Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) and Sam Sparks (Anna Faris) watch in amazement while it rains hamburgers in Sony Pictures Animation's CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS.Courtesy of Sony Pictures Animat
Our roundup of Canadian small-caps of between $100-million and $2.5-billion in market capitalization making news and on the move today.
Halifax-based DHX Media (DHX.B-T;DHX.A-T;DHXM-Q), which creates TV shows aimed at families and children, said it has signed a deal with Turner Broadcasting for the new animated television series Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs: The Series based on the Sony Pictures Animation blockbuster film franchise.
DHX Media said the animated series it is producing with Sony Pictures Animation, commissioned by TELETOON in Canada, has been picked up by Turner Broadcasting for its second flagship kids channel, Boomerang across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific, and Latin America.
DHX Media handles global television, licensing and merchandising and non-U.S. home entertainment rights to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs: The Series (Sony will distribute home entertainment in the U.S.). The series is being produced at DHX's animation studio in Vancouver, BC.
The 2009 animated feature comedy Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and its 2013 sequel, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2, were produced by Sony Pictures Animation, and distributed by Columbia Pictures. Both films were critical and commercial successes which grossed a combined $510-million in theatres.
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Mississauga, Ont.-based Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CPH-T;CPHR-Q) said it and its partners, Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Sun Pharma company, and Galephar Pharmaceutical Research Inc., have entered into a settlement agreement with Actavis Laboratories F1 Inc., Andrx Corp., Actavis Inc. and Actavis Pharma Inc. that dismisses the patent litigation suit relating to Actavis' abbreviated new drug application for a generic version of Absorica (isotretinoin capsules).
As part of the settlement agreement, Cipher, Ranbaxy and Galephar have entered into a non-exclusive license agreement with Actavis under which Actavis may begin selling its generic version of Absorica in the U.S. on Dec. 27, 2020, about nine months prior to the expiration of the patents in September, 2021, or earlier under certain circumstances.
The settlement agreement is subject to review by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice.
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Toronto-based Rubicon Minerals Corp. (RMX-T;RBY-A) said that its chief executive officer Michael A. Lalonde has left the company, and Michael D. Winship, currently a company director has been appointed interim president and CEO.
"Mr. Winship, who has over 35 years of experience in the mining industry, is extremely qualified to lead the company, as the project transitions into the production phase," said chairman David Beatty. "The board will undertake the process of selecting a new President and CEO on a full-time basis."
Mr. Winship was most recently the president and CEO of Orvana Minerals and was previously the chief operating officer of Quadra FNX Mining Ltd., and president of Hudbay Minerals Inc.
Rubicon Minerals also announced that it has been ordered by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change on Sept. 30, "to temporarily suspend mill operations at the Phoenix Gold Project [in Red Lake, Ont.] to treat elevated ammonia levels, discharge sufficient water from the tailings management facility, and to upgrade the TMF, under specific timelines.
The company said the initial order received on Sept. 8, ordered Rubicon to commission new interim and permanent ammonia treatment systems for the effluent held in its TMF and discharge a portion of treated effluent. It also ordered Rubicon to undertake other operational and reporting obligations, including construction upgrades to the TMF.
Rubicon "has been utilizing alternative technologies to address the ammonia levels in the TMF. Rubicon has made progress with respect to treating the effluent and believes it can resume mill operations in a timely manner," the company said.
At the current time, underground development, construction and trial stoping continue uninterrupted, the company said.
"The Rubicon management team and the board of directors take these matters seriously and are committed to operating at the highest environmental standards," said Michael Winship, interim president and CEO. "We have made progress towards treating the elevated ammonia levels in the effluent and have made it a priority to resolve these issues in a timely manner. Our underground operations continue uninterrupted during this time and we hope to resume mill operations shortly once we have met all the requirements outlined by the MOECC."
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Calgary-based Ithaca Energy Inc. (IAE-T) said it is cutting its full 2015 capital spending by $30-million to $120-million, and that it expects its debt at the end of the year to be about $750-million, down from earlier guidance of $800-million due to cost savings.
It also said average year-to-date production to the end of the third quarter was 12,300 barrels of oil equivalent per day. During the third quarter, the company said it benefited from having about 9,600 barrels of oil per day hedged at an average price of $92 (U.S.) per barrel. This compares to an average Brent price for the period of $50/bbl.
It said commissioning operations have begun on the its floating production facility and "sail-away" of the vessel remains on track for the end of the first quarter of 2016.
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Toronto-based Denison Mines Corp. (DML-T;DNN-A) said that two of the leading independent proxy advisory firms, Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. and Glass, Lewis & Co. LLC , have recommended that shareholders of both Denison and Fission Uranium Corp. (FCU-T) vote for the plan of arrangement to combine the two companies. Shareholder meetings for both companies are set to be held on Oct. 14.
"In their respective reports, ISS and Glass Lewis cited the fairness of the transaction and the strategic rationale behind the combination, including the premium implied by the offer to Fission shareholders and the potential for the combined company to attract more investor interest on a larger scale in a bear market," Denison said.
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Vancouver-based Savant Explorations Ltd. (SVT-X) said John McClintock has resigned as the company's president and CEO, as well as a director, to pursue other business interests. However, he has agreed to stay on as a technical adviser to the company. David Douglas, currently the company's chief financial officer and a director will assume the duties of president until further notice, the company said.
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Vancouver-based Ashburton Ventures Inc. (ABR-X) said it has acquired additional claims contiguous to the previously announced "Elon" lithium claims in the Clayton Valley lithium district of Nevada. These new claims consist of six additional parcels of land directly bordering Pure Energy's Clayton Valley Deposit. Clayton Valley is the site of the only lithium brine production operation in North America, which has been in production since 1966.
"The purchase price of the new claims was negotiated by Ashburton management and the vendor to have no additional cost. These will be included in the initial cost previously announced. This will now double Ashburton's land holdings to about 240 acres directly bordering Pure Energy's Clayton Valley Discovery. The "Elon" lithium claims have been negotiated from an arm's length vendor and are subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval," the company said.
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Toronto-based Chesswood Group Ltd. (CHW-T) said it has entered into an agreement to sell its Acura dealership, Acura Sherway, for about $22-million, based on current vehicle inventory. Chesswood said it expects to record a gain on the sale of about $4-million. The transaction is expected to close during the current fiscal year and is subject to the purchaser obtaining customary consents, including the consent of Honda Canada.
"This transaction allows Chesswood to be solely focused on the growth and development of our specialty finance companies. We are thankful to our team at Acura Sherway for providing Chesswood with an incredibly consistent level of strong financial performance over the 16 years we have been together" said Barry Shafran, Chesswood's president and CEO.