The PBR1000 April 2018 Breaking News Items

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!

******

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!

******

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.

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