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

19:14 EDT Kratos receives USAF contract award to support Northrop Grumman - Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (KTOS) announced that its Command, Control, Communications, Computing, Combat & Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Division has been awarded a contract to support the U.S. Air Force's Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program as part of the team led by Northrop Grumman (NOC). Northrop Grumman was selected by the U.S. Air Force to modernize the nation's aging intercontinental ballistic missile system under a contract awarded today for the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the GBSD program. For the program, Kratos will provide engineering services, the manufacture and production of specialized ground support systems, including highly complex missile transporters and payload transporters. Tom Mills, President of Kratos C5ISR Division, said, "We have been preparing for over a year and are ready to deliver on our commitments to our partner Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Air Force for a successful EMD phase. The entire Kratos team is proud to have a critical role in this national security program."

18:41 EDT Teck Resources to restart second Fort Hills train - The company states: "Teck Resources announced that the Partners in the Fort Hills limited partnership have decided to restart the second Fort Hills train and plan to ramp up production to approximately 120,000 barrels per day by the end of the year. Assuming ongoing production at Fort Hills on this basis we have narrowed our production guidance for the year from 100,000-120,000 barrels per day to approximately 105,000-115,000 barrels per day, of which Teck's share is 21.3%. We have also lowered our unit operating costs guidance by C$2 per barrel to C$35 to C$38 per barrel for the year compared to our previous guidance of C$37 to C$40 per barrel. We previously announced a reduction in our 2020 capital spending in our Energy business unit to $85 million from $175 million and this remains unchanged. The Fort Hills partners will continue to monitor market conditions and may adjust the operating plan for Fort Hills accordingly."

18:25 EDT Twitter CFO: We keep making the product better every day - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Ned Segal would not comment on rumors that the company was interested in acquiring TikTok. However, he said anything to help the company accelerate its priorities would be considered.

17:46 EDT Sensata up over 3.5% at $42.50 per share after raising Q3 guidance

17:42 EDT Superior Industries says NYSE accepts continued listing compliance plan - Superior Industries International, Inc. announced that the New York Stock Exchange accepted the company's plan to regain compliance with the continued listing standards set forth in Section 802.01B of the NYSE's Listed Company Manual. "We are pleased that the NYSE has accepted our plan to regain compliance with its continued listing standards," said Majdi Abulaban, President and Chief Executive Officer of Superior. "Our team remains focused on our long-term value creation roadmap, which is founded on enhancing cash flow and financial performance, executing on our portfolio of premium and innovative technologies, and leveraging our strong customer relationships. Our decisive response to the COVID-19 pandemic has enabled us to safely restart all of our operations, execute $40 million in cost reduction initiatives, and maintain strong liquidity(1), which stood at approximately $275 million at the end of August. Further, we expect to be free cash flow positive beginning in the third quarter and continuing throughout the end of the year, thereby achieving our objective to be cash flow breakeven for full year 2020."

17:28 EDT AstraZeneca down over 4% at $52.31 after STAT news on COVID-19 vaccine trial

17:23 EDT AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine ph3 study placed on hold, Bloomberg reports

17:17 EDT Uber commits to becoming fully zero-emission platform by 2040 - Uber said that it is committing to become a fully zero-emission platform by 2040, with 100% of rides taking place in zero-emission vehicles, on public transit, or with micromobility. "We're also setting an earlier goal to have 100% of rides take place in electric vehicles (EVs) in US, Canadian, and European cities by 2030," the company said. "In fact, we believe we can achieve this 2030 goal in any major city where we can work with local stakeholders to implement policies that ensure a fair transition to EVs for drivers. In addition to our platform goals, we're also committed to reaching net-zero emissions from our corporate operations by 2030. All told, hitting these goals would put us a decade ahead of Paris Climate Agreement targets." The company said that its four key actions to help it reach its goals are: Expanding Uber Green to make it easier for riders to choose to travel in hybrids or EVs; Committing $800 million in resources to help hundreds of thousands of drivers transition to EVs by 2025; Investing in our multimodal network to promote sustainable alternatives to personal cars; Being transparent and accountable to the public along the way. Reference Link

17:01 EDT Front Yard Residential reports August collections 99% - Front Yard Residential Corporation reported the following operating metrics for August 2020: August collections at 30 days were 99% of the trailing 12-month historical average. July collections at 60 days and June collections at 90 days were in line with the trailing 12-month historical averages. Stabilized Rental leased percentage as of August 31, 2020 continued its positive trend at 98.8%, compared with 98.7% at July 31, 2020 and 98.3% at June 30, 2020. Stabilized Rental August average occupied days were 97.3% compared to 91.8% a year ago, up from 97.2% for July 2020 and 96.1% for the second quarter of 2020. Blended rent growth was 4.6% for August, compared to 4.7% for July and 4.1% for the second quarter of 2020. "August was another excellent month for Front Yard as key operating metrics improved further from already strong levels," said George Ellison, Chief Executive Officer. "We remain focused on providing high quality service to our tenants and creating value for our stockholders."

16:58 EDT Trillium Therapeutics announces $25M equity investment from Pfizer - Trillium Therapeutics (TRIL) announced that it has agreed to sell 2,297,794 of its common shares at a price of $10.88 per share to Pfizer ( PFE), for gross proceeds of $25.0M. The common shares were offered and sold to Pfizer Inc. in a registered direct offering conducted without an underwriter or placement agent. The offering is expected to close on or about September 10, 2020. In addition, Dr. Jeff Settleman, Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, Oncology, Worldwide Research, Development & Medical, Pfizer, has agreed to join Trillium's Scientific Advisory Board, once formed. It is anticipated that the SAB will be announced later this year. The SAB will work closely with Trillium's senior management team to guide the Company's scientific and clinical strategic priorities. Trillium intends to use the net proceeds of the offering to help fund its ongoing and planned clinical trials for its CD47 program, and for working capital and general corporate purposes.

16:54 EDT MasterCard reports switched volume in week ending 8/28 up 3% - In a regulatory filing the company also reports Switched Transactions in week ending August 28th, up 5% and Cross-Border volume down 35%. MasterCard also states: "We continue to see some improvement in card present growth rates, in part due to further relaxation of social distancing measures in several markets, partially offset by the expiration of elevated unemployment benefits in the United States. In particular, we are seeing continued improvement in travel and entertainment related categories such as lodging, restaurants, auto rental and gas. Card not present growth rates remain healthy." Reference Link

16:45 EDT Asur reports August passenger traffic down 71.4% - Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V. announced that total passenger traffic for August 2020 decreased 71.4% when compared to August 2019. Passenger traffic decreased 63.1% in Mexico, 62.9% in Puerto Rico and 99.6% in Colombia, impacted by severe downturns in business and leisure travel stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

16:43 EDT Lululemon slips 3.5% below $338 per share after Q2 results

16:37 EDT International Money Express reports all-time high sales in August - International Money Express announced that it set an all-time high for one month sales in August delivering 2,999,869 remittances, up 13.4% over August 2019. Contributing to this record performance were all-time high transactions to countries including Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras

16:35 EDT Under Armour approves $75M increase to restructuring plan - The company states: "On April 3, 2020, Under Armour announced a 2020 restructuring plan outlining its expectations of incurring approximately $475M to $525M of estimated pre-tax restructuring and related charges during 2020. As previously disclosed, this restructuring plan was developed prior to the Company assessing the potential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Company stated that it would continue to evaluate necessary actions in response to the pandemic. After further review, the Company has identified further opportunities and on September 2, 2020, the Company's Board of Directors approved a $75M increase to the restructuring plan, resulting in an updated 2020 restructuring plan of approximately $550M to $600M of total estimated pre-tax restructuring and related charges. The Company anticipates that these additional restructuring and related charges will include up to: Approximately $60M of additional cash charges, consisting of up to: $40M in contract termination and other restructuring costs, $15M in facility and lease termination costs, and $5 million in employee severance and benefit costs; and Approximately $15M of additional non-cash charges, consisting of intangibles and other asset related impairments. The Company currently anticipates that the majority of the remaining restructuring and related charges will occur by the end of 2020."

16:32 EDT Flexion treats first patient in FX201 Phase 1 study - The company states: "Flexion announced the treatment of the first patient in the second cohort of the Phase 1 dose-escalation trial evaluating the safety and tolerability of FX201, an investigational, intra-articular, IL-1Ra gene therapy product candidate being developed for the treatment of osteoarthritis. The open-label, dose-escalation study is expected to enroll 15 to 24 patients, 30-80 years of age and test three doses of FX201 in cohorts of five to eight patients. Each patient will only receive one injection of FX201. Following the completion of the first cohort in which five patients were treated with the low dose of FX201, safety data were collected and reviewed by an independent DMC. After evaluating the first cohort safety data, the DMC supported continuing the trial and initiating treatment in the next dosing cohort which will include KL Grade 4 patients. The company anticipates data from the study will be available in 2021."

16:30 EDT RPT Realty reports August rent collections 86% - RPT Realty announced that August collections of rent and recovery income through September 4, 2020 were 86%, up from 79% in July and 70% in the second quarter. Including signed or approved deferral agreements totaling 7%, the Company has addressed 93% of its August billed rent and recovery income. "Against the backdrop of a reacceleration in new leasing activity with several leading brands, continued progress on our grocer initiatives and 96% of our tenants now open, rent collections continue to materially improve, demonstrating the strength and resiliency of the portfolio," said Brian Harper, President and Chief Executive Officer.

16:26 EDT Monocle Acquisition, AerSale announce revised merger agreement - Monocle Acquisition and AerSale announced that they have entered into a revised agreement to merge in a transaction with a fully diluted enterprise value of approximately $300M, equating to approximately 5.5x AerSale's forecasted 2021 Adjusted EBITDA. The combined company will be named AerSale Corporation and is expected to be publicly traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The parties anticipate closing the transaction early in the fourth quarter, after receipt of shareholder approval. The revised merger agreement is supported by AerSale's current owners - Leonard Green & Partners, Florida Growth Fund LLC and the Company's two founders - and was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both Monocle and AerSale. The transaction will be funded by a combination of cash held in Monocle's trust account and common stock in the surviving company to be issued to existing AerSale shareholders. AerSale will retain the first $50M of cash proceeds from Monocle's trust account and 40% of all trust proceeds in excess of $50M. As a result of this new structure, AerSale will be debt-free at close. Further, assuming no redemptions from the trust account, it is anticipated that AerSale will have approximately $128M of cash on its balance sheet and $110M of additional liquidity available under its existing asset backed debt financing facility. Following completion of the transaction, the current owners will receive approximately $76M in cash and $241M in newly issued common equity, representing approximately 56% of the outstanding shares of the combined company, assuming no redemptions by Monocle's existing public shareholders. The current owners will also have the right to receive 3M shares of contingent consideration depending upon the achievement of certain stock price performance targets. AerSale's current owners can elect to receive all of their transaction consideration in the form of common equity in the surviving company, in which case the cash consideration will be divided pro rata by the non-electing owners, if any, or if all of AerSale's current owners make such election, the cash consideration will be paid to the surviving company. Those who elect to receive their transaction consideration in the form of common equity will receive additional shares of common equity at closing, and will also have the right to receive additional shares of contingent consideration depending on the achievement of certain stock price performance targets. The remaining outstanding shares of the combined company will be held by public stockholders and the founders of Monocle. On a pro forma basis, AerSale expects to generate approximately $307M in revenue and a 17.6% Adjusted EBITDA margin for the full year 2021. As the aviation market recovers, the company forecasts significant revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth over the next several years resulting from the unprecedented availability of attractively-priced retired aircraft and engines for acquisition, the growth in the e-commerce and air cargo markets, the increasing contribution of MRO products and services, the rollout of higher margin proprietary engineered products and services, increased penetration of the government and defense marketplace, improved operating leverage, and continuing M&A activity.

16:23 EDT Lyft reports Q3 quarter-to-date rides down 53.6% - In a regulatory 8-K filing, Lyft states: "In the first two months of the third quarter, rides on Lyft's rideshare platform were down 53.6% versus the same period a year ago. Rideshare rides in the month of August 2020 increased 7.3% versus July 2020 and were down 53.0% versus the same period a year ago. In the week ended September 6, 2020, rideshare rides reached a new high since April as the change in rideshare rides recovered to less than a 50% year-over-year decline. While local recovery trends continue to vary significantly across Lyft's marketplace, the Company's rideshare operations in Canada have been recovering more quickly than in the United States. In August, the Company used a lower amount of driver incentives than originally anticipated as more drivers returned to the platform, improving supply conditions on the Company's rideshare marketplace. While trends in driver supply vary significantly between individual cities, the Company expects that lower driver incentives spend will result in a more favorable relationship between revenue and rideshare rides in the third quarter than previously expected. Based on this improved outlook, the Company now expects that the year-over-year change in revenue will modestly outperform the year-over-year change in rideshare rides in the third quarter if driver incentives spend remains at August 2020 levels in September 2020. Given the stronger performance in August 2020 versus July 2020, the Company continues to expect that it can manage its Adjusted EBITDA loss for the third quarter below $265 million if driver incentives spend and average daily rideshare ride volume in September 2020 are unchanged versus August 2020 levels. This expectation includes the incremental investment related to supporting the passage of Proposition 22 in California."

16:22 EDT Retail Properties of America resumes dividend payment and provides update - Retail Properties of America announced that its board of directors has declared a Q3 dividend for its outstanding Class A common stock of 5c per common share. The Company's board had previously suspended the dividend to preserve and enhance liquidity and capital positioning. The dividend of 5c per common share will be paid on October 9 to Class A common stockholders of record on September 25. "I am pleased to report that our board has resumed dividend payments for 2020," stated Steve Grimes, CEO. "This reinstated dividend level takes into consideration dividends already paid year to date. The Board will continue to monitor our financial performance and declare additional dividend payments to at least cover our minimum taxable distribution requirements. This move further signals our desire to preserve our balance sheet strength and financial flexibility and the stabilization in our underlying business, including our improving rent collection trends, the ongoing reopening of our tenant base and our recent successful efforts to further reinforce our sound capital structure position. Our July rent collection level has improved from the previously reported 71.4% to 76%, and August rent collection stands at 77%, as our open square footage percentage has continued to migrate higher and now stands at 93%."

16:20 EDT Slack Technologies reports Q2 Paid Customers up 30% at over 130K - Reports Q2: net dollar retention rate of 125%; 985 Paid Customers with greater than $100,000 in annual recurring revenue, up 37% year-over-year; 87 Paid Customers with greater than $1 million in annual recurring revenue, up 78% year-over-year; Over 52,000 Paid Customers using Slack Connect, up from over 41,000 at the end of last quarter; Over 380,000 connected endpoints on Slack Connect, up over 200% year-over-year.

16:17 EDT Tufin announces availability of SecureCloud on Red Hat Marketplace - Tufin (TUFN) announced that SecureCloud is now available through Red Hat Marketplace (IBM). The Red Hat Marketplace is an open cloud marketplace for enterprise customers to discover, try, purchase, deploy, and manage certified container-based software across environments-public and private, cloud and on-premises. Through the marketplace, customers can take advantage of responsive support, streamlined billing and contracting, simplified governance and single-dashboard visibility across clouds. Tufin SecureCloud delivers comprehensive value to customers through the new Red Hat Marketplace powered by Red Hat and IBM. This paves the way for an agile, more secure and compliant environment to accelerate our joint customers' growth and protect valuable assets. Cloud operations teams will gain agility through deep visibility and actionable notifications. Finally, DevOps members can be confident of smooth deployments due to automation of the CI/CD pipeline through robust APIs.

16:16 EDT Berkshire Hills Bancorp reduces dividends by 50% - Berkshire Hills Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of 12c per common share to shareholders of record at the close of business on September 22, payable on September 30. Effective for the same dates, the Board also approved a quarterly cash dividend on its preferred stock of 24c per preferred share. As a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to earnings and operations, both dividends are being reduced by 50%.

16:14 EDT Global Blood Therapeutics enters Oxbryta distribution deal with Biopharma-MEA - Global Blood Therapeutics announced that it has entered into an exclusive agreement with Biopharma-Middle East and Africa, or Biopharma-MEA, to distribute Oxbryta tablets in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, collectively known as the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC, region. There are estimated to be more than 100,000 people age 12 years and older in this region living with sickle cell disease. Oxbryta is a once-daily, oral therapy that directly inhibits hemoglobin polymerization, the root cause of the sickling and destruction of red blood cells in SCD. The sickling process causes hemolytic anemia, which impairs adequate oxygen delivery to the tissues and organs in the body.

16:13 EDT Coupa Software reports Q2 subscription revenue $111.6M, up 34% y/y

16:11 EDT Black Diamond appoints Rachel Humphrey as Chief Medical Officer - Black Diamond Therapeutics announced the appointment of Rachel Humphrey, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer. Karsten Witt, M.D., who has been senior VP of Clinical Development and acting Chief Medical Officer since May 2019, will continue to serve the company as Senior VP, Non-Clinical Development. Humphrey joins Black Diamond from CytomX Therapeutics, where she served as Chief Medical Officer.

16:09 EDT LifeVantage CEP Darren Jensen resigns, Steven Fife appointed interim CEO - LifeVantage Corporation announced that Darren Jensen, the company's president and CEO, resigned from his position at the company on September 3. Jensen will be available to assist with the transition. Steven Fife, the company's CFO, has been appointed interim CEO to lead the company. The LifeVantage board intends to retain a leading executive search firm to help the company identify and appoint a permanent successor to Jensen. In addition, the company will be combining its sales and marketing teams. The combined team will be led by Justin Rose, the company's Chief Sales Officer.

16:08 EDT Lululemon CEO says 'cautiously optimistic' for second half of year - CEO Calvin McDonald says: "We're pleased with our overall business results for the second quarter, as lululemon increasingly lives into its Omni potential. As trends around the world are shifting to working and sweating from home with an increased focus on health and wellness, we believe 2020 is likely an inflection point for retail and for lululemon. We are cautiously optimistic with regard to the second half of the year as we continue to navigate the uncertain environment."

16:06 EDT PetIQ provides reopening update - PetIQ provided an update on its wellness center and community clinic re-opening plan. The company has re-opened approximately 70% of its wellness centers and 60% of its community clinics. All 37 of PetIQ's regional offices supporting the national service network are now open. PetIQ remains on-track to re-open approximately 95% of its community clinics and wellness centers by the end of Q3. In addition, the 27 new wellness centers under construction prior to the on-set of the pandemic continue to be expected to have grand openings in Q4. Results from recent re-openings have demonstrated a quick return in customer traffic and average ticket to pre COVID-19 rates.

16:04 EDT Agios Pharmaceuticals appoints Jonathan Biller CFO - Agios Pharmaceuticals announced the appointment of Jonathan Biller to the role of CFO, head of legal and corporate affairs effective September 11. Biller joined Agios in November 2019 as Chief Legal Officer. Biller will replace Andrew Hirsch, who has served as the company's CFO since 2016. Hirsch will depart the company this month to pursue another opportunity and will remain a strategic advisor to Agios through October.

16:03 EDT Qiagen to launch rapid portable COVID-19 test analyzing 30 samples per hour - QIAGEN announced plans to launch a rapid portable test that can detect SARS-CoV-2 antigens in people with active infections in less than 15 minutes and process on average around 30 swab samples per hour using a small digital detection system. The Access Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Test, which is expected to become available in the fourth quarter of 2020, is designed for environments that require a high volume of fast and accurate test results. It is the second QIAGEN COVID-19 test to make use of Ellume's digital eHub and eStick system. QIAGEN in August announced the Access Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Test that uses the same devices. Two versions of the Antigen Test are scheduled for US launch in the fourth quarter - one for labs and one for point-of-care use. QIAGEN will apply for FDA Emergency Use Authorization and seek CE-IVD registration in Europe. A CLIA Waiver in the US would allow the POC version to be used in settings like airports or stadiums. Feasibility tests have shown the Access Antigen Test to have a sensitivity of at least 90% and a specificity of 100%.

14:55 EDT Airbus delivers 39 aircraft in August - Airbus' 2020 gross orders by August 31st totalled 370 aircraft with net orders of 303, after the year's cancellations. The company registered 1 new order for an ACJ320neo and no cancellations in August. In August, Airbus delivered a total of 39 aircraft spread out between 35 A320 Family aircraft including the first A321neo to Gulf Air, two A330 including the first A330-900 to Portuguese carrier Orbest and two A350. Airbus' backlog of aircraft remaining to be delivered as of August 31st stood at 7,501 comprising 524 A220s, 6,091 A320 Family aircraft, 319 A330s, 558 A350 XWBs and nine A380s.

14:01 EDT IBM announces general availability of Red Hat Marketplace - Red Hat and IBM announced the general availability of Red Hat Marketplace, a one-stop-shop to find, try, buy, deploy and manage enterprise applications across an organization's hybrid IT infrastructure, including on-premises and multicloud environments. A private, personalized marketplace experience is also available with Red Hat Marketplace Select at an additional cost for enterprises that want additional control and governance with curated software for more efficiency and scale that is pre-approved for that particular enterprise.

12:50 EDT Microsoft says Xbox Series S out November 10 - In a reveal trailer, Microsoft confirmed that its upcoming Xbox Series S will be available on November 10 at a retail price of $299. The all-digital system, which is meant to be a cheaper, smaller alternative to the upcoming Series X, includes 1440p resolution at up to 120 frames per second, DirectX raytracing, variable rate shading, variable refresh rate, ultra-low latency, a custom 512 gigabit SSD, 4K streaming media playback, and 4K upscaling for games, the company said. Reference Link

12:25 EDT Schlumberger, IBM, Red Hat announce hybrid cloud collaboration - Schlumberger (SLB), IBM (IBM) and Red Hat (RHT) announced a collaboration to accelerate digital transformation across the oil and gas industry. The joint initiative will provide global access to Schlumberger's exploration and production cloud-based environment and cognitive applications by leveraging IBM's hybrid cloud technology, built on the Red Hat OpenShift container platform. Collaborative development will initially focus on two key areas: Private, hybrid or multi-cloud deployment of the DELFI cognitive E&P environment enabled by Red Hat OpenShift to significantly expand access for customers. Delivering the first hybrid cloud implementation of the OSDU data platform. Through the agreement with IBM and Red Hat, Schlumberger has committed to the exclusive use of Red Hat OpenShift. Using the container platform will enable the deployment of applications in the DELFI environment across any infrastructure, from traditional data centers to multiple clouds, including private and public. This new way of hosting will offer the possibility to use multiple cloud providers and will address critical issues for customers, facilitating in-country deployments in compliance with local regulations and data residency requirements. The organizations intend to further their collaboration with the creation of a differentiated data management and operations solution for the OSDU data platform, enabling oil and gas operators to build, deploy and transition digital solutions with hybrid-cloud data infrastructures. This will foster wider collaboration and greater efficiency across many professionals in the E&P value chain.

12:04 EDT Nutanix partners with Microsoft Azure for hybrid solution - Nutanix (NTNX) announced a new partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) that will enable both companies to deliver a hybrid solution with seamless application, data, and license mobility as well as unified management across on-premises and Azure environments, using Nutanix Clusters on Azure.

12:00 EDT Core Laboratories falls -11.6% - Core Laboratories is down -11.6%, or -$2.42 to $18.44.

12:00 EDT Camping World rises 13.4% - Camping World is up 13.4%, or $4.08 to $34.55.

12:00 EDT GTT Communications rises 15.6% - GTT Communications is up 15.6%, or 83c to $6.15.

11:45 EDT Viamedia to oppose Comcast's petition for writ of certiorari to Supreme Court - Cross-media local advertising company Viamedia issued a statement in response to Comcast's September 4, 2020, filing with the U.S. Supreme Court of a petition for a writ of certiorari relative to the February 2020 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reinstating Viamedia's antitrust lawsuit against Comcast: "Viamedia intends to oppose Comcast's petition. Comcast seeks to challenge the correct and well-reasoned decision of the Seventh Circuit, which held that Viamedia has jury-ready claims against Comcast for monopolizing in violation of the Sherman Act. The parties are now engaged in additional discovery in the district court, and we hope to proceed to trial next year. The cable television advertising 'Interconnects' were intended to provide for a fair, inclusive, efficient and competitive marketplace for advertisers, cable operators and consumers, which is more important than ever in the face of new challenges to the advertising economy." In February, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit revived Viamedia's $500M antitrust claim against Comcast, remanding the case for jury trial. Viamedia commented on that decision, and provided a timeline of the case, on February 26.

11:34 EDT FTC approves Elliott taking stake in Noble Energy - Elliott International received FTC approval to take a stake in Noble Energy on September 4, 2020. Reference Link

11:27 EDT GTT jumps 9% to $5.79 after Bloomberg says near sale of European assets

11:20 EDT Apple announces event to be held Sept. 15 - In a post to its website, Apple announced an event, stating "Join us from Apple Park. September 15, 2020, at 10 a.m. PDT." The event is widely seen as one where the company is expected to announce new iPhones and potentially other products. Reference Link

11:13 EDT Amazon sees onboarding additional 100,000 U.S. businesses as new sellers - Amazon's Day One Staff stated in a post to the company's corporate blog: "At Amazon Accelerate, our largest-ever U.S. event dedicated to helping sellers succeed in our store, entrepreneurs, small business leaders, and brand owners consumed over 30,000 hours of streaming content across more than 65 sessions over three days. In an opening fireside chat, Jeff Wilke, CEO Worldwide Consumer at Amazon, emphasized how critical our partnership with sellers is. He said, 'Sellers are incredibly important to Amazon because they're important to the customer experience. And when we improve the customer experience together, it works for everybody.' ... At the conference, we announced that Amazon is on track to spend $18 billion in 2020 to help independent businesses reach more customers and grow sales, including investments in logistics, tools, services, programs, and people. In the next twelve months, we will provide more than 500,000 U.S. SMBs currently selling through Amazon with guidance, education, and support, and we plan to onboard an additional 100,000 U.S. businesses as new sellers in our store. In 2020, we have already released more than 135 tools and services to help sellers manage their Amazon businesses." Reference Link

11:03 EDT Boeing slows deliveries to 'thoroughly inspect' completed 787s

10:15 EDT Sinopharm announces strategic cooperation agreement with Gilead for Vemlidy - Sinopharm Group announces that the company and Gilead Sciences duly signed the Mainland China Regional Promotion Services Agreement on September 8 of this year in relation to Vemlidy, the "global innovative treatment against Hepatitis B." Sinopharm said: "Both parties will make full use of their respective advantages in pharmaceutical innovation, market development, distribution channel and retail management to comprehensively improve the accessibility of the innovative chronic Hepatitis B drug Veride to Chinese patients." Reference Link

10:04 EDT Jifiti expanding partnership with Mastercard - Jifiti, a fintech company with offices in the U.S. and Tel Aviv, Israel, announced the expansion of its partnership supporting both merchants and issuers with Mastercard to scale its point of sale installments offering to provide more options for consumers at checkout. "We're proud to be expanding our partnership with Mastercard, a global payment and technology company that is so committed to delivering value to merchants and consumers," shared Yaacov Martin, Co-Founder and CEO at Jifiti. "Together, we are bridging the gap between merchants, consumers and lenders by offering a minimal-integration platform. The key to success in the retail space is the ability to quickly test, launch and roll out shopping experiences that their customers will love. Together we will make that more accessible to banks, merchants and consumers."

10:00 EDT Cellcom Israel rises 9.5% - Cellcom Israel is up 9.5%, or 30c to $3.47.

10:00 EDT Scor ADR rises 11.9% - Scor ADR is up 11.9%, or $2.03 to $19.14.

09:47 EDT Scor ADR rises 10.6% - Scor ADR is up 10.6%, or $1.82 to $18.93.

09:38 EDT Air Products signs long-term contract to supply memory-chip maker in Malaysia - Air Products announced it has been awarded a long-term onsite contract from a global leader in memory and storage solutions to supply its state-of-the-art new facility in Penang, North Malaysia. The latest win will further strengthen Air Products' long-standing relationship with its global customer and its leading position to serve the fast-growing electronics markets. Air Products will install a proprietary PRISM cryogenic nitrogen generator to supply high purity, reliable and economical on-site gaseous nitrogen, and a significant volume of liquid nitrogen to the new facility, located in one of the fast-growing industrial parks in Penang. The gases will be used in the customer's chip assembly processes and cold testing of the memory products, helping improve product quality, productivity, and environmental performance.

09:32 EDT Perrigo announces availability of store brand equivalent of Voltaren - Perrigo announced that it has launched the store brand equivalent of over-the-counter Voltaren Arthritis Pain to its retail partners and the product is now available in the U.S. nationwide. Perrigo's abbreviated new drug application for OTC diclofenac sodium topical gel, 1% is the first store brand ANDA to receive approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the company stated.

09:27 EDT CTO Realty Growth appoints Matthew Partridge as SVP, CFO - CTO Realty Growth (CTO) announced that Matthew Partridge has been appointed SVP and CFO of the Company. Partridge was most recently the COO and CFO of Hutton. In addition to his position at CTO, Mr. Partridge will also serve as SVP, CFO and Treasurer of Alpine Income Property Trust, Inc. (PINE), a single- tenant net lease REIT externally managed by CTO.

09:22 EDT Inovio higher after Thermo signs letter of intent to make COVID vaccine - Inovio (INO) announced that Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) has signed a letter of intent to manufacture its DNA COVID-19 vaccine candidate INO-4800. Thermo Fisher joins other contract development and manufacturing organizations in Inovio's global manufacturing consortium, the company said in a statement. "With its consortium of third-party manufacturers, INOVIO plans to have 1001 million doses of INO-4800 manufactured in 2021, subject to FDA approval of INO-4800 for use as a COVID-19 vaccine. Thermo Fisher plans to manufacture INO-4800 drug substance as well as perform fill and finish of INO-4800 drug product at its commercial facilities in the US. At peak capacity, Thermo Fisher projects that it could produce at least 100 million doses of INO-4800 annually," it added. Shares of Inovio are up 6%, or 58c, to $10.15 in premarket trading.

09:15 EDT Chevron announces Jon Huntsman has been re-elected to its board - Chevron announced that Jon Huntsman has been re-elected to Chevron's board of directors, effective on September 15. He will serve on the management compensation committee and the public policy Committee. Huntsman was a member of Chevron's board from 2014 to 2017, serving on the audit committee, the board nominating and governance committee, and the public policy committee during his tenure. He resigned to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to Russia.

09:11 EDT UGI Corporation appoints Judy Zagorski as Chief Human Resources Officer - UGI Corporation announced that Judy Zagorski has been appointed Chief Human Resources Officer. In Judy's most recent role, she served as Executive Vice President, Global Human Resources & Chief Human Resources Officer at Church & Dwight, a major manufacturer of household products headquartered in Ewing, New Jersey. Prior to joining Church & Dwight, Judy held the positions of Senior Vice President - Human Resources and Vice President - Human Resources, Development and Strategy at BASF.

09:09 EDT Gevo continues to seek targeted capital raise of approx. $200M - Gevo recently raised approximately $46M, net of expenses, from a Registered Direct Offering and approximately $16M as a result of warrant exercises. This capital infusion substantially improves Gevo's ability to execute on its strategic plans. Gevo continues to pursue a licensing and developer strategy that is expected to enable the construction of up to three production facilities and capacity expansions. The production facilities and expansions are needed to provide the product required under its existing and expected, future take-or-pay, off-take agreements. The licensing and developer strategy should reduce or eliminate the need for Gevo construction capital by utilizing project-level debt and third-party equity. Gevo continues to seek a targeted capital raise of ~$200 million of project-level equity using a project financing structure to build up to three production facilities. The first expanded production facility or project is expected to be located at Gevo's current production facility located in Luverne, Minnesota. As previously announced, Gevo engaged Citigroup Global Markets to lead a process to develop the three projects and procure the capital needed by Gevo to build up to three production facilities. Gevo expects it will take approximately one year to develop and close the financing for the first project. Assuming Gevo successfully closes on a financing in the next 12 months, Gevo would expect production of hydrocarbon fuels from the first project in late 2023 or early 2024. Gevo will continue to develop the marketplace and try to create additional customer demand for its next generation of renewable premium gasoline, jet fuel and diesel fuel products that have the potential to achieve zero carbon emissions, while addressing the market need of reducing greenhouse gas emissions with sustainable alternatives. Gevo's strategy is to act as the licensor of its technology and project developer. This strategy is intended to allow Gevo to recapture the capital deployed to develop projects, with such capital recoveries occurring at financial closings of any successful development projects. Gevo's current strategy is for any production facilities to be owned by Special Purpose Entities that will be non or limited-recourse companies. Gevo intends to negotiate minority ownership interests in the SPEs. The developer business model is expected to provide Gevo with fee income streams from SPEs for value-added functions around technology licensing, project management, and operations and maintenance. There is no assurance that Gevo will be successful in executing this licensing and developer project finance strategy. In April 2020, Gevo engaged Citigroup to help secure project finance funding to develop and establish production capabilities for its contracted products across up to three production facilities. To facilitate this expansion, Gevo estimates the project capital cost would be around $700 million, including $200 million of equity and $500 million of debt. Gevo is still in the early phase of the Citigroup process of securing financing with the process slowed somewhat due issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gevo expects it will take approximately one year to develop and close the financing for the first project. Production of hydrocarbon fuels from the first project is not expected prior to late 2023 or early 2024. Gevo believes the following additional key milestones are important to potential project investors: finalizing and acquiring the rights to the additional production facility sites, completing engineering work to finalize the exact capital requirements, securing additional take-or-pay contracts and developing plans to mitigate various financial risks associated with the proposed projects. On a proforma modeling basis, which incorporates a range of assumptions, the production facilities in the SPEs should yield greater than 20% levered internal rate of returns for investors. Gevo cannot assure whether it will be successful in securing investors for its potential development projects on acceptable terms or at all. Going forward, Gevo intends to use its cash to secure additional customers, further develop the marketplace for its low-carbon fuels, fund incremental process improvements, engineering, and site development and permitting. Gevo believes its stronger capitalization provides it the needed flexibility and financial strength to manage through the development process of securing project financing as well as to weather unexpected challenges.

09:08 EDT KINETIC partners with JLG Industries for deployment of safety wearables - KINETIC announced a partnership with JLG Industries to deploy the Reflex smart wearable at JLG facilities. In alignment with their people-first culture, JLG has deployed the KINETIC Reflex devices on the shop floor to provide team members instant feedback on high risk ergonomic postures. JLG Industries will collect information from the Reflex device to significantly reduce the number of high risk movements across the facility. Additionally, the JLG team is piloting a new feature of the KINETIC Reflex device that alerts team members in real time when they are within six feet of each other. "Safer at Six" practices are being embraced across all Oshkosh facilities to provide real-time alerts and contact logging capabilities to fight against COVID-19 outbreaks.

09:05 EDT Arcutis Biotherapeutics to accelerate ARQ-151 into Phase 3 trials - Arcutis Biotherapeutics y announced plans to advance its program to develop ARQ-151 for the treatment of atopic dermatitis into Phase 3 clinical trials following its End-of-Phase 2 meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, without conducting the previously planned Phase 2b atopic dermatitis trial. The Company now anticipates initiating pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials in late 2020 or early 2021. ARQ-151 is a once-daily topical cream formulation of roflumilast, a highly potent and selective phosphodiesterase type 4 inhibitor, which the Company is developing for atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Roflumilast cream is a once-daily topical cream formulation of a highly potent and selective PDE4 inhibitor that is under development for atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Oral roflumilast has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment to reduce the risk of exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease since 2011. Roflumilast has shown greater potency than the two other FDA-approved PDE4 inhibitors. PDE4 is an intracellular enzyme that increases the production of pro-inflammatory mediators and decreases production of anti-inflammatory mediators and has been implicated in a wide range of inflammatory diseases including psoriasis, eczema, and COPD. PDE4 is an established target in dermatology, and other PDE4 inhibitors have been approved by the FDA for the topical treatment of atopic dermatitis or the systemic treatment of plaque psoriasis. Roflumilast cream is already undergoing Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of plaque psoriasis, with topline data expected in the first half of 2021.

09:02 EDT FormFactor, Physik Instrumente join in MeasureOne partnership - FormFactor and Physik Instrumente announced the companies have joined in a MeasureOne partnership to accelerate development of silicon photonics test and measurement applications. MeasureOne is a commitment between FormFactor and a select group of partners to deliver performance-validated, integrated solutions to address customers' test and measurement applications. FormFactor and PI's relationship began five years ago to bring to the market a fully automated and reliable probing system to test silicon photonics devices in wafer and die form. Silicon photonics can enable the transfer of enormous amounts of data at high speeds using optical signals instead of electrical signals. The global silicon photonics market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.7% between 2019 and 2027, according to Inkwood Research.

09:00 EDT Exela Technologies announces rollout of cloud-hosted solution for healthcare - Exela Technologies announced that it has launched the healthcare industry's first all-encompassing, cloud-based claims processing gateway. The platform - PCH Global - enables healthcare providers to streamline submission of healthcare claims, and enables payers to more efficiently process claims and related payments. The real benefit of the platform is the expected reduction in claim denials, faster processing of payments to providers, and ultimately, a better healthcare experience for patients.

08:58 EDT Toll Brothers, JD Capital USA announce JV to develop Georgia rental community - Toll Brothers and JD Capital USA have announced the formation of a new joint venture to develop Motto, a 290-unit luxury apartment community in Decatur, the well-known suburb of Atlanta. The joint venture has secured a $45.7 million construction loan from Santander Bank, N.A. The debt and equity financing were arranged by Toll Brothers' in-house Finance Department. Toll Brothers Apartment Living will manage the development, management, and marketing of Motto. The community is a 5- and 6-story building with a structured parking garage situated on a 3.2-acre site. Motto is part of a larger mixed-use site that will be anchored by a Publix grocery store and additional service-oriented businesses. Motto will offer 290 apartment homes with floor plan styles including studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments. Amenity features will include a resort-style pool, luxurious clubroom and coffee bar, state-of-the-art fitness center, community-wide WiFi, courtyards, pet spa, bicycle storage, and more. Residents will enjoy a mix of urban walkability and suburban lifestyle while being located nearby top-rated restaurants, bars, entertainment, and shopping.

08:56 EDT StoneMor announces withdrawal of Axar proposal, proposed amendments to charter - StoneMor announced that Axar Capital Management, after determining that it will not be able to reach an agreement with the Special Committee on terms that would be satisfactory to Axar, has withdrawn its proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of the Company not owned by Axar or its affiliates. A copy of the letter from Axar withdrawing its proposal is attached hereto as Annex A. In an unrelated announcement, the Company also disclosed that its Board has voted unanimously to submit two proposals to the Company's stockholders at its 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to amend its certificate of incorporation. The first proposal would effect a reverse split of the Company's common stock at a ratio of 1-for-10 in the event that the Board deems such action to be advisable to avoid delisting on the New York Stock Exchange, or otherwise in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders at the time. As previously reported, the Company received a notice from the New York Stock Exchange (the "NYSE") in April 2020 stating that it was not in compliance with the NYSE's minimum price continued listing requirements. In order to regain compliance, the closing price of the Company's common stock on December 24, 2020 and the average closing price for the 30 trading days ending on that date must be at least $1.00. The Company also would regain compliance if the closing price of the common stock on the last trading day of any month and the average closing price for the 30 trading days ending on that date is at least $1.00. The second proposal would declassify the Board and provide for annual elections for all directors. Currently, the Company's Board is divided into three classes, with the members of each class serving staggered three-year terms. If the stockholders approve the proposal, each director will resign upon the effectiveness of the amendment and immediately be reappointed to the Board to serve until the Company's 2021 annual meeting. Beginning at that meeting, all directors will stand for election annually. he proposals to amend the Company's certificate of incorporation will be detailed in the Company's proxy statement, which will be filed and disseminated to the stockholders in advance of the annual meeting, which will be held on November 5, 2020. This press release is being provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute the solicitation of any vote for approval of any transaction or proposal. Lastly, StoneMor also announced that on September 4, 2020, the Board increased the size of the Board to eight directors and elected Kevin D. Patrick to fill the new position. Mr. Patrick has been Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Colonial Williamsburg Foundation since August 2017.

08:53 EDT Fluidigm achieves milestone under NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics deal - Fluidigm announced progress on the Company's Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics project. Fluidigm has achieved the initial milestone under its letter contract with the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, under the agency's Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics initiative. The letter contract, which established $12 million of funding available to Fluidigm prior to execution of a definitive contract, provided for initial payment to Fluidigm of approximately $11 million based on achievement of the initial test verification milestone. Fluidigm expects to receive all $12 million in funding associated with the letter contract by the end of the third quarter and is actively engaged in finalizing the definitive contract with the NIH. The initial milestone involved an independent third-party verification of the Fluidigm Advanta Dx SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Assay, which received Emergency Use Authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in late August. The RADx initiative, whose letter contract with Fluidigm was announced in July, fast-tracks development and commercialization of innovative technologies to significantly increase U.S. testing capacity for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Fluidigm microfluidics technology is the basis for several COVID-19 test assays designed to be run on the Fluidigm Biomark HD system. The Fluidigm RADx project is supported by the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics initiative and has been funded in whole or in part with federal funds from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under contract no. 75N92020C00009. Fluidigm's ongoing collaboration with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and its Epigenetic CHaracterization and Observation program includes financial support for development of innovative programs based on our microfluidics technology. The Advanta Dx SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR Assay is for In Vitro Diagnostic Use. It is for Use Under Emergency Use Authorization Only. Rx Only. It has not been FDA cleared or approved. It has been authorized by FDA under an EUA for use by authorized laboratories. It has been authorized only for the detection of nucleic acid from SARS-CoV-2, not for any other viruses or pathogens. It is only authorized for the duration of the declaration that circumstances exist justifying the authorization of emergency use of in vitro diagnostics for detection and/or diagnosis of COVID-19 under Section 564(b)(1) of the Act, 21 U.S.C. Section 360bbb-3(b)(1), unless the authorization is terminated or revoked sooner. Other Fluidigm products are For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

08:49 EDT Celsion: Enrollment in Phase II portion of OVATION 2 study has been accelerated - Enrollment in the Phase II portion of the Phase I/II OVATION 2 Study has been accelerated with 22 patients enrolled thus far at 13 sites in the U.S. The company expects 12 additional sites in the U.S. and Canada to begin enrolling patients by the end of the year, and now expects full enrollment of 118 patients to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2021, a full quarter earlier than previously anticipated. GEN-1 was designed using TheraPlas, Celsion's proprietary, synthetic, non-viral nanoparticle delivery system platform. It is an interleukin-12 DNA plasmid vector associated with a non-viral nanoparticle delivery system, which enables cell transfection followed by persistent, local secretion of the IL-12 protein. The OVATION 2 Study combines GEN-1 with standard-of-care neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients newly diagnosed with Stage III/IV ovarian cancer. NACT is designed to shrink the cancer as much as possible for optimal surgical removal after three cycles of chemotherapy. Following NACT, patients undergo interval debulking surgery, followed by three adjuvant cycles of chemotherapy and up to nine additional weekly GEN-1 treatments, the goal of which is to delay progression and improve overall survival. The OVATION 2 Study is an open-label, 1-to-1 randomized trial, 80% powered to show the equivalent of a 33% improvement in progression-free survival, the primary endpoint, when comparing the treatment arm with the control arm. Celsion has received definite confirmation from the U.S. FDA that PFS may be used as a surrogate endpoint for overall survival. Because OVATION 2 is an open-label study, the company intends to provide clinical updates throughout the course of treatment, including response rates and surgical resection scores.

08:48 EDT Celsion provides update on OPTIMA study of ThermoDox - Celsion continues to follow patients for overall survival in its Phase III study of ThermoDox for newly diagnosed hepatocellular carcinoma patients, noting that the unexpected and marginally crossed futility boundary, suggested by the Kaplan-Meier analysis at the second interim analysis on July 9, 2020, may be associated with a data maturity issue. The company has hired independent statisticians to further evaluate the trial data, the statistical plan, and the hypothesis generating data from the earlier HEAT Study, as well as, supplying data to the NIH for independent analysis and recommendation. The company expects to announce its plans for the OPTIMA Study before year end.

08:44 EDT Acutus Medical announces pulse field ablation program, pre-clinical results - Acutus Medical announced pre-clinical experimental results of a novel diagnostic and therapeutic workflow utilizing the AcQMap System along with tissue-selective, non-thermal pulse field ablation via a proprietary Acutus ablation catheter. While Acutus has been known for its rapid imaging and mapping platform along with access and diagnostic products, the company is now aggressively pursuing the therapeutic commercial market. Pulsed field ablation is an emerging ablation modality that distinguishes itself from traditional thermal ablation, such as radiofrequency energy ablation and cryoablation, by delivering therapeutic energy faster and more selectively with minimal collateral damage. While not fully clinically proven or approved by regulatory authorities for use in cardiac tissue in humans, recent pre-clinical and clinical studies suggest that PFA may enable rapid targeted ablation of cardiac muscle while leaving adjacent tissue, such as nerves, blood vessels and the esophagus, completely unaffected. In addition, PFA does not rely on heat or extreme cold to ablate tissue. The application time required to create a lesion takes less than a second compared to thermal ablation which may take many seconds to minutes at each location. The AcQMap cardiac mapping system, distinguishes itself from conventional contact mapping via ultra-fast ultrasound imaging of cardiac anatomy and information-rich display of actionable diagnostic maps. By coupling the AcQMap System and the potential of PFA, procedure times may be dramatically shortened while enhancing the safety profile. In a series of pre-clinical experiments, Acutus researchers employed a novel workflow that involved ultrasound imaging of whole-chamber cardiac anatomy and non-contact mapping of electrical activity, followed by delivery of 4 to 8 contiguous ablation lesions in regions of interest via a novel PFA catheter. Following creation of these lesions, non-contact mapping was utilized to assess and confirm the effectiveness of the therapy in the treated regions. In multiple experiments with multiple physician-advisors, this entire whole chamber map / ablate / re-map to confirm block workflow was completed in an average of 12 minutes. Acute ablation efficacy was further confirmed by conventional high-density contact mapping of the treated region with the AcQMap System and a contact mapping catheter. After a recovery period of 10 days, intra-cardiac re-mapping confirmed lesion durability in the treated experimental model indicating that the ablated regions were irreversibly treated via PFA. Visual observation of cardiac muscle under a microscope further confirmed that the ablated regions were clearly demarcated, spanned the entire tissue thickness and non-cardiac tissue were not affected. More importantly, blood vessels within and near the ablated regions also appeared structurally unaffected. This post study analysis indicates that durable, non-conductive lesions were created without damage to collateral structures, confirming the hypothesis that PFA may be tissue-selective. Acutus Medical with its physician-advisors are preparing to conduct clinical trials to prove the safety and efficacy of PFA in patients with a wide range of cardiac arrhythmias.

08:40 EDT Gladstone Land acquires pistachio orchard, organic farmland in California - Gladstone Land announced that it has acquired 2,515 gross acres of farmland in Fresno County, California, for approximately $31.8 million. The farm consists of 619 planted acres of mature pistachio trees and 1,896 acres of open farmland, 1,273 acres of which is organic. In connection with the acquisition, Gladstone Land also entered into an 8-year, triple-net leaseback agreement with the seller.

08:39 EDT OSI Systems receives orders for $6M for electronic components - OSI Systems announced that its Optoelectronics and Manufacturing division has received orders for approximately $6 million to provide electronic sub-assemblies for a leading information security technology provider OEM.

08:38 EDT Hess Corp. announces oil discovery at Redtail offshore Guyana - Hess Corp. announced another oil discovery offshore Guyana at the Redtail-1 well, the eighteenth discovery on the Stabroek Block, which will add to the previously announced gross discovered recoverable resource estimate for the block of more than 8B barrels of oil equivalent. Redtail-1 encountered approximately 232 feet of high quality oil bearing sandstone and was drilled in 6,164 feet of water. The well is located approximately 1.5 miles northwest of the Yellowtail discovery and is the ninth discovery in the southeast area of the block. In addition to the Redtail-1 discovery, drilling at Yellowtail-2 resulted in the discovery of additional reservoir intervals adjacent to and below the Yellowtail-1 discovery. Yellowtail-2 encountered 69 feet of high quality oil bearing reservoirs, which comprise the 17th discovery on the Stabroek Block. This resource is currently being evaluated for development in conjunction with other nearby discoveries.

08:36 EDT Michaels to hire over 16,000 holiday employees - Michaels said in a release, "Michaels announced it will hire over 16,000 seasonal positions across its U.S. and Canada stores and distribution centers in preparation for the 2020 holiday season. Michaels will host a seasonal hiring event in U.S. stores on September 12 from 12pm - 4pm. The Company will be hiring talented team members across the organization and strengthening its buy-online, pickup in-store, or BOPIS, team in order to continue to serve shoppers in a safe and convenient way during the holiday season. Candidates in Canada can visit their local stores to learn more about holiday hiring opportunities."

08:35 EDT Turning Point Brands files Premarket Tobacco Applications covering 250 products - Turning Point Brands said in a release, "Turning Point Brands announced it has submitted to the FDA Premarket Tobacco Applications, or PMTAs, covering 250 products. This is an important and necessary step for TPB to offer adult consumers an extensive portfolio of products that serve as alternatives to combustible cigarettes and satisfy a wide variety of consumer preferences. The PMTAs cover a broad assortment of products in the vapor category including multiple proprietary e-liquid offerings in varying nicotine strengths, technologies and sizes; proprietary replacement parts and components of open system tank devices through partnerships with two leading manufacturers for exclusive distribution of products in the United States; and a closed system e-cigarette. The PMTAs provide clarity to customers and retail partners of TPB's continued support behind products across multiple leading brands including Solace, VaporFi, South Beach Smoke, HorizonTech, FreeMaX and other developing brands and partnerships."

08:33 EDT Aeterna Zentaris announces results from pediatric study of macimorelin - Aeterna Zentaris announced the presentation of results from its first pediatric study of macimorelin as a growth hormone stimulation test for the evaluation of childhood-onset growth hormone deficiency at the 22nd European Congress of Endocrinology. The data were presented during the event in an ePoster titled, Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of macimorelin acetate in paediatric patients with suspected growth hormone deficiency, accommodated by an audio commentary. The AEZS-130-P01 study, was an open-label, group comparison, dose escalation trial and the first of two studies as agreed with the European Medicines Agency in the Company's Pediatric Investigation Plan for macimorelin. Study P01 was designed to investigate the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, safety, and tolerability of macimorelin after single oral dosing of 0.25, 0.5, and 1.0 mg/kg in pediatric patients with suspected growth hormone deficiency. The Company completed the study and announced positive results in April 2020. The completed study included 24 subjects aged 4 to 15 years. In the subjects who completed the study in accordance with the protocol, macimorelin demonstrated an excellent safety and tolerability profile. There were 88 adverse events reported in 23 subjects, none of which was assessed by the investigator as related to macimorelin. The majority of AEs were expected side effects related to the hypoglycemia introduced by the Insulin Tolerance Test. No significant changes in ECG parameters and safety laboratory values were noted in any of the three dosing cohorts.

08:32 EDT Exelixis, Catalent enter collaboration to develop ADCs - Exelixis (EXEL) and Catalent (CTLT) announced a partnership under which Catalent's Redwood Bioscience subsidiary will develop multiple antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs, for Exelixis using Catalent's proprietary SMARTag site-specific bioconjugation technology. Under the terms of the agreement, Catalent will use its SMARTag bioconjugation platform to build ADCs using monoclonal antibodies, or mAbs, from Exelixis' growing preclinical pipeline. In exchange for an upfront payment to Catalent of $10M, Exelixis received an exclusive option to nominate up to a fixed number of targets using the SMARTag ADC platform over a three-year period. The companies plan to advance the ADCs into preclinical development, and, prior to filing an Investigational New Drug application, Exelixis may exercise its exclusive option to a worldwide license of the related ADC program and continue clinical development and commercialization. Exelixis will provide research and development funding, and Catalent will be eligible for development and commercial milestones and royalties on net sales of any product commercialized as part of the collaboration.

08:32 EDT Evofem announces availability of Phexxi in the U.S. - Evofem Biosciences announced that Phexxi, the first and only non-hormonal prescription vaginal gel is now available in the U.S. for the prevention of pregnancy in females of reproductive potential for use as an on-demand method of contraception. Approved by the FDA on May 22, Phexxi is a vaginal pH modulator designed to maintain vaginal pH within the normal range of 3.5 to 4.5 - an acidic environment that is inhospitable to sperm. Phexxi will be commercially available in a box containing 12 individually wrapped Phexxi applicators.

08:30 EDT Exelixis, NBE-Therapeutics enter exclusive collaboration to develop ADCs - Exelixis and NBE-Therapeutics announced a partnership to discover and develop multiple antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs, for oncology applications by leveraging NBE's expertise and proprietary platforms in ADC discovery, including site-specific conjugation and novel payloads. The agreement comes as Exelixis continues to build out its pipeline behind Cabometyx, its product that is now a global oncology franchise. Under the terms of the agreement, Exelixis will make an upfront payment of $25M to NBE in exchange for an exclusive option to nominate a defined number of target programs on NBE's ADC platform over a two-year period. Together, the companies will seek to advance multiple ADCs into preclinical development with Exelixis contributing research and development support. For each individual target program, prior to filing an Investigational New Drug application, Exelixis will be able to exercise its option to an exclusive worldwide license, and afterwards continue clinical development and commercialization activities for that target program. Upon exercise of any option, NBE will be eligible for development and commercialization milestones, as well as royalties on net sales of any potential products resulting from that target program.

08:29 EDT Canada Carbon closes Red Chris South royalty sale with Newcrest Mining - Canada Carbon announces that it has sold its royalty on the Red Chris South Project to Newcrest Mining for cash consideration of C$225,000. Newcrest Mining Limited had elected to exercise its ROFR.

08:27 EDT DermTech appoints Michael Howell, Ph.D., as Chief Scientific Officer - DermTech (DMTK) said in a release, "DermTech announced the appointment of Michael Howell, Ph.D., to the role of Chief Scientific Officer. Howell brings over twenty years of academic and pharmaceutical industry experience to DermTech and will coordinate research, new product development, and clinical validation efforts. Prior to joining DermTech, Mr. Howell was the translational research lead at Incyte (INCY)."

08:25 EDT Radius Health completes enrollment for Phase 3 wearABLe study - Radius Health announced completion of enrollment in its "wearABLe" phase 3 trial. The study was designed to look at the effects on bone mineral density of abaloparatide delivered via a novel transdermal device compared with the current subcutaneous formulation, marketed as TYMLOS. The study aimed to enroll 474 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis at high risk for fracture. Actual patients enrolled, based on demand, was approximately 500. These patients will be treated for 12 months and have a further one month on study for safety assessment at the completion of 12 months of therapy. The abaloparatide-patch leverages the technology advances of the solid microstructured transdermal system, which was developed by Kindeva Drug Delivery, a spin-out of the 3M Corporation. This technology innovation allows the successful delivery of peptides - in our case, abaloparatide - across the skin. To date, this has not been proven possible by traditional transdermal patch capabilities. This initiative was designed as a patient-centric approach and differentiating strategy for Radius as part of a multi - year partnership with Kindeva/3M. A successful trial and subsequent regulatory approval would provide patients with a new option of abaloparatide administration. Such an option is typically not available for biological products.

08:24 EDT VBL reaches alignment with FDA on path forward for VB-601 development - VBL Therapeutics announced the completion of a Type B pre-IND meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regarding the Company's development plan for VB-601. VB-601 is the Company's lead anti-MOSPD2 antibody for immune-inflammatory indications, for which a briefing package for the pre-IND meeting was submitted in June. Based on the FDA's feedback, VBL plans to advance its IND-enabling activities for VB-601 as planned. "We are very pleased with the outcome of the pre-IND meeting with the FDA," said Dror Harats, M.D., CEO of VBL Therapeutics. "VB-601 is a first-in-class product candidate that has a completely novel mechanism of action. It can block the ability of monocyte to migrate to inflammatory sites, no matter which molecules try to attract them in. Therefore, it is important that we have reached alignment with the FDA on the path forward for VB-601. With this green light, we plan to continue to advance VB-601, aiming to start a first-in-human study in the second half of 2021."

08:23 EDT PolarityTE, Co-Diagnostics enter partnership to expand COVID-19 testing platform - PolarityTE (PTE), a biotechnology company developing regenerative tissue products and biomaterials, announced that its subsidiary, Arches Research, has entered into a strategic partnership with Co-Diagnostics (CODX) to expand COVID-19 testing operations. Under the agreement, Arches will provide COVID-19 testing for customers referred by Co-Diagnostics and, to support additional demand, Co-Diagnostics will provide to Arches testing equipment in exchange for Arches' commitment to use only Co-Diagnostics tests on the equipment. Arches has previously been performing COVID-19 testing for its customers using Co-Diagnostics' Logix Smart COVID-19 test kit.

08:23 EDT Luby's adopts plan of liquidation, dissolution - Luby's announced that the company's Board of Directors, after considering a number of strategic alternatives, has approved and adopted a plan of liquidation and dissolution that provides for the sale of the company's assets and distribution of the net proceeds to the company's stockholders, after which the company will be dissolved. This follows Luby's June 3 announcement that it is seeking the sale of its assets. Approval of the Plan by the company's stockholders is the next step in connection with these matters. The company intends to hold a special meeting of stockholders to seek approval of the Plan for which it will file preliminary proxy materials with the SEC. The company believes that the sale of assets pursuant to its monetization strategy and the dissolution will provide stockholders with an opportunity to receive cash distributions that maximize the value of their investment. The assets to be sold include operating divisions Luby's Cafeterias, Fuddruckers, and the company's Culinary Contract Services business, as well as the company's real estate. The company will also provide an opportunity at the special meeting for its stockholders to vote on maintaining or revoking the Rights Agreement, often referred to as a "poison pill." In addition, the company will also seek stockholder approval to reduce the size of the Board of Directors and to permit action of stockholders by written consent. The Plan of Liquidation outlines an orderly sale of the company's businesses, operations, and real estate, and an orderly wind down of any remaining operations. If the company's stockholders approve the Plan, the company intends to attempt to convert all of its assets into cash, satisfy or resolve its remaining liabilities and obligations, including contingent liabilities and claims and costs associated with the liquidation of the company, and then file a certificate of dissolution. The company currently anticipates that its common stock will be delisted from the NYSE upon the filing of the certificate of dissolution, which is not expected to occur until the earlier of the completion of the asset sales or three years, but the delisting of its common stock may occur sooner in accordance with the applicable rules of the NYSE. If at any time, including after the Plan is approved by stockholders, the company receives an offer for a corporate transaction that, in the view of the Board of Directors, will provide superior value to its stockholders in comparison to the value of the estimated distributions under the Plan, taking into account factors that could affect valuation, including timing and certainty of closing, credit market risks, proposed terms and other factors, the Plan could be abandoned in favor of such an alternative transaction. While no assurances can be given, the company currently estimates, assuming the sale of its assets pursuant to its monetization strategy, that it could make aggregate liquidating distributions to stockholders of between approximately $92M and $123M (approximately $3.00 and $4.00 per share of common stock, respectively, based on 30,752,470 shares of common stock outstanding as of September 2, 2020). Aggregate payments will likely be paid in one or more distributions. The company cannot predict the timing or amount of any such distributions, as uncertainties exist as to the value it may receive upon the sale of assets pursuant to its monetization strategy, the net value of any remaining assets after such sales are completed, the ultimate amount of expenses associated with implementing its monetization strategy, liabilities, operating costs and amounts to be set aside for claims, obligations and provisions during the liquidation and winding-up process and the related timing to complete such transactions and overall process.

08:21 EDT Westwater Resources to sell uranium assets in Texas, New Mexico to enCore - Westwater Resources announced a binding letter of intent to sell its uranium assets located in New Mexico and Texas to enCore Energy, a Toronto Venture Exchange-listed company. Total compensation accruing to Westwater as part of the deal is expected to be in excess of $1.95M in enCore shares and royalties from future production from the New Mexico properties. All remaining reclamation liabilities and bonding obligations for the company's Texas uranium properties will be transferred to enCore at the time of sale, with the transaction expected to close on or before December 31. This transaction is subject to further due diligence, the execution of a definitive agreement, and other customary conditions. Westwater is retaining its uranium interests in Turkey, which are subject to an ongoing international arbitration proceeding. Westwater has applied for a provisional patent with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its proprietary graphite purification technology. This proprietary process, which does not utilize hydrofluoric acid, is a purification methodology that has a more sustainable footprint than those currently used in China and elsewhere. The invention claimed in the provisional patent application relates to a method of obtaining highly purified graphite from a natural flake graphite concentrate sample. Additional steps involving water washing and drying are included in some methods. The methods provided in the application may further include any combination of varying the weight percentage of the caustic solution, varying the temperature of and time for the caustic roasting, varying the temperature of and time for the acid leaching, and/or varying the temperature of, time for, and the atmosphere used in the thermal treatment. Westwater has returned its lithium claims in Nevada and Utah to the United States government, thereby focusing all financial and technical resources on the continued development of its graphite business. Estimated savings from the return of these claims will be on the order of at least $200,000 per year.

08:20 EDT FactSet, AWS to bring FactSet's global exchange data to the cloud - FactSet (FDS) announced plans to migrate its real-time ticker plant to Amazon Web Services (AMZN). FactSet's ticker plant, which is currently implemented on premise, ingests and delivers live market data from exchanges around the world and represents a large part of the Company's data footprint. This migration will create the first global ticker plant of its kind in the cloud. FactSet's cloud-based ticker plant will rely on the new Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud instances built on the AWS Nitro System. The migration process is scheduled to begin later this year and is estimated to be completed in 2021. FactSet clients will benefit from faster cloud-based content delivery and AWS's large global footprint, which will allow for reduced latency and increased local data processing and normalization.

08:18 EDT Strongbridge Biopharma expects to submit RECORLEV NDA in 1Q21 - Earlier today, Strongbridge reported positive and highly statistically significant top-line results from the Phase 3 LOGICS study, which met its primary endpoint. At the end of the randomized-withdrawal phase of the LOGICS study, 54.5 percent more patients who were withdrawn to placebo had a loss of prior-established mean urinary free cortisol response as compared with those who remained on RECORLEV. Additionally, the secondary endpoint of normalization of mUFC at the end of the randomized-withdrawal phase was also highly statistically significant with 45.5 percent more patients treated with RECORLEV maintaining mUFC normalization in the active arm than the placebo arm. RECORLEV was generally well tolerated with a safety and tolerability profile comparable to the profile observed in the Phase 3 SONICS study. The Company continues to anticipate that it will submit a New Drug Application for RECORLEV to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration in the first quarter of 2021; with a 10-month PDUFA review cycle, and if approved, the launch of RECORLEV is anticipated in the first quarter of 2022.

08:17 EDT LyondellBasell starts up its MoReTec molecular recycling facility - LyondellBasell announced the successful start-up of its MoReTec molecular recycling facility at its Ferrara, Italy, site. LyondellBasell's proprietary MoReTec advanced recycling technology aims to return post-consumer plastic waste to its molecular form for use as a feedstock for new plastic materials. LyondellBasell successfully starts up its MoReTec molecular recycling facility at its Ferrara, Italy, site. The pilot plant completes the company's next step towards an industrial scale conversion of plastic waste into feedstock.

08:14 EDT Duos Technologies Group awarded $1.3M contract by Class 1 railroad customer - Duos Technologies Group said in a release, "Duos Technologies Group, through its operating subsidiary Duos Technologies, has been awarded an initial contract by an existing Class 1 railroad customer to substantially expand its current relationship and upgrade its scope of work at an existing Railcar Inspection Portal for the purpose of instituting increased automated mechanical inspections. The total contract is valued at approximately $1.3 million and will be executed over the next few months with completion expected before the end of the year. This contract also includes future payments through 2022 for recurring service, maintenance and spare parts components in addition to the base contract value."

08:12 EDT Eos Energy to merge with B. Riley Principal Merger, to list on Nasdaq - Eos Energy and B. Riley Principal Merger (BMRG), a special purpose acquisition company sponsored by an affiliate of B. Riley Financial (RILY), announced a definitive merger agreement for a business combination that would result in Eos becoming a publicly listed company. Upon closing of the transaction, the combined company will be renamed Eos Energy Enterprises (EOSE) and intends to list its shares of common stock on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol (EOSE). Eos is focused on accelerating the growth of clean energy in the United States by deploying large scale stationary energy storage solutions that deliver reliable and cost-competitive power in a safe and environmentally sustainable way. Eos's flagship product, the Eos Znyth DC battery system, is designed to meet the requirements of the grid-scale energy storage market, is commercially available and scalable, and is manufactured in the United States. The business combination values Eos at an implied $550M pro forma enterprise value which represents approximately 2x 2022E revenue and approximately 0.5x 2024E revenue. The boards of directors of both Eos and BMRG have approved the proposed transaction, which is expected to be completed in Q4. The net proceeds from this transaction will be used to fund the growth of Eos's corporate strategy, which includes the expansion of its manufacturing capacity to meet customer demand, investment in personnel to further drive research, development and commercialization, in addition to general corporate purposes. Following completion of the transaction, Eos will retain its management team. Joe Mastrangelo will continue to serve as CEO and Sagar Kurada will continue to serve as CFO. Daniel Shribman will join the Eos board of directors upon closing of the transaction.

08:11 EDT TPI Composites appoints Bavan Holloway to board of directors - TPI Composites (TPIC) announced that Bavan Holloway has joined its board of directors, effective September 8, 2020. Ms. Holloway also will serve on the Audit Committee of the Board. From August 2010 to April 2020, Ms. Holloway served as Vice President of Corporate Audit for The Boeing Company (BA).

08:09 EDT Co-Diagnostics announces agreement with Arches Research - Co-Diagnostics announced that it has entered into an agreement with Arches Research, a CLIA laboratory and subsidiary of Polarity TE, to expand Arches' COVID-19 testing services using Co-Diagnostics' Logix Smart COVID-19 test kit. Arches Research began using Co-Diagnostics' tests for its customers earlier this year. The announcement follows news last week of additional, independent third-party validation of the Company's test, supporting its performance characteristics and value in helping communities, schools, and workplaces to re-open safely. The CE-marked and FDA EUA Co-Diagnostics Logix Smart COVID-19 test is currently available to all clinical laboratories certified under Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments, and is authorized to be used for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in the US and many other countries.

08:08 EDT Leaf Group says Society6 delivers $17.4M in gross transaction value in August - Society6 announced record-setting Gross Transaction Value of $17.4 million for August 2020 - a 116% increase year-over-year - marking the brand's strongest month in company history. The artist-driven online marketplace, featuring made-to-order products in home decor, wall art, apparel and accessories, saw further momentum across home decor with shifts in consumer behavior to online continuing to fuel strong growth in new and repeat customers.

08:07 EDT Yum! Brands' KFC announces new DoorDash partnership - Kentucky Fried Chicken announced that its world-famous fried chicken is now available for order and on-demand delivery through DoorDash. To celebrate the new partnership, KFC and DoorDash are offering fried chicken fans across the U.S. an irresistible deal: Beginning today, September 8, through Thursday, September 17, customers will receive 12 free chicken tenders with the purchase of select KFC bucket meals on orders placed through the DoorDash website or app with promo code KFC12.

08:07 EDT Biocept announces agreement with Health Net Federal Services - Biocept announces it has entered into an agreement with Health Net Federal Services to be an in-network provider for its Target Selector liquid biopsy oncology platform for the TRICARE West region network. TriWest provides healthcare services to approximately three million members of the U.S. military and their families.

08:06 EDT 1-800-Flowers.com plans to hire more than 10,000 seasonal employees - 1-800-Flowers.com has announced its plans to hire more than 10,000 seasonal associates across its gourmet foods and gift brands for the upcoming holiday season. Hiring has commenced at Harry & David, PersonalizationMall.com, Cheryl's Cookies and The Popcorn Factory to fill critical roles to meet holiday peak demand and help customers connect with others as they navigate what is expected to be an unusual season ahead. As the company quadruples its workforce nationwide for the holiday period, it continues to prioritize the health and safety of its team members.

08:05 EDT Avidity Biosciences announces collaboration supporting END-DM1 - Avidity Biosciences announced it entered into a collaboration supporting END-DM1, a natural history study to advance the understanding of disease progression in patients with myotonic dystrophy type 1. END-DM1, or Establishing Biomarkers and Clinical Endpoints in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1, is a non-interventional study designed and run by the Myotonic Dystrophy Clinical Research Network, or DMCRN, a network of medical centers that aims to support future clinical trials of potential therapies for DM1 through the generation of evidence around endpoint measures and testing methods.

08:04 EDT Alimera Sciences obtains reimbursement approval for ILUVIEN use - Alimera Sciences announces that the Scottish Medicines Consortium, after completing its assessment and review, has accepted ILUVIEN for prevention of relapse in recurrent non-infectious uveitis affecting the posterior segment of the eye. The decision came following a review of a cost-utility analysis for the prevention of relapse in recurrent non-infectious uveitis based on results from the PSV-FAI-001 clinical study. The analysis compared outcomes following insertion of a fluocinolone acetonide implant at baseline with standard treatment, including systemic corticosteroids or immunosuppressants, topical steroids, intraocular pressure reduction therapy, cataract removal and other elective ocular surgical procedures.

08:03 EDT Oxford Lane sees NAV $3.71-$3.81 as of August 31 - Oxford Lane Capital announced the following net asset value estimate as of August 31, 2020. Management's unaudited estimate of the range of our NAV per share of our common stock as of August 31, 2020 is between $3.71 and $3.81. This estimate is not a comprehensive statement of our financial condition or results for the month ended August 31, 2020. This estimate did not undergo the Company's typical quarter-end financial closing procedures and was not approved by the Company's board of directors. We advise you that our NAV per share for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 may differ materially from this estimate, which is given only as of August 31, 2020. As of August 31, 2020, the Company had approximately 86.9 million shares of common stock issued and outstanding.

08:01 EDT Comscore and Weigel Broadcasting renew agreement - Comscore announced a renewal agreement to provide Weigel Broadcasting with continued local TV measurement for their five Milwaukee, WI stations and three South Bend, IN stations. Under the agreement, Weigel will continue its long-term use of Comscore's local television currency, including Comscore's powerful Advanced Automotive and Political Audience segments, to better plan, transact and evaluate not only the size, but the value and relevance of their audience.

07:58 EDT cbdMD signs multi-year exclusive retail distribution agreement with Life Time - cbdMD has signed a multi-year, exclusive retail distribution agreement with Life Time, Inc., a healthy lifestyle brand. As part of the agreement, cbdMD's products will be available for sale in Life Time destinations and in the coming months also available in its online health store. The new retail distribution agreement expands cbdMD's original, exclusive marketing and sponsorship agreement from October 2019. As the exclusive CBD partner of Life Time, cbdMD has a presence within all Life Time clubs, including its internal TV channel, digital signage, atrium signage, banner units, and poster units, as well as in Experience Life magazine print and digital media. cbdMD is also the annual sponsor of numerous Life Time events, including Presenting Sponsor of The Miami Marathon and Half Marathon, Title Sponsor of Chicago Tri, the world's largest triathlon, Escape to Miami Tri and Big Sugar gravel bike race, and Official Sponsor of the New York City Tri, Minneapolis Tri, Crusher in the Tushar, Chequamegon, Lutsen 99er and Barn Burner bike races, Chicago Spring and Fall Half Marathons, Turkey Day 5Ks in Minneapolis, Chicago and Miami and the Leadville Race Series.

07:45 EDT Silence Therapeutics initiates dosing in Phase 1 study of SLN124 - Silence has initiated dosing in its randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 1 single-ascending dose study of SLN124, the Company's wholly owned product candidate for beta-thalassaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome, in up to 24 healthy volunteers. This marks the first dose of a Silence siRNA therapeutic delivered to humans using the Company's proprietary GalNAc-siRNA platform. GalNAc is a naturally occurring sugar that binds specifically to a receptor which is highly expressed on liver cells, or hepatocytes. Coupling GalNAc sugars to stabilized siRNA molecules allows them to specifically target liver cells and carry out their function. The FDA recently granted SLN124 orphan drug designation for the treatment of adult beta-thalassemia. The FDA previously granted SLN124 ODD for MDS and rare paediatric designation for beta-thalassaemia. SLN124 also has ODD for the treatment of beta-thalassaemia from the European Medical Agency.

07:43 EDT Silence Therapeutics announces SEC declares registration statement effective - Silence Therapeutics announces that in connection with a listing of American Depositary Shares representing ordinary shares of nominal value GBP0.05 each in the capital of the Company on the Nasdaq Capital Market, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission has declared effective registration statements on Form F-1 and F-6 with respect to such securities, Nasdaq has approved the ADSs for listing, and ADSs are expected to be listed for trading on such market under the symbol "SLN" on 8 September 2020. The registration statement was filed to facilitate the creation of a trading market in the US for ADSs representing the Company's Ordinary Shares. The Company has not registered any new issuance of securities in connection with this filing. The Company's Ordinary Shares will continue to be admitted to trading on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange.

07:41 EDT AnGes, Brickell Biotech enter collaboration agreement for DNA vaccine candidate - AnGes announced a collaboration agreement with Brickell Biotech through which Brickell has the right to develop AnGes' proprietary investigational adjuvanted plasmid DNA vaccine intended to prevent SARS-CoV-2 in the U.S., South America and certain emerging markets. AnGes is currently conducting Phase 1/2 clinical studies with its vaccine candidate in Japan, with data readouts expected through the first quarter of 2021. The results from these studies will guide AnGes' and Brickell's global development efforts of this novel vaccine candidate. Under the terms of this agreement, AnGes will continue to lead the development of its vaccine candidate in Japan and Brickell will provide information and know-how that could be relevant to such development efforts. In exchange for this, Brickell has received the right to develop and, if approved, commercialize AnGes' DNA vaccine in the U.S. and certain underserved countries.

07:38 EDT Nikola jumps 16% to $41.25 after forming partnership with General Motors - General Motors is up 5% to $31.46.

07:35 EDT Spero Therapeutics says Phase 3 ADAPT-PO trial met primary endpoint - Spero Therapeutics announced positive topline results from ADAPT-PO, the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating Spero's oral antibiotic candidate, tebipenem HBr, for the treatment of adults with complicated urinary tract infection and acute pyelonephritis. Topline data from the trial demonstrate that oral tebipenem HBr was statistically non-inferior to intravenous ertapenem in the treatment of patients with cUTI and patients with AP. The global Phase 3 ADAPT-PO clinical trial evaluated the safety and efficacy of oral tebipenem HBr versus IV ertapenem for the treatment of adults with cUTI or AP. Results demonstrate that tebipenem HBr was non-inferior compared to ertapenem with respect to the trial's primary endpoint, overall response at the test-of-cure visit in the microbiological-intent-to-treat population. The favorable overall response rates at TOC were 58.8% versus 61.6% for tebipenem HBr and ertapenem, respectively. Clinical cure rates at TOC were high in both treatment groups. Overall response rates were consistent across key subgroups of interest, including age, baseline diagnosis, and presence of bacteremia. Per pathogen microbiological response was balanced across treatment groups for most prevalent uropathogens. Comparative safety data from the 1,372 hospitalized adult patients who enrolled in the trial suggest that tebipenem HBr was well-tolerated, with a safety profile similar to that of ertapene. Treatment emergent adverse events were reported in approximately 26% of patients in both treatment groups. The most commonly reported TEAEs in both treatment groups were diarrhea and headache. Serious TEAEs were infrequent and no deaths were reported in the trial. Three Clostridioides difficile-associated TEAEs were observed in the ertapenem group, while none were observed in the tebipenem HBr group. Emerging data from the tebipenem HBr program, including the ADAPT-PO clinical trial results, will be presented in detail at future scientific meetings and in publications. Tebipenem HBr has been granted Qualified Infectious Disease Product and Fast Track designations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of cUTI, which may result in expedited review and an option for rolling submission of a New Drug Application. Spero intends to initiate a rolling NDA submission and anticipates completing the NDA submission to the FDA for tebipenem HBr in the second quarter of 2021.

07:33 EDT LabCorp launches first combined test for COVID-19, flu and RSV - LabCorp announced the launch of the first testing method to simultaneously detect COVID-19, influenza A / B, and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. The single-panel test, which detects multiple types of infections, can help doctors diagnose patients and make decisions about treatment options. The test is available to patients through doctors, hospitals, and other authorized healthcare providers nationwide. LabCorp has also submitted an application to the FDA to offer the combined test through its Pixel by LabCorp at-home test collection kit. LabCorp's COVID-19, influenza A / B, and RSV testing method is part of the company's commitment to meet the demand for diagnostic testing as the country addresses the overlap of the COVID-19 health crisis and flu season. Between October 1, 2019, and April 4, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that there were 39M to 56M flu illnesses, resulting in 18M to 26M medical visits. Pending authorization by the FDA, the Pixel by LabCorp at-home test will be another option for individuals to determine if they have the flu, COVID-19 or RSV. Thousands of people have used the company's COVID-19 Pixel by LabCorp at-home test kit, with 95% of users being very satisfied or satisfied with their experience. The Pixel by LabCorp at-home test uses a short swab that is inserted into the individual's lower nostril. In addition to its novel respiratory flu test, LabCorp offers a suite of readily accessible prevention-to-detection solutions for COVID-19 and flu that doctors, healthcare providers, individuals, employers, and students can access. The company has performed over 13M molecular tests since March, using several sample collection methods, including simple nasal swabs and nasopharyngeal swabs.

07:31 EDT Medigus says Fortune 500 company adds ScoutCam to approved supplier list - Medigus announced that it was informed by ScoutCam that ScoutCam has been officially included on a Fortune 500 multinational healthcare corporation's Approved Supplier List. The qualification will allow ScoutCam to develop, manufacture and supply a complete visualization solution for the global company's minimally invasive surgical product, which incorporates ScoutCam's single-use miniature video cameras. The two companies initially began collaborating back in 2018 and in mid-2019, a formal audit at ScoutCam's facilities was completed. This past May, the global standard Supplier Quality Agreement of the customer was signed. ScoutCam provided a final quote to the healthcare corporation in May as well, which included development fees of $2.4M to be paid per milestones in 2020-2021 and prices per ordered quantities for the supply of the final deliverables, ranging in hundreds of USD per unit. ScoutCam's inclusion on the ASL encompasses all of its business units, in addition to the one in which ScoutCam is currently engaged.

07:29 EDT Cardinal advises shareholders to accept improved Shandong Gold offer - Cardinal Resources refers to its announcements of 2 and 3 September 2020 in relation to the revised Nord Gold on-market takeover offer for Cardinal at A$0.90 cash per share. As announced earlier today, Cardinal has received a revised and improved proposal for an off-market takeover offer from Shandong Gold Mining, pursuant to which Shandong Gold will offer to acquire all of the shares in Cardinal it does not presently own at a cash price of A$1.00 per share. The Cardinal Board, together with the Special Committee and its financial and legal advisers, carefully considered the Improved Shandong Gold Offer in detail and given the superior price to the Nordgold Takeover Bid, the Cardinal Board unanimously recommends that Cardinal Shareholders: ACCEPT the Improved Shandong Gold Offer; and REJECT the Nordgold Takeover Bid. The recommended Improved Shandong Gold Offer of A$1.00 cash per share values Cardinal at approximately A$565.6 million on a fully diluted basis and represents an attractive premium of approximately 11.1% to the revised Nordgold Takeover Bid of A$0.90 cash per share. The Improved Shandong Gold Offer is no longer subject to Chinese Regulatory Approvals or FIRB Approval, and only remains subject to a number of standard market conditions for a transaction of this nature. The Cardinal Board has no reason to believe that the remaining conditions of the Improved Shandong Gold Offer cannot be satisfied within a reasonable timeframe based on the information available to it as at the date of this announcement and in careful consultation with Cardinal's advisers. As the Directors have determined to continue to unanimously recommend that Cardinal Shareholders accept the Improved Shandong Gold Offer, Cardinal has today entered into a deed with each of Shandong Gold and Shandong Gold Mining Co., Ltd. to amend the Bid Implementation Agreement to give effect to the Improved Shandong Gold Offer. In summary, the Second Amendment Deed amends the Bid Implementation Agreement to, amongst other matters: increase the Offer Price of the Improved Shandong Gold Offer to A$1.00 per Share; increase the ascribed value per Cardinal Option for certain Cardinal Options; increase the break fee so that it continues to represent approximately 1% of the deal value; and amend the definition of "Acceptance Date". As announced to the market on 3 September 2020, the Cardinal Directors maintain their Acceptance Intention as required under the Bid Implementation Agreement. Under the Second Amendment Deed, Cardinal and Shandong Gold have agreed to amend the "Acceptance Date" to a date that is 5 Business Days after the date of the Second Amendment Deed. Accordingly, the Cardinal Directors who own or control Shares in Cardinal intend to accept the Improved Shandong Gold Offer in respect of all of the Shares they own or control on Monday, 14 September 2020, subject to there being no Superior Proposal.

07:24 EDT Quantum Leap, Athenex evaluate oral paclitaxel plus encequidar with dostarlimab - Quantum Leap Healthcare Collaborative and Athenex (ATNX) announce the launch of two new study arms of the I-SPY 2 TRIAL to evaluate Athenex's combination of oral paclitaxel plus encequidar with GSK's (GSK) dostarlimab, an investigational antibody binding PD-1, in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy setting. The goal of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of oral paclitaxel plus encequidar with dostarlimab +/- carboplatin in Stage 2/3 HER2- breast cancer patients and plus trastuzumab in HER2+ patients, followed, if needed, by doxorubicin plus cyclophosphamide chemotherapy and surgical resection of breast tissue. The primary objective is to determine whether this regimen increases the probability of pathologic complete response over standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone for any of the tumor subtypes established at trial entry, and to determine the predictive probability of success in a subsequent Phase 3 trial. The primary endpoint is to assess objective response rates, as measured by pCR. This measurement will occur after the end of therapy during pathologic assessment of residual disease. pCR is defined as no residual invasive cancer in the breast or in the lymph nodes. Secondary endpoints include safety assessments and additional information on response to be obtained by measuring the change in MRI volume before, during and after therapy in order to calculate the change in residual cancer burden at time of pathologic assessment of residual disease. This regimen has several innovative components including: assessment of extending PD-1 blockade to HER2+, an orally bioavailable investigational paclitaxel that may be more convenient and tolerable over many more cycles compared to the IV formulation, and the assessment of the impact of carboplatin on efficacy across all tumor subtypes, which may drastically enhance outcomes for some patients. The I-SPY 2 TRIAL, sponsored by Quantum Leap, is a standing Phase 2 randomized, controlled, multicenter platform with an innovative Bayesian adaptive randomization design aimed to rapidly screen and identify promising new treatments in specific subgroups of adults with newly-diagnosed, high-risk, locally-advanced breast cancer. GSK will provide dostarlimab. Athenex will provide oral paclitaxel and encequidar. Quantum Leap will be responsible for running the trial.

07:18 EDT Rosehill Resources, Rosehill Operating Company emerge from Chapter 11 - Rosehill Resources and Rosehill Operating Company announced that, on September 4, 2020, they emerged from chapter 11 bankruptcy (the "Chapter 11 Cases") pursuant to their prepackaged chapter 11 plan. The Plan implements the previously announced Restructuring Support Agreement between certain of the Company's consenting creditors and preferred equity holders. Pursuant to the Plan, all general unsecured creditors, including the Company's trade creditors and vendors, will be paid in full by Rosehill Operating in the ordinary course of business. All of Rosehill's prepetition equity interests have been cancelled as of the Effective Date, and as of the Effective Date, Rosehill Operating's equity is majority owned by funds managed by EIG Global Energy Partners.

07:16 EDT Sanuwave Health announces reimbursement coverage for BIOVANCE from Centene - SANUWAVE Health (SNWV) announced that Centene Corporation (CNC) has included SANUWAVE's BIOVANCE in its list of reimbursed skin substitutes for advanced wound healing for the more than 24.5 million lives it covers. BIOVANCE is decellularized, dehydrated human amniotic membrane that is an intact, natural extracellular matrix that acts as a scaffold for restoration of functional tissue. BIOVANCE contains key ECM proteins that allow for the migration of host cells to permeate the graft and promote tissue repair when applied to a wound. BIOVANCE brings the progenerative power of the amnion to tissue regeneration1-6 and provides a foundation for the wound healing process.

07:09 EDT COVID vaccine makers pledge to only seek approval after Phase 3 testing - The CEOs of AstraZeneca (AZN), BioNTech (BNTX), GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Merck (MRK), Moderna (MRNA), Novavax (NVAX), Pfizer (PFE), and Sanofi (SNY) announced a pledge, outlining a "united commitment to uphold the integrity of the scientific process as they work towards potential global regulatory filings and approvals of the first COVID-19 vaccines." The statement reads in part: "We, the undersigned biopharmaceutical companies, want to make clear our on-going commitment to developing and testing potential vaccines for COVID-19 in accordance with high ethical standards and sound scientific principles. The safety and efficacy of vaccines, including any potential vaccine for COVID-19, is reviewed and determined by expert regulatory agencies around the world, such as the United States Food and Drug Administration. FDA has established clear guidance for the development of COVID-19 vaccines and clear criteria for their potential authorization or approval in the US. FDA's guidance and criteria are based on the scientific and medical principles necessary to clearly demonstrate the safety and efficacy of potential COVID-19 vaccines. More specifically, the agency requires that scientific evidence for regulatory approval must come from large, high quality clinical trials that are randomized and observer-blinded, with an expectation of appropriately designed studies with significant numbers of participants across diverse populations...We believe this pledge will help ensure public confidence in the rigorous scientific and regulatory process by which COVID-19 vaccines are evaluated and may ultimately be approved. We believe this pledge will help ensure public confidence in the rigorous scientific and regulatory process by which COVID-19 vaccines are evaluated and may ultimately be approved." The companies also pledged to "only submit for approval or emergency use authorization after demonstrating safety and efficacy through a Phase 3 clinical study that is designed and conducted to meet requirements of expert regulatory authorities such as FDA."

07:08 EDT Bellus Health announces study design for SOOTHE trial of BLU-5937 - Bellus Health announced the planned trial design for SOOTHE, the company's Phase 2b dose confirmation trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of BLU-5937 in refractory chronic cough, or RCC. The Phase 2b trial is designed based on the results from the company's previous Phase 2 RELIEF trial including the finding that baseline cough frequency is a key indicator of treatment benefit. The SOOTHE Phase 2b trial is planned as a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, 4-week, parallel arm study evaluating three doses of BLU-5937 in 280 patients with refractory chronic cough versus placebo. Overall, 240 participants with a baseline cough count of greater than or equal to 25 awake coughs per hour are expected to be randomized across four arms evaluating the three active doses and placebo in the main study. Treatment arms will be stratified by baseline awake cough frequency to help balance the baseline cough count across trial arms. The primary efficacy endpoint will be the placebo-adjusted change in the 24-hour cough frequency using a cough recorder in the main study. An additional 40 participants with a baseline cough count less than 25 awake coughs per hour are expected to be randomized across two arms evaluating one active dose and placebo to further investigate the effect of BLU-5937 in an exploratory analysis. The trial is expected to enroll participants in approximately 100 sites, including 50 centers in the United States. The first patient is expected to be dosed in Q4 2020. An interim analysis is expected to be conducted once 50% of patients have completed the main study and is anticipated in mid-2021. Using a predefined probability of efficacy hurdle, results from the interim analysis may be used to help select dose(s) for Phase 3 and initiate Phase 3 planning, including health authority interactions. Topline results from SOOTHE are expected in 2H 2021. The Company has confirmed a meeting with FDA in Q4 2020 and any adjustments to trial design or our expected timeline based on FDA feedback will be disclosed thereafter.

07:08 EDT AVEO Oncology regains full global rights to ficlatuzumab - Aveo Pharmaceuticals said in a release, "AVEO Oncology announced that it has regained full global rights to ficlatuzumab, AVEO's potent hepatocyte growth factor, or HGF, inhibitory antibody which binds to the HGF ligand with high affinity and specificity to inhibit HGF/c-Met biological activities. AVEO also announced today that it plans to fund the clinical manufacture of ficlatuzumab to enable a potential registrational Phase 3 clinical trial in head and neck squamous cell cancer, or HNSCC, as well as additional potential development in Phase 2 studies in pancreatic cancer and acute myeloid leukemia, or AML. Following the decision, Biodesix, a leading diagnostic company, has exercised its contractual right to reduce its future financial obligations in exchange for reduced partnership economics. Under the terms of the agreement between AVEO and Biodesix, Biodesix will continue to fund 50% of the ongoing HNSCC Phase 2 trial, and will be entitled to a low double digit royalty on any future product sales as well as 25% of future licensing revenue, subject to certain limitations."

07:06 EDT Protara Therapeutics reaches alignment with FDA on TARA-002 development path - Protara Therapeutics announced its development plans for TARA-002 in both non-muscle invasive bladder cancer and Lymphatic Malformations following recent interactions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. TARA-002 is the Company's lead investigational cell therapy based on the broad immunopotentiator OK-432, which is approved in Japan and Taiwan for the treatment of LMs and multiple oncologic indications. Following a recent pre-Investigational New Drug engagement with the Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies division of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, the FDA agreed that Protara has successfully demonstrated initial manufacturing comparability between TARA-002 and OK-432 and that the Company was on track with its plans to conduct three large-scale batch runs to confirm comparability. Good Manufacturing Practice scale up is currently in process and the Company will initiate GMP comparability runs with an expected completion date in mid-2021. In addition, the Company reached alignment with the FDA on a proposed clinical development plan to evaluate TARA-002 in patients with NMIBC. Advancement into the clinic will be supported by existing and ongoing non-clinical studies as well as the historical safety and efficacy data for OK-432. Subject to the successful completion of select non-clinical studies to characterize local toxicity of intravesical administration of TARA-002 as well as acceptance of an IND filing, the Company plans to commence a Phase 1 study in 2021 to assess the safety and tolerability of TARA-002 in patients with NMIBC, including patients with carcinoma in situ, with results expected in 2022. The Phase 2 development program, which Protara plans to commence in 2022, is expected to include NMIBC patients with CIS +/- Ta and/or T1 papillary tumors and high-grade Ta and/or T1 papillary tumors without CIS. Protara plans to request a meeting with the FDA Division of Vaccines and Related Products Applications by year end to discuss the regulatory path for TARA-002 in LMs. The Company plans to utilize the robust dataset for OK-432 in LMs to support a Biological License Application (BLA) filing for TARA-002 in LMs. In a randomized, Phase 2 clinical trial of OK-432 in LMs conducted in the U.S., 68% of patients treated with OK-432 in the immediate treatment group experienced a complete or substantial response. Long-term control of LMs was favorable, with more than 90% of patients treated with OK-432 having no regrowth over a median follow-up period of approximately three years following treatment.

07:04 EDT Evoqua Water acquires Aquapure Technologies, terms not disclosed - Evoqua Water announced it has acquired privately held Aquapure Technologies of Cincinnati, a Hamilton, Ohio based water service and equipment company. Evoqua Water said in a release, "This acquisition will further strengthen Evoqua's service capabilities in Cincinnati, Ohio and the surrounding region. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Aquapure Technologies serves the commercial and light industrial markets from its Hamilton-based branch. It provides its customers with a variety of water treatment products and services, including deionization, reverse osmosis, softeners and filtration systems."

07:04 EDT Atara Biotherapeutics receives FDA clearance to initiate ATA2271 study - Atara Biotherapeutics announced that the FDA has accepted the investigational new drug, or IND, application providing clearance to initiate an open-label, single-arm Phase 1 clinical study of ATA2271, the company's next-generation autologous CAR T therapy targeting mesothelin under development in collaboration with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for the treatment of advanced mesothelioma.

07:04 EDT Aurora Cannabis names Miguel Martin as CEO, effective immediately - Aurora Cannabis announced that Miguel Martin has been appointed CEO, effective immediately. With deep, diverse experience in consumer packaged goods, highly regulated industries and the U.S. cannabinoid industry, Miguel is well-positioned to execute the next phase of Aurora's business transformation, with a focus on commercial strategy. Michael Singer, who has served as Interim CEO since February 2020, has stepped down from his temporary role and will remain Executive Chairman.

07:03 EDT BeyondSpring receives Breakthrough Therapy Designation for plinabulin - BeyondSpring announced that its lead asset Plinabulin, has received the Breakthrough Therapy Designation for the chemotherapy-induced neutropenia indication from both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and China's Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of the National Medical Products Administration. The FDA's BTD is intended to expedite the development and review of a drug candidate that is planned to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition in which clinical evidence indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints. The CDE in China established its BTD program in July 2020 to facilitate the research and development of innovative drugs that treat severe life-threatening or quality-of-life impairing diseases with no existing therapy or with proven evidence to demonstrate clear clinical benefits compared to existing therapies. Products with BTD from the CDE may be considered for conditional approval and priority review when submitting New Drug Applications. The Breakthrough Therapy application is based on the strength of the totality of the clinical data generated so far: Positive interim analysis results from the PROTECTIVE-2 Phase 3 study - The clinically meaningful primary endpoint was the prevention of severe neutropenia, an "industry first," building on the previous standard for approval, the Duration of Severe Neutropenia. In the protocol-specified interim analysis, Plinabulin, in combination with Neulasta, was significantly better than Neulasta alone in achieving the primary endpoint with pless than0.01, along with a well-tolerated safety profile and fewer Grade 4 adverse events, compared to Neulasta alone. These results were further strengthened by the Company's other CIN studies that have confirmed Plinabulin's early onset action in Week 1 with protecting neutrophils in various cancer types and various chemotherapies, which is complementary to Week 2 neutrophil protection with G-CSFs. The Company expects to report the full PROTECTIVE-2 Phase 3 topline data in Q4 2020 and file an NDA with the FDA by the end of 2020. The Company has submitted an NDA for Plinabulin for the CIN indication to the NMPA on a rolling basis in Q1 2020.

07:02 EDT KAR Auction to acquire BacklotCars for $425M - KAR Auction Services has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BacklotCars. BacklotCars is an app and web-based dealer-to-dealer wholesale platform featuring a 24/7 "bid-ask" marketplace and comprehensive vehicle inspections performed by automobile mechanics. Upon closing, the acquisition will further diversify KAR's broad portfolio of digital capabilities and accelerate the company's strategy to be a leading digital dealer-to-dealer marketplace provider. The acquisition will also build on the successful foundation of the company's TradeRev auction platform and provide dealers with greater choice, enhanced transparency, and access to an expanded buyer and seller population. After the transaction closes, key BacklotCars leadership including co-founders Justin Davis, Ryan Davis, Josh Parsons and Fabricio Solanes will remain with the company, and KAR intends to continue operating BacklotCars' Kansas City headquarters location. The purchase price of the acquisition is $425M and the transaction is expected to close prior to year-end pending the requisite legal and regulatory approvals. Guggenheim Securities is acting as exclusive financial advisor to KAR Global and Winston & Strawn is serving as legal advisor. Evercore is acting as exclusive financial advisor to BacklotCars and Stinson is serving as legal advisor.

06:59 EDT Protalix regains compliance with NYSE - Protalix announced that it received notification from the NYSE that the company has regained compliance with all of the continued listing standards set forth in Part 10 of the NYSE company guide. Specifically, that the company has resolved the continued listing deficiency with respect to Sections 1003 of the company guide.

06:56 EDT Westlake Chemical Partners updates statement on Lake Charles operations - Westlake Chemical Partners issued a statement updating the impact of Hurricane Laura, which made landfall near plants in the Lake Charles, Louisiana area owned by Westlake Chemical OpCo LP, in which the Partnership owns a 22.8% interest. "In the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, the Partnership's primary concern is for the safety of OpCo's employees and the integrity of its operations in the greater Lake Charles area. We are working to assist OpCo's employees and their families, many of whom have suffered damage to their homes and are without power. Recovery efforts at OpCo's plants in the Lake Charles area are underway for the safe and reliable return to operations. Restoration of electricity and other utilities remain critical to these efforts. The local utility, Entergy Louisiana, has reported extensive damage to the electricity transmission system in the Lake Charles area and that restoration of service will take a number of weeks. Given Entergy's latest guidance on the restoration of power to the Lake Charles area, barring other unforeseen circumstances, we currently expect production at some of OpCo's units to restart by the end of September and full production to resume in early October."

06:52 EDT Westlake Chemical provided update on the impact of Hurricane Laura - Westlake Chemical issued a statement updating the impact of Hurricane Laura, which made landfall near its plants in the Lake Charles, Louisiana area. According to the company "In the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, the safety of our employees and the integrity of our operations in the greater Lake Charles area remain our primary focus. We are working to assist our employees and their families, many of whom have suffered damage to their homes and are without power. Recovery efforts at our plants in the Lake Charles area are underway for the safe and reliable return to operations. Restoration of electricity and other utilities remain critical to these efforts. The local utility, Entergy Louisiana, has reported extensive damage to the electricity transmission system in the Lake Charles area and that restoration of service will take a number of weeks. Given Entergy's latest guidance on the restoration of power to the Lake Charles area, barring other unforeseen circumstances, we currently expect production at some of our units to restart by the end of September and full production to resume in early October."

06:47 EDT Merck announces results from COUGH-1, COUGH-2 trials evaluating gefapixant - Merck has announced the results from two pivotal Phase 3 trials (COUGH-1 and COUGH-2) evaluating the efficacy and safety of gefapixant (MK-7264), an investigational, orally administered, selective P2X3 receptor antagonist, for the potential treatment of refractory or unexplained chronic cough. COUGH-1 and COUGH-2 are the first companion Phase 3 trials ever conducted in patients with refractory chronic cough, a cough that persists despite appropriate treatment of underlying conditions, or unexplained chronic cough, a cough where the underlying cause cannot be identified despite a thorough evaluation. In these studies, adult patients treated with gefapixant 45 mg twice daily demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in 24-hour cough frequency (measured objectively, as coughs per hour, using 24-hour sound recordings) versus placebo at 12 weeks (COUGH-1) (18.45% reduction relative to placebo, 95% CI) and 24 weeks (COUGH-2) (14.64% reduction relative to placebo, 95% CI). The gefapixant 15 mg twice daily treatment arms did not meet the primary efficacy endpoint in either Phase 3 study.

06:42 EDT MAG Silver completes $50M at-the-market equity program - MAG Silver is pleased to announce that the $50M at-the-market equity program previously announced has been completed. Since June 30, MAG Silver sold and issued 3,092,783 common shares under the ATM Program at an average price of $16.16 per share, for gross and net proceeds of $50M and $48.625M, respectively. There is no further remaining availability under this ATM Program.

06:38 EDT Strongbridge Biopharma announces 'positive' results from Phase 3 RECORLEV study - Strongbridge Biopharma announced positive and statistically significant top-line results from its multinational, Phase 3, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized-withdrawal LOGICS study evaluating RECORLEV for the treatment of endogenous Cushing's syndrome. "We are delighted to announce the positive and statistically significant top-line results of the LOGICS study, which add to the growing body of evidence supporting the potential of RECORLEV as an effective and well tolerated cortisol synthesis inhibitor to treat Cushing's syndrome. We believe that these results, coupled with the previously reported positive results from our Phase 3 SONICS study, will support a New Drug Application in the U.S., which we plan to submit to the Food & Drug Administration in the first quarter of 2021," said Fredric Cohen, M.D., chief medical officer of Strongbridge Biopharma. "On behalf of Strongbridge, we would like to thank the many patients, investigators, collaborators, and employees who have contributed to our RECORLEV Phase 3 clinical program, particularly to our more recent study participants who remained committed to completing the LOGICS study despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic."

06:35 EDT Progress Software to acquire Chef for $220M, accretive in Q1 of FY21 - Progress announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Chef, a global leader in DevOps and DevSecOps, providing complete infrastructure automation to build, deploy, manage and secure applications in modern multi-cloud and hybrid environments, as well as on-premises. Founded in 2008, Chef has over $70M in annual recurring revenue. Progress will acquire Chef for $220M in cash, subject to customary adjustments. Progress will fund the transaction with existing cash on hand and funds secured under its existing credit facility. The transaction is expected to be accretive beginning in Q1 of FY21 to both non-GAAP EPS and cash flow.

06:31 EDT Canaan approves $10M share repurchase program - Canaan announced that its board of directors has authorized a share repurchase program under which the Company may repurchase up to $10M worth of its outstanding American depositary shares, each representing 15 Class A ordinary shares, and/or Class A ordinary shares over the next 12 months starting from September 22.

06:17 EDT Quotient, Ortho Clinical Diagnostics settle arbitration - Quotient announced that the company and Ortho Clinical Diagnostics have signed a binding letter of intent that confirms the termination of their former distribution agreement and related contracts and resolves all their disputes over the former distribution agreement. In addition, this ends the pending arbitration between the two companies and establishes a new distributor relationship focused solely on patient transfusion diagnostics. Under the new agreement, Quotient will develop an immunohematology MosaiQ microarray optimized for the patient transfusion market. Quotient will sell this microarray along with instruments and consumables to Ortho for distribution in Europe and in the US. In addition to payments for the products it will supply, Quotient will also be entitled to payments in the amount of up to $67.5M. The first non-refundable milestone payment of $7.5M was received on September 4th, 2020. The remaining milestone payments are due upon achievement of certain regulatory and commercial sales benchmarks. Ortho's rights to the IH microarray in the European and US patient transfusion markets are for ten-year terms. Ortho's rights are exclusive so long as Ortho satisfies certain minimum purchase requirements. Under the new agreement Ortho has no rights to applications of Quotient's MosaiQ technology outside of patient transfusion diagnostics. Quotient retains the rights to market, distribute and sell the IH microarray for use in testing blood donors. The current global transfusion diagnostics market is estimated at $3.4B of which approximately two-thirds is related to the blood donation market to which Quotient retains all rights.

06:10 EDT CNX Resources raises FY20 FCF view to $350M from $300M - CNX Resources announced that it continues to execute on its commitment to generate free cash flow, or FCF, per share on a regular basis and reducing its outstanding debt. The following is an update of key drivers in that effort.. The company increased 2020 FCF guidance to approximately $350M from prior guidance of $300M. In August, CNX received $104M of federal tax refunds, which the company expects to use to further pay down its 5.875% notes due in 2022, leaving a remaining balance of approximately $250M, a reduction from $895M at year-end 2019. CNX expects full year EBITDAX to be modestly above the high-end of the previously announced range of $830M-$900M.Capital expenditures expected near the midpoint of the previously announced range of $470M-$550M. Previously curtailed production expected to resume October 1. The company estimates that optimizing the temporary curtailments and turning back in-line timings have resulted in approximately $30M of net present value realized through the pricing arbitrage

06:07 EDT Elbit Systems ICATS solution selected by USMC - Elbit Systems said in a release, "The United States Marine Corps selected Kollsman, Inc.'s solution for a multispectral, clip-on weapon night sight, allowing Marines to engage in day and nighttime operations at extreme stand-off distances. The selection is part of Phase II of the Integrated Clip-on Advanced Targeting Sight, or ICATS, program and will require the company to design, build and test two sophisticated ICATS prototypes for the USMC over the next year. Kollsman, Inc. is a subsidiary of Elbit Systems of America. Elbit Systems of America's ICATS solution is optimized for USMC scout snipers and reconnaissance Marines, so they may acquire targets and engage at extended ranges. The solution clips onto the Marine's weapon and provides critical information to the user, even in low-light or inclement weather. The ICATS is configured to provide simultaneous imaging across extended ranges, without adding considerable weight to the Marine's weapon. The ICATS solution builds off the company's successes offering the U.S. military other precision targeting capabilities, such as the Next Generation Hand-Held Targeting System for the USMC and the Multi-Domain User Sensor Architecture, or MDUSA, targeting system for the U.S. Army. Work on ICATS will be designed and produced in Elbit Systems of America's Merrimack, New Hampshire facility, which is known for its sophisticated electro-optics solutions."

06:05 EDT Aridis announces agreement with FDA on updated Phase 2 trial design for AR-501 - Aridis Pharmaceuticals said in a release, "Aridis Pharmaceuticals announced it has reached an agreement with the FDA to simplify the Company's AR-501 Phase 2 trial design for the treatment of chronic lung infections associated with cystic fibrosis, or CF. After reporting (June 2020) positive Phase 1 safety data in healthy adults who were exposed to a single ascending dose, or SAD, or a multiple ascending dose, or MAD, regimen, Aridis proposed, and the FDA has now agreed to streamline AR-501's forthcoming Phase 2a clinical trial in CF patients, by removing the SAD and only conducting a MAD regimen. Furthermore, the FDA also concurred with the Company's proposal to expand the originally planned Phase 2a protocol design into a Phase 2a/2b study. This Phase 2a/2b design will enable seamless and efficient advancement of the study from Phase 2a into Phase 2b using the same clinical study protocol. The data from the Phase 2a will inform the dose selection and sample size expansion to achieve statistical significance in efficacy in Phase 2b."

06:01 EDT Cunard announces Classic World Voyage on Queen Mary 2 for 2022 - Cunard said in a release, "Cunard's 2022 classic World Voyage on the illustrious Queen Mary 2 goes on sale. The iconic ocean liner will make calls to Greece, Dubai, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Australia and Bali, Abu Dhabi, Oman, Italy and Portugal. Sailings through the Suez Canal feature on both the outbound journey and return. The 118 night voyage sets sail from New York on January 3, 2022 and returns on May 1, 2022. It will include overnight stops in Haifa, Dubai, Hong Kong, Sydney and Singapore, plus a late night departure from Colombo. Those sailing the full World Voyage will enjoy a welcome on board reception, services of a World Voyage Concierge and use of a private lounge, a gala event ashore and complimentary daily gratuities."

05:43 EDT Mylan to acquire thrombosis business from Aspen Pharmacare for EUR 641.9M - Mylan said in a release, "Mylan announced an agreement to acquire the related intellectual property and commercialization rights of Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Limited's thrombosis business in Europe for EUR 641.9 million, subject to customary closing conditions and European regulatory clearances. The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to Mylan upon closing and is anticipated to be accretive to VIATRISTM upon the completion of Mylan's previously announced combination with Upjohn that is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020. Upon closing of the transaction, Mylan expects to fund an upfront payment of EUR 263.2 million to Aspen from existing cash. Also, Mylan expects to utilize cash generated from operations to make the final deferred payment of EUR 378.7 million on June 25, 2021. The closing of the proposed sale is expected to be completed before December 31, 2020. Mylan does not expect the transaction to impact our target of approximately $1 billion of 2020 debt repayments or Viatris' previously announced debt repayment and leverage target commitments. The portfolio consists of well-established injectable anticoagulants sold in Europe under the brand names, and variations of the brand names, Arixtra, Fraxiparine, Mono-Embolex and Orgaran. These products had combined net sales of approximately EUR 231 million for the 12 months ended June 30, 2020 and are expected to be accretive to Mylan's consolidated adjusted EBITDA margins, as well as the anticipated consolidated adjusted EBITDA margins of Viatris."

05:38 EDT Regeneron, Sanofi: long-term Dupixent data show sustained improvement - Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN) and Sanofi (SNY) announced new results from a Dupixent Phase 3 open-label extension trial that showed the safety and efficacy profile observed in previous Dupixent trials was maintained for up to three years in adults and adolescents with moderate-to-severe asthma. Data from the trial will be presented during a live session at the virtual 2020 European Respiratory Society, or ERS, International Congress. "These data suggest Dupixent may slow the progressive decline in lung function that many patients with moderate-to-severe asthma experience, as shown by the sustained improvement in lung function for up to three years. Further, patients on Dupixent maintained asthma control and reduced rates of severe asthma attacks that may result in hospitalizations," said Michael Wechsler, M.D., M.M.Sc., Director of the National Jewish Cohen Family Asthma Institute in Denver, Colorado, and principal investigator of the trial. "This reinforces the importance of Dupixent as a continuous, long-term treatment option to improve patients' ability to breathe and maintain control of their asthma, particularly in those with higher markers of underlying type 2 inflammation." The companies said in a release, "The analyses to be presented at ERS included more than 2,200 patients who previously participated in Dupixent asthma trials, including three pivotal trials that lasted between 24 and 52 weeks. Patients entered the extension trial after finishing active treatment or placebo in the initial trials and were treated for up to an additional two years, providing up to three years of treatment data in total. The safety analyses included patients from all three pivotal asthma trials, and the efficacy and biomarker analyses included patients who were not dependent on oral corticosteroids, or OCS, from the pivotal Phase 2b and Phase 3 QUEST trials. Additional long-term efficacy data in OCS-dependent patients will be presented at a later congress."

05:18 EDT Apple Marina Bay Sands opens Thursday in Singapore - Apple said in a release, "Apple previewed Apple Marina Bay Sands, the first Apple store to sit directly on the water. Appearing as a sphere floating on the iridescent Marina Bay, the store introduces a new and captivating retail experience at one of the most iconic locations in Singapore. Entirely surrounded by water, Apple Marina Bay Sands offers uninterrupted 360-degree panoramic views of the city and its spectacular skyline. The sphere is a first-of-its-kind, all-glass dome structure that is fully self-supported, comprised of 114 pieces of glass with only 10 narrow vertical mullions for structural connection. As Apple's third retail location in Singapore, the new store creates an unforgettable space for customers. The 148-person team at Apple Marina Bay Sands, who collectively speak over 23 languages, will welcome visitors for the first time on Thursday, September 10 at 10 a.m. SGT. The store will implement the same rigorous health measures for both employees and visitors seen across all Apple Store locations, including a mask requirement, temperature checks, and social distancing."