4:47 pm Teck Resources: Revelo Resources signed Purchase Agreement for acquisition of Reprado gold-silver project in Northern Chile from Teck Resources Chile Limitada (TCK) : The Reprado property is being acquired for 1,000,000 Revelo common shares and warrants as well as a retained NSR royalty. The Acquisition is subject to approval from the TSX Venture Exchange.

4:38 pm Kennametal reduces FY16 guidance as a result of 'weakening end market conditions' (KMT) :

The company states its revenue expectations have been negatively impacted by further declines in its end markets as evidenced by continued declines in industrial production indices since prior guidance was issued in early November, particularly China automotive and US and China coal mining, as well as further reductions in O&G activity. At this point in time, as a result of lower revenue expectations and the company's current lack of visibility to its end markets, the company expects as much as a 30-60% decrease in previously announced guidance for fiscal 2016 adjusted earnings per diluted share.

• In early November, the co updated its FY16 outlook saying, "The depth and duration of the downturn in the company's served end markets coupled with recent macroeconomic concerns has weakened the company's fiscal 2016 outlook. The company now expects fiscal 2016 total sales to decline in the range of 10 to 14 percent and organic sales to decline in the range of 6 to 10 percent. Previously, the decline in total sales was projected to be in the range of 7 to 9 percent, with a decline in organic sales of 1 to 3 percent. Kennametal now expects consolidated adjusted EPS to be in the range of $1.50 to $1.70 for the full fiscal year. "
• Current Capital IQ consensus estimates call for a y/y decline in revenues of ~14% to $2.28 bln and a y/y decline in EPS of ~26% to $1.50. The company will provide more detail at the time of the February 2016 Earnings call. 

4:36 pm American Water Works reaffirms prior 2015 EPS guidance; guides EPS in-line for 2016 (AWK) :

• Co reaffirms prior 2015 EPS guidance of $2.60-2.65 vs CapitalIQ consensus of $2.62.
• Co guides to 2016 EPS of $2.75-2.85 vs consensus of $2.82. Co says the 2016 guidance is based on the continued execution of its strategic goals.
• "Highlights of our achievements this year include our success in growth with seven completed regulated acquisitions to date and the addition of our 12th military base contract, approximately $1.2 billion in planned capital investment into our systems, and continued gains in efficiency and cost management."

4:31 pm Intl Game Tech. PLC reaches agreement with Kaw Gaming to provide IGT casino management systems and games to SouthWind Braman and SouthWind Kanza Casinos in Oklahoma (IGT) :  

4:31 pm Black Hills Corp appoints Linn Evans as President and COO (BKH) : Evans has served as president and COO of utilities for the co since 2004.

4:31 pm Pfizer increases quarterly dividend to $0.30/share from $0.28/share (PFE) :  

4:30 pm NeoThetics reports top-line results from its Abcontour 1 and Abcontour 2 pivotal Phase 3 trials of LIPO-202 for the reduction of central abdominal bulging; neither trial met its endpoint (NEOT) : In both studies, LIPO-202 did not meet its co-primary composite and secondary endpoints. The co-primary endpoints were the proportion of subjects who reported an improvement of at least one point on the Patient-Global Abdominal Perception Scale (P-GAPS) and an improvement of at least two points on the Clinician Photonumeric Scale and the proportion of subjects who reported an improvement of at least two points on the P-GAPS and an improvement of at least two points on the CPnS. LIPO-202 continued to show a benign safety profile in these trials.

4:27 pm Norwegian Cruise Line announces secondary public offering of approximately 10.3 mln of common stock by certain funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management and Star NCLC Holdings (NCLH) : Concurrently with and subject to completion of the offering, co has agreed to repurchase from the Underwriter ordinary shares that are being sold by the Selling Shareholders in the offering having an aggregate purchase price of ~$20.0 mln at a price per share equal to the price per share to be paid by the Underwriter to the Selling Shareholders. The share repurchase is part of Norwegian's existing $500.0 mln share repurchase program.

4:25 pm Carmike Cinemas named Rob Collins to the newly created position of Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer effective immediately (CKEC) :  

4:25 pm American Electric's Ohio unit has filed a stipulated agreement with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, in support of American Electric's purchase power agreement (AEP) : The stipulated agreement, expected to be ruled on by the PUCO early in 2016, would require AEP Ohio to enter into an eight-year power purchase agreement for the capacity, energy and ancillary service output of AEP's 2,671 megawatt ownership share of nine generating units and AEP Ohio's 423 MW contractual share of Ohio Valley Electric Corporation (:OVEC) generation.

4:20 pm Digital Turbine revises FY16 (Mar) revs guidance to $90 -100 mln vs $102.84 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate based on expected timing of device launches (APPS) :

• The primary reason for the update is a revision in the expected timing of device launches with multiple recently added major distribution partners to now launch in the first quarter fiscal 2017 rather than in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2016, as well as the onboarding of other new distribution partners later in Q4 than originally anticipated, reducing their contribution to fiscal 2016 revenue.
• Co expects to achieve adjusted EBITDA profitability for the fiscal 2016 fourth quarter ended March. The Advertising business, which is the key driver of fiscal third quarter 2016 growth, is demonstrating continued expansion in both DT Media and Appia Core. Within DT Media, the combination of the expansion of DT Ignite slots across US carriers that is resulting in increasing yield per device and a seasonal increase in device sell-through is expected to drive second half fiscal 2016 revenue growth of up to ~200% on a sequential basis versus $7.3 million in first half fiscal 2016. Yield per device is trending over the Company's target of $2 to date in the quarter.

4:19 pm RCI Hospitality reports Q4 results; will focus on margin expansion in FY16 (RICK) :

• Q4 non-GAAP EPS $0.17 vs. $0.23 last year; rev +4.4% to $35 mln (no estimates).
• While the company has focused on growing revenues over the last five years, RCI now is placing increased emphasis on expanding margins. "With annual revenues of about $145 million, if costs are reduced by an amount equal to 1% of revenue, that reduction would equate to approximately $0.09 per share in after tax profit, using the September 30th share count."

4:17 pm Kimberly-Clark amends bylaws to allow eligible shareholders to have their own director nominees included in the company's proxy statement for the annual meeting (KMB) : Under the amendments, a shareholder, or a group of up to 20 shareowners, owning at least three percent of Kimberly-Clark's outstanding common stock continuously for three or more years may submit director nominees for up to the greater of two directors or 20 percent of the board, provided the shareholders and nominees satisfy the requirements specified in the by-laws.

4:17 pm Franklin Financial Network to acquire Nashville-based Civic Bank & Trust for ~$29.7 mln, expects immediate accretion tangible book value and EPS in first year (FSB) :

The transaction values Civic at approximately $29.7 million. Franklin Synergy Bank estimates immediate accretion to its tangible book value per share as well as its capital ratios. The transaction is expected to be accretive to operating EPS immediately. In the transaction, holders of Civic common stock will receive shares of Franklin Financial Network, Inc. common stock. Upon closing, Franklin Financial Network, Inc. shareholders will own approximately 91% of the combined company; Civic shareholders will own approximately 9%. 

• Based on financial results as of September 30, 2015, the combined company would have total assets of $2.1 billion, $1.8 billion in total deposits and $1.2 billion in total loans, with an expanded footprint of 13 offices in the three demographically attractive markets of Davidson, Williamson and Rutherford counties.

4:16 pm FXCM reports November monthly metrics, showing retail customer trading volume of -12% Y/Y to $298 bln (FXCM) :

• Retail Customer Trading Metrics
  • Retail customer trading volume of $298 billion in November 2015, 11% lower than October 2015 and 12% lower than November 2014.
  • Active accounts of 179,905 as of November 30, 2015, an increase of 1,632, or 1%, from October 2015, and an increase of 16,575, or 10%, from November 2014.
• Institutional Customer Trading Metrics
  • Institutional customer trading volume((2)) of $41 billion in November 2015, 21% higher than October 2015 and 51% lower than November 2014.

4:16 pm WP Glimcher closes new seven-year, $340 million unsecured term loan facility (WPG) : Co borrowed $340 million under the facility, which matures in January 2023. Concurrent with the closing, coexecuted interest rate swap agreements totaling $340 million, which effectively fixes the interest rate on the term loan at 3.51% through the maturity of the facility.

4:16 pm Regional Mgmt enters into new credit agreement providing for a $75 mln amortizing loan to its Regional Management Receivables subsidiary (RM) : The loan is secured by automobile receivables originated by Regional Management subsidiaries. RMR, as borrower under the facility, will pay interest of 3.00% per annum on the loan balance from the closing date until the date the loan balance has been fully repaid.

4:16 pm Boeing raises share repurchase program to $14 bln and increased 20% to $1.09 per share (BA) : Co's board of directors has raised the share repurchase program to $14 bln and declared that the company's quarterly dividend will increase 20% to $1.09 per share. The new $14 billion repurchase authorization replaces the $12 billion authorization approved last December, of which $5.25 billion remained. Share repurchases for 2015 have been completed for a year-end total of $6.75 billion.

4:15 pm Cameco reports that production from the Cigar Lake mine in northern Saskatchewan has surpassed 10 million pounds of uranium concentrate (CCJ) : Co announces that production from the Cigar Lake mine in northern Saskatchewan has surpassed 10 mln pounds of uranium concentrate (Cameco's share 5 mln pounds). The Cigar Lake mine is owned by Cameco (50.025%), AREVA Resources Canada Inc. (37.1%), Idemitsu Canada Resources Ltd. (7.875%) and TEPCO Resources Inc. (5.0%) and is operated by Cameco.

4:15 pm F5 Networks appoints Chairman John McAdam as President and Chief Executive Officer (FFIV) :

Co announced that John McAdam, Chairman of the F5 Board of Directors, has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer. McAdam joined F5 in July 2000, and served as the Company's President and Chief Executive Officer until his retirement in July 2015. In connection with this appointment, McAdam will remain a member of the F5 Board but will step down as Chairman in order to focus on his executive duties and actively lead the Company forward. Alan Higginson, who currently serves as F5's Lead Independent Director, has been appointed Non-Executive Chairman of the Board. All actions are effective immediately.

• McAdam succeeds Manuel Rivelo who has resigned from his position of President and Chief Executive Officer, and as a member of the F5 Board of Directors, for matters regarding personal conduct unrelated to the operations or financials of the Company.

4:13 pm Midatech Pharma enters into a supply agreement for Q-Octreotide with Centurion Pharma (MTP) : The agreement grants exclusive rights to Q-Octreotide, a sustained release version of Octreotide which Midatech is developing for the treatment of carcinoid and acromegaly, to Centurion for the Turkish market. As part of the agreement, Midatech will receive up front, milestone and royalty payments. Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.

4:08 pm Delta Apparel reports Q4 $0.53 vs $0.60 single analyst estimate; revs +13% YoY to $120.2 mln vs $118.58 mln single analyst estimate and in-line with preannouncement (DLA) : "Looking ahead, we believe there will be a continuation of the soft retail environment but, regardless, we believe we are positioned to further improve our operating results in 2016. Our fixed cost structure is now lower and we will have a full fiscal year to reap the anticipated benefits of the actions we took in the past year. We are excited about introducing new performance and lifestyle products across our business units for Spring that we believe will enhance our current offerings to consumers. These steps give us encouragement that we should see another year of sales growth and profit improvement for Delta Apparel in fiscal year 2016."

4:08 pm Revance Therapeutics names Abhay Joshi, PhD, as Chief Operating Officer effective immediately (RVNC) : Dr. Joshi comes to Revance from Alvine Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a private, clinical-stage company focused on the development of biologics targeting autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, where he was President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director. Revance also announced the promotion of Lauren Silvernail to Chief Financial Officer and Chief Business Officer effective today. Mrs. Silvernail joined the company in March of 2013 as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and has since helped take the company public, raise more than $400 million in equity and debt and attain a market capitalization of approximately $1 billion.

4:08 pm Closing Market Summary: Crude Oil Leads Stocks Higher (:WRAPX) :

The stock market began the trading week on a higher note, but not before showing some late morning volatility. The S&P 500 climbed 0.5% after briefly dipping below the 2,000 mark while the Nasdaq Composite (+0.4%) underperformed slightly.

Equity indices slumped out of the gate with cyclical sectors fueling the early weakness. That selling was congruent with a retreat in the oil market, but a reversal in crude futures helped halt the slide in equities. The stock market spent the afternoon near its flat line, rallying to a fresh high during the final 15 minutes of the session.

Crude oil was in focus throughout the day as the energy component probed the $34.60/bbl area in overnight action before rallying to end the day higher by 2.0% at $36.34/bbl. The late morning reversal underpinned the energy sector (+0.8%), which rebounded from last week's 6.6% dive.

The energy sector climbed into the green with relative ease, but the same could not be said for most of the remaining cyclical groups. The technology sector (+0.6%) was an exception as the top-weighted group climbed ahead of the broader market during the afternoon after showing relative weakness at the start. That early weakness could be traced back to the shares of Apple (AAPL 112.48, -0.70) as the tech giant struggled after Morgan Stanley lowered its iPhone sales forecast. Apple settled lower by 0.6% after being down more than 2.0% in the early going.

The uptick in the tech sector masked relative weakness among high-beta chipmakers. Accordingly, the PHLX Semiconductor Index settled lower by 0.7% with most of its components ending in the red.

Staying on the high-beta theme, transport stocks also struggled while biotechnology benefited from the late afternoon strength. The Dow Jones Transportation Average surrendered 0.5%, widening its December loss to 7.6%, while the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 320.84, +0.95) gained 0.3%.

On the corporate front, Jarden (JAH 54.09, +1.41) spiked 2.7% after agreeing to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL 42.15, -3.13) for $60/share in cash and stock.

The oil-driven rebound off late morning lows masked continued weakness in the corporate bond space. High-yield remained weak with iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate ETF (HYG 78.83, -0.69) falling 0.9%, while investment grade debt also faced some pressure, evidenced by a 0.7% decline in iShares Investment Grade Corp Bond ETF (LQD 114.35, -0.85).

Treasuries retreated throughout the day, ending on their lows with the 10-yr yield rising ten basis points to 2.23%.

Today's participation was ahead of average as more than a billion shares changed hands at the NYSE floor.

Tomorrow, November CPI (Briefing.com consensus 0.0%) and December Empire Manufacturing Index (expected -5.9) will be reported at 8:30 ET while December NAHB Housing Market Index (consensus 63) will cross the wires at 10:00 ET.

• Nasdaq Composite +4.6% YTD
• S&P 500 -1.8% YTD
• Dow Jones Industrial Average -2.6% YTD
• Russell 2000 -7.4% YTD

4:07 pm VeriFone beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS and rev below consensus; guides FY16 EPS and rev towards the low end of expectations (PAY) :

• Reports Q4 (Oct) earnings of $0.49 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.48; revenues rose 4.8% year/year to $514 mln vs the $512.93 mln Capital IQ Consensus.
• Co issues downside guidance for Q1 and FY16,
  • Sees Q1 EPS of $0.45, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.50 Capital IQ Consensus; sees Q1 revs of $500 mln vs. $505.90 mln Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Sees FY16 EPS of $2.15-2.17, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $2.18 Capital IQ Consensus; sees FY16 revs +5% (+9% ex-FX) $2.09-2.11 bln vs. $2.11 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.

4:06 pm Novavax completes target enrollment of its pivotal Phase 3 Resolve clinical trial, for the RSV F Vaccine in older adults (NVAX) : All participants have been enrolled and vaccinated in advance of the 2015-16 RSV season, and top-line results are expected in the second half of 2016.

4:06 pm Adamas Pharmaceuticals completes enrollment in its Phase 3 EASE LID 3 study for the treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesia (ADMS) : "We look forward to announcing top-line data from the EASE LID and EASE LID 3 trials in the near future and being one step closer to a potential new treatment option for Parkinson's patients experiencing the often debilitating effects of levodopa-induced dyskinesia."

4:06 pm Illumina and bioMrieux launch bioMrieux EpiSeq (ILMN) : The bioMrieux EpiSeq service will first be launched in Europe followed by North America and Asia. The menu will initially consist of Staphylococcus aureus and will subsequently be expanded to include the other bacterial species most commonly responsible for healthcare-associated infections.

4:06 pm Veracyte reports that Health Care Service Corporation, a licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association has approved coverage for Veracyte's Afirma Gene Expression Classifier (VCYT) : The policy will cover as medically necessary the genomic test for HCSC's nearly 16 million members, effective January 1, 2016. The plans determined that the Afirma GEC may be medically necessary for use in identifying patients with benign thyroid nodules -- and who can thus potentially avoid a diagnostic surgery -- among those whose fine needle aspiration biopsy results are indeterminate following traditional cytopathology review.

4:03 pm Express Scripts announces plan to release 2016 guidance next Tuesday, Dec. 22, via press release before the market open followed by a 9:00 am ET conference call (ESRX) : "With integration activities firmly behind us and the continued improvement in our budgeting process, our leadership team is pleased to announce an accelerated schedule to provide 2016 financial guidance," said Eric Slusser, Chief Financial Officer. "We look forward to sharing our outlook before the start of the New Year."

4:02 pm Synergy Resources Co-CEOs Ed Holloway and William Scaff to stop down effective December 31 (SYRG) : Holloway and Scaff will remain on the board of directors of Synergy. Synergy's Board of Directors has appointed Lynn A. Peterson, current President, to the position of Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2016. Mr. Holloway and Mr. Scaff will also serve as advisors to Mr. Peterson regarding strategic initiatives, asset acquisitions and other activities through May 31, 2016.

4:01 pm Spark Therapeutics commences an underwritten public offering of 3 mln shares of common stock; 1 mln to be offered by selling stockholders (ONCE) : The offering consists of 2,000,000 shares being offered by Spark and 1,000,000 shares being offered by The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Cowen and Company, LLC and Evercore Group L.L.C. will act as bookrunning managers for the offering.

4:01 pm Apollo Investment approves a new $50 mln stock repurchase plan (AINV) : Co announces that since adopting a stock repurchase plan in August 2015, the co has repurchased all $50 mln. Co announces a new stock repurchase plan to acquire up to $50 mln of common stock. The Repurchase Plan does not have an expiration date and may continue to be modified or discontinued at any time.

4:01 pm Amgen enters into a definitive agreement with GSK to reacquire all of its remaining rights to Prolia, Xgeva and Vectibix in 48 countries in Asia, South America, Europe and Australia; anticipates this transaction to be accretive to adj 2017 EPS (AMGN) : The majority of markets are planned to be transitioned back to Amgen within a 12-month period.

3:17 pm HEICO declares a 14% increase in its semi-annual cash dividend to $0.08/share from $0.07/share (HEI) :  

3:01 pm Jones Lang LaSalle acquires real estate firm Cresa South Florida; terms not disclosed (JLL) :  

2:55 pm Fresh rebound highs for the Nasdaq Comp +8.4 and Dow Transports -- S&P +4.3 and Dow +48 are working up toward the midday highs (:TECHX) :  

2:31 pm Arthur J. Gallagher acquires Centennial Insurance Agency, based in Pueblo, Colorado; terms not disclosed (AJG) :  

2:28 pm FXCM (+46%) surges after co late Friday said restructuring discussions with Leucadia (LUK) are ongoing; hinted at co/mgmt buying the stock (FXCM) : FXCM hit a new all time low on Friday before the release.

2:18 pm Facebook: FB now trading +1.55%, reversing earlier losses off the 101.46 multi-week low & reclaiming the widely watched 50d moving average support today (FB) :  

2:00 pm Goodyear Tire is selected by Boeing (BA) to provide main nose and landing gear tires for its new 777X aircraft, which is scheduled for delivery in 2019 (GT) :  

1:54 pm SPDR DJIA ETF: CVX now +3.0%, & XOM now +1.8% continue to lead all DJIA 30 components with the index now trading around the unch. mark as we approaching the afternoon trading session here (DIA) :  

1:41 pm Cormedix reports that the first patient has been enrolled and dosed in its LOCK-IT-100 Phase 3 clinical study of Neutrolin, to be used in preventing catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRMD) :  

1:30 pm Craft Brew Alliance elected David Lord to the position of Board Chairman effective January 1 2016 succeeding Kurt Widmer, who is retiring (BREW) : Lord served as the President of Pioneer News Group, Inc. from 1991 until 2009, when he assumed the role of Vice Chairman, a position he held until December 2012.

1:29 pm iKang Healthcare Group: Meinian Consortium increases its acquisition offer for iKang to $23.50/share (KANG) :

Jiangsu Sanyou Group Co Ltd announces that the consortium of which it is a member has submitted a revised and improved proposal to acquire iKang Healthcare. The Improved Proposal was submitted to the Special Committee of the Board of Directors and the Consortium wishes to express that it remains committed to its objective of acquiring iKang.

• The Improved Proposal increases the offer to $23.50 per ADS or US$47.0 per share in cash to acquire 100% of the outstanding Shares (including Shares represented by ADSs) of iKang. The improved offer price represents a premium of approximately 46.2% to the unaffected closing price on August 28, 2015, the last trading day before iKang publicly announced receipt of the Insider Proposal, and a premium of approximately 32% to the Insider Proposal. The improved offer price is also  $3 higher per share than $44 per share the Consortium originally offered in its preliminary non-binding proposal on November 29, 2015.

12:59 pm Major averages vacillating near their morning rebound highs -- Dow +53, S&P +2.6, Nasdaq Comp -5.5 (:TECHX) :  

12:57 pm Midday Market Summary: Oil in Focus (:WRAPX) :

The major averages hover near their flat lines at midday after climbing off their late morning lows. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has paced the turnaround, trading higher by 0.3%, while the S&P 500 (+0.1%) and Nasdaq (-0.2%) follow.

Equities faced some selling pressure at the start with cyclical sectors fueling the early weakness. That selling was congruent with a retreat in the oil market, but a reversal in crude has helped halt the slide in equities. At this juncture, WTI crude is higher by 2.8% at $36.60/bbl after dipping below $34.60/bbl earlier. Accordingly, the energy sector (+0.8%) has benefitted from the turn, which puts the growth-sensitive group ahead of its peers.

Similar to energy, the technology sector (-0.2%) contributed to the opening weakness, but unlike energy, the top-weighted sector remains among the laggards at this time. Shares of Apple (AAPL 111.17, -2.01) are largely responsible for the underperformance as the stock trades lower by 1.8% after Morgan Stanley lowered its iPhone sales forecast.

Elsewhere, the industrial sector (-0.2%) has spent the first half behind the broader market with transport stocks showing relative weakness. The Dow Jones Transportation Average is lower by 0.9% today, widening its December loss to 7.9%.

Last week, the news of Third Avenue Management liquidating its high-yield Focused Credit Fund turned everyone's attention to the junk bond arena where iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate ETF (HYG 78.47, -1.05) has slid to a four-year low. The high-yield ETF has taken another step back today, trading lower by 1.3% at this juncture.

Company-specific news has been relegated to the backburner today, but it is worth noting that Jarden (JAH 52.86, +0.18) has climbed 0.3% after agreeing to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL 40.29, -4.99) for $60/share in cash and stock.

Strikingly, Treasuries have spent the day in a retreat and they sit on their lows at this time with the benchmark yield up nine basis points at 2.22%.

12:33 pm Solid intraday follow through off morning lows --Dow +45, S&P +1.6 (:TECHX) : Supports noted earlier (11:42) provided a floor this morning with the Dow rebounding as much as 180 points (S&P 21 points off low).

12:29 pm SPDR DJIA ETF: DJIA now + 29 pts. with leadership now seen in CVX, XOM, TRV, MMM, NKE, & VZ all > +1% here (DIA) :  

12:14 pm Stock indices extend rebound attempt -- S&P -4, Dow -5 (:TECHX) : Noted at 11:42 that the S&P and Dow were probing second level supports from The Technical Take (1993/1991 S&P, 17147/17140 Dow). The indices held near these levels and extended as high as 2009 S&P and 17281 Dow in recent action.

12:01 pm European Markets Closing Prices (:SUMRX) : European markets are now closed; stock markets across Europe performed as follows:

• UK's FTSE:-1.3%
• Germany's DAX:-1.9%
• France's CAC:-1.7%
• Spain's IBEX:-2.1%
• Portugal's PSI:-1.2%
• Italy's MIB Index:-2.4%
• Irish Ovrl Index:-0.4%
• Greece ASE General Index: +2.1%

11:56 am Intraday relative sector strength as indices attempt to work off morning lows (:TECHX) : Sectors displaying some relative strength vs. the S&P in recent trade include: Reg Bank KRE, Bank KBE, Crude Oil USO, Rail, Energy XLE.

11:48 am Choice Hotels increases quarterly dividend $0.01/share to $0.205/share (CHH) :  

11:47 am Illumina and Novogene have entered into an agreement to jointly develop advanced clinical applications in the fields of reproductive health and oncology based on next-generation sequencing technology (ILMN) : As part of the agreement, Novogene will provide its nucleic acid extraction, library preparation, and data analysis software, while Illumina will provide NGS instrument components and related reagents.

11:44 am Floor Talk (:TALKX) :

Market participants can be forgiven for feeling a little dazed and confused these days. The capital markets have been an unruly bunch, so much so that we are hearing talk about margin calls, forced liquidation, and fear-based selling at a time when everyone thought they might be hearing talk of performance chasing, rate hike optimism, and favorable seasonality.

There is still time left in the month for the seasonally good tidings to avail themselves, but right now, the markets aren't exactly showing a great deal of holiday cheer and that has participants on edge.

• Oil prices have continued to fall, but remarkably so have the transports. In fact, the Dow Jones Transportation Average hit a new 52-week low today.
• A weaker yuan and falling oil prices are stirring concerns about the potential for further disinflation, if not actual deflation being exported from abroad, and yet the long end of the Treasury curve is being sold today
• The euro continues to exhibit relative strength (+0.5% at 1.1040 against the dollar), laying continued waste to the consensus long dollar-short euro trade and stirring up angst about unwinding carry-trade positions
• The US economy is supposedly the bright spot of the world economy and yet the Russell 2000, which is dominated by companies that derive the bulk of their sales from the US, is underperforming today (-0.9%) and year-to-date (-7.5%)
• The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX 26.17, +1.77) is surging again, up 7.2% today and up 77% over the last six trading sessions

It's all kind of a mess at the moment and it has led to a bout of persistent selling in recent sessions that has carried the S&P 500 back below the 2000 level.

December has a reputation for being a good month for the stock market. That hasn't been the case so far this year as the S&P 500 is down 4.0% for the month. There is a budding sense that the market is oversold on a short-term basis and due for a decent-sized rebound as investor pessimism (a contrarian indicator) continues to swell.

Time will tell if the rebound comes, but the absence of seasonal cheer so far and the bid to reduce exposure in many areas -- not just stocks -- is a further weight on sentiment because it is creating a good bit of uncertainty about what it all means.

11:42 am S&P -15 and Dow -94 probe second level supports (:TECHX) : The S&P and Dow have probed second level supports from The Technical Take at 1993/1991 (session low 1993) and 17147/17140 (session low 17138), respectively.

11:38 am Slow slide continues with Nasdaq Comp -56 and S&P -17 setting new session lows -- Dow -113 just above its trough (:TECHX) :  

11:36 am Associated Capital Group reports Board authorization for a 500K common share buyback program (AC) :  

11:22 am Currency Commentary: Markets Prepare for Fed Decision (:SUMRX) :

• The Dollar Index is testing its 50-sma (97.62) as we kick off a big Fed week. The majority of market participants are expecting the Fed to finally tighten the interest rates with a 25 bps hike on Wednesday. But rather than a run up ahead of the move we are seeing more profit taking in the greenback. This has the DXY testing its 50-sma and we are sitting just above a key confluence area of the 100- and 200-smas (96.72-96.89). This key area may find its way into the story this week in what promises to be a volatile one.
• The euro is seeing a bid as some of the recent funding trade is unwound. The euro is now testing a key area that is currently housing the 50-, 100-, and 200 sma (1.0957-1.1062) as it continues to squeeze higher. Economic data in the region was positive as Industrial Production bounced back to a gain of 0.6%, which was better than expected. ECB President Mario Draghi was out reiterating that the central bank had no limits to tools it could use to spur inflation. But the overall market continues to be skeptical as it appears German central bankers remain an obstacle. Markets will await the latest PMI preliminary data on Wednesday morning, but the Fed remains the clear main event this week.
• The pound is trying to hold the 1.51 level in early trade. The move comes ahead of some key inflation data that is due out tomorrow morning at 4:30am ET.
• The yen has broke above its key confluence area and has marched into the 120 area on safe haven buying. Yen is now at its best level in six weeks as leverage is wound down ahead of the Fed's decision. The country did see its Tankan survey outpace expectations but the cautious forward outlook took away from the headline beat (FOREX, BONDX). 

11:21 am Amazon: AMZN out-performs here, now trading +0.70% as price holds Friday's 639.62 sell-off low print to the tick this morning (AMZN) :  

11:14 am Stock indices find no buying interest, drop to new session lows -- Dow -105, S&P -13, Nasdaq Comp -34 (:TECHX) :  

11:02 am Dow Transports slips under Aug low at 7452 to set a new 52-wk intraday low of 7436 (:TECHX) : The Dow transports dropped to its lowest level since April 2014 at its first hour/session low. The Transportation ETF (IYT) slipped under its Aug close low (134.14, session low 133.80) but did not come close to the Aug spike down low at 128.28).

10:47 am Lakeland announces that the shareholders of Pascack Bancorp have approved the merger of Pascack Bancorp into co; intend transaction to close on or about January 7, 2016. (LBAI) :  

10:45 am Round number tests for Nasdaq Comp -11 session low 4902 and S&P -3.2 session low 2002 (:TECHX) : The indices have recently stabilized near round number supports with some upticks developing. For the S&P initially watching 2014/2015 and the intraday spike high 2021.

10:27 am Small-/Mid-Caps and Nasdaq Comp -22 slide to new session lows along with A/D Line, Dow -59, S&P -7 are nearing their lows (:TECHX) :  

10:23 am Netflix extends to new low of 116.26, working back to the vicinity of its 50 ema at 115.77 (NFLX) : Note that its Oct and early Nov high / bull breakout point are at 115.83 and 115.68

10:18 am Erratic, lower volume action continues with stock indices currently chopping near mid-range -- Dow -20, S&P -2, Nasdaq Comp -9 (:TECHX) :  

10:18 am Boeing: BA now trading -1.2%, a notable laggard as price slides to new lows in recent 1st hour trading, holding just above last weeks important 142.27 swing low this morning (BA) :  

10:13 am Stock indices rotate lower to set new session lows -- Dow -39, S&P -4.9, Nasdaq Comp -13 (:TECHX) :  

10:10 am Destination Maternity issues a statement, confirming that the unsolicited proposal from Orchestra-Premaman S.A. is not in the best interests of stockholders (DEST) :

Co confirmed that its Board of Directors, after consulting with its financial and legal advisors, unanimously determined that an unsolicited proposal from Orchestra-Premaman S.A. to enter into negotiations to acquire the company was not in the best interests of Destination Maternity and its stockholders.

• Co stated: "After serious consideration, and based on the preliminary discussions, the Board unanimously decided that pursuing the stock-merger proposal would not be in the best interests of our stockholders considering the risks inherent in a primarily stock based merger transaction dependent on uncertain revenue synergies."

10:09 am Stock indices edge up toward tight morning range highs -- Dow +25, S&P +3.8, Nasdaq Comp +8.2 (:TECHX) : The S&P has been flirting with an equality target at 2007 (Nov high to mid-month low off Dec peak -- see The Technical Take for chart). While it did slip under Friday's low 2008.80 (session low 2008.62) it has continued to hold above the equity target.

10:06 am Walt Disney firmer in early trade (DIS) : Noted here on Friday that it was probing its 200 ema at (107.64 today, Friday's low 107.61). A recovery attempt this morning has flirted with the underside of its 200 sma and Friday's high at 109.74/109.95 -- session high 109.81.

10:03 am Franklin Resources (-3%): Asset manager falls to three year low (BEN) : Barclays downgraded to Underweight last week

9:55 am Travelers testing its 50 sma/ema and Friday' high between 110.85 and 111.10 --session high 111.10 (TRV) :  

9:52 am Early relative sector strength (:TECHX) : Sectors that are outperforming the S&P on a relative basis in recent trade include: Biotech IBB (CHRS, VRX, GENE, BLUE, MYGN, BMRN, JUNO, PRGO, ALXN, CELG), Internet FDN, Airline JETS, Health XLV, Staples XLP.

9:51 am Opko Health and North Shore-LIJ Health System form a strategic alliance to provide genomic testing, molecular diagnostic testing and ancillary support services such as genetic counseling (OPK) :

The scope of testing will cover all genetic disorders, including prenatal screening, pediatric and postnatal diagnosis, assessing risk for inherited cancer, and testing for genetic cardiac abnormalities and neurological disorders. It will also include genetic analysis of cancer for sensitivity to drug therapies.

• Through this alliance, North Shore-LIJ will utilize co's GeneDx and GenPath divisions as its primary laboratory for genomic testing.
• Forms a LLC
  • Its purpose will be to generate knowledge leading to new discoveries from a shared data infrastructure consisting of fully annotated genomic data with detailed clinical information, which will help build the evidence base for the medical necessity of genomic and genetic testing.

9:49 am Opening Market Summary: Energy and Technology Display Opening Weakness (:WRAPX) :

The major averages displayed modest gains at the start, but they have returned to unchanged amid losses in six of ten sectors. The S&P 500 is higher by 0.1% with commodity-related materials (-1.2%) and energy (-0.9%) showing early weakness.

Both cyclical sectors have retreated amid continued weakness in commodities. To that point, crude oil is lower by 1.3% at $35.11/bbl while copper futures have surrendered 0.4% to $2.11/lbs.

In addition, the top-weighted technology sector (-0.5%) also lags with Apple (AAPL 110.83, -2.36) down 2.1% after Morgan Stanley lowered the iPhone sales forecast for the company.

Treasuries have slid to new lows, pushing the 10-yr yield up to 2.18% (+6 bps).

9:49 am Nasdaq Comp +3 and Dow +8 slipped under Friday's low and attempt to recover, S&P +3 thus far did not confirm the break of last week's low (:TECHX) :  

9:46 am Relative sector weakness (:TECHX) : Sector underperforming in early trade include: Crude Oil USO, Gold Miners GDX, Silver SLV, Materials XLB, Energy XLE, Reg Bank KRE, Bank KBE, Semi SMH, Oil Service OIH.

9:44 am DuPont continues to weaken off last week M&A related high, gap close is at 67.38 -- session low 67.53 (DD) :  

9:41 am Stock indices slip back off early highs amid limited action -- Dow -20, S&P -0.3, Nasdaq Comp -2.7 (:TECHX) :  

9:40 am Fiat Chrysler determines the Ferrari common shares to be delivered to holders of its 7.875% mandatory convertible securities due 2016 (FCAU) :

Based on the spin-off ratio of one Ferrari common share for every ten underlying FCA common shares, FCA will deliver to holders of the mandatory convertible securities, upon the effectiveness of the Ferrari spin-off, 0.77369 common shares of Ferrari for each $100 in outstanding mandatory convertible securities.

• Co will deliver a total of 22,243,588 Ferrari common shares in respect of the $2,875,000,000 aggregate outstanding mandatory convertible securities.

9:39 am Wal-Mart retesting its 50 sma resistance (WMT) : The 50 day sma/ema have provided key resistance on recovery attempts throughout 2015. The 50 day sma is at 59.94 (session high 59.97) with the 50 day ema at 60.48.

9:36 am Waste Mgmt to increase quarterly dividend payments 6.5% to $0.41/share from $0.385/share and authorization for up to $1 bln in share repurchases (WM) : Co received authorization from its Board of Directors to repurchase $1 bln of the Company's common stock in future periods. This authorization refreshes the Company's previous $1 bln share buyback authorization under which Waste Management entered into agreements in 2015 to repurchase $750 mln of its common stock.

9:35 am Apple gaps lower extends to 111.30 (AAPL) : Note that the Nov low is at 111.00

9:32 am Ferrari announces that the Borsa Italiana S.p.A. has approved its common share listing on the Mercato Telematico Azionario (RACE) : Ferrari shares are expected to commence trading, subject to completion of the separation, on January 4, 2016.

9:28 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• Synopsys (SNPS) announced that Axell, a fabless design company of graphics chips for interactive entertainment and industrial embedded systems, has switched to Synopsys' Design Compiler RTL synthesis solution for their IC designs.
• Southern Company (SO) subsidiary Southern Power, announced its first wind project the 299 MW Kay Wind facility in Kay County, Oklahoma, is fully operational.
• Sysorex (SYRX) announced a $3.9 mln purchase order from the City of Seattle to design and deploy an advanced information systems architecture
• Imaging Advantage and RadNet (RDNT) entered into a multi-year strategic relationship. Under the terms of the strategic agreement, the parties will collaborate to deploy innovative models of delivering radiology services

9:18 am Industrial Services announces the sale of its Waste Services segment for $7.5 mln minus a working capital adjustment (IDSA) : Co announced the sale of its Waste Services segment. The Company received cash consideration at closing of $7.5 million, less $150,000 retained by Purchaser which will be released to the Company or retained by the Purchaser in connection with any working capital adjustment. The Company used the proceeds, net of transaction costs, to repay debt.

9:16 am American Midstream Partners Executive Chairman, President, and CEO Steve Bergstrom retires; appoints Lynn L. Bourdon III Chairman, President and CEO (AMID) :

Co announces that Steve Bergstrom, Executive Chairman, President, and CEO, retired from his position effective December 10, 2015.

• Bergstrom will continue to serve as a Director on the BoD. Lynn L. Bourdon III has been appointed Chairman, President and CEO.
• Bourdon served as President and CEO of Enable Midstream Partners, LP.

9:16 am S&P futures vs fair value: +1.40. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +5.10. (:WRAPX) :

The stock market is on track for a flat open as S&P 500 futures trade one point above fair value after climbing off their early morning lows.

Overnight, most Asian markets struggled, but China's Shanghai Composite (+2.5%) bucked the trend thanks to some better than expected economic data that included November Retail Sales (+11.2% year-over-year; consensus 11.1%; previous 11.0%), November Industrial Production (+6.2% year-over-year; expected 5.6%; last 5.6%), and November Fixed Asset Investment (+10.2% year-over-year; consensus 10.1%; prior 10.2%).

Unlike Chinese equities, markets across Europe have struggled while crude oil has faced a continuation of last week's selling pressure. The energy component has bounced off its low, but remains down 1.2% at $35.18/bbl after dipping below $34.60/bbl earlier.

Investors did not receive any economic data today while corporate news has been limited. On the M&A front, Jarden (JAH 53.85, +1.17) has spiked 2.2% in pre-market after agreeing to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL 41.80, -3.48) for $60/share in cash and stock.

Treasuries have retreated, pushing the 10-yr yield higher by four basis points to 2.17%.

9:10 am Rexahn Pharmaceuticals presents preclinical data for its anti-cancer compound, Supinoxin; demonstrates 50% tumor inhibition in animal trials (RNN) : The results demonstrated that oral administration of ascending weekly doses of Supinoxin of 160, 320 and 600 mg/kg showed dose-dependent, potent tumor growth inhibition of 44%, 65% and 83%, respectively, and extended the overall survival of these animals. Moreover, by comparison, 5 mg/kg of Abraxane administered by intravenous injection achieved 50% tumor inhibition.

9:06 am Advaxis confirms receipt of Orphan Drug Designation in the EU for Axalimogene Filolisbac for the treatment of anal cancer (ADXS) :  

9:02 am Viggle confirms the sale of certain assets to Perk.com; intends to rebrand itself as DraftDay to focus greater attention on its recently acquired DraftDay Gaming Group subsidiary (VGGL) :

Co confirmed its has entered into an agreement to sell a number of assets, including the Viggle applications and rewards program, to Perk.com. Viggle intends to rebrand itself as DraftDay to focus greater attention on its recently acquired DraftDay Gaming Group subsidiary which it will retain as its entertainment publishing site. Viggle will change its trading symbol to DDAY, which it has reserved with the NASDAQ. At the present time, Wetpaint.com, its play-along app MyGuy, and its B2B provider of digital rewards in loyalty programs Choose Digital, will be retained and managed by Viggle as it explores strategic alternatives for these non-DraftDay assets.

• Upon closing of the transaction, Perk.com has agreed to pay 1.5 million PER.TO shares to Viggle, which equates to $4.7 million based on the closing price of PER.TO shares on December 11, 2015. Perk.com is also advancing $1 million to Viggle, which can be repaid by reducing the number of shares Viggle receives at closing to 1.37 million shares. Additionally, if the annual revenue of the combined companies exceeds $130 million in either 2016 or 2017, Viggle will receive an additional 2.0 million PER.TO shares.
• The transaction is expected to close in early 2016.

9:02 am SPX Corp to sell Dry Cooling business to Paharpur Cooling Towers for $48 mln (SPXC) :

• Co announced an agreement for the sale of its Dry Cooling business to Paharpur Cooling Towers Limited. The purchase price is estimated to be ~$48 Million, subject to adjustments for working capital at closing. The transaction is expected to be finalized during the first half of 2016 and is subject to the receipt of certain regulatory approvals. The transaction does not include SPX's South African subsidiary, DBT Technologies (Pty) Ltd. Other terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
• The Dry Cooling business, which is headquartered in Brussels with facilities in China and the United States, accounts for approximately 10% of the revenues of SPX's Power Segment. The anticipated sale proceeds will provide the company with a greater ability to deploy capital in accordance with its stated capital allocation policy. Until the sale is completed the results of Dry Cooling will remain in continuing operations.

9:01 am Antares Pharma announces FDA approval of Sumatriptan injection USP (ATRS) :

Co announces that the FDA has approved its ANDA for 4 mg/0.5 mL and 6 mg/0.5 mL Sumatriptan Injection USP in adults for the acute treatment of migraine and cluster headache when a clear diagnosis has been established.

• Teva will distribute the product in the U.S. and the net profits, after an allowance for a fixed percentage cost of distribution, will be split equally between the companies.
• The term of the agreement is seven years from commercial launch, with automatic one-year renewals unless terminated by either party pursuant to the provisions of the agreement.
• Antares Pharma and Teva (TEVA) currently expect to launch the product in June of 2016.

8:59 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• Cardica (CRDC) announced that it has entered into a three-year national agreement with Novation. The national contract for the MicroCutter Xchange 30 Stapler is effective November 1, 2015.
• Mellanox Technologies (MLNX) announced the Defense Information Systems Agency has approved the Mellanox SwitchX series of 10/40 Gigabit Ethernet switches for use on U.S. Department of Defense networks
• IsoRay (ISR) announced study results entitled: "Neurocognitive function and quality of life in patients with newly diagnosed metastasis after treatment with intra-operative cesium-131 brachytherapy: a prospective trial." Results of the study suggest that surgical resection with intraoperative Cs-131 brachytherapy is able to "stabilize or improve NCF for patients with metastatic brain tumors by improving control of brain tumors and avoiding the toxicity of WBRT."
• Drone Aviation Holding (DRNE) announced that the WATT-200 tethered drone has been approved by the FAA for operations by a major news organization.
• Blackbaud (BLKB) entered into a new four year employment contract with President and CEO, Mike Gianoni. The new arrangement extends Gianoni's service as President and CEO for an additional four-year period through December 31, 2019.
• Scientific Games (SGMS) announced gaming regulators have approved the new TwinStar dual-screen cabinet

8:58 am S&P futures vs fair value: +4.80. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +10.10. (:WRAPX) :

The S&P 500 futures trade five points above fair value. 

Equity markets across Asia saw broad-based losses at the start of the Monday session, but an intraday turnaround helped a handful of indices end the day in positive territory. Japan's Nikkei (-1.8%) struggled from the start and even though the index climbed off its low, it could not avoid settling at its lowest level since early November. Elsewhere, China's Shanghai Composite (+2.5%) erased its slim loss by midday and continued the advance into the afternoon following some better than expected economic data. On a separate note, the chairman of Fosun, who had been missing since Thursday, was reportedly back at his home over the weekend.

• In economic data:
  • China's November Retail Sales +11.2% year-over-year (consensus 11.1%; previous 11.0%), November Industrial Production +6.2% year-over-year (expected 5.6%; last 5.6%), and November Fixed Asset Investment +10.2% year-over-year (consensus 10.1%; prior 10.2%)
  • Japan's Q4 Tankan Large Manufacturers Index held at 12 (expected 11) and Q4 Large Non-Manufacturers Index held at 25 (consensus 23). Separately, Q4 Tankan All Big Industry CAPEX 10.8% (expected 10.2%; previous 10.9%) and October Industrial Production +1.4%, as expected
  • India's November CPI +5.41% year-over-year (consensus 5.40%; previous 5.00%), WPI Inflation -1.99% (expected -2.80%; prior -3.81%), and WPI Food +5.20% year-over-year (previous +2.44%)

---Equity Markets---

• Japan's Nikkei spent the day in a slow advance off its early low, but still lost 1.8%. Industrials (-2.5%), consumer discretionary (-1.9%), and technology (-2.3%) sectors paced the retreat with Hitachi Construction, Mitsumi Electric, Daikin Industries, and OKUMA falling between 3.7% and 4.5%.
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng narrowed its loss to 0.7% by the close, settling at its lowest level since early October. Selling pressure was far-reaching with consumer, casino, and energy names pacing the slide. Belle International sank 6.6% while Galaxy Entertainment, CNOOC, Sands China, and China Petroleum & Chemical fell between 1.1% and 2.4%. On the flip side, insurers outperformed with China Life Insurance and Ping An Insurance climbing 1.8% and 0.6%, respectively. Also of note, Baoxin Auto Group surged 20.5% after selling a $1 billion stake in the company.
• China's Shanghai Composite rallied 2.5% on the back of better than expected economic data. Financials and brokerage names contributed to the strength with CITIC Securities, Agricultural Bank of China, Industrial Securities, and Pacific Securities soaring between 1.6% and 10.0%.

European markets have begun the trading week on a cautious note with most indices trading below their flat lines at this juncture. UK's FTSE (+0.4%) has shown some relative strength while Germany's DAX (-1.1%) underperforms. Select mining shares have contributed to the outperformance in the UK as stocks with South African exposure advance after Pravin Gordhan was named the country's third finance minister in just one week. Overall, though, European investors are on hold ahead of this week's policy meeting at the Federal Reserve, which is widely-expected to result in a fed funds rate hike. The euro has retreated about ten pips against the dollar, slipping to 1.0980.

• Economic data was limited:
  • Eurozone October Industrial Production +0.6% month-over-month (expected 0.3%; previous -0.3%); +1.9% year-over-year (consensus 1.3%; last 1.3%)
  • Italy's November CPI -0.4% month-over-month, as expected; +0.1% year-over-year, as expected

---Equity Markets---

• Germany's DAX is lower by 1.1%, slipping to late October levels. Just about every component trades in the red at this time with Fresenius, RWE, K+S, and Deutsche Telekom leading the slide, showing losses between 1.3% and 1.8%. Financials Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank are down 0.4% and 0.7%, respectively, while Continental outperforms, trading right on its flat line.
• France's CAC has given up 0.1% amid losses in growth-sensitive names. ArcelorMittal is the weakest component, down 4.1%, while Peugeot, Renault, Michelin, and Total have surrendered between 1.0% and 1.9%. Financials trade in mixed fashion with respect to the market with Societe Generale down 0.3% and BNP Paribas lower by 0.7%.
• UK's FTSE outperforms, trading higher by 0.4%. As mentioned earlier, Anglo American (+1.3%) has benefitted from news out of South Africa, but peers BHP Billiton and Randgold Resources show respective losses of 1.9% and 1.4%. Elsewhere, financials are mixed with Old Mutual spiking 7.1% while Standard Chartered has given up 2.0%.

8:46 am Charles Schwab reports November monthly activity, showing total client assets of +3% Y/Y to $2.55 trln (SCHW) :

• Net new assets brought to the company by new and existing clients in November 2015 totaled $17.2 billion. November 2015 net new assets included a $10.2 billion inflow related to a mutual fund clearing services client.
• Total client assets were $2.55 trillion as of month-end November, up 3% from November 2014 and up 1% compared to October 2015.
• Average interest-earning assets on the company's balance sheet were a record $167.4 billion in November, up 18% from November 2014 and up 1% compared to October 2015.

8:35 am Franklin Covey Company commences a dutch auction tender offer for up to $35 million of its common stock at a price within the range of $15.50 to $17.75/share (FC) : The tender offer will expire at 11:59 p.m. New York City time, on January 12, 2016, unless extended by Franklin Covey.

8:33 am Tuesday Morning appoints Steven Becker as Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately (TUES) : Co announced the appointment of Steven R. Becker as CEO, effective immediately. Mr. Becker has led Tuesday Morning's Office of the Chairman since September 28th, 2015, and served as the Company's Chairman of the Board since 2012. While Mr. Becker will continue to serve on the Company's Board of Directors, Lead Independent Director Terry Burman will assume responsibilities as Board Chair.

8:33 am Graham subsidiary Kaplan acquires Mander Portman Woodward and portfolio company of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners; deal is expected to close in early January; financial terms not disclosed (GHC) :  

8:32 am Corcept Therapeutics reports initial efficacy data from its Phase 1/2 trial of Mifepristone in combination with Eribulin; the combination was well-tolerated (CORT) :

Co presented initial efficacy data from its Phase 1/2 trial of mifepristone in combination with the chemotherapy drug eribulin to treat patients with GR-positive, metastatic, triple-negative breast cancer.

• As determined using the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (:RECIST), initial efficacy results in this group were as follows: one patient exhibited a partial response (defined as a 30 percent or greater reduction in tumor size), seven had stable disease and five had progressive disease. Two patients were too early in their treatment to be assessed. The combination of mifepristone and eribulin has been well-tolerated.
• Most adverse events have been disease-related and of mild or moderate severity, with the most common being neutropenia, fatigue, hypokalemia, nausea, hair loss and neuropathy. Neutropenia has been manageable with the administration of growth factor. No patient has suffered a serious adverse event. Pharmacokinetic data show no interaction between eribulin and mifepristone.

8:32 am Corning enters into a 25-year power purchase agreement for solar- generated electricity produced by Duke Energy Renewables. (GLW) : Corning will purchase 62.5% of the expected output of the facility, estimated tobe 120,300 megawatt hours per year, beginning in the first quarter of 2016. Thatamount of electricity is equivalent to the annual power used by approximately10,000 U.S. homes.The new solar farm being constructed by Duke Energy (DUK) Renewables is located in Conetoe, North Carolina, and will be the largest solar-generating facilitycompleted to date east of the Mississippi River.

8:32 am Barnes & Noble Education authorizes $50 mln share repuchase plan (BNED) :  

8:31 am Pointer Telocation receives a noitce of noncompliance from the Nasdaq regarding audit committee composition requirements (PNTR) :

Co previously disclosed on December 1, 2015 that Ms. Alicia Rotbard, a member of its board of directors and audit committee, had passed away following an illness. The Company also notified The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC that it was not in compliance with the NASDAQ audit committee composition requirements due to the vacancy created by Ms. Rotbard's passing.

• Co has begun the process of identifying a third audit committee member and expects to regain compliance with NASDAQ's audit committee composition requirements within the cure period.

8:31 am Barnes & Noble appoints William E. Wood as Chief Information Officer; Wood joins BKS from EZCORP (EZPW) (BKS) :  

8:31 am Apollo Commercial Real Estate increases quarterly dividend $0.02/share to $0.46/share of common stock (ARI) : This is the second increase of the quarterly dividend per share of common stock in 2015, resulting in a 15% total dividend increase for the year.

8:31 am Crestwood Equity Partners: Raging Capital Management sends a letter to the Board, detailing its 'Crestwood comeback program' (CEQP) :

• A reduced distribution with significantly improved coverage ratio
• Substantial direct unit buyback program
• Opportunistic debt repurchases and/or preferred refinancing
• Self-Funding future growth plans
• Exploring accretive asset sales
• Setting future, highly achievable distribution growth targets

8:28 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• 51job, Inc. (JOBS) announced an education partnership with the Association of Talent Development. 51job and ATD will join together and leverage the strengths of both parties to provide education courses, workshops and certificate programs to talent development professionals in China.
• Allergan plc (AGN) announced today that Viberzi, co's treatment for irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea, is now available by prescription in the U.S.
• Rosetta Genomics (ROSG) and Biocept (BIOC) announced the successful completion of feasibility studies under a previously announced collaboration to evaluate the use of Biocept's patented microfluidic channel technology to extract circulating tumor cells from blood and Rosetta Genomics' technical expertise and proprietary qRT-PCR platform to characterize microRNAs isolated from those CTCs. In the next phase of the collaboration, Rosetta and Biocept will test for markers currently offered by Rosetta, as well as pursue new markers.
• Verizon (VZ) announced that it has expanded its Fios Mobile App to include remote DVR streaming. As such, customers with both Fios Quantum TV and Fios Internet service can now stream nearly all of their DVR-recorded shows from anywhere they have an Internet connection.
• CSW Industrials (CSWI) announces the closing of a 5-year, $250 mln revolving credit facility, with an additional $50 mln accordion feature. Including the accordion feature, the new credit facility represents a $100 mln increase compared to the co's previously disclosed plans

8:27 am S&P futures vs fair value: -5.90. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -10.20. (:WRAPX) :

The S&P 500 futures trade six points below fair value.

In commodities, oil has continued its slide, trading lower by 2.5% this morning at $34.72/bbl.

Meanwhile, Treasuries show modest losses, up three basis points to 2.16% after hitting 2.18% overnight.

8:23 am Gapping down (SCANX) : Gapping down
In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance: NX -0.7%, .

M&A news: NWL -5.2% (Jarden to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL) for $60.00/share), PBY -0.9% (Pep Boys and Bridgestone (BRDCY) amended terms to merger agreement from $15.00 per share to $15.50 per share in cash)

Select metals/mining stocks trading lower: HMY -9.9%, AU -7.2%, MT -3.3%, BP -2.2%, BBL -2.2%, SLV -2%, ABX -1.5%, SLW -1.4%, FCX -1.4%, GDX -1.1%, GG -0.9%

Select oil/gas related names showing early weakness: SDRL -7.9%, BHI -4.9%, SWN -3.6%, CHK -3.1%, RDS.A -2.2%, RIG -2.1%, PBR -2%

Other news: ATRA -36.7% (announces that its Phase 2 proof-of-concept clinical trial for PINTA 745 did not meet its primary endpoint), BIND -11.3% (reports that the NSCLC Cohort of the Phase 2 INSITE 1 trial will advance to the second stage; the KRAS mutant NSCLC arm will not advance to the second stage), PSTI -9.2% (still checking), ECA -4.8% (decreases annualized 2016 dividend by $0.26/share to $0.06/share), SYT -3.8% (still checking), SYT -3.8% (may be related to no announcement of M&A deal over the weekend)

Analyst comments: GPRO -5.3% (downgraded to Underweight from Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley), GTE -5% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup), AAPL -1.7% (hearing Morgan Stanley substantially lowering iPhone estimates), HRL -1.6% (downgraded to Hold at Deutsche Bank), DD -1.5% (downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies), SYK -0.8% (downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital)

8:18 am Gapping up (SCANX) : Gapping up
In reaction to strong earnings/guidance: N/A.

M&A news: TSL +9% (receives preliminary non-binding proposal to be acquired by CEO and Shanghai Xingsheng Equity Investment & Management for $11.60 per ADS),ATML +5.2% (receives unsolicited proposal to be acquired $9.00 per share),JAH +4.9% (to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL) for $60.00/share),MU +1.5% (acquires remaining interest in Inotera Memories of Taiwan; expected to be immediately accretive to EPS)

Select generic pharma names showing strength: MYL +1.4%, PRGO +0.9%, TEVA +0.3%

Other news: IMNP +53% (reports new data regarding tetravalent IgG1-like bi-specific antibodies),BPMX +10.2% (may be related to upcoming investor presentation),CBLI +6.2% (announces the publication of a study in Oncotarget demonstrating the ability of entolimod to suppress liver metastases in a preclinical model of uveal melanoma),MNGA +4.4% (cont strength),UDF +3.6% (issues supplemental statement responding to apparent 'short and distort' attack),BLRX +3.1% (files a regulatory submission to commence a Phase 2 trial for BL-8040 for mobilization and collection of bone marrow stem cells),CTIC +2.7% (receives $10 mln milestone payment for TRISENOX from Teva (TEVA)),JKS +1.7% (TSL peer)

Analyst comments: PBYI +2.6% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup),MAT +2% (upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital)

8:12 am Intec Pharma receives US centralized institutional review board approval to initiate a Phase III clinical trial for AP-CDLD, to treat Parkinson's disease (NTEC) : Approximately 460 patients will be enrolled in this single pivotal Phase III study in advanced Parkinson's disease patients. The total treatment period for each patient will be 25 weeks. The primary efficacy endpoint will be a change from baseline to termination of treatment in the percent of daily off time during waking hours.

8:09 am Enanta Pharmaceuticals elects Bruce L.A. Carter, Ph.D. as non-executive Chairman of the Board (ENTA) : Carter currently serves as the Chair of the Compensation Committee and is a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

8:07 am Quanex beats by $0.03, misses on revs; guides FY16 (NX) :

• Reports Q4 (Oct) earnings of $0.29 per share, $0.03 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 19.4% year/year to $195.5 mln vs the $200.11 mln Capital IQ Consensus. 
  • "Fourth quarter EBITDA results more than doubled over last year's performance, despite slower revenue growth. Gross margins continued to improve as we saw further progress in the financial performance of our vinyl profile business. HL Plastics exceeded our internal expectations in their first full quarter after the acquisition, and we successfully completed the acquisition of Woodcraft Industries as planned on November 2nd."
• Assuming modest overall growth rates of 5-6%, Quanex expects 2016 revenues to approach $1 billion [consensus $862 mln, may not compare due to Woodcraft acquisition]. At this level, and with further improvements across all segments of the business, projected 2016 EBITDA will be in the range of $112-$120 million.
• "Economic forecasts at this time of the year always tend to be optimistic, and have historically been revised downward as the year progresses. However, if the current economic forecasts prove to be accurate, growth rates could be in the 7%-8% range with a commensurate improvement in EBITDA." 

8:07 am Pan Am Silver CEO Geoff Burns retires; Michael Steinmann will be appointed President & CEO effective January 1, 2016 (PAAS) : As the last step of a transitional plan that has been under consideration for over a year, Mr. Geoff Burns, Chief Executive Officer, will retire effective Dec 31, 2015 and Mr. Michael Steinmann, currently President, will be appointed President & CEO effective January 1, 2016. Mr. Steinmann will also join the Board of Directors on January 1, 2016. Mr. Burns will continue serving on the Company's Board of Directors until the Company's next Annual General Meeting scheduled for mid-May of 2016.

8:06 am Enviva Partners sees Q4 adj EBITDA and distributable cash flow to be at or slightly above high end of the expected ranges ex items; provides 2016 distributable cash flow guidance of $2.71 to $2.87 per unit (EVA) :

• The Partnership is expecting Q4 adjusted EBITDA and distributable cash flow, exclusive of the Southampton Drop-down, to be at or slightly above the high end of the expected ranges published on November 5, 2015. Inclusive of the impact of the Southampton Drop-down, the Partnership expects net income for 2016 to be in the range of $43.0 mln to $47.0 mln and adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $83.0 mln to $87.0 mln. The Partnership expects to incur maintenance capital expenditures of $4.1 mln and interest expense net of amortization of debt issuance costs and original issue discount of $11.9 mln in 2016.
• As a result, the Partnership expects to generate distributable cash flow in 2016 in the range of $67.0 mln to $71.0 mln, or $2.71 to $2.87 per common and subordinated unit. Other than the Southampton Drop-down, the guidance amounts provided above do not include the impact of any potential acquisitions from the Partnership's sponsor or others.

8:05 am E*TRADE reports November monthly metrics; DARTS were +3% M/M to 148,777 (ETFC) :

Co announced that Daily Average Revenue Trades ("DARTs") for November were 148,777, up 3% from October and a 9% decrease from the year-ago period.

• The company added 27,698 gross new brokerage accounts in November and ended the month with approximately 3.2 mln brokerage accounts - an increase of 7,255 from October.

8:05 am CAI Intl authorizes 1 mln share Share Repurchase Program (CAI) :  

8:05 am Viggle signs asset purchase agreement with Perk.com (VGGL) :

Pursuant to the Agreement, Perk will purchase the rights to the Viggle name and brand as well as the entirety of Viggle's interests in the Viggle App. As consideration, Viggle will be entitled to receive:

• 1,500,000 Perk common shares valued at approximately $4.7 million, based on the closing price per Perk Share of CDN $4.30 (USD $3.13) on December 11, 2015, less 130,000 Perk Shares if Viggle elects to satisfy the loan in Perk Shares, as described below; 2,000,000 Perk Shares if the Company's total revenues exceed $130.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 or December 31, 2017; A warrant entitling Viggle to purchase 1,000,000 Perk Shares at a strike price of CDN $6.25 per Perk Share in the event the Perk Shares' volume weighted average price is greater than or equal to CDN $12.50 for 20 consecutive trading days in the two year period following the closing of the Acquisition; and a warrant entitling Viggle to purchase 1,000,000 Perk Shares at a strike price of CDN $6.25 per Perk Share in the event that the Perk Shares' VWAP is greater than or equal to CDN $18.75 for 20 consecutive trading days in the two year period following the closing of the Acquisition. 
• Perk will also assume certain liabilities of Viggle, including Viggle's points liability. In connection with the agreement, Perk has also agreed to loan Viggle $1.0 million. The loan is repayable by Viggle upon close of the transaction in either (i) cash or (ii) by reducing the number of Perk Shares issued to Viggle on closing from 1,500,000 to 1,370,000. On closing of the Acquisition, Viggle is expected to hold approximately 7% of the issued and outstanding Perk Shares (after giving effect to the Acquisition). Assuming Viggle's exercise of the Warrants and the vesting of the Earn-Out, Viggle may hold up to 22% of the issued and outstanding Perk Shares. Perk may issue Class A Restricted Voting Shares of Perk to Viggle in lieu of Perk Shares in connection with the Warrants and/or the Earn-Out.

8:03 am Zogenix announces FDA acceptance of IND app for ZX008 Phase 3 clinical trial in Dravet Syndrome (ZGNX) : Co announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (:FDA) has accepted the Company's investigational new drug (IND) application for Zogenix's lead product candidate, ZX008, as an adjunctive treatment of seizures in children with Dravet syndrome. The active IND now allows the Company to initiate its planned Phase 3 program for ZX008.

8:03 am Aduro Biotech granted Orphan Drug Designation by the EMA for CRS-207 and GVAX for the treatment of pancreatic cancer (ADRO) : Aduro has completed enrollment in the Phase 2b ECLIPSE trial of its novel LADD and GVAX immunotherapies being developed for the treatment of metastatic pancreatic cancer. The randomized, controlled three-arm trial enrolled 303 patients in the United States and Canada. Top line results are expected in the first half of 2016.

8:03 am Celsion reports results from its ongoing Phase I/II US Dignity Study of ThermoDox in recurrent chest wall breast cancer; data demonstrated a combined local response rate of 61.9% (CLSN) :

Co announced the presentation of results from its ongoing Phase I/II US DIGNITY Study of ThermoDox in combination with mild hyperthermia in patients with recurrent chest wall breast cancer. The data, which demonstrated a combined local response rate of 61.9% among evaluable patients treated with ThermoDox, were presented on Saturday, December 12, 2015 at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

• In the Phase I/II trials, which were designed to evaluate the safety and anti-tumor activity of ThermoDox in combination with mild hyperthermia in RCW breast cancer, a total of 28 patients were treated at doses of either 40 or 50 mg/m2. In addition to a local response rate of 61.9% among evaluable patients, a combined local response rate was observed in 46.4% of the intent-to-treat population (13/28), notably consisting of five patients demonstrating a durable local response lasting greater than three months, including four complete responses (CR) and one partial response (:PR). Patients dosed at 40 mg/m2 displayed a comparable response rate and a more favorable safety profile to that of patients receiving 50 mg/m2. As a result, 40 mg/m2 will be the recommended dose for future clinical trials in this indication.
• The Company anticipates completion of the Phase II US DIGNITY trial by year-end, and plans to initiate a 70 patient Phase II study in Europe and Israel in less advanced, less heavily pretreated patients as part of the Euro-DIGNITY Trial.

8:02 am Jason Inc. names Jeffry N. Quinn as CEO, effective immediately (JASN) : Co announces Jeffry Quinn has been named as CEO, effective immediately. Mr. Quinn was named interim CEO on November 9, 2015 and he continues to serve as chairman of the Board of Directors. Quinn is the former CEO and chairman of Solutia Inc., a global specialty chemicals and performance materials company.

8:02 am FireEye announced agreement with Ingram Micro (IM) to market, sell and support FireEye security products throughout the U.S. and Canada; no terms disclosed (FEYE) :  

8:02 am AES approves a 10% increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.11/share from $0.10 (AES) :  

8:02 am Palo Alto Networks appoints Naveen Zutshi as Chief Information Officer (PANW) : Co announced the appointment of Naveen Zutshi as chief information officer (CIO). Prior to joining Palo Alto Networks, Naveen served as senior vice president of technology with Gap Inc.

8:01 am Seres Therapeutics initiates a Phase 1b clinical trial evaluating SER-287 in mild-to-moderate ulcerative colitis (MCRB) : The program IND has been cleared by the FDA, and clinical investigational sites are now open and actively enrolling patients.

8:01 am Endo Intl announces the extension of its exclusive U.S. marketing rights for Voltaren Gel (ENDP) : The co announced the extension of its exclusive U.S. marketing rights for the currently marketed prescription medicine Voltaren Gel (diclofenac sodium topical gel) 1% as well as for the product's Authorized Generic, should Endo opt to commercially launch it in the future. Endo, through an indirect wholly owned subsidiary, has entered into a licensing agreement with Sandoz Inc. and Novartis AG through June 30, 2023.

8:01 am NephroGenex announces FDA clearance of IND Application for clinical study of intravenous pyridorin in the treatment of acute kidney injury (NRX) :  

8:00 am Idera Pharma announces initiation of Phase 1/2 Clinical Trial of Intra-tumoral IMO-2125 in combination with Ipilimumab in patients with metastatic melanoma (IDRA) : Co announces that it has begun enrollment in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial evaluating intra-tumoral IMO-2125, a TLR9 agonist in combination with ipilimumab (an anti-CTLA4 antibody) in patients with previously treated metastatic melanoma. The study is being conducted at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. The primary objectives of the phase 1 portion will be to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and characterize the dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) of IMO-2125 when administered intra-tumorally in combination with ipilimumab. The primary objective of the phase 2 portion will be to determine efficacy. Co expects initial data from the ongoing trial to be available in 2016.

8:00 am CatchMark Timber Trust expands its multi-draw term credit facility from $275 million to $365 million (CTT) : Co announced the expansion of its multi-draw term credit facility, increasing the maximum availability of funds by $90 million from $275 million to $365 million. The increase in available funds from CoBank, ACB and AgFirst Farm Credit Bank provides ready capital for CatchMark to pursue acquisitions of high quality timberlands to support long-term growth in shareholder value and cash available for distribution. CatchMark's total credit facility increases to approximately $500 million as a result of the refinancing, which includes an unfunded $35 million revolving line of credit and a $100 million term loan.

7:59 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• Bristol-Myers (BMY) entered into a collaboration agreement with UCLA as part of Bristol-Myers Squibb's Immuno-Oncology Rare Population Malignancy research program in the U.S. Bristol-Myers Squibb and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLAwill conduct a range of early phase clinical studies as part of the I-O RPM research program, and Bristol-Myers Squibb will fund positions within UCLA's fellowship program in the UCLA Division of Hematology/Oncology.
• OvaScience (OVAS) announced the AUGMENT fertility treatment is now being offered in Japan through a preceptorship program at the IVF JAPAN fertility clinic system
• Orient Paper (ONP) announced that it will temporarily suspend its production of regular CMP, light weight CMP, offset printing paper and digital photo paper from December 14, 2015 to December 31, 2015, in accordance with a mandate issued by Xushui Environmental Protection Bureau of Baoding City.

7:59 am Ecopetrol reports Board approval for a $4.8 bln 2016 Investment Plan (EC) :

The approved investment budget is in line with the new corporate strategy, and is attuned to the challenging situation of the international oil market. Accordingly, investments budgeted for 2016 will be 40% less than those that were planned for 2015.

• The investment plan will allow for maintaining average daily production of around 755 thousand barrels of oil equivalent (:MBOED), of which 690 (:MBOED) come from Ecopetrol S.A., figures similar to those reached in 2015. 96% of the investments will be made in Colombia, and 4% abroad through affiliates of Ecopetrol S.A. The largest part of the investments will be allocated to more efficient production of crude oil and gas, evaluate recent exploratory discoveries, startup of the new Cartagena refinery, and strengthening transport capacity.
• Of the $4.8 bln, $660 mln will be spent on exploration, $2.34 bln will be spent on production, $473 mln will be spent on transport, and $1.04 bln will be spent on refining and petrochemicals. 

7:58 am Dow Chemical BOD unanimously supports merger with DuPont (DD) (DOW) : Co states, "We stand by both our and DuPont's Boards' unanimous decisions to conduct this transaction"

7:55 am Daily Morning Briefing: Futures Slightly Lower (:WRAPX) :

U.S. equity futures trade near their pre-market lows amid mixed action overseas. The S&P 500 futures trade six points below fair value after sliding into negative territory from their highs overnight. The overnight retreat in equity futures has not resulted in a large move to Treasuries, the yield on the 10-yr is up two basis points to 2.15%.

    In  U.S. Corporate News: 

• GoPro (GPRO 18.28, -0.87) -4.5% after being downgraded by Morgan Stanley to Underweight. 
• Trina Solar Limited (10.52, +0.97) +10.1% after receiving a non-binding proposal letter to have outstanding shares acquired by the Chairman and CEO of the     company

Reviewing overnight developments:

• Asian markets ended their sessions on mixed notes despite all of the major indices ending their session's off of their lows. Japan's Nikkei (-1.8%), Hong Kong's Hang Seng (-0.7%), China's Shanghai Composite (+2.5%).
  • In economic data:
    • China's November Retail Sales +11.2% year-over-year (consensus 11.1%; previous 11.0%), November Industrial Production +6.2% year-over-year (expected 5.6%; last 5.6%), and November Fixed Asset Investment +10.2% year-over-year (consensus 10.1%; prior 10.2%)
    • Japan's Q4 Tankan Large Manufacturers Index held at 12 (expected 11) and Q4 Large Non-Manufacturers Index held at 25 (consensus 23). Separately, Q4 Tankan All Big Industry CAPEX 10.8% (expected 10.2%; previous 10.9%) and October Industrial Production +1.4%, as expected
    • India's November CPI +5.41% year-over-year (consensus 5.40%; previous 5.00%), WPI Inflation -1.99% (expected -2.80%; prior -3.81%), and WPI Food +5.20% year-over-year (previous +2.44%)
  • In news:
    • The chairman of Fosun, who had been missing since Thursday, was reportedly back at his home over the weekend
• Major European indices trade lower across the board. Germany's DAX -0.8%, France's CAC -0.4%, and UK's FTSE -0.1%. Elsewhere, Italy's MIB -0.6% and Spain's IBEX -0.7%
  • In Economic data:
    • Eurozone October Industrial Production +0.6% month-over-month (expected 0.3%; previous -0.3%); +1.9% year-over-year (consensus 1.3%; last 1.3%)
    • Italy's November CPI -0.4% month-over-month, as expected; +0.1% year-over-year, as expected
  • Among news of note:
    • Select mining shares have contributed to the outperformance in the UK as stocks with South African exposure advance after Pravin Gordhan was named the country's third finance minister in just one week

7:48 am Archer-Daniels purchases 50% stake in Medsofts Group; terms not disclosed (ADM) :

The new 50-50 JV will own and manage merchandising and supply chain operations.

• In addition, the JV will own a 50% share of Nile Stevedoring & Storage Co., which operates one of the largest grain port facilities in Egypt.
• Co is targeting closing the deal in early 2016.

7:45 am Javelin Mortgage reports increasing its buy-back authority to 2 mln common shares, from 1.358 mln; announces expense reduction intiatives (JMI) :

Co announced two measures to reduce expenses, and also approved an expansion of the Company's share repurchase plan. The expense reduction measures are expected to reduce costs by approximately $2.1 million annually.The Company's manager, Armour Capital Management, has agreed to voluntarily rebate to Javelin a portion of its management fee. At current levels, the rebate represents expected annualized savings to Javelin of $1.8 million.Javelin's Board has also unanimously elected to reduce non-management director fees to $75,000 per person per annum, effective immediately.

• To expand Javelin's stock repurchase plan, the Board increased the firm's buy-back authority to 2,000,000 shares of common stock from the approximately 1,358,000 shares of common stock previously available for repurchase.

7:35 am Ocean Power Tech reports Q2 results (OPTT) :

• Q2 net loss $3 mln vs. $4.4 mln last year, rev -72% to $0.49 mln (no estimates), primarily related to decreased billable costs on our project with Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding and with their contract with the U.S. Department of Energy.
• The MES project is currently undergoing a stage-gate review.
• "We expect the APB350 will feature an enhanced electrical storage system, a higher efficiency power management system, and "plug and play" capability, making it end-user payload agnostic. I am excited to announce this next-generation buoy has undergone a critical design review, and we expect the APB350 to undergo significant in-ocean and accelerated life testing in the next year. We currently project that in calendar year 2016, it will achieve a maturity level that will allow us to proceed with a commercial launch of our product."

7:32 am Cleveland Biolabs announces the publication of a study in Oncotarget demonstrating the ability of entolimod to suppress liver metastases in a preclinical model of uveal melanoma (CBLI) :

Cleveland BioLabs (CBLI), Emory University and Roswell Park Cancer Institute (:RPCI) today announced the publication of a study in Oncotarget demonstrating the ability of entolimod to suppress liver metastases in a preclinical model of uveal melanoma (:UM).

• The goal was to explore the potential of entolimod as an immunotherapeutic agent against liver metastasis of UM using the TLR5-expressing B16LS9 animal model in which orthotopic intraocular tumors spontaneously metastasize to the liver. Reported results indicated that systemic entolimod treatment led to a significant reduction in the number of metastatic liver nodules in the laboratory models. This entolimod-mediated antimetastatic effect was associated with increased blood-borne homing, maturation and activation of natural killer (NK) cells in the liver, and was abrogated when mice were depleted of NK cells before entolimod treatment.

7:32 am KCG Holdings reports November trade volumes, showing $27.6 billion in average traded volume for market making (KCG) :

In Market Making, KCG averaged $27.6 billion dollar volume traded, 4.7 billion shares traded, and 3.5 million trades per day in U.S. equities. In Global Execution Services: KCG electronic execution averaged 317.2 million shares traded per day in U.S. equities.

• As for the overall market conditions in November, consolidated U.S. equity volume averaged $269.5 billion in dollar volume and 7.0 billion shares traded per day.

7:31 am The Bancorp announces Frank M. Mastrangelo resigns from his position as President, CEO, and director; names John C. Chrystal as Interim CEO (TBBK) :

Frank M. Mastrangelo resigns from his position as President, CEO, and director, but he will continue in the new role of Technologist in Residence for Co.

• Co names John C. Chrystal, a member of the board, as Interim CEO and President
• Co is commencing its search for a permanent CEO immediately.

7:31 am Fairchild Semi determines that the unsolicited proposal received on December 7 for $21.70/share in cash would not reasonably be expected to result in a 'Superior Proposal' (FCS) : Fairchild Semiconductor (FCS) announced that its board of directors, after conducting a review and considering the advice of its legal and financial advisors, has concluded that the unsolicited proposal received on December 7, 2015, to acquire Fairchild for $21.70/share in cash would not reasonably be expected to result in a "Superior Proposal" as defined in Fairchild's Agreement and Plan of Merger with ON Semiconductor Corporation (ON).

7:31 am Orient Paper announces government mandated suspension of production following Beijing's first red alert for smog; will not impact the co's tissue paper operations (ONP) :

• The co will temporarily suspend its production of regular CMP, light weight CMP, offset printing paper and digital photo paper from December 14, 2015 to December 31, 2015, in accordance with a mandate issued by Xushui Environmental Protection Bureau... The red alert, the most serious level under a four-tier emergency response system created in October 2013, has triggered shutdown of schools, highways and construction activities from 7 a.m. on Tuesday December 8 to noon on Thursday December 10.
• Industrial manufacturing activities in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is occasionally subject to this type of suspensions. The temporary suspension of production will not impact the Company's tissue paper operations, which are located in the Economic Development Zone of Wei County, Hebei Province. Production of impacted products will be resumed on January 1, 2016.

7:30 am Immune Pharma reports new data regarding tetravalent IgG1-like bi-specific antibodies (IMNP) : In this study, Immune described positive developments with a novel platform for production of tetravalent IgG1-like bi-specific antibodies. The prototype bi-specific antibody retained effector functions and mediated redirect killing of target cells by cytokine induced killer T cells demonstrating direct anti-cancer effects in vitro as well as anti-tumor activity and improved survival in vivo in a mouse xenograft model of disseminated leukemia. The newly developed platform will be further used to generate novel bi-specific antibodies against immune-oncology targets.

7:30 am BIND Therapeutics reports that the NSCLC Cohort of the Phase 2 INSITE 1 trial will advance to the second stage; the KRAS mutant NSCLC arm will not advance to the second stage (BIND) :

The company also announced that the KRAS mutant NSCLC arm will not advance to the second stage. The rationale for these decisions is based on safety and efficacy data from the planned interim analysis of iNSITE 1 as well as updated overall survival data in the squamous cohort from the previous clinical trial in the broad NSCLC population, the BIND-014-005 trial.The major criteria for advancing to the second stage included 6-week disease control rate (6wDCR), tolerability and, in the case of the squamous histology cohort, confirmation of the OS data from the BIND-014-005 trial.

• In the squamous histology cohort, data from 20 patients in the intent-to-treat (ITT) population and 11 patients from the Per-Protocol (:PP) subset demonstrated an interim 6wDCR of 25 percent (95% CI [confidence interval], 9% to 49%) and 45.5 percent (95% CI, 17% to 77%), respectively. There were no tumor responses by RECIST v1.1.
• In the KRAS mutant cohort, data from 23 patients in ITT population and 14 patients from the PP subset demonstrated an interim 6wDCR of 17.4 percent (95% CI, 5% to 39%) and 28.6 percent (95% CI, 8% to 58%) respectively, which did not meet pre-specified criteria to move to the second stage of the iNSITE 1 trial. The overall response rate (:ORR) by RECIST v1.1 was 4 percent (ITT) and 7 percent (:PP). Patients currently enrolled in this cohort will continue to be followed for safety and efficacy.

7:25 am European Markets Update: DAX -1.1%, CAC -0.4%, FTSE -0.2% (:SUMRX) :

European markets have begun the trading week on a cautious note with most indices trading below their flat lines at this juncture. UK's FTSE (-0.2%) has shown some relative strength while Germany's DAX (-1.1%) underperforms. Select mining shares have contributed to the outperformance in the UK as stocks with South African exposure advance after Pravin Gordhan was named the country's third finance minister in just one week. Overall, though, European investors are on hold ahead of this week's policy meeting at the Federal Reserve, which is widely-expected to result in a fed funds rate hike. The euro has retreated about ten pips against the dollar, slipping to 1.0980.

• Economic data was limited:
  • Eurozone October Industrial Production +0.6% month-over-month (expected 0.3%; previous -0.3%); +1.9% year-over-year (consensus 1.3%; last 1.3%)
  • Italy's November CPI -0.4% month-over-month, as expected; +0.1% year-over-year, as expected

---Equity Markets---

• Germany's DAX is lower by 1.1%, slipping to late October levels. Just about every component trades in the red at this time with Fresenius, RWE, K+S, and Deutsche Telekom leading the slide, showing losses between 1.3% and 1.8%. Financials Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank are down 0.4% and 0.7%, respectively, while Continental outperforms, trading right on its flat line.
• France's CAC has given up 0.4% amid losses in growth-sensitive names. ArcelorMittal is the weakest component, down 4.1%, while Peugeot, Renault, Michelin, and Total have surrendered between 1.0% and 1.9%. Financials trade in mixed fashion with respect to the market with Societe Generale down 0.3% and BNP Paribas lower by 0.7%.
• UK's FTSE outperforms, but is still down 0.2%. As mentioned earlier, Anglo American (+1.3%) has benefitted from news out of South Africa, but peers BHP Billiton and Randgold Resources show respective losses of 1.9% and 1.4%. Elsewhere, financials are mixed with Old Mutual spiking 7.1% while Standard Chartered has given up 2.0%.

7:21 am Market View: Mar. E-mini stock-index futures slide to pre-market lows as losses in Jan. NYMEX crude oil futures continue to apply the pressure (:TECHX) :

• ESh6 now -7.25
• YMh6 now -71

7:16 am NovoCure reports new data on how TTFields interfere with cancer cell division and result in cancer cell death (NVCR) :

The data were published on Dec. 11, 2015, in Scientific Reports. The results demonstrated the following:

• TTFields decreased the ratio between polymerized and total tubulin, and prevented spindles from forming properly during mitosis in cancer cells -- the first direct evidence of this effect.
• Aberrant mitotic events induced by TTFields led to abnormal chromosome segregation, cellular multi-nucleation and a reduction in clonogenic potential, thus activating various forms of cell death. While cells treated with TTFields can die during mitotic arrest, they more commonly divide and die during the following interphase.
• The effect of TTFields on cell viability and clonogenic survival depended on cell division rate, with rapidly dividing cells being more sensitive to treatment. Extending treatment duration enhanced efficacy in slowly dividing cells.

7:06 am Gilat Satellite signed development agreement with 'major aerospace systems integrator' to further develop both its Ku-band Electronically-Steered-Array/Phased-Array Antenna (ESA/PAA) and Ka-Band technologies (GILT) : Gilat has received initial orders for its ESA antenna in Ku-band and will continue development of dedicated products for commercial air and ground applications.

7:05 am Headwaters provides update on American Coal Ash Association's recent findings on utilization of coal combustion products; agree that production of high quality fly ash over the next several decades will continue to provide us with a steady supply (HW) : The American Coal Ash Association released recent findings on the U.S. production and utilization of coal combustion products, particularly fly ash. CCPs are a byproduct of coal-fueled electric generation and they include fly ash, bottom ash, and synthetic gypsum. "Based on ready mixed concrete market projections, fly ash utilization is forecast to increase to 35.7 million tons in 2033 -- a 53 percent cumulative increase over the next two decades."

7:04 am TPG Specialty Lending comments on recent public statements from TICC Capital (TICC); affirms it 'stands ready and willing to make its proposed transaction a reality' (TSLX) : Co Chariman and Co-CEO states, "To state that a 'no' vote at the Special Meeting mandates a return to the status quo shockingly undermines the voice of TICC stockholders, as well as the Board's mandate to maximize value for them...We stand ready and willing to engage with TICC to make our proposal a reality, but we are, and will remain, undeterred by any continued intransigence of TICC management."

7:04 am Williams Cos and Energy Transfer Equity (ETE) enter into an agreement with the staff of the FTC for their pending merger (WMB) :

As previously disclosed, ETE and WMB received a request for additional information and documentary material (the "Second Requests") from the FTC pursuant to the "HSR Act". ETE and WMB are targeting compliance with the Second Requests in January 2016. Under the terms of the Timing Agreement, ETE and WMB have agreed (1) not to consummate the proposed acquisition prior to 60 days after substantial compliance with the Second Requests, and (2) not to consummate the proposed acquisition before March 18, 2016. ETE and WMB continue to work cooperatively with the staff of the FTC as it conducts its review of the proposed acquisition.

• Completion of the proposed transaction remains subject to regulatory review, including the approval of the proposed transaction by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Completion of the proposed transaction also remains subject to the approval of WMB stockholders and other customary closing conditions.

7:04 am Ritchie Bros.: Final Edmonton auction of 2015 held Dec. 10-12; 6,000 items sold for CA$98+ mln (US$71+ mln) (RBA) : Co sold more than 38,250 equipment items and trucks for CA$731+ million (US$576+ million) in Edmonton, AB in 2015, making it the site's largest year ever. Approximately 55 percent (CA$404+ million or US$317+ million) of the equipment was sold to online buyers. Ritchie Bros. held its sixth and final Edmonton auction of 2015 last week (December 10-12), selling more than 6,000 items for CA$98+ million (US$71+ million). Bids were placed in person, online at rbauction.com and by proxy.

7:03 am BioLineRx files a regulatory submission to commence a Phase 2 trial for BL-8040 for mobilization and collection of bone marrow stem cells (BLRX) :

Co announced the filing of regulatory submissions required to commence a Phase 2 trial for BL-8040 as a novel approach for mobilization and collection of bone marrow stem cells from the peripheral blood circulation. The trial is expected to commence shortly after receipt of regulatory approval, anticipated in the first quarter of 2016.

• The study submission was made following a meeting with the FDA in October 2015 to discuss the BL-8040 stem cell mobilization development program. The trial will evaluate the ability of BL-8040 to promote stem cell mobilization as a single agent in the allogeneic transplantation setting. Donors between 18 and 70 years of age and their HLA-matching recipients, diagnosed with advanced hematological malignancies that require stem cell transplantation, will be recruited to the study.
• On the donor side, the primary endpoint of the study is the ability of a single injection of BL-8040 to mobilize sufficient amounts of cells for transplantation following up to two leukapheresis collections. On the recipient side the study aims to evaluate the functionality and engraftment following transplantation of the BL-8040 collected graft. The safety and tolerability of BL-8040 in the healthy donors will be evaluated.

7:03 am Asian Markets Close: Nikkei -1.8%, Hang Seng -0.7%, Shanghai +2.5% (:SUMRX) :

Equity markets across Asia saw broad-based losses at the start of the Monday session, but an intraday turnaround helped a handful of indices end the day in positive territory. Japan's Nikkei (-1.8%) struggled from the start and even though the index climbed off its low, it could not avoid settling at its lowest level since early November. Elsewhere, China's Shanghai Composite (+2.5%) erased its slim loss by midday and continued the advance into the afternoon following some better than expected economic data. On a separate note, the chairman of Fosun, who had been missing since Thursday, was reportedly back at his home over the weekend.

• In economic data:
  • China's November Retail Sales +11.2% year-over-year (consensus 11.1%; previous 11.0%), November Industrial Production +6.2% year-over-year (expected 5.6%; last 5.6%), and November Fixed Asset Investment +10.2% year-over-year (consensus 10.1%; prior 10.2%)
  • Japan's Q4 Tankan Large Manufacturers Index held at 12 (expected 11) and Q4 Large Non-Manufacturers Index held at 25 (consensus 23). Separately, Q4 Tankan All Big Industry CAPEX 10.8% (expected 10.2%; previous 10.9%) and October Industrial Production +1.4%, as expected
  • India's November CPI +5.41% year-over-year (consensus 5.40%; previous 5.00%), WPI Inflation -1.99% (expected -2.80%; prior -3.81%), and WPI Food +5.20% year-over-year (previous +2.44%)

---Equity Markets---

• Japan's Nikkei spent the day in a slow advance off its early low, but still lost 1.8%. Industrials (-2.5%), consumer discretionary (-1.9%), and technology (-2.3%) sectors paced the retreat with Hitachi Construction, Mitsumi Electric, Daikin Industries, and OKUMA falling between 3.7% and 4.5%.
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng narrowed its loss to 0.7% by the close, settling at its lowest level since early October. Selling pressure was far-reaching with consumer, casino, and energy names pacing the slide. Belle International sank 6.6% while Galaxy Entertainment, CNOOC, Sands China, and China Petroleum & Chemical fell between 1.1% and 2.4%. On the flip side, insurers outperformed with China Life Insurance and Ping An Insurance climbing 1.8% and 0.6%, respectively. Also of note, Baoxin Auto Group surged 20.5% after selling a $1 billion stake in the company.
• China's Shanghai Composite rallied 2.5% on the back of better than expected economic data. Financials and brokerage names contributed to the strength with CITIC Securities, Agricultural Bank of China, Industrial Securities, and Pacific Securities soaring between 1.6% and 10.0%.
• India's Sensex recovered an opening loss to end higher by 0.4% with roughly 60% of its components settling in the green. Hindalco Industries led, climbing 3.0%, while Maruti Suzuki, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Steel, and Infosys followed with gains between 1.6% and 2.0%.

---FX---

• USDJPY -0.1% to 120.88
• USDCNY +0.1% to 6.4590
• USDINR UNCH at 67.15

7:02 am Cyclacel Pharma reports the presentation of preclinical data for CYC065 in triple negative breast cancer; demonstrated the mechanistic rationale for clinical development of the compound (CYCC) : Data presented at SABCS demonstrated in particular the mechanistic rationale for clinical development of CYC065 in basal-like TNBC. CYC065 was shown to rapidly induce cell death in breast cancer cell lines, while transiently inducing G1 cell cycle arrest in non-malignant breast lines. CYC065's potent anticancer activity has been confirmed in breast cancer xenograft animal models.An oral regimen of seliciclib and sapacitabine is being evaluated in an on-going Phase 1 all-comer study of patients with various advanced cancers.

7:02 am Ocular Therapeutix announces Dextenza showed benefit in efficacy measure of corneal staining signs of inflammatory dry eye disease (OCUL) :

Co announced topline results from a Phase 2 exploratory clinical trial designed to evaluate a range of objective and subjective measures (signs and symptoms, respectively) for Dextenza (sustained release dexamethasone) Intracanalicular Depot for the treatment of inflammatory dry eye disease.

• While the study was not designed to show statistical significance, total corneal staining at day 30 following randomization was significantly decreased from baseline in the DEXTENZA group (-3.14) compared to placebo (-1.10) (p=0.018).
• There were certain other measures included in the trial where DEXTENZA did not show a benefit over the placebo group. The trial was designed to include many different measures and identify those measures where DEXTENZA showed a benefit compared with the placebo vehicle depot group to inform the design of future clinical trials. The trial achieved this objective.

7:02 am Akebia Therapeutics and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma (MTZPY) announce a collaboration to develop and commercialize Vadadustat in Asia (AKBA) :

Co and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation (MTZPY) announced that they have entered into a development and commercialization agreement for vadadustat (formerly AKB-6548), an oral therapy for the treatment of anemia related to chronic kidney disease, in Japan and certain other countries in Asia.

• Under the terms of the agreement, MTPC will make payments totaling $100 million for costs associated with the global Phase 3 program for vadadustat, including $40 million upon signing. In addition, Akebia is eligible to receive up to $250 million in additional milestone payments, based upon achievement of certain development and sales milestones. MTPC will also make tiered royalty payments, from low teens up to twenty percent, on sales of vadadustat in Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Indonesia, India and other Asian countries.

7:02 am AcelRx holds pre-NDA meeting with the FDA, anticipates the submission of the ARX-04 NDA in in the second half of 2016 (ACRX) :

The co reported on the outcome of the ARX-04 (sufentanil sublingual tablet, 30 mcg) pre-NDA meeting held recently with the FDA. The Company intends to pursue an ARX-04 indication for moderate-to-severe pain in a medically supervised setting. To support this indication, based on feedback from the FDA, the Company will expand the clinical program by approximately 165 patients to include individuals from specific populations and settings. Enrollment in the ongoing SAP302 open-label study in the emergency room will be increased, and a new study known as SAP303 is expected to be initiated in the first quarter of 2016 in postoperative patients with moderate-to-severe pain. SAP303 will focus on enrolling patients greater than 40 years of age and will allow for administration of ARX-04 for up to 12 hours. With these modifications, assuming successful completion of the studies, AcelRx anticipates submitting the NDA for ARX-04 in the second half of 2016

• The FDA has also agreed to include, as supporting safety information, data from 323 patients treated in the Zalviso (sufentanil sublingual tablet system) clinical studies who had administered two 15 mcg tablets 20-to-25 minutes apart. AcelRx had previously completed and analyzed pharmacokinetic and modeling data, which demonstrated the equivalency of one 30 mcg sublingual sufentanil to two 15 mcg sublingual sufentanil tablets taken 20-to-25 minutes apart.

7:01 am Check-Cap announces data related to clinical studies of its preparation-free colon screening capsule, have been published in the journal Gut; polyps were seen, system was safe (CHEK) :

Data related to its clinical studies have been published in Gut, an official peer-reviewed journal of the British Society of Gastroenterology.

• Preliminary analysis of the ongoing clinical feasibility study evaluated data from participants who swallowed Check-Cap's scanning capsule, tracking the entire passage of the capsule through the alimentary tract using radio frequency telemetry and Check-Cap's proprietary capsule position tracking system. Pedunculated and sessile polyps were clearly seen and validated by subsequent colonoscopy, and the total radiation exposure was found to be ultra-low (0.030.007 mSv, or the equivalent exposure of one chest x-ray). Capsules were excreted naturally in all 48 volunteers who completed the study (one asymptomatic volunteer withdrew prior to completion and the capsule was retrieved endoscopically from the colon). Initial data show the system to be safe, as well as able to produce 3D reconstructions of the colonic wall and lumen, including identifying polyps.

7:01 am Horizon Pharma and Fox Chase Cancer Center Temple Health initiate phase 1 study to evaluate ACTIMMUNE in combination with Nivolumab in patients with advanced solid tumors (HZNP) :

• The Phase 1, open label study will evaluate the combination of ACTIMMUNE and nivolumab in patients with advanced solid tumors who have progressed on at least one prior systemic therapy, which may include prior immunotherapy.
• Patients will be treated with a one week induction phase of ACTIMMUNE (starting dose 50 mcg/m2 subcutaneously), followed by a combination phase with ACTIMMUNE and nivolumab (3 mg/kg intravenously) for three cycles, followed by a single-agent phase of nivolumab alone for up to one year.
• The study will primarily assess the safety and tolerability of the combination of ACTIMMUNE and nivolumab.
• Secondary objectives, including overall response rate, progression free survival and overall survival, will also be assessed, as will various correlative analyses. Initial accrual will occur using a modified 6+6 design, and if endpoints for safety (using dose-limiting toxicity criteria) are met, expansion cohorts in renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer) and urothelial carcinoma (bladder cancer) are planned for up to 15 patients per cohort.

6:59 am Teekay Tankers secures new debt facility; announces new dividend policy: intends to pay out 30-50% of its quarterly adj. net income, with a minimum quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share; declares Q4 dividend $0.12/share (TNK) :

Board of Directors has approved a new dividend policy, effective immediately, under which the Company intends to pay out 30 to 50 percent of its quarterly adjusted net income(1), with a minimum quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share, subject to any reserves determined to be required by the Company's Board of Directors. The new dividend policy will provide investors the opportunity to more directly participate in the earnings from the tanker market while also enable the Company to further strengthen its balance sheet.

• Based on the Company's estimated results for the fourth quarter of 2015, the Company's Board of Directors has declared a fourth quarter cash dividend of $0.12 per share, representing a 400 percent increase from the previous fixed dividend of $0.03 per share. The cash dividend is payable on February 12, 2016 to all shareholders of record as at February 2, 2016.
• Co has secured a new $900 million long-term debt facility that will mature in January 2021. The new facility will be used to refinance 36 of the Company's existing vessels, including the recently-acquired vessels that are secured by the Company's two bridge loan facilities which mature in early-2016, and the Company's main corporate revolving credit facility that matures in 2017.

6:59 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• Ares Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) closed a new $155.0 mln secured term loan. Co expects that none of the proceeds of the $155.0 mln term loan will be used in connection with repayment of the convertible notes.
• Air Lease (AL) announces an agreement to lease two new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to El Al. Both aircraft are on long-term lease from ALC's order book with Boeing and are scheduled to deliver to Israel's flag carrier airline in 3Q17 and early 4Q17.
• Etihad Airways and Cognizant (CTSH), a leading provider of information technology, consulting, and business process outsourcing services, announced a strategic agreement to drive digital transformation across the airline and its equity partners. Under the three-year, multi-million dollar deal, Cognizant will help Etihad Airways define its digital strategy and customer service along a guest's travel journey across the group.
• CYREN (CYRN) announced it received accreditation as a "Friendly WiFi" approved provider in the UK. CYREN partners and users can now offer the third-party designation as additional assurance that CYREN is committed to enabling safe WiFi experiences for children and families where its technology is relied upon in public areas.
• Delta Air Lines (DAL) and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will launch a codeshare agreement with India's Jet Airways that brings new travel options for customers flying from Europe and the US via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to India and globally.

6:57 am ENGlobal reports being awarded three projects with a combined value of ~$6 mln (ENG) : More specifically, ENGlobal has been selected by a major refining client in the Rocky Mountains to design, fabricate and supply a modular Power Distribution Center, which is needed to provide critical electrical switchgear for their operations. The Company will also provide the full scope of controls engineering and systems equipment for a midstream energy master limited partnership. Finally, ENGlobal has been selected as the designer and supplier of all online process analytical equipment for a new chemical production facility on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

6:51 am Vaalco Energy announces second successful well drilled to the Dentale Formation (EGY) :

The North Tchibala 2-H well, the second development well drilled by VAALCO in the North Tchibala field, was brought online at a stabilized rate of ~500 gross barrels of oil per day (:BOPD), or 122 BOPD net revenue interest to VAALCO. The well was drilled to a measured depth of 16,476 feet and encountered good quality sands in the Dentale D-18/19 reservoir. The well came on production flowing naturally with no H2S and water free. Based on production tests in nearby exploration wells, the quality of the reservoir would indicate the potential for a higher flow rate than has been achieved thus far.

• "I am pleased to announce that the North Tchibala 2-H well encountered very good quality reservoir. As a result, we are further encouraged about the long term upside potential for the Dentale formation on our Etame Marin acreage, but it will take time to monitor the ongoing performance of the first two wells and to test other areas of our concession with additional wells in the future. While no more wells are planned for the SEENT platform in the near term, we are evaluating the drilling of a development well at the Etame platform in early 2016 following our three-well workover program. The Etame development well would target the Gamba formation as well as test the Dentale reservoir that we believe could exist at deeper depths in that area."

6:46 am Patriot National announces private placement of 1,666,666 shares of common stock (PN) : Co announces that the Co and Steven M. Mariano, the President and CEO, entered into a securities purchase agreement with certain institutional investors in which the co will sell 1,666,666 shares of common stock (in the form of 666,666 shares of common stock and a prepaid warrant for 1 mln shares of common stock) and warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 2,083,333 shares of common stock for an aggregate purchase price of ~$20 mln and the Selling Stockholder will sell an aggregate of 2.5 mln shares of common stock for an aggregate purchase price of ~$30 mln. Co and the Selling Stockholder have agreed that the cowill repurchase a number of shares of its common stock owned by the Selling Stockholder equal to 60% of the shares to be issued upon the exercise of the warrants. Co expects to use the proceeds from this transaction for general corporate purposes.

6:42 am United Development Funding IV issues supplemental statement responding to apparent 'short and distort' attack (UDF) :

The co stated that on December 10, 2015, it  was attacked by a hedge fund or funds. UDF believes that the hedge fund(s) built a significant short position in UDF IV with the intention of unlawfully manipulating the price of UDF IV shares (a type of securities trading scheme known as "short and distort"). UDF IV short activity reported by Nasdaq.com at November 30, 2015 was in excess of 4.1 million shares, up from approximately 59,000 shares on December 31, 2014. The co says it has communicated its knowledge of the facts and circumstances to the SEC. UDF believes the hedge fund(s) intend to continue to disseminate misleading information. UDF states it will defend its funds aggressively.

• "Consistent with a short and distort scheme, the posts about UDF have appeared on Internet sites and contain misleading statements, speculation and rumors. The statements clearly demonstrate a lack of understanding of the residential development project life cycle, which typically involves multi-phase master planned communities and the related financing structures. Investors who wish to understand our business should review our registration statements and periodic SEC filings, which describe the business model for each fund."
• The Companies have been cooperating since April 2014 with a non-public fact-finding investigation being conducted by the SEC. The co states it has provided a broad range of information to the SEC, however, the SEC has not identified any specific issues that are the subject of its investigation. The SEC has informed the Companies that this investigation is not an indication that any violations of law have occurred or that the SEC has any negative opinion of any person, entity, or security. UDF has not been accused of any wrongdoing and UDF believes it has appropriate policies and procedures in place to ensure accurate financial reporting and compliance with all applicable rules and regulations. The SEC has requested that the details of its fact-finding process be kept confidential and the co has followed the advice of its securities counsel with respect to communication with the SEC and disclosure with respect thereto.

UDF also provided a number of details responding to some of the issues mentioned in last week's short report, stating that its underlying business model is sound. "The fundamentals of our business have not changed from the end of the September quarter to the date of the anonymous release of misleading information on December 10, 2015. We expect to incur additional audit fees as a result of changing auditors and we will incur additional legal fees as a result of these anonymous posts. Directors, management and/or executives have purchased UDF IV shares in the open market since the misleading posts were made, and they may continue to do so."

6:33 am Rudolph Tech reports that a leading foundry in Asia has placed an order for over $15 million in multiple NSX 330 Systems (RTEC) : The systems will be used for inspection of next-generation fan-out wafer level packaging products, including whole-wafer inspection and post-saw inspection. The systems will begin shipping in the fourth quarter of 2015 with the majority shipping in the first quarter of 2016.

6:32 am Hydrogenics announces the award of almost $2 million in orders for fuel cell power modules, by a US-based developer of hydrogen powered forklifts (HYGS) : The fuel cells are expected to be shipped in the first quarter of next year, and follow-on orders are anticipated to support the scale up of forklifts at the retailer prior to the end of 2016.

6:31 am Jarden to be acquired by Newell Rubbermaid (NWL) for $60.00/share in cash & stock in a $16 bln deal (JAH) :

Newell Rubbermaid (NWL) and Jarden confirmed that they have entered into a definitive agreement to combine the two companies (this news confirms stories that circulated last week).

• Under the terms of the agreement, Jarden shareholders will receive, for each Jarden share, $21 in cash and 0.862 shares of Newell Rubbermaid stock at closing. Based on Newell Rubbermaid's closing share price as of December 11, 2015, the implied total consideration would be $60 per share, which represents a 24 percent premium to Jarden's 30-day volume weighted average share price as of December 11, 2015.
• The transaction will be funded by cash on hand, debt and equity issued to Jarden shareholders; convertible bondholders will be entitled to convert in exchange for the merger consideration in conjunction with the transaction. Newell Rubbermaid has obtained a committed bridge facility, which it expects to replace with permanent financing prior to closing. Newell Brands intends to maintain its investment grade credit rating by using strong cash flow from the combined company to prioritize debt reduction in the short term towards a target leverage ratio of 3.0 to 3.5 times. Newell Brands expects to achieve the target ratio within two to three years, while simultaneously maintaining or increasing its dividend per share.
• Newell Rubbermaid anticipates incremental annualized cost synergies of approximately $500 million over four years, driven by efficiencies of scale and new efficiencies in procurement, cost to serve and infrastructure that the combination unlocks. The transaction is projected to be immediately accretive with strong double-digit normalized earnings per share accretion post synergy realization.
  
• Upon the closing of the transaction, Newell Brands will be led by Michael B. Polk as Chief Executive Officer. Newell Rubbermaid and Jarden will host a conference call with investors to discuss the announcement at 8:00 a.m. ET.

6:31 am Recon Technology wins a major bidding contract with PetroChina Co, to participate in PetroChina's furnace procurement program (RCON) : Co subsidiary BHD receives a major bidding contract with PetroChina Co and has been deemed a Class A Furnace Supplier to all PetroChina's oilfield companies.. Co also announces that BHD has secured a RMB 3.22 million contract to supply five furnaces to PetroChina's Huabei Oilfield under this Bidding process.

6:30 am Angie's List promotes Darin Brown to Chief Technology Officer (ANGI) : In this role Brown will have responsibility for all of Engineering and Enterprise Technology. He joined Angie's List in January and previously served as senior vice president of Technology. He came to Angie List from Salesforce, formerly ExactTarget, where he served in various leadership roles including vice president of the Interactive Marketing Hub (now Salesforce Marketing Cloud) product line.

6:30 am Travelport Worldwide appoints Bernard Bot as EVP/CFO replacing incumbent CFO Philip Emery (TVPT) :

• Bot will replace incumbent CFO, Philip Emery, who will be taking a break in his career to spend more time with his family, and the two will work together during the first few months of 2016 to ensure a smooth handover of duties. Emery will also continue in his role as a board member of Travelport controlled subsidiaries, eNett and Locomote, until he leaves the company in 2016. 
• Bot joins Travelport on January 1, 2016, from Aer Lingus (AIRXY), where, as the airline's Chief Financial Officer, he played an instrumental role in completing the recent 1.4bn takeover by IAG (International Airlines Group-ICAGY), the parent group of both British Airways (:BAIRY) and Iberia.

6:11 am Siliconware Precision: Advanced Semiconductor (ASX) submits an offer to acquire SPIL for NT$275/ADS share (SPIL) :

Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASX) announced that its board of directors has approved and submitted a proposal to Siliconware Precision Industries to acquire all SPIL shares for cash. The terms and conditions of our Proposal are as follows:

• Price: NT$55 per common share (or NT$275 per American depositary share).
• All directors and management of SPIL will be retained and their current compensation and benefits maintained. SPIL must terminate or cancel the Tsinghua Deal.

Co stated: "We have asked that SPIL review our Proposal and send us a written response no later than December 21, 2015 to confirm whether SPIL is willing to discuss as soon as possible a 100% share exchange transaction in accordance with our Proposal."

6:06 am Atmel: Dialog Semi (DLGNF) acknowledges Atmel's receipt of an unsolicited acquisition proposal (ATML) :

Dialog Semiconductor (DLGNF) announced that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form F-4 with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with its previously announced proposed acquisition of Atmel. The registration statement contains a draft prospectus and proxy statement in connection with the proposed acquisition. The definitive versions of the prospectus and proxy statement will be filed publicly with the SEC and mailed to stockholders of Atmel prior to the time the Atmel shareholder meeting is scheduled.

• Dialog also acknowledged Atmel's recent announcement of its receipt of an unsolicited proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Atmel common stock. Atmel's board of directors has determined to engage in discussions with the potential acquirer, consistent with its rights under the Dialog merger agreement. Atmel's board of directors has not determined whether the proposal constitutes a "Company Superior Proposal" under the terms of the Dialog merger agreement, and the Dialog merger agreement remains in full effect and Atmel's board of directors continues to recommend the Dialog transaction to its stockholders.

6:04 am EnCana updates budget plan; decreases annualized 2016 dividend by $0.26/share to $0.06/share (ECA) :

Highlights of budget plan include:

• a 10-15% reduction in drilling and completion costs and over 10% reduction in corporate costs
• ~12 % Y/Y increase in production from core four assets
• ~$600(25%) mln lower than 2015
• Production from Encana's core four assets is expected to average between 260,000 to 280,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, representing over 75% of total expected production.
• Co is planning to reset its annualized 2016 dividend to $0.06/share

6:02 am Atara Biotherapeutics announces that its Phase 2 proof-of-concept clinical trial for PINTA 745 for the treatment of protein energy wasting in patients with end stage renal disease did not meet its primary endpoint (ATRA) :

The co announced results from its Phase 2 proof-of-concept clinical trial for PINTA 745 for the treatment of protein energy wasting (:PEW) in patients with end stage renal disease. The trial did not meet its primary endpoint, defined as the percent change from baseline in Lean Body Mass as measured by Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry at week 12 following weekly treatment with PINTA 745.

• PINTA 745 also did not improve physical function, measures of glycemic control and markers of inflammation. There were no treatment related serious adverse events observed in the trial.
• As a consequence of these results, Atara Bio will suspend further development of PINTA 745. To date, third-party direct costs for the development of PINTA 745 from its inception through the third quarter of 2015 were approximately $10 million.
• The Company will focus its resources on its portfolio of clinical stage oncology and immunotherapy product candidates, including:
  • Epstein-Barr Virus (:EBV) Targeted Cytotoxic T-Lymphocyte (EBV-CTL), which received breakthrough designation in rituximab refractory EBV associated post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (alloHCT) and is in two ongoing Phase 2 trials for EBV malignancies;
  • Cytomegalovirus (:CMV) Targeted Cytotoxic T-Lymphocytes (CMV-CTL), which is in two Phase 2 clinical trials for refractory CMV infections that occur in patients who have received an alloHCT;
  • Wilms' Tumor 1 Targeted Cytotoxic T-Lymphocytes (WT1-CTL), which is in two ongoing Phase 1 clinical trials assessing safety and initial anti-tumor efficacy in patients with hematologic malignancies; and
  • STM 434, an activin inhibitor, which is in an ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial assessing safety and initial anti-tumor efficacy in patients with ovarian cancer and other advanced solid tumors.

Atara ended the third quarter of 2015 with approximately $334.3 million in cash and cash equivalents and short-term available-for-sale investments, providing sufficient resources to further advance the Company's oncology and immunotherapy portfolio, including completion of the ongoing clinical studies and the planned initiation of two pivotal trials for EBV-CTL. The co will hold a conference call at 8 AM ET to discuss the development

6:02 am Snyder's-Lance reports the expiration of the HSR waiting period associated with merger with Diamond Foods (DMND) (LNCE) :  

6:02 am Egalet signs and agreement with Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA) to commercialize Sprix Nasal Spray in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank (EGLT) : Co announced a collaboration agreement with Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA). With this agreement, Egalet granted Teva exclusive marketing and commercialization rights to SPRIX (ketorolac tromethamine) Nasal Spray in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank. Under the terms of the agreement, Egalet will receive an undisclosed upfront payment, sales-based milestones and will share in the profits from net sales of SPRIX in these territories.

6:01 am Basic Energy Services reports Nov operating data; well servicing rig count remained unchanged; do not currently anticipate any change to previously announced Q4 revs guidance (~$161-165 mln vs $163 mln est) (BAS) :

• Well servicing rig hours for the month were 37,600 producing a rig utilization rate of 39%, compared to 44% and 67% in October 2015 and November 2014, respectively. During the month, fluid service truck count declined by five to 1,001. Fluid service truck hours for the month were 182,800, compared to 197,200 and 210,400 in October 2015 and November 2014, respectively. Drilling rig days for the month were 59 producing a rig utilization of 16%, compared to 13% and 83% in October 2015 and November 2014, respectively.
• "We have exited markets where margins have fallen below levels that justify current sustaining capital expenditures. While we expect a slower than usual holiday period in late December, we do not currently anticipate any change to our previously announced guidance of fourth quarter revenues being 13-15% lower sequentially."

6:01 am HollySys announces high-speed rail signaling contract win valued at $75.5 mln; delivery of the products is expected to be finished by June 2016 (HOLI) : "In the future, Hollysys will continue to work closely with the China Railway Corporation and national railway authorities, leveraging its strong R&D capability, effective management and high-quality products and services, make more contribution to China's railway construction and explore the vast rail and subway opportunities both in China and abroad, and create value for our shareholders."

6:00 am ImmunoCellular Therapeutics establishes an agreement with The Canadian Brain Tumour Consortium for a phase 3 registrational trial of ICT-107 in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma (IMUC) :

Co announced the establishment of an agreement with a major Canadian cancer cooperative group, The Canadian Brain Tumour Consortium, for the phase 3 registrational trial of its cancer immunotherapy ICT-107 in patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma.

• The CBTC's major goals are furthering brain tumor research and development and supporting patients and their families who are affected by glioblastoma.
• The ICT-107 phase 3 registrational trial is open for enrollment in the US with additional sites anticipated to open in Canada and Europe in the coming weeks and months.

5:50 am Trina Solar receives preliminary non-binding proposal to be acquired by CEO and Shanghai Xingsheng Equity Investment & Management for $11.60 per ADS (TSL) :

Co received a preliminary non-binding proposal letter from Jifan Gao (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company) and Shanghai Xingsheng Equity Investment & Management to acquire all of the outstanding shares of the Company not owned by the Buyer Group, including ordinary shares represented by ADSs, for $0.232 in cash per ordinary share, or $11.60 in cash per ADS

• Represents a premium of approximately 21.5% above the closing price of the Company's ADSs on December 11
• The Board has formed a special committee consisting of two independent directors, Messrs. Sean Shao and Qian Zhao, to consider the proposal

5:44 am S&P futures vs fair value: +9.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +30.60. :

5:44 am European Markets : FTSE...5987.10...+34.30...+0.60%.  DAX...10377.30...+37.20...+0.40%.

5:44 am Asian Markets : Nikkei...18883.42...-347.10...-1.80%.  Hang Seng...21309.85...-154.20...-0.70%.

5:19 am Merck KGaA acquires Ormet Circuits; purchase price not disclosed (MKGAY) :

Merck KGaA announced that it has acquired Ormet Circuits Inc., to strengthen its position as a materials supplier for the semiconductor industry.

• Merck KGaA has already held a minority stake in Ormet and has now taken over all remaining shares. The parties haveagreed not to disclose the purchase price.

5:16 am Vinci acquires the Dominican AERODOM company (VCISY) :

VINCI Group's airport subsidiary, signed an agreement with the Advent International private equity firm to acquire Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI, SA (:AERODOM).

• Concession and operation of six airports in the Dominican Republic, including those in Santo Domingo and Puerto Plata
• Total traffic: 4.3 million passengers in 2014
• Concession contract valid until March 2030

5:14 am Veolia Environnement provides updated outlook at investor day; sees annual rev growth of 2-3% for 2016-2018 (VEOEY) :

Co provides an outlook through 2018 at its investor day. The following highlights co's targets:

• Two main objectives for 2018:
  • near-doubling of net free cash flow to around 1 billion
  • current net income -- group share of more than 800 million
• 2016-2018 outlook:
  • the group expects a progressive increase in revenue growth to achieve average annual revenue growth between 2% and 3%, based on the current economic environment
  • average annual EBITDA growth of around 5% per year
  • more than 600 million in cost savings over the 2016-2018 period
• Dividend policy envisioned by the board of directors:
  • a return to dividend growth beginning with the 2015 fiscal year : 0.73 per share, paid in cash, compared to 0.70 per share paid for the 2014 fiscal year
  • 2016-2018: around 10% dividend growth per year
    

5:10 am Delek Group issues statement regarding sale of Phoenix Holdings; Fosun (FOSUF) reps to visit co in coming days (DGRLY) :

Co issues statement concerning the sales process of the shares of Phoenix Holdings

• Fosun representatives stated that they are expected to come to Israel in the next few days for meetings at which the parties will discuss the continuation of the Sales Process and its timetable.

4:44 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• ExxonMobil (XOM) announced the successful and safe startup of the onshore central processing facility at the Banyu Urip field in Indonesia, helping increase production to more than 130,000 barrels of oil per day. Once full field production is reached, Banyu Urip will represent ~20% of Indonesia's 2016 oil production target.
• NN Group (NNGPF) announces that ING (ING) nominees Patrick Flynn and Wilfred Nagel will step down from the Supervisory Board of NN Group, effective today. The resignation of Patrick Flynn and Wilfred Nagel marks a next step in NN Group's journey of becoming a stand-alone company.
• Micron Technology (MU) announced it has entered into a memorandum of understanding to grant Nanya Technology an option to license Micron 1x and 1y DRAM technologies. This new license agreement is in addition to Micron's existing license agreement for 20 nanometer technology with Nanya.
• Rubicon Project (RUBI) announced a partnership with Digital Media Services, which serves as the digital arm of the Middle East's largest media representation house -- Choueiri Group.
  
  

4:42 am Nordic American Offshore issues letter to shareholders; Exec Chairman states purchase of NAO stock (NAO) :

Co issued a letter to shareholders from the Executive Chairman

• It is good news for our platform supply vessels (:PSV) in Nordic American Offshore that the short term spot market has improved in the last few weeks. All our ships operate in the spot market, where rates have hovered around $5,000 per day...We are always looking for bright spots on the horizon and this example of a strong improvement in rates is such a bright spot. It would be too optimistic to expect rates to continue to be this strong, but we welcome every contract we sign at these levels...During the last few days I have personally bought about $500,000 worth of stock in NAO, which reflects my attitude about the company's prospects. Nordic American Tankers (NAT), where I am the Chairman and one of the largest shareholders, now owns about 26% of the shares in NAO, after NAT increased its holding from about 19% November 12, 2015."

4:17 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• AT&T (T) announced customers can get two of the most popular smartphones, including Samsung (SSNLF) Galaxy S6, for the price of one. The offer also applies to iPhone 6s (AAPL).
• Primero Mining Corp (PPP) regrets to report the fatality of an employee that occurred at its San Dimas mine in Mexico on the weekend. The accident was an isolated incident that occurred during wall and ceiling scaling in preparation for ground support installation in a cut-and-fill stope in the mine's Central Block area.
• Semtech (SMTC) and STMicroelectronics (STM) announced an agreement on Semtech's LoRa long-range wireless RF technology.
• NTT Communications, the ICT solutions and international communications business within NTT (NTT), announced that it has established the basic operations, administration and maintenance function, a key technology for software-defined networking on multiple wide area networks
• Medtronic (MDT) announced a new manufacturing facility in Galway, Ireland that will manufacture the market-leading IN.PACT Admiral drug-coated balloon for the treatment of peripheral artery disease.
• Xura (MESG) announced the availability of its Signaling Fraud Management System, built to protect mobile operators' signaling networks from sophisticated exploits and security threats.  
• Accenture (ACN) has been selected to help Deppon Logistics Co design a new agile sales and operations organization that will benefit from advanced customer insights.

4:14 am Micron acquires remaining interest in Inotera Memories of Taiwan; expected to be immediately accretive to EPS (MU) :

Micron Technology and Inotera Memories announced the signing of an agreement for Micron to acquire Inotera's remaining shares for consideration worth 30 New Taiwan Dollars per share or ~$0.92 per share.

• Micron currently owns approximately 33 percent of Inotera. This represents a transaction value of ~$3.2 billion, net of cash and debt at Inotera, to acquire the remaining equity.
• Acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to Gross Margin, EBITDA, EPS and Free Cash Flow
  

4:10 am Royal Dutch Shell - BG Group (BRGYY) merger Chinese Antitrust clearance; pre-conditional approval process now complete (RDS.A) :

Co announced that its recommended combination with BG Group (BRGYY) has received unconditional merger clearance from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.

• Following previously announced approvals in Brazil, the EU and Australia, MOFCOM clearance marks the final pre-conditional approval required for the combination.

4:07 am CTI BioPharma receives $10 mln milestone payment for TRISENOX from Teva (TEVA) (CTIC) :

Co announced that it has received a $10 million milestone payment from Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA) related to the achievement of sales milestones for TRISENOX.

• TRISENOX was acquired from CTI BioPharma by Cephalon, subsequently acquired by Teva.
• The milestone was paid pursuant to an acquisition agreement for TRISENOX entered into with Cephalon under which CTI BioPharma is eligible to receive up to an additional $70 million in payments upon achievement by Teva of specified sales and development milestones related to TRISENOX.

4:03 am Cheniere Energy appoints Neal Shear as interim Pres/CEO; Andrea Botta as Chairman (LNG) :

Cheniere Energy (LNG), along with subsidiaries Cheniere Energy Partners (CQP) and Cheniere Energy Partners LP Holdings (CQH), announced that its Board has appointed Board member Neal Shear as interim President and Chief Executive Officer, and the Cheniere Board has appointed Board member Andrea Botta as Chairman, effective immediately.

• Shear has also been appointed the Chairman of the Boards of Cheniere Energy Partners GP, the general partner of Cheniere Energy Partners, and Cheniere Energy Partners LP Holdings.
• The appointments follow the Board's decision to replace Charif Souki, Cheniere's co-founder, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. 
• The Governance and Nominating Committee of the Board will immediately begin a search for a permanent CEO.

3:59 am MediciNova reports positive interim safety and clinical outcomes data from clinical trial of MN-166 (MNOV) :

Co presented interim data from MediciNova's ongoing clinical trial of MN-166 in ALS

• The rate of decline in the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale-Revised score, a measure of functional impairment, from Baseline to Month 6 for the MN-166 and placebo subjects combined is below rates observed historically in other ALS studies.
• Slow vital capacity declined by 1.50% predicted/month for the no-NIV cohort from Baseline to Month 6, which is below rates observed historically in other ALS studies.
• Non-invasive ventilation utilization was lower in clinical trial participants when compared with the deployment of non-invasive ventilation in a sample of patients referred to ALS Multidisciplinary Clinic with vital capacity greater than 60% predicted, and the difference came close to reaching statistical significance.
• No cluster of adverse events was differentially present in MN-166 treatment and placebo treatment subjects.
• Safety review concludes that the clinical trial may continue as planned. MN-166 treatment will be given to subjects in the open-label extension for an additional 6 months
  

3:52 am EMC announces end to 'go shop' period; no additional proposals received (EMC) :

EMC announced the expiration of the "go shop" period described in the definitive Dell and EMC merger agreement announced on October 12, 2015.

• EMC and its representatives solicited alternative acquisition proposals during the "go shop" period. No acquisition proposals were received or deemed to constitute a Superior Proposal to the existing merger agreement.

3:44 am Pep Boys and Bridgestone (BRDCY) amended terms to merger agreement from $15.00 per share to $15.50 per share in cash (PBY) :

Co announced that Pep Boys and Bridgestone (BRDCY) Retail Operations, have amended their Agreement and Plan of Merger dated October 26, 2015.

• BSRO increased the offer price to acquire all the outstanding shares of common stock of Pep Boys from $15.00 per share to $15.50 per share in cash, or ~$863 million in aggregate equity value. The revised offer price of $15.50 per share provides approximately $28 million in additional cash consideration to Pep Boys shareholders.
• The Pep Boys board of directors continues to unanimously recommend that Pep Boys shareholders accept BSRO's offer and tender their shares pursuant to that offer.
• Pep Boys also announced that its board of directors no longer deems the proposal received on December 8, 2015 from Icahn Enterprises (IEP) to acquire Pep Boys for $15.50 per share in cash to be a "Superior Proposal" as defined in the Agreement and Plan of Merger

3:41 am NovaBay Pharma declares 1-for-25 reverse stock split (NBY) :

Co announced that the Board has approved to effect a 1-for-25 reverse stock split of all outstanding common stock shares of the Company.

• The Company's common stock will begin trading on a split-adjusted basis on Monday, December 21, 2015.

3:39 am Clear Channel Outdoor prices $225.0 mln of 8.75% Senior Notes due 2020 (CCO) :  

3:37 am Atmel receives unsolicited proposal to be acquired $9.00 per share (ATML) :

Atmel (ATML) announced that it has received an unsolicited proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Atmel common stock.

• Atmel stockholders would receive $9.00 in cash per share, with the option to receive, in lieu of cash, shares of the acquiror in an amount of up to $1.0 billion in aggregate value
• Atmel announced on September 20, 2015 that it had entered into a merger agreement with Dialog Semiconductor plc (DLGNF) which Dialog would acquire Atmel, with each share of Atmel common stock issued and outstanding immediately prior to the merger converted into the right to receive (A) 0.112 American Depositary Shares of Dialog, with each whole ADS representing one ordinary share of Dialog, (B) $4.65 in cash, without interest, and (C) cash in lieu of fractional ADSs as contemplated in the merger agreement.
• Atmel's board of directors, in consultation with its financial and external legal advisors, has determined that the proposal would reasonably be expected to result in a "Company Superior Proposal"
• Dialog Semiconductor announced that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form F-4 in connection with its previously announced proposed acquisition of Atmel
• Dialog also acknowledged Atmel's recent announcement of its receipt of an unsolicited proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Atmel common stock. Atmel's board of directors has determined to engage in discussions with the potential acquirer, consistent with its rights under the Dialog merger agreement.

3:25 am General American Investors issues price for year-end dividend and distribution (GAM) :

Co announced that the price at which shares of its common stock will be issued to stockholders who elected to receive additional shares in payment of the 2015 year-end dividend and distribution on its common stock will be $30.81 per share.

• The dividend and distribution is payable on December 30, 2015. As announced on November 4, the dividend and distribution amounts to $1.15 per share in the aggregate and is estimated to consist of:
  • A distribution of $0.81 per share from net long-term capital gains on securities sold.
  • A dividend of $0.34 per share from estimated undistributed net investment income for the full year 2015.

2:44 am On The Wires (:WIRES) :

• California American Water (AWK) has selected three firms to construct ~22 miles of pipeline, pump stations and storage facilities that will deliver desalinated water to the Monterey Peninsula as part of the proposed Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project. The Governance Committee will conduct its own review and make further recommendations on the award of these contracts, valued at ~$92 million.
• Lawyers representing Save Porter Ranch and hundreds of homeowners impacted by the Southern California Gas Company and Sempra Energy (SRE) massive gas well failure have called on Governor Jerry Brown to declare an immediate state of emergency to help Porter Ranch residents.
  

12:01 am Empire District Elec exploring strategic alternatives (EDE) :

The company issued a statement saying that while it is its policy not to confirm or deny market rumors, in response to recent media reports concerning it, and Friday's stock trading activity, EDE confirms that it is in the early stages of exploring strategic alternatives, and has retained a financial advisor with regard to the exploration of such strategic alternatives. The Company says it does not intend to make any further press release or announcement regarding these matters unless and until there is a material change in circumstances. 

• Briefing.com note: On Friday, shares closed up 8.3% after rising nearly 20% in heavy intra-day trading. After the close, Bloomberg reported that EDE was exploring a sale.