PureCycle Tech Up 22% On Commercial Production Of Recycled PP

Shares of PureCycle Technologies, Inc. (PCT) are up 22% on Wednesday morning trade after announcement that it has successfully produced the first run of Ultra-Pure Recycled (UPR) resin for commercial scale.

PCT is trading on the Nasdaq at $9.73, up 22.54% or $1.79 per share. It has traded between $4.44 and $10.95 in the past 52-week period.

The company stated that the first step in operating PureCycle’s flagship polypropylene (PP) purification facility has been successfully accomplished.

Once fully operational, the Ironton facility is projected to have an annual production capacity of 107 million pounds of UPR resin, which are made from post-industrial recycled material.

Moreover, the company’s UPR resin is easily colourable and 100% recyclable. The Ironton facility is projected to use 79% less energy than the production of virgin PP resin, moreover releasing an estimated 35% fewer carbon emissions than new PP manufacturing.

SM Energy Gains 6% On Better-than-expected Q2 Production

Shares of SM Energy Co. (SM) are progressing more than 6 percent on Wednesday morning trade after announcing an update on its second-quarter production. Further, the company said it has entered into agreements to acquire 22,800 oily net acres and repurchased 2.6 million shares.

The company said the second quarter production to date is higher than expected and the expected costs are lower than expected in South Texas.

SM Energy said it plans to revise guidance for the second quarter and full year to reflect higher production and lower costs.

Currently, shares are at $29.58, up 5.68 percent from the previous close of $27.99 on a volume of 982,798.

Quest Diagnostics To Acquire Haystack Oncology

Quest Diagnostics Inc. (DGX), a US-based diagnostic laboratory, on Wednesday announced its agreement to acquire Haystack Oncology for approximately $450 million.

The deal involves an upfront cash payment of $300 million at closing, along with potential milestone payments of up to $150 million.

Haystack Oncology is an early-stage oncology company, that developed a revolutionary technology for detecting minimal residual disease or MRD in cancer patients.

The acquisition is projected to be completed in the second quarter. Upon closing, Quest will integrate Haystack’s MRD test into its comprehensive range of oncology services.

J.P. Morgan Securities acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Quest, while Weil, Gotshal & Manges provided legal advisory services. On the other side, Goldman Sachs & Co. served as the exclusive financial advisor, and Goodwin Proctor acted as legal advisor to Haystack in the transaction.

Quest is currently trading at $138.87 up 0.60 percent or $0.83 in its regular trading session.

Aldeyra Therapeutics Gets CRL From FDA For NDA Of ADX-2191 To Treat Primary Vitreoretinal Lymphoma

Biotechnology company Aldeyra Therapeutics, Inc. (ALDX) announced Wednesday the receipt of a Complete Response Letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the 505(b)(2) New Drug Application (NDA) of ADX-2191 (methotrexate for injection, USP), an investigational drug candidate, for the treatment of primary vitreoretinal lymphoma (PVRL).

Although no safety or manufacturing issues with ADX-2191 were identified, the FDA stated that there was a “lack of substantial evidence of effectiveness” due to “a lack of adequate and well-controlled investigations” in the literature-based NDA submission.

Based on prior discussions with the FDA, Aldeyra did not conduct any clinical trials of ADX-2191 in PVRL.

PVRL is a rare, high-grade, aggressive cancer, with a median survival of less than five years. Methotrexate, the compounded intravitreal injection of which is the standard of care for the treatment of PVRL, is currently in shortage, per the FDA Drug Shortages database.

Aldeyra plans to discuss ADX-2191 for the treatment of PVRL with the FDA, including the potential to make ADX-2191 accessible to PVRL patients under an Expanded Access Program protocol.

Kratos Defense & Security Stock Gains 5%

Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (KTOS) are gaining nearly 5% on Wednesday morning after the company announced it successfully test fired the Zeus 1 solid propellant rocket motor at Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Camden, Arkansas facility.

KTOS is currently trading at $14.42, up $0.68 or 4.95%, on the Nasdaq. The stock opened its trading at $13.69 after closing Tuesday’s trading at $13.74. The stock has traded between $8.90 and $16.23 in the past 52-week period.

The Kratos Zeus 1 is the first of two high-performance 32.5-inch diameter solid rocket motors internally developed and funded under the Kratos Zeus Program, with the larger Zeus 2 motor scheduled for static test later this year.

Intel To Sell 20% Stake In IMS To Bain Capital

Intel Corporation (INTC) said on Wednesday that it has agreed to sell around 20 percent stake in its IMS Nanofabrication GmbH or IMS business, to Bain Capital Special Situations, that values IMS around $4.3 billion.

Matt Poirier, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Intel, said: “Bain Capital’s investment and partnership will provide IMS with increased independence and bring strategic perspective to help accelerate the next phase of lithography technology innovation, ultimately benefitting the ecosystem as a whole.”

Following the completion of the transaction, which is expected in the third-quarter, IMS will operate as a standalone unit and will continue to be led by Chief Executive Officer Elmar Platzgummer.

Based in Vienna of Austria, IMS is an expert in multi-beam mask writing for advanced technology nodes. Intel initially invested in IMS in 2009 and later acquired the same in 2015.