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by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 16, 2026

Once‑Yearly Shot at EoE: Why Eupraxia’s EP‑104GI Is Turning Heads & Receiving Upgrades on Wall Street -( $EPRX $SNY $IBB $XBI )

Eupraxia’s (NASDAQ: EPRX) once‑yearly shot at taming eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) reads less like a niche biotech story and more like the early chapters of a franchise, with Wall Street now casting it as a potential leading role rather than a cameo. For patients and gastroenterologists tired of daily steroids or weekly biologic injections, the idea of “fix it while you’re already scoped” has an almost suspiciously sensible ring to it—like upgrading to bespoke shoes while you’re already in the store getting your old pair resoled.

A Chronic Disease Meets a Once‑Yearly Plan

EoE is a chronic inflammatory disease of the esophagus that affects hundreds of thousands of patients in the U.S., causing painful swallowing, food impaction, and a steady erosion of quality of life. Current standards of care, including swallowed topical steroids and biologics like Dupixent, work for many patients but demand long‑term daily or weekly dosing and can carry trade‑offs such as oral or gastrointestinal candidiasis. EoE prevalence and diagnosis are rising, which means the treatment burden—for patients, payors, and GI practices—has only been heading in one direction.

EP‑104GI: Treat While You Scope

Eupraxia’s EP‑104GI, an extended‑release formulation of fluticasone propionate using the company’s DiffuSphere microsphere platform, is injected directly into the esophageal wall during an endoscopy, then slowly releases steroid over many months. In the Phase 1b/2a open‑label RESOLVE trial, a single treatment given via multiple esophageal injections has produced significant reductions in symptom scores and marked histologic improvement, with clear dose‑response trends as more drug is delivered to tissue. By going straight to the diseased tissue instead of relying on what patients swallow or self‑inject at home, EP‑104GI is designed to hit the underlying pathology while asking patients to remember precisely one thing a year: the date of their next scope.

Durability That Fits the Calendar

Cohorts treated with higher doses of EP‑104GI have shown sustained benefits out to one year, including meaningful rates of clinical remission on the Straumann Dysphagia Index and substantial improvements in EoE histology scores. In follow‑up data from later cohorts, all patients maintained clinical benefit at 52 weeks after a single treatment, with a majority remaining in clinical remission, and no serious adverse events or cases of oral or GI candidiasis reported across the first six cohorts. For a disease typically managed like a never‑ending subscription, the prospect of a once‑yearly dose aligned with routine annual endoscopy threatens to turn the treatment paradigm into something closer to an annual check‑up than a lifestyle.EoE patients often undergo endoscopy at least once a year to monitor disease progression, a practice supported by national guidelines and reflected in real‑world claims data. Tying EP‑104GI administration to this existing annual procedure creates an elegant economic loop: gastroenterologists retain well‑compensated endoscopy volumes, potentially add a procedure‑linked injection code (a Botox‑style “plus‑one” for the scope), and patients avoid adding weekly biologic injections to their already crowded medical calendars. From the patient’s vantage point, it resembles trading in high‑maintenance, fast‑wear sneakers for durable, custom‑fit shoes that only need attention once a year—still not cheap, but much less work to live with.

What the New Report Says

A fresh research note published on January 14, 2026 titled “Once Annual Treatment for EoE Looks Like a No‑Brainer” from Cantor Fitzgerald reiterates an Overweight rating on Eupraxia and elevates the firm’s 12‑month price target to 19 from 11, reflecting both the strength of the RESOLVE data and a significant upward revision in modeled EoE prevalence and peak EP‑104GI sales. The analysts highlight three key pillars for the bullish stance: the lower‑than‑typical clinical risk given well‑validated steroid biology in EoE, the differentiated tissue‑level delivery and durability profile of EP‑104GI, and a commercial setup in which once‑yearly injections can be neatly bolted onto annual endoscopies, aligning incentives for patients, physicians, and payors. In their discounted cash‑flow model, which runs out to 2035 with a 12 percent discount rate and zero terminal growth, Eupraxia’s equity value tallies roughly 1.4 billion dollars, making the 19 target price look less like blue‑sky optimism and more like a fitted pair of high‑end shoes: not inexpensive, but justified if the craftsmanship—here, the Phase 2b data—comes in as advertised.

The Sources

Cantor Fitzgerald equity research report – “Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals: Once Annual Treatment for EoE Looks Like a No-Brainer” (PDF, Jan 14, 2026)
ClinicalTrials.gov – “A Trial to Evaluate EP‑104GI in Adults With Eosinophilic Esophagitis (RESOLVE)” (NCT05608681) – https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05608681[clinicaltrials]
Eupraxia press release (PR Newswire) – “Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Announces Positive Data from RESOLVE Phase 1b/2a Trial of EP‑104GI for the Treatment of Eosinophilic Esophagitis” – https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eupraxia-pharmaceuticals-announces-positive-data-from-resolve-phase-1b2a-trial-of-ep-104gi-for-the-treatment-of-eosinophilic-esophagitis-301412231.html[prnewswire]
Eupraxia press release (GlobeNewswire) – “Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Reports Positive Tissue Health Data from its Ongoing RESOLVE Trial in Eosinophilic Esophagitis” – https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/01/08/3215280/0/en/Eupraxia-Pharmaceuticals-Reports-Positive-Tissue-Health-Data-from-its-Ongoing-RESOLVE-Trial-in-Eosinophilic-Esophagitis.html[globenewswire]
CheckOrphan – “Eupraxia Reports Near-Complete Biopsy Improvement in RESOLVE Eosinophilic Esophagitis Trial” – https://checkorphan.org/news/eupraxia-reports-near-complete-biopsy-improvement-in-resolve-eosinophilic-esophagitis-trial/[checkorphan]
StockTitan – “Eupraxia (EPRX) posts positive tissue health data in EoE trial” – https://www.stocktitan.net/news/EPRX/eupraxia-pharmaceuticals-reports-positive-tissue-health-data-from-9e6ucqaxpfhb.html[stocktitan]
Longbridge News – “Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Reports Positive Tissue Health Data from RESOLVE Trial in EoE” – https://longbridge.com/en/news/271932840[longbridge]
Clinical Trials Arena – “Eupraxia reports positive data from eosinophilic esophagitis trial” – https://www.clinicaltrialsarena.com/news/eupraxia-eosinophilic-esophagitis-trial/[clinicaltrialsarena]
Yahoo Finance / PR – “Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Reports Additional 52‑week Follow‑up Data from the RESOLVE Trial in Eosinophilic Esophagitis” – https://finance.yahoo.com/news/eupraxia-pharmaceuticals-reports-additional-52-220000443.html[finance.yahoo]
Company website – Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals corporate site (program and technology overviews) – https://eupraxiapharma.com[eupraxiapharma]

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 16, 2026

Anthropic Taps Microsoft Veteran Irina Ghose to Turn Bengaluru Into Claude’s New AI Bull Market ( $MSFT $AMZN $GOOG )

Anthropic’s decision to tap Microsoft veteran Irina Ghose as its Managing Director for India reads less like a routine executive shuffle and more like a signal flare from the frontier of AI competition—Bengaluru is about to get a new large‑language landlord.

A Microsoft Strategist Walks Into a Startup

Anthropic has chosen Irina Ghose, who spent over two decades at Microsoft and recently ran its India business, to build and lead its first India office in Bengaluru. For a company founded by former OpenAI researchers and already backed by Amazon and Google, hiring someone who has navigated Redmond’s corridors for 20 years suggests it now wants less “scrappy startup” and more “institutional scale.”

Why Bengaluru, Why Now

India is already Anthropic’s second‑largest market for Claude, with usage skewed toward technical work such as programming and mathematical tasks. Planting a flag in Bengaluru gives Anthropic proximity to that developer base and to an enterprise IT ecosystem that has spent the past decade turning cloud budgets into line items rather than science experiments. With over a billion internet users and intensifying AI adoption across both consumer and enterprise sectors, the competitive scrum now has an unmistakable subtext: bring a playbook, not just a model card.

Building An India‑Sized AI Franchise

Ghose arrives with a résumé built on scaling Microsoft’s India operations, including driving enterprise AI uptake in banking, healthcare, manufacturing, and government. That background slots neatly into Anthropic’s push to turn Claude into what its leadership describes as a trusted “intelligence platform” for more than 300,000 business customers worldwide. The mandate in India is clear: translate responsible‑AI rhetoric into contracts, pilots, and eventually procurement cycles measured in crores rather than credits.

A Three‑Cloud Chess Game

If OpenAI has Microsoft, Anthropic has chosen a more polyamorous approach, taking up to $4 billion from Amazon and as much as $3 billion from Google, with commitments to run its models on both companies’ cloud infrastructure. That makes the India office something of a neutral ground where AWS and Google Cloud sales teams will happily cheer Anthropic’s success—as long as the workloads land on their side of the invoice. In this configuration, Ghose, a former senior Microsoft executive, now effectively becomes the local ringmaster of a three‑way hyperscaler rivalry that her old employer can only watch from the stands..

From Safety Sermons To Local Playbooks

Anthropic has styled itself as the safety‑first foil to more exuberant AI labs, publishing economic impact indices and governance frameworks even as it races to ship larger Claude models. In India, that posture will be tested in sectors like banking and public services, where regulators prefer their AI explainable and their outages nonexistent. The upcoming visit of CEO Dario Amodei and senior executives to inaugurate the Bengaluru office and join the India AI Impact Summit underlines that the company is not treating India as a satellite market but as a proving ground for how “responsible AI” sells at scale.

In Wall Street terms, Anthropic is rotating from “pure play research story” to “execution story”—and Irina Ghose’s appointment suggests the next leg of growth will be written as much in deal memos and government MoUs as in model benchmarks.

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 14, 2026

Tech Stumbles, Small Caps Strut, JpmHc2026 Day 3, Silver, Gold, Bitcoin Pop- January 14, 2026 -( $CRML $EPRX $INTC $MTWO $NBTX $RIO $SER $SOAR $VKTX Rise!)

Wall Street ended Wednesday with big tech nursing a hangover, small caps stealing the limelight, and investors once again discovering that the yield curve has a better sense of drama than most streaming services.

Indexes: Big Tech Blinks, Small Caps Smirk

The Nasdaq Composite led the retreat, sliding about 1% as a broad selloff in Nvidia and its semiconductor peers pressured the growth complex. The S&P 500 followed lower, shedding roughly 0.53% as mega-cap tech gave back a sliver of its recent outsized gains

The Dow Jones Industrial Average proved more decorous, dipping only around .09% as its old-economy ballast cushioned the tech weakness. By contrast, the Russell 2000 quietly played hero, up about 0.7% on the day and roughly 6.84% year-to-date as small caps enjoyed a rare moment in the spotlight at big tech’s expense.

Macro: Inflation Cool, Data Calendar Bent, Not Broken

On the inflation front, wholesale prices continued to underwhelm the pessimists, with the Producer Price Index rising less than expected and reinforcing the narrative that pricing pressures are easing rather than reaccelerating. Recent data showed core consumer inflation at 0.2% month-on-month in December and 2.6% year-on-year, a four‑year low that has allowed markets to lean further into the “disinflation plus growth” story.

The government shutdown’s earlier disruption of federal statistics left the economic calendar looking like a shuffled deck, with agencies now phasing in delayed releases on revised timetables and tweaking some report formats to catch up. Tariff‑related data showed U.S. tariff revenues hitting a record $264 billion in 2025 but declining in the last two months of the year after President Trump trimmed some levies; analysts note that pass‑through to consumer prices has so far been notably milder than feared.

Rates, Yield Curve, Fed, and Washington

Treasury yields drifted lower, with the 10‑year note hovering near 4.15–4.18%, leaving the curve still positively sloped but far from relaxed. The 20‑year yield sat around 4.77%, modestly below recent peaks, while curve spreads such as the 10‑year minus 3‑month rate remained in the black, pointing to a “steepening-lite” regime as investors handicap a Fed near the end of its cutting cycle. The 2-yr came in at 3.520%.

The Federal Reserve’s next policy set‑piece arrives at the January 27–28 FOMC meeting, with Chair Powell scheduled for the customary press conference on the 28th and no rate change widely expected. Market commentary has increasingly framed 2026 as a year of transition to a neutral fed funds range near 3.5–3.75%, a level seen as restrictive enough to keep inflation in check but no longer an outright brake on activity. In Washington, the aftershocks of last year’s government shutdown are still visible in the data pipeline, but there is no fresh shutdown drama on today’s docket, and the fiscal conversation has shifted back toward deficits and the optics of using tariffs as a budgetary crutch.finance.yahoo+4

Trade and Tariffs: Policy by Tweet and Footnote

Tariffs remained a policy wildcard, but not a market‑breaking one. New Treasury figures highlighted that while 2025 tariff revenues hit record levels, monthly inflows slipped in November and December after Trump’s partial rollback, highlighting the limits of tariffs as a fiscal tool. Economists also pointed out that core goods prices have been almost eerily well‑behaved, suggesting that the feared torrent of tariff‑driven consumer inflation has so far amounted to more of a steady drizzle.

The tariff conversation took on a fresh geopolitical edge, with the White House floating threats of 25% tariffs on countries “doing business” with Iran even as markets awaited a potential Supreme Court ruling on the administration’s broad tariff authority—a reminder that the trade rulebook remains a living, heavily annotated document.

Commodities and Crypto: Shiny Things and Digital Gold

In commodities, the precious‑metals crowd enjoyed another day of vindication, as gold futures hovered near record territory at 4,633.90/oz., +.76%, while silver ended at $93.185/oz. upon 7.93%—up nearly 30% year‑to‑date and having almost tripled over the past year—continued to behave less like a hedge and more like a high‑beta macro thesis. Oil prices stayed buoyant after a recent rally, with crude holding above key resistance near the low‑$61s as supply jitters and Middle East tensions kept a firm bid under the barrel complex.

Bitcoin traded up around ~3.29% to there $97.8k range, remaining inside an upward‑sloping bullish channel that technicians describe as still intact despite signs of a short‑term corrective phase; the consensus view remains that any pullback toward support in the low‑$90,000s would likely invite another round of dip buying. In a world where gold, silver, and digital gold are all flirting with new highs, diversification increasingly looks less like prudence and more like fear of missing out in triplicate.

Corporate Tape: AI Darlings, Chips, and Old Economy Stalwarts

The session’s equity narrative was dominated by a rotation away from mega‑cap tech and AI plays, even as Wall Street’s research machinery continued to shower them with superlatives.

Eli Lilly (LLY, $,073.29, -.36%): Shares remained underpinned by the company’s status as a weight‑loss and diabetes powerhouse, after a 39% gain in 2025 and a recent milestone as the first healthcare group to cross the $1 trillion market‑cap line, but near‑term trading was choppy as investors weighed lofty valuations against still‑accelerating earnings forecasts.
Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM, $327.11, -1.24%): TSM traded near record territory but slipped modestly as investors squared positions ahead of Thursday’s earnings; the company recently reported a roughly 20% year‑on‑year jump in fourth‑quarter revenue and won a series of price‑target hikes on expectations of 30% revenue growth in 2026 driven by AI demand.
Nvidia (NVDA, $183.14, -1.44%) and Micron (MU, $333.35,-1.41%): Nvidia was at the epicenter of the tech pullback, with the stock under pressure after the Trump administration ordered new security protocols before exports of high‑end AI chips to China, contributing to the Nasdaq’s underperformance. Micron moved in sympathy with the broader chip complex as investors reassessed just how far and fast the AI memory cycle can run.
Apple and Tesla: Apple eased alongside the mega‑cap cohort despite a recent vote of confidence from Bank of America, which reiterated a bullish stance heading into late‑January earnings on the back of strong iPhone and Services trends. Tesla slipped as well to $439.20, weighed by an Underweight call from Wells Fargo that highlighted skepticism about the company’s robotaxi ambitions even as it nudged its price target higher.
Broadcom (AVGO, $339.89, -4.15%) and Meta ($615.52, -2.47%): Broadcom, another AI infrastructure bellwether, joined the day’s semiconductor retreat despite being re‑endorsed as a top pick by Bernstein, which argued that AI‑driven spending still has ample room to run. Meta traded off recent highs but remained supported by bullish research citing a robust 2026 earnings and capex profile.cnbc+1
Nokia (NOK, $6.36, -2.45%) and McDonald’s: Nokia’s shares were relatively subdued, with the stock drifting as investors awaited clearer signs that its restructuring and 5G cycle can translate into sustained top‑line growth. McDonald’s, a defensive staple, traded more resiliently to close at $308.13, -.42%, benefiting from its status as both an inflation hedge for value‑seeking diners and a dependable dividend payer.
Rio Tinto (RIO, $85.88, +2.74%), Intel: Rio Tinto rode the broader metals and mining optimism sparked by record gold and strong copper prices, as investors leaned into hard‑asset plays. Intel (INTC) lead the AI elite rosing 3.02% closing at $48.72.
OKLO, Opendoor, Palantir: Nuclear‑energy hopeful Oklo traded as a high‑beta clean‑energy play, swaying with sentiment rather than headlines closing at $95.97, -1.15%. Opendoor (OPEN, $6.64, -1.92%) moved with the housing and rate complex. Palantir (PLTR, $178.40,-.31%) stayed on growth investors’ radar thanks to outsize earnings growth expectations and a recent wave of bullish commentary, including a buy‑rating reset that cast the company as a potential long‑duration “supercycle” winner in data and AI software.

M&A chatter remained active across healthcare and tech, but no landmark new megadeals crossed the tape today; the tone was one of ongoing strategic positioning rather than market‑rocking buyouts. IPO activity on the NYSE and Nasdaq also remained comparatively subdued, with bankers prepping pipelines rather than ringing many bells, as issuers continued to weigh rich valuations against an increasingly discerning buy side.

J.P. Morgan Healthcare, Day 3: Deals, Data, and Diplomacy

The 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference rolled into its third day in San Francisco, once again doubling as healthcare’s annual strategy summit and speed‑dating festival for capital. AI in healthcare, obesity and cardiometabolic drugs, and a rekindling of biotech M&A remained dominant themes, with big pharma executives threading a careful needle between Washington’s pricing scrutiny and Wall Street’s appetite for pipeline‑in‑a‑box acquisitions.

Presentations from specialty pharma and rare‑disease players, including companies like Recordati (RCDTF, $65.44), Nanbiotix (NBTX, $21.53 +.70%), & Viking Therapeutics (VKTX, $34.34, +11.89%) highlighted how even niche franchises are now framed through the lens of real‑world evidence, pricing durability, and capital discipline—an unmistakable sign that the era of “grow now, justify later” has definitively passed. In the hallways, the conversation mixed GLP‑1s, AI‑enabled clinical development, and the emerging reality that in 2026, healthcare strategy is as much about data architecture as it is about molecules.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $.4609), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, announced (Dec. 10) that it had priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $8.20, +1.44%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $2.86), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer.

GeoVax is heading into the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference week (“JPM2026”) in San Francisco, CA Jan. 12-15 with the kind of narrative biotech investors typically like to hear: a differentiated platform, large funded trials lining up, and multiple shots on goal in both infectious disease and oncology. The company is leaning into its MVA platform as a potential franchise engine rather than a one‑product science experiment. Specifically, investors can meet David Dodd, Chairman & CEO of GeoVax, during his presentation at the Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, Yosemite A (Ballroom Level), San Francisco, CA on January 13, 2026, 2:30 pm PST.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 19) that it has entered into definitive securities purchase agreements with several institutional and individual investors for the purchase and sale of approximately 13.2 million units, each comprised of one share of the Company’s common stock and warrants, as described below, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $0.245 per unit in a public offering. The Company will issue warrants to purchase up to approximately 26.5 million shares of common stock. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.245 per share, will be exercisable immediately following the date of issuance and will have a term of five years following the date of issuance. Roth Capital Partners is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds to the Company from this offering are expected to be approximately $3.2 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 22, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 18) the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Frontiers in Immunology titled: “Multi-antigen MVA-vectored SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, GEO-CM04S1, induces cross-protective immune responses to ancestral and Omicron variants.” The study provides definitive preclinical evidence that GeoVax’s multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate, GEO-CM04S1, delivers full cross-variant protection, driven predominantly by robust T-cell responses, even in the absence of neutralizing antibodies. The findings reinforce the design philosophy behind GeoVax’s MVA-based, multi-antigen platform and provide mechanistic insight that is increasingly relevant for immunocompromised individuals, who often fail to respond optimally to the first-generation COVID-19 vaccines.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 17) the successful completion of fill-finish for the initial clinical batch of GEO-MVA, its next-generation Mpox/smallpox vaccine. The product has now entered final release evaluation, the concluding quality-control and compliance process required before shipment for clinical use, positioning the Company for Phase 3 immunobridging trial start-up activities in Q1 2026. Fill-finish – the sterile, cGMP-regulated process of filling, sealing, and packaging vaccine vials – marks the last manufacturing step before a vaccine may enter clinical study supply channels. With fill-finish complete and GEO-MVA now undergoing final release evaluation, GeoVax has moved into the final pre-clinical-deployment phase of its EMA-aligned clinical program. In June 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Scientific Advice confirmed that a single Phase 3 immunobridging study demonstrating immune comparability to the approved MVA vaccine, Imvanex(R), would be sufficient to evaluate GEO-MVA’s efficacy. This provides a clear, accelerated regulatory path to licensure. This milestone coincides with increasing Mpox activity globally – including expanding Clade I outbreaks in Africa and emerging cases in the United States – exposing vulnerabilities associated with global dependence on a sole foreign MVA vaccine supplier. GEO-MVA is designed to expand supply, diversify sources, and strengthen biodefense infrastructure.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $.6059, +4.47%) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.055, +3.38%), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, recently announced key developments in its pending all-stock merger with M2i Global, Inc.. Volato has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), following the SEC’s completion of its review of the initial confidential submission. With the reopening of federal agencies following the recent government shutdown, both companies now anticipate closing the merger in the first quarter of 2026, pending completion of SEC review and shareholder approval.

On Jan. 9, M2i Global and Volato Group announced that they have entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with Australian company Titanium X to advance critical mineral development in the US. This partnership represents a significant move towards enhancing domestic refining capacity and strengthening the critical materials supply chain that underpins US industry and national security. Titanium X and M2i Global will work together on the financing, development and commercialisation of the former’s critical mineral assets. M2i Global will apply its global experience in delivering mineral projects to support these initiatives. The companies are also in talks to conclude an exclusive titanium concentrate supply agreement.

On Jan. 7, M2i Global, Inc. along with Volato Group, Inc. (“Volato”) (NYSE American: SOAR), a technology-driven company, announced a strategic collaboration agreement with Titanium X, marking a major step forward in advancing domestic refining capabilities and securing the critical materials supply chain essential to U.S. industry and national security.

Volato Group, Inc. today (Dec. 29) announced the appointment of Alan D. Gaines to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Gaines will also serve as Chairman of the Audit Committee.

On Dec. 23, Volato Group, Inc. announced preliminary financial guidance for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2025, reflecting continued execution against its strategic and balance sheet objectives. For the fourth quarter of 2025, Volato expects to report revenue between $27 million and $28 million. For the full year 2025, the Company anticipates total revenue between $78 million and $79 million, with net income of $6 million to $8 million. These results reflect a year of meaningful progression aligning operational performance with Volato’s long-term growth initiatives and advancing its pending merger with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). During 2025, Volato also made substantial progress strengthening its balance sheet. As of September 30, 2025, the Company reduced total liabilities to $9.5 million, satisfying the debt reduction condition required under its pending merger agreement with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). Volato expects continued improvement in its capital structure as it advances toward a targeted first-quarter 2026 closing of the transaction. “Our 2025 results reflect a year of transformation and disciplined balance sheet execution,” said Mark Heinen, Chief Financial Officer of Volato. “We made significant progress reducing liabilities while sharpening our focus on scalable, technology-driven businesses that are designed to complement and strengthen the M2i Global platform over the long term.”

Volato Group, Inc. announced recently that it has set a preliminary date of February 26, 2026 and preliminary record date of January 17, 2026 for a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the proposed merger with M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO) and related matters. The preliminary meeting date and record date remain subject to applicable regulatory and exchange requirements, including the effectiveness of Volato’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-292132) (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the mailing of definitive proxy materials to shareholders. The proposed merger creates a combined company built for scale. M2i Global brings a platform focused on critical minerals and national supply chain resilience, while Volato contributes proven aviation technology, software capability, and an established track record of operational execution. Together, the companies aim to participate in a U.S. critical minerals market estimated at more than $320 billion annually.

Critical Metals Corp. (CRML, $17.93, +32.58%), a leading critical minerals mining company, today announced that the first assay results from the 2025 drilling program have been received from the Fjord Deposit and Upper Fjord areas at the Tanbreez Rare Earths Project in Greenland.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $2.67, +8.54%), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. On Dec. 11, Serina announced the appointment of Joshua Thomas, Ph.D., as Vice President and Head of Chemistry. He will oversee internal and external chemistry efforts to optimize POZ-based candidates, supporting efficient translation from discovery through development.

On Dec. 10, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $31.67, +0.00%) announced (Jan. 6) that on December 29, 2025, it completed the sale of a non-core 12-unit apartment complex in Los Angeles County for a gross sales price of approximately $4,850,000. InterGroup expects to report a GAAP net gain on sale of approximately $3,509,000, which will be reflected in the Company’s Form 10‑Q for the quarter ended December 31, 2025. The transaction is expected to result in federal and state income tax liability, the amount of which will be determined based on the Company’s final tax position and applicable tax rules.

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $10.63. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

flyExclusive, Inc. (NYSE American: FLYX, $3.69), one of the nation’s largest private jet operators and a certified Part 145 Repair Station, today announced it has signed an authorized dealership agreement with Starlink, becoming a certified dealer and installer for Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency aviation connectivity system.

The Sources

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 14, 2026

U.S. Stocks Slipped Modestly As CPI Cools & Intel Pops – January 13, 2026 -( $AAPL $DV $EVTV $INTC $INTG $MCD $MODD $NVDA $RIO Rise!)

U.S. stocks slipped modestly on Tuesday as Wall Street digested a cooler core inflation print, a heavy dose of bank earnings, and fresh tariff salvos from Washington, leaving the major indexes just a step back from record territory rather than in full retreat. Precious metals held near historic highs and bitcoin hovered around five figures that now look oddly pedestrian next to $4,600 gold, while Treasurys signaled a still-steep but slightly calmer curve as traders looked ahead to this month’s FOMC meeting.

Indexes: gravity with manners

The S&P 500 eased about 0.2% to roughly 6,964, giving back part of early January’s sprint but leaving the benchmark still up about 1.7% year to date. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fared worst, shedding roughly 0.8% to just above 49,100 as a weak reaction to JPMorgan’s (JPM, $310.90, -4.19%) earnings weighed on the blue-chip gauge. The Nasdaq Composite and Russell 2000 both slipped around 0.1%, a genteel pullback that suggests growth and small caps are pausing rather than panicking after strong early-year gains.

Macro: cooler core, hotter politics

December CPI rose 0.3% with annual core inflation easing toward the Fed’s comfort zone, reinforcing expectations for at least two rate cuts later in 2026 even as officials stay publicly cautious.
The Treasury yield curve remains positive but relatively flat, with the 10‑year around 4.19% and shorter bills clustered in the mid‑3% range, signaling a market that believes in future easing but not a rapid collapse in growth.
Trade policy re-entered center stage as President Trump moved to impose 25% tariffs on countries doing business with Iran, a step that could lift effective levies on many Chinese imports toward the mid‑40% range and risk reopening the U.S.–China trade rift just as supply chains were finding their equilibrium.

On fiscal risk, both parties in Washington remain publicly committed to avoiding another government shutdown after last year’s epic standoff, and recent reporting suggests the White House is inclined to sign the latest funding package rather than reprise that drama.

Fed, yields and the road ahead

The Fed’s next two‑day FOMC meeting is scheduled for January 27–28, with a rate decision and press conference due on the 28th and markets currently pricing cuts later in the year rather than this month. Daily rate data show front‑end yields still elevated relative to history, but the long end has backed off its 2025 peaks, leaving the curve modestly upward sloping instead of inverted—a configuration more consistent with slower expansion than imminent recession.

Commodities and crypto: hard assets stay loud

Gold traded near $4,600 an ounce, down marginally on the day but still up more than 70% from a year ago as investors continue to pay handsomely for perceived monetary and political insurance. Silver changed hands around the high‑$80s per ounce after another strong daily gain, extending a meteoric 12‑month advance north of $50. Crude prices were steady to slightly higher, with Brent holding above the low‑$60s and WTI flirting with the $60 mark as traders weigh Middle East risk against softening global growth expectations. Bitcoin hovered near $92,000, consolidating recent gains as listed crypto ETFs showed only modest moves on the session.

Street diary: JPM Healthcare and Lilly’s moment

The 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference rolled into its second day in San Francisco, turning Union Square hotels into a dense ecosystem of GLP‑1 enthusiasm, oncology pipelines, and hurried coffee line diligence checks. Eli Lilly (LLY, $1,077.19, -.35%) was front and center, with executives using the conference spotlight to underscore the company’s next‑generation obesity pill and its potential global reach. Management indicated the oral obesity therapy remains on track for FDA approval as early as the second quarter and suggested long‑term penetration could reach roughly one‑fifth of the global market, reinforcing the notion that this franchise is still in the early innings rather than the late stages.

Analysts continued to debate valuation, noting that Lilly’s shares—recently trading around the low‑$1,000s—carry a premium multiple even after a powerful run, but momentum remains firmly on the company’s side as obesity and diabetes therapies reshape the profit pool for Big Pharma.

Mega‑cap tech and AI: still the main show

Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM, $331.21, -.17%): Reports surfaced that Washington is nearing a trade arrangement that would lower U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods while encouraging further U.S. fab expansion, underscoring the company’s central role in both geopolitics and GPU supply.
NVIDIA (NVDA, $185.81, +.47%): Nvidia rose slightly with the broader tech complex, though Bernstein reaffirmed the chip designer as a top pick, arguing that AI spending shows “no signs of deceleration” and that consensus numbers likely remain too low.
Micron Technology (MU): Micron traded mixed intraday as investors weighed still‑tight memory markets against cyclical fears; the stock remains a favored way to play AI‑driven DRAM and HBM demand, but enthusiasm cooled in step with the Nasdaq.
Apple (AAPL): Apple shares rose .31% to $261.05 with a reaffirmed “buy” from Bank of America, which highlighted resilient iPhone demand and double‑digit Services growth heading into late‑January earnings; today’s move looked more like profit‑taking than a shift in the fundamental narrative.
Tesla (TSLA): Tesla declined after Wells Fargo reiterated its underweight rating, warning that the market still prices in near‑perfect robotaxi execution even as questions persist around the safety of a vision‑only approach.
Broadcom (AVGO): Broadcom rose modestly by .68% to $354.61, but remained well‑bid relative to peers after Bernstein again named it, alongside Nvidia, as a preferred AI infrastructure play, citing still‑attractive valuation versus growth prospects.
Meta Platforms (META): Meta eased by 1.69% to $631.09 despite a reiterated overweight and a nearly $800 price target from Wells Fargo, with the Street focused on heavy 2026 capex but ultimately comfortable that higher spending is tied to monetizable AI and engagement initiatives.
Palantir Technologies (PLTR): Palantir traded choppily as Citi’s recent upgrade and talk of a “supercycle” met lingering concerns over a valuation that still screens expensive even in an AI‑inflated market.finance.

Other notable movers: chips, burgers, mines and more

Nokia (NOK, $6.52): Nokia shares were little changed, with investors continuing to treat the name as a steady but unspectacular 5G infrastructure story amid uncertain carrier capex trends.
McDonald’s (MCD): McDonald’s rose .88% to $309.44 to support the Dow despite continued traffic resilience, as rate‑sensitive investors rotated cautiously out of defensive consumer names after a long run of outperformance.
Rio Tinto Group (RIO): Rio Tinto rose .86%$ to $83.59 even as metal and bulk commodity traders weighed China‑linked tariff uncertainty and slower global industrial activity against still‑tight supplies in key inputs such as copper and iron ore.
Oracle (ORCL): Oracle traded lower by 1.17% as investors continued to parse its evolving cloud and AI story; the stock remains sensitive to any hint of slower enterprise spending after a strong multiyear re‑rating.
Intel (INTC): Intel rose a whopping 7.33% to $47.29 as Keybanc upgraded shares to Overweight citing advances in its manufacturing business and increased demand for its chips from AI data centers.
Oklo (OKLO): Advanced nuclear developer Oklo traded with a speculative tone dropping 5.28% to $97.09, reflecting both enthusiasm for small modular reactors in a tighter energy and decarbonization environment and the reality that commercialization is still some distance away.
Opendoor (OPEN): Opendoor moved lower by 3.56% to $6.77 as higher mortgage rates and cautious housing data continued to weigh on sentiment toward iBuying and housing‑adjacent fintech models.

Deal flow, IPOs and corporate chessboard

Despite a more hospitable backdrop for risk assets, today’s M&A tape was relatively quiet, with no mega‑cap mergers, buyouts, or transformative acquisitions announced that could rival last year’s headline deals. The IPO calendar on the NYSE and Nasdaq likewise remained light on actual pricings for the day, though 2026 is expected to feature a deeper bench of offerings—including potential debuts from high‑profile private names and larger life‑sciences issuers that have been preparing since late 2025. Filings and banker chatter continue to point toward a more “normal” issuance environment, but today offered more groundwork than fireworks.

Policy, shutdown risk and tariffs

The lingering after‑effects of the record 43‑day government shutdown last year remain in focus, but current commentary from both parties and market analysts suggests a shared desire to avoid a repeat as new funding bills move through Congress. Investors are watching closely not because they relish the theater, but because the prior episode temporarily scrambled data releases, disrupted payments, and briefly shifted expectations for Fed policy and Treasury issuance..

On trade, Trump’s move to slap 25% tariffs on any country doing business with Iran adds a fresh variable to the already complex tariff landscape, effectively lifting the minimum rate on many Chinese imports and raising the risk of retaliatory action from Beijing and others. For markets, the immediate impact has been more visible in currency moves and sector‑specific jitters than in broad equity indices, but the episode is a reminder that geopolitics can still upstage valuation models on short notice.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

AZIO AI, in conjunction with Azio Corp, a next-generation artificial intelligence infrastructure and high-performance computing platform, today announced it has received a binding purchase order for 256 units of the Nvidia B300’s GPUs, representing a significant advancement towards completion of a major governmental Purchase Order in Southeast Asia, resulting in approximately $107 million in contractual revenue, underscoring the Company’s ability to execute complex, large-scale government and institutional initiatives. The company expects to receive a 30% deposit over the course of the next few weeks. On Jan. 6, Envirotech Vehicles, Inc. (NASDAQ: EVTV, $3.52, +40.24% & 512.17% over the last 5-days) announced that it has entered into an Amended and Restated Letter of Intent (“LOI”) with AZIO AI Corporation (“AZIO AI”), pursuant to which EVTV would acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding equity interests of AZIO AI through a merger transaction.

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $.4771, +.48%), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, announced (Dec. 10) that it had priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $8.20, +.99%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $3.48, -2.52%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer.

GeoVax is heading into the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference week (“JPM2026”) in San Francisco, CA Jan. 12-15 with the kind of narrative biotech investors typically like to hear: a differentiated platform, large funded trials lining up, and multiple shots on goal in both infectious disease and oncology. The company is leaning into its MVA platform as a potential franchise engine rather than a one‑product science experiment. Specifically, investors can meet David Dodd, Chairman & CEO of GeoVax, during his presentation at the Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, Yosemite A (Ballroom Level), San Francisco, CA on January 13, 2026, 2:30 pm PST.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 19) that it has entered into definitive securities purchase agreements with several institutional and individual investors for the purchase and sale of approximately 13.2 million units, each comprised of one share of the Company’s common stock and warrants, as described below, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $0.245 per unit in a public offering. The Company will issue warrants to purchase up to approximately 26.5 million shares of common stock. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.245 per share, will be exercisable immediately following the date of issuance and will have a term of five years following the date of issuance. Roth Capital Partners is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds to the Company from this offering are expected to be approximately $3.2 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 22, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 18) the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Frontiers in Immunology titled: “Multi-antigen MVA-vectored SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, GEO-CM04S1, induces cross-protective immune responses to ancestral and Omicron variants.” The study provides definitive preclinical evidence that GeoVax’s multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate, GEO-CM04S1, delivers full cross-variant protection, driven predominantly by robust T-cell responses, even in the absence of neutralizing antibodies. The findings reinforce the design philosophy behind GeoVax’s MVA-based, multi-antigen platform and provide mechanistic insight that is increasingly relevant for immunocompromised individuals, who often fail to respond optimally to the first-generation COVID-19 vaccines.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 17) the successful completion of fill-finish for the initial clinical batch of GEO-MVA, its next-generation Mpox/smallpox vaccine. The product has now entered final release evaluation, the concluding quality-control and compliance process required before shipment for clinical use, positioning the Company for Phase 3 immunobridging trial start-up activities in Q1 2026. Fill-finish – the sterile, cGMP-regulated process of filling, sealing, and packaging vaccine vials – marks the last manufacturing step before a vaccine may enter clinical study supply channels. With fill-finish complete and GEO-MVA now undergoing final release evaluation, GeoVax has moved into the final pre-clinical-deployment phase of its EMA-aligned clinical program. In June 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Scientific Advice confirmed that a single Phase 3 immunobridging study demonstrating immune comparability to the approved MVA vaccine, Imvanex(R), would be sufficient to evaluate GEO-MVA’s efficacy. This provides a clear, accelerated regulatory path to licensure. This milestone coincides with increasing Mpox activity globally – including expanding Clade I outbreaks in Africa and emerging cases in the United States – exposing vulnerabilities associated with global dependence on a sole foreign MVA vaccine supplier. GEO-MVA is designed to expand supply, diversify sources, and strengthen biodefense infrastructure.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $.58) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.0532), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, recently announced key developments in its pending all-stock merger with M2i Global, Inc.. Volato has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), following the SEC’s completion of its review of the initial confidential submission. With the reopening of federal agencies following the recent government shutdown, both companies now anticipate closing the merger in the first quarter of 2026, pending completion of SEC review and shareholder approval.

On Jan. 9, M2i Global and Volato Group announced that they have entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with Australian company Titanium X to advance critical mineral development in the US. This partnership represents a significant move towards enhancing domestic refining capacity and strengthening the critical materials supply chain that underpins US industry and national security. Titanium X and M2i Global will work together on the financing, development and commercialisation of the former’s critical mineral assets. M2i Global will apply its global experience in delivering mineral projects to support these initiatives. The companies are also in talks to conclude an exclusive titanium concentrate supply agreement.

On Jan. 7, M2i Global, Inc. along with Volato Group, Inc. (“Volato”) (NYSE American: SOAR), a technology-driven company, announced a strategic collaboration agreement with Titanium X, marking a major step forward in advancing domestic refining capabilities and securing the critical materials supply chain essential to U.S. industry and national security.

Volato Group, Inc. today (Dec. 29) announced the appointment of Alan D. Gaines to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Gaines will also serve as Chairman of the Audit Committee.

On Dec. 23, Volato Group, Inc. announced preliminary financial guidance for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2025, reflecting continued execution against its strategic and balance sheet objectives. For the fourth quarter of 2025, Volato expects to report revenue between $27 million and $28 million. For the full year 2025, the Company anticipates total revenue between $78 million and $79 million, with net income of $6 million to $8 million. These results reflect a year of meaningful progression aligning operational performance with Volato’s long-term growth initiatives and advancing its pending merger with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). During 2025, Volato also made substantial progress strengthening its balance sheet. As of September 30, 2025, the Company reduced total liabilities to $9.5 million, satisfying the debt reduction condition required under its pending merger agreement with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). Volato expects continued improvement in its capital structure as it advances toward a targeted first-quarter 2026 closing of the transaction. “Our 2025 results reflect a year of transformation and disciplined balance sheet execution,” said Mark Heinen, Chief Financial Officer of Volato. “We made significant progress reducing liabilities while sharpening our focus on scalable, technology-driven businesses that are designed to complement and strengthen the M2i Global platform over the long term.”

Volato Group, Inc. announced recently that it has set a preliminary date of February 26, 2026 and preliminary record date of January 17, 2026 for a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the proposed merger with M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO) and related matters. The preliminary meeting date and record date remain subject to applicable regulatory and exchange requirements, including the effectiveness of Volato’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-292132) (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the mailing of definitive proxy materials to shareholders. The proposed merger creates a combined company built for scale. M2i Global brings a platform focused on critical minerals and national supply chain resilience, while Volato contributes proven aviation technology, software capability, and an established track record of operational execution. Together, the companies aim to participate in a U.S. critical minerals market estimated at more than $320 billion annually.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $2.46), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. On Dec. 11, Serina announced the appointment of Joshua Thomas, Ph.D., as Vice President and Head of Chemistry. He will oversee internal and external chemistry efforts to optimize POZ-based candidates, supporting efficient translation from discovery through development.

On Dec. 10, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $31.67, +3.16%) announced today(Jan. 6) that on December 29, 2025, it completed the sale of a non-core 12-unit apartment complex in Los Angeles County for a gross sales price of approximately $4,850,000. InterGroup expects to report a GAAP net gain on sale of approximately $3,509,000, which will be reflected in the Company’s Form 10‑Q for the quarter ended December 31, 2025. The transaction is expected to result in federal and state income tax liability, the amount of which will be determined based on the Company’s final tax position and applicable tax rules.

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $10.87, +.18%. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

flyExclusive, Inc. (NYSE American: FLYX, $3.85), one of the nation’s largest private jet operators and a certified Part 145 Repair Station, today announced it has signed an authorized dealership agreement with Starlink, becoming a certified dealer and installer for Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency aviation connectivity system.

The Sources

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 13, 2026

Wall Street and JPM2026 Kicked Off The Week In An Ebullient Mood As Silver Jumps – January 12, 2026 -( $AAPL $AVGO $EPRX $EVTV $LLY $NOK $NVDA $ORCL $PLTR $SIL $TSLA $TSM Rise!)

Wall Street kicked off the week in an ebullient mood Monday, as major U.S. equity benchmarks climbed to fresh heights while gold and silver behaved like they had just discovered caffeine

Indexes: Bulls in Full Voice

The S&P 500 added roughly 0.2%–0.3%, extending last week’s record run as investors shrugged off political noise around the Federal Reserve and leaned back into megacap tech and AI winners.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average outpaced the broader market, rising north of 0.3% and notching another closing high as cyclical and financial shares caught a bid.
The Nasdaq Composite advanced about 0.3%, with chipmakers and AI-linked names once again carrying more than their fair share of the narrative load.
The small‑cap Russell 2000 joined the party, extending a multi‑week stretch of outperformance that has seen the index up several percent year to date as investors tentatively rediscover smaller companies.

Macro: Fed Drama, Quiet Data, Loud Metals

Monday’s U.S. economic calendar was light, with attention instead locked on a heavy slate of Fed speakers and the lingering impact of December jobs and inflation data due later in the week.
Political pressure on the Fed, including an investigation touching on Chair Powell, rekindled worries about central‑bank independence and nudged traders to reprice the path of rate cuts for 2026.
On the trade front, markets stayed focused on pending court decisions and legal challenges that could reshape the administration’s tariff toolkit rather than any new concrete tariff measures announced Monday.

Fed, Yields, and the Shutdown Clock

In Treasurys, the yield curve remained modestly inverted but continued to grind toward a gentler slope, with the 10‑year hovering in the low‑4% area and the 2‑year in the mid‑3% range as investors balanced slowing growth against still‑sticky inflation.
Fed funds futures still pencil in roughly 50 basis points of cuts over the course of 2026, with upcoming CPI, PPI, and PCE data seen as key inputs to the January 27–28 FOMC meeting; there was no formal FOMC announcement scheduled for Monday.
In Washington, the government remained open, but investors kept one eye on the calendar: some agencies are funded only through January 30, leaving a non‑trivial risk of a partial shutdown starting January 31 if lawmakers cannot bridge partisan gaps.

Commodities & Crypto: Gold Steals the Show

Gold futures surged to fresh record territory, recently trading around 4,600 an ounce after a 2.5% rally tied to concerns over Fed independence and rising geopolitical risk.
Silver dramatically out‑outperformed, leaping more than 7% to new all‑time highs above the mid‑80s, embodying the classic precious‑metals overachiever role.
Oil prices were softer to flat by late afternoon, with West Texas Intermediate hovering around the high‑50s per barrel as traders weighed unrest in Iran against a still‑comfortable global supply backdrop.
Bitcoin continued to behave like an adrenaline‑fueled macro hedge, trading near the high‑$90,000s area and logging a modest gain on the day alongside the broader risk‑asset rally.

Corporate Stage: JPM Healthcare and Deal Flow

The 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference opened in San Francisco, once again turning Union Square into a temporary ecosystem of biotech term sheets, investor slide decks, and hurried latte negotiations; the event runs January 12–15 at the Westin St. Francis.
Life‑sciences M&A remained a key talking point around the conference, with new analysis pointing to an acceleration in dealmaking as large players seek growth and AI‑enabled assets.
More broadly, corporate deal flow stayed active, highlighted by Heritage Global’s agreement to acquire substantially all assets of loan‑sale advisor DebtX for roughly $8.5 million in cash, adding another modest brick to 2026’s M&A wall.
In IPO land, the calendar showed several smaller offerings either filed or slated for the coming weeks, including Green Circle Decarbonize Technology Limited and Papa Medical among micro‑cap candidates eyeing Nasdaq and NYSE listings, underscoring a still‑cautious but functioning new‑issue market.

Company Moves: AI Royalty, Chips, and Consumer Names

Eli Lilly (LLY, $1,081.00, +1.64%)
- With investors descending on San Francisco for JPM, Lilly’s obesity and diabetes franchises kept it firmly in the large‑cap pharma spotlight, though Monday news flow for the name itself was relatively quiet.
- Shares traded with a positive bias as healthcare investors continued to position around GLP‑1 demand and pipeline read‑outs rather than any single headline.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM, $331.77, +2.52%)
- TSMC remained a core pillar of the AI supply chain narrative, frequently cited among top hypergrowth or high‑conviction tech picks for 2026, thanks to strong demand for cutting‑edge foundry capacity.
- The stock traded higher alongside the broader chip complex, aided by ongoing enthusiasm around high‑end AI accelerators and resilient forward earnings expectations.
NVIDIA (NVDA, $184.94, +.06%)
- Nvidia stayed at the center of the AI universe, with recent commentary highlighting its role as “king of AI compute” and one of Wall Street’s preferred hypergrowth names heading into 2026.
- Shares rose, helping power the Nasdaq’s advance as traders used any macro wobble as an excuse to add exposure to the company’s AI‑driven data‑center franchise.
Micron Technology (MU, $345.87, +.23%)
- Micron continued to benefit from a powerful up‑cycle in memory pricing, with DRAM prices projected to rise more than 50% quarter‑on‑quarter this year as AI servers devour capacity.
- The stock, already sharply higher year‑to‑date, extended gains as investors leaned into the thesis that Micron is one of the cleaner AI infrastructure plays outside the headline GPU names.
Apple (AAPL, $260.25, +.34%)
- Apple remained a quieter member of the mega‑cap cohort Monday, but recent flows suggested neutral to slightly positive sentiment as investors weigh incremental AI features and a still‑resilient services business.
- The shares participated in the broader market’s upward drift, albeit with less drama than the more AI‑centric names.
Tesla (TSLA, $448.96, +.89%)
- Tesla traded with a more cautious tone as competitive pressures and questions about EV demand continued to shadow the stock, even as AI and autonomy stay central to the bull case.
- The name lagged the strongest tech performers, with money flows described as negative in recent trading commentary.
Broadcom (AVGO, $352.21, +2.10%)
- Broadcom remained in the market’s AI hardware and networking sweet spot, supported by Street research that still sees meaningful upside based on rising accelerator and custom‑silicon demand.finance.yahoo+1
- The stock edged higher with the chip complex, though investors remain mindful of its already‑hefty market capitalization and expectations bar.wsj+1
Meta Platforms (META)
- Meta stayed front‑and‑center in AI‑infrastructure debates after recently signing large nuclear‑powered energy deals to secure up to 6.6 gigawatts of supply for future data centers.
Nokia (NOK, $6.58, +1.54%)
- Nokia’s fundamental narrative stayed tied to 5G infrastructure and network modernization, but it remained a secondary character in Monday’s risk‑on script, with no major new headlines hitting the tape.
- The stock rode broader tech and telecom sentiment rather than company‑specific catalysts.
McDonald’s (MCD)
- McDonald’s drew continued attention from analysts who see the Golden Arches as a beneficiary of value‑seeking consumers and digital ordering initiatives, even as the cycle matures.
- Shares traded constructively alongside other defensive growth names, underscoring that comfort food still pairs well with late‑cycle macro jitters.
Rio Tinto Group (RIO, $82.88, +2.16%)
- Rio Tinto remained levered to the evolving China and commodity growth narrative, with sentiment supported by firmer metals prices and tentative signs of stabilization in Chinese activity.
- The stock tracked global miners modestly higher as investors sought selective exposure to real‑asset plays alongside surging precious metals.
Oracle (ORCL, $204.68, +3.10%)
- Oracle continued to benefit from its cloud and database repositioning, as investors look for enterprise names that can monetize AI workloads without pure‑play volatility.
- The shares moved higher with broader software and cloud peers as risk appetite improved.
Intel (INTC)
- Intel stayed in focus as a turnaround and foundry‑ambition story, while options activity and trading commentary kept the name prominent among active tech traders, fell 3.27% today to $44.06.
Oklo (OKLO)
- Oklo, a next‑generation nuclear‑technology and micro‑reactor developer, remained in the spotlight after a recent surge driven by Meta’s long‑term nuclear energy agreements that highlighted the strategic value of advanced nuclear in powering AI data centers.
- The shares fell back 2.67% today to $102.50, but retained a strong speculative bid as investors reassessed the long‑run role of small modular reactors in both AI infrastructure and grid decarbonization.
Opendoor Technologies (OPEN, $7.02)
- Opendoor, a bellwether for housing‑linked fintech, featured in recent options‑activity rundowns as traders probed the stock’s sensitivity to interest‑rate expectations and housing turnover.
Palantir Technologies (PLTR, $179.41, +1.08%)
- Palantir continued to draw attention as a hypergrowth AI‑software name, often cited on lists of favored 2026 tech picks thanks to strong backlog growth and expanding commercial demand.
- The stock traded higher with AI peers as investors sought exposure to software‑driven data and defense analytics on a day when geopolitical tension and Fed uncertainty both loomed in the background.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

AZIO AI, in conjunction with Azio Corp, a next-generation artificial intelligence infrastructure and high-performance computing platform, today announced it has received a binding purchase order for 256 units of the Nvidia B300’s GPUs, representing a significant advancement towards completion of a major governmental Purchase Order in Southeast Asia, resulting in approximately $107 million in contractual revenue, underscoring the Company’s ability to execute complex, large-scale government and institutional initiatives. The company expects to receive a 30% deposit over the course of the next few weeks. On Jan. 6, Envirotech Vehicles, Inc. (NASDAQ: EVTV, $2.51, +442%) announced that it has entered into an Amended and Restated Letter of Intent (“LOI”) with AZIO AI Corporation (“AZIO AI”), pursuant to which EVTV would acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding equity interests of AZIO AI through a merger transaction.

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $.4748), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, announced (Dec. 10) that it had priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $8.20, +.99%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $3.57), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer.

GeoVax is heading into the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference week (“JPM2026”) in San Francisco, CA Jan. 12-15 with the kind of narrative biotech investors typically like to hear: a differentiated platform, large funded trials lining up, and multiple shots on goal in both infectious disease and oncology. The company is leaning into its MVA platform as a potential franchise engine rather than a one‑product science experiment. Specifically, investors can meet David Dodd, Chairman & CEO of GeoVax, during his presentation at the Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, Yosemite A (Ballroom Level), San Francisco, CA on January 13, 2026, 2:30 pm PST.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 19) that it has entered into definitive securities purchase agreements with several institutional and individual investors for the purchase and sale of approximately 13.2 million units, each comprised of one share of the Company’s common stock and warrants, as described below, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $0.245 per unit in a public offering. The Company will issue warrants to purchase up to approximately 26.5 million shares of common stock. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.245 per share, will be exercisable immediately following the date of issuance and will have a term of five years following the date of issuance. Roth Capital Partners is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds to the Company from this offering are expected to be approximately $3.2 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 22, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 18) the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Frontiers in Immunology titled: “Multi-antigen MVA-vectored SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, GEO-CM04S1, induces cross-protective immune responses to ancestral and Omicron variants.” The study provides definitive preclinical evidence that GeoVax’s multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate, GEO-CM04S1, delivers full cross-variant protection, driven predominantly by robust T-cell responses, even in the absence of neutralizing antibodies. The findings reinforce the design philosophy behind GeoVax’s MVA-based, multi-antigen platform and provide mechanistic insight that is increasingly relevant for immunocompromised individuals, who often fail to respond optimally to the first-generation COVID-19 vaccines.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 17) the successful completion of fill-finish for the initial clinical batch of GEO-MVA, its next-generation Mpox/smallpox vaccine. The product has now entered final release evaluation, the concluding quality-control and compliance process required before shipment for clinical use, positioning the Company for Phase 3 immunobridging trial start-up activities in Q1 2026. Fill-finish – the sterile, cGMP-regulated process of filling, sealing, and packaging vaccine vials – marks the last manufacturing step before a vaccine may enter clinical study supply channels. With fill-finish complete and GEO-MVA now undergoing final release evaluation, GeoVax has moved into the final pre-clinical-deployment phase of its EMA-aligned clinical program. In June 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Scientific Advice confirmed that a single Phase 3 immunobridging study demonstrating immune comparability to the approved MVA vaccine, Imvanex(R), would be sufficient to evaluate GEO-MVA’s efficacy. This provides a clear, accelerated regulatory path to licensure. This milestone coincides with increasing Mpox activity globally – including expanding Clade I outbreaks in Africa and emerging cases in the United States – exposing vulnerabilities associated with global dependence on a sole foreign MVA vaccine supplier. GEO-MVA is designed to expand supply, diversify sources, and strengthen biodefense infrastructure.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $.6350) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.0581), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, recently announced key developments in its pending all-stock merger with M2i Global, Inc.. Volato has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), following the SEC’s completion of its review of the initial confidential submission. With the reopening of federal agencies following the recent government shutdown, both companies now anticipate closing the merger in the first quarter of 2026, pending completion of SEC review and shareholder approval.

On Jan. 9, M2i Global and Volato Group announced that they have entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with Australian company Titanium X to advance critical mineral development in the US. This partnership represents a significant move towards enhancing domestic refining capacity and strengthening the critical materials supply chain that underpins US industry and national security. Titanium X and M2i Global will work together on the financing, development and commercialisation of the former’s critical mineral assets. M2i Global will apply its global experience in delivering mineral projects to support these initiatives. The companies are also in talks to conclude an exclusive titanium concentrate supply agreement.

On Jan. 7, M2i Global, Inc. along with Volato Group, Inc. (“Volato”) (NYSE American: SOAR), a technology-driven company, announced a strategic collaboration agreement with Titanium X, marking a major step forward in advancing domestic refining capabilities and securing the critical materials supply chain essential to U.S. industry and national security.

Volato Group, Inc. today (Dec. 29) announced the appointment of Alan D. Gaines to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Gaines will also serve as Chairman of the Audit Committee.

On Dec. 23, Volato Group, Inc. announced preliminary financial guidance for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2025, reflecting continued execution against its strategic and balance sheet objectives. For the fourth quarter of 2025, Volato expects to report revenue between $27 million and $28 million. For the full year 2025, the Company anticipates total revenue between $78 million and $79 million, with net income of $6 million to $8 million. These results reflect a year of meaningful progression aligning operational performance with Volato’s long-term growth initiatives and advancing its pending merger with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). During 2025, Volato also made substantial progress strengthening its balance sheet. As of September 30, 2025, the Company reduced total liabilities to $9.5 million, satisfying the debt reduction condition required under its pending merger agreement with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). Volato expects continued improvement in its capital structure as it advances toward a targeted first-quarter 2026 closing of the transaction. “Our 2025 results reflect a year of transformation and disciplined balance sheet execution,” said Mark Heinen, Chief Financial Officer of Volato. “We made significant progress reducing liabilities while sharpening our focus on scalable, technology-driven businesses that are designed to complement and strengthen the M2i Global platform over the long term.”

Volato Group, Inc. announced recently that it has set a preliminary date of February 26, 2026 and preliminary record date of January 17, 2026 for a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the proposed merger with M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO) and related matters. The preliminary meeting date and record date remain subject to applicable regulatory and exchange requirements, including the effectiveness of Volato’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-292132) (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the mailing of definitive proxy materials to shareholders. The proposed merger creates a combined company built for scale. M2i Global brings a platform focused on critical minerals and national supply chain resilience, while Volato contributes proven aviation technology, software capability, and an established track record of operational execution. Together, the companies aim to participate in a U.S. critical minerals market estimated at more than $320 billion annually.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $2.47), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. On Dec. 11, Serina announced the appointment of Joshua Thomas, Ph.D., as Vice President and Head of Chemistry. He will oversee internal and external chemistry efforts to optimize POZ-based candidates, supporting efficient translation from discovery through development.

On Dec. 10, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $30.70, +5.86%) announced today (Jan. 6) that on December 29, 2025, it completed the sale of a non-core 12-unit apartment complex in Los Angeles County for a gross sales price of approximately $4,850,000. InterGroup expects to report a GAAP net gain on sale of approximately $3,509,000, which will be reflected in the Company’s Form 10‑Q for the quarter ended December 31, 2025. The transaction is expected to result in federal and state income tax liability, the amount of which will be determined based on the Company’s final tax position and applicable tax rules.

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $10.85. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

flyExclusive, Inc. (NYSE American: FLYX, $5.63.), one of the nation’s largest private jet operators and a certified Part 145 Repair Station, today announced it has signed an authorized dealership agreement with Starlink, becoming a certified dealer and installer for Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency aviation connectivity system.

The Sources

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 12, 2026

JPM 2026: AI, EoE Shots and Alzheimer’s Hope Converge in San Francisco -( $JPM $ACOG $EPRX $IBB $XBI )

The J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (JPM2026) is returning to San Francisco this week (Jan. 12-15, 2026) with all the familiar hallmarks: packed lobbies, overbooked coffee meetings, and the annual reminder that in healthcare, January belongs less to New Year’s resolutions and more to deal term sheets and AI slide decks

The Westin Becomes Wall Street West

For four days, the Westin St. Francis once again doubles as Wall Street’s largest offsite, as the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference convenes thousands of executives, investors, bankers and policymakers. Billed as the largest and most informative healthcare investment symposium in the industry, the meeting has evolved into a de facto “state of the union” for biotech, pharma, medtech and digital health.namsa+3

The invite-only status has done little to dampen attendance, with more than 8,000 professionals expected to orbit official ballrooms and unofficial lobby conferences around Union Square.

From Digitization to “Don’t Call It Hype” AI

If past conferences were about electronic medical records and value-based care, this year’s unofficial theme might be “AI, but make it billable.” In a recent J.P. Morgan podcast, global healthcare services co-head Nick Richitt and Smarter Technologies president Michael Gao described the shift from software that merely digitizes workflow to AI that actually reduces cognitive load in hospitals. Their thesis: AI that can read labs, meds, orders and notes like a clinician—and then translate that into cleaner documentation and claims—moves from buzzword to hard-dollar ROI when it boosts hospital margins by 30 to 50 basis points in a world where 2% is the norm.

That “augmented intelligence” framing, where algorithms handle tedious documentation and revenue-cycle hoops so clinicians can focus on patients, is increasingly the price of admission for serious AI pitches heading into JPM week.

Smarter Revenue, Not Just Smarter Apps

Nowhere is the AI story more concrete than in the plumbing of healthcare finance—revenue cycle management. Smarter Technologies, formed from SmarterDx, Pieces, Thoughtful.ai and Access Healthcare, offers a tidy case study: clinical AI that understands more than 10,000 diagnoses, documentation tools that generate physician notes, agentic bots that navigate payer workflows, and a scaled services backbone that already processes over 400 million transactions and manages about $200 billion in revenue annually.

By combining those assets, the company pitches hospitals on a simple trade: fewer denials, lower cost-to-collect, and more dollars redirected from administrative overhead to care and R&D—an argument that tends to land well in conference rooms where every basis point is negotiated like a merger premium.

EoE Meets Union Square: Eupraxia’s Momentum

Amid the AI fanfare, Eosinophilic Esophagitis is quietly getting its own moment, thanks to the recent progress from Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: EPRX). The company has been reporting encouraging tissue health and symptom improvements from its RESOLVE trial of EP-104GI, a locally delivered, long-acting corticosteroid injection designed to offer durable relief where current swallowed therapies often underwhelm.markets.

That scientific momentum is arriving in San Francisco with a human face: Eupraxia’s leadership has been front and center at two packed Tribe Public CEO Presentation and Q&A events in the Bay Area heading into JPM 2026 week, giving investors a closer look at the EoE data, the knee-osteoarthritis program, and a runway that now stretches well into the back half of this decade.

Alzheimer’s in the Spotlight: Alpha Cognition at Tribe

Neurodegeneration will also have a reserved seat at the table, with Alpha Cognition (NASDAQ: ACOG) stepping into the spotlight during JPM week. The company has been scaling the commercial launch of ZUNVEYL for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease, while laying out a 2026 playbook that includes real-world effectiveness studies in long-term care, exploratory work in mild traumatic brain injury, and a path it believes can support operating profitability by 2027.

Investors looking to trade the buzz of hotel lobby chatter for a more focused discussion will get their chance when Alpha Cognition presents at a Tribe Public CEO Presentation and Q&A luncheon at 12 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, January 15, during JPM 2026—an event (reportedly sold out) hosted by Tribe Public (tribepublic.com), which has quietly become one of the more efficient ways to compress a full diligence day into a single sitting.

Capital Wants Impact With Receivables Attached

From the capital markets side, the mood music is less “growth at any price” and more “show me the integration.” Investors are gravitating toward companies that can embed AI into existing clinical and operational systems rather than launching yet another standalone app that needs its own training seminar and change-management war room.jpmorgan+2

The deal landscape has also grown more eclectic, with strategics acquiring AI platforms, private equity firms backing infrastructure plays, health systems launching venture arms, and corporate VC increasingly looking for tools that sharpen their own operations. For companies circling Union Square, the ideal outcome is no longer just a term sheet—it is a strategic partner with data, distribution, and a shared appetite for responsible AI.

Where the Industry Hopes This All Goes

Looking out five years, conference chatter is coalescing around a two-track vision: AI that quietly reallocates billions from back-office administration to front-line care, and AI that accelerates drug discovery and personalized treatments. That future assumes systems where AI decisions remain transparent and under clinician control, with audit trails replacing black-box mystique—particularly in use cases where patient lives, not just quarterly metrics, are on the line.

In the meantime, San Francisco gets four days where every hotel lobby sounds like a panel on “intelligent healthcare,” every coffee line doubles as a pitch queue, and the true unofficial KPI is how many meetings you can schedule between Powell Street and Post without needing your own care team.

The Sources

by John F. Heerdink, Jr. January 10, 2026

First Week of 2026 Market Recap: Index Moves, Fed Signals, Tariff Tension and the New Dealmaking Cycle – January 9, 2025 -( $DV $EPRX $FLYX $INTG $MODD $OKLO $OPEN $PLTR $SER $TSLA Rise!)

Wall Street closed the first full week of 2026 looking less like a Santa rally and more like a New Year’s rebalancing, as investors rotated briskly beneath mostly resilient headline indexes. The Dow (+2.3%) and small-cap Russell 2000 (+4.6%) outperformed, helped by cyclicals and domestically focused names, while the S&P 500 (+1.6%) churned to record territory and the tech‑heavy Nasdaq (+1.9%) wobbled but still moved upward as traders trimmed some of last year’s AI high‑flyers ahead of Friday’s payrolls report and a looming Supreme Court ruling on tariffs.

On the macro front, the calendar was thick but distorted by the lingering effects of the federal shutdown, which has left key data releases arriving out of order. Delayed reports on the trade deficit and housing starts, along with backlogged business inventories, retail sales, and producer prices, reminded investors that the economic picture is still being stitched together after the fall’s Washington drama. On Friday, reports confirmed that the US economy added 50k jobs in December/2025, making out the worst year for annual job growth that since 2003 and outside of a recession.

Fed, yields, shutdown and tariffs

The December FOMC minutes showed a committee unified on the direction of easing but divided on the pace, encouraging the market to pencil in cuts while keeping an eye on every incoming jobs number. A steepening yield curve—now at its widest since 2021 as 2–10 and 2–30 spreads push higher—underscored expectations of lower front‑end rates against stubborn term premia, a combination that tends to flatter financials and hard assets more than long‑duration growth stocks,

The government shutdown has ended but its statistical hangover is very much alive, with agencies still catching up on months of delayed releases and pushing key data such as retail sales, PPI, import prices, and GDP updates deeper into January. Meanwhile, markets fixated on tariffs as the Supreme Court prepared to rule on President Trump’s international levies, a decision that could force hefty refunds to importers and potentially upend assumptions across equities, bonds, and crypto in one noisy Friday morning.

Commodities and crypto

Gold spent the week behaving like an over‑caffeinated safe haven, oscillating on profit‑taking but ultimately holding near record‑high territory north of 4500 dollars an ounce, with spot and futures benchmarks showing sizable year‑on‑year gains after last year’s parabolic run. Silver ($79.79/oz.) mirrored the volatility with sharper percentage swings, reminding traders that leverage cuts both ways when enthusiasm runs hot in the metals pits.

Oil prices ground higher, with front‑month WTI futures hovering in the high‑50s per barrel by Friday as geopolitical jitters and improving U.S. sentiment offset lingering concerns about global demand. The modest weekly advance kept energy shares in play but stopped short of igniting the kind of full‑blown inflation scare that would truly sour the Fed‑cut narrative.

Bitcoin, never one to let equities have all the volatility, traded near the low‑90,000‑dollar mark after an early‑year surge, leaving prices just below recent highs as traders braced for tariff‑related headline risk. With the yield curve steepening and debasement fears simmering, digital‑asset analysts framed 2026 as a year of “asymmetric upside”—Wall Street’s polite way of saying “fasten seat belts.”

IPOs and dealmaking

New‑issue activity returned from the holidays in respectable form, with healthcare, critical minerals, and SPAC‑style vehicles dotting the calendar more than dominating it. Among the pricings, oncology player Aktis Oncology, Atlas Critical Minerals (via uplisting), and blank‑check Lafayette Digital Acquisition Corp. I were slated around January 9, while a second wave of smaller listings spanning consumer, recycling, and decarbonization names lined up for the following week.

In mergers and acquisitions, the first week of 2026 kept up the drumbeat that bankers have been promising for months, as commentary pointed to a continued rebound in big‑ticket deal volumes and private‑equity‑driven secondary buyouts. Surveys of corporate executives and advisers showed confidence in deal flow staying strong or improving this year, with many framing 2026 as a potential “megadeal” chapter now that boardrooms have finally emerged from their post‑pandemic risk.

Large‑cap tech and AI complex

Across the AI and semiconductor complex, volumes were heavy and nerves slightly frayed as last year’s leadership names traded more like old pros than momentum darlings. Nvidia, Broadcom, and Micron remained at the center of AI‑infrastructure positioning, while options desks highlighted brisk activity in Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, Palantir, Alphabet, Amazon, AMD, and Intel, a reminder that the market’s speculative impulse has not gone on New Year’s vacation.

Apple and Meta continued to straddle the line between “defensive growth” and “crowded trades,” attracting both dip‑buyers and valuation skeptics as analysts refreshed 2026 forecasts. Oracle and Intel, once pigeonholed as legacy tech, stayed in the AI conversation thanks to Oracle’s build‑out of a chip‑neutral cloud‑AI stack and Intel’s inclusion among actively traded AI‑hardware names, illustrating how generously the market is currently interpreting the term platform.

Autos, energy, materials and consumer names

Tesla ($445.01, +1.58% overs the last 5-days)retained its place on traders’ short list of 2026 favorites, featuring prominently in options flow and pre‑market activity even as the stock whipsawed with every tweak to EV, AI, and robotaxi narratives. The company continued to attract bullish research coverage framing it as a multi‑year platform story rather than a mere carmaker, a distinction Tesla’s valuation is more than happy to endorse.

In the old‑economy corner of the tape, Rio Tinto and other resource majors navigated a backdrop of firm metals prices and ongoing chatter around critical minerals supply, while oil’s grind higher kept energy names relevant if not exuberant. McDonald’s, a bellwether for global consumer demand and pricing power, remained in the analyst rotation as investors weighed how far the company can push menu innovation and digital initiatives before customers decide they’ve supersized enough.

Other notable movers and themes

Palantir (PLTR $177.49, +5.74% over the last 5-days) and Opendoor (OPEN, $7.29 +20.10% over the last 5-days) stayed on the radar of speculative growth investors as part of the broader software‑plus‑data and real‑estate‑tech trade, respectively, both surfing in the wake of shifting rates and renewed interest in differentiated business models. Activity in these names underscored how quickly money is willing to move down the quality curve when macro fears ebb, especially with the curve steepening and rate‑cut odds still priced generously.

Nokia, McDonald’s (MCD, $307.32, +1.34%), Rio Tinto, OKLO ($105.31, +35.36% over the last 5-days) and other more idiosyncratic stories contributed to a market that felt more “stock‑picker’s” than “index‑hugger’s,” even as benchmarks stayed within sight of their peaks. For the first full week of 2026, that may be the most telling signal: investors are no longer just buying the market—they are, with a touch of renewed discrimination, choosing their characters in what is shaping up to be another long and unpredictable.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $48.82, +26.81% over the last 5-days), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, announced (Dec. 10) that it had priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $8.59, +7.27% over the last 5-days), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $.1656), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer.

GeoVax is heading into the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference week (“JPM2026”) in San Francisco, CA Jan. 12-15 with the kind of narrative biotech investors typically like to hear: a differentiated platform, large funded trials lining up, and multiple shots on goal in both infectious disease and oncology. The company is leaning into its MVA platform as a potential franchise engine rather than a one‑product science experiment. Specifically, investors can meet David Dodd, Chairman & CEO of GeoVax, during his presentation at the Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, Yosemite A (Ballroom Level), San Francisco, CA on January 13, 2026, 2:30 pm PST.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 19) that it has entered into definitive securities purchase agreements with several institutional and individual investors for the purchase and sale of approximately 13.2 million units, each comprised of one share of the Company’s common stock and warrants, as described below, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $0.245 per unit in a public offering. The Company will issue warrants to purchase up to approximately 26.5 million shares of common stock. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.245 per share, will be exercisable immediately following the date of issuance and will have a term of five years following the date of issuance. Roth Capital Partners is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds to the Company from this offering are expected to be approximately $3.2 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 22, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 18) the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Frontiers in Immunology titled: “Multi-antigen MVA-vectored SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, GEO-CM04S1, induces cross-protective immune responses to ancestral and Omicron variants.” The study provides definitive preclinical evidence that GeoVax’s multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate, GEO-CM04S1, delivers full cross-variant protection, driven predominantly by robust T-cell responses, even in the absence of neutralizing antibodies. The findings reinforce the design philosophy behind GeoVax’s MVA-based, multi-antigen platform and provide mechanistic insight that is increasingly relevant for immunocompromised individuals, who often fail to respond optimally to the first-generation COVID-19 vaccines.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 17) the successful completion of fill-finish for the initial clinical batch of GEO-MVA, its next-generation Mpox/smallpox vaccine. The product has now entered final release evaluation, the concluding quality-control and compliance process required before shipment for clinical use, positioning the Company for Phase 3 immunobridging trial start-up activities in Q1 2026. Fill-finish – the sterile, cGMP-regulated process of filling, sealing, and packaging vaccine vials – marks the last manufacturing step before a vaccine may enter clinical study supply channels. With fill-finish complete and GEO-MVA now undergoing final release evaluation, GeoVax has moved into the final pre-clinical-deployment phase of its EMA-aligned clinical program. In June 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Scientific Advice confirmed that a single Phase 3 immunobridging study demonstrating immune comparability to the approved MVA vaccine, Imvanex(R), would be sufficient to evaluate GEO-MVA’s efficacy. This provides a clear, accelerated regulatory path to licensure. This milestone coincides with increasing Mpox activity globally – including expanding Clade I outbreaks in Africa and emerging cases in the United States – exposing vulnerabilities associated with global dependence on a sole foreign MVA vaccine supplier. GEO-MVA is designed to expand supply, diversify sources, and strengthen biodefense infrastructure.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $.6538) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.06)), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, recently announced key developments in its pending all-stock merger with M2i Global, Inc.. Volato has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), following the SEC’s completion of its review of the initial confidential submission. With the reopening of federal agencies following the recent government shutdown, both companies now anticipate closing the merger in the first quarter of 2026, pending completion of SEC review and shareholder approval.

On Jan. 7, M2i Global, Inc. along with Volato Group, Inc. (“Volato”) (NYSE American: SOAR), a technology-driven company, announced a strategic collaboration agreement with Titanium X, marking a major step forward in advancing domestic refining capabilities and securing the critical materials supply chain essential to U.S. industry and national security.

Volato Group, Inc. today (Dec. 29) announced the appointment of Alan D. Gaines to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Gaines will also serve as Chairman of the Audit Committee.

On Dec. 23, Volato Group, Inc. announced preliminary financial guidance for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2025, reflecting continued execution against its strategic and balance sheet objectives. For the fourth quarter of 2025, Volato expects to report revenue between $27 million and $28 million. For the full year 2025, the Company anticipates total revenue between $78 million and $79 million, with net income of $6 million to $8 million. These results reflect a year of meaningful progression aligning operational performance with Volato’s long-term growth initiatives and advancing its pending merger with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). During 2025, Volato also made substantial progress strengthening its balance sheet. As of September 30, 2025, the Company reduced total liabilities to $9.5 million, satisfying the debt reduction condition required under its pending merger agreement with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). Volato expects continued improvement in its capital structure as it advances toward a targeted first-quarter 2026 closing of the transaction. “Our 2025 results reflect a year of transformation and disciplined balance sheet execution,” said Mark Heinen, Chief Financial Officer of Volato. “We made significant progress reducing liabilities while sharpening our focus on scalable, technology-driven businesses that are designed to complement and strengthen the M2i Global platform over the long term.”

Volato Group, Inc. announced recently that it has set a preliminary date of February 26, 2026 and preliminary record date of January 17, 2026 for a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the proposed merger with M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO) and related matters. The preliminary meeting date and record date remain subject to applicable regulatory and exchange requirements, including the effectiveness of Volato’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-292132) (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the mailing of definitive proxy materials to shareholders. The proposed merger creates a combined company built for scale. M2i Global brings a platform focused on critical minerals and national supply chain resilience, while Volato contributes proven aviation technology, software capability, and an established track record of operational execution. Together, the companies aim to participate in a U.S. critical minerals market estimated at more than $320 billion annually.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $2.54, +22.23% over the last 5-days), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. On Dec. 11, Serina announced the appointment of Joshua Thomas, Ph.D., as Vice President and Head of Chemistry. He will oversee internal and external chemistry efforts to optimize POZ-based candidates, supporting efficient translation from discovery through development.

On Dec. 10, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $27.85, +5.97%) reported (Nov. 17) results for the three months ended September 30, 2025. John V. Winfield, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We continue to observe signs of stabilization and recovery across the San Francisco hospitality market, including improving convention calendars, tourism indicators, and business travel activity. On the investment side, our marketable securities activity remained modest with a small net gain, consistent with our emphasis on liquidity and risk discipline.”

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $11.07, +1.93%. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

flyExclusive, Inc. (NYSE American: FLYX, $6.39, +58.96% over the last 5-days), one of the nation’s largest private jet operators and a certified Part 145 Repair Station, today announced it has signed an authorized dealership agreement with Starlink, becoming a certified dealer and installer for Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency aviation connectivity system.

The Sources

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by Vista Partners LLC January 8, 2026

Wall Street Shrugs Off Tech Jitters as Dow Climbs and Small Caps Shine – January 8, 2025 -( $AXP $API $CAT $EPRX $HD $INTG $MCD $MODD $MTWO $OPEN $SOAR $TSLA Rise!)

US stocks finished Thursday with a split personality: the Dow marched confidently higher, small caps finally stole a headline, and Big Tech discovered that gravity still works, even in an AI bull market.

Major indexes

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added about 270 points, or .55%, helped by old‑economy stalwarts like Home Depot (HD, $359.56, +3.01%), American Express (AXP, $382.98, +1.26%) and Caterpillar (CAT, $608.13, +1.95%) as investors rotated away from mega‑cap tech.
The S&P 500 was essentially flat, gaining just 0.53 points to close near 6,921 after notching a record earlier in the week.
The Nasdaq Composite slipped roughly 0.44% as AI leaders including Nvidia and Broadcom came under pressure, a reminder that even market darlings occasionally need to catch their breath.
The Russell 2000 rose about 1.1% to roughly 2,603, marking its first record close since December and reinforcing the theme that 2026 may not be a one‑factor mega‑cap trade.

Macroeconomic data, Fed and Washington

Weekly initial jobless claims inched up to about 208,000, still historically low and below consensus, suggesting a labor market that remains tight enough to keep Fed officials alert.
The Commerce Department worked through shutdown backlogs, releasing the long‑delayed October trade deficit today as agencies continue to catch up after the fall government funding lapse.
The federal funds rate sits in a 3.5%–3.75% range after a December cut, with markets and forecasters expecting the Fed to stay on hold at the next FOMC meeting on January 27–28, even as longer‑term projections point to a gradual drift toward roughly 3.25% in 2026.
The yield‑curve story remains one of a market pricing eventual easing rather than imminent cuts; Congressional Budget Office projections contemplated the impact of President Trump’s tariff and fiscal policies alongside last year’s shutdown, but saw little change in the medium‑term growth and inflation outlook.
In Washington, the government shutdown that froze key reports last year has ended, but statistical agencies are still working through a backlog of data, leaving investors with a somewhat patchy macro dashboard.
The administration continued to lean on tariffs as a core plank of its “America First” strategy, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent highlighting how strategic duties are intended to pull investment back onshore and pressure trading partners to open their markets to U.S. goods, particularly agriculture and manufacturing.

Sector tone and key commodities

A continued rotation out of Big Tech into cyclicals and small caps shaped the day’s tone, with the Dow and Russell outperforming while the Nasdaq lagged.
Gold prices closed at $4,483.50.
Silver eased 1.38% to $76.54 as investors unwound part of this week’s risk‑off positioning and looked ahead to index rebalancing that could add technical pressure to precious metals later in the month.
In energy, crude oil jumped 4.82% to $58.66/bbl.
Bitcoin traded just around the $91k mark.

Company highlights

Eli Lilly (LLY)

Eli Lilly dropped 2.07% to $1,085.19.
A series of bullish research notes and institutional buying followed prior news of pipeline expansions and deal activity, while Lilly’s cardiometabolic portfolio continues to feature prominently on “drugs to watch in 2026” lists, cementing its status as healthcare’s current market‑cap monarch.

Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM)

TSMC (TSM, $318.01, -.21%) recently pushed to a 52‑week high above 330 dollars, buoyed by AI‑chip demand from marquee customers including Nvidia (NVDA, $185.04) and Broadcom, and today’s trading reflected ongoing debate over whether the premium is justified or merely the cover charge for dominance in 3‑nanometer production.
AI‑related chips are expected to account for roughly 30% of 2025 revenue, and management has guided to mid‑30% growth, leaving the stock tightly hitched to both the AI capex cycle and the shifting winds of U.S.–Asia trade tensions.

Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA), Meta (META), Nokia (NOK)

Apple traded in sympathy with the broader Big Tech pullback, as investors rotated toward value and cyclicals after a strong run into the new year; earnings optimism around services and devices remains, but the stock took a modest breather.
Tesla (TSLA, $435.80, +1.02%) shares, after a robust 2025 advance, spent the session navigating important technical levels that short‑term traders are watching as the stock digests enthusiasm around its robotics and AI roadmap.
Meta Platforms eased with the Nasdaq, giving back part of its recent AI‑advertising rally, as portfolio managers used gains in mega‑cap communication services as a source of funds for more cyclical bets.
Nokia ($6.49, -4.42%) remained more of a sideshow in today’s flow, held in the broader camp of communications and networking names that have lagged the headline AI beneficiaries but may become more interesting if capital spending on 5G and cloud infrastructure re‑accelerates.

McDonald’s (MCD), Rio Tinto Group (RIO), Oracle (ORCL)

McDonald’s (MCD) shares edged 1.55% higher to $308.88, aided by a favorable analyst call earlier in the week that highlighted pricing power and international expansion, placing the stock squarely in the “quality defensive” bucket benefiting as investors rotate out of high‑beta tech.
Rio Tinto traded as a clean proxy on the global growth and metals narrative, with sentiment shaped by expectations for stronger demand tied to infrastructure, electrification and China’s policy stance, even as short‑term price action in iron ore and copper remains choppy.
Oracle remained volatile, with the stock still working through a sharp late‑2025 sell‑off as investors reassess its AI and cloud positioning; UBS has stuck with a buy rating even after cutting its price target, arguing that pessimism on the company’s OpenAI‑linked opportunity set has gone too far.

Oklo (OKLO), Opendoor (OPEN), Palantir (PLTR)

Oklo, the advanced nuclear developer that came public via SPAC, continues to trade more on policy headlines and sentiment around next‑generation nuclear than on near‑term earnings, leaving the stock sensitive to any hint of new regulatory or federal‑support news.
Opendoor (OPEN, $6.43, +5.07%) remains tightly yoked to the U.S. housing and mortgage‑rate outlook, with investors weighing the company’s capital‑light pivot against a rate environment that, while easing from its peak, still keeps housing affordability under pressure.
Palantir softened as part of the broader AI complex, even after recent commentary framed the company—alongside Nvidia—as having effectively issued Wall Street a 3.3 billion‑dollar warning about how AI infrastructure and software spending will reshape profit pools in 2026.

M&A, IPOs and capital markets

In M&A, ASP Isotopes (ASPI , $6.44, +2.06%) completed its acquisition of Renergen, issuing roughly 14.3 million shares at a fixed exchange ratio and making the South African energy company a wholly owned subsidiary, a niche deal that nonetheless underscored continued activity in specialty energy and industrial gases.
The SPAC market showed fresh signs of life as Art Technology Acquisition Corp. completed a 220 million‑dollar Nasdaq IPO this week, with units trading under “ARTCU” and common shares and warrants to follow under “ARTC” and “ARTCW.”
Another blank‑check vehicle, Bleichroeder Acquisition Corp. II, priced a 250 million‑dollar Nasdaq offering, with its units expected to start trading January 8, adding to the roster of SPACs hunting for deals in technology and adjacent sectors.
In the traditional IPO pipeline, Soren Acquisition Corp. moved closer to closing its own offering, targeting healthcare deals and expected to finalize its capital raise around today’s session, further proof that risk appetite in new issues is thawing after a long freeze.

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

Modular Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: MODD., $48.08, +8.07%), a leader in innovative insulin delivery technology targeting the $3 billion adult “almost-pumpers” diabetes market with user-friendly, affordable patch pumps, announced (Dec. 10) that it had priced an underwritten public offering (the “offering”) of 12,173,000 shares of its common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase 6,086,500 shares of its common stock. Each two shares of common stock are being offered and sold together with one accompanying warrant at a combined offering at a price of $0.77, yielding an effective price of $0.38 per share and $0.01 per warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.45 per share, are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will expire five years following the date of issuance. In connection with the offering, Modular Medical has granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 15% of common shares and/or warrants at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The over-allotment option may be elected with respect to, at the underwriter’s sole discretion, shares and warrants together, solely shares, solely warrants, or any combination thereof. Newbridge Securities Corporation is acting as the sole bookrunner for the offering. Assuming no exercise of the over-allotment option, the gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $4.68 million, before deducting underwriting discounts, commissions, and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund operations and for working capital and general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures.

On Nov. 17, Modular announced Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) approval to conduct an in-house study of its next-generation Pivot™ insulin delivery system using insulin on people with diabetes (the “Study”). Pursuant to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) regulations, an IRB is a group that has been formally designated to review and monitor biomedical research involving human subjects. The Study will simulate real-world conditions by delivering insulin to adult participants to gather critical data on device function and usability and obtain user feedback. Modular Medical’s Pivot tubeless patch pump aims to enhance accessibility for underserved patients with diabetes and drive market penetration and expansion.

On Nov. 14, Modular Medical announced the 510(k) premarket submission of its next generation Pivot™ tubeless patch pump to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”). The Company expects to commence the commercial launch of its Pivot pump in Q1 2026. On Nov. 3, Modular Medical the successful validation of its Pivot controller line, a critical milestone in preparing for the commercial launch of its Pivot patch pump targeted for Q1 2026. The Pivot controller line validation further demonstrates manufacturing readiness for high-volume production, positioning Modular Medical to meet the growing demand in the diabetes treatment market for advanced technology.

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: EPRX, $8.59, +19.14%), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leveraging its proprietary Diffusphere™ technology to optimize local, controlled drug delivery for diseases with significant unmet need, announced (Nov. 13) the second set of 52-week follow up data from its ongoing Phase 1b/2a RESOLVE trial evaluating a single administration EP-104GI for the treatment of eosinophilic esophagitis (“EoE”). James A. Helliwell, Chief Executive Officer of Eupraxia stated,“These data further highlight the strong durability and tolerability profile of EP-104GI, reinforcing its potential to become a convenient, once-a-year treatment that fits seamlessly into routine disease management by aligning with annual patient endoscopies. The Cohorts 5 & 6 patients – the only groups to have reached 52 weeks in the trial – are demonstrating levels of symptom relief that is durable and clinically meaningful – we are very encouraged by this outcome. We’re also pleased that our previously announced 52-week data were presented as a late-breaking presentation at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG). These new results build on that momentum. Given that current EoE therapies often struggle with long-term adherence, we believe a durable, once-yearly treatment could meaningfully improve patient outcomes and establish EP-104GI as a preferred option for both physicians and their patients.”

GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX, $.1848), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious diseases and cancer.

GeoVax is heading into the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference week (“JPM2026”) in San Francisco, CA Jan. 12-15 with the kind of narrative biotech investors typically like to hear: a differentiated platform, large funded trials lining up, and multiple shots on goal in both infectious disease and oncology. The company is leaning into its MVA platform as a potential franchise engine rather than a one‑product science experiment. Specifically, investors can meet David Dodd, Chairman & CEO of GeoVax, during his presentation at the Hilton Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, Yosemite A (Ballroom Level), San Francisco, CA on January 13, 2026, 2:30 pm PST.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 19) that it has entered into definitive securities purchase agreements with several institutional and individual investors for the purchase and sale of approximately 13.2 million units, each comprised of one share of the Company’s common stock and warrants, as described below, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $0.245 per unit in a public offering. The Company will issue warrants to purchase up to approximately 26.5 million shares of common stock. The warrants will have an exercise price of $0.245 per share, will be exercisable immediately following the date of issuance and will have a term of five years following the date of issuance. Roth Capital Partners is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering. The gross proceeds to the Company from this offering are expected to be approximately $3.2 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for working capital and general corporate purposes. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 22, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 18) the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Frontiers in Immunology titled: “Multi-antigen MVA-vectored SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, GEO-CM04S1, induces cross-protective immune responses to ancestral and Omicron variants.” The study provides definitive preclinical evidence that GeoVax’s multi-antigen COVID-19 vaccine candidate, GEO-CM04S1, delivers full cross-variant protection, driven predominantly by robust T-cell responses, even in the absence of neutralizing antibodies. The findings reinforce the design philosophy behind GeoVax’s MVA-based, multi-antigen platform and provide mechanistic insight that is increasingly relevant for immunocompromised individuals, who often fail to respond optimally to the first-generation COVID-19 vaccines.

GeoVax announced (Dec. 17) the successful completion of fill-finish for the initial clinical batch of GEO-MVA, its next-generation Mpox/smallpox vaccine. The product has now entered final release evaluation, the concluding quality-control and compliance process required before shipment for clinical use, positioning the Company for Phase 3 immunobridging trial start-up activities in Q1 2026. Fill-finish – the sterile, cGMP-regulated process of filling, sealing, and packaging vaccine vials – marks the last manufacturing step before a vaccine may enter clinical study supply channels. With fill-finish complete and GEO-MVA now undergoing final release evaluation, GeoVax has moved into the final pre-clinical-deployment phase of its EMA-aligned clinical program. In June 2025, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Scientific Advice confirmed that a single Phase 3 immunobridging study demonstrating immune comparability to the approved MVA vaccine, Imvanex(R), would be sufficient to evaluate GEO-MVA’s efficacy. This provides a clear, accelerated regulatory path to licensure. This milestone coincides with increasing Mpox activity globally – including expanding Clade I outbreaks in Africa and emerging cases in the United States – exposing vulnerabilities associated with global dependence on a sole foreign MVA vaccine supplier. GEO-MVA is designed to expand supply, diversify sources, and strengthen biodefense infrastructure.

Volato Group, Inc. (NYSE American: SOAR, $.70, +7.69%) and M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO, $.0648, +8.18%), a company specializing in the development and execution of a complete global value supply chain for critical minerals, recently announced key developments in its pending all-stock merger with M2i Global, Inc.. Volato has filed the Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), following the SEC’s completion of its review of the initial confidential submission. With the reopening of federal agencies following the recent government shutdown, both companies now anticipate closing the merger in the first quarter of 2026, pending completion of SEC review and shareholder approval.

On Jan. 7, M2i Global, Inc. along with Volato Group, Inc. (“Volato”) (NYSE American: SOAR), a technology-driven company, announced a strategic collaboration agreement with Titanium X, marking a major step forward in advancing domestic refining capabilities and securing the critical materials supply chain essential to U.S. industry and national security.

Volato Group, Inc. today (Dec. 29) announced the appointment of Alan D. Gaines to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Gaines will also serve as Chairman of the Audit Committee.

On Dec. 23, Volato Group, Inc. announced preliminary financial guidance for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2025, reflecting continued execution against its strategic and balance sheet objectives. For the fourth quarter of 2025, Volato expects to report revenue between $27 million and $28 million. For the full year 2025, the Company anticipates total revenue between $78 million and $79 million, with net income of $6 million to $8 million. These results reflect a year of meaningful progression aligning operational performance with Volato’s long-term growth initiatives and advancing its pending merger with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). During 2025, Volato also made substantial progress strengthening its balance sheet. As of September 30, 2025, the Company reduced total liabilities to $9.5 million, satisfying the debt reduction condition required under its pending merger agreement with M2i Global, Inc. (OTC: MTWO). Volato expects continued improvement in its capital structure as it advances toward a targeted first-quarter 2026 closing of the transaction. “Our 2025 results reflect a year of transformation and disciplined balance sheet execution,” said Mark Heinen, Chief Financial Officer of Volato. “We made significant progress reducing liabilities while sharpening our focus on scalable, technology-driven businesses that are designed to complement and strengthen the M2i Global platform over the long term.”

On Dec. 18, Volato Group, Inc. and M2i Global, Inc. announced that they applaud the recent December 11, 2025 announcement from the U.S. Department of State whereby Pax Silica, a U.S.-led strategic initiative to build a secure, prosperous, and innovation driven silicon supply chain—from critical minerals and energy inputs to advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, AI infrastructure, and logistics, was formed.

Volato Group, Inc. announced recently that it has set a preliminary date of February 26, 2026 and preliminary record date of January 17, 2026 for a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the proposed merger with M2i Global, Inc. (MTWO) and related matters. The preliminary meeting date and record date remain subject to applicable regulatory and exchange requirements, including the effectiveness of Volato’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-292132) (the “Registration Statement”) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the mailing of definitive proxy materials to shareholders. The proposed merger creates a combined company built for scale. M2i Global brings a platform focused on critical minerals and national supply chain resilience, while Volato contributes proven aviation technology, software capability, and an established track record of operational execution. Together, the companies aim to participate in a U.S. critical minerals market estimated at more than $320 billion annually.

Serina Therapeutics (NYSE American: SER, $2.62, +8.26%), Alabama-based biotech is betting its proprietary POZ platform and reimagined approach to apomorphine delivery may redefine the treatment paradigm for patients who have exhausted standard oral therapies. On Dec. 11, Serina announced the appointment of Joshua Thomas, Ph.D., as Vice President and Head of Chemistry. He will oversee internal and external chemistry efforts to optimize POZ-based candidates, supporting efficient translation from discovery through development.

On Dec. 10, Serina announced that it has submitted a complete response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) clinical hold letter for SER-252, the Company’s lead program for advanced Parkinson’s disease. As previously disclosed, the FDA placed the Company’s Investigational New Drug (“IND”) application for SER-252 on clinical hold pending additional information related to a commonly used formulation excipient. On November 25, 2025, the FDA issued a formal full clinical hold letter specifying the information required to permit initiation of the planned Phase 1b registrational study, SER-252-1b. The issues identified by the FDA do not relate to the apomorphine active drug substance, its mechanism of action, the use of the enFuse device (Enable Injections) or the broader 505(b)(2) NDA development pathway previously discussed with the Agency.

The InterGroup Corporation (NASDAQ: INTG, $28.98, +28.98%) reported (Nov. 17) results for the three months ended September 30, 2025. John V. Winfield, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We continue to observe signs of stabilization and recovery across the San Francisco hospitality market, including improving convention calendars, tourism indicators, and business travel activity. On the investment side, our marketable securities activity remained modest with a small net gain, consistent with our emphasis on liquidity and risk discipline.”

DoubleVerify Holdings Inc. (DV) closed at $10.92. DoubleVerify, which built its franchise on media verification and ad performance analytics, is now the first badged TikTok Marketing Partner focused specifically on attention measurement, tapping impression-level signals from the platform. Brands gain a granular view of how exposure and user interaction come together across TikTok formats, ad sets, creatives, and objectives, effectively treating every swipe as a tiny A/B test.

by Vista Partners LLC January 8, 2026

Eupraxia’s EoE Shot Delivers Near‑Clean Biopsies, Putting Once‑Yearly Treatment on the Map -( $EPRX $XBI $IBB $SNY )

Eupraxia’s ( NASDAQ: EPRX) latest biopsy readout suggests that in eosinophilic esophagitis (EOE), the tissue may be healing faster than Wall Street skepticism. The company’s long‑acting injectable, EP‑104GI, is now looking less like an experiment and more like a once‑yearly contender in a market starved for durable relief.

A Once‑Yearly Shot at a Chronic Disease

Eosinophilic esophagitis, a chronic inflammatory disease that can turn every meal into a negotiation, has historically been managed with swallowed steroids, restrictive diets, and patience. Eupraxia is attempting to upend that playbook with EP‑104GI, an extended‑release fluticasone formulation injected directly into the esophageal wall to bathe the tissue in corticosteroid over many months.

Unlike daily pills or sprays that rely on patient diligence and gravity, this approach is built on the idea that one well‑placed shot can quietly work in the background for up to a year. That proposition is increasingly resonating in a field where adherence is as much a problem as inflammation.

About Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE)

EoE is an inflammatory-mediated disease in which white blood cells migrate into and become trapped in the esophagus, creating pain and difficulty with swallowing food. According to market research from Clearview Healthcare Partners, EoE affects more than 450,000 people in the United States and has been identified by the American Gastroenterological Association as rapidly increasing in both incidence and prevalence. Impacts from both symptoms and interventions frequently lead to mental health issues, compounding the disease burden of EoE for both the healthcare system and the individual.

Tissue Health: Biopsies Behaving Themselves

The newest data from the ongoing RESOLVE Phase 1b/2a study suggest the esophagus is not only calmer but starting to look almost normal under the microscope. At 12 weeks, patients in the highest‑dose cohort (8 mg per site across 20 sites) showed about a 94% improvement in EoEHSS Grade and a 97% improvement in Stage, a near‑complete normalization of tissue health that is the best response seen in the trial so far.

Lower‑dose cohorts were hardly slouches; they tended to maintain tissue health gains from week 12 out to week 36, hinting at a dose‑response curve that slopes in Eupraxia’s favor. For a disease known for stubborn histology, having biopsies suddenly act like model citizens is the sort of problem clinicians do not mind having.

Symptoms, Remission and the Long Arc of a Single Dose

The trial has also been quietly answering the question every patient asks: does the biopsy improvement actually translate into feeling better. In patients who had at least 60% of their esophagus treated, a majority reached clinical remission by week 8 and many maintained that status out to 52 weeks after a single administration.delta.

These sustained symptom gains complement earlier RESOLVE updates showing improvements in dysphagia scores and patient‑reported outcomes over the first year of follow‑up. For a once‑yearly injectable, this kind of durability begins to look less like incremental innovation and more like a reset of patient expectations.

Safety Profile: No Drama, Just Data

In a field that has seen its share of safety footnotes, EP‑104GI’s tolerability so far reads almost uneventfully. Across more than 200 patient‑months of follow‑up and 31 treated patients in all cohorts, there have been no serious adverse events and no cases of oral candidiasis, a common nuisance with topical steroids.

The drug has been reported as well tolerated even at the highest dose, an important qualifier when efficacy appears to climb with dose intensity. For regulators and investors alike, boring safety slides paired with interesting efficacy curves tend to be a welcome combination.

From Phase 1b to Phase 2b – and to Wall Street

The current open‑label Phase 1b/2a portion of RESOLVE uses a dose‑escalation design, with cohorts escalating both dose per site and number of injection sites, and follow‑up extending to 52 weeks in later cohorts. With the highest dose cohort now showing the strongest tissue and eosinophil responses, the company appears to have a clearer idea of what to bring forward.

A randomized, placebo‑controlled Phase 2b arm is already enrolling, with a planned clinical dose of 120 mg delivered as 20 injections of 6 mg each and top‑line data expected in the third quarter of 2026. If those data rhyme with today’s readout, Eupraxia’s valuation discussions may shift from “can it work” to the more pleasant debate of “how big could this be” in EoE and beyond.

The Sources

by Vista Partners LLC January 8, 2026

Starlink at 45,000 Feet: flyExclusive Plugs Its Private Jets Into Space-Grade Wi‑Fi -( $FLYX $TSLA $SPY )

flyExclusive ( FLYX) just strapped a satellite-powered rocket to its business model, clinching authorized dealer status for Starlink Aviation and turning in-flight Wi-Fi from polite suggestion into core product feature. For a company that already sells time, convenience, and bragging rights at 45,000 feet, adding streaming-grade bandwidth may be the most on-brand upgrade yet.

A Jet Operator Meets a Constellation

flyExclusive, a vertically integrated private jet operator and Part 145 repair station, has signed an authorized dealership agreement that makes it an official dealer and installer of Starlink’s aviation connectivity system. The pact gives the Kinston, North Carolina-based provider a front-row seat to the satellite broadband revolution now sweeping through both commercial and business aviation.

Starlink’s low Earth orbit constellation delivers broadband speeds of up to 310 Mbps with latency under 99 milliseconds, enough to support streaming, HD video calls, large file transfers, and corporate-grade VPN usage in flight. For business travelers accustomed to treating airborne Wi-Fi like a fickle relative—occasionally present, rarely dependable—this represents a material change in expectations.

From Nice-to-Have to Non‑Negotiable

Management is framing the move less as a gadget upgrade and more as a strategic response to how quickly connectivity has become table stakes in premium cabins. Founder and CEO Jim Segrave notes that customers now expect “world-class” experiences that explicitly include connectivity that “works at the highest level,” while COO Matt Lesmeister bluntly calls connectivity “a core part of the passenger experience.”.

That shift in language matters for a brand that already sells jet cards, on-demand charters, and fractional ownership under a highly curated service umbrella. High-throughput, low-latency links allow the cabin to function as a flying extension of the office, with seamless video conferences and real-time collaboration replacing the old inflight ritual of drafting emails in offline purgatory.

Fleet First, Then Everyone Else

The rollout begins at home: flyExclusive plans to start installing Starlink systems on its own fleet, including Challenger 350 jets, in early 2026, setting a higher bar for the onboard experience across its network. Passengers can expect streaming-quality internet, real-time communications, and dependable VPN performance at altitude—features once reserved for patient early adopters with generous budgets and low expectations.

But the more quietly transformative piece is what this does for flyExclusive’s maintenance, repair, and overhaul ambitions. As an authorized dealer and installer, the company will sell, install, test, and support Starlink systems for third-party aircraft owners, turning its Kinston facility and mobile service capabilities into a one-stop shop for high-speed connectivity upgrades.

MRO Business Gets a Turbo Boost

The dealership dovetails neatly with flyExclusive’s broader push to expand its MRO and avionics footprint, including more mobile service units, fleet-modernization initiatives, and a wider menu of upgrade services for business aviation customers. By wrapping provisioning, installation, and ongoing support into a turnkey package, the company positions itself as a convenience-oriented connectivity partner rather than just another hangar with tools.

In practical terms, that means external operators can outsource the pain of integrating a cutting-edge satellite service to a provider that installs the same hardware on its own jets and has direct incentive to keep the system performing flawlessly. For a segment where downtime and configuration errors translate directly into lost charter hours and unhappy owners, this “do it once, do it right” pitch has obvious commercial appeal.

A Market That Likes Its Wi‑Fi

Public markets appear to appreciate the logic of turning bandwidth into both value proposition and revenue stream. flyExclusive shares have jumped sharply following the announcement, as investors recalibrate expectations around high-margin service revenue and the signaling effect of aligning with a marquee name in satellite connectivity.

The move also drops flyExclusive into a broader narrative in which airlines and private operators race to shed the reputational baggage of spotty inflight internet by partnering with next-generation systems. In that context, becoming an early, vertically integrated Starlink aviation dealer lets flyExclusive market not just faster Wi‑Fi, but a subtly upgraded identity: from jet operator with a maintenance arm to platform business sitting at the intersection of aircraft, service, and always-on data

A Chronic Disease Meets a Once‑Yearly Plan

EP‑104GI: Treat While You Scope

Durability That Fits the Calendar

What the New Report Says

The Sources

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Macro: Inflation Cool, Data Calendar Bent, Not Broken

Rates, Yield Curve, Fed, and Washington

Trade and Tariffs: Policy by Tweet and Footnote

Commodities and Crypto: Shiny Things and Digital Gold

Corporate Tape: AI Darlings, Chips, and Old Economy Stalwarts

J.P. Morgan Healthcare, Day 3: Deals, Data, and Diplomacy

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

The Sources

Indexes: gravity with manners

Macro: cooler core, hotter politics

Fed, yields and the road ahead

Commodities and crypto: hard assets stay loud

Street diary: JPM Healthcare and Lilly’s moment

Mega‑cap tech and AI: still the main show

Other notable movers: chips, burgers, mines and more

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Policy, shutdown risk and tariffs

Vista Partners Watchlist Updates

The Sources

Indexes: Bulls in Full Voice

Macro: Fed Drama, Quiet Data, Loud Metals

Fed, Yields, and the Shutdown Clock

Commodities & Crypto: Gold Steals the Show

Corporate Stage: JPM Healthcare and Deal Flow

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Commodities and crypto

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Autos, energy, materials and consumer names

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Major indexes

Macroeconomic data, Fed and Washington

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Company highlights

Eli Lilly (LLY)

Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM)

Apple (AAPL), Tesla (TSLA), Meta (META), Nokia (NOK)

McDonald’s (MCD), Rio Tinto Group (RIO), Oracle (ORCL)

Oklo (OKLO), Opendoor (OPEN), Palantir (PLTR)

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A Once‑Yearly Shot at a Chronic Disease

About Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE)

Tissue Health: Biopsies Behaving Themselves

Symptoms, Remission and the Long Arc of a Single Dose

Safety Profile: No Drama, Just Data

From Phase 1b to Phase 2b – and to Wall Street

The Sources

A Jet Operator Meets a Constellation

From Nice-to-Have to Non‑Negotiable

Fleet First, Then Everyone Else

MRO Business Gets a Turbo Boost

A Market That Likes Its Wi‑Fi

The Sources

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