CANADA STOCKS-TSX opens higher on gold boost, stimulus hopes

Dec 16 (Reuters) – Canada’s main stock index opened higher on Wednesday, helped by gains in gold miners, as optimism around the rollout of coronavirus vaccines and hopes of fresh U.S. stimulus bolstered sentiment.

* At 09:32 a.m. ET (14:32 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index was up 67.67 points, or 0.39%, at 17,574.15.

Stock Alert: American Outdoor Jumps 16%

Shares of American Outdoor Brands, Inc. (AOUT) are currently gaining over 16% as the outdoor sports products retailer reported profit for second-quarter results, and the annual earnings outlook is better than the Street view.

AOUT is currently trading at $18.38, up $2.54 or 16.04%, on the Nasdaq.

Second-quarter net income was $7.3 million or $0.52 per share, compared with a net loss of $393,000 or $0.03 per share last year. Adjusted earnings were $0.77 per share, compared to $0.20 per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $0.25 per share for the quarter.

Second-quarter sales rose 65.7% to $79.1 million from $47.7 million, driven primarily by increases in both e-commerce and traditional sales channels. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $61 million.

Looking forward to full year 2021, American Outdoor expects revenues of $235 million to $245 million and adjusted earnings of $1.49 to $1.67 per share. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $0.91 per share on revenues of $209.98 million.

Saudi Arabia receives first shipment of Covid-19 vaccines

DUBAI (REUTERS) – Saudi Arabia received its first shipment of Covid-19 vaccines on Wednesday (Dec 16) morning and will begin distributing the shots in the next three days, the health minister said on Wednesday.

Mr Tawfiq al-Rabiah asked citizens and residents to register to receive the vaccine, and reiterated that the vaccine would be free to all in the country.

He did not specify how many shots had been received nor which vaccine it was.

Last week, Saudi health authorities registered the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for import and use in the country.

Watch live: Trump health officials discuss Pfizer Covid vaccine as U.S. administers shots

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Officials from the Health and Human Services Department and Pentagon are holding a joint briefing Wednesday on the Trump administration's Covid-19 vaccine program Operation Warp Speed as Americans begin receiving Pfizer's shots.

The briefing comes a day before the FDA's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee votes on whether to recommend Moderna's vaccine for emergency use. A favorable vote from the committee will likely clear the pathway to Moderna's vaccine becoming the second one approved for use in the U.S. behind Pfizer's.

U.S. officials have said they expect to distribute about 40 million doses of vaccine by the end of this year, enough to inoculate about 20 million people since the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines both require two shots weeks apart.

Read CNBC's live updates to see the latest news on the Covid -19 outbreak.

Stock Alert: Teladoc Health Down 7%

Shares of Teladoc Health, Inc. (TDOC), a New York-based virtual healthcare services provider, are tumbling almost 7 percent or $13.59 in Wednesday’s morning trade at $182.52 despite no company-centric news.

U.S. stocks are mostly lower on Tuesday following the release of disappointing retail sales data. A report from the Commerce Department showed retail sales slumped by much more than expected in the month of November. Trading activity was subdued ahead of the announcement of the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy decision this afternoon.

Teladoc Health has traded in a range of $79.80 to $253.00 in the past 52 weeks.

US Cybersecurity Firm FireEye Hacked

Cybersecurity giant FireEye said that it had been hacked, which the company says is likely a state-sponsored attack. The hacking tools used to test the defenses of its clients has been stolen in the attack.

“Based on my 25 years in cyber security and responding to incidents, I’ve concluded we are witnessing an attack by a nation with top-tier offensive capabilities. This attack is different from the tens of thousands of incidents we have responded to throughout the years. The attackers tailored their world-class capabilities specifically to target and attack FireEye. They are highly trained in operational security and executed with discipline and focus. They operated clandestinely, using methods that counter security tools and forensic examination. They used a novel combination of techniques not witnessed by us or our partners in the past,” CEO Kevin Mandia said in a statement.

The company said it is investigating in coordination with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other key partners, including Microsoft.

The company said the attackers targeted and accessed certain Red Team assessment tools that it uses to test customers’ security.

Meanwhile, The New York Times reported that the FireEye hack appears to have been carried out by Russian intelligence agencies.

“We hope that by sharing the details of our investigation, the entire community will be better equipped to fight and defeat cyber attacks,” Mandia added.

What's next for Amazon in healthcare? A conversation with Business Insider reporter Blake Dodge

• Amazon is looking to disrupt the healthcare industry.
• Want to learn more about Amazon's ambitions? Sign up for our live conversation on Friday at 1 PM ET with Business Insider healthcare reporters.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Amazon is plotting a major move to shake up healthcare, building on its multiyear push into the pharmacy industry.

In a big feature this week, Business Insider reporter Blake Dodge revealed that the e-commerce giant is planning to provide online and in-person primary care to workers at other companies.

On Friday at 1 PM ET, Business Insider editor Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer will lead a discussion with Blake about Amazon's healthcare ambitions. They'll touch on topics like why Amazon's move into employer healthcare is so disruptive and how this plan aligns with their bigger mission of lowering the cost of healthcare for Americans.  

They'll also take reader questions. 

You can sign up here.