ZURICH-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- FIRST QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

• Total orders +3%1, order backlog +6%
• Base orders +6%, higher in all divisions and regions
• Revenues +4%, book-to-bill2 1.11x
• Operational EBITA margin2 11.2%, impacted 100 basis points by GEIS dilution and a further 100 basis points by stranded costs
• Net income $535 million, -6%
• Operational EPS2 $0.31, +5%3
• Cash flow from operating activities -$256 million; solid cash delivery expected for the full year
• Global software partnership agreement with Dassault Systèmes announced

“We delivered another quarter of solid orders and revenue growth demonstrating the quality and resilience of our portfolio despite the softening we have seen in some of our end-markets, particularly in discrete manufacturing and the automotive sector,” said ABB CFO Timo Ihamuotila.

“We remain firm ... Read more »

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, -Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

Beyontec, a global insurance information and technology solutions provider with significant business presence in Kuwait and Middle East Region today announced that it has been selected by Gulf Insurance Group Kuwait (gig-Kuwait) to implement the Beyontec Suite, its core solution, across General, Group Life, Finance and ERP Modules.

gig-Kuwait is one of the largest insurance company in Kuwait in terms of written and retained premiums in general life, medical and motor segments. Established in 2007 as a subsidiary of Gulf Insurance Group (GIG), gig-Kuwait was the first and only local specialized life and health insurance Company in Kuwait. gig-Kuwait maintains its competitive edge through prudent underwriting and product innovation, and the implementation of cutting-edge information technology initiatives where it holds many ‘firsts’ in the region.

After a thorough due diligence ac ... Read more »

West Africa’s Mobile Economy Valued at More Than $50 Billion in 2018

ABIDJAN, Côte d'Ivoire-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- West Africa’s mobile ecosystem generated more than $50 billion in economic value last year – equivalent to 8.7 per cent of the region’s GDP1, according to a new GSMA study. The 2019 West Africa edition of the GSMA’s Mobile Economy report series is published at the ‘Mobile 360 – West Africa’ event being held in Abidjan this week. The study finds that rising mobile phone ownership and the ongoing migration to mobile broadband networks and services across the region will see the mobile ecosystem’s economic contribution continue to increase over the coming years, forecast to reach almost $70 billion (9.5 per cent of GDP) by 2023.

“Today’s report underlines the vital role the mobile ecosystem is playing in contributing to economic growth, soc ... Read more »

SpeeDx tests will be available through Cepheid’s FleXible Cartridge programme for the GeneXpert System

SYDNEY-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)--

SpeeDx Pty, Ltd. announced an agreement with Cepheid to manufacture their market-leading ResistancePlus® tests for use on the GeneXpert System. The first test in Cepheid’s FleXible Cartridge programme, planned for launch early 2019, is ResistancePlus® MG, detecting the sexually transmitted infection (STI) Mycoplasma genitalium (Mgen) and markers associated with azithromycin resistance.

“The availability of ResistancePlus MG in a FleXible cartridge that runs on the GeneXpert System is a compelling and exciting extension for us,” said Colin Denver, CEO of SpeeDx. “Patients are already benefiting from Resistance Guided Therapy with our central lab tests. Now clinicians can receive resistance information even faster, to support antimicrobial stewa ... Read more »

INGELHEIM, Germany.-Monday 15 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

• Boehringer Ingelheim plans a pilot programme using the innovative SoundTalksTM system in select pig barns

• The goal is to harness the power of digital innovation and technological change to detect possible respiratory distress in swine quickly

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Boehringer Ingelheim has acquired a minority stake in SoundTalks NV, a Belgian company. SoundTalks NV has developed a digital monitoring tool that seeks to improve the healthcare of pigs and helps farmers operate more efficiently.

“We are proud to partner with SoundTalks NV to offer an innovative solution to pork producers,” shares Rolf-Dieter Günther, Head of Diagnostics & Monitoring, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Business Unit. “Technological innovation is transforming the animal health industry, and we are committed to developing solutions that help veterinarians and ultimately farmers as well as ... Read more »

The Transformational Health Team Unleashes Growth Opportunities and Technology Innovations for the Future 

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, -Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

In 2019, GCC countries will represent 13% of global revenues for healthcare products, with services growing at 12%. The region is witnessing increasing demand for healthcare services, largely driven by increased prevalence of chronic diseases and improved healthcare.

While turmoil in oil prices continues, public health expenditure remains a priority for governments. The private sector will play a key role by entering into public-private partnerships. The rising demand for better healthcare services in the region and global advancements in medical technologies have opened up a number of opportunities for information technology (IT) organisations to tap into this growing sector. Technologies such as blockchain, wearables, internet of medical things and artificial intelligence ... Read more »

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Bank of America reported its first-quarter 2019 financial results today. The news release, supplemental filing and investor presentation can be accessed in the following ways:

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190416005489/en/

    Bank of America newsroom at https://newsroom.bankofamerica.com
    Bank of America Investor Relations website at http://investor.bankofamerica.com
    Business Wire’s news webpage at http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/news

Investor Conference Call information

Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan and Chief Financial Officer Paul Donofrio will discuss the financial results in a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET today. For a listen-only connection to the conference call, dial 1.877.200.4456 (U.S.) or 1 ... Read more »

NEW YORK-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MSCI), a leading provider of critical decision support tools and services for the global investment community, announced today it will release its results for first quarter 2019 on Thursday, May 2, 2019.

MSCI's senior management will review the first quarter 2019 results on Thursday, May 2, 2019 at 11:00 AM Eastern Time. To listen to the live event, visit the events and presentations section of MSCI's Investor Relations homepage, http://ir.msci.com/events.cfm, or dial 1-877-376-9931 conference ID: 1957547 within the United States. International callers dial 1-720-405-2251 conference ID: 1957547. The earnings release and related investor presentation used during the conference call will be made available on MSCI's Investor Relations homepage.

An audio recording of the conference call will be available on our Investor Relations website, http://ir.msci.com/events.cfm, ... Read more »

ZURICH-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Board of Directors of ABB and its CEO Ulrich Spiesshofer (55) have mutually agreed for him to step down from his role, which he has held since 2013. The Chairman of the Board, Peter Voser (61), will become interim CEO in addition to his current role with immediate effect. An official search to find a new CEO has been initiated.

Peter Voser: “On behalf of the Board and the employees of ABB, I would like to personally thank Ulrich for his dedication and commitment to ABB’s customers and employees, not only as CEO, but also in other executive roles at ABB since 2005. Under his leadership, ABB has been transformed into a global technology leader focused in digital industries. He strategically repositioned the company and built up growth momentum across all businesses. We wish him all the best for his future endeavors.”

Voser added: “We will continue to focus on implementin ... Read more »

• Well-filled research pipeline in oncology, fibrotic diseases, immunology and metabolic diseases

• Operating growth outpaces the market in all businesses

• Technical integration of the animal health business acquired in 2017 successfully completed 

INGELHEIM, Germany-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The research-driven pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim ended 2018 with net sales of 17.5 billion euros. Adjusted for currency effects, as well as one-off effects due to the asset swap with Sanofi in 2017, net sales grew by 4 per cent. At 3.2 billion euros (+2.8%), R&D expenses increased to 18.1 per cent of annual net sales.

In the process, the company has focused on specific therapeutic areas. “We want to make a significant contribution towards a superior treatment of cancer,” says Hubertus von Baumbach, Chairman of the Board of Managing Directors. “In addition, we are cond ... Read more »

 Company promotes two industry veterans into newly-created Operations and Global Commercial roles

SAN ANTONIO-Thursday 18 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Acelity today announced Gaurav Agarwal, Chief Commercial Officer, has been promoted to the position of President and Chief Operating Officer. Additionally, Rohit Kashyap, President of the Americas, has been promoted to the position of President, Global Commercial, responsible for sales development, customer support and business growth in markets around the world.

Agarwal has nearly 20 years of global business management experience in the healthcare industry. Prior to joining the Company in 2014, he served as President, Orthopedic Reconstruction for the Advanced Surgical Devices Division at Smith & Nephew. In his new role as Chief Operating Officer, Agarwal leads KCI’s Product Research and Innovation functions, Manufacturing & Operations, Information Technology, B ... Read more »

Bryan, Garnier & Co combines with Nordic growth investment bank Beringer Finance, further strengthening the firm’s leadership in the European investment banking landscape.

• The group expands its European footprint with the addition of offices in Stockholm, Oslo and Reykjavik. Bryan, Garnier & Co will also add the current Beringer Finance Palo Alto office to its existing US presence in NYC.

• CEO Adalsteinn Johannsson will join Bryan, Garnier & Co as Partner focused on International M&A, with Beringer’s Tor Berthelius as Partner to lead the Nordic operations.

• The combination reinforces the group with 31 professionals focused on Technology, IT Services and Fintech.

• Beringer has conducted more than 140 M&A, ECM and Private Placements transactions in the past 10 years alone, and benefits from a leading position in the Nordic markets.

• The combination provides a strong foothold for the ... Read more »

ZephyrTel also joins AWS Partner Network, ramps up cloud development

LONDON -Wednesday 3 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ZephyrTel, a division of ESW Capital dedicated to serving global telecommunications operators, is pleased to announce that it has today signed a telecom-focused Strategic Collaboration Agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS).

This agreement comes less than a year after ZephyrTel’s formation and is testament to the company’s growth strategy and focus on cloud leadership in the Telco market. The strategic collaboration agreement will initially be focused on a joint go-to market approach based on ZephyrTel’s industry leading Customer Experience Management platform, ResponseTek for Telco, which was the first ZephyrTel solution to be migrated to AWS.

Work is already underway to migrate other ZephyrTel solutions to AWS, including Mobilogy, OASIS Cloud Contact Centre, Volt Delta 360 Directory Assistance, Peer ... Read more »

LONDON -Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Moody’s Corporation (NYSE: MCO) announced today that it has acquired a majority stake in Vigeo Eiris, a global leader in Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) research, data and assessments. The acquisition furthers Moody’s objective of promoting global standards for ESG for use by market participants.

With products and capabilities based on ESG assessments and an extensive ESG database, Vigeo Eiris offers specialized research and decision-making tools for sustainable and ethical investments.

Vigeo Eiris will continue to be headquartered in Paris, operating under its existing brand, and it will be an affiliate of Moody’s Investors Service.

The acquisition recognizes that ESG considerations are increasingly relevant to issuers, investors, counterparties and others as capital markets and other stakeholders seek clear and objective standards for understanding and meas ... Read more »

Huawei AI and smartphone technology to be used in eye hospitals around the world in partnership with leading eye institute. 

LONDON-Wednesday 17 April 2019 [ AETOS Wire ]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Huawei has deployed its AI expertise with leading medical research bodies to help safeguard children's eyesight. Huawei is working with IIS Aragon and DIVE Medical to co-create Track AI, an AI-powered assessment designed to detect and diagnose early signs of visual impairment in children.

The World Health Organization estimates there are 19 million children in the world with visual impairment, of which 70 to 80 percent are preventable or curable. In most cases, these children will remain undiagnosed for years, resulting in more serious consequences with their vision, general development, educational and social opportunities. Less severe but easily prevented types of visual impairments are currently affecting 12.8 million children.

“For the past ... Read more »