Stockwinners Market Radar for December 20, 2022 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:24 EST Musk says he will resign as Twitter CEO once successor is found - Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk said he will resign as Twitter (TWTR) CEO as soon as he finds a successor. "I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job! After that, I will just run the software & servers teams," Musk said in a tweet. Reference Link

18:40 EST Forian: NY selects BioTrack as state's cannabis track and trace system - Forian announced that New York has selected BioTrack as the track and trace system for the New York Office of Cannabis Management's Cannabis Seed to Sale Tracking System. The BioTrack software, commonly referred to as traceability or seed-to-sale, will track cannabis from when it is first planted as a seed to the point of sale to the consumer. New York's Office of Cannabis Management plans to use the BioTrack seed to sale traceability system to monitor the movement of cannabis products in the state's new adult-use cannabis market and continue monitoring in the state's medical cannabis market, while providing a real-time inventory of cannabis products available and sold in the state and preventing unlawful diversion of products. In New York, all licensed medical cannabis and adult-use cannabis licensees will be required to integrate their own inventory and/or sale tracking systems with the BioTrack tracking system to log the movement of cannabis as it is grown, manufactured into other products, packaged, tested, and sold to qualifying patients or consumers. BioTrack's government traceability system could also help recall cannabis plants and products deemed as unsafe/adulterated, and prevent adulterated and regulated materials from reaching the illicit market.

18:02 EST FedEx says drop in volume accelerated through Q2 - Says volume decline to begin to moderate at end of Q3.

17:41 EST FedEx says Ground service now back to pre-pandemic levels - Says able to grow both operating income and margin for FedEx Ground in Q2. Says achieved over $900M in savings during Q2. Says Ground service now back to pre-pandemic levels. Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

17:32 EST Acorda Therapeutics receives non-compliance letter from NASDAQ - Acorda Therapeutics announced that it was notified by the Listing Qualifications Staff of The Nasdaq that, due to the Company's common stock not having regained compliance with the minimum price of $1.00, the stock is subject to delisting unless the Company timely requests a hearing before the Nasdaq Hearings Panel. The Company plans to submit such request within the required seven calendar days, which will stay any suspension or delisting action pending the hearing and the expiration of any additional extension period granted by the Hearings Panel following the hearing. The Hearings Panel has the discretion to grant the Company an extension through June 17, 2023. At the hearing, the Company intends to present a plan to achieve compliance with the Nasdaq listing requirements and to request additional time to regain such compliance. In the event that the Company receives an extension but cannot regain compliance within the extended time, the Company would effect a reverse stock split under authorization from stockholders received in November 2022. There can be no assurance that the Panel will grant the Company an extension or that the Company will ultimately regain compliance with all applicable requirements for continued listing on The Nasdaq Global Select Market.

17:20 EST Caterpillar appoints Lou Balmer-Millar as Chief Sustainability Officer - Caterpillar announced that Lou Balmer-Millar will assume responsibility for the Chief Sustainability Officer role in addition to her current responsibility as Senior Vice President of the Large Power Systems Division within the Energy and Transportation segment. Balmer-Millar succeeds Julie Lagacy, who was Caterpillar's first Chief Sustainability & Strategy officer and is retiring February 1, 2023, after nearly 35 years of dedicated service. In her capacity as Chief Sustainability Officer, Balmer-Millar will report directly to Chairman and CEO Jim Umpleby. Balmer-Millar has held several technical and business leadership positions of increased scope and responsibility over her 20-year career with Caterpillar. Prior to joining the company, she led materials and chemical engineering research efforts at the Environmental Molecular Science Laboratory of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Balmer-Millar has a Ph.D. in Materials Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Bachelor of Science in engineering from The Pennsylvania State University. Balmer-Millar will work with Lagacy to transition to the role in the Q1 of 2023.

17:17 EST Skillz receives non-compliance letter from NYSE - Skillz announced that it received a notice from the NYSE that it is not in compliance with Section 802.01C of the NYSE Listed Company Manual because the average closing price of the Company's Class A common stock was less than $1.00 over a consecutive 30 trading-day period. The notice does not result in the immediate delisting of Skillz's Class A common stock from the NYSE. The Company plans to notify the NYSE by January 3, 2023 that it intends to cure the stock price deficiency and to return to compliance with the NYSE continued listing standard. The Company can regain compliance at any time within the six-month period following receipt of the NYSE notice if on the last trading day of any calendar month during the cure period the Company has a closing share price of at least $1.00 and an average closing share price of at least $1.00 over the 30 trading-day period ending on the last trading day of that month. The Company intends to consider available alternatives, including, but not limited to, a reverse stock split, subject to stockholder approval no later than at the Company's next annual meeting of stockholders, if necessary to cure the stock price non-compliance.

16:57 EST Indaba Capital reports 8.8% stake in On24 - Indaba Capital believes that the Board of Directors of On24 needs to urgently take proactive measures to improve the company's stock price, balance sheet and valuation, including by exploring bold capital allocation decisions, and intends to actively engage with the Board regarding ways to unlock shareholder value. Indaba Capital urges the independent directors of the Board to improve their oversight of management, engage directly with the stockholder base and demonstrate greater responsiveness to stockholder input.

16:55 EST Lowe's exec McFarland sells 15,301 common shares - In a regulatory filing, Lowe's Companies executive VP Joseph Michael McFarland disclosed the sale of 15,301 common shares of the company on December 19 at a price of $203.8218 per share.

16:46 EST Nike jumps 7% to $110.13 after Q2 results beat estimates

16:37 EST HTG Molecular says stock begins trading on Nasdaq Dec. 21 after reverse split - HTG Molecular Diagnostics announced that as a result of its one-for-twelve reverse stock split which became effective at 4:15 p.m. Eastern Time on December 20, its common stock will begin trading on a split-adjusted basis on The Nasdaq Capital Market effective with the open of the market tomorrow, Wednesday, December 21. HTG's common stock will continue to trade under the ticker symbol "HTGM."

16:34 EST Atara announces $31M royalty interest financing pact with HealthCare Royalty - Atara Biotherapeutics has entered into a royalty interest financing agreement totaling $31M with HealthCare Royalty for Ebvallo in Europe and other territories covered by Atara's commercialization agreement with Pierre Fabre. "This strategic deal with HCRx, a top-tier investment firm, contributes to Atara's financial position and reflects our positive momentum following the recent European Commission approval of Ebvallo as the only approved therapy for EU patients with a rare and potentially deadly cancer," said Pascal Touchon, President and Chief Executive Officer of Atara. "We share HCRx's confidence in Ebvallo and a vision of bringing a first ever allogeneic T-cell therapy to market in collaboration with our European commercialization partner Pierre Fabre." Under the terms of the agreement, Atara will receive a $31M upfront payment from HCRx. In exchange, HCRx will receive rights to specified royalties and milestones under the Pierre Fabre commercialization agreement for Europe and other territories. The total royalties and milestones payable to HCRx are capped between 185% and 250% of the total investment amount by HCRx, dependent upon the timing of such royalties and milestones. Additionally, Atara retains existing milestone payments from Pierre Fabre of $10M for Ebvallo approval in Europe and $30M for Atara's initiation of the EU Marketing Authorization Application transfer to Pierre Fabre from the previously announced commercialization agreement and subsequent update announced in September 2022.

16:30 EST Granite selected for $174M LAWA construction, rehabilitation project - Granite has been awarded an approximately $174M contract by the City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles World Airports to construct new exit taxiways and reconstruct sections of existing runways. The project will be funded by LAWA's Capital Improvement Plan and Federal Aviation Administration, and is expected to be included in Granite's fourth quarter CAP. The project consists of constructing four new exit taxiways alongside existing Runway 6L-24R, rehabilitation of hot mix asphalt pavement surfacing on Runway 6L-24R, and reconstruction of Portland cement concrete pavement keel section of Runway 6R-24L on the north airfield. The project requires two major runways to be shut down sequentially, requiring working double 10-hour shifts, six and sometimes seven days a week for nearly a year continuously. The resulting work will improve safety and operational efficiency on the airfield and extend the pavement life of both runways on the north complex of LAX. Granite will be recycling approximately 85,000 tons of materials on-site, and self-producing approximately 85,000 cubic yards of FAA Concrete for use on the project. "This project allows Granite to further enhance our quality relationship with LAWA that has been developing since 2016," said Granite VP of Regional Operations, Scott McArthur. "We appreciate being trusted with a project that will provide increased safety and efficiency to one of the world's busiest airports." The project will begin in January 2023 and is expected to be completed in April 2025.

16:26 EST American Equity rejects acquisition proposal from Prosperity, Elliott - American Equity Investment Life Holding Company confirmed that its Board of Directors reviewed and rejected an unsolicited, non-binding proposal from Prosperity Group Holdings LP and its principal shareholder, Elliott Investment Management L.P. to acquire American Equity in an all-cash transaction at $45.00 per share. The initial proposal was received by American Equity on December 8, 2022 and rejected on December 12, 2022. On December 19, 2022, Prosperity sent a second letter restating the same price and economic terms. American Equity reiterated its rejection on December 20, 2022. David S. Mulcahy, Chair of American Equity, said, "The Board is fully committed to acting in the best interests of AEL and its shareholders and policyholders. Consistent with its fiduciary obligations and in consultation with independent financial and legal advisors, the Board has carefully evaluated Prosperity and Elliott's opportunistic proposal and unanimously determined that it significantly undervalues the Company. The Board strongly believes that the continued execution of our strategic plan, AEL 2.0, will generate significantly greater value for all shareholders." Anant Bhalla, CEO and President of American Equity, said, "Over the past two years, we have demonstrated that executing our AEL 2.0 strategy is delivering value for all shareholders. Through our unique go-to-market and investment management approaches and capital-light structure, we are accelerating the implementation and scaling of our AEL 2.0 strategy to be the leading, customer-focused annuity provider with best-in-class capabilities across the entire insurance value chain. Our Board processes are thorough, and our Board and management team remain laser-focused on serving our policyholders and generating value for shareholders."

16:25 EST Frequency Electronics declares $1.00 per share special cash dividend - Today the Board of Directors of Frequency Electronics declared a special cash dividend of $1.00 per share of common stock. The special dividend is payable on January 27 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on January 6. Based on the current number of shares outstanding, the total amount of the special dividend payment will be approximately $9.3M. Interim Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Thomas McClelland, commented: "Today our Board of Directors declared a $1.00 per share special cash dividend. Our strong balance sheet allows us to pay this dividend while maintaining our ability to invest in the business for future success. After paying this dividend we will remain debt free, and our focus on sustained profitability and cash generation should help us maintain a strong balance sheet in the future."

16:22 EST Worthington says economic outlook murky - "Despite a somewhat murky economic outlook, steel prices appear to have stabilized and we believe many of our customers have returned to seasonally normal inventory levels. End market demand remains solid across most markets, and we are optimistic about our start to 2023," Rose said. "We continue to make progress on our previously announced business separation (Worthington 2024) and remain confident that the separation will enhance shareholder value by creating two distinct, market-leading companies with strong cash flows that are better positioned to pursue their respective growth strategies while delivering superior returns for shareholders."

16:17 EST Oneok subsidiary files permit application for new facilities - ONEOK announced that its Saguaro Connector Pipeline subsidiary has filed a Presidential Permit application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, to construct and operate facilities for the exportation of natural gas at a new international border-crossing at the U.S. and Mexico border in Hudspeth County, Texas. The proposed border facilities would connect upstream with a potential intrastate natural gas pipeline, the Saguaro Connector Pipeline, which would be designed to transport natural gas from ONEOK's existing WesTex intrastate natural gas pipeline system in the Permian Basin in West Texas to Mexico. Additionally, the proposed border facilities would connect at the International Boundary with a new pipeline under development in Mexico for delivery to an export facility on the West Coast of Mexico. The potential Saguaro Connector Pipeline would consist of approximately 155 miles of 48-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline originating at the Waha Hub in Pecos County, Texas. The ultimate design capacity of the potential pipeline would be approximately 2.8 billion cubic feet per day. Final investment decision on the potential pipeline is expected by mid-2023.

16:16 EST Associated Banc-Corp names Terry Williams as Chief Information Officer - Associated Banc-Corp announced that Terry Williams will join its executive leadership team as the company's next Chief Information Officer, effective January 17, 2023. Most recently he served as Chief Information Officer and Chief Technology Officer for Belcan, LLC.

16:15 EST Regional Management expands operations to Idaho - Regional Management Corp. announced that it has commenced lending operations in Idaho, its 18th U.S. state, and expects to open its first branch within Idaho during the first quarter of 2023. "We are very pleased to bring our suite of affordable, best-in-class financial solutions to Idaho and expand our operations for the first time to the Pacific Northwest," said Robert W. Beck, President and Chief Executive Officer of Regional Management Corp. "We expect to service loans originated in Idaho at first through our centralized sales and service team, and eventually through branches in select markets across the state. Our geographic expansion strategy continues to position us well to capture additional market share in a controlled manner and deliver smart and sustainable value to our shareholders."

16:10 EST Sterling Construction acquires Concrete Construction Services for $22M - Sterling Infrastructure announced that it has acquired Concrete Construction Services of Arizona L.L.C. and its affiliated company for a purchase price of $22M. CCS provides residential single-family home concrete foundations, including the preparation, pouring and finishing of post-tension concrete foundations in new housing subdivisions in the Greater Phoenix area. "The addition of CCS to our Building Solutions segment allows us to expand our breadth of residential service offerings to our key blue-chip customers in Arizona," said Joe Cutillo, Sterling's Chief Executive Officer. "The population shifts in the area have significantly increased the demand for our residential services, and this tuck-in acquisition broadens our capacity. We welcome CCS to our team and believe they are a culture fit with their strong entrepreneurial management and solid competencies in concrete foundations."

16:08 EST Mitek Systems receives Nasdaq notice - Mitek Systems reported that it received a notice on December 16, 2022 from the Listing Qualifications Department of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC advising the company that it was not in compliance with Nasdaq's continued listing requirements under the Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) as a result of its failure to file its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2022 in a timely manner. Under Nasdaq rules, the company has 60 calendar days from receipt of the Notice or until February 14, 2023, to submit a plan to regain compliance with the Rule. If Nasdaq accepts the company's plan, then Nasdaq may grant an exception of up to 180 calendar days from the due date of the Form 10-K, or until June 12, 2023, to regain compliance. In response to the Notice, the company intends to file the Form 10-K as promptly as possible in order to regain compliance with the Rule. However, if the company does not submit the Form 10-K by February 14, 2023, the company will submit a plan by such date to Nasdaq that outlines, as definitively as possible, the steps the company will take to promptly file the Form 10-K.

16:06 EST Workday appoints Carl Eschenbach as co-CEO - Workday announced the appointment of Carl Eschenbach to co-CEO, effective immediately. Carl will remain on the Workday Board of the Directors, which he has been a member of since 2018. Carl will serve as co-CEO alongside Aneel Bhusri, Workday's co-CEO, co-founder, and chair, through January 2024, Workday's fiscal year end. At that time, Aneel and the Board expect that Carl will assume sole CEO responsibilities and Aneel will assume a full-time role as executive chair and will remain as chair of the Board of Directors. Chano Fernandez has stepped down as co-CEO and as a member of the Workday Board of Directors, effective immediately. Carl has more than 35 years of experience leading successful technology companies. He has been a partner at Sequoia Capital, a leading venture capital firm, since 2016, having worked closely with high-growth, innovative enterprise software organizations. Carl will stay involved with Sequoia in a venture partner capacity. Prior to Sequoia, Carl held several leadership positions at VMware, a global virtual infrastructure software provider, including as president, chief operating officer, acting chief financial officer, and executive vice president of worldwide field operations, helping the company scale at that time to more than $7B in total revenue during his 14 years at the company.

16:04 EST FedEx says Q2 results constrained by continued demand weakness - Second quarter results were constrained by continued demand weakness, particularly at FedEx Express. FedEx Express operating income declined 64% year-over-year due to lower global volumes, partially offset by an 8% package yield increase. FedEx Express implemented previously planned and incremental cost reduction actions during the quarter to mitigate the impact of volume declines, including structural air network changes and the temporary parking of aircraft. FedEx Ground operating income increased 24% year-over-year, due primarily to a 13% yield increase and cost reduction actions. These factors were partially offset by increased purchased transportation rates, lower package volume, and higher other operating expenses. FedEx Freight operating income increased 32% year-over-year, driven by an 18% yield increase. This was partially offset by higher salaries and employee benefits and decreased shipments.

15:56 EST American Equity trading halted, news pending

15:52 EST American Equity up nearly 7% after report of Prosperity Life bid - Shares of American Equity Investment Life are up $2.61, or nearly 7%, to $42.91 following Bloomberg's report.

15:44 EST American Equity trading halted, volatility trading pause

14:41 EST Cruise's driverless robotaxis are taking passengers in Phoenix and Austin - On Tuesday, the CEO of Cruise, GM's self driving unit, Kyle Vogt, tweeted, in part: "We promised we'd go driverless in 3 cities by the end of this year, and WE DID IT! ..@Cruise is now live in SF, Austin, and Phoenix. Folks, we are entering the golden years of AV expansion...If you thought AVs were still years out or will forever be constrained to small geofences, I hope you'll reconsider. I absolutely cannot wait for you to take your first ride and get a glimpse of the exciting future we all have ahead." The Fly notes that Cruise is a is a largely-autonomous subsidiary of General Motors. Reference Link

14:19 EST U.S. Steel announces ratification of new collective bargaining agreements by USW - United States Steel announced the ratification of new successor four-year collective bargaining agreements by the United Steelworkers, or USW. These agreements cover approximately 11,000 USW- represented employees at the company's domestic flat-rolled facilities, iron ore mining facilities and applicable tubular operations. The new agreements are retroactive to Sept. 1, 2022 and will continue through Sept. 1, 2026. David Burritt, President and CEO of U. S. Steel, said, "The new agreements balance the needs of our employees, customers, stockholders, and other stakeholders. We will continue to work together in implementing our Best for All strategy and transforming the future of steel through strategic investments in innovation, sustainability, operational excellence and the communities in which we operate."

13:51 EST Class Acceleration Corp trading resumes

13:42 EST Walmart says first threshold passed for finalizing opioid settlement - Walmart announced it has surpassed the first threshold required for finalizing the company's $3.1B nationwide opioid settlement framework announced on November 15. The company now has settlement agreements with all 50 states, including four states that previously settled with the company, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and three other U.S. territories, that are intended to resolve substantially all opioids-related lawsuits brought by state and local governments against Walmart. The participation exceeded the 43 states that were required to join the nationwide settlement framework by December 15 for it to move forward. The settlement will take effect if a sufficient number of cities and counties also join, according to Walmart. Walmart believes "these settlements are in the best interest of all parties and will provide significant aid to communities across the country in the fight against the opioid crisis, with aid reaching state and local governments faster than any other nationwide opioid settlement to date, subject to satisfying all settlement requirements. Walmart strongly disputes the allegations in these matters, and these settlements do not include any admission of liability. Walmart will continue to vigorously defend the company against any lawsuit not resolved through these settlements." Walmart is helping fight the opioid crisis and is proud of its pharmacists, who help patients understand the risks about opioid prescriptions. The company has adopted many approaches to fighting the opioid crisis as part of its industry-leading Opioid Stewardship program. More information is available at corporate.walmart.com/opioids.

13:24 EST Class Acceleration Corp trading halted, news pending

13:08 EST Model Performance Acquisition Corp trading halted, volatility trading pause

13:01 EST Corteva Agriscience, Nevonex announce collaboration agreement - Corteva Agriscience announced a collaboration with NEVONEX, powered by Bosch, to explore precision application of crop protection products using on-farm data, advanced analytics, and spray equipment. The collaboration intends to create value for farmers by enabling data-driven crop protection applications with standard machine spray technology, the companies said. "Corteva Agriscience is excited to include NEVONEX among our growing list of industry collaborations aimed at leveraging digital capabilities to deliver new value to farmers through our crop protection products," said Dr. Brian Lutz, Vice President of Digital Solutions at Corteva Agriscience.

12:37 EST Lexaria's human oral nicotine study begins dosing - Lexaria Bioscience announced dosing has now begun in its human clinical nicotine study NIC-H22-1. Study NIC-H22-1 is a 36-person human pharmacokinetic randomized, double blinded, cross-over study conducted in current cigarette smokers, wherein each person will visit the laboratory to be dosed three times over the weeks to come. During each visit only one oral nicotine pouch will be administered and evaluated: either DehydraTECH-nicotine; On! brand manufactured by Altria; or Zyn brand manufactured by Swedish Match. The primary study objectives are to determine the quantity of nicotine in blood at various time points and vital-sign data collection of temperature, blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate. Subjective evaluations related to throat burn, user experience, gastrointestinal experience and more will be conducted.

12:25 EST Bill Gross names AGNC, Energy Transfer LP as equity picks - When discussing his equity investments on CNBC, Bill Gross named AGNC Investment (AGNC) and Energy Transfer LP (ET) as stock picks. Energy Transfer now yields above 9%, Gross said during an interview.

12:00 EST Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bear 3x Shares falls -9.1% - Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bear 3x Shares is down -9.1%, or -80c to $8.01.

12:00 EST TAL Education rises 12.7% - TAL Education is up 12.7%, or $1.02 to $9.10.

12:00 EST MediaAlpha rises 18.0% - MediaAlpha is up 18.0%, or $1.65 to $10.82.

11:32 EST EU opens antitrust probe into Broadcom's proposed $61B VMware bid - The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess, under the EU Merger Regulation, the proposed acquisition of VMware (VMW) by Broadcom (AVGO). The Commission says it "is particularly concerned that the transaction would allow Broadcom to restrict competition in the market for certain hardware components which interoperate with VMware's software." The Commission said in a statement that its "preliminary investigation indicates that the transaction may allow Broadcom to restrict competition in the market for the supply of NICs, FC HBAs and storage adapters by: degrading interoperability between VMware's server virtualization software and competitors' hardware to the benefit of its own hardware, and/or foreclosing competitors' hardware by preventing them from using VMware's server virtualization software or degrading their access to it. This, in turn, could lead to higher prices, lower quality and less innovation for business customers, and ultimately consumers." The Commission added that it will also examine whether Broadcom may hinder the development of SmartNICs by other providers. In 2020, VMware launched Project Monterey with three SmartNICs sellers -- NVIDIA (NVDA), Intel (INTC) and AMD Pensando (AMD). "Broadcom may decrease VMware's involvement in Project Monterey to protect its own NICs revenues. This could hamper innovation to the detriment of customers," the Commission writes. Further, it believes "Broadcom may start bundling VMware's virtualization software with its own software and no longer offer VMware's virtualization software as a stand-alone product reducing choice and potentially foreclosing rival software providers." The proposed transaction was notified to the Commission on 15 November 2022. The Commission now has 90 working days, until 11 May 2023, to take a decision. Reference Link

10:52 EST AG Mortgage lowers quarterly dividend to 18c from 21c - AG Mortgage Investment Trust announced this morning that its board declared a dividend of 18c per common share for Q4. The dividend is payable on January 31, 2023 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 30, 2022. During the fourth quarter and through the date of the press release, the company repurchased 0.8M shares of its common stock at a cost of $4.4M. As of the date of the press release, $8.3M of common stock remained authorized for future common stock repurchases under the company's 2022 stock repurchase program.

10:51 EST Greenidge Generation executes term sheet with lender regarding $74M of debt - Earlier, Greenidge Generation announced the company has entered into a non-binding term sheet with secured lender NYDIG regarding approximately $74M of debt whereby NYDIG would purchase miners with approximately 2.8 EH/s in exchange for a reduction of $57M-$68M of secured debt that the company has outstanding with NYDIG, among other terms. "The company has not reached a definitive agreement and may not reach any agreement on commercially acceptable terms or at all. Any change in the terms reflected in the term sheet could have a material adverse effect on the company and its stockholders and could impact its ability to continue as a going concern, among other things," Greenidge stated. In addition, pursuant to the term sheet, the company is contemplating concurrently entering into a hosting agreement whereby the company would transfer miners to NYDIG and operate such miners on behalf of NYDIG pursuant to a hosting services agreement, which would result in a material change to the company's current business strategy and result in the company largely operating miners owned by NYDIG, rather than operating miners owned by the company. Dave Anderson, CEO of Greenidge, added: "We are pleased with the progress of our constructive negotiations with NYDIG to address our secured debt. NYDIG values our operational excellence, which affords us the ability to work towards a structure that would allow our two organizations to partner, with Greenidge providing hosting services. If we complete this debt restructuring, this would improve our future liquidity and would provide a significant step toward the improvement of our balance sheet. In addition, we believe that the contemplated terms of a concurrently executed hosting arrangement would allow us to continue participating in the future upside potential of bitcoin."

10:37 EST Pallone requests information on Keystone Pipeline spill in Kansas - Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. said he wrote to the President and CEO of TC Energy Corporation to express concern about the recent oil spill from the Keystone Pipeline in Washington County, Kansas and to request information from the company about the spill and how it plans to prevent future spills. "The Keystone Pipeline has continued to exhibit a pattern of oil spills and safety incidents that put public health and safety at risk," Pallone wrote. "Therefore, I request that TC Energy provide a formal plan for preventing further oil spills and for remediating the significant damage caused by this most recent incident." Earlier this month, the Keystone Pipeline ruptured and released about 588,000 gallons of oil into a Kansas waterway, resulting in the largest oil spill in the Pipeline's history and the largest onshore oil pipeline spill in nine years. In addition to damaging property and polluting a local waterway, the incident hurt American companies and consumers by increasing the price of crude oil during intra-day trading. According to a 2021 Government Accountability Office report requested by Pallone and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair Peter DeFazio, the Keystone Pipeline has had at least 22 oil spills since 2010, excluding the spill earlier this month. Of those incidents, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has classified six as "impacting people or the environment" and this is the third significant spill from the pipeline since 2017, Pallone noted in a press release. "In light of these facts, I have significant concerns about TC Energy's ability to safely operate its pipeline network," Pallone continued. "I look forward to receiving TC Energy's plan to address the root cause of this most recent oil spill and the systemic issues that continue to plague the Keystone Pipeline by no later than January 3, 2023."Reference Link

10:03 EST ADS-TEC Energy to invest $8M in Auburn, Alabama facility - ADS-TEC Energy is establishing its first dedicated facility in North America in Auburn, Ala., bringing together sales, warehousing, service and assembly in the new location. The company expects its new site in the United States to be fully functional by 2024, expanding ADS-TEC Energy's manufacturing to include both Germany and the U.S. ADS-TEC Energy plans invest $8M and create approximately 180 jobs in the coming years associated with the new site, which will facilitate the expansion of e-vehicle charging infrastructure in the U.S.

10:00 EST Model N falls -7.1% - Model N is down -7.1%, or -$2.85 to $37.27.

10:00 EST Arcus Biosciences falls -32.8% - Arcus Biosciences is down -32.8%, or -$10.01 to $20.50.

10:00 EST MediaAlpha rises 13.1% - MediaAlpha is up 13.1%, or $1.20 to $10.37.

09:56 EST AstraZeneca, G42 Healthcare enter strategic partnership agreement - AstraZeneca and G42 Healthcare, an AI-powered healthcare company, have signed a strategic partnership agreement to locally manufacture drugs in Abu Dhabi. The binding agreement focuses on collaboration in four key areas including localizing innovative industries, research and development, innovation and sustainability at a global scale, the companies said in a statement.

09:47 EST Sunlands Online falls -7.4% - Sunlands Online is down -7.4%, or -52c to $6.50.

09:47 EST Arcus Biosciences falls -25.8% - Arcus Biosciences is down -25.8%, or -$7.86 to $22.65.

09:47 EST Mitsubishi UFJ rises 11.5% - Mitsubishi UFJ is up 11.5%, or 64c to $6.19.

09:45 EST Lanvin Group Holdings Ltd trading resumes

09:40 EST Lanvin Group Holdings Ltd trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:31 EST Inpixon awarded purchase order valued at over $1M - Inpixon announced that it has received an order for its real-time location system products from a global provider of transportation and industrial products and services. The purchase order is valued at over $1M and covers an approximately 18-month period. The RTLS products will be used in products that provide proximity awareness and collision avoidance for worker safety in industrial operations.

09:27 EST NIO 'deeply regrets' data leakage, establishes dedicated hotline for queries - NIO Inc. issued a press release in response to a recent incident related to NIO's data security. The company said, "On December 20, 2022, the Company was made aware that certain information of users and vehicle sales in China before August 2021 were sold on the internet by third parties for illegal purposes. NIO has issued a public statement in China related to the incident, including providing a dedicated hotline and an email address to respond to users' queries regarding the data leakage. The Company has also undertaken the responsibilities for the loss that the users may incur in connection with the data leakage. NIO deeply regrets this incident happened, and is doing everything possible to support its users. NIO continues to work with governmental authorities to investigate the incident and implement necessary measures to contain potential damages. NIO reaffirms its commitment to protecting data security and privacy of its users."

09:21 EST Greenpro Capital's incubatee company JOCOM obtains S-1 effectiveness - Greenpro Capital announced that its incubator company, JOCOM Holdings Corp "JOCOM" has obtained S-1 Notice of Effectiveness from the U.S. SEC on December 19, 2022. JOCOM is based in Malaysia and currently provide data analytic services to e-commerce platform operators in Malaysia. Its vision is to develop solutions that impact the lives of both consumers and businesses through m-commerce technology.

09:19 EST Wells Fargo to pay $1.7B in CFPB settlement, expects $3.5B in operating losses - Wells Fargo said that it has reached a broad-reaching settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, resolving multiple matters, the majority of which have been outstanding for several years, related to automobile lending, consumer deposit accounts, and mortgage lending. Current leadership has made significant progress to transform Wells Fargo; in fact, the CFPB recognized that since 2020, the company has accelerated corrective actions and remediation, including to address the matters covered by today's settlement. The required actions related to many of the matters described in the settlement are already substantially complete. The company is pleased to bring closure to these issues. As part of the settlement, Wells Fargo entered into a consent order, which lays out a path to termination after the company completes the remainder of the required actions. The company also agreed to pay a civil penalty of $1.7B. In addition, the CFPB is clarifying how and when its April 20, 2018 consent order will terminate. Also, the CFPB is terminating its August 20, 2016 consent order relating to Wells Fargo's student loan servicing. Wells Fargo expects operating losses expense, which is included in its noninterest expense, will be approximately $3.5B for the three months ending on December 31. This includes, among other things, the incremental costs of the CFPB civil penalty and related customer remediation as well as amounts related to outstanding litigation matters and other customer remediation. The company's full fourth quarter financial results will be reported on January 13, 2023.

09:14 EST NLS Pharmaceutics announces Israeli patent grant for Mazindol - NLS Pharmaceutics announced that the Israeli Patent Office has granted approval for Patent Application 261418, which covers Mazindol as a method of treatment for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. This patent is expected to expire no earlier than 2037.

09:13 EST Stereotaxis announces treatment of patients with latest Genesis RMN in Michigan - Stereotaxis announced the successful treatment of patients using the latest Genesis Robotic Magnetic Navigation, RMN, system by physicians of the nationally recognized Fred & Lena Meijer Heart Center, part of Corewell Health in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Electrophysiologists at Corewell Health have established a successful robotic cardiac ablation program treating nearly 500 patients using advanced robotic technology. The hospital is now among the first in the world, and the first in Michigan, to offer the latest in RMN technology with the Genesis system. "We are delighted to continue our partnership with the physicians at Corewell Health as they advance the frontiers of patient care and clinical science," said David Fischel, Chairman and CEO of Stereotaxis. "We look forward to working with Corewell Health to extend its leadership in arrhythmia care in Grand Rapids."

09:11 EST Arthur J. Gallagher to acquire Buck - Arthur J. Gallagher announced an agreement to acquire the partnership interests of BCHR Holdings, dba Buck. The transaction is expected to close during the first half of 2023. Buck is a provider of retirement, HR and employee benefits consulting and administration services. The organization dates back more than 100 years. With over 2,300 employees, including more than 220 credentialed actuaries, Buck primarily serves customers throughout the US, Canada and the UK. Gallagher will acquire the partnership interests of BCHR Holdings and its subsidiaries for a gross consideration of $660M or approximately $585M net of agreed seller funded expenses and net working capital. Gallagher expects to fund the transaction via free cash flow and short-term borrowings. The transaction is estimated to be approximately 2% accretive to adjusted diluted EPS over the trailing twelve month period ended September 30, 2022. Buck's pro forma adjusted trailing twelve month revenues and EBITDAC ending September 30, 2022 were approximately $280M and $34M, respectively.

09:11 EST Arthur J. Gallagher to acquire Buck, terms not disclosed - Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced an agreement to acquire the partnership interests of BCHR Holdings, L.P., dba Buck. The transaction is expected to close during the first half of 2023, subject to customary regulatory approvals. Buck is a provider of retirement, HR and employee benefits consulting and administration services. The organization has a long history, dating back more than 100 years, with a diverse client base by both size and industry. With over 2,300 employees, including more than 220 credentialed actuaries, Buck primarily serves customers throughout the U.S., Canada and the UK.

09:11 EST Axis Capital CEO Albert Benchimol to step down, Vincent Tizzio to succeed - Axis Capital announced that Albert Benchimol will step down from his role on May 4, 2023, timed to the company's annual general meeting, or AGM, and will retire at the end of 2023. He will be succeeded as president and CEO by Vincent Tizzio, who currently serves as CEO, specialty insurance and reinsurance, overseeing all business lines and front-end operations for Axis. Benchimol will continue with Axis through year-end as a strategic advisor to the company. In the months ahead, Benchimol and Tizzio will partner to ensure a leadership transition.

09:09 EST Varonis' cloud-hosted data security platform achieves SOC 2 Type II compliance - Varonis Systems announced that the cloud-hosted version of the company's flagship data security platform successfully completed its Service Organization Control 2 Type II compliance audit. The audit verifies that Varonis' SaaS offering meets rigorous standards for data security, availability, confidentiality, and privacy.

09:06 EST Bowman awarded contract for 25 Dutch Bros drive-thru coffee sites - Bowman Consulting Group announced that Dutch Bros Coffee, a drive-thru coffee chain with more than 650 locations in 14 states, has selected the firm to provide site civil engineering and design, MEP and survey services for more than 25 new store locations in Florida, Tennessee and Texas. Dutch Bros has created a unique customer experience that focuses on the convenience of drive-thru and walk-up ordering paired with enthusiastic "broistas" and a commitment to giving back to the community. The combination of pedestrian and vehicular traffic, a small footprint of 950 square feet, and high-volume customer demand creates site design challenges that Bowman's engineers have vast experience resolving creatively, specifically within retail beverage and double drive-thru environments. These solutions create efficient and safe flow through each site while preserving the positive, and personal team-member customer attention on which Dutch Bros prides itself. Bowman brings extensive national roll-out capabilities to support Dutch Bros' growth plans for 150 new shops. "Dutch Bros focuses on building relationships with our customers, vendors and business partners like Bowman," said Aaron Harris, Dutch Bros Coffee, VP - real estate and construction. "When we started collaborating with Bowman on a consulting basis, we quickly realized the innovation that Bowman could bring. As our relationship matures, we're confident that we will continue to build a strong partnership that will help us bring our expansion efforts to fruition."

09:06 EST United Maritime announces sale of an LR2 Tanker for $39M - United Maritime announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with an unaffiliated third party for the sale of one of its LR2 product tankers, the 2008-built MT Minoansea. The vessel is scheduled to be delivered to its new owner by the end of December 2022. The vessel's gross sale price is $39M, and the transaction is subject to customary closing procedures. Stamatis Tsantanis, the Company's Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, stated: "We are extremely pleased to announce another exceptionally profitable transaction for our shareholders, as the gross sale price of the Minoansea is at a premium of over 100% of the vessel's acquisition price, while the return on equity is estimated at approximately 480%. The transaction follows the sale of the Company's two Aframax vessels at a premium of approximately 50% over the vessels' acquisition prices with a respective return on equity of approximately 240%. Since United Maritime's initial listing six months ago, we have generated a combined profit from the sale of the three tankers of approximately $38m, which represents 130% of the Company's market capitalisation as of December 19, 2022, and we have declared a special dividend of $1 per share. Following the sale of the vessels and the payment of the special dividend the cash equivalents of the Company are estimated in excess of $8.8 per share. We remain consistent with our strategy to pursue well-timed investments in the shipping industry and to generate profits in order to fund our growth and to further enhance our shareholders' returns."

09:05 EST Magenta stops dosing participants at Cohort 4 level in MGTA-117 Phase 1/2 trial - Magenta Therapeutics announces that, per the clinical trial protocol for the MGTA-117 Phase 1/2 Dose Escalation Clinical Trial in relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia, AML, and myelodysplastic syndrome, MDS, it has stopped dosing participants at the Cohort 4 dosing level and plans to dose additional participants at the Cohort 3 dosing level. Three participants have been dosed in Cohort 4, and dose-limiting toxicities were observed in the second and third dosed participants. The first participant completed the 21-day DLT observation period with no DLTs. Subsequent to the Company's investor presentation on December 13, 2022, it was reported to the Company that the second dosed participant in Cohort 4 experienced a Grade 4 Serious Adverse Event considered possibly related to MGTA-117. This SAE was later determined to be a DLT and a Suspected Unexpected Serious Adverse Reaction due to lung involvement. This participant also experienced Grade 4 aspartate transaminase and Grade 3 alanine transaminase elevations without clinically significant changes in bilirubin, gamma glutamyl transferase or alkaline phosphatase. On December 15, 2022, the Company received a report of a respiratory SAE for the third dosed participant. This SAE was subsequently determined to be the second DLT in Cohort 4, thereby triggering prespecified stopping rules for further dosing in Cohort 4. As of the date of this press release, the clinical trial sites have reported that the first participant with a DLT has demonstrated improved respiratory status and AST/ALT enzyme levels, and the second participant with a DLT had improved respiratory status. Magenta reported the clinical data and other information applicable to the first observed DLT to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today. Magenta also informed the FDA that the information applicable to the DLT event in the second participant is forthcoming. In accordance with the clinical trial protocol and following the recommendation of the trial's safety Cohort Review Committee on December 19, 2022, Magenta plans to continue enrollment at the Cohort 3 dose level. As presented at the 2022 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting on December 12, 2022, no DLTs were observed in the fifteen participants dosed in the first three Cohorts in the clinical trial. Three out of the four participants in Cohort 3 for whom paired bone marrow samples were collected at baseline and post-dosing had depletion of cancer blast cells in both blood and bone marrow. The Company continues to believe that the benefit/risk profile at the Cohort 3 dose level is acceptable to continue enrolling participants in this trial.

09:03 EST Remark Holdings, Mudrick Capital intend to continue business relationship - Remark Holdings and Mudrick Capital Management, L.P., have announced their shared intention to continue their business relationship by working to reach a mutually-beneficial amendment of their existing loan agreement. The companies are working to reach agreement on all details, with any potential loan modification expected to be communicated to the public after the New Year holiday.

09:02 EST Digital Ally announces deal with MetLife Stadium - Digital Ally announced the continuation and expansion of its partnership with MetLife Stadium. Home to the NFL's New York Jets and New York Football Giants, MetLife Stadium is deploying 70 FirstVU PRO body cameras and three QuickVu 24-bay docking stations, and will utilize Digital Ally's EVO Web cloud platform. "We are extremely proud of our long-standing relationship with MetLife Stadium," said Stan Ross, CEO of Digital Ally, adding, "Their commitment to fan experience, including safety and security, makes them a great partner for Digital Ally's innovative and dependable products, and unsurpassed service." The FirstVu PRO features include: Live GPS Tracking; Remote Activation; Full-Color Touchscreen; Full HD Audio & Video; and Rugged & Reliable. As part of Digital Ally's complete ecosystem of video solution products, the FirstVu PRO is compatible with the recently released QuickVu docking station. Digital Ally's QuickVu system provides a comprehensive and elegant solution for charging, reviewing and offloading video evidence to the cloud.

09:01 EST LiqTech and Ecolotron Wastewater cooperate on phosphoric acid purification - LiqTech has entered a cooperation agreement with USA-based Ecolotron Wastewater Solutions, a firm specializing in electrolytic water treatment, for the commercialization of a combined solution for acid purification. The solution offered by LiqTech and Ecolotron is based on a combination of Ecolotron's E - FLOC technology - electrochemical precipitation and oxidation/reduction system and LiqTech's silicon carbide ceramic ultrafiltration system for the purification of crude phosphoric acid streams. The two companies have filed a joint patent application for this combined solution.

08:50 EST Wells Fargo ordered to pay $3.7B by CFPB for mismanagement of auto loans - The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is ordering Wells Fargo Bank to pay more than $2B in redress to consumers and a $1.7B civil penalty for legal violations across several of its largest product lines. The bank's illegal conduct led to billions of dollars in financial harm to its customers and, for thousands of customers, the loss of their vehicles and homes. Consumers were illegally assessed fees and interest charges on auto and mortgage loans, had their cars wrongly repossessed, and had payments to auto and mortgage loans misapplied by the bank. Wells Fargo also charged consumers unlawful surprise overdraft fees and applied other incorrect charges to checking and savings accounts. Under the terms of the order, Wells Fargo will pay redress to the over 16 million affected consumer accounts, and pay a $1.7B fine, which will go to the CFPB's Civil Penalty Fund, where it will be used to provide relief to victims of consumer financial law violations. "Wells Fargo's rinse-repeat cycle of violating the law has harmed millions of American families," said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. "The CFPB is ordering Wells Fargo to refund billions of dollars to consumers across the country. This is an important initial step for accountability and long-term reform of this repeat offender." Reference Link

08:48 EST BK Technologies' BKRplay available in Apple App, Google Play stores - BK Technologies announced that its public safety smartphone application, BKRplay is now available for free download to owners of IOS or android smartphones. BKRplay hosts innovative public safety communications services designed for first responders, to help keep them safe and make them more efficient when they exit their vehicles during an incident response. BKRplay's first service, InteropONE was launched in mid-October.

08:44 EST DLocal announces proposed share purchases by shareholders, management - In addition, the Company has been informed by certain of its shareholders, including General Atlantic DO B.V., Andres Bzurovski Bay, dLocal co-founder and Board Member; Alberto Eduardo Azar, chairman of the Board; Sergio Enrique Fogel Kaplan, dLocal co-founder and Board Member; Sebastian Kanovich, CEO; and Jacobo Singer, President; that such shareholders expect to engage in open market transactions to acquire additional shares of the Company's outstanding Class A common shares in compliance with SEC Rules 10b5-1 and/or 10b-18. Any such purchases are subject to market conditions, and there can be no assurance that such shareholders, or any agent acting on their behalf, will acquire any particular amount of Class A common shares. Sebastian Kanovich, dLocal's CEO, stated, "These proposed share purchases attest to management's and key shareholders' confidence in dLocal's current and future prospects."

08:44 EST DLocal board authorizes $100M share buyback plan - The Company announces that on December 19, 2022, its Board of Directors approved a share buyback plan to purchase up to $100M of the Company's outstanding Class A common shares. The plan will expire on the earlier of July 2023 and when the $100M buyback limit is reached. The Company expects to finance the purchases with own cash balances derived from retained and future earnings, which is not expected to have a material impact on capital levels. Eduardo Azar, dLocal's chairman, stated, "We are committed to the strength of dLocal's business and in delivering value to our shareholders. This buyback plan reflects the Board's confidence in our current performance and prospects and long-term growth."

08:43 EST DLocal calls short seller allegations 'without merit' - DLocal announced a response to allegations made in a report by short seller Muddy Waters Capital, dated November 16, 2022, as well as a share buyback program and proposed share purchases by key shareholders and senior management team. The company said, "We value corporate governance and transparency, and in that spirit have engaged in a thorough, fully resourced set of processes to review the short seller's allegations. Our Board of Directors requested that management with the assistance of the Company's professional advisors, including a global investigations and advisory services firm, conduct an internal review of the allegations made by the Report. In addition, our Audit Committee, consisting solely of independent directors, is conducting a review of the allegations in the Report with the assistance of independent counsel and an independent global expert services and forensic accounting advisory firm. That review is substantially complete. We will not engage in a tit-for-tat rebuttal of the numerous factual errors or inflammatory, misleading statements set forth in the Report, which collectively demonstrate a fundamental lack of understanding of our financial statements and business. However, based on the two separate reviews, we do wish to set the record straight with respect to the following: Client funds. We maintain separate bank accounts for merchant cash and our own cash. We have not used merchants' cash to make loans to our senior leadership or to pay dividends to our shareholders. Additionally, the reviews verified that the amounts recorded on the Company's balance sheet as own funds or merchant funds, respectively, were consistent with the balances reflected on bank statements of dLocal and its subsidiaries as of September 30, 2022, with no material exception. Take Rates/FX Fees. The Report draws comparisons between dLocal and other companies, which are inaccurate and unsubstantiated. PrimeiroPay acquisition. The PrimeiroPay asset acquisition was an arm's-length, stand-alone transaction. We engaged internationally recognized professional advisors in the transaction who conducted financial and legal due diligence. Pre-IPO loans to executives. The pre-IPO loans extended to Company executives to purchase Company shares were repaid prior to the IPO in order to comply with U.S. legal requirements and not, as suggested in the Report, "to avoid the negative optics of making a large loan to its senior management pre-IPO." The acquisition of shares by our CEO and President and related loans were entirely independent of the PrimeiroPay transaction, and the loans were repaid prior to our IPO. Comparisons of Total Payment Volume reporting. The Report makes specious allegations about our TPV reporting, claiming we have been inconsistent in TPV cohort reporting; however, the Company has disclosed applicable TPV cohort methodology, including a change in its methodology between its final F-1 filing and its 20-F filing. The Company's total TPV for each relevant year is the same amount under both methodologies for reporting TPV by cohort. The Report makes inaccurate and misleading comparisons of the Company's initial draft registration statement to a subsequent period annual report and earnings presentation. We describe the applicable methodology for TPV cohort reporting in each instance, as set forth in our filings with the SEC. Qualifications of the Independent Auditor. Price Waterhouse & Co. is the independent auditor of the Company. It was appointed as auditor by the Board of Directors as mandated by applicable laws and regulations, and consistent with independence rules. It works with other PwC member firms as necessary and appropriate under relevant applicable auditing standards."

08:40 EST American Acquisition target Royalty Management completes Heart Water investment - American Acquisition Opportunity's merger target company, Royalty Management Corporation announced that it has made an investment into Heart Water, Inc. and entered into an agreement whereby Royalty Management Corporation has the right to provide royalty based financing for the build out of Heart Water systems for a royalty-based payment structure per gallon of water sold from such facilities. Royalty Management Corporation continues to seek other similar investment and development opportunities from a variety of industries, with a particular focus on those that are emerging or transitionary, as the company builds a diverse portfolio of royalties, rents, and revenue shares across a broad range of strategic investments.

08:38 EST Edesa Biotech gets FDA Fast Track designation for ARDS drug candidate - Edesa Biotech has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its monoclonal antibody candidate, EB05. Approval of the company's application follows favorable Phase 2 results from an international Phase 2/3 study of EB05 in hospitalized Covid-19 patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome , a severe form of respiratory failure characterized by widespread inflammatory injury to the lungs. The Fast Track program provides Edesa with the opportunity for more frequent communication with the agency to discuss the development path for EB05 as a treatment for ARDS in critically ill Covid-19 patients. Investigational drugs that receive Fast Track designation are also eligible for rolling review of their marketing application as well as potential pathways for accelerated regulatory approval. To receive this designation, drug candidates must both treat a serious disease and have non-clinical or clinical data that demonstrate the potential to address an unmet medical need. Par Nijhawan, MD, Chief Executive Officer of Edesa, said that FDA's decision is a significant development milestone for the company. "Fast Track designation provides additional validation of EB05's potential to address a significant unmet need in hospitalized patients with ARDS," said Dr. Nijhawan. "The Fast Track designation will facilitate our interactions with the FDA and will also allow for faster review and approval upon successful completion of a Phase 3 development program."

08:35 EST iClick Interactive Asia trading halted, news pending

08:34 EST Taseko and Mines Mitsui & Co partner to develop Florence Copper Project - Taseko Mines (TGB) has signed agreements with Mitsui & Co. (MITSY) to form a strategic partnership to develop the company's Florence Copper project in Arizona. Mitsui has committed to an initial investment of $50M, with proceeds to be used for construction of the commercial production facility. The initial investment will be in the form of a copper stream agreement on 2.67% of the copper produced at Florence Copper. In addition, Mitsui has the option to invest an additional $50M - for a total investment of $100M - for a 10% equity interest in Florence Copper. The Equity Option is exercisable by Mitsui within a three-year period following completion of construction of the commercial production facility. If Mitsui elects to exercise its Equity Option the Copper Stream will terminate. As part of the arrangement, Taseko and Mitsui have entered into an offtake contract for 81% of the copper cathode produced at Florence during the initial years of production. Mitsui's first deposit payment of $10M will be available for drawdown after receipt of Florence Copper's Underground Injection Control permit, with additional $10M instalments available each quarter thereafter to fund project construction. Mitsui will receive 2.67% of the copper metal produced at Florence and pay a delivery price equal to 25% of the market price of copper delivered under the contract. If Mitsui elects to exercise its Equity Option and invest an additional $50M in the Project, these additional funds and the Copper Stream will be converted into a 10% equity interest in Florence Copper. At that time, the initial offtake agreement will cease and be replaced with a marketing agency agreement. If the Copper Stream is not converted into an equity interest Taseko will have the right to buy-back 100% of the Copper Stream, otherwise, it will terminate when 40 million pounds of copper have been delivered under the agreement.

08:33 EST Lantheus announces closing of strategic collab, license agreements with POINT - Lantheus announced the closing of the strategic collaboration agreements previously announced on November 14, 2022 between Lantheus and POINT Biopharma Global (PNT). Closing of the agreements was subject to customary closing conditions, including the expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Act.

08:32 EST HeartCore partners with Spirit Advisors to expand Go IPO service - HeartCore Enterprises has partnered with Spirit Advisors to augment HeartCore's Go IPO service. Together, HeartCore and Spirit have signed more than 10 Japanese companies seeking a U.S. exchange listing. The partnership allows the two organizations to leverage mutual capabilities, resources, and economics to further enhance the services provided to Japanese companies and to streamline the IPO process.

08:20 EST Verona Pharma announces ENHANCE-1 trial meets primary, secondary endpoints - Verona Pharma announced results of its Phase 3 ENHANCE-1 trial evaluating nebulized ensifentrine for the maintenance treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. The ENHANCE-1 trial successfully met its primary and key secondary endpoints demonstrating significant improvements in lung function, symptoms and quality of life measures. In addition, ensifentrine substantially reduced the rate and risk of COPD exacerbations. Ensifentrine was well tolerated over 24 and 48 weeks. Ensifentrine is a first-in-class, selective dual inhibitor of the enzymes phosphodiesterase 3 and 4 combining bronchodilator and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory activities in one compound. Subject demographics and disease characteristics were well balanced between treatment groups. Approximately 66% of subjects received background COPD therapy, either a long-acting muscarinic antagonist, or LAMA, or a long-acting beta-agonist, or LABA. Additionally, approximately 21% of all subjects received inhaled corticosteroids, or ICS, with concomitant LAMA or LABA. Placebo corrected, change from baseline in FEV1 area under the curve 0-12 hours post dose at week 12 was 87 mL for ensifentrine. Demonstrated consistent improvements in all subgroups including gender, age, smoking status, COPD severity, background medication, ICS use, chronic bronchitis, FEV1 reversibility and geographic region. Placebo corrected, increase in peak FEV1 of 147 mL 0-4 hours post dose at week 12. Daily symptoms as measured by E-RS. Total Score in the ensifentrine group improved from baseline to greater than the minimal clinically important difference of -2 units with a statistically significant improvement compared to placebo at week 24. Improvements in symptoms were early and sustained with statistical significance versus placebo at weeks 6, 12 and 24. Quality of Life as measured by SGRQ. Total Score in the ensifentrine group improved from baseline to greater than the MCID of -4 units with a statistically significant improvement compared to placebo at week 24. Improvements in QOL were early and sustained with statistical significance versus placebo at weeks 6, 12 and 24. Placebo corrected, increase in morning trough FEV1 of 35 mL at week 12, supporting twice daily dosing regimen. Subjects receiving ensifentrine demonstrated a 36% reduction in the rate of moderate to severe COPD exacerbations over 24 weeks compared to those receiving placebo. Treatment with ensifentrine significantly decreased the risk of a moderate/severe exacerbation as measured by time to first exacerbation when compared with placebo by 38%. Pooled exacerbation data from ENHANCE-1 and ENHANCE-2, ensifentrine demonstrated a 40% reduction in the rate of moderate to severe COPD exacerbations over 24 weeks compared to those receiving placebo. Additionally, ensifentrine significantly decreased the risk of a moderate/severe exacerbation as measured by time to first exacerbation when compared with placebo by 41%. Ensifentrine was well-tolerated with very few events occurring in more than 1% of subjects and greater than placebo over 24 and 48 weeks.

08:18 EST Oxbridge Re Holdings appoints Reuel Ocho as head of special projects - Oxbridge Re Holdings announced that Dr. Reuel Ocho has been appointed head of the company's special projects division. Prior to joining Oxbridge, Dr. Ocho was the Chief Technology Officer for the Cayman Islands Ministry of Financial Services and Commerce.

08:15 EST EU accepts Amazon commitments, ending antitrust investigations - The European Commission has made commitments offered by Amazon.com legally binding under European Union antitrust rules. "Amazon's commitments address the Commission's competition concerns over Amazon's use of non-public marketplace seller data and over a possible bias in granting to sellers access to its Buy Box and its Prime programme," the agency said in a statement. The Commission found that Amazon's final commitments "will ensure that Amazon does not use marketplace seller data for its own retail operations and that it grants non-discriminatory access to Buy Box and Prime." The Commission decided to make them legally binding on Amazon. The offered commitments cover all Amazon's current and future marketplaces in the European Economic Area. If Amazon were to breach the commitments, the Commission could impose a fine of up to 10% of Amazon's total annual turnover, without having to find an infringement of EU antitrust rules or a periodic penalty payment of 5% per day of Amazon's daily turnover for every day of non-compliance. Reference Link

08:14 EST Sunshine Biopharma issues letter to shareholders - Sunshine Biopharma issued a letter to shareholders from Dr. Steve Slilaty, Chairman and CEO of the Company. "2022 has been a transformative year for the Company despite some challenging headwinds with the economy and financial markets. On February 17, we completed an $8 million public offering and up-listed to NASDAQ. Shortly thereafter on March 14, we completed a private placement for total gross proceeds of another $8 million and on April 28 we closed a third offering for $19.5 million in gross proceeds... In April, 2022, we announced our biopharma pipeline developments for mRNA molecules capable of destroying multidrug resistant cancer cells grown in culture. The cytotoxicity tests were performed on a variety of cancer cells including multidrug resistant, breast, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer cells. Soon after announcing these findings, the Company filed a provisional patent application for composition and utility subject matter pertaining to the structure and sequence of these mRNA molecules in the United States... In October 2022 we announced what we consider to be our crown achievement of 2022, our acquisition of a Canadian generic pharmaceuticals company, Nora Pharma Inc., with sales of approximately $14 million... We have vigorously pushed forward with our oncology K1.1 mRNA development program by entering into a key collaboration arrangement with a leading lipid nano-particle formulation company in North America. Our LNP collaboration partner is currently preparing two LNP formulations for our antineoplastic K1.1 mRNA... Beginning in March, 2023, our partner generated K1.1-LNP formulations will be used to conduct in vivo studies on xenograft mice expressing the in vitro tested human cancers as well as liver cancer. Should these mice studies prove successful, the Company can advance relatively rapidly to conducting human trials. The LNP formulated K1.1 mRNA can be readily adapted for delivery into patients using the recently gained knowledge from the mRNA vaccine technology. We believe we have a solid foundation to move the Company forward into 2023 and beyond. Our objectives going forward will be focused on: Achieving profitability on a priority basis; and Continuing to invest in our proprietary drug development program."

08:12 EST Terns Pharmaceuticals reports inducement grants to new employees - Terns Pharmaceuticals announced that it has granted equity inducement awards to three new non-executive employees under the terms of the 2022 Employment Inducement Award Plan. The equity awards were approved on December 15, 2022, in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). In the aggregate, the new non-executive employees received options to purchase 60,000 shares of Terns common stock and 30,000 restricted stock units for shares of Terns common stock. The options have an exercise price per share equal to $6.82, which was the closing price of Terns' common stock on December 15, 2022, the date of grant. The options and RSUs vest over four years, subject to continued service through the applicable vesting dates.

08:11 EST Bird Global announces proposed merger with Bird Canada - Bird Global announced that it is pursuing a merger with Bird's original and most successful platform partner, Bird Canada, along with an estimated total of $32M in new financing, $4M of which has already been funded. The proposed financing and merger is expected to include an offering of convertible secured promissory notes issued to Obelysk; MacKinnon, Bennett & Company ; and Relay Ventures, owners of Bird Canada. Pursuant to the Proposed Transaction, Bird would combine with Bird Canada with the shareholders of Bird Canada primarily receiving as consideration an expected $32M in Notes. The merger would add additional profitable operations to Bird's global platform, while consolidating North American operations. The Proposed Transaction is expected to close as soon as possible, subject to the completion and execution of definitive documentation and other customary closing conditions. Stewart Lyons will join Bird as President. He is currently CEO and founder of Bird Canada, having held prior CEO and senior executive roles across Mobilicity, SiriusXM, and TeraGo Networks. Michael Washinushi will join Bird as Chief Financial Officer as Ben Lu, Bird's current CFO, transitions to a role as a strategic advisor. Michael has 17 years of experience as Chief Financial Officer for FreshBooks and SiriusXM Canada. "We believe that this new funding, coupled with the operational rigor provided by the addition of Bird Canada, will contribute to Bird's goal of becoming adjusted EBITDA profitable on a full year basis in 2023," said Shane Torchiana, CEO of Bird. "I'm grateful to our dedicated team and Board of Directors for their guidance throughout this process. In particular, I want to acknowledge Ben's contributions: he has been instrumental in helping us navigate through multiple transactions, brought greater public company discipline, and helped to put the company on a stronger path toward profitability."...The transactions demonstrate a significant investment in Bird by Obelysk, MKB and Relay.

08:09 EST Eyenovia to participate at 2023 International Consumers Electronics Show - Eyenovia announced that the company will participate at the 2023 International Consumer Electronics Show, which is being held January 5-8 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The company's booth will feature digital aspects of Eyenovia's proprietary ophthalmic topical drug delivery technology. With its incorporated smart technology, the Optejet may enable the transmission of real-time product use data, which could then be incorporated into apps intended to provide patients and caregivers reminders and ongoing support, potentially leading to improved long-term ophthalmic outcomes. In the future, the Optejet might also provide doctors with data showing product usage patterns, enabling identification of issues in treatment adherence that could be addressed in real time in a way that is not possible today with traditional eye drops. Eyenovia's development programs incorporating these digital designs will be core to the company's future plans for topical drug delivery products and partnerships.

08:09 EST Kite to acquire Tmunity, terms undisclosed - Kite, a Gilead company and Tmunity Therapeutics announced that the companies have signed an agreement in which Kite will acquire Tmunity, a clinical-stage, private biotech company focused on next-generation CAR T-therapies and technologies. The company said the acquisition of Tmunity complements Kite's existing in-house cell therapy research capabilities by adding additional pipeline assets, platform capabilities, and a strategic research and licensing agreement with the University of Pennsylvania. The acquisition will provide Kite with pre-clinical and clinical programs, including an 'armored' CAR T technology platform, which potentially could be applied to a variety of CAR T's to enhance anti-tumor activity, as well as rapid manufacturing processes. Tmunity's prostate-specific membrane antigen, or PSMA, and prostate stem cell antigen, or PSCA, assets are not part of the Kite acquisition and will be spun-out by Tmunity as part of the transaction. As part of the acquisition, Kite will assume responsibility for continuing the research and development collaboration between Tmunity and Penn, also known as the Amended Research License Agreement, or ARLA, which includes research funding to Penn along with options and licenses to certain cell engineering and manufacturing technologies invented and developed in certain Penn laboratories. Upon closing, the ARLA will be extended until 2026 with an option to extend further.

08:07 EST Sharps Technology begins manufacturing at Hungary facility - Sharps Technology announces they have commenced manufacturing of their much-needed ultra-low waste smart safety syringe products in their European operation in Hungary. The plant has been producing products and will begin shipments to support the distribution and sales agreement with Nephron Pharmaceuticals by the end of the year, and customer agreements in Europe in early 2023. The production of these specialty syringe products will ramp up over the next several months to increase supply. The purchase of the European facility was finalized in the summer of 2022 and Sharps has invested in infrastructure and equipment upgrades to prepare the plant for a full manufacturing schedule. Syringe products produced by Sharps comply with all applicable FDA and ISO requirements and have been awarded the European Union's CE Mark. The Hungary plant is vertically integrated in that it has the capability to manufacture the syringe components by injection molding, assemble the devices on automated lines or by manual assembly if required, and to sterilize the products on-site through the Ethylene Oxide sterilization process. This last stage of the syringe manufacturing process is unique in the industry and gives Sharps an advantage in supporting shortened lead times as compared to the common need to utilize a third-party for sterilization. The plant has manufacturing capacity to supply more than 50 million units today and the facility could be expanded to produce 250 million units or more over the next couple of years.

08:05 EST Orgenesis announce preclinical study result for oncolytic virus bearing product - Orgenesis and Kurve Therapeutics announced positive preclinical study results for intranasal administration of a cell-based oncolytic virus bearing product. The results demonstrated over 50% tumor reduction in a murine glioblastoma model. The study was conducted by an independent pre-clinical research organization. In the study, the cell-based product was successfully delivered into the brain of mice via intranasal administration utilizing Kurve Therapeutics' patented Controlled Particle Dispersion technology as a novel approach to bypass the blood-brain barrier. Historically, the blood-brain barrier has been a primary roadblock in delivering therapies, especially for larger molecules and cellular therapies, directly to the brain. Orgenesis, through its newly formed POCare services subsidiary, provides clinical grade manufacturing of the product to one of its customers, a premier cell therapy development company. The product has been administered to patients intravenously in collaboration with Hospital Infantil Universitario Nino Jesus in Madrid, Spain.

08:05 EST Rocket Lab reschedules launch of first Electron mission from U.S. soil - Last night, Rocket announced the launch window for its first Electron mission from U.S. soil has been rescheduled to January 2023. The move of the planned launch window from December to early 2023 was driven by weather and the additional time that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, at Wallops and the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, required to complete essential regulatory documentation for launch. The delay in documentation left only two days in the originally scheduled 14-day launch window and both of those final remaining days were unsuitable for launch due to bad weather. The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport within NASA's Wallops Flight Facility is now closed for launch activity for the remainder of the December due to holiday airspace restrictions, preventing further launch attempts in 2022. Now scheduled for January, the mission will still take place from Virginia. This new launch window will result in the mission and its related revenue being recognized in Rocket Lab's Q1, versus in fiscal Q4 as was previously anticipated at the time Rocket Lab provided Q4 financial guidance in conjunction with its Q3 2022 preliminary earnings release on November 9.

08:04 EST Navigator Holdings announces first vessel acquisition under JV - Navigator Holdings announced that following the formation of its 60/40 joint venture with Greater Bay Gas, previously announced on September 30, 2022, the Joint Venture has acquired the first of its scheduled five vessels. The vessel, a 17,000 cbm 2018-built liquefied ethylene gas carrier was renamed Navigator Luna, in recognition of the Navigator and Greater Bay Gas Luna Pool collaboration arrangement. The remaining vessels to be acquired by the Joint Venture include another 17,000 cbm, 2018-built ethylene carrier and three 22,000 cbm, 2019-built ethylene carriers, which are expected to be purchased over the next 12 months. The Vessels will continue to be commercially managed by the Luna Pool, and technical management will be provided by the third-party technical manager, PG Shipmanagement Pte. Ltd. of Singapore. To assist with the financing of the Vessels, on December 15, 2022, the JVCO's subsidiaries, entered into a six-year secured term loan with ING Bank N.V., Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, CTBC Bank and Shinsei Bank Limited, pursuant to which such lenders made available to the Borrowers, a maximum amount of $151.3 million, subject to certain terms and conditions set out in the Facility Agreement, which represents 65% of the expected aggregate value of the Vessels. The loan bears interest on a quarterly basis at SOFR plus 220 basis points. Obligations under the Facility Agreement are guaranteed by Navigator Gas L.L.C. and the Company and will be secured by the Vessels. The Facility Agreement contains certain conditions, covenants and events of default.

08:04 EST Erasca announces first patient dosed in HERKULES-1 Phase 1b trial - Erasca announced dosing of the first patient in the HERKULES-1 Phase 1b trial evaluating ERK1/2 inhibitor ERAS-007 in combination with SHP2 inhibitor ERAS-601 in patients with RAS/MAPK pathway-altered solid tumors. "We are pleased with our team's efficient execution that resulted in dosing the first patient in our MAPKlamp trial in 2022 ahead of schedule," said Jonathan E. Lim, M.D., Erasca's chairman, CEO, and co-founder. "ERK and SHP2 inhibition with ERAS-007 and ERAS-601 targets critical downstream and upstream nodes in the RAS/MAPK pathway, offering a rational approach that is supported by early clinical data that we presented at our R&D Day in September. Notably, we reported four responses in nine patients with BRAF-driven tumors to either monotherapy ERAS-007 or ERAS-601. Three of these responses were in tumors with BRAF Class 2 or 3 alterations, including a confirmed response to monotherapy SHP2 inhibition in a patient with a BRAF Class 3 alteration, which is dependent on upstream receptor tyrosine kinase activation. We look forward to exploring the potential to address the high unmet need in these BRAF subtypes, which have no approved targeted therapies and represent up to 25% of all BRAF-driven tumors."

08:02 EST Nova's Elipson selected by logic manufacturer for integrated circuit - Nova announced that a global logic manufacturer recently selected Nova Elipson for integrated circuit development. Nova Elipson was chosen for its ability to perform in-die characterization of stress, strain and defectivity in next-generation devices The solution utilizes advanced Raman spectroscopy technology to extract materials properties of in-die structures, by fast and non-destructive means.

07:47 EST Eco Atlantic announces issue of shares in relation to Block 3B/4B - Eco Atlantic announces, further to its announcement of 20 December 2022, that 21,060,000 new Common Shares have been issued to the Lunn Family Trust as consideration for the acquisition, by its wholly owned subsidiary Azinam,of an additional 6.25% Participating Interest in Block 3B/4B, offshore South Africa from the Lunn Family Trust, one of the shareholders of Ricocure. Eco now holds a 26.25% participating interest in the block. It is noted that 8,065,000 of the Consideration Shares will be subject to a special lock up agreement restricting the sale or transfer of all or any portion of the Restricted Shares until the earlier of signature of a farmout agreement between the Block JV partners and a third party; or March 15th, 2023. In addition, all of the Consideration Shares will all be subject to a restrictive hold period of four months and one day from the day of their issuance, which restricts them from being sold, transferred, hypothecated or otherwise traded through the facilities of the TSX Venture Exchange or otherwise in Canada or to a Canadian during the Hold Period without the prior written approval of the TSXV and compliance with all applicable securities laws.

07:38 EST Iveric bio completes NDA submission to FDA for avacincaptad pegol to treat GA - IVERIC bio announced that it has submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration FDA the third and final part of its New Drug Application, NDA for rolling review of avacincaptad pegol, ACP, a novel investigational complement C5 inhibitor for the treatment of geographic atrophy GA secondary to Age-Related Macular Degeneration, AMD. Per the company's agreement with the FDA for rolling NDA review, part 3 of the NDA included chemistry, manufacturing, and controls data. "We are excited to have submitted our complete NDA for avacincaptad pegol with a request for priority review based on our Breakthrough Therapy designation," said Glenn P. Sblendorio, Chief Executive Officer of Iveric Bio. "We continue to accelerate our launch preparations with the goal of making a treatment available as soon as possible for AMD patients impacted by GA, a disease that leads to irreversible blindness." "We are thrilled with the statistically significant efficacy and consistent safety results from both the GATHER1 and GATHER2 pivotal clinical trials," said Pravin U. Dugel, President of Iveric Bio. "Our Special Protocol Assessment Agreement for GATHER2, rolling review, Breakthrough Therapy designation and priority review request are intended to expedite the review process and get avacincaptad pegol to GA patients, who currently have no treatment options. We look forward to collaborating with the FDA throughout the NDA review process."

07:37 EST Shawcor receives commitments for five pipe coating projects - Shawcor (SAWLF) announced that its pipe coating division, Pipeline Performance Group, PPG, has received several project commitments which, in aggregate, are valued over $200 million. These commitments include: A Letter of Intent, LOI, from Saipem (SAPMY) for a deep-water development project in South America. The Company anticipates that it will receive a formal contract in the first half of 2023, subject to project sanction and the necessary government authorizations. Shawcor will provide thermal insulation and anticorrosion coating services from a Western Hemisphere facility. Project initiation is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2023. Two binding letters of intent and two purchase orders for the provision of insulation coating services on four Brazilian offshore projects. One of the projects will utilize Shawcor's proprietary ULTRA technology, representing the second deployment of ULTRA on offshore Brazilian pipelines. Coating activity will begin in the first half of 2023 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2024. All four projects have already been sanctioned, however, Shawcor's official purchase orders and notices to proceed for the two projects under LOI are expected to be received during the first half of 2023. All work will be executed from Shawcor's Serra, Brazil facility.

07:35 EST Lithium Americas to acquire Arena Minerals in transaction valued at $227M - Lithium Americas Corp. (LAC) and Arena Minerals Inc. (AMRZF) are pleased to announce that they have entered into a definitive arrangement agreement pursuant to which Lithium Americas has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Arena not already owned by Lithium Americas by way of a plan of arrangement. Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement, Arena's shareholders will receive 0.0226 of a Lithium Americas common share for each Arena Share held. The Consideration to Arena implies a total equity transaction value of $227M, based on the closing price on December 19, 2022, which would result in Arena Shareholders owning approximately 5.7% of Lithium Americas. Arena appointed a special committee of independent directors to consider and make a recommendation to the board of directors of Arena with respect to the Transaction. After consultation with its financial and legal advisors, and on the unanimous recommendation of the Special Committee, the Arena Board unanimously determined that the Transaction is in the best interests of Arena, and approved the Arrangement Agreement. Accordingly, the Arena Board recommendation that Arena Shareholders, option holders and warrant holders vote in favour of the Transaction. The Board Recommendation is made to all Arena Securityholders excluding Lithium Americas and Ganfeng Lithium. The Special Committee received a fairness opinion from Stifel GMP., which was retained on a fixed-fee independent fairness opinion basis, which states that as of the date of such opinion and based upon and subject to the assumptions, limitations and qualifications set forth therein, the consideration to be received by Arena Securityholders pursuant to the Transaction is fair, from a financial point of view, to the Arena Securityholders. The Transaction will be effected by way of a court-approved plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act and will be subject to the approval of: 66 2/3% of votes cast by Arena Shareholders; 66 2/3% of votes cast by Arena Securityholders, voting together as a single class; and a simple majority of the votes cast by Arena Shareholders excluding for this purpose the votes held by any person required under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions, at a special meeting of Arena Securityholders expected to be held in Q1 2023. In addition to Arena Securityholder approval, the Transaction is also subject to the receipt of certain regulatory and court approvals, including the approvals of the TSX, NYSE and the TSX Venture Exchange, any required approval under the Investment Canada Act, and other closing conditions customary in transactions of this nature. The Transaction provides for, among other things, customary Arena Board support and non-solicitation covenants, with a "fiduciary out" that would allow Arena to accept a superior proposal, subject to a "right to match" period in favour of Lithium Americas. The Arrangement Agreement also provides for, among other matters, a termination fee of US$9.1 million payable by Arena to Lithium Americas in certain specified circumstances, and a reverse termination fee of US$9.1 million payable by Lithium Americas to Arena in certain other specified circumstances. All directors and senior officers of Arena have entered into support and voting agreements pursuant to which they have agreed to vote their Arena securities in favour of the Transaction. Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement, unless otherwise excluded, all outstanding Arena warrant and stock options, which remain unexercised at the effective time of the Transaction, will be deemed to be exercised on a "cashless exercise" basis under the arrangement for Arena Shares, which will be exchanged for LAC Shares at the Exchange Ratio. Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd., GFL International Co. Ltd. and their affiliates, which collectively owns approximately 16% of the outstanding Arena Shares and Arena Warrants that if exercised would represent a further 6% ownership of Arena, has entered into a support and disposition agreement committing to use commercially reasonable efforts to dispose of all of its securities of Arena prior to closing of the Transaction. Further, the Arrangement Agreement provides that in the event that such securities held by Ganfeng are not disposed prior to closing of the Transaction, Lithium Americas will acquire such securities for cash rather than issue new shares of the Company as part of the Transaction subject to a maximum cash payment of C$75 million. Subject to certain conditions, including the Parties obtaining the requisite regulatory approvals, the Transaction is expected to close by Q3 2023. Upon closing of the Transaction, the Arena Shares are expected to be concurrently delisted from the TSX-V. The delisting is conditional upon TSX-V approval.

07:33 EST FirstService completes three tuck-under acquisitions - FirstService announced that its FirstService Brands division has recently completed three acquisitions. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. First Onsite Restoration acquired Emergency Restoration, Inc. Founded in 2003, the company is a provider of emergency water mitigation and property restoration services throughout the New Orleans metropolitan area. This acquisition enhances FirstService's presence and client coverage in a key geographic region susceptible to weather-driven property damage. Paul Davis Restoration added to its company-owned platform with the acquisition of its franchised operation serving the Salt Lake City, Utah and Las Vegas, Nevada metropolitan areas. Established in 2014, this business is one of the largest franchises in the Paul Davis network and the largest restoration service provider in Salt Lake City. This acquisition furthers FirstService's strategy of selectively acquiring franchises within our aggregate network of 330 locations across North America. California Closets also further expanded its company-owned operations with the acquisition of its franchised territory within Portland, Oregon and surrounding areas, adding a market with significant future growth potential. "These three transactions are a continuation of our strategy to augment our capabilities and geographic coverage across existing operations through selective tuck-under acquisitions," said Scott Patterson, Chief Executive Officer of FirstService. "We look forward to jointly working with the operating leaders and their teams to drive incremental growth opportunities in their respective markets," he concluded.

07:33 EST Soligenix's RiVax vaccine shows non-human primate protection vs. ricin toxin - Soligenix announced publication of preclinical immunogenicity challenge studies for RiVax - heat stable ricin toxin vaccine - demonstrating statistically significant correlates of protection predicting survival after lethal aerosolized ricin challenge in non-human primates - NHPs -. This same thermostabilization approach is also being advanced in the development of Soligenix's CiVax vaccine for COVID-19 and SuVax and MarVax vaccines for ebola type filovirus infections. RiVax is the company's vaccine candidate for the prevention of death following exposure to a lethal dose of ricin toxin using a unique antigen that is completely devoid of the toxic activity of ricin. These results, coupled with the recent demonstration of statistically significant correlates of protection via the EPICC assay, position RiVax for additional clinical and pivotal non-clinical studies under the FDA Animal Rule.

07:14 EST Gilat Satellite, Intelsat expand strategic in-flight connectivity partnership - Gilat Satellite Networks announced the company and Intelsat are expanding their strategic partnership with multimillion-dollar agreements to increase in-flight connectivity in the Americas. Gilat hubs deployed in the USA and Brazil will be expanded to support increased network capacity to address growing bandwidth demands on Intelsat's IFC network in the Western Hemisphere. Gilat's solution is already proven worldwide as an operational system that allows aviation service providers like Intelsat to streamline IFC service fulfillment.

07:09 EST Next Hydrogen Solutions to receive investment of $5.1M from SDTC - Next Hydrogen Solutions announces that it has been awarded $5.1M from Sustainable Development Technology Canada, SDTC, towards the development and demonstration of the Company's next generation electrolysis technology. This collaborative project with a budget of over $12M will run to the end of 2024, resulting in cost and performance improvements to Next Hydrogen's current line of electrolysis products and the launch of next generation large-scale electrolysis modules. With the launch of these products, Next Hydrogen will be well positioned to support the needs of its customers for both near-term market demonstrations and commercial large-scale green hydrogen systems. "We are delighted with SDTC's decision to support this Next Hydrogen led consortium project," says Raveel Afzaal, President and CEO of Next Hydrogen. "The collaboration with key industry partners provides an unprecedented opportunity to accelerate the adoption of our innovative green hydrogen products in the marketplace. We look forward to providing updates on our development progress and related market deployment projects."

07:08 EST NextDecade executes LNG sale, purchase agreement with Galp Trading - NextDecade announced the execution of a sale and purchase agreement, or SPA, with Galp Trading for the long-term supply of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, from NextDecade's Rio Grande LNG, or RGLNG, export project in Brownsville, Texas. Under the 20-year SPA, Galp will purchase 1 tons per annum, or MTPA, of LNG indexed to Henry Hub on a free-on-board basis. NextDecade is currently targeting a positive Final Investment Decision, or FID, on the first three trains of the RGLNG export project during the first quarter of 2023, with FIDs of its remaining trains to follow thereafter.

07:07 EST Boralex says three projects selected in France's first technology-neutral tender - Boralex announced that three of its projects, totalling 42 MW, have been selected in the first technology-neutral tender, covering wind, solar and hydropower, conducted by the Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition of France. These projects have received the necessary administrative authorizations and will allow Boralex to benefit from a feed-in premium contract for 20 years as of the commencement of commercial operation. Boralex has a portfolio of over 1.5 GW of wind and solar projects in France at various stages of development. It currently has over 1.1 GW of wind and solar facilities in operation in France and approximately 2.5 GW worldwide.

07:06 EST Altimmune announces topline results from 24-week trial of pemvidutide - Altimmune announced topline results from its 24-week trial of pemvidutide in subjects with NAFLD. Sixty-six of the 83 subjects who completed the initial 12-week Phase 1b NAFLD trial consented to participate in this 12-week extension trial to receive a total of 24 weeks of treatment, and 64 subjects were enrolled. The same endpoints as the 12-week parent NAFLD trial were employed, with a primary efficacy endpoint of percent reduction in liver fat content; key secondary endpoints were reduction in liver inflammation, as measured by serum ALT levels and cT1, and percent weight loss. The trial met its primary endpoint in all pemvidutide treatment groups. At the 1.8 mg and 2.4 mg doses, subjects receiving pemvidutide achieved mean relative reductions of liver fat content of 75.2% and 76.4%, respectively; 92.3% and 100% of subjects, respectively, achieved a 30% reduction in liver fat, 84.6% and 72.7% of subjects, respectively, achieved a 50% reduction in liver fat, and 53.8% and 45.5% of subjects, respectively, achieved normalization of liver fat, defined as liver fat fraction of 5% or less. Statistically significant declines in mean serum ALT levels were observed in all pemvidutide-treated subjects, and in subjects with baseline serum ALT greater than or equal to30 IU/L, ALT levels declined at least 17 IU/L at all pemvidutide dose levels. The trial also met its key secondary weight loss endpoint in all pemvidutide treatment groups. Employing an efficacy estimand, mean weight losses of 7.2% in subjects without diabetes and 6.2% in all subjects were achieved at the 1.8 mg dose. Pemvidutide was generally well tolerated. A total of 3 serious or severe adverse events were reported, each unrelated to study drug administration. As expected, gastrointestinal events comprised the majority of AEs and were predominantly mild in nature. No clinically significant ALT elevations were observed. Glycemic control was maintained, with pemvidutide groups demonstrating trends toward improvements in fasting glucose and HbA1c over the 24 weeks of treatment. Meaningful reductions in systolic blood pressure were observed, and increases in heart rate, typical of the incretin class of agents, were minimal at 0 to 4 beats per minute and independent of dose.

07:04 EST Genius Sports awarded Ohio Sports Gaming Supplier License - Genius Sports announced that it has been granted a Sports Gaming Supplier License by the state of Ohio, Casino Control Commission. With the addition of Ohio, Genius Sports now holds 39 licenses, or equivalent, in North America across US states, territories, tribes, and Canada, providing its award-winning products and services to a wide array of clients operating within these jurisdictions. "We are honored that the state of Ohio has awarded Genius Sports its sports gaming supplier license to provide licensed sportsbooks across the Buckeye State with access to our groundbreaking NFL products and marketing services" said Mark Locke, CEO of Genius Sports. "As a growing majority of U.S. states legalize sports betting, Genius Sports welcomes the opportunity to work with states like Ohio, on providing sports fans with official sports data-driven solutions to power their sportsbooks." Legal sports betting will be available in Ohio beginning on January 1.

07:03 EST BioLineRx's AGI-134 meets Phase 1/2a safety endpoint in solid tumors - BioLineRx announced results from the Phase 1/2a study of intratumoral cancer vaccine candidate, AGI-134, designed to evaluate the safety and biological activity of AGI-134 in patients with unresectable metastatic solid tumors. The study met its primary endpoint of AGI-134's safety and tolerability. In this first-in-human trial, a total of 38 patients were treated with AGI-134: 5 patients in part 1, the accelerated dose-escalation part of the study; and 33 patients in part 2, the dose expansion part of the study. Part 1 demonstrated that AGI-134 was safe and well tolerated, with no dose-limiting toxicities reported. The maximum tolerated dose was not reached and the recommended dose for part 2 of the study was determined to be up to 200mg. In the dose expansion part 2 of the study, AGI-134 was generally well-tolerated, with treatment-related adverse events being transient and mostly mild to moderate. Generation of an immune response and markers of clinical efficacy were assessed as secondary endpoints. Most patients analyzed showed an increase in Alpha-Gal antibodies, indicating increased overall immune activity. Additionally, increases in antigen presenting cells were observed in most tissue samples analyzed. 29% of patients in the trial achieved best overall response of stable disease. Seven of the 11 patients who achieved stable disease had previously failed checkpoint-inhibitor therapy.

07:02 EST Ginkgo Bioworks, MoH of Botswana enter MoU on biosecurity capabilities - Ginkgo Bioworks and the Ministry of Health, representing the Government of the Republic of Botswana, tannounced that they have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the intent of developing and implementing new biosecurity capabilities in Botswana. The planned partnership will support capacity-building and biosecurity throughout Botswana's public health sector. Ginkgo, through its biosecurity and public health unit, Concentric by Ginkgo, plans to collaborate with the Botswana MoH to equip local public health institutions with biosecurity tools and training, as well as the secure data infrastructure that they need to leverage automation, data analysis, bio-informatics capabilities and other critical genomic sequencing technologies. Concentric and Botswana MoH will also endeavor to address key biosecurity challenges, by implementing innovative pathogen monitoring programs at strategic nodes, such as ports of entry and animal agricultural settings.

06:57 EST IFF sells Savory Solutions Group to PAI Partners - IFF has entered into an agreement to sell its Savory Solutions Group to PAI Partners, a global private equity firm with a strong focus on the food and consumer industry. The transaction values the business at approximately $900M and cash proceeds net of taxes and expenses will be primarily used to reduce outstanding debt. IFF's Savory Solutions Group focuses primarily on ingredients for prepared foods and foodservice, including products for butchers, and plant-based solutions for the vegan and vegetarian markets. It includes several business units operating out of Austria, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Poland, Canada, Mexico and Thailand. With approximately 1,800 employees, IFF's Savory Solutions generated approximately $475M in revenue over the last 12 months. The transaction values the business at approximately 14x the last 12-month EBITDA. IFF and PAI Partners expect to close the transaction in 2Q23, subject to customary closing conditions, including satisfaction of applicable consultation requirements, and regulatory clearances.

06:51 EST Seagen, Astellas and Merck announce FDA acceptance of sBLA in urothelial cancer - Seagen (SGEN), Astellas Pharma (ALPMF) and Merck (MRK) announced the FDA has accepted for Priority Review supplemental Biologics License Applications - sBLAs - for Padcev and Keytruda for use of these two agents in combination for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer who are not eligible to receive cisplatin-containing chemotherapy. The respective applications are intended to expand both labels for Padcev and Keytruda. The agency set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act goal date for each application of April 21, 2023. The combination therapy was granted Breakthrough Therapy designation by the FDA in February 2020. Seagen, Astellas and Merck are further investigating enfortumab vedotin plus pembrolizumab in the ongoing phase 3 EV-302 study evaluating the clinical benefit for the investigational treatment combination in patients with previously untreated advanced urothelial cancer. The trial is intended to serve as the confirmatory trial for the potential accelerated approval in the U.S. and serve as the basis for global registration.

06:47 EST Loews announces reversal of trial court decision in Boardwalk litigation - Loews announced that the Delaware Supreme Court reversed the November 2021 decision of the Delaware Court of Chancery that had awarded former minority unitholders in its Boardwalk Pipelines subsidiary approximately $690M, plus interest. This award was in connection with Loews's 2018 acquisition of Boardwalk units. The Delaware Supreme Court remanded the case to the Chancery Court for further proceedings consistent with the Delaware Supreme Court's ruling. The Supreme Court's opinion is available on the Delaware Courts' website.

06:31 EST BitNile plans to change name to 'Ault Alliance' - BitNile Holdings announced its plan to merge its wholly owned subsidiary, Ault Alliance, with and into BitNile. In connection with this upstream merger, the current AAI will disappear and the business of BitNile will continue as it is currently being conducted. Further, on January 3, 2023, the effective date of the merger, the company will change its name to Ault Alliance, and its ticker will be changed to "AULT."

06:03 EST Radware to deliver application and network security for pharmaceutical company - Radware signed a deal with a large multinational pharmaceutical company to increase the cyber defenses around its global hybrid environment using Radware's end-to-end network and application security as well as application delivery solutions. The pharmaceutical company delivers medicine across more than 100 countries. The stack of services includes Radware's Cloud Web Application Firewall Service, Cloud DDoS Protection Service, DefensePro DDoS Protection, and Alteon application delivery and security solution.

05:24 EST Mainz Biomed announces first patient enrolled in eAArly DETECT study - Mainz Biomed announced the first patient has been enrolled in eAArly DETECT, Mainz's U.S. extension of ColoFuture, its European feasibility study evaluating the integration of a portfolio of novel gene expression, or mRNA, biomarkers into ColoAlert. Currently, Mainz is commercializing ColoAlert, its highly efficacious, and easy-to-use detection test for colorectal cancer, or CRC, across Europe and in select international territories. ColoFuture/eAArly DETECT are multi-center studies assessing the potential of these biomarkers to identify advanced adenomas, a type of pre-cancerous polyp often attributed to CRC.