Stockwinners Market Radar for April 14, 2023 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

18:38 EDT Astellas Pharma: Lancet publishes results from Phase 3 SPOTLIGHT trial - Astellas Pharma announced that The Lancet published detailed data from the Phase 3 SPOTLIGHT trial evaluating first-line treatment with zolbetuximab, an investigational first-in-class Claudin 18.2 targeted monoclonal antibody, plus mFOLFOX6 versus placebo plus mFOLFOX6 in patients with CLDN18.2-positive, HER2-negative, locally advanced unresectable or metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma. The study data was first published online on April 14 in The Lancet. Initial results from SPOTLIGHT, which met its primary endpoint of progression-free survival and a key secondary endpoint of overall survival were presented at the 2023 American Society of Clinical Oncology Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium.

17:09 EDT Lannett CFO John Kozlowski to leave company on May 16 - In a regulatory filing, Lannett announced that on May 16, John Kozlowski will be leaving to pursue other opportunities. In consideration of the extended notice period, his 15 years loyal service and customary releases, he will be separated without cause from his position as Vice President of Finance, CFO and Principal Accounting Officer.

17:02 EDT Winvest Acquisition announces extension of termination date - WinVest Acquisition announced that its Board of Directors has approved an extension of the period of time available to the company to consummate an initial business combination by one month from April 17 to May 17, as permitted under the company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended. The purpose of the extension is to provide additional time for the company to complete an initial business combination. In connection with the extension, $125,000 will be deposited into the trust account established in connection with the company's initial public offering. The Board may elect to further extend the Termination Date on a monthly basis until June 17 upon the deposit of an additional $125,000 into the trust account per monthly extension.

16:35 EDT Wheels Up receives noncompliance notification from NYSE - Wheels Up announced that it received a notice from the New York Stock Exchange that the average closing price per share of its common stock did not exceed $1.00 over a 30 consecutive trading-day period, which is required for continued listing on the NYSE. The company notified the NYSE of its intent to regain compliance with the continued listing standards by seeking stockholder approval at its upcoming annual meeting of stockholders on May 31 to authorize a reverse stock split of the company's common stock.

16:31 EDT ElectraMeccanica updates voluntary recall of Solo G3 and G2 - ElectraMeccanica provided an update on its previously announced safety recall for the SOLO (G3/G2), model years 2019, 2021-2023. Approximately 429 vehicles are involved in this recall. While driving, the vehicle may experience a loss of propulsion. An instrument cluster warning light illuminates, and the driver will experience a loss of power as the vehicle decelerates as if removing their foot from the accelerator pedal. Steering, braking, and lighting systems are not impacted. The vehicle can be restarted after a short period of time. In the event of sudden loss of propulsion, the vehicle maintains all other critical functionality including power steering, braking, and lighting, and in most instances allows the driver to pull over. However, due to the unexpected loss of propulsion, there may be an increased risk of crash. The recall remedy available is vehicle repurchase, for the full price paid including taxes, fees and shipping. ElectraMeccanica will work directly with customers to complete the vehicle repurchase process, free of charge. Reservation holders will be issued a refund.

16:17 EDT Maxar Technologies provides update on proposed acquisition by Advent - Maxar Technologies announced that it has received the majority of the regulatory consents required for the company's previously announced transaction to be acquired by Advent International, one of the largest and most experienced global private equity investors. Advent has agreed, pursuant to a definitive merger agreement, dated December 15, 2022, to acquire all outstanding shares of Maxar common stock for $53.00 per share in cash. The transaction also remains subject to the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions, including approval by Maxar stockholders and the receipt of approvals from certain other authorities. Both Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. and Glass, Lewis & Co., LLC, leading proxy advisory firms, have recommended that stockholders vote for the proposal to approve the proposed acquisition. A special meeting of Maxar's stockholders to approve the Merger Agreement will be held virtually at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/MAXR2023SM at 11 a.m. Mountain Time on April 19. Maxar and Advent currently anticipate that the proposed transaction will close in late April or early May, subject to satisfaction or waiver of all other closing conditions, including receipt of outstanding regulatory approvals.

16:15 EDT SNDL granted management cease trade order extension - SNDL announced that its principal regulator, the Alberta Securities Commission, has granted an extension to the existing management cease trade order granted on April 3 from April 14 to April 24. The company said, "SNDL and its auditor continue to work diligently toward completing the audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022, annual management's discussion and analysis for the same period, annual information form for the same period (which will be reported as an Annual Report on Form 20-F) and management certifications of annual filings as soon as possible. The Company believes that there will be no restatement of previously released financial statements of SNDL and it expects to report fourth quarter and full year 2022 earnings and complete the Filings on or before April 24, 2023."

16:06 EDT Bannix Acquisition announces monthly extension to complete combination - Bannix Acquisition Corp. announced that its board of directors has decided to extend the date by which Bannix must consummate an initial business combination from April 14, 2023 for an additional month, to May 14, 2023. As previously disclosed, at a special meeting of its stockholders held on March 8, 2023, Bannix' stockholders voted in favor of a proposal to amend Bannix's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to provide Bannix with the right to extend the Deadline Date up to 12 times for an additional one month each time, from April 14, 2023 to up to May 14, 2024. On March 9, 2023, Bannix filed the Amended Charter with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware. Also as previously announced, if an Extension is implemented, the sponsor of Bannix, Instant Fame LLC, or its designees will deposit into the trust account, as a loan, the lesser of $75,000 and $0.07 for each share that is not redeemed in connection with the special meeting.

16:04 EDT Fed Reserve Board approves UBS acquisition of Credit Suisse's U.S. subsidiaries - The Federal Reserve Board announced its approval for UBS Group (UBS) to acquire the U.S. subsidiaries of Credit Suisse Group (CS). The application was submitted in connection with UBS Group AG's acquisition of Credit Suisse Group AG. In connection with the proposal, UBS has committed to provide the board with an implementation plan for combining the U.S. business and operations of UBS and Credit Suisse, which will be updated quarterly. The implementation plan will address UBS's obligations to comply with more stringent enhanced prudential standards, including liquidity standards. Reference Link

16:01 EDT OFS Credit estimates NAV per share of $8.82-$8.92 as of March 31 - OFS Credit Company announced the following net asset value estimate as of March 31, 2023. Management's unaudited estimate of the range of our NAV per share of our common stock as of March 31, 2023 is between $8.82 and $8.92. This estimate is not a comprehensive statement of our financial condition or results for the month ended March 31, 2023. This estimate did not undergo the Company's typical quarter-end financial closing procedures. We advise you that current estimates of our NAV per share may differ materially from future NAV estimates or determinations, including the determination for the period ending April 30, 2023, which will be reported in our Semi-Annual Report on Form N-CSR.

15:38 EDT Xcel Brands announces strategic licensing partnership with One Jeanswear Group - Xcel Brands announced a strategic licensing partnership with One Jeanswear Group. Under the new agreement, OJG will design and produce apparel products for Xcel's C. Wonder by Christian Siriano brand, beginning with items shipping for the fall 2023 season. The new agreement marks an expansion of Xcel's partnership with OJG, which also manufactures LOGO by Lori Goldstein apparel products under license from Xcel.

14:24 EDT NuVasive says ISS recommends vote in favor of Globus deal - NuVasive (NUVA) announced that proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services recommends that shareholders vote for the shareholder proposal to adopt the merger agreement with Globus Medical (GMED) at the upcoming special meeting of shareholders scheduled for April 27. "The merger "appears to have strategic merit, as the combined company will have increased scale with a complementary product portfolio and geographic footprint and addresses key strategic areas of focus for NUVA, including the lack of a robotics platform and an outsized cost structure," ISS stated in its report, according to NuVasive.

13:03 EDT Baker Hughes reports U.S. rig count down 3 to 748 rigs - Baker Hughes reports the U.S. rig count is down 3 from last week to 748 rigs, with oil rigs down 2 to 588, gas rigs down 1 to 157 and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at 3. The U.S. rig count is up 55 rigs from last year's count of 693, with oil rigs up 40, gas rigs up 14 and miscellaneous up 1. The Canada rig count is down 16 from last week to 111, with oil rigs down 7 to 45, gas rigs down 9 to 66.

12:54 EDT Rosecliff Acquisition Corp I trading halted, volatility trading pause

12:00 EDT Spirit AeroSystems falls -20.6% - Spirit AeroSystems is down -20.6%, or -$7.33 to $28.27.

12:00 EDT JPMorgan rises 7.2% - JPMorgan is up 7.2%, or $9.30 to $138.29.

12:00 EDT BigBear.ai rises 11.8% - BigBear.ai is up 11.8%, or 33c to $3.12.

11:26 EDT Citi says enhancing cybersecurity through AI - Says seeing signs of cooling in labor and manufacturing. Says enhancing cybersecurity through AI. Says feels "very good" about asset quality and reserve levels even amid macro uncertainty.

11:09 EDT PNC Financial CFO sees reducing share repurchase activity in Q2 - On PNC Financial's Q2 earnings conference call, CEO William Demchak said: "For the past month, we've seen market volatility across the broader industry. And while we take this situation seriously and are closely monitoring the environment, it's important to note that these events have taken place within a few banks with very unique business models. Inside of our company, we really haven't seen any meaningful impacts from the events of the past month. Our balance sheet remains strong and stable, and we are operating the company in the same way we were at the beginning of March. Ultimately, over time, we expect the dynamics playing out in the banking system today to contribute to changes in the competitive landscape. And while it's still early innings, we believe that PNC will be a beneficiary from this process. That said, in the near term, we're not immune to the competitive environment and the deposit dynamics that will ultimately impact our NII in the near term, and Rob is going to cover that in more detail in a second." PNC CFO Rob Reilly added: "During the quarter, we returned $1 billion of capital to shareholders which included $600 million of common dividends and approximately $370 million of share repurchases or 2.4 million shares. Due to market conditions and increased economic uncertainty, we expect to reduce our share repurchase activity in the second quarter. And of course, we'll continue to monitor this and may adjust share repurchase activity as appropriate."

11:01 EDT Wells Fargo CEO says 'no concerns over what we're doing' in trading business - Asked by an analyst about a New York Post article published yesterday that "alluded to some concerns" in Wells Fargo's trading business, CEO Charlie Scharf responded: "We have no concerns over what we're doing in the business. We're not increasing risk in any meaningful way. We've had strong oversight in that business, and we think it continues. And we benefited from business activity, which is focused on customer flow. We have strong financial risk management in the company and have had that for a long period of time. We have strong risk management over our trading businesses and controls. And I would just be really careful to take the source that you're taking and using that to expand into anything beyond... And as I said, we feel really good about the progress that we're making, and we feel good about the performance of the company. And I think it's that -- that stands on its own."

10:48 EDT Wells Fargo CFO not anticipating 'significant additional capital needs' - Wells Fargo CFO Michael Santomassimo said on the company's Q1 call: "We've got plenty of capital to deal with whatever comes out of [the stress tests]. And as we said, over time, we'll get closer to 100 basis points or so above the -- above the 9.2%. And so I think there's plenty of capacity to deal with whatever comes and continue to return money back to shareholders, as Charlie said... All I was trying to say is we have a lot of flexibility to deal with things that come our way. And so we're not anticipating significant additional capital needs. We're not anticipating that any potential downturn could create additional capital needs inside of the business. All we're saying is that if any of those things were to happen, we have the flexibility to deal with that, both because of the amount of earnings that we have as well as the existing excess capital that we have. So you'll add those -- you take that, you say, we bought all those things happened while we bought $4 billion of stock back this quarter. So we feel we'll be able to continue to return capital and still maintain a very conservative position."

10:37 EDT Wells Fargo CFO says 'expect a little bit of a stepdown' in Q2 NII from Q1

10:32 EDT Goldenbridge Acquisition Ltd trading resumes

10:23 EDT Wells Fargo CFO backs full-year NII guidance - Q1 net interest income, or NII, was $13.3B, which was 45% higher than a year ago as the bank continues to benefit from the impact of higher rates. The $97M decline for the fourth quarter was due to two fewer business days, Wells Fargo CFO Michael Santomassimo said on the company's Q1 call. "Our full year net interest income guidance has not changed from last quarter as we still expect 2023 net interest income to grow by approximately 10% compared with 2022. And ultimately, the amount of net interest income we earned this year will depend on a variety of factors, many of which are uncertain, including the absolute level of interest rates, the shape of the yield curve, deposit balances, mix and repricing and loan demand," Santomassimo added.

10:13 EDT Wells Fargo CEO says share buybacks resumed during Q1

10:08 EDT Wells Fargo CEO says delinquencies, net charge-offs slowly rising, as expected - Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf says "the consumer and majority of our businesses remain strong." He added: "Delinquencies and net charge-offs have continued to slowly increase as expected. We're looking for signs of accelerated deterioration in asset classes or segments of our customers. And broadly speaking, we saw a little change in the trends from the prior quarter... Given what we're seeing, we're taking incremental actions to tighten credit on higher risk segments but continue to lend broadly. We increased our allowance for credit losses for the fourth consecutive quarter." Comments taken from Q1 earnings conference call.

10:03 EDT Xcel Brands announces new licensing agreement with JTV - Xcel Brands and JTV announced a new licensing agreement that will see Judith Ripka fine jewelry sold on JTV.com beginning in June and through the network's live TV broadcasts beginning in August. Under the new agreement, JTV will also license the Judith Ripka e-commerce platform, JudithRipka.com. "We're excited to launch this partnership. The JTV team's commitment to jewelry, digital retail and live broadcasting, coupled with their superior manufacturing expertise, make them an ideal licensing partner. We have committed to significant on-air time with the network, and we're confident this will be a highly successful collaboration," said Robert D'Loren, Chairman and CEO of Xcel Brands.

10:00 EDT Spirit AeroSystems falls -20.2% - Spirit AeroSystems is down -20.2%, or -$7.17 to $28.43.

10:00 EDT Posco rises 6.6% - Posco is up 6.6%, or $4.90 to $79.29.

10:00 EDT BigBear.ai rises 14.6% - BigBear.ai is up 14.6%, or 41c to $3.20.

09:47 EDT Spirit AeroSystems falls -14.7% - Spirit AeroSystems is down -14.7%, or -$5.24 to $30.36.

09:47 EDT VF Corp. rises 6.3% - VF Corp. is up 6.3%, or $1.38 to $23.20.

09:47 EDT BigBear.ai rises 7.9% - BigBear.ai is up 7.9%, or 22c to $3.01.

09:41 EDT PermaFix Environmental Services trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:35 EDT JPMorgan's Dimon: Can count on your hands the number of troubled banks - Says a lot of regional banks have sticky mid-market deposits. Expects headcount to remain flat.

09:31 EDT Acuity Brands to acquire KE2 Therm Solutions - Acuity Brands announced a definitive agreement to acquire KE2 Therm Solutions, which develops and provides intelligent refrigeration control solutions that "improve profitability by increasing system efficiency and decreasing operational and service costs." The transaction is expected to close during the spring of 2023 when KE2 Therm will begin integrating into Distech Controls within the Intelligent Spaces Group business segment of Acuity. The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions. Until close, the companies will continue to operate independently. Peter Han, President of the Intelligent Spaces Group, said: "In recent months, we have expanded our presence in new regions and now, with the acquisition of KE2 Therm, we will expand into the commercial refrigeration controls market as it transitions from analog to digital controls. KE2 Therm's controls and software will help us lead this transition, and we are excited to welcome the talented team to Acuity."

09:16 EDT Mobilicom to exhibit at Military Robotics & Autonomous Systems 2023 - Mobilicom announced it will exhibit its suite of end-to-end solutions for military applications at the Military Robotics & Autonomous Systems 2023 conference in London, England on April 17 and 18, 2023. The conference's focus this year is on optimizing uncrewed systems and autonomous capabilities for future ground warfare. "We look forward to engaging with current and prospective customers at this important conference that is set to address the growing role of autonomous systems in defense and warfare. Given the conference's location in London, we plan to meet with a number of European and UK-based potential partners and customers," said Mobilicom CEO and Founder Oren Elkayam.

09:14 EDT Molekule reports equity inducement grant under Nasdaq rule - Molekule Group announced that the Company's Compensation Committee has granted an equity inducement award of common stock to a new executive employee in connection with his joining the Company. The Company granted 500,000 restricted stock units to Ryan Patch, its new Chief Legal Officer, Corporate Secretary and Senior Vice President. The grant of restricted stock units was promised to Mr. Patch in his employment agreement with the Company as a material inducement of employment in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The restricted stock units granted to Patch will vest on a quarterly basis pro-rata in substantially equal installments over a four-year period, subject to Patch's continued employment through the applicable vesting dates.

09:13 EDT CSW Industrials board increases quarterly dividend 12% to 19c per share - The Board of Directors of CSW Industrials declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents an increase of $0.02 per share, or approximately 12%, as compared to the declared dividend in the prior quarter. The dividend is payable on May 12, 2023, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on April 28, 2023. "We are pleased to announce another increase in our quarterly dividend, reflecting our strong balance sheet, cash flows and profitability. Over the past four years, we have returned $120.5 million in cash to our shareholders, while also growing organically and through acquisitions," said Joseph Armes, CSW Industrials Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer.

09:09 EDT JPMorgan's Dimon: People need to prepare for higher rates for longer

09:02 EDT JPMorgan's Dimon says banks facing tightening, not credit crunch - Says larger banks have no pricing power on deposits.

08:50 EDT Catalent falls 21% to $50.00 in pre-market after Q3 update - Shares of Catalent are down 21% or $13.31 at $50.00 in pre-market trading after the company stated that "productivity issues and higher-than-expected costs experienced at three of its facilities, including two of its largest manufacturing facilities, during the quarter will materially and adversely impact the company's financial results for the third fiscal quarter and its outlook for the remainder of the 2023 fiscal year."

08:40 EDT Alcoa buys group annuity contracts for certain Canadian retirees, beneficiaries - Alcoa announced the purchase of group annuity contracts that will facilitate the transfer of approximately $235M of pension obligations and assets associated with defined benefit pension plans for certain Canadian retirees and beneficiaries. The transfer, which will be complete later this month, further enhances the company's strong balance sheet, reduces the risk from volatility in pension plan obligations, and continues to meet commitments to retirees and beneficiaries. This is the company's sixth pension annuity transaction for a total transfer of approximately $3.6B in pension obligations and assets since 2018. The latest group annuity contracts, which required no cash funding from Alcoa, will be executed by Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc. and will cover approximately 500 participants in the Canadian pension plans. Participants will not have any change in their benefits, and Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc. will assume the payment obligations beginning in September. In the second quarter of 2023, Alcoa expects to record a non-cash settlement charge of approximately $18M related to this annuity transaction.

08:36 EDT TriumphPay partners with Highway to combat double-brokering fraud - TriumphPay, a division of TBK Bank, SSB, Member of FDIC, and a member of the Triumph Financial portfolio of brands, announced a strategic partnership with Highway, a premier technology provider for carrier identity management. The collaboration aims to identify and mitigate double-brokering fraud schemes that are increasing in frequency, scale and sophistication. The partnership will arm customers of TriumphPay and Highway with essential information to prevent bad actors from being loaded and paid, allowing them to focus on securing capacity with the most reliable carriers. "Our partnership with Highway will significantly strengthen our efforts to combat double-brokering fraud in the freight industry, which we estimate affects $500-700M worth of freight annually," said Melissa Forman, president of TriumphPay. "By combining our resources and expertise, we're providing our customers with an invaluable tool for detecting and mitigating fraud while improving the overall payment experience for carriers."

08:33 EDT Fujifilm debuts Synapse Pathology at HIMSS 2023 annual meeting - FUJIFILM Healthcare Americas Corporation will debut Synapse Pathology, the company's newly acquired and branded digital pathology PACS solution at the 2023 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, HIMSS, annual meeting. "The addition of Pathology to our enterprise imaging portfolio is exciting for us, as it aligns with our expertise and strengths in the area of digitizing medical imaging and helping providers smoothly transition to all the benefits of digital workflow" says Bill Lacy, senior vice president, medical informatics, FUJIFILM Healthcare Americas Corporation. "We never lose sight of the bigger picture when introducing new innovation, and now as Pathology evolves to embrace all of the new benefits of digital imaging with Synapse Pathology, we will also be leveraging our award-winning Synapse Enterprise Imaging portfolio to bring Pathology into the workflow of the healthcare enterprise."

08:32 EDT China Natural Resources to acquire lithium mine in Zimbabwe - China Natural Resources announced that the company has completed its due diligence investigation with satisfactory results, and will proceed with the acquisition of Williams Minerals Ltd by paying a deposit of $35M by way of promissory notes to Feishang Group Limited and Top Pacific Limited on or about April 21, 2023, pursuant to the definitive sale and purchase agreement that the Company entered into with the Sellers on February 27, 2023. Williams Minerals owns the mining permit for a Zimbabwean lithium mine. Under the Sale and Purchase Agreement, it is expected that the Company will indirectly acquire all interests in Williams Minerals and pay an aggregate of $140M by way of promissory notes and/or cash to the Sellers as an initial installment. Consideration for the Company's "ownership" (as defined in the Sale and Purchase Agreement) of various regions of the Zimbabwean lithium mine will thereafter be calculated and paid, and such "ownership" will vest, cumulatively, region by region and over time, based on the issuance and results of subsequent independent technical reports, with the maximum consideration contemplated to be $1.75B. The subject of each independent technical report will be the quantity of qualified measured, indicated and inferred sources of lithium oxide proven to be in a discrete region of the mining area. For each region of the lithium mine, until the consideration due for each region based upon the independent technical report has been paid and the company's "ownership" has vested, the Sellers will maintain legal possession and control, including the right to exploration, sales of lithium, and the revenue derived therefrom, as well as liability for operational costs and third-party claims.

08:31 EDT Inozyme to present preliminary data from Phase 1/2 trial at ECTS - Inozyme Pharma announced Yves Sabbagh, Ph.D., the company's senior vice president and chief scientific officer, will present recently announced preliminary data from the ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trial of INZ-701 in patients with ENPP1 Deficiency in an oral presentation on Monday, April 17 at the European Calcified Tissue Society Congress, ECTS, in Liverpool, UK. In February 2023, the Company announced positive preliminary pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, and safety data with encouraging patient reported outcome data from the ongoing trial. Dosing is ongoing in the Phase 2 portion of the trial and the Company is on track to report interim clinical data in the third quarter of 2023. The Company also plans to add an additional cohort to investigate the potential for once-weekly dosing in the ongoing trial.

08:07 EDT Heliogen receives non-binding acquisition proposal from Continuum Renewables - Heliogen announced that it has received an unsolicited, non-binding proposal from Continuum Renewables to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Heliogen for cash consideration of 40c per share. The non-binding proposal states that CRI was co-founded by Bill Gross. Gross is the former CEO of Heliogen who was terminated by Heliogen in February. The non-binding proposal further states that CRI's largest investors are Idealab Studio, an entity affiliated with Gross, and Prime Movers Lab, which collectively hold, directly or indirectly, approximately 26% of the company's outstanding shares. The non-binding proposal is subject to various contingencies, including CRI obtaining financing. Since Gross's separation, and as shared during the company's March 28 earnings call, the company's new leadership has taken measures to progress its strategic priorities of increasing sales, installing its first commercial project, and improving the company's financial position. Consistent with its fiduciary duties, Heliogen's board will carefully evaluate the non-binding proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interest of the Company and all Heliogen shareholders and respond appropriately.

08:05 EDT Yoshitsu welcomes Prometheus Capital Fund I as new institutional shareholder - Yoshitsu announced that, on April 5, 2023, Prometheus Capital Fund I became the beneficial owner of 2,063,300 ordinary shares of the Company, which represented approximately 5.7% of the Company's issued and outstanding ordinary shares. Prometheus Capital GP is the sole general partner of the Fund. Focused on early-to-growth-stage investment opportunities within the technology, media, and telecom and consumer sectors, Prometheus Capital manages four funds denominated in USD and RMB with total assets under management of $1 billion. Mei Kanayama, Principal Executive Officer of Yoshitsu, commented, "We are excited to have Prometheus Capital Fund I, L.P. as our new institutional shareholder. This investment by the prestigious Prometheus Capital is a recognition of our brand and our ability to create value for shareholders."

08:03 EDT JPMorgan sees FY23 net interest income about $81B, market dependent - Sees FY23 adjusted expense about $81B, market dependent. Sees FY23 card services NCO rate of about 2.6%. Comments taken from investor presentation slides.

07:52 EDT Ocugen reports preliminary safety, efficacy results Phase 1/2 trial of OCU400 - Ocugen announced positive preliminary data among retinitis pigmentosa participants treated in the first two cohorts of the Phase 1/2 trial to assess the safety and efficacy of OCU400 for RP associated with NR2E3 and Rhodopsin mutations and Leber Congenital Amaurosis with mutation in the CEP290 gene. These preliminary results provide support that OCU400, Ocugen's first-in-class therapeutic approach utilizing a proprietary modifier gene therapy platform, has the potential to be a gene-agnostic therapeutic for RP and LCA patients with inherited retinal degeneration. This Phase 1/2 trial is a multicenter, open-label, dose ranging study. A total of 18 RP subjects have been enrolled in this study-10 subjects in the dose escalation and 8 subjects in the expansion phase, respectively. In Cohort 1 and 2 of the clinical trial, 7 participants with severe vision impairment due to RP associated with RHO and NR2E3 gene mutations received a unilateral subretinal injection of either a low dose or medium dose OCU400, respectively. In the preliminary data analysis, 9-month follow-up data for 3 subjects, and 6-month follow-up data for 4 subjects were evaluated. Results showed a favorable safety profile and visual improvements after treatment with OCU400 as measured by multi-luminance mobility testing and best corrected visual acuity assessment. Key efficacy outcomes from 7 subjects demonstrated: 100% of treated eyes showed a stable or improved MLMT score trend; 5 of 7 OCU400 treated eyes demonstrated a 1 or more Lux level improvement in MLMT score compared to 28.6 % of untreated eyes; 66.7% of OCU400 treated eyes in Cohort 1 with 9-month follow-up demonstrated a 2 or more Lux level improvement in MLMT score compared to none of the untreated eyes; and 3 of 7 OCU400 treated eyes demonstrated 8-11 letters of improvement in BCVA score compared to none of the untreated eyes.

07:36 EDT Catalent names Ricky Hopson interim CFO, announces adverse impact to Q3 results - Catalent announced a business update. While complete financial information and operating data for the company's third fiscal quarter ended March 31 are not yet finalized, the company expects that productivity issues and higher-than-expected costs experienced at three of its facilities, including two of its largest manufacturing facilities, during the quarter will materially and adversely impact the company's financial results for the third fiscal quarter and its outlook for the remainder of the 2023 fiscal year. The company also announced that Ricky Hopson will assume the role of Interim CFO, effective April 14. Catalent is engaging an executive search firm to evaluate candidates for a permanent CFO. One of the facilities that experienced productivity issues is the company's gene therapy manufacturing site located in Harmans, Maryland near the BWI airport, where the company's plans to increase capacity for a customer's product during the third quarter in order to ramp production was slower than expected. During this ramp-up, certain operational challenges, including those related to the initial deployment of a new enterprise resource planning system at BWI, significantly reduced the expected revenue in the third fiscal quarter associated with the site, and will also impact revenue previously expected in the fourth quarter. Timely resolution of these issues was delayed by the necessity of focusing site resources on important regulatory inspections involving the BWI site, which were successfully completed. The ERP-related challenges were operational in nature and will not impact the Company's ability to produce timely and accurate financial statements. None of these issues is expected to adversely impact the quality or commercial launch quantities of any product made at BWI in light of, among other things, the level of "bright stock" on hand. However, revenue from the unproduced batches cannot be made up for in this fiscal year due to manufacturing capacity constraints. The company expects to recover related revenue in the second half of calendar year 2023. In the third fiscal quarter, the company also experienced productivity challenges and higher-than-expected costs at its drug product and drug substance manufacturing facilities located in Bloomington, Indiana and Brussels, Belgium, where the company was unable to achieve anticipated productivity levels and associated revenue due in part to the continued need to implement enhancements to its operational and engineering controls following regulatory inspections that occurred earlier in the fiscal year. While these issues are also expected to affect the company's fiscal fourth quarter to end on June 30, productivity levels in Bloomington are expected to be restored to previously forecast levels in that quarter. As with BWI, the company does not expect to make up for the lost production at Bloomington until after the close of the current fiscal year. After conducting an internal review of the company's manufacturing operations, the company has taken a number of measures at BWI, Bloomington, and Brussels, including both management and operational changes, to address the root causes of the issues identified at each site.

07:07 EDT Brady announces CFO Pearce to step down, Thornton to succeed - Brady Corporation announced that Aaron Pearce will step down as Chief Financial Officer, CFO, and Treasurer to pursue other opportunities. The Company also announced that Ann Thornton, the Company's Chief Accounting Officer and Corporate Controller, has been named as Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, effective April 14, 2023.

07:05 EDT Mind Medicine release topline data from lysergide trial - Mind Medicine announced that Matthias Liechti and Felix Mueller, MindMed collaborators at University Hospital Basel, or UHB, and the University Hospital of Psychiatry, have released topline data from a double-blind, investigator-initiated trial evaluating lysergide in the treatment of MDD. These findings were presented on April 14 in Basel, Switzerland. The topline data demonstrated significant, rapid, durable and beneficial effects of lysergide and its potential to mitigate symptoms of MDD. The high dose lysergide regimen in which patients received 100 microgram at their first dosing day and 200 microgram at their second dosing day resulted in statistically and clinically significant improvements on the primary endpoint, which was the change in clinician-rated Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology, or IDS-C, scores six weeks after the first administration as compared to control. The control group in this study received a lower dose regimen of 25 microgram on both treatment days. Patients in the high dose arm demonstrated a least square mean change from baseline in IDS-C scores of -12.9 points compared to -3.6 points in the lower dose arm. The statistically significant benefit as measured by IDS-C was maintained up to 16 weeks after the first administration compared to placebo. Data from the secondary endpoints were also encouraging. The investigational drug was generally well-tolerated, as indicated by reported adverse events, changes in vital signs and laboratory values.

07:03 EDT Transcode Therapeutics announces equity investment from White Lion Capital - TransCode Therapeutics announced that it has entered into a Common Stock Purchase Agreement with White Lion Capital, an investor in the glioblastomas / oncology sector. The Agreement provides the Company with the right to sell White Lion Capital up to approximately $1.08M of its common stock until May 31, 2023, subject to certain limitations and conditions. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the transaction for working capital and general corporate purposes. The shares of common stock described above will be offered by the Company pursuant to a "shelf" registration statement on Form S-3 previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 13, 2022, and declared effective by the SEC on December 16, 2022. The offering of the shares of common stock will be made only by means of a prospectus, including a prospectus supplement, forming a part of the effective registration statement.

06:52 EDT JPMorgan reports Q1 ROE 18%, ROTCE 23%

06:51 EDT JPMorgan CEO: We reported strong results in the first quarter - Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO, commented on the financial results: "We reported strong results in the first quarter, delivering net income of $12.6 billion, record revenue of $38.3 billion, and an ROTCE of 23%. We continued to generate considerable amounts of capital, and our CET1 ratio increased to 13.8%, compared to a regulatory requirement of 12.5% and our target of 13% for the first quarter (which we had already exceeded). Our years of investment and innovation, vigilant risk and controls framework, and fortress balance sheet allowed us to produce these returns, and also act as a pillar of strength in the banking system and stand by our clients during a period of heightened volatility and uncertainty." Dimon continued: "Our lines of business saw continued momentum in the quarter. In Consumer & Community Banking, consumer spending remained healthy with combined debit and credit card sales up 10% and card loans up 21%. In the Corporate & Investment Bank, Markets revenue fell 4% versus a very strong prior year, and we focused on supporting clients as they navigated volatile market conditions. Global Investment Banking fees remained challenged for the industry, although we significantly outperformed the overall wallet. In Commercial Banking, we earned record revenue, with exceptionally strong Payments revenue, up 98%. Finally, Asset & Wealth Management performed well with strong long-term inflows of $47 billion across products." Dimon added: "The U.S. economy continues to be on generally healthy footings-consumers are still spending and have strong balance sheets, and businesses are in good shape. However, the storm clouds that we have been monitoring for the past year remain on the horizon, and the banking industry turmoil adds to these risks. The banking situation is distinct from 2008 as it has involved far fewer financial players and fewer issues that need to be resolved, but financial conditions will likely tighten as lenders become more conservative, and we do not know if this will slow consumer spending. We also continue to monitor for potentially higher inflation for longer (and thus higher interest rates), the inflationary impact of continued fiscal stimulus, the unprecedented quantitative tightening, and geopolitical tensions including relations with China and the unpredictable war in Ukraine. While we hope these clouds will dissipate, the Firm is prepared for a broad range of outcomes, and we are confident that we can serve the needs of our customers and clients in all environments." Dimon concluded: "Finally, I want to recognize our outstanding employees across the globe. Thanks to their efforts, we extended credit and raised $588 billion in capital in the quarter for small and large businesses, governments, and U.S. consumers, as well as efficiently onboarded a significant amount of new clients across many of our businesses."

06:40 EDT Accenture appoints Alan Jope to Board of Directors - Accenture (ACN) announced that Alan Jope has been appointed to the company's Board of Directors, effective April 14. Jope is the CEO of Unilever (UL).

06:11 EDT BlackRock reports $34B of bond ETF net inflows in Q1 - Laurence Fink, Chairman and CEO: "BlackRock is helping clients execute on opportunities arising during this period of transition, driving $110 billion of total net inflows and positive annualized organic base fee growth in the first quarter. BlackRock is a source of both stability and optimism for clients. We are helping clients navigate volatility and embed resiliency in their portfolios, while also providing insights on the long-term opportunities to be had in today's markets. BlackRock led the industry with $34 billion of bond ETF net inflows and accounted for over 60% of total fixed income ETF trading volume during the quarter. BlackRock ETFs once again proved their value as critically important tools for active management and in providing liquidity and transparency to clients. Aladdin continued to provide best-in-class portfolio and risk analytics, enabling clients to act quickly and with clarity and confidence. And clients turned to our $683 billion cash management platform to manage risk, diversify, and enhance yields. BlackRock was founded on the belief that the capital markets would steadily grow as people, companies and countries turn to them to fund their retirements, businesses, and economies. I believe today's crisis of confidence in the regional banking sector will further accelerate capital markets growth, and BlackRock will be a central player. Increased financing through the capital markets will require the scale, multi-asset capabilities and excellence in portfolio construction that BlackRock consistently delivers across market cycles. Throughout our history, moments of market dislocation and disruption have served as inflection points for BlackRock. We've always emerged stronger, more differentiated and more deeply connected with clients. We will continue to stay in front of client needs and execute on opportunities to deliver long-term growth for our clients, shareholders and employees."

06:05 EDT BlackRock reports Q1 AUM $9.09T, down 5% y/y

05:05 EDT Zura Bio appoints Michael Howell as chief scientific officer - Zura Bio announced the appointment of Michael Howell to the role of chief scientific officer and head of translational science. Howell brings more than two decades of experience leading discovery, translational research, and early clinical programs and will lead the scientific strategy and translational science efforts at Zura Bio. Howell initially joined Zura Bio in 2022 as a scientific advisor during the company's formation and acquisition of its first two clinical programs.