Stockwinners Market Radar for August 16, 2021 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

19:46 EDT Ashford Hospitality reports July comparable hotel EBITDA up 27% from June - Ashford Hospitality announced its preliminary operating results for the month of July. For the month of July, Comparable Hotel Net Income was $7.9M. Comparable Hotel EBITDA for the month of July was $26.4M, a 27% increase over June's Comparable Hotel EBITDA of $20.8M. The Company's current monthly run-rate for cash interest expense is approximately $11 million and its current monthly run-rate for corporate G&A and advisory expense is approximately $4M. CEO Rob Hays says: "We are pleased to report these strong results for the month of July and are excited about the positive momentum we saw in the operating performance of our diverse portfolio, which was driven by strong leisure and transient demand. Our Hotel EBITDA performance for July exceeded our own internal estimates. Additionally, we continue to see our stock trade at a significant discount to our cash value per share and do not believe this reflects the intrinsic value of our high-quality portfolio."

19:28 EDT Syniverse to go public via merger with M3-Brigade Acquisition II - Syniverse announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with M3-Brigade Acquisition II Corp. (MBAC), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, which will result in Syniverse becoming a publicly traded company. The transaction implies an initial enterprise value for Syniverse of $2.85M, or an enterprise value-to-adjusted 2022E EBITDA multiple of approximately 12.1x, and will provide Syniverse with up to $1.165 billion in cash through a combination of equity and equity-linked capital. Upon closing of the transaction, the publicly traded company will be named Syniverse Technologies Corporation and its common stock will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under ticker "SYNV." Today's announcement builds on the strategic partnership between Syniverse and Twilio (TWLO) that was announced on March 1, 2021, through which Twilio agreed to make an equity investment of up to $750M in Syniverse, with a minimum commitment of $500M. In addition, as a part of this transaction, Twilio will become a significant minority owner of Syniverse. Syniverse intends to use the up to $1.165B in equity and equity-linked capital to substantially reduce its debt, fund new value-added products and services, advance its strategy of investing in organic and inorganic growth, and increase its investment in data, machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies. Following the closing of the merger, Syniverse will continue to be led by Chief Executive Officer Andrew Davies and its world class leadership team. The Carlyle Group (CG), Syniverse's current majority owner, will retain all of its current investment in Syniverse and be the largest shareholder in the newly publicly traded company.

19:03 EDT Incyte, InnoCare announces license agreement for tafasitamab in Greater China - Incyte and InnoCare announced that Incyte and a subsidiary of InnoCare have entered into a collaboration and license agreement for the development and commercialization of tafasitamab, a humanized Fc-modified cytolytic CD19 targeting monoclonal antibody, in Greater China. Under the terms of the agreement, InnoCare will pay Incyte $35M up front, and Incyte is eligible to receive up to an additional $82.5M in potential development, regulatory and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties. InnoCare will receive the rights to develop and exclusively commercialize tafasitamab in hematology and oncology in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. The transaction is effective immediately upon the execution of the collaboration and license agreement.

18:35 EDT Danimer Scientific says to continue acceleration of investment in technology - The Company says it "expects to continue its acceleration of investments in headcount and technology, inclusive of Novomer, to build out the operational platform and infrastructure needed to support its production capacity expansion and sales growth objectives. Additionally, with the completion of the Kentucky debottlenecking initiative in the second quarter of 2021, the Company expects the improved operating rates will contribute to Adjusted EBITDA and cash flow from operations in 2021. Based on the timing of customer product launches, the Company expects its second half 2021 results to be weighted towards the fourth quarter. The Company expects full year capital expenditures to be in the range of $125 million to $150 million inclusive of post-acquisition investments in Novomer."

18:14 EDT ViacomCBS sells CBS Building to Harbor Group for $760M - Harbor Group International, a privately owned international real estate investment and management firm, announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire 51 West 52nd Street, a premier office tower in Midtown Manhattan, for a purchase price of $760M. Popularly known as the CBS Building or Black Rock, this purchase marks the first sale since it opened in 1964. As the former owner-occupier, ViacomCBS will lease back its space on a short term basis. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year. "The agreement to acquire the CBS Building is further proof of HGI's ability to identify and successfully transact for unique investment opportunities in an increasingly competitive market," said Richard Litton, President, HGI. "With its prime location, Class A features, and strong roster of tenants, HGI is positioned to acquire one of New York City's few iconic assets. We look forward to activating our strategic business plan for this asset at a transformational time for New York City's office market."

17:59 EDT Manitowoc to acquire Aspen Equipment for $51M - The Manitowoc Company announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire substantially all the assets of Aspen Equipment, a "diversified crane dealer and a leading final-stage purpose-built work truck upfitter", for approximately $51M. The transaction is expected to close in September 2021 and is subject to customary closing conditions.

17:52 EDT Third Point adds SoFi, exits Equitrans in Q2 - Third Point disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund's new buys during the second quarter included SentinelOne (S), SoFi Technologies (SOFI), Endeavor (EDR), Zimmer Biomet (ZBH), and Peloton (PTON). Third Point exited positions in Equitrans (ETRN) and IAA (IAA) during the quarter. The fund increased its stake in Intel (INTC), Amazon (AMZN), Dell (DELL), Cano Health (CANO), and Estee Lauder (EL) and reduced its stake in Charter (CHTR), PG&E (PCG), JD.com (JD), Iqvia (IQV), and Disney (DIS).

17:20 EDT Lockheed Martin subsidiary awarded $116.51M Army contract - Sikorsky Aircraft was awarded a $116.51M firm-fixed-price contract for maintenance and overhaul of the Black Hawk main rotor blade. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of August 15, 2026. Army Contract Command is the contracting activity.

17:05 EDT Corvus Pharmaceuticals' CPI-818 approved for Phase 1/1b trial in China - Corvus Pharmaceuticals' CPI-818 licensee Angel Pharma announced that the Center for Drug Evaluation of the China National Medical Products Administration has accepted its IND application for the initiation of a Phase 1/1b clinical trial of its small molecule ITK inhibitor CPI-818 for treatment of relapsed/refractory T-cell lymphomas. Angel Pharma licensed the rights to CPI-818 from Corvus Pharmaceuticals for development, manufacturing and commercialization in China. Angel Pharmaceuticals announced plans to initiate the trial before the end of 2021. CPI-818 has been shown to selectively inhibit ITK without effect on related kinases. ITK is a 72 kDa protein kinase that plays an essential role in the activation, differentiation and proliferation of T-cells. Based on these properties, ITK is a promising treatment target for autoimmune diseases and for lymphoproliferative diseases such as T-cell lymphomas. Corvus is studying CPI-818 in a multi-center Phase 1/1b clinical trial in patients with several types of TCL in the U.S. and Asia. Overall, CPI-818 has been shown to be well-tolerated, and has shown anti-tumor activity in peripheral T-cell lymphomas and in cutaneous T-cell lymphomas.

17:03 EDT Ellington Financial estimates book value per share of $18.29 as of July 31, 2021 - Ellington Financial Inc. announced its estimated book value per common share of $18.29 as of July 31, 2021. This estimate includes the effect of the previously announced monthly dividend of 15c per common share, payable on August 25, 2021 to holders of record on July 30, 2021, with an ex-dividend date of July 29, 2021.

16:50 EDT Paulson buys Bally's, cuts Dish Network in Q2 - John Paulson's Paulson & Co. disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund's 11 new buys during the second quarter included, by size of position, APA Corp (APA), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), Bally's (BALY), BP (BP), and Kansas City Southern (KSU). Paulson exited seven positions during the quarter, including by size of previous position SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), Takeda Pharmaceuticals (TAK), and Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE). The fund increased its stake in four holdings, including by size of previous position Occidental (OXY), Exxon Mobil (XOM), Barrick Gold (GOLD), and Seabridge Gold (SA). Paulson reduced its stake in four holdings, including by size of previous position Viatris (VTRS), Pacira Biosciences (PCRX), SandRidge Energy (SD), and Dish Network (DISH). The fund's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were Bausch Health (BHC), Horizon Therapeutics (HZNP), Brightsphere Investment (BSIG), NovaGold Resources (NG), and Occidental.

16:43 EDT Scotts Miracle-Gro buys Rhizoflora for $33.5M, warrant in Dewey Scientific - The Scotts Miracle-Gro announced that it has acquired Rhizoflora's leading nutrients business including its Terpinator and Purpinator brands, further bolstering The Hawthorne Gardening Company product portfolio. Separately, the Company announced that its subsidiary, The Hawthorne Collective, has purchased a warrant to buy equity in Dewey Scientific for $3.2M which will help advance Dewey's industry-leading cannabis genomics and cultivation. The investment from the Hawthorne Collective will be used only for purposes permitted by applicable laws of the United States. Hawthorne becomes primary provider of Rhizoflora's Terpinator and Purpinator brands Rhizoflora has been the producer of the industry-leading Terpinator and Purpinator brands. Prior to this acquisition, Hawthorne has been a distributor of the Rhizoflora brands. Now, Hawthorne is the primary provider of the Terpinator and Purpinator product lines in the United States. "This acquisition reflects our broader strategy to build the most comprehensive portfolio of products and solutions to serve growers at an unparalleled scale," said Chris Hagedorn, Hawthorne Gardening division president. "We appreciate our long-standing partnership with Rhizoflora and look forward to elevating the brands, including bringing Terpinator and Purpinator to expanded markets." Under the terms of the Rhizoflora deal, the Company will acquire substantially all the assets of Rhizoflora for $33.5M , adding approximately $8M in annualized sales. Acquiring the Terpinator and Purpinator brands will extend the Hawthorne Signature Nutrients portfolio into supplements that are being rapidly adopted as the industry standard to fully express plant characteristics. Hawthorne will increase marketing and sales efforts around the brands to support the Hawthorne 360 Total Solution for growers.

16:40 EDT Elliott buys Dropbox, exits Facebook in Q2 - Paul Singer's Elliott Management disclosed in an SEC filings its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund's three new buys during the second quarter included, by size of position, Duke Energy (DUK), Dropbox (DBX), and H&R Block (HRB). Elliott exited six positions during the quarter, including by size of previous position Discovery Class C (DISCK), Community Health (CYH), and Facebook (FB). The fund increased its stake in three holdings, including by size of previous position Twitter (TWTR), E2open (ETWO), and Pinterest (PINS). Elliott reduced its stake in two holdings, namely Snap (SNAP) and Howmet Aerospace (HWM). The fund's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were Dell Technologies (DELL), Howmet, Twitter, Marathon Petroleum (MPC), and Evergy (EVRG).

16:33 EDT Lone Pine takes stake in Moderna, exits Netflix in Q2 - Stephen Mandel's Lone Pine Capital disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund's ten new buys during the second quarter included, by size of position, Moderna (MRNA), RH (RH), Twitter (TWTR), KE Holdings (BEKE), and Marqeta (MQ). Lone Pine exited 12 positions during the quarter, including by size of previous position MercadoLibre (MELI), Netflix (NFLX), Atlassian (TEAM), Bilibili (BILI), and Bill.com (BILL). The fund increased its stake in ten holdings, including by size of previous position Square (SQ), ServiceNow (NOW), DoorDash (DASH), Workday (WDAY), and Farfetch (FTCH). Lone Pine reduced its stake in ten holdings, including by size of previous position Microsoft (MSFT), MasterCard (MA), Dexcom (DXCM), Carvana (CVNA), and UnitedHealth (UNH). The fund's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were Shopify (SHOP), Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN), Snap (SNAP), and Bath & Body Works (BBWI).

16:31 EDT Orion Engineered to increase prices for carbon black in North America by 8c/lb - Orion Engineered "announced that effective September 15, 2021, or as permitted by customer contracts, the company is increasing prices on all carbon black products produced in North America. Due to higher operating costs related to recently installed emissions control systems and associated capital investments required to maintain service levels, it is necessary to adjust base prices and environmental surcharges for carbon black by a total of 8 cents per pound. In addition, service charges, payment terms and volume rebates will be adjusted to reflect higher logistics costs, capital commitments and reliability expectations."

16:31 EDT Innovative Industrial Properties acquires property in Maryland - Innovative Industrial Properties announced that it closed on the acquisition of a property in Hancock, Maryland, and entered into a long-term lease with a subsidiary of Harvest Health & Recreation Inc. The purchase price for the property was approximately $16.6M. Harvest is expected to complete additional tenant improvements for the property as a regulated cannabis cultivation and processing facility, for which IIP has agreed to provide reimbursement of up to $12.9M. Assuming full reimbursement for the tenant improvements, IIP's total investment in the property is expected to be approximately $29.5M. Earlier this year, IIP acquired a Florida property and executed a long-term lease with Harvest, which comprises approximately 295,000 square feet and for which IIP expects its total investment to be approximately $41.7M, assuming full reimbursement for tenant improvements.

16:24 EDT OncoSec establishes Leadership Committee, interim CEO stepping down - OncoSec established a Leadership Committee consisting of three board members, Margaret Dalesandro, Herbert Kim Lyerly and Yuhang Zhao, to lead all development efforts, with a focus on the company's lead asset, Tavo. Effective immediately, OncoSec's interim CEO, Mr. Brian Leuthner, will be leaving the company. The search for a permanent CEO has been actively underway since late June. Dalesandro previously held an executive leadership role at ImClone Systems where she contributed significantly to drug development and the sale of ImClone to Eli Lilly. Herbert Kim Lyerly is an internationally recognized expert in cancer therapy and interleukin-12. Yuhang Zhaopreviously held positions at PaineWebber, Deloitte, and Bayer.

16:20 EDT Culp, Inc. confirms Haiti operations are secure following recent earthquake - Culp, Inc. announced that the company's sewn mattress cover production facilities located in Ouanaminthe, Haiti, were not affected by the recent magnitude-7.2 earthquake that occurred in southwestern Haiti, with the epicenter more than 275 miles from Culp's operations. Iv Culp, president and CEO of Culp, Inc., commented, "We are extremely thankful that our Haiti operations are secure, and all of Culp's dedicated employees are reported to be safe. There has been no disruption to our normal production schedules related to the earthquake, and we remain focused on meeting customer demand. We are deeply saddened by the extreme devastation that has occurred to our Haitian neighbors and are grateful for the heroic humanitarian work underway to help those who were affected. Culp is supporting these relief efforts with donations of home goods and food supplies from both our Haiti and U.S. operations."

16:18 EDT RMG Acquisition Corporation II reports investor approval of ReNew Power deal - RMG Acquisition Corporation II, a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company, announced that its stockholders voted to approve the previously announced business combination with ReNew Power Private Ltd. , and all other proposals presented at RMG II's extraordinary general meeting of shareholders held on August 16. Approximately 88% of the votes cast on the business combination proposal at the Extraordinary General Meeting were in favor of approving the business combination proposal. Subject to the satisfaction or waiver of the other customary closing conditions, the business combination is expected to close on August 23, 2021. As announced previously, the business combination will be effected through a newly-incorporated holding company, ReNew Energy Global plc. RMG II will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of ReNew Global, and ReNew Global's class A shares and warrants are expected to commence trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on August 24.

16:13 EDT Hippo boosts FY guidance for total generated premium to $565M from $544M

16:12 EDT Berkshire Hathaway exits Biogen, boosts Kroger in Q2 - Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund exited three positions during the second quarter, including by size of previous position Axalta (AXTA), Biogen (BIIB), and Liberty Global Class A (LBTYA). Berkshire increased its stake in three holdings, including by size of previous position Kroger (KR), RH (RH), and Aon (AON). The fund decreased its stake in eight holdings, including by size of previous position General Motors (GM), Bristol-Myers (BMY), AbbVie (ABBV), Liberty Global Class C (LBTYK), and Chevron (CVX). Berkshire's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were Apple (AAPL), Bank of America (BAC), American Express (AXP), Coca-Cola (KO), and Kraft Heinz (KHC).

16:11 EDT Buffett's Berkshire sold 7M shares of GM in Q2, still owns 60M

16:09 EDT Geron plans to engage over 180 sites to participate in IMpactMF - The Company plans to engage over 180 sites to participate in IMpactMF across North America, South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, of which 55 sites are currently open for enrollment. In the second quarter of 2021, the first patient was dosed in IMpactMF. The Company continues to expect the interim analysis to occur in 2024 and the final analysis in 2025. As the only MF Phase 3 trial with overall survival as the primary endpoint, the Company expects that success in this trial would provide unequivocal proof of clinical benefit for patients, as well as further evidence of disease-modifying activity with imetelstat treatment.

16:08 EDT Geron sees cash, resources funding operations through end of 1Q23 - Previously, the Company provided guidance that its financial resources were sufficient to fund its operations through the end of 2022. As of June 30, 2021, the Company had $239.1 million in cash and marketable securities. These financial resources, combined with expected future non-dilutive funding under the current debt facility, are now expected to fund operations through the end of the first quarter of 2023. As of June 30, 2021, the Company had 68 employees. The Company plans to grow to a total of approximately 80 to 85 employees by year-end 2021, of which the majority will be development and manufacturing personnel.

16:06 EDT Roblox reports Q2 average DAUs 43.2M, up 29% y/y - Hours Engaged were 9.7 billion, an increase of 13% year over year. Average Bookings per DAU was $15.41, a slight increase year over year.

15:29 EDT T-Mobile says unauthorized access to some T-Mobile data occurred - T-Mobile issued the following cybersecurity incident update on its corporate site: "We have been working around the clock to investigate claims being made that T-Mobile data may have been illegally accessed. We take the protection of our customers very seriously and we are conducting an extensive analysis alongside digital forensic experts to understand the validity of these claims, and we are coordinating with law enforcement. We have determined that unauthorized access to some T-Mobile data occurred, however we have not yet determined that there is any personal customer data involved. We are confident that the entry point used to gain access has been closed, and we are continuing our deep technical review of the situation across our systems to identify the nature of any data that was illegally accessed. This investigation will take some time but we are working with the highest degree of urgency. Until we have completed this assessment we cannot confirm the reported number of records affected or the validity of statements made by others. We understand that customers will have questions and concerns, and resolving those is critically important to us. Once we have a more complete and verified understanding of what occurred, we will proactively communicate with our customers and other stakeholders." Reference Link

14:56 EDT Ligand says Travere reporting 'impressive topline results' for sparsentan - Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) announces that its partner Travere Therapeutics (TVTX) announced "positive" topline interim results from the ongoing pivotal Phase 3 PROTECT Study of sparsentan, an investigational product candidate for the treatment of IgA nephropathy, or IgAN. The PROTECT Study met its pre-specified interim primary efficacy endpoint with statistical significance, demonstrating a greater than threefold reduction of proteinuria from baseline after 36 weeks of treatment, compared to the active control irbesartan. Preliminary results from the interim analysis suggest that to date in the study, sparsentan has been generally well-tolerated and consistent with the observed safety profile to date. Based on the results from the interim analysis, Travere plans to submit an application for accelerated approval in the U.S. in the first half of 2022 and also plans to submit an application for conditional marketing authorization in Europe. Under a license agreement with Travere for sparsentan, Ligand is entitled to receive a net $5.9M milestone upon NDA submission, other potential milestone payments and net royalties of 9% on future worldwide sales by Travere. "Travere is reporting impressive topline results from the sparsentan PROTECT trial, and we commend their team for the success so far in this study. Sparsentan is one of Ligand's most important partnered assets and we are very pleased to see the growing body of evidence in treating rare kidney disorders," said John Higgins, CEO of Ligand Pharmaceuticals.

14:36 EDT Jana buys Cornerstone, cuts Conagra stake in Q2 - Jana Partners disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund's one new buy during the second quarter was Cornerstone OnDemand (CSOD). Jana increased its stake in four holdings during the quarter, including by size of previous position CyrusOne (CONE), Vonage (VG), SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), and Encompass Health (EHC). The fund reduced its stake in three holdings, including by size of previous position Labcorp (LH), Conagra (CAG), and TreeHouse Foods (THS). The fund's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were Conagra, TreeHouse, Labcorp, Encompass Health, and Vonage.

14:22 EDT Tiger Global adds to DoorDash stake in Q2, makes DocuSign top 5 holding - Chase Coleman's Tiger Global disclosed in an SEC filing its holdings as of June 30, 2021. The fund made 24 new buys during the quarter, including by size of purchase Procore Technologies (PCOR), UiPath (PATH), Coinbase (COIN), DoubleVerify (DV) and Bright Health Group (BHG). Tiger exited three positions during the quarter, including Academy Sports (ASO). The fund increased its stake in 23 holdings, including by size of increased position, DoorDash (DASH), DocuSign (DOCU), Zoom Video (ZM), Shopify (SHOP) and Sea Limited (SE). Tiger reduced its stake in 16 holdings, including Salesforce (CRM), TAL Education (TAL), JD.com (JD), New Oriental Education (EDU) and Roblox (RBLX). The fund's top holdings as of June 30, in order of size, were JD.com, Microsoft, Sea Limited, Roblox and DocuSign.

14:03 EDT Intel introduces Arc brand, coming in 1Q22 - Intel introduced Intel Arc, its latest graphics solutions brand that will cover hardware and software powering the company's GPUs. The company said Arc is coming in 1Q22. "The new Intel Arc Graphics Solutions will deliver high performance gaming, immersive visuals, and seamless game streaming & creation experiences," the company said.

13:02 EDT Philip Morris enters tender period with Vectura Group shareholders - Philip Morris International (PM) announced it has published an offer document with U.K.-based Vectura Group plc (VEGPF) in connection with the recommended cash offer to acquire the inhaled therapeutics company. Under the terms of the acquisition, Vectura shareholders would be entitled to receive 165 pence per share, a 60% premium to the ex-dividend closing price of 103 pence per Vectura share on May 25, 2021. "PMI's acquisition of Vectura is part of our long-term strategy to transform PMI by investing in scientific excellence and leveraging its capabilities and expertise," said PMI's CEO, Jacek Olczak. "Our investment will accelerate the development and delivery of inhaled therapeutics to address many of today's unmet medical needs. We look forward to working with Vectura's great people as we embark on the next stage of our transformation." PMI's proposed acquisition of Vectura is part of its long-term strategy, as outlined in its 2020 Integrated Report, the company said. PMI will fund the transaction with existing cash and expects it to close in the second half of 2021, subject to receipt of acceptances of the offer and approval by the appropriate regulatory authorities. PMI expects the impact of the acquisition on its full-year 2021 adjusted diluted EPS to be immaterial.

12:43 EDT Vislink closes $18.3M acquisition of Mobile Viewpoint - Vislink announced it has closed on an $18.3M acquisition of Mobile Viewpoint. The deal is comprised of a EUR 14.8M stock purchase agreement and the assumption and payment of EUR 700,000 in intercompany debt. "The Mobile Viewpoint acquisition will enable Vislink to fulfill its strategic aim of providing an industry-leading portfolio of live video acquisition, contribution and distribution solutions that meet the demanding needs of media, enterprise, defense and government ," the company said in a statement.

12:09 EDT American Express reports July write-off rate 0.7% vs. 0.7% last month - Reports July 30 days past due loans as a percent of total 0.6% vs. 0.6% last month.

12:00 EDT X Financial falls -14.1% - X Financial is down -14.1%, or -81c to $4.93.

12:00 EDT Bright Health rises 9.8% - Bright Health is up 9.8%, or 82c to $9.22.

12:00 EDT CS Disco rises 12.1% - CS Disco is up 12.1%, or $6.30 to $58.29.

11:55 EDT IM Cannabis to acquire 51% of Vironna Pharm shares fo C$3.3M - IMC announced the purchase of 51% of the outstanding ordinary shares of Revoly Trading and Marketing Ltd., dba Vironna Pharm by IMC Holdings, a wholly-owned Israeli subsidiary of the Company. Strategically located in Tira, a central Israeli city, Vironna ranks among the top 10 single cannabis dispensing points throughout Israel and is the largest pharmacy serving the rapidly growing Arab consumer segment of the medical cannabis market. Assets include a well-established brick and mortar storefront as well as a home-delivery operation to dispense cannabis directly to patients' homes, all operated by an experienced management team. Total annual revenue run rate is in excess of C$7 million with positive EBITDA. IMC Holdings has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 51% of the outstanding ordinary shares of Vironna for a total consideration of approximately C$3.3 million, of which C$1.4 million is in common shares of IMC to be issued at Closing of the Vironna Transaction. The closing is conditional upon receipt of all requisite approvals, including from the Israeli Medical Cannabis Unit. To satisfy the share consideration component of the Vironna Transaction, the Company will issue a number of IMC shares calculated based on the average closing price of the Company's common shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market over the 14 trading days period immediately preceding the Closing. "In preparation for expected government reform in both medical and recreational cannabis in Israel, the acquisition of Vironna strategically compliments our previous announced transactions with Panaxia and Pharm Yarok by strengthening our direct links to patients and client data as well as consumer preferences" said Oren Shuster, CEO of IMC . "By building a powerful retail chain we increase our purchasing power, create potential synergies with our established call center and on-line operations and gain additional margin on direct sales and up-sale across a growing range of products. We welcome the new management team, experts in retail and branding, who will boost our leadership position and help drive global revenue and margin growth for our multi-country operating platform."

11:35 EDT Pearson settles with SEC for $1M over cyber intrusion disclosures - The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that Pearson agreed to pay $1M to settle charges that it misled investors about a 2018 cyber intrusion involving the theft of millions of student records, including dates of births and email addresses, and had inadequate disclosure controls and procedures. Reference Link

11:01 EDT NI Holdings announces $5M stock repurchase plan - NI Holdings announced that its Board of Directors has approved an authorization for the repurchase of up to approximately $5M of the company's outstanding common stock. This authorization, in addition to a previous authorization currently in place, supports our planned approach to capital deployment to create long-term value for our shareholders - through share repurchases and future strategic acquisitions.

10:30 EDT Bayer files petition to U.S. Supreme Court for review of Hardeman decision - Bayer - through its subsidiary Monsanto - filed its Petition for a Writ of Certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court in Hardeman, which it calls "the only Roundup federal product liability case to have gone to trial." The petition urges the court to review the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals' decision on two grounds. "First, the state-law failure-to-warn claims at the center of the case are preempted by federal law, as the U.S. Government argued in its amicus filing in the Ninth Circuit. Second, the admission of expert testimony departed from federal standards, enabling plaintiff's causation witnesses to provide unsupported testimony on the principal issue in the case, Roundup's safety profile," the company stated. Reference Link

10:20 EDT Sproutly acquires primary assets of CannaHive, terms not disclosed - Sproutly Canada is pleased to announce it has acquired the primary assets of CannaHive. The Acquisition supercedes the definitive agreement between the companies announced in April of this year. The Acquisition provides Sproutly with fully automated, pharmaceutical grade manufacturing equipment to produce high quality cannabis confectionaries, such as gummies and chocolates, at a lower cost and at a larger scale to meet the projected demands for the Canadian market.

10:13 EDT Bank of America reports July net charge-offs 2.39% vs. 2.53% in prior month - Reports July 30-plus day delinquencies 0.92% vs. 0.97% last month.

10:00 EDT Zhangmen Education falls -10.8% - Zhangmen Education is down -10.8%, or -54c to $4.46.

10:00 EDT Paysafe falls -11.5% - Paysafe is down -11.5%, or -$1.17 to $9.03.

10:00 EDT Bright Health rises 6.0% - Bright Health is up 6.0%, or 50c to $8.90.

09:57 EDT Opko's BioReference Laboratories acquires U.S Ariosa business from Roche - BioReference Laboratories, Inc., an OPKO Health company (OPK) announced the acquisition of the U.S. Ariosa centralized laboratory prenatal testing business from Roche (RHHBY). "Throughout BioReference's 40 year legacy of diagnostic testing, women's health has been at the forefront of our focus," said Jon R. Cohen, M.D., Executive Chairman of BioReference Laboratories. "Last year, there were about six million pregnancies in the U.S., and prenatal screening for Down syndrome has become common practice. Acquiring the U.S. Ariosa centralized laboratory prenatal testing business allows us to expand our NIPS offerings and further underscores our commitment to prenatal screening, allowing BioReference and GenPath to advance high quality and accessible testing that positively impacts the medical care and outcomes of patients and their families."

09:47 EDT Sasol falls -6.4% - Sasol is down -6.4%, or -94c to $13.64.

09:47 EDT Paysafe falls -9.8% - Paysafe is down -9.8%, or -99c to $9.21.

09:47 EDT Hippo rises 5.7% - Hippo is up 5.7%, or 30c to $5.57.

09:45 EDT NTT Data awarded $15.4M contract from Argonne National Laboratory - NTT DATA announced it has won a $15.4M contract to deliver superior end-user support services for Argonne National Laboratory. a multidisciplinary science and engineering research center and the largest U.S. Department of Energy laboratory in the United States Midwest. NTT DATA will work with Argonne to mature their IT operations, modernize their end-user experience, and identify technologies that drive the most impact, while developing comprehensive project plans that include extensive testing, piloting and roll back procedures. Additionally, NTT DATA will recommend program enhancements, focusing on best practices and process standardization for continuous service improvements.

09:39 EDT Synchrony reports July net charge-off rate 2.24% vs. 2.83% last month - Reports July 30-plus day delinquencies 1.37% vs. 1.34% last month.

09:37 EDT Eliem Therapeutics Inc trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:36 EDT Ascletis Pharma partner Sagimet doses first patient in FASCINATE-2 trial - Ascletis Pharma announces that its partner Sagimet Biosciences dosed the first patient in its FASCINATE-2 Phase IIb clinical trial for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. FASCINATE-2 is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase IIb clinical trial of approximately 330 NASH patients with moderate to advanced fibrosis. This trial will evaluate the impact of oral, once-daily doses of TVB-2640 for 52 weeks as assessed by biopsy. Patients will initially be randomized to receive placebo or 50 mg of TVB-2640. A 75 mg dose level of TVB-2640 is planned to be added to FASCINATE-2 following an open-label cohort in the FASCINATE-1 Phase IIa clinical trial. Primary efficacy endpoints are: greater than or equal to 2-point improvement in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease activity score that results from reduction of necro-inflammation; or improvement in fibrosis. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepted these two endpoints for Phase IIb studies in NASH. Liver biopsy data will also be evaluated to assess NASH resolution without worsening of fibrosis and/or improvement in fibrosis without worsening of NASH, both of which are endpoints accepted by the FDA for accelerated approval following Phase III studies. The study will also measure liver fat, assessed by magnetic resonance imaging-proton density fat fraction, and other serum biomarkers of inflammation, fibrosis, and liver injury in a portion of patients at 26 weeks of treatment in an interim analysis.

09:33 EDT TuSimple Holdings trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:30 EDT TuSimple says CFIUS initiated 45-day investigation period in review of 2017 deal - In a regulatory filing, TuSimple Holdings noted that as previously disclosed, the company filed a notice with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or "CFIUS," which is reviewing the 2017 acquisition of the U.S. business of TuSimple LLC by Tusimple (Cayman) Limited, which was the company's name prior to its deregistration as a Cayman Islands exempted company and domestication as a corporation incorporated under the laws of Delaware. "The company was recently informed that CFIUS initiated a 45-day investigation period in connection with its review of the 2017 Transaction. It is not uncommon for CFIUS to initiate the 45-day investigation period, and it does not indicate one way or the other whether CFIUS will eventually identify a national security concern with the 2017 Transaction. To date, CFIUS has not advised the company of any determinations regarding the 2017 Transaction. Although the company cannot predict the outcome of the CFIUS review at this time, the company continues to cooperate fully with CFIUS," TuSimple stated.

09:20 EDT Sage Group announces launch of Sage People U.S. Benefits - Sage announced the launch of Sage People U.S. Benefits. This complete benefits administration solution can reduce HR effort, increase accuracy, and identify cost saving opportunities to maximize return on investment. The new offering in Sage People is delivered through a partnership and integration with PlanSource, a leader in cloud-based U.S. benefits.

09:18 EDT First Financial Northwest announces new share repurchase program - First Financial Northwest announced the Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to 5.0% of the company's outstanding common stock, or approximately 476,000 shares, on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, in accordance with Rule 10b-18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The new stock repurchase plan will commence on or about August 16, 2021, and will expire no later than February 15, 2022. The extent to which the company repurchases its shares and the timing of such repurchases will depend upon market conditions and other corporate considerations. As a result, there can be no assurance as to the exact number of shares, if any, that will be repurchased under the plan. The Company repurchased a total of 268,286 shares of its outstanding common stock at an average price of $14.97 per share under its most recent stock repurchase plan in effect from February 1, 2021, through August 13, 2021, which authorized the repurchase of up to 5% of its outstanding common stock, or approximately 486,000 shares.

09:15 EDT Comtech awarded $1.7M contract for COMET terminals - Comtech Telecommunication announced , that during its fourth quarter of fiscal 2021, a non-U.S. NATO military customer awarded Comtech a $1.7M contract for multiple COMET terminals. This represents the second procurement of COMET terminals by a non-U.S. NATO military customer, in additional to the multiple COMET terminals already procured by U.S. Special Operations Command.

09:13 EDT Comtech to present 911 solutions for states and local jurisdictions at APCO 2021 - Comtech Telecommunications announced that it will be showcasing all of the Company's Next Generation 911 solutions August 16-17 at the annual Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials Conference & Expo. With decades of experience, Comtech has developed an extensive portfolio of call routing, call handling, location data delivery and text messaging solutions and has strengthened its one-stop-shop NG911 capabilities for states and local jurisdictions. Comtech is the only company in the industry offering a one-stop-shop next-generation 911 approach that includes comprehensive in-house capabilities that cross the entire deployment and ongoing systems management.

09:11 EDT OSI Systems receives $13M order for RTT hold baggage screening systems - OSI Systems announced that its Security division received an order for approximately $13M to provide multiple units of its RTT 110 explosive detection system that is expected to be installed at an Asian Pacific international airport to screen passengers' hold baggage. OSI Systems' Chairman and CEO, Deepak Chopra, commented, "We are excited to support this customer and expand our CT hold baggage inspection system installed base at major international airports."

09:10 EDT Gevo announces the publication of IMPACT, an ESG report - Gevo has published IMPACT, a sustainability report which demonstrates Gevo's mission to be transparent on its environmental, social, and corporate governance performance. In addition to disclosing Gevo's progress in 2020 and goals for the future, IMPACT shares details about Gevo's holistic approach to commercializing high-value nutritional products and groundbreaking energy-dense, renewable transportation fuels. Gevo's Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Patrick Gruber, has expressed his support for this progressive and comprehensive sustainability report: "We have a way of transforming renewable energy into energy-dense liquids. As we do that, we pay attention to the whole picture; we intend to track it, make it incredibly transparent. The ESG report is an important part of that effort. It's also about our employees. We care about diversity in our workforce and bringing in the best skill sets we possibly can across the board. We are going to be a global company, and so for us, it's incredibly important to build up our diversity in our workforce."

09:08 EDT Edgewise granted FDA fast track designation for EDG-5506 for BMD treatment - Edgewise Therapeutics announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, has granted Fast Track designation for EDG-5506 for the treatment of individuals with BMD. EDG-5506, a selective, small molecule myosin inhibitor designed to protect injury-susceptible fast skeletal muscle fibers in DMD and BMD, is advancing in a Phase 1 clinical trial. "The FDA's decision to grant EDG-5506 Fast Track designation underscores the urgency to address a significant unmet medical need for individuals with Becker muscular dystrophy," said Kevin Koch, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Edgewise. "Becker is a serious, progressive disease that leads to severe disability, including loss of ambulation and heart disease that has substantial impact on day-to-day function in many individuals. We look forward to working closely with the FDA towards establishing EDG-5506 as the potential first muscle-directed therapy for individuals with Becker." "I am pleased to see that the FDA recognizes Becker muscular dystrophy as a serious disease and that the team at Edgewise is acknowledging the important unmet need in Becker," said Craig McDonald, M.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, University of California Davis...The decision to give EDG-5506 Fast Track designation was supported by a robust preclinical data package and an ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial . The Company expects to have Phase 1 topline Multiple Ascending Dose data in healthy volunteers and in individuals with BMD later in 2021.

09:06 EDT Roblox acquires Guilded, terms undisclosed - Roblox announced the acquisition of Guilded, a privately-held company focused on building a platform to connect gaming communities. Since launching in 2017, the Guilded team has built a platform to connect gaming communities, including tools and features such as tiered voice chat, video chat, integrated calendars, scheduling tools and more. In March, the company launched its bot API to simplify bot development allowing users with little or no programming experience to create bots. Guilded will continue to operate as an independent product group.

09:05 EDT Goodyear Tire invests in EV charging company AmpUp - Goodyear announced that its venture capital arm, Goodyear Ventures, has added AmpUp, a leader in electric vehicle, or EV, charging, to its investment portfolio. AmpUp supports the EV driving community through their advanced charging network and software solutions. With operations across North America, AmpUp aims to make charging accessible and seamless for every EV driver.

09:04 EDT Galectin Therapeutics expects cash to fund operations to September 2022 - The Company expects that it will require more cash to fund operations after September 30, 2022, and believes it will be able to obtain additional financing as needed. Currently, we expect to require an additional approximately $30-$35 million to cover costs of the NAVIGATE trial to reach the planned interim analysis estimated to occur in the second half of 2023, along with drug manufacturing and other scientific support activities and general and administrative costs. However, there can be no assurance that we will be successful in obtaining such new financing or, if available, that such financing will be on terms favorable to us.

09:04 EDT Northrop Grumman announces results of early participation in exchange offers - Northrop Grumman Corporation announced that it has extended the early tender date from August 13, 2021 to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on August 20, 2021 in connection with its previously announce offers to exchange any and all outstanding notes of Northrop Grumman Systems Corporatio for up to $1,171,189,000 aggregate principal amount of new notes issued by Northrop Grumman an cashd, and related consent solicitations being made by Northrop Grumman and NGSC to adopt certain amendments to each of the indentures governing the Existing Notes and except with respect to NGSC's 7.750% Debentures due 2031, amend and terminate each of the corresponding guarantees currently provided by Northrop Grumman of NGSC's obligations in respect of the applicable series of Existing Notes and increased the cash portion of the consideration offered in the Exchange Offers and waived certain conditions, each as described below. In addition, Northrop Grumman announced that it has extended the withdrawal deadline for each Exchange Offer and Consent Solicitation from August 13, 2021 to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on August 17, 2021.

09:03 EDT PLBY Group announces partnership with Jay Jay Capital and Investments - PLBY Group announced the expansion of its global consumer products and lifestyle business in India, in partnership with Jay Jay Capital and Investments, an India-based investment fund and brand operator. The new partnership will bring Playboy hospitality experiences to major metropolitan areas in India, with the first flagship venue expected to open in Gurgaon in December 2021.

09:00 EDT Moderna announces first patient dosed in mRNA-3705 study - Moderna announced the first patient has been enrolled in the Phase 1/2 study evaluating the safety and tolerability of mRNA-3705, its investigational mRNA therapeutic for methylmalonic acidemia, or MMA, administered via intravenous infusion in patients with isolated MMA due to MUT deficiency.

08:52 EDT Reviva Pharmaceuticals announces 2021 anticipated events, targeted milestones - Anticipated Events and Targeted Milestones for 2021: Initiate a pivotal, double-blind Phase 3 study in acute schizophrenia; Regulatory submissions to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for initiating Phase 2 studies in pulmonary arterial hypertension and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; Pursue partnership opportunities for the development of our pipeline; Evaluate grant and other non-dilutive financing opportunities for our product candidates from relevant Federal and State Agencies and Foundations

08:52 EDT Reviva Pharmaceuticals expects cash to cover expenses into 2H22 - As of June 30, 2021, the Company's cash and cash equivalents totaled approximately $35.8 million compared to approximately $0.2 million for the same period in 2020. Reviva believes that based on the current operating plan and financial resources, the Company's cash and cash equivalents at the quarter end June 30, 2021 will be sufficient to cover general operating expenses into the second half of 2022.

08:49 EDT MusclePharm announces partnership with New Age - MusclePharm (MSLP) announced a Direct Store Delivery distribution partnership with New Age (NBEV) for the State of Colorado. New Age is the top independent beverage distributor in the region with a significant portfolio of premium beverage products. MP Performance Energy is slated to begin distribution in September 2021 and FitMiss Functional Energy products to begin distribution in the fourth quarter of 2021.

08:46 EDT Orocobre, Galaxy Resources announce effectiveness of scheme of arrangement - Further to its announcement on Friday, 13 August 2021, Galaxy Resources Limited (GALXF) is pleased to announce that it has lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission a copy of the orders of the Supreme Court of Western Australia approving its merger with Orocobre Limited, pursuant to which Orocobre (OROCF) will acquire all of the shares in Galaxy by way of a scheme of arrangement. As a result, the Scheme is now legally effective. It is expected that Galaxy Shares will be suspended from trading on ASX at close of trading today, Monday, 16 August 2021. Galaxy shareholders who hold Galaxy Shares at the Scheme record date will receive 0.569 new fully paid ordinary shares in Orocobre for each Galaxy Share held at the Scheme Record Date, in accordance with the terms of the Scheme. It is expected that the Scheme will be implemented, and the Scheme Consideration will be issued to Galaxy Shareholders, on Wednesday, 25 August 2021.

08:45 EDT Skillful Craftsman Education appoints Zhang as new independent director - Skillful Craftsman Education Technology announced that its board of directors has appointed Shaowei Zhang as a new independent director of the board to succeed Limin Huang, who has resigned on August 13, 2021. Shaowei Zhang is the founder of First High-School Education Group. Zhang has served as the chairman of board of directors and chief executive officer of First High-School Education since September 2018.

08:43 EDT NanoVibronix plans to enter OTC pain relief market with PainShield RELIEF - NanoVibronix announced that it intends to enter the Over-the-Counter, or OTC, pain relief market with the introduction of PainShield RELIEF, a non-prescription ultrasound therapy device that delivers fast pain relief for nerve and soft tissue damage. Brian Murphy, Chief Executive Officer of NanoVibronix, commented, "Entering the OTC pain relief market with our newest product in the PainShield family significantly expands our total addressable market and opens up new opportunities for growth through several additional revenue streams. Those suffering from pain will have ready access to the device with no need for clinician prescription. Plans are under way for an official launch in the U.S. and select parts of the world and product reveal in the coming months at a number of trade shows targeting a variety of athletic interests including tennis and golf. We are targeting the specific pain relief indications and the retail channels to address them as an OTC alternative to less effective interventions. The company expects widespread availability by early to mid-2022." The company has submitted its trademark application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for protection of the PainShield RELIEF and expects to submit for clearance to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the very near term.

08:40 EDT Zscaler selected by Schmitz Cargobull to secure Cloud-only storage - Zscaler announced Schmitz Cargobull has selected the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange platform to protect users, applications, and workloads for 5,800 employees at 50 locations worldwide. The global manufacturer of semi-trailers, trailers, and motor vehicle bodies for temperature-controlled freight will combine Zscaler Internet Access and Zscaler Private Access to create a holistic, high-performance zero trust security environment to power a cloud-only, work-from-anywhere business model. With Zscaler, Schmitz Cargobull gains a multilayered security approach and encrypted traffic inspection to protect against fast-moving threats. The deployment also furnishes a least privileged access model, which uses policies and identities to control and secure the company's IT environment. In addition, adopting the Zero Trust Exchange platform enables Schmitz Cargobull to replace its existing decentralized, manually-administered security systems with a highly integrated zero trust solution that automatically applies up to 200,000 security updates daily.

08:38 EDT Jupiter Wellness applies for IND number from the US FDA - Jupiter Wellness announced it has requested an IND number from the US Federal Drug Administration in preparation for a pre-IND submission to review preclinical and clinical studies for the use of JW-100 in the treatment of patients with mild to moderate eczema. The preparation of the pre-IND briefing document has been co-ordinated by a team of scientific, clinical and regulatory experts at Applied Biology in concert with pharmaceutical and manufacturing expertise at Jupiter Wellness .Jupiter Wellness previously reported that in a double-blinded, placebo controlled clinical trial of 55 patients using JW-100 was shown to significantly reduce ISGA scores in 50% of adult patients suffering from eczema after two weeks of use. "The request of an IND number and filing of an IND is a natural step forward as we expand our clinical program and ultimately seek FDA approval for a prescription medicine for the treatment of eczema" said Dr Glynn Wilson, Chief Scientific Officer at Jupiter Wellness. "Jupiter Wellness is committed to providing rapid-and-consistent relief for the majority of people suffering from eczema."

08:37 EDT Histogen, Amerimmune additional findings from Phase 1 study of emricasan - Histogen and its partner Amerimmune announced additional findings from its Phase 1 study of emricasan in mild symptomatic COVID-19 patients to assess safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy. Further analysis of the laboratory and exploratory biomarkers from the patients in this study shed critical insight. First, in the emricasan cohort, there was an increase in certain blood immune cell numbers, which play an important role in immunity against viruses. Second, patients that received emricasan showed normalization of several serum markers related to increased risk for blood clotting that are typically elevated in individuals with COVID-19. Third, substances that leak from dying cells in the body decreased and normalized in the emricasan cohort. These findings correlated with trends toward better immunity to SARS CoV2. Collectively, this data points to the role of emricasan in mild COVID19 and cell death as the core problem in COVID-19. "These additional findings further reinforce that emricasan can potentially be developed as a therapeutic treatment for mild to moderate COVID-19," said Richard W. Pascoe, Histogen's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We, along with Amerimmune, are currently developing a Phase 2 clinical strategy for emricasan as a new therapeutic option for the treatment of COVID-19 in parallel with exploring partnering opportunities for its future development and commercialization."

08:35 EDT SharpLink Gaming names Brian Bennett as Chief Financial Officer - SharpLink Gaming announced the appointment of Brian Bennett, CPA as the company's new Chief Financial Officer, effective today, August 16, 2021. Bennett succeeds Christian Peterson, who has served as SharpLink's Interim CFO and Vice President, Finance since the Company's business was founded in April 2019. Reporting directly to SharpLink CEO Robert Phythian, Bennett brings the company over a decade of finance and accounting experience in public and private manufacturing, technology and rate-regulated companies. Prior to joining SharpLink, Bennett served as Executive Director of Finance for Cirrus Aircraft.

08:34 EDT Hyliion Holdings announces Dennis Gallagher joins as COO - Hyliion Holdings announced that Dennis M. Gallagher has joined the company as Chief Operating Officer. Gallagher brings over 20 years of experience leading high-performing business units with a focus on global manufacturing and commercial vehicles. He will oversee aspects of Hyliion's commercialization process. "Dennis' experience in the heavy-duty commercial vehicle space will be invaluable as we continue to expand and achieve important milestones in our commercialization efforts, and we are pleased to bring an executive of his caliber on board," said Hyliion CEO Thomas Healy. "He is a seasoned and trusted leader with a laser focus on operational excellence. As COO, he will work closely with me and the rest of our leadership team and will be responsible for implementing industry-leading operational practices to optimize our robust Hypertruck ERX commercialization process."

08:33 EDT Cellectar Biosciences announces manufacturing, supply agreement with Evergreen - Cellectar Biosciences announced that it has entered into a commercial manufacturing and supply agreement with Evergreen Theragnostics. The company also announced that the United States Adopted Names Council has approved the use of "iopofosine I-131" as the generic name for CLR-131. The agreement with Evergreen provides long term commercial supply of iopofosine I-131 and supply of clinical study material for Cellectar's study in Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia as well as ongoing Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical studies. Evergreen will conduct process development and validation of additional large scale commercial quantities of iopofosine I-131 at its newly constructed manufacturing facility designed specifically for radiopharmaceutical manufacturing, including therapeutic and diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals. "Establishing a collaboration with a strong partner capable of supplying clinical and commercial scale quantities of iopofosine I-131 is another important advancement in our iopofosine I-131 product development and commercialization plan," said James Caruso, president and CEO of Cellectar. "Evergreen has tremendous expertise as a leading radiopharmaceutical contract manufacturer, and their location in New Jersey provides strategic logistical advantages including favorable distribution for both the U.S. and ex-U.S. markets. Importantly, this collaboration expands upon our current supply capabilities with our existing CDMO, allows future development and supply of additional radiotherapeutic programs in development and continues to pave the way for Cellectar to meet the potential market demand for iopofosine I-131 upon approval."

08:32 EDT Willis Towers Watson appoints Carl Hess as president, future CEO - Willis Towers Watson announced that its board of directors has unanimously selected Carl Hess as the company's new president and next chief executive officer. Hess, who currently serves as Willis Towers Watson's Head of Investment, Risk and Reinsurance business segment, will immediately assume the president role and succeed John Haley, upon his retirement, as CEO on January 1, 2022. Hess began his career at the company in 1989 and has held diverse leadership positions spanning business segment and geography roles. Prior to his current role, Hess served as co-leader of North America at Willis Towers Watson and before that, managing director, the Americas, of Towers Watson.

08:31 EDT Kiniksa announces launch of ARCALYST named patient program - Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals announced the launch of a Named Patient Program for ARCALYST, a weekly, subcutaneously-injected, recombinant fusion protein that blocks interleukin-1 alpha and interleukin-1 beta signaling. The Named Patient Program for ARCALYST was launched in partnership with the specialist services company, WEP Clinical. The program is designed to ensure that physicians outside the U.S. can request ARCALYST on behalf of individual patients who have recurrent pericarditis, cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes, or deficiency of IL-1 receptor antagonist but reside in countries where ARCALYST is not currently commercially available.

08:30 EDT NV5 Global selected for $6M in Geospatial awards to support US geological survey - NV5 Global announced that it has been selected by the US Geological Survey to provide geospatial services totaling approximately $6M to support the 3D Elevation Program. Under these awards, NV5 Geospatial will perform over 20,000 square miles of lidar data collection and data analytics in Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and Alaska. The goal of the USGS 3DEP program is to provide a national baseline of high-resolution, three-dimensional topographic elevation data across the United States. The elevation data provided by the 3DEP program is used to make critical decisions related to the environment, property, infrastructure, and safety. "NV5 Geospatial has supported the 3DEP program and the local governments and private organizations that partner with USGS since the program's inception," said Dickerson Wright, PE, Chairman and CEO of NV5. "The contributions that NV5 Geospatial makes to the 3DEP program support flood risk management, coastal resilience, energy development, water and natural resource conservation, infrastructure management, and a host of other applications."

08:29 EDT Genetic Technologies announces completion of acquisition of EasyDNA - Genetic Technologies announces the completion of its acquisition of EasyDNA for $4Min cash and stock on August 13, 2021. Simon Morriss, Chief Executive Officer of GENE, said, "Having completed the acquisition of EasyDNA we are now focused on integrating the team and embedding the product and platform into our existing structure. The strong alignment of this brand and platform with GENE's planned expansion into "health and wellness" testing was critical to our decision to acquire the business of EasyDNA and will deliver solid revenue growth and expansion in the future. "This acquisition gives GENE the platform to immediately access the consumer genomics market in 40 countries with an estimated value of $2.4B," added Morriss. "This market is forecast to continue on a trajectory of 19.4% CAGR, reaching USD$8.1billion by 2028. This market covers Ancestry, Genetic Relatedness, Diagnostics Lifestyle, Reproductive Health, Personalized Medicine & Pharmacogenetic testing and more, in regions including North American, Europe, and Asia Pacific where EasyDNA has presence." EasyDNA generates revenue from the sale of test kits to customers via its network of websites. Tests are typically performed via an oral swab sent directly to the customer from external laboratory partners. The laboratory processes the tests and transmits the results to EasyDNA, with test results communicated to customers by email.

08:27 EDT Oramed announces publication of ORMD-0801 study in peer-reviewed journal - Oramed Pharmaceuticals announced that Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism, has published an original article titled "Efficacy and safety of 28-day treatment with oral insulin, or ORMD-0801, in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus - A randomized placebo-controlled trial" authored by Dr. Roy Eldor, Dr. Joel Neutel, Kenneth Homer and Oramed's Chief Scientific Officer, Miriam Kidron. The article presents the results of a trial that assessed the safety and efficacy of Oramed's lead drug candidate ORMD-0801 in type 2 diabetes. The trial met its primary endpoint and found that in patients with T2DM, bedtime ORMD-0801 curbed increases in night-time glycemia, 24-hour glycemia, and HbA1c without increasing the risk of hypoglycemia or safety events as compared to the control arm.

08:25 EDT Avadel Pharmaceuticals announces publication of data from Phase 3 REST-ON trial - Avadel Pharmaceuticals announced the publication of data from its pivotal Phase 3 REST-ON trial of FT218 in SLEEP, the journal of the Sleep Research Society. The paper, titled "Once-Nightly Sodium Oxybate Demonstrated Improvement of Symptoms in a Phase 3 Randomized Clinical Trial in Patients With Narcolepsy." "The publication of the REST-ON trial results in the peer-reviewed journal SLEEP validates the potential of FT218 as a once-at-bedtime option that could, if approved, transform the treatment landscape for adults suffering from the burdensome symptoms of narcolepsy," said Jennifer Gudeman, Pharm.D., Vice President of Medical and Clinical Affairs at Avadel. "We believe FT218 has tremendous potential to provide clinically meaningful results for people with narcolepsy. As we approach our October PDUFA date, we remain confident in the potential of FT218 and are committed to making FT218 accessible to patients, if approved." Topline data from the completed randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled REST-ON trial were announced in April 2020. The study was designed to investigate the efficacy and safety of once-at-bedtime FT218 for the treatment of EDS and cataplexy in patients with narcolepsy. FT218 is currently under review at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration with a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target date of October 15, 2021.

08:24 EDT Brickell Biotech announce final patient completed in Phase 3 Cardigan II study - Brickell Biotech announced that the final patient has completed the Phase 3 pivotal Cardigan II study, which is evaluating sofpironium bromide gel, 15% in patients with primary axillary hyperhidrosis. The Company expects to announce topline results for the U.S. Phase 3 pivotal Cardigan I and Cardigan II studies concurrently in the fourth quarter of 2021. Pending the outcome of these studies, the Company expects to submit a New Drug Application for sofpironium bromide gel, 15% to the U.S. FDA in mid-2022. "We're excited to announce that all patients have now completed their final visits in the Cardigan I and Cardigan II studies of sofpironium bromide gel, 15% in patients with primary axillary hyperhidrosis. Achieving this milestone positions us to report topline results from both studies in the fourth quarter of 2021," said Deepak Chadha, Chief Research and Development Officer of Brickell. "We greatly appreciate the patients and investigators who participated in the Phase 3 program and look forward to receiving and releasing the results in due course."

08:21 EDT Collegium Pharmaceutical announces $100M share repurchase program - Collegium Pharmaceutical announced that its Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $100M of the company's shares of common stock. "Collegium is in a phase of growth and value creation, and this share repurchase program reflects our confidence in the underlying strength of our differentiated pain portfolio," said Joe Ciaffoni, President and Chief Executive Officer of Collegium. "We are committed to maintaining a disciplined approach to capital allocation and we believe that our strong financial position gives us the flexibility to return cash to shareholders, execute on our business strategy and invest in our long-term growth."

08:20 EDT 9 Meters collaborates with EBRIS to study larazotide for MIS-C treatment - 9 Meters Biopharma, announced a collaboration with the European Biomedical Research Institute of Salerno, Italy, EBRIS, to study larazotide for the treatment of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, MIS-C. Larazotide is a novel first-in-class tight junction regulator that the Company currently has in Phase 3 clinical development for adults with celiac disease.MIS-C is a rare and serious complication of COVID-19 with symptoms that resemble those of Kawasaki disease, potentially including persistent fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, myocardial dysfunction and cardiogenic shock with ventricular dysfunction in the setting of multisystem inflammation. Following receipt of a Study May Proceed letter from the FDA under a recently filed Investigator IND, EBRIS now plans to initiate a Phase 2a study in MIS-C in Q4 2021.The study intends to evaluate the use of larazotide in a group of children through a randomized placebo-controlled trial at Massachusetts General Hospital for Children led by pediatric pulmonologist Lael Yonker, M.D. Earlier this year, Dr. Yonker and a team of researchers announced unexpected findings published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation indicating that the dangerous hyperinflammatory response in MIS-C known as the "cytokine storm" may be triggered several weeks after acute viral infection when virus particles persisting in the gut migrate into the bloodstream. Larazotide, which promotes tight junction assembly, was used to test the hypothesis that the drug could mitigate migration of viral particles out of the gut through compromised junctions, thereby diminishing the magnitude of the hyperinflammatory response characteristic of MIS-C. The Phase 2a study is intended as a randomized, controlled trial, which, if successful, could lead to discussions between 9 Meters, EBRIS and regulators as to the best path forward to continue to develop larazotide in this setting.

08:19 EDT Lightbridge receives notice of allowance for patent from Canadian IPO - Lightbridge announced that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, or IPO, for a key patent that covers the design of our all-metal PWR fuel assembly, as well as a method for manufacturing our metallic fuel rods using the casting route. Seth Grae, President & Chief Executive Officer of Lightbridge Corporation, commented, "This latest patent in Canada further expands the broad global patent protection already surrounding our fuel design, illustrating our continued success securing our intellectual property rights around the world. We have now received patents for our breakthrough metallic nuclear fuel in key markets including the U.S., Canada, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, and other global markets. We believe that our strong patent portfolio will help establish and sustain our leadership in key global markets."

08:16 EDT Questor Technology says continuing to diversify in new markets - The company said, "During the first half of 2021, governmental health restrictions around the world have started lifting; however, the effects from COVID-19 continue to impact the global economy and the Company's operations and financial performance. It is difficult to predict how long these market conditions will continue to negatively impact the business. The Company notes that oil and gas prices have started to trend upwards in 2021 and the Company is optimistic this will lead to some increase in activity levels in the energy sector over the next year, which is where the Company's revenue has historically been derived. The Company also continues to diversify its business into new markets, expand its waste heat to power offering and build digital capability focused on an emissions platform that will enable credible quantification of emission reductions for its clients, with the end goal of monetizing the emission reduction offsets. In addition, as the importance of Environmental and Social Governance increasingly takes hold across many industries, the Company believes that clean technology demand will continue to increase. The Company is well positioned given its focus on top-tier service, quality and technology to meet its client's emission commitments in the future. As the world continues to move out of these challenging economic times, resilient companies will continue to focus on addressing the commitments they have made to their investors and the public to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Company's proven, cost-effective technology solutions will play an instrumental role in enabling these companies to meet their goals and targets. The Company continues to see demand for its products in this market both during and subsequent to the quarter, and as more and more companies see the value of ESG, the Company anticipates growth in this market. The Canadian federal government has established a $750 million Emission Reduction Fund, with a focus on methane reduction, to create and maintain jobs through pollution reduction efforts. This goes a long way toward indicating the federal government does understand the importance of this industry and the struggles it currently faces. The Company continues to work with potential clients to offer products and services that allow them access to this funding. The US market has proven difficult over the past year due to the Companies previous customer concentration in the oil and gas market. However, as the energy industry and the economy start to recover, the Company expects to see an increase in future demand and has been positioning both operations and sales and marketing to be ready to capitalize on this growth. Recent opportunities have presented themselves for expansion into new industry segments and to provide more integrated product solutions to help customers achieve their goals with respect to net zero emissions targets and Questor is continuing its focus its future sales activities to incorporate further diversification. The Company anticipates the final commissioning of three facilities in Mexico will be completed in the second half of 2021. The Company continues to be optimistic for further business in this area given the country's aggressive objectives to address energy emissions."

08:15 EDT 111 and Bayer Healthcare expand strategic partnership - 111 announced the expansion of its existing partnership with Bayer Healthcare. 111 and Bayer Healthcare first entered into a strategic partnership in September 2020, to collaborate on drug commercialization initiatives in China. Specifically, 111 and Bayer agreed to work towards the commercialization of innovative drugs and healthcare products for chronic disease management, as well as providing useful resources for patient education. Leveraging 111's vast network of pharmacies and healthcare providers facilitates the expansion of Bayer's presence in underserved markets in China, as well as enhances the leading drug maker's channel management and patient outreach capabilities. The two companies also agreed to jointly develop a digital content portal that provides online pharmacist training, as well as interactive patient education, and other services.

08:12 EDT Tilt Holdings receives approval to trade on the NEO Exchange - TILT Holdings announced that it has received approval for the listing of its common shares on the NEO Exchange. TILT's common shares will begin trading in Canadian Dollars on the NEO on Tuesday, August 17 under the symbol TILT. The Company's common shares will also continue to trade in U.S. Dollars on the OTCQX Best Market. In conjunction with the new listing, TILT's common shares are expected to be voluntarily delisted from the Canadian Securities Exchange at the close of trading on Monday, August 16. No action is required from current shareholders.

08:11 EDT Lordstown Motors appoints Eric Purcell as VP, global quality - Lordstown Motors has announced Eric Purcell will be joining the company as Vice President of Global Quality, effective August 16, 2021. Mr. Purcell will be responsible for implementing and overseeing the company's quality standards ahead of the start of production of the Lordstown Endurance. He will report to Lordstown Motors President, Rich Schmidt, and work closely with leaders across Operations, Engineering, Warranty, Sales and Service. As Vice President of Global Quality, Mr. Purcell will play a pivotal role in ensuring the continual compliance of quality standards for Lordstown Motors products and processes to ensure vehicle reliability, durability and safety. He will work across all functions to develop and implement strategic initiatives to achieve annual objectives for Safety, Quality, Delivery, Productivity and Cost at all LMC locations globally. He has a proven track record as a strong and decisive operations leader, most recently with Gibson Brands.

08:09 EDT COMSovereign Holding resumes volume shipments of Fastback Networks radio product - COMSovereign Holding announced that following increased production capacity at its U.S.-based contract manufacturing partner, it is resuming volume shipments of its Fastback Networks radio products under its multi-year Master Vendor Agreement with a Tier 1 U.S. Mobile Network Operator. Fastback has begun fulfillment of open orders valued at more than $8.7M under the multi-year MVA after resolving initial delays caused by global component shortages, post-production testing capacity, as well as the lingering impact of COVID-19 on operations and supply chains. With its current component inventory and production capacity, COMSovereign believes that it will fulfill these initial orders throughout the third and fourth quarters of 2021. Based upon rapidly increasing production capacity, and the availability of necessary components, the Company expects the ability to meet Fastback radio order volumes of approximately $40M from customers over the next 8 to 10 months.

08:08 EDT Starboard says 'significant issues remain' with Box

08:07 EDT Exelixis, Invenra expand discovery and licensing collaboration by 20 targets - Exelixis and Invenra announced that they have expanded their discovery and licensing collaboration to include an additional 20 oncology targets. The augmented partnership builds on the two companies' ongoing collaboration and license agreement to discover and develop mono-specific and multi-specific antibodies for incorporation into novel biologics to treat cancer, which was originally announced in May 2018 and expanded in October 2019. Under the terms of this newly expanded collaboration, Exelixis has agreed to pay Invenra an upfront fee of $15M, as well as additional fees and funding for the option to nominate up to 20 additional targets in oncology. Invenra will be eligible for development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties on net sales of any approved products. Exelixis will own all antibody sequences discovered from the collaboration for all therapeutic uses in oncology and any other disease areas. The expanded collaboration also provides Exelixis with an option to obtain development and commercialization rights to certain of Invenra's future internal pipeline programs, in exchange for an opt-in fee.

08:06 EDT Red Cat receives purchase order from Drone Nerds - Red Cat Holdings announces that it has received a significant purchase order from Drone Nerds, which is the largest distributor of drones in the United States. The purchase order is for the Golden Eagle, manufactured by Teal Drones. The Company announced a definitive agreement to acquire Teal Drones on July 13. Red Cat and the Golden Eagle from Teal Drones will be featured in the Drone Nerds booth at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, or AUVSI, Convention at the Georgia World Conference Center in Atlanta on August 16-19.

08:05 EDT Alaska Air exercises options early on 12 Boeing 737-9 aircraft - Alaska Airlines (ALK) announced it is accelerating its fleet growth by exercising options early on 12 Boeing (BA) 737-9 aircraft. The option aircraft are now firm commitments for 2023 and 2024. This additional commitment brings Alaska's total firm 737-9 order to 93 aircraft, five of which are currently in service. Alaska announced a restructured agreement with Boeing in December 2020 to acquire 68 737-9 aircraft between 2021 to 2024, with options for another 52 deliveries between 2023 and 2026. This year, the airline has exercised 25 of the options, including 13 planes in May. As part of this transaction, Alaska will add 25 options to backfill the ones that have been exercised.

08:04 EDT Starboard: 'We have never demanded Box sell for a price in the low twenties'

08:03 EDT Starboard seeking election of minority slate of directors to Box board

08:03 EDT Abbott announces FDA approval of Amplatzer Amulet device - Abbott announced that the U.S. FDA approved the company's Amplatzer Amulet Left Atrial Appendage Occluder to treat people with atrial fibrillation who are at risk of ischemic stroke. The device offers immediate closure of the left atrial appendage, an area where blood clots can form in people suffering from AFib - reducing their risk of stroke and immediately eliminating the need for blood-thinning medication.

07:59 EDT Minim launches intelligent networking products in India - Minim announced the launch of its intelligent networking products in India. Consumers can now find the Motorola MH7020 Triband AC2200 Mesh WiFi system and mobile app, powered by Minim, in Amazon.in and Flipkart.in. The move marks the first major step towards international e-commerce expansion, adding to the company's global sales footprint via Internet Service Providers. More than 140 Internet Service Providers rely on Minim's WiFi as a Service platformto improve the subscriber experience while decreasing support costs. Minim's mobile app gives subscribers advanced performance monitoring, parental controls, comprehensive network security and more. Minim's ISP customers are now distributed in: Americas: Canada, Mexico, Honduras, Paraguay, Guadeloupe; Europe: UK, Italy; Africa: South Africa, Nigeria, Tanzania, Malawi, Kenya; Cambodia; Australia. The new sales channels Amazon.in and Flipkart.in will expand Minim's e-commerce presence, which now includes: Amazon US, Best Buy, B&H, Staples, Target, Walmart, Home Shopping Network, The Home Depot, Lowe's, Sam's Club, Micro Center, Newegg, and BJ's Wholesale Club.

07:55 EDT Yamana repurchases initial 1.73M common shares under share repurchase program - YAMANA GOLD announced that it has repurchased an initial 1,736,776 common shares outstanding for approximately C$10 million under the Company's normal course issuer bid as part of its share repurchase program for up to 5% of the outstanding shares. The Company has not established any formulae or price ranges under its normal course issuer bid as it plans to be selective and opportunistic in relation to share repurchases intending to enter market when permitted and at times when the trading range of its shares do not reflect the underlying value. The Company is committed to further increasing shareholder returns through its capital returns program, and additional share repurchases will be determined based on market conditions, share price, and best use of available cash, in addition to further considerations. Common shares that are purchased under the normal course issuer bid will be cancelled. The Company believes that the market price of its common shares does not currently represent their full value and growth prospects and views purchases of common shares as an attractive investment comparable to its investments in its portfolio of exploration and development stage assets. The share repurchases are a further component of the Company's capital returns program, which also includes cash returns through the Company's dividends, which have cumulatively increased by 500% since the second quarter of 2019. With the Company's recently completed $500 million 10-year unsecured senior notes offering and redemption of existing notes, which significantly reduced aggregate outstanding debt while increasing tenor and lowering interest carrying costs, the Company has further increased its financial resilience and flexibility-one of the Company's three equally-weighted capital allocation priorities. This allows the Company to more effectively and fully pursue its other two capital allocation priorities: the exploration, development and expansion of priority, low capital cost growth projects, and support and further increase returns of capital to shareholders. Lower interest carrying costs in the approximate amount of $21.6 million annually add to already robust cash flows, contribute to the increase of cash balances and thereby support capital costs and amounts available for dividends and share repurchases. The Company has high return organic growth projects, including the Jacobina Phase 2 expansion, the Wasamac project and the Odyssey underground project at Canadian Malartic, which the Company intends to fully fund with cash on hand and free cash flow generation. The Company is also advancing the development of the MARA copper-gold project with average annual production of 556 million pounds of copper equivalent in the first 10 years and 469 million pounds of copper equivalent production life of mine over an initial mine life of 28 years.

07:51 EDT Equity Commonwealth buys Monmouth Real Estate for total consideration of $3.4B - Equity Commonwealth (EQC) and Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corporation (MNR), or Monmouth, announced that they have entered into an amendment to the definitive merger agreement between the two companies. Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, Equity Commonwealth revised its offer to pay a total value of $19.00 per share in a combination of cash and stock at the election of Monmouth shareholders and based on EQC's closing price of $26.65 per share on August 13.Total consideration for the transaction is $3.4B, including the assumption of $857M of mortgage debt, and the repayment of the $550M of Monmouth's 6.125% Series C Redeemable Preferred Stock and Monmouth's outstanding line of credit and term loan. "Our revised offer provides Monmouth shareholders with the option to elect to receive consideration in cash, but also provides a tax-deferred option to remain invested in the future upside of our business," said David Helfand, President, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee of Equity Commonwealth. "We will continue to have significant balance sheet capacity, of over $4 billion, for future industrial investments." The revised transaction structure, with the issuance of fewer EQC common shares, is expected to result in significant improvement in per share earnings metrics for the combined company as compared to earnings under the original all-stock transaction. In addition, the dividend per share is expected to be higher under the revised transaction due to fewer EQC common shares outstanding post transaction. It is anticipated that the transaction will be tax-deferred to Monmouth common shareholders to the extent they receive common stock as consideration. In connection with the revised offer, the termination fee will increase by approximately $10 million to $72 million. Equity Commonwealth and Monmouth shareholders are expected to own approximately 73% and 27%, respectively, of the pro forma company following the close of the transaction.

07:46 EDT Ayr Wellness enters LOI to acquire Cultivauna for $20M upfront consideration - Ayr Wellness has announced that it has entered into a binding letter of intent to acquire Cultivauna, LLC, the owner of Levia branded cannabis infused seltzers and water-soluble tinctures. Ayr intends to purchase 100% of the equity interests of Cultivauna, LLC. The terms of the transaction include $20 million in upfront consideration, made up of up to $10 million in cash with the remainder in stock. An earn-out payment of up to an additional $40 million will be paid in shares based on the achievement of revenue targets in 2022 and 2023. Levia Cannabis Infused Seltzers provide for rapid onset of the effects of THC, typically 15-20 minutes, allowing for a more consistent consumption experience than many edible products. Levia is currently available in Massachusetts in three experiences and flavors: "Achieve" Raspberry Lime. "Celebrate" Lemon Lime. "Dream" Jam Berry. Each flavor is available in 12-ounce slim cans and contains 5 mgs of THC. Levia is also available in water soluble tinctures in the same formulations. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, as well as the execution of a binding definitive agreement. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of 2021.

07:44 EDT Minim launching WiFi 6 product family in 2H21 - "Our trailing 12 month sales as of June 30th outperformed our product category in US retail by 17% according to NPD Group market research," said Nicole Zheng, President and CMO of Minim. "This is evidence that we're bringing stand-out products to market. We look forward to Back to School season sales and launching our powerful WiFi 6 product family and exciting mobile app features in the second half of the year. We continue to light up new and exciting retail sales channels in the U.S. and now India."

07:39 EDT Medipharm Labs committee interviews 'several strong candidates' for CEO position - The company said, "The Company's Board of Directors previously appointed a special committee to lead the search for a permanent CEO. Following its engagement with global search firm Korn Ferry, the search committee has interviewed several strong candidates and anticipates selecting a new CEO aligned to its growth into a global pharmaceutical company."

07:39 EDT Medipharm Labs appoints Chris Taves as chairman of the board - The Company's Board of Directors is pleased to announce that it has unanimously appointed Chris Taves as Chairman of the Board effective immediately. Mr. Taves joined MediPharm's Board in July 2020 and also chairs its Audit Committee. He brings a wealth of experience in the banking and capital markets industries having recently held the position of COO of BMO Capital Markets. Pat McCutcheon, previous Chairman of the Board, and Shelley Martin, previous Lead Independent Director, remain on the Board of Directors and will continue to assist the Company in devising its strategic direction. As Chairman, Chris Taves will oversee the leadership of the Company into its next stage of growth as a leader in the supply of cannabis-based drugs and API to pharmaceutical companies around the world.

07:35 EDT FreightCar America raises 2021 delivery outlook - 2021 delivery outlook raised to between 1,750 and 1,850 railcars, up from between 1,600 and 1,750 railcars. "We remain encouraged by signs of an improving demand environment across our end-markets. Sales inquiries remain positive, and we have raised our 2021 outlook again for railcar deliveries. Additionally, we are thrilled to share that our Board of Directors has approved plans to add two more production lines at the Castanos manufacturing facility, which will double our capacity within a year. This planned expansion is an essential next step to driving incremental volumes and significantly improving our long-term earnings profile," said Jim Meyer, President and Chief Executive Officer of FreightCar America.

07:34 EDT Medipharm Labs expects cash balance to support long-term growth strategy - The company said, "Cash and cash equivalents totaled $39 million at June 30, 2021 and the cash balance outstanding under the convertible notes was under $2 million. This strong cash balance, together with expected income tax refunds and CEWS/CERS payments is sufficient to support of the Company's long-term growth strategy."

07:30 EDT Alliance Data reports July net charge offs 4.2% vs. 4.8% last month - Reports July delinquency ratio 3.4% vs. 3.3% last month.

07:25 EDT Amcor to build two new art innovation centers with total investment of $35M - Amcor announced plans to build two new state-of-the-art innovation centers. The new facilities in Ghent, Belgium, and Jiangyin, China, will welcome customers as of mid-2022, with full build-out over the next two years. The total investment is expected to be approximately $35M. The new centers expand the global reach of Amcor's innovation network, which currently includes flagship sites such as Neenah, Wisconsin, and Manchester, Michigan, in the US, as well as smaller sites around the world.

07:24 EDT Yumanity Therapeutics appoints Michael Wyzga as Chief Financial Officer - Yumanity Therapeutics announced the appointment of Michael Wyzga as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer. Wyzga has more than a decade of experience in healthcare finance. He joins the Company after eight years at Needham & Company where he served as Vice President in the Healthcare Investment Banking group.

07:21 EDT Gulf Resources CEO says 'optimistic' about 2H21 - "The company is optimistic about the second half of year 2021. Production lost in the second quarter is likely to be recouped in the third quarter. Bromine price remains high. At current levels of production, our bromine business should be profitable. We have expensed our all of our annual stock grants, so overhead will be reduced. We believe we could receive approvals for one or more of our closed factories in near future. In 2022, we may begin to generate revenues from our chemical factory. We expect that our chemical business could be profitable in 2023. We continue to believe that we may be able to produce both natural gas and bromine products in Sichuan if we are able to obtain requisite governmental approvals," said Mr. Xiaobin Liu, CEO of the Company.

07:18 EDT Matinas BioPharma announces issuance of US patent for MAT2203 - Matinas BioPharma announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a Notice of Allowance for U.S. Patent Application No. 16/312,047, covering MAT2203, the Company's oral, LNC formulation of antifungal medicine amphotericin B. The allowed patent application, entitled, "Encocholeated Antifungal Compounds for Central Nervous System Delivery and Treatment of Cryptococcus Infections," includes claims directed to using an orally administered amphotericin B cochleate composition in combination with a second antifungal compound, such as 5-Flucytosine or an azole antifungal, to treat or prevent a Cryptococcus infection of the central nervous system. The patent that issues from U.S. Patent Application No. 16/312,047 will have a base patent term extending to 2037, excluding any patent term adjustments or patent term extensions which may provide additional protection. "This new patent allowance by the USPTO is not only another important milestone in protecting the commercial potential of MAT2203, but demonstrates our strong overall commitment to protecting the innovation and commercial opportunity of our entire LNC delivery platform portfolio," commented Jerome Jabbour, Chief Executive Officer of Matinas.

07:16 EDT Teligent says FDA CGMP inspection, reinspection remain ongoing - The company said, "As previously reported, based on management's assessment of our remediation efforts at the Buena NJ manufacturing facility, the Company issued prior guidance stating that it believed it would be ready to inform the FDA of its inspection readiness during the third quarter of 2021. rior to our informing the FDA of our inspection readiness, the Company was informed by the FDA that it would commence a periodic Current Good Manufacturing Practices inspection and reinspection to follow-up on FDA Warning Letter remediation actions in mid-July. This inspection and reinspection remain ongoing and no formal communication from the FDA to the Company regarding the outcome or providing the final results of the inspection and reinspection has been issued, nor is the timing of such communications determinable at this time. Therefore, until such time as the results of the FDA's inspection and reinspection are formally made available to us and we have had ample opportunity to review and analyze the same with our consultants and advisors we will have no further comment on this matter."

07:12 EDT Freeline expects cash to fund operating expenses into 1Q23 - Cash and cash equivalents were $164.7 million as of June 30, 2021, as compared to $230.0 million as of December 31, 2020. Based on the Company's revised operating plan, Freeline expects that its current level of cash and cash equivalents will enable the Company to fund its operating expenses into the first quarter of 2023.

07:09 EDT Centessa expects cash, cash equivalents to fund operations until end of 2023 - Cash and cash equivalents were $613.8M as of June 30, 2021, compared to $7.2M for the Centessa Predecessor Group as of December 31, 2020. The increase in cash resulted from $344.1M in net proceeds from the company's initial public offering completed in June 2021, and the full exercise of the underwriters' option to purchase additional shares, $241.6M in net proceeds from the Company's Series A financing completed in January 2021, and cash contributed upon the acquisition of the additional Centessa Subsidiaries, net of cash used during the period. Based on the current, non-risk-adjusted operating plan, the Company expects the cash and cash equivalents as of June 30, 2021, to fund its operations until the end of 2023.

07:07 EDT Enanta doses 1st patient EDP-721 study for oral oral hepatitis B virus - Enanta Pharmaceuticals, announced that it has dosed the first subject in its Phase 1 clinical trial of EDP-721, a novel, oral hepatitis B virus RNA destabilizer being developed for use in an all-oral combination regimen for chronic HBV patients. "We are pleased to advance our HBV program by dosing the first subject in our Phase 1 clinical study of EDP-721, an orally administered HBV RNA destabilizer that has the potential to reduce S antigen. As we believe that achieving a functional cure for HBV will involve a combination approach, this milestone brings us closer to our vision of developing an all-oral regimen for HBV," said Jay R. Luly, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Enanta Pharmaceuticals. "The current standard of care for chronic HBV involves nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, or NUCs, which can suppress HBV replication. In addition, EDP-514, our potent core inhibitor inhibits several stages of HBV replication, from uncoating and nuclear import of the virus, to capsid assembly and recycling. Now, with EDP-721, we have an oral compound that has demonstrated preclinically the ability to destabilize HBV RNAs, leading to a reduction in viral proteins, including S antigen, which we believe is essential for the treatment of HBV. With this triple combination of a NUC, EDP-514, and EDP-721, we see the potential for an all-oral functional cure and look forward to progressing this study." This two-part Phase 1a/b study will initially evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of EDP-721 in single and multiple ascending oral doses in healthy volunteers. The second part, in chronic HBV patients, will evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and antiviral activity of multiple ascending oral doses of EDP-721 with or without a NUC, and then in combination with EDP-514. Data from the first part of the study are expected in the first half of 2022.

07:06 EDT Scienjoy announces pilot exhibitions of NFT artwork in New York - Scienjoy Holding announced plans for a pilot initiative to exhibit and sell the non-fungible token, or NFT, artwork of young artists at a group of contemporary art galleries in the New York area. Scienjoy and Global Friendship Exchange Foundation have signed a memorandum of understanding with three contemporary art galleries with an interest in digital art NFTs, including Latitude Gallery, Onboard Gallery and Herr Gallery in New York.

07:05 EDT Centene names Rich Fisher SVP and Medicare CEO - Centene announced Rich Fisher has been appointed to Senior Vice President and Medicare CEO. Fisher will play a critical role overseeing the company's Medicare strategy, product development, sales, and operations. He will report to Brent Layton, Executive Vice President and President of U.S. Health Plans, Products, and International. Fisher joined Centene through the acquisition of Wellcare and has more than 15 years in the combined organization. For the past four years, he has served as Medicare's CFO and has played an instrumental role in driving overall growth and profitability for the company's Medicare products.

07:04 EDT Castle Biosciences presents new data on DecisionDx-Melanoma and DecisionDx-SCC - Castle Biosciences announced recent presentations on two of its skin cancer gene expression profile tests at the 2021 American Academy of Dermatology,AAD, Summer Meeting, held Aug. 5-8. DecisionDx-Melanoma is Castle's gene expression profile test that uses an individual patient's tumor biology to predict the risk of cutaneous melanoma metastasis or recurrence, as well as sentinel lymph node,SLN, positivity, independent of traditional staging factors. "Integrating 31-gene expression profiling with clinicopathologic features improves prognostication of recurrence and metastasis in patients with stage I-III cutaneous melanoma" was presented by Nicholas Taylor, M.D., Ph.D., Zitelli and Brodland, P.C., Pittsburgh and Central Dermatology Center, Chapel Hill, N.C. in the Frontiers in Research, Science and Technology, FiRST, session on Saturday, Aug. 7. "The study demonstrated that DecisionDx-Melanoma added significant prognostic value for a patient beyond traditional staging," said Taylor. "The study further showed that the ability to integrate a patient's unique tumor biology with their personal clinical and pathologic risk factors helped both patients and clinicians."

07:03 EDT Rocket Pharmaceuticals announces FDA lifts clinical hold on RP-A501 trial - Rocket Pharmaceuticals announced that the FDA has lifted the clinical hold on the company's Phase 1 clinical trial of RP-A501 for the treatment of Danon Disease, allowing patient enrollment to resume. The hold was removed after the company addressed the FDA's requests to modify the trial protocol and other supporting documents with revised guidelines for patient selection and management. The company has initiated steps to resume the program as soon as possible and expects to commence dosing in the low-dose pediatric patient cohort in the third quarter. Rocket's Danon Disease program was placed on clinical hold by the FDA in May to modify the study protocol and other supporting documents with revised guidelines for patient selection and safety management. No new drug-related safety events were observed in the low-dose or higher-dose young adult cohorts as part of the clinical hold or during the hold.

06:44 EDT Scorpio Tankers announces purchase of call options by President Robert Bugbee - Scorpio Tankers announced that the President of the company, Robert Bugbee, has purchased call options on an aggregate of 50,000 common shares of the company for total consideration of $230,000. The call option contracts have a strike price of $15.00 and an expiration of January 2023.

06:35 EDT Hexo appoints Valerie Malone as CCO - HEXO announced that it is expanding its global leadership team with the appointment of Valerie Malone as CCO, effective September 6. Valerie brings more than 20 years of experience managing businesses across different verticals including consumer packaged goods, technology and electronics, durable goods and consulting to her role at HEXO. Valerie's vast leadership experience includes roles at high-profile organizations including PepsiCo Canada, Whirlpool Corporation, LG Electronics and Lixil, with responsibilities spanning from Vice-President of Marketing to General Manager and President. Her success has been built through strategies rooted in data, analytics and consumer insights. Valerie comes well prepared to immediately make an impact with her in-depth knowledge of HEXO and its product brands. As HEXO's CCO. Valerie will oversee the Marketing, Sales and Product Development groups with a focus on commercial strategy and development. The Company also announces that HEXO's Chief Development Officer, James McMillan will be departing from his role with the company.

06:16 EDT II-VI announces board chair succession - II-VI announced that Francis Kramer, II-VI's current Board chair and former CEO, will transition to Chair Emeritus while continuing as a director, effective immediately following the annual meeting of II-VI shareholders in November, 2021, and that Dr. Vincent D. Mattera, Jr., II-VI's current CEO and a director, will become Chair of II-VI's board of directors at that time. Rear Admiral Marc Y.E. Pelaez will continue to serve as Lead Independent Director on the II-VI Board, a position he has held since 2014.

06:04 EDT UWM sees Q3 production $57B-$62B range and gain margin between 75bps-100bps -

06:02 EDT HSBC agrees to acquire AXA Singapore for $575M - HSBC Insurance Asia-Pacific Holdings Ltd, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc (HSBC), has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the issued share capital of AXA Insurance Pte Limited, or AXA Singapore (AXAHY), for $575M. Noel Quinn, CEO, HSBC Holdings plc, commented: "This is animportant acquisition that demonstrates our ambition to grow our Wealth business across Asia. Wealth is one of our highest growth and highest return opportunities, and plays to our strengths as an Asia-centred bank with global reach. We are acquiring a good business that fits well with our existing operations, and which strengthens our status as one of Asia's leading wealth and insurance providers." Following deal completion, which is subject to regulatory approval, the intention is to merge the operations of HSBC Life Singapore and AXA Singapore, subject to further approval by the Singapore regulator and courts.

05:53 EDT Rada Electronic, Alpha Design enter MoU to establish joint venture - Rada Electronic and Alpha Design have executed a memorandum of understanding to establish a joint venture to market, manufacture, sell and support RADA's radars in India. Based on Indian defense doctrines for air defense and force protection, Rada envisions this market as a growth opportunity. Among the operational missions in which this advanced technology would be used are, mobile short range air defense, counter UAV, counter mortars, artillery and rockets, active protection of armored vehicles, and others.

05:21 EDT Eli Lilly says ADvocate 1, ADvocate 2 trials met primary and secondary endpoints - Lebrikizumab led to significant improvements with at least 75% skin clearance in more than half of people with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis, or AD, as measured by EASI, in Eli Lilly's ADvocate 1 and ADvocate 2 Phase 3 clinical trials. In the top-line results from these two studies of lebrikizumab as a monotherapy in AD, primary and all key secondary endpoints, including skin clearance and itch improvement, were met at Week 16. Lebrikizumab is a novel monoclonal antibody, or mAb, that binds soluble IL-13 with high affinity, has high bioavailability, a long half-life and blocks IL-13 signaling. The FDA has granted fast track designation to lebrikizumab for moderate-to-severe AD in adult and adolescent patients. Fast track designation is granted for a medicine that is intended to treat a serious condition and data demonstrate the potential to address an unmet medical need. ADvocate 1 and ADvocate 2 are ongoing 52-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, Phase 3 studies designed to evaluate lebrikizumab as monotherapy in adult and adolescent patients with moderate-to-severe AD. The primary efficacy endpoints were assessed at 16 weeks in the two studies and were measured by an Investigator Global Assessment or IGA, score of clear or almost clear skin with a reduction of at least two points from baseline at Week 16 and at least a 75% or greater change from baseline in their Eczema Area and Severity Index, or EASI, score at Week 16. Lebrikizumab also achieved key secondary endpoints versus placebo in patients with AD, including early onset in skin clearance and itch relief, improvement in interference of itch on sleep and quality of life. Key secondary endpoints were measured by the IGA, EASI, the Pruritus Numeric Rating Scale, Sleep-Loss due to Pruritus and the Dermatology Life Quality Index. In the initial 16-week placebo-controlled period of ADvocate 1 and ADvocate 2, the incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events, or AEs, and serious AEs among patients treated with lebrikizumab was consistent with that of the previous Phase 2 lebrikizumab study in AD. The most common AEs included conjunctivitis, nasopharyngitis and headache for lebrikizumab-treated patients. Discontinuations due to AEs were similar in the lebrikizumab group compared to placebo.The full study results from ADvocate 1 and ADvocate 2 will be disclosed at future congresses in 2022. Data from a Phase 3 combination study of lebrikizumab with topical corticosteroids in patients with AD will be available later this year. These studies are part of the lebrikizumab Phase 3 program, which consists of five key ongoing, global studies including two monotherapy studies and a combination study as well as long-term extension and adolescent open label trials.