Catch up on today's top five analyst upgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Staples (SPLS) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citi with analyst Kate McShane saying her sum-of-the-parts analysis indicates the company should be worth closer to $7.9B versus the current market capitalization of $5.6B. This implies 30% upside for the shares, McShane tells investors in a research note after the Wall Street Journal reported Staples is exploring a possible sale. The analyst believes the exploration makes sense. She upped her price target for Staples to $12 from $9.50. 2. Wells Fargo (WFC) and Citi (C) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette. 3. McCormick (MKC) upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan with analyst Ken Goldman saying he continues to view the stock as overvalued but notes management "sounded highly confident about current fundamentals." 4. Wynn Resorts (WYNN) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Argus with analyst John Staszak saying the company is benefiting from the "consistent improvement" of its Wynn Palace casino in Macau, along with the overall improvement of the Macau gambling market in general and the faster than expected rebound of the Macau VIP market in particular. 5. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Exane BNP Paribas. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

Due to a rapidly changing epidemiological environment following the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, CureVac and GSK decided to end the Pandemic Preparedness Agreement jointly concluded with the Federal Republic of Germany in April 2022. This decision was made after consultation with the German Federal Ministry of Health and the German Center for Pandemic Vaccines and Therapeutics. The agreement included the provision of production capacity and supply of mRNA-based vaccines in the event of a public health emergency in Germany. Termination will take effect on May 31, 2024, with no further financial obligations. Completion of CureVac's GMP IV manufacturing plant for the production mRNA-based vaccines is unaffected and progressing. Contingent upon regulatory approval, the facility is expected to be certified in the second half of 2024.

CureVac (CVAC) announced the start of the Phase 1 part of a combined Phase 1/2 study of an investigational influenza A pre-pandemic vaccine candidate developed in collaboration with GSK (GSK). The H5N1 avian influenza virus is considered a potential future pandemic threat, known to sporadically cross species from its original bird host to other animal hosts and humans. The monovalent vaccine candidate is based on CureVac's proprietary second-generation mRNA backbone and encodes an influenza A H5-antigen. The combined Phase 1/2 study will evaluate the safety, reactogenicity and immunogenicity of an investigational influenza A pre-pandemic vaccine candidate in healthy younger adults aged 18 to 64 and healthy older adults aged 65 to 85. In the initial Phase 1 dose-escalation part of the study, up to five dose levels will be assessed compared to a placebo control. The study will be conducted in the United States. The broad CureVac-GSK infectious disease collaboration was first announced in July 2020. It focuses on applying CureVac's mRNA-technology to the development of new products for infectious disease targets.