Stockwinners Market Radar for October 30, 2023 - Earnings, Upgrades downgrades, option trades, Best Stock Advisory Service

20:30 EDT Apple unveils M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max chips for a personal computer - Apple "announced M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max, three chips featuring groundbreaking technologies that deliver dramatically increased performance and unleash new capabilities for Mac. These are the first personal computer chips built using the industry-leading 3-nanometer process technology, allowing more transistors to be packed into a smaller space and improving speed and efficiency. Together, M3, M3 Pro, and M3 Max show how far Apple silicon for the Mac has come since the debut of the M1 family of chips. The M3 family of chips features a next-generation GPU that represents the biggest leap forward in graphics architecture ever for Apple silicon. The GPU is faster and more efficient, and introduces a new technology called Dynamic Caching, while bringing new rendering features like hardware-accelerated ray tracing and mesh shading to Mac for the first time. Rendering speeds are now up to 2.5x faster than on the M1 family of chips. The CPU performance cores and efficiency cores are 30 percent and 50 percent faster than those in M1, respectively, and the Neural Engine is 60 percent faster than the Neural Engine in the M1 family of chips. And, a new media engine now includes support for AV1 decode, providing more efficient and high-quality video experiences from streaming services. The M3 family of chips continues the tremendous pace of innovation in Apple silicon, and brings massive enhancements and new features to the new MacBook Pro(R) and iMac(R)."

20:29 EDT Apple unveils 24-inch iMac with new M3 chip - Apple "unveiled the new 24-inch iMac(R) featuring the amazing M3 chip, making the world's best all-in-one even more powerful and more capable. Thanks to the efficiency of Apple silicon, the new iMac delivers a huge leap in performance in its remarkably thin design and spectrum of seven vibrant colors that users love. iMac with M3 is up to 2x faster than the prior generation with M1.1 And for those upgrading from an Intel-based iMac, the new iMac is up to 2.5x faster than the most popular 27-inch models,2 and 4x faster than the most powerful 21.5-inch model.3 It also features an expansive 4.5K Retina(R) display with 11.3 million pixels and over a billion colors, faster wireless connectivity, and a seamless experience with iPhone(R). Combined with its best-in-class camera, speakers, and mics, along with macOS(R) Sonoma, iMac with M3 is better than ever - perfect for everyone, from families to small businesses, aspiring creatives, students, and gamers. Customers can order the new iMac starting today, with availability beginning Tuesday, November 7."

19:00 EDT Star Bulk Carriers announces repurchase of additional 10M shares of common stock - Star Bulk Carriers "announced that it entered into a Repurchase Agreement with OCM XL Holdings, L.P., a limited partnership incorporated in the Cayman Islands, Oaktree OBC Container Holdings, LLC, a limited liability company organized in the Marshall Islands, and OCM FIE, LLC, a limited liability company organized in Delaware, pursuant to which the Company agreed to purchase of an additional 10 million of its common shares from the Sellers at a price per common share of $19.50. The Share Repurchase was approved unanimously by all the disinterested members of the Company's Board of Directors."

18:49 EDT Carnival CEO: We outperformed on every metric in Q3 - In an interview on CNBC's Mad Money, Josh Weinstein said, "We're performing and our brands are delivering. We are using less fuel than ever." He expects Carnival to be back to an investment grade credit rating by 2026. There is tremendous free cash flow generation in the business and significant runway to pay down debt in the coming years, he noted. He feels the stock is a "bargain" at current levels.

17:30 EDT Theravance Biopharma, Teva enter into settlement agreement related to Yupelri - Theravance Biopharma (TBPH) stated in a regulatory 8-K filing: "On October 27, 2023, Theravance Biopharma R&D IP, LLC, Theravance Biopharma US, Inc. and Theravance Biopharma Ireland Limited, subsidiaries of the Registrant Theravance Biopharma, Inc., and Mylan Ireland Limited and Mylan Specialty L.P., entered into a Settlement Agreement with Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA) relating to Theravance and Mylan's YUPELRI (revefenacin) inhalation solution. A Theravance entity owns and Mylan is the exclusive sub-licensee of Orange Book-listed United States Patent Nos. 8,541,451; 9,765,028; 10,550,081; 11,008,289; 11,484,531; and 11,691,948. The Settlement Agreement resolves ongoing patent litigation brought by Theravance and Mylan against Teva pursuant to the Hatch-Waxman Act based on Teva's filing of an abbreviated new drug application seeking approval to market a generic version of YUPELRI (revefenacin) inhalation solution prior to expiration of the Orange Book Listed Patents. Under the Settlement Agreement, Theravance and Mylan granted Teva a royalty-free, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, non-transferable license to manufacture and market Teva's generic version of YUPELRI(R) (revefenacin) inhalation solution in the United States on or after the licensed launch date of April 23, 2039, subject to certain exceptions as is customary in these type of agreements. As required by law, the settlement is subject to review by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission."

17:22 EDT Lockheed Martin awarded $996.22M Air Force contract - Lockheed Martin was awarded a $996.22M contract for the MK21A Reentry Vehicle program. This contract provides for conducting engineering, manufacturing, and design to provide a low technical risk and affordable RV for Sentinel. Work will be performed in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, and other various locations, and is expected to be completed by October 20, 2039. This contract is a sole source acquisition. FY24 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $26.61M are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Nuclear Weapons is the contracting activity.

17:11 EDT General Motors reaches tentative agreement with UAW - "GM is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with the UAW that reflects the contributions of the team while enabling us to continue to invest in our future and provide good jobs in the U.S.," said GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra. "We are looking forward to having everyone back to work across all of our operations, delivering great products for our customers, and winning as one team. "Reference Link

17:06 EDT Rev Group announces Stephen Zamansky as general counsel - Rev Group announced Stephen Zamansky has joined the company as senior vice president and general counsel, effective immediately. Paul Robinson, who has served as interim general counsel since April, will remain with the company until January 2024 to ensure a transition.

17:00 EDT VF Corp. sees FY24 free cash flow $600M - Says brand president of Vans will step down. Says working on building a more efficient company. Says CEO Bracken Darrell is taking a very active role in the turnaround of the brand. Says targeting $300M in cost reductions. Says bringing down debt and reducing leverage is the number one focus. Says will not be doing any acquisitions until the debt level is brought down. Says removing guidance. Says this is a turnaround. Says reduced inventory versus last year. Says continued weakness in U.S. business and Vans globally. Says Vans had another disappointing quarter with revenue dropping 23%. Comments taken from Q2 earnings conference call.

16:46 EDT Bank7 announces renewal of stock repurchase plan - Bank7 Corp, the parent company of Oklahoma City-based Bank7, announced that its board of directors has authorized a renewal of Bank7's existing stock repurchase program for a term of two years. The stock repurchase plan provides for the purchase of up to 750,000 shares of the Company's outstanding common stock.

16:41 EDT Alliance Entertainment regains compliance with Nasdaq listing rule - Alliance Entertainment Holding Corporation announced that it received a written notice on October 30 from the Listing Qualifications Department of the Nasdaq Stock Market indicating the Company has regained compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5250(c)(1) by filing its annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, on October 19 with the Securities and Exchange Commission ..Nasdaq Listing Qualifications Department staff have determined that the Company now complies with the Rule.

16:36 EDT Site Centers announces spin-off of convenience portfolio - Site Centers announced that the Company's Board of Directors has unanimously approved a plan to spin-off the Company's Convenience assets into a separate publicly-traded REIT to be named Curbline Properties Corp. "We believe that the Convenience real estate sector offers attractive, inflation-protected returns with limited capital expenditure requirements and are excited to form and scale the first public real estate company focused exclusively on Convenience properties located on the curbline in the wealthiest submarkets in the United States. CURB's balance sheet upon separation from SITE Centers is expected to position Curbline Properties for significant asset growth in a period of market disruption, providing a compelling competitive advantage in a fragmented yet liquid marketplace," commented David R. Lukes, President and Chief Executive Officer. "For SITE Centers, our work over the past six years has resulted in a carefully curated mix of dominant grocery, lifestyle, net lease and regional power center properties located in the top submarkets in the United States with compelling near-term net operating income ("NOI") growth. Following the separation, SITE Centers intends to continue maximizing value via our leasing and tactical redevelopment efforts and opportunistically realize value through asset sales where appropriate." CURB expects to confidentially submit its initial draft Form 10 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2024, and the spin-off is expected to be completed in the second half of 2024. CURB intends to elect to be treated as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes and be structured as an UPREIT which is expected to be a competitive advantage when acquiring assets from private Convenience sellers. Shareholders of SITE Centers will receive shares of CURB via a taxable pro rata stock distribution. The transaction is subject to certain conditions, including the effectiveness of CURB's Form 10 registration statement and final approval and declaration of the distribution by SITE Centers' Board of Directors. The transaction does not require shareholder approval.

16:34 EDT Site Centers reports Q3 same-store NOI up 2.9% - Site Centers "reported an increase of 2.9% in same-store net operating income on a pro rata basis for the third quarter of 2023, including redevelopment, as compared to the year-ago period. The impact of prior period rental income receipts related to cash basis tenants was immaterial to third quarter 2023 SSNOI growth. Reported a leased rate of 94.6% at September 30, 2023, compared to 95.5% at June 30, 2023 and 95.0% at September 30, 2022, all on a pro rata basis. The sequential decline was primarily related to the recapture of the remaining units leased by Bed, Bath & Beyond and the sale of properties in the third quarter with an average leased rate of 98.5%, partially offset by new leasing activity."

16:33 EDT Biora Therapeutics submits updated IND application for BT-600 'as planned' - Biora Therapeutics announced that it submitted an updated Investigational New Drug IND application for BT-600 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration FDA as planned. The update includes additional clarifying information and provides additional time for regulatory review of the company's IND filing. The IND application for BT-600 includes extensive manufacturing, preclinical, human device function, and toxicology data to support a first-in-human clinical trial for BT-600, a drug/device combination designed to use Biora's NaviCap(TM) ingestible drug delivery device with a proprietary liquid formulation of tofacitinib for the treatment of moderate to severe ulcerative colitis. The phase 1 trial of BT-600 is planned as a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics, including effects on colon tissue, in healthy volunteers receiving the NaviCap device filled with a novel liquid formulation of tofacitinib at 5 mg and 10 mg doses. The NaviCap device has been designed for targeted delivery directly to the colon in this application

16:32 EDT Ultra Clean announces departure of COO Vijay Chinnasami - Ultra Clean Holdings announced that Vijay Chinnasami, COO, will be leaving UCT as of December 31. "Over the past four and a half years, Vijay has made substantial contributions to UCT's growth by effectively diversifying and scaling our global business on many levels," said Jim Scholhamer, CEO. "We sincerely thank Vijay for his leadership in implementing many strategic initiatives, integrating acquisitions, adding new global facilities, and spearheading industry-leading manufacturing automation solutions. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors." A search is underway for Chinnasami's replacement and an announcement will be made in due course.

16:31 EDT LianBio to discuss Phase 3 LIBRA results with China NMPA - LianBio announced topline results from the Phase 3 LIBRA clinical trial evaluating TP-03 in Chinese patients with Demodex blepharitis. The co-primary endpoints of the LIBRA trial were mite eradication and complete collarette cure at day 43. Results demonstrated statistically significant mite eradication in patients with Demodex blepharitis treated with TP-03 compared to vehicle. A positive, but not statistically significant trend was also observed for complete collarette cure. TP-03 was well tolerated with a safety profile similar to that observed in other large-scale clinical trials, and there were no treatment-related discontinuations. LianBio plans to discuss these results with the China National Medical Products Administration NMPA and expects to use these data to support a New Drug Application filing in China "We are pleased that the LIBRA trial demonstrated significant Demodex mite eradication, the primary etiology of Demodex blepharitis, as well as a favorable safety profile

16:28 EDT Galapagos finishes strategic evaluation signs LOI for Jyseleca to Alfasigma - Galapagos and Alfasigma announced that they have signed a letter of intent contemplating a transfer of the Jyseleca business to Alfasigma, including the European and UK Marketing Authorizations, the commercial, medical and development activities for Jyseleca and approximately 400 positions in 14 European countries. In the contemplated transaction, Galapagos will receive a EUR 50M upfront, potential milestone payments totaling EUR 120M and mid-single to mid-double-digit royalties on European sales. Galapagos will pay up to EUR 40 M by June 2025 to Alfasigma for Jyseleca related development activities. In addition, Galapagos plans to streamline its remaining operations and further build efficiencies, with an envisaged reduction of approximately 100 positions across the organization. Galapagos estimates annualized savings ranging between EUR 150 M and EUR 200 M. This repositioning of the company marks yet another significant milestone in Galapagos' ongoing transformation into an innovative biotechnology company with a patient-centric research and development pipeline focused on immunology and oncology. While Galapagos' commitment to transforming patient outcomes with life changing science and innovation remains unchanged, its ability to work efficiently across streamlined operations and portfolio are expected to accelerate these efforts.

16:23 EDT BlackBerry confirms CEO John Chen to retire, effective November 4 - BlackBerry (BB) announced that John Chen, Executive Chair and CEO of BlackBerry, will retire from the company effective November 4. This aligns with the terms of Chen's contract and follows the conclusion of the Project Imperium evaluation. Richard (Dick) Lynch will succeed Chen as Board Chair and will also serve as Interim CEO while BlackBerry completes its search for a permanent CEO. Lynch joined the BlackBerry Board in 2013 and serves as a member of its Compensation, Nomination and Governance Committee. He previously served as Executive Vice-President and Chief Technology Officer of Verizon Communications (VZ) and Verizon Wireless. He is a director of Cohere Technologies and iconectiv and has served as Chairman of Ribbon Communications and as a director of Ruckus Wireless.

16:21 EDT Franklin BSP Realty Trust did not repurchase any shares in Q3 - Subsequent to September 30, 2023, the Company repurchased 137,444 shares of common stock at a weighted average cost of $12.55 per share. As of October 25, 2023, $37.5 million remains available under the $65 million share repurchase program. FBRT's Board of Directors has extended the share repurchase authorization through December 31, 2024.

16:17 EDT Addus HomeCare reports Q3 EPS $1.15, consensus $1.08 - Reports Q3 revenue $270.7M, consensus $267.2M. Commenting on the results, Dirk Allison, CEO, said, "Our third quarter results reflect the continued strong momentum in our business, highlighted by revenue and adjusted EBITDA growth of 12.6% and 20.0%, respectively, when compared with the third quarter of 2022. In addition to revenues generated by our recent acquisitions, organic growth was driven by continued demand for home-based care, especially for our personal care services, which accounted for 74.6% of our revenues. We are also pleased that the overall labor environment has continued to improve, which has enhanced our ability to support our higher patient volume. Our personal care segment has been the key growth driver for Addus this year, as we delivered impressive 13.9% organic growth in revenue on a same-store basis over the third quarter of 2022, the highest quarterly growth rate this year. This growth has benefited from the increased demand we are seeing in our markets along with the two statewide rate increases in our largest personal care state of Illinois. Our third quarter results included two months of operations of Tennessee Quality Care, a provider of home health, hospice, and private duty nursing services, which we acquired August 1, 2023. We are pleased that the integration process is going well as we expand our coverage capabilities to all three levels of home-based care in Tennessee. We remain excited about the expansion opportunities in our home health operations as it complements our personal care services, especially where we participate in value-based contracting models. For our hospice business, which accounted for 19.6% of revenue for the third quarter, we were encouraged to see more positive trends return with revenues up 3.1% over the third quarter of 2022 on a same-store basis and modest improvement in average daily census and length of stay compared with the same period last year."

16:15 EDT KKR completes takeover of Simon & Schuster from Paramount - KKR (KKR) announced the successful completion of the previously announced acquisition of Simon & Schuster from Paramount Global (PARA) in a $1.62B all-cash transaction. With the closing of the deal, Simon & Schuster is now a standalone private company, and the only independent major trade publisher in the U.S. It continues to be led by Jonathan Karp, President and CEO, and his talented executive team. "This is an exciting moment for us-both a return to our roots as a standalone company and an opportunity for all of us to forge a new path together," said Jonathan Karp, President and CEO of Simon & Schuster. "With KKR's resources and support, we intend to become an even stronger company and a more dynamic force in our industry, while still maintaining our well-established record of editorial excellence and independence, and our unceasing focus on doing the best for our authors and their books. I know that we will build on that legacy going forward."

16:09 EDT Ryan Specialty to acquire AccuRisk, terms not disclosed - AccuRisk Holdings LLC announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Ryan Specialty, an international specialty insurance firm. Dan Boisvert, President & CEO of AccuRisk, said, "We are excited to be joining the Ryan Specialty team. AccuRisk and Ryan Specialty Benefits have a common mission to transform the Healthcare Finance and Health Insurance markets by providing integrated health solutions to our broker and TPA clients. The acquisition will allow us focus on that vision and to enter the next stage of our corporate growth."

16:08 EDT Pinterest sees Q4 revenue up 11%-13% from last year, consensus $976.6M - The company states: "For Q4 2023, we expect revenue to grow in the 11-13% range year over year. We expect Q4 2023 Non-GAAP operating expenses to decline in the 9-13% range year over year."

16:07 EDT Pinterest reports Q3 MAU up 8% from last year to 482M

16:05 EDT Medallion Financial boosts dividend 25% to 10c per share - Our board of directors has authorized a 25% increase of our quarterly dividend to $0.10 per share beginning with the upcoming dividend payment next month, another sign of our commitment to providing sustainable shareholder value over the long-term.

16:02 EDT Sarepta reports topline results from EMBARK study - Sarepta Therapeutics announced topline results from EMBARK (Study SRP-9001-301), a global, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 3 clinical study of ELEVIDYS (delandistrogene moxeparvovec-rokl) in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy between the ages of 4 through 7 years. "The results of EMBARK, our double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, support the conclusion that ELEVIDYS modifies the trajectory of Duchenne and benefits patients across age groups living with this ferociously degenerative disease. The results favored ELEVIDYS across all endpoints in the study, including achieving statistical significance on all pre-specified key secondary endpoints and in each age subgroup of the key secondary endpoints. Indeed, passing 5 seconds on time to rise is the strongest predictor of early loss of ambulation and in EMBARK, ELEVIDYS reduced those odds over 52 weeks by greater than 90 percent," said Doug Ingram, president and chief executive officer, Sarepta. "Based on the EMBARK results, we intend to move swiftly to request an update to expand the labeled indication to treat all patients. Importantly, we have shared the EMBARK topline results with FDA leadership and they have confirmed that, based on the totality of the evidence, they are open to such label expansion if supported by review of the data, and that they intend to proceed rapidly with consideration of the submission." In the study, ELEVIDYS-treated patients improved 2.6 points on their North Star Ambulatory Assessment (NSAA) total score 52 weeks after treatment compared to 1.9 points in placebo-treated patients. The difference of 0.65-points between treated and placebo groups did not reach statistical significance (n=125; p=0.24). All key pre-specified functional secondary endpoints demonstrated robust evidence for a clinically meaningful treatment benefit that was consistent across age groups in ELEVIDYS-treated patients compared to placebo at 52 weeks.

15:05 EDT ShiftPixy trading resumes

14:11 EDT U.S. video game content spending up 2% YTD, says Circana - Circana analyst Mat Piscatella said that 2023 has been one of the "best years" for new video games "perhaps ever," as U.S. video game content spending has grown 2% year-to-date compared to a year ago, at $34.1B. This compares to U.S. content spending in past years of: $33.8B in same period YTD in 2020; $26.6B in same period YTD in 2021; and $33.5B in same period YTD in 2022. Publicly traded companies in the space include Activision Blizzard (ATVI), Electronic Arts (EA), GameStop (GME), Nintendo (NTDOY), Take-Two (TTWO), Tencent (TCEHY), Microsoft (MSFT), Sony (SONY), Roblox (RBLX), Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), and Ubisoft (UBSFY). Reference Link

13:17 EDT LiveOne pre-announces Slacker subsidiary results, raises FY24 Slacker guidance - LiveOne announced certain preliminary and unaudited results for its wholly owned Slacker subsidiary for the first six months ended September 30, as well as updated revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance for Slacker for its full fiscal year ending March 31, 2024. The Slacker subsidiary is expected to report six months revenue of $31.5M and adjusted EBITDA of $9.1M, said the company, which raises FY24 guidance for Slacker's revenue to $63-$66M, with $17-$19M of adjusted EBITDA.

13:07 EDT Audacy common stock to delist from NYSE - Audacy announced that its appeal of the determination by the New York Stock Exchange to commence proceedings to delist Audacy's Class A common stock from the NYSE was not successful. As a result, the NYSE today filed a Form 25 relating to the delisting from the NYSE of its common stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which will become effective on or about November 10. "Audacy stock has not been traded on the NYSE since May when the NYSE notified Audacy that it had elected to commence proceedings to delist the common stock from the NYSE based on Audacy's 'abnormally low' price levels. The common stock will continue to trade over the counter under the symbol 'AUDA.' The NYSE's determination has no impact on Audacy's business strategy or operations. Audacy continues to focus on growing and enhancing its capabilities as a leading, multi-platform audio content and entertainment company, and continues to engage in discussions with its lenders to deleverage its balance sheet and improve its capital structure to position Audacy for long-term growth," the company stated.

13:03 EDT Advantage Solutions sells Atlas Technology Group to Crisp, terms not disclosed - Advantage Solutions announced the sale of its Atlas Technology Group's business to Crisp, the open-data retail platform for the consumer goods industry. Atlas Technology Group is an analytics provider serving many of the world's largest consumer packaged goods companies. Crisp will migrate Atlas' existing customers to its cloud-based data-sharing platform and collaborate with Advantage to offer sophisticated supply chain analytics and an expanded retail footprint. Crisp's relationship with Advantage Solutions will provide CPG brands with access to enhanced retail sales data to understand potential supply chain issues and product availability, enabling them to make faster decisions, optimize inventory and marketing, and drive sales and loyalty. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

12:06 EDT Walmart announces re-grand openings of 117 remodeled U.S. stores - On Friday, Nov. 3, Walmart will celebrate the "Second Best Day" for 117 stores nationwide, the largest single-day rollout of re-grand openings in company history. The re-grand opening projects represent more than half a billion dollars in capital investments in local communities across 30 states. Associates and customers will be welcomed into the improved Supercenters and Neighborhood Markets with ceremonies, ribbon cuttings and family-friendly activities to commemorate the occasion. "We're investing more than $9B over a two-year period to upgrade and modernize more than 1,400 of our stores across the U.S.," said John Furner, CEO of Walmart U.S. "With nearly 90 percent of the U.S. population living within 10 miles of a Walmart, we understand how important our local stores are to customers and communities, and these construction investments allow us to create more local jobs and make it easier for our associates to get customers what they want, when they want it."

12:03 EDT Zabka taps HPE GreenLake to run SAP S/4HANA applications - Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced that Zabka has selected the HPE GreenLake edge-to-cloud platform to run its SAP S/4HANA applications.

12:00 EDT Marine Products falls -12.1% - Marine Products is down -12.1%, or -$1.35 to $9.79.

12:00 EDT Daqo New Energy rises 10.6% - Daqo New Energy is up 10.6%, or $2.48 to $25.81.

12:00 EDT JinkoSolar rises 20.9% - JinkoSolar is up 20.9%, or $5.42 to $31.31.

11:39 EDT Air Products supplies two MCHE replacements for Bintulu LNG facility - Air Products announced its commitment to provide its advanced main cryogenic heat exchanger technology for the PETRONAS LNG Complex located in Bintulu, Sarawak, Malaysia. The replacements are part of an extension program being implemented to extend the life and continue the superior performance and high reliability of the MLNG Dua LNG facility in Bintulu. This will be the second and third MCHE replacements provided by Air Products at this facility, after the original units completed almost three decades of reliable service. The first MCHE replacement was installed in June 2022 in-house by PETRONAS and successfully started up in the fall of 2022 and operating reliably ever since. Air Products' contract supply to PETRONAS will consist of MCHE engineering and design, two units of two-bundle MCHEs, continued use of company's proprietary AP-C3MRTM LNG process technology with associated process licenses, and technical advisory services. All engineering and design will be done in Air Products' global corporate headquarters office in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and the MCHEs manufacture will be executed at Air Products' manufacturing facility located on the west coast of Florida, less than a mile from the deep-water port at Port Manatee.

11:28 EDT Veon challenges freezing of corporate rights in Kyivstar - Veon announces that it filed two motions with the relevant Kyiv district court, challenging the freezing of the corporate rights in Kyivstar, which was initially announced on the website of the Security Services of Ukraine October 6. "Noting that corporate rights in Kyivstar belong exclusively to Veon, and that their full or partial seizure directly violates the rights of Veon and its international debt and equity investors, Veon requested the lifting of the freezing of its corporate rights in Kyivstar," the company said in a statement. "Veon is taking all the necessary steps to protect the rights of our company, our wholly owned subsidiary Kyivstar and our international investors. The impeccable track record of Veon and Kyivstar in serving Ukraine, the dialogue we established last week in Ukraine during our Board delegation's visit and the continued availability of appeal mechanisms and procedures give me confidence that that we will achieve our dual goal of addressing the concerns of Ukrainian authorities while protecting our rights," said Kaan Terzioglu, Veon CEO. Kyivstar continues to serve its 25M customers and keep Ukraine connected with 94% network availability, continuing its services with full operational integrity in line with the national security priorities of Ukraine, the company added.

11:14 EDT Global Mofy Metaverse Ltd trading halted, volatility trading pause

11:01 EDT Humana, Greater Good Health expand access to primary care in Montana - Humana and Greater Good Health announced the opening of primary care clinics in Missoula, Billings and Great Falls, Montana. The clinics are in-network with all Humana Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plans offered in Montana, as well as a Humana Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan for certain patients qualifying for both Medicare and Medicaid. Greater Good Health will also see patients with Original Medicare.

10:40 EDT Digimarc 'fully supports bold actions taken today by the Biden Administration' - Digimarc issued the following statement from on the Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence: "Digimarc Corporation fully supports the bold actions taken today by the Biden Administration as it works to balance protecting the rights of Americans while seizing the tremendous innovative potential of Artificial Intelligence, AI. We are encouraged to see the administration's guidance include clear direction regarding the role watermarking must play in this critical effort. Harnessing proven technologies will go a long way to ensure that the power of AI is safeguarded."

10:05 EDT McDonald's says had 'slight dip' in traffic in Q3 - Says traffic went "slightly negative" in Q3.

10:00 EDT Daily S&P Biotech Bear 3x Shares falls -7.2% - Daily S&P Biotech Bear 3x Shares is down -7.2%, or -$2.13 to $27.35.

10:00 EDT Revvity falls -15.3% - Revvity is down -15.3%, or -$14.93 to $82.94.

10:00 EDT Daqo New Energy rises 14.8% - Daqo New Energy is up 14.8%, or $3.46 to $26.79.

09:47 EDT STMicroelectronics falls -5.6% - STMicroelectronics is down -5.6%, or -$2.21 to $37.38.

09:47 EDT Revvity falls -16.1% - Revvity is down -16.1%, or -$15.79 to $82.08.

09:47 EDT XPO, Inc rises 10.8% - XPO, Inc is up 10.8%, or $7.28 to $74.61.

09:38 EDT Datasea reports September revenue of $2.5M from 5G Messaging business - Datasea recorded revenue of RMB 17.8M, or $2.5M in the month of September 2023, attributable to three of its 5G business segment operating entities. The Company's September 2023 5G messaging revenue was 12x greater than 5G messaging revenue in September 2022 which came in at RMB 0.15M, or $0.02M. Datasea CEO, Ms. Zhixin Liu, commented, "Our 5G messaging business has recovered rapidly so far this year relative to somewhat discouraging results last year. We signed major contracts beginning in June 2023 that we think could create momentum for this business segment going forward."

09:37 EDT Forbion European Acquisition Corp trading resumes

09:32 EDT Forbion European Acquisition Corp trading halted, volatility trading pause

09:28 EDT BIMI International Medical's Phenix Bio appoints Hao Mu as distributor - BIMI International Medical announced that its subsidiary, Phenix Bio Inc., appointed Hao Mu, as a distributor responsible for the distribution of Phenix's 17 herbal supplements in Mainland China. Pursuant to the terms of a sales agreement entered into on October 29, 2023, Hao Mu must make annual purchases of at least $5 million in order to maintain its distributor status for this territory.Under the terms of this agreement, Phenix's comprehensive portfolio of high-quality herbal supplements will be made available to consumers in Mainland China through Hao Mu's well-established distribution channels and network.

09:25 EDT CEL-SCI issues letter to shareholders regarding Multikine regulatory pathway - CEL-SCI released a letter to shareholders from the company's CEO, Geert Kersten. The letter details the data reported on the efficacy of Multikine in the head and neck cancer target patient population as well as CEL-SCI's plan to file for immediate regulatory approval. "This shareholder letter will be longer and much more detailed than prior letters. My goal is to show you the clinical data supporting Multikine's survival benefits, explain how we identified the target population of head and neck cancer patients who should receive Multikine, and describe our efforts with the world's leading regulatory bodies to bring Multikine to market as quickly as possible. Why are we confident that Multikine should be approved as soon as possible? First, we can clearly identify patients who should get Multikine. Second, Multikine definitely benefits patients by causing pre-surgical responses. Third, the Multikine survival benefit in the target population is outstanding. Fourth, as a statistical matter, another trial is more than 95% likely to be successful and therefore should not be necessary for approval. Fifth, there are regulatory pathways specifically designed for our situation where the target population is selected from the larger Phase 3 study population. We believe that we meet these factors with strong evidentiary support and are eager to move forward... By way of summary, Phase 3 patients in the finalized target population saw the following: risk of death cut in half at five years versus the control; 28.6% absolute 5-year overall survival benefit versus control (p=0.0015); 0.349 hazard ratio vs control (95% CIs [0.18, 0.66], Wald p=0.0012); greater than35% rate of pre-surgery tumor reductions and/or downstages (pless than0.01); and low PD-L1 tumor expression (vs high PD-L1 where Keytruda and Opdivo work best). We can identify at diagnosis the patients most likely to have pre-surgical responses to Multikine. The survival statistics in this target population are so good that it is hard to imagine how they could be challenged or ignored. Multikine's safety profile is very favorable compared to other oncology agents. And, we have a manufacturing plant that can make an estimated $2 billion worth of Multikine annually. CEL-SCI is ready-and we believe patients and doctors are, too. A new drug for our targeted disease (previously-untreated locally advanced primary resectable squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck) has not been approved by FDA in decades. The current standard of care provides only a 50-50 chance of living past five years. Large companies have tried and failed to improve this figure. Patients desperately need better treatments. We now have the ingredients for delivering results to investors as well. While the biotech stock market always has its ups and downs, and has been dismal lately, the clinical data will stand firm and drive the final success for CEL-SCI. We have presented our new data to regulators in Europe and the UK. Canada and the United States (FDA) have not yet seen these data, and we plan to present to them in the next quarter. CEL-SCI plans to seek approval for immediate patient access to Multikine without waiting on the results of a new trial wherever possible. There are regulatory pathways specifically designed for such approvals that CEL-SCI is pursuing worldwide. These pathways are called "conditional approvals" (or, in the U.S., accelerated approval) which means you can be approved first while a confirmatory study is ongoing and before that study is completed. Our situation-where we have selected a portion of the Phase 3 study for our target population-is precisely why these regulatory pathways were adopted by regulatory bodies, so that patients do not need to wait many years before gaining access to promising drugs that have already been shown to provide clinical benefit."

09:21 EDT Aptose Biosciences presents highlights from webcast on tuspetinib - Aptose Biosciences released highlights from a clinical update event held today, October 30, 2023, in conjunction with the European School of Haematology 6th International Conference: Acute Myeloid Leukemia "Molecular and Translational": Advances in Biology and Treatment, being held in Estoril, Portugal. The webcast event featured a comprehensive review of up-to-date clinical data for Aptose's lead compound tuspetinib by Rafael Bejar, MD, PhD, Aptose's Chief Medical Officer, and featured Naval G. Daver, MD, Professor, Director Leukemia Research Alliance Program, Department of Leukemia, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX. Dr. Daver is the lead investigator on Aptose's APTIVATE trial of tuspetinib and is recognized for significant achievements in the development of novel acute myeloid leukemia treatments, including several combination therapies. Tuspetinib is a once-daily, oral, precision targeted kinase inhibitor that suppresses select kinases that drive the proliferation of AML. These key kinase targets include the SYK, FLT3, JAK1/2, mutant forms of KIT, RSK2, and the TAK1-TAB1 kinases operative in AML, while other kinases are avoided to promote safety. AML care has shifted toward venetoclax containing combination regimens and a new population of difficult-to-treat VEN relapsed patients is emerging. Tuspetinib's safety, activity, mechanism of action, and convenient dosing make it ideal for combination therapy. Importantly, TUS directly targets VEN resistance mechanisms. This means that TUS targets pathways and may lead to re-sensitizing VEN-resistant cells to VEN when given in combination. TUS/VEN may safely and successfully treat these VEN failures, as we already have observed clinically, and an accelerated approval path may be available for VEN failure relapsed or refractory AML patients treated with TUS/VEN.Aptose provided updated clinical findings from the ongoing APTIVATE study of tuspetinib: Patient Enrollment: More than 140 patients have been treated with tuspetinib to date; 91 patients have received TUS as a single agent; Aptose anticipated dosing up to 30 patients with TUS/VEN by the ESH 2023 Conference; however, investigator enthusiasm resulted in dosing of 49 patients, and patients continue being enrolled. Safety Profile: In the most recent data cut, the favorable safety profile remained consistent for TUS and TUS/VEN treated R/R AML patients: No TUS related adverse events of QTc prolongation; No observed differentiation syndrome; No TUS related non-hematologic serious AEs; No TUS related deaths; No rhabdomyolysis or AEs of elevated creatine phosphokinase; No TUS related dose-limiting toxicities from 20 mg level through 160 mg level; One DLT of muscle weakness at 200 mg; Occurred in patient with high exposure; Not rhabdomyolysis No muscle destruction; Avoids many typical toxicities observed with other FLT3, IDH1/2, and menin inhibitors; In TUS/VEN doublet, no unexpected or new safety signals were observed. Tuspetinib Single Agent: Tuspetinib as a single agent was well-tolerated and highly active among relapsed or refractory AML patients with a diversity of adverse genotypes. TUS single agent delivered 42% and 60% CR/CRh response rates across all patients and across FLT3-mutated patients, respectively, among evaluable VEN-naive patients at the 80mg daily recommended phase 2 dose. Tuspetinib demonstrated a 29% CR/CRh rate in VEN-naive FLT3 unmutated AML at 80 mg daily RP2D, unlocking the potential for TUS to treat the additional 70-75% of the AML population without FLT3-mutation not currently addressed by any approved tyrosine kinase inhibitors; Responses were achieved across four dose levels; Responses were shown to mature over time with sustained blood count recovery during continuous dosing; Several responders were bridged to potentially lifesaving transplant; Durability was observed when HSCT was unavailable; Tuspetinib single agent response rates compare favorably to gilteritinib FLT3 inhibitor. TUS/VEN Doublet: Patients who have failed venetoclax treatment represent an increasing AML population in need of improved salvage therapies; Over 90% of recent U.S. patients enrolled in the APTIVATE trial were VEN failures; VEN resistance involves mutations in multiple pathways to evade BCL-2 blockade; Tuspetinib directly targets pathways involved in VEN resistance; By shutting down these pathways, tuspetinib appears to re-sensitize prior-VEN failures to venetoclax; Overall Response Rates with TUS/VEN Doublet: 31 evaluable patients showed an ORR 48%; 81% of patients were VEN failures; 44% ORR in VEN failures; 60% ORR in FLT3-mutant; 43% ORR in FLT3-wildtype; Most patients are very early in treatment, having initiated dosing in the past 2-6 weeks, and responses are expected to mature over time

09:15 EDT Where Food Comes From acquires ownership of the Smart Catch program - Where Food Comes From announced it has acquired ownership of the Smart Catch program, which is dedicated to promoting the sustainability of seafood on restaurant menus. John Saunders, CEO of WFCF, said, "The integration of Smart Catch into our organization aligns seamlessly with our mission of providing greater clarity on the origin of food and supporting those that champion responsibility and authenticity within the food industry. We are committed to carrying the Smart Catch legacy forward and making a significant impact on seafood supply chains around the world." Smart Catch will continue to champion the cause of sustainable blue foods but will do so with a fresh perspective and a brand that mirrors its new home. The relaunched program offers a step forward in the journey to create a more accessible, responsible, and eco-conscious culinary landscape.

09:14 EDT Matterport announces collaboration with Stockperks - Matterport announced the launch of the Matterport Shareholder Rewards Program on the Stockperks app. To kick off the program, retail shareholders who leverage the Stockperks app can obtain discounts on a Matterport subscription and a free Axis device. Additional perks are available for a limited time and will be updated on an ongoing basis. Investors should visit the Stockperks app for more details on how to claim Matterport shareholder perks. "We're excited to partner with Stockperks and provide our retail investors an opportunity to experience Matterport solutions firsthand, enhancing their understanding of the company and providing a new way for us to connect with retail shareholders directly," said JD Fay, Chief Financial Officer of Matterport.

09:12 EDT Hawkins to add six water treatment locations with acquisitions - Hawkins announced that it has completed the acquisition of Water Solutions Unlimited and has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of The Miami Products & Chemical Company. Water Solutions mainly serves municipal customers in Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Kentucky, and Miami Products manufactures bleach and serves the commercial pool business under the brand name Sanygen and sells to municipal customers in Ohio and the surrounding region. The acquisition of Miami Products is expected to close within the coming weeks. "These acquisitions continue to grow our Water Treatment footprint and provide an expanded product offering to our customers," said President and Chief Executive Officer, Patrick Hawkins. "Hawkins' annual proforma combined revenue is now expected be approximately $1 billion and the number of our Water Treatment locations we operate out of has increased from 40 to 46. Water Solutions and Miami Products are considered premier providers in the states they serve and, a lot like Hawkins, create value for their customers through superb customer service and support, quality products and customized applications. In addition, the bleach manufacturing capabilities that Miami Products brings to us in Southwestern Ohio will provide support to current Hawkins Water Treatment sites in that region."

09:11 EDT Verizon, Baltimore Ravens renew partnership for M&T Bank Stadium - Verizon and the Baltimore Ravens have renewed their partnership, which will continue a mutual commitment to boosting connectivity and enhancing the fan experience at M&T Bank Stadium and beyond. Additionally, as the "Official 5G Network of the Baltimore Ravens," Verizon will join the Ravens to help fans score big at a Nov. 3 Ravens Purple Friday event in Frederick, Md.

09:10 EDT SuperCom receives third order from Romania for over $3.4M - SuperCom received a third order by Romania's Ministry of Interior, extending their partnership in Romania's National Electronic Monitoring Project. The order is valued at approximately $3.4M and is anticipated to be delivered by the end of Q4. Building upon the execution of two prior orders totaling approximately $15.1M, this order continues the expansion of Romania's EM program based on SuperCom's PureSecurity Suite for domestic violence monitoring, GPS Tracking of offenders, and home detention monitoring. SuperCom's PureSecurity Suite is an end-to-end electronic monitoring solution with GPS tracking, communication, monitoring technologies, and a software platform providing real-time tracking and reporting.

09:09 EDT OSI Systems receives $4M award for patient monitoring systems - OSI Systems announced that its Healthcare division, Spacelabs Healthcare , has received an order valued at approximately $4M to provide patient monitoring solutions and related accessories to a U.S. based hospital. The Company expects to install its Xhibit Central Stations with XTR Telemetry, and Qube bedside patient monitors. Deepak Chopra, OSI Systems CEO, commented, "We are glad to team up with this hospital and are ready to deploy our advanced patient monitoring solutions to support thorough patient care."

09:08 EDT McDonald's sees cost inflation headwinds continuing in Q4

09:07 EDT Shineco opens a healthy food restaurant with a focus on nutrition - Shineco announced the grand opening of its first carry-out restaurant which will sell Shineco's new healthy and nutritious food brand, 'Meida Nutritionary Restaurant". Shineco's first carry-out restaurant is located on Baihuazhou Road, Cangshan, Fuzhou City, China. Shineco's official entry into the healthy food market represents a further evolution of the medical and health company's operations, which has been long engaged in the field of life sciences. Commenting on Shineco's entry into the healthy prepared carry-out market, CEO Jennifer Zhan said, "We believe that healthy meals is a large market with steady growth potential. Our advantage lies in our life science research and findings as well as our abundant health industry resources. Today, through the integration of these advantages, Shineco has introduced a series of healthy meals available in our carry-out restaurant with nutritious and health intervention features for consumers, which we believe will completely refresh the current status of the carry-out prepared meals market. We look forward to developing a restaurant chain based on healthy prepared meals and encouraging the entire industry to develop in a healthier and more functional direction."

09:07 EDT ADM and Solugen announce biomanufacturing facility in U.S Midwest - Solugen and ADM announced a strategic partnership to scale a range of innovative, plant-based specialty chemicals and bio-based building block molecules in a new manufacturing facility in Marshall, Minnesota. Under the terms of the agreement, Solugen will build a new 500,000-square-foot biomanufacturing facility adjacent to ADM's existing corn complex in Marshall. The facility will utilize ADM-provided dextrose to scale its current line of lower-carbon organic acids and develop new, innovative molecules to replace existing fossil fuel-based materials. The companies also plan to collaborate on commercialization opportunities of these biomaterials for a range of applications including energy, water treatment, agriculture, construction materials, cleaning, personal care, and more. "The strategic partnership with ADM will allow Solugen to bring our chemienzymatic process to a commercial scale and meet existing customer demand for our high-performance, cost-competitive, sustainable products," said Gaurab Chakrabarti, Co-Founder and CEO of Solugen. "As one of the few scaled-up and de-risked biomanufacturing assets in the country, Solugen's Bioforge platform is helping bolster domestic capabilities and supply chains that are critical in ensuring the U.S. reaches its ambitious climate targets." Leveraging a first-of-its-kind combination of computationally engineered enzymes and metal catalysts, Solugen's Bioforge converts plant-derived substances into essential materials that have traditionally been made from fossil fuels. The high efficiency and scalability of Solugen's process can offer a significant reduction in carbon footprint compared with conventional ingredients.

09:06 EDT Zoom AI Companion hits 1M meeting summaries milestone - Zoom Video Communications announced that Zoom AI Companion, the company's generative AI assistant, has reached a milestone less than two months after its launch, with more than 125,000 accounts using AI Companion, generating more than one million meeting summaries. Zoom also announced new capabilities, additional language support, and further enhancements to existing capabilities for AI Companion.

09:04 EDT LiqTech signs distribution agreement in Middle East for water treatment solution - LiqTech has entered a new agreement for the distribution of LiqTech's Aqua Solution swimming pool water filtration systems covering the Middle East. LiqTech has partnered with UK and Dubai-based Barr + Wray to distribute the Aqua Solution to Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

08:54 EDT BIO-key announces Montenegro Ministry of Defense deploys AuthControl Sentry - BIO-key International announced that the Ministry of Defense of Montenegro has deployed AuthControl Sentry for secure IAM for all of the Ministry's government employees through BIO-key EMEA.

08:53 EDT McDonald's: 'Best Burger' initiative has been scaled to over 70 markets

08:47 EDT KULR Technology, U.S. Army extended previously awarded contract - KULR Technology announced an extension to its previously awarded contract with the United States Army following promising initial results. The Army has extended its collaboration with KULR to continue the development, testing, and analysis of next generation lithium-ion battery cells incorporating the Company's battery storage platform, KULR ONE Design Solutions. The development activities that began in April 2023, continue to progress and, are slated to run through 2024. "This extension serves as a testament to the transformative potential of our technology and the trust the US Army has put in us to partner with them to achieve their goal of developing state-of-the-art energy storage solutions," said KULR CEO Michael Mo. "To be trusted by the US Army to provide cutting edge effectiveness and safety in energy solutions to our soldiers is an honor. We look forward to completing our extensive K1-DS design and testing process so the Army can move into production as soon as possible of these next generation energy storage solutions that meet the Army's high technical and safety standards."

08:46 EDT KVH Industries, Kognitive Networks sign exclusive maritime agreement - KVH Industries and Kognitive Networks announced an exclusive, multi-year maritime agreement. KVH will integrate Kognitive's suite of enterprise-grade network and bandwidth management tools into KVH's mobile communication service offerings. Kognitive's software will become an integral element of KVH's multi-orbit, multi-channel marine communication solutions.

08:43 EDT Safety Shot announces direct-to-consumer launch of Safety Shot - Safety Shot announced the direct-to-consumer launch of Safety Shot, the first patented beverage on Earth that helps people feel better faster by reducing blood alcohol content and boosting clarity, in the first week of December 2023. The Company plans to launch business-to-business sales of Safety Shot to distributors, retailers, restaurants, and bars in the first quarter of 2024. "We're very excited to launch Safety Shot through our multichannel strategy designed to dominate e-commerce, quickly win retail shelf space, and establish longstanding ties with key distribution and sales partners," stated Safety Shot's CEO Brian John. "Led by our executive managed team that has launched numerous successful brands and business and led sales into the billions at companies including Anheuser Busch, and supported Advantage Solutions as well as our growing roster of brand ambassador influencers, we are confident that Safety Shot will become a blockbuster product creating a new category in the beverage industry."

08:41 EDT Phunware partners with Wailea Beach Resort - Phunware (PHUN) has announced that Wailea Beach Resort is deploying its enhanced Smart Hospitality Solution as part of a three-year-long contract. The updated version of the platform guides guests through the 22-acre property and drives them to the many amenities and dining options available, thus generating new revenue and improving the guest experience at Wailea Beach Resort - Marriott, Maui, which is part of the Marriott International (MAR) portfolio of brands. By leveraging Phunware's platform, Wailea Beach Resort also has the ability to extend the capabilities of its Smart Hospitality Solution in the future with additional integrations to support business systems such as on-demand ordering, concierge communication, and loyalty programs. "We are delighted to collaborate with the forward-thinking team at Wailea Beach Resort to unveil the enhanced version of our Smart Hospitality Solution," said Mike Snavely, CEO of Phunware. "Our goal is to empower guests with seamless navigation through this luxury property, ensuring they can fully explore the wealth of amenities available at Wailea Beach Resort. In addition to giving guests a more pleasant and technologically advanced experience, our software provides Wailea Beach Resort with the opportunity to maximize its top line by way of mobile engagement and generating profitable behavior."

08:40 EDT Magdalena recieves second tranche of funding from One Small Plaent - Jaguar Health announced that Magdalena Biosciences, the joint venture recently formed by Jaguar and Filament Health, to develop novel, natural prescription medicines derived from plants for mental health indications such as depression, anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and other possible neuropsychiatric conditions initially in adults, has received the second tranche of funding from One Small Planet. As announced, Boulder, Colorado-based One Small Planet, founded by Will Peterffy, committed to initial funding of $1,000,000 for Magdalena, with the funds payable in quarterly installments in 2023 based on the achievement of defined milestones by Magdalena.

08:39 EDT McDonald's has seen broad-based momentum across business over Q3, says CEO

08:39 EDT McDonald's expects macro environment to remain uncertain - Comments taken from Q3 earnings conference call.

08:37 EDT SG Echo awarded additional multi-million contract to supply modular units - Safe & Green announced that SG Echo, a subsidiary of Safe & Green Holdings Corp., has entered into an agreement to provide 40 additional units to an existing customer, which is expected to generate revenue in excess of $2M starting in Q4, with estimated completion during 2024.

08:35 EDT Coffee Fellows to make Oatly Barista available in 275 locations - Oatly Group announced that one of Germany's largest coffee chains, Coffee Fellows, will make Oatly Barista available in 275 of its locations across Germany, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Coffee Fellows' customers can now enjoy all its coffee specialties dairy-free at no extra charge.

08:35 EDT Ferroglobe acquires high-purity quartz mine for $11M in cash - Ferroglobe announces the acquisition of a strategic, high-purity quartz mine in South Carolina, U.S. The purchase price was approximately $11 million in cash with an additional $4 million expected in capital expenditures to build out the infrastructure, including rail access, loadout, and a processing facility. High-purity quartz is the key raw material in the supply chain and is required for the production of high-purity silicon metal, which is used in applications for solar and advanced battery technologies. These end markets are expected to experience dramatic growth in the coming years, driven by secular trends in the market. In addition, the U.S. is making significant investments in its solar value chain and advanced battery technologies, evidenced by the Department of Energy's addition of silicon to its critical materials list. This acquisition helps ensure that Ferroglobe has access to this critical material, enabling it to meet the increasing demand for high-purity silicon metal. The South Carolina mine has the capacity to produce more than 300kt of high-purity quartz per year, with more than ten years of reserve life. It is located near a rail line with a lower cost of production than Ferroglobe's existing quartz operations in Alabama. Production is expected to begin in the second half of 2024. The purchase of the mine is part of Ferroglobe's long-term strategy to be fully self-sufficient in quartz supply, a critical raw material in the production of silicon metal. This transaction increases the company's global vertical integration in quartz supply, with the U.S. becoming fully backward integrated.

08:23 EDT ARIA Cybersecurity secures first customer for AZT PROTECT - ARIA Cybersecurity Solutions has announced the first customer for its latest solution, AZT PROTECT, which provides proactive cyberattack protection for Operational Technology environments. The patented, AI-powered solution is being deployed by a large, Fortune-500 chemical manufacturer to protect its critical production applications from all forms of attack, enabling production lines to continue running without disruption.

08:20 EDT Critical Elements Lithium obtains Transport Canada dewatering exemption - Critical Elements Lithium announced having obtained an order from the Minister of Transport of Canada exempting the Corporation from the prohibition to dewater navigable waters under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act impacting 28 navigable waters located either on top of or around the perimeter of the future open pit mine site for the Rose Lithium-Tantalum project. Indeed, Subsection 23(1) of the CNWA prohibits taking any action, such as dewatering, that lowers the water level of a navigable water or any part of a navigable water to a level that extinguishes navigation for vessels, unless the Minister of Transport receives an application for an exemption and the Governor in Council is satisfied that it would be in the public interest to permit the dewatering that extinguishes navigation. Following a detailed review and analysis of the Corporation's request, Transport Canada concluded that it would be in the public interest to permit the dewatering, thereby reducing water levels in the 28 navigable waters and making navigation impracticable. As a result, an exemption was granted to the Corporation pursuant to subsection 24(1) of the CNWA. As mentioned in the Order, despite the dewatering, mitigation measures relevant to navigation have been implemented to assist in safeguarding Indigenous trapping rights, such as relocation of a camp used for trapping and a beaver management plan. Furthermore, navigation is not the main means of transportation to access the territory. Access to the territory can and is being achieved by additional methods such as snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles and/or snowshoes/foot. Second, the anticipated creation of 580 jobs from the mining project in an area with a population of only 760 people is expected to be a significant benefit to the local economy. Finally, the Order mentions that the mining project itself would help facilitate obtaining the raw materials needed in the manufacture of the essential parts of zero-emission vehicles, thereby contributing to ZEV availability to improve air quality.

08:18 EDT EHang continues to promote operations, commercial deployment of EH216-S - EHang announced that the Company is progressing towards obtaining the Production Certificate, PC, and Airworthiness Certificate, AC, for the EH216-S, its self-developed passenger-carrying Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, UAV, system, with the full support from the Civil Aviation Administration of China, CAAC. Under the guidance of the CAAC Central and Southern Regional Administration, EHang is steadily moving towards obtaining the PC and producing EH216-S according to its Type Certificate, TC. Notably, documentation review and most of the definition and practical assessments are completed, with inspection and test at facility before production delivery underway. The initial batch of the EH216-S passenger-carrying UAVs following the TC is scheduled to roll off the production line with customer deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2023. To ensure safety, EHang will closely monitor new routes during the first phase of commercial operations. Moreover, it will position extra observers in areas that are beyond the operators' visual line of sight to satisfy requirements for beyond visual line-of-sight operations. Huazhi Hu, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of EHang commented, "Safety is the lifeline of the aviation industry. Ensuring a rigorous and systematic approach to the research and development, production, operation, and management of aerial vehicles remains a core value for the CAAC, EHang, and all our collaborators. We will continue to innovate and maintain our leading advantages. In accordance with the CAAC's safety standards and airworthiness requirements, we are committed to ensuring the safety of every passenger and cementing a solid foundation for commercial operations. Looking ahead, we will further advance UAV passenger-carrying flight operations and full-scale commercial deployments to achieve milestones in the development of the global low-altitude economy."

08:16 EDT Catalyst Pharmaceuticals partners with Sofie's Journey - Catalyst Pharmaceuticals announced that Catalyst will participate in the upcoming 11th Annual Epilepsy Awareness Day & Education Expo, taking place at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA, October 30-31, 2023, to raise awareness and education with the epilepsy community. This event is jointly organized by Sofie's Journey and Epilepsy Alliance of America and is the largest gathering of patients, families, and physicians in the U.S.

08:15 EDT Alzamend Neuro annouces one-for-fifteen reverse stock split - Alzamend Neuro announced that Alzamend's board of directors approved a one-for-fifteen reverse stock split of Alzamend's common stock that will be effective in the State of Delaware at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time on October 31. Beginning with the opening of trading on October 31, the Company's Common Stock will trade on The Nasdaq Capital Market on a split-adjusted basis under the Company's existing trading symbol "ALZN". The new CUSIP number for the Common Stock will be 02262M407. The reverse stock split is part of the Company's plan to regain compliance with the Minimum Bid Price Requirement of $1.00 per share required to maintain continued listing on The Nasdaq Capital Market, among other benefits.

08:15 EDT Aemetis receives $150M biodiesel supply allocation from India OMCs - Aemetis announced that its Universal Biofuels subsidiary in India, owner and operator of a 60 million gallon per year capacity biodiesel plant located near the Port of Kakinada on the East Coast of India, was selected by India's three government-controlled oil marketing companies to supply an estimated $150 million of biodiesel under cost-plus purchase contracts for approximately 40 million gallons of biodiesel during the one year period starting October 2023. Approximately 70% of the 25 billion gallon diesel market in India is supplied by the OMCs, with the remaining 30% supplied by private oil refiners. The 2022 Amendment to India's National Policy on Biofuels targets a 5% minimum blend on direct sale of biodiesel by 2030 to expand the domestic production and consumption of biodiesel above the current 1% blend. The National Policy prohibits imports of biodiesel into India.

08:13 EDT Roth CH Acquisition V Co. and Slacker announce expiration of letter of intent - Roth CH Acquisition or "ROCL announced that the exclusivity in its letter of intent with Slacker, LiveOne's wholly owned subsidiary has expired and the parties have mutually agreed to terminate discussions with respect to a potential transaction to acquire Slacker. As a result, ROCL is currently exploring opportunities with other potential merger candidates in order to complete its business combination. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

08:11 EDT Day One announces FDA acceptance of NDA, priority review for tovorafenib - Day One Biopharmaceuticals announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration accepted its New Drug Application for tovorafenib as a monotherapy in relapsed or progressive pediatric low-grade glioma. The FDA has granted priority review and assigned a Prescription Drug User Fee Act target action date of April 30, 2024. The FDA is not currently planning to hold an advisory committee meeting to discuss the application. The NDA is based on results from the open-label, pivotal Phase 2 trial evaluating tovorafenib as a once-weekly monotherapy in patients aged 6 months to 25 years with relapsed or progressive pLGG. Updated data was recently disclosed when the Company announced the completion of its rolling NDA submission on September 11, 2023. New, detailed data is expected to be presented at an upcoming medical conference.

08:10 EDT 23andMe enters collaboration extension with data licensing agreement with GSK - 23andMe Holding (ME) announced a new, non-exclusive data license with GSK (GSK) which extends their collaboration and enables GSK to conduct drug target discovery and other research using the 23andMe database. Under an amendment to their Collaboration Agreement, 23andMe will receive a $20 million upfront payment for a one year, non-exclusive data license. The license will also include access to certain services such as further analyses of the 23andMe data not provided in the core data release. "We've had an incredibly successful collaboration with GSK over the past five years, and we are excited to continue our work together," said Anne Wojcicki, CEO and Co-Founder, 23andMe. "With approximately 50 programs developed over the last five years, we are thrilled to work with GSK in discovering genetically validated targets. The continued relationship with GSK demonstrates the power of the 23andMe research platform to consistently produce novel insights for therapeutic development, rooted in human genetics." Under terms of the new data license, 23andMe will provide GSK with access to de-identified, summary data from global genome- and phenome-wide analysis of the 23andMe database, for a 12-month period, and offer its research services for analyses of the data over that same period. Any new drug discovery programs that GSK chooses to initiate during the agreement will be owned and advanced solely by GSK. 23andMe may be eligible for downstream royalties under certain uses of the database by GSK. As part of the amendment, 23andMe is taking the royalty option on three programs previously initiated by the two companies, which GSK will independently advance, with 23andMe retaining certain rights to downstream royalties.

08:08 EDT SoftBank Group deploys Synchronoss Personal Cloud - Synchronoss Technologies announced that SoftBank Corp. has deployed Synchronoss Personal Cloud to power its Anshin Data Box service.

08:08 EDT Facebook, Instagram to offer subscription for no ads in Europe - Meta announced that it will offer people in the EU, EEA and Switzerland the choice to pay a monthly subscription to use Facebook and Instagram without any ads. They can alternatively continue to use these services for free while seeing ads that are relevant to them, Meta said. "We believe in a free, ad-supported internet - and will continue to offer people free access to our personalized products and services regardless of income. Whether people choose to use our products for free with ads or subscribe to stop seeing ads, we are committed to keeping people's information private and secure, under our own policies as well as the EU's General Data Protection Regulation." Reference Link

08:07 EDT VERB's MARKET.live adds MyPillow to roster of brands - Verb Technology Company announced that national brand MyPillow has joined the roster of popular brands and retailers on MARKET.live. With a planned launch of a series of livestream shopping shows hosted by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, the shows will feature the company's most popular products. The November 10, 2023 premier event will be broadcast live on MARKET.live and multicast live on many popular social media platform

08:05 EDT Karyopharm signs clinical trial collaboration with Bristol Myers in myeloma - Karyopharm Therapeutics (KPTI) has entered into a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Bristol-Myers (BMY) to evaluate the company's proprietary investigational cereblon E3 ligase modulator agent mezigdomide in combination with Karyopharm's selinexor, an approved first-in-class inhibitor of Exportin 1, plus dexamethasone in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. This trial will evaluate mezigdomide in combination with selinexor doses of either 40mg or 60mg plus dexamethasone in patients who have prior exposure to immunomodulatory drug agents, proteasome inhibitors, and anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody treatment. The companies expect to initiate the trial in the first half of 2024. The primary endpoints of this trial are to assess the objective response rate and the clinical benefit rate. Key secondary endpoints include progression-free survival, overall survival and duration of response. In addition, the trial will evaluate dynamic changes in T-cell populations and activity as patients undergo treatment. Under the terms of the agreement with Bristol Myers Squibb, Karyopharm will sponsor the trial as a new arm of Karyopharm's Phase 1b/2 STOMP trial and Bristol Myers Squibb will supply the study's clinical drug mezigdomide.

08:04 EDT Phathom announces U.S. FDA approved PAS for reformulation of vonoprazan tablets - Phathom Pharmaceuticals announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, has approved the Prior Approval Supplement, PAS, for the reformulation of vonoprazan tablets for both VOQUEZNA TRIPLE PAK and VOQUEZNA DUAL PAK, for the treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection in adults. VOQUEZNA treatment regimens contain antibiotics conveniently packaged with vonoprazan, a novel potassium-competitive acid blocker and the first innovative acid suppressant from a new drug class approved in the U.S. in over 30 years. These initial product approvals were based on safety and efficacy data from the Phase 3 PHALCON-HP trial, the largest U.S. registrational trial ever conducted in H. pylori, randomizing 1,046 patients. In the modified intent-to-treat population, both VOQUEZNA treatment regimens demonstrated non-inferiority to lansoprazole triple therapy in patients without a clarithromycin or amoxicillin resistant strain of H. pylori at baseline. The H. pylori eradication rate was 84.7% with VOQUEZNA TRIPLE PAK compared to 78.8% with lansoprazole triple therapy and 78.5% for VOQUEZNA DUAL PAK compared to 78.8% with lansoprazole triple therapy. VOQUEZNA TRIPLE PAK and DUAL PAK demonstrated superior eradication rates compared to PPI-based triple therapy among all patients, including in patients with clarithromycin resistant strains of H. pylori.1 The H. pylori eradication rate with VOQUEZNA TRIPLE PAK was 80.8% versus 68.5% with lansoprazole triple therapy in the overall study population and in patients who had a clarithromycin-resistant strain of H. pylori, 65.8% vs. 31.9%, respectively. H. pylori eradication rates for VOQUEZNA DUAL PAK were 77.2% versus 68.5% with lansoprazole triple therapy in the overall study population and in patients who had a clarithromycin-resistant strain of H. pylori, 69.6% vs. 31.9%, respectively. Adverse event rates for the vonoprazan-based regimens were comparable to lansoprazole triple therapy in the trial. The most common AEs reported in the VOQUEZNA TRIPLE PAK, VOQUEZNA DUAL PAK, and lansoprazole triple therapy arms, respectively, were diarrhea, dysgeusia, vulvovaginal candidiasis, abdominal pain, headache, hypertension and nasopharyngitis.

08:02 EDT NexGel enters supply agreement with AbbVie - NEXGEL (NXGL) announced that its subsidiary, CG Converting and Packaging, has executed a supply agreement with AbbVie (ABBV) to be a supplier of gel pads to be used with AbbVie's Rapid Acoustic Pulse device being investigated for improvement in the appearance of cellulite.

08:01 EDT Orion Energy releases BABA Act-compliant LED lighting - Orion Energy Systems announced its latest line of LED lighting fixtures that are compliant with the Build America, Buy America Act. These cutting-edge fixtures include LED High Bays, LED Strips, LED Strip Retrofits, LED Troffers, and LED Troffer Retrofits all manufactured at Orion's state-of-the-art facility in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

07:57 EDT Teck Resources president, COO Red Conger to retire - Teck Resources announced that Harry "Red" Conger will retire as President and COO and step down from Teck's board of directors, effective November 1, 2023. CEO Jonathan Price will assume the role of President and CEO, and a search will be conducted to fill the COO role.

07:43 EDT Rekor Systems, NextMove enter multi-year strategic partnership - Rekor Systems announced a multi-year strategic partnership with NextMove by Cintra, the digital business venture of Ferrovial's highway division. The partnership aims to accelerate the connected vehicle and infrastructure ecosystem to create safer, more efficient, and sustainable transportation solutions.

07:40 EDT Marathon confirms Berry Pit Expansion released from EA process - Marathon Gold Corporation announces that the Honourable Bernard Davis, Newfoundland and Labrador Minister of Environment and Climate Change, has released the proposed addition of the Berry Deposit to the Valentine Gold Project from the provincial environmental assessment, EA, process. The Minister's decision follows regulatory and public review of the Berry Pit Expansion Environmental Registration document, which was submitted to the NL Department of Environment and Climate Change on August 11, 2023. As is customary for projects released from the provincial EA process, the decision letter includes certain terms and conditions with which Marathon must comply, including completion of water-related plans and studies, ongoing caribou monitoring and mitigation, avifauna surveys, and an update to the NL Benefits Agreement to include the Berry Pit Expansion. The conditions are similar to those required in the March 17, 2022 provincial EA Release, which included Leprechaun and Marathon pits, the process plant, and Tailings Management Facility. The Berry EA documentation was also submitted to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and on August 30, 2023, Marathon received confirmation from IAAC that the proposed Berry Pit Expansion does not constitute a new Designated Project federally and, as such, a new impact assessment under the Impact Assessment Act is not required.

07:38 EDT Redwire teams with Lilly on 1st spaceflight mission for pharma drug development - Redwire Corporation (RDW) announced the first spaceflight mission for its cutting-edge in-space pharmaceutical manufacturing platform, PIL-BOX, designed to offer pharmaceutical companies and researchers novel and flexible services to grow small-batch crystals of protein-based pharmaceuticals and other key pharmaceutically relevant molecules for research. The new platform will launch onboard SpaceX's 29th cargo resupply services mission, SpaceX-29, for NASA to the International Space Station, ISS. On the inaugural PIL-BOX-01 mission, Eli Lilly (LLY) partnering with Redwire to conduct three critical experiments focused on developing advanced treatments for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and pain. "The microgravity environment is a game changer for pharmaceutical drug development, which has a greater than $240B annual spend in 2022, and has tremendous potential to save and improve life on Earth," said Redwire Executive Vice President John Vellinger. PIL-BOX technology builds from Redwire's multi-decade space crystallization flight heritage, which dates back to the space shuttle era through its Advanced Space Experiment Processor. PIL-BOX is being developed in partnership with NASA, through its In Space Production Applications flight demonstrations program, which is focused on stimulating demand in low-Earth orbit.On SpaceX-29, Redwire is also launching materials for an investigation that will bioprint cardiac tissue on orbit using Redwire's BioFabrication Facility, BFF. This type of technology could be used to develop heart patches that can be applied to the outside of damaged hearts and advances our ability to print complex, thick tissues that cannot be produced on Earth. In September, Redwire announced that it had successfully 3D bioprinted the first human knee meniscus on orbit using BFF. The print returned to Earth for further study and analysis.

07:37 EDT Streamline Health announces new eValuator contract - Streamline Health Solutions announced that it has signed a new contract for the use of eValuator with a 1,000-bed, Epic-based academic medical center serving central Florida. "We are pleased that our pre-bill revenue integrity solutions continue to gain market traction with large health systems," stated Ben Stilwill, Chief Executive Officer. "Our team is excited to improve the revenue cycle of these institutions to ensure they are accurately paid for the care they've provided."

07:36 EDT Applied UV granted new patents by USPTO, enters partnership with Canon Virginia - Applied UV announces that the United States Patent and Trademark Office, USPTO, issued a patent US 2023/0059472 A1 for the Company's Airo Vortex, encompassing advanced disinfection capabilities and Photocatalytic Oxidation. Concurrently, the Company also received publication notice on its Fighter Flex LED. In a groundbreaking development, Applied UV announces the recent approval of a new patent for its Fighter Flex HVAC system. Published on October 12th, 2023, with patent number US 2023/0321309 A1, this patent underscores the innovative capabilities of the Fighter Flex HVAC system in enhancing indoor air quality and promoting healthier environments. These milestones underscore a significant stride in Applied UV Inc.'s capabilities and focus on advancing innovation in the disinfection domain, with an aim to foster safer and healthier environments for all. At the 2023 Global Produce & Floral Show held last week, Applied UV Inc. and strategic partner, Canon Virginia, showcased its next-generation Airocide technology. Furthermore, the Fighter Flex LED, alongside the Puro Protect, are currently undergoing stringent testing by the Federal Government as part of the GSA Green Proving Grounds Program. This initiative is further bolstered by an ongoing partnership for additional testing with Johnson Controls and Ushio at Purdue University. This extensive realm of testing highlights the potential and efficacy of Applied UV Inc.'s technologies in addressing diverse community requisites.

07:33 EDT MeiraGTx announces $30M strategic investment from Sanofi - MeiraGTx Holdings announced strategic updates including that Sanofi has made a $30M strategic investment in the Company through the purchase of 4.0 million ordinary shares at a price of $7.50 per share. MeiraGTx CEO Alexandria Forbes continued, "MeiraGTx is a broad-based genetic medicines company, with late-stage clinical programs, world leading end-to-end manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure, and a transformative Riboswitch gene regulation technology. As a result of the breadth of interest over the past several months from multiple parties around mutually beneficial strategic transactions involving certain assets of the Company, we have engaged Evercore and Wachtell Lipton to work with management and our Board of Directors to execute one or more of these additional potential strategic transactions and maximize value for our shareholders."

07:28 EDT Alterity Therapeutics says ATH434-202 trial 'enrolling according to plan' - The ATH434-202 trial is enrolling according to plan. The study is assessing the effect of ATH434 treatment on neuroimaging and protein biomarkers to evaluate target engagement, in addition to clinical measures, safety, and pharmacokinetics. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of 12 months treatment with ATH434 on brain iron by MRI in a more advanced patient population than is being studied in Alterity's double blind Phase 2 trial. Preliminary data from the first cohort in this study is expected in the first half of 2024.

07:26 EDT Alterity Therapeutics reports cash balance of A$16.7M as of September 30 - "Alterity had a great start to the 2024 financial year with significant developments in the first quarter," said David Stamler, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Alterity. "Our two Phase 2 clinical trials in Multiple System Atrophy are on track as we look to develop a new treatment for this devastating rare disease. Of note, we have closed screening in the ATH434-201 study and expect to close enrollment imminently. In addition, an independent Data Monitoring Committee recommended that the trial continue as planned and they expressed no concerns about safety. These events are important milestones in the development of ATH434 for the treatment of early-stage MSA. While the ATH434-201 trial is evaluating individuals with early-stage MSA, we are also conducting a second Phase 2 trial in individuals with more advanced disease. This open label, biomarker study will give us the opportunity to assess the effect of ATH434 in multiple populations and we also expect it to provide preliminary data in the first cohort of participants in the first half of next year.

07:25 EDT Radoff-Sudbury Group recommend LifeVantage holders vote blue proxy card - Bradley L. Radoff and Sudbury Capital Fund, together with their affiliates, the "Radoff-Sudbury Group who collectively own approximately 12.8% of the outstanding stock of LifeVantage announced that Glass, Lewis & Co has joined Institutional Shareholder Services in recommending that the Company's stockholders support boardroom change by voting on the Radoff-Sudbury Group's BLUE Proxy Card. Specifically, Glass Lewis recommended that stockholders elect independent director candidate Dayton Judd and withhold support for long-tenured director Michael Beindorff at the Company's upcoming Annual Meeting of Stockholders . "We appreciate that both leading independent proxy advisory firms have endorsed boardroom change at LifeVantage and highlighted the Company's long-term underperformance under current Board leadership. Importantly, Glass Lewis noted it would be in stockholders' best interest to remove 11-year tenured director Michael Beindorff from the Board, while ISS supports the removal of 15-year tenured Chairman Garry Mauro. Both firms were unequivocal in their support of nominee Dayton Judd, whose CEO-level turnaround experience, corporate governance and strategic planning acumen, and wellness industry expertise would be extremely additive to the Board. We believe this should send a clear message to the Company: it is time to welcome new perspectives, fresh ideas and, very importantly, stockholder perspectives to the boardroom. We encourage our fellow stockholders to support our entire slate - Dayton Judd, Michael Lohner and Bradley L. Radoff - on the BLUE Proxy Card to help ensure LifeVantage consultants, employees, customers, stockholders and stakeholders' interests are always put first."

07:20 EDT ACI Worldwide announces Abe Kuruvilla as chief technology officer - ACI Worldwide announced the appointment of Abe Kuruvilla as chief technology officer. In this role, Kuruvilla will lead ACI's innovation agenda, optimizing the way the company develops and delivers its industry-leading software solutions globally to banks, merchants and billers.

07:18 EDT Marimaca Copper appoints Ausenco to lead Marimaca Project DFS - Marimaca Copper announced the appointment of Ausenco Chile Limitada to lead the Marimaca Project Definitive Feasibility Study, following a competitive bidding process. Ausenco will lead the DFS engineering workstreams as well as serve as lead author for the planned NI 43-101 technical report with its professionals acting as Qualified Persons for core chapters. In addition, Ausenco will also act as the engineering lead for permitting application purposes. Marimaca Copper and Ausenco will complete a business case optimization leading into the DFS with both workstreams to focus on the following core areas: Development of final geo-metallurgical model to optimize leaching conditions for recovery and acid consumption; Crush, Heap Leach and SX-EW process plant throughput optimization, layout, design and capex estimation; Mine plan trade-off to optimize throughput and target production rate; Targeting leading sustainability metrics with a focus on carbon intensity per tonne of copper produced, recyclable water and green power use and associated infrastructure.

07:16 EDT Lumentum to acquire Cloud Light for $750M, sees accretion - Lumentum announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Lumentum will acquire Cloud Light with a transaction value of approximately $750M, subject to certain adjustments. At the time of closing, transaction consideration will be paid in cash and the assumption and substitution of outstanding unvested Cloud Light options. The transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies and by Cloud Light's shareholders. Nearly all of Cloud Light's more than $200M revenue in the last 12 months was derived from 400G or higher speed transceiver sales. In the most recent quarter, over half of Cloud Light's optical transceiver revenue was derived from 800G modules. The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to Lumentum's non-GAAP earnings per share and is expected to more than double Lumentum's cloud data center infrastructure revenue in the 12-month period following the transaction close. Lumentum intends to finance the transaction through cash from its balance sheet. The transaction is expected to close by the end of calendar 2023, subject to receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

07:13 EDT Next Hydrogen Solutions achieves efficiency targets for GEN2 electrolysers - Next Hydrogen Solutions reports that it has met its energy efficiency targets for its new second generation "GEN2" water electrolyser technology. Next Hydrogen is launching its next generation GEN2 large-scale, low-cost green hydrogen production systems. A key performance aspect is the ability to maintain good energy efficiency at high hydrogen production rates. Next Hydrogen has achieved its target cell performance of 1.90 V/cell at 1 A/cm2 and 70oC. This exceeds recently reported US Department of Energy technical targets status for energy efficiency, while maintaining a 2 times higher peak operating point.

07:12 EDT Tilray's Blue Point Brewing announces Cask Ales Festival, new beer lineup - Blue Point Brewing Company, a subsidiary of Tilray Brands, announces the return of its highly anticipated 19th Annual Cask Ales Festival. The event, in partnership with Long Island Cares, is set to take place on Saturday, November 4th, and promises a mix of live music, local vendors, food trucks, and, of course, a wide array of cask ales from breweries around the country. "This event is not just about celebrating good beer. It's about celebrating the community and the culture that surrounds it," said Ty Gilmore, President, Tilray Beer. "We're committed to creating unforgettable experiences for our consumers across the nation, filled with great music, exciting activities, delicious food, and exceptional beers."

07:12 EDT Deciphera: MOTION study of vimseltinib met primary endpoint, key 2ndry endpoints - Deciphera Pharmaceuticals announced positive top-line results from the MOTION pivotal Phase 3 study of vimseltinib in patients with TGCT not amenable to surgery. Vimseltinib is the Company's investigational, orally administered, potent, and highly selective switch-control kinase inhibitor of CSF1R. "Patients suffering from TGCT are in need of a new treatment option that offers both strong clinical benefit and a well-tolerated safety profile," said Hans Gelderblom, M.D., Ph.D., Chair of the Department of Medical Oncology at Leiden University Medical Center. "TGCT has a significant negative impact on the daily life of patients who face substantial pain, stiffness, and impaired mobility. Success across both the primary and all key secondary endpoints in MOTION underscores vimseltinib's ability to help TGCT patients feel and function better. The top-line results from MOTION, together with the impressive data announced today from the Phase 1/2 study showing that the response rates with vimseltinib continue to increase over time, and that patients continue to receive long-term clinical benefit as evidenced by the median duration of treatment, demonstrates vimseltinib's potential to become a best-in-class agent." "We are excited about the potential for vimseltinib to become our next approved medicine, supporting our continued evolution to a company with multiple marketed products," said Steve Hoerter, President and Chief Executive Officer of Deciphera Pharmaceuticals. "The totality of data shown today demonstrate the potential for vimseltinib to offer a new and differentiated treatment option for patients with TGCT. On behalf of the entire Deciphera team, I would like to thank the patients, their caregivers, and the healthcare professionals who participated in the MOTION and Phase 1/2 studies. We look forward to working with regulatory agencies worldwide as we focus on delivering this important new treatment option to patients with TGCT." Top-line Results from the MOTION Pivotal Phase 3 Study of Vimseltinib in TGCT. The results for Part 1 of the study are based on a data cutoff date of August 22 . In addition to meeting the primary endpoint, the study also achieved statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements versus placebo in all key secondary endpoints assessed at Week 25 including ORR per tumor volume score active range of motion physical function, stiffness, quality of life, and pain.

07:10 EDT Canadian Solar to establish solar PV module production facility in Indiana - Canadian Solar announced that it is establishing a 5 GW Solar PV cell production facility at the River Ridge Commerce Center in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Canadian Solar is building a state-of-the-art solar photovoltaic cell manufacturing plant with an annual output of 5 GW, equivalent to approximately 20,000 high-power modules per day. The Jeffersonville facility represents a projected investment of more than $800M and will create approximately 1,200 skilled high-tech jobs once production is fully ramped up. The solar cells produced at this facility will be used at the previously announced 5 GW module assembly plant in Mesquite, Texas. Production at the Jeffersonville facility is expected to begin by the end of 2025.

07:09 EDT View Inc. adds Tridium's Niagra to View Secure Edge marketplace - View has announced its partnership with Tridium to deliver the most recent release of the Niagara Framework, Niagara 4.13, on View Secure Edge. This collaboration will enable Tridium's innovative containerized Niagara to run within View Secure Edge, creating a transformative turn-key infrastructure solution for building operations. View's partnership with Tridium broadens the range of applications available to Secure Edge customers to improve the security and automation of their buildings. "Our innovative offer of secure edge infrastructure and flexible building automation provides the 'building-in-a-box' solution our customers have been seeking," said Nitesh Trikha, Chief Product Officer of View. "Our customers can deploy View Secure Edge to any building without decommissioning existing systems, resulting in seamless and consistent network access and security. Now, with Niagara 4.13, they can also standardize building operations and automation."

07:06 EDT Hollysys provides update on sales process - Hollysys Automation Technologies announced that the Special Committee of the Board of Directors, which was established to conduct a sale process as announced on October 2, and its advisors have been in contact with multiple prospective buyers. These include financial sponsors as well as strategic buyers for which there would be compelling industrial logic to an acquisition. Additionally, the Special Committee and its advisors are considering bids submitted by Recco Control Technology and Dazheng Group Investment Holdings Company and by representatives of the Hollysys management team. It is engaged in ongoing discussions with both groups and will provide updates on material developments as soon as practicable. In a statement, the members of the Special Committee stated: "We are making every effort to conduct a fair and full process and to be fully responsive to all current and potentially interested parties to facilitate due diligence and enable them to make updated and binding proposals. Our objective is to present to shareholders a recommended proposal that provides compelling value, committed financing, regulatory certainty, and a viable pathway to closing." The sale process is targeted to be at an advanced stage, with a preferred bidder identified, as soon as early December.

07:06 EDT Edible Garden products available at Tops Friendly Markets - Edible Garden AG announced that Tops Friendly Markets, a subsidiary of Northeast Grocery, will begin carrying Edible Garden's products in all of their locations across New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont. Jim Kras, Chief Executive Officer of Edible Garden, stated, "We are pleased to announce that Tops Friendly Markets will now feature our sustainable herbs throughout their 149 retail locations in New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. Their addition to our already robust distribution network enhances the Company's presence in the Northeastern United States. Our track record, marked by exceptional order fulfillment rates surpassing industry standards, underscores our commitment to unparalleled service for our distribution partners and their more than 5,000 retail outlets across the United States. We trust that Tops Friendly Markets will recognize Edible Garden as a go-to, dependable source of produce, and our objective is to expand our offering over time. By leveraging our existing retail relationships in the Northeast, we also aim to maximize efficiency and minimize our carbon footprint which aligns perfectly with our Zero-Waste Inspired mission. We look forward to enjoying a long relationship with Tops Friendly Markets, providing them with the reliable service and high-quality products that their customers can count on."

07:05 EDT Eyenovia to sponsors course at IJCAHPO's ACE Program - Eyenovia announced that it is sponsoring a course during the International Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology 51st Annual Continuing Education program, which is being held November 3-5 in San Francisco. The course, Topical Pharmaceutical Drug Delivery Innovations: The Potential Role for the New Ophthalmic Spray, will offer ophthalmic technicians background on Eyenovia's Optejet dispensing technology and training on the use of Mydcombi in daily practice. "As the first FDA-approved mydriasis agent to combine tropicamide and phenylephrine, and the first product to leverage the Optejet device, we believe Mydcombi represents a true advancement for eye care practitioners and their technicians, and we are pleased to sponsor this course at IJCAHPO's ACE program to raise awareness of the technology and provide training on its use," stated Michael Rowe, chief executive officer of Eyenovia. "We continue to ramp our internal manufacturing capabilities, staff our sales management team and obtain additional key state licenses of which we now have eight either completed or in process. We look forward to transitioning to a broader commercial launch of Mydcombi in early 2024."

07:04 EDT Tonix Pharmaceuticals announces new data on TNX-1500 - Tonix Pharmaceuticals announced data from two oral presentations which were delivered recently at the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress 2023, and The International Pancreas and Islet Transplant Association, the International Xenotransplantation Association, and the Cell Transplant and Regenerative Medicine Society Joint Congress by faculty at the Center for Transplantation Sciences, Massachusetts General Hospital in October 2023. The data involve Tonix's TNX-1500 which is currently in Phase 1 development for the prevention of organ transplant rejection. The oral presentations titled, "Pilot Evaluation of a Clinical Xeno Heart Transplant Regimen in a Preclinical Model" and "Extended Survival of 9- and 10-Gene Edited Pig Heart Xenografts with Ischemia Minimization and CD154 Costimulation Blockade-Based Immunosuppression" by Dr. Ikechukwu Ileka et al. include data demonstrating the use of TNX-1500 as maintenance therapy after xeno heart transplant in non-human primates. In both studies, genetically engineered pigs in baboon transplants were treated with cold-perfused ischemia minimization and a novel costimulation-based immunosuppressive regimen including TNX-1500. The multi-GE pigs were provided by eGenesis and Revivicor. "The results of these preclinical studies are encouraging and demonstrate the potential of genetically engineered pig hearts in the context of a clinically applicable regimen," said Seth Lederman, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Tonix Pharmaceuticals. "Because anti-CD40L treatment is widely recognized as critical to the success of xeno organ transplant, no animals were transplanted without anti-CD40L treatment."

07:03 EDT VYNE Therapeutics announces data from Phase 1b trial of VYN201 - VYNE Therapeutics announced positive data from its Phase 1b trial evaluating once-daily dosing of VYN201 in patients with nonsegmental vitiligo. The Phase 1b trial is a 16-week open-label trial assessing the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of once-daily topical VYN201 in 29 patients across three dose cohorts. Key results include: Proof-of-concept achieved: Significant clinical improvement observed in 1% and 2% cohorts with rapid onset of action and a dose-dependent response. Mean percentage reduction in F-VASI score from baseline after 16 weeks of treatment was: 7.5% for the 0.5% cohort, with 20% of patients achieving a greater than or equal to25% improvement in F-VASI score from baseline; 30.3% for the 1.0% cohort, with 50% of patients achieving F-VASI25 and 30% of patients achieving a greater than or equal to50% improvement in F-VASI score from baseline; 39.0% for the 2.0% cohort, with 67% of patients achieving F-VASI25 and 33% of patients achieving F-VASI50, including one patient who achieved a greater than or equal to75% improvement in F-VASI score from baseline; The mean percentage reduction in F-VASI score from baseline for each of the 1.0% and 2.0% cohorts was statistically significant compared to the 0.5% cohort at week 16, indicative of a dose response. Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics: Topical VYN201 was generally well-tolerated with a favorable safety profile in vitiligo patients at all dose levels with no serious adverse events reported and no abnormal laboratory values suggestive of low or reducing platelet counts. All treatment emergent adverse events have been classified as mild or moderate with no dose-dependent trends observed to date. All mean local skin tolerability assessment scores were less than 0.30 on a severity scale 0 to 3. Next Steps: Initiate Phase 2b Trial: The Company intends to begin Phase 2b preparatory activities and expects to advance VYN201 into a longer duration Phase 2b trial to evaluate optimal dosing and peak efficacy in patients with active and stable nonsegmental vitiligo in 1H 2024.

07:03 EDT McEwen Mining reports Q3 production of 38,600 GEOs - McEwen Mining is pleased to report production for Q3 2023 was 38,600 gold equivalent ounces and 104,800 GEOs for the nine months ended September 30th, 2023. Our consolidated production guidance for 2023 is maintained, despite the Gold Bar Mine's production forecast being 13% below its guidance range. Our forecast for the full year 2023 reflects actual productions to September 30th and management's current estimates for Q4 2023. Good progress has been made at Gold Bar recovering from a challenging first half of the year, as demonstrated by steadily increasing production quarter after quarter. Gold Bar has also maintained an excellent safety record with 1,313 days without a lost time injury as of September 30th. Crushing and stacking of ore on the heap leach pad reached a rate of 9,300 tonnes per day in September, a major improvement over the average in the prior eight months of 6,150 tpd. Year-to-date, ore containing 41,600 ounces of gold has been loaded onto the heap leach pad with an average expected recovery rate of 68%. Due to the gold inventory on the heap leach pad, we are confident in a reasonably strong Q4 continuing into the start of 2024. The 2023 production forecast is 13% below the guidance established in December 2022, due to a combination of factors including flooding and extreme weather in the Spring and a slower leach recovery rate of Gold Bar South ore. Fox Complex, Timmins District Fox performed well during Q3 and it is on track to slightly exceed the mid-point of our guidance range. Fox has achieved 738 days without a lost time injury as of September 30th. Mining at Froome is on track and the Stock mill continues to increase average throughput. We are pleased with the good exploration drilling results seen at our Stock Complex including the 'Ramp Portal Zone', which may represent an early mining horizon for our upcoming Stock West project. San Jose, Argentina San Jose, which is operated by our joint venture partner Hochschild Mining, delivered Q3 production in line with our expectations for the quarter and guidance for the year. San Jose reported one lost time injury in August 2023, the worker has since recovered and returned to regular duty. McEwen Copper On October 11th our McEwen Copper subsidiary announced additional investments by Stellantis and Nuton of ARS$42 billion and US$10 million, respectively. Since the creation of McEwen Copper, shareholders have invested $397 million to acquire shares even though that the Company has remained private. The recent transactions occurred at $26.00 per share of McEwen Copper, giving it a market value of approximately $800 million. McEwen Mining retains 47.7% ownership of McEwen Copper, with an implied market value of $380 million, this represents a value accretion for McEwen Mining shareholders of $98 million or two dollars per share since March 2023. McEwen Copper is now well financed for the remainder of 2023 and well into 2024. The funds raised will be used to advance the feasibility study on the Los Azules project and for other corporate purposes. McEwen Mining also received proceeds of $6 million to augment its balance sheet. Currently, we have fourteen drill rigs on site at Los Azules, scaling up to 18 drill rigs for our drilling campaign targeting more than 45,000 meters. This program will generate all the remaining data required to complete the planned feasibility study by Q1 2025.

06:59 EDT JinkoSolar sees Q4 module shipments 23 GW - The company said, "We expect our module shipments to be approximately 23.0 GW for the fourth quarter of 2023 and are confident that our full-year module shipments will exceed our guidance of 70 to 75 GW, with N-type modules accounting for approximately 60%. We expect our annual production capacity for mono wafers, solar cells and solar modules to reach 85.0 GW, 90.0 GW and 110.0 GW, respectively, by the end of 2023, with N-type capacity accounting for over 75%. We are confident that we will continue to lead the industry with our advanced technology and premium high-efficient products."

06:36 EDT Realty Income to acquire Spirit Realty in $9.3B all-stock transaction - Realty Income(O) and Spirit Realty (SRC), announced that the two companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement by which Realty Income will acquire Spirit in an all-stock transaction valued at an enterprise value of approximately $9.3B. The leverage-neutral transaction is expected to deliver over 2.5% accretion to Realty Income's annualized Adjusted Funds from Operations, or AFFO, per share. Additionally, no new external capital is expected to be required to finance the transaction. The merger, once completed, will result in an enterprise value of approximately $63B for the combined company, enhancing Realty Income's size, scale, and diversification to expand its runway for future growth. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Spirit shareholders will receive 0.762 newly-issued Realty Income common shares for each Spirit common share they own. At closing, this will result in Realty Income and Spirit shareholders owning approximately 87% and 13%, respectively, of the combined company. The merger is subject to customary closing conditions, including the approval of Spirit shareholders, and is expected to close during the first quarter of 2024. Additionally, from the date of the merger agreement through the closing of the transaction, Spirit may declare and pay regular, quarterly cash dividends to holders of its common stock and to holders of its preferred stock. No approval of Realty Income shareholders will be required in connection with the merger.

06:27 EDT Moderna, CEPI enter strategic partnership to advance 100 Days Mission - The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, CEPI, and Moderna have entered into a strategic partnership that will harness Moderna's mRNA platform to accelerate the development of vaccines against viral disease outbreaks that threaten global health. The work undertaken as part of this partnership could expand the infectious disease targets for mRNA vaccine technology and strengthen pandemic preparedness and public health efforts in alignment with the 100 Days Mission, a global goal to compress vaccine development timelines to 100 days. Stephane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, said: "We are pleased to announce our strategic partnership with CEPI, harnessing the power of Moderna's mRNA platform to accelerate the development of mRNA vaccines against viral disease outbreaks that pose global public health threats. Our mRNA Access program reinforces our dedication to public health by offering researchers the opportunity to utilize our mRNA technology in the development of vaccines for emerging and neglected infectious diseases. We believe this program can play a key role in helping the next generation of researchers and engineers to advance mRNA science."

06:25 EDT GSK reports Phase III RUBY trial of Jemperli plus chemo meets OS endpoint - GSK plc announced positive headline results from a planned analysis of Part 1 of the RUBY/ENGOT-EN6/GOG3031/NSGO phase III trial investigating Jemperli plus standard-of-care chemotherapy, followed by dostarlimab as a single agent, compared to placebo plus chemotherapy followed by placebo in adult patients with primary advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer. The trial met its primary endpoint of overall survival, or OS, demonstrating a statistically significant and clinically meaningful benefit in the overall patient population. A clinically meaningful OS benefit was observed in both prespecified subpopulations in the trial: mismatch repair deficient/microsatellite instability-high and mismatch repair proficient/microsatellite stable patient subgroups. OS is one of two primary endpoints in the RUBY Part 1 trial. Previously, the trial met its other primary endpoint of progression-free survival, or PFS, demonstrating a 72% and 36% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death observed in the dMMR/MSI-H population and overall patient population, respectively. Hesham Abdullah, Senior Vice President, Global Head Oncology, R&D, GSK, said: "With today's headline results from Part 1 of the phase III RUBY trial, dostarlimab plus chemotherapy has become the only immuno-therapy combination to show a survival benefit in this broader patient population in this treatment setting. We look forward to sharing detailed results of this analysis with regulatory authorities and the larger scientific community." Full results from this latest analysis from the trial will be published in a medical journal and presented at an upcoming scientific meeting. The safety and tolerability profile of dostarlimab plus carboplatin and paclitaxel was generally consistent with the known safety profiles of the individual agents.

06:17 EDT HSBC to initiate share buy-back of up to $3B - The company has announced a third interim dividend of $0.10 per share and intend to initiate a further share buy-back of up to $3B, which we expect to commence shortly and complete by its 2023 full-year results announcement on 21 February 2024. Further buy-backs will be subject to appropriate capital levels.

06:04 EDT Check Point reports Q3 security subscriptions revenue $248M, up 15% y/y -

05:27 EDT IFF to divest Cosmetic Ingredients business unit for $810M - IFF announced that Clariant-a sustainably focused specialty chemical company-has agreed to purchase IFF's Cosmetic Ingredients business unit for $810M. Reporting through IFF's Scent division, IFF's Cosmetic Ingredients business unit develops, manufactures and markets ingredients for the cosmetic and personal care industry, including active ingredients, functional ingredients and delivery systems, primarily through the Lucas Meyer Cosmetics brand. Cash proceeds from the proposed transaction-net of taxes and expenses-will be used to reduce outstanding debt. IFF's Cosmetic Ingredients business unit includes the Lucas Meyers Cosmetics and IBR brands and operates six research and development and/or production sites globally. With about 195 employees, IFF's Cosmetic Ingredients business unit has more than 2,900 customers in over 80 countries and generated approximately $100M in revenue in the last 12 months. IFF and Clariant expect to close the transaction in the first quarter of 2024, subject to applicable works council consultations and customary closing conditions, including regulatory clearances. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor to IFF, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP is serving as legal counsel.

05:21 EDT Omnicom to acquire Flywheel Digital from Ascential for $835M - Omnicom announced it has agreed to acquire Flywheel Digital, the digital commerce business of Ascential, for a net cash purchase price of approximately $835M. Flywheel's services enable top brands to sell more goods more efficiently across hundreds of digital marketplaces, such as Amazon, Walmart, and Alibaba. These services are reinforced by their advanced technology platform, Flywheel Commerce Cloud, which delivers near real-time insights to improve decision-making and boost sales. Flywheel will operate as a Practice Area within Omnicom and will be led by Duncan Painter who currently serves as CEO of Ascential. The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024 and is subject to Ascential shareholder approval, regulatory approvals, and customary closing conditions.

05:10 EDT Fortuna Silver Mines announces reinstatement of San Jose Mine EIA - Fortuna Silver Mines reported that the Mexican Federal Administrative Court has ruled in favor of Minera Cuzcatlan, Fortuna's Mexican subsidiary, and re-instated the 12-year environmental impact authorization, or EIA, for the San Jose Mine. On January 2, Minera Cuzcatlan received written notice of a resolution issued by the Secretaria de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales which annulled the 12-year term of the EIA for the San Jose Mine and required SEMARNAT to re-assess it. Minera Cuzcatlan subsequently initiated legal proceedings in the Court to contest and revoke the annulment of the EIA and obtained a permanent injunction to protect its operations pending the decision of the court. In its ruling, the court dismissed the allegations of SEMARNAT contained in the annulment resolution. The San Jose Mine is in full compliance with all material environmental laws and continues to operate under the terms of the EIA. The decision of the court is subject to appeal by SEMARNAT, and if appealed, the permanent injunction that the company already has will remain in effect.