US stock futures were trending slightly higher in Wednesday’s pre-market trading after declining earlier, as late Tuesday, President Donald Trump called the new $900 billion COVID-19 relief package a “disgrace” and asked lawmakers to send a “suitable bill or else the next administration will have to deliver a COVID relief package.”
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 were up 0.13%, 0.14% and 0.07%, respectively. Also, Wall Street will focus today on weekly jobless claims data and consumer spending numbers amid rising COVID-19 cases and fears over pandemic-induced restrictions given the new virus strain in the UK.
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (SPPI) plunged 10.6% in Wednesday’s pre-market trading as the company announced that Cohort 3 of its ZENITH20 clinical trial, which enrolled first-line NSCLC (non-small cell lung cancer) patients with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations at 16mg once daily, did not meet its primary endpoint. The unfavorable update overshadowed the news of a successful pre-NDA meeting with the FDA, which resulted in an agreement to submit an NDA for poziotinib based on Cohort 2 data from the ZENITH20 clinical trial.
American Airlines (AAL) is bringing back its furloughed employees after Congress passed a stimulus bill that includes payroll support for airlines, Reuters reported. As per a memo that Reuters has access to, the carrier is planning to call back its furloughed workers in a phased manner. “While pay and benefits will be restored right away, people will be asked to return to the operation in phases,” stated American Airlines’ CEO Robert Isom in the memo.
In other news, the FDA has issued a warning letter to Amazon’s (AMZN) Whole Foods Market for not labeling some food products for the presence of major allergens. The FDA noted that between October 2019 to November 2020, Whole Foods recalled 32 food products due to undeclared allergens such as milk and eggs. “We noticed similar patterns of numerous recalls for undeclared allergens in previous years as well,” the FDA stated in the letter, which demanded Whole Foods to take corrective action. Whole Foods now has 15 days to respond to the letter and provide details on how it intends to address the violations and prevent recurrences going forward.
Daimler (DDAIF) has inked a partnership with software company Infosys (INFY) to innovate and transform its IT infrastructure. The long-term partnership will establish a fully scalable on‑demand digital IT infrastructure and anytime-anywhere workplace for Daimler. The collaboration will also help Infosys enhance its automotive expertise.
Meanwhile, Ryman Hospitality Properties (RHP) has completed a second amendment to the credit agreement governing its $700 million revolving credit facility, $300 million Term Loan A facility and its Term Loan B facility. The second amendment provides for an extended temporary waiver of all financial covenants in the credit facility through April 1, 2022.
Shares of Translate Bio (TBIO) were down 1.9% pre-market as the company announced that CFO John Schroer was departing from the company by the end of the year for personal reasons. The company stated that Robert Prentiss, Vice President and Corporate Controller since 2017, will serve as Principal Accounting Officer and report directly to the CEO Ronald Renaud, on an interim basis, while a formal search to appoint a new CFO is conducted.
