Morning Buzz: Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Xoma Corp (XOMA), Twitter (TWTR), Wal-Mart (WMT)

Google Inc (GOOG) and Microsoft Corp (MSFT) announced Wednesday that they have dismissed all outstanding patent disputes between them over technology found in phones and the Xbox. The companies did not disclose any financial details about the agreement but said they have agreed to collaborate on “certain patent matters.” The peace pact will result in dropping 18 lawsuits in both the U.S. and Germany, Reuters says.
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Shares of XOMA Corporation (XOMA) are higher by 54.32% to $1.16 in pre-market trading on Thursday after the company announced an exclusive license agreement with Novartis AG (NVS) to develop and commercialize its cancer-fighting antibody program. Under the terms of the agreement, XOMA will receive an upfront payment of $37 million. The company also said that it is eligible to receive up to $480 million in milestone payments. In addition, XOMA is eligible to receive royalties on product sales that range from the mid-single digits to the low double digits.

“With this non-dilutive liquidity of essentially $50.5 million, we currently project this capital, in combination with our planned cost savings measures, will fund operations into 2017,” stated Xoma CEO John Varian. “We remain on track to begin our XOMA 358 Phase 2 clinical program this fall and fully anticipate we will have the data from these studies during that timeframe.”
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Twitter, Inc. (TWTR) – On Wednesday, Re/code’s Kara Swisher reported that Jack Dorsey, who has served as interim chief executive the past three months, could be named the company’s new permanent CEO. The report notes that Dorsey will continue to run Square, the payments company he founded where he is also CEO.

TWTR shares recently lost $0.24 to $26.70. In the past 52 weeks, shares of San Francisco, California-based company have traded between a low of $21.01 and a high of $55.99.

Shares are down 47.77% year-over-year and 24.90% year-to-date.
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Wal-Mart (WMT) — The retail giant is expected to cut hundreds of jobs at its Arkansas headquarters in an effort to pare costs, according to Reuters. The publication notes that fewer than 500 employees are expected to lose their jobs and an announcement could be made as early as tomorrow.

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