Stockwinners Market Radar for April 27, 2020 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:47 EDT Chico's saw strong customer demand in digital channels over past 6 weeks - The company states: "Over the past six weeks, we have seen strong customer demand in our digital channels, including increased traffic and sales on our websites and increased engagement on our social media channels. Chico's FAS digital sales have experienced double digit growth in the six weeks since the company became a digital-only business on March 18, 2020. The Company operates five unique websites for its' brands. Driving this sales growth and double-digit traffic growth are categories of intimates, sleep, cozy, active and lounge."

20:40 EDT JetBlue to require that all customers wear face coverings during travel - JetBlue announced that starting May 4 all customers will be required to wear a face covering during travel. The policy comes after the airline began requiring all crew members to wear face coverings while working. JetBlue has modeled its policy on the Centers for Disease Control guidelines that indicate all individuals should wear a face covering in public to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. This new policy will require customers to wear a face covering over their nose and mouth throughout their journey, including during check-in, boarding, while in flight and deplaning. Small children who are not able to maintain a face covering are exempt from this requirement.

18:37 EDT Key Tronic says Mexico facilities successfully resume operations - Key Tronic announced the company has successfully resumed operations in its Juarez, Mexico facilities after announcing the temporary closure of these production facilities as a result of new restrictions by the Mexican government last week. Operations resumed April 27 after successfully petitioning the Mexican government to recognize the essential nature of products the company manufactures. Currently, the company is ramping operations back up in Mexico while continuing to focus on protecting the health of all of employees by adhering to current health guidelines.

18:27 EDT Nvidia CEO: Mellanox is a home-run deal for us - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang said the company's acquisition of Mellanox (MLNX) is a "home-run deal," increasing its footprint and scale. According to Huang, the most important computer is the data center. He noted that Nvidia is involved in "every aspect" of fighting COVID-19. Huang plans to continue investing in autonomous vehicle technology as it will "pay off hugely someday."

17:35 EDT S&P announces changes to S&P MidCap 400, S&P SmallCap 600 indices - S&P Dow Jones Indices will make the following changes to the S&P MidCap 400 and S&P SmallCap 600 effective prior to the open of trading on Friday, May 1: Enphase Energy (ENPH) will replace Core Laboratories (CLB) in the S&P MidCap 400, and Core Laboratories will replace Akorn (AKRX) in the S&P SmallCap 600. Akorn intends to file for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code by May 1 and will no longer be eligible for continued inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600. Paylocity (PCTY) will replace Meredith (MDP) in the S&P MidCap 400, and Meredith will replace Diamond Offshore Drilling (DO) in the S&P SmallCap 600. Diamond Offshore Drilling filed to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and is no longer eligible for continued inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600.

17:23 EDT Voxeljet receives noncompliance notification from NYSE - Voxeljet announced that the company received a notice from the New York Stock Exchange on April 20 stating that the company is not in compliance with Section 802.01C of the NYSE's Listed Company Manual due to the fact that the average closing price of the company's American depositary shares, or ADSs, had fallen below $1.00 per share over a period of 30 consecutive trading days. As set forth in the Notice, as of April 17, the company had a 30 trading-day average closing share price of 96c. The company intends to work diligently in an effort to remedy the deficiency in a timely manner and, in accordance with NYSE listing requirements, notified the NYSE within 10 business days of receipt of the Notice on April 22, of its intent to cure the deficiency within six months following receipt of the notice. The company can regain compliance with Section 802.01C at any time during the cure period if on the last trading day of any calendar month during the cure period, the company has a closing share price of at least $1.00 and an average closing share price of at least $1.00 over the 30 trading-day period ending on the last trading day of that month. In the event that at the expiration of the cure period, both a $1.00 closing share price on the last trading day of the cure period and a $1.00 average closing share price over the 30 trading-day period ending on the last trading day of the cure period are not attained, the NYSE will commence suspension and delisting procedures.

17:20 EDT Meredith to replace Diamond Offshore in S&P 600 at open on 5/1 - Diamond Offshore Drilling filed to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and is no longer eligible for continued inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600.

17:18 EDT Core Laboratories to replace Akorn in S&P 600 at open on 5/1 - Akorn intends to file for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code by May 1 and will no longer be eligible for continued inclusion in the S&P SmallCap 600.

17:11 EDT NXP Semiconductors up 2.9% after $99.94 after Q1 results, Q2 guidance

17:09 EDT NXP Semiconductors sees 'challenging and very fluid environment' - CEO Richard Clemmer says: "From a business perspective, we currently find ourselves navigating a challenging and very fluid environment. We are working diligently with our direct and distribution partners to determine accurate projections of customer demand, especially within the global automotive and industrial markets. Notwithstanding the current challenges, NXP continues to have the financial strength, the product portfolio and customer engagements to emerge strongly from the current unpredictable environment."

17:04 EDT Intevac not providing guidance amid COVID-19 uncertainty - Says COVID-19 impact to local GDP is unknown. Says situation is continuing to evolve rapidly. Says confident in ability to closely manage expenses if need be. Says these are unprecedented and challenging times. Says expects remaining quarterly operating expenses around $9M for FY20. Says expects softer year on hard drives in FY20. Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

17:00 EDT ISS recommends SORL stockholders to vote FOR going private transaction - SORL Auto Parts announced that Institutional Shareholder Services, or ISS, has recommended that SORL stockholders vote "FOR" the proposed going private transaction for $4.72 per share of common stock in cash, as contemplated in the Company's previously announced Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of November 29, 2019, with Ruili International, and Ruili International Merger Sub, pursuant to which Merger Sub will be merged with and into the Company, with the Company surviving the Merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Parent. ISS is a leading independent international proxy advisory firm, and its voting analyses and recommendations are relied upon by thousands of major institutional investment firms, mutual funds and fiduciaries throughout the world.

16:58 EDT Cognex rises 3.3% after reporting Q1 results

16:53 EDT Impinj up 7.75% after reporting Q1 earnings results

16:48 EDT Sanmina down 5% to $26.40 after Q2 results miss estimates - The company's EPS guidance for Q3 also trailed estimates.

16:43 EDT K12 down 8.1% after reporting Q3 earnings, reaffirming FY20 guidance

16:42 EDT Knoll cuts quarterly dividend to 4c from 17c per share - The dividend is payable June 30, 2020 to shareholders of record on June 15, 2020.

16:40 EDT Luxfer temporarily suspends ops at certain facilities - "In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, we implemented numerous protocols and procedures to protect the health and wellbeing of our employees, our operations and the communities in which we operate," the company said. "We are monitoring the current situation closely and have taken the following steps to ensure the safety of our employees and the continuity of our business: Prohibited all domestic and international non-essential travel for all employees; Increased frequency of disinfecting high-touch areas and high-traffic common areas; Reinforced hand washing and infection control training; Implemented safe distancing procedures in all facilities; Provided additional personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies; Shifted to remote work strategies, where possible. At this time, Luxfer is continuing to run the majority of its operations, as permitted by local authorities. However, due to uncertain economic conditions resulting in weaker demand, potential supply constraints and the continued spread of COVID-19, the Company has temporarily suspended operations at certain facilities and has reduced capacity at others. We will continue to monitor the situation and may reduce or suspend operations at additional facilities as warranted. The magnitude of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the extent of any impact on Luxfer's business, financial position, results of operations or liquidity, which could be material, cannot be reasonably estimated at this time due to the rapid development and fluidity of the situation. As a result, Luxfer has taken incremental actions to minimize the financial impacts by reducing expenses and conserving cash: Reduction in cash contribution towards pension deficit; Freeze on non-essential expenses, hiring, and other discretionary spending; Reduction and re-prioritizing of capital expenditures; Additional actions may be taken in certain locations in response to lower customer demand, including temporary reductions in work hours, furloughs and layoffs, as necessary."

16:36 EDT Document Security to proceed with Impact BioMedical acquisition after valuation - Document Security announces the completion of the required independent valuation, allowing the company to proceed with the acquisition of the stock of Impact BioMedical, Inc. through a share exchange agreement as outlined in the term sheet announced on March 12, 2020 among DSS, DSS BioHealth Security, Inc., a wholly-owned direct subsidiary of DSS, Impact BioMedical and Global BioMedical Pte. Ltd. , which owns all of the stock of Impact BioMedical. Impact BioMedical's ownership of a suite of antiviral and medical technologies has been valued at $382 million. As the value is higher than the agreed value, the purchase price for the acquisition will be DSS common stock and convertible preferred stock with an agreed value of $50 million, as previously announced.

16:35 EDT Moderna submits IND to FDA for Phase 2 study of coronavirus vaccine - Moderna announced that it has submitted an Investigational New Drug, or IND, application to the FDA for the company's mRNA vaccine candidate, mRNA-1273, against the novel coronavirus to evaluate mRNA-1273 in Phase 2 and late-stage studies if supported by safety data from the Phase 1 study led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, or NIAID, part of the National Institutes of Health. Moderna has received initial feedback from the FDA on the design of the planned Phase 2 study, which is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2020. This study will evaluate the safety, reactogenicity and immunogenicity of two vaccinations of mRNA-1273 given 28 days apart. Each subject will be assigned to receive placebo, a 50 mug or a 250 mug dose at both vaccinations. The company intends to enroll 600 healthy participants across two cohorts of adults ages 18-55 years and older adults ages 55 years and above. Participants will be followed through 12 months after the second vaccination.

16:34 EDT ORIC Pharmaceuticals presents preclinical data on CD73 inhibitor - ORIC Pharmaceuticals presented research that led to the discovery of potent and orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitors of CD73 at the 2020 American Association for Cancer Research Virtual Annual Meeting I. The preclinical data on ORIC's CD73 program were presented in the "Advances in Cancer Drug Design and Discovery" session in an oral presentation titled "Orally Available Small Molecule CD73 Inhibitor Reverses Immunosuppression Through Blocking of Adenosine Production." Many cancers usurp the anti-inflammatory adenosine pathway to avoid detection by the immune system, thereby reducing the effectiveness of certain chemotherapy- and immunotherapy-based treatments. Accumulation of adenosine in the tumor microenvironment is implicated in local immune suppression that leads to tumor growth. CD73 is an enzyme that controls the rate at which extracellular adenosine is produced and its overexpression is associated with poor prognosis in several cancers, including triple negative breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, melanoma and prostate cancer, among others. Therefore, reducing the level of adenosine via inhibition of CD73 has become a potential strategy for cancer treatment. ORIC's small molecule inhibitor of CD73 demonstrated more potent adenosine inhibition compared to an antibody approach in preclinical studies. Further studies showed CD73 inhibition impacted T cell proliferation and cytokine production in the context of adenosine-mediated immunosuppression. ORIC's research program led to the discovery of clinical candidate ORIC-533, an orally bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of CD73, which in preclinical studies demonstrated significant anti-tumor single agent efficacy when dosed once a day, with corresponding reduction of adenosine levels in the tumor microenvironment. ORIC expects to file an IND for ORIC-533 in the first half of 2021.

16:33 EDT Kroger expands drive-thru COVID-19 testing to 12 states - Kroger Health, the healthcare division of The Kroger Co., announced plans to expand its drive-thru COVID-19 testing model to 50 locations in more than 12 states to perform up to 100,000 tests by the end of May. To date, Kroger Health has performed nearly 8,000 tests in 30 locations in Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. The company has also launched a pilot for site-specific testing for company associates in Michigan and Colorado. "As America's grocer, Kroger is here for our associates, customers, communities and our country," said Rodney McMullen, Kroger's chairman and CEO. "As part of Kroger's commitment to help America reopen safely, we are proud to help expand access to COVID-19 testing as a partner in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Public-Private Testing Partnership."

16:29 EDT Brooge Energy names Syed Masood Ali acting CFO - Brooge Energy Limited announced the appointment of Syed Masood Ali as Chief Financial Officer. Saleh Yammout, former CFO, is to continue working with the Company as a board member. Nico Paardenkooper, CEO of Brooge Energy, commented, "Syed brings to our senior management team an impressive corporate finance and international reporting background. As a newly public company, we will continue to bolster Brooge's team with talented professionals that have complementary experience and will support us in building value for our shareholders. With deep expertise and knowledge in all aspects of corporate finance, financial planning and financial governance, we believe Syed has the required leadership capabilities to help strategically manage our growth as Brooge enters a new chapter in its growth, with the upcoming launch of Phase II operations and our planned expansion of Phase III for which the FEED process has started."

16:24 EDT Keurig Dr Pepper up 8% to $27.92 after Q1 results beat estimates

16:23 EDT Comcast extends COVID-19 response policies to June 30 - As shelter in place continues to be the norm and schools remain closed across the country, Comcast announced it will extend its commitments for Xfinity customers through June 30 to help ensure students can finish out the school year from home and remain connected to the internet during the COVID-19 crisis. Originally announced on March 13, Comcast made the following commitments that will now be extended into the summer: no disconnects and waiving late fees; Xfinity WiFi free for everyone; pausing data plans; and internet essentials. "These extended measures will continue to keep Americans safe and ensure that households are equipped for students to learn and stay informed at home as the nation copes with this unprecedented disruption to our daily lives," said Dave Watson, Comcast Cable Chief Executive Officer. "Our services have never been more important, and we're doing everything we can to keep people connected to the internet."

16:21 EDT Universal Health suspends stock repurchase program, payment of dividend - The company said, "In addition, we recognize the significant financial stress created by the dramatic decline in patient volumes that began in mid-March, 2020, at our acute care and behavioral health facilities, and as a result, have implemented numerous financial-related measures including the following: Effected initiatives to produce increased labor productivity and reductions to certain other costs. Reduced spend rate and magnitude of certain previously planned capital projects and expenditures. Suspended our stock repurchase program and payment of quarterly dividends."

16:17 EDT Alexandria reduces construction spend forecast to $960M from $1.6B - The company said, "A significant portion of our historical annual construction spend forecast included amounts related to future development projects with no aboveground vertical construction and was not committed to a specific tenant. Due to the current dislocation of capital and other markets caused by COVID-19, we have reduced our construction spend forecast to focus primarily on projects that are partially or fully leased. We also expect to continue certain future pipeline expenditures to minimize the impact of a temporary pause. As a result, we have reduced our construction spend forecast for 2020 from $1.6B to $960M. We also reduced our forecasted acquisitions for 2020 from $950M to $650M. The aggregate $940M reduction in uses of capital in 2020 reduced our remaining forecast of sources of capital from real estate dispositions, partial interest sales, and common equity from $925M to zero dollars.

16:16 EDT Community Health sells two Texas hospitals - Community Health Systems announced that subsidiaries of the company have signed a definitive agreement to sell two Texas hospitals - 231-bed Abilene Regional Medical Center in Abilene and 188-bed Brownwood Regional Medical Center in Brownwood and their associated assets to subsidiaries of Hendrick Health System. As part of the proposed transaction, Hendrick would work with the Brownwood County Hospital Authority to secure assignment of the long-term lease and operations of Brownwood Regional Medical Center.

16:14 EDT LabCorp to offer antibody tests nationwide starting today w/ no up-front cost - LabCorp (LH)) announced that beginning today, it will offer antibody tests for the virus that causes COVID-19. There will be no upfront out-of-pocket costs to people who receive an order for a test through a doctor or healthcare provider, including telemedicine providers. Antibody blood tests offered by LabCorp are administered across the U.S. at tens of thousands of doctors' offices and at LabCorp's nearly 2,000 patient service centers, including LabCorp at Walgreens (WBA) locations. Results will be available to the ordering healthcare provider within 1-3 days after the date of specimen pick up. They are also available to patients in the LabCorp Patient mobile app. LabCorp began antibody blood testing on a limited basis to high-priority healthcare workers in late-March and currently has capacity to perform over 50,000 antibody tests per day. By mid-May, LabCorp expects to be able to perform 200,000 tests per day as more tests and testing platforms receive U.S. Food and Drug Administration Emergency Use Authorization. These tests have not been reviewed by the FDA but are being offered by LabCorp in accordance with the public health emergency guidance issued by the FDA on March 16.

16:13 EDT Keurig Dr Pepper CEO says Q1 results 'in line with our long-term targets' - Chairman and CEO Bob Gamgort stated, "We delivered Q1 performance in line with our long-term targets, building on the business strength demonstrated since our merger in mid-2018 and setting us up for a strong 2020. However, we are now operating in a distinctly different environment that has required us to pivot significantly. The extraordinary steps we've taken to keep our teams safe and working, coupled with our broad portfolio and seven distinct routes to market, position us to continue to successfully navigate this unprecedented time. I recognize the significant role KDP employees are playing in our future success, and I can't thank them enough for their tireless efforts to ensure we continue to meet the needs of our customers and consumers. Finally, while the timing of the macroeconomic recovery remains uncertain, we remain confident in our ability to deliver the guidance we reaffirmed today, particularly our Adjusted EPS and deleveraging commitments."

16:09 EDT Intevac experiencing delays in progress of some TFE engineering programs - "As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, specifically with activity in China and other hard-hit areas, we are experiencing delays in the progress of several TFE engineering programs, as well as the capacity expansion timelines we are driving in our 2020 plan. We anticipate these delays will elongate the sales process with our solar, display cover glass, and advanced semiconductor packaging growth initiatives in particular. Despite operating in this unprecedented environment, we remain confident in our strategy as we work through all the unknowns ahead. We have improved our balance sheet and operate on a very strong financial footing, and are confident we can continue to make solid progress toward our strategic growth objectives in this extremely challenging environment. I am also pleased to report that all of our employees around the world are well," concluded Mr. Blonigan. "We are taking every precaution to protect and ensure the safety of our employees as they continue to perform essential work for the Company and the critical markets we serve."

16:08 EDT Hudson terminate agreement with OHM Concession Group to acquire stake - Hudson provided an update regarding its agreement to acquire a controlling stake in the assets of OHM Concession Group LLC, a food and beverage concessions operator in North America, as previously announced on October 31, 2019. On April 2, 2020, Hudson exercised its right to terminate its agreement with OHM as a result of the closing not having occurred prior to the end date provided for in the agreement. Hudson and OHM are continuing to explore other possible transactions, but there can be no guarantee that any agreement will be reached, or that any such transactions will ultimately be consummated.

16:01 EDT Walgreens Boots Alliance to further expand COVID-19 testing - Walgreens announced plans to open COVID-19 testing locations in 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico, as the company further expands drive-thru testing to help meet the growing need in communities nationwide. With this latest expansion, Walgreens will focus its efforts on improving access to testing in underserved communities, and over time will also be working with companies to provide testing to employees, to help more businesses re-open in the weeks and months ahead. All new testing locations will be determined in collaboration with the Administration, federal health agencies and state and local authorities, and once all sites are fully operational, Walgreens expects to test more than 50,000 people each week. This latest planned expansion is being made possible through Walgreens' partnership with LabCorp, as the companies are furthering their relationship in order to triple Walgreens' current testing capacity. The new testing sites will utilize LabCorp's COVID-19 nasal swab diagnostic test1 to determine if an individual currently has the virus. LabCorp is also offering antibody blood testing at more than 100 LabCorp at Walgreens patient service center locations beginning today. The antibody blood tests detect the presence of antibodies to the virus and can help identify individuals who have been exposed to the virus.

15:29 EDT Avis Budget announces leverage covenant waiver under existing credit facility - Avis Budget announced that the company has obtained a waiver of the leverage covenant included in its existing senior credit facilities, comprised of a term loan and revolving credit facility, until June 30, 2021. The waiver is included in an amendment to the credit facilities, which allows the company to incur an additional $750M of first lien debt.

14:41 EDT Diamond Offshore receives NYSE delisting notice - Diamond Offshore Drilling announced that the company received notification from the staff of NYSE Regulation that it has determined to commence proceedings to delist the company's shares of common stock. NYSE Regulation determined that the company was no longer suitable for listing after the company's April 27 disclosure that it and select subsidiaries have filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The company does not presently anticipate exercising its right to appeal NYSE Regulation's delisting determination. The company expects that the company's common stock will be quoted on the OTC Pink markets.

14:36 EDT Virgin Galactic signs Space Act agreement with NASA in fight against COVID-19 - George Whitesides, CEO Virgin Galactic, said in a statement that, "we are proud to share that Virgin Galactic is meeting this responsibility head-on through a Space Act Agreement with NASA. This Space Act Agreement outlines Virgin Galactic's commitment to developing innovative solutions to the problems facing healthcare workers on the frontlines. [...] I am incredibly proud of our employees at Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company for the enormous push last week in the development and testing of the PPB Hood - a device designed to support those admitted with COVID-19 with portable oxygen-rich pressure chambers, reducing the subsequent need for ventilator intubation. The team overcame shipping delays and product challenges to execute a carefully choreographed fabrication process, complete with exhaust fitting, liner leak check and repair, door installation, strap fastening, inspection, cleaning, labeling, and packaging. The result of this is an innovative patient care tool that can help make a difference for those in need. Thanks to the dedication, resilience, and creativity of this group, we are on track to produce 400 PPB Hoods at a specially constructed assembly line at our Final Assembly, Integration and Test Hangar in Mojave. [...] These products will be made available to the Antelope Valley Hospital in Lancaster, California - where we were able to conduct pressure testing on 5 prototype hoods, and secure initial authorization for production of the full batch of 400 units of the model approved by doctors. Separately, we're also working on conducting a further test program with Bartlett Community Hospital in Juneau, Alaska. Virgin Galactic, together with TSC, NASA, and the Antelope Valley Hospital team, has also been working on a separate project to develop and build negative pressure enclosures - specialist equipment that covers a patient on a gurney or hospital bed. These enclosures are designed to protect medical staff by containing infected air and filtering it so that it does not contaminate the wider room environment. The team tested the first units, rapidly developed over the past week, with positive results - and are currently implementing some minor modifications to the units and will be reviewing options for FDA authorization and wider testing. [...] Our work is far from over - the Space Act Agreement announced today outlines a series of significant milestones over the next several weeks. These milestones mark Virgin Galactic's and The Spaceship Company's next steps towards manufacturing, testing, and perfecting the patient hoods." Reference Link

13:59 EDT White House to announce additional testing guidance - In a tweet, Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that, "UPDATE: The White House has additional testing guidance and other announcements about safely opening up America again. President @realDonaldTrump will brief the nation during a press conference this evening." Reference Link

13:44 EDT White House to announce additional testing guidance - In a tweet, Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that, "UPDATE: The White House has additional testing guidance and other announcements about safely opening up America again. President @realDonaldTrump will brief the nation during a press conference this evening." Reference Link

13:31 EDT Ocean Bio-Chemical granted additional patent for Performacide pouch system - Ocean Bio-Chem announced that its wholly owned subsidiary has been granted an additional patent for the company's Disinfectant Pouch Delivery System with Fluid Control, which is used for delivery of the company's Performacide product. This new design patent supplements its existing patents. Peter Dornau, President and CEO of the company, commented: "The granting of the latest patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office further enhances our ability to pursue and expand sales of Performacide, including in industries not currently served by the product." As previously announced, as a result of increased sales of Performacide since the inception of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has increased personnel and shifts for the manufacture of Performacide. The company is also currently expanding production capacity with the purchase of additional equipment.

13:18 EDT Havertys plans to reopen 108 stores on May 1 - HAVERTYS announced it would begin the process of reopening its stores and resuming its distribution and delivery operations. The company currently expects to reopen 108 of its 120 stores on May 1 and the remaining locations by mid-May. Havertys plans a phased approach as it restarts its business with limited staffing and shorter hours, adjusting as the pace of business dictates. The company will follow the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and will implement enhanced cleaning measures, social distancing, and the utilization of face masks across its operations for the safety of team members, customers, and communities.

13:10 EDT Hilton to launch 'Hilton CleanStay with Lysol Protection' program - Hilton announced plans for a new program that it said will "deliver an industry-defining standard of cleanliness and disinfection in Hilton properties around the world." Hilton added: "In a first for the hospitality business, Hilton will collaborate with RB, maker of Lysol and Dettol, and consult with Mayo Clinic to develop elevated processes and Team Member training to help Hilton guests enjoy an even cleaner and safer stay from check-in to check-out." The "Hilton CleanStay with Lysol protection," as the program will be called in North America, will be "a rigorous system that incorporates RB's trusted know-how and scientific approach to cleaning practices and product offerings. Experts from Mayo Clinic's Infection Prevention and Control team will advise and assist in enhancing Hilton's cleaning and disinfection protocols," according to the company's press release.

12:48 EDT FangDD Network Group Ltd (ADS) trading halted, volatility trading pause

12:33 EDT Sony says 'Last of Us Part II' to arrive on June 19 - Sony Interactive Entertainment said in a blog post that upcoming PlayStation 4 exclusive game "The Last of Us Part II" will arrive on June 19 follow a delay, and that PS4 exclusive "Ghost of Tsushima" will come out on July 17. "I want to personally congratulate and thank both the teams at Naughty Dog and Sucker Punch Productions on their achievements, as we know it's not an easy feat to reach the finish line under these circumstances," SIE Head of Worldwide Studios Hermen Hulst said. "Both teams have worked hard to deliver world-class experiences, and we can't wait to see what you think of them when they release in just a few short months." Reference Link

12:20 EDT UPS Flight Forward, CVS to launch residential drone delivery service in Florida - UPS (UPS) and CVS Health Corporation (CVS) said UPS subsidiary UPS Flight Forward will use drones to deliver prescription medicines from a CVS pharmacy to The Villages, Florida for the largest U.S. retirement community, home to more than 135,000 residents. The service will use Matternet's M2 drone system. "Our new drone delivery service will help CVS provide safe and efficient deliveries of medicines to this large retirement community, enabling residents to receive medications without leaving their homes," said Scott Price, UPS chief strategy and transformation officer. "UPS is committed to playing its part in fighting the spread of Coronavirus, and this is another way we can support our healthcare customers and individuals with innovative solutions." UPS and CVS last year announced plans to jointly explore the use of drone delivery. The companies successfully completed their first drone deliveries of medical prescriptions from a CVS pharmacy in Cary, N.C. in November 2019. The new service in The Villages in central Florida begins in early May under the Federal Aviation Administration's Part 107 rules, with authority to operate through the pandemic and explore ongoing needs as they arise after that period. The operation could expand to include deliveries from two additional CVS pharmacies in the area.

12:00 EDT Curo Group rises 21.3% - Curo Group is up 21.3%, or $1.40 to $7.97.

12:00 EDT Scor ADR rises 29.4% - Scor ADR is up 29.4%, or $13.25 to $58.35.

11:23 EDT Marc Cohodes short Trex, says 'numbers ridiculously too high' - In an interview with Batman Research's Edwin Dorsey, short seller Marc Cohodes discussed his short position in Trex (TREX). "I think the number are ridiculously too high," he explained. "Trex management just retired, they have huge execution issues, they have an awful lot of competition [...] Camping world [CWH] will outrun Trex," Cohodes adds. The short seller had previously disclosed this short in an interview with Grant Williams from Real Vision.Reference Link

11:13 EDT iAnthus to reschedule Q4, FY19 earnings news release - As disclosed in the Company's news release dated April 6, 2020, iAnthus has temporarily postponed the filing of its annual financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 to incorporate subsequent event disclosures as they relate to the Company's financial position. As a result of a change to the Company's filing date, the Company's earnings news release for the fourth quarter and full year 2019, as well as the conference call for financial analysts and investors previously scheduled for April 7, 2020, is being rescheduled. The Company expects to issue a news release announcing a revised date for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 conference call and earnings news release.

11:12 EDT iAnthus CEO Hadley Ford resigns following Special Committee investigation - iAnthus Capital Holdings announced that its Board of Directors has accepted and considered the report of the special committee of independent directors, which reviewed the allegations of undisclosed related-party transactions against the Company's CEO On March 31, 2020, allegations against the Company were made in an online media report. Broadly stated, the allegations were that Hadley Ford, the Company's CEO, is or has been acting in a conflict of interest and has misused iAnthus' resources to his own benefit. In response, the Board determined that it was in the best interests of the Company to form the Special Committee and retain outside counsel to conduct a detailed investigation. The Special Committee's investigation examined all material allegations against the Company included in the Online Report. Two allegations were substantiated and the Special Committee recommended further action. The Special Committee concluded, and the Board accepted, that Ford entered into two undisclosed loans and those loans created a potential or apparent conflict and should have been disclosed to the Board in a timely way. With respect to the loan with the related-party, the Online Report included an allegation that Mr. Ford entered into an undisclosed loan transaction with the managing member of iAnthus' senior secured lender, Gotham Green Partners. The Special Committee considered the allegation and the relevant details, are summarized as follows: On December 20, 2019, iAnthus and Gotham Green closed an additional $36.15M of senior secured convertible notes from Gotham Green and additional co-investors. A day after the close of the Third Tranche, on December 21, 2019, Ford and the Managing Member, entered into a loan for the principal sum of US$100,000, documented by an email. The loan bore no interest and was to be repayable on March 31, 2020. The loan has not been repaid. The Special Committee did not find a basis to conclude that Ford's conduct in the face of the potential or apparent conflict impacted the terms, timing, or negotiations the Company had with the related-party or the non-arm's length party. Nevertheless, the Special Committee concluded, and the Board accepted, that the failure to disclose such personal loans to the Board was a breach of the Company's conflict policies and other obligations as an officer and director of the Company. The Board has accepted Ford's immediate resignation as CEO. Ford also resigned as a director of the Company and as an officer and director of the Company's subsidiaries. The Board has appointed Randy Maslow as interim CEO effective immediately. Mr. Maslow is the co-founder of iAnthus and has served as the President and a director of the Company since its inception.

10:00 EDT Universal Compression falls -24.4% - Universal Compression is down -24.4%, or -$4.03 to $12.50.

10:00 EDT Chesapeake falls -31.6% - Chesapeake is down -31.6%, or -$12.61 to $27.33.

10:00 EDT VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN rises 16.0% - VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN is up 16.0%, or $37.47 to $271.00.

09:57 EDT Aytu BioScience signs pact with Sterling Medical Devices to develop Healight - Aytu BioScience announced that it has signed an agreement with Sterling Medical Devices to finalize the development of Healight, a novel endotracheal catheter, as a potential treatment for coronavirus. The company announced last week that it licensed exclusive worldwide rights to the Healight technology from Cedars-Sinai for all endotracheal and nasopharyngeal indications. The patent-pending Healight Platform has been in development since 2016 by the Medically Associated Science and Technology team at Cedars-Sinai. Following their pre-clinical findings that Healight may be a safe and effective antiviral and antibacterial treatment, the team engaged Sterling to rapidly develop a novel endotracheal device to help combat coronavirus.

09:47 EDT VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN rises 14.9% - VelocityShares 3x Inv Natural Gas ETN is up 14.9%, or $34.80 to $268.32.

09:45 EDT Embraer announces arbitration proceedings have commenced against Boeing - In addition to the material fact released on April 25, Embraer S.A. (ERJ) informs its shareholders and the market that arbitration proceedings have commenced with respect to the termination of the Master Transaction Agreement, or MTA, executed with Boeing (BA).

09:37 EDT Chesapeake trading resumes

09:32 EDT Chesapeake trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:24 EDT Tiziana Life files patent on combination of NP-ACT D, anti-IL-6R - Tiziana Life Sciences announced that it has filed a provisional patent application on the combination of nanoparticle-Actinomycin D with anti-interleukin-6 receptor monoclonal antibody as a potential therapy for management of COVID-19 disease. The underlying invention concepts are based on the hypothesis that a combination of an antiviral drug controlling proliferation of COVID-19, with an anti-inflammatory agent suppressing a possible 'Cytokine Storm' may provide immediate relief to severe cases of COVID-19 patients. Actinomycin D, an antibiotic drug approved initially for infectious diseases in the United States in 1964, is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines as the most effective medicine needed in a health system. However, severe toxicities associated with the intravenous administration of ACT D limits its widespread therapeutic utility. The NP-ACT D formulation, effectively controlling slow and sustained release, may overcome the severe toxicities of ACT D. Side-by-side animal studies have compared NP-ACT D with free ACT D and demonstrated that the intravenous treatment with NP-ACT D was well-tolerated with minimal apparent toxicities in animal models. Importantly, results from another animal study comparing free ACT D side-by-side with an equivalent dose of NP-ACT D, showed 0% mortality in rats dosed with NP-ACT D as compared to greater than 90% mortality with free ACT D. Nonetheless, safety and tolerability of NP-ACT D needs to be evaluated in healthy volunteers prior to any clinical studies. Patients infected with COVID-19 are known to develop an uncontrolled immune response, which results in excessive production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-6 and TNF-a both of which are regarded as key drivers of chronic inflammation and are believed to be associated with severe lung damage commonly observed in patients with COVID-19 infections and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Therefore, Tiziana believes it is possible to potentially combine TZLS-501 with NP-Act D to inhibit viral proliferation and to suppress inflammation in lungs to halt progression of COVID-19-mediated lung damage and death.

09:22 EDT SuperCom announces electronic monitoring of prisoners released due to COVID-19 - SuperCom announced that it has begun electronic monitoring of prisoners released from a U.S. correctional facility due to COVID-19. This facility and various others in the U.S. have requested assistance in managing prisoner releases as part of their COVID-19 mitigation strategy. LCA, a SuperCom subsidiary, will provide full case management and electronic monitoring services for these releasees during the release period. Reports indicate prisons and jails throughout the world have been implementing urgent measures to minimize the impact of COVID-19 among their staff and prison populations. In some cases, specific prisoner populations such as those more vulnerable to COVID-19 are temporarily or permanently released. Modern electronic monitoring technology, such as the Pure Security Suite provided by SuperCom, offers government agencies and correctional facilities the option to move prisoners outside physical walled facilities to a residential-based virtual incarceration.

09:20 EDT Flowr closes C$20M private placement led by insiders - The Flowr Corporation closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement of 20,041 Units for gross proceeds of CAD$20,041,000. The Company expects to use the proceeds of the Offering for general working capital purposes. The Company has the discretion to increase the Offering for an additional approximate CAD$5,000,000, bringing aggregate gross proceeds to CAD$25,000,000. In the event the Company closes on additional subscriptions, it will issue a news release announcing such additional subscriptions. Chairman & Chief Strategist Steve Klein and Chief Executive Officer Vinay Tolia led the Offering with commitments in excess of $10 million. Management and insiders will continue to own approximately 59% of the shares of the Company post financing on a fully diluted basis. In addition, certain directors, officers, employees and executives of Flowr, including Chairman & Chief Strategist Steve Klein, Chief Executive Officer Vinay Tolia, Founder and Managing Partner Thomas Flow, Managing Director, Europe Pauric Duffy and Managing Director, Australia and Asia Pacific Peter Comerford, who currently collectively control approximately 58% of the Company, agreed to voluntary lock-up agreements in connection with the closing of the Offering whereby all shares held by these shareholders will be subject to restrictions on sale until released under the terms of the Lock-Up Agreements on April 27, 2021. The Lock-Up Agreements are in addition to lock-up agreements already entered into by Pauric Duffy and Peter Comerford in connection with the acquisition of Holigen Holdings Limited.

09:18 EDT BioTelemetry to hold Annual Stockholder Meeting virtually - BioTelemetry announced that its 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders will be held virtually, moving away from an in-person event due to the evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual meeting date: Friday, May 8, 2020. Virtual meeting time: 8:30 a.m. EDT.

09:16 EDT Apollo Global appoints John MacWilliams as operating partner - Apollo Global Management announced the appointment of renewable energy industry veteran John MacWilliams as an Operating Partner. MacWilliams will focus on the Firm's infrastructure and natural resources efforts, providing insight to these platforms and portfolio companies on energy transition, environmental, social and governance issues and sustainability matters. In addition to his previous leadership roles at JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, MacWilliams served as Associate Deputy Secretary and Chief Risk Officer of the U.S. Department of Energy in the Obama Administration. He earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School, an M.S. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a B.A. from Stanford University. In addition to the appointment of MacWilliams, Jeff Hunter and Peter Ford have also joined as Senior Advisors to the Apollo infrastructure team.

09:13 EDT Norwegian Cruise Line identifies $515M capex reductions - The company said, "The Company has swiftly undertaken several proactive measures to mitigate the financial and operational impacts of COVID-19. This action plan includes cost mitigation and cash conservation levers the Company has deployed to preserve and enhance liquidity and is part of an overall plan that, as described below, also contemplates additional sources of capital and liquidity. These measures include: Reduced Operating Expenses: Meaningfully reducing cruise operating expense which includes reducing expenses associated with crew payroll, food, fuel, insurance and port charges. The majority of ships in the Company's fleet are currently transitioning to cold layup. Significantly reducing or deferring marketing expense in the first half of the year. Introduced a temporary shortened work week and reduced work hours with commensurate 20% salary reduction for shoreside team members. Paused employer 401(k) match contribution. Implemented a company-wide hiring freeze. Suspended travel for shoreside employees across the organization.The Company anticipates estimated ongoing ship operating expenses and administrative operating costs combined to range from approximately $70 million to $110 million per month during the suspension of operations. Reduced Capital Expenditures: The Company has identified approximately $515 million of capital expenditure reductions, comprised of: $345 million, or a nearly 70% reduction of non-newbuild capital expenditures for the remainder of 2020. Approximately $170 million in expected reduced and deferred capital expenditures for newbuild related payments through March 31, 2021 which the Company is currently finalizing. Upon completion, the Company's next newbuild related payments would not be until April 2021. Improved Debt Profile Export Credit Agencies ("ECA") and Norwegian's ECA lenders are working to finalize an industrywide initiative to grant a 12-month debt holiday to provide interim debt service relief for amortization payments and financial covenants. The Company has approximately $540 million of ECA-backed amortization payments due over the next 12-months, of which approximately $385 million of payments related to guaranteed financing by Euler Hermes Aktiengesellschaft, the official ECA of Germany, have already been deferred through April 2021 and associated credit agreements have been amended to incorporate this Debt Holiday. The Company is in the process of finalizing the deferral of the remaining approximately $155 million of payments through March 31, 2021 with its other ECA lenders. Contractual optionality to extend $230 million Pride of America term loan by one year to January 2022. Working with lenders and evaluating additional options available to defer or refinance certain of the Company's existing debt profile."

09:09 EDT Norwegian Cruise Line extends voyage suspension through June 30 - The Company previously announced a voluntary suspension of all cruise voyages from March 13 to June 30, 2020 for its three brands. All 28 ships in the Company's fleet are in safe haven in port or at anchor. The ongoing suspension contributes to the global efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19, which has also resulted in travel restrictions and significant uncertainty regarding worldwide port closures and availability. The Company's U.S. operations are also subject to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention No Sail Order which was extended on April 9, 2020 to continue until the earliest of the expiration of the Secretary of Health and Human Services' declaration that COVID-19 constitutes a public health emergency, (ii) the date the Director of the CDC rescinds or modifies the No Sail Order or 100 days after the order appears on the Federal Register, which would be July 24, 2020. Prior to the suspension of cruise voyages, the Company had begun developing a comprehensive and multi-faceted strategy to enhance its already rigorous health and safety protocols to address the unique public health challenges posed by COVID-19, including but not limited to enhanced screening, upgraded cleaning and disinfection protocols and plans for social distancing. Several of these protocols were put in place prior to the voyage suspension. The Company will continue to work with the CDC and other federal agencies, global public health authorities and national and local governments in areas where it operates to take all necessary measures to ensure the health, safety and security of guests, crew and the communities visited once operations resume. "With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting communities worldwide, we continue to closely monitor the evolving global public health environment. We have also taken decisive action to protect the Company's future by shoring up our liquidity position through cost mitigation and cash conservation measures as well as pursuing additional sources of liquidity to help us weather this global pandemic," said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. "We believe the disruption to the travel industry, while swift and severe, will eventually subside. Our guests continue to demonstrate their desire for cruise vacations as we continue to experience demand for voyages further in the future across our three brands. When the time comes, we will be ready to safely resume operations and welcome our loyal guests on board."

09:07 EDT Aptose Biosciences presents preliminary data on CG-806 - Aptose Biosciences presented the early clinical data on CG-806, the company's oral, first-in-class FLT3/BTK cluster selective kinase inhibitor, at the AACR Virtual Annual Meeting I, in lieu of the live oral presentation originally planned. Rafael Bejar M.D., Ph.D., Aptose's Chief Medical Officer, presented a video summary of Abstract # 9967 - Early clinical findings from a phase 1a/b dose escalation trial to evaluate the safety and tolerability of CG-806 in patients with relapsed or refractory CLL/SLL or non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. The first-in-human tests of CG-806 are being carried out in a Phase 1a/b clinical study. The target population in the study includes patients with significant unmet needs including patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia, small lymphocytic leukemia or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) who have failed or been intolerant to two lines of established therapy. CG-806 is administered as oral capsules dosed twice daily in 28-day cycles. The study design includes an accelerated titration followed by a 3+3 dose escalation to establish the recommended Phase 2 dose for planned expansion cohorts and future studies. The first patient, treated with 150 mg BID of CG-806, was heavily pretreated, carried a TP53 mutation, and had severe thrombocytopenia prior to study entry. This patient currently is in the eleventh cycle of therapy without having experienced a dose-limiting toxicity and has been dose escalated to the 450 mg BID dose level. The second patient, treated at the 300 mg BID dose level, had significant marrow involvement with neutropenia and thrombocytopenia at study entry, and developed a brisk lymphocytosis, but did not experience a DLT through four cycles of therapy including no worsening of their thrombocytopenia or neutropenia. The study has now completed three dose levels without observing any drug-related severe adverse events and has not reached a dose-limiting toxicity. Three patients completed the safety evaluation period at the third dose level, 450 mg BID, and as a result, the fourth dose level was opened. The first patient, previously dosed at 150 mg BID was dose escalated to dose level 3 at 450 mg BID. Enrollment is open and dosing is ongoing at the 600 mg BID dose level with no drug-related SAEs or DLTs encountered to date. Key findings to date: No drug-related SAEs or DLTs have been observed in patients to date. CG-806 demonstrates favorable steady state pharmacokinetics evidenced by stable trough plasma concentrations reached by Day 8 in the first two patients treated at dose levels 1 and 2. CG-806 has shown on-target pharmacologic activity demonstrated by plasma inhibitory assays with reporter cells exposed to patient plasma for 6 hours. Phospho-BTK is markedly reduced after exposure to plasma from the patient treated at dose level 1 and completely abrogated with plasma form the patient treated at dose level 2. Similar results are seen for the phosphorylation of PDGFR-alpha, a target of CG-806, for SYK, which lies in the same signaling pathway as BTK and for ERK. Lymphocytosis was noted at dose level 2 - pharmacologic BTK inhibition in CLL promotes exfiltration.

09:06 EDT Inspired Entertainment provides update in recent business trends - Inspired Entertainment announced favorable improvements in recent business trends. Highlights include: Based upon the projections provided to lenders on April 24, Inspired currently projects having available cash balances of GBP25.7M, or $31.8M at July 17 assuming the retail lockdown carries on for this period. This compares favorably to a prior projected cash balance of GBP10.1M or $12.5M, at July 31 based upon prior projections provided to lenders on March 24. Following the projection period underlying the April 24th Projections, management currently expects a further improvement in monthly operating cash uses, to approximately GBP500,000 per month for as long as all retail locations are closed. It should be noted that all projections assume that all retail locations would remain closed for the entire projection period. Additionally, on April 24th, following the preparation of the April 24th Projections, the Italian Government announced that certain gaming locations would be permitted to operate beginning May 11. The April 24th Projections do not include any potential benefit due to these potential retail re-openings.

09:05 EDT Bio-Path announces presentation on trial design of Phase 1 study of BP1002 - Bio-Path Holdings announces the presentation of a poster highlighting the clinical trial design of its Phase 1 study of BP1002 at the 2020 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting being held virtually from April 27-28, 2020. The poster, titled, "A Phase I Clinical Trial to Study the Safety, Pharmacokinetics, and Efficacy of BP1002 Antisense Oligonucleotide in Patients with Advanced Lymphoid Malignancies," was presented virtually by Dr. Ana Tari Ashizawa, Senior Vice President of Research, Development and Clinical Design at Bio-Path Holdings. The Phase 1 clinical trial is expected to be conducted at several leading cancer centers, including The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the Georgia Cancer Center and the Sarah Canon Research Institute. Initially, a total of six evaluable patients will be treated with BP1002 monotherapy in a standard 3+3 design, with a starting dose of 20 mg/m2. The approved treatment cycle is two doses per week over four weeks, resulting in eight doses administered over 28 days. The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of escalating doses of BP1002. BP1002 targets the protein Bcl-2, which is responsible for driving cell survival in up to 60% of all cancers. High expression of Bcl-2 has been correlated with adverse prognosis for patients diagnosed with relapsed, aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Preclinical studies have shown BP1002 to be a potent inhibitor against the Bcl-2 target, and Bio-Path believes that its benign safety profile should enable BP1002 combination therapy with approved agents.

09:04 EDT Vail Resorts sees reduction in FY20 Resort Reported EBITDA of about $115M - Vail Resorts announced updates to its season pass program for the 2020/2021 North American ski season. Rob Katz, CEO, said, "Following the difficult decision to close our North American mountain resorts as a result of the unprecedented circumstances surrounding COVID-19, we have been developing a comprehensive plan to address our pass holders' concerns about the early closure this past season and provide improved coverage for the future. We are committed to providing the best passes in the ski industry and are focused on both honoring the loyalty of our guests and providing peace of mind for next season. To address last season, we are providing credits to 2019/2020 season pass holders to apply toward the purchase of a 2020/2021 season pass. Season pass holders will receive a minimum credit of 20% toward next season's pass. For season pass holders who used their pass less than five days, they will be eligible for higher credits up to a maximum of 80% for season pass holders who did not use their season pass at all. For Epic Day Pass, Edge Card and other frequency based products with unused days remaining, we will be offering credits for each unused day up to a maximum of an 80% credit. The credits will be available for our pass holders who purchase 2020/2021 passes by September 7, 2020. Looking ahead to the 2020/2021 North American ski season, we fully expect that we will all be enjoying a great ski and ride season, but we also understand that many pass holders are nervous about the future given the current uncertainty. As a result, we are redefining how we will protect season passes through the launch of 'Epic Coverage.' Epic Coverage is free for all pass holders and completely replaces the need to purchase pass insurance. Epic Coverage provides refunds in the unlikely event of certain resort closures, giving pass holders a refund for any portion of the season that is lost. Additionally, Epic Coverage provides a refund for personal circumstances covered by our pass insurance for eligible injuries, job losses and many other personal events. In addition to these changes, in order to give our pass holders the time they need to make decisions regarding next season, we are extending the deadline for pass holders to receive spring benefits (including Buddy Tickets) until September 7, 2020, and we are extending the period for pass holders to lock in their purchase with only $49 down for the next few months. As a result of the early closure this season and the meaningful credits we are offering to 2019/2020 season pass holders, we will be delaying the recognition of approximately $118 million of our deferred season pass revenue, as well as approximately $3 million of related deferred costs, that would have been recognized in the remainder of fiscal 2020 and will now be recognized in the second and third quarters of fiscal 2021. This will result in a reduction in lift revenue and Resort Reported EBITDA in fiscal 2020 of approximately $118 million and approximately $115 million, respectively, which is incremental to the negative impact previously disclosed on March 18, 2020. Fiscal 2021 lift revenue will increase by approximately $118 million, partially or fully offsetting the negative impact of the credits being offered to pass holders, depending upon the final usage of such credits towards the purchase of 2020/2021 season passes, and fiscal 2021 Resort Reported EBITDA will increase by approximately $115 million."

09:02 EDT Check Point not providing Q2 outlook amid COVID-19 pandemic - The company notes that this is the first time ever it won't issue quarterly guidance.

09:02 EDT LivaNova Bi-Flow cannula receives CE Mark for ECMO applications - LivaNova announced its Bi-Flow Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation, or ECMO, cannula earned CE Mark approval for ECMO procedures where femoral artery cannulation can be applied. Bi-Flow previously received CE Mark in 2019 for cardiac surgery procedures requiring femoral artery cannulation. Now validated for up to 29 days of use, Bi-Flow ECMO is designed to reduce the risk of limb ischemia for patients receiving ECMO and it allows for safe, easy and reproducible procedures.

09:00 EDT Generex publishes response to Congressional letter on COVID-19 - Generex Biotechnology published a response to the April 20th letter from Congressional members to HHS Secretary Alex Azar and FDA Commissioner Stephan Hahn, MD wherein they call for an accelerated development path for a vaccine to the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic using viral challenge studies. Generex President & CEO Joseph Moscato presents a corporate response to the idea of conducting challenge studies with this coronavirus and provides details of how Generex is responding to this global emergency by offering a safer solution with the Ii-Key vaccine technology. The company said, "Upon reading the letter that was sent last week by Congress to Secretary Azar and Commissioner Hahn, the Generex management team and I were sufficiently alarmed to publish this response to the proposal that vaccine developers intentionally infect healthy young people with the deadly SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus to speed up vaccine development. While we wholeheartedly support the proposition that we accelerate the vaccine development process, especially in this time of emergency pandemic response, the idea of conducting a challenge study using such a new and incompletely understood virus that has wreaked devastation around the globe is incomprehensible when there are safer and better ways available to us right now. Plus, it is not just the virus that is dangerous. There are serious potential risks of vaccination as well, especially with whole virus and large subunit vaccines that are known to cause off-target effects. Anyone who wants to consider volunteering for a COVID-19 vaccine challenge study should read the article about a vaccine that was developed for the previous SARS outbreak that was published in the American Chemical Society Journal of Infectious Diseases in 2016. That article reports the results of a viral challenge study in monkeys using an inactivated SARS-CoV-1 vaccine. When the monkeys were vaccinated, their immune systems generated antibodies against the whole virus, a normal immune response to viral infection; then they infected the monkeys with the SARS virus. While some antibodies conferred protection from the viral challenge, other antibodies caused serious lung damage in the monkeys and enhanced COVID disease resulting in the honeycomb lung that we see in patients who have died during the current SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. So, anyone who enrolls in a viral challenge study risks not only a deadly disease, but also worsening of the disease because the non-specific vaccine may produce unwanted immune system overreactions. At Generex, we understand the risks of developing a vaccine for this coronavirus, because for the last two months the team at Generex has been working around the clock to advance the development of a new COVID-19 vaccine using our targeted Ii-Key vaccine technology to specifically target the immune system against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. We are moving forward with a rational scientific approach and a conservative regulatory strategy that first and foremost ensures the safety of people who volunteer to participate in our clinical research trials of an Ii-Key-SARS-CoV-2 peptide vaccine. With our development partners, we have used computational algorithms to identify specific antigenic peptides from the viral spike, envelope, and membrane proteins that are highly conserved across other deadly coronaviruses like SARS-1 and MERS, have no human sequences that could cause autoimmune reactions, and contain amino acid sequences most likely to produce a neutralizing antibodies based on historical data and computational analyses. We are manufacturing these peptides with the Ii-Key and will be screening them against blood samples from patients who have recovered from COVID-19. The blood from previously infected individuals contains T-Cells and antibodies that have actually worked to neutralize the coronavirus infection so the patients could recover from COVID-19. This standard protocol, which has been developed over the years by the NuGenerex Immuno-Oncology team, enables us to identify specific coronavirus peptide epitopes that produce neutralizing, rather than off-target antibodies, and activate appropriate T-helper cell responses through the Ii-Key rather than the potentially dangerous TH2 responses that are part of the cytokine storm. In this fashion, we can not only select the proper, specific epitopes for a peptide vaccine, but we also test the specificity of the immune response generated by our Ii-Key-SARS-CoV-2 peptide vaccine in a 100% safe "Ex-Vivo" human clinical trial before we proceed to the clinic. Generex has had numerous discussions with U.S. government agencies, including HHS, FDA, and BARDA, the government funding agency that has requested that we submit a contract proposal to provide them with details of our Ii-Key-SARS-CoV-2 peptide vaccine development program. Today, we are submitting that proposal, written and compiled by the Generex COVID-19 task force with detailed plans and budgets from our scientific and clinical team, our contract manufacturing partners, clinical laboratories, preeminent infectious disease research laboratories, a major clinical research organization, regulatory consultants, key opinion leaders in vaccine development and infectious disease, and clinical research sites to conduct the safety and efficacy trials required for FDA fast track approval. We have also agreed to partner with a major corporation that is developing a vaccine adjuvant formulation that we plan to evaluate in our proposed clinical trials. Again, our planned clinical trials are 100% focused on patient safety with interim reviews by an independent data safety monitoring board or DSMB that will evaluate the data not only for safety but also for futility if the vaccine does not induce the appropriate immune responses necessary to kill the virus. With this ongoing review of clinical safety and futility, our plan de-risks our vaccine development program for patients, the medical community, the government, and our investors, with patient safety being of the utmost importance."

08:58 EDT ElectraMeccanica extends, expands agreement with Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield - ElectraMeccanica Vehicles has extended and expanded its agreement with Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. Based on the initial success, ElectraMeccanica will extend the lease on its current SOLO EV storefront located at Westfield Century City in Los Angeles. In addition, ElectraMeccanica will open a second SOLO EV storefront in the second half of 2020 at Westfield Fashion Square, a premier shopping center in Sherman Oaks, California. The Sherman Oaks neighborhood in the San Fernando valley of California has a reputation for being an amenity rich area with high-end boutiques, restaurants and malls. The Company is continuing to evaluate additional locations within its initial target markets across the west coast of the United States. In addition, ElectraMeccanica is announcing that Jack Austin is retiring, and therefore, resigning from the Board of Directors.

08:57 EDT Check Point withdraws previously issued guidance for FY20 amid COVID-19 pandemic

08:56 EDT Check Point: Impact of pandemic 'limited' in Q1 - Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

08:52 EDT Arcutis Biotherapeutics appoints Halley Gilbert to board of directors - Arcutis Biotherapeutics announced that Halley Gilbert has been appointed to the Arcutis Board of Directors effective May 1, 2020. Gilbert was most recently with Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, where she had been Senior Vice President for Corporate Development and Chief Administrative Officer, and oversaw corporate and business development, legal, compliance and government affairs.

08:49 EDT Sonic Foundry Special Committee announces acceptance of stock purchase offer - Sonic Foundry announced that its Special Committee of Independent and Disinterested Directors has accepted an offer from Mr. Mark Burish to purchase all outstanding shares of the Company's common stock not presently held by Mr. Burish at $5.00 per share. The transaction is expected to close in the third calendar quarter of 2020. As previously announced, the Company formed the Special Committee to consider strategic alternatives. Mr. Burish has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sonic Foundry since October 2011. The offer is not dependent upon a financing contingency, however, it is subject to customary terms and conditions, agreement on final definitive documents, and approval of the Special Committee, as well as the holders of a majority of shares not held by Mr. Burish or his affiliates. Sonic Foundry previously announced its Special Committee retained Silverwood Partners LLC, a Boston-based investment banking firm specializing in digital media technology, to evaluate strategic alternatives for Sonic Foundry and its Mediasite video streaming and video management solutions business. Gordon Feinblatt LLC was also retained by the Special Committee as its independent legal counsel.

08:45 EDT Recon Technology subsidiary signs agreement in China - Recon Technology announced that in the middle of April, the Company's subsidiary Future Gas Station Technology, signed a joint operation agreement with China Petroleum Planning and Engineering Institute. The Agreement is signed to facilitate the operation of DT Refuel mobile application functions in Zhejiang. CPPEI is the only decision supporting institute of The China National Petroleum Corporation a major state-owned oil and gas corporation in China. CPPEI operates Hao Ke E Station, a refuel mobile application currently used on over 20,000 CNPC gas stations in China. Pursuant to the Agreement, FGS and CPPEI has established a joint project team to integrate and embed FGS' solution of advanced payment on refuel into Hao Ke. "The joint operation with CPPEI will further improve our current operation solution," said Yang Song, founder of FGS. "As of today, we are cooperating with 437 stations in Zhejiang Province, has a total of 4.12 million registered users and the accumulated Gross Merchandise Volume of DT refuel has been about $439M, and we also have been profitable. Based on the advantage of CPPEI's unique position, we aim to win more high-value customers and prepaid card users and to enhance users' loyalty and reliance on our platform. Beyond, we hope to become China's FLEETCOR through cooperation with more professional companies, to provide a convenient payment solution and customized payment services to China's gas stations, to provide the best solution of petroleum cost control for logistics companies, and to provide the best consumption experience to consumers."

08:40 EDT Telus, Koodo offering two months free wireless service to frontline workers - As a thank you for their dedication to keeping others safe, TELUS announced it is crediting monthly rate plan charges for two months1 or frontline healthcare workers at select hospitals in areas across the province that have been significantly impacted by COVID-19. The credit will be available to eligible TELUS and Koodo customers to help them stay connected to the people and information that matter most.

08:39 EDT DavidsTea expects to file FY19 reports by June 15 - The company said, "In connection with the 45-day extension referred to above, the Company confirms that its management and other insiders are subject to an insider trading black-out policy that reflects the principles in section 9 of Canadian National Policy 11-207 Failure-to-File Cease Trade Orders and Revocations in Multiple Jurisdictions. As noted above, the Company expects to file the Fiscal Year 2019 Reports by June 15, 2020. The Company confirms that material business developments since November 2, 2019, being the date of the last interim financial statements filed by the Company, are as set out above and in the Company's material change report filed on SEDAR on March 24, 2020, relating to the closing by the Company of its stores in North America, effective immediately and until further notice, in response to the continued spread of COVID-19."

08:38 EDT DavidsTea receives Nasdaq notice of non-compliance - On April 21, 2020, the Company was notified by Nasdaq Stock Market LLC that the Company is not in compliance with the minimum bid price requirement under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1). The notification has no immediate effect on the listing of the Company's common stock on Nasdaq and the Company has until December 28, 2020 to regain compliance. The failure to regain compliance prior to December 28, 2020 may result in the Company's common stock being delisted from Nasdaq.

08:37 EDT Vertex, Affinia Therapeutics enter collaboration to engineer AAV capsids - Vertex and Affinia Therapeutics announced that the two companies have entered into a strategic research collaboration to engineer novel adeno-associated virus, or AAV, capsids to deliver genetic therapies to people with serious diseases. Affinia Therapeutics' proprietary AAVSmartLibrary and associated technology provides capsids for improved tissue tropism, manufacturability and pre-existing immunity. The collaboration will leverage Affinia Therapeutics' capsid engineering expertise and Vertex's scientific, clinical and regulatory capabilities to accelerate the development of genetic therapies for people affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy, myotonic dystrophy type 1 and cystic fibrosis. Under the terms of the agreement, Affinia Therapeutics will apply its vector design and engineering technologies to develop novel capsids with improved properties. The agreement provides Vertex an exclusive license under Affinia Therapeutics' proprietary technology and intellectual property in DMD and DM1 with an exclusive option to license rights for CF and an additional undisclosed disease. The scope of the agreement covers all genetic therapy modalities in these diseases. Affinia Therapeutics will be eligible to receive over $1.6B in upfront and development, regulatory and commercial milestones, including $80M in upfront payments and research milestones that will be paid during the research term, plus tiered royalties on future net global sales on any products that result from the collaboration. Affinia Therapeutics will be responsible for the discovery of capsids that meet certain pre-determined criteria. Vertex will be responsible for and will fund the design and manufacturing of genetic therapies incorporating the selected capsids, preclinical and clinical development efforts, and commercialization of any approved products in the licensed diseases.

08:36 EDT Global Partners cuts quarterly dividend to 39c per unit from 52.5c per unit - Global Partners announced that the board of its general partner, Global GP, has declared a quarterly cash distribution of 39.4c per unit, $1.58 per unit on an annualized basis, on all of its outstanding common units for the period from January 1 to March 31. The distribution will be paid on May 15, to unitholders of record as of the close of business on May 11. The distribution represents a decrease of 25% from the distribution of 52.5c paid in February.

08:34 EDT Axis Capital announces estimated $300M net claims provision for Q1 - Axis Capital announced an estimated net claims provision of $300M, pre-tax, for the first quarter related to catastrophe and other weather-related events. This amount includes an estimated net claims provision of $235M, pre-tax, for the COVID-19 pandemic. The company's estimated net claims provision for COVID-19 is largely attributable to property related coverages, but also includes event cancellation and accident & health coverages, and considers a global shelter in place order that remains in effect until July 31. Other-weather related events of $65M, pre-tax, includes regional weather events in the United States, U.K. floods and Australia wildfires. Axis Capital notes improvement in its current accident year loss ratios excluding catastrophe and weather-related losses for its insurance and reinsurance businesses for the quarter. Separately, the company expects to report a full limit loss of $10M associated with the WHO pandemic swap. The loss is recorded in other insurance related income. In addition, the company expects to report net investment income of $93M for the quarter, reduced from $107M in Q1 of 2019, primarily attributable to lower hedge fund returns. The company also expects to report net unrealized losses of $61M attributable to its equity securities portfolio and net unrealized losses of $275M attributable to its fixed maturities portfolio, due to the significant decline in equity and credit markets at March 31.

08:33 EDT electroCore provides update on ongoing nVNS COVID-19 initiatives - electroCore provided an update on ongoing nVNS COVID-19 initiatives. The company announced that an investigator-initiated, randomized, controlled clinical trial of nVNS therapy has commenced enrolling COVID-19 patients in Spain. The trial, "Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Study to Evaluate the Effect of Non-Invasive Electrical Vagus Nerve Stimulation on Respiratory Symptoms due to COVID-19," is designed to assess the ability of nVNS to decrease the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients requiring use of a ventilator. In the treatment group, nVNS will be provided in addition to the current standard of care. nVNS will be used prophylactically, three times a day, as well as acutely when needed by patients, with the goal of improving breathing and decreasing the need for mechanical ventilation. The control group will consist of patients matched to the stimulation group in terms of severity and will be treated with standard of care alone. The trial is being led by Dr. Carlos Tornero, M.D., Head of the Anesthesiology-Resuscitation Department, Hospital Clinico Universitario de Valencia. Multiple US institutions have expressed interest in conducting additional controlled clinical studies of nVNS' potential utility in treating COVID-19 patients. A second investigator-initiated randomized, controlled trial protocol was recently approved by the Institutional Review Board at one U.S. institution and should commence soon. Additional U.S. investigator-initiated trials are under consideration. The company also announced that a paper, entitled, "Use of Non-Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation to Treat Respiratory Symptoms Associated with COVID-19: A Theoretical Hypothesis and Early Clinical Experience," has gone through peer review and been accepted for publication by the highly-regarded journal Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface. The paper will be made available via open access when published online in the near future.

08:31 EDT Kayne Anderson Midstream/Energy Fund completes planned leverage reduction - Kayne Anderson Midstream/Energy Fund has completed its planned reduction in leverage levels. On April 24, 2020, the Fund utilized a portion of its cash on hand to redeem $70 million of unsecured senior notes and $35 million of mandatory redeemable preferred shares. These negotiated repurchases were the result of constructive discussions between the Fund and its note holders and preferred investors. As a result of these repurchases, the Fund is currently in compliance with all the applicable 1940 Act leverage tests as well as the covenants on its debt agreements and terms of its preferred stock. The Fund's previously announced distribution of $0.075 per share will be paid on April 30, 2020. In response to the market volatility experienced during March and April, the Fund has reduced leverage by approximately $149 million, or 54%, relative to February levels. Management and the Board of Directors are pleased to complete the Fund's leverage reduction plan and believe the actions taken were done in a way that minimized prepayment penalties and maximized shareholder value. Further, the Fund is appreciative of the support shown over the last two months by its credit facility lenders, note holders, and preferred investors. As of April 24, 2020, the Fund had $127 million of leverage outstanding, consisting of $87 million of Notes and $40 million of MRP Shares. As of this date, the Fund had $43 million of cash and no borrowings outstanding on its unsecured revolving credit facility. In conjunction with the Fund's reduction in leverage levels over the last two months, it amended the terms of this facility to reduce the size of its available commitment from $100 million to $75 million. As of April 24, 2020, the Fund's asset coverage ratio under the 1940 Act with respect to senior securities representing indebtedness was 414% and the Fund's asset coverage ratio under the 1940 Act with respect to total leverage was 283%.

08:29 EDT Emmaus Life Sciences says APCER report confirms Endari safety - Emmaus Life Sciences announced that APCER Life Sciences has confirmed the safety profile of Endari, Emmaus' prescription grade L-glutamine oral powder for the treatment of sickle cell disease. Using the signal detection method to identify adverse drug reactions, APCER indicated that no serious safety concerns were reported among patients using Endari during the period from July 7, 2017 to April 6, 2020.

08:27 EDT Lightbridge signs cooperative R&D agreement with U.S. DOE's GAIN program - Lightbridge announced that it has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC, the operating contractor of the Idaho National Laboratory, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy. The principal goal of this agreement is to design an experiment for irradiation of Lightbridge metallic fuel material samples in the Advanced Test Reactor at INL. The experiment will allow Lightbridge to measure the thermo-physical properties of Lightbridge Fuel material samples. The total project value of the CRADA is approximately $845,000, with three-quarters of this amount funded by DOE for the scope performed by INL. Lightbridge and INL will establish the test plan for measuring key thermo-physical properties of Lightbridge Fuel material both before and after irradiation in the ATR. INL will then perform the detailed design and establish the safety case for the experiment in the ATR. This will include the control of parameters such as thermal hydraulic capacity, maximum sample temperature, neutron fluence, and the physical location of the test capsules within the ATR. The output of this project will be the complete design and safety case needed for insertion of the experiment into the ATR. The timeline for the CRADA is 12 months from project initiation.

08:19 EDT ExOne, Pitt collaborate to produce reusable respirators - ExOne and the University of Pittsburgh have partnered to develop reusable metal filters that fit into a specially designed respirator cartridge for sustainable, long-term protection against contaminants, such as COVID-19. ExOne has 3D printed respirator filters in two metals - copper and 316L stainless steel - and a range of porosity levels for use inside a unique cartridge designed by the Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science department in Pitt's Swanson School of Engineering. Initial testing for airflow and filtration efficiency is currently underway, and the filters are being optimized with the goal of adhering to an N95 respirator standard.

08:18 EDT SurveyMonkey, COVID Near You collaborate to accelerate coronavirus research - SurveyMonkey announced a new collaboration with COVID Near You, a joint project of Boston Children's Hospital and the Harvard Medical School, to accelerate critical coronavirus research efforts across the United States. COVID Near You will use the scale and reach of millions of daily survey respondents through SurveyMonkey to collect essential community data on the current global crisis. Created by epidemiologists at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, COVID Near You uses crowdsourced data to help citizens and public health agencies identify current and potential hotspots for COVID-19. By leveraging SurveyMonkey, COVID Near You will get a steady stream of diverse respondents across the United States, providing greatly expanded reach in understanding the spread of COVID-19 and the rapid changes roiling daily life across the world. The collaboration launches today through a specialized survey designed by COVID Near You and deployed on the SurveyMonkey platform. Aggregate data will be reported regularly on the COVID Near You and SurveyMonkey websites and made available to media outlets, public health officials and the Center for Disease Control.

08:17 EDT Strata Skin Sciences receives $2M loan under PPP - STRATA Skin Sciences announced it received a loan of approximately $2M from Republic Bank, as lender, pursuant to the Paycheck Protection Program of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act on April 22, 2020. The PPP loan matures on May 1, 2022 and bears an interest rate of 1.0% per annum. Payments of principal and interest of any unforgiven balance commence December 1, 2020. All or a portion of the PPP loan may be forgiven by the lender upon application by STRATA beginning 60 days but not later than 120 days after loan approval and upon documentation of expenditures in accordance with the requirements set forth by the Small Business Administration pursuant to the CARES Act. Under the CARES Act, loan forgiveness is available for the sum of documented payroll costs, covered rent payments, covered mortgage interest and covered utilities during the eight week period beginning on the date of disbursement of proceeds from the PPP loan. For purposes of the CARES Act, payroll costs exclude compensation of an individual employee in excess of $100,000, prorated annually. Not more than 25% of the forgiven amount may be for non-payroll costs. Forgiveness is reduced if full-time headcount declines, or if salaries and wages for employees with salaries of $100,000 or less annually are reduced by more than 25%. In the event the PPP loan, or any portion thereof, is forgiven pursuant to the PPP, the amount forgiven is applied to outstanding principal. It should be noted the SBA has recently issued the interim final regulations in light of certain companies receiving PPP loans as it pertains to "Do businesses owned by large companies with adequate sources of liquidity to support the business's ongoing operations qualify for a PPP loan?" STRATA is not owned by a large company, and while public, does not have a substantial market value nor have substantial access to the capital markets; based on its financial position, STRATA believes that it qualifies for funding of a PPP loan. Additionally, Dr. Rafaeli announced that in further efforts to conserve the Company's cash resources, the STRATA management team has deferred the payment of their 2019 fiscal year bonuses of $333 thousand and the Board of Directors has deferred all second quarter board fees of $62 thousand. As individual states across the United States begin announcing their steps of returning to normal business activities, the Company is executing on its Patient Outreach Program, in which STRATA provides a unique advantage to its partner clinics, to quickly rebuild their patient referrals by reengaging patients that were either in treatment or about to enter into treatments before the lockdown. The Company, as part of its service to its partners, and using its in-house call-center and reimbursement teams will perform outreach services on behalf of these clinics to their patients to bring them back into treatment. At this time, the Company has held multiple webinars on this Program with over 200 attendees. With a number of states updating their guidelines related to the timing of allowing elective procedures at health clinics, including dermatologists' offices, we have already reached out to 357 clinics in 18 states offering to assist these partners in their plans to open and reengage with their patients.

08:16 EDT Turquoise Hill postpones annual meeting of shareholders - Turquoise Hill Resources announced the postponement of its annual general and special meeting of shareholders of the Company, originally scheduled to be held on May 12. Due to public health measures and restrictions on gatherings enacted by both the Federal and Provincial governments in Canada in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to help protect the health and well-being of its shareholders, colleagues, communities and other stakeholders, the Company made the decision to postpone the Meeting to a later date.

08:14 EDT Diffusion announces Pre-IND submission for design for TSC trials - Diffusion Pharmaceuticals announced the pre-IND submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of a planned clinical program using trans sodium crocetinate in COVID-19 patients displaying severe respiratory symptoms and low oxygen levels. Under federal regulations, the FDA has up to 60 days to hold an advisory meeting with the Company, but for COVID-19-related submissions, the FDA has announced its intention to significantly shorten this period under its Coronavirus Treatment Acceleration Program. Clinical trial start-up preparations are continuing as the Company awaits the FDA's response. To aid in timely trial enrollment, Diffusion is conducting expedited discussions with institutions located in areas of severe COVID-19 incidence, both in the U.S. and in Eastern Europe, to determine their possible participation. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome develops in nearly all patients hospitalized with COVID-19, triggered by lack of sufficient oxygen to vital organs as a consequence of damage to the lungs. In severe cases, patients need to receive life support through mechanical ventilation. In general, ARDS carries a high mortality rate. Diffusion believes that through successful implementation of its TSC/COVID-19 clinical program, TSC's oxygen-enhancing mechanism of action could provide an important new treatment option for this life-threatening unmet medical need. Further, the Company believes that TSC's novel mechanism of action would be compatible with many of the COVID-19 treatment modalities currently used or under development. Although the number, design and projected enrollment of the clinical trials are subject to change, Diffusion's pre-IND submission for TSC envisions three studies to be conducted in rapid succession. The first is an open-label study that will examine the basic safety of the TSC dosing paradigm in up to 12 COVID-19 patients who have been admitted to Intensive Care Units. In addition to the primary endpoint of safety, blood gas and pulse oximetry data also will be collected to observe TSC's possible effect on increasing oxygenation in these oxygen-starved patients. The second trial is planned as a larger, double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled study to confirm safety in the ICU patient population and determine the statistical significance of any effect on the patient's oxygenation status from TSC, again using blood gas analysis and pulse oximetry. The number of patients enrolled will be determined by statistical considerations. Data also will be collected for other endpoints including mortality. Assuming results from the second study warrant program continuation, the third study, also double-blinded, randomized and placebo controlled, would enroll a statistically determined number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients who have not yet been admitted to an ICU, and therefore may not have arterial blood lines in place. While pulse oximetry readouts and other parameters will be monitored for possible improvements in patient status, the primary goal of this third study, intended to be a registration trial, will be to show that TSC lowers the probability of COVID-19 patient admittance to the ICU. Diffusion believes that achieving this goal would provide an important new tool for healthcare professionals as they fight to prevent the cascade of negative effects from oxygen deficiency in hospitalized COVID-19 patients, which too often lead to disease progression and mortality. Meeting this goal could also provide significant cost savings to the health care system, lessening the use of critical resources associated with ICU admittance and fostering TSC's more widespread use. Diffusion's COVID-19 program is a cooperative research effort with the University of Virginia Health System and the Integrated Translational Research Institute of Virginia. iTHRIV is a National Institutes of Health-funded Clinical and Translational Awards program. Dr. Andrew Southerland, Associate Professor of Neurology and Public Health Sciences at UVA, serves as lead Principal Investigator, working with co-investigator Dr. Alex Kadl, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology in the UVA Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine.

08:14 EDT Horizon Therapeutics announces availability of PROCYSBI granules in U.S. - Horizon Therapeutics announced that PROCYSBI delayed-release oral granules in packets are now available in the United States and can be ordered in 75 mg and 300 mg dosage strengths for adults and children one year of age and older living with nephropathic cystinosis. The FDA approved this new dosage form in February. In the United States, PROCYSBI is now available in two forms: tear-open packets and capsules. Both forms contain the same PROCYSBI granules, also called microbeads, that provide 12 hours of cystine control. PROCYSBI capsules will continue to be available in 25 mg and 75 mg dosage strengths. The new tear-open packets offer a convenient option for cystinosis patients who may have difficulty swallowing, need to sprinkle the granules on certain foods or mix with select liquids, or administer medication through a gastrostomy tube. Additionally, the ability to access PROCYSBI granules in tear-open packets may help reduce the burden families living with cystinosis often face with managing multiple medications every day.

08:12 EDT IBM announces IBM Rapid Supplier Connect blockchain-based network - As part of IBM's approach to combating COVID-19, the company announced IBM Rapid Supplier Connect, a blockchain-based network designed to help government agencies and healthcare organizations identify new, non-traditional suppliers who have pivoted to address the shortage of equipment, devices and supplies needed for COVID-19 relief efforts. Rapid Supplier Connect is available at no cost until August 31, 2020 to qualified buyers and suppliers in the United States and Canada.

08:11 EDT Adverum Biotechnologies doses first patient in cohort 4 of OPTIC Phase 1 trial - Adverum Biotechnologies announced that the first patient was dosed in Cohort 4 of the ongoing OPTIC Phase 1 clinical trial for ADVM-022 for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration. Patients in Cohort 4 are receiving a single intravitreal injection of gene therapy candidate ADVM-022 at a dose of 6 x 10 ^11 vg/eye and are receiving steroid eye drop prophylaxis for six weeks. The multi-center, open-label, Phase 1, dose-ranging trial is designed to assess the safety and tolerability of a single intravitreal administration of ADVM-022 in patients with wet AMD who are responsive to anti-vascular endothelial growth factor treatment. In Cohort 1, patients received ADVM-022 at a higher dose of 6 x 10^11 vg/eye and in Cohort 2, patients received ADVM-022 at a lower dose of 2 x 10^11 vg/eye. In Cohort 3, patients also received a dose of 2 x 10^11 vg/eye and in Cohort 4, patients are receiving a dose of 6 x 10^11 vg/eye. Patients in Cohorts 3 and 4 receive prophylactic steroid eye drops instead of oral steroids which were used in Cohorts 1 and 2. The primary endpoint of the trial is the safety and tolerability of ADVM-022 after a single IVT administration. Secondary endpoints include changes in best-corrected visual acuity, measurement of central retinal thickness, as well as the need for anti-VEGF rescue injections. Each patient enrolled will be followed for a total of two years.

08:08 EDT Cellect Biotechnology receives new patent allowance in Canada - Cellect Biotechnology received an official communication from the Canadian Intellectual Property Office regarding its intention to grant Canadian Patent Application No. 2,866,358 for Apograft. Including this latest notification, the company has 67 patent applications worldwide, of which 33 are issued/allowed patents.

08:06 EDT Callaway Golf's e-commerce results exceed expectations - The Company announced that: E-commerce has been exceeding expectations globally and is partially offsetting the decline in wholesale and retail. Due to the early impact from COVID-19, the Company's golf and apparel businesses in China were down significantly at the beginning of the year but both have rebounded well, exceeding the Company's expectations in April, with golf rebounding particularly strongly in-country. Overall, the business is seeing core resilience across Asia, especially in Korea. As a result, the Company expects sales in that region will be a strong net contributor for the full year. Even with the severe disruptions associated with COVID-19 in the first quarter, the Company's business in both Japan and Korea delivered revenue growth in the first quarter and is continuing to perform well in April. Recent steps to relax social distancing regulations in Germany and the DACH region are encouraging given Jack Wolfskin's business has a significant portion of sales in this region relative to broader Europe. In the U.S. the National Golf Foundation estimates that approximately half of U.S. golf courses are open currently. Trends indicate continued opening of courses as golf is commonly viewed as a safe and healthy outdoor activity. The Company is also starting to see some golf retail activity phase back in as state and county governments allow courses to open.

08:05 EDT USA Technologies enters board agreement with Hudson Executive - USA Technologies announced that it had entered into an agreement with Hudson Executive, the largest shareholder of the company. Under the terms of the agreement, the company has appointed Lisa Baird, Douglas Bergeron, Douglas Braunstein, Jacob Lamm, Michael Passilla, Ellen Richey, Anne Smalling and Shannon Warren to the board, effective immediately. Donald Layden and Patricia Oelrich will continue to serve as directors of the company and will stand for election at the 2020 annual meeting of shareholders together with the newly appointed directors. The company has accepted the resignations of Kelly Ann Kay, Robert Metzger, Sunil Sabharwal, William Schoch and Ingrid Stafford from the board. Hudson Executive has agreed to vote all shares of common stock owned by it in favor of the election of the 10 person USAT slate at the 2020 annual meeting.

08:04 EDT Lakeland Financial temporarily suspends share repurchases - On March 10, 2020, the company announced the activation of its share repurchase plan, which was reauthorized by the board of directors on January 14, 2020. During the first quarter of 2020, the company repurchased 289,101 shares of its common stock for $10 million at a weighted average price per share of $34.63. Share repurchases under the repurchase plan were temporarily suspended with $20 million of authorization remaining available under the plan.

08:03 EDT Big Lots reports positive quarter-to-date comps for Q1 - Big Lots provided an update on its response to the COVID-19 crisis, including further actions the company is taking to support its customers, associates, and communities. As a retailer of everyday home essentials, all Big Lots stores remain open for business and the company has continued to exceed its sales expectations. Notwithstanding the cancellation of its chainwide weekend friends and family event in early April, and the decision to close all stores on Easter day, the company has achieved positive month-to-date comps for fiscal April and positive quarter-to-date comps for the first fiscal quarter of 2020, including a significant acceleration of sales in the last two weeks.

08:02 EDT General Motors suspends quarterly dividend, share repurchase program

07:51 EDT Vaccinex announces interim results from CLASSICAL-Lung Phase 1b/2 study - Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) announced the presentation of updated interim results from CLASSICAL-Lung, the Company's Phase 1b/2 study of pepinemab in combination with anti-PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor avelumab in non-small cell lung cancer, at the American Association for Cancer Research Virtual Annual Meeting I, being held April 27-28, 2020. The data will be presented in a virtual poster session, available on demand and free to anyone on the AACR website beginning April 27. The CLASSICAL-Lung trial is being conducted in collaboration with Merck KGaA (MKGAY), Darmstadt, Germany. It is a multi-center, open-label study designed to evaluate the safety and potential efficacy of the combination of pepinemab and avelumab in subjects with advanced NSCLC. Avelumab is co-developed and co-commercialized by Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany and Pfizer Inc. The data presented at AACR, which build upon results presented at the 34th Annual Meeting of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer in November 2019, show that 81% of immunotherapy-naive patients have experienced disease control, either a partial response or stable disease, in response to combination immunotherapy. Of these, four patients have achieved a durable clinical benefit of greater than one year, and six have achieved a durable clinical benefit of greater than 6 months. Notably, in the cohort of evaluable patients whose tumors had progressed during or following treatment with anti-PD-x antibodies, 59% benefited from switching to the combination therapy, suggesting that adding pepinemab to an immunotherapy treatment regimen has the potential to halt or reverse tumor progression. The combination of pepinemab and avelumab appears to be well-tolerated.

07:48 EDT Supreme Cannabis names Beena Goldenberg as CEO, succeeding Colin Moore - Supreme Cannabis (SPRWF) announced that its board of directors has named Beena Goldenberg, former CEO of Hain-Celestial Canada (HAIN), as the company's President and CEO, effective immediately. Goldenberg succeeds Colin Moore, who as interim President and CEO since January, took significant steps to reduce the company's operating and overhead costs, expand its product offering across all market segments and accelerate its transition into a premium cannabis consumer packaged goods company. Moore will continue to serve as a director of the company and will also serve as an advisor to Goldenberg, providing support throughout the transition until the end of July. Goldenberg has also been appointed to the Board.

07:45 EDT AMG to reallocate $50M toward share repurchases in lieu of dividend payments - The company said, "The Company announced a second-quarter cash dividend of $0.01 per common share, payable May 21, 2020 to common stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 7, 2020. During the first quarter of 2020, the Company repurchased $70 million in common stock and plans to reallocate $50 million of capital toward share repurchases, in lieu of dividend payments, over the balance of 2020."

07:39 EDT B Communications Ltd. receives Nasdaq letter regarding non-compliance - B Communications announced that on April 22, 2020, BCOM received a notice from the Listing Qualifications Department of The Nasdaq Stock Market regarding BCOM's non-compliance with the $1 per share minimum bid price requirement stated in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5450(a)(1). Pursuant to the Nasdaq Listing Rules, the Company has been provided with a compliance period of 180 calendar days from the date of notification in which to regain compliance with the Minimum Bid Requirement. Additionally, due to the ongoing turmoil in the world financial markets, Nasdaq has determined to toll the compliance period for the Minimum Bid Requirement through June 30, 2020. As a result, the Company has until December 28, 2020 to regain compliance with the Minimum Bid Requirement. If at any time prior to December 28, 2020 the closing bid price of the Company's ordinary shares is at least $1.00 for a minimum of ten consecutive business days, the Company will be considered by Nasdaq to have regained compliance with the Minimum Bid Requirement. BCOM will actively monitor its closing bid price during the compliance period. Nasdaq's notice has no immediate effect on the listing of the Company's ordinary shares on Nasdaq and does not otherwise impact the Company's listing on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. In the event the Company does not evidence compliance with the Nasdaq Listing Rules within any prescribed period and is not otherwise eligible for additional time to do so, the Company would be subject to delisting from Nasdaq. In that event, the Company would have the right to request a hearing before a Nasdaq Hearings Panel, which request would stay any further action by Nasdaq pending such hearing. In lieu of delisting, BCOM could consider applying to Nasdaq to have its ordinary shares transferred to the Nasdaq Capital Market, provided that it satisfies all of the requirements for continued listing on that market, including market value of publicly held shares, but other than the $1 minimum bid price requirement. In that case, BCOM would need to notify Nasdaq of its intent to cure the minimum bid price deficiency during a second 180 day compliance period, including by way of a reverse share split, if necessary. In order to approve the transfer to the Nasdaq Capital Market, Nasdaq would need to verify that it believes that it would be possible for BCOM to cure the minimum bid price deficiency.

07:37 EDT Flexion announces preclinical data supporting development of FX301 - Flexion Therapeutics announced new preclinical efficacy and pharmacokinetic data for FX301, its locally administered peripheral nerve block candidate for control of post-operative pain. Results demonstrated sustained analgesic effect in a preclinical surgical pain model for the duration of the study following a single injection of FX301, and no impairment of motor function. The data were presented in an electronic poster presentation available on the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain Medicine's website. "These compelling data bolster our excitement about the potential for FX301 to solve the issues that have plagued most pain drug candidates in the NaV1.7 inhibitor class and address a key unmet need in post-operative pain management - to provide durable and meaningful post-operative pain relief while sparing motor function," said Michael Clayman, M.D., President and CEO of Flexion. "In contrast to liposomal bupivacaine, FX301, through its innovative mechanism of action, provided improved analgesic effect while preserving motor function. These results support the potential for FX301 to become a differentiated peripheral nerve block product which could enable more rapid post-operative ambulation and rehabilitation than existing nerve blocks. We look forward to advancing the FX301 GLP toxicology studies this year and intend to initiate human trials in 2021." The study evaluated the efficacy and PK profile of FX301 following ultrasound-guided sciatic nerve block in a validated post-operative pain model in pigs. The pigs were divided into three study groups, anesthetized and given a single 10 ml injection of either FX301, liposomal bupivacaine or placebo in close proximity to the sciatic nerve prior to receiving a surgical incision on the hind limb. Pain was assessed at 1, 4, 8, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 72 hours post-injection. Motor function was evaluated at 2 and 24 hours post-injection. Key findings from the study include: FX301 provided both greater analgesic effect from 12 through 72 hours and a longer duration of effect through 72 hours compared to liposomal bupivacaine or placebo; Treatment with FX301 did not significantly affect total walking distance in animals at 2 and 24 hours post-injection; animals treated with liposomal bupivacaine experienced a significant reduction in total walking distance compared with baseline at 2 and 24 hours post-injection; and Systemic plasma profile of funapide, the active ingredient in FX301, remained relatively flat throughout the study, indicative of controlled drug release from the thermosensitive gel formulation, while high local concentrations of funapide were observed at the site of administration at 72 hours.

07:36 EDT AudioCodes, Google collaborate on telephony voice services - AudioCodes (AUDC) announced that it is collaborating with Google (GOOG, GOOGL) to integrate telephony voice services with virtual agents developed with the Google Dialogflow bot framework. The use of chat bots and virtual agents is increasing as contact and support centers worldwide seek ways of improving live agent productivity. They achieve this by offloading simple, repetitive tasks to bots while maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction using natural language interactions powered by advanced AI technology. The AudioCodes One-Click Telephony Gateway solution, built on AudioCodes' Voice.AI Gateway, enables Dialogflow virtual agents to become accessible via telephone calls, which are still the most natural form of customer communication with contact centers. The AudioCodes solution includes a user-friendly self-service portal and automatic integration with a few clicks, to simplify and accelerate deployments. Customers can purchase phone numbers for their service simply via the solution's portal. Phone numbers are currently available in the USA and the UK, with other countries to follow in the future. The solution's underlying media processing technology ensures high voice quality and reliability, resulting in more successful transactions and higher conversion rates.

07:32 EDT Neurocrine announces FDA approval for ONGENTYS - Neurocrine Biosciences announced that the FDA has approved once-daily oral ONGENTYS 25 mg and 50 mg capsules as an add-on treatment to levodopa/carbidopa in patients with Parkinson's disease experiencing "off" episodes. As the disease progresses, patients taking levodopa/carbidopa may begin to experience "off" time between treatment doses, during which an increase in Parkinson's disease motor symptoms such as tremor, slowed movement and difficulty walking occur. ONGENTYS also increases "on" time without troublesome dyskinesia, the time when the motor symptoms of a patient with Parkinson's disease are better controlled. The company plans to launch ONGENTYS later this year.

07:30 EDT Probe Metals consolidates 100% ownership of Detour Quebec project - Probe Metals announced the acquisition of SOQUEM's 25% interest in the Company's Detour Quebec Joint-Venture Project. Upon the completion of the Transaction, Probe will own 100% of the project. As previously disclosed in September 2017, Probe entered into a 75-25 joint venture agreement with SOQUEM Inc. on its Detour Quebec Project. Pursuant to the Transaction, the Company will acquire SOQUEM's interest in the Project for a consideration of $425,000. At closing, Probe will issue 620,081 common shares to SOQUEM for a total value of $425,000 based on 20-day volume weighted average price of $0.6854 per share on the TSX Venture Exchange. The transaction is subject to receipt of approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. Probe's flagship Val-d'Or East project remains the top priority for the Company. This project has shown rapid and continued growth since the acquisition in 2016. The current resource at theVal-d'Or East project includes gold resources totaling 866,300 measured and indicated ounces and 2,558,100 inferred ounces. The 2020 exploration program consists of 90,000 metres of drilling on the project which primarily focuses on resource growth.

07:27 EDT Orchard Therapeutics doses first patient with OTL-201 gene therapy in PoC trial - Orchard Therapeutics announced that the first patient has been dosed in an open-label, proof-of-concept investigational study of OTL-201, an ex vivo autologous hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy for the treatment of mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA. The study is designed to evaluate safety, tolerability and clinical efficacy and is intended to enroll up to five patients between three months and 24 months of age who will be followed for three years. The study also contains a number of key secondary outcome measures such as overall survival, cognition and behavior to help inform future clinical development of HSC gene therapy in this indication.

07:25 EDT Brunswick Boat Group donate 15,000 masks to first responders - Brunswick Boat Group has donated 15,000 masks to first responders and hospitals in three different communities where Brunswick Boat Group manufacturing facilities are located. In addition, the business is utilizing its upholstery manufacturing capability to design and fabricate additional masks for employees at its Integrated Manufacturing Center in Florida as well as at its Sea Ray Tellico plant in Tennessee, Thunder Jet facility in Washington, Boston Whaler in Edgewater, Florida and soon its Reynosa facility in Mexico. Brunswick Corporation has launched a multi-faceted, global response across its portfolio to support the fight against this pandemic, including monetary donations and manufacturing personal protective equipment, such as face masks and shields. The company continues to seek opportunities to manufacture additional products and has active programs underway to produce additional masks, face shield parts, and components for ventilators.

07:22 EDT Kamada, Kedrion collaborate on COVID-19 polyclonal immunoglobulin product - Kamada and Kedrion Biopharma announced a global collaboration for the development, manufacturing and distribution of a human plasma-derived Anti-SARS-CoV-2 polyclonal immunoglobulin product as a potential treatment for coronavirus patients. The announcement follows separate previous reports by each of the two entities in connection with initiation of development programs for such product. The plasma-derived Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG product will be developed and manufactured utilizing Kamada's proprietary IgG platform technology. Pursuant to the agreed terms, Kedrion will provide plasma, collected at its KEDPLASMA centers, from donors who have recovered from the virus and, upon receipt of regulatory approvals, will be responsible for commercialization of the product in the U.S., Europe, Australia, and South Korea. Kamada is responsible for product development, manufacturing, clinical development, with Kedrion's support, and regulatory submissions. Kamada will also assume distribution responsibility in all territories outside of those Kedrion is responsible for. Marketing rights for the product in China will be shared by the parties. The initial primary focus of the collaboration will be to provide the product as treatment to patients in Italy, Israel and the U.S. through various clinical programs, while subsequently expanding development and commercialization efforts to additional markets. This global collaboration expands the existing relationship between Kamada and Kedrion beyond KEDRAB, a plasma-derived FDA-approved human rabies immune globulin that was launched in the U.S. market in April 2018, based on a separate strategic supply and distribution agreement between the two companies. There can be no assurance that the planned development and manufacturing of an Anti-SARS-CoV-2 product will receive regulatory approval, be available in a timely manner and/or result in a safe, effective and approvable therapy for COVID-19.

07:18 EDT Lexicon announces anticipated near-term milestones - The company expects initiation of the Phase 2 study for LX9211 in diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain in mid-2020, data from the first efficacy cohort of the Phase 2 study of telotristat ethyl in biliary tract cancer in Q4 and manuscript publications for XERMELO in carcinoid syndrome diarrhea in 2020.

07:15 EDT Modine Manufacturing launches its Authorized Contractor Program - Modine Manufacturing has announced the launch of their Modine Authorized Contractor Program for residential HVAC contractors, a no-fee membership that directly connects contractors and homeowners in their service areas. The Modine Authorized Contractors Program is designed to build long-term customer relationships, drive leads and establish member contractors as trusted, industry-endorsed experts in their communities. Modine is presenting the program as an added value for contractors and homeowners during a period of economic uncertainty.

07:14 EDT Arcturus Therapeutics reports preclinical ddata for COVID-19 vaccine candidate - Arcturus Therapeutics announced immunogenicity data from its preclinical study for the Company's COVID-19 Vaccine. These data for LUNAR-COV19 were measured by Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore. "These preclinical studies done in partnership with Arcturus establish a strong package of data to support initiation of human clinical trials this Summer," said Professor Ooi Eng Eong, Deputy Director of the Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme at Duke-NUS Medical School. "There is a tremendous urgency to develop an effective vaccine in this global fight against COVID-19." Seroconversion, using a gold standard virus neutralization assay and IgG/IgM antibody titers were assessed at day 10 and day 19. Rodents were immunized with a single dose of LUNAR-COV19 vaccine. The study results showed self-transcribing and replicating mRNA induced higher seroconversion relative to conventional mRNA at equivalent doses. In conjunction, anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG and IgM antibody titers were also higher.

07:11 EDT CytoSorbents appoints Efthymios Deliargyris as Chief Medical Officer - CytoSorbents announced the appointment of Efthymios N. Deliargyris, MD, FACC, FESC, FSCAI as Chief Medical Officer, to begin employment on May 1. Deliargyris brings over 19 years of experience in both academic medicine and industry to the position of Chief Medical Officer. From 2010-2016, Dr. Deliargyris held roles of increasing responsibility as Vice President, European Medical Director, based in Munich, Germany and Global Medical Lead - Acute Cardiovascular Care at The Medicines Company, acquired by Novartis AG this year. Most recently Dr. Deliargyris was Chief Medical Officer of PLx Pharma, a NASDAQ-traded, U.S. specialty pharmaceutical company.

07:10 EDT Dorman Products reaffirms temporary halt of share repurchase program - The company said, "Under its share repurchase program, Dorman repurchased 92.0 thousand shares of its common stock for $5.5 million at an average share price of $59.41 during the quarter ended March 28, 2020. The Company has $138.5 million left under its current share repurchase authorization. As communicated on April 8, 2020, the Company temporarily halted its share repurchase program while it navigates the uncertain COVID-19 environment. However, the Company may resume the repurchase program at any time when the Company believes it is prudent to do so and without further notice."

07:08 EDT Kimbell Royalty Partners sees Q1 adjusted EBITDA $18.0M-$20.0M - "We are pleased to announce that the company performed very well in the Q1 of this year with expected record production, as well as strong cash provided by operating activities and consolidated Adjusted EBITDA, in each case after giving effect to a full quarter of Springbok. We had 70 active rigs operating on our properties as of April 17, 2020, which represents an increased market share of all land drilling rigs in the continental U.S. compared to year-end 2019," commented the company. Sees Q1 oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, or NGL, revenues $24.5M-$26.5M, up 12% at its midpoint as compared to Q1 of last year. Sees Q1 run-rate daily production 12,500-12,700 barrels of oil equivalent, orBoe", per day, up 5% at its midpoint as compared to Q1 last year. Sees Q1 net cash provided by operating activities $19.7M-$21.9M, up 32% at its midpoint as compared to Q1 last year. Sees Q1 consolidated Adjusted EBITDA $18.0M-$20.0M, up 18% at its midpoint as compared to Q1 last year.

07:07 EDT Investor Group urges GameStop shareholders to vote the WHITE proxy card - Hestia Capital Partners LP, Permit Capital Enterprise Fund, L.P. and their affiliates, who beneficially own approximately 7.2% of the outstanding common stock of GameStop, announced that they have mailed a definitive proxy statement, including a WHITE proxy card, to stockholders in conjunction with the company's 2020 annual meeting of stockholders, which is expected to take place virtually in mid-June. The Investor Group also sent a letter to its fellow stockholders detailing why it believes GameStop's recent Board refreshment is insufficient and highlighting the steps the company must take to maximize value for stockholders. The Investor Group believes the Board remains primarily composed of directors with traditional retail backgrounds and continues to lack critical skillsets and needed perspectives. The Investor Group believes the Board must add stockholder-aligned directors that have the financial acumen, turnaround experience and stockholder perspective to drive real change at GameStop. If elected, the Investor Group's nominees will push the company to reduce its bloated cost structure, fix misaligned executive compensation, quickly address liquidity concerns, focus on optimizing its unique gaming assets, and create a positive narrative about the company's future. While the Investor Group acknowledges the timing of this proxy contest is unfortunate due to the COVID-19 crisis, the lack of diversity of perspectives on the Board and the Board's resistance to engage with the Investor Group to avoid a contested election, has compelled the Investor Group to move forward with its nomination.

07:05 EDT 58.com retains Houlihan Lokey, Fenwick & West to evaluate acquisition proposal - 58.com announced that the special committee of the company's board, formed to evaluate and consider the previously announced preliminary non-binding acquisition proposal letter dated April 2, or any alternative strategic option that the company may pursue, has retained Houlihan Lokey Limited as its independent financial advisor and Fenwick & West LLP as its legal counsel to assist it in this process.

07:04 EDT CTI BioPharma initiates Phase 3 PRE-VENT study - CTI BioPharma announced the initiation of PRE-VENT, a Phase 3 study evaluating pacritinib in hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19. PRE-VENT, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study, will compare pacritinib plus standard of care versus placebo plus standard of care in 358 hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19, including patients with and without cancer. The primary endpoint of the trial will assess the proportion of patients who progress to invasive mechanical ventilation and/or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation or die by Day 28. CTI expects to commence enrollment of PRE-VENT in May at sites in the United States and in Europe with data expected by the end of 2020.

07:03 EDT Global Cord Blood sees FY21 new subscriber number down 19%-29% - Global Cord Blood provided an update on the impact of the 2019 novel coronavirus on the company's expected fiscal 2021 operations. Based on information available to date, management estimates that the company's new subscriber number in fiscal 2021 will decrease to 60,000-65,000, a 19%-29% decrease from the company's fiscal 2020 new subscriber target, which is 80,000-85,000. Under the anti-pandemic policies and measures taken by the Chinese government, the risk levels associated with major cities has decreased, and social and economic activities are gradually resuming. However, hospitals, which are the company's key promotion and marketing channel, remain at the forefront in fighting this pandemic and remain under strict supervision and control. In the company's key markets of Beijing municipality, Guangdong province, and Zhejiang province, the company's usual marketing and promotion activities are significantly impacted by the control measures implemented by authorities and hospitals, prompting it to constantly readjust its marketing and promotion activities. During this difficult time, the company has prioritized employee safety and protection by providing personal protective equipment to everyone, especially the frontline sales team, and by implementing additional disinfection measures and work streams in its day-to-day operating procedures. The management team has also recalibrated its marketing and promotion efforts in order to better serve and engage with target and existing clients. As a result, operating costs have increased. The negative economic impact brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic has affected numerous industries and further erodes already weak consumer sentiment. GCBC management expects that these conditions, compounded by other factors, will adversely affect and potentially delay potential clients' pregnancy plans. Therefore, management believes it is possible that the number of newborns in the company's respective regions will remain low in the near term. While the world is facing various challenges in response to COVID-19, China may continue to tighten its anti-pandemic policies and measures, which would add further headwinds to the recovery pace of China's economy and consumer confidence. GCBC management does not expect these conditions to be significantly improved in the near term. Under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company management is not optimistic regarding the general operating environment. Current operating data points to the low end of the expected fiscal 2021 new subscriber range. The management would like to remind investors that the above estimation is a forecast that reflects the company's current and preliminary views, which is subject to change and substantial uncertainties, particularly in view of the potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, the effects of which are difficult to analyze and predict. The management will continue to monitor the evolvement of the pandemic and does not exclude the possibility of further adjusting the Group strategy and target as future situation and events unfold. Meanwhile, the management will continue to proactively explore and identify opportunities within the healthcare industry value chain to ensure the Group future growth over the long run.

06:58 EDT Ryder renews $300M receivable-backed financing facility - Ryder announced it has renewed its $300M receivable-backed financing facility with two large banks for an additional 364 day period, further enhancing its solid liquidity position. The receivables-backed financing facility, which is a supplement to Ryder's larger $1.4B multi-year revolving credit facility, will be used for working capital and other general corporate purposes of Ryder and its subsidiaries.

06:57 EDT Merck reports interim data from Cohort B of KEYNOTE-555 Phase 1 trial - Merck announced the presentation of interim data from Cohort B of KEYNOTE-555, a Phase 1 trial evaluating a 400 mg every six-week dosing regimen for KEYTRUDA, Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, in patients with metastatic melanoma. Results of the study - which represent the first clinical outcomes evaluating Q6W dosing for KEYTRUDA - demonstrated efficacy and safety comparable to findings from previous melanoma trials evaluating KEYTRUDA monotherapy. Interim data showed an overall response rate of 38.6% in patients who received KEYTRUDA 400 mg Q6W, the primary endpoint of the study. As previously announced, Merck resubmitted supplemental Biologics License Applications to the U.S. FDA to update the dosing frequency for KEYTRUDA to include a 400 mg Q6W option across all approved adult indications. The results of KEYNOTE-555 supported the resubmission. In the EU, 400 mg Q6W dosing for KEYTRUDA monotherapy was approved by the European Commission in March 2019.

06:56 EDT CNX Resources cuts FY20 production view to 490-530 Bcfe from 525-555 Bcfe - In 2020, CNX is optimizing the production profile due to a combination of low NGL, condensate, and gas pricing this summer and higher pricing this winter, which optimizes NAV per share.

06:49 EDT Vista Outdoor appoints Sudhanshu Priyadarshi as CFO - Vista Outdoor provided an update on its business operations and liquidity in light of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and announced the appointment of Sudhanshu Priyadarshi as Vista Outdoor's Senior Vice President and CFO. Priyadarshi succeeds Mick Lopez, who will be leaving the company after a transition period. The company believes it has the support and financial flexibility required to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the global economy. Vista Outdoor's appointment of Sudhanshu Priyadarshi as Senior Vice President and CFO is effective immediately. He most recently worked as CFO of Flexport.

06:43 EDT Bayer: Impact of COVID-19 'not yet reliably quantifiable' - Bayer said: "The forecast published in February 2020 did not take into account the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to reflect the company's targets. Bayer anticipates that, following the positive start to the year, COVID-19 will continue to impact its business over the course of 2020. It will not be possible to reliably assess the positive and negative effects until later in the year."

06:33 EDT Range Resources reports Q1 production of 2,294 Mmcfe per day - Range Resources announced that Q1 production averaged approximately 2,294 Mmcfe per day. Range continues to expect 2020 production to average approximately 2.3 Bcfe per day, including an expected exit rate of approximately 2.3 Bcfe per day. Range's Q1 realized NGL price, before hedges, was $14.87 per barrel. This represents a $1.30 per barrel premium to the Mont Belvieu-equivalent barrel, which is at the upper end of Range's 2020 guidance of 50cc-$1.50 per barrel premium. Range continues to see positive premiums to Mont Belvieu from NGL exports out of Marcus Hook, as lower international prices since the start of 2020 have been largely offset by lower freight rates. Additionally, some of Range's long-term NGL marketing arrangements are structured to insulate Range from lower prices, including physical price floors within certain sales contracts. As a result, Range is reiterating its 2020 NGL premium differential guidance of 50c-$1.50 per barrel versus the Mont Belvieu-equivalent barrel. NGL prices have also significantly outperformed oil prices in recent weeks, leading to material improvements in pricing as a percent of WTI. Lastly, Range is reiterating its differential guidance for both natural gas and condensate.

06:26 EDT Broadcom offers to settle EU antitrust probe into exclusivity deals - The European Commission invites comments from interested parties on commitments offered by Broadcom to address competition concerns in relation to Broadcom's conduct in various TV set-top box and modem chipset markets. Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: "TV set-top boxes and modems are part of our daily lives, for both work and for leisure, even more so in these days of confinement. We are assessing whether the commitments proposed by Broadcom after our interim measures decision of last October will ensure that final consumers reap the benefits of choice and innovation on these markets. We want to hear stakeholders' views before taking any decision." Broadcom has offered the following commitments to address the Commission's competition concerns: At worldwide level, Broadcom committed: a) Not to require or induce by means of certain type of advantages an original equipment manufacturer to obtain more than 50% of its requirements for SoCs for TV set top boxes, xDSL modems and fibre modems from Broadcom; and b) Not to condition the supply of, or the granting of advantages for, SoCs for TV set top boxes, xDSL modems and fibre modems on an OEM obtaining from Broadcom more than 50% of its requirements for any other of these products, or for other products which were within the scope of the interim measures Statement of Objections or Decision. Reference Link

06:09 EDT Armstrong World sees FY20 free cash flow margin of 22%-25% - "Given external uncertainty and the high levels of variability in our financial scenario modeling, we have withdrawn our financial guidance for 2020. We currently expect, however, to generate a free cash flow margin of 22-25% this fiscal year, consistent with the range of outcomes in our current 2020 models," said Brian MacNeal, CFO of AWI. "With a strong balance sheet, ample liquidity, and no meaningful debt maturities until 2024, we are well positioned to navigate through the impact of COVID-19."

06:07 EDT Aurinia Pharmaceuticals names Joe Miller as CFO, succeeding Dennis Bourgeault - Aurinia Pharmaceuticals (AUPH) announced the appointment of Joe Miller as CFO. Dennis Bourgeault will be retiring from that role after serving the company for more than two decades. Miller joins Aurinia with over two decades of experience as a senior executive managing financial operations and supporting enterprise growth in companies across the health sciences, biotech and pharmaceutical sectors. Most recently, he served as CFO, Principal Executive Officer, and Corporate Secretary at Cerecor (CERC).

06:05 EDT Farmmi subsidiary wins repeat customer order of over $2.1M - Farmmi announced its subsidiary Zhejiang FLS Mushroom won a major order valued at more than $2.1M. The order for Shiitake and black Mu Er mushrooms is from an existing customer, which sells agriculture products in China.

06:04 EDT Diamond Offshore commences voluntary chapter 11 proceedings - Diamond Offshore announced that the company and select subsidiaries have filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Diamond intends to use the proceedings to restructure and strengthen its balance sheet and achieve a more sustainable debt profile, while continuing to focus on contract drilling services for its global clients. The company and its advisors are pursuing negotiations with its key stakeholders regarding a restructuring plan to address the capital structure. Diamond has sufficient capital to fund its global operations in the ordinary course and to make continued investments in safety and reliability during the reorganization proceedings and does not require additional postpetition financing at this time. Marc Edwards, president and CEO, said, "After a careful and diligent review of our financial alternatives, the Board of Directors and management, along with our advisors, concluded that the best path forward for Diamond and its stakeholders is to seek chapter 11 protection. Through this process, we intend to restructure our balance sheet to achieve a more sustainable debt level to reposition the business for long-term success."

06:03 EDT Amphastar granted ANDA for Epinephrine Injection by FDA - Amphastar Pharmaceuticals announces that the FDA has granted approval of its Abbreviated New Drug Application, or ANDA, for Epinephrine Injection, USP 30mg/30mL Multiple Dose Vial. Amphastar's newly approved drug product was determined by the FDA to be therapeutically equivalent to Adrenalin distributed in the U.S. by Par Pharmaceutical, Epinephrine Injection Multiple Dose Vial is for intramuscular, subcutaneous, and intravenous use, and is indicated for emergency treatment of allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, and to increase mean arterial blood pressure in adult patients with hypotension associated with septic shock. Additionally, the FDA granted 180 day exclusivity to Amphastar as the first generic filer. Amphastar plans to launch this Epinephrine Injection Multiple Dose Vial within two to three months.

05:52 EDT Dr. Reddy's launches Fenofibrate Tablets USP, in U.S. market - Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (RDY) announced the launch of Fenofibrate Tablets USP, a therapeutic equivalent generic version of Tricor Tablets, approved by the FDA. Tricor is a trademark of AbbVie (ABBV).

05:46 EDT Alphatec terminates agreement to acquire EOS Imaging - Alphatec Holdings announced that it has terminated the Tender Offer Agreement, or TOA, dated February 26, under which it was to acquire EOS Imaging, for up to $88M, plus debt retirement of $33.9M, in a combination of cash and equity. This decision follows ATEC's consideration and analysis of the expected ongoing market effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Based upon its assessment, ATEC concluded that a "Material Adverse Effect" has occurred, resulting in circumstances that are no longer conducive to completion of the transaction described in the TOA. ATEC notified EOS of its termination decision, as required by the TOA, in a letter dated April 24. In connection with the termination of the TOA, ATEC and Perceptive Credit Holdings III, LP, have agreed to terminate the commitment letter for up to $160M in secured debt financing, which was intended to retire ATEC's existing credit facilities and fund the cash required to complete the acquisition of EOS. The company's current credit facilities with MidCap Funding IV, LLC and Squadron Medical Finance Solutions remain in place.

05:43 EDT Verastem announces preliminary data from VS-6766 Phase 1 clinical study - Verastem announced results from the ongoing investigator-initiated Phase 1 clinical study investigating VS-6766, its RAF/MEK inhibitor, in combination with defactinib, its FAK inhibitor, in patients with KRAS mutant advanced solid tumors. The data will be presented as a virtual poster today at the American Association for Cancer Research, or AACR, 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting I. This ongoing study is an open label, dose escalation and expansion study. The expansion cohorts are currently ongoing in patients with advanced solid tumors, including low-grade serous ovarian cancer, or LGSOC, KRAS mutant non-small cell lung cancer, or NSCLC, and KRAS mutant colorectal cancer, or CRC. In the LGSOC cohort, among the patients with KRAS mutant tumors, 4 patients responded, for an overall response rate, or ORR, of 67%. Median time on treatment was 20.5 months. In the KRAS mutant NSCLC cohort, 1 patient achieved a partial response and 8 patients achieved disease control. In this cohort, 70% of patients continued on treatment at least 12 weeks and 30% of patients continued on treatment at least 24 weeks. "Based on an observation of higher response rates seen in patients with KRAS G12V mutations in the investigator-initiated Phase 1 combination study, we conducted a combined analysis with data from the combination study and the prior single-agent study that utilized a twice-weekly dosing schedule of VS-6766 to get a more complete picture of activity in KRAS G12V mutations. The subsequent, combined analysis showed a 57% ORR; as a single agent and in combination with defactinib in KRAS G12V mutant NSCLC. Similarly, the combined analysis showed a 60% ORR; as a single agent and in combination with defactinib in KRAS G12V mutant gynecologic cancers. These additional analyses were conducted by Verastem Oncology to understand the impact that various KRAS variants may have had on response to identify potential signals to pursue in future prospective studies." This additional analysis was not part of the AACR 2020 poster presentation.

05:22 EDT Halozyme announces daratumumab NDA filed in Japan by Janssen - Halozyme Therapeutics (HALO) announced the submission of a New Drug Application, or NDA, to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, or MHLW, by Janssen Pharmaceutical (JNJ) seeking approval of a new subcutaneous, or SC, formulation of daratumumab, an intravenous, or IV, treatment approved for patients with multiple myeloma. The NDA is supported by pivotal data from the Phase 3 COLUMBA study - a randomized open label study - that included a non-inferiority comparison of daratumumab SC formulation versus daratumumab IV administration in patients with multiple myeloma who had received at least three prior lines of therapy including a proteasome inhibitor, or PI, and an immunomodulatory drug, or IMiD, or whose disease was refractory to both PI and IMiD. In addition to non-inferiority, daratumumab SC showed a lower rate of infusion-related reactions.

05:14 EDT FTI Consulting expands partnership with Relativity in China - FTI Consulting announced the company's technology segment has expanded its partnership with Relativity to provide its e-discovery software solutions to clients in China. Over the last two years, FTI Technology has expanded its Relativity managed e-discovery services across North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The addition of these offerings in China furthers the firm's reach in helping legal teams in the region deal with e-discovery challenges and cost containment for local and cross-border matters of all sizes.