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Market Update: 110405
4:30 pm : Stocks overcame some choppy trade in the early going to stage a nice advance, but the move eventually lost momentum, leaving the major averages to roll over.

Stocks followed up lackluster action in the prior session with a relatively flat start today. Overseas markets failed to provide a lift as most of the major global averages moved lower following China's 25-basis point rate increase and the latest round of ISM Services readings from Europe. As for domestic data, the ISM Services Index for March came in at 57.3, which is not only down from the 59.7 that had been recorded for the prior month, but it is less than the 59.5 that had been expected among many economists polled by Briefing.com.

Despite mixed interest in the early going, buying interest gradually increased as the session progressed. The buying effort took the Dow to a new 52-week high, but the S&P 500 only came within a few points of its 52-week high.

Tech stocks had been a key source of broad market strength following news that Texas Instruments (TXN 34.69, +0.58) will acquire National Semiconductor (NSM 24.06, +9.99) for $6.5 billion, or $25 per share. The takeover price represents a premium of almost 80% above NSM's prior session closing price.

Interest among tech issues even helped Apple (AAPL 338.89, -2.30) recover from an opening drop that came in response to news that its weight in the Nasdaq 100 will be reduced to about 12% from 20% with the rebalancing of the Index.

Broad market strength began to fade a bit in afternoon trade, and some knee-jerk selling followed the release of minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting.

According to the minutes, a few members noted that evidence of a stronger recovery, or of higher inflation or rising inflation expectations, could make it appropriate to reduce the pace or overall size of the asset purchase program while several others indicated that they did not anticipate making adjustments to the program before its intended completion. Voting members also noted anticipation that recent increases in the prices of energy and other commodities will result in only a transitory increase in headline inflation.

Investor interest in basic commodities and materials plays helped the materials sector remain propped up while the rest of the market drifted lower in afternoon trade. In turn, materials stocks settled with a collective gain of 1.1% while the major equity averages settled mixed.

Advancing Sectors: Materials (+1.1%), Consumer Discretionary (+0.4%), Energy (+0.3%), Consumer Staples (+0.1%)
Declining Sectors: Tech (-0.1%), Financial (-0.1%), Utilities (-0.3%), Industrials (-0.4%), Health Care (-0.5%), Telecom (-0.7%)DJ30 -6.13 NASDAQ +2.00 NQ100 -0.3% R2K +0.5% SP400 +0.4% SP500 -0.24 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1328/1.96 bln/1270 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1629/829 mln/1312

3:35 pm : Commodities finished mixed today, with a slightly positive bias. Precious metals led all gainers after posting a 1.6% move to the upside. May silver futures rallied for 1.9% to close at $39.18 per ounce while June gold surged 1.4% to close at $1451.80 per ounce. Silver traded to a fresh ~31 yr high heading into the close of pit trade, while gold put in a new all-time high at $1455.50 per ounce. Both metals rallied on a flight to safety following Portugal's downgrade at Moody's and the rate hike in China.

It was another uneventful session for May crude oil, which shed 0.1% to settle at $108.34 per barrel. May natural gas shed 1.2% to close at $4.23 per MMBtu after it sold off heading into the close of pit trade. DJ30 -0.94 NASDAQ +0.65 SP500 +0.03 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1303/1.6 bln/1282 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1660/453.6 mln/1276

3:00 pm : Tech stocks have rolled over in recent trade. That has undercut the Nasdaq, which is now at its lowest level since the first hour of the session. As for tech stocks, they are up with a gain of less than 0.2% after finding support at the flat line.

Even though stocks have encountered selling pressure, Treasuries have failed to secure support. Instead, they have extended their downturn to new session lows. That has the yield on the benchmark 10-year Note flirting with 3.50%. DJ30 +16.61 NASDAQ +6.50 SP500 +2.13 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1398/1.42 bln/1193 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1714/515 mln/1192

2:30 pm : Minutes from the FOMC's most recent meeting were released about 30 minutes ago. Some knee-jerk selling ensued, but stocks have since stabilized.

Among the key takeaways from the FOMC meeting, voting members anticipated that recent increases in the prices of energy and other commodities would result in only a transitory increase in headline inflation, but longer-term inflation expectations remain stable and measures of underlying inflation subdued.

A few members noted that evidence of a stronger recovery, or of higher inflation or rising inflation expectations, could make it appropriate to reduce the pace or overall size of the purchase program. Several others indicated that they did not anticipate making adjustments to the program before its intended completion. DJ30 +30.09 NASDAQ +11.16 SP500 +3.66 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1444/1.31 bln/1132 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1791/350 mln/1094

2:00 pm : Minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting are due at any moment.

In the meantime, stocks continue to sit near session highs, but Treasuries are at their worst levels of the day. Treasuries are near support levels that have been in place for the past couple of weeks.

Selling among Treasuries has been rather broad, but the benchmark 10-year Note has been leading the way lower. Its sell-off has pushed its yield more than five basis points higher to nearly 3.48%. However, the belly of the yield curve is seeing the biggest rise as the 7-year Note's yield is up in excess of six basis points. The spread between the 10-year and 30-year yields is tighter today at 103. DJ30 +30.58 NASDAQ +14.22 SP500 +3.99 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1520/1.19 bln/1028 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1832/310 mln/1024

1:30 pm : Stocks recently stretched to session highs, but overall gains remain rather modest.

Retailers are having an impressive session, however. As such, the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT 52.19, +1.31) is up about 2.5%. Among individual retailers, TJX Co (TJX 50.99, +1.39) is up almost 3% following the firm's decision to raise its dividend by almost 30% to $0.19 per share. DJ30 +33.04 NASDAQ +15.04 SP500 +4.35 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1552/1.11 bln/989 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1887/280 mln/943

1:05 pm : Stocks are up with varied gains at midday while participants await the minutes from the latest FOMC meeting.

Trade was choppy in the early going. A disappointing ISM Services Index reading of 57.3 for March failed to provide any additional direction.

However, renewed strength in the tech sector, which lagged in the prior session, has helped bring buyers back into the fold. The sector's strength stems largely from news that Texas Instruments (TXN 34.83, +0.72) will acquire National Semiconductor (NSM 24.13, +10.06) for $6.5 billion, or $25 per share, which makes for a premium of almost 80% above NSM's prior session closing price. However, the buzz about the takeover has been somewhat diluted by news that the rebalancing of the Nasdaq 100 will cut the weight of Apple (AAPL 341.18, -0.01) in the Index to about 12% from 20%. Shares of AAPL have steadily recovered from their opening drop.

Although the tech sector's weight has made it a leader today, materials stocks are out in front of the overall market for the second straight session. The group's 1.4% gain has been led by metals and mining plays again.

A generally positive tone has the stock market just a few points below its 52-week high. The hesitation ahead of that point comes as participants await minutes from the latest FOMC meeting (2:00 PM ET). DJ30 +29.82 NASDAQ +15.08 SP500 +4.50 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1534/1.03 bln/991 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1865/250 mln/946

12:30 pm : The stock market has run into a little resistance in recent trade. That that has kept the S&P 500 a few points shy of its 52-week high near 1340.

Although the broad market continues to trade with a positive bias, KB Home (KBH 11.77, -0.43) has been hit hard in response to its latest quarterly report. Other homebuilders are mixed in the wake of that report. For instance, Lennar (LEN 18.49, +0.42) is up more than 2%, but Hovanian Enterprises (HOV 3.34, -0.04) is down more than 1%. DJ30 +20.85 NASDAQ +12.70 SP500 +3.46 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1450/920 mln/1064 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1816/216 mln/948

12:00 pm : Buying efforts have picked up so that all three of the major equity averages are now at fresh session highs. Natural resource plays have been paving the way.

Energy stocks have extended their recent climb to a 0.6% gain, but even more impressive is the 1.2% gain that is now sported by the materials sector. Materials stocks are currently led by metals and mining plays like Newmont Mining (NEM 56.65, +2.04) for the second straight session. Materials plays had outperformed in the prior session, but the lack of weight in the sector undermined its leadership capability. DJ30 +33.76 NASDAQ +13.72 SP500 +4.76 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1338/820 mln/1148 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1674/185 mln/1026

11:35 am : Stocks slipped in recent trade, but they have successfully recovered gains. The effort has taken the Nasdaq to a fractionally improved session high. It continues to be supported by tech issues, which are collectively up 0.5%.

Energy stocks have attracted renewed buying interest in recent trade. In turn, the sector is now up 0.4% to a fresh session high of its own. The move comes as oil prices trade near the flat line at $108.45 per barrel. DJ30 +17.64 NASDAQ +11.36 SP500 +3.14 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1288/730 mln/1191 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1570/142 mln/1091

11:00 am : The broad market recently pushed into positive territory, but is starting to give back that gain. The move has been generally broad-based, but consumer discretionary stocks have benefitted the most--they are up 0.5%.

Meanwhile, Treasuries climbed off their worst levels of the session following the weaker-than-expected ISM services reading. The number printed 57.3 versus the Briefing.com consensus estimate of 59.5 and showed its prices paid number decline from 73.3 to 72.1. After being rejected by its 50-day moving average near 3.465%, the 10-yr yield has eased to 3.435%. The yield curve has flattened on the data release with the 2-10-yr spread testing important support near 264, and the 10-30-yr spread hovering just above 104 support.DJ30 +6.13 NASDAQ +10.32 SP500 +1.79 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1178/557.5 mln/1227 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1427/92.18 mln/1117

10:35 am : The dollar index continues to show some strength this morning, which is pressuring select commodities.

May crude oil has been in negative territory all session and hit session lows of $107.50/barrel around 7:00am EST. In current trade, the energy component is down 0.3% at $108.15/barrel.

May natural gas was in the red this morning ahead of pit trading, but when the pits opened, natural gas pushed into positive territory and to new session highs of $4.32. Its currently just above the unchanged line at $2.27/MMBtu.

Precious metals are higher this morning with June gold up 0.4% at $1439.40/ounce and May silver is up 0.4% at $38.66/ounce.DJ30 +7.42 NASDAQ +8.12 SP500 +1.61 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 946/388.4 mln/1417 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 957/42.1 mln/1332

10:05 am : A flurry of selling in response to the latest ISM Services Index recently took stocks a leg lower, but the major equity averages have been quick to bounce back. Overall trade remains listless, though.

The ISM Services Index for came in at 57.3. Not only is that down from the 59.7 that had been recorded for the prior month, but it is less than the 59.5 that had been broadly expected among economists polled by Briefing.com. DJ30 -39.28 NASDAQ -0.82 SP500 -1.97

09:45 am : Stocks are chopping along without much direction in the first few minutes of trade. Tech, which lagged in the prior session, has gotten an early bid that has lifted the sector to a modest gain of 0.3%. Most of that is owed to strength in the semiconductor space.

Telecom has turned lower. It was one of last week's best performing sectors, but today the telecom space is down 0.5%.

Coming up in just a few minutes is the latest ISM Services Index (10:00 AM ET). DJ30 -16.80 NASDAQ +1.63 SP500 -1.31

09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -3.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -5.00. Stock futures point to a slightly lower start for the session. The relatively weak tone comes in the face of news that Texas Instruments (TXN) will acquire National Semiconductor (NSM) for $25 per share -- a premium of almost 80% above NSM's prior session closing price. Although the semiconductor space has been helped by news of that deal, the broader tech sector hasn't exactly been abuzz with takeover speculation. Instead, many are digesting the implications of a rebalancing of the Nasdaq 100, which is home to a fleet of large-cap tech issues, including Apple (AAPL), which will have its weight in the Index clipped to 12% from about 20%. There haven't been many other corporate news items, especially of any major consequence. Also, a fit of weakness among overseas markets has diluted premarket buying interest. Losses abroad come amid news that Moody's followed the other rating agencies by downgrading the debt of Portugal. China also hiked its one-year lending and borrowing rate by another 25 basis points. No domestic data were released yesterday, but participants get their hands on the latest ISM Services Index at 10:00 AM ET, then the minutes from the latest FOMC meeting at 2:00 PM ET.

09:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -3.90. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.00. Oil prices made a late move in the prior session to score their best settling price in more than two years, but the energy component has been clipped a bit this morning. It now trades with a $0.40 loss at $108.07 per barrel in early pit trade. Gold prices have made a narrow gain, though; the yellow metal was last quoted at $1436.70 per ounce, up $3.70. Meanwhile, silver prices are flat at $38.47 per ounce.

08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -4.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -8.00. Germany's DAX is down 0.3% at the moment. France's CAC has been cut down to a 0.5% loss. Britain's FTSE is off by 0.3%. The latest data indicate that Germany's final PMI Services reading for March came in at 60.1, unchanged from the preliminary reading. France's final PMI Services reading slipped to 60.4 from 60.7 in the preliminary reading. The United Kingdom's PMI Services reading for March improved to 57.1 from 52.6 in February. Meanwhile, the final PMI Services reading for the broader eurozone improved to 57.2 from 56.9 in the preliminary reading. Eurozone retail sales for February were also reported; they slipped 0.1% after a downwardly revised 0.2% increase in the prior month. In other news, Moody's followed the lead of other rating agencies by implementing a downgrade on Portugal's debt to Baa1 from A3.

Holiday in Asia kept Hong Kong's Hang Seng and China's Shanghai Composite closed, but China's central bank still announced another 25-basis point hike to its one-year deposit and lending rate. Japan's Nikkei was knocked to a 1.1% loss in its latest round of trade. Weakness was widespread, but Tokyo Electric Power plummeted again. Its loss of almost 20% was by far the worst of any issue in the Nikkei. Japan Tobacco and Tokai Carbon were a couple of top performers that managed to put together solid gains, though.

08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: -3.10. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.30. Listless trade left stocks to hug the neutral line yesterday. Semiconductor plays were actually a drag on action, but the space has been revived by news that Texas Instruments (TXN) will pay about $6.5 billion, or $25 per share in cash, for National Semiconductor (NSM), which barely closed above $14 per share in the prior session. Even though that news would seemingly lend support to the rest of the tech space, there has been some push back in response to news that a rebalancing of the Nasdaq 100 will reduce the weight of Apple (AAPL) to about 12% from about 20%. Overseas action has failed to offer any kind of support. Generally, Europe's major bourses are all down despite some generally solid PMI Services readings. Moody's did issue a downgrade on Portugal's debt, though. As for action in Asia, Japan's Nikkei fell more than 1% while other major Asian averages remained closed for holiday observance. China's central bank announced its plan for another 25-basis point hike to its deposit rates. With the overall mood among morning participants still uninspired, stock futures continue to sit below fair value. Still on today's docket, the latest ISM Services Index is due at 10:00 AM ET and the minutes from the latest FOMC meeting will be posted at 2:00 PM ET.

06:28 am : [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: -5.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -12.80.

06:28 am : Nikkei...9615.55...-103.30...-1.10%. Hang Seng...Holiday.........
http://finance.yahoo.com/marketupdate?u

5:31PM Union Pacific Railroad to invest $400 mln in New Mexico rail facility; UNP granted a locomotive fuel tax deduction (UNP) 97.80 -0.891 : Union Pacific Railroad announced that New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez signed into law a bill passed by the New Mexico Legislature granting Union Pacific a locomotive fuel tax deduction. This legislation paves the way for Union Pacific to begin construction of an all new rail facility near Santa Teresa, New Mexico in June 2011. Construction of the new facility will create ~3,000 jobs during the build phase from 2011 to 2015. UNP expects that more than 600 jobs will be based at the facility once it reaches full capacity in 2025. The estimated overall economic impact of the project for New Mexico exceeds $500 mln, with Union Pacific's investment highlighting the co's strong commitment to enhancing the nation's transportation infrastructure and setting the standard for outstanding customer service. Construction of this facility is part of Union Pacific's commitment to invest ~$3.2 bln in 2011.

5:18PM Pinnacle West reported that APS seeks additional renewable energy (PNW) 42.90 -0.31 : Arizona Public Service Co. announces a request for proposal for energy generated from small renewable projects. The energy must come from projects with capacity between two and 15 megawatts with a commercial operation date by Dec. 31, 2013, for solar and wind projects and by Dec. 31, 2014, for all other technologies. APS, Arizona's largest and longest-serving electricity utility, serves about 1.1 million customers in 11 of the state's 15 counties. With headquarters in Phoenix, APS is the largest principal of Pinnacle West Capital (PNW).

5:18PM Navistar receives EPA certification for MaxxForce DT mid-range diesel engine at 0.39g NOx (NAV) 69.39 -0.11 : Co announced that it has received certification from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its 2011 model year MaxxForce(R) DT mid-range diesel engine at 0.39g/bHpHr NOx using Navistar's in-cylinder NOx reduction technology.

5:02PM Applied Materials announced to sell Chamber Cleaning and Coating Services Group to Quantum Global Technologies (AMAT) 15.53 +0.13 : AMAT and Quantum Global Technologies, LLC (QuantumClean) announced a definitive agreement for QuantumClean to acquire the assets of Applied Materials' Chamber Performances Services semiconductor process kit precision cleaning, coating services and associated analytical testing services businesses for an undisclosed cash amount. The deal is expected to close within 30 days.

5:00PM Marathon Oil assigns portion of Niobrara Shale Acreage to Marubeni (MRO) 53.43 +0.34 : Co announced that it has signed an agreement with Marubeni Denver Julesburg LLC, a subsidiary of Marubeni Corp., under which Marathon will assign a portion of its interest in the Niobrara shale play within the DJ Basin of southeast Wyoming and northern Colorado. Under terms of the agreement, Marubeni will receive a 30 percent undivided working interest in Marathon's approximately 180,000 net acres in the DJ Basin for a total consideration of $270 million, or $5,000 per acre. The companies expect to close this transaction by April 28, 2011.

5:00PM AsiaInfo-Linkage signs contract with U Mobile in Malaysia to provide CRM and BI Systems (ASIA) 22.00 -0.24 : ASIA announced that the co has signed an agreement with U Mobile Sdn Bhd ("U Mobile"), a telecommunications service provider in Malaysia which offers comprehensive postpaid and prepaid mobile services as well as other telecommunication services. AsiaInfo-Linkage will provide U Mobile with Customer Relationship Management and Business Intelligence systems.

4:50PM Arden Group announces stock purchase (ARDNA) 77.33 -0.17 : Co announced that it has purchased 90,098 shares of its Class A Common Stock in an unsolicited private transaction for an aggregate purchase price of ~$6,684,371.

4:49PM Optimer announces that the U.S. FDA's Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee voted unanimously to recommend approval of Dificid (OPTR) 13.80 : Co announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee (AIDAC) recommended that the FDA approve Optimer's investigational antibiotic DIFICID (fidaxomicin) for the treatment of patients with Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), a bacterial infection in the lining of the gut that can cause severe diarrhea, colitis and in some cases death. In a unanimous 13-0 decision, the AIDAC found that the clinical evidence submitted by Optimer demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of DIFICID for the treatment of CDI.

4:47PM Exceed reports Q4 (EDS) 7.08 -0.20 : Reports Q4 (Dec) revenues rose 9.4% year/year to $99.4 mln vs the $93.0 mln consensus. Net profit up 41.8% year-over-year to RMB351.6 million. Exceed expects to generate net revenues in the range of RMB718.0 million to RMB729.4 million in the first quarter of 2011, representing an ~YOY increase of 26% to 28%, as compared with RMB569.8 million in the same period of 2010.

4:45PM Maxwell Technologies files $125 mln shelf registration statement (MXWL) 17.54 +0.06 :

4:40PM Dollar Financial announces launch of common stock offering of 5 mln shares (DLLR) 21.77 -0.38 : Co announced that it has commenced an underwritten public offering, subject to market and other conditions, of 5,000,000 shares of its common stock. The Company also intends to grant to the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 750,000 shares of common stock to cover over-allotments, if any. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC and Nomura Securities International, Inc. are serving as joint book-running managers for the offering.

4:34PM Curtiss-Wright signs contract with Boeing (BA) (CW) 35.07 -0.23 : Co announced that it has been selected by The Boeing Company to provide emergent and specialty production support for the final assembly and delivery of the 787 Dreamliner in South Carolina.

4:31PM Gramercy Capital has received, as expected, a notice from the NYSE indicating that it is not in compliance due to a delay in the filing of its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec 31, 2010 (GKK) 4.18 +0.10 :

4:30PM IDEX Corp increases regular quarterly cash dividend 13% (IEX) 45.16 -0.52 : Co announced that its Board of Directors has approved a thirteen percent increase in the company's regular quarterly cash dividend to $0.17 per common share.

4:28PM Corporate Office Properties Trust updates 2011 earnings guidance to reflect Fort Ritchie impairment charges (OFC) 36.21 +0.38 : Co announced that it would recognize a non-cash impairment loss of ~$28 million, or $0.39 per diluted share, related to its investment in Fort Ritchie in Cascade, MD ("Fort Ritchie" or the "Property"). The impairment loss will be reflected in the Co's operating results for Q1. COPT previously announced diluted funds from operations per share ("Diluted FFOPS") for 2011. For the year ending December 31, 2011, the co previously provided guidance for Diluted EPS of between $0.51 and $0.69 and for Diluted FFOPS of between $2.35 and $2.57. Co lowers Q1 FFOPS guidance, after adjusting for the effect of the impairment of Fort Ritchie to $0.12-0.15 including the $0.39 charge (Thomson Reuters consensus is $0.52), down from prior guidance of $0.51-0.54. Co lowers FY11 FFOPS to $1.96-2.18 (Consensus is $2.43), from $2.35-2.57.

4:22PM Verigy wins new business from Networking and Multimedia Group at Continuing Customer Freescale Semiconductor (VRGY) 14.07 +0.04 : Co has won new business with Freescale Semiconductor's Networking and Multimedia Group, which has placed a volume order for Verigy's V93000 scalable test platform to use in testing select QorIQ PowerPC communications microprocessors, based on Power Architecture technology.

4:21PM Clark Holdings announced that it had extended its engagement of AlixPartners, as strategic advisors to the company (GLA) 0.32 -0.01 : Co announced that it had extended its engagement of AlixPartners as strategic advisors to the company. The original engagement of AlixPartners was to expire on March 31, 2011, and has been extended through May 31, 2011, with an option to extend to June 30, 2011. Clark also announced that it has entered into an amendment to its credit agreement with Cole Taylor Bank that waives non-compliance with a financial covenant and amends the financial covenants and several other provisions of the credit agreement.

4:21PM Transatlantic Hldngs expects to incur total net catastrophe costs in the first qtr of 2011 of approximately $355 mln, net of tax, based on its preliminary assessment of the impact of all catastrophe events that have occurred in the qtr (TRH) 49.19 -0.32 : Co announces that it expects to incur total net catastrophe costs (net of reinstatement premiums and reinsurance) in the first quarter of 2011 of approximately $355 million, net of tax, based on its preliminary assessment of the impact of all catastrophe events that have occurred in the quarter. The total for the quarter includes catastrophe costs related to the Tohoku Earthquake, which occurred off the coast of Northeast Japan, and ensuing tsunami of approximately $240 million, net of tax, and contemplates an industry loss of between $25 billion and $30 billion. The quarterly total also includes TRH's present estimate related to first quarter 2011 events in Australia and the February earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand of approximately $115 million, net of tax.

4:17PM American Eagle Airlines reports March traffic (AMR) 6.23 -0.04 : American Eagle reported a March traffic increase of 18.8 percent year over year as capacity increased 20.4 percent. March load factor was 71.0 percent, a decrease of 0.9 points compared to the same period last year.

4:12PM Mitcham Ind misses by $0.04, misses on revs (MIND) 13.58 -0.45 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.17 per share, $1.0 million charge to provision for doubtful accounts, $0.04 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 13.2% year/year to $19.7 mln vs the $20.2 mln consensus. "Looking at our current fiscal year, we are excited about what we have seen so far in fiscal 2012 as there are ongoing indications of increasing demand for seismic services, especially in international markets. We expect essentially all of our lease pool equipment in Russia to remain fully utilized in our first quarter of fiscal 2012. In Canada, the overall market is turning out to be better than originally contemplated, and as a result we expect a high level of utilization in that market for the remainder of the winter season. In addition, current order activity is giving us fairly good visibility at least through the first half of this fiscal year. We expect good performance in Southeast Asia and Latin America and new activity in Europe for our land leasing business, as well as continued solid marine leasing activity. We expect Seamap to have a good year in FY12, led by a growing demand for our GunLink and BuoyLink products as contractors seek to expand capabilities and upgrade equipment and technology."

4:12PM Legacy Reserves announced it has entered into an agreement to purchase Permian Basin natural gas properties for $67 mln in cash (LGCY) 31.79 -0.18 : Co announced it has entered into an agreement to purchase Permian Basin natural gas properties for $67 mln in cash. The properties included in this pending acquisition contain 126 wells, 100 of which are operated, that are located in Eddy and Chaves Counties, New Mexico. In addition, the acquisition encompasses a natural gas gathering system and related compression facilities gathering gas from the acquired wells and some third party wells.

4:10PM Am Superconductor to resume trading at 16:35 ET... see 16:06 comment for details on co's downside guidance (AMSC) 24.88 +0.20 :

4:10PM AngioDynamics beats by $0.03, beats on revs; raises bottom-end of FY11 EPS in-line, lowers revs in-line (ANGO) 14.99 -0.15 : Reports Q3 (Feb) earnings of $0.15 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.12; revenues rose 4.6% year/year to $54.6 mln vs the $53.9 mln consensus. Co issues guidance for FY11, raises EPS to $0.48-0.50, incl charges, vs. $0.49 Thomson Reuters consensus, from $0.47-0.50; lowers FY11 revs to $217-220 mln vs. $220.24 mln Thomson Reuters consensus, down from $220-225 mln.

4:06PM ONEOK has entered into a new $1.2 bln, 5-year senior unsecured revolving credit facility; facility will include a $100 mln sublimit for the issuance of standby letters of credit and will also feature an increase option permitting it to increase the size of the facility to an aggregate of $1.7 bln (OKE) 67.30 -0.25 :

4:06PM Am Superconductor sees Q4 EPS, rev well below consensus; co says Sinovel refused to accept contracted shipment (AMSC) 24.88 +0.20 : Co sees Q4 non-GAAP net loss vs $0.33 Thomson Reuters consensus; revs less than $42 mln vs $119.13 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. On March 31, 2011, Sinovel refused to accept contracted shipments of 1.5 megawatt (MW) and 3 MW wind turbine core electrical components and spare parts that AMSC was prepared to deliver. AMSC believes that Sinovel intends to reduce its level of inventory before accepting further shipments. AMSC estimates that its balance of cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities and restricted cash as of March 31, 2011 was ~$240 mln. This is down from $260.5 mln as of December 31, 2010. AMSC's cash balance was negatively impacted by an increased inventory level related to the refusal of shipments by Sinovel, and Sinovel's failure to pay AMSC for certain contracted shipments made in fiscal year 2010. As a result of both accumulated aged accounts receivable due to payment delays and Sinovel's recent refusal to accept March deliveries, AMSC is reviewing the appropriateness of the timing of its rev recognition on ~$56 million of unpaid shipments in Q2, Q3 and Q4. AMSC continues to have active discussions with Sinovel to determine when Sinovel will accept further shipments and when it will pay for past shipments. In the meantime, AMSC has taken certain actions to reduce expenses, and the co is in the process of implementing plans to better align spending with near-term revs while continuing to maintain a high level of service and support for its global Wind and Grid customers.

4:03PM Am Superconductor halted, news pending (AMSC) 24.86 +0.18 :

4:02PM Chesapeake Energy reports progress towards its goal of converting its entire corporate fleet of 4,200 vehicles to clean, compressed natural gas by 2014 (CHK) 33.73 -0.10 :

4:01PM Toyota Motor and MSFT announce videoconference tomorrow to discuss a collaboration between the two companies (TM) 77.62 -1.86 :

4:01PM Kilroy Realty Corporation announces commencement of 4.5 mln share public offering of common stock (KRC) 39.43 +0.04 : Co announces that it has commenced a public offering of 4,500,000 shares of common stock. BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital and J.P. Morgan will act as joint book-running managers. The company plans to contribute the net proceeds from the offering to Kilroy Realty, L.P., the company's operating partnership. Co plans to use a portion of the net proceeds from the offering to finance the cash portion of the ~$100 million purchase price for four office buildings in Kirkland, Washington. The net proceeds remaining following payment of the purchase price for the office buildings, or all of the net proceeds if the acquisition of the office buildings is not consummated, will be used for general corporate purposes, which may include repaying borrowings under the operating partnership's unsecured revolving credit facility and potential future acquisitions. Pending application of the net proceeds as described above, the company plans to use the net proceeds to temporarily repay borrowings outstanding under the credit facility.

4:01PM Oclaro lowers Q3 rev guidance below consensus (OCLR) 10.89 +0.26 : Co lowers Q3 rev guidance to $116.5 mln from $123-131 mln vs $124.26 mln Thomson Reuters consensus; the rev shortfall from the previous est resulted primarily from inventory corrections among certain of the co's telecom customers that began during the quarter and continued through the end of the quarter. The co also expects a correlation between this lowered rev estimate for the quarter, and the estimated level of gross margins and adj. EBIDTA for the quarter. The co currently has a cautious short term view of revs for its quarter ended July 2, 2011, however it remains confident in the solid fundamentals of its business. This confidence is based on an expected book-to-bill ratio of ~1:1 in telecom for the third fiscal quarter, with particular booking strength late in the quarter, as well as scheduled new product introductions and the co's belief in the fundamental underlying demand for broadband.

4:01PM AMR reports March traffic (AMR) 6.22 -0.04 : American Airlines reported its March traffic increased 0.8% versus the same period last year. Capacity increased 2.6% year over year, resulting in a load factor of 80.2% compared to 81.7% in the same period last year. International traffic increased by 5.2% relative to last year on a capacity increase of 7.1%. Domestic traffic decreased 1.7% year over year on 0.1% less capacity.

4:00PM Hudson Pacific Properties announces that it has completed an amendment to its $200.0 million revolving secured credit facility entered into in June 2010 in connection with the Company's initial public offering (HPP) 14.35 -0.26 :

3:25PM California Water announces two-for-one stock split (subject to approval of an increase of authorized shares at the annual meeting of stockholders on May 24, 2011) (CWT) 37.65 +0.09 : Co announces that its Board of Directors has approved a two-for-one stock split of its common stock, to be effected in the form of a stock dividend, subject to stockholder approval of a proposed amendment to the Group's Certificate of Incorporation to increase the number of shares of common stock that the Group is authorized to issue.

3:22PM Kaman awarded $19.8 million joint programmable fuze order raising program backlog to $159 million (KAMN) 36.60 -0.09 :

3:15PM Solera repurchases 15% of the outstanding shares of Audatex Spain, Solera's Spanish operating company, from Nacional de Reaseguros S.A. (SLH) 51.68 -0.23 :

3:12PM Crude oil pulling back in electronic trade; currently lower by 68 cents to $107.79 (COMDX) :

3:10PM Stock indices continue to slide back off early afternoon highs -- Dow -1.5, S&P -0.1, Nasdaq Comp +0.6 (SPY) :

3:00PM Reliv International announces $1 million stock buyback program (RELV) 1.86 -0.02 :

2:58PM Delta Air Lines reports March traffic; System traffic in March 2011 increased 0.5% (DAL) 9.71 -0.13 : Co reported traffic results for March 2011. System traffic in March 2011 increased 0.5% compared to March 2010 on a 6.2% increase in capacity. Load factor decreased 4.5 points to 79.7%.

2:45PM Energen unit adds to Bone Spring/Avalon acreage position (EGN) 63.06 -0.68 : Co announced that its oil and gas exploration and production company, Energen Resources Corporation, has purchased five-year leases for more than 11,000 net acres in the Bone Spring and Avalon shale trends in the Permian Basin in the Texas General Land Office sealed bid sale. The total purchase price was $37 million.

2:44PM Taseko Mines announces $200 mln senior notes offering (TGB) 5.96 +0.04 : Co commences a public offering of up to $200 mln aggregate principal amount of its senior notes due 2019. Taseko intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the Notes to fund Gibraltar Development Plan 3, with any remainder to be used for general corporate purposes. Barclays Capital Inc. is acting as sole book-running manager for the offering. BMO Capital Markets Corp. and TD Securities LLC are acting as co-managers for the offering.

2:41PM Stock indices drop to new afternoon lows -- Dow +12, S&P +1.6, Nasdaq Comp +5.8 (SPY) :

2:37PM CBOT Agriculture and Ethanol and ICE Exchange Sugar Closing Prices; Corn Futures Hit Record High Since the June 27, 2008 Record of $7.65 (COMDX) : Corn futures (continuous contract) rose to a new all-time high of $7.7075/bushel in trade today, breaking through the prior all-time high of $7.65, which was hit on June 27, 2008.

May corn finished 5 cents higher to $7.6525, May wheat fell 5 cents to close at $7.85, May soybeans fell 12 cents to close at $13.72, April ethanol closed lower by 0.02 cents at $2.695, while May world sugar futures closed down 0.45 cents to 27.55 cents.

2:34PM NYMEX Energy Closing Prices (COMDX) : Crude oil settled down 13 cents to $108.34, natural gas shed 5.6 cents to close at $4.233, heating oil gained 1.3 cents to finish at $3.1844, while RBOB gasoline ended up 2.98 cents to $3.1986 (all May contracts).

2:29PM Air Tran Holdings reports AirTran Airways March RPMs were up 5.5% y/y, ASMs grew 6.8% (AAI) 7.43 +0.02 :

2:07PM Further downticks off early afternoon/session highs -- Dow +19, S&P +2.7, Nasdaq Comp +10 (SPY) : Intraday supports for the S&P are at 1335 (recently tested) and 1333.

2:02PM Stock indices tick slightly lower as FOMC minutes hit the wires -- Dow +28, S&P +3.7, Nasdaq Comp +13 (SPY) :

1:34PM Westport Innovations will resume trading at 13:40 (WPRT) 25.45 -0.46 :

1:31PM COMEX Metals Closing Prices (COMDX) : June gold finished higher by $19.20 to $1452.20. Note that the continuous gold contract traded to a new all-time high at $1454.50. May silver rallied for 62.6 cents to end at $39.12, while May copper gained 0.45 cents to end at $4.2595.

1:24PM Gap hovering just above its previous 11 month high from Feb at 23.22 -- session high 23.25 (GPS) 23.25 +0.72 :

1:12PM Westport Innovations: Heckmann Corporation teams up with co, Encana Natural Gas (ECA), and Peterbilt Motors Company to employ the largest transport fleet of liquefied natural gas powered trucks in North America (WPRT) 25.38 -0.53 : Co announces that Heckmann Corporation is teaming up with co, Encana Natural Gas Inc., a subsidiary of Encana Corporation, and Peterbilt Motors Company, a division of PACCAR Inc to transition its truck fleet from traditional diesel vehicles to natural gas vehicles. Under the terms of the agreement, Encana will make fueling services available where Heckmann Water Resources operates its fleet of water transportation vehicles. HWR will use the trucks to service its customer's natural gas wells and provide water handling services in conjunction with its system of pipelines and disposal wells. HWR has issued a purchase order for 200 Peterbilt 367 liquefied natural gas trucks incorporating Westport Heavy Duty Systems, from Westport. (Stock is halted)

1:02PM Micromet announced the presentation of pre-clinical data on its BiTE antibody MT112/BAY 2010112; data demonstrates the potent activity of the BiTE antibody against human cancer cell lines (MITI) 5.40 -0.06 :

1:01PM Westport Innovations halted, news pending (WPRT) 25.45 -0.46 :

12:59PM Crude oil pulls back below $108; now down 54 cents to $107.93 (COMDX) :

12:55PM TJX announces 27% increase in common stock dividend to $0.19 (TJX) 50.82 +1.22 :

12:53PM Gold new highs at $1454.90; now up $21.70 to $1454.80 (COMDX) :

12:53PM Relative Sector Strength (TECHX) : Sector leadership in recent action has been noted in Retail XRT, Housing XHB, Reg Bank KRE, Materials XLB, Commodity Index, Networking IGN, Transports IYT, Gold Miners GDX, Silver SLV, Casino, Auto Parts, Education.

12:22PM SureWest Comm announces retirement of COO Fred Arcuri (SURW) 14.57 +0.09 : co announced that Fred Arcuri, its Chief Operating Officer (COO), is retiring from the company. Scott Barber, who has been working with Arcuri as vice president of operations, will assume the COO position upon Arcuri's retirement on April 15, 2011.

12:20PM Relative sector strength in Education in recent trade -- EDMC, STRA, CECO, CPLA, LOPE, APEI, COCO, ESI (TECHX) :

12:12PM Russell 2000 extends to new session high of 856.35, testing its 2007/all time highs at 856.39/856.48 (IWM) :

12:01PM Alcoa hovering slightly under session high and its 52-wk high from last week at 17.80 (AA) 17.77 +0.21 :

12:00PM Chevron nearing last wk/52-wk high at 109.65 -- session high 109.52 (CVX) 109.45 +1.22 :

11:59AM Stock indices jump above intraday ranges to set new session highs -- Dow +30, S&P +4.4, Nasdaq Comp +14 (SPY) :

11:54AM Google slides to a fresh session low of 570.30 near its 200 ema at 570.15 and pauses (GOOG) 571.23 -16.45 : Its Mid-March bull gap at is 569.02/567.99.

11:48AM Mkt Vectors Gold Miners ETF outperforming market, testing its March/three month peaks at 61.30/61.37 -- session high 61.34 (GDX) 61.33 +1.58 : AEM, ABX, GFI, GG, HMY, KGC, NEM, BVN, AUY, EGO, AU, FCX.

11:46AM CTG announces extension of 10b5-1 plan to facilitate share repurchases (CTGX) 13.72 +0.16 : Co announces that it has extended a stock repurchase plan under Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities and Exchange Commission to facilitate the repurchase of its common stock. The Company had ~1.1 million shares available for repurchase as of March 31, 2011 under its outstanding repurchase authorizations. "We are again extending our 10b5-1 plan as it gives us the ability to repurchase shares during our self-imposed blackout periods prior to the announcement of quarterly results."

11:41AM Outperforming Nasdaq Comp +11.6 sets new session high, S&P +3.1 nearing morning peak, Dow +16 lagging but in upper end of range (SPY) :

11:34AM GenVec will implement a one for ten reverse stock split of the Company's outstanding shares of common stock (GNVC) 0.38 -0.00 : The reverse stock split will be effective with respect to stockholders of record at the close of business on Monday, April 18, 2011, and trading of the Company's common stock on the NASDAQ Capital Market will begin on a split-adjusted basis at the opening of trading on Tuesday, April 19, 2011.

11:13AM May silver notches highs at $39.015, a fresh ~31 yr high; now up $0.416 to $38.91 (COMDX) :

11:11AM Sysco vacillating near its March peak at 28.14, its 50 ema/sma are just above at 28.20 (SYY) 28.17 +0.22 :

11:10AM Continuous gold contract trades to fresh all time high at $1450.50; now higher by $16.90 to $1449.10 (COMDX) :

11:07AM Crude oil trades into positive territory; now up 3 cents to $108.49 (COMDX) :

11:01AM AthenaHealth announces that HealthInfoNet has selected co as a one of its supported EHR vendors (ATHN) 44.15 -0.85 :

10:40AM Silver also to highs, at $38.84, a fresh ~31 yr level; nowup $0.286 to $38.79 (COMDX) :

10:37AM Pullback in dollar index sends gold to highest levels of the morning; now up $11.10 to $1444.10 (COMDX) :

10:36AM Wells Fargo sets new session high of 32.17, an area of note above is at its 50 day sma and three week trading range top at 32.31/32.37 (WFC) 32.15 +0.35 :

10:34AM New high for leading Semiconductor sector, SMH approaching its 50 day sma and the late March recovery high at 34.93/35.09 (SMH) 34.88 +1.06 :

10:32AM Cardiovascular Systems reports COMPLIANCE 360 trial demonstrates superior acute results of the Diamondback 360 over balloon angioplasty (CSII) 11.20 +0.18 : Acute data from co's prospective, randomized COMPLIANCE 360 clinical trial was presented. The study directly compared the Diamondback 360 Orbital PAD System versus balloon angioplasty in treating above-the-knee peripheral arterial disease (PAD), or blockages in leg arteries. COMPLIANCE 360 acute results showed that the Diamondback 360 Orbital PAD System can achieve far superior acute results in treating calcium-containing femoropopliteal plaque by improving lesion compliance through a unique technology known as differential sanding, without the need for stent placement.

10:30AM Solid follow through on recent bounce with new highs set across the board -- Dow +3, S&P +1.3, Nasdaq Comp +7.9 (SPY) :

10:25AM Relative Sector Strength (TECHX) : Sectors outperforming in recent intraday action include: Retail XRT, Semi SMH, Housing XHB, Internet FDN (AMZN +1.4%), Telecom IYZ, Casino BJK, Networking, Copper JJC, Gold Miners GDX.

10:23AM Stock indices jump higher in recent trade with S&P +0.4 setting a new session high, Nasdaq Comp + 3.2, Dow -7 (SPY) :

10:14AM Amazon.com sets new high of 184.50, its later Feb bear gap resistance comes into play at 184.72/185.13 (AMZN) 184.25 +1.35 :

10:10AM SPDR Retail opened on bullish note and extends to 51.26, Thursday's high and Friday's 52-wk peak comes into play at 51.30/51.35 (XRT) 51.26 +0.38 : PBY +3.3%, GME +3%, SVU +1%, ARO +1.6%, NFLX +0.9%, FINL +1.3%,

10:02AM Dow -31 set a new low after the data but it was not confirmed by the S&P -1 or Nasdaq Comp +0.9 with some recovery gains noted (SPY) :

10:01AM Comtech Telecom receives $2.8 million order for satellite earth station equipment for national public emergency response network (CMTL) 28.94 -0.07 :

10:00AM Stock indices weakening after data -- Dow -41, S&P -2.4, Nasdaq -1.3 (SPY) :

9:57AM Seeing some intraday relative strength in Solar -- LDK, JASO, CSIQ, JKS, YGE, TSL, SOL, STP (TAN) :

9:54AM S&P -0.6 sets fractional new high and paused, Nasdaq Comp +2.3 did not confirm, Dow -25 just above session lows -- JNJ -1%, VZ -0.7%, CAT -0.6%, MRK -0.6% (SPY) :

9:54AM Sprott Physical Gold Trust prices its follow-on offering of 24,821,000 transferable, redeemable units of the Trust at a price of US$12.54 per unit (PHYS) 12.48 -0.18 :

9:53AM Inter-Tel announces that it is in discussions with Ambrian Capital plc. to acquire one of its subsidiaries; this transaction is not considered to be material (INTL) 25.88 -0.14 :

9:47AM Intel firms with overall semiconductor strength hovering slightly above yesterday's six month low bar high at 19.82 -- session high 19.88 (INTC) 19.84 +0.35 : INTC has been on the defensive for the last six weeks with it dropping more than 12% from high to low. Short term, however, it held at the 62% retracement support of the Aug to Feb rally and this morning it has edged above the high of yesterday's low bar at 19.82.

9:41AM SPDR Homebuilders gaps down, holding thus far near last week's low and its 50 sma at 18.01/18.01 (XHB) 18.05 -0.17 : KBH -8.1%, LEN -2.1%, MDC -1.6%, MTH -1.4%, PHM -2.6%, SPF -0.9%, TOL -1.9% ITB -1.4%, DHI -2.4%.

9:37AM Dow -15 and S&P -1.3 weaker but off lows, Nasdaq Comp +3 rallies amid Semi strength SMH +2% (SPY) :

9:35AM HMS Holdings awarded third party liability contract by the Commonwealth of Virginia (HMSY) 83.55 -0.20 : Co announced that is has been awarded a contract by the Commonwealth of Virginia, Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) to provide third party liability services, including cost avoidance, commercial insurance recovery, Medicare disallowance, and credit balance reviews. The contract extends through December 31, 2012, with the option to renew for four additional one-year periods.

9:32AM Microsoft gaps higher reaches 25.83, important zone above is at its March recovery high/200 sma at 25.95/25.97 (MSFT) 25.81 +0.26 :

9:31AM Starwood Hotels announces plans to open W Mumbai, marking the debut of W Hotels Worldwide in India (HOT) 57.53 0.00 :

9:30AM Inspire Pharm to be acquired by Merck (MRK) for $5/share; transaction has a total cash value of ~$430 mln (ISPH) 3.98 : Merck, and Inspire Pharm announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Merck will acquire Inspire. Under the terms of the agreement, Merck, through a subsidiary, will commence a tender offer for all outstanding common stock of Inspire at a price of $5.00 per share in cash, a 26% premium to the closing price of Inspire's common stock on April 4, 2011. The transaction has a total cash value of ~$430 mln. In addition, Warburg Pincus, which owns ~28% of the outstanding shares of Inspire, has agreed to tender all of its shares into the offer. (stock halted)

9:29AM Baldwin Technology announces a strategic reorganization of the Company's operations in Europe and a 9% reduction in global employment levels (BLD) 1.61 : Co estimates that the total cost of implementing this Q3 FY2011 restructuring plan will be ~$2.4 million and will result in an annual savings of ~$5 million. Coupled with actions taken earlier in the current fiscal year, the total impact of all restructurings is expected to result in savings of over $6.6 million annually. As part of the above described plan, the Company will exit facilities in Egelsbach, Germany and Tranas, Sweden and consolidate engineering and production into existing Baldwin operations in Germany and the U.K. Baldwin will reorganize its sales and service structure in Southeast Asia, and the Company's Japan sales office will move to more efficient space in Tokyo. Additionally, the Company announced the planned exit of its U.S. food blending and packaging business. The Company will classify its non-core food blending and packaging business as discontinued operations, which will result in a charge during the third quarter primarily related to the impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets associated with that business in the amount of ~$2.5 million. During the fiscal fourth quarter ending June 30, 2011, the Company expects to incur an additional $3 million facility related charge and minor costs to reduce employment at its food blends operation.

9:25AM Teekay LNG Partners prices its follow-on public offering of 3.7 common units, which represent limited partner interests, at $38.88 per unit (TGP) 40.50 :

9:20AM Diana Shipping enters into a time charter contract with Hyundai Merchant Marine Co, Seoul, South Korea for one of its Panamax dry bulk carriers, the m/v Danae, at a gross charter rate of US$15,600 per day (DSX) 11.96 : The charter is expected to commence by the end of April, 2011. This employment is anticipated to generate ~US$11 million of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the charter.

9:17AM Smart Balance amends credit facility in significantly oversubscribed transaction (SMBL) 4.43 : Co announces that GFA Brands, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, successfully closed an amended and upsized credit agreement, in a transaction that was significantly oversubscribed by the banking community. The new $150 million secured credit facility replaces the previous $100 million secured facility and carries lower interest rates and less restrictive financial covenants, while also enhancing the Company's financial flexibility moving forward.

9:16AM Copano Energy reports successful results for tender offer and consent solicitation for 8.125% Senior Notes due 2016 (CPNO) 35.98 : CO announces that it had received tenders and consents from holders of ~83% in aggregate principal amount of its outstanding 8.125% Senior Notes due 2016. Co intends to execute a supplemental indenture with respect to the indenture governing the 2016 Notes that will eliminate most of the covenants and certain events of default applicable to the 2016 Notes.

9:15AM Epoch Holdings reports 9% increase in AUM to $15.6 bln (EPHC) 16.07 :

9:14AM Unilife Corporation realigns operations; expects to reduce 2011 expenditures by $12 mln (UNIS) 5.43 : Co has commenced a scheduled realignment of its operating infrastructure in preparation for the upcoming full commercial production and sale of its innovative drug delivery devices to healthcare and pharmaceutical customers. The adoption of these business efficiencies is expected to improve Unilife's cash flow and extend cash reserves by over $12 mln during calendar year 2011. Through the elimination or deferral of expenditures no longer required at this time, Unilife expects to reduce operating expenses by ~$5 mln during calendar year 2011, and streamline capital spending programs to further improve cash reserves by ~$7 mln during calendar year 2011. These adopted changes will better enable Unilife to efficiently focus cash resources on the production and sale of the Unifill prefilled syringe, the Unitract 1mL syringe, and the commercialization of other pipeline products.

9:12AM TeamStaff says it has improved its liquidity and capital structure in recent weeks (TSTF) 0.46 : Co has improved its liquidity and capital structure in recent weeks. Most recently, co entered into a securities purchase agreement with certain members of the board of directors and management team. Total cash proceeds were $150,000 in consideration for 306,121 common shares. In addition to the cash proceeds, three participants elected to purchase in total $75,000 of additional shares by granting a credit to the Company for an amount equal to the purchase price and authorizing the Company to apply this credit against any obligation of the Company to such person within 12-months of the closing date, except for base salary. Co intends to use these proceeds for general working capital. Also, co has improved its capital structure by increasing the maximum availability under its line of credit to $3.0 million, up from $2.5 million, through its lender, Presidential Financial Corporation. As part of this arrangement, the lender agreed to provide a credit facility against the Company's unbilled receivables, subject to a limit of $500,000, and also extended the term of the loan agreement by 12 months, to July 2013.

9:11AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Regions Bank (RF) announced it has formed a Technology & Defense banking group and named David Sozio to lead this effort.
* Intellifiber Networks, a subsidiary of PAETEC Holding Corp. (PAET) announced that it has been awarded a five year contract by National Aeronautics and Space Administration to construct, provision and manage a diverse communications network for NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility.
* Veolia Energy (VE) North America announced that SourceOne, its energy management and advisory services subsidiary, has been selected by the Town of Hempstead, New York, to provide energy efficiency measures.
* Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corp and New York Portfolio Clearing announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the development of a clearing link for the Canadian swap market to assist in meeting Canada's G20 commitment of clearing OTC derivatives by December 31st, 2012.
* Elec For Imaging (EFII) announced that WorkflowOne has selected EFI Monarch and EFI Digital StoreFront to automate and unify its 15 U.S. locations.
* Epicor Software (EPIC) announced that Sanyo Color, a Buenos Aires, Argentina-based company with 40 years of tradition as a manufacturer and seller of home and construction paint and textile pigments, has selected the Epicor next-generation enterprise resource planning solution as the perfect tool for the consolidation of its operations across all business divisions. j
* tw telecom (TWTC) announced that leading law firm Smith, Gambrell & Russell has selected it to provide advanced voice, data and Internet services to the firm's offices in Atlanta, New York, Washington D.C. and Jacksonville, Fla.
* Regal Beloit (RBC) announced that it has acquired Ramu, a motor and control technology co headquartered in Blacksburg, Virginia, backed by the venture capital firm Khosla Ventures.

9:08AM CareFusion announces Chief Operating Officer Dwight Winstead will leave the company on June 30 (CFN) 27.96 :

9:07AM Lime Energy won the contract as the exclusive provider for the Small Business Energy Efficiency Program for the Long Island Power Authority; projected value of the five year contract is $7.3 million per year (LIME) 35.61 : Co has been notified that it has won the contract as the exclusive provider for the Small Business Energy Efficiency Program for the Long Island Power Authority. The projected value of the five year contract is $7.3 million per year.

9:04AM Procera Networks won initial orders with a combined value of over $2.75 million for a first phase deployment at a leading cable MSO and a Tier-1 fixed/mobile operator (PKT) 9.33 : Co announces it has won initial orders with a combined value of over $2.75 million for a first phase deployment at a leading cable MSO and a Tier-1 fixed/mobile operator. These two European service providers have a combined customer base of over 100 million subscribers.

9:04AM US Airways reports March RPMs increased 3.9% to 5.1 bln, ASMs increased 3.6% and load factor was up 0.2 pts to 83.4% (LCC) 8.74 :

9:03AM Orion Energy Systems announces that Michael Harris has been named CFO effective April 1 (OESX) 4.00 : Co announces that Michael Harris has been named Chief Financial Officer effective April 1, 2011. Orion's former Chief Financial Officer, Scott Jensen has been appointed to the newly-created position of Chief Accounting Officer and will continue to serve as a member of the management team.

9:01AM Neurocrine Biosci announces successful Phase IIa Clinical Trial for VMAT2 Inhibitor; initiating the Investigational New Drug application process with the FDA (NBIX) 7.23 : Co announced that it has completed the dosing and preliminary assessment of the initial cohort of Tardive Dyskinesia patients using its proprietary Vesicular Monoamine Transporter 2 inhibitor (VMAT2), NBI-98854. Based on this data, the co is initiating the Investigational New Drug (IND) application process with the FDA.

9:00AM Rentech has increased its projection of EBITDA for fiscal year 2011 for its wholly-owned nitrogen fertilizer subsidiary to $75 mln from $60 mln (RTK) 1.24 :

8:53AM Validus Holdings no longer expects to report positive net operating income for the three month period ending March 31, 2011 due to Japan earthquake (VR) 34.25 : Co comments on worldwide loss activity occurring in the first quarter of 2011, including the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan and other loss events occurring during the three month period ended March 31, 2011. Based on this analysis, the co currently expects to record loss and loss expenses of $139 mln, net of applicable reinstatement premiums, in its first quarter 2011 results. Co anticipates that its share of this loss event could potentially represent an ultimate loss of up to $51 mln and as a result, the co currently expects to record loss and loss expenses of $51 mln, net of applicable reinstatement premiums, in its first quarter 2011 results of operations. After considering the worldwide loss events through March 31, 2011 and the anticipated loss and loss expenses associated with the events cited above, the co no longer expects to report positive net operating income for the three month period ending March 31, 2011.

8:49AM Kayne Anderson prices public follow-on offering of 5.7 mln shares common stock at $30.58 (KYN) 32.16 : Net proceeds from the offering of ~$167 mln will be used to make additional portfolio investments that are consistent with the co's investment objective and policies and for general corporate purposes.

8:45AM SinoCoking enters into new rmb 360 million (~$54 million) medium-term loan agreement (SCOK) 8.48 : Co announces that on April 2, 2011, Henan Province Pingdingshan Hongli Coal & Coke Co., Ltd. entered into a medium-term loan agreement with Bairui Trust Co., pursuant to which Bairui has loaned Hongli the sum of RMB 360 million (~$54 million), of which RMB 180 million is due in two years and RMB 180 million in three years, with an APR of 6.3%. All of the Company's business operations are currently conducted by Hongli, which the Company controls through contractual arrangements.

8:41AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* GAIN Capital Holdings (GCAP) announced that it has opened an office in Singapore to expand business development efforts in Asia for GAIN GTX, the company's institutional electronic communications network.
* Caliper Life Sciences (CALP) announced that its Caliper Discovery Alliances and Services unit has formed a research collaboration with Denver-based Catholic Health Initiatives, one of the nation's largest health systems.
* Monotype Imaging (TYPE) has introduced the iType FontTuner application, a solution for improving the look of fonts on particular display screens by adjusting the thickness and sharpness of characters rendered from the fonts.
* Boston Scientific (BSX) announced the start of patient enrollment in the SuperNOVA clinical trial, an international, prospective, single-arm, non-randomized trial evaluating the safety and effectiveness of the INNOVA Self-Expanding Bare-Metal Stent System in patients with stenosis of the superficial femoral artery or proximal popliteal artery.
* Integral Systems (ISYS) announced that the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center has awarded the co an $8.6 mln contract modification to its Command and Control System-Consolidated contract.
* Boston Scientific (BSX) announced the start of patient enrollment in the SuperNOVA clinical trial, an international, prospective, single-arm, non-randomized trial evaluating the safety and effectiveness of the INNOVA Self-Expanding Bare-Metal Stent System in patients with stenosis of the superficial femoral artery or proximal popliteal artery.
* RPC Inc. (RES) announced that during the quarter ended March 31, 2011 it purchased 810,377 shares under its share repurchase program.
* DARA BioSciences (DARA) announced that it has initiated a Phase Ib clinical study for DB959, its PPAR delta/gamma agonist, an oral drug in development for the treatment of Type 2 Diabetes. The co expects to report the results of the study during Q3 2011.
* CryoLife (CRY) announced that it, through its wholly-owned subsidiary CL Falcon, has commenced a cash tender offer for all outstanding shares of Cardiogenesis (OTCQB: CGCP) common stock.
* Government Properties Income Trust (GOV) announced it has raised its regular quarterly common share distribution by $0.01 to $0.42 per common share

8:33AM McCormick & Schmick's board has made no decision on discussions with Fertitta or any other party or to consider any sale or other strategic transaction (MSSR) 9.22 : Co responds to an announcement by Tilman Fertitta, the controlling stockholder of Landry's Restaurants, who issued a press release stating that he intends to commence, through an affiliate, a tender offer to acquire all shares of MSSR not owned by Fertitta or his affiliates for $9.25 cash per share. McCormick & Schmick's did not solicit such an offer and has had no discussions with Mr. Fertitta concerning it. If the offer is formally made, the McCormick & Schmick's board of directors will respond appropriately in accordance with its fiduciary duties. The board has made no decision at this point whether to initiate or enter into discussions with Mr. Fertitta or any other party or to consider any sale or other strategic transaction concerning the co.

8:33AM Crude oil continues push higher and is now approaching the flat line; now off 19 cents to $108.28 (COMDX) :

8:32AM Wright Medical appoints Chairman David Stevens as Interim CEO; terminates CTO (WMGI) 17.13 : Co has appointed Chairman David D. Stevens as interim President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Stevens remains Chairman of the Board. Stevens replaces Gary D. Henley, who has resigned as President and CEO and as a director of the Company on April 4, 2011. Co also announced that the Board has terminated Frank Bono, the Company's Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, for cause for failing to exhibit appropriate regard for the Company's ongoing compliance program. (stock is halted)

8:32AM Daxor Corporation announces the publication of a research article highlighting co's Blood Volume Analyzer (DXR) 10.85 : Co announces publication of a research article entitled "Blood Volume Analysis Can Distinguish True Anemia from Hemodilution in Critically Ill Patients" in the Journal of Trauma. This research study used co's Blood Volume Analyzer to precisely measure the volume status of 36 critically injured or postoperative surgical patients over the course of a three-day period. The investigators found that the volume status of severely injured patients could not be predicted based on the amount of fluid administered during resuscitation. Importantly, this study also showed that the peripheral hematocrit (the standard test used to estimate patients' volume status) is not an accurate predictor of red blood cell volume status.

8:31AM Core-Mark signs a definitive agreement to acquire Forrest City Grocery Co. for ~$73 million; raises FY11 revs guidance to $8.0 bln vs $7.8 bln Thomson Reuters consensus (CORE) 33.75 : Co announces that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Forrest City Grocery Co. for ~$73 million. The transaction is structured as an all-cash merger pursuant to which FCGC will become a wholly-owned, indirect subsidiary of Core-Mark. The purchase price of $73 million is predicated on ~$50 million in assets, to be determined at time of closing. No debt is being assumed in this transaction. Core-Mark expects to fund the transaction from a combination of cash and borrowings under its $200 million revolving credit facility. The deal is expected to close within two months and is expected to be accretive beginning in 2011, excluding ~$2.5 million in start-up and conversion costs. Co raises FY11 revs guidance to $8.0 bln vs $7.8 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

8:31AM Keryx Biopharma reports results on KRX-0401 (Perifosine); demonstrated antitumor activity in several gastric cancer cell lines (KERX) 5.02 : Perifosine showed single agent anti-proliferative activity in a variety of gastric cancer cell lines. In 8/13 cell lines resistant to 5-FU, perifosine showed a synergistic antiproliferative activity with 5-FU. In 72% of cell lines, high basal levels of pAkt were detected. Treatment with perifosine reduced tumor growth in nude mice inoculated subcutaneously with the YCC 2 gastric cancer cell line. Finally, an MTT based microarray analysis was performed to identify pharmacogenomic classifiers for synergy in 5-FU resistant cell lines. Perifosine demonstrated antitumor activity in several gastric cancer cell lines. Furthermore, perifosine enhanced the antitumor activity of 5-FU including 5-FU resistant cell lines. 5-FU is the active metabolite of the pro-drug Xeloda, which is approved for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer and breast cancer in the U.S., as well as advanced gastric cancer in certain countries outside of the U.S.

8:31AM Immunomedics reports progress on development of antibody-SN-38 conjugates at cancer meeting (IMMU) 3.75 : Co announces at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research results from 2 studies on the development of antibody-SN-38 conjugates for targeted drug therapy of cancer.The first study focused on the tolerability and dose-limiting toxicity of SN-38 conjugates of labetuzumab, its proprietary humanized antibody targeting the CEACAM5 cancer marker, and hRS7, an anti-TROP-2 humanized antibody, in a number of animal models. Both antibody-drug conjugates were found to be well tolerated. In addition, labetuzumab-SN-38 was shown in a mouse model of human colonic cancer to be efficacious at a dose of 0.5 mg given twice a week for 2 weeks, whereas hRS7-SN-38 was efficacious at 0.25 mg/dose, administered twice weekly for 4 weeks, in a human pancreatic cancer model.

8:30AM VirnetX Holding awarded new patent, included in current infringement lawsuits (VHC) 23.45 : Co announced that it has been granted U.S. Patent No. 7,921,211, Agile Network Protocol for Secure Communications Using Secure Domain Names, by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and has filed papers with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas seeking to add allegations that all of the defendants in its two currently-pending patent infringement lawsuits, VirnetX v. Cisco Systems (CSCO), Apple (AAPL), Aastra, Aastra Technologies, NEC Corporation, and VirnetX v. Mitel Networks (MITL), Siemens (SI) GmbH & Co. KG,, infringe this new patent. VirnetX also added allegations that Apple's iPad 2 infringes its patents.

8:18AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Incyte Corporation (INCY) announced that it has earned a $15 million payment from Novartis (NVS) based on the achievement of a predefined milestone in an ongoing Phase I dose- escalation trial for INCB28060 in patients with solid tumors.
* Jacobs Engineering Group (JEC) announced that it was awarded a major contract by Saudi Aramco for general engineering and project management services. Officials did not disclose the contract value; however, they noted that the work is expected to be executed by its office in al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia. The duration of the GES+ contract is five years and covers all engineering, procurement and construction management services for Saudi Aramco's Capital Program.
* OSI Systems (OSIS) announced that its Healthcare division, Spacelabs Healthcare, received orders totaling $1.1 mln from Methodist Health System.
* Equinix (EQIX) announced the opening of its fifth International Business Exchange data center in Dallas, Texas. The $25 Million phase 1 dallas expansion supports strong demand for peering and interconnection services among networks and IT services companies.
* Uroplasty (UPI) announced that two private insurance payers have elected to cover posterior tibial nerve stimulation using its Urgent PC Neuromodulation System for the treatment of overactive bladder and associated symptoms. Effective April 1, 2011, UnitedHealthcare and, effective March 17, 2011, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield initiated coverage of PTNS.
* DemandTec (DMAN) announced that Do it Best extended its subscription for DemandTec's Promotion Planning & Management and Promotion Execution.
* Outdoor Channel (OUTD) announced the launch of its VOD channel on DIRECTV (DTV).
* Jack Henry & Associates (JKHY) announced that its ProfitStars division has introduced ECS Web.
* Tempur-Pedic (TPX) has teamed up with New England-based retailer Jordan's Furniture and today announced the Tempur-Pedic IMAX (IMAX) 3D Theater at Jordan's in Natick and Reading, Mass.
* Deutsche Bank's (DB) Autobahn Equity business announced the launch of Stealth, the next generation of its liquidity seeking algorithm. Stealth uses advanced high frequency alpha models to opportunistically source liquidity in both bright and dark venues.
* DISH Network (DISH) and EPIX, the entertainment service from Paramount, Lionsgate (LGF) and MGM, announced that DISH Network satellite TV customers who subscribe to EPIX Programming automatically have free, unlimited on-demand, online access to content via DISHOnline.

8:06AM KB Home misses by $1.22, misses on revs (KBH) 12.20 : Reports Q1 (Feb) GAAP loss of $1.49 per share, $1.22 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.27); revenues fell 25.4% year/year to $196.9 mln vs the $223.6 mln consensus. Net orders totaled 1,302 in the first quarter of 2011, down 32% from 1,913 net orders generated in the same period of 2010. The year-over-year comparison was negatively affected in part by heightened activity in the 2010 first quarter stemming from a federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers that was available during that period. The co's cancellation rate as a percentage of gross orders increased to 29% in the 2011 first quarter from 22% in the year-earlier quarter. As a percentage of beginning backlog, the cancellation rate was 39% in the first quarter of 2011 and 26% in the year-earlier quarter. The number of homes in backlog at February 28, 2011 decreased 38% on a year-over-year basis to 1,689 from 2,713, while the projected future revenues in backlog declined 32% to ~$353.6 million at February 28, 2011... The co delivered 949 homes in the first quarter of 2011, down 28% from the same period of 2010, with decreases in each of the Company's geographic regions. The co's first-quarter average selling price rose 4% from the year-earlier period to $205,700, with increases of 1%, 7% and 26% in the co's West Coast, Central and Southeast regions, respectively, partly offset by a 6% decrease in the Southwest region. "As this year's spring selling season has commenced, we are encouraged by the higher traffic we experienced in the first quarter compared to a year ago, as well as the sequential improvement in our monthly net order levels during the quarter."

8:06AM Ryder System acquires Commercial Truck Leasing, Rental and Maintenance Portfolio of B.I.T. Leasing in San Francisco Bay Area; expected to be accretive to earnings in 2011 (R) 50.42 : Co announces it has completed the acquisition of the lease, rental and maintenance portfolio of B.I.T. Leasing, a privately owned, 58-year-old full service truck leasing and fleet services company headquartered in Hayward, California. The acquisition was completed in two phases; the first phase completed in August 2010 and the final phase completed in March 2011. The acquisition is expected to add ~$9 million in annualized operating revenue to Ryder's Fleet Management Solutions business segment and be accretive to earnings in 2011. Co anticipates additional earnings in future years due to synergies and operational improvement within the combined organizations.

8:04AM Myrexis presents data on cancer metabolism inhibitor program and data on HSP90 inhibitor program (MYRX) 3.85 : Co announces results for 2 programs. First, it presented five posters on its novel cancer metabolism inhibitor, MPC-9528. The data on multiple aspects of MPC-9528 activity that support that potential for broad spectrum tumoricidal activity alone and in a variety of combinations with other agents. Significantly, MPC-9528 was shown to exhibit synergistic anti-tumor activity when coupled with DNA damaging agents such as DNA alkylating agents and thymidylate synthase inhibitors. Additionally, it presented data on its fully synthetic, orally bioavailable heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitor. Co demonstrated that the combination of MPC-3100 with other targeted therapies, showed greater in vivo anti-tumor activity compared to either agent alone. These preclinical data demonstrate the potential of combining MPC-3100 with other targeted cancer therapies in the clinic. Animal studies showed that the pro-drug displayed pharmacokinetics comparable to MPC-3100 and equivalent efficacy, inducing significant tumor regressions. The co expects to advance MPC-3100 to Phase 2 as soon as practicable after completing the Phase 1 study.

8:03AM Seabridge Gold announced that Christopher J. Reynolds will join the Company as Vice President, Finance, CFO and Corporate Secretary effective May 1, 2011. (SA) 32.04 : Reynolds will be replacing Roderick Chisholm, CA who is retiring.

8:03AM Alliant Tech awarded a $35.8 mln contract for the Engineering & Manufacturing Development phase of the Hard Target Void Sensing Fuze program (ATK) 70.83 :

8:02AM Aeterna Zentaris releases Results on AEZS-131; showed a favorable PK profile (AEZS) 1.87 : Co announced that a poster on its highly selective Erk 1/2 inhibitor anticancer compound, AEZS-131, was presented at the 102nd annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research. AEZS-131 is an orally active small molecular compound that selectively inhibits Erk 1/2 with an IC50 of 4nM, blocks cellular Rsk-1 phosphorylation, modulates downstream cellular substrate activation, arrests tumor cells in G1 and inhibits the growth of multiple human tumor cell lines in the nanomolar range. In in vivo pharmacokinetic studies, AEZS-131 showed a favorable PK profile. Anti-tumor activity was studied in in vivo mouse xenograft experiments utilizing the HCT-116 colon cancer model. AEZS-131 significantly inhibited tumor growth and was well tolerated at daily doses up to 120 mg/kg. Focus on inhibition of downstream kinase Erk 1/2 activity as a therapeutic target may be attractive because the pharmacologic inhibition of Erk 1/2 reverses Ras and Raf activation in cells which also demonstrate resistance to common Raf inhibitors, such as PLX-4720/4032.

8:02AM Amer States Water announces regulatory approval of the sale of its Arizona utility (AWR) 36.32 : Co announces that on March 30, 2011 the Arizona Corporation Commission approved the sale of AWR's wholly-owned subsidiary in Arizona, Chaparral City Water Company. On June 7, 2010, AWR entered into a stock purchase agreement with EPCOR Water to sell all of the common stock of CCWC for a total purchase price of $35 million, including the assumption of approximately $6 million of long-term debt.

8:02AM China Integrated Energy announces independent third party investigation (CBEH) 2.21 : Co announces that the Audit Committee of the Company's Board of Directors has retained the law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman who, in turn, with the Audit Committee retained Deloitte Financial Advisory Services to, together, advise the co's Audit Committee with regard to the Audit Committee's independent investigation into various issues raised by certain individuals. Larry Goldman, an independent Director and Audit Committee Chair, said, "We consider these issues to be significant and the Audit Committee intends to conduct a thorough and independent investigation. The Audit Committee will authorize counsel to engage such additional independent advisors as deemed necessary and the Committee will work to conclude the investigation in a timely manner."

8:02AM Telik announces presentation of data on the characterization of novel Ezatiostat Analogs; efficacy and tolerability observed with ezatiostat supported the initiation of the analog program (TELK) 0.99 : Co presented data at the 102nd American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida on a group of second generation analogs of ezatiostat, the most clinically advanced product in development at Telik. The efficacy and tolerability observed with ezatiostat in several Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials supported the initiation of the analog program to identify potential follow-on drug candidates.

8:01AM Lee Enterprises will convert all outstanding shares of its Class B Common Stock to its Common Stock (LEE) 2.74 :

8:01AM Optimer Pharma announced that NASDAQ has halted trading of its common stock this morning (OPTR) 13.78 : The Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee of the FDA is scheduled to meet today to review and discuss Optimer's New Drug Application for fidaxomicin for the treatment of Clostridium difficile infection.

8:01AM Oncothyreon Initiates Phase 2 Trial of its PI-3 Kinase Inhibitor PX-866 in Patients with Glioblastoma (ONTY) 3.91 : Co announced enrollment of the first patient in a Phase 2 trial of PX-866 in patients with glioblastoma multiforme that has recurred during or following primary therapy. PX-866 is a small molecule compound designed to inhibit the activity of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI-3K), a component of an important cell survival signaling pathway. The trial will enroll up to 30 patients whose brain tumor is in first relapse during or following primary therapy. The primary endpoint of this single-arm screening trial is a combination of objective response rate and early progression.

8:01AM Peregrine Pharma's PS-targeting antibody significantly improves anti-tumor effect of Sorafenib in models of advanced liver cancer (PPHM) 2.56 : Co announces that its phosphatidylserine-targeting antibody significantly enhanced the anti-tumor effects of sorafenib in models of hepatocellular carcinoma, with 69% less tumor growth compared to sorafenib alone. This study, one of four poster presentations on Peregrine's PS-targeting antibodies at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research, was the basis for initiating a Phase I/II investigator-sponsored trial evaluating the company's lead antibody bavituximab with sorafenib in patients with advanced HCC. Bavituximab is currently in three randomized Phase II clinical trials in lung cancer and pancreatic cancer and several ISTs for additional oncology indications.

8:01AM Walgreens reports March sales in comparable stores increased 3.0% (WAG) 40.83 : Co reports March sales of $6.28 bln, an increase of 7.6% from $5.83 bln for the same month in 2010. Duane Reade stores, acquired in April 2010, contributed 2.8% points to the total sales increase for the month. Calendar year-to-date sales were $17.98 bln, an increase of 9.1% from $16.48 bln in 2010.

7:58AM May WTI crude oil is modestly lower this morning and is currently attempting to bounce off its overnight lows at $107.50; currently down 56 cents to $107.91 (COMDX) :

7:52AM CECO Environ. announces new orders totaling ~$4.7 million (CECE) 5.82 : The major new orders include one for $2.7 million for a rolling mill ventilation system for a U.S. steel plant. Additional significant orders totaling $2.0 million were received from customers in the power, aluminum, asphalt, and automotive industries in India, Brazil, Canada, and the U.S.

7:45AM Penn Virginia announces $250 million offering of senior notes (PVA) 16.24 : Co intends to use a portion of the net proceeds from the Offering to fund its previously announced tender offer for any and all of its outstanding 4.50% Convertible Senior Subordinated Notes due 2012. Any remaining net proceeds from the Offering will be used to provide additional working capital for general corporate purposes. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, BofA Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets, LLC, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC and Barclays Capital Inc. will act as joint book-running managers for the Offering.

7:42AM Ariad Pharm announced results of preclinical studies on ponatinib, its investigational pan-BCR-ABL inhibitor, showing potent inhibition of all four members of the fibroblast growth factor receptor family of tyrosine kinases that are abnormally expressed in multiple cancers (ARIA) 7.97 : Recent research has established that FGF receptors 1 to 4 are activated through multiple mechanisms in certain solid tumors and represent promising targets for antitumor therapy. The new data on ponatinib demonstrate potent activity against a broad range of tumor cells activated by all four FGFRs, in vitro and in vivo. In a panel of 14 cell lines representing multiple different tumor types including endometrial, bladder, gastric, breast, lung and colon cancer, ponatinib potently and selectively inhibited FGFR-mediated signaling and cell growth. Four other tyrosine kinase inhibitors with FGFR inhibitory activity that are in clinical development were substantially less active, and none potently blocked all four FGF receptors.

7:34AM Applied Materials wins second multi-year service contract at TowerJazz (TSEM) (AMAT) 15.40 : Co announced that it signed a multi-year service contract with TowerJazz, to support Applied Materials equipment at its semiconductor manufacturing facility in Newport Beach, California. This is the second service contract TowerJazz has awarded AMAT; the first contract covers all Applied Materials systems at TowerJazz's Fab 2 in Migdal Haemek, Israel. Under the agreement, Applied will service etch, metrology and inspection tools.

7:33AM Avalon Rare Metals provides progress report on metallurgical testwork, Nechalacho rare earth elements deposit, Thor Lake, Northwest territories, Canada (AVL) 9.20 : Co provide an update its progress on the Nechalacho deposit, Northwest Territories, Canada.Avalon is continuing to conduct metallurgical testwork toward proving its proposed process for concentration of the Nechalacho ore minerals. The additional time and complexity of the hydrometallurgical pilot plant work, in addition to more updated cost information for other areas of the BFS, have resulted in an increase in the BFS budget to $54 million, which is comprised of direct costs of $46 million and administrative and overhead costs of $8 million... Avalon has previously disclosed the outline of its planned hydrometallurgical process to extract the rare earths and other valuable rare metals from the Basal Zone ore minerals. The hydrometallurgical process steps following the Caustic Crack step are being investigated at present, to determine the optimum process for separating the rare earths from Zr, and from Nb and Ta. This will likely involve a combination of precipitation and solvent extraction.

7:31AM Diamond Foods to Merge P&G's Pringles Business into the co for $2.35 bln; updates FY12 EPS and rev guidance (DMND) 57.22 : Co announces the signing of a definitive agreement to merge the Pringles business into Diamond Foods in a transaction valued at $2.35 bln. For fiscal year 2012, Co issues guidance for FY12 (Jul), sees EPS of $3.00-3.15, excluding non-recurring items and may not comapare to $2.98 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY12 (Jul) revs of ~$1.8 bln, may not be comparable to $1.02 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. FY12 EPS, before costs associated with the transaction and integration, are estimated to range from $3.00 to $3.10 per share, which reflects EPS accretion of 12 to 15 cents per share. The tax-efficient deal structure maximizes value for P&G shareholders and minimizes annual earnings dilution. The transaction will result in a one-time earnings increase for P&G of ~$1.5 bln after tax or ~$0.50 per share. P&G expects only modest EPS dilution of $0.02-0.04 on an annualized basis. The stock exchange with Diamond will reduce outstanding P&G shares, partially offsetting the Pringles earnings impact.

7:23AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Delcath Systems (DCTH) announced that it will meet this week with the FDA to discuss the Refusal to File letter that it received from the FDA on February 18, 2011 and the resubmission of its New Drug Application for its proprietary chemosaturation system.
* AECOM Technology Corporation (ACM) announced that it has been awarded a US$19-million contract by the Government of Alberta Ministry of Transportation for the design and construction of the Highway 2 Twinning project at Peace River in Alberta, Canada.
* Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company and Sunesis Pharmaceuticals (SNSS) announced a license agreement for the development of Sunesis' oral, selective pan-Raf kinase inhibitor and one additional undisclosed kinase inhibitor program in oncology. Under the terms of the agreement with Biogen Idec and Millennium, Sunesis has received a $4 million upfront payment from Millennium.
* BioDelivery Sciences International (BDSI) announced completion of enrollment in its Phase 3 clinical trial assessing the efficacy and safety of BEMA Buprenorphine for the treatment of moderate to severe chronic pain.
* PPL Susquehann (PPL) announced operators at the Susquehanna nuclear plant near Berwick, Pa., safely shut down the Unit 2 reactor on Tuesday (4/5) to begin a planned refueling and maintenance outage.
* American Induction Technologies recently won a major legal battle against Osram Sylvania, part of Siemens AG (SI) in a patent infringement lawsuit pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. AITI sought judgment that OSRAM's patent is invalid. On February 7, 2011 and March 21, 2011, Judge Manuel Real in Los Angeles invalidated all independent claims of U.S. Patent No. 5,834,905, paving the way for what is anticipated to be a brief trial on the remaining, dependent claims of the patent. AITI strongly believes in the evidence and that the patent will be completely struck down.

7:14AM Quiet: 10-yr: +01/32..3.421%..USD/JPY: 84.32..EUR/USD: 1.4176 (BONDX) : Treasuries are little changed this morning after a quiet overnight session. Sellers were in control overnight, sending yields higher by one or two bps, but the complex has recently rallied to their best levels of the session, with the longer dated maturities crossing into positive territory. Yields across the curve hover slightly in the red with none seeing more than a 1 bp decline. The little action that has taken place in the complex has had minimal impact on the curve as the 2-10-yr spread is relatively flat near 265.5, as is the 10-30-yr spread at 105.5. Precious metals are lower as spot gold trades down two dollars to 14332, and spot silver is off 32 cents to 38.26. A light data week kicks off with ISM services (10) and the release of the FOMC minutes (14). Without a macro catalyst choppy trade may continue all week as little data and a lack of auctions makes for a trade the news week. POMO continues with the Fed looking to buy $6.5-$8.5 bln of 2018-2021 maturities. Click here to see a 60 minute 10-yr T-Note chart.

7:04AM Netsol provides update on proposed acquisition of two subsidiaries by NetSol Pakistan (NTWK) 1.82 : Co announced an update on the proposed acquisition of its two wholly owned subsidiaries, NetSol Technologies North America and NetSol Technologies Europe, by NetSol Technologies, the Company's majority-owned subsidiary in Pakistan. CEO of NetSol PK, commented: "The SEC of Pakistan recently declined to approve the transaction. While NetSol PK has the option to file an appeal with the SECP, we have decided not to pursue the transaction further and have withdrawn our acquisition proposal." Najeeb Ghauri, Chairman and CEO of NetSol Technologies, Inc., stated: "Both subsidiaries are performing well. Their pipelines are growing, and their delivery teams are very busy servicing existing customers in the North American and European markets. In addition, NetSol Technologies recently acquired nearly 1.9 mln shares of NetSol PK on the open market at an average share price of 20 rupees or $0.23, thereby increasing our ownership stake from 58% to nearly 61%. We do not anticipate any adverse impact on our EPS due to the withdrawal of the acquisition proposal, and we will maintain our 100% ownership of the two subsidiaries."

7:03AM Intl Speedway beats by $0.01, misses on revs; reaffirms FY11 EPS guidance, revs guidance (ISCA) 31.51 : Reports Q1 (Feb) earnings of $0.49 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.48; revenues fell 2.2% year/year to $148.7 mln vs the $156.6 mln consensus. Co reaffirms guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.60-1.80 vs. $1.65 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $635-650 mln vs. $643.92 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "We are experiencing increased levels of interest from corporate partners despite the impact the economy continues to have on corporate budgets and sales... We are also beginning to see pricing stabilization on our inventory of assets and remain committed to securing all of our 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide series event entitlements."

7:03AM Mylan Labs launches generic version of Sandostatin (MYL) 23.37 : Co announces that its subsidiary Bioniche Pharma has launched Octreotide Acetate Injection USP, pre-filled syringes (PFS), the generic version of Novartis' (NVS) Sandostatin, a treatment for a rare hormonal disorder called acromegaly. Octreotide Acetate Injection is also used to suppress or inhibit severe diarrhea associated with metastatic carcinoid tumors and vasoactive intestinal peptide tumors.

7:02AM Covidien releases interim data showing single incision gall bladder surgery with SILS port associated with improved cosmetic outcome compared to four-port laparoscopic approach (COV) 52.82 : Co announces interim results of its multicenter, international, prospective SILS Port laparoscopic cholecystectomy post-market clinical study. The 111 patients who underwent gall bladder surgery with the single incision approach reported significantly better cosmetic outcomes up to three months after their procedures, compared to the group whose surgeons used four laparoscopic ports. The pain scores between the two groups were within one point of each other on a 10 point visual analog scale rendering pain as clinically similar between the two groups. Surgeons, on average, took 12 minutes longer to perform the gall bladder surgery with the single-port approach (57 vs. 45 min), but there was no difference in blood loss during the operation. A chief investigator of study stated: "The interim results of this study show that single-incision gall bladder surgery appears to be as safe and effective as standard multi-port cholecystectomy. In addition, patients may view the cosmetic results as superior when compared to the traditional four-port laparoscopic approach."

6:57AM Companhia Vale do Rio announced that the controlling shareholders of Valepar communicated to co the nomination of Murilo Pinto de Oliveira Ferreira to succeed Roger Agnelli as co's CEO, starting on May 22, 2011 (VALE) 33.88 : Co announced last night that the controlling shareholders of Valepar -- Litel, Bradespar, BNDESpar, Mitsui and Eletron -- communicated to co the nomination of Murilo Pinto de Oliveira Ferreira to succeed Roger Agnelli as Vale's Chief Executive Officer, starting on May 22, 2011, after the end of the mandate of Agnelli. Murilo Ferreira was nominated by the controlling shareholders of Vale among a list of three candidates recommended by an international executive search company, according to the rules and bylaws of Valepar, the controlling shareholder of Vale. Consistent with the best corporate governance practices, there will be a transition period, from our current CEO, Roger Agnelli, to its successor, to ensure the continuity of the operations and strategy implementation of Vale.

6:30AM Marketaxess announces total monthly trading volume for March 2011 of $52.2 billion, consisting of $32.4 billion in U.S. high-grade volume, $3.9 billion in eurobond volume, and $16.0 billion in other volume (MKTX) 24.96 :

6:20AM Cobalt International Energy commenced a registered underwritten public offering of 27,000,000 shares of its common stock (CIE) 16.11 : Co intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund its capital expenditures and for general corporate purposes. Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Goldman, Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. are acting as joint book-running managers of the offering.

6:20AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* ADTRAN (ADTN) announced that Wes-Tex Telephone Cooperative and Telecommunications has selected ADTRAN's flagship product, the Total Access 5000 Multi-Service Access and Aggregation Platform to deliver voice, data and video services over its Fiber-to-the-Home network as part of a Broadband Stimulus award.
* Jones Soda (JSDA) announced it has teamed up with America's top-selling winter sports brand K2 Sports to pursue new snow-inspired initiatives.
* Westlake Chemical (WLK) announced an expansion program to include increasing the ethane-based ethylene capacity at Lake Charles, LA, and the evaluation of expansion options and the upgrade of ethylene production facilities at Calvert City, KY in order to capitalize on new low cost ethane and other "light" feedstocks being developed in North America.

6:16AM Fushi Copperweld beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; provides results of restated financials (FSIN) 7.61 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.35 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.34; revenues rose 35.2% year/year to $69.9 mln vs the $69.9 mln consensus. Additionally, co states it completed restatement of its financial statements for 2007-2009, as previously announced on March 24, 2011. "The effects of correcting this error, after income taxes are a decrease in net income of $2.1 mln, or $0.07 per diluted share, an increase in net income of $2.7 mln, or $0.10 per diluted share, a decrease in net income of $5.6 mln, or $0.22 per diluted share, and a decrease in net income of $5.0 mln, or $0.13 per diluted share, for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008, and 2007, and for the quarter ended March 31, 2010, respectively."

6:05AM Layne Christensen beats by $0.09, beats on revs (LAYN) 35.14 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.45 per share, $0.09 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.36; revenues rose 19.7% year/year to $271.9 mln vs the $254.4 mln consensus. Backlog in the Water Infrastructure Division was $585.2 mln as of January 31, 2011, compared to $554.2 mln as of January 31, 2010.

5:43AM Apple: Nasdaq confirms that the NASDAQ-100 Index will undergo special rebalance; will reduce AAPL weight by 8.16% to 12.33% (AAPL) 341.19 : Click here for Nasdaq rebalance summary.

3:22AM NASDAQ-100 Index to undergo a Special Rebalance (NDAQ) 27.44 : Co announces the NASDAQ-100 Index (NDX), will undergo a Special Rebalance effective prior to market open on Monday, May 2, 2011. The Special Rebalance will not change the methodology used to calculate the NASDAQ-100 Index nor the Index Securities. After substantial research and consideration, NASDAQ OMX decided to enact a Special Rebalance in order to bring the weights of the Index Securities closer in line with their actual market capitalizations.

1:51AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* SMSC (SMSC) announced the availability of its OS81092 Intelligent Network Interface Controller for MOST.
* Alaska Airlines (ALK) has reached agreement with Los Angeles World Airports to move from its existing location at Terminal 3 to Terminal 6, paving the way for a major renovation project featuring its Airport of the Future check-in process and modernized gate facilities.
* Samson Oil & Gas (SSN) advises that fracture stimulation operations on the Earl #1-13H started on Saturday, April 2nd. Pumping operations are currently expected to be completed by April 7th and flow back operations will commence shortly thereafter.
* U.S. District Judge denied the government's motion to dismiss TCF National Bank's, a subsidiary of TCF Financial (TCB), complaint and took the motion to dismiss the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency as a proper party defendant under advisement. The judge also denied TCB's motion for a preliminary injunction at this time.
* Broadridge Financial Solutions (BR) announced that it has concluded a software purchase agreement with Mitsui Knowledge Industry in Japan. Under this agreement, BR has acquired all intellectual property rights in MKI's B-Fund solution.

1:25AM Fuel Systems Solutions enters into agreement to acquire Alternative Fuel Systems (FSYS) 29.85 : Co, through its wholly owned subsidiary IMPCO Technologies and Alternative Fuel Systems announce that they have entered into a support agreement pursuant to which IMPCO has agreed to offer to acquire, directly or indirectly, all of the outstanding common shares of AFS for CAD0.50 in cash per share. The purchase price under the Offer represents a 66.7% premium over the average closing price for the last 20 trading days of CAD0.30. The transaction is valued at ~CAD9.4 mln.

1:21AM Alaska Air Reports March Operational Results; RPMS +19.3% YoY (ALK) 62.54 : Co reports 19.3% increase in traffic on a 15.3% increase in capacity, resulting in a 2.9-point increase in load factor to a record 87.4%. Co also reported that 82.6% of its flights arrived on time in March, a 4.6-point decrease compared to the 87.2% reported in March 2010. March on-time results were negatively impacted by a computer system outage that disrupted operations on March 26.
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