Pre-Open Stock Movers:
Kezar Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:KZR) 90% HIGHER; reported positive topline results from the MISSION Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating zetomipzomib, a novel, first-in-class selective immunoproteasome inhibitor, in patients with active lupus nephritis (LN).
Sutro Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRO) 14% HIGHER; Astellas Pharma Inc. and Sutro Biopharma today announced a worldwide, strategic collaboration and licensing agreement focused on the discovery and development of novel immunostimulatory antibody-drug conjugates (iADCs). The collaboration leverages the unique cancer-fighting potential of iADCs as a novel modality, enabled by Sutros ability to engineer complex conjugated antibodies, and Astellas global oncology R&D expertise.
Spero Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRO) 8% LOWER; received a Complete Response Letter (CRL) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its New Drug Application (NDA) seeking approval for tebipenem HBr oral tablets for treatment of adult patients with complicated urinary tract infection (cUTI), including pyelonephritis. The FDA had set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of June 27, 2022.
Playtika Holding Corp (NASDAQ:PLTK) 7% HIGHER; reports from Axios that private equity firm Joffre Capital is buying a stake in the company at $21 per share.
Vonage Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:VG) 5% HIGHER; Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) continues to work closely with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States as it reviews its proposed acquisition of Vonage Holdings. The merger has cleared all other requisite foreign and US regulatory approval requirements, and the parties are working to conclude the regulatory process as expeditiously as possible. Ericsson and Vonage remain fully committed to this transaction and are working towards closing before end of July, 2022.
Spirit Airlines Inc (NYSE:SAVE) 5% HIGHER; JetBlue (NASDAQ:JBLU) today announced that it is modifying its proposal to acquire Spirit based on discussions with Spirit shareholders.
Nike (NYSE:NKE) 3% LOWER; reported Q4 EPS of $0.90, $0.09 better than the analyst estimate of $0.81. Revenue for the quarter came in at $12.2 billion versus the consensus estimate of $12.07 billion. The Company announced its Board of Directors has authorized a new four-year, $18 billion program to repurchase shares of NIKE's Class B Common Stock
Snowflake Inc (NYSE:SNOW) 3% HIGHER; Jefferies upgraded from Hold to Buy with a price target of $200.00 (from $125.00).
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) 3% HIGHER; announced that it will increase its quarterly common stock dividend to $0.775 per share from the current $0.70 per share, beginning with the common dividend expected to be declared by the Firm’s Board of Directors in the third quarter of 2022. In addition, the Firm’s Board of Directors authorized a new multi-year common equity share repurchase program of up to $20 billion, without a set expiration date, beginning in the third quarter of 2022
The Goldman Sachs Group , Inc. (NYSE:GS) 2% HIGHER; announced plans to increase its common stock dividend from $2.00 to $2.50 per share following the stress test.
Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT) 2% HIGHER; BMO Capital upgraded from Market Perform to Outperform with a price target of $70.00
Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) 2% HIGHER; Stifel upgraded from Hold to Buy with a price target of $75.00 (from $70.00).
Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD) 2% LOWER; gives back some intra-day gains after FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried denies having mergers and acquisitions conversations with Robinhood.