Massachusetts news

• Putnam shakes up strategy for investing in small companies

  21-03-2017 20:01
  Putnam Investments is revamping its strategy for small-cap investments, including hiring new personnel and swapping out portfolio managers on multiple funds.The Boston-based asset manager will put greater emphasis on fundamental research in its small-cap funds, it announced Tuesday. It plans to cut down on the number of stocks it holds in three of the funds, in order to focus on those investments it believes will drive the greatest returns.The moves reinforce Putnam’s commitment to active
  
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• As Cerulean Pharma winds down, executives get a parting gift: bonuses

  21-03-2017 19:41
  After multiple trial failures, Waltham-based cancer drug developer Cerulean Pharma is laying off its employees, selling its lead drugs and merging with a San Diego biotech.But the company’s departing top executives are in line to receive bonuses.Cerulean (Nasdaq: CERU) announced on Monday that it will be absorbed by Daré Bioscience through a reverse merger, sell its two lead cancer drugs and its technology platform for a total of just $7.5 million, and lay off 11 of its 19 employees
  
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• Sanofi-Genzyme files preemptive legal strike to protect eczema drug

  21-03-2017 19:28
  Sanofi-Genzyme, which expects to soon win approval for an eczema drug, has filed a federal lawsuit that seeks to preempt a possible patent challenge by Amgen.The Cambridge-based firm, a unit of French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi SA (NYSE: SNY), filed a suit in Boston federal court along with its partner Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: REGN). The complaint asks a judge to rule that the drug does not infringe a patent held by Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN).The treatment for atopic dermatitis, which will&
  
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• After stumble, Boston's ride-hailing startup touts SXSW as a success

  21-03-2017 18:54
  Last week seemed like a bad one for Boston-based startup Fasten when its stint as the official ride-sharing service of the giant South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas got off to a rocky start.The Fasten app crashed for about an hour on the night of Saturday, March 11 under the intense demand of the crowded festival, leading to angry tweets and negative headlines. But now that SXSW is over, Fasten has released statistics it hopes will show its two weeks in the spotlight went pretty well&
  
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• Goodwin Procter’s Seaport home sells for $447M

  21-03-2017 18:32
  Deutsche Asset Management has closed on its $447 million acquisition of 100 Northern Ave., a 17-story office building on Fan Pier in Boston’s Seaport District, according to a Suffolk County deed.The 516,000-square-foot commercial office property is home to Goodwin Procter, Boston’s second-largest law firm.The 100 Northern office was the fifth completed building in The Fallon Co.’s Fan Pier development area, which also includes the Vertex Pharmaceuticals headquarters at 50 North
  
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• John Hancock, city of Boston unveil illustrated marathon street banners

  21-03-2017 17:14
  Just in time for spring, Boston Marathon sponsor John Hancock and Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh revealed a new set of streetlight banners for this year's race, which is scheduled to take place on April 17.Roughly 500 banners will be installed around Boston. The banners' design incorporate illustrations rather than the more traditional photographs of recent years, and offer an outline sketch on each banner design. John Hancock’s 2017 Boston Marathon theme is “Make it Your Moment.&rdquo
  
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• Biogen prevails in dispute over key Tecfidera patent

  21-03-2017 16:24
  A panel of judges has upheld a key patent on Biogen’s blockbuster multiple sclerosis treatment Tecfidera, rejecting a challenge filed by hedge fund manager Kyle Bass last year.The Patent Trial and Appeal Board on Tuesday upheld the validity of the patent, which relates to the dosage of Tecfidera’s key ingredient. Since coming onto the market in 2013, the drug has emerged as Biogen’s biggest moneymaker, accounting for nearly $4 billion of the company’s $11.4 billion in tot
  
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• ​Goldberg: Deadlines will be missed if pot oversight moves from Treasury

  21-03-2017 15:23
  Shifting the responsibility for overseeing the sprouting legal marijuana industry away from the Treasury would result in Massachusetts missing the already-delayed deadlines for licensure and the start of retail business, the treasurer said Monday.Treasurer Deborah Goldberg said her office has been working for 15 months toward implementing a legal recreational-marijuana marketplace and that taking oversight away from her office now would further delay legal sales. "My long-term concerns are that&
  
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• Arctic Sand, backed by GE and Ray Stata, acquired for $68M

  21-03-2017 12:14
  Arctic Sand Technologies, a Burlington-based semiconductor company backed by GE and the founder of Analog Devices, will be acquired by a San Diego-based firm.The purchase price is $68 million, according to a spokesperson for Peregrine, which is a subsidiary of Japanese Murata Manufacturing Co.Arctic Sand was founded in 2011 based on MIT-developed technology. Ray Stata, the co-founder of Analog Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: ADI), participated in the company's $9.6 million Series A round in 2012. Murata&h
  
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• ​Five things you need to know today, and a nod to '80s rap

  21-03-2017 10:37
  Good morning, Boston! Here are the five most important things you need to know to help start your busy business day — none of which includes the fact that Tom Brady's jersey has been found ... in Mexico.Robert Kraft is a constant in Trump's orbitHe's already amassed a fortune while basking in the glory of owning one of the most successful football teams in history. But New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is now soaking up a new kind of power: acting as an informal advisor to President
  
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