 24 and April 1, the Company enrolled the first patient in the 1.4 mg/kg cohort of the TTI-621-01 study and the first patient in the 8.0 mg/kg cohort of the TTI-622-01 study, respectively. Going forward, Trillium expects that enrollment in the TTI-621 and TTI-622 clinical studies will slow down or potentially pause as many clinical sites are putting enrollment of new patients on hold. Given the rapidly evolving nature of the pandemic, the Company will update trial timelines after it has more visibility on the length and extent of the COVID-19 crisis. "

07:02 EDT Trillium Therapeutics implements work-from-home policy - The company said, "Trillium has implemented measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and protect the health and safety of its personnel amid this pandemic. In compliance with local 'stay at home' measures in Massachusetts and Ontario, Trillium has suspended all business travel and implemented a work-from-home policy for all employees."

07:01 EDT Pennsylvania REIT furloughed 37% of staff due to COVID-19 - PREIT provided an update on its efforts to stabilize cash flow while operations are temporarily suspended, concurrently positioning itself for a rapid re-boot of mall operations. The company has significantly reduced its expense burden while balancing the ability to quickly re-engage. In the event the operations halt continues longer than anticipated, the company has additional levers to pull to further reduce expenses. Last week, the company took the difficult but necessary step of implementing a furlough of 37% of our staff by way of temporary suspension or hours reduction. The furlough impacted 41 of our corporate office colleagues and 62 of our property colleagues, and we continue to provide benefits to the impacted employees. The company submitted an application for stimulus funds available through the CARES Act. The funds are being pursued through the Paycheck Protection Plan which is being administered jointly by the Treasury and the SBA.

06:57 EDT Lannett to meet with FDA on advancement of biosimilar insulin glargine - Lannett announced that it is set to meet with the FDA on June 9 to plan next steps for the clinical advancement of its biosimilar insulin glargine partnered product candidate. Insulin glargine is a long-acting insulin used to treat adults with Type 2 diabetes, as well as adults and pediatric patients with Type 1 diabetes, for the control of high blood sugar.

06:49 EDT RPM suspends share buyback program - "In March 2020, subsequent to the end of the third quarter, we repurchased approximately $25 million of our common shares. This is in addition to the $300 million we repurchased during fiscal 2019 and the first three quarters of fiscal 2020, coupled with the $200 million cash redemption of our convertible notes in November of 2018. Given recent macroeconomic uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, we have suspended our share buyback program," stated CEO Sullivan.

06:36 EDT Air Lease reports Q1 activity - Air Lease updated deliveries, sales and new significant financing occurring in Q1. As of March 31, ALC's fleet was comprised of 301 owned aircraft in its operating fleet and 82 managed aircraft with 399 new aircraft on order from Boeing and Airbus set to deliver through 2026. In Q1, the company delivered 8 new aircraft, acquired 1 A330-300 in the secondary market, and sold 3 aircraft to Thunderbolt Aircraft Lease Limited III. Aircraft investments in the quarter totaled approximately $700M. Sales proceeds for the quarter totaled approximately $65M. The company issued $1.4B of senior unsecured medium-term notes comprised of $750.0M due 2025 at a fixed rate of 2.30% and $650.0M due 2030 at a fixed rate of 3.00% and upsized senior unsecured revolving credit facility to $6.1B from $5.8B.

06:33 EDT HollyFrontier limits onsite staff at all facilities - The company said, "HollyFrontier is committed to producing the essential products necessary for our communities as long as it is safe to do so and has taken the following steps: HollyFrontier is limiting onsite staff at all of our facilities to essential operational personnel only. As a result, the company is carefully evaluating projects at the refinery and limiting or postponing non-essential projects and contractor work. Based on market conditions, the Refining segment is currently running at approximately 70% of capacity. In Lubricants and Specialty Products, the company is withdrawing 2020 guidance for Rack Forward due to lack of visibility around global end market demand."

06:29 EDT BHP Group has 'small number' of COVID-19 cases among staff - BHP Group said that a "small number" of its total workforce had been confirmed with COVID-19, but it had not impacted operations at any of its operations. "There has not been any broader transmission from these cases to other workers, or any impact on sites or operations," the world's biggest miner said in a statement on its website. BHP CEO Mike Henry said: "Our over-riding priority remains to help reduce the risk of transmission and help protect our people and communities. We are absolutely committed to playing our part in the collective response to the COVID-19 pandemic." Reference Link

06:16 EDT Silicom awarded $15M government project - Silicom announced that a major systems integrator has placed approximately $15 million in purchase orders for 10G, 40G and 100G Intelligent Bypass Units to be delivered during the next 12 months. It will use the units in a massive infrastructure project for the government of one of the world's top economies. The integrator has indicated that Silicom should expect additional projects of a similar scope for this government over time. The integrator selected Silicom after a long process begun in mid-2019 that concluded with a thorough evaluation demonstrating the superiority of Silicom's technology and products.

06:07 EDT Regeneron, Zai Lab announce collaboration for development of REGN1979 - Regeneron (REGN) and Zai Lab (ZLAB) announced a strategic collaboration for the development and commercialization of REGN1979 in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau. The collaboration will support global clinical development for REGN1979, starting with the ongoing potentially registrational Phase 2 program in B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, or B-NHL. Additionally, if REGN1979 is approved, Zai Lab will leverage its capabilities to commercialize REGN1979 in this region. REGN1979 is the most advanced investigational bispecific monoclonal antibody from Regeneron's bispecific platform and is designed to trigger tumor killing by linking and activating a cytotoxic T-cell to a lymphoma cell. Under the terms of the agreement, Regeneron will receive a $30M upfront payment and is eligible to receive up to $160M in additional regulatory and sales milestones. Zai Lab will contribute to the global development costs for REGN1979 for certain trials and will receive the rights to develop and exclusively commercialize REGN1979 in oncology in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau. Additionally, Zai Lab will make payments to Regeneron based on net sales, such that Regeneron shares in a significant portion of any potential profits. Regeneron will be responsible for the manufacture and supply of REGN1979 for development and commercialization in the region.

06:07 EDT Barnwell Industries says NYSE American accepts company's compliance plan - Barnwell Industries announced that the NYSE American has accepted the company's plan of compliance for continued listing on the Exchange. On April 2, the Exchange notified the company that it accepted the company's compliance plan and granted the company an extension for its continued listing until July 13, 2021.

06:04 EDT Novavax identifies coronavirus vaccine candidate, NVX-CoV2373 - Novavax announced it has identified a coronavirus vaccine candidate, NVX-CoV2373, a stable, prefusion protein made using Novavax' proprietary nanoparticle technology, and will initiate a first-in-human trial in mid-May. Novavax' proprietary Matrix-M adjuvant will be incorporated with NVX-CoV2373 in order to enhance immune responses and stimulate high levels of neutralizing antibodies. NVX-CoV2373 was shown to be highly immunogenic in animal models measuring spike protein-specific antibodies, antibodies that block the binding of the spike protein to the receptor and wild-type virus neutralizing antibodies. High levels of spike protein-specific antibodies with ACE-2 human receptor binding domain blocking activity and SARS-CoV-2 wild-type virus neutralizing antibodies were observed after a single immunization. In addition, the already high microneutralization titers seen after one dose increased eight fold with a second dose. High titer microneutralizing antibodies are generally accepted evidence that a vaccine is likely to be protective in humans. The NVX-CoV2373 clinical development plan combines a Phase 1/Phase 2 approach to allow rapid advancement during the current coronavirus pandemic. The Phase 1 clinical trial is a placebo-controlled observer blinded study of ~130 healthy adults and includes assessment of dosage amount and number of vaccinations. The trial is expected to begin in mid-May with preliminary immunogenicity and safety results in July.

05:49 EDT CME Group reports Q1 ADV of 7.2M contracts - CME Group announced that it achieved record international average daily volume, or ADV, of 7.2 million contracts in Q1, up 57 percent year on year, and surpassing the previous quarterly record of 5.3 million contracts traded during the second quarter of 2019. This record, reflecting all trading done outside North America, was driven largely by growth in Equity and Interest Rate products, up 152 percent and 46 percent respectively. In Q1, Europe, Middle East and Africa ADV hit a record 5.4 million contracts, up 54 percent from Q1 2019. This was due to a strong performance in Equity and Interest Rate products in the region, up 139 percent and 46 percent respectively, compared to the same period in 2019. Asia Pacific Q1 ADV reached a record 1.6 million contracts, up 73 percent from Q1 2019. This was driven by a 195 percent growth in Equity products, 76 percent growth in Metals products, and 59 percent growth in Interest Rate products in the region. Latin America ADV was 182,000 contracts in Q1, up 21 percent from the corresponding period in 2019. This was led by a 138 percent growth in Equity products and 34 percent growth in Foreign Exchange products in the region.

05:20 EDT Volaris reports March domestic passenger traffic down 12.1% - Reports March international traffic down 16.1%. In March, capacity measured by ASMs (Available Seat Miles) decreased by 5.6% vs the same period of last year, while demand measured by RPMs (Revenue Passenger Miles) decreased 10.3% year over year. Volaris transported a total of 1.6 million passengers during the month of March, a decrease of 12.8% year over year. Network-wide load factor for March was 82.3%, a decrease of 4.3 pp versus last year. These decreases were a result of the decline in demand related to the virus SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, which affected Volaris at the end of March. On March 24 the company announced a decrease in capacity measured by available seat miles for the months of March and April of approximately 50% versus the scheduled originally published. On March 30 the Mexican government through the General Health Council declared a health emergency due to force majeure, which will be in effect until April 30. As a result, on March 31, Volaris announced an additional capacity reduction for the month of April , which results in a decrease of approximately 80% versus the originally scheduled capacity. Volaris' President and CEO, Enrique Beltranena, commenting on the traffic results for March, said: "At the end of March, the company began to experience a significant drop in the demand for air travel which has seriously affected the entire aviation industry as a result of the pandemic caused by the COVID-19. Despite this, March passenger demand delivered a load factor of 82.3%."