Denali Therapeutics prices IPO at $18 a share, midpoint of price range

Biotech Denali Biotherapeutics Inc. priced its initial public offering at $18 a share, the midpoint of its $17 to $19 price range. The company sold 13.9 million shares to raise $250 million, giving it a valuation of $1.7 billion, according to Renaissance Capital, a manager of IPO-focused ETFs like the Renaissance IPO ETF . Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and J.P. Morgan were lead managers on the deal. The stock will start trading today on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “DNLI”.

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Stock futures add to gains after solid jobs report

U.S. stock-index futures added to modest gains on Friday after a stronger-than-expected jobs report for November. The U.S. economy added 228,000 jobs last month, while the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%. The hourly average earnings rose 0.2%. The S&P 500 futures were up 8 points, or 0.3%, at 2,647. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 70 points, or 0.3%, to 24,297. The tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 futures advanced 38 points, or 0.6%, to 6,361.

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Sage Therapeutics shares gain another 2% as SunTrust raises stock price target to $178 vs. $116

Sage Therapeutics Inc. shares rose another 2% Friday, adding to prior-session gains of more than 70%, as SunTrust Robinson Humphrey became the latest shop to raise its stock price target after positive results in a mid-stage trial of a new depression treatment. SunTrust boosted its target to $178 from $116, and reiterated a buy rating. “Based on the positive top-line readout from the Phase II trial for SAGE-217 in MDD, we have increased the probability of success from 30% to 60%,’ analyst Edward Nash wrote in a note. “Post-partum depression (PPD) is the second mood disorder being investigated by SAGE for SAGE-217. We have increased the probability of success from 50% to 60% in PPD as we believe
a read-through from the positive MDD Phase II data is warranted.” On Thursday, Leerink raised its stock price target to $246 from $123, while RBC raised its target to $280. Shares closed Thursday’s session at $156.27, and have gained 206% in 2017, while the S&P 500 has gained 18%.

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U.K.’s Brexit ‘divorce’ bill to be finalized between £35 billion to £39 billion

The U.K.’s so-called ‘divorce’ bill from the European Union is expected to be finalized at a range between £35 billion to £39 billion, reports said Friday. “We would look at it as a fair settlement of our obligations,” said a Downing Street spokesperson, according to Sky News. In current dollar-pound currency rates, the bill would amount to between $47 billion and $52 billion. U.K. and the European Union officials early Friday said they had reached agreement on the terms of the Brexit ‘divorce’, clearing the way to move on to the second phase of trade and transition talks. The U.K. is expected to leave the EU in March 2019.

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Judge in Argentina orders arrest of former president Cristina Kirchner

Argentina’s former president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, has been ordered under arrest on treason and other charges, according to media reports. Thursday’s order stems from allegations she covered up the possible role of Iranian officials in a 1994 bombing in Buenos Aires in exchange for oil-related trade deals, reports said. The bombing of a Jewish community center killed 85 people. Kirchner at a Thursday press conference denounced the charges and said they were politically motivated. Kirchner, who led Argentina from 2007 to 2015, won a Senate seat in October. In addition to the arrest order, Judge Carlos Bonadio called on the Senate to start the process of stripping Kirchner of her parliamentary immunity. Kirchner was scheduled to be sworn into her Senate seat on Sunday.

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Bitcoin briefly breaks below $15,000 on CoinDesk, slides 11%

Bitcoin tumbled on Friday, breaking below $15,000 just hours after blasting through the $17,000 milestone. The cryptocurrency briefly slid 11% to trade around $14,996 on CoinDesk, before rebounding slightly to trade around $15,303. The slump comes after bitcoin on Thursday broke through the $15,000, $16,000 and $17,000 milestones, pushing it up more than 1,600% since the beginning of the year.

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Rep. Trent Franks resigns over asking staffers to have his child

Republican Rep. Trent Franks said late Thursday he would resign amid a sexual harassment investigation by the House Ethics Committee. In a statement, the staunchly conservative Arizona congressman denied intimidating, coercing or attempting sexual contact with members of his staff. But he did acknowledge he had asked two female staff members to be the surrogate for his child. Franks in his statement admitted his request “made certain individuals uncomfortable,” and he had “became insensitive as to how the discussion of such an intensely personal topic might affect others.” Franks said he and his wife have struggled with infertility, and have twins who were conceived through surrogacy. Franks said his last day will be Jan. 31.

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MediciNova stock up more than 50% on positive trial results

Biotech company MediciNova Inc. said late Thursday that it had received positive top-line results from the company’s clinical trial of MN-166 in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Shares went on a rampage after hours, up more than 52% to $10.52. The company said that it conducted data analysis on 51 subjects without non-invasive ventilation in the “intent to treat” population and the trial “achieved the primary endpoint of safety and tolerability, and also demonstrated efficacy trends in favor of MN-166 (ibudilast).” MN-166 has been marketed in Japan and Korea to treat post-stroke complications and bronchial asthma, the company said. MediciNova is attempting to develop MN-166 for progressive multiple sclerosis and other neurological conditions such as ALS, the company said. Prior to after hours Thursday, MediciNova stock is up 14% this year, as the S&P 500 index gained 18%.

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Emails appear to show follow-up to 2016 Trump Tower meeting: report

Previously undisclosed emails apparently following up on a July 2016 meeting at Trump Tower are raising new questions by congressional investigators, CNN reported Thursday. The emails from British publicist Rob Goldstone are the first indication that there were follow-up communications after the meeting he set up between senior Trump campaign officials, including Donald Trump Jr., and a Russian lawyer, CNN said. Trump Jr. has said that the meeting ended up being primarily about Russian adoptions and there was no further communication after it ended. One email from Goldstone to a senior Trump campaign aide urged Donald Trump to join a Russian social network, an idea that was reportedly pitched at the meeting. Another email from Goldstone to his client, Russian pop star Emin Agalarov, who also attended the meeting, mentioned the alleged Russian hack of DNC emails, and called it “eerily weird” after what they had discussed at Trump Tower. The emails are likely to be discussed next week when Goldstone meets with the House and Senate intelligence committees behind closed doors.

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Investors Bancorp to cut workforce by 5%, close 6 branches

Investors Bancorp Inc. said late Thursday it was laying off about 5% of its workers and closing six of its branch offices. The Short Hills, N.J.-based bank has 155 branches and reported having 1,829 employees at the end of 2016. Investors Bancorp said the cuts will reduce annual operating expenses by about $10 million to $12 million. Shares of Investors Bancorp were flat at $14.17 after hours.

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