MorphoSys Raises EUR 84 Million in Private Placement
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MorphoSys AG has announced that it has raised gross proceeds of approximately EUR 84 million in a private placement via an accelerated book building procedure.
MorphoSys issued 1,514,066 new shares from authorized capital to international institutional investors at a price of EUR 55.76 per share, which corresponds to the closing auction price on 18 September 2013, one day prior to the launch of the transaction.
The offering represents approximately 6.3% of the registered pre-transaction share capital and will bring the total number of registered shares after the issuance to 25,669,444, and was multiple times over-subscribed.
The new shares will be admitted to listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange following their issuance.
The net proceeds from the transaction will be used by MorphoSys to:
• fund the clinical development of MOR208, our wholly owned anti-CD19 antibody, potentially including an additional phase 2 combination study in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). MOR208 has completed a phase 1 study in CLL and is in ongoing phase 2 clinical trials in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL);
• fund the further clinical development of MOR202 (an anti-CD38 antibody currently in a phase 1/2a clinical trial in multiple myeloma), for which MorphoSys has signed a global co-development agreement with Celgene;
• initiate, advance and/or accelerate the development of other proprietary programs, including advancing of pre-clinical or clinical stage assets into later stages of clinical development prior to licensing;
• fund potential acquisitions of new businesses, technologies or products, including MorphoSys's Innovation Capital initiative, that would complement our business or expand our portfolio.
"We are very pleased to announce the successful completion of our placement which we believe reflects the significant progress made at MorphoSys over the past year," said Dr. Simon Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys AG.
Dr. Moroney continued, "We have made considerable progress in advancing our pipeline and have announced ground-breaking partnerships with both GlaxoSmithKline and Celgene. The funds we have raised will allow us to further develop our wholly-owned program MOR208, to build on the great potential of MOR202 with our partner Celgene and to invest in other attractive opportunities. We believe MorphoSys is well positioned to build on this positive momentum and to continue to build significant value to shareholders."
Jens Holstein, Chief Financial Officer of MorphoSys AG commented: "In response to the progress the company achieved in recent years and the further promise of our pipeline, we received strong interest from international investors. The offering has allowed us to meet this demand, strengthen our financial position and further enhance trading liquidity. The funds raised will provide additional strategic flexibility as we continue to build the company to create long-term value for our shareholders."
