Briefing.com: Hourly In Play (R) – 13:00 ET
Jan 05, 2010 (Briefing.com via COMTEX) -- Hourly In Play (R)
Updated: 05-Jan-10 13:00 ET
12:59
HSY Hershey Foods displaying Relative Strength on above average volume (37.55 +1.33) -Technical-
The chocolate maker is up +3.6% here at midday on above average volume as the stock breaks out to a fresh 5-week high above $37.
12:53
COMDX Natural gas continues to sell off, notching fresh lows at $5.671; now off 20 cents to $5.684
12:43
AKS AK Steel announces February 2010 surcharges for electrical and stainless steels (23.00 +0.25)
Co has advised its customers that a $235 per ton surcharge will be added to invoices for electrical steel products shipped in February 2010. Co's surcharges are based on reported prices for raw materials and energy used to manufacture the products, with the December 2009 purchase cost used to determine the February 2010 surcharges.
12:39
COMDX Natural gas ticks to fresh lows at $5.73; now off 14.9 cents to $5.735
12:36
Porsche Cars North America reported approx flat y/y December sales in the U.S. of 2,118
12:20
Fitch downgrades Iceland to 'BB+'/'BBB+'; outlook negative
12:13
XLF Financial Select Sector SPDR edges to new session high (14.86 +0.17) -Technical-
The XLF held up well during the market's slip off morning peaks with it recently notching a new session high of 14.87. There is an equality target and the Dec high at 14.88/14.94 with the top of its Nov peak the next level of interest at 15.13.
12:11
F Ford Motor confirms Dec. sales of +32.8% vs. +13% street expectation (11.14 +0.86) -Update-
Ford confirms Dec. monthly sales were +32.8% vs. the +13% Street expectation. Ford reports its first full-year market share gain since 1995 and December marks the 14th time in 15 months that Ford increased retail market share. Ford cars were up 42%, crossovers were up 51%, sport utilities were up 33%, and trucks and vans were up 18%. Among brands, Ford sales were up 37%, Lincoln sales were up 16% and Mercury sales were up 6%. Ford Fusion posted a December sales increase of 83% and set new December (18,852) and full-year (180,671) sales records. Ford's F-Series truck had its best sales month since March 2008. F-Series sales in December were 48,209 (up 16%), bringing the full-year total to 413,625.
12:08
Subaru of America reports December sales increased 33% y/y to 23,074 units
12:06
MON Monsanto testing important resistance at $85 ahead of earnings tomorrow morning (84.94 +1.51) -Technical-
11:52
MS Morgan Stanley pushes back near early high/intraday range top at 31.85 (31.79 +0.88) -Technical-
The initial level of interest above is at its Dec high at 31.97.
11:47
ATSG Air Transport Services Group unit and pilots reached agreement on disbursement of Severance and Retention Agreement (2.70 -0.09)
Co reports that its subsidiary, ABX Air and APA Teamsters Local #1224, which represents its pilots, reached agreement on the disbursement of $75 million provided for under a Severance and Retention Agreement between ABX Air and DHL. DHL committed to provide these funds under this 2008 agreement to address pilot severance and other issues arising from DHL's restructuring of its U.S. business. DHL paid ABX Air the $75 million in December 2009. In accordance with ABX Air's agreement with the Union, $31.4 million of those funds were contributed to the pilots' defined benefit pension trust on December 29, 2009, and $30.4 million in pilot severance benefits and related taxes were paid prior to December 31, 2009. The remaining $13.2 million of severance benefits is expected to be disbursed in the coming months.
11:40
SPY S&P -0.15 and Nasdaq -3.4 slide back into the red, Dow -37 never reach unchanged -Update- -Technical-
Relative Sector Weakness vs. the S&P on the recent pullback has been noted in Casino, Airline, REITs IYR, Consumer Discretionary XLY, Housing XHB, Materials XLB, Gold Miners GDX, Steel SLX, Software.
11:35
COIN Converted Organics surges higher after receives organic fertilizer order from Walmart (0.83 +0.15)
Co announced that it received an order for its all-natural, organic fertilizers from Walmart (WMT) of Puerto Rico. The order was received by Matosantos Commercial Corporation, the Company's exclusive distributor in the Caribbean, which recently completed the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Department of Agriculture's registration process for Converted Organics' Lawn & Turf 8-1-4, Flower & Garden 4-1-8 and Indoor & Container 4-1-8 organic fertilizer products.
11:34
GCOM Globecomm Systems receives contract extension from NATO Valued at $9.1 million for GPS-based force tracking system (8.06 -0.05)
Co has received a contract extension from NATO valued at $9.1 million to extend communication services and onsite support for the Company's previously deployed GPS-Based Force Tracking System. Co previously announced approximately $35 million in contracts from NATO for this project to design and install a GPS FTS, bringing the combined contract value to approximately $44 million.
11:32
S&P report says U.S. corporate default rate falls to 10.9% in December
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services announced that the U.S. speculative-grade default rate decreased to an estimated 10.9% in December. The report notes that this is the first monthly decline since October 2007, when the default rate hit a 25-year low of 0.99%. The highest U.S. default rate on record is 12.54%, set in July 1991. "Credit conditions in the U.S. remain challenging, but signs of improvement are beginning to emerge, such as improved lending conditions and a resurgence in new issuance," stated Diane Vazza, head of Standard & Poor's Global Fixed Income Research Group. During December, four defaults were recorded, bringing the year-to-date total to 189. All of the defaults in December were from nonfinancial sectors. The preliminary estimate for the U.S. 12-month-trailing speculative-grade default rate in December is 10.9% (subject to revision), down from 11.28% in November. Standard & Poor's expects the speculative-grade default rate to continue declining to a mean forecast of 6.9% by September 2010, but it could also decline to only 9.9% if economic conditions are worse than expected.
11:29
RL Polo Ralph Lauren exhibiting some Relative Strength this morning as price climbs towards 2-month highs near 83.25/83.50 zone (83.42 +1.86) -Technical-
11:22
SCANX Today's biggest point gainers/losers -Update- -Technical-
Biggest point gainers: EDC (149.74 +3.52), NEU (123.30 +3.12), WYNN (68.19 +4.23), DECK (107.74 +3.99), CTRP (75.68 +3.18), FSLR (138.50 +3.04), PCLN (227.08 +3.12), HCH (115.00 +8.97), POT (118.15 +5.95), CEO (166.37 +5.05), ANW (33.09 +4.56), PTR (126.50 +4.05), RTP (228.11 +4.00)... Biggest point losers: SNS (299.65 -14.60), NVR (707.50 -5.17), MTD (102.08 -3.56)
11:22
Rumor Round Up
After a quiet start to the New Year, a few rumors were circulated this morning. ICX Tech (ICXT 7.84 +0.04) saw in increase in volume following takeover chatter. We note ICXT has seen an increase in volatility lately as it is being picked up as an airline security play by momentum traders. It was rumored that Nokia (NOK 13.28 -0.07) could be interested in Ciena (CIEN 11.42 +0.40). We note Ciena recently completed their purchase of all of the optical networking and carrier ethernet assets of Nortel's N. American network business.. It was also rumored that Novartis (NVS 52.38 -0.23) would raise its offer for the Alcon (ACL 156.32 +1.34) minority shareholders. Wells Fargo had a note out this morning saying they expected the same thing. The firm said they anticipated NVS will raise its price to $168-180 from the current price of $148/share. Delta Petroleum (DPTR 1.48 +0.13) was rumored to be seeing interest from Apache (APA 106.73 +0.86). This rumor likely stems from the fact that in Nov of last year DPTR announced it retained Morgan Stanley and Evercore Partners to evaluate and advise the Board on strategic alternatives. As mentioned before, while many rumors circulate during the day, and the validity of the source of these rumors can be questionable, the speculation may increase volatility in the near term.
11:19
CABL China Cablecom reports an additional $736K in debt cancellation during second round of equity conversions (0.66 +0.04) -Update-
Co reports a further reduction of approximately $736,000 in its outstanding debt, resulting from the conversion of approximately 2.06 million of the Company's Series A Preferred Shares into Ordinary Shares.
11:18
NEWT Newtech has retained Rubenstein Public Relations to promote its full suite of services (0.98 +0.02)
11:12
COMDX Silver rallies to its best levels of the morning, at $17.86; now higher by 37.2 cents to $17.835
11:07
SPY S&P 500 extends intraday turnaround -Update- -Technical-
Noted in The Technical Take that as long as 1130/1129 and a secondary target (1127/1126) held during early gyrations it would be in position for follow through (session low 1129). The morning reversal/extension has run as high 1136 with the next short term resistance zone in the 1140/1141 area. The upper end of this zone marks Fibonacci extension targets based on the width of the Nov/Dec range and the Nov to Dec advance -- (Click for chart). Intraday watching support at 1134/1133 during the current pause.
11:05
SHLD Sears Hldg extends current intraday strength of its morning lows up to last week's December peak of 86.53 (56.00 +2.58) -Technical-
11:04
BMC BMC Software catches some upside momentum here intraday as price attempts to breakout above its recent 6-day consolidation highs along 40.72 (40.74 +0.32) -Technical-
10:51
GR Goodrich to supply composite components for eight Virginia-Class Submarines (66.56 +0.21)
Co has received a $49 million contract from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding to provide a number of composite components for the next eight Virginia Class nuclear fast attack submarines, collectively referred to as Block III. General Dynamics Electric Boat with its construction partner Northrop Grumman (NOC) Shipbuilding has contracts to build a total of 18 Virginia-class ships; 30 ships are planned altogether.
10:38
TCK Teck Resources announces expansion at Antamina Mine (38.47 +1.03)
Co announces a major expansion at the Antamina mine in Peru is expected to increase ore throughput by approx 38% to 130,000 tonnes per day, and annual production of copper and zinc by approx 30% on completion in late 2011. Teck owns a 22.5% interest in Compania Minera Antamina, which owns the mine. CMA will invest $1,288 million to expand its mining and processing facilities. The expansion project cost will be funded out of cash flow and borrowings by CMA. Teck expects its share of CMA distributions to be reduced by no more than approx $100 million in total during 2010 and 2011 as construction progresses. Teck's share of operating profit after depreciation from Antamina for the last 12 months to September 30th, 2009 was C$231 million. Ore reserves at Antamina were increased by approximately 75% in 2008.
10:37
SPY S&P +2.1 and Nasdaq +2.9 edge above Monday peaks to set new 52-wk highs, Dow -12 -Update- -Technical-
10:30
JEC Jacobs establishes a new session high of 38.89 leaving it near a resistance zone at its 50 day ema and Dec recovery high at 39.01/38.99 (38.86 +0.41) -Technical-
Note that its 50 day sma comes into play thereafter at 39.23.
10:27
WYNN Wynn Resorts builds on breakout above 50 day, tests resistance at its Dec peak at 67.72 (67.43 +3.47) -Technical-
Noted test of its 50 day ema/sma yesterday (61.93/62.01) with the breakout nearing its Dec peak this morning at 67.72 (session high 67.69) for a 9% upside extension.
10:20
TECHX Relative Strength as stock indices rebound -Update- -Technical-
Sectors that have outperformed the S&P has the market bounces off the data related lows include: Housing XHB, Retail XRT, Semi SMH, Consumer Discretionary XLY, Solar TAN, Gold Miners GDX, Shipping SEA, Casino, Coal KOL.
10:05
XHB SPDR Homebuilders lagging slides to new session low after data (15.18 -0.14) -Technical-
The sector has been a laggard this morning with it recently hit following the weaker Pending Home Sales (-16% vs. consensus -2%). The XHB has, however, held between support at its early and Mid-Dec reaction highs at 14.89/15.02 and bounced more than 1%.
10:05
MACE Mace Security unit becomes exclusive distributor of SabraFence Perimeter Detection Technology (1.14 +0.10)
Co announced its subsidiary, Mace Security Products, has reached agreement with SabraFence Technologies to become the exclusive North American distributor of SabraFence products. The systems will be available exclusively through Mace in the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and most of Central America. Mace will also distribute the products in Mexico and South America. The product line will include all components necessary to install the systems, from perimeter cable and sensors to central control units. Mace plans to introduce this new technology at FenceTech 2010/Orlando in February and ISC West in March.
10:02
TECHX Stock indices slide to new lows after disappointing housing data then bounce -- Dow -39, S&P -1.1, Nasdaq -3.9 -Update- -Technical-
S&P is attempting to stabilize at support noted in The Technical Take at 1130/1129.
10:02
FBSS Fauquier Bankshares chairman retires and successor elected (13.00 )
Co announces that on December 17, 2009, John B. Adams, Jr. was formally elected Chairman and Randolph T. Minter was elected Vice Chairman of Fauquier Bankshares by the Company's Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2010. In September 2008, C. H. Lawrence announced he would retire, as Chairman, effective December 31, 2009. Mr. Lawrence served as Chairman since June 2006 and was a director of the Bank for over 30 years.
10:00
ECONX November Factory Orders +1.1% vs +0.5% consensus, prior revised to +0.8% from +0.6% -Update-
09:59
TLCR Talecris Biotherapeutics initiated with a Buy at BWS Financial; tgt $30 (22.39 +0.56)
BWS Financial initiates TLCR with a Buy and establishes a tgt of $30. The firm believes that from the operating leverage the Company could experience over the next three years and the scheduled opening of a new facility in 2015 that would pave the way for larger revenue growth.
09:49
KOL Market Vectors Coal ETF extends to new 16 month high (38.67 +0.81) -Technical-
ANR +1.4%, ACI +2.8%, CNX +2.4%, BTU +1.8%, WLT +0.7%.
09:47
BBY Best Buy notches a new session high of 41.00, hovering slightly under its 50 day ema/late Dec rebound high at 41.10/41.20 (40.98 +0.79) -Technical-
09:47
BBBB Blackboard: Best long idea for 2010; tgt raised to $59 - Maxim (45.43 -0.32)
Maxim raises their BBBB tgt to $59 from $50 as the co remains one of their top picks in enterprise software, and they believe that shares continue to offer a very compelling risk-reward tradeoff despite continued share price appreciation. Furthermore, the firm believes that BBBB's demand drivers are firmly intact and continue to view the academic software market as a long-term secular growth opportunity. In the firm's view, BBBB remains uniquely positioned to continue to dominate its market and extend share gains.
09:46
SPY S&P 500 holding above initial support at 1130/1129 -- session low 1131.06 -Update- -Technical-
No damage to the very short term patterns as the index has merely extended yesterday's sideways drift thus far. A minor secondary support is at 1127/1126.
09:43
ECONX Reminder: Factory Orders and Pending Home Sales data due out in about 17 min at 10:00ET
09:41
SPY Stock indices extending opening dip to fresh session lows -- Dow -39, S&P -1.6, Nasdaq -6.4 -Update- -Technical-
Sector pressure has come from Broker IAI -0.7%, Internet HHH -0.8%, Drug -0.7%, Housing XHB -0.7%. Semi SMH -0.7%.
09:41
PGC Peapack-Gladstone Financial receives approval from U.S. Treasury to redeem a portion of the preferred stock issued under the Treasury's Capital Purchase Program (13.00 +0.01)
Co has received approval from the U.S. Treasury to redeem 25% of the preferred shares issued under the Treasury's Capital Purchase Program. Co expects to repay ~$7.2 million to the Treasury (including accrued and unpaid dividends of ~$50,000) on January 6, 2010, representing 25% of the original $28.7 million CPP investment.
09:37
TECHX Airline -XAL- flying in early trade, vacillating near Dec peak -Update- -Technical-
UAUA +4.1%, CAL +7.2%, LUV +2.8%, AMR +4.4%, ALK +2.3%, XJT +1.5%, DAL +5.3%.
09:36
ICOP ICOP Digital announced that a patent application for video streaming was allowed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (0.49 +0.01)
09:33
GTIV Gentiva Health Svcs downgraded to Hold from Buy at BB&T Capital Mkts (27.20 -0.30)
09:32
MOS Early strength in Ag/Chem -- IPI +4.9%, POT +3.3%, MOS +2.5%, AGU +2.1%, CF +1.5%, BG +1.4%, MOO +1.3% -Technical-
09:31
DRCO Dynamics Research awarded $1.2 million program management contract to support FEMA's Office of External Affairs (10.52 -0.12)
09:30
CLMT Calumet Specialty Products increases in its quarterly cash distribution to $0.455 per unit, up from $0.45 per unit (18.68 +0.15)
09:26
Elecsys (ESYS) Acquires SensorCast; expects revenue from company to exceed $1 mln over next 12 months (3.54 )
09:16
OTIV On Track Innovations wins over $30 million in contracts for national eID program (1.40 )
Co announces that it had signed contracts relating to a national eID program with total consideration that exceeds $30 million. Revenues from this Project in 2010 are expected to be over $20 million. An advance payment has been received to support the initial stages of the project which have already commenced.
09:10
On The Wires
Maxim Integrated Products (MXIM) and Celeno Communications announce their collaboration to provide whole-home wireless HD solutions. The companies are now offering a joint reference design that can be embedded into HDTVs, gaming consoles, digital video recorders, laptops, Blu-ray players, set-top boxes, and home gateways... LTX-Credence Corporation (LTXC) announces a new multi-channel, VI instrument for the ASL test system. The XVI greatly enhances multi-site capability for the ASL1000 and ASL 3000 test systems with 14 channels per board... Bally Technologies (BYI) announces a comprehensive systems and server-based technology contract award for the new Boot Hill Casino & Resort in Dodge City, Kan., which opened to the public in December... CopperGate, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sigma Designs (SIGM) and Gigafast jointly announce that Gigafast is developing HomePlug AV bridges based upon the high performance CopperGate CG2110 Chipset... Smith International (SII) announces that on December 31, 2009 its PathFinder Energy Services business acquired a contract with Petroleo Brasileiro representing an estimated $80-100 mln of revenue over the 3-year term and substantially all of the directional drilling assets from San Antonio International do Brasil... Corcept Therapeutics (CORT) announces its anticipated milestones for 2010... inVentiv Health (VTIV) announces that it has acquired ParagonRx, a consulting company specializing in pharmaceutical risk management and optimizing medication use.
09:09
BAM Brookfield Asset Mngmt to issue Cdn$150 million of preferred shares (22.30 )
09:07
COMDX Crude oil surges back toward the $82 level to its best levels of pit trade; currently higher by 39 cents to $81.90
09:05
IT Gartner acquires Burton Group for ~$56 mln in cash; excluding estimated acquisition and integration related charges, expected to be modestly accretive to income per share in 2010 (18.70 )
Co announces that, on Dec. 30, 2009, it acquired Burton Group for approximately $56 mln in cash. Burton Group is a research and advisory services firm that focuses on providing practical, technically in-depth advice to front-line IT professionals. The firm has approximately 41 research analysts, 40 sales and client service associates, and projected 2009 revenue of $30 mln. Gartner expects the acquisition of Burton Group to be accretive to its revenue, earnings and cash flow over time. On a reported GAAP basis, the transaction is expected to be dilutive to income per share by ($0.12)-($0.10) in 2010 and accretive to income per share by at least $0.00-$0.03 in 2011. Excluding estimated acquisition and integration related charges, the transaction is expected to be modestly accretive to income per share in 2010 and add at least $0.04-$0.06 to income per share in 2011.
09:05
PPC Pilgrim's Pride announced the elimination of approximately 230 corporate and administrative positions (8.92 )
Co announced the elimination of approximately 230 corporate and administrative positions across the organization under the first phase of its integration with JBS USA, which acquired majority control of Pilgrim's Pride on December 28, 2009. Co will provide severance benefits, including outplacement assistance, to affected salaried and salaried non-exempt employees. There is no direct impact on Pilgrim's Pride's operations or production, as none of the positions being eliminated are production-related. Co said it is moving forward with plans to consolidate most corporate functions at JBS USA's headquarters in Greeley, Co. Both companies are continuing to evaluate the needs of their organizations and expect to finalize consolidation plans within the next three to six months.
09:04
TPX Tempur-Pedic upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Longbow; tgt $32 (24.43 )
09:03
INO Inovio Biomed announces that Mark Bagarazzi has been appointed Chief Medical Officer (1.10 )
He joins Inovio from Merck (MRK), where he was director of worldwide regulatory affairs for vaccines and biologics.
09:02
CHP C&D Tech awarded $19 mln contract by U.S. Army (1.68 )
Co announces they have been awarded a contract by the US Army for the development of large-format lithium-ion battery systems. The $19 mln contract will span an estimated four year period from September 18, 2009, with the objective of developing large-format lithium-ion batteries that can meet the growing needs of the US Army for light-weight, high power density battery systems.
09:01
TTEK Tetra Tech awarded $200 million FAA Navigation Technical assistance contract (27.75 )
Co announces that it has been awarded the $200 million Navigation Technical Assistance Contract with the Federal Aviation Administration. Tetra Tech will provide engineering and technical support services for the planning, research, development, implementation, sustainment, and decommissioning of FAA's navigation, landing, and lighting systems.
09:01
OSK Oshkosh Truck receives $290 mln delivery order for the U.S. Army family of heavy tactical vehicles (38.04 )
Co announced that its Defense division has received a delivery order valued at more than $290 million from the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command Life Cycle Management Command to deliver more than 725 next-generation Palletized Load Systems A1. The order was issued under the U.S. Army's existing Family of Heavy Tactical Vehicles contract. Production will begin in April 2010 and be completed in September 2011.
09:00
SII Smith Intl unit acquired a contract with Petroleo Brasileiro (27.99 )
Co announced that on December 31, 2009 its PathFinder Energy Services business acquired a contract with Petroleo Brasileiro (PBR) representing an estimated $80-100 million of revenue over the 3-year term and substantially all of the directional drilling assets from San Antonio International do Brasil. It is anticipated that employees supporting the contract will be retained and future operations will be provided by PathFinder through the newly completed Smith facility in Macae, Brazil. "The new base is a state-of-the-art facility bringing together all Oilfield Segment divisions of Smith under one roof. The addition of this contract provides a pivotal piece in our region-wide initiative to provide Optimized Drilling Services to Brazil and the region," stated Nigel Evans Geographic Business Unit VP for Smith in Latin America. Although PathFinder has been working for Petrobras in Brazil for several years, San Antonio had previously been the lead contractor through which PathFinder served clients in the country.
09:00
ASEI American Science & Engineering receives $5.8 mln follow-on order for cargo security equipment in the Middle East (79.83 )
Co announces that it has received a $5.8 mln follow-on order for a Middle East client for cargo inspection equipment to protect critical infrastructure in the region. AS&E's cargo equipment will scan vehicles and trucks entering a high-risk facility in the Middle East for explosive threats and contraband.
08:55
HILL Dot Hill Systems announces acquisition of Cloverleaf Communications; reaffirms Q409 financial guidance (1.97 )
Co announces that it has entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Cloverleaf Communications. Under the terms of the agreement, Dot Hill will purchase the company for cash of $2.5 million plus approximately $9.5 million in shares of unregistered Dot Hill common stock "The acquisition is intended to significantly broaden Dot Hill's reach into the storage virtualization, data management services software and unified storage markets." Firm expects the acquisition could be accretive to their financial results in 2011. Firm reaffirms their Q4 guidance for a net loss of ($0.07)-($0.01) (vs ($0.05) single analyst est, on revs of $62-$67 mln (vs $64 mln single analyst est).
08:49
LIME Lime Energy has received three contracts from the USPS (4.58 )
Co announces today it has received three contracts from the United States Postal Service (USPS) that give the company the opportunity to develop and implement energy efficiency projects for USPS facilities on the east coast. The maximum work to be performed under the three contracts is $28.5 million, accounting for the potential of four one-year renewals under each contract. There is no minimum purchase requirement under any of these contracts.
08:46
GLT Glatfelter Co to acquire airlaid non-wovens manufacturer Concert Industries; expected to be modestly accretive in 2010 (12.68 )
Co announces that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase Concert Industries from Brookfield Special Situations Management, an affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) for $235 mln. Concert is a global supplier of highly absorbent cellulose-based airlaid non-woven materials, used to manufacture a diverse range of consumer and industrial products for growing global end-use markets, including feminine hygiene and adult incontinence products, specialty wipes and food pads. Approximately 80% of Concert's sales come from the feminine hygiene mkt, which is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 5% for the next four years. In 2009, Concert's revenues are estimated at approximately $203 mln and EBITDA is estimated to be approximately $25 mln. Glatfelter expects the acquisition to be modestly accretive in 2010 and to be $0.20 to $0.25 per share accretive in 2011.
08:46
COMDX Gold pulls back to its lowest levels of the morning, at $1119.60; currently higher by $1.70 to $1120
08:40
VRTX Vertex Pharm downgraded to Underperform at Wedbush Morgan; tgt $45 (44.24 )
Wedbush Morgan downgrades VRTX to Underperform from Neutral and sets target price at $45. The firm believes that the recent run of the stock to the $43 range leaves limited upside to their price target of $45.
08:37
On The Wires
GovDelivery, the leading provider of government-to-citizen communications solutions, announces that Internet Capital Group (ICGE) has joined with the management team of GovDelivery to buy out all other shareholders of the company. The ownership change will keep existing GovDelivery management in place while providing the company with additional support and resources to continue to expand its leadership position. GovDelivery retained Craig-Hallum Capital Group LLC as its financial advisor and Faegre & Benson LLP as its legal advisor on this transaction... Boston Scientific (BSX) announces that it has completed enrollment in its MAPS clinical trial, which is studying the coiling of intracranial aneurysms. This prospective, randomized trial commenced enrollment in 2007 and has reached its goal of 630 patients, enrolled at 47 hospitals in 11 countries.
08:35
UPG Universal Power signs letter of intent for distribution of lithium battery technology (3.05 )
Co announces that it has signed a letter of intent to enter into a multi-year battery distribution agreement with K2 Energy Solutions, a developer and manufacturer of rechargeable battery systems for electric vehicles and energy storage applications. Under terms of the agreement, UPG will have the rights to market, distribute and sell K2's complete line of lithium iron phosphate products.
08:35
SMED Sharps Compliance initiated with a Outperform at Barrington Research; tgt $13 (9.82 )
Barrington Research initiates SMED with a Outperform and price target of $13. The firm notes that the co's solutions helps customers comply with government regulations that require proper disposal of "sharps" medical waste, protect service workers and the general public from potential exposure to contagious diseases, and reduce environmental pollution and accidental poisoning from unused medications. The co's flagship Sharps Disposal by Mail System serves a variety of customer segments that offer attractive growth opportunities, including medical professionals, retail clinics, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and assisted living facilities. The firm believes the company has captured less than 1% of a $2 bln market opportunity, leaving ample room for long-term growth.
08:32
BMR BioMed Realty unit commenced a private placement of $125.0 million aggregate principal amount of Exchangeable Senior Notes due 2030 (15.88 +0.10)
Co announced that its operating partnership subsidiary, BioMed Realty, L.P., has commenced a private placement of $125.0 million aggregate principal amount of Exchangeable Senior Notes due 2030, plus up to an additional $25.0 million aggregate principal amount of Notes that may be issued at the option of the initial purchasers to cover over-allotments, if any.
08:32
ICE IntercontinentalExchange reports record annual futures volume in 2009; December 2009 ADV across all three ICE Futures exchanges increased 17% y/y to record 988,212 contracts (112.87 )
Co announces record futures volumes and OTC energy commissions for 2009. Each of ICE's futures exchanges established annual volume records in 2009, with average daily volume (A.D.V.) surpassing one million contracts for the first time. ICE also established record OTC energy average daily commissions (A.D.C.) of $1.33 mln in 4Q09. December 2009 A.D.V. across all three ICE Futures exchanges increased 17% over Dec 2008, to a record 988,212 contracts. Fourth quarter 2009 A.D.V. for all ICE Futures contracts increased 13% over 4Q08, to a record 1,048,501 contracts. ICE Futures Europe established its second consecutive A.D.V. and total volume quarterly records, with 688,598 and 44,070,252 contracts, respectively. During 4Q09, ICE expects to record an incremental $11 mln in non-operating income related to adjustments to various cost equity method investments, including the disposition of its LCH.Clearnet shares. In addition to its GAAP reporting, ICE will report fourth quarter and full year non-GAAP EPS which exclude these items. During 4Q09, ICE expects to record $3 mln in additional SG&A expense related to a one time true-up of certain state tax items. Also, during 4Q09, ICE expects to record $3 mln in additional SG&A expense related to a one time true-up of certain state tax items.
08:31
PMFG PMFG Inc awarded contracts for three Process Products projects and two Environmental Systems projects (16.94 )
Co announced that it has been awarded contracts for three Process Products projects and two Environmental Systems projects with a combined value of approximately $30.0 million. The Company anticipates that approximately $10 million of the related revenues will be recognized during the second half of fiscal year 2010, with the remaining revenues recognized in future periods. The Process Products orders are for the installation of separation/filtration equipment at three natural gas pipeline projects in China, South America, and Saudi Arabia.
08:31
KERX Keryx Biopharma announces special protocol assessment agreement with FDA for Phase 3 registration program of Zerenex
Co announced today that it has reached agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regarding a Special Protocol Assessment (SPA) on the design of a Phase 3 clinical program for Zerenex (ferric citrate), its iron-based phosphate binder for the treatment of elevated serum phosphorous levels, or hyperphosphatemia, in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The SPA provides agreement that the Phase 3 program design adequately addresses objectives in support of a regulatory submission for drug approval. Keryx Biopharmaceuticals retains a worldwide exclusive license (except for the Asian Pacific Region) to Zerenex (ferric citrate). The Company has sublicensed the development of ferric citrate in Japan to Japan Tobacco Inc. and Torii Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
08:28
CDCS CDC Software estimates 37% growth in quarterly sequential license revenue for 4Q09 (10.11 )
Co announces, based on preliminary financial projections and estimates, it expects license revenue to be about $10.3 mln for 4Q09 compared to $7.6 mln in 3Q09, and $7.5 mln for the average of the first three quarters of 2009. According to First Call, the consensus analysts estimate for fourth quarter 2009 license revenue is $7.9 mln. The company estimates that organic license revenue in the fourth quarter is projected to be about $9.8 mln compared to $7.5 mln, for the average of the first three quarters of 2009, a 30% increase. In the fourth quarter, CDC Software expects to generate more than $600,000 in license sales from the three recent acquisitions completed in the fourth quarter of 2009.
08:27
KFT Kraft Foods: Berkshire Hathaway has voted "no" on Kraft's proposal to authorize the issuance of up to 370 million shares to facilitate the acquisition of Cadbury (27.43 ) -Update-
Berkshire Hathaway has voted "no" on KFT's proposal to authorize the issuance of up to 370 million shares to facilitate the acquisition of Cadbury (CBY). Berkshire, taking into account both its own holdings and those of its pension funds, believes that the 138,272,500 Kraft shares it owns - 9.4% of the total outstanding - make it the company's largest shareholder. "The share-issuance proposal, if enacted, will give Kraft a blank check allowing it to change its offer to Cadbury - in any way it wishes - from the transaction presented to shareholders in the proxy statement. And we worry very much that, indeed, there will be an additional change from the revision announced this morning. To state the matter simply, a shareholder voting "yes" today is authorizing a huge transaction without knowing its cost or the means of payment. What we know with certainty, however, is that Kraft stock, at its current price of $27, is a very expensive "currency" to be used in an acquisition. In 2007, in fact, Kraft spent $3.6 billion to repurchase shares at about $33 per share, presumably because the directors and management thought the shares to be worth more... Our understanding is that Kraft must announce its final offer for Cadbury by January 19th. If we conclude at that point that the offer does not destroy value for Kraft shareholders, we will change our vote to yes."
08:25
COMDX Crude oil gives back overnight gains to move into negative territory; now off 2 cents to $81.49
08:20
VECO Veeco Instruments appoints David Glass as Chief Financial Officer (33.99 )
Co announces that David Glass will be joining the company effective January 18, 2010 as Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Glass will replace John Rein, Jr. who announced his retirement from Veeco last year.
08:12
PVSW Pervasive Sftwr updates guidance for Dec. quarter; sees EPS of $0.06-$0.07 vs. $0.07 consensus, revs of $11.5-$11.7 mln (4.83 )
Co narrows guidance range for Q2, sees EPS of $0.06-$0.07 vs. $0.07 First Call consensus and prior guidance of $0.05-$0.08; sees revs of $11.5-$11.7 mln vs. $11.62 mln consensus and vs. prior guidance of $11-$12 mln. PVSW expects to report positive cash flow from operations with approximately $2.3 mln in the second quarter of fiscal 2010, ending the quarter with approximately $41.7 mln in cash and marketable securities. Co also issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.04-$0.07 vs. $0.07 First Call consensus and revenue of $11-$12 mln vs. $11.69 mln consensus.
08:10
On The Wires
SXC Health Solutions (SXCI) announces that its informedRx PBM division has been awarded full pharmacy benefit management accreditation from URAC, a Washington, DC-based health care accrediting organization that establishes quality standards for the health care industry... ImmuneRegen BioSciences (IRBS.ob) announces additional positive results from a recent study that evaluated its lead anti-influenza drug, Homspera, in ferrets.... Ivanhoe Energy (IVAN) announces that Ivanhoe Energy Ecuador has spud its first appraisal well, IP-15, in the Pungarayacu field in Ecuador. Ivanhoe Energy Ecuador, a Canadian company, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ivanhoe Energy Latin America Inc., the parent company of Ivanhoe Energy Inc.'s Latin America corporate group... John Morrell & Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Smithfield Foods (SFD), announces that it has acquired the remaining 49% interest in Premium Pet Health, LLC. Premium Pet Health is a leading protein by-product processor that supplies many of the leading pet food processors in the United States... EMCOR Group (EME) announces that its Marelich Mechanical subsidiary has been awarded a contract for the installation of mechanical systems for Western Digital... Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (KTOS) announces that it has been awarded three contracts valued at a total of $3.2 mln to support the U.S. Navy's next-generation IT workforce... Navistar Defense (NAV) announces that it has made a new foreign military sale to the Israel Ministry of Defense. Under the $12 mln contract, Navistar will deliver 114 medium tactical vehicles by June 2010... Excaliard Pharmaceuticals announces the initiation of three proof of concept Phase 2 trials of EXC 001, an antisense medicine that reduces fibrosis, for the amelioration of skin scarring and other fibrotic disorders. EXC 001 was co-discovered by Isis Pharmaceuticals (ISIS) and Excaliard, and licensed to Excaliard Pharmaceuticals.
08:06
CGNX Cognex promotes Robert Willett to President and COO (18.14 )
08:04
WAVX Wave Systems receives $5.7 mln in software license and maintenance orders for a global automaker (1.58 )
Co announces that it has received a series of significant license and maintenance orders for its EMBASSY Remote Administration Server software for a U.S.-based automotive company for managing its worldwide employees' laptop computers equipped with hardware-based, self-encrypting drives for the protection of sensitive customer, financial, competitive and other confidential data. The orders were received by Wave through an OEM partner in late December and total approximately $5.7 million. On average, the orders account for tens of thousands of new licenses per year for each of the next three years, along with maintenance orders for each of the next five years. The orders include approximately $1.9 mln for software licenses delivered and invoiced at the end of 2009; approximately $2.25 mln for additional software licenses to be delivered and invoiced at the end of 2010; approximately $1.07 mln for additional software licenses to be delivered and invoiced at the end of 2011 and for annual maintenance to be invoiced at the end of 2012 and 2013, respectively.
08:03
UIS Unisys wins contract to test and evaluate innovative data protection technology solutions at US Special Operations Command (38.27 )
Co was awarded a task order to help the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) develop technology solutions for secure data storage, retrieval and sharing. The project will test and evaluate the Unisys Stealth Solution and network and storage data protection solutions for government and commercial organizations. Under the one-year, firm fixed price task order, awarded through the Defense Information Systems Agency's Encore II contract, Unisys will provide support for USSOCOM in Tampa, Fla.
08:02
UEC Uranium Energy extends option agreement deadline for $11 mln sale of interest in New Mexico project (3.81 )
Co announces that it has granted a three-month extension to Neutron Energy until March 31, 2010, to provide written notice of its intention to purchase the Company's 49% joint venture interest in Cibola Resources LLC for a cash payment of US$11,000,000. If Neutron elects to exercise the option to purchase the Company's interest in Cibola, the date by which funds must be paid and the transaction closed has been extended to April 12, 2010. If Neutron does not provide written notice of its intention to exercise the option by March 31, 2010, the option will terminate, and the option agreement will be of no further force or effect. Additionally, the option agreement provides that Neutron will fund Cibola's obligations for the months of August 2009, through March 2010. Regardless of whether Neutron exercises its option, Neutron has agreed to release the Company from all liabilities with respect to these obligations, and the Company's interest in Cibola will not be diluted due to Neutron's funding of the project during this period.
08:02
IMA Inverness Medical enters into distribution agreement with Epocal (42.26 +0.75)
The co announces that it has entered into a distribution agreement with Epocal to distribute its epoc Blood Analysis System for blood gas and electrolyte testing. The epoc (enterprise point of care) platform is a point-of-care analysis system which provides wireless bedside blood gas and electrolyte measurement testing solutions. Utilizing easy to use, low-cost disposable Smart- Cards, the epoc System produces laboratory quality results in critical and acute care settings in about 30 seconds. The epoc system received FDA 510(k) clearance in 2006 for marketing in the US and anticipates receiving CE marking in 2010. Under the five year agreement, Inverness will utilize its strong global sales force to promote the use of this point-of-care system co-exclusively with Epocal in all geographies worldwide, except for Japan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Inverness paid $20.0 million to Epocal in connection with the entry into the distribution agreement, which provides that Epocal will supply to Inverness, at no charge, all of Inverness' requirements for Epocal products and Inverness will pay to Epocal 50% of its revenues from the sale of Epocal products. Separate from the distribution agreement, Inverness will work with Epocal in a collaboration to develop additional test menu content for the epoc testing platform, expanding Inverness' portfolio of test platforms in the point-of-care market.
08:01
ARYX Aryx Therapeutics receives guidance on anticoagulant agent tecarfarin (3.36 )
Co has received guidance in writing from the FDA confirming that the existing development pathway remains acceptable to seek regulatory approval of ARYx's novel anticoagulant agent, tecarfarin (ATI-5923). This guidance results from a series of discussions between ARYx and the FDA following the recent completion of the Phase 2/3 EmbraceAC clinical trial in which tecarfarin essentially replicated the efficacy and safety demonstrated in two previous Phase 2 clinical trials testing the compound. ARYx sought guidance from the FDA on a number of key elements in the continued development of tecarfarin, including: whether the maintenance of a patients' therapeutic level of anticoagulation, as measured by the International Normalized Ratio (INR), could continue to serve as a surrogate measure of outcomes; whether one successful additional clinical trial, comparing the safety and efficacy of tecarfarin to warfarin, the leading anticoagulant therapy, in a real-world setting, could establish tecarfarin's superiority over warfarin and be sufficient for approval; and, preliminarily, the design elements of the real-world trial required for approval. In their guidance, the FDA provided preliminary feedback on the design of this additional clinical trial so that it might provide adequate efficacy and safety data for their assessment, recognizing that the use of a surrogate endpoint should allow for a smaller clinical trial, of shorter duration, than one based upon outcomes.
08:01
NPO Enpro Industries announces acquisition of high performance seal manufacturer (27.38 )
Co announces that that it has acquired Technetics Corporation, a leading manufacturer of abradable seals, brush seals and acoustic products for turbines used in aerospace and power generation applications. The transaction was completed for cash; terms were not disclosed.
08:00
APWR A-Power Energy Signs License Agreement with W2E Technologies (17.84 )
APWR, a provider of distributed power generation systems in China and a manufacturer of wind turbines, today announced it has signed a technology license agreement with W2E Technologies GmbH. W2E Technologies granted A-Power an exclusive right to manufacture, operate, service and sell T8x 2.0 MW wind turbines in China and the United States starting in January 2010. In addition, A-Power has obtained non-exclusive rights to market T8x products outside of China and the United States. No other details of the agreement were disclosed.
08:00
CRED Credo Petroleum reports increased reserves for FY09 (9.59 )
Co reported that total proved reserves rose to 20.2 billion cubic feet equivalent at its October 31, 2009 fiscal year-end compared to 19.8 Bcfe last year. Reserves are denominated in the six to one natural gas energy-equivalent ratio. For 2009, Credo replaced 121% of its production. Oil reserves increased 23% while natural gas reserves fell about 4%. Oil currently accounts for 26% of the co's total proved reserves. At fiscal year-end, proved developed reserves represented 61% of total reserves and proved undeveloped reserves represented 39%. The percentage of reserves in the proved undeveloped category increased this year because the co was able to book a limited amount of reserves on its previously announced Bakken well on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. That well has reached total depth and is currently awaiting completion.
07:47
COMDX Gold, silver and crude oil all tick modestly higher in electronic trade as the dollar index pulls back into negative territory
Gold is now up $9.30 to $1127.60, silver is higher by 24.2 cents to $17.705 and crude oil is up 31 cents to $81.82.
07:45
NBL Noble Energy expands DJ Basin position with asset acquisition (73.22 )
Co announces that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire substantially all of the Rockies upstream assets of Petro-Canada Resources Inc. and Suncor Energy (Natural Gas) America Inc. for $494 mln. The company estimates total proved reserves to be 53 mln barrels of oil equivalent, 45% of which are liquids and 80% within the liquid-rich Wattenberg field, Noble Energy's largest onshore U.S. asset. The acquisition will add about 10 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day or 46 mln cubic feet of natural gas and 2,500 barrels of liquids to Noble Energy's daily production base. Included in the purchase is 340 thousand total net acres, nearly 200 thousand of which are located in the Greater DJ Basin. Total net risked resources (proven, probable and possible) are estimated at 103 MMBoe. Noble Energy has identified several thousand projects associated with the assets being acquired, including over 2,000 Codell/Niobrara drilling locations in Wattenberg. The Company plans to add two rigs to its Wattenberg program in 2010 as a result of the transaction, increasing the Company's operated drilling activity in the field to eight rigs. Including activity on acreage outside Wattenberg, Noble Energy expects to grow net production from the assets to approximately 20 MBoe/d by 2012, with a focus on increasing liquids contribution.
07:44
PTEN Patterson-UTI reports Dec drilling activity; co had an average of 118 drilling rigs operating (16.19 )
Co reported that for the month of December 2009, the Company had an average of 118 drilling rigs operating, including 108 rigs in the United States and 10 rigs in Canada. For the three months ended December 2009, the Company had an average of 103 drilling rigs operating, including 95 rigs in the United States and 8 rigs in Canada.
07:34
OZM Och-Ziff Capital: In 8-K, discloses that, as of Jan. 1, the estimated unaudited amount of assets under management was approximately $23.5 bln; an increase of ~$700 mln y/y (13.73 )
07:34
TTI TETRA Tech issues in-line FY10 EPS guidance
Co issues in-line guidance for FY10 (Dec), sees EPS of $0.85-1.05 vs. $0.93 First Call consensus. "The 2010 guidance reflects our expectation of earnings growth in our Fluids Division, our Maritech segment, and our Production Enhancement Division. We have based these forecasts of improved results on a number of factors and assumptions, including our expectation of a modest recovery in our domestic markets, our continuing belief that future growth in the Gulf of Mexico will be focused toward deepwater services, and our continued commitment to international expansion. In addition, we anticipate strong market activity in 2010 for the Offshore Services segment... Similar to last year, we are not providing quarterly earnings guidance for 2010. We do expect that typical seasonal patterns will impact 2010 results, and that Offshore Services will perform most strongly in the second and third quarters, and the Fluids Division will benefit from strong demand in Europe during the second quarter." Guidance assumes avg unhedged oil price of $70.75 and avg unhedged gas price of $5.75.
07:34
AMFI AMCORE Fncl subsidiary reaches an agreement with Midland States Bank for sale of 12 branches (1.30 )
AMCORE Bank, N.A., a wholly-owned subsidiary of AMFI announced that it has reached a definitive agreement with Midland States Bank to sell 12 branches and two stand-alone drive-ups. The branches are located in Dixon, Freeport, Mendota, Oregon, Peru, Princeton, Rock Falls and Sterling. The transaction includes approximately $480 million in loans, $540 million in deposits and sweep accounts, up to $400 million in trust and brokerage account relationships, as well as the branch facilities, related fixed assets and leases. In connection with the sale, AMCORE will receive a 1.5% deposit premium and a $1.5 million trust account premium. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory and other customary closing conditions, is expected to close in first quarter 2010.
07:31
GERN Geron announces the publication of data on its telomerase inhibitor in glioblastoma (6.22 )
Co announces the the publication of preclinical data demonstrating that its telomerase inhibitor drug, imetelstat, inhibited telomerase activity and reduced tumor size in xenograft models of glioblastoma, and inhibited the activity of glioblastoma stem cells in culture. The data, authored by Geron collaborators at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, were published in the January 1, 2010 issue of Clinical Cancer Research.
07:31
CME CME Group volume averaged 9.2 million contracts per day in December 2009, up 13% from December 2008 (342.41 )
The co announces that December volume averaged 9.2 million contracts per day, up 13 percent from December 2008, and represented the second consecutive month of positive year-over-year growth in 2009. Total volume was 202 million contracts for December, of which 82 percent was traded electronically. Electronic volume averaged 7.5 million contracts per day, up 17 percent from the prior December. Average daily volume cleared through CME ClearPort was 403,000 contracts for December 2009, down 1 percent compared with December 2008. CME Group fourth-quarter volume averaged 10.2 million contracts per day, down one percent from December 2008, but up one percent versus third-quarter 2009. CME Group 2009 volume averaged 10.3 million contracts per day, down 20 percent from 2008.
07:31
DPZ Domino's Pizza announces that Chairman & CEO David A. Brandon is transitioning to Non-Executive Chairman; J. Patrick Doyle to be named CEO (8.68 )
Co announces that Chairman and CEO David A. Brandon will be stepping down as CEO effective March 7, 2010. The Board of Directors plans to elect J. Patrick Doyle as Brandon's successor. Brandon, 57, will be retained by the company as a special advisor for the balance of 2010. In addition, Brandon will stand for re-election to the Board when his current term expires in 2012. Concurrent with this announcement, the University of Michigan is announcing that Brandon has been selected to serve as its next Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. Before joining Domino's over 12 years ago, Doyle spent six years with the Gerber Products Company, most recently as General Manager of its U.S. baby food business.
07:31
On The Wires
Technip (TKPPY) has been awarded by Polimerica a reimbursable contract to perform the front end engineering design for a new ethylene plant... Oceaneering International, Inc. (OII) announced it has commissioned the construction of a dive support vessel (DSV) with an estimated capital cost of $17 million. Oceaneering expects delivery of the 200 foot by 46 foot vessel from a U.S. Gulf Coast shipyard late in the fourth quarter of 2010. The new vessel will replace the Ocean Project, which was built in 1972... The Bank of East Asia has selected BMC Software's (BMC) Business Service Management platform to deliver a comprehensive IT management platform and to build up a "boutique data center" that meets its rapidly growing banking business... INX, Inc. (INXI) announced that it has acquired the operations of Marketware, a network consulting organization.
07:31
ALGT Allegiant Travel reports Scheduled Service December, 4Q09, FY09 traffic (48.01 )
Co reports Scheduled Service December 2009 RPM increased 18.6% to 406,238,000 and load factor increased 1.9 pts to 90.6%. 4Q09 RPM increased 25.4% to 1.053 bln and load factor increased 0.5 pts to 90.2%. 4Q09 RPM increased 28.1% to 4.48 bln and load factor increased 0.5 pts to 90.4%.
<p>07:31
LCRD LaserCard awarded contract to supply highly secure International Certification cards for professional drivers by Hungary's Public Transportation Authority (6.03 )
Co announces that it has been awarded the contract to supply highly secure International Certification cards for professional drivers by Hungary's Public Transportation Authority. It is anticipated that the Hungarian government will purchase certification cards valued at about $4 million over the next six years. LaserCard has received the contract from its local partners and initial deliveries have begun.
07:30
AMSC Am Superconductor signs contract to develop 5 megawatt wind turbines with China's Dongfang Turbine (42.15 )
Co announces that its wholly-owned AMSC Windtec subsidiary has signed a follow-on contract with Dongfang Turbine to design and jointly develop 5 megawatt full conversion wind turbines for the offshore wind power market.
07:17
KOSS Koss Corp's investigation expands as Grant Thornton is dismissed as the Independent Auditors (5.51 )
The co announces that the scope of the Company's previously disclosed internal investigation of unauthorized financial transactions by Sujata Sachdeva, the Company's former Vice President of Finance and Secretary, has been expanded to include fiscal years since 2005 through the present. Preliminary estimates indicate that the amount of unauthorized transactions since fiscal year 2005 through the present has exceeded $31 million, but at this point the Company and its advisors cannot assess the potential impact on its financial statements or identify the extent that specific fiscal periods may be affected. Nor can the Company and its advisors yet assess the extent of the possible offsets through insurance, asset recoveries and other mechanisms related to the unauthorized transactions. As a result, the Company has concluded that its previously issued financial statements at least since the end of its 2005 fiscal year should no longer be relied upon. The Company plans to restate its financial statements for at least the last three fiscal years as further investigation indicates... On December 31, 2009, upon a recommendation from Koss Corporation's Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors, Koss dismissed Grant Thornton LLP as its independent auditors. None of Grant Thornton's audit reports of Koss Corporation's financial statements, including the ones for the past two fiscal years, contained an adverse opinion, a disclaimer of opinion, nor were they qualified or modified as to uncertainty, scope, or accounting principles.
07:16
CABL China Cablecom announces six month payment extension for Binzhou Broadcasting (0.62 )
Co announces that it has entered into an amended framework agreement pursuant to which it has further extended its payment deadline to Binzhou Broadcasting until June 30, 2010. Under the revised agreement, the company is relieved from its obligation to pay outstanding cash payments of approximately $16.5 mln prior to December 31, 2009 and has renewed the duration of contract with its Binzhou JV partners.
07:12
MESA Mesa Air commences restructuring (0.11 )
Co announces it has commenced a financial restructuring through the voluntary filing of petitions to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. During the restructuring, the Company will continue to operate as normal, without interruption, which includes its code-share agreements with its partners US Airways, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Mesa's go!-Mokulele joint venture, an independent Hawaiian inter-island operation, is not included in the filing and will continue to operate its full flight schedule. To ensure the Company operates without interruption, Mesa is seeking authority from the Court to continue all of its normal operations. The requests include authority to continue to pay employee salary and benefits, fulfill code-share partner agreements, honor customer programs, and pay vendors and suppliers for post-petition goods and services. These requests are standard and the Company anticipates receiving approval in the next few days. Vendor and supplier invoices incurred prior to the commencement of the co's Chapter 11 case that have not been paid will be resolved through the Company's Plan of Reorganization which requires Court approval and has yet to be submitted.
07:11
On The Wires
Insulet Corporation (PODD) and Ypsomed AG announce an exclusive agreement for the distribution of the OmniPod Insulin Management System in nine countries across Europe, as well as China and Australia... Isilon Systems (ISLN) announces that Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium has selected Isilon IQ as the primary repository for all of its Winter Games raw footage and video package content... Bruker's (BRKR) new South America headquarters announces a new framework agreement for up to $1 mln in business with SABMiller's Latin American headquarters to supply local breweries throughout South and Latin America with Bruker BioSpin's proprietary EPR technology, the e-scan beer analyzer... World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and Mattel (MAT) announce the debut of the most comprehensive portfolio of WWE action figures and accessories for fans of all ages on store shelves worldwide. Mattel will manufacture, market and distribute the exclusive line of WWE action figures and accessories... Dolan Media Company (DM) said today that it acquired an additional 7.57% membership interest in National Default Exchange, or NDeX, increasing its ownership from 84.67% to 92.24%.
07:06
LVLT Level 3 reaffirms previously issued expectation of FY09 Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA of $900-950 million (1.61 ) -Update-
Co also expects to be approximately Free Cash Flow neutral for 2009 in the aggregate. In addition, for Q4, co continues to expect improvement in the sequential performance of Core Network Services revenue. Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA is expected to increase in Q4 compared to the company's results in Q3.
07:04
GDP Goodrich Petroleum announces East Texas Well results (25.07 )
Co announced results on two wells in its Beckville field in Panola and Rusk Counties, Texas. The Company has completed a horizontal Haynesville Shale well, its Billy Harris No. 1H, which produced into sales at a 24 hour peak production rate of 12,200 Mcf per day on a 24/64 inch choke with 6,000 psi. The well was drilled and completed with an approximate 5,000 foot lateral and twenty frac stages. The Company is operator and owns a 100% working interest in the well. The Company has also completed its fourth horizontal Cotton Valley Taylor sand well. The GT Waldrop 5H is in early stages of flowback, and to date has a 24 hour peak production rate of 4,100 Mcf per day. The Company is also operator and owns a 100% working interest in the well.
07:04
TGA Transglobe Energy provides an update on its operations and production (3.44 )
Co announces that two oil wells were completed since the last update provided on November 25, 2009. The Company's first horizontal well in Egypt at Arta #12 was drilled to a total depth of 5,217 feet with a 1,519 foot horizontal section in the Nukhul reservoir. The well was placed on production during the first week of December at a rate of 30 barrels of oil per day of 19 degrees API oil, with no water cut. A multi-staged fracture stimulation program is being designed to improve access to the reservoir and potentially increase production rates. The stimulation program is expected to be completed in the next sixty days, subject to the availability of stimulation equipment. If successful, additional horizontal wells will be drilled in the Arta field. A development/appraisal well at Hana West #8 was drilled to a total depth of 6,971 feet and cased as a multi-zone oil well. The well was completed in the lower Rudeis formation and placed on production at a rate of 730 Bopd on December 27, 2009. The well also encountered an extension to the main Hana pool and a new oil pool in the Shagar formation, which have not been completed. The rig was then moved to a step-out location at Hana #20 on the south end of the Hana field. The Hana #20 well reached a total depth of 5,505 feet in eight days on January 3, 2010, making it the fastest well ever drilled in the Hana field. TransGlobe's 2009 average oil production increased 22% over 2008. The Company's 2009 average production was 8,970 Bopd comprised of 5,830 Bopd from West Gharib and 3,140 Bopd from Yemen. The December 31, 2009 exit sales rate was 9,428 Bopd, primarily due to the addition of new wells at Arta and Hana West in Egypt.
07:03
LVLT Level 3 announces its subsidiary, Level 3 Financing, plans to offer $640 mln aggregate principal amount of senior notes that will mature in 2018 (1.61 )
07:02
AMED AMEDISYS names Michael D. Snow new Chief Operating Officer (50.55 )
Co announced that Michael D. Snow, formerly President and CEO of Wellmont Health System, will join Amedisys as the Company's new Chief Operating Officer (COO); and Tim Barfield, formerly the Executive Counsel to Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, will join Amedisys as the Company's new Chief Development Officer.
07:01
ICFI ICF International awarded $9.9 mln contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (27.21 )
07:01
LCAV LCA Vision reported that 11,718 procedures were performed at LasikPlus vision centers in 4Q09 vs 15,335 in 3Q09, and 19,424 in 4Q08 (5.81 )
07:01
LOCM Local.com acquires approximately 22,000 subscription customers (5.84 )
Co announces that on December 30, 2009, it acquired approximately 22,000 web hosting subscribers, bringing the co's total subscribers to over 40,000. In connection with the transaction, the co also secured an option to purchase up to approximately 10,000 additional web hosting subscribers during 1Q10. The acquired customers pay approximately $35 per month for web hosting services, which are provided by a third party with which the co has contracted. "This acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive. This is our third subscriber acquisition since February 2009, and we ended 2009 much closer to our stated target of 50,000 small business subscribers. We anticipate additional future acquisitions in order to increase our small business subscriber base."
06:34
S&P futures vs fair value: -0.40. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -0.30.
06:34
Asian Markets
Nikkei...10681.83...+27.00...+0.30%. Hang Seng...22279.58...+456.30...+2.10%.
06:34
European Markets
FTSE...5519.92...+19.60...+0.40%. DAX...6042.06...-6.20...-0.10%.
06:09
CAMT Camtek receives first order for co's Automatic Optical Inspection system by Asian integrated device manufacturer; financial terms not disclosed (2.69 )
01:53
KFT Kraft Foods extends offer deadline for Cadbury shareholders to tender shares from January 5, 2010 to February 2, 2010 (27.43 ) -Update-
Co announces that it will extend the acceptance period for Cadbury plc (CBY) securityholders to tender their shares from January 5 to February 2, 2010.
01:49
KFT Kraft Foods offer to include partial cash alternative enabled by net proceeds from sale of N. American pizza business (27.43 ) -Update-
This morning, Kraft Foods announced a definitive agreement to sell the assets of its North American pizza business to Nestle (NSRGY) for a total consideration of $3.7 bln. Following this news, Kraft Foods is now announcing it will use an amount equivalent to the full net proceeds from the sale (less taxes and deleveraging to maintain its investment grade credit rating) to fund a partial cash alternative as part of its Offer for Cadbury plc (CBY). Kraft Foods is doing this because of the desire expressed by some Cadbury Securityholders to have a greater proportion of the offer in cash and because Kraft Foods Shareholders have expressed a desire for Kraft Foods to be more sparing in its use of undervalued Kraft Foods Shares as currency for the offer. Kraft Foods continues to believe that its share price is depressed as a consequence of a number of short term factors which it believes will dissipate once the uncertainty surrounding its offer for Cadbury is resolved. Therefore, it will apply an amount equivalent to the net proceeds from the pizza sale, estimated to be 60 pence per Cadbury Share or 240 pence per Cadbury ADS, to fund a Partial Cash Alternative to its Offer to acquire Cadbury. Kraft will announce the detailed terms of the Partial Cash Alternative on or before 19 January 2010 (being the last day for Kraft Foods to amend the terms of the offer).
01:45
KFT Kraft Foods announces agreement to sell pizza business to Nestle -Update-
Co announces that, after several months of discussions, it has agreed to sell the assets of its North American pizza business to Nestle (NSRGY) for a total consideration of $3.7 bln.
01:26
FPO First Potomac Realty trust refinances bank debt (12.57 )
First Potomac Realty Trust (FPO) announces that it has restructured its unsecured revolving credit facility and one of its bank term loans, extending the maturity on approx $180 mln of debt and increasing its total bank debt capacity by $10 mln. The co closed on a new $175 mln unsecured revolving credit facility to replace its $125 mln facility, which was scheduled to mature in April 2010.
01:19
On The Wires
Syngenta (SYT) and Dow AgroSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow Chemical (DOW), announces that Syngenta has granted Dow AgroSciences licenses to a number of VipCot cotton varieties, as well as access to its COT102 cotton transgenic event. Under the terms of the agreement, Dow AgroSciences will receive a global license to develop and commercialize stacked combinations of Syngenta's COT102 transgenic event with Dow AgroSciences' traits... Tortoise Energy Infrastructure (TYG) announces that as of Dec. 31, 2009, the co's unaudited total assets were approx $1.1 bln and its unaudited net asset value was $658 mln, or $27.38 per share... Tortoise North American Energy (TYN) announces that as of Dec. 31, 2009, the co's unaudited total assets were approx $157.3 mln and its unaudited net asset value was $135.6 mln or $21.65 per share... Aerojet, a GenCorp (GY) co, announces that the co has been selected to provide the MK 125 warhead for Raytheon Missile Systems' (RTN) family of Standard Missile programs, with deliveries beginning in 2010... Bio-Rad Labs (BIO) and Axis-Shield plc announce launch of Bio-Rad's BioPlex 2200 Anti-CCP test for early detection of rheumatoid arthritis.
18:37
ATRI Atrion Corporation declares special dividend of $6.00 per share (155.85 +0.13)
18:23
CAL Continental Airlines reports December 2009 operational performance (18.14 +0.22)
Co reported a December consolidated (mainline plus regional) load factor of 83.0%, 3.1 points above the December 2008 consolidated load factor, and a mainline load factor of 83.5%, 3.1 points above the December 2008 mainline load factor. The carrier reported a domestic mainline December load factor of 85.1%, 1.1 points above the December 2008 domestic mainline load factor, and an international mainline load factor of 81.9%, 5.2 points above December 2008. All four December load factors were records for the month.
18:10
FRM Furmanite Corp announced that it is implementing initiatives to reduce sales costs by 15% and G&A costs by 13% from current levels (3.90 +0.09)
17:54
PPD Pre-Paid Legal announces new memberships produced and new sales associates enrolled in Q4 (41.66 +0.58)
Co reported new memberships produced and new sales associates enrolled for Q4 and for the year ended December 31, 2009. During Q4, new sales associates enrolled increased 89.4% to 61,623 from the 32,533 enrolled in the 4th quarter of 2008 and new memberships produced increased 11.8% to 148,248 during the 2009 quarter compared to 132,641 for the 2008 quarter.
17:52
RUTH Ruth's Hospitality Group reports prelim Q4 sales; Total company-owned restaurant sales decreased by 10.5%, to $83.7 mln (2.42 +0.33)
Co reported preliminary sales results for the 13-week Q4 ended December 27, 2009. Total co-owned restaurant sales decreased by 10.5%, to $83.7 million for the fourth quarter ended December 27, 2009 compared to $93.5 mln for Q4 ended December 28, 2008. Co-owned comparable restaurant sales for Ruth's Chris Steak House decreased 11.2% in Q4 of 2009 from Q4 of 2008, compared to an 18.7% decrease in Q4 of 2008 from Q4 2007. Sales results in Q4 of 2009 and 2008 have been adjusted downward to reflect the reclassification of sales discounts from operating expenses to net sales. The adjustment for sales discounts in Q4 of 2009 was $2.1 mln, while the adjustment for sales discounts in Q4 of 2008 was $3.0 mln. Comparable restaurant sales for Mitchell's Fish Market decreased 2.6% for Q4 of 2009 from Q4 of 2008... Co says, "We believe our preliminary sales results for Q4 suggest that the sales environment at our restaurants has stabilized. While absolute sales volumes have declined from 2008, our unit level cash flow and return on capital continue to be very solid given cost initiatives that have become a permanent part of our model. In terms of the specific guidance metrics we've referenced throughout the year, we expect to meet targets for cost of goods sold, general and administrative expenses and capital expenditures, which we believe will continue to drive free cash flow generation and will assist us in our on-going debt reduction efforts. In FY09, we reduced our outstanding debt by ~$35 mln."
17:47
LINE LINN Energy names Mark Ellis President and Chief Executive Officer (2.45 +0.57)
Co announced that Mark E. Ellis has been named President and Chief Executive Officer of LINE and has been appointed to its Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2010. As the co announced in June 2009, Michael C. Linn will remain an officer of LINE as Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and will focus on the long-term strategy of the co and Board leadership. Ellis joined LINE in December 2006 and has served as President and Chief Operating Officer since December 2007
17:35
CELL Brightpoint sees Q4 EPS below consensus; issues preliminary selected expectations for 2010 (776 +0.41)
Co issues downside Q4 EPS guidance; co sees Q4 Non-GAAP EPS of ~$0.13-0.18 vs. First Call consensus of $0.19. Co estimates wireless devices handled to be ~22-24 million units for Q4 of 2009 and ~81-83 mln units for FY09, which is a reduction of ~5% from 2008. Global sell-in for the wireless device industry in 2009 is estimated to have declined by 7% to 10% from 2008. Therefore, the co believes it gained market share during 2009... For 2010, global sell-in for the wireless device industry is currently expected to grow by ~8-10%. The co expects to outpace the global wireless device industry in terms of unit growth rate and plans for its year over year growth in wireless devices handled for 2010 to be higher than the top end of this range. Therefore, the co plans to continue to gain market share in 2010. The co currently plans annual combined gross margin to be between 8.4% and 8.6% for 2010. Combined gross margin is anticipated to vary from quarter to quarter as the co plans for seasonality to have a more pronounced impact on demand than in 2009. Logistic services gross margin is planned to reflect a change in reporting of revenue associated with certain prepaid airtime agreements from a gross basis to a net basis as defined by Accounting Standards Codification (ASC) Section 605-45 (formerly Emerging Issues Task Force Issue No. 99-19) based on a change in the prepaid airtime business model. While this change will not impact gross profit, the co currently believes that the impact of this change will result in a reduction of both its logistic services revenue and its cost of logistic services revenue of ~$20-25 mln per quarter. The co expects price pressures related to the renegotiation and renewal of contracts with several key logistic services customers to negatively impact logistic services gross margin. However, the co anticipates continued improvement in planned distribution gross margins to substantially offset any negative impact of the potential price pressures to overall combined gross margins.
17:25
UAUA United Airlines reports December consolidated traffic results (280 -0.11)
Co reported its preliminary consolidated traffic results for December 2009. The co reported a December consolidated passenger load factor of 81.9%. Total consolidated revenue passenger miles were flat in December on a consolidated capacity decrease of 3.1% in available seat miles compared with the same period in 2008.
17:17
TLB Talbots amends loan facility and repays all outstanding third party bank debt (9.09 +0.18)
Co announced that it amended and restated its secured revolving loan agreement as entered into on April 10, 2009 with Aeon Co., Ltd., the Co's majority shareholder, in order to repay all of its outstanding third party debt. Pursuant to the Agreement, the principal amount of the Co's earlier $150 mln secured credit facility with Aeon was increased to $250 mln.
17:03
ROL Rollins announces share repurchases in Q4 2009 totaling 227,100 shares of its $1 par value common stock at a weighted average price of $18.18 per share (19.61 +0.33)
16:58
UUP PowerShares DB USD Bull ETF: DB Commodity Services re-commences issuance of shares of the PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund (22.92 -0.16)
Co announced that the registration statement it filed on December 8, 2009 to register 240,000,000 additional shares of the PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish Fund (UUP) was declared effective by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. UUP will re-commence the issuance of shares on Tuesday, January 5, 2010.
16:32
YTEC Yucheng Technologies and NTT DATA Establish E-Banking ASP Joint Venture (8.80 +0.27)
YTEC, a provider of IT solutions to China's banking industry, today announced a joint venture with NTT DATA Corp, a provider of IT services and solutions in Japan, that will rapidly develop Yucheng's E-Banking ASP into an unparalleled leader in hosted e-banking for China. The joint venture expands the scope of the E-Banking ASP and allows it to grow more rapidly than Yucheng's resources and expertise alone permitted. The platform will continue to maximize economies of scale by providing limited customization; however, the forecasted increase in clients and significant capital investments necessary to support the platform will result in a 2012 breakeven target.
16:31
NWS News Corp's Dow Jones combines consumer and enterprise businesses in new organizational structure (16.31 +0.39)
Dow Jones & Company announced a new organizational structure combining its consumer and enterprise businesses in a unified group serving customers across all platforms and distribution channels. The new alignment puts key products such as The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Newswires and Factiva in a single operating unit.
16:31
ANW Aegean Marine Petrol announces agreement to acquire Verbeke Bunkering (28.53 +1.05)
Co announces it has entered into an agreement to acquire Verbeke Bunkering, a physical supplier of marine fuel in the Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam region, the world's second largest bunkering market. The acquisition, which is subject to the completion of detailed documentation, is scheduled to close by the end of the first quarter of 2010. E. Nikolas Tavlarios, President of ANW, commented, "The accretive acquisition of Verbeke represents our largest acquisition to date, positioning Aegean well to significantly increase future sales volumes and strengthen the company's global brand recognition... We intend to capitalize on the favorable growth prospects in the world's second largest bunkering market and meet the demand for our comprehensive marine fuel services. In addition to establishing a strategic presence in this important region with considerable ship traffic, we expect to realize meaningful operating synergies with our Belgium-based subsidiary, Bunkers at Sea, which Aegean acquired in 2007."
16:30
IFLG InfoLogix announces 1-for-25 reverse stock split (0.23 -0.03)
Co announced that the stockholders have approved a one-for-twenty-five reverse stock split of the Company's issued and outstanding common stock. The Reverse Split was previously disclosed in the proxy materials distributed to the Company's stockholders in connection with the annual stockholders' meeting held on December 30, 2009 to authorize, among other things, amending the Company's certificate of incorporation to effect the Reverse Split. The Reverse Split will be effective on January 5, 2010 and trading of the Company's common stock on the NASDAQ Capital Market on a split-adjusted basis, under the new CUSIP number of 45668X204, will begin at the open of trading on January 6, 2010. The Company's shares will trade on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol "IFLG" with the letter "D" added to the end of the trading symbol for a period of 20 trading days to indicate that the Reverse Split has occurred.
16:30
BIIB Biogen Idec announces President and Chief Executive Officer James Mullen to retire (53.64 +0.14)
Co announces that James Mullen, President and Chief Executive Officer, will retire from his position effective June 8, 2010. Mr. Mullen will also retire from the Company's Board upon the completion of his current term as a Director at the Company's 2010 Annual Shareholder Meeting. The Company has initiated a search for Mr. Mullen's successor.
16:30
MDCO The Medicines Co files additional patent infringement lawsuits (8.41 +0.07)
The co announces that it has filed lawsuits against Teva Parenteral Medicines, Pliva Hrvatska d.o.o. and related entities in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware alleging patent infringement based on Abbreviated New Drug Applications seeking U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to market and sell generic versions of The Medicines Company's Angiomax(R) product prior to expiration of U.S. Patent No. 7,598,343 ("the '343 patent"). Each lawsuit alleges infringement of the '343 patent which was issued on October 6, 2009. As previously announced, The Medicines Company has patent infringement lawsuits pending against the same parties in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware for infringement of its U.S. Patent No. 7,502,727.
16:26
IMAX Imax Avatar release reaches $67 mln worldwide in 17 days (13.31 +0.00) -Update-
Co and Twentieth Century Fox (NWSA) announced that James Cameron's Avatar continued its record-breaking box office run over its third weekend, grossing approximately $8.7 mln from 179 IMAX theatres domestically from January 1 through January 3, 2010. The film registered more than 12% of the film's total domestic gross of $68.3 mln during that period on less than 3% of the screens, driving the domestic IMAX box office to date to approximately $47.1 mln. The IMAX international release grossed more than $4.0 mln from 71 IMAX screens during the weekend, an 11% increase over last weekend. Avatar also posted a record-breaking international single day on Saturday with $1.425 mln. The worldwide IMAX box office total for Avatar is estimated to be $67 mln as of the end of day Sunday, January 3, 2010.
16:20
OSTK Overstock.com will no longer sell products made from exotic skins (13.71 +0.15)
Co announced that it will no longer sell products made from exotic skins. Co "has removed from its site all apparel and accessory products which feature exotic animal skins, including snake, alligator, crocodile, lizard, ostrich, stingray, eel, shark or kangaroo and will no longer sell such products." Co made a similar move for the same reason in 2008 by banning the sale of apparel and accessory products made from fur. Overstock.com has also banned the sale of ivory products.
16:17
ARCI Appliance Recycling Cntrs awarded a contract by ICF International to provide refrigerator and freezer recycling services (2.27 -0.03)
Co announced that it has been awarded a contract by ICF International (ICFI) to provide refrigerator and freezer recycling services for Southern Maryland Electrical Cooperative (SMECO) customer-members. The program is scheduled to begin on January 4, 2010 and run through December 31, 2011. Through this program, participating utility customers who turn in operating but energy inefficient refrigerators and freezers will be eligible for a $50.00 incentive check for each qualifying appliance, with a maximum of two units per year. The incentive, which will be paid by SMECO, is designed to offset the costs normally incurred when disposing of an old refrigerator or freezer, often in favor of a new and more energy efficient model.
16:16
ALJ Alon USA Energy announces issuance of Common Stock in exchange for Subsidiary Preferred Stock (7.38 +0.54)
Co announced that it has issued 7,351,051 shares of its common stock in exchange for all of the outstanding shares of preferred stock of its subsidiary, Alon Refining Louisiana, Inc.. Alon Louisiana issued the preferred stock to Alon's majority stockholder, Alon Israel Oil Company, Ltd., in 2008 to finance a portion of the purchase price for the Krotz Springs refinery. Under the terms of a stockholders agreement among Alon, Alon Louisiana and Alon Israel, the preferred stock was required to be exchanged for shares of Alon common stock on July 3, 2011 if not previously exchanged as provided in the stockholders agreement.
16:16
TXCC TranSwitch receives commitment from investment fund to purchase up to 1.95 million shares over next 12 months; consummates initial closing (1.99 -0.11)
Co announces today it has entered into a common stock purchase agreement with Seaside 88, a private investment limited partnership. Under the terms of the agreement, Seaside has committed to purchase up to 1,950,000 TranSwitch common shares. Seaside will purchase 75,000 shares every two weeks for up to 26 purchases. Today, TranSwitch and Seaside closed the first sale of 75,000 shares for gross proceeds of approximately $120,000. The price of the shares sold at today's initial closing was $1.6025 per share,
16:13
ATCT ATS Corporation anticipates its shares will begin trading on the NYSE Amex on January 5, 2010, using the symbol "ATSC" (2.45 -0.03)
Prior to that date, the Company's common shares traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under the ticker symbol "ATCT".
16:06
ZSTN ZST Digital Networks awarded Government grant of ~$400K (9.79 +1.03)
Co announces that it has been designated a Key Enterprise by the Zhengzhou Municipal People's Government, primarily in recognition of the co's successful recent listing on the NASDAQ Global Market. Under the terms of the official designation, ZST received a grant of RMB2.6 mln (approximately $0.4 mln) from the Zhengzhou Municipal People's Government.
16:06
GPX GP Strategies acquires PerformTech (7.65 +0.12)
Co announces that its principal operating subsidiary, General Physics has acquired PerformTech. GPX anticipates that PerformTech will have revenue of approximately $15 million for the year ending December 31, 2009 and that the acquired business will be accretive to earnings-per-share in 2010.
16:06
ADAM A.D.A.M. appoints Mark Adams to the position of president and chief executive officer (4.30 +0.10)
Co appointed Mark Adams, the company's current chief financial officer, to the position of president and chief executive officer effective immediately. Mr. Adams succeeds Kevin Noland who has resigned his position as president and chief executive officer and his board seat to pursue other opportunities. Chris Joe, A.D.A.M.'s current director of finance, will fill the chief financial officer position on an interim basis.
16:05
GLUU Glu Mobile announces new President and CEO (1.21 +0.06)
Co announced that Niccolo de Masi has joined the company as President and CEO. Most recently, Niccolo served as Chief Executive Officer and President of Hands-On Mobile, a mobile technology company and developer and publisher of mobile entertainment.
16:04
ORCL Oracle buys Silver Creek Systems; financial details of the transaction were not disclosed (24.85 +0.32)
16:03
SRX SRA Intl unit selected by Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide to supply 228 of its latest-generation Squid vehicle tracking units (19.35 +0.25)
Era a.s., a subsidiary of SRA International, announced that Fraport AG Frankfurt Airport Services Worldwide has selected Era to supply 228 of its latest-generation Squid vehicle tracking units at Frankfurt Airport (FRA). The Squid units will support the airport's advanced surface movement guidance and control system (A-SMGCS).
16:00
FFG FBL Financial names James Hohmann CEO (19.62 +1.10)
Co announces that its board of directors has named James Hohmann to the position of CEO, after his service as interim CEO for eight months. FBL Financial Group Board Chairman Craig Lang said that Hohmann's performance during his tenure as interim CEO, his extensive background in the insurance and financial services industry and his leadership skills were key factors in the board's unanimous decision.
16:00
BSQR BSQUARE renews OEM distribution agreement with Microsoft (2.52 +0.02)
The co announces that it has renewed its OEM distribution agreement with Microsoft Corporation under which Bsquare sells Microsoft's complete line of software products for embedded systems to OEMs in North America. The new agreement is effective for a six-month period Jan. 1, 2010 to June 30, 2010 -- at which time Microsoft anticipates introducing updated agreements for its distributors. Under the agreement, Bsquare enables OEMs to quickly adopt Microsoft software products including Microsoft's innovative, new Windows 7-based technologies. Windows 7 for Embedded Systems and Windows Embedded Standard 2011 both enable touch and gesture input improving the end user experience for Bsquare customers building point-of-service, medical and industrial devices.
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