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The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission awarded five integrated facility licenses for medical cannabis to Trulieve Alabama Inc., Sustainable Alabama, LLC; Wagon Trail Med-Serv, LLC; Flowerwood Medical Cannabis, LLC and Specialty Medical Products of Alabama. Trulieve Alabama Inc. is part of Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (OTCQX:TCNNF). The licenses allow for vertical integration and were selected out of 33 applicants. Licensees have 14 days to pay a $50,000 fee, with licenses to be issued on Jan. 9. Legal challenges have been a hurdle, with Verano Holdings Corp. (OTCQX:VRNOF) previously awarded a license in June but then left without it in August. New lawsuits have emerged, but a temporary restraining order request by Alabama Always was denied.

Portfolio Pulse from Jelena Martinovic

December 13, 2023 | 5:22 pm

CLF

Shares of United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) are rising after receiving multiple bids over $40 a share. The board is meeting to discuss the offers, with no guarantee of an announcement following the meeting. The sale process began after a rejected $7.3 billion bid from Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (NYSE:CLF). Arcelor Mittal (NYSE:MT) is also a bidder, with a potential all-cash offer of $45 per share. X shares are up 4.81% to $38.14.

Portfolio Pulse from Nabaparna Bhattacharya

December 13, 2023 | 5:19 pm

PGTI

PGT Innovations Inc, a U.S. manufacturer of doors and windows, has rejected a $2.2 billion acquisition offer from Miter Brands, backed by Koch Industries. The offer of $38 per share was a 66% premium over PGT's share price before the adoption of a poison pill in March. PGT, with a market cap of $1.9 billion, saw a 28.5% increase in net sales in 2022. There is no certainty that Miter will succeed in acquiring PGT, despite considering raising its offer.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 13, 2023 | 5:15 pm

Macy's Inc (NYSE:M) shares fell by 2.3% after Citigroup downgraded the stock from Neutral to Sell. The downgrade follows a recent boost in Macy's stock price due to a proposed $5.8 billion buyout by Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management. The investor group's offer to purchase Macy's aims to take the company private at $21 per share. Macy's has seen a significant decline in market value over the years due to online competition.

Portfolio Pulse from Henry Khederian

December 13, 2023 | 5:07 pm

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U.S. stocks traded higher with the Dow, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 all seeing gains following the release of Producer Price Index (PPI) data. Real estate shares led the gains, while materials shares declined. Crude oil inventories decreased, leading to a 1.5% rise in oil prices. C4 Therapeutics, Shattuck Labs, and ReShape Lifesciences experienced significant stock price increases due to positive company developments. Conversely, Loop Media, Blackboxstocks, and Processa Pharmaceuticals saw their shares fall following earnings reports and company announcements.

Portfolio Pulse from Avi Kapoor

December 13, 2023 | 5:05 pm

LVS

This week's investment insights include Peter Schiff's defense of property rights, Moody's potential downgrade of China, Las Vegas Sands' ($LVS) strategic purchase of Sands China stock, new U.S. payroll and jobs data, and the Bank of Japan's interest rate signals. Schiff made a case for Bitcoin property rights, Moody's shifted China's outlook to negative due to economic and debt concerns, and Las Vegas Sands capitalized on discounted gaming assets. U.S. job growth is positive but slowing, and the Bank of Japan's interest rate hints could impact the U.S. stock market.

Portfolio Pulse from Gary Brode

December 13, 2023 | 5:04 pm

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Paragon Technologies, Inc., holding 4.9% of Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. shares, criticizes OPT for financial mismanagement and attempts to divert attention from its poor financial performance. Paragon highlights OPT's increased losses, declining share price, and executive compensation exceeding revenues. Paragon, seeking board representation, accuses OPT of misleading shareholders with non-guaranteed contract announcements and urges voting for their proxy card to address mismanagement.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 13, 2023 | 4:51 pm

IART

JNJ

Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (IART) has agreed to acquire Acclarent Inc. from Ethicon Inc, a Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) MedTech company, for $275 million in cash, with an additional $5 million contingent on regulatory milestones. Acclarent, specializing in ENT medical devices, will join Integra's Codman Specialty Surgical division, expanding its global market by approximately $1 billion. Acclarent's 2022 revenue was about $110 million with gross margins similar to Integra's average. The deal is expected to close by Q2 2024 and be accretive to Integra's long-range plan. IART shares dropped slightly by 0.49% to $40.72.

Portfolio Pulse from Vandana Singh

December 13, 2023 | 4:20 pm

LFMD

MED

Medifast Inc (NYSE:MED) has formed a strategic alliance with LifeMD Inc (NASDAQ:LFMD), investing $20 million into LifeMD, including a $10 million purchase of LifeMD's shares. Medifast has discontinued its quarterly cash dividends to provide flexibility for evolving its business model. The collaboration will integrate LifeMD's virtual care technology with Medifast's OPTAVIA program, aiming to offer a clinically supported weight management program. This partnership follows a successful pilot program and positions LifeMD in a growing market. However, following the announcement, LFMD shares dropped by 6.30%, and MED stock fell by 11.7%.

Portfolio Pulse from Vandana Singh

December 13, 2023 | 4:11 pm

CTSH

NOW

Cognizant (NASDAQ:CTSH) is set to acquire Thirdera, an Elite ServiceNow Partner, to enhance its digital transformation capabilities with ServiceNow and create one of the world's largest ServiceNow partners. The acquisition will add over 940 employees and a significant number of ServiceNow certifications to Cognizant's ServiceNow Business Group. Thirdera has a global presence and has been recognized with several ServiceNow awards. The deal is expected to close in January 2024, with financial details not disclosed. Cognizant and ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) have been expanding their strategic partnership, aiming to build a $1 billion combined business focused on AI-driven automation.

Portfolio Pulse from Benzinga Newsdesk

December 13, 2023 | 4:02 pm