Month: May 2014

The Dow Chemical Company ’s ( DOW ) subsidiary – Dow AgroSciences – and Sigma-Aldrich Corporation ( SIAL ) have signed a manufacturing license and supply agreement, under which, Sigma-Aldrich will make zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) reagents for use with EXZACT Precision Technology. The financial terms of the agreement were undisclosed. Per the agreement, Sigma-Aldrich will act as exclusive manufacturer and supplier of ZFN reagents for the platform […]

Pipeline updates are highly awaited events in the pharma/biotech sector as they play an important role in deciding whether or not to invest in a particular company. These updates provide information on experimental drugs and at times give an insight into the commercial potential of the candidate. […]

Weyerhaeuser Company ( WY ), which had previously announced a split-off decision for its homebuilding and real estate company, WRECO, has started the exchange offer related to the transaction. WRECO will be merged with a subsidiary of TRI Pointe Homes, Inc. ( TPH ), becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of the latter. […]

Defense major Raytheon Co. ( RTN ) got the U.S. […]

On May 23, we issued an updated research report on energy company Pepco Holdings Inc. ( POM ). […]

Pfizer ( PFE ) and BioRestorative Therapies ( BRTX ) inked a deal for studying human brown adipose tissue and cell lines. The research deal, which is for two years, will permit the companies to jointly conduct a study (Development and Validation of a Human Brown Adipose Cell Model) to characterize further the identity and metabolic operation of these cell lines. Both Pfizer and BioRestorative Therapies can make use of the data from the study. […]

On May 23, Zacks Investment Research upgraded Embraer SA ( ERJ ) to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Why the Upgrade? Embraer SA reported solid result in the first quarter of 2014 on the back of strong performance by both the Defense & Security and Executive Jets segments […]

Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. ( WSM ) reached a new 52-week high of $69.49 on May 22 after announcing robust first-quarter fiscal 2014 results and increasing expectations for the year. Shares of the specialty retailer of home products eventually closed at $68.93, yielding a solid year-to-date return of 18.4%. […]

The board of directors of the mining equipment maker Joy Global Inc. ( JOY ) has approved of a 14% hike in the quarterly dividend rate. The new quarterly dividend of the company will be 20 cents per share, up from the previous rate of 17.5 cents. […]

Shares of Group 1 Automotive Inc. ( GPI ) gained 0.7% on May 19, after the company acquired the South Point Kia dealership in Austin, TX. […]

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust ( PEB ) has acquired the Prescott Hotel in San Francisco, CA, for $49 million. The move comes as this hotel real estate investment trust (REIT) gears up to strengthen its presence in the San Francisco market and leverage on the growing fundamentals. […]

Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc. ( SRPT ) entered into an agreement to acquire a multifunctional manufacturing facility on 26 acres of land in Massachusetts for $25 million. The deal is expected to close in July this year depending on certain conditions and extensions in the agreement. […]

Riding on a strong growth momentum, shares of AmTrust Financial Services Inc. ( AFSI ) reached a new 52-week high at $47.10 on May 22. […]

Independent exploration and production (E&P) company Sanchez Energy Corporation ( SN ) spiked close to 9% after the May 21 announcement of the acquisition of Eagle Ford assets in South Texas from Royal Dutch Shell plc ( RDS.A ). The deal at once doubled the company’s holdings in the Eagle Ford shale. […]

Shares of Celgene Corporation ( CELG ) gained slightly following the announcement of a series of organizational changes to expand its leadership team. The changes are aimed to improve operational efficiencies. […]

On May 21, we issued an updated research report on the MGIC Investment Corp. ( MTG ). The mortgage insurer reported earnings of 15 cents per share in the first quarter of 2014, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by nearly 67%. […]

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc ’s ( RBS ) legal hassles aggravates as Lloyds Banking Group plc ( LYG ) gets involved in a class-action lawsuit against the company, according to a report by Reuters . Lloyds Banking Group is set to claim £420 million ($709 million) owing to The Royal Bank of Scotland’s management of manipulated rights issue worth £12 billion. Lloyds Banking Group, the government backed financial institution, is taking legal action through nine of its pensions and investment management subsidiaries including Scottish Widows Plc, Scottish Widows Unit Fund Ltd, Pensions Management Ltd and Clerical Medical Investments Group […]

A continuing impasse over the ongoing wage negotiations in Norway threaten its status as a stable energy producer. Norwegian oil unions – representing close to 16,000 employees working for oil companies, drilling operators and catering firms to the offshore sector – are dragging the stand-off in one way or another since the inception of May. […]