High-Altitude Chinese Spy Balloon Tracked In Montana Airspace Near ICBM Fields

 US military commanders have advised President Biden against shooting down a Chinese spy balloon flying over the US. 

Reuters said the US military took "custody" of the "high-altitude surveillance balloon" and deployed military aircraft, including stealth fighter jets, to observe it. 

Such balloons operate at an altitude of 15-22 miles, well above commercial air traffic. The balloon's size is estimated to be equivalent to three buses. 

"The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now," Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder told reporters Thursday. 

"The balloon is currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground," Ryder continued. 

Right now, the spy balloon appears to be occupying Montana airspace. This alarmed the state's Republican Senator Steve Daines, who sent an alarming letter to the Department of Defense (DOD). He said the spy balloon is a "concerning event": because Montana airspace includes "Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB) and the United State's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fields." 

Daines wrote that given "the serious nature of the event," he is "requesting a full security briefing from the administration on this situation."

"It is vital to establish the flight path of this balloon, any compromised US national security assets, and all telecom or IT infrastructure on the ground within the US that this spy balloon was utilizing," he continued.

"As you know, Montana plays a vital national security role by housing nuclear missile silos at Malmstrom AFB," the senator said. 

Separately, Canada's defense ministry is monitoring a "potential second incident" but declined to give further details. 

News of the spy balloon followed CIA Director William Burns' speech at a Georgetown University event, where he called China the "biggest geopolitical challenge" facing the West. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/high-altitude-chinese-spy-balloon-tracked-montana-airspace-near-icbm-fields

Merck: KEYTRUDA Plus Chemo Met Primary Endpoint of Progression-Free Survival in Endometrial Carcinoma

 Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada, today announced that the Phase 3 NRG-GY018 trial evaluating KEYTRUDA, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, in combination with standard of care chemotherapy (carboplatin and paclitaxel) met its primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) for the treatment of patients with stage III-IV or recurrent endometrial carcinoma regardless of mismatch repair status. At a pre-specified interim analysis review conducted by an independent Data Monitoring Committee, KEYTRUDA in combination with chemotherapy then continued as single agent every six weeks for up to 14 cycles demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in PFS compared with chemotherapy alone in these patients whose endometrial carcinoma was either mismatch repair proficient (pMMR) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR).

The safety profile of KEYTRUDA in this trial was consistent with that observed in previously reported studies; no new safety signals were identified. Results will be presented at an upcoming medical meeting and discussed with regulatory authorities.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/merck-keytruda-pembrolizumab-plus-chemotherapy-114500491.html

They're baaaaack. Retail participation in the stock market just surpassed the GameStop days.

 It's getting out of control. Even before Jerome Powell incorrectly told a MarketWatch colleague that financial conditions hadn't changed very much, all manner of risky assets have stormed higher.

Bitcoin , up 42% this year. The ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), which in 2022 lost about two-thirds of its value, also up 42%. The Roundhill MEME ETF (MEME) has jumped 38%.

The Great Unwashed have noticed. Near the end of January, retail market orders as a percent of market value reached 23% on Jan. 23, according to data from JPMorgan. To put that in perspective, it got to 22% a few times when GameStop (GME) first started surging in value and everyone was talking about Roaring Kitting and Reddit Wall Street Bets.

Tesla (TSLA) was the most sold stock by retail investors, while Amazon and Apple were the most bought, according to JPMorgan analyst Peng Chang, using data up to Wednesday. (Oops? More on Amazon and Apple later.)

There also was strong demand for emerging market equities, gold, and credit ETFs. Thematically, Chang detected strong retail interest in areas including oil underperformers and labor intensive companies with poor sentiment, but selling of green/EV infrastructure and 5G broadband plays.

Chang doesn't venture where all this is leading. Charlie McElligott of Nomura, who ahead of the Fed decision said it would be hard for Powell to meet "hawkish hike" expectations, lays it out.

"You've been greenlighted to re-risk," when you add the Fed talk to the Bank of England and European Central Bank commentary this week that suggested there aren't many rate hikes left, he said. "It sure looks like a coordinated 'light at the end of the tunnel' signaling...which is now turning this into an outright 'asset allocation' flow to simply reverse the damage of last year's positioning."

Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist at Bank of America, says the plug is about to be pulled, noting first-quarter highs are likely before Valentine's Day (which less romantically is also when the Labor Department releases the next consumer price index report), as he recommended investors fade the S&P 500 above 4,200.

Speaking of meme-stocks, Nordstrom (JWN) shares shot up over 30% after The Wall Street Journal reported that activist investor, and GameStop chairman, Ryan Cohen has built up a big stake and is looking to shake up its board.

https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/20230203209/theyre-baaaaack-retail-participation-in-the-stock-market-just-surpassed-the-gamestop-days

Memphis police chief ran aggressive force similar to Scorpion unit while in Atlanta

Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis reportedly oversaw a street crime unit in Atlanta that, similar to the now defunct Scorpion unit implicated in the death of 29-year-old Tyre Nichols, was eventually disbanded amid public backlash over its aggressive tactics, according to reports.

The “Red Dog” unit was a group of about 30 officers at the Atlanta Police Department that was meant to flood high crime areas of the city. The unit, which Davis oversaw from 2006 to 2007, was disbanded in 2011, NBC News reported.

The city of Atlanta settled at least 10 lawsuits related to the Red Dog unit throughout its existence, although none were related to misconduct that occurred under Davis’ management, per NBC.

One lawsuit accused the unit of employing “unconstitutional policies, customs, and practices,” including performing strip searches and body cavity searches in public and stopping and frisking individuals without “reasonable suspicion or probable cause.”

A 2013 affidavit from a former Atlanta police officer, who was a member of the Red Dog unit, noted that their supervisors were aware of their “aggressive attitude” and did not appear bothered until it “resulted in political backlash for the administration and politicians.”

The revelations about Davis’ background with the Atlanta unit come in the wake of Nichols’ death last month. The Memphis Police Department’s Scorpion unit — which took a similar approach of targeting high crime areas — arrested Nichols on suspicion of reckless driving on Jan. 7.

In video footage of the traffic stop released last week, officers can be seen pepper-spraying, tasing and beating the 29-year-old. Nichols died several days later from his injuries.

The controversial Scorpion unit was officially deactivated on Saturday amid public backlash over Nichols’ death. Five police officers in the unit that were involved in Nichols’ arrest were fired and have since been charged with second-degree murder.

A sixth officer was also “relieved of duty” at the beginning of the Memphis Police Department’s investigation into the incident. A seventh officer has since been suspended, and two emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and one lieutenant with the Memphis Fire Department have been fired.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3842138-memphis-police-chief-ran-aggressive-force-similar-to-scorpion-unit-while-in-atlanta-report/

4D Molecular: FDA Clears IND Application for Genetic Treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema

 

• 4D-150 Phase 2 SPECTRA clinical trial for diabetic macular edema enrollment is expected to initiate in Q3 2023

• Initial Phase 1 PRISM clinical trial with 4D-150 for wet age-related macular degeneration further validates R100 intravitreal vector potential for other large market eye diseases including geographic atrophy

• Interim PRISM data for dose Cohorts 1, 2, & 3 (n=15) to be presented at the 2023 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting

• Randomized Phase 2 portion of the Phase 1/2 PRISM clinical trial with 4D-150 for wet AMD is currently enrolling

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/4d-molecular-therapeutics-announces-fda-210500915.html

Regeneron Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022

 

• Fourth quarter 2022 revenues decreased 31% to $3.41 billion versus fourth quarter 2021; excluding REGEN-COV^® and Ronapreve^TM(a)(b), revenues increased 14%
• Full year 2022 revenues decreased 24% to $12.17 billion versus full year 2021; excluding REGEN-COV and Ronapreve^(a)(b), revenues increased 17%
• Fourth quarter 2022 EYLEA^® U.S. net sales decreased 3% to $1.50 billion versus fourth quarter 2021; full year 2022 EYLEA U.S. net sales increased 8% to $6.26 billion versus 2021
• Fourth quarter 2022 Dupixent^® global net sales (recorded by Sanofi) increased 38% to $2.45 billion versus fourth quarter 2021; full year 2022 Dupixent global net sales increased 40% to $8.68 billion versus 2021
• Fourth quarter 2022 GAAP diluted EPS of $10.50 and non-GAAP diluted EPS^(a) of $12.56; includes unfavorable $0.21 impact from acquired IPR&D charge
• Aflibercept 8 mg BLA for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD) and diabetic macular edema (DME) submitted to FDA in December 2022
• FDA approved Libtayo^® in combination with chemotherapy as first-line treatment for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)
• European Commission approved Dupixent for adults with prurigo nodularis and adults and adolescents with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE)

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/REGENERON-PHARMACEUTICALS-10649/news/Regeneron-Reports-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-2022-Financial-and-Operating-Results-42889771/

Cigna beats quarterly profit expectations as COVID medical costs fall

 

Cigna Corp beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit on Friday, aided by a sharp fall in medical costs due to lower COVID-19-related hospitalizations.

Health insurers have largely managed to keep medical costs in check during the fourth quarter amid a so-called "tripledemic" of an early flu season coinciding with COVID and respiratory syncytial virus cases.

Cigna's quarterly medical care ratio, or its spending on claims as a percentage of premiums, declined to 84.0% from 87.0%, and was better than the analysts' average estimate of 84.28%, according to Refinitiv data.

However, the company's annual profit forecast of at least $24.60 per share was marginally below expectations of $24.84 per share.

The insurer forecast medical care ratio of 81.5% to 82.5% for 2023, compared with Wall Street estimate of 81.9%.

The company, which served 18 million people in 2022 through its commercial and government-supported plans, expects to add at least 1.2 million customers this year.

Cigna's Evernorth unit, which operates its pharmacy benefit management business that negotiates between drugmaker and insurers, generated revenue of $36.19 billion, 3% higher than the previous year.

Excluding one-off items, the company reported a profit of $4.96 per share in the fourth quarter, beating analysts' average estimate by 10 cents.

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/CIGNA-CORPORATION-49690049/news/Cigna-beats-quarterly-profit-expectations-as-COVID-medical-costs-fall-42889521/