FT Vest International Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - March (BATS: YMAR)

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FT Vest International Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - March

Rivian Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RIVN#NASDAQ">RIVN</a>) on Monday quietly sneaked in a price benefit to its users even as <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/04/38345362/tesla-slashes-model-s-x-and-y-prices-in-us-by-2-000-in-late-friday-move-as-volume-growth-turns-n">industry leader Tesla announced price cuts over the weekend.</a>
What Happened: Commemorating the &#8216;Earth Day,&#8217; observed every year on April 22, Rivian said it would start offering a discount of up to $5,000 on qualifying new R1 models when customers trade in select gas-powered vehicles. 
Additionally, buyers become eligible for a year of charging on the Rivian Adventure Network at no additional cost.
The discount, ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 is made available to customers in the U.S. and Canada and is applicable for deliveries taken between Monday (April 22) and June 30. The details of the trims and the applicable discounts are as follows:
<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"> 
<table>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td></td>
<td>Discount (USD)</td>
<td>Discount (CAD)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>R1T Standard, Standard+ Pack</td>
<td>$3,000</td>
<td>C$4,500</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>R1T Large Pack</td>
<td>$4,000</td>
<td>C$6,000 </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>R1S Large Pack</td>
<td>$5,000</td>
<td>C$7,500</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>R1S Large Pack</td>
<td>$1,000</td>
<td>C$1,500</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</figure>
For availing the vehicle must be selected and purchased or leased through Rivian's online Shop.
Vehicles eligible for trade-ins are:
<ul>
<li>2018 or newer Ford: F-150, Explorer, Expedition, Bronco (excluding Bronco Sport)</li>
<li>2018 or newer Toyota: Tacoma, Tundra, Highlander, 4Runner</li>
<li>2018 or newer Jeep: Grand Cherokee, Wrangler, Gladiator</li>
<li>2018 or newer Audi: Q5, Q7, Q8</li>
<li>2018 or newer BMW: X3, X5, X7</li>
</ul>
Rivian said the Earth Day is a &#8220;time to celebrate the planet we call home and think about ways to preserve it for generations&nbsp;to&nbsp;come. We want to help you get into a more environmentally friendly, zero-emissions Rivian&nbsp;vehicle.&#8221;
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/best-electric-vehicle-stocks">Best Electric Vehicles</a>
Why It&#8217;s Important: Tesla announced over the weekend a flat $2,000 cut in the prices of all trims of its Model Y, S and X vehicles. It isn&#8217;t quite apparent whether Rivian&#8217;s own discount is a reactionary move. At least the company did not project it as a configurator price cut and structured it as a limited period discount. To top it, it is a trade-in benefit.
Fund Manager Gary Black is not a fan of configurator price cuts, and following Tesla&#8217;s weekend price cuts, he warned that rivals would match the move. Tesla, therefore, will unlikely see any volume benefit, he added.
Chinese EV startup Li Auto, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/LI#NASDAQ">LI</a>) on Monday <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/asia/24/04/38351314/did-tesla-just-trigger-another-brutal-price-war-in-china-li-auto-blinks-first-with-up-to-4-000-disco">announced sharp price cuts for almost its entire lineup,</a> towing in line with Tesla&#8217;s cuts in the country.
In premarket trading on Tuesday, Tesla shares slipped 0.46% to $8.75, according to<a href="https://benzinga.grsm.io/lxquj26b2sag"> Benzinga Pro data.</a>
Check out more of Benzinga&#8217;s Future Of Mobility coverage by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.benzinga.com/topic/mobility" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">following this link</a>.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/04/38353241/rivian-may-bring-back-a-beloved-feature-modified-tank-turn-for-off-roading">Rivian May Bring Back A Beloved Feature With A Twist: Modified Tank Turn For Off-Roading</a>
Photo by Tada Images on Shutterstock

Equities

News

Tech

RIVN

Rivian's Earth-Day Offer: Trade In Your Gas-Powered Car And Get Up To $5K Off On R1 EV

<h4>Key Takeaways:</h4>
<ul>
<li>Fosun Tourism said business volume at its Atlantis Sanya mega-resort and Club Med chain rose 4.5% and 15.2%, respectively, in the first quarter</li>
<li>The company&rsquo;s shares are trading near an all-time low, following reports earlier this year that its two major assets may be up for sale to raise cash for its debt-strapped parent</li>
</ul>
By Doug Young
There&rsquo;s not much fun these days at&nbsp;Fosun Tourism Group&nbsp;(OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/fsngf#OTC">FSNGF</a>), one of China&rsquo;s leading tourism companies and owner of the Club Med resort chain.
The company&rsquo;s latest&nbsp;<a href="https://www1.hkexnews.hk/listedco/listconews/sehk/2024/0422/2024042201483.pdf">quarterly update</a>&nbsp;shows it&rsquo;s suffering from a post-Covid hangover, with its China business significantly underperforming the market. Its global business, anchored by the Club Med chain, did slightly better, but was nothing to write home about either. Meantime, the company&rsquo;s stock is down more than 40% this year and now trades at all-time lows, in sharp contrast to Chinese peers that have mostly posted strong gains this year.
So, why all the gloom at a company whose formation dates back to the roughly $1 billion purchase of Club Med in 2015 by&nbsp;Fosun International&nbsp;(OTC: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/fosuf#OTC">FOSUF</a>), one of China&rsquo;s leading conglomerates? While the latest quarterly operating data isn&rsquo;t too exciting, it hardly explains Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s recent fall from grace in the investment community.
The biggest factor behind the gloom probably owes to reports in March that Fosun International was considering selling part of Club Med, as well as Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s other major asset, its Atlantis Sanya mega-resort, to raise cash to pay down its massive debt. Thus, anyone who holds Fosun Tourism stock now doesn&rsquo;t really know if the company will still own one or both of its major assets at this time next year.
At the same time, the people at Fosun Tourism are probably having difficulty staying focused on their business while knowing major changes could soon be coming.
All that said, we&rsquo;ll return to Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s first-quarter update that provides one of the first real indicators of how China&rsquo;s tourism industry will fare in the post-Covid era. This year&rsquo;s first quarter is significant in China, since it marks the first time that the latest data and year-ago comparisons are both in the country&rsquo;s post-Covid period.
That means that Covid-era volatility should be largely gone from most Chinese tourism-related companies going forward, giving a clearer picture of how the sector is doing as the Chinese economy slows and consumers become more cautious.
Previously released national data showed the sector was holding up quite well during the long Lunar New Year holiday in February despite the economic slowdown. The number of domestic trips during the weeklong period rose 34.3% to 474 million, while domestic tourism spending was up by an even stronger 47.3% to 632.7 billion yuan ($87 billion), according to government data.
But Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s data wasn&rsquo;t nearly so buoyant. Business volume at the company&rsquo;s Atlantis Sanya mega-resort was up just 4.5% to 576 million yuan during the first quarter, according to the company&rsquo;s quarterly update. The number of visits to the resort rose at a slightly faster rate of 7.5% to 2.1 million. But in a slightly ominous sign, the average daily room rate was actually down 2.8% to 2,500 yuan.
Here we should point out that year-ago figures for the resort might have been artificially high, since China ended its Covid restrictions at the end of 2022 and &ldquo;revenge travel&rdquo; was at a peak in January and February 2023 as many people took some of their first major vacations in three years during those months.
<h3>Dead&nbsp;Cat Bounce</h3>
Fosun tourism shares got a lift from the update, rising more than 5% in early trade on Tuesday. But the jump was a bit of a &ldquo;dead cat bounce,&rdquo; since the stock was previously at an all-time low, and it&rsquo;s quite likely the shares could resume their downward trend later this week.
Even after the slight rally, the stock is still well behind its peers in terms of valuation. It trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 10, compared to a 20 for&nbsp;Trip.com&nbsp;(NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tcom#NASDAQ">TCOM</a>), China&rsquo;s leading online travel agent that has a similar mix of domestic and international business. While Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s shares are down sharply this year, Trip.com&rsquo;s stock has risen about 40% over that period.
While Sanya Atlantis posted single-digit gains, the performance was slightly better at Club Med, whose worldwide chain of resorts accounts for more than 80% of Fosun Tourism&rsquo;s business. The chain&rsquo;s business volume rose 15.2% to 6.08 billion yuan in the first quarter, while average occupancy at its rooms rose 1.4 percentage points to 76.9%. Its average bed rate rose 8.8% to 2,190 yuan.
Here, we should point out that Fosun Tourism is doing quite a bit better now, at least in terms of business volume, than it was before the pandemic. The company&rsquo;s latest overall first-quarter business volume of 7.16 billion yuan was up nearly 50% from the 4.8 billion yuan it reported in the first quarter of 2019. The big jump most likely reflects the fact that Fosun Tourism, like many of its peers, continued to upgrade existing properties and build new ones during the pandemic, in anticipation of business eventually returning to normal.
While the first-quarter numbers don&rsquo;t look too impressive, Fosun Tourism also didn&rsquo;t impress investors too much with its results for all of 2023 released last month. Those results show its revenue rose 25% last year to 17.2 billion yuan. Within the total, Sanya Atlantis posted much stronger revenue growth, with the figure nearly doubling to 1.76 billion yuan from 897 million yuan a year earlier. Club Med revenue rose by a slower 22% to 14.6 billion yuan, reflecting the fact that its business is mostly outside China and thus already began to rebound in 2022.
Still, the company&rsquo;s overall revenue growth last year was well behind the 122% growth for Trip.com, whose revenue reached 44.5 billion yuan for the period.
The bottom line is that investors have recently become quite bearish on Fosun Tourism, partly due to its underwhelming post-Covid rebound. But the bigger reason is probably the cloud hanging over the company due to its parent&rsquo;s financial difficulties, meaning no one is really sure what Fosun Tourism might look like a year from now &ndash; assuming it continues exists in its current form.
This article is from an unpaid external contributor. It does not represent Benzinga&#39;s reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy.

Asia

Penny Stocks

Travel

Markets

General

FOSUF

FSNGF

TCOM

Fosun Tourism's Post-Covid Holiday Fizzles

Benchmark analyst Subash Chandra maintains Matador Resources (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MTDR#NYSE">MTDR</a>) with a Buy and lowers the price target from $71 to $62.

Price Target

Analyst Ratings

MTDR

Benchmark Maintains Buy on Matador Resources, Lowers Price Target to $62

Macro Economic Events

Econ #s

Economics

S&P Global Services PMI for April 50.9 vs 52 Est.

Merck &amp; Co's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MRK#NYSE">MRK</a>) short percent of float has fallen 15.38% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 19.59 million shares sold short, which is 0.77% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 2.01 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Merck &amp; Co Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713879923_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Merck &amp; Co has declined since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to rise in the near-term but traders should be aware that less shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Merck &amp; Co's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Merck &amp; Co's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 4.22%, which means the company has less short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

Short Sellers

Short Ideas

Trading Ideas

Looking Into Merck & Co's Recent Short Interest

S&P Global Manufacturing PMI For April 49.9 Vs 52.0 Expected, 51.9 Prior

Advance Auto Parts's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AAP#NYSE">AAP</a>) short percent of float has fallen 17.96% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 4.36 million shares sold short, which is 8.27% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 2.14 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Advance Auto Parts Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713879918_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Advance Auto Parts has declined since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to rise in the near-term but traders should be aware that less shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Advance Auto Parts's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Advance Auto Parts's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 11.91%, which means the company has less short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

How Is The Market Feeling About Advance Auto Parts?

Intuitive Surgical's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ISRG#NYSE">ISRG</a>) short percent of float has fallen 3.96% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 3.41 million shares sold short, which is 0.97% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 2.63 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock/">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Intuitive Surgical Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2024/1713879913_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Intuitive Surgical has declined since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to rise in the near-term but traders should be aware that less shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Intuitive Surgical's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Intuitive Surgical's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 4.21%, which means the company has less short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze/">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

ISRG

(ISRG) - Analyzing Intuitive Surgical's Short Interest

S&P Global Composite PMI For April 50.9 Vs 52.1 Prior

Movers

Boeing Talks For Spirit Purchase Only Progressing Slowly

Leerink Partners analyst Thomas Smith initiates coverage on Cartesian Therapeutics (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RNAC#NASDAQ">RNAC</a>) with a Outperform rating and announces Price Target of $39.

Initiation

RNAC

Leerink Partners Initiates Coverage On Cartesian Therapeutics with Outperform Rating, Announces Price Target of $39

Management

GE Aerospace CEO, When Asked If He Would Consider Boeing's CEO Job, Says 'I Can Best Serve Boeing Being Their Best Supplier;' Says Boeing Still Taking Deliveries Of Engines At The Same Rate

Popular pseudonymous Bitcoin newsletter writer The Bitcoin Therapist shared how a &#8220;complete stroke of luck&#8221; catapulted him into the <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/24/04/38362524/crypto-trader-explains-why-middle-east-billionaires-are-suddenly-interested-in-launching-m">world of cryptocurrencies</a>.
What Happened: The Therapist took to X (formerly Twitter) to <a href="https://twitter.com/TheBTCTherapist/status/1782591290753929621">tell</a> his story, saying that he came across Bitcoin (CRYPTO: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/btc/usd">BTC</a>) when he commenced his journey around 3.5 years ago through a Reddit forum.
The trader found Dogecoin (CRYPTO: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/doge/usd">DOGE</a>) and invested a few thousand dollars, only to wake up the next day to find his money had tripled. He cashed out and started researching Bitcoin.
His conviction grew rapidly, and it took him a "few days before it clicked" In a few weeks he converted it all to Bitcoin and in a few months, he went &#8220;100% all in on Bitcoin.&#8221; &nbsp;
Ironically, the initial Dogecoin investment skyrocketed by 40x shortly after the exit to allocate funds to Bitcoin. However, the trader expresses gratitude for his first experience in crypto where he made a lot of money, unlike others who &#8220;get REKT,&#8221; a slang term for losing all your money.
"Ironic, but true. I haven't touched anything but Bitcoin since and I don't intend to," The Bitcoin Therapist writes.
Price Action: Since around 3.5 years ago, Bitcoin&#8217;s price has increased by 270% while Dogecoin has skyrocketed by 4,670%.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://www.benzinga.com/events/digital-assets/ "><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="250" src="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/29155259/905735A6-57D3-4874-9AA1-75D037842DB3-2.gif" alt="Benzinga Future of Digital Assets conference" class="wp-image-270548" /></a></figure>
Also Read: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/24/04/38365501/crypto-greed-almost-at-all-time-high-but-prices-are-not-warns-trader-this-cycle-is-kinda-c">Crypto &#8216;Greed Almost At All-Time High, But Prices Are Not&#8217; Warns Trader: &#8216;This Cycle Is Kinda Cooked&#8217;</a>
Why It Matters: In the evolving world of cryptocurrencies, such expert stories serve as a reminder that sometimes, a stroke of luck can lead to a transformative financial journey.
The investor quickly realized that the true goal was not making money off meme coins but rather achieving financial freedom through Bitcoin&#8217;s absolute scarcity. They learned that &#8220;making money off s&#8211;t coins isn&#8217;t the end goal. The end goal is freedom of money and holding something of absolute scarcity.&#8221;
The Bitcoin Therapist remains grateful for the experience and has gained valuable knowledge by spending an entire year learning, listening, and understanding various crypto spaces.
What's Next: The influence of meme coins and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/is-bitcoin-a-good-investment" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bitcoin as an institutional asset class</a>&nbsp;are topics expected to be thoroughly explored at Benzinga's upcoming&nbsp;<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/events/digital-assets/agenda/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Future of Digital Assets</a>&nbsp;event on Nov. 19.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/24/04/38258823/anthony-scaramuccis-fund-will-not-touch-meme-coins-but-vouches-for-bitcoin-ethereum-solana">Anthony Scaramucci&#8217;s Fund &#8216;Will Not Touch&#8217; Meme Coins But Vouches For Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana</a>
This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Image: Shutterstock

Coverage of Bitcoin, Etherum, Ripple and all the latest digital currencies.

Cryptocurrency

$BTC

$DOGE

Bitcoin Maxi Shares How A 40X Dogecoin Investment And A 'Complete Stroke Of Luck' Got Him Into Crypto

On Monday,&nbsp;Abeona Therapeutics Inc&nbsp;(NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ABEO#NASDAQ">ABEO</a>)&nbsp;announced a regulatory update for&nbsp;prademagene&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/24/04/g38364789/abeona-therapeutics-provides-regulatory-update-on-pz-cel" rel="noreferrer noopener">zamikeracel&nbsp;(pz-cel)</a>.&nbsp;
The FDA has issued a Complete Response Letter (CRL) in response to the company&#8217;s Biologics License Application (BLA) for pz-cel for the treatment of patients with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB).&nbsp;
The CRL follows the completion of Abeona&#8217;s Late Cycle Review Meeting with the FDA&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/24/02/g36885659/abeona-therapeutics-announces-progress-update-on-pz-cel-biologics-license-application-bla" rel="noreferrer noopener">in March 2024</a>.&nbsp;
At the Late Cycle Review Meeting and in a subsequent information request, the FDA noted that certain additional information&nbsp;needed&nbsp;to&nbsp;satisfy Chemistry Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) requirements.&nbsp;
In response, the company submitted plans to the FDA with the commitment to provide CMC data&nbsp;prior to&nbsp;BLA approval and&nbsp;full&nbsp;validation reports after approval in mid-2024.&nbsp;
In addition, the company discussed these plans with the FDA in a subsequent informal meeting.&nbsp;
In the CRL, the FDA indicated that the proposed timing of the data submission by Abeona would require more time for the FDA to complete its review by the May 25, 2024, PDUFA date.
The information needed to satisfy the CMC requests in the CRL pertains to validation requirements for&nbsp;certain&nbsp;manufacturing and release testing methods, including some captured in the observations during the FDA&#8217;s pre-license inspection (PLI).&nbsp;
The CRL did not identify any deficiencies related to the clinical efficacy or clinical safety data in the BLA, and the FDA did not request any new clinical trials or clinical data to support the approval of pz-cel.
The BLA for pz-cel was accepted for filing and granted priority review designation by the FDA in November 2023.&nbsp;
Price Action: ABEO shares are down 45.10% at $4.04 at the last check Tuesday.
Photo via Shutterstock

Biotech

Health Care

ABEO

FDA Rejects Approval Of Abeona Therapeutics' Skin Disorder Treatment, Shares Sink

AMZN

Amazon Highlights 'Bedrock Innovations' That Offer Customers Way To Develop Advanced Generative Artificial Intelligence

JP Morgan analyst Matthew Boss downgrades Five Below (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FIVE#NASDAQ">FIVE</a>) from Overweight to Neutral and lowers the price target from $215 to $170.

Downgrades

FIVE

JP Morgan Downgrades Five Below to Neutral, Lowers Price Target to $170

Sherwin-Williams Company&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SHW#NYSE">SHW</a>) shares are&nbsp;trading lower in the morning session on Tuesday.
The company reported first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $2.17,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/24/04/n38375063/the-sherwin-williams-company-reports-2024-first-quarter-financial-results" rel="noreferrer noopener">missing the Wall Street view of $2.21</a>.&nbsp;
Quarterly revenue of $5.367 billion&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/calendars/earnings" rel="noreferrer noopener">missed the analyst consensus of $5.505 billion.&nbsp;</a>
Consolidated net sales decreased 1.4% in the quarter. Delayed capex projects impacted Property Maintenance sales.
Net sales from stores in the Paint Stores Group open more than twelve calendar months were approximately flat in the quarter.
Quarterly gross profit increased to $2.531 billion from $2.420 billion a year ago. Gross margin in the quarter under review expanded to 47.2% from 44.5% a year ago.
The company returned cash of&nbsp;$728 million&nbsp;to shareholders&nbsp;in the form of&nbsp;dividends and repurchases of 1.7 million shares of its common stock during the first quarter of 2024.&nbsp;
Sherwin-Williams exited the quarter with cash and equivalents worth $179.9 million.
&#8220;We also continued to execute our capital allocation strategy by investing&nbsp;$546 million&nbsp;in share repurchases and increasing our dividend 18.2% in the quarter,&#8221; said President and Chief Executive&nbsp;Officer&nbsp;Heidi G. Petz.
Outlook:&nbsp;Sherwin-Williams reaffirmed 2024 adjusted EPS guidance of $10.85-$11.35<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/calendars/guidance" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;versus the $11.44 estimate.</a>
The company expects consolidated net sales to be up a low to&nbsp;mid-single digit&nbsp;percentage compared to the full year 2023.
&#8220;We expect second quarter 2024 consolidated net sales to be flat&nbsp;to&nbsp;up a low-single digit percentage compared to the second quarter of 2023,&#8221; Petz added.
The company plans to&nbsp;provide an update on&nbsp;its full-year guidance during second-quarter results in July.
Price Action:&nbsp;SHW shares are trading lower by 3.2% to $299.37 at&nbsp;the last check Tuesday.

Earnings

Guidance

What's Going On With Sherwin-Williams Shares After Q1 Results?

Washington, D.C. may impose sanctions on certain Chinese banks over their commercial support of <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/russia-ukraine-war">Russia&#8217;s war in Ukraine</a>. 
What Happened: According to the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/u-s-takes-aim-at-chinese-banks-aiding-russia-war-effort-fcf76dcc?mod=hp_lead_pos1">Wall Street Journal</a>, Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently addressed the issue in a speech at the G7 meeting in Capri, Italy. 
&#8220;When it comes to Russia&#8217;s defense industrial base, the primary contributor in this moment to that is China,&#8221; he said. "China can't have it both ways&#8230; It can't purport to want to have positive friendly relations with countries in Europe, and at the same time be fueling the biggest threat to European security since the end of the Cold War."
The comments come as Blinken prepares a three-day trip of discussions with Chinese officials in Shanghai and Beijing, hoping to persuade China to align more closely with Western efforts to stabilize global security. 
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/04/38154879/elon-musks-starlink-gone-rogue-black-market-supplies-banned-tech-to-russia-and-beyond-report-reveals">Elon Musk&#8217;s Starlink Gone Rogue? Black Market Supplies Banned Tech To Russia And Beyond, Report Reveals</a>
Why It Matters: Despite geopolitical tensions, China and the U.S. are trade partners. 
However, Chinese banks from the global financial system — primarily dominated by the dollar — play a vital role as intermediaries in facilitating trade between China and Russia, including transactions for military-linked goods. 
Also, Chinese exports of dual-use goods — items with both commercial and military applications — have significantly increased (i.e., semiconductors, chips, ball bearings, navigation equipment, and fighter jet parts).
Essential components like circuitry and aircraft parts have been pivotal in enabling Russia to replenish its military capabilities.
Per the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank, trade between China and Russia surged to a record $240 billion in 2023. That&#8217;s a 26.3% increase from the previous year, despite the looming threat of secondary sanctions from the West.
Exports of technological items like microelectronics and drone components from China are essential for Russia's manufacturing and assembly processes. The Russian industrial sector is dependent on China for machine tools and other critical arms manufacturing components.
&#8220;This has ultimately enabled the Kremlin to speed up its weapons production, including armor, artillery, missiles, and drones, and put up an effective defense against Ukraine's 2023 counteroffensive,&#8221; the report claimed.
The Russian drone industry is 95–98% reliant on imported parts, predominantly from China, as revealed by the analysis. 
&#8220;The Russian military continues to rely on commercial UAVs such as the Chinese-made DJI and Autel. Within the first six months of 2023, Russia received at least $14.5 million in direct drone shipments from Chinese trading companies,&#8221; CSIS stated. 
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="580" src="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23082916/image-166-1024x580.png" alt="" class="wp-image-304281" srcset="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23082916/image-166-1024x580.png 1024w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23082916/image-166-300x170.png 300w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23082916/image-166-768x435.png 768w,https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/23082916/image-166.png 1472w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>
Chart CSIS – <a href="https://csis-website-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2024-04/240419_Snegovaya_Backin_Stock.pdf?VersionId=R.2JNVf7ECi8Jyk_9QVWuP8_g5KLkbCe">&#8220;Back in Stock? The State of Russia&#8217;s Defense Industry after Two Years of the War&#8221;</a>
What&#8217;s Next: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has voiced concerns that banks involved in significant dealings with Russia&#8217;s defense sector risk exposure to U.S. sanctions.
Officials hope that coordinated diplomatic efforts from Western nations will prevent the need for drastic actions that could disrupt the fragile balance between global major powers.
Expect lesser-known regional Chinese banks, which engage minimally in dollar-denominated transactions, and thus have less exposure to U.S. sanctions, to become increasingly significant conduits for military-related trade between China and Russia.
Additionally, the CSIS reported that some Chinese and Hong Kong companies play a dual role, supplying both Russian and Ukrainian military efforts, raising a significant challenge and potential conflict in the effectiveness and implications of sanction strategies.
Now Read: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/large-cap/24/04/38364875/geopolitical-relief-triggers-gold-selloff-prices-dip-below-2-350-mark-mining-stocks-hit-hard">Geopolitical Relief Triggers Gold Selloff: Prices Dip Below $2,350 Mark, Mining Stocks Hit Hard</a>
Image: Shutterstock

Politics

Global

US Mulls Sanctions On Beijing Banks For Alleged Role In Putin's War In Ukraine: 'China Can't Have It Both Ways,' Blinken Says

SMFL

Smart For Life Shares Resume Trading, Move Lower

In a significant development, NASA engineers have managed to reestablish communication with Voyager 1, the furthest spacecraft from Earth.
What Happened: NASA&#8217;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) announced on Monday that the 46-year-old probe, currently over 15 billion miles away, has started transmitting intelligible data again, The Guardian <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/apr/23/voyager-1-transmitting-data-again-after-nasa-remotely-fixes-46-year-old-probe">reported</a>. The spacecraft had been sending back indecipherable code since December.
The problem was traced back to one of the spacecraft&#8217;s three onboard computers, which is responsible for packaging the scientific and engineering data before it is sent back to Earth. The JPL team successfully relocated the corrupted code, a task made difficult due to the outdated technology.
The solution was transmitted from Earth on Apr. 18, but due to the vast distance, it took two days to verify its success. 
&#8220;When the mission flight team heard back from the spacecraft on April 20, they saw that the modification worked,&#8221; JPL stated.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/04/38134055/biden-vs-trump-matchup-shows-tight-race-but-new-poll-identifies-two-issues-that-could-resolve-the-de?itm_source=parsely-api" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Biden Vs. Trump Matchup Shows Tight Race But New Poll Identifies Two Issues That Could Resolve The Deadlock</a>
Why It Matters: Voyager 1, launched in 1977, was originally intended for a five-year mission to study Jupiter and Saturn. However, it has greatly surpassed its initial objective, becoming the first human-made object to enter interstellar space in August 2012. Despite the recent hiccup, Voyager 1 has continued to function normally, and the team is now working to enable the spacecraft to send back scientific data.
These developments come at a time when <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/general/24/04/38355446/elon-musk-is-the-only-person-able-to-get-us-astronauts-to-orbit-nasa-can-no-longer-do-it-boeing-cant">NASA&#8217;s ability to launch astronauts </a>into orbit has been called into question, with Elon Musk&#8217;s SpaceX being the only current viable option. This successful remote repair of Voyager 1 highlights NASA&#8217;s ongoing relevance and expertise in space exploration.
Read Next: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/04/38347033/bound-by-courtroom-rules-donald-trump-is-doing-something-uncommon-for-his-public-persona-staying-sil?itm_source=parsely-api" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bound By Courtroom Rules, Donald Trump Is Doing Something Uncommon For His Public Persona: Staying Silent</a>
Photo by L Galbraith on Shutterstock
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