Cloud-based Learning Management Systems (LMS) are “predicted to revolutionize both the way we learn as students and the way we learn on the job” according to Capterra (http://dtn.fm/Gz7Yi). The article continues to explain that more and more organizations are likely to adopt cloud-based LMS in the coming years.

Cloud-based Learning Management Systems are web-hosted platforms used by organizations to deliver, manage, and track online training programs for their employees. One of the industries highlighted as a user of LMS software is the real estate industry, and eXp World Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: EXPI), holding company for a cloud-based, agent-owned real estate brokerage, is one company in the sector that’s taking advantage of the many benefits offers by cloud-based LMS.

In fact, the company’s eXp Realty subsidiary is a full-service real estate brokerage that offers 24/7 access to collaborative tools and socialization features to its agents and brokers through its 3-D, cloud office environment. In addition to collaborative tools and socialization, EXPI offers its agents a full network of online training resources.

As well as introducing lower setup costs, this method of training is easy to maintain and, according to eLearning Industry (http://dtn.fm/bUL0M), increases productivity and job satisfaction. The article explains that virtual training saves time and money, and it is far more appealing to employees, or, in this case, agents and brokers, as they can access courses from anywhere at any time.

The eXp World Holdings training platform is accessible to agents and brokers all day, every day, for free. The system EXPI uses provides flexible training options to agents whereby they can improve and advance their eXp Realty operations. The platform offers a range of courses to choose from with the opportunity to attend meetings and company presentations as well.

This user-friendly way of learning is completely secure, and it allows for more effective training, as users can learn in their chosen environments, from any device. Courses can be uploaded easily and improved upon with time. Aside from the high-quality training, EXPI agents and brokers are able to increase their listings and sales while reducing their overhead and capital requirements.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.eXpWorldHoldings.com

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With health care costs constantly on the rise across all medical sectors, a growing number of health care professionals and practices are looking for ways to streamline and improve their processes via electronic management technologies, so as to ultimately offer more efficient and cost-effective services. Whether it’s electronic medical records, revenue cycle management, scheduling and billing software, or more, cloud-based technologies are becoming increasingly popular in the health care niche, proving to be a very effective replacement for the traditional manual systems.

One segment that is largely unaddressed, but which would particularly benefit from a more complex and comprehensive digital management system, is surgical care, due primarily to the urgency associated with these services. This is where ORHub, Inc. (OTC: ORHB), a cloud-based software platform focused on the value-based medicine model in surgical care, comes in. The company’s software, known as Surgical Resource Management, was developed specifically for surgery management, promising to revolutionize this segment by offering significantly enhanced capabilities compared to more traditional electronic health records solutions.

The revolutionary platform is 100 percent proprietary and was built around Microsoft’s Azure Cloud system. It is already being used by two hospitals – a regional hospital in Southern California and a prominent non-profit hospital system, with encouraging results. The software is still being tested further as part of a study to determine its impact on participating institutions, conducted by Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT). The study is likely to be concluded by the middle of 2017, as ORHub is planning to run three more pilot programs in other hospitals before launching the platform officially nationwide. Marketing efforts will mostly focus on major hospital operations. There are about 5,600 hospitals in the U.S. at the moment.

It is estimated that there are approximately 150 million surgeries per year in the United States, and many of the systems that handle these processes, from scheduling to billing and inventory, are manual. This leaves way for lengthier processing times and delayed payments to vendors, not to mention potential errors. ORHub’s platform is designed to improve this process not only by making it more efficient and eliminating potential human errors and omissions, but also by significantly decreasing costs.

As the number of annual surgeries is likely to grow, ORHub is planning to gain a dominant share of the surgical care segment with the help of its innovative platform, aiming to ultimately help reduce annual health care spending by up to $250 billion. A significant part of its platform is currently dedicated to implant surgeries, a segment that is also expected to grow. At the moment there are an estimated seven million implant surgeries across the United States and roughly $85 billion spent on surgical implants and biologics every year.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ORhub.com

Substance abuse and addiction remain a serious problem across the United States, generating more than $700 billion a year in expenses related to health care, crime, work productivity and more, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (http://dtn.fm/pcN87). Abuse of tobacco, illicit drugs and alcohol remains high, along with the number of prescription drug users nationwide. Unfortunately, not all people suffering from a substance abuse problem get the treatment they need, or perhaps access to any kind of treatment at all, with potentially lethal consequences. GreeneStone Healthcare Corp. (OTCQB: GRST), a Canadian-founded provider of healthcare services, with a focus on addiction and mental health, is hoping to change this as it enters the U.S. market with a unique and tested approach to the substance abuse recovery process.

The company recently sold its Canadian addiction business and is planning to open a new treatment center in Florida after acquiring the real estate assets and business of Delray Beach-based Seastone addiction center. Known as a leading and first addiction treatment of the kind in Canada, GreeneStone has used modern philosophies and techniques to successfully treat hundreds of patients, and it has been planning to expand its operations to the U.S. as well. The first step is the Florida clinic, where the company hopes to use the skills acquired in Canada to revolutionize addiction treatment.

According to the Addiction Blog (http://dtn.fm/4irCC), Florida has a severe substance problem and one of the highest overdose mortality rates in the United States. With more than 300 illegal methamphetamine labs seized and almost 3,000 drug induced deaths per year, the need for comprehensive and effective substance abuse and addiction treatment is evident. In addition, Florida also prescribes up to 10 times more oxycodone pills than all the other states combined, which in turn causes a major increase in the number of addiction patients throughout the state.

GreeneStone’s unique approach to substance abuse recovery is based on the best practices and principles available and focuses on treating not only the addiction problem but also any co-occurring and underlying disorders that enabled the addiction behavior in the first place. GreeneStone applies unique assessment tools to evaluate the extent and nature of the brain disorders in its clients so that it may effectively tailor the treatment plan. With a non-judgmental, client-centered approach that respects the need for privacy, independence and autonomy and embraces diversity, GreeneStone is developing personalized, holistic treatments for its patients, based on their individual beliefs and situation.

Additionally, all treatments are results oriented and based on the idea of inclusion – meaning that each client benefits from core team support consisting of friends or family. Counseling and education are also provided to family members and friends who are part of patients’ support teams, with the goal of helping them get a better understanding of what their loved ones are going through, what addiction entails and how they can help during and after the recovery process.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.GreeneStone.net

Drug development. Medical marijuana. Female diagnostics and treatments. These high-growth industries and sectors are the focal points of Easton Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s (OTC: EAPH) operations. A diversified and specialty company based in Canada, Easton’s operation spans multiple pharmaceutical sectors and other emergent industries, including the medical marijuana market.

In its day-to-day operations, the company balances three mission goals:

1. It develops and acquires drugs, diagnostics and treatment products that build shareholder value.
2. It delivers safe, effective and proven products that improve the health and well-being of men and women across global jurisdictions.
3. It builds and capitalizes on fast-growing and promising industries and sectors defined by products like medical marijuana, vaporizers, e-liquids and other items.

Within the pharmaceutical sector, Easton designs, develops and markets a variety of topical drugs and therapeutic health care products. It formerly developed and owned a wound-healing drug approved the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Presently, however, its portfolio includes products in various stages of development and approval, from topically-delivered drugs that treat cancer to therapeutic products that treat varied conditions. For one, Easton is the midst of developing XILIVE, an early stage cancer drug. For another, it is growing its product portfolio, which currently includes: Kenestrin Gel used for arthritic pain and pain in the back, elbows, knees, shoulders and wrist; Nauseasol, a motion sickness gel; Skin Renou HA, an anti-aging wrinkle cream using hyaluronic acid, which keeps the skin smooth; Viorra, a hormone-free, non-toxic, and topical gel that improves a woman’s sexual functioning; and a female sexual arousal disorder drug.

Another key product in Easton’s portfolio is AL-Sense (AmnioSense), an amniotic fluid diagnostic leak test. Through a strategic partnership, Easton and another company, BMV Medica SA de C.V., own the exclusive distribution rights for AL-Sense (AmnioSense) in Mexico and Latin America. AL-Sense (AmnioSense) is a patented women’s diagnostic product that has been approved in Europe and is already being sold in the United Kingdom. With the birth rate in Latin America estimated at three times that of North America and most of Europe, it opens up a vast market for the Easton / BMV partnership, one with a population greater than 200 million people. The higher birthrate in the region and other factors also portend a faster rate of sale for pharmaceutical and diagnostic products, approximately five times the rate of North American and European sales.

For more information, visit www.EastonPharmaceuticalsInc.com

National Waste Management Holdings (OTC: NWMH) is turning trash into treasure in its run-up to becoming a leading waste management company in the United States. Specializing in a multitude of solid waste management services, the company recognizes the promise in this highly-regulated industry and is pursuing a growth strategy that merges supplementary acquisitions with organic initiatives.

Over 20 years ago, National Waste established a presence in Hernando, Florida – the base of its operations – before extending its reach to the state of New York. Fast forward to today, and the company is focused on hastening its growth and leveraging the resources at its disposal, including:

• The backing of its tested leadership team;
• Industry trends, including national recycling mandates;
• Prospective increases in residential construction and infrastructure spending; and
• Strategic company acquisitions.

Operationally, National Waste specializes in services surrounding the removal and hauling off of debris, garbage and waste. The company offers construction and demolition landfill services; commercial and residential dumpster services and roll-off boxes for construction and clean-up projects. It also provides trash collection services and a full service transfer station, as well as wood grinding, demolition, mulch and gravel services for industrial and residential markets.

These days, National Waste continues to press forward with an aggressive business model that calls for one acquisition per quarter by seeking out acquisitive opportunities in Upstate New York and Florida. To name a few, the company acquired both Sivart Services, a roll-off and compactor company in Worchester, NY, and Northeast Data Destruction and Recycling in 2016. More recently, in February 2017, National Waste targeted and closed on another acquisition in the area. This time, it acquired Burts Refuse, a waste disposal and recycling business in West Davenport, NY.

National Waste’s recent acquisitions add to its existing operations while making way for future growth. These deals expand its territory for commercial and residential garbage collection in Upstate New York, increase its roll-off customer base and business relationships and strengthen its equipment line with additional trucks, equipment and containers. They also create overhead cost savings for the company and introduce new income streams to its books.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.nationalwastemgmt.com

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Chinese consumers are spending more, and that harbors good fortune for Moxian, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOXC) as it continues to roll out its comprehensive online-to-offline (O2O) commercial platform. Consumption in China as a percentage of GDP is rising, and retail sales went up by about 10 percent in 2016. There’s no doubt that consumption is driving commerce and that the Moxian platform that links brick-and-mortar establishments to the cloud is at the hub of online and offline commercial activity.

Reuters (http://nnw.fm/Yf4xs) recently reported on data released by China’s statistics bureau that showed consumption accounted for about three-quarters of China’s economic growth in the first half of 2016. In the past, a lot of China’s GDP growth has come from capital investment and exports, and consumption since the Great Recession has been around 36 percent of GDP. The 2016 reported figure would indicate that the Chinese economy is on its way to becoming consumer driven, much as Western economies are. Consumption contributes to more than half of GDP in most developed economies. In the U.S., it accounts for about two-thirds of economic activity.

Other data shows that, indeed, the normally thrifty Chinese are loosening their purse strings. While the Chinese economy is expected to grow by 6.7 percent in 2016, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) (http://nnw.fm/l1NyB), China Daily (http://nnw.fm/k7IH1) reported that retail sales in China rose by 9.6 percent in 2016. Retail is growing 40 percent faster than the economy.

Moxian is set to capitalize on these changing dynamics. It is planning a renewed marketing push of its Moxian+ platform this month. The company now has operations in two major Chinese cities, Shenzhen and Beijing, and plans to expand into two more, Shanghai and Guangzhou, with a sales force of around 100 by the end of 2017. The sales effort will be directed to both increasing the number of merchants using the free version of the platform and converting ‘free’ users to Moxian’s added subscription services. The free version of Moxian’s platform is already in use by more than 30,000 businesses and 300,000 consumers, mostly in Shenzhen.

Shenzhen is one of China’s top five cities, according to China Highlights (http://nnw.fm/K60Nq), with a population of around 10 million. The city has the distinction of being home to China’s first Special Economic Zone (SEZ), created in 1980, and the level of financial and investment activity has merited the establishment of its own Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE), now the world’s eighth largest, listing companies with a total capitalization of around $2.3 trillion.

Beijing, of course, is the capital of the People’s Republic of China, with a population of about 19 million and an economy estimated (http://nnw.fm/eT87j) at around $360 billion in 2016. Guangzhou is also a major Chinese city. It has a population of about 11 million and is noted for the large number of foreigners living there. Biggest and brightest of all, however, is Shanghai, with its population of some 24 million. China Highlights ranks it as the number one city, boasting that it is ‘the undisputed largest and wealthiest city in China’.

Based in Shenzhen, China, Moxian has developed a technology platform, Moxian+, which provides small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with technology tools to manage and conduct business through mobile, online, and social media channels. Moxian+ is targeted at SMEs with traditional, offline, or “brick and mortar” businesses, providing them with a full suite of O2O commerce services. With a footprint in China’s top cities, the company looks set to do some business.

For more information, visit www.Moxian.com

Vertex Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: VTNR), an environmental services company that focuses on aggregating, processing, and recycling industrial waste systems and off-specification commercial chemical products, is taking strides toward conserving the environmental and energy resources of the United States by operating in three key divisions: Black Oil, Refining & Marketing, and Recovery.

The Black Oil Division collects, aggregates, processes, and then sells used motor oil (UMO) and finished products, while the Refining & Marketing Division aggregates and manages the refining of off-specification petroleum and chemical products. Lastly, the Recovery Division provides hydrocarbon stream recovery and management solutions, industrial dismantling and demolition, and decommissioning services.

Vertex Energy also uses a variety of refining technologies. These include base oil, VGO, and TCEP, with refineries located in Columbus, Ohio; Marrero, Louisiana; and four other terminals. These aggregate UMO collected from across eight to 10 major metropolitan areas.

The company is made up of third-party aggregation systems with approximately 50 collectors, 43 trucks operating as collectors, a nationwide processing capacity of over 115 million gallons, and in-depth market knowledge that enables its sales model to foster strong, localized relationships. VTNR now has 2 terminals for aggregation in Houston and Mobile, and it has developed and patented a unique UMO processing technology.

Although Vertex Energy still has a presence across the country, taking on 23 percent of total UMO refining capacity in North America, it now operates in strategic regional hubs, allowing it to optimize its transportation costs. The company has two refining facilities in Texas, two in Louisiana, and one in Ohio. All of these have a diversification of product mix, with one in Baytown strategically located to capitalize on the export market created by Gulf refiners, and one which is capable of low-capex conversion, allowing it to produce base oil.

Most recently, Vertex announced its fourth quarter and end-of-year financial results for 2016. For the three months ended December 31, 2016, the company reported revenues of over $31 million, a growth of nearly 50 percent compared to the same period of 2015. VTNR’s gross profits came in at over $5 million, more than 1,000 percent higher than the previous year, with a gross profit margin of 17 percent. Additionally, the company’s SG&A expenses decreased more than 30 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, and per-barrel margin improved more than 1,000 percent.

Overall, Vertex reported revenues of more than $98 million, with profits exceeding last year’s figure by over $5 million, and a gross profit margin 10 percent higher than in 2015. During 2016, the company reduced debts and stabilized itself. VTNR expects increased volume in 2017.

Recently, analysts have shown significant interest in Vertex Energy, with the majority of these offering the company a ‘Buy’ or ‘Strong Buy’ recommendation on the stock. Rives Journal states that some analysts project the stock to reach $2.13 in the near future (http://dtn.fm/0NnCI). Zacks Investment Research upgraded Vertex from a ‘Hold’ rating to a ‘Buy’ rating with a price objective of $1.50 per share, all according to Daily Quint (http://dtn.fm/zGd6B).

Institutional investors raised their positions in the company, giving them ownership of 21.51 percent of Vertex’s stock. On March 1, 2017, Vertex Energy traded up over 4 percent, reaching $1.41. As it stands today, the company has a market cap of just over $39 million.

For more information, visit www.VertexEnergy.com

According to a new market report published by Credence Research (http://dtn.fm/FV2Gi) entitled ‘Head Mounted Display (HMD) (Defense, Consumer, Industrial, Healthcare, Public Safety, and Other Verticals) Market – Growth, Share, Opportunities, Competitive Analysis, and Forecast 2015 – 2022’, the head mounted display market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of just below 50% between 2015 and 2022.

The report explains that this significant growth has been largely attributed to the declining prices of microdisplays, coupled with the high demand for lightweight wearable computing devices. Because of this decline in prices, manufacturers are now able to penetrate into the consumer market, offering more affordable products.

eMagin Corp. (NYSE MKT: EMAN), a company dedicated to developing and delivering head-worn systems for law enforcement, military, entertainment, and medical applications, among others, is set to capitalize on this growing industry thanks to its ability to develop and deliver high-quality, high-resolution, cutting-edge displays to its customers.

Earlier this week, the company was a big mover, with a rise in shares of more than 9% on March 7, 2017. According to the Nasdaq website (http://dtn.fm/YhZ6q), “The move came on solid volume with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session. This breaks the recent trend of the company, as the stock is now trading above the volatile price range of $2.10 to $2.30 in the past one-month time frame.” The company’s stock price escalated, climbing to $2.45 per share in Friday morning trading.

On March 8, the Daily Quint reported that Bessemer Group, Inc. had acquired over 76,000 new shares of eMagin stock worth approximately $164,000 (http://dtn.fm/9QusN). Not only this, Fiscal Standard (http://dtn.fm/l8xRG) reported that H. C. Wainright and Craig Hallum began coverage on the company, with both issuing it a ‘Buy’ rating. Craig Hallum gave eMagin a target share price of $6.

eMagin is the first and leading manufacturer of active matrix OLED-on-silicon microdisplays. In addition to the company’s focus on the security, defense, medical, and industrial markets, eMagin has now entered into the consumer market with its Z800 3DVisor, which was described as the “the best 3D goggles we’ve ever tested” by Maximum PC (http://dtn.fm/zyV67).

For more information, visit www.eMagin.com

Singlepoint, Inc. (OTC: SING), a publicly traded holding company based in Arizona, has been highlighted as one to look out for in the cannabis space, according to InsiderFinancial.com (http://dtn.fm/3zGnN). The company, through its SingleSeed subsidiary, provides business services to cannabis businesses, including marketing, point of sale and more.

Because of the company’s nature, and its ability to fill a very challenging gap in the marijuana industry, Singlepoint is on a climb as the industry continues to flourish in the United States. This has been reflected in its stock price, which at the time of InsiderFinancial’s coverage had shown a 560% appreciation in approximately 12 weeks.

In addition to its substantial stock rise, earlier this year Singlepoint announced that it has raised more than $600,000, and it is looking to secure up to $1 million. Singlepoint has also made reference to its strategic acquisition activities.

During an interview with Donald Baillargeon from Money TV (http://dtn.fm/e27Za), CEO Greg Lambrecht explained that the companies Singlepoint is looking to acquire are those that are part of the cannabis industry, but that do not in any way touch the plant itself. This acquisition strategy allows Singlepoint to continue expanding without getting into trouble with any state or federal laws.

According to InsiderFinancial, the acquisition announcement relates to a company called Convectium, which has invented a mechanism that fills over 100 oil cartridges in just 30 seconds. Because of the high demand for this type of infrastructural technology, Singlepoint is expected to close this acquisition in the very near future.

According to Lambrecht and InsiderFinancial, Singlepoint’s key goals are to close its acquisition of Convectium, look for more acquisitions to close in the future, and continue to raise money for the company. With a market cap that has grown from just $5 million to over $40 million, and a significant amount of attention from new investors and other third parties, analysts believe that Singlepoint will continue to show signs of growth for the foreseeable future.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Singlepoint.com

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At the recently held Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, details of clinical trial results presented by CytoDyn Inc. (OTCQB: CYDY) for its monoclonal antibody, PRO 140, were well received. The UK-based charity, NAM Aidsmap, known for its pioneering work in providing information on HIV/AIDS therapies, hailed the poster presentations on monoclonal antibodies such as PRO 140, noting the promise they hold as long-acting therapies for HIV/AIDS patients with limited treatment options due to drug resistance (http://nnw.fm/dFPp2). PRO 140’s efficacy has already offered hope to a number of HIV positive patients in a series of clinical trials. On behalf of CytoDyn, Dr. Kush Dhody of Amarex Clinical Research presented, in a well-attended special themed discussion, the latest results from the extension study of a Phase IIb trial of PRO 140 as a single agent maintenance therapy for people who had achieved viral suppression on standard combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) and wanted to switch to a treatment with fewer side effects to improve their quality of life and provide simpler compliance.

Antibodies are produced by the body as a first line of defense against pathogens such as viruses and bacteria. Each antibody is uniquely developed to combat a particular antigen, which it then counters by flagging the intruder as such, to be destroyed by microphages, or by neutralizing it. Monoclonal antibodies are artificially produced antibodies that have been cloned from one cell, hence the term “monoclonal”. Being clones, antibodies produced from one cell are identical, and this means that large numbers of a specific antibody can be produced to fight the unique antigens associated with a pathogen.

This characteristic of selectively targeting a pathogen has given antibodies the moniker ‘magic bullets’, since they attack the disease-carrying cells without harming the host. The term was first proposed by German physician Paul Ehrlich, whose insights into the operation of these immunological mechanisms earned him the Nobel Prize in 1908.

PRO 140 is considered one of the most advanced experimental monoclonal antibodies for HIV treatment and has been used in more than 140 HIV positive patients in placebo controlled and open label FDA-approved clinical trials. The drug has been the subject of seven clinical trials, each demonstrating efficacy by significantly reducing or controlling HIV viral load in human test patients and has been designated a “fast track” product candidate by the FDA.

If approved for commercialization, PRO 140 could face a $20 billion U.S. HIV therapeutics market that is plagued with a number of ills, including difficult dosing schedules, resistance to currently used drugs, and, worst of all, the debilitating toxicity of standard highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). PRO 140 has been shown to address the weaknesses of HAART with no serious side effects, hardly any toxicity and no drug resistance when self-administered as a dose-a-week subcutaneous injection. Despite advances in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS, the scourge still afflicts ‘more than 1.2 million people in the U.S.’, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://nnw.fm/b5LWn). With PRO 140, CytoDyn is offering the hope of a longer and richer lifespan to many of those.

CytoDyn is a biotechnology company focused on the clinical development and commercialization of humanized monoclonal antibodies for the treatment and prevention of human immunodeficiency virus infection.

For more information, visit www.CytoDyn.com