Streetbeat News

Acquisitions Mergers

LGST

Tevogen Bio and Semper Paratus Acquisition Corporation have announced the effectiveness of their registration statement by the SEC for their business combination. The pro forma equity value of Tevogen Bio's portion is expected to be $1.2 billion. Tevogen Bio is a biotech company specializing in T cell therapeutics for virology, oncology, and neurology.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:59 pm

BABA

BIDU

Baidu, Inc's founder Robin Li has called for a shift from developing large language models to creating applications for existing models like Baidu's 'Ernie'. Despite this, competition in China's AI sector is increasing, with many homegrown models emerging. Baidu has faced challenges such as high executive turnover and internal conflicts, partly attributed to the joint presence of Li and his wife Melissa Ma. Baidu's focus on AI and large language models, including Ernie, is seen as crucial for its future amidst a crowded market and regulatory challenges. Alibaba Group Holding Limited's CEO also highlighted a shift towards AI, aiming to become an 'open technology platform'. Baidu's shares saw a slight decrease in premarket trading.

Portfolio Pulse from Anusuya Lahiri

January 05, 2024 | 1:54 pm

BNZI

DZSI

IMUX

Immunic, Inc. (IMUX) announced a private placement of up to $240M, causing its stock to surge by 54%. DZS Inc. (DZSI) revealed securing $25M in funding and a definitive agreement to sell its Asia business to DASAN Networks Inc. for $48M, leading to a 35% increase in its stock price. Banzai (BNZI) disclosed the execution of an LOI to acquire the lead generation platform IGLeads, resulting in a 44% jump in its stock.

Portfolio Pulse from ryanfaloona@benzinga.com

January 05, 2024 | 1:53 pm

BABA

PDD

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA) has reduced its stake in GoGoX Holdings from 12.23% to 8.89% over two months, making Yao Jinbo the largest shareholder. This move comes as Alibaba prepares for the IPO of Cainiao Smart Logistics Network. GoGoX, despite its expansion in Asia, has lost over 90% of its market value since its Hong Kong debut in June 2022 and expects continued losses in 2023. Alibaba is also facing challenges such as regulatory crackdowns and competition from PDD Holdings Inc (PDD), which has outperformed Alibaba's stock. Additionally, Alibaba's subsidiary Lazada laid off staff in Singapore as part of ongoing leadership changes.

Portfolio Pulse from Anusuya Lahiri

January 05, 2024 | 1:51 pm

DIS

IVV

SPY

VOO

Disney (NYSE:DIS) has underperformed in 2023 with only a 1.5% rise compared to the S&P 500's 25% gain. With CEO Bob Iger's turnaround plan, including a dividend reinstatement and investments in streaming and theme parks, Disney is showing signs of a potential recovery. A Golden Cross in the stock's chart and a bullish analyst rating from Rosenblatt Securities suggest optimism for 2024. Disney's stock trades 23% below its 52-week high, presenting an opportunity for investors as the company focuses on growth and profitability.

Portfolio Pulse from Surbhi Jain

January 05, 2024 | 1:46 pm

BNZI

Banzai International, Inc. (NASDAQ:BNZI) has signed an LOI to acquire IGLeads, a top-rated automated lead generation platform. IGLeads specializes in verified, targeted lead generation using search criteria instead of firmographic data. The acquisition aligns with Banzai's strategy to enhance its marketing and sales solutions with data-focused products. IGLeads is profitable, growing rapidly, and has a 4.7-star rating on TrustPilot. The integration is expected to offer strategic and financial benefits, including profitable growth, complementary product offerings, and cross-sell opportunities to Banzai's customers.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:35 pm

BTDR

Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ:BTDR) reported a 7.7% increase in Bitcoin mined in December 2023 compared to November 2023, and a 149.4% increase from December 2022, totaling 434 BTC despite retiring 6,000 legacy mining machines. The Gedu Datacenter contributed 53.0% of the mined Bitcoins. Bitdeer is constructing a 175MW datacenter in Norway and plans a 221MW datacenter in Ohio, both expected to complete in 2025. The company also received NVIDIA DGX H100 systems and expects to launch its AI cloud service platform in Q1 2024.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:34 pm

RCAC

Revelstone Capital Acquisition Corp. (RCAC) has cancelled its special meeting initially scheduled for January 5, 2024, to approve the business combination with Set Jet, Inc. The meeting was intended to consider proposals in the definitive proxy statement/prospectus filed on December 13, 2023. The cancellation means that redemption requests for RCAC's Class A common stock will not be accepted until a new meeting date is set.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:33 pm

CATX

Perspective Therapeutics has entered into a patent license agreement with Mayo Clinic for the PSMA Alpha-PET DoubLET platform technology, which is used for imaging and targeted therapy in PSMA-expressing cancers, primarily prostate cancer. The technology involves a double chelator design using isotopes 64/67Cu and 203/212Pb for radiopharmaceutical therapy (RPT).

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:18 pm

DZSI

DZS (NASDAQ:DZSI) has announced securing $25 million in funding and the divestiture of its Asia business to DASAN Networks Inc. (DNI) for $48 million. The deal includes $5 million in cash and the elimination of about $43 million of debt. The divestiture will allow DZS to focus on the Americas, EMEA, and ANZ regions, aligning with its strategic investments in technology and acquisitions. The additional working capital is expected to support DZS's growth, with government stimulus funds deployment beginning in 2024. The company anticipates improved gross margins by the end of 2024 and is hosting a conference call on January 8, 2024.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

January 05, 2024 | 1:17 pm