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The PBR1000 May 2018 Stocks & Commodities Snapshots

June 7, 2018 by admin

May 2018: The Stock Market Bull Dominates

The Stock Market Bull wins 2 months in a row. Will geopolitical issues and upcoming US elections stop the streak?

By Larry C. Paxton

The month of May was a lot less volatile than April, at least according to the numbers. With all kinds of geopolitical issues arising creating a lot of uncertainty, and US primary and general elections soon to be center stage, it would seem that volatility should increase. But the US and global economies are doing well, though there are concerns about national debt and employee wage growth is still not growing as much as anticipated. The bottom line is that at the end of the month the Stock Market Bull has won two months in a row and now leads the Stock Market Bear 3 months to 2 months so far in 2018.

The May 2018 US Major Stock Market Exchanges Summary

Number of Trading Days: 22

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 13+/9-; NASDAQ 12+/10-; SPX 11+/11-.

Record Days: DJIA 0, NASDAQ 0, SPX 0

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 8 days(05/03-14/18), NASDAQ 5 days(05/04-10/18), SPX 4 days(05/09-14/18)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 4 days(04/27-05/02/18), NASDAQ 2 days(05/02-03/18, 05/17-18/18), SPX 2 days(05/02-03/18)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 4 days(05/04(DNS), 04/04(NS), 05/09(N), 05/21(D), 05/30(DS))

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): 2 days(05/29(DS), 05/31(D))

The PBR1000 May 2018 Snapshots

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 May 2018 Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on May 31, Month % Chg is compared to April 30, YTD % Chg is compared to December 29, 2017, and the 17 Months % Chg is compared to December 30, 2016. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the May 2018 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots and 25 rankings and the bonus The PBRMarketTools US Monthly Indices Snapshots.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +88% to -60%. 606 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 1.5%, the median was a gain of 1.9%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 05/31/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	17 Mos % Chg
Essendant	507	ESND	13.99	+88	+51	-33
Chesapeake Energy	304	CHK	4.47	+51	+13	-36
Wayfair	524	W	92.35	+48	+15	+163
Tenet Healthcare	142	THC	35.43	+48	+134	+139
ArcBest	718	ARCB	47.45	+48	+33	+72

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +315% to -65%. 449 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 0.0%, the median was a loss of 1.6%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 05/31/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	17 Mos % Chg
BlueLinx	884	BXC	40.55	+1	+315	+443
Fossil	728	FOSL	21.88	+46	+182	-15
Tenet Healthcare	142	THC	35.43	+48	+134	+139
Whiting Petroleum	953	WLL	52.42	+28	+98	+9
Netflix	253	NFLX	351.60	+13	+83	+184

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 17 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +558% to -92%. 646 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 19.1%. The median was a gain of 11.5%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 05/31/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	17 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	976	WTW	75.32	+8	+70	+558
BlueLinx	884	BXC	40.55	+1	+315	+443
Square	832	SQ	58.25	+23	+68	+327
Scientific Games	690	SGMS	59.30	+11	+16	+324
Systemax	982	SYX	33.02	+5	-1	+277

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $921 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $26.2 billion, median is $8.2 billion, out of 1,000 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 05/31/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	17 Mos % Chg
Apple	4	AAPL	921	+12	+5	+49
Amazon	8	AMZN	788	+3	+42	+121
Microsoft	31	MSFT	760	+3	+15	+57
Alphabet	21	GOOG	745	+4	+2	+40
Facebook	69	FB	543	+8	+6	+64
The PBR1000			26,248	+2	+1	+20

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 05/31/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	17 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	86,248.83	+1.5	+0.0	+19.1
DJIA	24,415.84	+1.1	-1.2	+23.6
NASDAQ	7,442.12	+5.3	+7.8	+38.3
S&P500	2,705.27	+2.2	+1.2	+20.8
GOLD	1,304.70	-1.0	-0.0	+13.3
SILVER	16.46	+0.6	-3.1	+2.9
OIL	67.04	-2.2	+11.6	+24.8

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(The PBR1000 provides astute investors and business professionals with the data, news, and analysis for taking higher probability of success actions. The PBR1000 covers over 1,000 of the largest publicly held companies with principle or administrative headquarters in the US. These companies generate $13 trillion in annual worldwide revenues, more than all other companies in the US combined. These are the key drivers in the US and world economies. On a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis several analytical reports in customizable Microsoft Excel format are provided to Subscribers of The PBR1000. Subscribers include C-level executives, entrepreneurs, sales/marketing/advertising professionals, investors/investment advisers, business professors/students, career counselors/job seekers, to name just a few. To order your monthly or significantly discounted annual subscription, just click here to go to the PBRMarketTools.com Order page.)

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Filed Under: Snapshots Tagged With: Business Intelligence, business news, Commodities, DJIA, Economy, Investing, Money, NASDAQ, Personal Finance, Rankings, Research, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000, Trading, Wealth Management

The PBR1000 May 2018 Breaking News Recap

June 4, 2018 by admin

The PBR1000 May 2018 Breaking News Items

Global trade has become a critical issue. Will world leaders be able to find fair and equitable solutions? Let’s hope so.

Here are The PBR1000 corporate and economic related breaking news items of interest with hotlinks to the sources for May 2018, starting with the last active business day.

***Thursday, May 31:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Month of May Ending 05/31/18:

May 2018 Summary: Geopolitical issues(N Korea, Iran, China, Italy) and US trade policies(tariffs) grabbed most of the headlines during May and caused volatility in the stock market, But the US economy continues to grow at a moderate rate and looks to continue that trend in the near future. Unemployment is very low, the tech sector had a major rally, and corporate earnings were better than expected. As a result, the Stock Market Bull wins May, the second win in a row, and is ahead of the Stock Market Bear with 3 months of wins to 2 months.

DJIA ends May at 24,415.84, -1.36% from last Friday, +1.05% MTD, +1.30 QTD, -1.23% YTD, -8.27% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends May at 7,442.12, +0.11% from last Friday, +5.32% MTD, +5.36% QTD, +7.80% YTD, -1.93% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends May at 2,705.27, -0.59% from last Friday, +2.16% MTD, +2.44% QTD, +1.18% YTD, -5.83% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

General Motors(PBR12) to get $2.25 billion investment from SoftBank Vision Fund for in automated driving venture GM Cruise Holdings, values GM Cruise at $11.5 billion, GM to also invest $1.1 billion. $GM PR link.

Delta(PBR68), Los Angeles World Airportsprepare for construction of $1.86 billion Delta Sky Way at LAX. $DAL PR link.

Hartford Financial(PBR166) completes $2.05 billion sale of its run-off life and annuity businesses Talcott Resolution to an investment group. $HIG PR link.

Sears(PBR168) has identified around 100 non-profitable stores, to close 72 in near future, continuing to evaluate sale of some or all assets to ESL Investments. $SHLD PR link.

LKQ(PBR295) completes $1.8 billion acquisition of Germany based European wholesale distributor of aftermarket spare parts for passenger cars, tools, capital equipment and accessories provider Stahlgruber. $LKQ PR link.

Assurant(PBR424) completes $2.5 billion acquisition of $1 billion revenues/2017 vehicle protection and financial services provider The Warranty Group. $AIZ PR link.

Wyndham Worldwide(PBR503) completes $1.95 billion acquisition of La Quinta(PBR998). $WYN PR link.

Symantec(PBR581) receives non-compliance notice from NASDAQ for not filing its annual 10-K report for year ended 03/31/18 on time, expects to submit a plan to regain compliance. $SYMC PR link.

Brink’s(PBR660) to acquire Hunt Valley, MD, based 5,400 employees 78 locations Dunbar Armored, the fourth largest US cash management company, for approximately $520 million cash, to close by end of 2018. $BCO PR link.

Sanderson Farms(PBR661) extends share repurchase program to 05/31/21, increases authorization from 1.0 million to 2.0 million shares. $SAFM PR link.

SM Energy(PBR997) completes combined $292.3 million sale of its remaining assets in the Williston Basin in Divide County, N Dakota, and the third-party operated assets Halff East in Upton County, TX. $SM PR link.

GameStop(PBR310) board member Shane Kim to serve as interim CEO, Rob Lloyd promoted to COO/CFO, Dan DeMatteo to continue serving as Executive Chairman. $GME PR link.

Celgene(PBR219) hires David Elkins as EVP/CFO, effective 08/01/18, succeeds Peter Kellogg who will become EVP/Chief Corporate Strategy Officer until his retirment in mid 2019. $CELG PR link.

Biogen(PBR238) hires Daniel Karp as EVP/Corporate Development, effective 06/11/18. $BIIB PR link.

Pioneer Natural Resources(PBR477)SVP/Investor Relations Frank Hopkins is retires, Neal Shah promoted as successor. $PXD PR link.

Pentair(PBR512) promotes Phil Rolchigo, PhD, to EVP/Chief Technology Officer. $PNR PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says the US National Debt on 05/30/18 was Public $15.398 trillion, Intragovernmental $5.707 trillion, Total $21.105 trillion, +0.2% from 04/30/18, +3.0% YTD, +6.3% from 05/31/17. USTreasury PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US 4 Week Moving Average Initial Unemployment Claims on 05/26/18 were at 222,250, -3.1% from 04/21/18, -5.5% from 05/25/17; Total 4 Week Moving Average Total Insured Unemployment on 05/19/18 was 1,743,500, -10.6% from 04/14/18, -9.8% from 05/18/17; Insured Unemployment Rate on 05/19/18 is 1.2%. USDOL PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR38) says US Average 30 Year Fixed Mortgage Rate on 05/31/18 is at 4.56%, on 04/26/18 was at 4.58%, 03/29/18 4.44%, 05/25/17 3.95%. $FMCC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/BEA says US Preliminary April 2018 Total Personal Income Annual Rate is at $16.935 trillion, +0.3% from March 2018, +3.8% from April 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago says the 7th District Preliminary April 2018 Midwest Economy Index is at +0.53, March 2018 was +0.52, February 2018 +0.41, April 2017 +0.49. ChiFed PR link.

The MNI May 2018 Chicago Business Barometer(>50 economy gaining) is at 62.7, April 2018 was 57.6, March 2018 57.4, May 2017 59.4. MNI/Chicago ISM PR link.

The US Energy Information Administrationsays US Crude Oil Stocks on 05/25/18 were at 434.5 million barrels of oil, +1.1% from 04/20/18, -15.8% from 05/24/17. EIA PR link.

The American Automobile Assn says the US National Average for Gas/Gallon on 05/31/18was at $2.959, on 04/30/18 it was $2.811, 03/30/18 $2.654, 05/31/17 $2.372. AAA PR link.

The August 2018 Closing Electronic Gold Price/Ounce on 05/31/18 was at $1,304.70, -0.9% from 04/30/18, -0.0% from 12/31/17, +2.3% from 05/31/17. MarketWatch PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says the US 05/31/18 30 Year Treasury Bond Yield closed at 3.00%, on 04/30/18 was at 3.11%, 03/29/18 2.97%, 05/31/17 2.87%. USTreasury PR link.

The Closing Exchange Rate for a Euro on 05/31/18 was $1.1693 US Dollars. MarketWatch Quote PR link.

***Wednesday, May 30:

Walmart(PBR1) to provide a new associate education benefit in partnership with Guild Education, will subsidize the cost of college tuition, books and fees, associate contribution only $1/day. $WMT PR link.

Amazon(PBR8) Prime member discounts now available at an additional 121 Whole Foodsmarkets in 12 states, now available at all 365 stores. $AMZN PR link.

Pfizer(PBR55) gets US FDA approval for ulcerative colitis therapy XELJANZ® (tofacitinib). $PFE PR link.

21st Century Fox(PBR102) sets 07/10/18 for special meeting for stockholders to vote on $52.4 billion in stock acquisition of certain assets by Walt Disney(PBR53), may move or adjourn meeting if Comcast(PBR33) also makes a bid. $FOX PR link.

NGL Energy(PBR218) to sell its remaining Retail Propane business to Superior Plus Corp(TSX:SPB) for $900 million cash, to close within 60 days. $NGL PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) Model 3 now gets recommendation of Consumer Reports after its testers found that a recent over-the-air (OTA) update improved the car’s braking distance by almost 20 feet, still has other issues which CEO Elon Musk says are being addressed. CR PR link.

Jones Lang LaSalle(PBR346) wholly owned subsidiary LaSalle unit to acquire the $7 billion of assets under management Real Estate Multi-Manager business of Aviva Investors, and full ownership of the gross asset value of around $2 billion management of the Encore+ fund. $JLL PR link.

Polaris Industries(PBR480) to acquire privately held largest pontoon boat manufacturer in the US Boat Holdings for around net $705 million cash, to close in 3Q18. $PII PR link.

T Rowe Price(PBR520) to close its Tampa, FL, operations center in 06/19, consolidate into Maryland and Colorado centers, to affect 400 positions. $TROW PR link.

Michael Kors(PBR556) in 4Q18 report says it will continue to explore acquisitions in FY2019 to complement their existing luxury portfolio. $KORS PR link.

Iron Mountain(PBR598) acquires Dutch EvoSwitch data center business for $235 million. $IRM PR link.

Monster Beverage(PBR653) authorizes new up to $500 million share repurchase program. $MNST PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US 1Q18 2nd Estimate Gross Domestic Product Annual Growth Rate is at +2.2%, $19.957 trillion, +1.0% from 4Q17, +4.7% from 1Q17. USDOC PR link.

The US Federal Reserve releases Beige Book, from data collected on or before 05/21/18, says economic activity expanded moderately in late April and early May with few shifts in the pattern of growth, outlooks for near term growth were generally upbeat. USFed PR link.

ADP(PBR235) says US Preliminary May 2018 Change In National Employment was +178,000, +38,000 from Small Businesses, +84,000 from Medium Sized Businesses, and +56,000 from Large Businesses; Goods Producing Sector was +64,000 jobs, Service Sector +114,000. $ADP PR link.

Healthcare News: Statement by US FDACommissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, on President Trump’s signing of the Right to Try Act. FDA PR link.

***Tuesday, May 29:

Amazon(PBR8) to open its first Oklahomafulfillment center, in Oklahoma City, 600,000 sf facility, to create 1,500+ full-time jobs by end of 2019. $AMZN PR link.

Walt Disney(PBR53)’s ABC unit cancels hit revival sitcom show “Roseanne” after Roseanne Barr’s racist tweet about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett. $DIS PR link.

Starbucks(PBR124) executive chairman/founder Howard Schultz sends open letter reminding everyone that today 8,000 Starbucks locations will be closed in the afternoon for training of its 175,000 partners, follow-on to recent incident in Philadelphia. $SBUX PR link.

WellCare Health Plans(PBR165) to acquire private $4.3 billion in revenues in 2018 Meridian Health Plan of Michigan, Inc., Meridian Health Plan of Illinois, Inc., and MeridianRx, a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), (collectively, “Meridian”) for $2.5 billion in cash by end of 2018. $WCG PR link.

Allergan(PBR173) issues voluntary US recall of one lot (Lot# 5620706, Expiry May-2019) of TAYTULLA® 1mg/20mcg, 6×28 physicians sample pack, for use by women to prevent pregnancy, first four days of therapy had four non-hormonal placebo capsules instead of active capsules. $AGN PR link.

Monsanto(PBR194 $MON) $66 billion acquisition by Germany based Bayer AGgranted conditional approval by US Dept of Justice, Bayer must divest $9 billion in business and assets to BASF. USDOJ PR link.

Monsanto(PBR194 $MON) $66 billion acquisition by Germany based Bayer AGconditions set by US Dept of Justice to be completed in around 2 months. Bayer PR link.

Kinder Morgan(PBR213) to sell Canadian Trans Mountain Pipeline system and the expansion project (TMEP) to the Canadian government for around C$ 4.5 billion(US$ 3.5 billion) by early 4Q18. $KMI PR link.

MGM Resorts(PBR270) and MGM Growth Properties(NYSE: MGP) to acquire the real property and operations associated with the Empire City Casino‘s race track and casino for $850 million. $MGM PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR441) to acquire Simi Valley, CA, based retail property/casualty broker, and employee benefits consultant and broker Thomas Costello Insurance Agency, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

SCANA(PBR545) to hold special stockholders meeting on 07/31/18 to vote on stock-for-stock merger into Dominion Energy(PBR228). $SCG PR link.

KKR(PBR670) to acquire global 10,000+ customers and 6,000 employees digital and IT infrastructure with a broad portfolio of software solutions provider BMC Software from a private investor group led by Bain Capital Private Equity and Golden Gate Capital, terms not disclosed. $KKR PR link.

Brown-Forman(PBR597) CEO Paul Varga to retire, effective 12/31/18, EVP/COO Lawson E Whiting to be successor. $BFA PR link.

HP Inc(PBR56) to promote Steve Fieler to CFO, effective 07/01/18, succeeds Cathie Lesjak who will become interim COO then retire in early 2019. $HPQ PR link.

Ocwen Financial(PBR991) EVP/CFO Michael Bourque leaving effective 06/22/18, new CFO search starts. $OCN PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR141) appoints General Lloyd J. Austin, III, retired 4 star Army general, and Meghan M. FitzGerald, DrPH, Managing Partner at healthcare investment fund L1 Health and Assistant Professor of Health Policy at Columbia University, to the Board. $THC PR link.

Molina Healthcare(PBR146) elects Richard Zoretic, retired EVP of WellPoint, to the Board effective 08/01/18. $MOH PR link.

Hub Group(PBR579) elects Mary Boosalis, President /CEO of Premier Health, to the Board. $HUBG PR link.

Service Corp Intl(PBR688) elects Jakki L. Haussler, co-founder/CEO of Opus Capital Management, and Sara Martinez Tucker, chairman of The U of Texas Board of Regents, to the Board. $SCI PR link.

ServiceMaster(PBR707) appoints Steven B. Hochhauser, former chairman/CEO of Johns Manville, to the Board. $SERV PR link.

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US March 2018 National Home Prices Index(01/2000=100) is at 198.94, February 2018 was 197.29, January 2018 196.47, March 2017 186.74. Case-Shiller PR link.

The Conference Board US Preliminary May 2018 Consumer Confidence Index(1985=100)is at 128.0, April 2018 was at 125.6. TCB PR link.

***Monday, May 28:

***US Federal Holiday: Memorial Day.
Remembering those who made
the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms
we enjoy and cherish today.***

***Friday, May 25:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 05/25/18:

In a repeat of last week the Stock Market Bullhad an excellent Monday and Wednesday was okay, but the Stock Market Bear took Tuesday,Thursday, and 2 out of 3 on Friday. However, it wasn’t enough and Week 21 belongs to the Stock Market Bull. Both have now won 10 weeks with one week a mixed result. All indices are in positive territory for the week, month, quarter, and now year, but still below their records.

DJIA ends the week at 24,753.09, +0.15% from last Friday, +2.44% MTD, +2.70 QTD, +0.14% YTD, -7.00% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,433.85, +1.08% from last Friday, +5.20% MTD, +5.24% QTD, +7.68% YTD, -2.04% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,721.33, +0.31% from last Friday, +2.77% MTD, +3.05% QTD, +1.78% YTD, -5.27% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

PepsiCo(PBR43) to acquire Bare Foods C(dba Bare Snacks), a US-based maker of baked fruit and vegetable snacks, terms not disclosed. $PEP PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR125) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 06/08/18 5PM Eastern, 4.0% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

Principal Financial(PBR206) now has 60% ownership of CIMB-Principal Asset Management Group and CIMB-Principal Islamic Asset Management in SE Asia joint venture. $PFG PR link.

LabCorp(PBR283) to become a preferred national laboratory for Aetna(PBR48)‘s 20 million customers per extended and expanded agreement to be effective 01/01/19. $LH PR link.

Coty(PBR363)’s Professional Beauty division opens new N America headquarters on 26 acre campus in Calabasas, CA. $COTY PR link.

Windstream(PBR459) completes reverse 1:5 stock split. $WIN PR link.

Herbalife(PBR544 $HLF) largest shareholder Icahn Enterprises(PBR147) tendering up to 11.4 million Herbalife shares of its 45.7 million shares because it is an outsized position currently. MarketWatch PR link.

Great Plains Energy(PBR757) $14 billion merger of equals with Westar Energy(PBR769)gets final regulatory approvals, transaction to close in 06/18, merged company to be called Evergy, Inc. (NYSE: EVRG). $GXP PR link.

UPS(PBR41) hires Kevin Warren as SVP/Chief Marketing Officer. $UPS PR link.

Tesla(PBR251) hires Stuart Bowers as VP/Engineering, James Zhou VP/CFO-China, and several director level executive positions. $TSLA PR link.

Delek US(PBR378) and Delek Logistics Partners(NYSE:DKL) hire Regina Bynote Jones as EVP/General Counsel and Secretary. $DK PR link.

The U of Michigan US Final May 2018 Consumer Sentiment Index is at 98.0, April 2018 was 98.8, March 2018 101.4, May 201797.1. UMich PR link.

***Thursday, May 24:

Apple(PBR4 $AAPL) wins iPhone patent infringement law suit, to receive $539 million from Samsung. MarketWatch PR link.

McKesson(PBR6) in fiscal year 2018 report announces an additional share repurchase authorization of $4 billion. $MCK PR link.

VISA(PBR153) makes strategic investment in YellowPepper to accelerate adoption of mobile payments and tokenization in Latin Americaand the Caribbean, expansion of partnership started in 2017. $V PR link.

Celgene(PBR219) authorizes additional $3 billion share repurchase program, to do $2 billion accelerated share repurchase using existing program and part of the new authorization. $CELG PR link.

First Data(PBR244) to sell $120 million in revenues in 2017 card processing businesses in parts of Central and Southeastern Europe for around $450 million to European high tech payment infrastructure and services provider SIA. $FDC PR link.

UNUM(PBR259) authorizes new up to $750 million share repurchase program, expires 11/24/19, replaces previous $750 million authorization scheduled to expire 11/25/18. $UNM PR link.

Clorox(PBR453) authorizes up to $2 billion share repurchase program, replaces existing $750 million program. $CLX PR link.

Windstream(PBR459) to upgrade its cable TV network internet speeds in N Georgia from 100 megabits-per second(Mbps) to 300 Mbps within next 12 months, serves 67,000 households. $WIN PR link.

Cimarex Energy(PBR869) to sell oil and gas properties principally located in Ward County, TX, to Callon Petroleum for $570 million cash. $XEC PR link.

AGNC Investment(PBR978) has priced a public offering of 30,000,000 shares of common stock, expects total gross proceeds of about $558.0 million. $AGNC PR link.

Ryman Hospitality(PBR993) to do $150 million expansion of Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, FL, adds 303 new guest rooms, 90,000 sf of convention space. $RHP PR link.

Molina Healthcare(PBR146) hires Thomas Tran as CFO/Treasurer effective 06/04/18, succeeds retiring Joseph White. $MOH PR link.

KeyCorp(PBR399) Chief Human Resources Officer Craig Buffie to retire in 2H18, Brian Fishel to be successor. $KEY PR link.

La-Z-Boy(PBR946) hires Melinda D. Whittington as SVP/CFO effective 06/21/18, to succeed retiring Louis M. (“Mike”) Riccio. $LZB PR link.

Bed Bath & Beyond(PBR236) appoints Stephanie Bell-Rose, senior managing director at TIAA, to the Board. $BBBY PR link.

Conagra Brands(PBR351) appoints Anil Arora, director and vice-chairman of Envestnet, to the Board, effective 07/17/18. $CAG PR link.

TDS(PBR504) elects James (Jim) W. Butman, President/CEO of wholly owned subsidiary TDS Telecom, to the Board. $TDS PR link.

Kennametal(PBR853) elects Lorraine M. Martin, recently retired EVP and deputy of Lockheed(PBR64)’s Rotary and Mission Systems, to the Board effective 07/01/18. $KMT PR link.

The Natl Assn of Realtors says US April 2018 Existing Home Sales Annual Rate is at 5,460,000, -2.5% from March 2018, -1.4% from April 2017; April 2018 Median Price was $257,900, +3.0% from March 2018, +5.3% from April 2017. NAR PR link.

***Wednesday, May 23:

Walmart(PBR1 $WMT) to acquire Japan’s SoftBank Group‘s 21% stake in India’s e-commerce provider Flipkart, in addition to $16 billion for the 77% stake it is acquiring.MarketWatch PR link.

ExxonMobil(PBR3) to reduce 2016 levels of methane emissions by 15%, flaring by 25% by 2020. $XOM PR link.

Kroger(PBR17) to acquire Chicago, IL, based 1,000 employees $250 million in profitable sales in 2017 largest US private meal kit company Home Chef for $200 million plus up to $500 million based on milestones achieved over next 5 years. $KR PR link.

Anthem(PBR30) to acquire largest US non-hospice, community-based palliative care provider Aspire Health, terms not disclosed, to close 3Q18. $ANTM PR link.

Comcast(PBR33) considering superior all-cash offer to acquire 21st Century Fox(PBR102) after spinoff of “New Fox.” $CMCSA PR link.

IBM(PBR34) to add 1,800 jobs over 2 years in France to drive innovation in AI, blockchain, cloud computing and IoT. $IBM PR link.

Southern Co(PBR119)’s Southern Power unit to sell a 33% minority interest in its solar portfolio to Global Atlantic Financial Group Limited for $1.175 billion. $SO PR link.

Huntsman(PBR333) authorizes increase of $450 million share buyback program to $1 billion. $HUN PR link.

Chipotle(PBR537) to relocate its headquarters, currently in Denver, CO, to Newport Beach, CA, will impact 400 employees in Denver and New York. $CMG PR link.

Herbalife(PBR544) renews partnership through 2021 as official nutrition sponsor of international soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. $HLF PR link.

Tiffany(PBR568) approves up to $1 billion share repurchase program, effective 06/01/18 through 01/31/22, replaces 2016 program. $TIF PR link.

Qorvo(PBR694) authorizes new up to $1 billion share repurchase program, includes $126 million remaining under previous plan. $QRVO PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR403) stockholders at annual meeting vote 14.0 million votes for and 55.9 million votes against the proposed executive officers compensation plan, a non-binding advisory vote. $WYNN PR link.

Revlon(PBR747) promotes COO Debra Perelman to President/CEO, effective immediately, is daughter of Board Chairman Ronald O. Perelman. $REV PR link.

Macy’s(PBR114) hires Paula Price as CFO, effective 07/09/18, to succeed retiring Karen Hoguet. $M PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR121) SVP and President/Lilly Oncology Sue Mahony, PhD, to retire effective 08/31/18 after 18 years with the company. $LLY PR link.

Lear Corp(PBR142) hires Rashida Thomas as Chief Diversity Officer and Director/Talent Management. $LEA PR link.

Patterson Cos(PBR471) hires Donald Zurbay as CFO, effective 06/29/18, and Andrea Frohning as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective immediately. $PDCO PR link.

Cooper Cos(PBR844) hires Holly Sheffield as EVP/Chief Strategy Officer, effective 06/04/18; Dr. Robert Auerbach now President/CooperSurgical. $COO PR link.

Avnet(PBR160) appoints Oleg Khaykin, president/CEO of Viavi Solutions, to the Board. $AVT PR link.

Diebold Nixdorf(PBR529) appoints Ellen M. Costello, currently serving as an independent director on the board of Citigroup(PBR32), to the Board. $DBD PR link.

Sally Beauty(PBR589) appoints Denise Paulonis, EVP/CFO of The Michaels Companies(PBR503), to the Board. $SBH PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary April 2018 New Family Homes Sold Annual Rate is at 662,000, -1.5% from March 2018, +11.6% from April 2017; April 2018 Median Home Price was at $312,400, -6.9% from March 2018, +0.4% from April 2017; April 2018 Months Supply at 5.4. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Open Market Committee releases minutes of its 05/01-02/18 meeting, notes labor market had continued to strengthen and that economic activity had been rising at a moderate rate, no federal funds rate increase, but a 90% chance for one at the 06/18 meeting. FOMC PR link.

***Tuesday, May 22:

Anthem(PBR30) to remain headquartered in Indianapolis, IN, spending $20 million in renovations for its new corporate offices in downtown area. $ANTM PR link.

MetLife(PBR46) authorizes new $1.5 billion share repurchase program, $370 million still available from 2017 authorization. $MET PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR121)’s Taltz® (ixekizumab)receives the first US FDA approval for label update to Include data for psoriasis involving the genital area. $LLY PR link.

PPG(PBR192) gets NYSE notice regarding delayed Form 10-Q filing, has 6 months to be in compliance. $PPG PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) CEO Elon Musk says braking distance issue mentioned by Consumer Reports is a firmware fix which will be rolled out in a few days. MarketWatch PR link.

Electronic Arts(PBR518) acquires Israel based cloud gaming technology assets and personnel of a wholly owned subsidiary of GameFly, terms not disclosed. $EA PR link.

Varian Medical(PBR749) will not submit a counterproposal to competing bid by Chinabased CDH Investments for acquisition of Australian based interventional oncology radiation therapies provider Sirtex Medical Limited (ASX: SRX), explains why its $1.28 billion bid is the better one. $VAR PR link.

Portland General Electric(PBR857) issues request for proposals seeking an additional 100 average megawatts of renewable power generating resources, minimum bid size 10 megawatts, bids due by 06/15/18. $POR PR link.

Lowe’s(PBR40) hires JCPenney(PBR230) Chairman/CEO Marvin Ellison as President/CEO, effective 07/02/18, succeeds retiring Robert Niblock, director Richard W. Dreiling to also become Chairman. $LOW PR link.

JCPenney(PBR230) Chairman/CEO Marvin Ellison resigns effective 06/01/18 to take position at Lowe’s(PBR40), lead independent director Ron Tysoe elected Chairman, Office of the CEO formed with 4 senior executives assigned. $JCP PR link.

Qurate Retail(PBR278) names Jeff Yurcisin as President of Zulilly, effective 08/15/18, Mary Campbell as Qurate Retail Group Chief Merchandising and Interactive Officer effective immediately, Aidan O’Meara to President/Qurate Retail Group International effective 07/02/18, and Tom Bazzone to President/Frontgate. $QRTEA PR link.

Fred’s(PBR897) appoints Dana Goldsmith Needleman, principal of private real estate investment firm The Cogent Group, and Thomas Zacharias, President of real estate investment and advisory firm Zacharias & Co, to the Board. $FRED PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond says the US Fifth District May 2018 Manufacturing Index is at +16%, April 2018 was -3%, March 2018 +15%, May 2017 +3%. RichmondFed PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond says the US Fifth District May 2018 Services Revenues Index is at +11%, April 2018 was +2%, March 2018 +25%, May 2017 +24%. RichmondFed PR link.

Personal Finance: The US Federal Reserve in its Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2017 says 4 out of 10 families would not be able to come up with $400 for an emergency, down from 50% in 2013. USFed PR link.

International Trade: China to cut import tariff on autos to 15% from 25%, auto parts to 6% from 8% to 25%, effective 07/01/18. MarketWatch PR link.

***Monday, May 21:

GE(PBR18) to spin-off GE Transportation unit which will then merge into Wabtec(PBR595)resulting in 50.1% ownership by GE and GE shareholders, 49.9% by Wabtec, in $11.1 billion deal, to close early 2019. $GE PR link.

Microsoft(PBR31) to acquire Berkeley, CA, based conversational Artificial Intelligence solutions developer Semantic Machines, terms not disclosed. $MSFT PR link.

Comcast(PBR33 $CMCSA) $30 billion bid for UK’s Sky plc unlikely to get an antitrust review, per a UK government official. MarketWatch PR link.

Southern Co(PBR119) to sell Florida assets Gulf Power Company, Florida City Gas and the entities holding Southern Power’s interests in Plant Oleander and Plant Stanton to NextEra Energy(PBR161) for $6.475 billion, includes debt. $SO PR link.

Amgen(PBR123) gets US FDA approval for the use of Prolia® (denosumab) for the treatment of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIOP) in men and women at high risk of fracture. $AMGN PR link.

Micron Technology(PBR144) authorizes up to $10 billion share repurchase program. $MU PR link.

Kohl’s(PBR149) expands millennial brand portfolio through an apparel collection with POPSUGAR, to launch in 09/18. $KSS PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA)‘s announces new high-performance Model 3 for $78,000. MarketWatch PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) Model 3 falls short of a Consumer Reports recommendation despite record range and agile handling, cites issues with braking, controls, and ride quality.Consumer Reports PR link.

Fifth Third Bancorp(PBR358) to merge MB Financial(Nasdaq: MBFI) into its operations in $4.7 billion 90% stock/10% cash deal. $FITB PR link.

Adobe Systems(PBR377) to aquire B2C and B2B cloud commerce developer Magento Commerce for $1.68 billion, to close 3Q18. $ADBE PR link.

Adobe Systems(PBR377) authorizes new up to $8 billion share repurchase program through FY 2019. $ADBE PR link.

Blackstone(PBR386 $BX) to acquire $1.1 billion in revenues in 2017 LaSalle Hotel Properties(NYSE: LHO) for $33.50/share, $4.8 billion cash, to close 3Q18. $LHO PR link.

AmTrust Financial(PBR450) activist 9.4% investor Icahn Enterprises(PBR147) files lawsuit in Delaware challenging going private by the Zyskind/Karfunkel families. $AFSI PR link.

Simon Property(PBR474) to install ultra-fast electric vehicle chargers at more than 30 of its shopping centers in partnership with Electrify America. $SPG PR link.

Cerner(PBR499) adds $500 billion to share repurchase program, $639 million now available, no expiration date set. $CERN PR link.

Roper Technologies(PBR614) to acquire Atlanta, GA, based global software and solutions for asset-centric companies provider PowerPlan from private equity firm Thoma Bravo for $1.1 billion cash. $ROP PR link.

Curtiss-Wright(PBR837) to utilize $50 million in repatriated cash to expand share repurchase program which has a current balance available of $36 million. $CW PR link.

Allscripts(PBR889) completes acquisition of mobile, enterprise patient engagement solutions developer HealthGrid, represents a significant expansion of the Allscripts FollowMyHealth®platform, terms not disclosed. $MDRX PR link.

Brunswick(PBR534) Chief Technology Officer David Foulkes gets additional responsibility of President/Brunswick Marine Consumer Solutions. $BC PR link.

FMC Corp(PBR714) President/FMC Agriculture Solutions Mark Douglas appointed corporate President/COO, other unit promotions reporting to Douglas also announced. $FMC PR link.

M&T Bank(PBR452) Corp elects Kevin J. Pearson, Vice Chairman of principal subsidiary M&T Bank, to its Board. $MTB PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago says the US Preliminary April 2018 National Activity Index is at +0.34, March 2018 was +0.32, February 2018 +0.73, April 2017 +0.44. ChiFed PR link.

***Friday, May 18:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 05/18/18:

The week of good 1st quarter corporate earnings was offset by geopolitical concerns. The Stock Market Bull did well on Monday and Wednesday, but the Stock Market Bear feasted on Tuesday and Thursday for a strong win in Week 20 of 2018 and YTD has now won 10 weeks.

DJIA ends the week at 24,715.09, -0.47% from last Friday, +2.28% MTD, +2.54 QTD, -0.02% YTD, -7.14% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,354.34, -0.66% from last Friday, +4.08% MTD, +4.12% QTD, +6.53% YTD, -3.08% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,712.97, -0.54% from last Friday, +2.45% MTD, +2.73% QTD, +1.47% YTD, -5.57% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Campbell Soup(PBR346) CEO Denise Morrison retires, director since 2016 Keith McLoughlin named interim CEO. $CPB PR link.

Middleby(PBR806) to acquire the global beverage solutions, soft serve and ice cream dispensing equipment, frozen drink machines, and automated double-sided grills developer $315 million in sales in 2017 the Taylor Company from UTC Climate, Controls & Security, a unit of United Technologies(PBR45), for $1.0 billion, to close 3Q18. $MIDD PR link.

Tenneco(PBR308) SVP/Finance Jason Hollar to become CFO on 07/01/18, to succeed retiring EVP/CFO Ken Trammell who will stay onboard in a broader leadership role as Tenneco separates into 2 independent public companies. $TEN PR link.

JetBlue(PBR387) EVP/Corporate Affairs, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary James Hnat to retire effective 06/30/18, will remain in an advisory role and on the Board. $JBLU PR link.

JetBlue(PBR387) VP/Customer Experience Joanna Geraghty promoted to President/COO, EVP/Operations Jeff Martin transitions to senior advisory role during reorganization. $JBLU PR link.

Flowserve(PBR560) hires Lanesha Minnix as SVP/Chief Legal Officer effective 06/11/18. $FLS PR link.

Vitamin Shoppe(PBR969) EVP/CFO Brenda Galgano to resign, effective 06/05/18, SVP/Business Development & Strategy Bill Wafford to be successor. $VSI PR link.

Take-Two Interactive(PBR883) appoints Paul Viera, founder/CEO of global investment firm Earnest Partners, to the Board. $TTWO PR link.

***Thursday, May 17:

Kroger(PBR17) increases investment in and partners with online grocery store retailer UKbased Ocado for online ordering, automated fulfillment and home delivery capabilities in the US, will start with 3 sites in US in 2018, expand to 20 over 3 years. $KR PR link.

United Technologies(PBR45 $UTX) activist investor Bill Ackman of Pershing Square says United Technologies should be split into 3 companies. Pershing PR link.

Amgen(PBR123) gets US FDA approval for Aimovig™ (erenumab-aooe) for the preventive treatment of migraine in adults, first and only FDA-approved treatment specifically developed to prevent migraine by blocking the calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor (CGRP-R). $AMGN PR link.

Emerson Electric(PBR184) to acquire global smart pneumatics technologies that power machine and factory automation applications developer Germany based 2,100 employees $425 million in 2017 sales Aventics from Tritonfor around $630 million. $EMR PR link.

CBS(PBR213) request for a temporary restraining order against the Redstone familyand National Amusements that would have enabled CBS to strip its Redstones/NA of its voting power is denied by Delaware court decision. $CBS PR link.

CBS(PBR213) board in a unanimous vote of the directors not affiliated with National Amusements approves pro rata dividend of 0.5687 shares of Class A common stock for each share of the Company’s Class A common stock and Class B common stock, conditioned on a final determination by the Delaware courts. $CBS PR link.

PayPal(PBR216) to acquire iZettle for $2.2 billion, will expand omnichannel presence in small businesses in Europe and Latin America, to close 3Q18. $PYPL PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) needs to raise $10.5 billion in capital to keep going through 2020, says Goldman Sachs(PBR89). MarketWatch PR link.

Global Partners(PBR318) to acquire retail fuel and Jiffy Mart convenience store assets in Vermont and New Hampshire from Champlain Oil Company, to close in 3Q18, terms not disclosed. $GLP PR link.

Williams Cos(PBR341) to acquire Williams Partners(NYSE: WPZ) in all stock deal valued at $10.5 billion, to close in fall of 2018. $WMB PR link.

AmTrust Financial(PBR450) shareholders get letter from 9.4% shareholder Carl Icahn/Icahn Enterprises urging them to vote against the $13.50/share, $2.7 billion acquisition by Stone Point Capital and the Karfunkel Family, requests 06/04/18 special meeting be moved to a later date. $AFSI PR link.

Hasbro(PBR488) authorizes additional $500 million for share repurchase program, balance available is now $639.2 billion. $HAS PR link.

GNC(PBR743) stockholders approve plan to get $300 million investment from China based Harbin Pharmaceutical, to form strategic joint venture partnership for manufacturing, marketing, sale and distribution of GNC-branded products in China. $GNC PR link.

United Continental(PBR76) CFO Andrew Levy leaves, SVP/Finance, Procurement and Treasurer Gerry Laderman appointed interim CFO, new CFO search starts. $UAL PR link.

Quest Diagnostics(PBR356) elects Helen I. Torley, President/CEO of novel cancer therapies developer/marketer Halozyme Therapeutics, to the Board. $DGX PR link.

Ascena Retail(PBR407) appoints John L. Welborn, Jr., currently Managing Director for investment advisory firm Stadium Capital Management, to the Board. $ASNA PR link.

Sealed Air(PBR529) director since 2012 Jerry R. Whitaker elected as non-executive Chairman of the Board. $SEE PR link.

Continental Resources(PBR845) elects Shelly Lambertz, COO of Hamm Capital, to the Board, replaces James L. Gallogly who is becoming President of the University of Oklahoma. $CLR PR link.

Rush Enterprises(PBR518) announced founder W. Marvin Rush died today at age 79, founded Company in 1965, served on Board from its incorporation until 08/16. $RUSHA PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphiasays US 3rd District May 2018 Manufacturing General Activity Indicator is at 34.4, April 2018was at 23.2, March 2018 22.3, May 2017 35.5. PhillyFed PR link.

The Conference Board says the US Preliminary April 2018 Leading Economic Index(2016=100) is at 109.4, March 2018 was at 109.0, February 2018 108.6, suggests solid growth should continue through 2018. TCB PR link.

***Wednesday, May 16:

Walmart(PBR1) in partnership with Lord & Taylor to roll out the new Lord & Taylor flagship store on Walmart.com in the coming weeks, will debut with more than 125 brands, including Tommy Bahama, Vince Camuto, Miss Selfridge, La La Anthony, Lucky Brand, H Halston and Effy, will be part of Walmart.com’s broader fashion destination. $WMT PR link.

Amazon(PBR8) Prime members to get an additional 10% off sales prices off hundreds of Whole Foods items, starting in Florida, to roll out across all 365 Whole Foods markets in the US during summer 2018. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR8) to open its first fulfillment center in Tucson, AZ, 855,000+ sf, to employ 1,500+ full time. $AMZN PR link.

Oracle(PBR77) to acquire DataScience.com. $ORCL PR link.

International Paper(PBR130) supports Irish Takeover Panel ruling saying IP must announce whether it will will not make a binding offer for Smurfit Kappa Group plc by 7:00an 06/06/18, IP says it will not make a binding offer without approval of SKG board, says proposed $45/share in stock/cash, around $10.6 billion is a compelling strategic and financial rationale offer. $IP PR link.

Kinder Morgan(PBR212) Canada(TSX: KML)acknowledges Canada’s decision to repay KML for the Trans Mountain pipeline losses, KML continues to plan to move forward with pipeline construction. $KMI PR link.

CBS(PBR213) majority voting stockholder National Amusements amends CBS’s bylaws, requires supermajority for certain board actions related to dividends and changes in bylaws. $CBS PR link.

Group 1 Automotive(PBR264) authorizes increase of share repurchase program from $100 million to $126 million. GPI PR link.

Zoetis(PBR482) to acquire Union City, CA, based $245 million in revenues/FY2018 global veterinary point-of-care diagnostic instruments provider Abaxis(NASDAQ: ABAX) for $83/share, $2.0 billion. $ZTS PR link.

Herbalife(PBR487) sets Dutch Auction tender offer for common shares after 2:1 stock split at between $49 to $54/share. $HLF PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR141) hires Paola Arbour as SVP/Chief Information Officer and Marie Quintana as SVP/Chief Marketing Officer. $THC PR link.

Wabash Natl(PBR867) hires Melanie D. Margolin as SVP/General Counsel. $WNC PR link.

Performance Food(PBR157) appoints Randy Spratt, EVP/Chief Information Officer and Chief Technology Officer for McKesson(PBR6) to the Board. $PFGC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary April 2018 Private Housing Building Permits Issued Annual Rate was at 1,352,000, -1.8% from March 2018, +7.7% from April 2017. USDOC PR link.

The US Federal Reserve says US Preliminary April 2018 Total Industry Production % of Capacity was at 78.0%, March 2018 was 77.6%, February 2018 77.1%, April 201776.2%. USFed PR link.

***Tuesday, May 15:

Amazon(PBR8) AWS cloud services are selected by Verizon(PBR16 $VZ) as its preferred public cloud provider. $AMZN PR link.

Boeing(PBR29) issues statement on World Trade Organization‘s final ruling saying European Union provided $22+ billion of illegal subsidies to European aircraft maker Airbus, clears way for the US Trade Representative to seek remedies in the form of tariffs against European imports to the US. $BA PR link.

IBM(PBR34) blockchain technology to be used by Veridium to help transform the carbon credit market with the goal of making it easier for companies to offset their environmental footprints. $IBM PR link.

Target(PBR39) Restock next-day delivery service of household essentials now available coast to coast, free for all Target REDcardpurchases, $2.99 for all other orders, no membership required. $TGT PR link.

Target(PBR39) to open 11 in-store men’s grooming departments with 600+ products ranging from $1.49 to $199.99, to have 80 departments by year end, items also available online. $TGT PR link.

Pfizer(PBR55) gets US FDA approval for RETACRIT® (epoetin alfa-epbx), a biosimilar to Epogen® and Procrit® (epoetin alfa)1, for all indications, is first and only biosimilar erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) to be approved in the US. $PFE PR link.

Facebook(PBR69) publishes enforcement numbers for the first time, says 3-4% of monthly active user accounts are fake accounts, 583 million fake accounts disabled in 1Q18, usually within a few minutes of registration. $FB PR link.

Tyson(PBR75) to acquire poultry rendering and blending assets of $550 million in expected revenues/2018 American Proteins, Inc. and AMPRO Products for $850 million, expected to enable Tyson Foods to recycle more animal products for feed, pet food and aquaculture. $TSN PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR110) gets US FDA approval for expanded indication for Truvada®(Emtricitabine and Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate) for reducing the risk of acquiring HIV-1 in adolescents. $GILD PR link.

Kellogg(PBR220 $K) closes operations in Venezuela amid country’s ‘deterioration.’MarketWatch PR link.

Blackstone(PBR383)’s International Market Centers unit to acquire AmercasMart, will create world’s largest permanent mart operator for furniture, home decor, rug, gift and apparel with nearly 20 million sf of showroom space, terms not disclosed, to close 3Q18. $BX PR link.

Trinity Industries(PBR588) files initial Form 10to spin-off newly named Arcosa as an independent publicly held infrastructure company, to be completed in 4Q18. $TRN PR link.

MSA Safety(PBR988) elects President/COO Nishan Vartanian as President/CEO as planned, succeeds William Lambert who is now non-executive Chairman. $MSA PR link.

Old Republic Intl(PBR430) promotes Craig R. Smiddy to corporate President/COO, other appointments announced. $ORI PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR699) hires Doug Albregts as EVP and Group CEO/Gaming Division. $SGMS PR link.

AutoZone(PBR268) appoints Gale V. King, EVP/Chief Administrative Officer for Nationwide, and Jill Soltau, President/CEO of JOANN Stores, to the Board. $AZO PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Manufacturers/Retail/Wholesale Sales are at $1.430 trillion, -0.1% from February 2018, +5.8% from March 2017. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Advance April 2018 Total Retail/Food Services/Drinking Places Sales are at $497.6 billion, +0.3% from March 2018, +4.7% from April 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York says the Empire State May 2018 Manufacturing General Business Conditions Index is at 20.1, April 2018 was 15.8, March 2018 22.5, May 2017 3.0. NYFed PR link.

The National Assn of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Preliminary May 2018 Housing Market Index is at 70, April 2018 was 68, March 201870, May 2017 69. NAHB PR link.

***Monday, May 14:

Amazon(PBR8) to open its sixth Ohio fulfillment center in West Jefferson, will create 1,500+ full-time positions by the end of 2019. $AMZN PR link.

HP Inc(PBR56) unveils premium notebooks, desktops and displays from the HP Elite 1000 Series of devices for the office and the consumer oriented HP ENVY devices. $HPQ PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR122) to acquire oncology compound AK-01, an Aurora kinase A inhibitor, developer AurKa Pharma from TVM Capital Life Science for $110 million upfront plus up to $465 million for milestone achievements. $LLY PR link.

Sears(PBR167) special committee of the board of directors initiating a formal process to explore the sale of its Kenmore brand and related assets, the Sears Home Improvement Products business of the Sears Home Services division and the Parts Direct business of the Sears Home Services division, ESL Investments has already expressed an interest in being a buyer. $SHLD PR link.

CBS(PBR213) and CBS special committee file lawsuit against National Amusements alleging breaches of fiduciary duty and seeking to prevent it from interfering with a special meeting of the Board of Directors at which it plans to issue dividends that would dilute National Amusements voting interests from 79% to 17%. $CBS PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) reorganizing into a more flat management structure and other news.MarketWatch PR link.

Baxter(PBR273) gets US FDA clearance for its Spectrum IQ Infusion System with Dose IQ Safety Software for bi-directional electronic medical records (EMR) integration to help ensure the correct medications and fluids are delivered to the patient. $BAX PR link.

Steel Dynamics(PBR302) to acquire Terre Haute, IN, based high margin flat roll steel processor Companhia Siderurgica Nacional(“Heartland”) for $400 million, will expand annual flat roll steel shipping capacity to 8.4 million tons and total shipping capability to 12.4 million tons. $STLD PR link.

The Mosaic Co(PBR369) to move its corporate headquarters from Plymouth, MN, to Hillsborough County, FL, will be more closely located to its primary customer base, timing, location, people to be relocated still under consideration. $MOH PR link.

JM Smucker(PBR370) completes $1.7 billion acquisition of privately held 700 employees Meadville, PA, based Ainsworth Pet Nutrition, maker of Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® pet food. $SJM PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR511) applauds the US Supreme Court‘s decision to strike down the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), likely leaving sports betting regulations to the states. $CZR PR link.

Triumph Group(PBR609) provides update on sale of 3 non-core businesses, Triumph Aerospace Structures Long and Large (L&L)machining and metal finishing operations, APU Repair Product Line (RPL) of Triumph Aviation Services Asia, and Triumph Structures – Long Island, represents $165 million in annual sales, terms not disclosed. $TGI PR link.

Brinker Intl(PBR653) says payment card information of some of its Guests who visited certain Chili’s® Grill & Bar corporate-owned restaurants between 03/18 and 04/18 have been compromised in a data incident, extent under investigation. $TSLA PR link.

Molina Healthcare(PBR146) hires James Woys as EVP/Health Plan Services. $MOH PR link.

United Natural Foods(PBR309) COO Sean Griffin to retire on 10/01/18, President/Atlantic Region Chris Testa to become corporate President, two other appointments mentioned. $UNFI PR link.

W.R. Grace(PBR913) SVP/CFO Thomas E. Blaser to resign from company effective 05/31/18 by mutual agreement, VP/Controller William Dockman to be interim CFO, search starts. $GRA PR link.

Xerox(PBR281) terminates merger agreement with Fujifilm, enters into settlement agreement with Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason, appoints Jonathan Christodoro, Keith Cozza, Nicholas Graziano, Scott Letier and John Visentin to the Board, Gregory Brown, Joseph Echevarria, Cheryl Krongard and Sara Martinez Tucker remain on the Board, Robert J. Keegan, Charles Prince, Ann N. Reese, William Curt Hunter, and Stephen H. Rusckowski resign from the Board, Jeff Jacobson resigns as CEO and from the Board, Keith Cozza to be appointed Chairman, John Visentin to be elected Vice Chairman and CEO. $XRX PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR400) director John J. Hagenbuch decides not to stand for re-election at 2018 annual meeting, director Robert J. Miller tenders his resignation. $WYNN PR link.

Hillenbrand(PBR917) elects Daniel C. Hillenbrand, currently Chairman, and previously President/CEO of Able Manufacturing and Assembly, to the Board. $HI PR link.

Sports Betting: In an opinion by Justice Samuel Alito the US Supreme Courtinvalidates the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, a federal law that says states can’t “sponsor, operate, advertise, promote, license, or authorize” sports gambling. US Supreme Court PR link.

***Friday, May 11:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 05/11/18:

The Stock Market Bull makes a dominating come back after 2 weeks of losses to the Stock Market Bear by winning all 5 days of the DJIA, and 4 out of 5 days for the NASDAQ and S&P500. All 3 exchanges were up by over 2% for the week and ahead year-to-date.

DJIA ends the week at 24,831.17, +2.34% from last Friday, +2.76% MTD, +3.02 QTD, +0.45% YTD, -6.71% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,402.88, +2.68% from last Friday, +4.76% MTD, +4.81% QTD, +7.24% YTD, -2.44% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,727.72, +2.41% from last Friday, +3.01% MTD, +3.29% QTD, +2.02% YTD, -5.05% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

CVS Health(PBR7) commends the Trump Administration‘s focus on reducing the cost of prescription drugs, is well positioned to implement many of the key proposals. $CVS PR link.

Express Scripts(PBR25) issues statement supporting the Trump Administration‘s push to lower drug costs. $ESRX PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR126) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 05/25/18 5PM Eastern, 13.1% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

C.H. Robinson(PBR189) increases share repurchase authorization balance by 15 million, has 1.2 million remaining from previous authorization. $CHRW PR link.

Tesla(PBR251 $TSLA) CEO Elon Musk tweets about an all-wheel drive, dual motor ‘performance’ Model 3 to go into production starting in 07/18. MarketWatch PR link.

Symantec(PBR558) in its 4Q18 report says Audit Committee has commenced an internal investigation in connection with concerns raised by a former employee, may not be able to file 10-K on time. $SYMC PR link.

GameStop(PBR310) CEO Michael K. Mauler resigns, effective immediately, for personal reasons, Executive Chairman/Co-Founder Daniel A. DeMatteo adds interim CEO responsibilities as new CEO search starts. $GME PR link.

The Cheesecake Factory(PBR800) hires Scarlett May as EVP/General Counsel and Secretary of the Company, succeeds retiring Debby R. Zurzolo; SVP/COO Keith T. Carango now President/The Cheesecake Factory Bakery, succeeds now retired Max S. Byfuglin. $CAKE PR link.

Allison Transmission(PBR807) to promote Fred Bohley to VP/CFO & Treasurer on 06/01/18. $ALSN PR link.

Penske Automotive(PBR133) elects automotive executive Wolfgang Dürheimer, most recently Chairman/CEO of Bentley Motors Ltd, to the Board. $PAG PR link.

The US Food and Drug Administrationreleases a statement from Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, on the Trump Administration’s plan to lower drug prices. FDA PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary April 2018 Import Prices Index changed +0.3%, March 2018 -0.2%, February 2018+0.2%, April 2017 +0.2%, Last 12 Months+3.3%; US Preliminary April 2018 Export Prices Index changed +0.6%, March 2018+0.3%, February 2018 +0.2%, April 2017+0.2%, Last 12 Months +3.8%. USDOL PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia 2Q18 Survey of Professional Forecastersindicates a slightly brighter outlook for US economic growth and labor markets in 2018 and 2019. PhillyFed PR link.

The U of Michigan US Preliminary May 2018 Consumer Sentiment Index is at 98.8, April 2018 was 98.8, March 2018 101.4, May 201797.1. UMichigan PR link.

***Thursday, May 10:

PPG(PBR26) finds discrepancies in its 1Q18, not able to file 10-Q at this time, possible impact on 2017 statements, VP/Controller employment has been terminated. $PPG PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) completes $270 million cash acquisition of Los Altos, CA, based privately held AI-driven relationship intelligence platform for finding new prospects, navigating the selling process, and strengthening relationships provider Accompany. $CSCO PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142) to acquire ARMO BioSciences(NASDAQ: ARMO), a late-stage immuno-oncology developer of a pipeline of proprietary product candidates that activate the immune system of cancer patients to recognize and eradicate tumors, for $50/share, $1.6 billion cash. $LLY PR link.

Alcoa(PBR253) and Rio Tinto(NYSE:RIO)announce a revolutionary process to make aluminum that produces oxygen and eliminates all direct greenhouse gas emissions from the traditional smelting process, Apple(PBR5) an investor and providing technical support, joint venture name is Elysis, plan to sell technology package in 2024. $AA PR link.

Gannett(PBR414) to acquire digital marketing software company WordStream for $130 million cash plus up to $20 million for achieving revenue targets in 2019 & 2020, expects $55 million in revenues in 1st year, to close 2Q18. $GCI PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR437) to acquire Brownsville, TX, based full-service Managing General Agency (MGA), broker and claims administrator, with focus on the Hispanic markets in Texas, California, and Florida, Pronto Insurance, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

McDermott Intl(PBR825) completes $6 billion merger with CB&I(NYSE: CBI)(Chicago Bridge & Iron), completes 3:1 reverse stock split. $MDR PR link.

Anthem(PBR38) newly launched pharmaceutical benefits manager unit IngenioRxstarts external search for new CEO with departure of Brian Griffin, COO Deepti Jain named leader. $ANTM PR link.

Diplomat Pharmacy(PBR515) hires Brian Griffin as Chairman/CEO effective 06/04/18. $DPLO PR link.

The Mosaic Co(PBR300) hires Clint Freeland as SVP/CFO, effective 06/04/18. $MOS PR link.

The Mosaic Co(PBR300) director Gregory Ebel appointed Board Chairman, succeeds Robert Lumpkins who remains on the Board, James Popowich retired as a director, and Oscar Bernardes was newly elected to the Board. $MOS PR link.

Tractor Supply(PBR436) at 2018 annual meeting elects Denise Jackson, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary for AMN Healthcare Services(NYSE:AMN), the nation’s largest healthcare workforce solutions and staffing company, to the Board, Johnston C. Adams has retired, other directors re-elected. $TSCO PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US Preliminary April 2018 Federal Government Receipts were $510.447 billion, Outlays $296.192 billion, for Surplus of $214.255 billion, Fiscal Year To Date Deficit(7 months) is $385.444 billion, FY YTD Deficit April 2017 was $344.428. USTreasury PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says the US Preliminary April 2018 Consumer Price Index(aka Inflation) was at +0.2%, Last 12 Months +2.5%, March 2018 was +2.4%, February 2018 2.2%, April 2017 +2.2%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary April 2018 Employee Average Current Earnings/Hour is at $26.84, Average Work Hours/Week is at 34.5, Average Weekly Earnings at $925.98, +0.2% from March 2018, +2.5% from April 2017. USDOL PR link.

***Wednesday, May 9:

PBRMarketTools Snapshot 15 Summary: The PBR1000 April Top 5 By Market Capitalization(Rank, Company, PBR Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 04/30/18 Market Capitalization in $ Billions, % Change YTD(4 months)):

1. Apple, PBR4, AAPL, $824B, -6%
2. Amazon, PBR8, AMZN, $763B, +37%
3. Microsoft, PBR31, MSFT, $738B, +12%
4. Alphabet, PBR21, GOOG, $717B, -2%
5. Facebook, PBR69, FB, $503B, -2%
Range: $824B to $0.01B
The PBR1000 Total Market Capitalization:$25.740 trillion, -0.8% YTD(4 months), +17.5% from 12/30/16(16 months)
Average: $25.740 billion
Median: $8.0 billion

The PBR1000, business intelligence to empower you to make better decisions. To find out more click here.

Walmart(PBR1) to pay $16 billion for an initial stake of approximately 77% in India e-commerce provider Flipkart, includes $2 billion of new equity funding. $WMT PR link.

Amazon(PBR8) announces the interactive Amazon Experience Centers within select Lennar(PBR340) model homes across the US, customers can simply ask Alexa to control the television, lights, thermostat, shades, and more. $AMZN PR link.

Sears(PBR93) Auto Centers first to work with Amazon(PBR8) to provide full-service tire installation and balancing for customers who purchase any brand of tires on Amazon.com. $SHLD PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106) authorizes new $10 billion share repurchase program, no expiration date, replaces current 2015 $15 billion program which had $1.2 billion left. $QCOM PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) to sell Octavius Tower at Caesars Palace and Harrah’s Philadelphia real estate assets to VICI Properties(NYSE:VICI) for $590 million, Caesars to continue to operate properties under long-term leases. $CZR PR link.

Royal Caribbean(PBR329) authorizes a $1 billion share repurchase program over next 2 years. $RCL PR link.

Wyndham Worldwide(PBR464) completes sale of its European vacation rentals business to an affiliate of Platinum Equity for $1.3 billion. $WYN PR link.

Wyndham Worldwide(PBR464) approves spin-off of wholly-owned subsidiary Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc., the world’s largest hotel franchisor with more than 8,300 affiliated hotels, effective at end of 05/31/18, will start trading on 06/01/18 as NYSE: WH; Wyndham Worldwide to be renamed Wyndham Destinations, start trading on 06/01/18 replacing current WYN ticker with new ticker NYSE: WYND. $WYN PR link.

Groupon(PBR652) 1Q18 report shows it had now has 4.2 million voucherless members in deal with American Express(PBR83), global units sold were at 42.4 million in 1Q18, -7% from 1Q17, part of restructuring to focus on revenue generation that maximizes gross profit, had 32.6 million N American active customers, 17.0 million from International unit, authorizes $300 million share repurchase program. $GRPN PR link.

ON Semiconductor(PBR656) acquires Irelandbased specializing in Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM), Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) and LiDAR sensing products for automotive, medical, industrial and consumer markets SensL Technologies, terms not disclosed. $ON PR link.

Sinclair Broadcast(PBR894) to raise $1.5 billion from divestiture of 23 TV stations to Fox Broadcasting, Standard Media Group(an affiliate of Standard General LP), Meredith Corp(PBR994), and Howard Stirk and Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation, to comply with regulators for Sinclair’s $43.50/share, $3.9 billion cash/stock, plus assumption of $2.7 billion of debt acquisition of Tribune Media Company(NYSE:TRCO). $SBGI PR link.

Univar(PBR334) President/COO David Jukes promoted to President/CEO, succeeds Chairman/CEO Stephen D. Newlin who has been appointed Executive Chairman. $UNVR PR link.

W.R. Grace(PBR645) President/COO Hudson La Force to succeed retiring CEO Fred Festa in 4Q18, Festa to become Non-Executive Chairman. $GRA PR link.

3M(PBR92) President & GM/3M Canada Company Mojdeh Poul to become EVP/Safety and Business Graphics unit effective 07/01/18, succeeds retiring Frank Little. $MMM PR link.

Covanta Holdings(PBR958) hires Ginny Angilello as SVP/Chief Human Resources Officer. $CVA PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107) appoints Harish M. Manwani, Global Executive Advisor to the private equity business of Blackstone(PBR352), to the Board. $GILD PR link.

Tesla(PBR251) shareholders get letter from CtW Investment Group to vote against re-election of Board members Antonio J. Gracias, Kimball Musk, and James R. Murdoch at 06/05/18 annual meeting, says they are not independent directors, not experienced in the auto industry. $TSLA PR link.

Oshkosh(PBR368) appoints retired General Raymond T. Odierno, 38th Chief of Staff for the US Army, to the Board. $OSK PR link.

Ralph Lauren(PBR406) to add Angela Ahrendts, SVP/Retail at Apple(PBR5), and has appointed Michael George, President/CEO of Qurate Retail(PBR263) to the Board. $RL PR link.

CNO Financial(PBR559) elects Daniel Maurer as Board Chairman, succeeds Neal Schneider who retires from the position but will remain on the Board. $CNO PR link.

W.R. Grace(PBR645) appoints Schlomo Yanai, currently Chairman of the Cambrex Corporation, former Teva Pharmaceuticals CEO, and retired Israeli Major General, to the Board. $GRA PR link.

STERIS(PBR922) Board Chairman John P. Wareham to retire at 2018 annual meeting, independent director Dr. Mohsen M. Sohi expected to be appointed Chairman, Dr. Nirav Shah appointed to the Board. $STE PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says the US April 2018 Producer Price Index was +0.1%, March 2018was +0.3%, February 2018 +0.2%, Last 12 Months +2.6%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Wholesale Sales was at $498.0 billion, +0.4% from February 2018, +7.3% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

California Solar Energy Update: California Energy Commission votes 5-0 to approve mandate for solar panels on new houses starting in 2020. LA Times PR link.

***Tuesday, May 8:

MetLife(PBR39) to provide annuity benefits to approximately 41,000 retirees and beneficiaries in the FedEx(PBR65) defined benefit pension plans, representing pension obligations of approximately $6 billion. $MET PR link.

Capital One(PBR116) has ceased new originations of residential mortgages and home equity loan products, to sell approximately $17 billion of first and second lien mortgages to DLJ Mortgage Capital, Inc., a subsidiary of Credit Suisse AG, in 2Q18, will then resume stock repurchase program. $COF PR link.

DISH(PBR196) ends 1Q18 with 10.845 million DISH TV subscribers and 2.303 million Sling TV subscribers. The total 13.148 million Pay-TV subscribers is compared to 13.528 million Pay-TV subscribers at the end of 1Q17. $DISH PR link.

Pentair(PBR363) authorizes new $750 million share repurchase program, expires 05/31/21, replaces existing program which had a balance of $450 million. $PNR PR link.

La Quinta(PBR998) Board approves spin-off of CorePoint Lodging as an independently held company(NYSE: CPLG, starting 05/31/18) in connection with La Quinta’s $1.95 billion acquisition by Wyndham Worldwide(PBR464 $WYN), to complete spin-off, then close acquisition on 05/30/18. $LQ PR link.

Diplomat Pharmacy(PBR515) expects to name next CEO by end of week, interim CEO Jeff Park has voluntarily resigned effective 05/11/18, will remain on the Board, CFO Atul Kavthekar to temporarily assume the additional responsibilities of the CEO until the appointment of the new CEO is effective. $DPLO PR link.

Facebook(PBR228) appoints Jeff Zients, CEO of diversified holding company Cranemere and former Director of the National Economic Council for President Obama, to the Board, effective 05/31/18. $FB PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352) appoints Sir John Hood, Chair of the Rhodes Trust, which oversees the Rhodes scholarship program, and President/CEO of the Robertson Foundation, to the Board, effective 05/14/18. $BX PR link.

MDU Resources(PBR513) board member A. Bart Holaday resigns, has reached age maximum for directors. $MDU PR link.

Adtalem Education(PBR905) appoints Georgette Kiser, Managing Director and Chief Information Officer of The Carlyle Group(PBR581), and Dr. Steven M. Altschuler, MD, Managing Director, Healthcare Ventures, at Ziff Capital Partners, to the Board; Kathy Boden Holland resigns from the Board to become Group President of its Medical and Healthcare vertical, currently Adtalem’s largest business unit; Chamberlain University unit President Susan Groenwald, PhD, RN, ANEF, FAAN, to retire after 12 years upon appointment of successor. $ATGE PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Job Openings-Private were at 5,928,000, Government 622,000, Total Openings 6,550,000, +7.8% from February 2018, +16.8% from March 2017. USDOL PR link.

CoreLogic says US February 2018 Total Percent of Mortgage Payments 30 Days or More Past Due was at 4.8%, January 2018 was 4.9%, December 2017 5.3%, February 20175.0%, Total Percent of Homes in Foreclosureis at 0.6%. CoreLogic PR link.

***Monday, May 7:

PBRMarketTools Snapshot 13 Summary: The PBR1000 April Top 5 Stock Gainers Since 12/30/16(16 Months)(Rank, Company, PBR Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 04/30/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 12/30/16):

1. Weight Watchers, PBR985, WTW, $70.05, +512%
2. BlueLinx, PBR856, BXC, $40.22, +438%
3. Scientific Games, PBR699, SGMS, $53.30, +281%
4. Systemax, PBR903, SYX, $31.43, +258%
5. RH(Restoration Hardware), PBR765, RH, $95.45, +211%
Range: +512% to -99%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:623/998
Average: +17.15%
Median: +10,54%

The PBR1000, business intelligence to empower you to make better decisions. To find out more click here.

Mondelez(PBR87) to acquire Tate’s Bake Shop, home of America’s top-rated chocolate chip cookie, for approximately $500 million from private equity firm The Riverside Company and other shareholders, including Founder Kathleen King, to close in summer 2018. $MDLZ PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) to receive $7.15 billion from Nestlé SA for rights to market, sell, and distribute Starbucks®, Seattle’s Best Coffee®, Starbucks Reserve®, Teavana™ , Starbucks VIA® and Torrefazione Italia® packaged coffee and tea in all global at-home and away-from-home channels. $SBUX PR link.

Principal Financial(PBR265) authorizes new up to $300 million share repurchase program, $96 million remained under previous $250 million program. $PFG PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352 $BX) to acquire global investor and asset manager of commercial real estate Gramercy Property Trust for $27.50/share, $7.6 billion cash, to close 2H18. $GPT PR link.

Windstream(PBR426) Wholesale unit to expand new almost 1,700 mile southern route from Los Angeles to Dallas as part of 100G nationwide fiber network expansion strategy, to be completed in 3Q18. $WIN PR link.

Intl Flavors & Fragrances(PBR666) to acquire global flavors and natural fine ingredients producer with 70,000 products and 30,000+ customers Frutarom (TASE:FRUT) for $106.25/share, $7.1 billion cash/stock, to close in 6-9 months. $IFF PR link.

Hexcel(PBR921) authorizes additional $500 million share repurchase program, $212 million remaining from previous authorization. $HXL PR link.

Monsanto(PBR187) Chairman/CEO Hugh Grant announces intention to leave upon acquisition by Bayer AG, to close in 2Q18, several other named executives leaving as well, some staying on in the Crop Sciences unit. $MON PR link.

Wells Fargo(PBR30) hires Amanda Norton as Chief Risk Officer, starting in the summer of 2018, to succeed retiring Mike Loughlin. $WFC PR link.

PPG(PBR26) hires Daniel G. Korte as Global VP Elect/Aerospace, succeeds Barry N. Gillespie who is retiring on 08/01/18. $PPG PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) hires Mike Weinstein as SVP/Strategy. $MDT PR link.

The US Federal Reserve says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Consumer Debt was at $3.875 trillion, +0.3% from February 2017, +1.1% from December 2017(YTD), +5.0% from March 2017. USFed PR link.

FannieMae(PBR17) says US April 2018 Home Purchase Sentiment Index is at 91.7, a new all-time survey high, March 2018 was 88.3, February 2018 85.8, April 2017 86.7. $FNMA PR link.

***Friday, May 4:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 05/04/18:

The Stock Market Bear easily had its way through Thursday. The Stock Market Bull then made a dramatic appearance on Friday and pushed the NASDAQ into plus territory for the week. In the end, the results were mixed for Week 20 of 2018 with the Stock Market Bearwinning 2 out of the 3 US stock exchanges.

DJIA ends the week at 24,262.51, -0.20% from last Friday, +0.41% MTD, +0.66 QTD, -1.85% YTD, -8.84% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,209.62, +1.26% from last Friday, +2.03% MTD, +2.07% QTD, +4.44% YTD, -4.99% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,663.42, -0.24% from last Friday, +0.58% MTD, +0.85% QTD, -0.38% YTD, -7.29% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Snapshot 12 Summary: The PBR1000 April Top 5 Stock Gainers YTD(4 Months)(Rank, Company, PBR Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 04/30/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 03/29/18):

1. BlueLinx, PBR856, BXC, $40.25, +312%
2. Fossil, PBR671, FOSL, $14.95, +92%
3. Stage Stores, PBR915, SSI, $2.91, +73%
4. Netflix, PBR252, NFLX, $312.46, +63%
5. Eastman Kodak, PBR926), KODK, $4,95, +60%
Range: +312% to -94%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:411/1,000
Average: -1.43%
Median: -3.01%

The PBR1000, business intelligence to empower you to make better decisions. To find out more click here.

Wells Fargo(PBR30) to pay $480 million in agreement in principle to resolve a consolidated securities fraud class action related to sales practices matters in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. $WFC PR link.

Xerox(PBR144) has taken an appeal from the decision enjoining the Fuji Xerox combination, says merger decision should be made by the shareholders, not the courts. $XRX PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) to sell its Covington, KY, based global consumer and commercial package manufacturing business The Waddington Group to Novolex Holdings, to result in after-tax proceeds of approximately $2.2 billion. $NWL PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) announces accelerated transformation plan, to generate around $10 billion in after-tax proceeds from divestitures by end of 2019, be an around $9.5 billion in sales/year company. $NWL PR link.

Sprouts(PBR688 $SFM) discontinues same-day home delivery service with Amazon(PBR29) Prime Now, effective 05/01/18, will expand the service with Instacart. Supermarket News PR link.

Cincinnati Bell(PBR988) gets Hawaiʻi Public Utilities Commission approval for $650 million cash/stock merger with Hawaiian Telecom(NASDAQ: HCOM), expects to close transaction soon after Federal Communications Commission review. $CBB PR link.

Xerox(PBR144) agreement on 05/01/18 with Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason expired 05/03/18 8PM with no actions taken, current Board and management team, including CEO Jeff Jacobson, remain in place. $XRX PR link.

Caterpillar(PBR54) hires Andrew Bonfield as CFO effective 09/01/18, succeeds Brad Halverson who retires 05/04/18, Financial Services division VP Joe Creed to be interim CFO. $CAT PR link.

Colgate-Palmolive(PBR168) VP/Corporate Controller Henning Jakobsen appointed CFO, succeeds Dennis Hickey who will be assuming the role of Vice Chairman. $CL PR link.

American Electric Power(PBR174)’s Southwestern Electric Power Co(SWEPCO)unit’s President/COO Venita McCellon-Allen has retired after 30 years with the company, Malcolm Smoak named SWEPCO interim President/COO.$AEP PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US April 2018 Civilian Force Employed was at 155,181,000, +3,000 from March 2018, +2,020,000 from April 2017, April 2018 Unemployed at 6,346,000, April 2018 Unemployment Rate at 3.9%, April 2017 was 4.4%. USDOL PR link.

US/China Trade: US representatives in China, seek $200 billion cut in China trade imbalance. MarketWatch PR link.

***Thursday, May 3:

Snapshot 11 Summary: The PBR1000 April Top 5 Stock Month Performers(Rank, Company, PBR Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 04/30/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 03/29/18):

1. Verifone, PBR858, PAY, $23.01, +50%
2. Andeavor, PBR82, ANDV, $138.32, +38%
3. Stage Stores, PBR915, SSI, $2.91, +33%
4. SM Energy, PBR978, SM, $23.95, +33%
5. Chipotle, PBR527), CMG, $423.33, +31%
Range: +50% to -48%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:511/1,000
Average: -0.01%
Median: +0.16%%

The PBR1000 empowers astute business leaders and shrewd investors worldwide to make higher probability of success decisions. To find out more click here.

SuperValu(PBR164) completes its about $43 million cash sale of 21 of its 38 Farm Fresh Food & Pharmacy (“Farm Fresh”) stores to three different retailers: Harris Teeter, Kroger Mid-Atlantic Division, and Food Lion, in various stages for other 17 stores. $SVU PR link.

Kellogg(PBR198) adds $420 million to joint venture with Tolaram in West Africa, an emerging market. $K PR link.

KKR(PBR332) to convert from a partnership to a corporation, effective 07/01/18; increases share repurchase program to $500 million. $KKR PR link.

Griffon Corp(PBR890)’s Clopay Building Products unit to acquire $200 million expected annual sales US manufacturer and marketer of rolling steel door and grille products designed for commercial, industrial, institutional, and retail use CornellCookson for $180 million. $GFF PR link.

Weight Watchers(PBR988) in 1Q18 report says it has added 1 million subscribers since 1Q17, 4.6 million subscribers highest in company’s history, credits global response to its new WW Freestyle™ program. $WTW PR link.

United Continental(PBR77) hires Josh Earnest as Chief Communications Officer, starts 05/21/18. $UAL PR link.

Patterson Cos(PBR542) President/Patterson Dental N America David Misiak departing on 05/11/18, search for new president starts. $PDCO PR link.

Pool Corp(PBR836) adds $200 million to share repurchase program, balance available is now $236 million. $POOL PR link.

Alliance One Intl(PBR875) hires Bryan Mazur as EVP/Global Specialty Products. $AOI PR link.

Archer-Daniels-Midland(PBR34) elects AECOM(PBR322) Chairman/CEO Michael S. Burke to the Board along with the 11 current members. $ADM PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) elects John Davidson, former SVP/Controller and Chief Accounting Officer at Tyco International, to the Board. $AGN PR link.

Alaska Air(PBR454) elects Facebook(PBR228) VP/Finance Susan Li to the Board. $ALK PR link.

Scotts Miracle-Gro(PBR705) appoints its former CFO David Evans to the Board. $SMG PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary 1Q18 Business Sector Labor Productivity Output/Hour-All Persons, was at +1.1%, 4Q17was -0.4%, 3Q17 +3.2%, 1Q17 -0.7%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US March 2018 Exports were at $208.5 billion, Imports$257.5 billion, Deficit $49.0 billion, Exports YTD(3 months) were at $613.7 billion, Imports YTD $777.3 billion, Deficit YTD $163.6 billion, March 2017 Deficit YTD was $137.9 billion. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary March 2018 New Orders for Durable Goods was valued at $255.2 billion, Non-Durable Goods $252.4 billion, Total$507.6 billion, +1.5% from February 2018, +8.1% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

IHS Markit says US April 2018 Composite PMI Output Index was 54.9, March 2018 was 54.2, February 2018 55.8, April 2017 53.2. IHS Markit PR link.

The Institute for Supply Management says US April 2018 Non-Manufacturing Index is at 56.8%, March 2018 was 58.8%, February 201859.5%, April 2017 57.5%. ISM PR link.

***Wednesday, May 2:

Macy’s(PBR97) has acquired STORY, a concept store in New York City. STORY founder/CEO Rachel Shechtman will join Macy’s as brand experience officer. $M PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) issues statement from Donte Robinson, Rashon Nelson, and CEO Kevin Johnson regarding settlement from arrest incident in Philadelphia on 04/12/18. $SBUX PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) authorizes up to $500 million share repurchase program, no expiration date. $CZR PR link.

Live Nation(PBR366) to acquire 2nd highest grossing festival in the world in 2017 Rock in Rio, terms not disclosed. $LYV PR link.

Spirit AeroSystems(PBR370) to acquire high lift wing structures, mechanical assemblies and major functional components to major OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers in the global commercial aerospace and military markets supplier S.R.I.F. N.V., the parent company of 1,400 employees anticipated $400 million in sales/2018 Asco Industries, N.V., for $650 million in cash, to close 2H18. $SPR PR link.

Salesforce(PBR453) completes $44.89/share cash/stock, $6.5 billion enterprise value acquisition of $296 million in sales/2017 1,200 customers MuleSoft(NYSE: MULE). $CRM PR link.

Post Holdings(PBR486) authorizes new $350 million share repurchase program, had repurchased $488 million under previous authorizations. $POST PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Bellevue, WA, based retirement plan consultant and investment analyst firm ClearPoint Financial, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Tesla(PBR651 $TSLA) is accused of patent infringement by Nikola Corporation for its design of the Semi, asking $2+ billion in damages. AZ District Court PR link.

Boyd Gaming(PBR727) to acquire Lattner Entertainment Group Illinois, operator of nearly 1,000 gaming units in 220 locations across the state of Illinois, for $100 million cash. $BYD PR link.

McDermott Intl(PBR825) and CB&I(NYSE: CBI(Chicago Bridge & Iron) shareholders approve $6 billion merger to be named McDermott, expects to close 05/10/18. $MDR PR link.

Sprint(PBR86) President/CEO Marcelo Claure named Executive Chairman, CFO Michel Combes appointed CEO, both effective on or before 05/31/18, new CFO search starts. $S PR link.

Xerox(PBR144) reaches agreement with Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason; Keith Cozza of Icahn Enterprises(PBR147) to be named Chairman, John Visentin to be named Vice Chairman and CEO, CEO Jeff Jacobson to resign as Xerox CEO and from the Board, 6 directors to resign from the Board, 3 directors remain on the Board, no effect on pending claims against Fujifilm. $XRX PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) CEO SG Interactive Barry Cottle to become new President/CEO on 06/01/18, succeeds Kevin Sheehan who will remain as a senior advisor; also, Tim Bucher hired as EVP/Chief Products Officer. $SGMS PR link.

Kohl’s(PBR149) hires Doug Howe as Chief Merchandising Officer. $KSS PR link.

SunPower(PBR680) CFO Chuck Boynton to transition out, will remain CEO of 8point3 Energy Partners through the sale, hires Manavendra Sial as new CFO, effective after filing of 1Q18 10-Q report. $SPWR PR link.

Univar(PBR334) appoints Kerry J. Preete, EVP/Chief Strategy Officer at Monsanto(PBR147), to the Board. $UNVR PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) board sends shareholders letter asking them to vote for its nominees at 05/16/18 annual meeting, says largest shareholder Elaine Wynn’s “withhold the vote” against Director John J. (“Jay”) Hagenbuch campaign is misguided. $WYNN PR link.

HCP(PBR834) appoints Lydia Kennard, recently CEO of Los Angeles World Airports, and Kent Griffin, a seasoned REIT executive, to the Board. $HCP PR link.

US Federal Open Market Committee releases statement from its 05/01-02/18 meetings, says labor market has continued to strengthen and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate, keeps federal funds short term interest rate at 1.50-1.75%. FOMC PR link.

ADP(PBR235) says US April 2018 Private Sector Change In Employment was +204,000, +62,000 from Small Businesses, +88,000 from Midsize Businesses, +54,000 from Large Businesses, March 2018 change was +228,000, February 2018 +241,000, April 2017+155,000. $ADP PR link.

***Tuesday, May 1:

Apple(PBR5) authorizes new $100 billion share repurchase program, will complete the execution of the previous $210 billion share repurchase authorization during the fiscal 3Q18. $AAPL PR link.

Boeing(PBR27) to acquire independent provider of aviation parts and services in the aerospace industry KLX(NASDAQ: KLXI) for $63/share, includes assumption of about $1.0 billion of net debt, total $4.25 billion all cash, to close by 3Q18. $BA PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) to expand Boston Tech Huband create an additional 2,000 technology jobs, expanding into 430,000 sf development on Boston waterfront, plans to open the doors of its new office in 2021. $AMZN PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) to acquire Los Altos, CA, based privately held AI-driven relationship intelligence platform for finding new prospects, navigating the selling process, and strengthening relationships provider Accompany for $270 million cash. $CSCO PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) to sell its Service Provider Video Software Solutions (SPVSS) business to private equity firm Permira, who will create a new, rebranded company focused on developing and delivering video solutions for the Pay-TV industry, terms not disclosed, to close Cisco fiscal 1Q19. $CSCO PR link.

T-Mobile(PBR95) celebrates 5th year as a public company, reports 1.4 million net adds in 1Q18, 20th quarter in a row with 1+ million net adds, has 74 million customers. $TMUS PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) gets US FDA approval for its Deep Brain Stimulation therapy for medically refractory epilepsy. $MDT PR link.

AbbVie(PBR136) commences modified “Dutch auction” tender offer to purchase up to $7.5 billion of its common stock at a price between $99.00/share and $114.00/share, expires 05/29/18. $ABBV PR link.

Lincoln Financial(PBR213) completes $3.3 billion acquisition of Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston from Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. $LNC PR link.

L3 Technologies(PBR238) to sell its aviation logistics services, supply chain management, and maintenance, repair and overhaul services provider Vertex Aerospace unit to American Industrial Partners for $540 million cash. $LLL PR link.

Owens & Minor(PBR292) completes $710 million cash acquisition of $1 billion revenues/year surgical and infection prevention (“S&IP”) business of Halyard Health. $OMI PR link.

Hasbro(PBR549) to acquire Saban’s Power Rangers and several other entertainment brands, including My Pet Monster, Popples, Julius Jr., Luna Petunia, Treehouse Detectives and others, in a $522 million cash/stock deal, to close 2H18. $HAS PR link.

Pitney Bowes(PBR588) gets renewal and multi-year extension of its partnership with eBay(PBR163) to power eBay’s Global Shipping Program. $PBI PR link.

USG Corp(PBR599) authorizes a new round of negotiations for potential acquisition by Gebr. Knauf KG (“Knauf”). $USG PR link.

Vista Outdoor(PBR784) in strategic transformation growth plan to focus on ammunition, hunting and shooting accessories, hydration bottles and packs, and outdoor cooking products; exploring strategic options for remaining Sports Protection brands (e.g. Bell, Giro, and Blackburn), Jimmy Styks paddle boards, and Savage and Stevens firearms. $VSTO PR link.

Beacon Roofing(PBR818) has acquired Tri-State Builder’s Supply (“Tri-State”), a wholesale supplier of roofing, siding, windows, doors and related building products located in Duluth, MN. $BECN PR link.

MetLife(PBR39) CFO John Hele retires, succeeded by EVP/Treasurer John McCallion; promotes Stephen W. Gauster to EVP/General Counsel. $MET PR link.

Honeywell(PBR74) promotes Greg Lewis to interim role of VP/Corporate Finance until 08/03/18 at which time he will succeed retiring Tom Szlosek as CFO. $HON PR link.

JM Smucker(PBR437) President/Pet Food and Pet Snacks Barry Dunaway to retire 07/31/18, President/Canada, International & US Away From Home David Lemmon is successor; President/CEO Jeffrey Watters of soon to be acquired Ainsworth to become SVP/General Manager of Ainsworth. $SJM PR link.

Henry Schein(PBR270) President James Breslawski adds role of Vice Chairman, hired Jonathan Koch as SVP & CEO/Global Dental Group. $HSIC PR link.

US Steel/Aluminum Tariffs Update: On 04/30/18 President Trump approved Section 232 tariff modifications on steel and aluminum imports, has reached a final agreement with South Korea on steel imports, also has reached agreements in principle with Argentina, Australia, and Brazil with respect to steel and aluminum, is extending negotiations with Canada, Mexico, and the European Unionfor a final 30 days. White House PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Construction Spending Annual Rate is at $1.285 trillion, -1.7% from February 2018, +3.6% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Institute for Supply Management says the US April 2018 Manufacturing PMI Index(>50%=Economy Expanding) is at 57.3%, March 2018 was 59.3%, February 201860.8%, April 2017 55.3%. ISM PR link.

IHS Markit says the US April 2018 Manufacturing PMI is at 56.5, highest since September 2014, March 2018 was 55.6, February 2018 55.3, April 2017 52.8. IHS Markit PR link.

Automotive News reports that US April 2018 Total Light Vehicles Sold were at 1,063,895 units, excludes GM who is now reporting only quarterly, -5.0% from April 2017, April 2018 Average Price was $35,411, +0.4% from from March 2018, +2.1% from April 2017. Automotive News PR link.

The PurdueU/CME Group April 2018 Ag Economy Barometer is 125, March 2018 was 135, February 2018 140, April 2017 130. PurdueU/CME Group PR link.

Check out the BLOG page for the previous RECAPS and SNAPSHOTS posts.

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-444-2519.

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Filed Under: Recaps Tagged With: acquisitions, Business, Business Intelligence, business news, DJIA, Economy, Leadership, Market Research, mergers, Money, NASDAQ, Rankings, Research, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000, Trading, Wealth Management

The PBR1000 April 2018 Stocks & Commodities Snapshots

May 4, 2018 by admin

April 2018: The Stock Market Bull Wins, But Just Barely

After a 2 month lapse, the Stock Market Bull is back in the game with a narrow win in April.

By Larry C. Paxton

With 9 out of 21 trading days in April being up or down by 1% or more volatility was at its greatest so far in 2018, even though the US and world economies continue to show strong moderate growth, US employment is good, and initial 1Q18 corporate earnings were generally encouraging. But there were headwinds from continued geopolitical concerns about N Korea and renewed issues with the nuclear treaty with Iran. At the end of the month the Stock Market Bull stops the Stock Market Bear at 2 consecutive months and they are now tied at 2 months each for the year.

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges April 2018 Summary

Number of Trading Days: 21

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 10+/11-; NASDAQ 11+/10-; SPX 13+/8-.

Record Days: DJIA 0, NASDAQ 0, SPX 0

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 3 days(04/03-05/18), NASDAQ 3 days(04/03-05/18, 04/16-18/18), SPX 3 days(04/13-15/18, 04/16-18/18, 04/25-27/18)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 5 days(04/18-24/18), NASDAQ 5 days(04/19-25/18), SPX 2 days(04/19-20/18)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 6 days(04/03(DNS), 04/04(NS), 04/10(DNS), 04/12(DN), 04/17(NS), 04/26(NS)), mostly from international trade issues, optimism over anticipated meetings with N Korea.

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): 3 days(04/02(DNS), 04/20(N), 04/24(DNS)), mostly from technology sector drops, Iran nuclear treaty issues.

The PBR1000 April 2018 Snapshots

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 April 2018 Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on April 30, Month % Chg is compared to March 29, YTD % Chg is compared to December 29, 2017, and the 16 Months % Chg is compared to December 30, 2016. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the April 2018 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots and 25 rankings and the bonus The PBRMarketTools US Monthly Indices Snapshots.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +50% to -48%. 511 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a loss of 0.0%, the median was a gain of 0.2%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 04/30/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	16 Mos % Chg
Verifone	877	PAY	23.01	+50	+30	+30
Andeavor	82	ANDV	138.32	+38	+21	+58
Stage Stores	934	SSI	2.91	+33	+73	-33
SM Energy	997	SM	23.95	+33	+8	-31
Chipotle	537	CMG	423.33	+31	+46	+12

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +312% to -94%. 411 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a loss of 1.4%, the median was a loss of 3.0%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 04/30/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	16 Mos % Chg
BlueLinx	882	BXC	40.22	+23	+312	+438
Fossil	726	FOSL	14.95	+18	+92	-42
Stage Stores	934	SSI	2.91	+33	+73	-33
Netflix	252	NFLX	312.46	+6	+63	+152
Eastman Kodak	943	KODK	4.95	-7	+60	-68

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 16 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +512% to -99%. 627 out of 998 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 17.2%. The median was a gain of 11.0%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 04/30/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	16 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	976	WTW	70.05	+10	+58	+512
BlueLinx	882	BXC	40.22	+23	+312	+438
Scientific Games	689	SGMS	53.30	+28	+4	+281
Systemax	982	SYX	31.43	+10	-6	+258
Square	833	SQ	47.34	-4	+37	+247

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $824 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $25.8 billion, median is $8.1 billion, out of 1,000 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 04/30/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	16 Mos % Chg
Apple	4	AAPL	824	-3	-6	+33
Amazon	8	AMZN	763	+10	+37	+114
Microsoft	31	MSFT	738	+7	+12	+53
Alphabet	21	GOOG	717	+3	-2	+35
Facebook	69	FB	503	+13	-2	+52
The PBR1000			25,800	+2	-1	+18

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 04/30/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	16 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	84,985.83	-0.1	-1.5	+17.4
DJIA	24,163.15	+0.3	-2.3	+22.3
NASDAQ	7,066.27	+0.0	+2.4	+31.3
S&P500	2,648.05	+0.3	-1.0	+18.3
GOLD	1,316.10	-1.0	+0.8	+14.3
SILVER	16.36	+0.1	-3.7	+2.3
OIL	68.57	+5.6	+14.1	+27.6

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-444-2519.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

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The PBR1000 April 2018 Breaking News Recap

May 3, 2018 by admin

The PBR1000 April 2018 Breaking News Items

A Lot of Questions About When the Chaos Will End and the Predictable Order, If There Ever Was Such A Thing, Will Be Restored.

Here are The PBR1000 corporate and economic related breaking news items of interest with hotlinks to the sources for April 2018, starting with the last active business day.

***Monday, April 30:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Month of April Ending 04/30/18:

The Stock Market Bear had the momentum as the month closed, but the Stock Market Bulleked out the win for April, its first since its big win in January, and ties up their records at 2 months each for 2018 so far.

DJIA ends April at 24,163.15, -0.61% from last Friday, +0.25% MTD/QTD, -2.25% YTD, -9.22% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends April at 7,066.27, -0.75% from last Friday, +0.04% MTD/QTD, +2.36% YTD, -6.88% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends April at 2,648.05, -0.82% from last Friday, +0.27% MTD/QTD, -0.96% YTD, -7.83% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Walmart(PBR1) wholly owned UK retail subsidiary Asda Group to combine with J Sainsbury plc, Walmart to hold 42% stake and receive about $4.0 billion cash, combined 2017 revenues of about $68.9 billion from 2,800 stores plus websites, 330,000 employees. $WMT PR link.

ExxonMobil(PBR2) to acquire Indonesia based motorcycle lubricants manufacturer & marketer PT Federal Karyatama, includes the Federal Oil brand and a 700,000 barrel per year blending plant in Cilegon, Indonesia, to close 3Q18, terms not disclosed. $XOM PR link.

Marathon Petroleum(PBR23) to acquire Andeavor(PBR71 $ANDV) for total enterprise value of $35.6 billion, a 24.4% premium price based on ANDV’s 04/27/18 closing stock price, creates a leading US refining, marketing, and midstream company, to close 2H18. $MPC PR link.

Oracle(PBR78) has acquired student-centric, cloud-based financial aid solution for higher education institutions provider Vocado, terms not disclosed. $ORCL PR link.

T-Mobile(PBR95) and Sprint(PBR86) to merge as T-Mobile in all stock deal, values Sprint at $59 billion, combined company $146 billion, will push 5G development, to close before end of 1H19. $TMUS PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107) and Alphabet(PBR44)’s Verily announce 3 year scientific collaboration to identify and understand immunological and molecular drivers of inflammatory diseases. $GILD PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) gets US FDA approval of its Infuse(TM) Bone Graft in new spine surgery indications. $MDT PR link.

Xerox(PBR144 $XRX) merger with Fujifilmtemporarily blocked per injunction issued by NY Supreme Court judge on 04/27/18, agrees with activist stockholder plaintiff, says Xerox CEO Jeff Jacobson sought to conclude the deal even though he was advised to end negotiations.Reuters PR link.

Parker Hannifin(PBR218) completes divestiture of its global Facet filtration business to Filtration Group Corporation per its agreement with the US Dept of Justice, terms not disclosed. $PH PR link.

VF Corp(PBR232) completes sale of its Nautica® brand business to Authentic Brands Group, terms not disclosed. $VFC PR link.

JCPenney(PBR234) offering exclusive popular singer-songwriter Lionel Richie designed Home Collection of comforters, quilts, sheets, decorative pillows and bath towels, available online, in select stores in Fall 2018. $JCP PR link.

KKR(PBR332) completes majority ownership acquisition of largest dental support organization in the US with 11,000 team members in more than 850 supported dental practices across 35 states, Effingham, IL, based Heartland Dental, from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and affiliates who remain stakeholders, terms not disclosed. $KKR PR link.

Boston Scientific(PBR356) completes $306 million up front plus up to $100 million for commercial milestone achievements acquisition of privately held Maple Grove, MN, based the Rezūm® system enlarged prostrate therapy developer NxThera. $BSX PR link.

KBR(PBR395) gets contract to develop world’s largest fully integrated crude oil to chemicals project in Saudi Arabia. $KBR PR link.

LabCorp(PBR413) to sell its $150 million in sales/2017 Covance Food Solutions business to Eurofins Scientific (EUFI.PA) for $670 million cash, to close in 3Q18. $LH PR link.

Chipotle(PBR561) food delivery from 1,500+ locations available per national deal with DoorDash. $CMG PR link.

Pitney Bowes(PBR588) selling its Document Messaging Technologies (DMT) production mail business and supporting software to Platinum Equity for $361 million. $PBI PR link.

Chico’s FAS(PBR730) to offer Chico’s brand apparel and accessories on Amazon(PBR29)beginning in mid 05/18. $CHS PR link.

Fitbit(PBR870) moving its healthcare services on wearables development to Alphabet(PBR44)’s Google new Cloud Healthcare API. $FIT PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) gets 8 year contract extension to provide lottery instant games in Kentucky. $SGMS PR link.

Prologis(PBR940) to acquire logistics real estate company DCT Industrial Trust(NYSE: DCT) in $8.4 billion stock-for-stock deal, includes debt, to close 3Q18. $PLD PR link.

Marriott Vacations(PBR947) to acquire ILG in $4.7 billion cash/stock deal, will result in an upper-upscale and luxury vacation ownership and exchange company with 100+ vacation properties worldwide and around 650,000 owners, $2.9 billion in annual revenues. $VAC PR link.

NCR(PBR383) hires Michael D. Hayford as CEO, succeeds Chairman/CEO Bill Nuti who has been named Chairman Emeritus, and names Frank Martire Executive Chairman. $NCR PR link.

YRC Worldwide(PBR472) promotes President/COO Darren Hawkins to CEO per succession plan, succeeds retiring James Welch. $YRCW PR link.

TransDigm(PBR810) President/COO Kevin Stein, PhD, now President/CEO, succeeds Chairman/CEO/Co-Founder Nick Howley who is now Executive Chairman. $TDG PR link.

Terex(PBR357) hires Boris Schoepplein as President/Terex Parts & Services, based in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, effective 06/01/18. $TEX PR link.

Fifth Third Bancorp(PBR387) hires Susan B. Zaunbrecher as SVP/Senior Legal Adviser with intent to succeed Jelena McWilliams, a candidate to chair the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation(FDIC), as Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary. $FITB PR link.

S&P Global(PBR477) hires Dimitra Manis as EVP/Chief People Officer. $SPGI PR link.

McKesson(PBR6) elects Brad Lerman, SVP/General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Medtronic(PBR133), as a new independent board director. $MCK PR link.

Deckers Outdoor(PBR929) appoints William L. McComb, former CEO of Liz Claiborne, to the Board and announces that John G. Perenchio has resigned from the Board. $DECK PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US National Public Debt on 04/26/18 was at $15.335 trillion, Intragovernmental Holdings $5.720 trillion, Total Debt $21.055 trillion, -0.2% from 03/30/18, +2.7% YTD, +6.1% from 04/28/17. USTreasury PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/BEA says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Personal Income Annual Rate is at $16.888 trillion, +0.3% from February 2018, +3.6% from March 2017; Personal Savings Rate Average at +3.1%, Effective Tax Rate Average at 12.3%. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago says 7th District Preliminary April 2018 Midwest Economy Index is at +0.52, March 2018 was +0.41. ChiFed PR link.

The MNI April 2018 Chicago Business Barometer(>50=Expanding) is at 57.6, March 2018 was 57.4, February 2018 61.9, April 201758.3. MNI/ISM Chicago PR link.

The American Automobile Assn says US Average Price Per Gallon-Regular on 04/30/18was at $2.811, highest since November 2014, 03/30/18 was $2.654, 02/28/18 $2.530, 04/28/17$2.398. AAA PR link.

***Friday, April 27:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 04/27/18:

The Stock Market Bear continued its run in the earlier part of the week, then the Stock Market Bull made an appearance for a couple of days. But in the end the Stock Market Bear prevailed for its 9th win of 2018 in the 19th week.

DJIA ends the week at 24,311.19, -0.62% from last Friday, +0.86% MTD/QTD, -1.65% YTD, -8.66% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,119.80, -0.37% from last Friday, +0.80% MTD/QTD, +3.13% YTD, -6.17% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,669.91, -0.01% from last Friday, +1.10% MTD/QTD, -0.14% YTD, -7.06% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Qualcomm(PBR106) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 05/11/18 5PM Eastern, 12.7% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427 $WYNN) appears before Massachusetts Gaming Commission(MGC) regarding whether or not Steve Wynn should be a qualifier, CEO Matt Maddox affirms he should not be, is no longer a part of the company, proposes $2.5 billion Wynn Boston Harbor casino being constructed name be changed to Encore Boston Harbor. MGC PR link.

PPG(26) announces restructuring plan, includes reducing headcount by 1,100 by end of 2Q19. $PPG PR link.

Hill-Rom(PBR954) hires John P. Groetelaars as President/CEO, effective 05/14/18, succeeds retiring John J. Greisch. $HRC PR link.

Mondelez(PBR87) hires Paulette Alviti as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective 06/11/18, succeeds retiring Karen May. $MDLZ PR link.

Newmont Mining(PBR358) elects René Médori, PhD, who has deep experience in the global energy and mining industries, to the Board. $NEM PR link.

Norwegian Cruise Lines(BR489) appoints Pamela Thomas-Graham, Founder/CEO of Dandelion Chandelier LLC, a private digital media enterprise focused on global luxury, to the Board. $NCLH PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/BEA says US Advance Estimate 1Q18 Gross Domestic Product Annual Rate was at +2.3%, $19.965 trillion, +1.1% from 4Q17, +4.8% from 1Q17. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says the US 1Q18 All Civilian Workers Employment Cost Index(2005=100) was at 132.5, 4Q17 was 131.4, 1Q17 129.0. USDOL PR link.

The U of Michigan US Final April 2018 Consumer Sentiment Index is at 98.8, March 2018 was 101.4, February 2018 99.7, April 2017 97.0. UMichigan PR link.

***Thursday, April 26:

Amazon(PBR29) Prime Video gets exclusive 2 year renewal to stream Natl Football League Thursday Night Football games globally. $AMZN PR link.

American Express(PBR83 $AXP) gets word from China‘s central bank that it would “formally accept” AMEX’s application to clear and settle domestic bank-card transactions, initial step toward approval. MarketWatch PR link.

Whirlpool(PBR138) commences modified Dutch Auction tender offer to purchase up to $1 billion of its common stock for $150 to $170/share, expires 05/23/18. $WHR PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR161) completes $630 million acquisition of 15% ownership stake inUnited Surgical Partners International from Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, now owns 95%, Baylor U Medical Center owns remaining 5%. $THC PR link.

Hershey(PBR354 $HSY) to stop selling certain sizes and varieties of candy to save money as costs rise. MarketWatch PR link.

T Rowe Price(PBR570) adds 10 million shares to repurchase program, balance available is now 21 million shares, all 12 board nominees elected, including newcomer Richard Verma, Vice Chairman/Partner at The Asia Group and former US ambassador to India. $TROW PR link.

CIT Group(PBR608) to purchase its common stock up to $500,000,000, for $50-$56/share, expires 05/23/18. $CIT PR link.

First Solar(PBR630) to build a new solar module manufacturing facility near existing Perrysburg, OH, flagship plant. The $400 million capital investment 1 million sf 1.2 gigawatt factory to create 500 new jobs in northwestern Ohio, will produce the company’s advanced technology Series 6 thin film photovoltaic (PV) module, construction to start mid 2018, be in full production by late 2019. $FSLR PR link.

Welltower(PBR635) to acquire Quality Care Properties, Inc. (NYSE: QCP) for $20.75/share, forms 80/20 joint venture with regional not-for-profit health system ProMedica Health Systemwho will provide operations support. $WELL PR link.

Endo Intl(PBR700) to acquire New Jerseybased developer/marketer of sterile injectable and ophthalmic drugs for the US marketplace Somerset Therapeutics and its India based affiliate contract developer/manufacturer Wintac Ltd for around $190 million total. $ENDP PR link.

MGIC Investment(PBR993) authorizes up to $200 million share repurchase program through 12/31/19. $MTG PR link.

La Quinta(PBR998) stockholders approve acquisition by Wyndham Worldwide(PBR464)for $1.95 billion in cash after spin-off of La Quinta’s real estate assets into independent public company CorePoint Lodging, to close 2Q18. $LQ PR link.

Tesla(PBR651) SEC proxy statement shows CEO Elon Musk received $49,920 in 2017 compensation, median worker earned $54,816 for a Pay Ratio of 0.91/1.00(pg 38). $TSLA PR link.

Macerich(PBR957) SEVP/CFO/Treasurer Thomas O’Hern to become CEO on 01/01/19, will succeed retiring Art Coppola, SVP/Finance Scott Kingsmore to become EVP/CFO/Treasurer. $MAC PR link.

The New York Times(PBR971) promotes Roland Caputo to CFO, effective 04/30/18, was named interim CFO on 03/01/18. $NYT PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Total Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims for Week Ending 04/21/18 were at 209,000, was 218,000 on 03/31/18, 217,000 on 02/24/18, 242,000 on 04/29/17. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US 1Q18 Total Housing Units are at 137.1 million, 120.9 million are occupired, 77.0 million by homeowners, 43.0 million by renters, 17.2 million homes are vacant, Occupancy Rate is 87.5%, Home Ownership Rate 64.2%. USDOC PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) says US 30 Year Fixed Mortgage Rate Average on 04/26/18 was at 4.58% with 0,5 fees/points, 03/29/18 was 4.44%, 02/22/18 4.40%, 04/27/17 4.03%. $FMCC PR link.

***Wednesday, April 25:

Ford(PBR10) releases 1Q18 results, says by 2020 almost 90% of Ford portfolio in N Americawill be trucks, utilities and commercial vehicles, sedans to be focused on Mustang and new Focus Active crossover. $F PR link.

Comcast(PBR42) bids $30 billion for major European entertainment and communications services provider Sky plc, a 16% premium over 21st Century Fox(PBR91) bid. $CMCSA PR link.

UPS(PBR47) makes available a special Voluntary Retirement Plan for a select group of non-operations, retirement-eligible US management employees to help reduce headcount, lower on-going operating expense. $UPS PR link.

21st Century Fox(PBR91) responds to Comcast(PBR42) $30 billion bid for Sky plc, comments that it remains committed to its recommended cash offer for Sky announced on 12/15/17 and is currently considering its options. $FOX PR link.

Norfolk Southern(PBR242) increases shares buyback program to $1.5 billion. $NSC PR link.

Estee Lauder(PBR255) expands paid parental leave program to 20 weeks, up to $10,000 for adoption assistance, expands benefits to include back-up child, adult, and elder care. $EL PR link.

Ball Corp(PBR312) authorizes 25 million share repurchase program, replaces all previous programs. $BLL PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) to license and manage its first Mexico non-gaming facility at to be developed $200 million 5 start luxury 500 room with convention center beach front Caesars Palace resort in Puerto Los Cabos. $CZR PR link.

KBR(PBR395) completes acquisition of technology solutions, engineering services, mission operations, scientific and IT software solutions in the Government Services market provider Stinger Ghaffarian Technologies, has $3.4 billion in backlog with no major recompetes for two years, terms not disclosed. $KBR PR link.

Twitter(PBR735) 1Q18 ends with 336 million total average monthly active users, 69 million from US, 267 million from international, total +3% from 1Q17, 6 million new users in 1Q18. $TWTR PR link.

Hologic(PBR767) gets US FDA approval for ThinPrep® Integrated Imager, which will make automated imaging of Pap tests more broadly available to US laboratories and cytologists. $HOLX PR link.

Plexus(PBR807) to build second manuifacturing facility in Guadalajara, Mexico, 472,000 sf, to be ready mid 2019, employ around 3,000. $PLXS PR link.

Briggs & Stratton(PBR920) authorizes $50 million share repurchase program, expires 06/30/20. $BGG PR link.

Regions Financial(PBR540) President John Turner to become CEO on 07/02/18, succeeds Chairman/CEO Grayson Hall who will become Executive Chairman through 2018. $RF PR link.

Coty(PBR524) hires Esra Erkal-Paler to newly created position of Chief Global Corporate Affairs Officer. $COTY PR link.

Public Storage(PBR848) promotes Natalia N. Johnson to SVP/Chief Human Resources Officer and hires Ryan Burke as VP/Investor Services, succeeds retiring Clemente Teng. $PSA PR link.

Herbalife(PBR487) board directors stepping off are Richard P. Bermingham, Pedro Cardoso, and Keith Cozza; new directors elected to the board are Nicholas Graziano, portfolio manager of Icahn Capital, Alan LeFevre, former EVP of finance and chief financial officer for Jarden Corporation, Juan Miguel Mendoza, an independent Herbalife distributor for 25 years, and Margarita Palau-Hernandez, founder and CEO of Hernandez Ventures. $HLF PR link.

Moody’s(PBR636) elects Vincent Forlenza, Chairman/CEO of Becton Dickinson(PBR318) and Gerrit Zalm, former Chairman/CEO of ABN AMRO to the Board. $MCO PR link.

The US Energy Information Administrationsays US Crude Oil Reserve Stocks on 04/20/18 were at 429.7 million barrels of oil, -0.1% from 03/23/18, -18.7% from 04/21/17. EIA PR link.

ADP(PBR235) says US 1Q18 Average Annual Wage Growth was at +2.9%, +0.8% from 1Q17, 1Q18 Average Worker Hourly Wage was $27.36, +$ 0.78 from 1Q17. $ADP PR link.

***Tuesday, April 24:

Amazon(PBR29) Prime members can now have items delivered inside their vehicle parked at home, work or near other locations in their address book through the Amazon Key service, no additional charge, currently available in 37 locations, rolling out across the US. $AMZN PR link.

Microsoft(PBR31) and Declaration Networks Group to deliver broadband internet access to approximately 65,000 people on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, including Accomack and Northampton Counties, and Garrett County, Maryland, over the next three years, partnership part of Microsoft’s Rural Airband Initiative. $MSFT PR link.

General Mills(PBR162) completes $40.00/share, $8.0 billion cash acquisition of BLUE brand natural foods and treats for dogs and cats company Blue Buffalo Pet Products(NASDAQ: BUFF). $GIS PR link.

SuperValu(PBR164) to sell 8 of its distribution centers, around 5.8 million square feet, to a single buyer for around $483 million then lease back the facilities for an initial term of 20 years with five five-year renewal options. $SVU PR link.

Gap Inc(PBR179) to open 60 new Old Navystores by end of 2018. $GPS PR link.

Genworth Financial(PBR287) and China Oceanwide withdraw and refile Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) joint notice, starts 45 day investigative period regarding GNW’s $5.43/share, $2.7 billion cash acquisition of Oceanwide. $GNW PR link.

Salesforce(PBR453) to invest $2.2 billion in its French business over the next five years. $CRM PR link.

Herbalife(PBR487) name change to Herbalife Nutrition Ltd to be effective 04/25/18, ticker symbol remains HLF; 2:1 stock split distribution date is 05/14/18. $HLF PR link.

TransDigm(PBR810) completes $525 million acquisition of Melbourne, FL, based $85 million/FY2018 proprietary aftermarket products and repair and overhaul services to the aerospace and defense end markets Extant Components Group from Warburg Pincus. $TDG PR link.

Sinclair Broadcast(PBR894) to sell 23 TV stations to Standard Media Group(an affiliate of Standard General LP), Meredith Corp(PBR994), Howard Stirk and Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation and another party to be announced, upon consummation of Sinclair’s $43.50/share, $3.9 billion cash/stock, plus assumption of $2.7 billion of debt acquisition of Tribune Media Company(NYSE:TRCO). $SBGI PR link.

Jabil Circuit(PBR188) CFO Forbes I.J. Alexander to retire 08/31/18 after 25 years with company, SVP/Controller Michael K. Dastoor named successor, effective 09/01/18. $JBL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary March 2018 New Family Homes Sold/For Sale Annual Rate is at 694,000, +4.0% from February 2018, +8.8% from March 2017; Preliminary March 2018 Median Home Price was $337,200, +3.5% from February 2018, +4.8% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Fifth District April 2018 Manufacturing Index(Annualized) is at -3%, March 2018 was +15%, February 2018 +28%, April 2017 +17%. RichmondFed PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Fifth District April 2018 Service Sector Revenue Index(Annualized) is at +2%, March 2018 was +25%, February 2018 +27%, April 2017 +19%. RichmondFed PR link.

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US February 2018 National Home Price Index(01/2000=100)is at 197.01, January 2018 was 196.18, December 2017 196.17, February 2017 185.27. Case-Shiller PR link.

The Conference Board Preliminary April 2018 Consumer Confidence Index(1985=100) is at 128.7, May 2018 was 127.0. TCB PR link.

***Monday, April 23:

Apple(PBR5 $AAPL) acquisition of UK based developer and distributor of music recognition applications Shazam getting in-depth investigation by European Commission, concerned merger could reduce choice for users of music streaming services. European Commission PR link.

Pfizer(PBR56) receives a Complete Response Letter (CRL) from US FDA regarding proposed trastuzumab biosimilar, does not relate to safety or clinical data submitted, plans to respond. $PFE PR link.

Humana(PBR58) with TPG Capital and Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, to acquire privately held hospice operators providing care to patients at 245 locations in 22 states Curo Health Services for $1.4 billion, Humana to have 40% minority interest. $HUM PR link.

Sears(PBR93) gets letter from ESL Investments recommending divestiture of all or a portion of (i) the Kenmore brand and related assets, (ii) the Sears Home Improvementbusiness of the Sears Home Services division (“SHIP”), and (iii) the PartsDirect business of the Sears Home Services division, ESL interested in participating as a buyer. $SHLD PR link.

Whirlpool(PBR138) to sell its Brazil based 11,000 employees worldwide Embracocompressor business to Nidec Corporation for $1.08 billion cash, to close in early 2019. $WHR PR link.

FirstEnergy(PBR195) reaches agreement in principle with two groups of key creditors in the Chapter 11 proceedings of FirstEnergy Solutions (FES), its related entities and FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC). $FE PR link.

PSEG(PBR257) to replace 875 miles of gas mains over 5 years through $1.875 billion settlement with NJ Board of Public Utilities, represents under 2% residential rate increase, around $17/year, to create 3,200 sustained jobs. $PEG PR link.

Henry Schein(PBR270) to spin off and merge its Animal Health business with Vets First Choiceto create an independent public company 63% owned by HSIC, also expects to receive $1.0 to $1.25 billion cash. $HSIC PR link.

CenterPoint Energy(PBR295) to acquire Vectren(PBR745) for $72/share, around $6 billion, will create an energy delivery, infrastructure and services company serving more than 7 million US customers. $CNP PR link.

LabCorp(PBR413) at Walgreens(PBR36 $WBA) to expand into Florida at 10 sites. $LH PR link.

JetBlue(PBR429) and semi-private public charter operator JetSuiteX announce codeshare partnership, includes flights between Burbank, Calif. (BUR); Concord, Calif. (CCR); Oakland, Calif. (OAK); and Las Vegas (LAS). $JBLU PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) to sell $1.5 billion of senior notes for general corporate purposes. $NFLX PR link.

Trimble Navigation(PBR804) to acquire privately-held scalable construction management software developer Viewpoint from Bain Capitalfor $1.2 billion cash. $TRMB PR link.

McDermott Intl(PBR825) rejects unsolicited, non-binding proposal to be acquired by Subsea 7 for $7.00/share. $MDR PR link.

McDermott Intl(PBR825) and CB&I(NYSE: CBI(Chicago Bridge & Iron) $6 billion merger to be named McDermott, expects to close in 05/18. $MDR PR link.

United Continental(PBR77) SEC proxy statement shows CEO Oscar Munoz 2017 total compensation was $9,561,134, median US employee total compensation was $83,211(from 85,359 US employees), 2017 CEO Pay Ratiowas 115:1(pg 84). $UAL PR link.

Cooper Cos(PBR950) CFO Albert White to become President/CEO on 05/01/18, Brian Andrews to be promoted to SVP/CFO & Treasurer. $COO PR link.

PolyOne(PBR586) promotes Dr. David A. Jarus to VP/Research & Development, succeeds retiring Christopher J. Murphy. $POL PR link.

Cabot Corp(PBR607) EVP/CFO Eduardo Cordeiro & President/Americas to step down on 05/15/18, VP/Business Operations of Reinforcement Materials Erica McLaughlin to become SVP/CFO at that time. $CBT PR link.

Granite Construction(PBR831) EVP/CFO Laurel J. Krzeminski to retire in 2H18, search starts. $GVA PR link.

Reinsurance Group of America(PBR256)appoints John J. Gauthier, most recently President of Allied World Financial Services and as EVP/Chief Investment Officer of Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, AG, and Hazel M. McNeilage, Managing Director, EMEA for Northern Trust Asset Management, to the Board, effective 07/18. $RGA PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) stockholders get letter from co-founder and largest stockholder Elaine Wynn requesting a No vote for Board nominee John J. Hagenbuch at 05/16/18 annual meeting. $WYNN PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) ends proxy fight with Starboard, appoints Starboard representatives Gerardo I. Lopez and Robert A. Steele to the Board, to nominate Bridget Ryan Berman for Board at 2018 annual meeting, Andrew Langham steps down from Board effective immediately, David Atchison not standing for re-election. $NWL PR link.

Vitamin Shoppe(PBR968) appoints Himanshu H. Shah, Sing Wang and Melvin L. Keating to the Board, may appoint 2 more later, 4 current directors not standing for re-election. $VS PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago US Preliminary March 2018 3 Month Moving Average National Activity Index is at +0.27, February 2018 +0.31, January 2018 +0.11, March 2017 -0.07. ChiFed PR link.

The Natl Assn of Realtors says US March 2018 Existing Home Sales Annual Rate is at 5,600,000, +1.1% from February 2018, -1.2% from March 2017; US March 2018 Existing Home Median Price is at $250,400, +3.6% from February 2018, +5.8% from March 2017. $NAR PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) in April 2018 Outlookforecasts 30 year fixed mortgage rates to average 5.1%. $FMCC PR link.

***Friday, April 20:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 04/20/18:

The week started out pretty strong as geopolitical issues eased. President Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Abe appeared to have some good talks to address the trade deficit. Former FBI Director James Comeymade the rounds promoting his “tell all” book about his interactions and thoughts about President Trump. As the week progressed 1Q18 earnings came in mixed. Mid week the Beige Book was released indicating the economy is growing at a modest to moderate rate. The much admired former First Lady Barbara Bushpassed away, The Stock Market Bear made a big push in the second half of the week as tech stocks struggled, but in the end the Stock Market Bull pulled out its 10th win of 2018 in the 16th week.

DJIA ends the week at 24,462.94, +0.42% from last Friday, +1.49% MTD/QTD, -1.04% YTD, -8.09% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,146.13, +0.56% from last Friday, +1.17% MTD/QTD, +3.52% YTD, -5.83% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,670.14, +0.52% from last Friday, +1.11% MTD/QTD, -0.13% YTD, -7.06% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Walmart(PBR1) Proxy Statement for 2018 shareholders meeting shows CEO made $22.8 million in 2017, median worker made $19,177, CEO pay ratio of 1,188:1(pg 78, CEO Pay Ratio). $WMT PR link.

Verizon(PBR15 $VZ) sells its photo services Flickr unit to SmugMug, terms not disclosed. SmugMug PR link.

Kroger(PBR20) completes $2.15 billion sale of 762 convenience stores unit to UK based privately held petrol forecourt convenience store retailer EG Group, announces $1.2 billion accelerated share repurchase program with Goldman Sachs(PBR76). $KR PR link.

Wells Fargo(PBR30) to pay $1 billion per agreement with US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency regarding certain home mortgage and auto loans compliance issues. $WFC PR link.

Monsanto(PBR187 $MON) $128/share, $66 billion cash acquisition by Germany’s Bayer AGgets Russian antitrust authorities approval conditioned on some technology transfers to Russia recipients. MarketWatch PR link.

Facebook(PBR228) moves 1.5 billion users out of reach of new European privacy law. The Guardian PR link.

Biogen(PBR282) purchases $625 million of Ionis Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IONS) stock and makes $375 million up front payment for 10 year expanded strategic collaboration agreement to develop novel antisense drug candidates for a broad range of neurological diseases. $BIIB PR link.

Charter Communications(PBR297) and Comcast(PBR42) form a 50/50 operating platform partnership for the development and design of backend systems to support Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile and Charter’s Spectrum Mobile service. $CHTR PR link.

Varian Medical(PBR678) gets US FDA 510k clearance for its Calypso® Anchored Beacon® transponder, helps clinicians deliver dose to lung tumors with increased confidence and accuracy. $VAR PR link.

Trimble Navigation(PBR804) has acquired assets of Williamsburg, VA, based N Americansupplier of Management Information System (MIS) solutions for steel fabrication developer FabSuite, terms not disclosed. $TRMB PR link.

Middleby(PBR865) acquires Barcelona, Spain, based $20 million in sales/year manufacturer of charcoal grill and oven cooking equipment for commercial foodservice and residential applications Josper SA, terms not disclosed. $MIDD PR link.

TripAdvisor(PBR936) acquires Iceland based business management technology for the tours, attractions and experiences industry provider Bokun, charges flat monthly fee for corporate bookings, terms not disclosed. $TRIP PR link.

HNI Corp(PBR841) Chairman/President/CEO retires as President, to retire as Chairman/CEO no later than 12/31/18, Jeffrey D. Lorenger promoted to President, to add CEO role by end of 2018. $HNI PR link.

Chipotle(PBR561) hires Marissa Andrada as Chief Human Resources Officer. $CMG PR link.

Delta(PBR72) appoints Michael Huerta, former Administrator of the US Federal Aviation Administration, to the Board. $DAL PR link.

AutoNation(PBR148) elects Dr. Jacqueline A. Travisano, EVP/Business and Finance and COO of the University of Miami, to the Board. $AN PR link.

***Thursday, April 19:

Verizon(PBR15) bolsters in-house customer experience design team with acquisition of Moment, terms not disclosed. $VZ PR link.

Wells Fargo(PBR30) commits to provide $200 billion in financing to sustainable businesses and projects by 2030, with more than 50% focused on clean technology and renewable energy transactions that directly support the transition to a low-carbon economy. $WFC PR link.

Wells Fargo(PBR30 $WFC) to no longer be mortgage benefits provider for the American Federation of Teachers because of lack of bank’s relationship with the National Rifle Association and gun manufacturers. AFT PR link.

Proctor & Gamble(PBR33) to acquire the Consumer Health business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, for around $4.1 billion, expands over-the-counter products, replaces and improves upon the highly successful PGT Healthcare joint venture P&G had with Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE: TEVA), which will be terminated 07/01/18. $PG PR link.

AIG(PBR46) authorizes two new insurance companies in the UK and Luxembourg, in preparation for upcoming Brexit break between the UK and the European Union. $AIG PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106) and NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) at the request of the Ministry of Commerce in China (MOFCOM) have withdrawn and refiled the notice of acquisition, extends end date for purchase to 07/25/18, also extends $127.50/share tender offer date to 04/27/18. $QCOM PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106 $QCOM) laying off 4.4% of its workforce to cut costs. MarketWatch PR link.

Xerox(PBR144 $XRX) defends CEO’s authority on Fujifilm deal after investor’s accusations. MarketWatch PR link.

American Electric Power(PBR174) reaches settlement agreement related to the return on equity (ROE) for transmission investments in AEP’s eastern operating companies and transmission companies, incorporates benefits of tax reform into transmission rates. $AEP PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) issues statement saying that it does not intend to make an offer for Shire plc, continues to evaluate divestitures, combinations and acquisitions. $AGN PR link.

Sempra Energy(PBR254)’s SoCalGas and Opus 12 successfully demonstrate new process to convert carbon dioxide in raw biogas to methane in a single electrochemical step, a critical improvement in the science of upgrading biogas to pipeline quality natural gas, and a simpler method of converting excess renewable electricity into storable natural gas. $SRE PR link.

Cognizant(PBR272) completes acquisition of privately held 2,400 employees, 1,400+ client locations revenue cycle management provider Bolder Healthcare Solutions, terms not disclosed. $CTSH PR link.

MGM Resorts(PBR273) and Chicago based Invenergy to partner in developing a new solar photovoltaic array with 336,000 panels on 640 acres 25 miles from Las Vegas, will generate 100 megawatts, and provide 90% of daytime electricity needs for MGM’s 13 Las Vegas properties. $MGM PR link.

AGCO(PBR280) Power unit celebrates 75th year in business, one millionth engine produced, in its factory in Linnavuori, Nokia, Finland. $AGCO PR link.

Booking(PBR319) to acquire Denver, CO, based local activities and experiences booking software provider, FareHarbor, terms not disclosed. $BKNG PR link.

AMD(PBR445) announced the global availability of its 2nd Generation Ryzen™ Desktopprocessors starting with four models optimized for gamers, creators, and hardware enthusiasts. $AMD PR link.

Guess?(PBR798) and Gucci conclude all pending IP litigations and trademark office matters worldwide, terms not disclosed. $GES PR link.

Mattel(PBR412) appoints director Ynon Kreiz to be CEO, effective 04/26/18, succeeds departing Margo Georgiadis, Kreiz expected to also be elected Chairman at 05/17/18 annual meeting. $MAT PR link.

Macerich(PBR957) Chairman/CEO Arthur Coppola to retire on 12/31/18 after 42 years with company and its predecessors, director Steven Hash appointed Independent Chairman, CEO successor search starts. $MAC PR link.

Nike(PBR98 $NKE) clears way for more diverse leadership with 4 executives having exited. Portland Business Journal PR link.

Nationstar Mortgage(PBR857) promotes Tony Ebers to new company position of COO. $NSM PR link.

Popular(PBR886) creates Corporate Security Group, promotes Betina Castellví to Chief Security Officer as its leader. $BPOP PR link.

Celgene(PBR347)‘s longest serving director, Gilla Kaplan, PhD, to retire after 20 years of service; US health insurance expert Patricia Hemingway Hall and Juno Therapeutics co-founder and former CEO Hans Bishop elected to Board. $CELG PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphiasays the 3rd District March 2018 Manufacturing General Activity Indicator is at 23.2, February 2018 was 22.3, January 201825.8, March 2017 31.6. PhillyFed PR link.

The Conference Board says US Preliminary March 2018 Leading Economic Indicator(2016=100) is at 109.0, February 2018was 108.7, January 2018 108.0, December 2017 107.2, indicates solid economic growth to continue through 2018. TCB PR link.

***Wednesday, April 18:

AT&T(PBR12) decides to withdraw its planned initial public offering of shares of Vrio Corpbased on current market conditions. $T PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) went over 100 million Prime members globally & shipped 5+ billion itemsin 2017, says Founder/Chairman/President/CEO Jeff Bezos in his annual letter to stockholders. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) and Best Buy(PBR73) do exclusive multi-year partnership to offer new Fire TV Edition Smart TVs in US & Canada beginning in summer 2018. $AMZN PR link.

Home Depot(PBR32) to hire 1,000 technology professionals at its primary technology centers in Atlanta, Austin and Dallas. $HD PR link.

Intel(PBR51) Stratix® 10 FPGAs hit 10 trillion floating point operations per second, fastest in the world. $INTC PR link.

Emerson Electric(PBR109) to acquire Textron(PBR207)’s Rockford, IL, based 11 manufacturing facilities globally, 2,300 employees $470 million in sales/2017 Tools and Test Equipment business for $810 million, to close within 90 days. $EMR PR link.

Community Health Systems(PBR125) to sell Ocala, FL, 421-bed Munroe Regional Medical Center to Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare subsidiary Florida Hospital Ocala, to close 3Q18, terms not disclosed, part of divestiture program announced in 12/17. $CYH PR link.

Office Depot(PBR182) expands channel partners program by making available its IT services with 6,000 field technicians, gets agreement with telecom and cloud solutions distributor MicroCorp. $ODP PR link.

RR Donnelley(PBR243) reorganizes from 3 operating units into 2, Marketing Solutions and Business Services. $RRD PR link.

Dover(PBR343) board approves spin-off of oil and gas well drilling equipment developer Apergy as a separate public company, NYSE: APY, effective 05/09/18. $DOV PR link.

United Rentals(PBR438) authorizes new $1.25 billion share repurchase program, commences after completion of $168 million balance remaining from previous $1 billion authorization, expires 12/31/19. $URI PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) has over 100 projects in the works, provides some details on 10 for Europe. $NFLX PR link.

Herbalife(PBR487) commences self-tender offer to purchase up to an aggregate $600 million of shares of its common stock at a per share price between $108.00 and $98.00, expires 05/16/18. $HLF PR link.

Norwegian Cruise Lines(PBR489) authorizes 3 year up to $1 billion share repurchase program. $NCLH PR link.

Tailored Brands(PBR643) announces partnership with Hero to launch phased rollout of Men’s Wearhouse LIVE! and Jos. A. Bank LIVE!, connects online shoppers live with expert sales associates in the physical store, to be in place by 09/18. $TLRD PR link.

SunPower(PBR680) to acquire Hillsboro, OR, based American manufacturer of solar panels SolarWorld Americas, terms not disclosed. $SPWR PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) completes $804 million cash acquisition of operator of data centers in Australia provider Metronode from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, now has 15 International Business ExchangeTM (IBX®)data centers across Australia. $EQIX PR link.

GoPro(PBR902) launches GoPro and digital cameras trade-up program for HERO6 Black($50 off) and Fusion($100 off) cameras. $GPRO PR link.

General Motors(PBR8) President/General Manager GM Canada Steve Carlisle appointed SVP & President/Cadillac replacing Johan de Nysschen who is leaving, effective immediately; VP/Global Products Travis Hester now President/General Manager of GM Canada. $GM PR link.

ADP(PBR235) appoints Thomas J. Lynch, Chairman of global technology and manufacturing company TE Connectivity Ltd, and Scott F. Powers, former President/CEO of State Street Global Advisors, to the Board. $ADP PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) appoints 3 new independent directors, Betsy Atkins, an expert in corporate governance and digital transformation, consumer experience and technology, Dee Dee Myers, Warners Bros Entertainment EVP/Worldwide Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, and Wendy Webb, CEO of Kestrel Advisors and former Walt Disney executive, first step to refresh the Board. $WYNN PR link.

The US Federal Reserve releases the Beige Book for data through 04/09/18, says economic growth continues to be modest to moderate, outlooks remain optimistic with some concerns over new and proposed tariffs, employmentcontinues to grow at a modest to moderate pace. USFed PR link.

***Tuesday, April 17:

***Beloved former First Lady Barbara Bush passes away at age 92. New York Post PR link.***

Walmart(PBR1) US to launch new look website for e-commerce in 05/18. $WMT PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) launches the ‘International Shopping’ experience within the Amazon Shopping App, 45 million items available to be shipped internationally from the US. $AMZN PR link.

Aetna(PBR49) in 1Q18 reorganizes its business and management structure in preparation for its $207/share, $69 billion, stock/cash acquisition by CVS Health(PBR11). $AET PR link.

Southwest Airlines(PBR153) confirms an accident involving Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 flight from NY, NY, to Dallas, TX, #1 engine caught fire, emergency landing in Philadelphia, PA, 1 fatality, flight had 144 passengers and 5 crew. $LUV PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) to close all 8,000+ US stores on afternoon of 05/29/18 for racial-bias education for its nearly 175,000 employees, will also become part of on-boarding process. $SBUX PR link.

BlackRock(PBR252) to acquire $9 billion in of committed client capital 80+ team members Los Angeles, CA, based Tennenbaum Capital Partners, terms not disclosed. $BLK PR link.

JetBlue(PBR429)‘s 5,000 inflight crewmembers elect to have the Transport Workers Union (TWU) represent them. $JBLU PR link.

Alliant Energy(BR634) gets approval from Iowa Utilities Board to to add 1,000 MW of new wind energy in Iowa, enough to power 430,000 homes, to invest $1.8 billion by end of 2020. $LNT PR link.

Scotts Miracle-Gro(PBR705) to acquire largest hydroponic distributor in the US $460 million in sales in 2017 Sunlight Supply for $425 million cash and $25 SMG equity, will become part of wholly owned subsidiary The Hawthorne Gardening Company. $SMG PR link.

Bon-Ton Stores(PBR707) not able to find buyer of its business as an ongoing concern, goes to auction, joint venture composed of the holders of the Company’s 8.0% Second Lien Secured Notes due 2021 and Great American Group, LLC and Tiger Capital Group, LLC will acquire the inventory and certain other assets of the Company, sale to be finalized and wind-down of operations scheduled for 04/18/18. $BONTQ PR link.

Big Lots(PBR468) President/CEO David Campisi, on medical leave, retires to focus on health issues, EVP/Chief Merchandising & Operating Officer Lisa Bachmann and EVP/Chief Admin & CFO Timothy Johnson continue assigned responsibilities until successor hired. $BIG PR link.

Southern Co(PBR155) to promote Andrew Evans to EVP/CFO, to succeed retiring Art Beattie, Kimberly Greene to succeed Evans as Chairman/President/CEO of Southern Company Gas, Stan Connally to succeed Greene as EVP/Operations & Chairman/President/CEO of Gulf Power, all effective 06/01/18. $SO PR link.

XCEL Energy(PBR241) hires Brett Carter to newly created position of EVP/Chief Customer and Innovation Officer. will assume many of the responsibilities currently held by Marvin McDaniel who is retiring 06/01/18. $XEL PR link.

Tapestry(PBR496) hires Eraldo Poletto as CEO/Brand President of Stuart Weitzman, effective 04/30/18, succeeds departing Wendy Kahn. $TPR PR link.

Welltower(PBR635) hires Keith Konkoli as SVP/Outpatient Medical & Real Estate Services, succeeds retiring Mike Noto. $WELL PR link.

H&R Block(PBR669) hires Vinoo Vijay as Chief Marketing Officer, effective 04/23/18. $HRB PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) co-founder and largest shareholder Elaine Wynn writes letter to the Board saying governance structure needs to be reformed and that the board of directors needs to be reconstituted immediately, recommends process to do so for voting at 2018 annual meeting. $WYNN PR link.

Nelnet(PBR972) mourns the passing away of co-founder/Board Vice Chairman and former CEO Stephen F. Butterfield. $NNI PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary March 2018 Private Housing Building Permits Issued Annual Rate is at 1,354,000, +2.5% from February 2018, +7.5% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

The US Federal Reserve says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Manufacturing Production % of Capacity was at 78.0%, February 2018was 77.7%, January 2018 77.1%, March 201775.5%. USFed PR link.

The Natl Assn of Home Builders/Wells Fargo March 2018 Housing Market Composite Indexis at 69, remains in solid territory, February 2018was 70, January 2018 71, March 2017 71. NAHB/WF PR link.

***Monday, April 16:

Merck(PBR70) shares surge anew on lung cancer advance on Keytruda results($MRK PR link.), while Bristol-Myers Squibb(PBR185)stock plummets with less positive Opdivoresults($BMY PR link.). MarketWatch PR link.

Goldman Sachs(PBR76) Bank USA Marcusunit acquires 1+ million customers personal finance app developer Clarity Money, terms not disclosed. $GS PR link.

American Express(PBR83) and Marriott International(PBR211) to launch new Starwood Preferred Guest® Luxury Credit Card in 08/18, $450 annual fee includes $300 in purchases credit, other benefits. $AXP PR link.

Icahn Enterprises(PBR147) to sell its majority owned subsidiary Tropicana Entertainment real estate to Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (NASDAQ:GLPI) and to merge its gaming and hotel operations into Eldorado Resort(NASDAQ:ERI) for an aggregate consideration of $1.85 billion, to close 2H18. $IEP PR link.

Goodyear Tire(PBR157) and Bridgestone Americas to form tire distribution joint venture called TireHub to serve US tire dealers and retailers, with an emphasis on satisfying rapidly growing demand for larger rim diameter premium tires, to be available around mid 2018. $GT PR link.

Group 1 Automotive(PBR276) expands in Brazil with Toyota and Honda dealerships in Sao Paulo area. $GPI PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) in deal with Merass Holdings to manage its first two non-gaming luxury hotels, Caesars Palace Bluewaters Dubai, and a beach club, Caesars Bluewaters Dubai, at Meraas’ Dubai-based Bluewaters Island development, starting in late 2018. $CZR PR link.

Boston Scientific(PBR356) acquires privately held nVision Medical, developed the first and only device cleared by the US FDA to collect cells from fallopian tubes, offering a potential platform for earlier diagnosis of ovarian cancer, for $150 million plus additional up to $125 million over four years for milestone achievements, potential $2 billion market. $BSX PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) says all litigation issues between WYNN, Kim Sinatra and Elaine Wynn have been resolved, no payments made. $WYNN PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) 1Q18 results show 125,000,000 total members, 118,900,000 paid, net additions of 7,410,000, forecasting 6,200,000 net additions for 2Q18. $NFLX PR link.

NASDAQ(PBR618) completes $335 million sale of its Corporate Solutions’ Public Relations Solutions and Digital Media Services units to West Corporation. $NDAQ PR link.

Tesla(PBR651 $TSLA) temporarily shutting down Model 3 production for 4-5 days.Buzzfeed PR link.

Tesla(PBR651) blog addresses recent Revealarticle critical about safety at Tesla, Tesla says its goal is to build “the safest factory on Earth.”$TSLA PR link.

Middleby(PBR865) acquires nitro coffee brew developer JoeTap, a subsidiary of A.C. Beverage, with its patented nitrogen infusion process that will be incorporated into a smaller footprint and with greater operator flexibility, terms not disclosed. $MIDD PR link.

Domino’s(PBR889) launches over 150,000 US hotspots for non-traditional ordering and delivery places, like parks, sports fields, and beaches. $DPZ PR link.

BlueLinx(PBR892) completes $413 million acquisition of building products wholesale distributor Cedar Creek, a portfolio company of Charlesbank Capital Partners. $BXC PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937)’ SG Digital unit has commenced OpenBet sportsbook product review sessions with the NJ Division of Gaming Enforcement, anticipating US Supreme Courtdecision to repeal the Professional and Amateur Sports Betting Association Act (PASPA). $SGMS PR link.

Sempra Energy(PBR254) hires Faisel H. Khan as VP/Investor Relations, succeeds recently retired Richard A. Vaccari. $SRE PR link.

Agilent Technologies(PBR364) SVP & President/Life Sciences and Analytical Group Patrick Kaltenbach leaving company 04/20/18, successor search starts. $A PR link.

Titan Intl(PBR910) notifies CFO James M. Froisland that his contract will not be renewed, expires 12/05/18, successor search starts. $TWI PR link.

Estee Lauder(PBR255) elects Jennifer Hyman, Co-Founder/CEO of Rent the Runway, and Jennifer Tejada, CEO of PagerDuty, to the Board. $EL PR link.

MasterCard(PBR291) hires former US Trade Representative Michael Froman as Vice Chairman and to the new role of President/Strategic Growth. $MA PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Business Sales were at $1.430 trillion, +0.4% from January 2018, +5.8% from February 2017, February 2018 Total Business Inventorieswere at $1.929 trillion, +0.6% from January 2018, +4.0% from February 2017. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Advance March 2018 Total Retail Sales were at $494.6 billion, +0.6% from February 2018, +4.5% from March 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York April 2018 Empire State Manufacturing Current Business Conditions Index is at 15.8, March 2018 was 22.5, February 2018 13.1, April 20174.1. NYFed PR link.

FannieMae(PBR17) revises forecast of US 2018 economic growth from +2.8% to a still strong +2.7%, predicts 2 federal funds interest rate hikes, expresses major concern that international trade wars could significantly alter results. $FNMA PR link.

***Friday, April 13:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 04/13/18:

It was just another typical week of volatility. Will the US and allies attack Syria or not over alleged chemical weapons use against civilians? As it turns out, late Friday there was a limited set of airstrikes by the US and its British and French allies on chemical weapons related facilities in Syria. The trade wars banter seemed to ease up a bit between the US and China and there might be an interest in joining the TPP. President Trump’s personal attorney’s officewas raided by the US Attorney General’s office. House Speaker Paul Ryan announces that he will not run for re-election and will retire as House Speaker in January. National Guard troops started deployments to the US/Mexico border. Former FBI director James Comeystirs up some controversy with excerpts and comments from his soon to be released book. Facebook Founder/Chairman/CEO Mark Zuckerberg faced hearings, made apologies, and promised policy changes over concerns of user privacy data capture and use that will affect many popular social media services. Corporate earnings reports were mixed, with financial services results disappointing on the last day of the week. US economic data continues to show moderate and stable growth. Signals from the Federal Reserve indicate more federal funds interest rate increases during the year. For the major US stock exchanges it was a mixed week with 3 days positive, 2 days negative, with the Stock Market Bull making a strong comeback after last week’s loss to notch its 9th win of 2018 in week 15. He also returns to be positive month-to-date as well, but still has ground to make up year-to-date for the DJIA and S&P500, and even more against all records.

DJIA ends the week at 24,360.14, +1.79% from last Friday, +1.07% MTD/QTD, -1.45% YTD, -8.48% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,106.65, +2.77% from last Friday, +0.61% MTD/QTD, +2.94% YTD, -6.35% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,656.30, +1.99% from last Friday, +0.58% MTD/QTD, -0.65% YTD, -7.54% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Sears(PBR93 $SHLD) closing its last store in the city of Chicago in 07/18. Chicago Sun-Times PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 04/20/18 5PM Eastern, 16.2% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

Facebook(PBR228) SEC filing shows that Founder/Chairman/CEO Mark Zuckerberg received $1 in compensation in 2017, $8.9 million for personal security related services. $FB PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) will license the Harrah’s brand name to the Buena Vista Gaming Authority as part of a new $168 million 71,000 sf casino development near the city of Buena Vista in N California. $CZR PR link.

Comcast(PBR42) and Netflix(PBR447) expand partnership following successful Xfinity X1integration. $NFLX PR link.

Adobe Systems(PBR557) appoints David “Dave” A. Ricks, Chairman/CEO of Eli Lilly(PBR142), to the Board. $ADBE PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Job Openings was at 6,051,000, -2.8% from January 2018, +7.7% from February 2017. USDOL PR link.

The U of Michigan Preliminary April 2018 Consumer Sentiment Index is at 97.8, March 2018 was 101.4, February 2018 99.7, March 2017 96.3. UMich PR link.

Gartner(PBR885) forecasts 2018 total global IT spending to grow by 6.2% to $3.7 trillion, 2019by 2.8%. $IT PR link.

***Thursday, April 12:

Amazon(PBR29) completes acquisition of home security products developer Ring, offering Ring Video Doorbell for $99.99. $AMZN PR link.

Wells Fargo(PBR30 $WFC) gets ultimatum from the 1.7 million members American Federation of Teachers that it must stop doing business with the NRA and gun manufacturers, will discontinue mortgage benefit program, used by 20,000 members, if they don’t. AFT PR link.

Broadcom(PBR152) authorizes up to $12 billion share repurchase program, expires 11/03/19. $AVGO PR link.

Franklin Resources(PBR315) authorizes new up to 80 million shares repurchase program with no expiration date, is in addition to 15.9 million shares remaining from previous program, 04/11/18 market close was at $32.48/share. $BEN PR link.

Essendant(PBR458) to acquire Genuine Parts(PBR191) $2.0 billion/year business products distributor S.P. Richards unit for $680 million, to close by end of 2018. $ESND PR link.

Sonoco Products(PBR480) completes $150 million acquisition of privately owned producer of thermoformed plastic packaging for fresh produce and dairy products, Plant City, FL, based $90 million in sales/2017, 425 employees Highland Packaging Solutions. $SON PR link.

Tesla(PBR651 $TSLA) withdraws formal cooperation with probe of fatal crash, will still assist investigators. MarketWatch PR link.

SemGroup(PBR866) completes sale of SemLogistics Milford Haven 8.5 million barrel fuel storage facility on the west coast of Wales, to Valero Energy(PBR13 $VLO) UK subsidiary, terms not disclosed. $SEMG PR link.

Lennar(PBR340) CEO Stuart Miller appointed Executive Chairman, President Rick Beckwitt appointed CEO, COO Jon Jaffe becomes President/COO, CFO Bruce Gross becomes CEO/Lennar Financial Services unit, Treasurer Diane Bessette becomes CFO/Treasurer in executive team restructuring. $LEN PR link.

Caterpillar(PBR54) Group President/Customer & Dealer Support Rob Charter to retire, Bob De Lange is named successor, Tom Pellette to succeed him as Group President/Construction Industries, Ramin Younessi to succeed him as Group President/Energy & Transportation, all effective 06/01/18. $CAT PR link.

Electronic Arts(PBR527) restructures leadership team, 8 people mentioned, includes Blake Jorgensen as COO/CFO, Chris Bruzzo as Chief Marketing Officer, Matt Bilbey joining as EVP/Strategic Growth. $EA PR link.

Polaris Industries(PBR531) hires Julie Gilbert to new position of Chief Customer Engagement and Growth Officer. $PII PR link.

Range Resources(PBR726) EVP/COO Ray Walker to retire effective 04/13/18, 42 years in the industry. $RRC PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) appoints Mark Garrett, former Adobe Systems(PBR557) EVP/CFO, to the Board. $CSCO PR link.

Sysco(PBR61) elects John M. Hinshaw, retired EVP/Technology and Operations and Chief Customer Officer of Hewlett Packard Enterprises(PBR95), to the Board. $SYY PR link.

Ciena Corp(PBR829) board member since 1994 Barry Cash passed away on 04/10/18. $CIEN PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary March 2018 Total Import Prices were +0.0%, February 2018 was +0.3%, January 2018+0.8%, March 2017 -0.2%, Last 12 Months+3.6%; March 2018 Total Export Prices were +0.3%, February 2018 +0.2%, January 2018+0.7%, March 2017 +0.1%, Last 12 Months+3.4%. USDOL PR link.

***Wednesday, April 11:

ExxonMobil(PBR2) says P’nyang field in Papua New Guinea has increased to 4.36 trillion cubic feet of gas, an 84% increase from a previous 2012 assessment, evaluating support of a 3-train LNG plant expansion concept. $XOM PR link.

CVS Health(PBR11) implementing new initiatives to reduce prescription drug prices, store locations to use CVS Pharmacy Rx Savings Finder. $CVS PR link.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37)’s Vision unit announces two-week reusable, spherical ACUVUE OASYS® with Transitions® Light Intelligent Technology™, contact lenses adjust to lighting situation, to be available 1H19. $JNJ PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) opens first store in Uruguay in capital city of Montevideo, plans to have 10 by 2020 with 130 employees. $SBUX PR link.

Carnival Corp(PBR184) increases quarterly dividend from $0.45/share to $0.50/share, re-authorizes of up to $1 billion in share repurchases. $CCL PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) partnering with Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics Co., Ltd. to commercialize a biosimilar to Humira® (adalimumab) developed by Fujifilm, Mylan will leverage its regulatory platform to seek approval and commercialize the product for $4.1 billion/year Humira market in Europe. $MYL PR link.

Tractor Supply(PBR436)‘s small-box pet specialty supply retailer Petsense unit to open a store in Gulf Breeze and Crestview to enter Florida market, currently has 172 stores in 27 states. $TSCO PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) to become official title sponsor of UK based Premiership Rugby, games televised in over 200 countries, over 2 million attendees at games last season. $AJG PR link.

Alexion Pharmaceutical(PBR840) to acquire Stockholm, Sweden, based biopharmaceutical company that develops novel therapies for patients with rare copper-mediated disorders Wilson Therapeutics(Nasdaq Stockholm: WTX) through tender offer valued at $855 million. $ALXN PR link.

KKR(PBR332) hires David Haines as Executive Chairman of the Global Spreads business, effective upon its $8.1 billion acquisition from Unilever. $KKR PR link.

Fiserv(PBR474) hires Kim Crawford Goodman as President/Card Services. $FISV PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary March 2018 Average Employee Current Weekly Earnings is at $925.29, +0.3% from February 2018, +3.3% from March 2017. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary March 2018 Monthly Consumer Price Index(aka inflation) was -0.1%, February 2018was +0.2%, January 2018 +0.5%, March 2017-0.3%, Last 12 Months was +2.4%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US March 2018 Total Federal Government Receipts Fiscal YTD(6 Months) were at $1.497 trillion, Outlays FYTD was $2.097 trillion, Deficit FYTD $599.7 billion, March 2017 FYTD Deficit was $526.9 billion. USTreasury PR link.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committeereleases the minutes from its 03/20-21/18 meeting, noted volatility in equity markets, labor markets continue to strengthen, real GDPgrew at moderate rate in 1Q18, actual path of the federal funds rate will depend on the economic outlook as informed by incoming data. FOMC PR link.

***Tuesday, April 10:

Walmart(PBR1) and delivery service Postmatesto expand Online Grocery Delivery option service to over 40% of the US, $9.95 delivery fee and $30 order minimum. $WMT PR link.

Kroger(PBR20) family of stores is hiring 11,000, includes 2,000 management positions. $KR PR link.

Humana(PBR58) acquires Orlando, FL, based 22 clinics serving 43,000 patients Family Physicians Group, terms not disclosed. $HUM PR link.

Icahn Enterprises(PBR147) to sell wholly owned subsidiary Federal-Mogul to Tenneco(PBR321) for $5.4 billion cash/stock, Tenneco to spin-off Federal-Mogul up into 2 separate independent public companies. $IEP PR link.

Booking(PBR319) announces milestone of five million reported listings in homes, apartments and other unique places to stay. $BKNG PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) to acquire global marketing rights to a once-monthly glatiramer acetateproduct, a therapy for multiple sclerosis, through investment/partnership with Israelicompany Mapi Pharma, terms not disclosed. $MYL PR link.

Spirit AeroSystems(PBR370) divests itself from Haeco Spirit AeroSystems (JinJiang) Co. Ltd, a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) joint venture in China, terms not disclosed. $SPR PR link.

Tesla(PBR651) gets purchase agreement to install a high-storage 212kW/840kWhr Tesla battery at BP Wind Energy’s Titan 1 Wind Farm in S Dakota, has 10 turbines on 7,500 acres, 25MW capacity, powers 6,700 homes. $TSLA PR link.

Sempra Energy(PBR254) to promote Joseph A. Householder to President/COO and Trevor I. Mihalik to EVP/CFO on 05/01/18, reiterates CEO succession plan. $SRE PR link.

Flowserve(PBR492) hires Elizabeth Burger as SVP/Chief Human Resources Officer, effective 04/16/18. $FLS PR link.

TEGNA(PBR622) hires Kurt Rao as Chief Technology Officer, effective 04/16/18. $TGNA PR link.

PerkinElmer(PBR838) hires James M. Mock as SVP/CFO, effective 05/01/18, to succeed retiring Andy Wilson. $PKI PR link.

Stepan(PBR904) hires Luis Rojo as VP/CFO, effective 04/30/18. $SCL PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary March 2018 Producer Price Index is at +0.3%, February 2018 was +0.2%, January 2018+0.4%, March 2017 +0.1%, Last 12 Months+3.0%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Wholesale Sales were at $495.9 billion, January 2018 was $490.9 billion, December 2017 $498.1, February 2017 $464.3 billion, % Change From February 2017 is +5.5%. USDOC PR link.

The US Congressional Budget Office forecasts 2018 Budget Deficit to be 4.2% of Gross Domestic Product, to grow to 5.1% of GDP in 2022. CBO PR link.

The Institute of International Finance says governments, businesses and individuals added $21 trillion of debt in 2017, bringing the total outstanding debt around the world to $237 trillion, the highest level on record. Yahoo Finance PR link.

CoreLogic says US January 2018 Home Mortgages 30 Days or More Delinquent was at 4.9%, December 2017 was 5.3%, November 2017 5.1%, January 2017 5.3%, Total US Homes In Foreclosure is at 0.6%. CoreLogic PR link.

Stocks Investing: Some interesting observations and comments from the investment team at Legg Mason(PBR709). $LM PR link.

***Monday, April 9:

***A PBRMarketTools Snapshot Summary.***

Snapshot 15 Summary: The PBR1000 March Top 5 By Market Capitalization(Rank, Company, PBR1000 Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 03/29/18 Market Capitalization):

1. Apple, PBR2, AAPL, $845 billion
2. Alphabet, PBR20, GOOG, $699 billion
3. Amazon, PBR7, AMZN, $693 billion
4. Microsoft, PBR29, MSFT, $688 billion
5. Berkshire Hathaway, PBR4, $485 billion

Range: $845 billion to $0.01 billion
Total The PBR1000 Market Capitalization:$25.2 trillion, -2.4% from 12/29/17, +15.4% from 12/30/16
Average: $25.2 billion
Median: $7.7 billion

The PBR1000 is used by astute business leaders and shrewd investors worldwide. Click here to find out more!

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Apple(PBR5) now globally powered by 100% renewable energy, currently has commitments from 23 suppliers to do so also. $AAPL PR link.

Nike(PBR98) acquires computer vision Tel Aviv, Israel, based Invertex to expand digital platform capabilities, terms not disclosed. $NKE PR link.

Leucadia Natl(PBR246) to sell 48% of National Beef to long-term strategic partner Marfrig for around $900 million cash, reducing Leucadia’s ownership in National Beef to 31%; also agrees to sell all its equity interests in Garcadia and its associated real estate to current partners, the Garff family, to net $425 million; to vote for company name change to Jefferies Financial Group Inc at 2018 annual meeting, ticker proposed to be NYSE: JEF; board approves up to 25 million share repurchase program from 12.5 million shares remaining from previous program. $LUK PR link.

Calumet Specialty(PBR431) acquires Irvine, CA, based private Biosynthetic Technologies, holds exclusive rights to patented technology that converts fatty acids found in plant and animal oils into high-performance synthetic oils that can be used in industrial lubricant, personal care and other chemical sectors, terms not disclosed. $CLMT PR link.

S&P Global(PBR477) completes $550 million cash/stock acquisition of Cambridge, MA, based provider of next-generation machine learning and analytics to the world’s premier financial institutions as well as the National Security community Kensho Technologies. $SPGI PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Houston, TX, based retail property/casualty broker serving Texas-based transportation clients, primarily long-haul truckers, Integrity Transportation Insurance Agency, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) in multi-year partnership to become Chicago Cubs’ official insurance brokerage, benefits and risk management services partner, west gate to be named “Gallagher Way”, also naming rights for left field bullpen door, and will do a videoboard feature sponsoring late inning insurance runs. $AJG PR link.

Bon-Ton Stores(PBR707) gets letter of intent to be purchased as a going concern in a Bankruptcy Court-supervised sale process by an investor group made up of DW Partners, Namdar Realty Group (including its partner Mason Asset Management) and Washington Prime Group, in the process of finalizing an asset purchase agreement in advance of 04/16/18 auction. $BONTQ PR link.

Dynegy(PBR777) $13.24/share in all stock deal with enterprise value of $20 billion merger into Vistra Energy Corp(NYSE: VST) is completed. $DYN PR link.

VeriFone(PBR858) to be acquired by private equity firm Francisco Partners for $23.04/share(a 54% premium from 04/09/18 closing price of $15.00), $3.4 billion cash, includes net debt, to close 3Q18. $PAY PR link.

Woodward(PBR888) to acquire Rolls Royce Power Systems unit fuel injection systems technology company 1,000 employees L’Orange GmbH for $859 million, has facilities in Germany, US, and China, did sales of $300 million in 2017. $WWD PR link.

E*Trade(PBR930) completes acquisition of $18.3 billion in institutional assets under custody, $1.6 billion in customer cash, 200 active registered investment advisors independent advisor custodian TCA, terms not disclosed. $ETFC PR link.

Caterpillar(PBR54) Group President/Customer & Dealer Support (C&DS) Rob Charter to retire 06/01/18 after 30+ years with the company, successor search starts. $CAT PR link.

Wynn Resorts(PBR427) promotes Corrine Clement to VP/Culture and Community, a new department. $WYNN PR link.

Cooper Tire & Rubber(PBR625) SVP/CFO Ginger Jones to retire as full-time executive later this year, to stay on until successor named. $CTB PR link.

Aerojet Rocketdyne(PBR969) hires Natalie Schilling as Chief Human Resources Officer. $AJRD PR link.

ServiceMaster(PBR704) appoints William(Bill) C. Cobb, former President/CEO of H&R Block(PBR669), to the Board. $SERV PR link.

FannieMae(PBR17) says US March 2018 Home Purchase Sentiment Index is at 88.3, February 2018 was 85.8, January 2018 89.5, March 2017 84.5. $FNMA PR link.

***Friday, April 6:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 04/06/18:

The first week of the month and quarter was a little bit like an April Fool’s Day joke, with the Stock Market Bear having Monday to himself on worries of international trade, but those fears subsided and the Stock Market Bull recovered the losses over the next three days. But after Thursday’s announcement that President Trump wanted to add tariffs on $100 billion of imports from China, and with a timid jobs report on Friday, the Stock Market Bear returned with a vengeance to easily claim the week as his.

DJIA ends the week at 23,932.76, -0.71% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, -3.18% YTD, -10.08% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 6,915.11, -2.10% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, +0.17% YTD, -8.87% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,604.47, -1.38% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, -2.59% YTD, -9.34% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Boeing(PBR27) gets deal from American Airlines(PBR69 $AAL) for 47 firm orders plus 28 options for Dreamliner 787s, order valued at $12+ billion, more than doubles AAL’s Dreamliner fleet. $BA PR link.

Merck(PBR70) and Incyte(Nasdaq:INCY) Phase 3 ECHO-301/KEYNOTE-252 studyresults evaluating Incyte’s epacadostat in combination with Merck’s KEYTRUDA® in patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma determined that the study did not meet the primary endpoint, study to be discontinued. $MRK PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 04/13/18 5PM Eastern, 16.1% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

BB&T(PBR277) Insurance Holdings unit to acquire Regions Financial(PBR450)‘s property and casualty and employee benefits products to businesses Insurance Group unit, has 60,000 clients in Southeast, Texas, and Indiana, terms not disclosed. $BBT PR link.

PriceSmart(PBR683) hires Maarten Jager as EVP/CFO, effective 04/24/18, succeeds retiring John Hefner. $PSMT PR link.

Roper Technologies(PBR614) elects Shellye L. Archambeau, most recently CEO of MetricStream, to the Board. $ROP PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US March 2018 Total Civilian Labor Force Employed was at 155,178,000, -37,000 from February 2018, +2,114,000 from March 2017, March 2018 Total Unemployed was at 6,585,000, -121,000 from February 2018, -586,000 from March 2017, March 2018 Unemployment Rate remains at 4.1%. USDOL PR link.

The US Federal Reserve Board says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Consumer Revolving Debt was at $1.031 trillion, Non-Revolving Debt $2.837 trillion, Total Consumer Debt $3.868 trillion, +0.3% from January 2018, +0.7% YTD, +5.1% from February 2017. USFed PR link.

***Thursday, April 5:

***A PBRMarketTools Snapshot Summary.***
Snapshot 13 Summary: The PBR1000 March Top 5 Stock Performers Since 12/30/16(15 Months)(Rank, Company, PBR1000 Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 03/29/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 12/30/16):

1. Weight Watchers, PBR985, WTW, $63.72, +457%
2. BlueLinx, PBR856, BXC, $32.59, +326%
3. Systemax, PBR903, SYX, $28.55, +226%
4. RH(Restoration Hardware), PBR820, RH, $95.28, +210%
5. Scientific Games, PBR699, SGMS, $41.60, +197%

Range: +457% to -99%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:623/1,000
Average: +17.0%
Median: +10.3%

The PBR1000 is used by astute business leaders and shrewd investors worldwide. Not a full Subscriber yet? Click here!

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CVS Health(PBR11) to expand ongoing efforts to educate patients about, and increase access to, the opioid overdose-reversal drug naloxone consistent with the Surgeon General’s Advisory on Naloxone and Opioid Overdoseissued today. $CVS PR link.

AT&T(PBR12) launches Vrio Corp IPO, holding company for AT&T’s Latin American digital entertainment services units, DIRECTV Latin America and SKY Brasil, NYSE: VRIO, Class A stock, $19-22. $T PR link.

Verizon(PBR15 $VZ) selling former AOL unit Moviefone to MoviePass owner Helios and Matheson Analytics(NASDAQ: HMNY) in cash and stock deal. $HMNY PR link.

JPMorgan Chase(PBR21) Chairman/CEO Jamie Dimon releases his 2017 annual report, was a good year for JPM during profound political and economic change around the world. $JPM PR link.

Alphabet(PBR44 $GOOG)’s Google unit gets open letter from 3,000 employees asking it to drop Pentagon ‘war’ drone program, Google responds. MarketWatch PR link.

Monsanto(PBR187) provides update on $128/share, $66 billion cash acquisition by Germany’s Bayer AG, says optimistic, Bayer leading the way on regulatory issues, may require some divestitures, to close in 2Q18. $MON PR link.

BlackRock(PBR252) provides its clients with an update on civilian firearms exposures in investment portfolios, has funds that does not include firearms. $BLK PR link.

Biogen(PBR282) and Samsung Bioepis get agreement in patent case with AbbVie (PBR136)for the commercialization of IMRALDI, a biosimilar referencing HUMIRA® (adalimumab), AbbVie will grant patent licenses for the use and sale of IMRALDI in Europe, on a country-by-country basis, and Biogen and Samsung Bioepis will make royalty payments to AbbVie. $BIIB PR link.

Sanmina(PBR401) facilities in Chennai, Indiabecome first Tier 1 Electronic Manufacturing Services company in India with both FDA Registration and Medical Design Registration. $SANM PR link.

NetApp(PBR405) authorizes additional $4 billion for share repurchase program, no expiration date. $NTAP PR link.

Intercontinental Exchange(PBR556) agrees to acquire the Chicago Stock Exchange, to close 2Q18, terms not disclosed. $ICE PR link.

Twitter(PBR735) releases 12th biannual Twitter Transparency Report, says suspended 1.2+ million accounts since 08/15 for terrorist content, provides updates on new transparency rules. $TWTR PR link.

GNC(PBR743) does master franchise agreement with Rapid Nutrition to market, sell and distribute GNC products through retail outlet expansion, e-commerce, and other potential distribution channels throughout Australia. $GNC PR link.

Synopsys(PBR879) replenishes share repurchase program back to $500 million. $SNPS PR link.

eBay(PBR163) hires Sukhinder Singh Cassidy to be president of its StubHub division, effective 05/02/18, succeeds Scott Cutler who recently became SVP and head of eBay’s Americas business unit. $EBAY PR link.

Campbell Soup(PBR326) announces strategic reorganization, appoints Luca Mignini as COO to oversee core businesses, doing search for someone to head up new Accelerator unit, Emily Waldorf appointed as SVP/Corporate Strategy. $CPB PR link.

Gannett(PBR414) President/USA TODAY NETWORK Maribel Perez Wadsworth now also Publisher, USA TODAY. $GCI PR link.

Adobe Systems(PBR557) promotes John Murphy to EVP/CFO, succeeds retiring Mark Garrett. $ADBE PR link.

Helmerich & Payne(PBR600) hires Mark W. Smith as CFO Designate effective 05/01/18, to succeed Juan Pablo Tardio as CFO upon his retirement on 06/30/18. $HP PR link.

Urban Outfitters(PBR638) says David McCreight, CEO of Anthropologie Group and President/Urban Outfitters, is departing 04/27/18, Hillary Super will be successor to lead the brand. $URBN PR link.

GoPro(PBR902) announces Eve Saltman has returned as VP, Corporate/Business Development and General Counsel. $GPRO PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Trade Exports were $204.5 billion, Trade Imports$262.0 billion, Trade Deficit $57.5 billion, February 2017 Trade Deficit was $44.4 billion; Total Trade Exports YTD(2 months) were $405.4 billion, Trade Imports YTD $519.7 billion, Deficit YTD is $114.3 billion, Deficit YTD 2017 $93.1 billion. USDOC PR link.

World Trade Organization: China files WTO complaint over the US’ tariff measures on Chinese goods. WTO PR link.

New China Tariffs Request: President Donald Trump requests tariffs on an additional $100 billion of Chinese goods. MarketWatch PR link.

***Wednesday, April 4:

***PBRMarketTools Special Report.***
Snapshot 12 Summary: The PBR1000 March Top 5 YTD(3 Months) Stock Performers(Rank, Company, PBR1000 Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 03/29/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 12/29/17):

1. BlueLinx, PBR856, BXC, $32.59, +234%
2. Alliance One, PBR894, AOI, $26.05, +97%
3. Eastman Kodak, PBR926, KODK, $5.35, +73%
4. Fossil, PBR671, FOSL, $12.70, +63%
5. Tenet Healthcare, PBR129, THC, $24.25, +60%

Range: +234% to -93%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:379/1,000
Average: -1.4%
Median: -3.2%

The PBR1000 is used by astute business leaders and shrewd investors worldwide. Not a full Subscriber yet? Click here!

******

CVS Health(PBR11) to phase in new program to focus on early identification of kidney disease and expansion of home dialysis equipment capabilities. $CVS PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) to open its 4th fulfillment center in Nevada in N Las Vegas, 800,000+ sf facility, to employ 1,000+ full-time. $AMZN PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142) paying $63 million upfront to Sigilon Therapeutics for development of encapsulated cell Diabetes 1 therapies, pay up to $410 million for reaching development and commercialization milestones, plus royalties on the commercial product, plus LLY making an undisclosed equity investment. $LLY PR link.

Facebook(PBR228) revises API, login, and other policies to protect user data, says Cambridge Analytica may have improperly collected data on up to 87 million people. $FB PR link.

JM Smucker(PBR437) to acquire privately held 700 employees Meadville, PA, based Ainsworth Pet Nutrition, LLC, maker of Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® pet food, for $1.7 billion, to close after 05/01/18; also reviewing strategic options, including a potential divestiture, for its US baking business that primarily encompasses products sold in US retail channels under the Pillsbury®, Martha White®, Hungry Jack®, White Lily®, and Jim Dandy®brands, represents $370 million annual revenues. $SJM PR link.

Michaels Cos(PBR503 $MIK) to add 300+ exclusive events/parties items from the new Martha Stewart Celebrations line through Sequential Brands Group(NASDAQ: SQBG), includes Cricut machine for custom projects. $SQBG PR link.

AMC Entertainment(PBR728) to open first movie theater after 35 year ban in Saudi Arabiain Riyadh on 04/18/18 under new license agreement, under Vision 2030 Saudi Arabiaeffort expects to have 350 cinemas and 2,500 screens by 2030. $AMC PR link.

SM Energy(PBR978) to sell remaining assets in the Williston Basin in Divide County, N Dakota, and the third-party operated assets Halff East in Upton County, TX, for a combined $292.3 million. $SM PR link.

3M(PBR92) promotes Kristen Ludgate to SVP/Human Resources, effective 07/01/18, succeeds retiring Marlene McGrath. $MMM PR link.

Macy’s(PBR97) CFO Karen Hoguet to retire in 02/19, has been CFO since 1997, successor search starts. $M PR link.

Nike(PBR98 $NKE) needs to promote more women and minorities, company’s HR chief says.MarketWatch PR link.

Bed Bath & Beyond(PBR240) appoints JB (Johnathan) Osborne, co-founder and CEO of Red Antler, to the Board, will stand for election at 2018 annual meeting. $BBBY PR link.

JetBlue(PBR429) board member since 2002 David Checketts to leave effective 05/17/18. $JBLU PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary February 2018 Manufacturing New Orders was $498.0 billion, +1.2% from January 2018, +7.1% from February 2017. USDOC PR link.

ADP(PBR235) says US Preliminary March 2018 Change In Private Sector Employmentwas +241,000, February 2018 was 246,000, January 2018 241,000, March 2017 122,000. $ADP PR link.

IHS Markit says US March 2018 Composite PMI Index is at 54.2, February 2018 was 55.8, January 2018 53.8, March 2017 53.0. IHS Markit PR link.

The Institute for Supply Management says the US March 2018 Non-Manufacturing ISM Index(>50% economy growing) is at 58.8%, February 2018 was 59.5%, January 201859.9%, March 2017 55.2%. ISM PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) releases “Profile of Today’s Renter,” says 67% of renters view renting as more affordable than owning a home. $FMCC PR link.

***Tuesday, April 3:

Target(PBR40 $TGT) adding three small-format stores in NYC, on the path to having 130 small format stores by end of 2019. MarketWatch PR link.

21st Century Fox(PBR91) issues statement regarding its proposed $14.8 billion cash acquisition of European entertainment 30,000 employee Sky plc, submits new revised set of remedies to maintain independence of Sky News, includes establishing Sky News as an independent entity with guaranteed funding for 15 years, or purchase by Walt Disney(PBR57), which has also expressed an interest in acquiring Sky. $FOX PR link.

VF Corp(PBR232) completes acquisition of private Auckland, New Zealand, based $150 million revenues/year 340+ employees natural materials high-performance outdoor clothing company Icebreaker Holdings, terms not disclosed. $VFC PR link.

Crown Holdings(PBR298) completes $3.91 billion acquisition of $2.3 billion/year global provider of transit packaging systems Signode Industrial Group Holdings from The Carlyle Group(PBR581). $CCK PR link.

Pentair(PBR363) board approves spin-off of nVent Electric plc as a public company, shares to start trading on 05/01/18 with ticker symbol NYSE: NVT, Pentair to continue as a global water company. $PNR PR link.

Ryder(PBR378) acquires 109 e-commerce fulfillment facilities across the US and Canada provider MXD Group for $120 million, Ryder now second largest last mile delivery provider of big and bulky goods. $R PR link.

W.R. Grace(PBR645) completes $416 million acquisition of Albemarle(PBR792)‘s polyolefin catalysts and components business. $GRA PR link.

Tesla(PBR651) releases 1Q18 production figures, 34,494 total vehicles, a 40% increase over 4Q17, 9,766 were Model 3‘s, now producing around 2,000 Model 3’s per week, expects to be at 5,000/week in about 3 months, and as result will not require an equity or debt raise this year. $TSLA PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) completes $800 million debt and cash acquisition of 1.6 million gross-square-foot InfoMart Dallas from ASB Real Estate Investments. $EQIX PR link.

Curtiss-Wright(PBR837) completes $212.5 million acquisition of Dresser-Rand Government Business, from a Siemens AGwholly-owned subsidiary. $CW PR link.

Charles River Labs(PBR900) completes $800 million cash acquisition of global biopharmaceutical and medical devices testing services provider MPI Research. $CRL PR link.

PSEG(PBR257) VP/Investor Relations Kathleen Lally to retire 06/30/18, Manager/Investor Relations Carlotta Chan to be successor. $PEG PR link.

Stryker Corp(PBR283) Group President/Global Quality and Business Operations Lonny Carpenter to retire on 03/31/18, Viju Menon hired as successor, effective 04/30/18. $SYK PR link.

DSW(PBR778) hires Drew Domecq as SVP/Chief Information Officer. $DSW PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) elects Christopher E. Herbert, Managing Director for Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, to the Board. $FMCC PR link.

The US Trade Representative releases proposed list of 1,300 separate tariff lines on approximately $50 billion worth of Chinese imports in response to China’s unfair trade practices related to the forced transfer of US technology and intellectual property, will undergo further review in a public notice and comment process, including a hearing, before final determinations are made. USTR PR link.

Automotive News says US March 2018 New Light Vehicle Sales were at 1,655,864, +26.9% from February 2018, +6.4% from March 2017; March 2018 Average Price was $35,285, -0.5% from February 2018, +2.0% from March 2017; Annual Sales Rate is at 17,490,000 vehicles. Automotive News PR link.

The US March 2018 PurdueU/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer Composite Index is at 135, February 2018 was 140, January 2018135, March 2017 124. PurdueU/CME Group PR link.

***Monday, April 2:

Snapshot 11 Summary: The PBR1000 March Top 5 Stock Performers (Rank, Company, PBR1000 Ranking by Revenues, Stock Symbol, 03/29/18 Stock Price, % Increase from 02/28/18):

1. BlueLinx, PBR856, BXC, $32.59, +116%
2. Veritiv, PBR318, VRTV, $39.20, +62%
3. Sears Hometown, SHOS, PBR830, $3.00, +43%
4. Crocs, PBR998, CROX, $16.25, +33%
5. Guess?, PBR807, GES, $15.79, +31%

Range: +116% to -33%
Number of Companies at 0% or Better:438/1,000
Average: -0.6%
Median: -0.8%

The PBR1000 is used by astute business leaders and shrewd investors worldwide. Not a full Subscriber yet? Click here!

GE(PBR9) to sell its Enterprise Financial Management (Revenue-Cycle, Centricity Business), Ambulatory Care Management (Centricity Practice Solution) and Workforce Management (formerly API Healthcare) assets comprising GE Healthcare’s Value-Based Care Division to private equity firm Veritas Capitalaffiliate for $1.05 billion in cash, to close in 3Q18. $GE PR link.

Energy Transfer Equity(PBR52) Partners unit completes $1.8 billion sale of compression business to USA Compression Partners(NYSE: USAC), ETE receives ownership interests in USAC general partner and 12.5 million shares of USAC. $ETE PR link.

Qualcomm(PBR106) extends $127.50/share tender offer for acquisition of NXP Semiconductors(NASDAQ: NXPI) to 04/06/18 5PM Eastern, 14.8% of the outstanding NXP common shares have been validly tendered. $QCOM PR link.

AFLAC(PBR121) completes AFLAC Japanbranch to subsidiary. $AFL PR link.

FirstEnergy(PBR195) files Chapter 11 bankruptcy for its First Energy Solutions and FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Companyunits, will be deconsolidated from FirstEnergy’s financial reporting, in discussions with noteholders, does not effect First Energy and its other subsidiaries. $FE PR link.

NGL Energy(PBR207) completes $200 million cash sale of portion of its Retail Propanebusiness across 10 states to a DCC plc division. $NGL PR link.

Sinclair Broadcast(PBR894) responds to criticism from media, says recent promotional announcements for its local news serve no political agenda, represents an effort to differentiate their award-winning news programming from other less reliable sources of information. $SBGI PR link.

Sonoco Products(PBR480) EVP/COO Rob Tiede now President/CEO as planned, succeeds retiring President/CEO Jack Sanders. $SON PR link.

Advance Auto Parts(PBR279) EVP/CFO Tom Okray departing, effective 04/15/18, SVP/Controller and Chief Accounting Officer Jeff Shepherd to also be interim CFO until successor named. $AAP PR link.

Celgene(PBR347) President/COO Scott A. Smith has departed, primary responsibilities being handled by Chairman/CEO Mark Alles, will modify executive team structure. $CELG PR link.

JetBlue(PBR429) hires Andres Barry as president of the airline’s new subsidiary, JetBlue Travel Products. $JBLU PR link.

UNISYS(PBR633) hires Katie Ebrahimi as SVP/Chief Human Relations Officer, effective 04/26/18, to succeed Dave Loeser. $UIS PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) to nominate David L. Atchison, an e-commerce marketing analytics executive with leading brands including Zulily and RedEnvelope, to the Board at the 2018 Annual Meeting, is the final independent nominee per cooperation agreement with Carl C. Icahn. $NWL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary February 2018 Total Construction Spending Annual Rate was at $1.273 trillion, +0.1% from January 2018, +3.0% from February 2017. USDOC PR link.

The Institute for Supply Management says the US March 2018 Manufacturing PMI Index(>50 expanding) is at 59.3%, February 2018 was 60.8%, January 2018 59.1%, March 201756.6%, 107th consecutive month of economic growth. ISM PR link.

IHS Markit says the US March 2018 Manufacturing PMI is at 55.6, highest since March 2015, February 2018 was 55.3, January 2018 55.5, March 2017 53.3. IHS Markit PR link.

***Friday, March 30:

***US Stock Markets Closed
***In Observance of Good Friday.

***Thursday, March 29:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week/Month/Quarter Ending 03/29/18

The business week comes to an end with the Stock Market Bull making a strong appearance after a few weeks of being a no-show. However, the Stock Market Bear dominated the monthso dramatically that it carried the quarter, and YTD with him. It really only took two or three weeks to do that, which is a little unsettling. What’s next? The predictions of expert prognosticators are all over the place and there is no clear direction. Let’s see what happens in April.

DJIA ends the week at 24,103.11, +2.42% from last Friday, -3.70% MTD, -2.49% QTD/YTD, -9.44% from record 26,616.71 set 01/26/18.

NASDAQ ends the week at 7,063.44, +1.01% from last Friday, -2.88% MTD, +2.32% QTD/YTD, -6.92% from record 7,588.32 set 03/12/18.

SPX ends the week at 2,640.87, +2.03% from last Friday, -2.69% MTD, -1.22% QTD/YTD, -8.08% from record 2,872.87 set 01/26/18.

Check out the BLOG page for the previous RECAPS and SNAPSHOTS posts.

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-444-2519.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, sheelamohan.)

Filed Under: Recaps Tagged With: acquisitions, Business, Business Intelligence, business news, DJIA, Economy, Leadership, mergers, Money, NASDAQ, Personal Finance, Rankings, Research, S&P 500, Stock Market, The PBR1000, Trading

The PBR1000 March 2018 Stocks & Commodities Snapshots

April 8, 2018 by admin

March 2018: The PBR1000 Gets A Big Stock Market Bear Hug.

Volatility is a favorite word for the Stock Market Bear, and it showed up often in March 2018.

By Larry C. Paxton

March featured another month of volatility from international trade as tariffs are threatened, the federal funds rate was increased with more anticipated during the year, there were more additions to the White House’s prestigious “You’re fired!” list, controversies surround the continuing investigation of Russia’s meddling in US elections, user privacy issues and data breaches continue to dog social media, retail and financial services, and the US President is being assaulted by the media for alleged personal indiscretions, but blows it off as he determinedly strives to achieve the agenda he promised his constituents. Confusion seems to reign in the hearts of investors so it was an easy second month in a row win for the Stock Market Bear.

On the other hand the economic data indicates continued moderate, consistent, and strengthening growth.

Mid-term elections should start heating up soon. It will be interesting to see how the voters respond to all of this in primary and the November general election as issues are debated and promises made by the candidates.

With volatility there are also new opportunities short and long term as the stock market and economy adjusts. It’s a good time to be a full Subscriber to The PBR1000 and The PBRMarketTools US Indices Snapshots!

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges March 2018 Summary

Number of Trading Days: 21

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 9+/12-; NASDAQ 11+/10-; SPX 9+/12-.

Record Days: DJIA 0, NASDAQ 2, SPX 0

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 2 days(03/05-06, 03/08-09, 03/15-16), NASDAQ 7 days(03/02-12), SPX 3 days(03/02-06)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 4 days(02/27-03/02), NASDAQ 3 days(02/27-03/01, 03/13-15, 03/21-23), SPX 4 days(03/12-15)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 5 days(03/02, 03/05, 03/09, 03/26, 03/29), mostly from international trade issues easing, N Korea willing to talk and give up its nuclear program, US/S Korea trade deal, economic data

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): 8 days(03/01, 03/07, 03/13, 03/14, 03/19, 03/22, 03/23, 03/27), mostly from international trade tariffs threatened, federal funds rate increase, technology/energy sector drops, White House staff turnover, President’s personal issues.

The PBR1000 March 2018 Snapshots

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 March 2018 Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on March 29, Month % Chg is compared to February 28, YTD % Chg is compared to December 29, 2017, and the 15 Months % Chg is compared to December 30, 2016. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the March 2018 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots and 25 rankings and the bonus The PBRMarketTools US Monthly Indices Snapshots.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +116% to -33%. 438 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a loss of 0.6%, the median was a loss of 0.8%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 03/29/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	15 Mos % Chg
BlueLinx	856	BXC	32.59	+116	+234	+336
Veritiv	318	VRTV	39.20	+62	+36	-27
Sears Hometown	830	SHOS	3.00	+43	+15	-36
Crocs	998	CROX	16.25	+33	+29	+137
Guess?	807	GES	15.79	+31	+23	+71

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +234% to -93%. 379 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a loss of 1.4%, the median was a loss of 3.2%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 03/29/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	15 Mos % Chg
BlueLinx	856	BXC	32.59	+116	+234	+336
Alliance One	894	AOI	26.05	+31	+97	+36
Eastman Kodak	926	KODK	5.35	+2	+73	-65
Fossil	671	FOSL	12.70	-5	+63	-51
Tenet Healthcare	129	THC	24.25	+18	+60	+63

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 15 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +457% to -99%. 623 out of 998 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 17.0%. The median was a gain of 10.3%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 03/29/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	15 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	985	WTW	63.72	-6	+44	+457
BlueLinx	856	BXC	32.59	+116	+234	+336
Systemax	903	SYX	28.55	-0	-14	+226
RH(Restoration Hardware)	820	RH	95.28	+12	+11	+210
Scientific Games	699	SGMS	41.60	-6	-19	+197

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $845 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $25.2 billion, median is $7.7 billion, out of 1,000 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 03/29/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	15 Mos % Chg
Apple	2	AAPL	845	-7	-3	+37
Alphabet	20	GOOG	699	-10	-4	+31
Amazon	7	AMZN	693	-5	+25	+94
Microsoft	29	MSFT	688	-5	+4	+42
Berkshire Hathaway	4	FB	485	-6	-1	+21
The PBR1000			25,202	-4	-2	+15

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 03/29/18	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	15 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	85,412.53	-0.6	-1.4	+17.0
DJIA	24,103.11	-3.7	-2.5	+17.6
NASDAQ	7,063.44	-2.9	+2.3	+31.2
S&P500	2,640.87	-2.7	-1.2	+18.0
GOLD	1,329.30	+0.9	+1.9	+15.4
SILVER	16.34	-0.4	-3.8	+2.2
OIL	64.91	+5.3	+8.0	+20.8

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-282-4100.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, ddpavumba.)

Filed Under: Snapshots Tagged With: Business, Business Intelligence, Commodities, DJIA, Economy, Investing, Money, NASDAQ, Personal Finance, Rankings, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000, Trading, Wealth Management

The PBR1000 October 2017 Stocks & Commodities Snapshots

November 8, 2017 by admin

October 2017: Stocks Have A Nice Gain To Start 4Q17.

The Stock Market Bull had an excellent October. Does he have the stamina to continue the run through the end of 2017 and into 2018?

By Larry C. Paxton

Stocks had a nice start to the new quarter, and there are some good reasons why. The economy continues to grow at a steady modest/moderate rate with some indications that it is strengthening. Unemployment is low, manufacturing and services industries continue to show growth, housing is in demand and inventories are low which will trigger growth in construction, consumer confidence indices are positive, just to name a few key economic drivers.

Many of President Trump’s promised initiatives are still mired in the mud pits of Congress, and perhaps rightfully so because they will cause significant change. But there does seem to be a possibility that tax reform could become a reality before the end of the year and that is creating some optimism as well.

There are, of course, also unpredictable counter forces. Natural disasters, geopolitical events, a burst of social upheavals caused by the increasing gap between the “haves” and “have nots.”

We have entered the favorite time of year for retailers. Forecasts are optimistic that consumers are anxious to use their new mobile and online purchasing tools to buy more than ever before.

What does that mean for investors in stocks? Many experts say that the US Stock Market Bull run that has lasted for several years must slow down, but others continue to say that the Bull is strong and has the endurance to run for a lot longer.

So, place you bets one way or the other. If you are undecided, then flip a coin, and flip it again to check your answer. However way you choose, we wish you the best! We also believe that a The PBR1000 Annual Subscription is a great investment in a tool to increase your probability of success, as has been proven over the years.

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges October Summary

Number of Trading Days: 22

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 16+/6-; NASDAQ 14+/8-; SPX 16+/6-.

Record Days: DJIA 12, NASDAQ 12, SPX 10

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 7(09/27/17-10/05/17), NASDAQ 9(09/26/17-10/06/17), SPX 8(09/26/17-10/05/17)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 2(10/06/17-10/09/17), NASDAQ 2(10/26/17-10/27/17), SPX 2(10/06/17-10/09/17)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 1, 10/27/17(NASDAQ +2.20%): Strong technology sector earnings reports.

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): None

The PBR1000 October Snapshots

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 October Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on October 31, Month % Chg is compared to September 29, YTD % Chg is compared to December 31, 2016, and the 22 Months % Chg is compared to December 31, 2015. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the October 2017 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots and 25 rankings.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +74% to -64%. 593 out of 1,002 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 2.0%, the median was a gain of 1.3%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 10/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	22 Mos % Chg
Bon-Ton Stores	714	BONT	0.75	+74	-49	-64
CalAtlantic	388	CAA	49.34	+35	+45	+30
Babcock & Wilcox	913	BW	4.38	+32	-74	-79
Restoration Hardware	810	RH	89.92	+28	+193	+13
Skechers USA	591	SKX	31.92	+27	+30	+6

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +292% to -82%. 650 out of 1,001 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 14.8%, the median was a gain of 9.9%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 10/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	22 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	986	WTW	44.92	+3	+292	+97
Scientific Games	693	SGMS	47.60	+4	+240	+431
Systemax	902	SYX	28.55	+8	+226	+232
Restoration Hardware	812	RH	89.92	+28	+193	+13
Tronox	820	TROX	26.47	+25	+157	+577

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 22 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +956% to -90%. 737 out of 998 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 28.3%. The median was a gain of 31.2%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 10/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	22 Mos % Chg
Chemours	447	CC	56.61	+12	+156	+956
Tronox	820	TROX	26.47	+25	+157	+577
NVIDIA	362	NVDA	206.81	+16	+94	+527
Scientific Games	693	SGMS	47.60	+4	+240	+431
Navistar	316	NAV	42.31	-4	+35	+379

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $873.13 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $24.9 billion, median is $6.1 billion, out of 1,002 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 10/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	22 Mos % Chg
Apple	4	AAPL	873.13	+10	+41	+49
Alphabet	27	GOOG	704.41	+6	+32	+35
Microsoft	28	MSFT	640.67	+12	+33	+45
Amazon	12	AMZN	530.95	+15	+49	+68
Facebook	95	FB	522.93	+5	+58	+77
The PBR1000			24,859.42	+2	+14	+23

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 10/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	22 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	84,470.31	+2.0	+14.8	+28.3
DJIA	23,377.24	+4.3	+18.3	+34.2
NASDAQ	6,727.67	+3.6	+25.0	+34.4
S&P500	2,575.26	+2.2	+15.0	+26.0
GOLD	1,270.50	-0.9	+10.3	+19.8
SILVER	16.69	+0.0	+4.4	+21.0
OIL	54.38	+5.3	+1.2	+46.8

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-282-4100.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, ddpavumba.)

Filed Under: Snapshots Tagged With: Business Intelligence, Commodities, DJIA, Economy, Investing, Market Research, Money, NASDAQ, Personal Finance, Rankings, Research, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000, Trading

The PBR1000 October 2017 Breaking News Recap

November 6, 2017 by admin

October 2017: The Last Quarter Starts

Economy Magnifier-Stuart Miles ID-100460418

The economy is the key indicator, and it continues to look good.

By Larry C. Paxton

The US economy showed no signs of letting up on its modest/moderate growth during October, though most of the data was prior to, or just after, the devastating hurricanes that hit the US and its territories in recent months. Nevertheless, economists seemed to be of the opinion that the rebuilding would mostly cancel out any temporary negative effects. The US stock exchanges had an excellent month, which perhaps helps validate that thought. The persistent question is how long can the run of the Stock Market Bull continue?

The PBR1000 companies continued to plod ahead without too many surprises. Retailers are making final preparations for the holiday buying season. It will be interesting to see what the ‘Amazon Effect’ is this year, but there is a sense there are some retailers who are finding ways to compete.

It continues to be hard to gauge the effects of President Trump’s agenda and the related actions of Congress on critical items, but some key issues will become prominent, especially as we enter the season for mid-term elections.

The world was relatively calm with fewer natural disasters, a toned down N Korea, and some key elections held in Japan and China that solidified leadership.

Here’s a quick October 2017 summary on items reported that relate to The PBR1000:

The PBR1000 Mergers & Acquisitions: 24 deals worth at least $1 billion initiated, closed, or updated. Total transaction value was $199 billion.

The PBR1000 Spinoffs: 4

The PBR1000 Share Repurchase Programs: 10 announcements, total $32.2 billion.

The PBR1000 Bankruptcies: 1 initiated or updated

The PBR1000 CEO Changes: 11 announced.

Jobs/Wages: 4.2% unemployment rate, modest wage growth.

US Economy: Modest/moderate growth continues, stable but fragile.

Federal Reserve Federal Funds Rate Changes: No change, remains 1.00-1.25%, an increase possible at FOMC meeting in December, 2017.

US Stock Market Exchanges: All three US major stock exchanges established new closing records during the month. The Stock Market Bull easily won October(See The PBR1000 October Stocks/Commodities Snapshots blog post.)

The PBR1000 Additions: 3, Chemours(PBR447 $CC), First Data Corp(PBR231 $FDC), Michael Kors(PBR519 $519).

The PBR1000 Removals: 1, West Corp(PBR787 $WSTC), acquired by Apollo Global Management(PBR843 $APO).

US News: Las Vegas concert shooting; President Trump visits hurricane ravaged Puerto Rico, Las Vegas after shooting; House and Senate pass budget proposal; California wildfires; Hurricane Nate; Harvey Weinstein and other notables sexual harassment scandals; President Trump decertifies Iranian nuclear treaty; NAFTA talks pushed into 2018; President Trump declares opioid crisis; partial release of JFK assassination papers; Manhattans killed in truck incident; Russian involvement in US election investigation still in progress.

International News: Catalan votes for independence from Spain; Japan earthquake; Brexit issues; Japan snap election, Abe gets decisive win; China election, Xi extends powerbase; European Central Bank extends quantitative easing program by 9 months; Australian government loses majority.

The PBR1000 October Breaking News Items

Here are The PBR1000 corporate and economic related breaking news items of interest with hotlinks to the sources for October 2017, starting with the last active business day.

***Tuesday, October 31:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for October Ending 10/31/17:
DJIA ends at 23,377.24, -0.24% from last Friday, +4.34% MTD/QTD, +18.29% YTD, -0.28% from record 23,441.76 set 10/24/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,727.67, +0.39% from last Friday, +3.57% MTD/QTD, +24.98% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,727.67 set 10/31/17.
SPX ends at 2,575.26, -0.23% from last Friday, +2.22% MTD/QTD, +15.03% YTD, -0.23% from record 2,581.07 set 10/27/17.

IBM(PBR25) authorizes additional $3 billion for share repurchase program, balance is now $4.5 billion. $IBM PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) to open new fulfillment center in Macon, GA, to create 500+ fulltime positions. $AMZN PR link.

Walgreens Boots Alliance(PBR36) completes 10 year global agreement for Fareva to take ownership of BCM, Walgreens Boots Alliance’s contract manufacturing business, which operates factories in the UK, France and Germany, for the manufacture and supply of own beauty brands and private label products, including products for sale in the USA. $WBA PR link.

Energy Transfer Equity(PBR52) Partners unit completes $1.57 billion sale of its 32.44% stake in Rover Pipeline Project to Blackstone(PBR352) Energy Partners. $ETE PR link.

HCA(PBR75) authorizes additional up to $2 billion share repurchase program, balance now is $2.15 billion. $HCA PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) and Kirin Holdings joint venture Kirin-Amgen to become a wholly owned subsidiary of Amgen, $780 million payment to be funded from joint venture cash holdings. $AMGN PR link.

ADP(PBR235) to submit complaint to SEC claiming Pershing Square‘s Bill Ackman statements have been false and misleading during proxy battle for 11/07/17 annual meeting. $ADP PR link.

Stanley Black & Decker(PBR240) to open in early 2018 a new 300,000 sf manufacturing facility in Mission, TX, to create 450 jobs. $SWK PR link.

Hormel Foods(PBR293) to acquire premium deli meat and salami $300 million revenues/year company Columbus Manufacturing from Arbor Investments for $850 million. $HRL PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) responds to proposed amendments to civil complaint filed in US District Court against Mylan and 17 other pharmaceutical companies regarding price fixing, denies charges, plans to defend. $MYL PR link.

Symantec(PBR385) completes $950 million sale of its Website Security and related PKI solutions to Lehi, UT, based DigiCert, gets about a 30% equity stake in DigiCert common stock, part of Symantec plan to be focused on cloud generation Integrated Cyber Defense Platform. $SYMC PR link.

Netflix(PBR447 $NFLX) suspends production of its popular ‘House of Cards’ for season 6 amid a sexual assault allegation against its star Kevin Spacey. MarketWatch PR link.

Envision Healthcare(PBR581) 3Q17 report says operations disrupted by Hurricanes Harvey & Irma, initiates a full review of a broad range of alternatives. $EVHC PR link.

MRC Global(PBR664) elects Deborah Adams, former Phillips 66(PBR7) executive, to the Board. $MRC PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US National Debt on 10/30/17 was $20.453 trillion, +1.0% from 09/29/17, +2.4% Calendar YTD, +3.3% from 10/31/16. Treasury PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US 3Q17 Employment Cost Index for All Civilian Laborers(2005=100) is at 130.6, 2Q17 was 129.7, 3Q16 127.4. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US 3Q17 Total Housing Units at 136.7 million, Occupied at 119.1 million, Occupancy Rate87.1%, Owner Occupied at 76.1 million, Renter Occupied 42.9 million, Home Ownership Rateat 63.9%, 2Q17 was 63.7%, 3Q16 63.5%. USDOL PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago says 7th District Preliminary September Midwest Economic Index is at +0.09, August was +0.08, July +0.28, September 2016 -0.05. ChiFed PR link.

The Conference Board US Preliminary October Consumer Confidence Index(1985=100) is at 125.9, highest since 12/2000, September was 120.6, October 2016100.8. TCB PR link.

The MNI Chicago October Business Barometer hits 66.2, highest since 03/11, September was 65.2, August 58.9, October 2016 50.6. MNI/ISM Chicago PR link.

The US August S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index(01/2000=100) is at 195.05, July was 194.01, June 192.66, August 2016 183.88. Case-Shiller PR link.

The American Automobile Assn says US Average Regular/Gallon Gas Price on 10/31/17 was $2.469, -3.9% from 09/29/17, +11.7% from 10/31/16. AAA PR link.

***Monday, October 30:

Amazon(PBR29) to move Amazon Studios, IMDb, Amazon Video and World Wide Advertising units into historic Hollywood location 280,000 sf The Culver Studios. $AMZN PR link.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37)’s Janssen unit receives US FDA approval for new 10 mg dosing for XARELTO® (rivaroxaban) to reduce the continued risk of Venous Thromboembolism (VTE). $JNJ PR link.

Andeavor(PBR71) completes incentive distribution rights for 59% buy-in after Andeavor Logistics(NYSE: ANDX) completes acquisition of Western Refining Logistics(NYSE: WNRL) for $1.7 billion(includes debt). $ANDV PR link.

CenturyLink(PBR160) gets last required regulatory approval for $66.50/share, $34 billion acquisition of Level 3 Communications(PBR375) from the US Federal Communications Commission, to close transaction on 11/01/17. $CTL PR link.

JCPenney(PBR234) partners with LEGO to offer LEGO building bricks and playsets in 875 toy shops inside JCPenney stores starting in November and online in December. $JCP PR link.

Lennar(PBR340) to acquire CalAtlantic(PBR799) for $51.34/share, $9.3 billion cash/stock, includes $3.6 billion debt, will create the nation’s largest homebuilder, to close 1Q18. $LEN PR link.

Constellation Brands(PBR377) invests $300 million for 9.9% ownership stake in Ontario, CAN, based medicinal cannabis products provider Canopy Growth Corp. $STZ PR link.

Owens Corning(PBR465) to acquire $480 million revenues/2017 1,800+ employees mineral wool insulation for building and technical applications in Europe producer Paroc Groupfrom CVC Capital Partners for $1.05 billion, to close in early 2018. $OC PR link.

Rent A Center(PBR657) to explore strategic and financial alternatives, Steven Pepper resigns as Chairman & director as a result of decision. $RCII PR link.

Analog Devices(PBR701) and China Mobile Communications Corp IoT unit sign Memorandum Of Understanding to collaborate to develop IoT solutions for customers across industries from the sensor level through to the cloud. $ADI PR link.

Dynegy(PBR777) to merge into Vistra(NYSE: VST) for $13.24/share in all stock deal with enterprise value of $20 billion. $DYN PR link.

CarMax(PBR202) EVP/COO Cliff Woods to retire in summer 2018, to be succeeded by EVP/Strategy & Business Transformation Ed Hill. $KMX PR link.

Diplomat Pharmacy(PBR515) hires Robyn Peters as EVP/Sales & Payor Strategies. $DPLO PR link.

Scholastic Corp(PBR926) promotes Kenneth Cleary to CFO, succeeds terminated Maureen O’Connell. $SCHL PR link.

CoreCivic(PBR965) EVP/Chief Corrections Officer Harley Lappin to retire effective 01/01/18, to be succeeded by SVP/Operations Patrick Swindle. $CXW PR link.

GATX(PBR995) EVP & President/Rail International James Earl to retire effective 03/01/18, to be succeeded by N Gokce Tezel. $GATX PR link.

NCR(PBR383) elects Matt Thompson, EVP/Field Operations for Adobe Systems(PBR577), to the Board. $NCR PR link.

Noble Energy(PBR471) elects Holli Ladhani, Chairman/President/CEO of Rockwater Energy Solutions, to the Board. $NBL PR link.

Sprouts(PBR688) appoints Joe O’Leary, former PetSmart executive, to the Board. $SFM PR link.

PerkinElmer(PBR839) elects Pascale Witz, a widely experienced commercial healthcare executive, to the Board. $PKI PR link.

GoPro(PBR902) appoints Rick Welts, President/COO of the Golden State Warriors professional basketball team, to its Board. $GPRO PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says the US Preliminary September Total Personal Income Annual Rate is $16.533 trillion, +0.4% from August, +2.3% from September 2016, Personal Savings Rate at 3.1%, Effective Tax Rate 12.5%. USDOC PR link.

***Friday, October 27:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 10/27/17:
DJIA ends at 23,434.19, +0.45% from last Friday, +4.59% MTD/QTD, +18.58% YTD, -0.03% from record 23,441.76 set 10/24/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,701.26, +1.09% from last Friday, +3.16% MTD/QTD, +24.49% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,701.26 set 10/27/17.
SPX ends at record 2,581.07, +0.23% from last Friday, +2.45% MTD/QTD, +15.29% YTD, +0.00% from record 2,581.07 set 10/27/17.

ExxonMobil(PBR2) with recent agreements now has 1.4+ million net acres offshore from Brazil, over 2 billion barrels of high quality oil reserves. $XOM PR link.

Amazon(PBR29)’s Whole Foods unit having a National Hiring Day on 11/02/17, looking to hire 6,000+ people for part/full time positions. $AMZN PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR161) 3Q17 report says restructuring, $150 million cost reduction initiative to include laying off 1,300 positions, appoints James Bierman, former President/CEO of Owens & Minor(PBR292) to the Board. $THC PR link.

Huntsman(PBR244) and Swiss based Clariant (SIX: CLN) agree to abandon $20 billion merger of equals, based on activist investor opposition. $HUN PR link.

Mylan(PBR346)’s EpiPen4Schools® Program surpasses one million free Epinephrine Auto-Injector donations to US schools. $MYL PR link.

XCEL Energy(PBR241) EVP & Group President/Utilities and Chief Administrative Officer Marvin McDaniel Jr to retire 2Q18. $XEL PR link.

Delek US(PBR536) & Delek Logistics hires Melissa Buhrig as EVP/General Counsel & Secretary. $DK PR link.

Interpublic(PBR350) appoints Patrick Q. Moore, EVP/Strategy and Business Development of Carters(PBR699), to the Board, effective 01/01/18. $IPG PR link.

AMC Entertainment(PBR728) board member Jack Q. Gao resigns along with all other boards affiliated with parent Chinese private conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group. $AMC PR link.

Schnitzer Steel(PBR764) appoints Rhonda D. Hunter, SVP at Weyerhauser(PBR355), to the Board. $SCHN PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce US Advance Estimate 3Q17 Gross Domestic Product is +3.0%, $19,495.5 trillion, +1.3% from 2Q17, +4.1% from 3Q16. USDOC PR link.

The U of Michigan US Final October Consumer Sentiment Index is at 100.7, September was 95.1, August 96.8, October 2016 87.2. UMich PR link.

***Thursday, October 26:

Comcast(PBR42) in 3Q17 nets 115,000 new customer relationships, total is now 29.1 million, revenues through 9 months at $62.6 billion, +5.4% from 2016. $CMCSA PR link.

Cognizant(PBR272) to acquire London, UK, based 220 digital agency experts independent full-service digital agency firm Zone, to close in 4Q17, terms not disclosed. $CTSH PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) wins UK court ruling related to Copaxone® 40 mg/mL Patent. $MYL PR link.

Hershey(PBR354) authorizes additional $100 million share repurchase program, to start after current authorization is completed. $HSY PR link.

Intuit(PBR529) to acquire cloud-based SaaS technology provider of sales and use tax calculation and filing Exactor, to be integrated into Quickbooks Online, terms not disclosed. $INTU PR link.

Perrigo(PBR565) settles Hatch-Waxman litigation relating to Onexton® Gel (clindamycin phosphate 1.2% and benzoyl peroxide 3.75%) brought by Valeant Pharmaceuticals NA and Dow Pharmaceutical Sciences, details not disclosed. $PRGO PR link.

Twitter(PBR735) in 3Q17 report says Monthly Active Users were at 330 million, +4% from 3Q16, revenues were $590 million, -4% from 3Q16. $TWTR PR link.

Hologic(PBR767) gets US FDA clearance for Paraflu Assay on Panther Fusion® system. $HOLX PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) opening $98.5 million International Business Exchange™ (IBX®)data center, named DC12, at Ashburn campus in Virginia. Now operates 14 IBX data centers in the Washington, D.C. area. $EQIX PR link.

Deckers Outdoor(PBR929) in 2Q18 report says it has authorized an additional $335 million for share repurchase program, balance is now $400 million. Also states it is no longer actively pursuing a sale of its business. $DECK PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) gets new Kansas Lottery‘s 10 year systems contract, implementation planned for 07/18, will replace current supplier. $SGMS PR link.

Hewlett Packard Enterprises(PBR56) hires Archana “Archie” Deskus as Global Chief Information Officer. $HPE PR link.

Community Health Systems(PBR125) Division II President Michael Portacci to retire 12/01/17. $CYH PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) promotes Jessica Neal to Chief Talent Officer. $NFLX PR link.

Suburban Propane(PBR901) promotes SVP/Operations Steven C. Boyd to COO. $SPH PR link.

Chevron(PBR3) elects John B. Frank, Vice Chairman of Oaktree Capital Management, to the Board. $CVX PR link.

Equifax(PBR795) appoints Scott A. McGregor, former CEO of Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO), to the Board. $EFX PR link.

The US Dept of Labor reports that US Initial Unemployment Claims 4 Week Moving Average on 10/14/17 was 239,500, -13.8% from 09/16/17, -5.3% from 10/15/16. USDOL PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) says US Average 30 Year Fixed Mortgage Rate on 10/26/17 was 3.94% with 0.5 points/fees, was 3.83% on 09/28/17, 3.47% on 10/27/16. $FMCC PR link.

***Wednesday, October 25:

Amazon(PBR29) launches Amazon Key for Prime members, initially in 37 cities, enables in-home delivery and secure home access for guests and service appointments, available starting 11/08/17. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) announces CloudCam security camera, works with Alexa, one for $119.99, 3 for $289.99, available 11/08/17. $AMZN PR link.

American Airlines(PBR69) Chairman/CEO Doug Parker responds to NAACP travel advisory in letter to employees. $AAL PR link.

Sprint(PBR86) total 3Q17 wireless net additions was 378,000, 54,027,000 total connections, 3Q16 was 53,962,000. $S PR link.

Sears(PBR93) releases reinvented 120 page 2017 Wish Book catalog for the holidays, first release since 2011. $SHLD PR link.

Nordstrom(PBR214) aiming to fill 13,650 positions before the holidays. $JWN PR link.

CSX(PBR226) authorizes new $1.5 billion share repurchase program. $CSX PR link.

Sanofi(EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY) files suit against Mylan(PBR346 $MYL) in US District Court to defend 18 patent rights on Lantus® and Lantus® SoloStar®. $SNY PR link.

Orbital ATK(PBR655) delivers 100,000th Hellfire rocket motor. $OA PR link.

Intl Flavors & Fragrances(PBR666) commissioning a new fragrance ingredients 165,000 sq meters plant in Jiande, located in China’s Zhejiang Province. $IFF PR link.

Mondelez(PBR87) hires Glen Walter as EVP & President/N America. $MDLZ PR link.

CSX(PBR226) hires James Foote as COO, succeeds departing EVP/COO Cindy Sanborn and EVP/Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Fredrik Eliasson, effective 11/15/17. EVP/Law & Public Affairs, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary Ellen M. Fitzsimmons retiring effective 11/08/17, to be succeeded by Nathan Goldman. $CSX PR link.

Essendent(PBR458) interim President/CEO Richard Phillips elected President/CEO. $ESND PR link.

The Carlyle Group(PBR581) announces Kewsong Lee & Glenn Youngkin to become Co-CEOs, Peter Clare to join William Conway, Jr, as Co-Chief Investment Officer, Daniel A. D’Aniello to become Chairman Emeritus & remain on Board, current Co-CEOs David M. Rubenstein and William E. Conway, Jr. will become Co-Executive Chairmen, all effective 01/01/18. $CG PR link.

New York Times(PBR971) EVP/CFO James Follo to retire in early 2018. Successor search starts. $NYT PR link.

EMCOR(PBR392) elects William Reid, former CEO of EMCOR Industrial Services, to the Board. $EME PR link.

Olin Corp(PBR838) elects Earl L. Shipp, former Dow Chemical VP/US Gulf Coast Operations, to the Board. $OLN PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary September New Family Homes Sales Annual Rate is at 667,000 units, +18.9% from August, +17.0% from September 2016, Median Price $319,700, +5.2% from August, -1.2% from September 2016, New Houses Available at 279,000, 5.0 Months Supply. HUD PR link.

The US Energy Information Administrationsays US 10/20/17 Crude Oil Reserves were at 457.3 million barrels, -2.9% from 09/22/17, -2.3% from 10/21/16. EIA PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) Rental Housing Surveyfinds affordability driving demand for rental housing, highlights changing preferences towards renting among all demographics. $FMCC PR link.

***Tuesday, October 24:

AT&T(PBR12) 3Q17 report shows revenue decline primarily because of wireline declines, had 3.0 million net adds for wireless services, Nearly 300,000 DIRECTV NOW net adds balances traditional TV subscriber declines. $T PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) celebrates 10 years in Arizona, employs 6,000, to open a new center in Phoenix area, refurbish original Valley location, add 1,000+ more fulltime jobs. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) launches Business Prime Shipping, $499/10 users and other options annual subscription in the US and Germany, includes unlimited free 2 day shipping in the US. $AMZN PR link.

Anthem(PBR38) to acquire Florida based 130,000 members privately‐held for‐profit Medicare Advantage organization America’s 1st Choice, terms not disclosed, to close 1Q18. $ANTM PR link.

International Paper(PBR117) to sell majority interest in its N America Consumer Packaging business, with 3,900 employees in 10 locations in US and UK, to Graphic Packaging(PBR553) for $1.8 billion, will retain 20.5% stake. $IP PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142) in 3Q17 report says reviewing strategic alternatives for Elanco Animal Health unit, including an initial public offering, merger, sale, or retention of the business. $LLY PR link.

Cognizant(PBR272) to acquire Zurick, Switzerland, based 380 employees digital experience and marketing solutions provider Netcentric, terms not disclosed. $CTSH PR link.

Pentair(PBR363) to file Form 10 for spin-off Electrical business as a separate public company called nVent, remain a public Water company, still planned for 2Q18. $PNR PR link.

New York Times(PBR971) to transfer pension benefits and annuity administration for approximately $225 million in pension obligations in agreement with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. $NYT PR link.

AIG(PBR46) hires Thomas Leonardi as EVP/Government Affairs, Public Policy and Communications, effective 11/01/17. $AIG PR link.

Patterson Cos(PBR542) hires Mark Walchirk as President/CEO, effective 11/20/17, succeeds interim CEO Jim Wiltz who will remain on the Board. $PDCO PR link.

TriNet(PBR659) hires Barrett Boston as SVP/Chief Revenue Officer. $TNET PR link.

Whiting Petroleum(PBR667) hires Bradley Holly as President/CEO, effective 11/01/17, to succeed retiring James Volker. $WLL PR link.

Express Scripts(PBR860) moves EVP James M. Havel to EVP/CFO, succeeds Eric Slusser who will be leaving at end of 1Q18. $ESRX PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) appoints Dr. Wanda Austin, retired President/CEO of The Aerospace Corporation, to the Board, to be effective in 12/17. $AMGN PR link.

Ball Corp(PBR312) elects Cathy D. Ross, retired EVP/CFO of FedEx(PBR65) Express, and Pedro Henrique Mariani, Chairman of Banco BBM, to the Board. $BLL PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond 5th District September Manufacturing Index(Annualized) is at +12%, August was +19%, July +14%, September 2016 -6%; The September Service Sector Revenue Index is at +24%, August was +22%, July +22%, September 2016 +10%. RichmondFed PR link.

***Monday, October 23:

AT&T(PBR12) $85.4 billion cash/stock acquisition of Time Warner(PBR103) termination date extended for a short while to get US regulatory approval. $T PR link.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37)’s Janssen unit receives 2 US FDA approvals for Simponi aria® (Golimumab) for treatment of adults with active Psoriatic Arthritis or active Ankylosing Spondylitis. $JNJ PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) to acquire cloud PBX, unified communications, team collaboration, and contact center solutions for businesses and service providers across 80 countries BroadSoft (NASDAQ: BSFT) for $55/share, $1.9 billion net of cash, to close 1Q18. $CSCO PR link.

Delta(PBR72) to hire 1,000 flight attendants in 2018, had 150,000 applicants in 2017. $DAL PR link.

T-Mobile(PBR95) 3Q17 report shows 1.3 million total net additions – 18 straight quarters of adding more than 1 million, ends with 70,731,000 total customers. $TMUS PR link.

Hartford Financial(PBR152) to acquire Aetna(PBR49)’s US Group Life and Disability business for $1.45 billion cash, expected to close early 11/17. $HIG PR link.

eBay(PBR163) StubHub unit gets multi-year agreement with Natl Football League to be its NFL Authorized Ticket Resale Marketplace starting with the 2018-2019 season. $EBAY PR link.

ConAgra(PBR166) completes acquisition of Angie’s Artisan Treats, the maker of Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP ready-to-eat popcorn, from TPG Growth, terms not disclosed. $CAG PR link.

CarMax(PBR202) to hire 2,000+ for long-term positions by 12/31/17. $KMX PR link.

Praxair(PBR233) merger with Germany based Linde AG(Xetra: LIN) to become a $30 billion/year Linde plc exchange offer minimum ratio changed from 75% to 60%, original acceptance period extended from 10/24/17 to 11/07/17 midnight. $PX PR link.

Hess(PBR248) to sell its oil and gas interests in Norway to Aker BP ASA for $2 billion; commences sale of Denmark assets. $HES PR link.

XPO Logistics(PBR321) to hire 6,000 seasonal workers in anticipation of expansion of e-commerce sales. $XPO PR link.

LKQ(PBR376) to acquire Dover(PBR343) subsidiary Warn Co, 350+ employees designer, manufacturer and marketer of high performance vehicle equipment and accessories, terms not disclosed. $LKQ PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) to offer $1.6 billion for 4.875% senior notes, to close 10/26/17, 04/15/28 mature date, proceeds to be used for general corporate purposes. $NFLX PR link.

NASDAQ(PBR618) completes acquisition of global content and analytics for institutional investors provider eVestment, terms not disclosed. $NDAQ PR link.

HB Fuller(PBR870) completes $1.575 billion acquisition of South Bend, IN, based $650 million/year, 1,500 employees in 5 countries Royal Adhesives & Sealants. $FUL PR link.

Kroger(PBR20) EVP/Retail Operations Fred Morganthall to retire after 31 years of service, effective 11/30/17, EVP/Merchandising Mike Donnelly to assume responsibility for both operations as EVP/COO, effective 11/01/17. $KR PR link.

Coca-Cola(PBR63) President/N America J. Alexander “Sandy” Douglas Jr to retire on 03/01/18, will be succeeded by James L. “Jim” Dinkins who will assume new responsibilities on 01/01/18. $KO PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR161) CEO Trevor Fetter steps down & resigns from Board as planned, Executive Chairman Ronald A. Rittenmeyer appointed CEO until permanent successor appointed. $THC PR link.

Arconic(PBR215) to hire Charles “Chip” Blankenship as CEO, effective 01/15/18, will succeed interim CEO and director David Hess, who will remain on the Board, director John Plant appointed Chairman, effective immediately. $ARNC PR link.

Arconic(PBR215) appoints Eric Roegner as EVP & Group President/Engineered Products and Solutions, succeeds leaving Karl Tragl, Tim Myers appointed EVP & Group President/Global Rolled Products and Transportation & Construction Solutions. $ARNC PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) hires Chris Holdren as Chief Marketing Officer, effective 11/01/17. $CZR PR link.

Diebold Nixdorf(PBR676) promotes Patty Lang to VP/Chief People Officer. $DBD PR link.

Blackhawk Network(PBR998) hires Charles Garner as CFO, to succeed retiring Jerry Ulrich. $HAWK PR link.

Delta(PBR72) appoints former US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter to the Board. $DAL PR link.

Stanley Black & Decker(PBR249) elects Nike(PBR98) CIO Jim Scholefield to the Board. $SWK PR link.

Brink’s(PBR613) appoints Dan Henry, former CEO of Netspend Corp and Euronet co-founder, to the Board, Peter Feld to resign from Board effective 11/11/17. $BCO PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago US Preliminary September Federal National Activity Index is at +0.17, August was -0.37, July -0.27, September 2016 -0.04. ChiFed PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) October Outlookforecasts 4.4% average interest rate in 2018, 6.3 million homes sold, 4.9% house price growth, $1.695 trillion in total originations. Also assesses impact of recent hurricanes. $FMCC PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) Multifamily in Focusreport focuses on the worsening of rental affordability. $FMCC PR link.

***Friday, October 20:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 10/20/17:
DJIA ends at record 23,328.63, +2.00% from last Friday, +4.12% MTD/QTD, +18.04% YTD, +0.00% from record 23,328.63 set 10/20/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,629.05, +0.35% from last Friday, +2.05% MTD/QTD, +23.15% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,629.05 set 10/20/17.
SPX ends at record 2,575.21, +0.86% from last Friday, +2.22% MTD/QTD, +15.02% YTD, +0.00% from record 2,575.21 set 10/20/17.

Booz Allen Hamilton(PBR466) to acquire Cincinnati, OH, based 40 professionals platform for managed cyber threat detection and response services provider Morphick, terms not disclosed. $BAH PR link.

Merck(PBR70 $MRK) laying off around 1,800 US sales people from 3 sales teams, to focus on chronic care therapies with 960 sales people. MarketWatch PR link.

Sealed Air(PBR344) SVP/CFO Carol Lowe departing on 10/31/17, Chief Accounting Officer/Controller Bill Stiehl to add interim CFO role. $SEE PR link.

Domino’s(PBR889) 113 Chicagoland locations to hire 2,000 new team members. $DPZ PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352) Board member Richard Jenrette retires, Board size reduced from 12 to 11. $BX PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US September Federal Government Receipts were $348.722 billion, Outlays $340.722 billion, Surplus $8.000 billion, Fiscal 2017 Year End Deficit at $665.712 billion, Fiscal 2016 Year End Deficitwas $585.6 billion. Treasury PR link.

The Natl Assn of Realtors says US September Total Existing Home Sales Annual Rate is at 5,390,000, +0.7% from August, -1.5% from September 2016, Median Price is $245,100, September 2016 $235,200. NAR PR link.

***Thursday, October 19:

Verizon(PBR15) adds 603,000 net retail postpaid net additions wireless subscribers in 3Q17, had 109.7 million retail postpaid connections and 5.6 million retail prepaid connections at the end of the quarter. $VZ PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) launches 18th wind farm, located in Scurry County, TX, has 100+ turbines, to generate 1,000,000+ MWh a year, 35 more Amazon wind farms scheduled. $AMZN PR link.

Alphabet(PBR44)’s CapitalG growth investment fund heads up $1 billion financing in ridesharing company Lyft. $GOOG PR link.

Genuine Parts(PBR191) to acquire Cedar Rapids, IA, based industrial applications company $100 million revenues/year Apache Hose & Belting, and Rochester, NY, based 17 stores regional automotive parts distributor $25 million revenues/year Monroe Motor Products, terms not disclosed. $GPC PR link.

CBS(PBR210) to split off CBS Radio which will combine with Entercom Communications(NYSE: ETM), will have 235 radio stations, including 22 in top 25 US markets. $CBS PR link.

JCPenney(PBR234) introducing smartwatches in 245 stores and JCPenney.com starting 10/30/17, unveils new Modern Bride concept in its fine jewelry dept. $JCP PR link.

TechnipFMC(PBR334) to acquire Plexus’ Exploration Wellhead equipment and services business for jack up applications, terms not disclosed. $FTI PR link.

Celgene(PBR347) stops two Crohn’s disease studies, not initiating another related study due to results. $CELG PR link.

JetBlue(PBR429) ending ticket sales through more than 10 online travel agencies, will focus on direct bookings though jetblue.com and select third-party channels, to reduce costs. $JBLU PR link.

Under Armour(PBR668) introduces subscription service ArmourBox, sends 4-6 items, try for a week, send back unwanted items, 20% off if take all items. $UA PR link.

Nelnet(PBR972) to acquire Madison, WI, based student loan servicing company Great Lakes Educational Loan Services for $150 million cash. $NNI PR link.

Intuit(PBR529) board member Diane Greene, CEO of Alphabet(PBR44)’s Google cloud businesses, stepping down at annual shareholder meeting in 01/18, former Amazon(PBR29) CFO Thomas Szkutak nominated as successor. $INTU PR link.

Ferro Corp(PBR992) appoints Marran Ogilvie, who has more than 20 years of executive management and financial experience across a diverse set of business environments, to the Board. $FOE PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia 3rd District October Manufacturing General Activity Indicator is at 27.9, September was 23.8, August 18.9, October 2016 11.1. PhillyFed PR link.

The Conference Board US Preliminary September Leading Economic Index is at 128.6, August was 128.8, July 128.4, September 2016 123.8. TCB PR link.

***Wednesday, October 18:

ExxonMobil(PBR2) has acquired a crude oil terminal in Wink, TX, from Genesis Energy, permitted for 100,000 barrels of oil/day, located in Delaware Basin of the Permian Basin. $XOM PR link.

Apple(PBR5) & GE(PBR9) partner to bring predictive data and analytics from Predix, GE’s industrial Internet of Things (IoT) platform, to iPhone & iPad. $GE PR link.

AT&T(PBR12) gets Brazilian Antitrust Authority approval for $85.4 billion cash/stock acquisition of Time Warner(PBR103), US only regulatory agency left, expects to close by 12/31/17. $T PR link.

Anthem(PBR38) establishing a new pharmacy benefits manager to be named IngenioRx, to launch in 2020 upon expiration of current contract, gets 5 year deal to provide IngenioRx to CVS Health(PBR11) starting 01/01/2020. $ANTM PR link.

Hewlett Packard Enterprises(PBR55) to return $2.5 billion to shareholders in FY18, $500 million in dividends, $2 billion in share repurchases, increases share repurchase authorization by $5 billion. $HPE PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107)’s Kite unit Yescarta™ (Axicabtagene Ciloleucel) becomes first CAR T Adult Refractory Large B-Cell Lymphoma therapy for certain situations approved by the US FDA. $GILD PR link.

SuperValu(PBR164) to acquire retailer owned cooperative, 650 employees, 1.5 million sf in real estate Affiliated Grocers of Florida for $180 million. $SVU PR link.

Micron Technology(PBR180) to retire $2.25 billion in debt. $MU PR link.

Assurant(PBR268) to acquire $1 billion revenues/2017 vehicle protection and financial services provider The Warranty Group for $2.5 billion, includes debt, to close in 1H18. $AIZ PR link.

CBRE(PBR301) acquires San Francisco, CA, based Custom Spaces, the Bay Area’s premier boutique real estate advisor to the tech sector. $CBG PR link.

Quest Diagnostics(PBR353) to acquire Cleveland HeartLab, form strategic collaboration with Cleveland Clinic, terms not disclosed. $DGX PR link.

SunPower(PBR680) gets 291 megawatts deal in 2nd Round CRE4 French Tenders for Solar Projects, will be supplying 505 megawatts in 1st/2nd Round of the French Tenders combined, more than any other solar panel brand. $SPWR PR link.

Universal Forest Products(PBR733) to do 3:1 stock split, effective 11/15/17. $UFPI PR link.

MEDNAX(PBR794) to acquire 90+ physicians serving 160 sites Houston metro based Synergy Radiology Associates, terms not disclosed, 10th acquisition in 2017. $MD PR link.

Adtalem Education(PBR905)’s DeVry University receives accreditation reaffirmation for it Engineering Technology classroom and online programs. $ATGE PR link.

American Express(PBR83) appoints Vice Chairman Stephen J. Squeri to succeed retiring Kenneth I. Chenault as Chairman/CEO on 02/01/18. $AXP PR link.

C.H. Robinson(PBR215) appoints Timothy C. Gokey, President/COO at Broadridge Financial(PBR533), to the Board. $CHRW PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary September Total Housing Permits Issued Annual Rate is at 1,215,000, -4.5% from August, -4.3% from September 2016. HUD PR link.

The US Federal Reserve Board releases Beige Book, based on data gathered through 10/06/17, says pace of growth split between modest and moderate. Fed PR link.

ADP(PBR237) says US 3Q17 Workforce Vitality Index(3Q13=100) is at 115.1, +3.5% from 3Q16. $ADP PR link.

***Tuesday, October 17:

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37) in 3Q17 report says it will not pursue global approvals of sirukumab for treatment of moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis, to discontinue clinical trial for talacotuzumab, an investigational compound being studied in patients with acute myeloid leukemia. $JNJ PR link.

Fidelity Natl Financial(PBR331) FNFV Group unit completes $200 million cash acquisition of clinical documentation and coding solutions for healthcare facilities T-System Holdings. $FNF PR link.

Electronic Arts(PBR527) to ramp down and close Visceral studio, move its Star Wars project to EA Worldwide Studios, to launch new Star Wars Battlefront II in a few weeks. $EA PR link.

Tailored Brands(PBR643) enters 9th year in partnership with National Basketball Coaches Assn, providing 10 US made Joseph Abboud suits and 20 ties for 24 NBA coaches. $TLRD PR link.

Middleby(PBR865) acquires Dayton, OH, based $50 million/year slicers and mixers for the commercial foodservice industry provider Globe Food Equipment Co. $MIDD PR link.

Amazon(PBR29 $AMZN) Studios unit suspended for sexual harrassment allegations head Roy Price resigns. Deadline PR link.

World Fuel(PBR67) hires Jeff Smith as EVP/COO. $INT PR link.

Macy’s(PBR97) hires Danielle Kirgan as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective 10/23/17. $M PR link.

DISH(PBR196) promotes SVP Tim Messner to General Counsel, effective 10/23/17, succeeds EVP R Stanton Dodge, who will be joining DraftKings as its chief legal officer. $DISH PR link.

TSYS(PBR790) elects Thaddeus Arroyo, CEO of AT&T(PBR12) Business unit, and Richard A. Smith, Chairman/President/CEO of Realogy Holdings Corp, to the Board. $TSS PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary September All Imports Prices were +0.7%, All Exports Prices +0.8%, Year-to-Date All Import Prices +2.7%, YTD All Export Prices +2.9%. USDOL PR link.

The US Federal Reserve Board says US Preliminary September Industrial Production Total Index(2012=100) is at 104.6, August104.3, July 105.1, September 2016 104.1. USFed PR link.

The Natl Assn of Home Builders/Wells Fargo US Preliminary October Housing Market Index is at 68, September was 64, August 67, October 2016 63. NAHB PR link.

***Monday, October 16:

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37)’s Janssen unit gets US FDA approval for an expanded indication for STELARA® (ustekinumab) for the treatment of adolescents with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. $JNJ PR link.

Aramark(PBR184) to acquire N America hospitality procurement services provider Avendra for $1.35 billion from a consortium of 5 major hospitality companies. Also acquiring uniform and linen rental and supply company AmeriPride for $1 billion. Both transactions to close by 12/31/17. $AMRK PR link.

Nordstrom(PBR214) family suspends active exploration of taking the company private until after the start of 2018. $JWN PR link.

Facebook(PBR228 $FB) acquires recently launched app developer TBH, has quickly added 5 million subscribers, over 1 billion messages sent. TBH PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) says US District Court concludes that Allergan(PBR219)‘s patent protection for Restasis ended in 2014, not entitled to renewed patent rights for a second wave of patent protection, also binding against Allergan’s arrangement with Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe. $MYL PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352) completes acquisition of Philadelphia, PA, area based independent investment management firm with over $10 billion in assets under management Harvest Fund Advisors, terms not disclosed. $BX PR link.

Cummins(PBR438) to acquire assets of Brammo, which designs and develops battery packs for mobile and stationary applications, terms not disclosed. $CMI PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) in 3Q17 reports net gain of 5.3 million subscribers, total now 109.25 million memberships, forecasts to grow by 6.3 million in 4Q17, continue to build its own content. $NFLX PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Santa Fe, NM, based commercial property/casualty and employee benefits coverages and services, and high-net-worth personal lines coverages provider Reynolds & Rodar Insurance Group, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

GE(PBR9) promotes Rafael Santana to CEO/GE Transportation, effective 11/01/17, succeeds Jamie Miller who is becoming GE CFO. $GE PR link.

Micron Technology(PBR180) hires Manish Bhatia as EVP/Global Operations. $MU PR link.

Dentsply Sirona(PBR694) hires Nick Alexos as EVP/Chief Administration Officer and Keith Ebling as EVP/General Counsel & Secretary. $XRAY PR link.

Woodward(PBR888) President/Airframe Systems Group Martin Glass to resign on 02/02/18 after 40 years with the company. $WWD PR link.

Microsoft(PBR29) proposes election of Penny Pritzker, former US Secretary of Commerce, and Arne Sorenson, President/CEO of Marriott Intl(PBR211), to the Board, at annual meeting set for 11/29/17. $MSFT PR link.

Proctor & Gamble(PBR33) provides preliminary voting results, indicates Trian‘s Nelson Peltz narrowly defeated for a Board position. $PG PR link.

Sears(PBR93) board member Bruce Berkowitz, Chief Investment Officer of Fairholme Capital Management, steps down. $SHLD PR link.

Vulcan Materials(PBR685) elects Kathleen Quirk, EVP/CFO of Freeport-McMoRan(PBR128), to the Board. $VMC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York October Empire State Manufacturing Index is at 30.2, a 3 year high, September was 24.4, August 25.2, October 2016 -5.5. NYFed PR link.

***Friday, October 13:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 10/13/17:
DJIA ends week at 22,871.72, +0.43% from last Friday, +2.08% MTD/QTD, +15.73% YTD, -0.01% from record 22,872.89 set 10/11/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,605.80, +0.24% from last Friday, +1.69% MTD/QTD, +22.71% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,605.80 set 10/13/17.
SPX ends at 2,553.17, +0.15% from last Friday, +1.34% MTD/QTD, +14.04% YTD, -0.08% from record 2,555.24 set 10/11/17.

Comcast(PBR42 $CMCSA)’s Fandango unit to acquire MovieTickets.com, previously acquired Movieclips, Flixster, Rotten Tomatoes and a streaming platform it renamed Fandango Now. MarketWatch PR link.

Alcoa(PBR115) pays $237.5 million and transfers 2,200 acres of land and assets to power provider Luminant Generation Companyto terminate electricity contract tied to Alcoa’s Rockdale Operations in Texas. $AA PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary September Current Average Earnings/Hourwas $26.55, Average Work Week Hours 34.4, Weekly Earnings $913.32, August was $909.19, July $910.46, September 2016$887.86. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US September Consumer Price Index(All Items) is at +0.5%, August was +0.4%, July +0.1%, Last 12 Months(Unadjusted) +2.2%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary August Trade Sales and Manufacturers’ Shipments were $1.369 trillion, +0.7% from July, +5.5% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Advance September Total Retail and Food Services/Drinking Places Revenues were $483.9 billion, +1.6% from August, +4.5% from September 2016. USDOC PR link.

The U of Michigan US Preliminary October Consumer Sentiment Index is at 101.1, September was 95.1, August 96.8, October 2016 87.2. UMich PR link.

***Thursday, October 12:

Amazon(PBR29) to hire for over 120,000 in the US for the 2017 holiday season. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) AWS unit and Microsoft(PBR31 $MSFT) announce Gluon, a new open source deep learning interface that allows developers to more easily and quickly build machine learning models. $AMZN PR link.

TimeInc(PBR631) partners with Alphabet(PBR44)’s Google to launch Adapt, leverages DoubleClick to deliver outstream native video ads. $TIME PR link.

Dynegy(PBR777) completes $180 million sale of its Lee Energy Facility to Rockland Capital, funds to be used for debt reduction. $DYN PR link.

Polaris Industries(PBR531) hires Chris Musso as President/Off-Road Vehicles, effective 11/06/17. $PII PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US September Producer Price Index for Total Final Demandwas +0.4%, August was +0.2%, July -0.1%, September 2016 +0.3%, Total Last 12 Months Total Demand at +2.1%. USDOL PR link.

***Wednesday, October 11:

Kroger(PBR20) announces Restock Kroger program, exploring strategic alternatives for its 784 stores, 11,000 associates, $4 billion/2016(includes $1.4 billion in inside sales) convenience store business, including possible sale. $KR PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) introduces Kindle Oasis, featuries 7-inch, 300 ppi display, waterproof design, and audible, $249.99, to start shipping 10/31/17. $AMZN PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR161) to sell suburban Chicago based MacNeal Hospital and related operations, including an independent practice association of 1,000 physicians, to Trinity Health affilate Loyola Medicine regional healthcare system, to close 1Q18, terms not disclosed. $THC PR link.

Micron Technology(PBR180) reprices $1 billion common stock offering to $1.2 billion, for $41.00/share, to be used to pay down debt, expects to close by 10/16/17. $MU PR link.

Coach(PBR496) to change its name to Tapestry, Inc, stock trading symbol from COH to NYSE: TPR, effective 10/31/17. $COH PR link.

International Paper(PBR117) elects Jacqueline C. Hinman, Chairman/President/CEO of engineering firm CH2M Hill, and Clinton A. Lewis, Jr, EVP & President/International Operations of animal health medicines provider Zoetis(PBR500), to its Board. $IP PR link.

ITT Corp(PBR735) elects Mario Longhi, former President/CEO of US Steel(PBR167), to its Board. $ITT PR link.

TransDigm(PBR810) appoints Gary E. McCullough, investor/advisor to venture capital firm Abundant Venture Partners, and David A. Barr, most recently Managing Director of private equity fund Warburg Pincus, to its Board. $TDG PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary August Job Openings at 6,082,000, -0.9% from July, +10,7% from August 2016. USDOL PR link.

The Federal Open Market Committee releases 09/19-20/17 Meeting Minutes, says US economic activity rising moderately, inflation remains below 2% target, to start balance sheet normalization program in October, no change in federal funds rate. FOMC PR link.

The US Energy Information Administrationestimates Average 2017 WTI Oil Price Per Barrel to be $49.69, 2018 Forecast is $50.57, 2016 was $43.33, 2015 $48.67. EIA PR link.

***Tuesday, October 10:

Walmart(PBR1) authorizes new $20 billion share repurchase program, replaces existing program, to utilize over next 2 years. $WMT PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) introduces a new option for Prime Student, $5.49/month with no annual commitment. $AMZN PR link.

Pfizer(PBR56) reviewing strategic alternatives for its Consumer Healthcare business. $PFE PR link.

Honeywell(PBR74) to spinoff $4.5 billion/year 13,000 employees Homes and the ADI Global Distribution Business, and $3 billion/year 6,500 employees Transportation Systems, into two independent public companies by end of 2018, additional restructuring announced. $HON PR link.

Micron Technology(PBR180) launches $1 billion offering of common stock, to be used to pay down debts. $MU PR link.

JCPenney(PBR234) introduces for the holiday season a limited collection of women’s apparel, accessories and home décor items created with award-winning actress and style icon Tracee Ellis Ross, available starting 11/12/17. $JCP PR link.

Henry Schein(PBR270) completes acquisition of independent family owned Columbia, SC, based $115 million/2016 animal health products supplier Merritt Veterinary Supplies, terms not disclosed. $HSIC PR link.

NVIDIA(PBR510) unveils NVIDIA DRIVE PX Pegasus, the world’s first artificial intelligence computer designed to drive fully autonomous robotaxis. $NVDA PR link.

Coty(PBR524) relaunches COVERGIRL brand to use makeup as a tool for self-expression and personal transformation. $COTY PR link.

Great Plains Energy(PBR757) & Westar Energy(PBR747) to hold special shareholder meetings on 11/21/17 to vote on merger of equals, on track for merger to close in 1H18. $GXP PR link.

Equinix(PBR795) completes $259 million acquisition of Itconic, a data center, connectivity and cloud infrastructure solutions provider in Spain and Portugal, from The Carlyle Group(PBR581). $EQIX PR link.

West Corp(PBR842), a global provider of communication and network infrastructure services, $23.50/share $5.1 billion cash acquisition by Apollo Global Mgmt(PBR906) is completed. $WSTC PR link.

Express Scripts(PBR860) to acquire privately-held evidence-based medical benefit management services provider eviCore healthcare for $3.6 billion, accelerates shift to being a patient benefit management company. $ESRX PR link.

CDW(PBR239) CFO Ann Zigler to retire on 12/31/17, Collin Kebo to be promoted to CFO on 01/01/18. $CDW PR link.

Molina Healthcare(PBR284) hires Joseph M. Zubretsky as President/CEO, effective 11/06/17. $MOH PR link.

MasterCard(PBR291) President/Global Products and Solutions Gary Flood leaving at end of 2017, operating units to then report to President/CEO Ajay Banga. $MA PR link.

MDU Resources(PBR513) promotes Trevor J. Hastings to President/CEO of WBI Holdings Inc., MDU’s pipeline and energy services business. $MDU PR link.

KB Home(PBR802) elects James C. (“Rad”) Weaver, CEO of McCombs Partners, the investment management division of McCombs Enterprises, to the Board. $KBH PR link.

CoreLogic reports that US July Housing Loans 30 Days Or More Delinquent were at 4.6%, June was 4.5%, May 4.5%, July 2016 5.5%, Total Houses In Foreclosure at 0.7%. CoreLogic PR link.

The International Monetary Fund October World Economic Outlook forecasts 3.6% global growth rate in 2017, 3.7% in 2018, mostly from emerging regions, and despite lower growth rates for the US and UK. IMF PR link.

***Monday, October 9:
***US Federal Holiday: Columbus Day.
***US Stock Markets: Open.

Phillips 66(PBR7) adds $3 billion to share repurchase program, balance is now $12 billion, from authorizations since 3Q2012. $PSX PR link.

Microsoft(PBR31) entering into a 15-year power purchase agreement with GE(PBR9) to purchase 100% of the wind energy from GE’s new, 37-megawatt Tullahennel wind farm in County Kerry, Ireland. $MSFT PR link.

AIG(PBR46) expects to report 3Q2017 pre-tax catastrophe losses net of reinsurance of $2.9 billion to $3.1 billion ($1.9 billion to $2.0 billion after-tax) from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria and Mexico earthquake. $AIG PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) Endurant(TM) II/IIs stent graft system receives FDA approval to treat short neck anatomies when used with Heli-FX(TM) EndoAnchor(TM) System. $MDT PR link.

Ross Stores(PBR253) opens 40 stores in September/October, makes 96 stores in 2017, completes store growth plans for fiscal 2017. $ROST PR link.

Magellan Health(PBR592) gets all regulatory approvals to acquire Senior Whole Health, serves complex, high-risk populations, providing both Medicare and Medicaid dual-eligible benefits to 22,000+ members in Massachusetts/NY, anticipates $1 billion revenues in 2017, to close by 12/31/17. $MGLN PR link.

Keysight Technologies(PBR660) temporarily closing Santa Rosa corporate headquarters due to wildfires on the area. $KEYS PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) acquires $2.5 million/year Zenium data center in Istanbul, Turkey, for $92 million cash, to be renamed Equinix IS2, includes current 1,500 square meters fitted out data center, expandable to up to 12,000 square meters. $EQIX PR link.

Granite Construction(PBR831) promotes Kyle Larkin to SVP/California Group Manager, effective 10/16/17. $GVA PR link.

GE(PBR9) elects Ed Garden, Chief Investment Officer and a Founding Partner of Trian Fund Management, to the Board, replaces Robert Lane, former Chairman/CEO of Deere & Co(PBR81), who has retired for health reasons. $GE PR link.

Minerals Tech(PBR949) elects Franklin Feder, former senior executive at Alcoa(PBR115), to the Board. $MTX PR link.

FannieMae(PBR17) says US September Home Purchase Sentiment Index is at 88.3, Augustwas 88.0, July 86.8, September 2016 82.8. $FNMA PR link.

***Friday, October 6:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 10/06/17:
DJIA ends week at 22,773.67, +1.65% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, +15.24% YTD, -0.01% from record 22,775.39 set 10/05/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,590.18, +1.45% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, +22.42% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,590.18 set 10/06/17.
SPX ends at 2,549.33, +1.19% from last Friday/MTD/QTD, +13.87% YTD, -0.11% from record 2,552.07 set 10/05/17.

The PBR1000 Top 5 September by Market Capitalization(Company, Rank by Revenues, Stock Symbol, Market Cap, Stock Price 09/29/17, % Change from 12/31/16(YTD)) are:

1. Apple(PBR4), AAPL, $796B, $154.12, +33%
2. Alphabet(PBR27), GOOG, $665B, $959.11, +24%
3. Microsoft(PBR28), MSFT, $574B, $74.49, +20%
4. Facebook(PBR95), FB, $496B, $170.87, +49%
5. Amazon(PBR12), AMZN, $462B, $961.35, +28%
The PBR1000 Total Market Capitalization:$24.319 trillion
Average Market Capitalization Change YTD:+12.8%
Range: $797B to $0.00B
Average: $24.3B(1,001 companies); Median:$7.4B

To get the full Snapshot 15 report go to The PBR1000 Subscribe page.

Costco(PBR18) launches CostcoGrocery, offering free 2 day delivery of non-perishables on orders over $75, expanding InstaCart service for same day deliveries of perishables. $COST PR link.

Kellogg(PBR198) to acquire Chicago Bar Co, maker of clean-label protein nutrition bars RXBAR, for $600 million. $K PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) announces new board of directors following completion of restructuring of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company. $CZR PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) completes merger with Caesars Acquisition Companyand concludes restructuring of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company, has an enterprise value of $20 billion, planning $1.5 billion in capital expenditures for property improvements. $CZR PR link.

United Natural Foods(PBR371) authorizes $200 million share repurchase program. $UNFI PR link.

CIT Group(PBR608) to sell Financial Freedom and reverse mortgage portfolio to an undisclosed buyer for $900 million, expects to close 2Q18. $CIT PR link.

ResMed(PBR977) provides status report on sleep-disordered breathing and respiratory care patent infringement lawsuits worldwide against Fisher & Paykel. $RMD PR link.

Apple(PBR5) hires Katherine Adams as General Counsel & SVP/Legal & Global Security, succeeds retiring General Counsel Bruce Sewell. $AAPL PR link.

GE(PBR9) CEO/Transportation Jamie Miller to be CFO, effective 11/01/17, succeeds departing Vice Chairman/CFO Jeff Bornstein, Vice Chairs Beth Comstock and John Rice to retire effective 12/31/17. $GE PR link.

Blackhawk Network(PBR998) board member Jeffrey Fox resigns to focus on recent appointment as CEO of Endurance International Group. $HAWK PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US September Non-Farm Employment was at 154,345,000, +906,000 from August, +2,419,000 from September 2016, Unemployed were at 6,801,000, Unemployment Rate is at 4.2%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary August Total Wholesale Saleswere $473.4 billion, +1.7% from July, +7.2% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Board says US Preliminary August Total Consumer Debt at $3.766 trillion, +0.4% from July, +3.3% YTD, +10.2% since 12/31/15(20 months). FED PR link.

***Thursday, October 5:

The PBR1000 Top 5 September Stock Price Gainers since 12/31/15(21 months)(Company, Rank by Revenues, Stock Symbol, Stock Price 09/29/17, % Change from 12/31/15) are:

1. NVIDIA(PBR363), NVDA, $178.77, +442%
2. Tronox(PBR819), TROX, $21.10, +440%
3. Scientific Games(PBR689), SGMS, $45.85, +411%
4. Navistar(PBR317), NAV, $44.07, +399%
5. Cleveland-Cliffs(PBR816), $7.15, +353%

Range: +442% to -96%
Number of Companies >0.0%: 860/997
Average: +26.1%; Median: +23.8%

To get the full Snapshot 13 report go to The PBR1000 Subscribe page.

Boeing(PBR27) to acquire Manassas, VA, based 550 employees across 6 states autonomous systems technologies to enable advanced robotic aircraft for future aerospace applications and vehicles developer Aurora Flight Sciences, terms not disclosed. $BA PR link.

Sears(PBR93) borrows $100 million at 11% interest from Chairman/CEO Eddie Lampert’s ESL Investments, can borrow up to $100 million before 12/01/17. $SHLD PR link.

Whirlpool(PBR138) gets unanimous US International Trade Commission safeguard ruling against Samsung and LG for washing machine imports, remedy hearing set for 10/19/17. $WHR PR link.

ADP(PBR235) acquires Irvine, CA, based digital payments processing platforms provider Global Cash Card, terms not disclosed. $ADP PR link.

MasterCard(PBR291) and PayPal(PBR252 $PYPL) expand digital partnership globally. $MA PR link.

DR Horton(PBR337) completes $17.75/share, $560 million cash 75% stake acquisition of Forestar Group(NYSE: FOR), will remain a public company. $DHI PR link.

Netflix(PBR447 $NFLX) raises subscription prices on premium services, plans to spend $7 billion on new content in 2018, up from $6 billion. MarketWatch PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Sudbury, Ontario, CAN, based human resources, employee benefits, wealth management and life insurance consulting and brokerage services area provider DiBrina Group, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Iron Mountain(PBR663) to acquire two Credit Suisse data centers in London and Singaporefor approximately $100 million, adds 273,000 sf to data center portfolio. $IRM PR link.

CME Group(PBR664) expands Asia Pacific footprint with opening of an office in Sydney, Australia. $CME PR link.

Regeneron(PBR708) and Sanofi to continue marketing, selling and manufacturing Praluent® (alirocumab) injection in the US per US Court of Appeals Amgen(PBR135 $AMGN) patent challenge decision, new trial to start in 2018, permanent injunction vacated. $REGN PR link.

Lennox Intl(PBR631) promotes Gary Bedard to EVP & President/COO of Worldwide Refrigeration, effective 10/16/17, succeeds departing David Moon. $LII PR link.

Vista Outdoor(PBR784) hires Christopher Metz as CEO, effective 10/09/17. $VSTO PR link.

ADP(PBR235) sends shareholders letter urging them to re-elect the 10 current directors, not for Pershing Square nominees, at 11/07/17 annual shareholders meeting. $ADP PR link.

Williams-Sonoma(PBR508) appoints Bob Lord, IBM(PBR25)‘s Chief Digital Officer, to the Board. $WSM PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census US Preliminary August Total Manufacturers New Orders was $471.7 billion, +1.2% from July, +3.9% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce US Preliminary August Total Exports were $195.3 billion, YTD(8 mos) $1.545 trillion, Total Imports were $237.7 billion, YTD $1.906 trillion; Deficit $42.4 billion, Deficit YTD $361.3 billion, August 2016 Deficit YTD was $332.2 billion. USDOC PR link.

***Wednesday, October 4:

The PBR1000 Top 5 September Stock Price Gainers YTD(Company, Rank by Revenues, Stock Symbol, Stock Price 09/29/17, % Change from 12/31/16) are:

1. Weight Watchers(PBR986), WTW, $43.55, +280%
2. Scientific Games(PBR689), SGMS, $45.85, +228%
3. Systemax(PBR899), SYX, $26.43, +201%
4. Restoration Hardware(PBR811), RH, $70.32, +129%
5. Conn’s(PBR912), CONN, $28.15, +123%

Range: +280% to -80%
Number of Companies >0.0%: 648/1,000
Average: +12.7%; Median: +9.1%

To get the full Snapshot 12 report go to The PBR1000 Subscribe page.

Amazon(PBR29) announces Alexa and the all-new Echo, Echo Plus, and Echo Dot now available in India, to be available in Japan later in the year. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29 $AMZN) gets European Commission order to pay Luxembourg $294 million in back taxes. EC PR link.

Alphabet(PBR44 $GOOG)’s Google unit announces Pixel 2 & Pixel 2 LP smartphones, Home Mini speakers, Pixel Buds, Clips clip-on camera, Pixelbook & Pixelbook Pen. MarketWatch PR link.

World Fuel(PBR67) renews share repurchase program for up to $100 million, replaces 09/16 authorization. $INT PR link.

3M(PBR92) completes $2.0 billion acquisition of 1,500 employees worldwide safety devices provider Scott Safety from Johnson Controls(PBR68). $MMM PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107) agreements with the Medicines Patent Pool and four manufacturers provides licenses for generic production of Bictegravir, for HIV treatments in low to middle income countries. $GILD PR link.

Kinder Morgan(PBR181), DCP Midstream(PBR929) and Targa Resources(PBR308) agree to jointly develop natural gas Gulf Coast Express Pipeline Project from Permian Basin to Texas coast. $KMI PR link.

Gannett(PBR414) acquires majority interest in Phoenix, AZ, based online media & publishing company with 8.5 million monthly food enthusiasts Grateful Ventures, terms not disclosed. $GCI PR link.

Navient(PBR443) to acquire financial technology and education finance company Earnest for $155 million cash. $NAVI PR link.

Tailored Brands(PBR643) Men’s Wearhouse to be NHL Coaches Assn official custom suit provider for 2 years, providing 10 American made Joseph Abboud custom suits and ties for participating coaches. $TLRD PR link.

Beacon Roofing(PBR818) $2.625 billion cash acquisition of East Rutherford, NJ, based 208 locations in 31 states exterior and interior building products distributor Allied Building Products Corp from Ireland based CRH plc(NYSE: CRH) expects to close 01/02/18. $BECN PR link.

Verizon(PBR15) EVP & President/Global Media Marni Walden to leave in 02/18. $VZ PR link.

Pitney Bowes(PBR588) EVP & President/SMB Solutions Mark Shearer to retire in 1Q18, Jason Dies is successor, Christopher Stehmann now EVP/International SMB Solutions, Lila Snyder named EVP & President/Global Ecommerce & Presort Services. $PBI PR link.

Diebold Nixdorf(PBR676) promotes Devon Watson to newly created position of VP/Chief Marketing Officer. $DBD PR link.

Hain Celestial(PBR712) hires Julie Bowerman as SVP/Digital Engagement & eCommerce. $HAIN PR link.

Cedar Fair(PBR977) President/COO Richard Zimmer to become CEO, effective 01/01/18, CEO Matt Ouimet to become Executive Chairman, Debra Smithart-Oglesby lead independent director. $FUN PR link.

World Fuel(PBR67) appoints Stephen Gold, EVP/Technology & Operations Innovation for CVS Health(PBR11), to the Board. $INT PR link.

ADP(PBR235) reports US Preliminary September Change In Private Sector National Employment(Non-Farm) was +135,000 jobs, -40.8% from August, -37.8% from September 2016, Goods Producing Sector was +48,000, Services +88,000. $ADP PR link.

The IHS Markit US September Composite PMI Output Index is at 54.8, August was 55.3, July54.6, September 2016 52.3. IHS Markit PR link.

The ISM US September Non-Manufacturing Index(>50 economy growing) is at 59.8%, August was 55.3%, July 53.9%, September 2016 57.1%. ISM PR link.

***Tuesday, October 3:

The PBR1000 Top 5 September Stock Price Gainers(Company, Rank by Revenues, Stock Symbol, Stock Price 08/31/17, % Change from 08/31/17) are:

1. Conn’s(PBR912), CONN, $28.15, +62%
2. Restoration Hardware(PBR811), RH, $70.32, +50%
3. Babcock & Wilcox(PBR914), BW, $3.33, +47%
4. Sears Hometown(PBR822), SHOS, $2.55, +46%
5. Revlon(PBR779), REV, $24.55, +45%

Range: +62% to -35%
Number of Companies >0.0%: 733/1,001
Average: +3.0%; Median: +4.4%

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Walmart(PBR1) acquires New York City, NY, 24/7 operation that delivers packages the same-day, overnight and in scheduled two-hour windows provider Parcel, terms not disclosed. $WMT PR link.

Ford(PBR10) redeploying assets, to focus on smart cars, shift products emphasis to trucks, SUVs. $F PR link.

Verizon(PBR15)‘s recently acquired Yahoo unit reveals that all 3 billion accounts may have been hacked in 08/13, original estimate was 1 billion. $VZ PR link.

Amazon(PBR29 $AMZN) has acquired 3D body model startup, Body Labs, for $50M-$70M.TechCrunch PR link.

Microsoft(PBR31) unveils a Windows Mixed Reality headset from Samsung, the Samsung HMD Odyssey, which joins the family of Windows Mixed Reality headsets, to be available 10/17/17. $MSFT PR link.

Alphabet(PBR44 $GOOG)’s Google unit YouTube TV, $35/month service, to live stream Major League Baseball’s World Series in sponsorship agreement. MLB PR link.

3M(PBR92) completes $200 million sale of its $95 million/year electronic monitoring business used by correctional and law enforcement agencies around the world to an Apax Partnersaffiliate. $MMM PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107) completes $180/share, $11.9 billion cash acquisition of engineered cell therapies developer Kite Pharma(NASDAQ: KITE). $GILD PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) and CytomX Therapeutics(NASDAQ:CTMX) to co-develop a CytomX Probody™ T-cell therapies for multiple human cancer types. $AMGN PR link.

Office Depot(PBR182) to enter business services sector with $1 billion acquisition of $1.1 billion/year 6,000 licensed technicians IT services, products and solutions provider CompuCom Systems. $ODP PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) gets US FDA approval for BOTOX® Cosmetic (OnabotulinumtoxinA) for temporary improvement in the appearance of some conditions of moderate to severe forehead lines. $AGN PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) gets US FDA approval for first generic for Teva Pharmaceutical’s Copaxone®, therapy for multiple sclerosis. $MYL PR link.

ARRIS Intl(PBR366) remains committed to $800 million cash acquisition of Brocade(PBR845)’s Ruckus Wireless and ICX Switch business from Singapore based Broadcom Ltd(NASDAQ: AVGO) once their merger is completed, which is being delayed. $ARRS PR link.

WABCO(PBR704) completes $250 million plus $225 million to $265 million over next 3 1/2 years based on earnings of the business acquisition of Meritor(PBR639) interest in Meritor WABCOjoint venture. $WBC PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) to acquire leading supplier of hole-card readers for blackjack provider Tech Art, to close in 1Q18, terms not disclosed. $SGMS PR link.

Mattel(PBR412) hires Joe Euteneuer as CFO, succeeds departed Kevin Farr. $MAT PR link.

Mattel(PBR412) hires Sven Gerjets as Chief Technology Officer, Amy Thompson as Chief People Officer, and Nancy Elder as Chief Communication Officer. $MAT PR link.

Welltower(PBR635) promotes John Goodey to EVP/CFO, succeeds departing Scott Estes. $HCN PR link.

Carlisle Cos(PBR650) hires Shelley Bausch as President/Carlisle Fluid Technologies. $CSL PR link.

Automotive News reports US September New Light Vehicle Sales were at 1,525,522 cars/trucks, +6.3% from September 2016, Annual Rate at 18.58 million units. Automotive News PR link.

TrueCar says US Estimated September Total New Vehicle Sales at $46 billion, -1.1% from September 2016, Average Transaction Price is $32,597, -1.1%, Incentive Per Unit Spending at $3,742. TrueCar PR link.

The Purdue/CME Group US September Ag Economy Barometer is at 132, August was also 132, July 139, September 2016 101, notes producers have waning optimism about US economy. Purdue/CME Group PR link.

Healthcare Study: Express Scripts(PBR860) analysis shows an estimated 870,000 Americans reached or exceeded a yearly medication cost threshold of $50,000 in 2016, up 35 percent from 2014. $ESRX PR link.

The National Retail Federation forecasts US 2017 Holiday Sales to grow 3.6-4.0%, $678.75 billion to $682 billion, up from $655.8 billion last year. NRF PR link.

***Monday, October 2:

GE(PBR9) completes $3.4 billion sale of Water & Process Technologies business to France based Suez and Canadian Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. $GE PR link.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37) completes divestiture of its $371.5 million/2016 Codman Neurosurgery business to Integra LifeSciences for around $1.045 billion. $JNJ PR link.

International Paper(PBR117) to reduce pension liabilities by transferring $1.3 billion in pension benefits for 45,000 former employees to Prudential Financial(PBR55) through the purchase of a group annuity contract for pension benefits and annuity administration. $IP PR link.

CenturyLink(PBR160) gets US Dept of Justice approval, based on certain conditions, for $66.50/share, $34 billion acquistion of Level 3 Communications(PBR375), now waiting additional regulatory approvals. $CTL PR link.

VF Corp(PBR232) completes $820 million cash acquisition of Williamson-Dickie Mfg. Co., a family-owned, private global workwear company, $875 million in revenues over the last 12 months. $VFC PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) has approvals from all gaming authorities and stockholders, plans to complete merger with Caesars Acquisition and restructuring of Caesars Entertainment Operating Co on 10/06/17. $CZR PR link.

Fidelity Natl Financial(PBR331) completes spin-off of Black Knight(NYSE: BKI) as a separate public company. $FNF PR link.

Fidelity Natl Financial(PBR331) Group unit acquires majority interest in real estate digital transaction management and closing solutions SkySlope, used by 1,500 brokerages covering 5,000 offices, 140,000 agents to initiate 1.5 million real estate transactions/year. $FNF PR link.

Live Nation(PBR366) issues statement on Las Vegas Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting tragedy, pledges support and assistance for victims & employees. $LYV PR link.

Packaging Corp(PBR425) completes $265 million cash acquisition of Sacramento Container, Northern Sheets, and Central California Sheets. $PKG PR link.

Coty(PBR524) completes acquisition of exclusive long-term global license rights for Burberry Beauty luxury fragrances, cosmetics and skincare. $COTY PR link.

Pitney Bowes(PBR588) completes $475 million acquisition of private Austin, TX, based parcel delivery, returns, fulfillment and digital commerce solutions for retailers and ecommerce brands provider Newgistics. $PBI PR link.

Carlisle Cos(PBR650) to acquire Maryland Heights, MO, based $430 million revenues/year polyurethane products and solutions provider Accella Performance Materials from Arsenal Capital Partners for $670 million cash. $CSL PR link.

Tesla(PBR651) delivers 26,150 vehicles in 3Q17, 14,065 were Model S, 11,865 Model X, and 220 Model 3; expects to deliver 100,000 Model S & Model X’s in 2017, up 31% from 2016, removing bottlenecks for Model 3 production. $TSLA PR link.

Equifax(PBR795) says cybersecurity firm has concluded forensic investigation of cybersecurity event disclosed 09/07/17, raises total number of US consumers affected from 143 million to 145.5 million. $EFX PR link.

Griffon Corp(PBR890) completes $200 million acquisition of Emerson Electric(PBR109)‘s $300 million+ revenues/year 1,500 employees ClosetMaid unit. $GFF PR link.

Regis Corp(PBR912) completes sale and subsequent franchise of all mall-based salons and UK businesses, 1,108 salons with 9,800 stylists & managers, to Regent affiliate The Beautiful Group. $RGS PR link.

TeleFlex(PBR923) completes $725 million plus up to $375 million based on milestones achieved acquisition of private urology medical devices developer NeoTract. $TFX PR link.

Allscripts(PBR944) completes $185 million cash acquisition of McKesson(PBR6)‘s hospital/health system IT business, Enterprise Information Solutions. $MDRX PR link.

Vitamin Shoppe(PBR968) enters China marketvia digital platform in partnership with Macy’s(PBR97) China Limited using Alibaba‘s online Tmall Global service. $VSI PR link.

Cincinnati Bell(PBR988) completes $201 million cash acquisition of N America/UK technology services/solutions provider OnX Enterprise Solutions. $CBB PR link.

Principal Financial(PBR265) to promote Julia Lawler to Chief Risk Officer, effective 01/01/18, succeeds retiring Greg Elming. $PFG PR link.

CF Industries(PBR502) hires Susan Menzel as SVP/Human Resources, effective 10/05/17. $CF PR link.

Diplomat Pharmacy(PBR515) acquires Tennessee based product development, IT outsourcing, and consulting services provider 8th Day Software and Consulting, names its founder Dave Loschinskey as DPLO’s Chief Information Officer. $DPLO PR link.

Dentsply Sirona(PBR694) appoints Mark Thierer interim CEO, Bob Size interim President/COO, Eric Brandt Non-Executive Chairman, follows resignations of Jeffrey Slovin, Christopher Clark, and Bret Wise. $XRAY PR link.

ServiceMaster(PBR704) appoints Dion Persson to SVP/Business Development, to focus on spin-off of new stand-alone public company American Home Shield in 2018. $SERV PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) hires Shawn Dennis as EVP/Chief Marketing Officer. $SGMS PR link.

GE(PBR9) Chairman Jeff Immelt steps down per plan, CEO John Flannery elected to additional role of Chairman. $GE PR link.

Citigroup(PBR28) elects John C. Dugan, former Comptroller of the Currency, and S. Leslie Ireland, former Asst Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis for the US Treasury Dept, to the Board. $C PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary August Total Construction Spending Annual Rate is at $1.218 trillion, +0.5% from July, +2.50% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The ISM US September Manufacturing PMI Index is at 60.8%, August was 58.8%, July56.3%, September 2016 49.4%. ISM PR link.

The IHS Markit Final September Manufacturing PMI is at 53.1, August was 52.8, July 53.3, September 2016 51.5. IHS Markit PR link.

***Friday, September 29:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week and Month Ending 09/29/17:
DJIA ends at 22,405.09, +0.25% from last Friday, +2.08% MTD, +4.94% QTD, +13.37% YTD, -0.03% from record 22,412.59 set 09/20/17.
NASDAQ ends at record 6,495.96, +1.07% from last Friday, +1.05% MTD, +5.79% QTD, +20.67% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,495.96 set 09/29/17.
SPX ends at record 2,519.36, +0.68% from last Friday, +1.93% MTD, +3.96% QTD, +12.53% YTD, +0.00% from record 2,519.36 set 09/29/17.

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-282-4100.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, Stuart Miles.)

Filed Under: Recaps Tagged With: acquisitions, Business, Business Intelligence, business news, DJIA, Economy, Leadership, Market Research, Marketing, mergers, Money, NASDAQ, Rankings, Research, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000

The PBR1000 September 2017 Stocks & Commodities Snapshots

October 8, 2017 by admin

September 2017: 3Q17 Ends and So Far So Good!

The Stock Market Geese laid a lot of very nice Golden Eggs during the first 3 quarters. How big will the 4th quarter basket have to be?

By Larry C. Paxton

At the beginning of the year there was a lot of anticipation about a new US President taking office, a business-friendly guy wanting to make America Great Again, who made a lot of promises, and who was determined to make them happen.

The feeling of optimism was strong and it was not difficult for prognosticators to predict a good year for investing. But no one came close to the results achieved through the first three quarters of the year.

In the meantime, US and geopolitics being what they are, there have been some detours on the promises, and not many of them have become a reality though the potential and hope is still there. The optimism continues as the Stock Market Bull continues to amaze everyone with a much longer run than anyone could have predicted. As always, there are the doomsday naysayers who say this has to end and the overly eagers who proclaim the Bull has a lot more room to roam.

Let the 4th quarter begin, and with the excitement of the holidays nearly upon us, nearly full employment, and big changes in how we shop, it will be an interesting last quarter of the year for The PBR1000 stocks.

Here are the September summaries on the major US stock market exchanges:

Number of Trading Days: 20

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 14+/6-; NASDAQ 14+/6-; SPX 14+/6-.

Record Days: DJIA 7, NASDAQ 5, SPX 9

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 9(09/08-20/07/17), NASDAQ 4(09/26-29/17), SPX 4(09/15-20/17 & 09/26-29/17)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 4(09/21-26/17), NASDAQ 2(09/20-21/17), SPX 2(09/07-08/17)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 2, 09/11/17(DJIA +1.19% NASDAQ +1.13%, S&P500 +1.08%): N Korea and Hurricane Irma fears abate; 09/27/17(NASDAQ +1.15%): Tech sector recovers.

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): 1, 09/05/17(DJIA -1.07%): N Korea missile test, President Trump rescinds DACA, debt ceiling concerns, Hurricane Irma anticipation.

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 September Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on September 29, Month % Chg is compared to August 31, YTD % Chg is compared to December 31, 2016, and the 21 Months % Chg is compared to December 31, 2015. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the September 2017 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +62% to -35%. 733 out of 1,001 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 3.0%, the median was a gain of 4.4%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 09/29/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	21 Mos % Chg
Conn’s	912	CONN	28.15	+62	+122	+20
Restoration Hardware	811	RH	70.32	+50	+129	-11
Babcock & Wilcox	914	BW	3.33	+47	-80	-84
Sears Hometown	822	SHOS	2.55	+46	-46	-68
Revlon	779	REV	24.55	+45	-16	-12

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +280% to -80%. 648 out of 1,000 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 12.7%, the median was a gain of 9.1%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 09/29/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	21 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	986	WTW	43.55	-7	+280	+91
Scientific Games	689	SGMS	45.85	+30	+228	+411
Systemax	899	SYX	26.43	+8	+201	+207
Restoration Hardware	811	RH	70.32	+50	+129	-11
Conn’s	912	CONN	28.15	+62	+123	+20

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 20 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +442% to -96%. 860 out of 997 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 26.1%. The median was a gain of 23.8%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 09/29/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	21 Mos % Chg
NVIDIA	363	NVDA	178.77	+6	+67	+442
Tronox	819	TROX	21.10	+2	+105	+440
Scientific Games	689	SGMS	45.85	+30	+228	+411
Navistar	317	NAV	44.07	+29	+40	+399
Cleveland Cliffs	816	CLF	7.15	-14	-15	+353

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $796.07 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $24.3 billion, median is $7.4 billion, out of 1,000 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 09/29/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	21 Mos % Chg
Apple	4	AAPL	796.07	-6	+29	+36
Alphabet	27	GOOG	664.55	+2	+25	+27
Microsoft	28	MSFT	573.74	-0	+19	+29
Facebook	95	FB	496.24	-1	+50	+68
Amazon	12	AMZN	461.81	-2	+30	+46
The PBR1000			24,318.98	+2	+11	+21

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 09/29/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	21 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	83,434.02	+3.1	+12.8	+26.1
DJIA	22,405.09	+2.1	+13.4	+28.6
NASDAQ	6,495.96	+1.1	+20.7	+29.7
S&P500	2,519.36	+1.9	+12.5	+23.3
GOLD	1,282.50	-3.3	+11.4	+21.0
SILVER	16.69	-5.4	+4.4	+20.9
OIL	51.64	+9.7	-3.9	+39.4

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-282-4100.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, Sira Anamwong.)

Filed Under: Snapshots Tagged With: Business Intelligence, Commodities, DJIA, Economy, Investing, Market Research, Marketing, Money, NASDAQ, Personal Finance, Rankings, S&P 500, Stock Market, Stocks, The PBR1000, Trading

The PBR1000 September 2017 Breaking News Recap

October 5, 2017 by admin

September 2017: Steadiness Amid The Chaos

With wars, a record number of refugees, and extreme weather conditions, there is a worldwide call for help. Please assist as you are able.

By Larry C. Paxton

In September the world was swirling in a thousand different directions with record strength hurricanes, destructive earthquakes, terrifying nuclear and missile tests, never ending local and regional wars, continued geopolitical uncertainties, elections, and unrest.

Nevertheless, the economies of the US and the world continued to grow at modest to moderate rates with most forecasts indicating more of the same in the years ahead.

Somehow it doesn’t make sense and you wonder when and how this will all resolve itself. Right now just about any scenario can be plausible. We will rapidly close in on the end of 2017 and it will be interesting to see what the legacy is.

Here’s a quick September 2017 summary on key activities that relate to The PBR1000:

The PBR1000 Mergers & Acquisitions: 25 deals worth at least $1 billion initiated, closed, or updated. Total transaction value was $94 billion.

The PBR1000 Spinoffs: 2

The PBR1000 Share Repurchase Programs: 17 announcements, total $8.8 billion.

The PBR1000 Bankruptcies: 1 initiated or updated

The PBR1000 CEO Changes: 7 announced.

Jobs/Wages: 4.2% unemployment rate, modest wage growth.

US Economy: Modest/moderate growth continues, stable but fragile.

Federal Reserve Federal Funds Rate Changes: No change, remains 1.00-1.25%, another increase possible in 2017.

US Stock Market Exchanges: All three US major stock exchanges established new closing records during the month. The Stock Market Bull easily won September(See The PBR1000 September Stocks/Commodities Snapshots blog post.)

The PBR1000 Additions: 6, Knight-Swift Transportation(PBR990, $KNX), per merger mentioned in Removals, DowDuPont(PBR48, $DWDP), per merger mentioned in Removals, Coca Cola Bottling(PBR643, $COKE), the largest US independent bottler for Coca Cola Company(PBR62, $KO), Norwegian Cruise Lines(PBR487, $NCLH), Sabre Corp(PBR615, $SABR), Signet Jewelers(PBR392, $SIG)

The PBR1000 Removals: 8, Knight Transportation(PBR977) and Swift Transportation(PBR547), merged to form Knight-Swift(PBR990, $KNX), Dow Chemical(PBR48) and EI DuPont(PBRPBR82), merged to form DowDuPont(PBR48, $DWDP), Staples(PBR122), acquired by Sycamore Partners, Cabela’s(PBR606), acquired by Bass Pro Shops, Parexel Intl(PBR762), acquired by Pamplona Capital Management, ARO Liquidation(PBR924), fka Aeropostale, in bankruptcy, selling off assets.

National: Hurricane Irma attacks Florida, then Hurricane Maria devastates Puerto Rico; Obamacare Repeal vote cancelled; President Trump rescinds DACA; US debt ceiling increased; proposed tax plans introduced; Supreme Court reinstates President Trump travel ban; President Trump interviews Federal Reserve Chairperson candidates; Russian involvement in US election investigation still in progress, controversial Playboy founder Hugh Heffner dies.

International: N Korea nuclear test; N Korea missile launch over Japan; German elections, Angela Merkel wins, but results disappoint; Mexico earthquakes; Brexit negotiations continue; continuations of Middle East conflicts, refugee crisis; oil/gold prices fluctuate; Japan parliament dissolved, snap election called.

The PBR1000 September Breaking News Items

Here are The PBR1000 corporate and economic related breaking news items of interest with hotlinks to the sources for September 2017, starting with the last active business day.

***Friday, September 29:

AIG(PBR46) welcomes decision of Financial Stability Oversight Council’s decision to remove AIG’s designation as a Systemically Important Financial Institution (SIFI). $AIG PR link.

Merck(PBR70) discontinuing development of 2 therapies for chronic hepatitis C, to focus on ZEPATIER® (elbasvir and grazoprevir). $MRK PR link.

Community Health Systems(PBR125)completes divestiture of 5 Pennsylvaniahospitals per 30 hospitals planned divestiture program announced 2Q17. $CYH PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) prices $5.7 billion in senior secured credit facility and $1.7 billion senior notes due 2025, to be used in a full repayment of all existing debt at Caesars Entertainment Resort Properties and Caesars Growth Properties Holdings, to result in $260 million savings over original debt, funds to be available upon emergence from bankruptcy by Caesars Entertainment Operating Companyand other conditions. $CZR PR link.

Quest Diagnostics(PBR353) completes acquisition of the Outreach Laboratory Services of two Hartford HealthCare Hospitalsin Connecticut, terms not disclosed. $DGX PR link.

Alliant Energy(PBR634) to build 300 megawatt 121 turbines Upland Prairie Wind Farm in Clay & Dickinson counties in NW Iowa, construction to start in spring 2018, to serve 130,000 homes/year, part of proposed $1.8 billion 1,000 megawatt plan for Iowa. $LNT PR link.

Vulcan Materials(PBR685) announces Vancouver, British Columbia, based Polaris Materials Corporation (TSX:PLS) has terminated agreement to be acquired because it has received a superior offer, has paid Vulcan $10 million(Canadian) termination fee. $VMC PR link.

Wolverine World Wide(PBR722) sells US Dept of Defense footwear business and Big Rapids, MI, factory to Original Footwear, terms not disclosed. $WWW PR link.

PAREXEL Intl(PBR762) $88.10/share, $5.0 billion cash acquisition by Pamplona Capital Management is completed. $PRXL PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142) promotes Josh Smiley to SVP/CFO, to succeed retiring Derica Rice, Myles O’Neill to SVP & President/Manufacturing Operations, both effective 01/01/18, Dan Skovronsky, MD, PhD, to SVP/Science and Technology and President/Research Labs, effective 06/01/18. $LLY PR link.

Becton Dickinson(PBR318) to add two directors from soon to be acquired CR Bard(PBR637) to its Board, Timothy Ring, Chairman/CEO, and David Melcher, President/CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA). $BD PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury reports that the US National Debt Total on 09/28/17 was $14.649 trillion Public, $5.554 trillion Intragovernmental, $20.203 trillion Total Debt, +1.8% from 08/31/17, +3.2% from 09/30/16. Treasury PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/BEA says US Preliminary August Total Personal Income Annual Rate is at $16.469 trillion, +0.2% from July, +2.3% from August 2016, Personal Savings Rate at 3.6%, Effective Tax Rate12.5%. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago 7th District Preliminary August Midwest Economy Index is at 0.10, July was 0.30. June0.43, August 2016 -0.17. ChiFed PR link.

MNI/ISM-Chicago reports that the MNI Chicago September Barometer Index(>50 gaining> is at 65.2, August was 58.9, July 58.9, September 2016 54.2. MNIChi PR link.

The American Automobile Assn says the US Average Price/Gallon of Regular Gas on 09/29/17 was $2.568, +4.9% from 08/31/18, +15.9% from 09/30/16. AAA PR link.

The U of Michigan US Final September Consumer Sentiment Index is at 95.1, Augustwas 96.8, July 93.4, September 2016 91.2. UMich PR link.

The Gold Price/Ounce Closing Price(GCZ7 12/17) on 09/29/17 was $1,282.50, -3.3% from 08/31/17, +11.4% from 12/31/16, -2.8% from 09/30/16. $GOLD PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury reports the US 1 Year Treasury Bill Yield at Close on 09/29/17 was 1.31%, 08/31/17 was 1.23%, 12/31/16 0.85%, 09/30/16 0.59%. Treasury PR link.

The Euro/USD Closing Exchange Rate on 09/29/17 was $1.1814, -0.9% from 08/31/17, +5.1% from 09/30/16. $EURUSD PR link.

***Thursday, September 28:

Amazon(PBR29) to open 650,000 sf fulfillment center in Euclid, OH, to employ 1,000+ fulltime, to be 5th center in Ohio. $AMZN PR link.

Lockheed(PBR64) authorizes additional $2 billion share repurchase program, balance available is now $4 billion. $LMT PR link.

Andeavor(PBR71) to complete incentive distribution rights for 59% buy-in after Andeavor Logistics(NYSE: ANDX) completes acquisition of Western Refining Logistics(NYSE: WNRL)for $1.8 billion(includes debt). $ANDV PR link.

Tyson(PBR80) boosts 2017 EPS guidance on strong beef segment performance, to eliminate 450 positions mostly in corporate offices in restructuring effort. $TSN PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) and AbbVie(PBR136)dismisses all pending patent litigation, allows commercialization of AMGEVITA™, an AbbVie HUMIRA® (adalimumab) biosimilar, Amgen to launch AMGEVITA in $4 billion market Europeon 10/17/17, in US on 01/31/23. $AMGN PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142 $LLY) gets US FDA approvalfor Verzenio (abemaciclib) therapy for certain advanced or metastatic breast cancers. FDA PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) extends licensing agreement with long-time Asia strategic partner Maxim’s Caterers Limited to include exclusive rights for Singapore. $SBUX PR link.

YUM!(PBR217)’s Taco Bell unit and fashion retailer Forever 21 to introduce new limited edition Forever 21 x Taco Bell collection on 10/10/17, to be available in Forever 21 stores and online 10/11/17. $YUM PR link.

KKR(PBR332) completes majority interest acquisition of global manufacturer, marketer, distributor and retailer of vitamins, nutritional supplements, sports & active nutrition and ethical beauty products Nature’s Bounty, hires Paul Sturman to be its CEO, succeeds departing Steve Cahillane. $KKR PR link.

Netflix(PBR447 $NFLX) to create Netflix Canada, invest minimum $400 million over 5 years, to establish permanent, multi-purpose film and television production presence for global distribution, first such venture outside the US. Canada Heritage Ministry PR link.

Invesco(PBR469) to acquire Guggenheim Investments’ exchange-traded funds (ETF)business, includes $36.7 billion of assets under management as of 08/31/17, for $1.2 billion cash. $IVZ PR link.

NVIDIA(PBR510) now offering interactive voice Google Assistant with its Shield TV streaming service. $NVDA PR link.

NASDAQ(PBR618) evaluating strategic alternatives for the Public Relations Solutionsand Digital Media Services units, do $195 million/year, wants to allocate more resources towards technology, data and analytics opportunities, leveraging its capital markets foundation. $NDAQ PR link.

MEDNAX(PBR794) acquires Hartford, CT, based 10 outpatient centers, exclusive provider to 7 regional hospitals Jefferson Radiology and Jefferson Imaging Associates, 60+ physicians, terms not disclosed. $MD PR link.

GoPro(PBR902) announces HERO6 Blackfeaturing 4K60 and 1080p240 video, $499.99, and Fusion, a waterproof, mountable 5.2K spherical camera, $699.99. $GPRO PR link.

Chevron(PBR3) to promote Mike Wirth to Chairman/CEO, effective 02/01/18, to succeed retiring John Watson, Mark Nelson to succed Wirth as VP/Midstream, Strategy & Policy. $CVX PR link.

Philip Morris Intl(PBR35) CFO Jacek Olczak to become COO, President/Asia Region Martin Luther to become CFO, restructuring from 4 to 6 geographic Regions. $PM PR link.

Kellogg(PBR198) Executive Chairman/CEO John Bryant retires as CEO, to remain Chairman until 03/15/17, Steven Cahillane hired as CEO, effective 10/02/17, to also be Chairman on 03/15/17. $K PR link.

Brown-Forman(PBR563) promotes Lawson Whiting to COO, effective 10/01/17. $BFA PR link.

Helmerich & Payne(PBR600) VP/CFO Juan Pablo Tardio to retire in 06/18, successor search starts. $HP PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US 4 Week Average Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims on 09/23/17 were at 277,750, +17.3% from 08/26/17, +8.5% from 09/24/16, Uninsured Unemployment Rate remains at 1.4%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US 2Q17 3rd Estimate of Gross Domestic Product Annual Rate is +3.1%, $19.250 trillion, +1.0% from 1Q17, +3.8% from 2Q16. USDOC PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) says US 30 Year Fixed Rate Mortgages on 09/28/17 Averaged 3.83% with 0.6 points/fees, 08/31/17 was 3.82% with 0.5 points/fees, 09/29/16 was 3.42% with 0.5 points/fees. $FMCC PR link.

***Wednesday, September 27:

Walmart(PBR1) relaunches Parent’s Choicebrand – including everything from diapers to blankets to wipes to baby food, to grow to more than 275 items. $WMT PR link.

Ford(PBR10) to develop self-driving cars for Lyft. $F PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) introduces new Fire TV for $69.99, $AMZN PR link., and newly designed Echo with Alexa($99.99) and Echo Plus($149.99) smart home hub, $AMZN PR link.

Delta(PBR72) is 1st US global airline carrier to offer free mobile messaging in flight, effective 10/01/17. $DAL PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) gets US FDA approval for HeartWare(TM) HVAD(TM) System as a destination therapy for patients with advanced heart failure who are not candidates for heart transplants. $MDT PR link.

Abbott Labs(PBR134) gets US FDA approvalof FreeStyle® Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System as replacement for routine finger sticks1for adults with diabetes. $ABT PR link.

Praxair(PBR233) shareholders approve 50/50 stock ownership deal with Germany based Linde AG(Xetra: LIN) to become a $30 billion/year Linde plc, plan to close 2H18. $PX PR link.

Applied Materials(PBR299) authorizes new up to $3 billion share repurchase program. $AMAT PR link.

Campbell Soup(PBR326) says $700 million cash acquisition of $218 million revenues/last 12 months organic broth/soup and shelf-stable plant-based beverages and other meals/sides producer Pacific Foods of Oregon subject to resolution of recently filed $250 million lawsuit against PFO. $CPB PR link.

Wabash Natl(PBR917) completes $21/share, $364 million acquisition of Goshen, IN-based 2nd largest US manufacturer of truck bodies with 2016 sales of $299 million Supreme Industries(NYSE MKT:STS). $WNC PR link.

Gilead Sciences(PBR107) COO Kevin Young to retire by 03/31/18. $GILD PR link.

Core-Mark(PBR271) promotes Scott McPherson to newly created position of President/COO, SVP/US Distribution-West Christopher L. Walsh to retire by 12/31/17, to be succeeded by SVP/Sales & Marketing Christopher Hobson. $CORE PR link.

Flowers Foods(PBR594) hires Debo Mukherjee as Chief Marketing Officer, effective 10/02/17. $FLO PR link.

La-Z-Boy(PBR918) SVP/CFO Mike Riccio to retire in 06/18, national successor search starts. $LZB PR link.

PayPal(PBR254) appoints Rodney Adkins, former IBM(PBR25) senior executive, to the Board. $PYPL PR link.

Hormel Foods(PBR293) Chairman Jeffrey Ettinger retires, President/CEO Jim Snee to add Chairman role, effective 11/20/17. $HRL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US Preliminary 2Q17 US Assets were at $25.938 trillion, Liabilities $33.873 trillion, Deficit $7.935 trillion, 1Q17 Deficit was $8.092 trillion. USDOC PR link.

The US Energy Information Administrationreports 09/22/17 US Crude Oil Stocks were at 471.0 million barrels, +2.9% from 08/25/17, -0.2% from 09/23/16. EIA PR link.

***Tuesday, September 26:

Amgen(PBR135) and China based Simcere Pharmaceutical announce strategic collaboration co co-develop and commercialize certain inflamation and oncology biosimilars In China. $AMGN PR link.

Aramark(PBR184) gets multi-year agreement to be the official retail partner for NFL events across the country. $ARMK PR link.

Parker Hannifin(PBR218) acknowledges US Dept of Justice filing regarding its US qualified aviation ground fuel filtration business, total related annual revenues less than $20 million. $PH PR link.

JCPenney(PBR234) to offer Frigidaire® kitchen appliances in 600 major appliance showrooms and online starting 10/01/17, also launches first-ever cookware line from celebrity chef Ayesha Curry. $JCP PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352) completes acquisition of world’s largest owner and operator of premier showroom space for the furnishings, home decor and gift industries International Market Centers, with 12.2 million sf of exhibition space, from Bain Capital & affiliates, terms not disclosed. $BX PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) resumes share repurchase program suspended in 4Q15, $256 million of $500 million authorization is available. $NWL PR link.

Clorox(PBR442)’s Kingsford unit to offer Kingsford® branded pre-cooked ribs and barbecue entrees starting in 12/17 through multi-year agreement with unit of Carl Buddig & Co. $CLX PR link.

Chipotle(PBR561) enters partnership with chef Richard Blais for its Tasty Made burger restaurant. $CMG PR link.

Cabela’s(PBR606) $61.50/share, $5 billion acquisition by Bass Pro Shops has been completed. $CAB PR link.

IAC(PBR665)’s Vimeo unit to acquire 10 million+ events/year LiveStream, terms not disclosed, launches its own Vimeo Livestreaming service. $IAC PR link.

Twitter(PBR735) making a 280 character limit version available to a small test group, provides some initial results. $TWTR PR link.

Griffon Corp(PBR890) amends purchase price for Emerson Electric(PBR109 $EMR)‘s $300 million+ revenues/year ClosetMaid unit from $260 million to $200 million due to increased manufacturing costs, to close 10/02/17. $GFF PR link.

Northrop Grumman(PBR113) COO Gloria Flach and VP/Government Relations Sid Ashworth to retire on 12/31/17, Kathy J. Warden to become President/COO, Mark Caylor to be VP and President/Mission Systems, Shawn Purvis to be VP and President/Enterprise Services, Lesley Kalan to be VP/Government Relations. $NOC PR link.

Kohl’s(PBR149) Chairman/President/CEO Kevin Mansell to retire in 05/18, Michelle Gass to become CEO, COO Sona Chawla to become President. $KSS PR link.

Equifax(PBR795) Chairman/CEO Richard Smith retires, Board member Mark Feidler appointed Chairman, Paulino do Rego Barros, Jr, appointed Interim CEO, CEO search starts. $EFX PR link.

Kaman Corp(PBR934) corporate EVP and President/Aerospace Group Gregory Steiner to retire 01/02/18, hires Richard Barnhart as President/Aerospace Group, effective 10/01/17. $KAMN PR link.

Comerica(PBR740) appoints Barbara R. Smith, CEO of Commercial Metals(PBR362), to the Board. $CMA PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD reports US Preliminary August New Family Homes Sold Annual Rate at 560,000, -3.4% from July, -1.2% from August 2016, Median Price is $300,200, -6.2% from July, -0.7% from August 2016. HUD PR link.

The S&P/CoreLogic/Case-Shiller Home Price Index(01/2000=100) was 194.10 in July, 192.70 in June, 190.93 in May, 183.22 in July 2016. Case-Shiller PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond says the 5th District September Annualized Manufacturing Index is at 19%, August was 14%, July 14%, September 2016 -6%. RichmondFed PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond says the 5th District September Service Sector Revenue Index is at 22%, August was 22%, July 12%, September 2016 10%. RichmondFed PR link.

The Conference Board says the US Preliminary September Consumer Confidence Index(1985=100) is at 119.8, August was 120.4, July 120.0, September 2016 103.5. TCB PR link.

***Monday, September 25:

GE(PBR9 $GE) Industrial Solutions unit, based in Atlanta, GA, with a 13,500 employees globally, $2.7 billion revenues/2016, to be acquired by Switzerland based ABB for $2.6 billion, to close 1H18. ABB PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) Web Services unit to open data centers in the Middle East by early 2019, to launch an AWS Edge Network location in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 1Q18. $AMZN PR link.

Target(PBR40) to raise minimum wage to $11/hour in 10/17, commits to minimum $15/hour by end of 2020. $TGT PR link.

AIG(PBR46) reorganizes, no longer has Commercial and Consumer segments, transitioning to General Insurance led by CEO Peter Zaffino, Life & Retirement led by CEO Kevin Hogan, and a stand-alone, technology-enabled platform led by CEO Seraina Macia. Rob Schimek, CEO of Commercial, leaving by 10/31/17. $AIG PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) says critical manufacturing areas in its Juncos, Puerto Rico, not significantly impacted by Hurricane Maria, no inventory lost, no interruption to patient supply anticipated, working to return to normal operations, has 2,000 employees in Puerto Rico. $AMGN PR link.

AbbVie(PBR136) says facilities in Puerto Ricoare intact, operational, and are returning to normal after Hurricane Maria, running on generators, has 1,200 employees on the island. $ABBV PR link.

Genuine Parts(PBR191) to acquire London, UK, based second largest European distributor of vehicle parts, tools and workshop equipment, 7,500 employees, 1,800 stores, Alliance Automotive Group for $2 billion, to close 4Q17. $GPC PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) authorizes new $2 billion share repurchase program, recently completed $15 billion program. $AGN PR link.

SunTrust Banks(PBR307) to sell its commercial lines insurance premium finance subsidiary, $1.4 billion in assets Premium Assignment Corporation (PAC), to IPFS Corporation, terms not disclosed. $STI PR link.

TechnipFMC(PBR334) authorizes up to $500 million share repurchase program through 12/31/18. $FTI PR link.

NVIDIA(PBR510) CEO/Founder Jensen Huang kicks off global GTC Tour, unveiling AI tools and partnerships in China, including Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, JD.com and iFlyTech for cloud services, and OEMs Huawei, Inspur, and Lenovo. $NVDA PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Naples, FL, based retail property/casualty broker and benefit consultant Premier Insurance dba Lutgert Insurance, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Colfax(PBR517) to sell its $463 million revenues in 2017 Fluid Handling business to CIRCOR for $860 million cash, to close in 4Q17. $CFX PR link.

American Equity(PBR859) to transition its 78,000 members National Guard and Fire Fighter group life insurance coverage to Armed Forces Benefit Association(AFBA), terms not disclosed. $AEL PR link.

Synovus Financial(PBR966) completes acquisition of certain Cabela’s(PBR606 $CAB)assets and liabilities for $1.2 billion, which will then sell credit card assets/related liabilities to Capital One(PBR116 $COF), which will become exclusive 10 year VISA(PBR224 $V) card provider. $SNV PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) EVP/CFO Tessa Hilado to retire upon appointment of successor. $AGN PR link.

HanesBrands(PBR459) hires Barry Hytinen as CFO, effective 10/16/17. $HBI PR link.

Moody’s(PBR636) hires Melanie Hughes as Chief Human Resources Officer. $MCO PR link.

Tempur Sealy(PBR687) promotes Bhaskar Rao to EVP/CFO, effective 10/13/17, succeeds departing Barry Hytinen. $TPX PR link.

Bristow Group(PBR919) directors Bruce Stover and David Gompert to depart Board in 03/18, Gaurdie Banister Jr, former Shell Oil senior executive, to join Board on 10/01/17. $BRS PR link.

The Federal Bank of Chicago says the Preliminary August National Activity Index is at -0.31, July was +0.03, June +0.16, August 2016 -0.43. ChiFed PR link.

***Friday, September 22:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 09/22/17:
DJIA ends week at 22,349.59, +0.36% from last Friday, +1.83% MTD, +4.68% QTD, +13.09% YTD, -0.28% from record 22,412.59 set 09/20/17.
NASDAQ ends week at 6,426.92, -0.33% from last Friday, -0.03% MTD, +4.67% QTD, +19.39% YTD, -0.53% from record 6,461.32 set 09/19/17.
SPX ends week at 2,502.22, +0.08% from last Friday, +1.24% MTD, +3.25% QTD, +11.76% YTD, -0.24% from record 2,508.24 set 09/20/17.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37) Janssen unit receives Complete Response Letter from US FDA for Sirukumab, for treatment of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis, of Biologics License Application, planning a follow-up session with FDA. $JNJ PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) completes $320 million cash acquisition of Sunnyvale, CA, based hyperconvergence software developer Springpath. $CSCO PR link.

Merck(PBR70) gets US FDA approval for KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) use for certain advanced gastric cancers. $MRK PR link.

International Paper(PBR117) to invest $300 million to convert its No. 15 paper machine at Riverdale Mill in Selma, AL, from uncoated freesheet to high quality whitetop linerboard and containerboard, to add 450,000 tons of annual capacity, provide some flexibilities. $IP PR link.

Abbott Labs(PBR134) gets US FDA approvalfor MRI-compatibility for its ELLIPSE™ ICDused for treatment of abnormally fast heart rhythms. $ABT PR link.

ConAgra(PBR166) to acquire Angie’s Artisan Treats, the maker of Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP ready-to-eat popcorn, from TPG Growth, terms not disclosed. $CAG PR link.

Bristol-Myers Squibb(PBR185)’s Opdivo® (nivolumab) gets US FDA approval for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma patients previously treated with sorafenib. $BMY PR link.

Allergan(PBR219) gets Refusal to File Letterfrom US FDA for Vraylar® (cariprazine) supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA)for the treatment of negative symptoms in schizophrenia, to meet with FDA to address issues. $AGN PR link.

TSYS(PBR790) President/COO Pamela Joseph resigns, effective 09/30/17; Chairman/CEO M Troy Woods to assume additional role of President, commits to being CEO through at least end of 2020. $TSS PR link.

Ferrellgas(PBR801) hires Doran Schwartz as CFO, effective 10/16/17, to succeed Al Heitmann, who will remain in an advisory role until his retirement on 01/31/18. $FGP PR link.

Insperity(PBR814) appoints Ellen Masterson, a former PriceWaterhouseCoopers executive, as a new independent director. $NSP PR link.

***Thursday, September 21:

ExxonMobil(PBR2) Baytown and Beaumontrefineries begin fuels production, chemical plants ramping up to normal operations as recovery continues from Hurricane Harvey. $XOM PR link.

Alphabet(PBR44 $GOOG)’s Google unit to pay $1.1 billion to Taipei, Taiwan, based smartphone developer HTC(TWSE: 2489) for some employees working on Pixel smartphones and for non-exclusive license of certain HTC intellectual property. HTC PR link.

Texas Instruments(PBR220) increases quarterly dividend by 24% to $0.62/share, adds $6.0 billion share repurchase program, balance available is now $10.6 billion. $TXN PR link.

Core-Mark(PBR271) gets 3 year food service distribution services renewal agreement for 4,500 Rite-Aid(PBR105 $RAD) drug stores. $CORE PR link.

AECOM(PBR322) announces capital allocation policy and $1 billion stock repurchase authorization. $ACM PR link.

Blackstone(PBR352) to acquire Darmstadt, Germany, based 2,300 employees global applied measuring technology provider Schenck Process from IK Investment Partners, terms not disclosed. $BX PR link.

Perrigo(PBR565) gets US FDA approval for its AB rated generic version of opioid agonist Exalgo®(hydromorphone HCl) 32mg Extended Release Tablets, used for certain pain therapies, $35 million market. $PRGO PR link.

FMC Corp(PBR566) gets Competition Commission of India (CCI) approval for acquisition of certain assets of DuPont Crop Protection business for $1.2 billion cash, expects to close 11/01/17. $FMC PR link.

Minerals Tech(PBR949) authorizes $150 million 2 year share repurchase program, effective 10/01/17. $MTX PR link.

PPG(PBR190) EVP Viktor Sekmakas to retire, effective 09/30/17. $PPG PR link.

PPG(PBR190) SVP/Automotive Coatings Tim Knavish to become SVP/Industrial Coatings & other units, effective 09/30/17, succeeds departing Shelley Bausch, Gary Danowski to become VP/Automotive Coatings. $PPG PR link.

Dana(PBR382) promotes Christophe Dominiak to SVP/Chief Technology Officer, succeeds retiring George Constand. $DAN PR link.

Flowserve(PBR492) hires Lee Eckert as SVP/CFO, effective 10/09/17. $FLS PR link.

MDU Resources(PBR513) promotes Jason Vollmer to VP/CFO, effective 09/30/17, succeeds departed Doran Schwartz. $MDU PR link.

Citrix(PBR658) hires Mark J. Ferrer as EVP/Chief Revenue Officer, EVP/Worldwide Sales and Services Carlos Sartorius to assist in transition, retire at end of 2017. $CTXS PR link.

Tiffany(PBR551) elects Roger Farah as new Chairman, effective 10/02/17, succeeds Michael Kowalski who will remain as a director. $TIF PR link.

The US Federal Reserve Bank reports US 2Q17 Households & Nonprofits Net Worth at $96.196 trillion, +1.8% from 1Q17, +9.3% from 2Q16. Fed PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphiasays the Philadelphia September Manufacturing General Activity Indicator is at 23.8, August was 18.9, July 19.5, September 2016 11.6. PhillyFed PR link.

The Conference Board says US August Leading Economic Index(2010=100) is at 128.8, July was 128.4, June 128.1, August 2016 124.1. TCB PR link.

FreddieMac(PBR41) in September Outlookforecasts US new and existing home sales to increase 2% in 2018, house price growth of 4.9%, refinance share of mortgage activity to decline to 25%. $FMCC PR link.

The Natl Retail Federation estimates Halloween spending to reach record $9.1 billion, +8.3% from 2016. NRF PR link.

***Wednesday, September 20:

Walmart(PBR1) to again offer extra hours to associates rather than hire seasonal workers for the holidays, bringing back Holiday Helpers to assist customers. $WMT PR link.

Anthem(PBR38) to acquire Florida based 40,000 members Medicare Advantage health plans and healthcare delivery networks provider HealthSun, terms not disclosed. $ANTM PR link.

Beacon Roofing(PBR818) making public offering of 6,325,000 shares of its common stock for $47.50/share, expects to close on 09/25/17. $BECN PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) to acquire Las Vegas, NV, based 1,000 employees globally digital gaming provider NYX Gaming Group(TSXV: NYX) for around $631 million. $SGMS PR link.

Office Depot(PBR182) hires David Bleisch as EVP/Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary, succeeds Steve Calkins who was promoted to President, Business Solutions Division in 05/17. $ODP PR link.

EOG Resources(PBR159) appoints C. Christopher Gaut, most recently Chairman/CEO of Forum Energy Technologies, to the Board, effective 10/01/17. $EOG PR link.

Citrix(PBR658) elects Ajei S. Gopal, currently President/CEO of engineering simulation developer ANSYS, to the Board. $CTXS PR link.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committeefinishes meeting, says labor market has continued to strengthen and that economic activity has been rising moderately so far this year, federal funds interest rate remains 1.00-1.25%, balance sheet normalization programto start in 10/17. FOMC PR link.

The Natl Assn of Realtors says US August Existing Home Sales Annual Rate is at 5.35 million, -1.7% from July, +2.0% from August 2016; Median Price is $253,500, -1.9% from July, +5.6% from August 2016. NAR PR link.

***Tuesday, September 19:

Ford(PBR10 $F) to cut production for 1-3 weeks at 5 plants as demand slips. MarketWatch PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) announces all new Amazon Fire HD 10, retails for $149.99. $AMZN PR link.

Walgreens Boots Alliance(PBR36) gets regulatory clearance for purchase of 1,932 Rite Aid(PBR105) stores and related assets over 6 months starting in 10/17 for $4.375 billion cash. $WBA PR link.

Kohl’s(PBR149) to offer free returns of Amazon(PBR29 $AMZN) items at 82 stores across Los Angeles and Chicago areas starting in 10/17. $KSS PR link.

Swiss based Clariant confirms receipt of letter from investor White Tale Holdings, reconfirms its full commitment to $20 billion merger of equals with Huntsman Corp(PBR244 $HUN). Clariant PR link.

Huntsman Corp(PBR244) says Clariant 15%+ stockholder White Tale Holding‘s public letter is false and misleading regarding $20 billion merger of equals. $HUN PR link.

Post Holdings(PBR486) to acquire producer and distributor of refrigerated potato, pasta and vegetable-based side dishes, pork sausage, and a variety of refrigerated and frozen convenience food items Bob Evans Farms(NASDAQ: BOBE) for $77.00/share, $1.5 billion cash, to be completed 1Q18. $POST PR link.

TEGNA(PBR622) authorizes up to $300 million share repurchase program over 3 years, anticipates 2018 revenue and cash flow will be particularly strong, driven by both Olympics and Super Bowl advertising, very strong political spending, as well as further ramp up of multiple revenue initiatives. $TGNA PR link.

WABCO(PBR704) completes $145 million acquisition of private, Hanover, PA, based $130 million/2016 commercial vehicle technologies supplier RH Sheppard. $WBC PR link.

Crocs(PBR1000) and British fashion designer Christopher Kane debut limited-edition Swiftwater Sandals, features a richly embellished rhinestone spin. $CROX PR link.

Xylem(PBR575) promotes Colin Sabol to SVP & President/Sensus & Analytics, effective 10/01/17, succeeds Randy Bays who will move into an advisory role. $XYL PR link.

Microsoft(PBR31) appoints Hugh Johnston, Vice Chairman/CFO of PepsiCo(PBR43) to the Board; G Mason Morfit to not stand for Board re-election in 11/17. $MSFT PR link.

eBay(PBR163) appoints Adriane Brown, currently advisor with Intellectual Ventures and former senior executive with Honeywell(PBR74), and Diana Farrell, Founding President/CEO at think tank JPMorgan Chase(PBR21) Institute, to the Board. EBAY PR link.

Colfax(PBR517) appoints Didier Teirlinck, strategic advisor to the CEO of Ingersoll Randand former EVP of Ingersoll Rand’s Climate segment, to its Board. $CFX PR link.

Twitter(PBR735) appoints Patrick Pichette, former SVP/CFO of Google, to the Board, effective 12/01/17; Hugh Johnston, Vice Chairman/CFO of PepsiCo(PBR43), to step down from Board, effective 10/01/17. $TWTR PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/HUD says US Preliminary August Private Housing Building Permits Issued Annual Rate is at 1,300,000, +5.7% from July, +8.3% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Labor reports US Preliminary August Import Prices were +0.6%, July -0.1%, June -0.2%, August 2016 -0.2%; Export Priceswere +0.6%, July +0.5%, June -0.1%, August 2016 -0.8%; YTD Import Prices are +2.1%, Export Prices +2.3%. USDOC PR link.

***Monday, September 18:

Valero Energy(PBR13) acquisition of Martinez and Richmond Terminals in California, assets of Plains All American Pipeline(PBR66 $PAA), terminated by mutual agreement. $VLO PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) to open 3rd fulfillment center in Portland, OR, 1 million sf facility, to create 1,000+ fulltime jobs. $AMZN PR link.

Amazon(PBR29) to open 4th fulfillment center in Ohio, a 1 million sf facility in Monroe, to create 1,000+ fulltime jobs. $AMZN PR link.

Macy’s(PBR97) to hire 80,000 seasonal associates in 2017, schedules national hiring event for 09/28-29/17. $M PR link.

Northrop Grumman(PBR113) to acquire global aerospace and defense technologies provider Orbital ATK(PBR655) for $134.50/share, $9.2 billion cash, includes $1.4 billion in debt, expects to close in 1H18. $NOC PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) announces US FDA approval and US launch of Intellis(TM) platform for the management of certain types of chronic intractable pain. $MDT PR link.

L Brands(PBR247) authorizes new $250 million share repurchase program, includes $10.3 million remaining from previous $250 million plan. $LB PR link.

Henry Schein(PBR270) authorizes new up to $400 million share repurchase program, $25 million still available from previous authorization. $HSIC PR link.

Sanmina(PBR401) authorizes new up to $200 million share repurchase program, to be effective upon completion of current program which has a balance of $53 million. $SANM PR link.

Envision Healthcare(PBR581) authorizes up to $250 million share repurchase program. $EVHC PR link.

Taylor Morrison Home(PBR595) extends share repurchase program to 12/31/18, increases amount available to $100 million from $56.4 million balance remaining. $TMHC PR link.

Meritor(PBR639) to sell its interest in Meritor WABCO joint venture to WABCO(PBR704) for $250 million plus $225 million to $265 million over next 3 1/2 years based on earnings of the business. $MTOR PR link.

TD Ameritrade(PBR662) completes $4 billion cash/stock acquisition of private Scottrade Financial Services. $AMTD PR link.

PAREXEL Intl(PBR762) shareholders approve acquisition by Pamplona Capital Managementfor $88.10/share, $5.0 billion cash, to close 09/29/17. $PRXL PR link.

Itron(PBR896) to acquire Internet of Important Things™ connectivity platforms and solutions to utilities and cities provider, $311 million in sales/2016 with $1.2 billion backlog Silver Spring Networks(NYSE: SSNI) for $16.25/share(25% premium over 09/15/17 closing price), $830 million cash. $ITRI PR link.

Apollo Global Mgmt(PBR906) completes $17.12/share, $1.1 billion acquisition of private clubs management provider ClubCorp(NYSE: MYCC). $APO PR link.

Scientific Games(PBR937) to re-incorporate from Delaware to Nevada pending special shareholders meeting approval. $SGMS PR link.

ManTech Intl(PBR938) to acquire private Bethesda, MD, based 300 employees IT solutions provider InfoZen for $180 million. $MANT PR link.

Verizon(PBR15) hires Rima Qureshi as EVP/Chief Strategy Officer, effective 11/06/17, to succeed Roy Chestnut who is departing by 12/31/17. $VZ PR link.

Ingredion(PBR415) EVP/Global Specialties & President/Americas Jim Zallie to become President/CEO on 01/01/18, current President/CEO/Chairman Ilene Gordon to be Executive Chairman until retirement in 07/18. $INGR PR link.

CommScope(PBR482) EVP/CFO Mark Olson to retire on 03/31/18, search firm being retained. $COMM PR link.

Envision Healthcare(PBR581) reorganizing, Karen Witty to be EVP/COO, Kevin Eastridge to be promoted to CFO, succeeds retiring Claire Gulmi, Physicians Services Group COO Brian Jackson to be President/Physicians Services, all effective 10/02/17. $EVHC PR link.

MSA Safety(PBR996) promotes Bob Leenen to President/MSA International, succeeds retiring Ronald Herring, Jr. $MSA PR link.

Dollar Tree(PBR309) CEO Bob Sasser assumes Executive Chairman role, Enterprise President Gary Philbin appointed President/CEO, Macon Brock remains on Board as Chairman Emeritus. $DLTR PR link.

Intel(PBR51) elects Andrew Wilson, CEO of Electronic Arts(PBR527 $EA), to the Board. $INTC PR link.

Cisco(PBR60) Executive Chairman John Chambers to not stand for re-election at 12/11/17 annual shareholders meeting, to become honorary Chairman Emeritus, CEO Chuck Robbins to be appointed Chairman. $CSCO PR link.

TEGNA(PBR622) board member Jennifer Dulski has resigned to begin a new professional opportunity. $TGNA PR link.

The Natl Assn of Home Builders/Wells Fargo US Preliminary September Housing Market Index is at 64, August was 67, July 64, September 2016 65. NAHB/WF PR link.

***Friday, September 15:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 09/15/17:
DJIA ends week at record 22,268.34, +2.16% from last Friday, +1.46% MTD, +4.30% QTD, +12.86% YTD, +0.00% from record 22,268.34 set 09/15/17.
NASDAQ ends week at 6,448.47, +1.39% from last Friday, +0.31% MTD, +5.02% QTD, +19.79% YTD, -0.18% from record 6,460.19 set 09/13/17.
SPX ends week at record 2,500.23, +1.58% from last Friday, +1.16% MTD, +3.17% QTD, +11.68% YTD, +0.00% from record 2,500.23 set 09/15/17.

Walmart(PBR1) CEO Doug McMillon announces 5-7 year plan to develop a new centralized home office located in Bentonville, AR. $WMT PR link.

MetLife(PBR39) completes $250 million acquisition of Fortress Investment Group‘s $33 billion in assets from 100+ institutional clients Logan Circle Partners, a traditional fixed income asset management business. $MET PR link.

Bon-Ton Stores(PBR707) to hire 10,000 associates for the holiday season, as well as 500 for its fulfillment/e-commerce centers. $BONT PR link.

Equifax(PBR795) releases details on cybersecurity incident, that its Chief Information Officer and Chief Security Officer are retiring, interim appointments made. $EFX PR link.

PerkinElmer(PBR839) SVP/CFO Andy Wilson to retire in 08/18, executive search firm retained. $PKI PR link.

Sysco(PBR61) elects Sheila G. Talton, currently serving as President/CEO of Gray Matter Analytics, to the Board, will stand for re-election at 11/17/17 annual meeting. $SYY PR link.

Natl Oilwell Varco(PBR127) appoints Melody B. Meyer, former Chevron(PBR3) executive, to the Board. $NOV PR link.

The US Federal Reserve Board says US Preliminary August Industrial Production Total Index(2012=100) is at 104.7, +0.2% from July, +2.2% from August 2016; Total Industry Capacity at 76.1%, July was 76.9%, effect of Hurricane Harvey. FRB PR link.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York September Empire State Manufacturing Survey Index is at 24.4, August was 25.2, July9.8, September 2016 -1.2. NYFed PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary July Total Manufacturers/Retail/Wholesales Sales at $1.359 trillion, +0.2% from June, +4.9% from July 2016. USDOC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Advance August Total Retail Sales were at $474.8 billion, -0.2% from July, +3.2% from August 2016. USDOC PR link.

The U of Michigan US Preliminary September Consumer Sentiment Index is at 95.3, Augustwas 96.8, July 93.4, September 2016 91.2. UMichigan PR link.

***Thursday, September 14:

Amazon(PBR29) to open 1 million sf fulfillment center in the Charter Township of Shelby, MI, to open in 2018, will create 1,000 new full-time jobs. $AMZN PR link.

Amgen(PBR135) and Allergan(PBR219 $AGN)’s MVASI™ (bevacizumab-awwb) gets US FDA first anti-cancer biosimilar approval for treatment of 5 types of cancer. $AMGN PR link.

Netflix(PBR447) renews 2014 agreement with Orange TV for France, expands partnership to include all 29 countries served by Orange Group. $NFLX PR link.

QuintilesIMS(PBR455) to do 4 million share repurchase as part of secondary public 9 million stock sale. $Q PR link.

AmTrust Financial(PBR564) to sell Personal Lines Policy Management System to National General Holdings Corp for $200 million in 3 payments. $AFSI PR link.

Manitowoc(PBR579) to do 1:4 reverse stock split, needs to be approved at special stockholders meeting to be held sometime in 4Q17. $MTW PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) opens its newest International Business Exchange™ (IBX®)data center in Silicon Valley, a $122 million facility called SV10, located at its Great Oaks campus in San Jose. $EQIX PR link.

Synopsys(PBR879) to do $100 million accelerated share repurchase for 1.01 million shares from HSBC. $SNPS PR link.

Office Depot(PBR182) hires Jerri DeVard as EVP/Chief Marketing Officer. $ODP PR link.

TimeInc(PBR631) promotes Edward Felsenthal to Editor-in-Chief of TIME, succeeds Nancy Gibbs who stepped down on 09/12/17. $TIME PR link.

Alexion Pharmaceutical(PBR840) appoints Paul A. Friedman, MD, former President/CEO of biopharmaceuticals company Incyte Corp, to the Board, succeeds retired R. Douglas Norby; Director Alvin S. Parven to retire from Board at next annual meeting. $ALXN PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary August Average Weekly Employee Earningswere at $907.82, -0.2% from July, +2.8% from August 2016. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US August Consumer Price Index for All Items was +0.4%, July was 0.1%, June +0.0%, Last 12 Months(Unadjusted) +1.9%. USDOL PR link.

The PBR1000 Top 5 August Stock Price Gainers(Company, Rank by Revenues, Stock Symbol, Stock Price 08/31/17, % Change from 07/31/17) are:

1. Triple-S Mgmt(PBR676), GTS, $24.71, +60%
2. Hertz Global(PBR297), HTZ, $21.74, +59%
3. Calumet(PBR584), CLMT, $8.00, +54%
4. Manitowoc Co(PBR905), MTW, $8.23, +44%
5. Systemax(PBR899), SYX, $24.44, +35%

Range: +60% to -78%
Number of Companies >0.0%: 431/1,002
Average: -0.65%
Median: -0.97%

To get the full The PBR1000 Snapshot 11 list, as well as 14 other insightful analytical reports, 22 rankings, and 200 data/info items per company go to the Subscribe page.

***Wednesday, September 13:

Target(PBR40) hiring 100,000 team members for the holiday season plus 4,500 for its distribution/fulfillment centers. $TGT PR link.

Alleghany Corp(PBR467) to sell its underwriter of workers’ compensation insurance, primarily in California, Pacific Compensation Insurance Company, to CopperPoint Mutual Insurance Company for $150 million cash. $Y PR link.

Greenbrier(PBR846) completes production on its 50,000th covered hopper railcar, built the first one 11 years ago. $GBX PR link.

Mylan(PBR346) hires Dennis Zeleny as Chief Human Relations Officer. $MYL PR link.

Bristol-Myers Squibb(PBR185) elects Karen Vousden, PhD, a highly regarded cancer researcher, to the Board, will serve on Science and Technology Committee. $BMY PR link.

Deckers Outdoor(PBR929) confirms receipt of 10 nominees for board from major shareholder Marcato Capital Management, will review, states confidence in current board and business strategy. $DECK PR link.

SeaWorld(PBR948) elects international theme parks executive Yoshikazu Maruyama as Chairman, succeeding David D’Alessandro who is stepping down along with directors Judith A. McHale, and Ellen O. Tauscher; Donald Robinson elected Lead Independent Director; all effective 10/09/17. $SEAS PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US August Producer Price Index was +0.2%, July was -0.1%, June +0.1%, August 2016 -0.2%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Treasury says US August Receipts were $226.3 billion, Outlays $334.0 billion, Deficit $107.7 billion, YTD Receipts(11 Months) $2.996 trillion, YTD Outlays $3.640 trillion, YTD Deficit $673.7 billion. Treasury PR link.

***Tuesday, September 12:

Walmart(PBR1 $WMT) moving from 6 divisional groups to 4, 44 regional groups to 36, in order to keep up with the fast pace of change in the retail sector. MarketWatch PR link.

Apple(PBR5 $AAPL) announces Apple Watch Series 3(PR link), iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus(PR link), and iPhone X(PR link).

AT&T(PBR12) Unlimited Choice customers join AT&T Unlimited Plus customers in getting HBOincluded with their wireless plans starting 09/15/17. $T PR link.

DowDuPont(PBR48) announces certain targeted adjustments to be made between the Materials Science and Specialty Productsdivisions before spin-offs occur. $DWDP PR link.

Staples(PBR122) acquisition by private equity firm Sycamore Partners for $10.25/share(about a 20% premium from 04/03/17), $6.9 billion cash, is completed, no longer a publicly traded company. $SPLS PR link.

Centene(PBR177) to acquire not-for-profit 1.6 million members $4.8 billion in revenues for 6 months ended 06/30/17 Fidelis Care for $3.75 billion, will become Centene’s health plan in New York State. $CNC PR link.

MGM Resorts(PBR273) to purchase 10 million shares at $32.75/share, from Tracinda Corporation, which will retain 47.1 million shares, represents 8.3% of common stock. $MGM PR link.

Dover(PBR343) exploring strategic alternatives for the separation of its upstream energy businesses within its Energy segment, including a tax-free spin-off, sale or other strategic combination. $DOV PR link.

Alexion Pharmaceutical(PBR840)restructuring, reduce global workforce by 20%, to close multiple manufacturing and office sites, relocate corporate headquarters to Boston, MA, by mid 2018, Center of Excellence for R&D and other functions to be in New Haven, CT. $ALXN PR link.

AGNC Investment(PBR992) to do public offering of 24.5 million common shares, expects total gross proceeds of $510.8 million before expenses. $AGNC PR link.

Flowserve(PBR492) hires David Wilson as President, Industrial Products Division, succeeds EVP/Global Operations and interim President/IPD Tom Pajonas who is retiring by 12/31/17. $FLS PR link.

SPX(PBR506) hires Franklin McClelland as VP/Business Development and Strategy. $SPX PR link.

TimeInc(PBR631) TIME Editor-in-Chief Nancy Gibbs is stepping down after 32 years at the brand, including four years at its helm. $TIME PR link.

New York Times(PBR971) announces key appointments and changes to digital operations, goal is $800 million in digital related revenues by 2020. $NYT PR link.

Chesapeake Energy(PBR131) appoints Leslie S. Keating, EVP/Supply Chain Strategy and Transformation for Advance Auto Parts(PBR279), to the Board. $CHK PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Preliminary July Total Job Openings were at 6,170,000, +0.9% from June, +5.8% from July 2016. USDOL PR link.

CoreLogic reports US June 30 Days or More Mortgage Delinquency Rate is at 4.5%, Maywas 4.5%, April 4.8%, June 2016 5.3%, Total June Rate In Foreclosure at 0.7%. CoreLogic PR link.

Manpower(PBR132) 4Q2017 US Employment Outlook Survey shows +17% Net Employment Outlook, same as 3Q2017. $MAN PR link.

Manpower(PBR132) 4Q2017 Global Employment Outlook Survey shows that all 43 countries have no negative growth outlooks, first time since 2Q2008. $MAN PR link.

***Monday, September 11:

***Remembering 9/11, Lives Lost, 1st Responders, Buildings Destroyed, and the Rebuilding of the American Spirit.***

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37) Janssen unit discontinuing Hepatitis C development program, focus on chronic Hepatitis B therapies. $JNJ PR link.

Medtronic(PBR133) is informing patients worldwide of a voluntary recall of specific lots of infusion sets used with all models of Medtronic insulin pumps. $MDT PR link.

Nordstrom(PBR214) introduces Nordstrom Local retail concept and neighborhood hub, a 3,000 sf retail space, for free personal styling, onsite alterations and a suite of Nordstrom services, opening 2 stores on 10/03/17 in West Hollywood & Century City, CA. $JWN PR link.

Pilgrim’s Pride(PBR310) acquires N Irelandbased UK/Europe poultry and prepared foods supplier Moy Park for enterprise value of $1.3 billion. $PPC PR link.

Sealed Air(PBR344) to acquire Singaporebased 1,300 employee, 14 plants across Asia, fabricator of polyethylene foam Fagerdala for $100 million cash, in 10/17. $SEE PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Flemington, NJ, based full-service property/casualty insurance agency Franklin-Case Agency, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Equinix(PBR793) to acquire Itconic, a data center, connectivity and cloud infrastructure solutions provider in Spain and Portugal, from The Carlyle Group(PBR581), for $259 million, to close in 4Q17. $EQIX PR link.

Cooper Cos(PBR950) to acquire $168 million in sales/2017 PARAGARD® Intrauterine Device (IUD) business from Teva Pharmaceutical(NYSE: TEVA) for $1.1 billion cash. $COO PR link.

Knight Transportation(PBR977) and Swift Transportation(PBR547) complete $6 billion all stock merger deal, now Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, keeps Knight KNXtrading symbol, companies to maintain distinct brands and operations. $KNX PR link.

Alaska Air(PBR454) hires Diana Birkett Rakow as VP of External Relations, succeeds departed Joe Sprague. $ALK PR link.

Host Hotels(PBR455) EVP/CFO Greg Larson to retire in 11/17, Michael D. Bluhm hired as successor. $HST PR link.

Macquarie Infrastructure(PBR901) promotes Christopher Frost to President/COO, effective on or before 10/31/17, expected to succeed James Hooke as CEO when he steps down in early 2018 and joins the Board. $MIC PR link.

Cabot Corp(PBR607) elects Michael Morrow, recently retired PricewaterhouseCooper executive, to the Board. $CBT PR link.

***Friday, September 8:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 09/08/17:
DJIA ends week at 21,797.79, -0.86% from last Friday, -0.68% MTD, +2.10% QTD, +10.30% YTD, -1.45% from record 22,118.42 set 08/07/17.
NASDAQ ends week at 6,360.19, -1.17% from last Friday, -1.07% MTD, +3.58% QTD, +18.15% YTD, -1.17% from record 6,435.33 set 09/01/17.
SPX ends week at 2,461.43, -0.61% from last Friday, -0.41% MTD, +1.57% QTD, +9.94% YTD, -0.79% from record 2,480.91 set 08/07/17.

Allergan(PBR219) and Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe announce agreements regarding RESTASIS® patents, tribe to receive $13.5 million upon execution of agreement, up to $15 million/year in royalties, patents expire 08/27/24. $AGN PR link.

TD Ameritrade(PBR662) opens registration through 10/02/17 for its 4th Annual thinkorswim Challenge for US college students to test their investing skills. $AMTD PR link.

Brinker Intl(PBR697)’s Chili’s restaurants changing menu from 125 items to 75, effective 09/18/17. $EAT PR link.

Synopsys(PBR879) to repatriate $775-850 million in international cash to the US during 4Q17 in anticipation of US corporate tax reform. $SNPS PR link.

Sprint(PBR86) hires Ivo Rook as SVP IoT, effective 01/01/18. $S PR link.

Kraft Heinz(PBR156) Kraft Heinz(PBR156) EVP/CFO Paulo Basilio to be Zone President/US, VP & Category Head-Planters David Knopf to be EVP/CFO, COO/US George Zoghbi to be Strategic Advisor to the Board, all effective 10/01/17. $KHC PR link.

Coty(PBR524) hires Daniel Ramos as Chief Scientific Officer and EVP R&D, effective 09/15/17. $COTY PR link.

Avista(PBR990) VP/State and Federal Regulation Kelly Norwood to retire 11/01/17, VP/Customer Solutions Kevin Christie to add the responsibilities to his role. $AVA PR link.

Salesforce(PBR453) appoints Bernard Tyson, currently Chairman/CEO Kaiser Health Plan and Hospitals, to the Board. $CRM PR link.

A. Schulman(PBR791) appoint Carol Eicher and Allen Spizzo to the Board, Dr. William Joyce appointed senior advisor to the Board and company consultant. Follows cooperation agreement between Cruiser Capital Advisor and Kingdon Capital Management, which collectively own 9.83% of A. Schulman common stock, and the Joyce Trusts which own 2.55%. $SHLM PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US 2Q17 Wages/Salaries for All Workers Averaged$24.10/hour, Benefits $11.18/hour, Total$35.28/hour, unchanged from 1Q17, +3.6% from 2Q16. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census US Preliminary July Total Wholesale Sales at $465.1 billion, -0.0% from June, +6.0% from July 2016. USDOC PR link.

The US Federal Reserve says US July Total Consumer Debt at $3.754 trillion, +0.5% from June, +3.0% YTD, +9,9% from 12/2015. TheFedPR link.

The FannieMae(PBR17) US August Home Purchase Sentiment Index is at 88.0, July was 86.8, June 88.3(Record), August 2016 85.0. $FNMA PR link.

***Thursday, September 7:

Amazon(PBR29) opens search for a second and equal headquarters location in the US, expects to spend $5+ billion for construction, to employ 50,000. $AMZN PR link.

Pfizer(PBR56 $PFE) Meridian Medical Technologies unit warning letter from US FDAmade public, regards EpiPen manufacturing violations that have lead to malfunctions and possibly death. FDA PR link.

Eli Lilly(PBR142) to streamline operations, to reduce global workforce by 3,500, primarily from US voluntary early retirement program by 12/31/17, to close R&D facilities in Bridgewater, NJ, and Shanghai, China. $LLY PR link.

Bristol-Myers Squibb(PBR185) completes $300 million cash upfront and up to $1.01 billion upon milestone achievements acquisition of developer of innate immune response for treating cancer therapies IFM Therapeutics. $BMY PR link.

Celgene(PBR347) reports that the US FDA has placed a partial clinical hold on five trials and a full clinical hold on one trial in the Celgene FUSION™ program. $CELG PR link.

Newell Brands(PBR434) to acquire Rockville, MD, based $55 million revenues/year Chesapeake Bay Candle for $75 million. $NWL PR link.

Williams-Sonoma(PBR508) to interview for over 4,000 open positions nationwide on first National Hiring Day on 09/14/17. $WSM PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires employee benefits consultant and brokerage firm Nebraska-based Lincoln Financial Management, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Equifax(PBR795) announces cybersecurity event from mid-May through July, potentially impacting 143 million US consumers, offers free 3-bureau credit reports and identity theft protection for 1 year. $EFX PR link.

Fitbit(PBR870) and continuous glucose monitoring provider DexCom(NASDAQ: DXCM)to collaborate on developing an app for the Fitbit Ionic smartwatch. $FIT PR link.

Boeing(PBR27) hires Phil Musser as SVP/Communications, effective 09/25/17, succeeds Tom Downey who is stepping down, retiring early next year. $BA PR link.

VISA(PBR224) hires Charlotte Hogg as corporate EVP & CEO/European Operations, effective 10/01/17. $V PR link.

Sealed Air(PBR344) President/CEO Jerome A. Peribere to retire on 12/31/17, successor Edward L. Doheny II hired as director, COO and CEO-designate, effective 09/18/17. $SEE PR link.

TD Ameritrade(PBR662) appoints Peter deSilva, head of Scottrade retail business, to President/Retail Distribution, to be effective upon completion of acquisition of Scottrade, succeeds current head of Retail Distribution Tom Bradley who will be leaving the organization. $AMTD PR link.

Whiting Petroleum(PBR667) to do 1:2 to 1:6 reverse stock split, to be voted on at special shareholders meeting to be scheduled in 4Q17. $WLL PR link.

ADP(PBR235) announces that after meeting with Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square on 09/05/17 the decision remains not to include its Board nominees at the next annual meeting. $ADP PR link.

The US Dept of Labor says US Revised 2Q17 Labor Productivity at +1.3%, 1Q17 was -0.8%, 4Q16 +2.0% 2Q16 +0.6%. USDOL PR link.

***Wednesday, September 6:

Amazon(PBR29) to open first fulfillment center in NY, to be located on Staten Island, 855,000 sf, to employ 2,250 fulltime. $AMZN PR link.

Johnson & Johnson(PBR37) recently acquired Actelion unit gets US FDA approval for TRACLEER® (bosentan) for use in pediatric patients aged three years and older with idiopathic or congenital pulmonary arterial hypertension. $JNJ PR link.

Merck(PBR70) to acquire RIG-I therapeutics for immuno-oncology pioneer Rigontec for $136 million cash plus up to $412 million in contingent payments. $MRK PR link.

Deere & Co(PBR81) to acquire Sunnyvale, CA, based 60 employees machine learning in agriculture developer Blue River Technologyfor $305 million. $DE PR link.

T-Mobile(PBR95) ONE family plans to now include free service Netflix(PBR447) On Us in exclusive partnership, requires two or more paid voice lines. $TMUS PR link.

Kohl’s(PBR149) announces ability to buy Amazon(PBR29) smart home products in 10 select Kohl’s stores across the Los Angeles and Chicago areas starting in 10/17. $KSS PR link.

Sempra Energy(PBR254) gets US Bankruptcy Court approval to acquire Energy Future Holdings, the indirect owner of 80% of Oncor Electric Delivery Co, operator of the largest electric transmission and distribution system in Texas, for $9.45 billion cash. $SRE PR link.

Sealed Air(PBR344) completes $3.2 billion sale of its Diversey Care division & food hygience and cleaning services units of its Food Care division to Bain Capital. $SEE PR link.

Terex(PBR357) authorizes new up to $225 million share repurchase program. $TEX PR link.

Kelly Services(PBR443) acquires substitute teacher staffing services for K-12 public, private and charter schools, and early child care centers provider Teachers On Call, terms not disclosed. $KELYA PR link.

Global Payments(PBR762) completes $1.2 billion cash/stock acquisition of the communities and sports divisions cloud-based payment technology solutions for event planners provider ACTIVE Network from Vista Equity Partners. $GPN PR link.

GoDaddy(PBR905) to sell 20 million shares at $44.00/share of Class A Common Stock held by 3 stockholders. $GDDY PR link.

Rite Aid(PBR105) corporate President & CEO/Stores Ken Martindale has resigned to assume a leadership position in another company; EVP/Store Operations Bryan Everett promoted to new position of COO/Stores. $RAD PR link.

Starbucks(PBR178) board member Rosalind Brewer to also be Group President/COO, effective 10/02/17. $SBUX PR link.

Abercrombie & Fitch(PBR595) welcomes back Scott Lipesky, appoints him as SVP/CFO, effective 10/02/17. $ANF PR link.

Tailored Brands(PBR643) hires Frank Hamlin as EVP/Chief Marketing Officer and Boris Sherman as EVP/Chief Technology Officer. $TLRD PR link.

GNC(PBR743) hires Ken Martindale as CEO, succeeds interim CEO Bob Moran, who has been elected Non-Executive Chairman, Michael Hines steps down as Chairman, remains on Board, all effective 09/11/17. $GNC PR link.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals(PBR893) hires Tom Graney as SVP/CFO, effective 09/13/17. $VRTX PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce says US Preliminary July Exports were $194.4 billion, YTD $1.349 trillion, July Imports $238.0 billion, YTD $1.668 trillion, July Deficit $43.6 billion, YTD Deficit $319.0 billion, July 2016 YTD Deficit was $332.3 billion. USDOC PR link.

The Federal Reserve Board releases the Beige Book, data from 07/01/17 through 08/28/17, says US economic activity expanded at a modest to moderate pace, mixed results for vehicle sales, low inventories of homes for sale continued to weigh on residential real estate activity, energy and natural resources sector was generally positive prior to shutdowns arising from Hurricane Harvey. TheFed PR link.

The Federal Reserve Board Vice-Chairman Stanley Fischer submits resignation, to be effective around 10/13/17. TheFed PR link.

The ISM US August Non-Manufacturing Index(>50=Economy Growing) is 55.3%, Julywas 53.9%, June 57.4%, August 2016 51.4%. ISM PR link.

The IHS Markit US August Composite PMI Output Index is at 55.3, July was 54.6, June53.9, August 2016 51.5. IHS Markit PR link.

***Tuesday, September 5:

Tyson(PBR80) to build $320 million poultry complex in eastern Kansas, begin production mid 2019, process 1.25 million birds/week, employ 1,600. $TSN PR link.

Monsanto(PBR187) The Climate Corpsubsidiary completes sale of its Precision Planting equipment business to AGCO(PBR280), terms not disclosed. $MON PR link.

PPG(PBR190) completes $545 million sale of its remaining fiberglass operations, all in the US, with 1,000+ employees and $350 million revenues/2016, to Nippon Electric Glass Co. $PPG PR link.

MGM Resorts(PBR273) authorizes $1.0 billion share repurchase program. $MGM PR link.

Group 1 Automotive(PBR276) reports $15 million in Hurricane Harvey related damages to its Houston area auto dealerships. $GPI PR link.

Caesars Entertainment(PBR314) majority owned subsidiary Caesars Entertainment Operating Company secures financing of $2.2 billion to finance the fee and leasehold interests in Caesars Palace Las Vegas as part of plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. $CZR PR link.

Fidelity Natl Financial(PBR331) to acquire clinical documentation and coding solutions for healthcare facilities T-System Holdings for $200 million cash. $FNFV PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Gothenburg, Sweden, based retail insurance broker Nordic Forsakring & Riskhantering AB, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

NASDAQ(PBR618) to acquire global content and analytics for institutional investors provider eVestment, terms not disclosed. $NDAQ PR link.

Griffon Corp(PBR890) to acquire Emerson Electric(PBR109)‘s $300 million+/year ClosetMaid unit for $260 million. Also exploring strategic alternatives for its $468 million/2017 Clopay Plastics unit because of unsolicited interest. $GFF PR link.

TeleFlex(PBR923) to acquire private urology medical devices developer NeoTract for $725 million plus up to $375 million based on milestones achieved. $TFX PR link.

UK based International Game Technology(NYSE: IGT) and Scientific Games(PBR937 $SGMS), the two largest slot game feature patent portfolios in North America, sign slot games patent cross-licensing agreement, terms not disclosed. $IGT PR link.

AIG(PBR46) hires Lucy Fato as EVP/General Counsel, effective 10/16/17. $AIG PR link.

LKQ(PBR376) hires Varun Laroyia as EVP/CFO, effective 10/01/17, succeeds Nick Zarcone who is now President/CEO. $LKQ PR link.

Green Plains(PBR649) CFO Jerry Peters to retire 09/11/17, hires John Neppl as successor. $GPRE PR link.

Bristow Group(PBR919) promotes Timothy Knapp to SVP/General Counsel, effective 09/26/17. $BRS PR link.

McDermott Intl(PBR825) appoints Philippe Barril, COO of SBM Offshore N.V. and former Technip executive, to the Board. $MDR PR link.

Toro(PBR855) Chairman Michael Hoffman to retire, effective 11/03/17, President/CEO Richard Olson to be successor. $TTC PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census says US Preliminary July Total Manufacturers New Orders were at $466.3 billion, -3.3% from June, +3.1% from July 2016. USDOC PR link.

The PurdueU/CME Group US August Composite Agriculture Barometer Index is at 132, July was 139, June 131, August 2016 95. PurdueU/CME PR link.

President Trump is phasing out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals(DACA) program implemented by an Executive Order issued by former President Obama in June, 2012. White House PR link.

***Monday, September 4:

***US Stock Markets Closed in Observance of Labor Day.***

United Technologies(PBR45) to acquire avionics, flight controls, aircraft interior and data connectivity solutions provider Rockwell Collins(PBR485 $COL) for $140/share, $30 billion cash/stock. $UTX PR link.

HB Fuller(PBR870) to acquire South Bend, IN, based $650 million/year, 1,500 employees in 5 countries Royal Adhesives & Sealants for $1.575 billion. $FUL PR link.

***Friday, September 1:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Week Ending 09/01/17:
DJIA ends week at 21,987.56, +0.80% from last Friday, +0.18% MTD, +2.99% QTD, +11.26% YTD, -0.59% from record 22,118.42 set 08/07/17.
NASDAQ ends week at record 6,435.33, +2.71% from last Friday, +0.10% MTD, +4.80% QTD, +19.55% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,435.33 set 09/01/17.
SPX ends week at 2,476.55, +1.37% from last Friday, +0.20% MTD, +2.19% QTD, +10.62% YTD, -0.18% from record 2,480.91 set 08/07/17.

Marathon Petroleum(PBR23) drops down joint-interest ownership in certain assets to MPLX for $1.05 billion. $MPC PR link.

Dow Chemical(PBR48) and DuPont(PBR82)complete merger of equals, now DowDuPont(NYSE: DWDP) with 3 divisions, Agriculture, Materials Science, and Specialty Products, all to be spinoffs within 18 months. $DD PR link.

Hewlett Packard Enterprises(PBR55)completes spin-off of software business with UK based Micro Focus Intl(LSE: MCRO, NYSE: MFGP) in $8.8 billion cash/stock deal. $HPE PR link.

Pfizer(PBR56) gets US FDA approval for MYLOTARG™ (gemtuzumab ozogamicin) for certain conditions of acute myeloid leukemia(AML). $PFE PR link.

Tenet Healthcare(PBR161) to transfer ownership of its 2 Philadelphia hospitals to Paladin Healthcare for around $170 million. $THC PR link.

SYNNEX(PBR209) completes $600 million cash acquisition of security, UCC and networking services provider Westcon-Comstor North America and Latin America businesses, plus minority stake in EMEA and APAC units. $SNX PR link.

KKR(PBR332) to acquire majority stake in non-invasive aesthetic treatments 80+ clinics 135 medical professionals 3 million treatments in last year Laser Clinics Australia, terms not disclosed. $KKR PR link.

TechnipFMC(PBR334) gets SEC notification that BlackRock(PBR252 $BLK) now owns 5% of stock. $FTI PR link.

Weyerhauser(PBR355) completes $402.5 million cash sale of its timberlands/manufacturing business in Uruguay to a consortium led by BTG Pactual’s Timberland Investment Group. $WY PR link.

O’Reilly Automotive(PBR359) authorizes additional $1 billion for share repurchase program, balance available now is $9.75 billion, effective for 3 years. $ORLY PR link.

LabCorp(PBR413) completes $1.2 billion cash acquisition of global 4,500 employees specialty contract research organization drug developer Chiltren. $LH PR link.

ABM Industries(PBR478) completes $1.25 billion cash/stock acquisition of Cleveland, OH, based $1.1 billion/year 37,000 employees nationwide facility services in the education/commercial industries provider GCA Services Group. $ABM PR link.

Arthur J Gallagher(PBR515) acquires Scottsdale, AZ, based long-haul and corporate fleet transportation third-party claims administrator National Transportation Adjusters, terms not disclosed. $AJG PR link.

Whiting Petroleum(PBR667) completes $500 million sale of its Fort Berthold area assets in N Dakota to RimRock Oil & Gas Williston. $WLL PR link.

Expedia(PBR433) SVP/Treasurer & Investor Relations appointed CFO, succeeds now President/CEO Mark Okerstrom. $EXPE PR link.

Penske Automotive(PBR170) appoints Greg Smith, former Vice Chairman of Ford Motor(PBR10), to the Board. $PAG PR link.

The US Dept of Labor reports that US August Employment was at 153,439,000, -74,000(-0.05%) from July, +1,784,000(+1.2%) from August 2016, Unemployed was at 7,132,000, Unemployment Rate was 4.4%, August 2016 was 4.9%. USDOL PR link.

The US Dept of Commerce/Census US Preliminary July Total Construction Spending Annual Rate is at $1.212 trillion, -0.6% from June, +4.4% from July 2016. USDOC PR link.

The U of Michigan US Final August Consumer Sentiment Index is at 96.8, July was 93.4, June95.1, August 2016 89.8. UMich PR link.

The ISM US August Manufacturing PMI is at 58.8%, July was 56.3%, June 57.8%, August 2016 49.4%. ISM PR link.

The IHS Markit US August Manufacturing PMIis at 52.8, July was 53.3, June 52.0, August 2016 52.0. IHS Markit PR link.

Automotive News estimates US August New Light Vehicles Sales were at 1,484,826 units, August 2016 was 1,512,626, Annual Rate at 16,130,000, Hurricane Harvey to have an impact. Automotive News PR link.

TrueCar/ALG reports US August New Light Vehicles Average Transaction Price(ATP) was $32,346/unit, +0.5% from August 2016, August Average Incentive Per Unit Spending at $3,799, 11.7% of ATP. TrueCar/ALG PR link.

***Thursday, August 31:

The PBRMarketTools US Stock Exchanges Recap for the Month Ending 08/31/17:
DJIA ends August at 21,948.10, +0.62% from last Friday, +0.26% MTD, +2.80% QTD, +11.06% YTD, -0.77% from record 22,118.42 set 08/07/17.
NASDAQ ends August at record 6,428.66, +2.60% from last Friday, +1.27% MTD, +4.69% QTD, +19.42% YTD, +0.00% from record 6,428.66 set 08/31/17.
SPX ends August at 2,471.65, +1.17% from last Friday, +0.05% MTD, +1.99% QTD, +10.40% YTD, -0.37% from record 2,480.91 set 08/07/17.

Check out the BLOG page for the previous RECAPS and SNAPSHOTS posts.

The PBR1000 August 2017 Stocks/Commodities Snapshots

September 8, 2017 by admin

August 2017: The Stock Market Bull Continues to Prevail

The Stock Market Bull stands tall after another triumphant month.

By Larry C. Paxton

Despite concerns over N Korea’s missile tests, a terrorist attack in Barcelona, Spain, a controversial rally in Charlottesville, VA, Hurricane Harvey attacking southeast Texas, continued lack of meaningful legislation from Congress, and the world still getting adjusted to a very different style US President, The PBR1000 and other stocks continued to climb in August.

Maybe it’s just one of those “It’s the economy, stupid!” that justifies the rise. Modest/moderate economic growth continues and cautious optimism about the future keeps pushing it along.

As a result investing opinions are still scattered all over the place. This inconsistency should be good news for everyone, because now you can be the expert! If you are wrong, it’s no big deal, you are in a large group. But if you are right, you will be a hero and hopefully have a much higher value portfolio to confirm that. Remember to give The PBR1000 credit!

Good luck, and we look forward to you sharing your success strategies and stories.

Here are the August summaries on the major US stock market exchanges:

Number of Trading Days: 23

Number of Gain(+)/Loss(-) Days: DJIA 15+/8-; NASDAQ 11+/12-; SPX 14+/9-.

Record Days: DJIA 5, NASDAQ 1, SPX 1

Longest Gain Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 10(07/25-08/07/17), NASDAQ 4(08/28-31/17), SPX 5(08/25-31/17)

Longest Loss Streak(Consecutive Days): DJIA 3(08/08-10/17), NASDAQ 3(08/08-10/17), SPX 3(08/08-10/17)

Big Swing Up Days(>1.00%): 3, 08/14/17(NASDAQ +1.34%, S&P500 +1.00%): Geopolitical issues ebb(N Korea); 08/22/17(NASDAQ +1.36%): Day after President Trump speech on Afghanistan; 08/30/17(NASDAQ +1.05%): GDP revised up to 3%, ADP Jobs Report

Big Swing Down Days(<-1.00%): 2, 08/10/17(NASDAQ -2.13%, S&P500 -1.45%): N Korea missile test; 08/17/17(DJIA -1.24%, NASDAQ -1.94%, S&P500 -1.54%): Barcelona terrorist attack; Charlottesville, NC, rally and death followed by controversial response by President Trump.

The following are Top 5 partial tables excerpts from The PBR1000 August Snapshots. The price for stocks is for the close of trading on August 31, Month % Chg is compared to July 31, YTD % Chg is compared to December 31, 2016, and the 20 Months % Chg is compared to December 31, 2015. The PBR Rank is by annual revenues.

To get the complete The PBR1000 Snapshots just click here to get your 2 month or significantly discounted 12 month subscription and automatically download the August 2017 edition with the complete 15 Snapshots.

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 1 Summary: The range was +60% to -78%. 431 out of 1,002 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a loss of 0.65%, the median was a loss of 0.97%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 08/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	20 Mos % Chg
Triple-S Mgmt	676	GTS	24.71	+60	+19	+3
Hertz Global	297	HTZ	21.74	+59	+1	n/a
Calumet Specialty	584	CLMT	8.00	+54	+100	-60
Manitowoc	905	MTW	8.23	+44	+38	-46
Systemax	899	SYX	24.44	+35	+179	+184

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2 Summary: The range was +309% to -86%. 583 out of 1,002 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 9.4%, the median was a gain of 4.6%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 08/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	20 Mos % Chg
Weight Watchers	986	WTW	46.81	+31	+309	+105
Systemax	899	SYX	24.44	+35	+179	+184
Scientific Games	689	SGMS	35.20	-5	+151	+292
Vertex Pharma	893	VRTX	160.54	+6	+118	+28
NRG Energy	220	NRG	24.91	+1	+103	+112

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 20 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3 Summary: The range was +429% to -96%. 707 out of 998 stocks were up 0% or more. The average was a gain of 22.4%. The median was a gain of 20.1%.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Price 08/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	20 Mos % Chg
Tronox	819	TROX	20.69	+7	+101	+429
Cleveland-Cliffs	816	CLF	8.36	+8	-1	+429
NVIDIA	363	NVDA	169.44	+4	+59	+414
AMD	523	AMD	13.00	-4	+15	+353
Scientific Games	689	SGMS	35.20	-5	+151	+292

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 4 Summary: The range was $847.10 billion to $0.01 billion. The average is $23.9 billion, median is $7.2 billion, out of 1,002 companies.

Company	PBR Rank	Symbol	Market Cap($B) 08/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	20 Mos % Chg
Apple	4	AAPL	847.10	+3	+26	+32
Alphabet	27	GOOG	650.89	+3	+21	+24
Microsoft	28	MSFT	575.90	+5	+16	+26
Facebook	95	FB	499.43	+12	+48	+66
Amazon	12	AMZN	471.06	+3	+33	+50
The PBR1000			23,907.85	-0	+9	+19

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

Company	Price 08/31/17	Mo % Chg	YTD % Chg	20 Mos % Chg
The PBR1000	80,896.35	-0.7	+9.4	+22.4
DJIA	21,948.10	+0.3	+11.1	+26.0
NASDAQ	6,428.66	+1.3	+19.4	+28.4
S&P500	2,471.65	+0.1	+10.4	+20.9
GOLD	1,326.50	+4.2	+15.2	+25.1
SILVER	17.65	+5.1	+10.4	+27.9
OIL	47.09	-6.1	-12.3	+27.1

Have questions on The PBR1000 or The PBR US Economic Indices Monthly Snapshots? Please contact us at Sales@PBRMarketTools.com or call us in the US at 520-282-4100.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter at @ThePBR1000.

(Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net, hywards.)

May 2018: The Stock Market Bull Dominates

The May 2018 US Major Stock Market Exchanges Summary

The PBR1000 May 2018 Snapshots

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 17 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

The PBR1000 May 2018 Breaking News Items

April 2018: The Stock Market Bull Wins, But Just Barely

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges April 2018 Summary

The PBR1000 April 2018 Snapshots

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 16 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

The PBR1000 April 2018 Breaking News Items

March 2018: The PBR1000 Gets A Big Stock Market Bear Hug.

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges March 2018 Summary

The PBR1000 March 2018 Snapshots

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 15 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Primary US Stock Exchanges/Commodities

October 2017: Stocks Have A Nice Gain To Start 4Q17.

The US Major Stock Market Exchanges October Summary

The PBR1000 October Snapshots

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 22 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

October 2017: The Last Quarter Starts

The PBR1000 October Breaking News Items

September 2017: 3Q17 Ends and So Far So Good!

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 20 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

September 2017: Steadiness Amid The Chaos

The PBR1000 September Breaking News Items

August 2017: The Stock Market Bull Continues to Prevail

Table 1(S11): The PBR1000 Top 5 Month Stock Price % Gainers

Table 2(S12): The PBR1000 Top 5 Year-To-Date Stock Price % Gainers

Table 3(S13): The PBR1000 Top 5 20 Months Stock Price % Gainers

Table 4(S15): The PBR1000 Top 5 Market Capitalization

Table 5: The PBR1000 Index & Selected Stock Exchanges/Commodities

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