| Inhibitex Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire FermaVir ...
ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 10, 2007 - Inhibitex, Inc. (NASDAQ: INHX) announced today that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with FermaVir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCBB: FMVR). FermaVir's development-stage antiviral pipeline includes FV-100, a highly potent nucleoside analogue for the treatment of herpes zoster infections ("shingles") that is expected to enter Phase I clinical trials in the third quarter of 2007, and a series of preclinical compounds for the treatment of human cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease. Under the terms of the agreement, each of the 20.8 million outstanding shares of FermaVir common stock will be exchanged for 0.55 shares of Inhibitex common stock. Immediately following the transaction, Inhibitex shareholders are expected to own approximately 73 percent of the combined company.
Investcorp Real Estate Group Sells Clearwater, FL Shopping Center ...
NEW YORK, April 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Investcorp Real Estate Group today announced that it has completed the sale of Cypress Point Shopping Center, a 166,933-square-foot retail property in Clearwater, Florida, to Ramco- Gershenson Properties Trust (NYSE: RPT) . Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. New York-based Investcorp acquired Cypress Point in November 2004. The property is 97% occupied and anchor tenants include Burlington Coat Factory and Fresh Markets. It is located along US Highway 19 North, the primary north-south commercial roadway in Pinellas County. Christopher Sameth, a Principal at Investcorp, said, "Our investment in Cypress Point achieved all of our investment objectives and we are pleased to realize value for our investors." Investcorp was advised on Cypress Point by Gumberg Asset Management of Ft.
Three Bullish Second-Quarter Plays
Analysts are ratcheting down estimates for quarterly profit growth in response to the housing slowdown and subprime crisis. But there's one place where reduced earnings aren't showing up right now: The interface between one quarter and the next usually triggers waves of warnings as internal company mathematics fail to match external expectations. That hasn't happened yet, at least from an anecdotal point of view. But it might be too early to declare victory, with the market holiday skewing last week's news flow. So let's wait another week and keep our fingers crossed. In the meantime, a little planning for a better-than-expected earnings season is in order. An upbeat period for earnings and positive commentary from the majority of publicly held companies would help improve market sentiment and shake off the jitters that have afflicted world markets since late February.
Real estate leasing boosts Immorent financing to 28m euros
Immorent Romania, the leasing arm of Austria's Erste Bank, last year released financing worth 28.3 million euros, an increase of 80% from the 15.7 million euros registered in 2005.
"The increase was mainly due to real estate leasing, with the first real estate leasing contracts being signed in 2006," Vasile Cristescu, sales manager with Immorent Romania, told ZF. The company is a provider of commercial real estate leasing and equipment leasing services.
Erste Bank plans to integrate Immorent's offer with BCR's specialised firm, BCR Leasing, as the latter has not developed a solid offer on the segment of real estate financing. .
Globalisation, Yes, Globalisation, No
Globalisation was in discussion yesterday at a seminar at the World Bank Dhaka Office looking for making it work for the developing world, viz. Bangladesh and other similar countries. Many foreign and local experts including ministers, diplomats and economists explored the possibilities to get more opportunities from globalisation, and identifying the constraints. Our finance adviser said, "Inequality is increasing due to the global trading pattern… then, of course, we need a compensation mechanism on how do we compensate the losers" (The Daily Star, April 9th). He talked in the language of economics while the key-note speaker British High Commissioner Anwar Choudhury highlighted the dark side of globalisation, saying it could bring threats of global crime and terrorism that could be organised and spread with devastating impact.
Hercules Provides $10 Million to Active Response Group, a Premier ...
PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Continuing to increase its portfolio of late-stage companies, Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTGC), a leading specialty finance company providing growth capital to venture capital and private equity backed technology and life science companies, today announced that on March 30, 2007, it provided $10 million of venture debt financing to Active Response Group, a leader in the online lead generation market. "Hercules is broadening it's portfolio in later stage, rapidly growing revenue companies that are also profitable like Active Response," said Kevin Grossman, managing director of the late-stage group at Hercules. "The online lead generation market is one of the fastest growing segments in the advertising space and Active Response's strong, disciplined growth in the last year made the company a great opportunity for Hercules." Unlike many online lead generating companies, Active Response provides targeted, qualified leads to clients from individuals who indicate interest or "opt-in" to receive marketing information.
401(k) loan can be easy, costly
Your 401(k) or 403(b) savings are meant for retirement. But if you're scraping together a down payment for a home or the old car is set to expire, you could borrow from your 401(k) for these short-term needs.
Most employers -- 85 percent, according to the Profit Sharing/401k Council of America, a non-profit association of companies and plan participants -- allow workers to take a 401(k) loan. Roughly a quarter of employees who are eligible to borrow take out a loan.
The main question is whether you should.
The pros
-The loans are convenient.
-There's no credit check. To apply, you often just submit a form online, and the funds are distributed within a week, sometimes in as little as three days, said David Wray, president of the council.
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