Stockwinners Market Radar for May 19, 2020 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:28 EDT AssetMark Financial CEO sells 70K shares of common stock - In a regulatory filing, AssetMark Financial disclosed that its CEO Charles Goldman sold about 70K shares of common stock on May 15-19th in a total transaction size of about $1.8M.

18:46 EDT Ping Identity CEO: We were born in the enterprise - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Andre Durand said the company secures access to applications "behind the scenes." Ping provides a level of authentication that larger companies demand, and that separates it from the competition, according to Durand. Identity is the "new perimeter" when it comes to security, Durand said. Identity management sits under all digital transformation and will become part of the "new normal" post-COVID-19, Durand noted.

18:19 EDT Urban Outfitters CEO says Q2 NA traffic running down 65%, sales down 50% - Says return to pre-COVID levels could take many quarters. Says Q2 total comps store sales could be down more than 60%. For entire Q2, sees store sales down 25%-30% overall. Sees 2nd half of 2020 store sales down around 20%. Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

17:58 EDT Jack Henry chairman Prim sells 4,700 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Jack Henry chairman John F. Prim disclosed the sale of 4,700 common shares of the company on May 18 at a price of $193.889 per share.

17:32 EDT Northrop Grumman raises quarterly dividend 10% to $1.45 per share - The board of directors of Northrop Grumman Corporation declared a quarterly dividend of $1.45 per share on Northrop Grumman common stock, payable June 17, 2020, to shareholders of record as of the close of business June 1, 2020. "Our focus during the COVID-19 pandemic is on maintaining the health and well-being of our employees and delivering national security solutions for our customers. We also continue to execute a balanced capital deployment strategy that calls for investments in our business and a competitive dividend for shareholders," said Kathy Warden, chairman, chief executive officer and president.

17:26 EDT J.C. Penney to reopen 12 additional Florida stores on May 20 - J.C. Penney said it will fully reopen 12 Florida stores beginning Wednesday, May 20, bringing the total to 17 in the state and 153 nationwide after temporarily closing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "We are thrilled to welcome our associates and customers back to JCPenney stores in Florida, and our top priority remains on the health and safety of our associates, customers, and communities," said Jim DePaul, executive vice president of stores at J.C. Penney. "We want to ensure everyone is safe and feels comfortable as we continue to provide an engaging shopping experience."

17:17 EDT 3D Systems appoints Wayne Pensky as interim CFO - 3D Systems (DDD) announced that Wayne Pensky, former CFO of Hexcel (HXL), has been appointed interim CFO, effective May 26. The company has initiated an executive search to identify a permanent replacement for Todd Booth, executive vice president and CFO, who has resigned from the company to pursue other opportunities. Pensky retired in 2017 after 24 years with Hexcel, a multinational manufacturer of advanced composite materials used in aerospace and industrial applications. He served as CFO for his last 10 years with the company, during which time Hexcel's revenue doubled to more than $2B and its net income grew nearly four-fold. Prior to that, he held a variety of financial leadership roles including head of Finance, Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer.

17:14 EDT Danaher director sells 18.3K shares of common stock - In a regulatory filing, Danaher disclosed that its EVP Daniel Comas sold 18.3K shares of common stock on May 18th. The total transaction size was $3.0M.

17:06 EDT Privately-held Galecto names Amit Munshi as new chairman, 'strengthens board' - Galecto announced that its board has appointed Amit Munshi as its new chairman. Galecto also announced the appointment of David Shapiro MD, the former Chief Medical Officer of Intercept Pharmaceuticals (ICPT), to its board. Amit Munshi has 30 years of international experience in private and public companies in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and medical technologies. He is currently CEO of San Diego-based Arena Pharmaceuticals (ARNA) and replaces Magnus Persson, who will continue to be available to Galecto as an adviser and a board observer. "We are delighted to welcome Amit and David to Galecto. Amit has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills and ability to commercialize medicines, grow businesses and deliver impressive returns to investors over 30 years in the healthcare industry. David's long and successful medical experience, particularly in the development of fibrosis treatments, will be an important source of advice and guidance to further advance and expand our pipeline. Together, their experience will prove invaluable as Galecto continues to pursue its ambitious targets, including moving the promising galectin-3 inhibitor GB0139 towards market for treating idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and further developing our exciting pipeline in fibrosis and cancer," said Hans Schambye, CEO of Galecto.

16:56 EDT Targa Resources sees FY20 adjusted EBITDA $1.4B-1.625B - Information taken from a company slides presentation.

16:52 EDT Carriage Services reports April revenue $25.4M, up 3.6% - Reports April total Field EBITDA of $11.1M, an increase of 1.3%; total Field EBITDA Margin down 100 basis points to 43.5%; Adjusted Net Income of $2.9M, a decrease of 3.2%; adjusted Diluted EPS 17c, flat year over year; and Estimated Free Cash Flow of $8.2M, an increase of 41.1%. The company added, "Our Executive Team reacted quickly during March to enact cost reduction measures to bring down our overhead costs for the duration of the Coronavirus Crisis. Moreover, our operations teams across the portfolio quickly adopted operating strategies during the last two weeks of March to adapt our service and financial performance to the harsh local conditions and fear of the unknown within our client family communities. Each week during April we gained funeral and cemetery revenue momentum and finished the month strong, and early revenue trends in May are highly encouraging, especially with our funeral revenue averages trending up near normalized averages prior to the Coronavirus Crisis."

16:41 EDT Gladstone announces recent leasing of commercial property in Twin Cities - Gladstone Commercial announced that Benedictine Health System has moved its headquarters into and its 10-year lease has commenced at one of Gladstone Commercial's properties, located at 6499 University Avenue, Fridley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. Construction of the tenant and building improvements were completed ahead of schedule in less than 90 days and below budgeted cost.

16:31 EDT American Tower sets quarterly dividend of $1.10 per share vs. $1.08 last quarter - The distribution is payable on July 10, 2020 to the stockholders of record at the close of business on June 19, 2020.

16:28 EDT Roche: Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody test live at more than 20 U.S. sites - Roche announced its Elecsys(R) Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody test is live at more than 20 commercial and hospital lab sites throughout the United States, with plans in the next several weeks to increase to more than 200 commercial and hospital lab sites with the ability to perform millions of tests per week. The Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody test received Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA earlier this month

16:25 EDT Acer jumps after Nature article on COVID therapy targets - A late day surge in shares of Acer Therapeutics, that is carrying over to after-hours trading, is being attributed to the circulation of a Nature article regarding "Proteomics of SARS-CoV-2-infected host cells reveals therapy targets." The accelerated article preview, which was published online on May 14, stated that the clinical researchers "speculated that SARS-CoV-2 replication might be sensitive to translation inhibition. We tested two translation inhibitors - cycloheximide and emetine - for their ability to reduce SARS-CoV-2 replication. Both compounds significantly inhibited SARS-CoV-2 replication at non-toxic concentrations. Taken together, translatome analyses of cells infected with SARS-CoV-2 revealed the temporal profile of viral and host protein responses with prominent increases in the translation machinery. Translation inhibitors prevented SARS-CoV-2 replication in cells." On May 11, Acer Therapeutics announced it has entered into a research collaboration agreement with the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, or NCATS, one of the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, to develop emetine hydrochloride as a potential treatment for patients with COVID-19, the disease caused by infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In after-hours trading, shares of Acer Therapeutics are up 83c, or 18%, to $5.36. Reference Link

16:22 EDT PAE awarded 10-year, $1.26B U.S. Customs and Border Protection contract - PAE was awarded the National Aviation Maintenance and Logistics Services contract by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The contract has a one-year base period of performance with nine one-year options, a potential three-month extension and an estimated total value of more than $1.26B.

16:18 EDT Transcat expects Q1 operating income around breakeven - The company states: "While the duration and ultimate severity of this pandemic is unknown, we have run various scenarios and at this date believe our first quarter ending June 27, 2020 of fiscal 2021 will be the low point of the 2021 fiscal year based on the evolving COVID-19 containment and economic recovery programs being implemented by federal and state authorities. We expect to be in range of breaking even on a consolidated operating income basis for the first quarter of fiscal 2021, which would result in positive Adjusted EBITDA results. Under our analyses, we expect to generate cash even as we continue to invest in our long-term growth initiatives. If the environment were to worsen, we are prepared to take additional actions. In fact, as things improve, we believe our scale will work in our favor to capitalize on growth opportunities, both organic and acquisitions. The Company anticipates total capital expenditures to be approximately $5.0 million to $5.5 million in fiscal 2021, with the majority of the capital expenditures planned for technology, growth-oriented opportunities within both of its operating segments, and rental pool assets. Maintenance/existing asset replacements are expected to be consistent with fiscal 2020 at approximately $1.0 million to $1.5 million."

16:15 EDT Alarm.com says lawsuit filed against subsidiary alleging TCPA violations - In a regulatory filing, Alarm.com disclosed that on May 8, a putative class action lawsuit was filed against Alarm.com Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, by Craig Hicks in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, or the "TCPA," and the Virginia Telephone Privacy Protection Act, or the "VTPPA." The complaint seeks statutory damages under the TCPA and VTPPA, injunctive relief, and other relief, including attorneys' fees. Alarm.com's response to the complaint is due in June 2020, the company noted.

16:09 EDT Echo Global and TrcukPark announce strategic partnership - Echo Global Logistics and TruckPark announced a strategic partnership that offers EchoDrive Preferred members access to TruckPark's extensive network of overnight, commercial truck parking resources at a discounted rate, providing an efficient and cost-effective way for truck drivers to find, reserve, and pay for guaranteed, secure parking in real time. Through the partnership with TruckPark, EchoDrive Preferred members will be eligible for parking at discounted rates, including 50% off for owner/operator fleets of 1-5 trucks and 25% off for company drivers and carriers with 6 or more trucks.

16:07 EDT Eiger BioPharmaceuticals: FDA accepts NDA for accelerated review of Zokinvy - Eiger BioPharmaceuticals announced that the U.S. FDA accepted the New Drug Application for accelerated review of Zokinvy for treatment of Progeria and Progeroid Laminopathies. The FDA granted Priority Review with a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target action date of November 20, 2020. The FDA is not currently planning to hold an advisory committee meeting to discuss this application. Zokinvy for treatment of Progeria and Progeroid Laminopathies has been granted Rare Pediatric Disease Designation.

16:06 EDT Red Rock Resorts says COVID-10 'significantly impacted' business operations - The unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic have significantly impacted the company's business operations. While Las Vegas operations, excluding Palms, recorded their best operating performance in January and February since 2008, the circumstances abruptly changed in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 17, the company announced the temporary shutdown of all its Las Vegas properties, consistent with the statewide directive issued by the Governor of Nevada due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, on March 17, the Graton Resort & Casino in northern California, which is managed by the company, temporarily closed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Those properties also remain closed as of May 19. On May 1, the company announced a phased reopening program with respect to its Las Vegas properties. Pursuant to that program, the company expects to reopen its Red Rock, Green Valley Ranch, Santa Fe Station, Boulder Station, Palace Station and Sunset Station properties, together with its Wildfire properties, when permitted to do so by governmental authorities. Also pursuant to that program, the company will assess the performance of the first-to-reopen properties before reopening its Palms, Texas Station, Fiesta Henderson and Fiesta Rancho properties.

16:04 EDT Red Rock Resorts suspends quarterly dividend for remainder of 2020

15:22 EDT ViacomCBS says three new series to join 23 shows returning to CBS primetime - CBS unveiled its new 2020-2021 primetime programming lineup featuring one new comedy, two new dramas and 23 returning series. Additional new series will be announced at a later date, the company said. "For 2019-2020, the Network finished number one for the twelfth straight season, winning 17 of the past 18 seasons," CBS parent ViacomCBS stated.

15:05 EDT Spotify surges 9% after exclusive deal for Joe Rogan podcast - Shares of Spotify (SPOT) jumped roughly 9% after the company said that The Joe Rogan Experience, a popular podcast hosted by Joe Rogan, will be coming to the streaming platform via a multi-year exclusive licensing deal. The podcast will debut on Spotify on September 1, 2020, and become exclusively available on the platform later this year, the company said. In its release on the news, Spotify referred to The Joe Rogan Experience as "one of the most popular podcasts in the world" and "the most-searched-for podcast" on the platform.

14:37 EDT Podcast The Joe Rogan Experience to become exclusive on Spotify - Popular podcast The Joe Rogan Experience is coming to Spotify via a multi-year exclusive licensing deal. The talk series has long been the most-searched-for podcast on Spotify and is the leading show on practically every other podcasting platform, the company said. Like all podcasts and vodcasts on Spotify, it will remain free and accessible to all Spotify users. The JRE will debut on Spotify on September 1, 2020, and become exclusively available on the platform later this year. Reference Link

14:14 EDT GWG Holdings trading resumes

13:52 EDT Synchrony extends and expands multi-year partnership with Continental Tire - Synchrony (SYF) and Continental Tire announced an expansion of their strategic partnership to include financing options at General Tire. This expanded agreement "brings benefits to both consumers and dealers including automatic access to special financing and easy application through Synchrony Car Care," the companies stated.

13:46 EDT ReWalk Robotics announces revised sponsored research agreement with Harvard - ReWalk Robotics announced a revision to the sponsored research agreement with Harvard University to extend the term of the collaboration four years after entering into a collaboration with researchers at Harvard to develop wearable exosuits for patients with limited mobility. "Continuing the ongoing project until March 2023, the research team will investigate how their novel designs for wearable exosuits may incorporate features that support the increasing demand for tele-healthcare, including remote data provision, analysis and remote physical therapy for patients with their therapists," the company stated. Reference Link

13:28 EDT Shopify up 2% after being listed among partners for Facebook Shops - Facebook (FB), which announced this afternoon that it is launching Facebook Shops and "investing in features across our apps that inspire people to shop and make buying and selling online easier," added that it is "working more closely with partners like Shopify (SHOP), BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Channel Advisor, CedCommerce, Cafe24, Tienda Nube and Feedonomics to give small businesses the support they need." In afternoon trading, Shopify shares are up $14.23, or 1.9%, to $752.26.

13:12 EDT Facebook to introduce Instagram Shop this summer in the U.S. - Facebook said: "This summer, starting in the US, we're introducing Instagram Shop, a new way to discover and buy products you love in Instagram Explore. You can get inspired by collections from @shop, browse selections from your favorite brands and creators, filter by categories like beauty and home, and purchase the looks you love all in one place. And later this year, we're adding a new shop tab in the navigation bar, so you can get to Instagram Shop in just one tap." Reference Link

13:03 EDT Cigna announces multi-year agreement with MultiCare Health System - Cigna and MultiCare Health System announced they have reached a multi-year agreement that "ensures access to quality care for Cigna customers at predictable, affordable rates." The pact covers MultiCare's hospitals and facilities, including Tacoma General Hospital, and applies to multiple lines of business, including Cigna's LocalPlus network, and continues Cigna's value-based Collaborative Care program that incentivizes MultiCare for meeting certain quality and affordability targets. "By establishing a framework for information sharing and joint accountability, Cigna Collaborative Care aims to advance care quality while driving down medical costs for employers and individuals," the company said.

12:54 EDT Fiserv unit First Data Merchant Services settles with FTC for $40.2M - First Data Merchant Services and its former executive will pay more than $40.2M to settle Federal Trade Commission charges they "knowingly processed payments and laundered, or assisted laundering of, credit card transactions for scams that targeted hundreds of thousands of consumers." According to the FTC's complaint, Atlanta-based First Data Merchant Services "allegedly ignored repeated warnings from employees, banks, and others that Chi 'Vincent' Ko, through his company that served as an independent sales agent for First Data, was laundering, and First Data was assisting and facilitating laundering, payments for companies that were breaking the law over a number of years." Ko was later hired as an executive at First Data. In addition to paying more than $40M, under the terms of its proposed settlement, First Data, which was acquired by Fiserv (FISV) in 2019, will be prohibited from assisting or facilitating FTC Act violations related to payment processing and evading fraud and risk oversight programs, the agency said in a statement. Under the terms of his proposed settlement, Ko will be required to pay $270,373.70. Reference Link

12:39 EDT FirstEnergy announces management changes, Steven Strah named president - FirstEnergy announced a series of management changes that it says "supports the company's succession planning process, broadens the experience of key executives, and further positions the company for long-term, customer-focused growth." All changes will be effective on May 24. Steven Strah has been elected by the board to serve as president, FirstEnergy. Strah will continue reporting to Charles Jones, who has been FirstEnergy's president, CEO and member of the board since 2015, will continue to serve as CEO and a member of the board. K. Jon Taylor has been elected senior vice president and Chief Financial Officer, reporting to Strah. The company also announced that Robert Reffner has been elected senior vice president and Chief Legal Officer. Ebony Yeboah-Amankwah was elected vice president, general counsel and Chief Ethics Officer. Mary Swann has been elected Corporate Secretary.

12:29 EDT Sony's PS Now achieves over 2.2M paid subscribers - In presentation slides for the company's Corporate Strategy Meeting, Sony said that PlayStation Now, its cloud gaming subscription service, has achieved over 2.2M paid subscribers as of the end of April 2020. The service first launched in 2014. Reference Link

12:22 EDT JPMorgan announces election of IBM's Ginni Rometty to board of directors - JPMorgan Chase (JPM) announced that Virginia "Ginni" Rometty has been elected as a director of the company, effective immediately. James Bell and Laban Jackson, Jr. have retired from the board. Ginni Rometty serves as Executive Chairman of IBM (IBM) and was previously Chairman, President and CEO of the company.

12:00 EDT Carvana falls -8.8% - Carvana is down -8.8%, or -$8.64 to $89.95.

12:00 EDT Model N falls -9.6% - Model N is down -9.6%, or -$3.06 to $28.98.

12:00 EDT AG Mortgage rises 15.9% - AG Mortgage is up 15.9%, or 43c to $3.14.

11:35 EDT Silicon Labs director William Bock sells $190K in company shares - Silicon Labs director William Bock disclosed in a filing that he had sold 2,000 shares of company stock at $95.00 per share on May 18. The total transaction value of the sale was $190,000.

11:05 EDT Delta Air Lines: Decision to exit fleet like 777 'isn't an easy one'

11:04 EDT Delta Air Lines on track to be cash flow break even by end of 2020

10:57 EDT MoneyGram partners with E9Pay - MoneyGram International announced a partnership with E9Pay, a money transfer and payment fintech companies in Korea. The partnership enables E9Pay customers to connect to the MoneyGram platform and distribution network in over 200 countries and territories. The integration will especially benefit consumers who send money between Southeast Asia, Russia, and the Commonwealth of Independent States, which are the main corridors for E9Pay.

10:52 EDT Delta Air Lines has seen a 'little bit' of bounce off the bottom - Comments made by CFO Paul Jacobson at the Wolfe Transportation & Industrials Conference.

10:40 EDT IMARA Inc trading halted, volatility trading pause

10:19 EDT Green Organic Dutchman announces supply agreement with Shoppers subsidiary - Earlier, the Green Organic Dutchman announced that it has signed a supply agreement with Medical Cannabis by Shoppers, a subsidiary of Shoppers Drug Mart, making their certified organic medical cannabis products available via the Shoppers online medical cannabis sales platform. The agreement is for a three-year term with a renewal clause for an additional two years. "We're thrilled to partner with Canada's largest pharmacy network, bringing together TGOD's unique expertise in developing high-quality certified organic cannabis products and Shoppers' unmatched national reach. We share their vision of facilitating access to medical cannabis for patients across Canada," said Robert Gora, Vice President of Sales at TGOD.

10:18 EDT JPMorgan doesn't plan to restrict activities due to COVID-19 pandemic

10:02 EDT Southwest seeing 'modest improvement' in passenger demand, bookings - In a regulatory filing earlier, Southwest Airlines gave guidance regarding its second quarter financial and operational trends. The company said it experienced weak passenger demand and bookings in April 2020 due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The company's preliminary April operating revenues decreased, year-over-year, in the range of 90%-95%; available seat miles, or ASMs or capacity, decreased approximately 58%, year-over-year; and load factor was approximately 8%; all "relatively in line with the company's previous estimations." The company "has recently experienced a modest improvement in passenger demand, bookings, and trip cancellations, resulting in month-to-date net positive bookings through May 18, where new passenger bookings outpaced trip cancellations," Southwest said. The company's month-to-date net positive bookings represent a reversal in the net negative booking trends experienced during the majority of March and April 2020, where trip cancellations outpaced new passenger bookings. For May 2020, operating revenues are currently estimated to decrease, year-over-year, in the range of 85%-90%; capacity is estimated to decrease in the range of 60%-70%, year-over-year; and load factor is estimated to be in the range of 25%-30%. This compares to the company's previous estimations of May 2020 operating revenues decreasing, year-over-year, in the range of 90%-95%; capacity decreasing in the range of 60%-70%, year-over-year; and load factor in the range of 5%-10%. The company has also recently experienced a modest improvement in passenger demand and bookings in June 2020, with operating revenues currently estimated to decrease, year-over-year, in the range of 80%-85%; capacity estimated to decrease in the range of 45%-55%, year-over-year; and load factor estimated to be in the range of 35%-45%. "The revenue environment remains uncertain and may require additional capacity reductions depending on passenger demand," Southwest added.

10:00 EDT Puxin Limited rises 13.9% - Puxin Limited is up 13.9%, or 86c to $7.04.

09:58 EDT United sees reduced customer cancellations, 'moderate' U.S. demand improvement - In a regulatory filing earlier, United Airlines said it continues to expect total adjusted capital expenditures for 2020 to be below $4.5B. The company currently expects total adjusted capital expenditures for 2021 to be close to $2B. As previously disclosed, the company plans to only take delivery of aircraft that are fully financed. In 2022, the company does not expect to be required to take delivery of any new aircraft and expects that non-aircraft adjusted capital expenditures will not exceed $500M. The filing added: "In April, the company experienced gross bookings that were down over 95% compared to April 2019, with customer cancellation rates reaching unprecedented highs. As of May 18, 2020, the company has seen a reduction in customer cancellation rates and a moderate improvement in demand in the Domestic United States and certain international destinations for the remainder of the second quarter of 2020. As such, the company expects its scheduled capacity, relative to 2019 levels, for July 2020 to be down approximately 75%. Scheduled capacity for May and June 2020 were reduced by approximately 90% from 2019 levels. The company plans to continue to proactively evaluate and cancel flights on a rolling 60-day basis until it sees signs of a recovery in demand."

09:54 EDT Nathans Famous trading resumes

09:47 EDT Home Depot says DIY business 'very strong' - Says Pros faced headwinds from state mandates. As mandates lifted, Pros "slowly" coming back to work.

09:47 EDT Telefonica falls -7.6% - Telefonica is down -7.6%, or -36c to $4.38.

09:47 EDT Danaos rises 10.9% - Danaos is up 10.9%, or 45c to $4.58.

09:47 EDT Dycom rises 21.2% - Dycom is up 21.2%, or $6.67 to $38.16.

09:36 EDT Regions Financial sees no share repurchases through end of 2020 - In presentation slides, Regions Financial said it made no share repurchases during Q1 and anticipates none through the end of 2020.

09:34 EDT Kohl's: Stores that are reopened doing 50%-60% of productivity

09:29 EDT Kohl's sees SG&A declining for the rest of the year

09:25 EDT Home Depot says to date in Q2, SSS up double digits

09:24 EDT Bow Street sends presentation to Mack-Cali Realty shareholders regarding board - Bow Street released a presentation to Mack-Cali Realty shareholders detailing what Bow Street calls, "the need to change the Mack-Cali Board of Directors (the "Board") by adding independence and restoring a culture of oversight, accountability and value creation." Bow Street said, "Key highlights of the presentation include: The need for Mack-Cali to overhaul its Board and end its perpetual cycle of poor performance and broken governance; Mack-Cali's operational underperformance and execution issues - debt has increased, cash flow has decreased, and the Company is trading at the widest discount to NAV in its history - owing to the continued pursuit of a failing strategy overseen by CEO Michael DeMarco; Mack-Cali's legacy of poor corporate governance overseen by entrenched, long-tenured directors loyal to management and who advance their own interests at shareholders' expense; The credibility and accountability gap that exists between Mack-Cali and all of its stakeholders; The mechanisms by which Mack-Cali's legacy directors have proactively marginalized and intentionally minimized the impact of the four directors duly elected by shareholders in 2019, including refusing to re-nominate them for election in 2020; The compendium of broken promises and defense tactics Mack-Cali has fed to shareholders in an effort to preserve the untenable status quo; Bow Street's thoughtful, comprehensive plan that will usher in a new era at Mack-Cali and put Mack-Cali on a path to create meaningful value for shareholders; and Bow Street's highly qualified, independent nominees' ideal mix of real estate, financial, operational and corporate governance experience, which is required in the Boardroom to protect the interests of shareholders and break the cycle of value destruction."

09:19 EDT Home Depot says big ticket transactions up 2.5% in Q1 - Says Q1 online sales up 80%, Q1 kitchen, bath and flooring sales down.

09:18 EDT BOQI International Medical enters into securities purchase agreement - BOQI International Medical announced that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with two institutional investors to sell a new series of senior secured convertible notes of the Company in a private placement, in the aggregate principal amount of up to $6,550,000. The offering is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close on or about May 22, 2020. Pursuant to the SPA, two convertible notes in an aggregate original principal amount of $ 4,450,000 will be issued to the investors, together with the issuance of warrants to acquire common stock of the Company. Each note has a face amount of $2,225,000, for which each holder will pay $1,750,000 in cash. Additional convertible notes in an aggregate original principal amount not to exceed $2,100,000 may also be issued to the investors under the SPA at a later date under certain circumstances. The convertible notes are being sold with an original issue discount and do not bear interest except upon the occurrence of an event of default. The convertible notes are convertible at any time after the receipt of stockholder approval of their issuance, at the option of the holders, into shares of common stock at a rate equal to the amount of principal, interest and unpaid late charges, divided by a conversion price of $2.59. Commencing on the six month anniversary of the closing date, the convertible notes will amortize in stock, subject to the satisfaction of certain equity conditions, or, at our option, in cash. Amortization of the convertible note in stock will be consummated at an amortization conversion price with a 78% discount to the lowest volume weighted average price in the prior 10 trading days, subject to a floor of $0.554. The convertible notes mature in 18 months, and the principal amount is payable in equal installments beginning on the six-month anniversary of the issuance date and each month thereafter until the maturity date. If the Company satisfies certain conditions it may convert the installment amount into shares of its common stock. In connection with the issuance of the convertible notes, the Company issued the investors warrants to purchase an aggregate of 1,300,000 shares of common stock. The warrants are exercisable an exercise price of $2.854 at any time or times after stockholder approval is obtained.

09:16 EDT Fortinet says Rollins implements Secure SD-WAN at 700 locations - Fortinet (FTNT) announced that Rollins (ROL) has implemented Fortinet Secure SD-WAN to eliminate chronic network outages, improve user experience and application performance, and enforce unified business and security policies across hundreds of locations in different geographies. Through its 19 wholly-owned subsidiaries, Rollins Inc. provides essential pest control services and protection against termite damage, rodents and insects to over two million customers globally. To ensure its customers can easily stay informed, Rollins prioritizes clear, quick communication at the end of each service by providing a summary of their work, which requires continued connectivity to critical resources from any location.

09:15 EDT Home Depot says traffic to website reached record numbers at end of Q1

09:12 EDT Kohl's to resume Amazon Returns program as stores reopen

09:11 EDT Lyell Immunopharma chooses AWS as cloud provider - Amazon Web Services, or AWS, an Amazon company, announced that Lyell Immunopharma is running its cloud infrastructure on AWS and has selected AWS as its standard for machine learning, or ML, workloads. Lyell leverages AWS's infrastructure to run its data and analytics platform as well as support its computing workloads to accelerate the research of new cell therapies as it searches for cures for cancer. AWS's services help Lyell to uncover scientific data on how the immune system can fight cancer, as well as its research. Using AWS's compute capacity, Lyell is able to design and test potential new cell therapy constructs going from conducting a single simulation in four weeks to completing 30 simulations in 10 hours. Lyell can now analyze petabytes of research, clinical, and manufacturing data to gain insights into immune cell functionality.

09:10 EDT Home Depot says 'pleased' with Q1 results, sees 'engaged customer' - Says "cautious to extrapolate" current trends. Seeing lots of volatility. Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

09:09 EDT Tecogen announces teaming agreement with Ainsworth - Tecogen announced that Ainsworth has chosen Tecogen as its preferred CHP partner. "The Teaming Agreement executed with Ainsworth provides a framework for Tecogen and Ainsworth to pursue projects that are a mutual fit for Tecogen's equipment and Ainsworth's installation services."

09:08 EDT INmune Bio announces publication of review of innate immune cell potential - INmune Bio announced publication of a review article: Killers at the crossroads: The use of innate immune cells in adoptive cellular therapy of cancer in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine by May Sabry, PhD and Professor Mark Lowdell, PhD, co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of INmune Bio, past vice-president (Europe) of the International Society of Cell & Gene Therapy and faculty professor at University College London. The article reviews the potential of harnessing cells of the innate immune system to treat cancer. This publication is one of the first to comprehensively review clinical trials of the common innate immune effector cells. It highlights the breadth of innate immunotherapy options and the global interest in harnessing this side of the immune system. Prof. Lowdell has been a leader in identifying how cancer evades innate immune surveillance by NK cells and how to overcome those resistance mechanisms to allow NK cells to attack the tumor.

09:07 EDT Kohl's: SSS trends consistent with previous guidance before pandemic hit

09:06 EDT CleanSpark announces additional patent approval for microgrids - CleanSpark announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, has approved for issuance an additional patent protecting the company's technology. The USPTO notification indicates that the application will issue as U.S. Patent No. 10,658,839 on May 19. "Today's patent specifically protects our proprietary system and method for distributing energy between microgrids. It particularly addresses the challenge of determining when it is appropriate for one microgrid to share power with another microgrid. In the patented system and method, a microgrid forecasts its own future power needs, the microgrid then uses this forecast to determine if and when to share power with another microgrid," stated Zachary Bradford, CleanSpark's President and CEO.

09:05 EDT B. Riley Financial disappointed by Spok's dismissive response to proposition - B. Riley Financial (RILY) and subsidiary B. Riley Capital Management, a shareholder of Spok Holdings, (SPOK) announced that it has sent the following letter to Spok's Board of Directors after market close on May 18. The letter began, "As shareholders, we are disappointed by Spok's Board of Directors' dismissive response to our March 16, 2020 proposal to acquire the Company for $12.00 per share. We have refrained from responding sooner in acknowledgement of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we do not believe that the current environment should shield Spok management from accountability to its shareholders indefinitely. We would also note that Spok's common stock was trading in the current $10 per share range before the emergence of COVID-19, reflecting investors' lack of confidence in the direction of the Company." And ended "We continue to stand by our offer and believe strongly that a sale process is in the best interest of Spok's shareholders. All businesses will be challenged in novel ways over the coming months, but shareholders must hold management teams accountable through times of crisis as well as prosperity. As this crisis shines a spotlight on hospitals' need for maximum efficiency and patient care, Spok Go's value proposition should be clear to Spok's customers and we expect meaningful new sales bookings to justify the years and tens of millions of dollars spent developing the product."

09:04 EDT Tupperware Brands names Beatriz Diaz de la Fuente as CHRO - Tupperware Brands named Beatriz Diaz de la Fuente as the company's Chief Human Resources Officer. She will join Tupperware on June 1. Diaz de la Fuente joins Tupperware Brands following successful careers in human resources at multinational companies including GE and Herbalife Nutrition. Most recently, she was head of human resources at El Palacio de Hierro, a worldwide recognized retail group based in Mexico.

09:04 EDT Eli Lilly announces baseline results from GERAS-US study of Alzheimer's disease - Eli Lilly announced baseline results from the GERAS-US Study examining the societal costs associated with mild cognitive impairment, mild dementia, and caring for someone with Alzheimer's disease. The study, published today in The Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, is "the first of its kind to show how early stages of cognitive decline economically impact both patients and caregivers," the company said. Dorene Rentz, co-author, PsyD, Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, added: "It is well known that caregiver costs increase with disease severity and this study demonstrates that those costs are incurred even earlier than we expected, at the stage of mild cognitive impairment. Clearly, memory loss in a loved one is not a benign event. It has a detrimental impact on caregivers and families long before a diagnosis of AD dementia. This paper validates the importance of a timely diagnosis and reinforces the emerging science that treatment, even at the preclinical stage of disease, may benefit not only patients, but their caregivers as well."

09:03 EDT PayPal rolls out QR Code payments in 28 markets around the globe - PayPal has rolled out the ability to use QR Codes to buy and sell goods in 28 markets around the globe. From farmers markets to selling secondhand goods, the rollout of the QR code functionality in the PayPal app allows customers to buy or sell in-person, safely and securely, and touch free. "Additionally, to continue PayPal's efforts in assisting our customers during this difficult period, for a limited time, we are waiving our standard seller transaction fees incurred on sales conducted using a QR Code."

09:01 EDT MGM Resorts announces reopening dates of its Mississippi resorts - MGM Resorts International announced the reopening dates of its Mississippi resorts, the first of the company's U.S. properties to reopen following closure earlier this year amidst the COVID-19 crisis. Gold Strike Casino Resort in Tunica will reopen in a limited capacity to the public on Monday, May 25, followed by Biloxi's Beau Rivage Resort & Casino's reopening Monday, June 1, also in a limited capacity. Each property will host an invitation-only weekend ahead of its public reopening.

08:45 EDT OneSpaWorld sends letter to shareholders urging $75M equity financing vote - OneSpaWorld sent a letter to shareholders urging a vote for the previously announced $75M equity financing at the company's upcoming annual meeting currently expected to be held on June 10. The letter said, "The Board of OneSpaWorld ("OSW") is asking for your vote at our Annual Meeting - currently expected to be held on June 10, 2020 - "FOR" approval of the vital $75 million equity financing announced on April 30, 2020. This financing is essential to fund our operations while our business is impaired due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will also enable us to remain in compliance with our debt facilities and position us to drive shareholder value as our cruise line partners resume voyages and our destination resorts reopen. Without your approval of this financing, there is substantial doubt about OSW's ability to continue as a going concern and the value of your shares will be imperiled. Your Board and management team believe strongly in the future of OSW and its ability to drive shareholder value. Indeed, we began 2020 with outstanding momentum across our business with our global market share at sea at an all-time high of over 90%. The onset of the pandemic significantly impacted our business and the cruise industry on which we are highly dependent. In response, we took immediate action to protect our staff, eliminate non-essential expenditures, preserve our liquidity, support our cruise line partners, and optimize our operating platform. However, the cancellation of all voyages and closing of most of our destination resorts effectively eliminates our ability to generate revenue and - as we said in our 10-Q filed on May 13, 2020 - absent this critical financing, there is substantial doubt about OSW's ability to continue as a going concern...Based on their assessment of actionable financing alternatives, including input from our lenders, the Special Committee authorized Nomura to solicit institutional investors with the ability to quickly execute an equity financing that met the required criteria under the highly challenging circumstances facing OSW. Nomura contacted 19 qualified parties, including seven private equity firms, seven long-only investors, two hedge funds and three family offices/sovereign wealth funds. Five proposals were ultimately received. Certain of these potential investors, including SLL, requested Board and management participation in the investment to demonstrate confidence in OSW's future. After thorough vetting of the merits and risks of each proposal, and negotiating substantially improved terms from SLL, the Special Committee unanimously determined that the SLL-led equity financing of $75 million was superior to all alternatives and in the best interest of OSW and its shareholders. Duff & Phelps rendered a fairness opinion with respect to the transaction supporting this determination... We believe the $75 million equity financing will enable OSW to survive more than 24 months without significant revenues. If we receive this financing, we do not expect to need additional financing during that time and will be able to remain in compliance with our debt facilities. The Board believes consummation of the equity financing will enable us to quickly restart operations when our cruise line partners resume sailing, facilitate innovation in our service and product offerings and wellness experiences, and position us for long-term operation and growth. The Board also believes the debt facility amendments - which will only remain effective if the equity financing is consummated - will provide us with additional operational flexibility vis-a-vis our key cruise line and resort partners and product suppliers... If OSW shareholders do not approve Proposals 3 and 4, we cannot complete the equity financing and will need to obtain adequate alternative financing in order to remain in compliance with our debt facilities, enhance our liquidity position, and fund our operations while our business is impaired. Adequate funds may not be available on a timely basis, and if we do not receive sufficient capital, we may be required to further reduce our limited operations and may have insufficient funds to pay our existing accounts payable. Furthermore, there can be no guarantee that we will be able to effect another long-term financing option on terms as favorable as the proposed transaction or in an amount sufficient to satisfy OSW's long term liquidity needs. As we stated in our 10-Q filed on May 13, 2020, absent this critical financing, OSW may not be able to survive as a going concern..."

08:34 EDT Fluidigm says University of Paris researchers utilizes mass cytometry - Fluidigm Corporation announced that researchers at the University of Paris have utilized mass cytometry to identify profound changes in the immune systems of critically ill COVID-19 patients. The findings may help define a population of COVID-19 patients at high risk for becoming critically ill, and they suggest a possible benefit from anti-inflammatory therapies. The study, available online through medRxiv and pending peer review, utilized the Fluidigm Maxpar Direct Immune Profiling Assay and Maxpar Pathsetter analysis software. The assay offers a fixed panel of 30 standard markers of immune activity, to which the researchers added two exploratory markers. Analyses of multiple markers revealed changes in the populations of different types of immune cells, and most important, to their antiviral response in 50 patients with varying disease severity. All patients were tested 8 to 12 days following the onset of symptoms and in the absence of anti-inflammatory therapy. In-depth profiling of immune cell populations and their respective functions using mass cytometry, gene expression studies and evaluation of the levels of proteins secreted by the cells found that profound impairment of type I interferon activity was unique to critically ill patients. This suggests that type I IFN deficiency is a hallmark of severe COVID-19 and that these patients could benefit from anti-inflammatory therapies targeting IL-6 or TNF-a inflammatory cytokines. The online archive medRxiv was founded by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a not-for-profit research and educational institution, Yale University, and BMJ, a global health care knowledge provider. It provides a platform for researchers to share their work and comment and receive feedback on it prior to journal publication.

08:31 EDT Resideo appoints Jay Geldmacher as CEO - Resideo Technologies announced that the company has appointed Jay Geldmacher as president and CEO and a member of the board of directors, effective May 28. Geldmacher succeeds Mike Nefkens, whose departure the company announced in December 2019. This leadership transition is the result of a comprehensive search process and follows the company's recently announced board changes, which included the addition of two new independent directors with substantial industry experience. As a 30-year industry veteran, Geldmacher brings to Resideo experience leading a complex industrial and technology spinout, Artesyn Embedded Technologies. Geldmacher has delivered consistent results in both public and private-equity backed companies, combining operational excellence with thoughtful capital allocation to gain market share and grow profits in competitive technology markets. Most recently, Geldmacher was president and CEO of Electro Rent, a leader in testing and technology solutions.

08:28 EDT Green Growth Brands announces event of default in respect to debentures - Green Growth Brands announced that an event of default has occurred in respect of its $45.5M principal amount of 15.00% secured convertible debentures, which matured on May 17, 2020. As previously disclosed, on May 5, 2020 the Company received $400,000 of debt financing from All Js Greenspace on a secured basis. On May 12, 2020, All Js' advanced an additional $400,000 to the Company, also on a secured basis.

08:27 EDT Oragenics, Aragen Bioscience enter agreement to advance TerraCoV2 - Oragenics announced, that through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Noachis Terra, it has entered into an agreement with Aragen Bioscience, a contract research organization focused on accelerating pre-clinical biologics product development, to advance TerraCov2 the Company's SARS CoV-2 vaccine candidate. Under the terms of the agreement, Aragen will provide cell line development services to Oragenics to aid in the development of Oragenics' TerraCoV2, which could provide specific immunity from the novel coronavirus ("SARS-CoV-2"), the root cause of coronavirus disease 2019 ("COVID-19").

08:24 EDT Walmart sees significant top-line headwinds from currency

08:23 EDT Walmart: Short-term environment will be 'challenging'

08:22 EDT Revance to acquire HintMD in all-stock deal - Revance Therapeutics announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire Hint, Inc., a privately held company doing business under the name HintMD, which has created an integrated financial technology platform for the aesthetics industry. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2020, subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of approval of the requisite HintMD stockholders. Revance has agreed to pay HintMD's shareholders a total of 8.54 million shares of Revance common stock, subject to customary adjustments provided in the acquisition agreement.

08:21 EDT Bionano Genomics announces presentation on Bionano Saphyr - Bionano Genomics announced that in an online presentation hosted by the Cancer Genomics Consortium on May 12, 2020, Dr. Brynn Levy from Columbia University and Dr. Rashmi Kanagal-Shamanna from the MD Anderson Cancer Center each presented updates on their work showing 100% concordance between Bionano Genomics' optical mapping technology and current gold standard cytogenetic methods. In his presentation, Dr. Levy reported on a blinded, prospective study comparing the results generated by Bionano's Saphyr instrument to results from routine clinical testing in CLIA laboratories using current gold standard cytogenetic techniques. On 91 samples from patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia that passed inclusion criteria, Bionano was 100% concordant with karyotyping results. Additionally, Dr. Levy illustrated concordance with chromosomal microarray for both the size and the breakpoints of identified aberrations in several cases of ALL and AML. Overall, Dr. Levy noted that Saphyr provided "Tremendous and remarkable concordance with traditional cytogenomic analyses for karyotype, FISH and CMA." Dr. Levy described how the current gold standard of leukemia testing requires karyotyping on all samples. When requested by the physician, multiple rounds of FISH with different FISH probes, and/or chromosomal microarray are run in addition. CMA provides a genome-wide scan for copy number variants but cannot detect balanced structural rearrangements or map chromosome structure of large imbalances. The study run by Dr. Levy is part of the Cancer Genomics Research Network and its members lead cytogenetics departments from Harvard Medical School, PathGroup, Columbia University, Penn State College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Augusta University and Legacy Laboratory Services. In a second presentation, Dr. Rashmi Kanagal-Shamanna from the MD Anderson Cancer Center gave an update on her study involving 100 samples of patients suffering from Myelodysplastic Syndrome, a precursor to AML. The clinical management of patients with MDS is largely determined by the number of structural aberrations detected, and therefore a single technology, like Saphyr, that is able to detect all CNVs and balanced rearrangements is desirable. Before the closure of Dr. Shamanna's lab due to the COVID-19 crisis, she analyzed 13 samples using Saphyr. A combined 39 aberrations that passed inclusion criteria were detected by karyotyping, and all of those variants were detected by Saphyr. Additionally, there was 100% concordance between Saphyr and calls made with CMA. Importantly, Bionano identified critical rearrangements important for prognostication of the disease and identified many novel aberrations that change the R-IPSS risk score, which would alter therapeutic management.

08:19 EDT Validian Corporation incurs 'unforeseen delays' in filing Form 10K - Validian Corporation announced that it has incurred unforeseen delays in filing its Form 10K for 2019 due to COVID-19. Validian is working diligently to complete and file its Form 10K for 2019 as soon as possible and upon filing will be fully compliant again. Upon filing its Form 10K, Validian will then proceed to complete and file its Form 10Q for Q1 2020 as soon as possible thereafter.

08:17 EDT KKR, Altavair announce sale, leaseback of six A321-200s with Delta Air Lines - KKR (KKR) and Altavair announced the signing of a sale and leaseback with Delta Air Lines (DAL) for six Airbus A321-200 aircraft. The acquisition was made through aircraft leasing investment platform Altitude Aircraft Leasing, which was established by KKR's credit and infrastructure funds in 2018 to acquire aircraft to be serviced by Altavair.

08:16 EDT TeleNav, Alpine Electronics to develop way to upgrade infotainment systems - Telenav and Alpine Electronics announced they are teaming up to develop a way to upgrade existing in-vehicle infotainment systems by inserting Alpine's infotainment device with Telenav's Vivid infotainment system into a vehicle's USB port. Vivid is a cloud-first, in-vehicle infotainment system that brings together online entertainment and information services with hybrid navigation and online smart voice assistant. Providing an updated infotainment system in this way will allow OEMs to give their customers the latest technology.

08:12 EDT Walmart CEO: Jet.com brand name 'may still be used in the future'

08:10 EDT Marathon Patent Group purchases 500 S19 Pro ASIC Miners - Marathon Patent Group announced the purchase of an additional 500 of the latest generation Bitmain S19 Pro Miners. These 500 miners will produce 110 TH/s and generate 56 PH/s of hashing power, bringing the company's total Hashrate to approximately 185 PH/s when fully deployed. This compares to the companies previous S-9 production of 46 PH/s. The company paid $1,258,500.00 and was funded with cash on hand. The company expects to take delivery of these units by the end of August. On May 11, 2020, Marathon announced the purchase of 700 M30S+ miners. On May 12, 2020, the Company announced the purchase 660 Bitmain S19 Pro Miners. The announcement of the purchase of an additional 500 S19 Pro Miners brings the total state of the art, next generation miners purchased in the past 8 days to 1,860 units.

08:09 EDT Ritter Pharmaceuticals announces stockholder approval of merger proposals - Ritter Pharmaceuticals announced that, based upon the final vote count certified by the inspector of election for the special meeting of stockholders held on May 18, 2020, its stockholders approved all of the Qualigen, Inc. merger-related proposals, including: the issuance of Ritter common stock and convertible preferred stock pursuant to the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of January 15, 2020, as amended, by and among Ritter, RPG28 Merger Sub, Inc., and Qualigen and the change of control of Ritter resulting from the merger, a reverse stock split of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company, at a ratio within a range of 1-for-25 to 1-for-35, as determined by the board of directors of the Company, changing the name of Ritter from "Ritter Pharmaceuticals, Inc." to "Qualigen Therapeutics, Inc." and the adoption of Ritter's 2020 Equity Incentive Plan. As previously announced, the boards of directors of both Ritter and Qualigen unanimously approved the merger, which is expected to be consummated in the next few days. In connection with the closing of the transaction, the Company will change its name to "Qualigen Therapeutics, Inc." and the Company's shares are expected to continue trading on The Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "QLGN".

08:08 EDT RMR Group to install new building skins on Muse at Torrey Pines - RMR Group announced that it has reached a new milestone in the $100M redevelopment of Muse at Torrey Pines, with new building skins being installed to the 186,000-square-foot project. A three-building campus, Muse is located on Science Park Road and is expected to be delivered in the fall. Muse will offer options to accommodate lab and cooperative office spaces starting at 20,000 square feet, with larger full building options for corporate headquarters with research facilities.

08:08 EDT TRHC publishes TRHC COVID-19 Treatment and Therapy Digital Resource - Tabula Rasa HealthCare published on the web the TRHC COVID-19 Treatment and Therapy Digital Resource. Developed by TRHC's Precision Pharmacotherapy Research & Development Institute, the resource provides a comprehensive analysis and clinical reviews of potential treatments and therapies for COVID-19. Currently there are more than 20 therapies and treatments being studied across the globe. Many are being fast-tracked for immediate use, due to the unique conditions of the novel coronavirus and COVID-19.

08:07 EDT Izea announces $1M in managed services bookings - IZEA Worldwide announced that it has significantly expanded its relationship with a Global Fortune 10 customer for influencer marketing managed services. In addition, the company has also signed a managed services contract expanding its relationship with a leading multi-billion dollar consumer packaged goods manufacturer to provide influencer marketing services. The two contracts, totaling $1M, were signed on Monday, May 18th.

08:06 EDT Darden reports Q4 to date SSS for reportable segments - Same-restaurant sales QTD through 5/17 performance for Darden and its reportable segments are as follows: Olive Garden down 39.4%; LongHorn Steakhouse down 45.8%; Fine Dining down 63.1%; Other Buisness down 65.5%; Darden down 47.9%.

08:04 EDT Capital Returns Management sends letter to Watford Holdings' Board - Capital Returns Management, the fifth largest stockholder of Watford Holdings, sent a letter to the Company's Board of Directors on Friday May 15. In the letter, Capital Returns described the Company' poor performance for shareholders and noted the Company's current public market valuation, which is equivalent to a 60+% discount to tangible book value. Capital Returns expressed its view that the Board should take bold action to maximize shareholder value given the persistent and significant discount to tangible book value at which the Company's shares trade. Capital Returns called on the Board to immediately engage financial advisors and conduct a strategic review. Capital Returns also expressed its belief that a liquidation or a sale represents the best path forward for stockholders and cited a peer reinsurer that conducted a strategic review and has substantially completed a liquidation in which 92+% of the peer company's book value is being distributed to shareholders.

08:01 EDT Darden says for Q4 to date, same-restaurant sales declined 47.9% - The company said, "For the fourth quarter to date through Sunday, May 17, Darden same-restaurant sales declined 47.9%. Beginning April 27, we began reopening dining rooms limited to between 25% - 50% capacity, depending on local or state regulations. As of May 17, we had 49% of our dining rooms open in limited capacity, and based on information we have available today, we expect to have more than 65% of our dining rooms open with limited capacity by the end of May."

07:42 EDT Innovation Pharmaceuticals says brilacidin reduces viral titer of COVID-19 - Innovation Pharmaceuticals announced that its anti-SARS-CoV-2 drug candidate, Brilacidin, in an in vitro experiment using VERO cells, reduced the viral titer of SARS-CoV-2 by 75 percent after only 1 hour of preincubation prior to infection at a concentration of 10muM as compared to vehicle control. These statistically significant lab results strongly support Brilacidin's prophylactic treatment potential given the drug's potent and rapid virucidal activity-a unique ability, different from any other known drug currently in development to treat COVID-19, to inactivate the novel coronavirus prior to host cell entry and subsequent viral replication. A majority of antiviral agents targeting SARS-CoV-2 attempt to inhibit viral replication rather than completely eliminating the virus. Additional time-dependent and concentration-dependent experiments are underway to further delineate Brilacidin's virucidal properties against SARS-CoV-2. Brilacidin anti-SARS-CoV-2 research is part of ongoing antiviral studies that are being conducted at a U.S. Regional Biocontainment Laboratory. An earlier 16-hour post-infection experiment, in VERO cells, showed Brilacidin exhibited a dose-dependent reduction in SARS-CoV-2 infectious viral titers. Separately, the Company and laboratory researchers agreed that Brilacidin as a vaccine would not be studied further at this time. While the vaccine pathway remains of interest, the Company is prioritizing Brilacidin's clinical development as a potential novel COVID-19 treatment, and thus is taking steps to rapidly advance Brilacidin into human trials.

07:40 EDT Xenetic enters agreement with Scripps Research to advance XCART development - Xenetic announced it has entered into a research funding and option agreement with Scripps Research to advance the development of the XCART technology for B cell malignancies. The XCART platform is a differentiated, proprietary approach to CAR T therapy for the treatment of multiple tumor types of B-cell Non-Hodgkin lymphomas, and was originally developed by Scripps Research in collaboration with the Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry. XCART is believed to have the potential to enhance the safety and efficacy of cell therapy for B-cell lymphomas by generating patient- and tumor-specific CAR T cells. The XCART technology platform was designed to utilize an established screening technique to identify polypeptide domains that selectively bind to the unique B-cell receptor, or BCR, on the surface of an individual lymphoma patient's malignant B-cell clones. This BCR-selective targeting domain is engineered into the antigen-binding domain of a chimeric antigen receptor, or CAR, creating the possibility of a CAR T treatment that should only recognize a given patient's malignant B-cell clones. An expected result for XCART is limited off-tumor toxicities, such as B-cell aplasia. Xenetic's clinical development program will seek to confirm the early preclinical results, and to demonstrate a more attractive safety profile than existing therapies.Under the terms of the Scripps Research agreement, Xenetic will be granted an exclusive license to certain intellectual property arising from the research program in the field of B-cell malignancies, as well as an option to acquire rights and licenses to new intellectual property outside of that field.

07:38 EDT Biogen announces new data from MS treatment portfolio - Biogen announced new data from its multiple sclerosis treatment portfolio. Additional clinical data support VUMERITY as an important oral treatment option in relapsing MS and reinforce the efficacy of TECFIDERA. In addition, an analysis of TYSABRI contributes to data demonstrating the reduced risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy through extended interval dosing as compared to the currently approved dosing of every four weeks. These new data were selected for presentation at the 72nd American Academy of Neurology annual meeting and will be available online via the 2020 AAN Science Highlights virtual platform. In an analysis of data from the double-blind, randomized, Phase 3 EVOLVE-MS-2 study, patients treated with VUMERITY or TECFIDERA demonstrated a significant reduction in gadolinium-enhancing lesion counts as early as seven weeks after treatment initiation. After continuing treatment with VUMERITY in the ongoing, open-label, Phase 3 EVOLVE-MS-1 study, researchers observed that 96.3 percent of patients were free from Gd+ lesions after one year. Both TECFIDERA and VUMERITY have shown early and sustained efficacy in patients with relapsing-remitting MS. A separate, exploratory analysis of EVOLVE-MS-2 data assessed the impact of gastrointestinal symptoms as reported by RRMS patients and expands understanding of VUMERITY's GI tolerability. GI events including nausea, vomiting, upper and lower abdominal pain and diarrhea were less likely to be disruptive to daily activities for VUMERITY-treated patients. Additionally, patients taking VUMERITY were less likely than patients on TECFIDERA to score 2 or higher-the primary endpoint-for two or more consecutive days on the Individual Gastrointestinal Symptom and Impact Scale, and fewer reported concomitant medications for GI tolerability. A real-world analysis of RRMS patients who switched from the approved every-four-week dosing to natalizumab EID did not show differences in serum neurofilament light levels from those patients who remained on Q4W dosing. sNfL is emerging as a potential biomarker of MS disease activity. These findings support previous reports that EID may not be associated with increased disease activity and suggest the longer treatment interval may not compromise efficacy. Additionally, updated analyses of real-world data from the TOUCH Prescribing Program Database continue to demonstrate natalizumab EID is associated with a lower risk for PML than the approved Q4W dosing in anti-JC virus antibody positive patients. The most recent analysis is consistent with previous findings. Biogen continues to evaluate the efficacy of EID in NOVA, a two-year, prospective, randomized, interventional, controlled, open-label, rater-blinded, international Phase 3b study assessing the efficacy, safety and tolerability of six-week natalizumab dosing intervals in people with RRMS. In addition to the presented data, Biogen recently submitted regulatory filings in the U.S. and the European Union for intramuscular injection of PLEGRIDY. PLEGRIDY is currently approved to be administered by subcutaneous injection and is available in more than 60 countries. Previously presented data have evaluated bioequivalence and adverse reactions after IM dosing compared to subcutaneous injection.1 In addition, earlier this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated the prescribing information for PLEGRIDY and AVONEX to include additional information on the use of these therapies during pregnancy and breastfeeding in women with relapsing MS.

07:37 EDT Imperial Brands cuts dividend by third to accelerate debt reduction - Imperial Brands said it has modified its capital allocation policy to accelerate debt reduction. The company's dividend will be rebased by one third; implying an annual dividend for 2020 of 137.7 pence per share. It sees its "Progressive dividend policy growing annually from the revised level thereafter, taking into account underlying business performance consistent with the policy outlined in July 2019." Imperial Brands added, "All dividend savings will be used to reduce gearing to the lower end of our 2-2.5x target range by the end of 2022; The policy recognises the Group's continued strong cash generation and the importance of growing dividends for shareholders, while strengthening the business for the future."

07:34 EDT Kopin granted two key patents on OLED backplane design - Kopin announced that it was granted two U.S. patents on "Two Rows Driving Method For Micro Display Device." The technology described in the patents are especially important for designing backplanes of high-resolution OLED microdisplays desired for virtual reality, or VR, augmented, or AR, and mixed reality, or MR, applications since it allows lower power consumption and high frame rates to avoid motion sickness. The company said, "The key claims of the patents relate to simultaneously writing pixels in two separate rows of the display array during one ramp amplifier cycle. In prior arts, pixels in only one row can be written while all the columns are being driven by the ramp. In the patented method, one half of the pixels in each column of the display array are connected to one set of rows while the other half connected to the other set of rows. The first half pixel columns are connected to a ramp amplifier while the second half pixel columns are connected to another ramp amplifier. This allows pixels in the two rows in the two different sets to be written simultaneously but also independently. Driving two rows for each cycle of the ramp signal can reduce the ramp frequency by half, which in turn lowers the power consumption of the ramp amplifier by half. This is important because the ramp amplifier consumes a significant portion of the overall display power in high resolution displays. In addition, doubling the ramp period relaxes the timing requirements of the pixel driver circuits, which become increasingly more challenging for 120 Hz operation of higher resolution displays. As an example of the benefits, the maximum backplane power for our Lightning 2k OLED microdisplay is only about 450 mW at 120 Hz operation - this is about 300 mW lower than if a single row drive method were used."

07:31 EDT KemPharm receives Day-74 Letter for KP415 NDA - KemPharm confirmed that the Company has received a filing communication from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, commonly known as the "Day-74 Letter." The Day-74 Letter stated that the New Drug Application for KP415 is sufficiently complete to permit a substantive review by the FDA, and that the target goal date under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act is March 2, 2021. In addition, the Day-74 Letter indicated that the FDA is not currently planning to hold an advisory committee to discuss the KP415 NDA. KP415 is KemPharm's investigational product candidate for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which contains serdexmethylphenidate, KemPharm's prodrug of d-methylphenidate. In September 2019, KemPharm entered into the License Agreement with an affiliate of Gurnet Point Capital for the exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize KemPharm's product candidates containing SDX, including KemPharm's ADHD product candidates, KP415 and KP484. GPC's portfolio company, Corium, Inc., will lead all commercialization activities for KP415.

07:22 EDT Hepion submits Phase 1 data memo, Phase 2a protocol to FDA for CRV431 - Hepion Pharmaceuticals announced that it has completed the submission of a Phase 1 data memo and the Phase 2a protocol to the FDA, and intends to commence its Phase 2a clinical trial of CRV431 for the treatment of NASH fibrosis in June. "The randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center study, entitled "AMBITION: A Phase 2a, Multi-center, Single-Blind, Placebo-controlled Study to Evaluate the Safety and Tolerability of CRV431 Dosed Once Daily in NASH induced F2 and F3 Subjects," will enroll 18 adults with presumed NASH F2 or F3 fibrosis. Twelve patients will receive 75 mg of CRV431, with the remaining six patients receiving placebo, both administered orally, once daily in a fasted state, for 28 days. The study will be led by Dr. Stephen Harrison and Pinnacle Clinical Research, San Antonio, Texas. The trial's primary objective is to evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of CRV431, compared to placebo control, over 28 days of dosing. Its secondary objective is to evaluate CRV431's antifibrotic activity, as measured by quantification of selected biomarkers of fibrosis, including collagen and lipid metabolites, matrix metalloproteinases, and full-scale gene expression. The purpose of these secondary analyses is to gain insights into CRV431's potential therapeutic activities in NASH, how to monitor these activities, and begin to identify which patients could benefit most from CRV431 treatment... Hepion has demonstrated CRV431's antifibrotic effect in seven separate studies, across four different in vitro models. In addition, studies were conducted in fibroblast cells derived from five different organs, two human precision-cut liver slice models of liver disease and one human precision-cut lung slice from a patient with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. All of these studies demonstrated fibrosis reductions, ranging from 30-100%, with one study also demonstrating CRV431's ability to prevent cirrhosis, the most advanced stage of fibrosis in which liver function is significantly impaired."

07:20 EDT GSX Techedu refutes Muddy Waters research's allegations - GSX Techedu refuted the false allegations in Muddy Waters Research's latest report, dated May 18. The company respects Muddy Waters' efforts. However, after analyzing the report, the company believes that Muddy Waters lacks a basic understanding of GSX's operations. The company's management regrets to see confusion in the market and will continue to use its best efforts to ensure that investors fully understand all aspects of the business.

07:15 EDT Yamana Gold reports exploration results for Jacobina, El Penon mines - YAMANA GOLD provided an update on exploration results for the Jacobina and El Penon mines. Results at both operations continued to show growth in mineral reserves and mineral resource through year-end 2019 with additional promising new exploration results in the first quarter of 2020. Exploration at Jacobina in the second half of 2019 through the first quarter of 2020 expanded higher grade zones in Canavieiras Sul, both down dip and along strike to the north towards Canavieiras Central, providing significant expansion of the known mineralized zone in the highest grade sector of the mine. Drilling down plunge of known high grade mineralization at Morro do Vento intercepted higher grades over good widths indicating excellent mineral resource expansion potential in this sector. Exploratory drilling continues to demonstrate the potential of the Joao Belo Sul area adjacent to the Joao Belo mine, as well as at Morro da Viuva, located about one kilometre north of Canavieiras. Surface exploration in the Serra Branca target area, located 12 kilometres north of Canavieiras, has returned significant gold results from surface sampling along a strike length of more than 2.0 kilometres. The exploration results, at minimum, support the extended mine plan scenario highlighted in the Company's recent announcement on the Phase 2 expansion of Jacobina. The Extended Case, which considers the addition of 9.5 million tonnes of plant feed, based on conversion of current mineral resources, with an average grade of 2.40 grams of gold per tonne, is the Company's new base case. Mine life under this scenario is forecast at 14.5 years, however, Jacobina has a long track record of increasing mine life and the latest exploration results underscore the likelihood that mine life will increase further under the Extended Case scenario at the contemplated throughput of 8,500 tonnes per day. In addition, these results highlight the potential to bring higher grade areas into production earlier in the operation's mine life. Drilling at El Penon in the fourth quarter of 2019 through the first quarter of 2020 intercepted encouraging mineralization at depth below existing mineral resources at the Bonanza, Sorpresa, and Pampa Campamento veins, as well as along strike at the Esmeralda vein, with all four veins demonstrating excellent potential for further mineral resource growth. Drilling at depth below mineral resources at Pampa Campamento has delivered good results, including drill hole UIP0003 with 6.0 g/t of gold and 189 g/t of silver over a horizontal width of 2.1 metres. At the Bonanza vein, deeper drilling in widely-spaced holes has also returned encouraging results, including hole UEB0028, with 9.1 g/t of gold and 167 g/t of silver over a horizontal width of 1.1 metres. Exploration drilling in 2019 on the Sorpresa vein demonstrated mineralization in a gap in mineral resources, where both infill drilling and testing in the area down plunge has returned promising results. At the Esmeralda vein, a secondary vein parallel to the prolific Bonanza structure, drilling has indicated good potential for extensions to the south of known mineral reserves. Surface exploration in the El Penon district continued to generate drill targets for further exploration, such as the Cerro Seco area, a new zone located immediately adjacent to the core mine vein system that may reflect a continuation of the same vein geometry as the core mine. The discovery of new secondary veins along with extensions and offshoots of primary veins further underscore the resilience and potential of the vein system at El Penon. The results support the Company's view that mine life will exceed current mineral reserves and is at least consistent with the Strategic Life of Mine of at least 10 years. Furthermore, because El Penon has excess plant capacity, the discovery of extensions of primary vein structures provides flexibility to process more tonnage at higher grades, which would increase annual production.

07:13 EDT Radient announces collaboration for development of anti-viral products - Radient Technologies announces that it has filed a provisional patent application covering the use of a combination of cannabinoids, terpenes and zinc as a means of preventing infection of coronavirus, mitigating the symptoms of coronavirus, and lowering infectiousness of Covid-19 patients, with the goal of reducing hospitalizations and intensive care unit requirements. Additionally, the Company announces that it will lead a collaboration with two US based groups, IntuitiveXand ipCapital Group, to explore the development of new anti-viral products using the Formulations. The Company is not making any express or implied claims as to the effectiveness of the Formulations or its ability to mitigate the symptoms of, eliminate, cure or contain Covid-19, and there can be no assurance that the Formulations will be effective or reach commercial production. The Company plans to collaborate with IntuitiveX and ipCapital to develop a process and timeline for the development of the Formulations. The Company announced that it will be collaborating with ipCapital, IntuitiveX and a third party contract research organization to be determined with a goal of developing, clinically testing and marketing cannabinoid based products that are targeted at lessening and/or eliminating the effects of Covid-19 in patients. The Company, ipCapital and their advisors have done a review of existing scientific literature that has focused on the use of cannabinoids and/or zinc compounds for anti-inflammatory and anti-viral indications. The Company believes there is sufficient scientific evidence from its review to support exploring the efficacy of the Formulations. As previous research work has been done by other groups on the use of cannabinoids or zinc for anti-viral purposes, the Company will be looking to validate that work through its own efforts with the specific viral target for this project. It is expected that Radient's dedicated innovation laboratory will lead the product development and the Company's proprietary processing technology will be used to produce the high-purity cannabinoids required for this product. Dr. Anna Bakowska-Barczak, Director of Formulations and Product Development at Radient will oversee the formulation development for patient studies. The Company has developed significant cannabinoid expertise as a result of its research efforts of the last three years. During this time the Company built up its scientific team to include over 25 in house scientists and engineers and has invested over $5M on its research, process development and intellectual property portfolio. The Company has developed, during this time, a number of proprietary formulations that it hopes will form the base of the development of a final formulation for this Covid-19 program. As well, the Company believes that it has the necessary equipment to develop and manufacture the necessary product formulations for patient studies including analytical testing of the composition of the formulations. The Company envisions starting patient studies with residents of long term care facilities, currently expected to be in the Seattle, Washington area, in order to test the efficacy of the Formulations both on high risk staff as well as nursing home patients. Radient is also considering exploring the use of the Formulations to mitigate ongoing symptoms of certain post Covid-19 survivors, notably those with continued pulmonary fibrotic disease. No such patient studies have been scheduled as of yet, and there is no certainty that any such patient studies will be scheduled. Key milestones for the project would include 1) completion of final formulations including dosing determination, 2) patient study design including identification of test sites and study leaders, 3) regulatory approval of study and 4) execution of study with evaluation of results.

07:09 EDT Walmart reports February U.S. comp sales up 3.8%, March SSS up 15.4% - Walmart said February U.S. comp sales grew 3.8%. In mid-March, stock-up trips surged with March comp sales increasing 15.4%. Store sales slowed during the first half of April but reaccelerated mid-month as customers spent government stimulus money resulting in a 9.5% April comp sales increase, Walmart added. It further stated that e-commerce sales were strong growing 74% and contributed approximately 390 basis points to segment comp sales growth. Store pickup and delivery, ship to home, ship from store, and marketplace channels were strong throughout the quarter.

07:08 EDT Exicure appoints Douglas Feltner as its CMO - Exicure announced that it has appointed Douglas Feltner as its CMO effective immediately. Feltner joins Exicure from AveXis where he was the VP of clinical development, focusing on developing gene therapies for neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders, including the recent approval of Zolgensma for patients with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Feltner is a physician-scientist, with over 20 years of experience in clinical drug development and in translational medicine, primarily focused on neurology, psychiatry and neuroscience.

07:07 EDT Kohl's down 2.2% after reporting Q1 resutls

07:06 EDT Kohl's announces actions taken in response to COVID-19 - "As part of the COVID-19 response, Kohl's has taken the following actions to preserve financial liquidity and financial flexibility: Managed inventory receipts meaningfully lower, Significantly reduced expenses across the business inclusive of marketing, technology, operations and payroll, Decreased planned capital expenditures by approximately $500 million, Suspended share repurchase program, Suspended regular quarterly cash dividend beginning in the second quarter of 2020, Replaced and upsized revolver to $1.5 billion secured facility, and Issued $600 million notes due 2025."

07:03 EDT Agios announces publication of TIBSOVO Phase 3 data - Agios Pharmaceuticals announced that The Lancet Oncology has published data from its global Phase 3 ClarIDHy study of TIBSOVO in previously treated cholangiocarcinoma patients with an isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 mutation. The study met its primary endpoint, demonstrating a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival in patients randomized to TIBSOVO compared with placebo patients. The safety profile observed in the study was consistent with previously published data. Data from this study were previously presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress, held in September 2019 in Barcelona, Spain. The ClarIDHy trial is a global, randomized Phase 3 trial in previously treated IDH1-mutant cholangiocarcinoma patients who have documented disease progression following one or two systemic therapies in the advanced setting. Patients were randomized 2:1 to receive either single-agent TIBSOVO 500 mg once daily or placebo with crossover to TIBSOVO permitted at the time of documented radiographic progression per RECIST 1.1. At the time of the primary analysis, a total of 185 patients were randomized, with 124 patients in the TIBSOVO arm and 61 patients in the placebo arm. Thirty-five patients randomized to placebo crossed over to open-label TIBSOVO upon radiographic disease progression and unblinding. Results of the study were as follows: Median PFS for patients randomized to TIBSOVO was 2.7 months compared to 1.4 months with placebo as assessed by independent radiology review. The estimated PFS rate was 32% at six months and 22% at 12 months for patients randomized to TIBSOVO, while no patients randomized to placebo were free from progression beyond six months as of the data cut-off. The most common treatment-emergent adverse events of any grade for the 121 patients who received TIBSOVO were nausea, diarrhea and fatigue. Less than third of patients experienced serious AEs in either arm. The most common Grade 3 or worse AE in both treatment groups was ascites. Patients randomized to placebo experienced a significantly greater decline in physical functioning from baseline compared to patients randomized to ivosidenib on the first day of their second 28-day treatment cycle based on European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 Physical Functioning subscale scores. TIBSOVO is not approved in any country for the treatment of patients with previously treated advanced IDH1-mutant cholangiocarcinoma.

07:03 EDT Advance Auto Parts up 9% to $143.00 following Q1 results

07:02 EDT Walmart reports Q1 U.Sgreater than comp sales up 10% - Walmart U.S. comp sales increased 10.0%, led by strength in food, consumables, health & wellness and some general merchandise categories. Walmart U.S. eCommerce sales grew 74% with strong results for grocery pickup and delivery services, walmart.com and marketplace. Sam's Club comp sales increased 12.0%, led by in-club transactions. eCommerce sales grew 40%. Reduced tobacco sales negatively affected comp sales by approximately 410 basis points. Net sales at Walmart International were $29.8 billion, an increase of 3.4%. Changes in currency rates negatively affected net sales by approximately $1.3 billion.

07:01 EDT Walmart: Net sales, operating results impacted by COVID-19 outbreak - The company's net sales and operating results were significantly affected by the outbreak of COVID-19, Walmart said in a statement. It added that unprecedented demand for products across multiple categories led to strong top-line results. Certain incremental costs negatively affected operating income, including costs associated with enhanced wages and benefits as well as safety and sanitation.

06:44 EDT PVH Corp. announces phased reopening of global stores - PVH Corp. released a phased reopening plan for its stores in the U.S. and around the world as the company continues to navigate the COVID-19 crisis. The company is taking a measured approach, considering not only the ability to re-open but local infection rate trends, store staff readiness and training, and the availability of protective and cleaning equipment and supplies to prioritize the health and safety of associates, consumers and communities generally. Specific practices will vary by region as informed by local ordinances. As of May 19, approximately 180 company-operated stores across all brands are now open in North America, along with 350 in Europe, 1,000 in Asia, 75 in Australia and four in Brazil. Phased reopening will continue over the next several weeks as additional localities lift restrictions on retail operations and other requirements are met.

06:38 EDT Advance Auto Parts drew down $500M from revolving credit facility during Q1 - During the quarter, the company drew down $500M from its previously undrawn $1B revolving credit facility, which may be increased to $1.25B based on customary requirements.

06:36 EDT Advance Auto Parts not providing guidance at this time - Advance Auto Parts withdrew guidance on April 9th, and given uncertainties related to the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company is not providing guidance at this time.

06:33 EDT Advance Auto Parts says through four weeks of Q2, SSS 'improved significantly' - The company said, "Through the first four weeks of the second quarter, comparable store sales improved significantly each week. Quarter to date comparable store sales are approximately in line with the prior year with DIY omnichannel growing double digits and significantly outperforming DIFM segment. While many uncertainties remain with respect to factors that drive demand, the company expects that DIFM sales will continue to improve as stay at home orders are lifted."

06:31 EDT Advance Auto Parts reports Q1 SSS down 9.3%

06:15 EDT Macerich announces 20 retail properties now fully open - Macerich announced that 20 major retail properties - including 11 in Arizona - are now fully open and welcoming shoppers with enhanced sanitation practices and social distancing protocols in place. In accordance with relevant state and local regulation, the company anticipates being able to open a total of approximately 35 centers by the end of May, with the vast majority of its centers to be reopened by the middle of June.

06:10 EDT Home Depot incurred $850M of pre-tax expense in Q1 - Home Depot said, "To support its associates during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company took the following actions: Expanded paid time off for all hourly associates with additional hours that can be used at their discretion and will be paid out at year-end if not used; Provided additional paid time off for associates who are 65 and older or deemed to be at higher risk according to CDC guidelines; Provided weekly bonuses for hourly associates in our stores and distribution centers, and doubled overtime pay; and Extended dependent care benefits and waived related co-pays. As a result of the actions taken to support our associates, the company incurred a total of approximately $850M of pre-tax expense, or approximately $640M after tax, equaling 60c per diluted share.

06:05 EDT Axonics announces publication of results from ARTISAN-SNM study - Axonics Modulation Technologies announced the publication of the 1-year results from its ARTISAN-SNM study in the peer-reviewed journal Neurourology & Urodynamics. Axonics also plans to launch a multi-center registry study in the U.S to collect additional real-world clinical evidence on the performance, safety and patient experience with the Axonics r-SNM System across all approved indications to advance physician knowledge and patient access to rechargeable sacral neuromodulation therapy. Using a conservative "as treated" analysis method, the 1-year results found that 89% of all implanted patients with the Axonics r-SNM System had successful therapy outcomes, and 93% of treated patients were satisfied with their r-SNM therapy. Currently, 2-year follow-up visits in the ARTISAN study are ongoing.

06:02 EDT CytoDyn, NIH of Mexico collaborate on study of leronlimab - CytoDyn announced it will be coordinating with the NIH of Mexico and providing leronlimab for a trial for the severe/critical COVID-19 population in Mexico with the potential to collaborate on further CytoDyn COVID-19 trials. CytoDyn is currently enrolling a Phase 2b/3 clinical trial for 390 patients, which is a randomized, placebo-controlled with 2:1 ratio. CytoDyn is also enrolling a Phase 2 randomized clinical trial with 75 patients in the mild-to-moderate COVID-19 population. CytoDyn has been granted more than sixty emergency Investigational New Drug authorizations by the U.S. FDA and plans to provide clinical updates for this patient population later in the week.

05:14 EDT Oxford Immunotec announces release of T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 test kit - Oxford Immunotec announces the release of the T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 test kit. "This kit is for research use only and launched under the T-SPOT Discovery brand. This research kit could make a significant contribution towards development of a new tool to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, which in turn could help to bring nations out of their current lockdowns in a faster, safer and more controlled manner. T-SPOT Discovery SARS-CoV-2 builds on Oxford Immunotec's experience with TB diagnosis and the assessment of immune response to CMV in transplant patients, to apply the Company's established, proprietary T-SPOT technology to the fight against COVID-19. While serology is able to detect antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in the blood of some individuals after infection, little is currently known about how this confers immunity to COVID-19. T-SPOT technology goes further than simple serology by interrogating the immune system's T cell response and will enable research into the measurement of the strength of that response to SARS-CoV-2.The strength of this response may be linked to protection from reinfection."