Purple Biotech Announces $2.8 Million Registered Direct Offering of American Depositary Shares

Rhea-AI Summary

Purple Biotech (NASDAQ/TASE: PPBT) has announced a $2.8 million registered direct offering of 472,668 American Depositary Shares (ADSs) at $6.00 per ADS. Each ADS represents 200 ordinary shares. The offering, expected to close around December 4, 2024, is being facilitated by H.C. Wainwright & Co. as the exclusive placement agent. The company plans to use the proceeds to fund the development of its oncology therapeutic candidates and for general working capital purposes. The offering is made pursuant to a previously filed and effective shelf registration statement.

Positive

• Secured immediate funding of $2.8 million through ADS offering
• Funds allocated to advance oncology therapeutic development pipeline

Negative

• Potential dilution of existing shareholders through new ADS issuance
• Share offering priced at $6.00 per ADS indicates need for external funding

Insights

Financial Analyst

This $2.8 million registered direct offering at $6.00 per ADS represents significant dilution for a micro-cap biotech with a market cap of only $14.8 million. The pricing shows a considerable discount to market value, which is concerning. The capital raise, while providing needed working capital for their oncology pipeline, comes at a high cost to existing shareholders.

The involvement of H.C. Wainwright as placement agent and the use of a shelf registration from 2022 suggests this was an opportunistic raise, likely driven by immediate capital needs. The company's small market cap and the offering's size relative to it indicates significant financial pressure. Investors should monitor cash burn rate and potential need for additional future dilutive financings.

REHOVOT, Israel, Dec. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Purple Biotech Ltd. (“Purple Biotech” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ/TASE: PPBT), a clinical-stage company developing first-in-class therapies that overcome tumor immune evasion and drug resistance, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement for the purchase and sale of 472,668 of the Company’s American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”), each ADS representing 200 ordinary shares, at a purchase price of $6.00 per ADS, in a registered direct offering. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about December 4, 2024, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

H.C. Wainwright & Co. is acting as the exclusive placement agent for the offering.

The gross proceeds to the Company from the offering are expected to be approximately $2.8 million, before deducting the placement agent’s fees and other offering expenses payable by the Company. Purple Biotech intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund the development of its oncology therapeutic candidates and for general working capital and corporate purposes.
  
The ADSs described above are being offered by Purple Biotech pursuant to a “shelf” registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-268710) previously filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on December 8, 2022, and declared effective by the SEC on May 22, 2023. The offering of the ADSs in the offering will be made only by means of a prospectus, including a prospectus supplement, forming a part of the effective registration statement. A final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering will be filed with the SEC. Electronic copies of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus may be obtained, when available, on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov or by contacting H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC at 430 Park Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10022, by phone at (212) 865-5711 or e-mail at placements@hcwco.com.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.

About Purple Biotech

Purple Biotech Ltd. (NASDAQ/TASE: PPBT) is a clinical-stage company developing first-in-class therapies that seek to overcome tumor immune evasion and drug resistance. The Company’s oncology pipeline includes CM24, NT219 and IM1240. CM24 is a humanized monoclonal antibody that blocks CEACAM1, that supports tumor immune evasion and survival through multiple pathways. CEACAM1 on tumor cells, immune cells and neutrophils extracellular traps (NET) is a novel target for the treatment of multiple cancer indications. The Company has completed a Phase 2 proof of concept study for CM24 as a combination therapy with anti-PD-1 checkpoint inhibitor and chemotherapy for the treatment of second line pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The study demonstrated consistent improvement across all efficacy endpoints and also identified potential serum biomarkers, including pretreatment levels for CEACAM1 and NET marker, . NT219 is a dual inhibitor, novel small molecule that simultaneously targets IRS1/2 and STAT3. A Phase 1 dose escalation study was concluded as a monotherapy and in combination with cetuximab in which NT219 demonstrated anti-tumor activity in combination with cetuximab in second line patients with recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. The Company is advancing CAPTN-3, a preclinical platform of conditionally-activated tri-specific antibody that engages both T cells and NK cells to induce a strong, localized immune response within the tumor microenvironment. The cleavable capping technology confines the compound’s therapeutic activity to the local tumor microenvironment, and thereby potentially increases the anticipated therapeutic window in patients. The third arm specifically targets the Tumor Associated Antigen (TAA). The technology presents a novel mechanism of action by unleashing both innate and adaptive immune systems to mount an optimal anti-tumoral immune response. IM1240 is the first tri-specific antibody in development that targets 5T4 expressed in a variety of solid tumors and is correlated with advanced disease, increased invasiveness and poor clinical outcomes. The Company’s corporate headquarters are located in Rehovot, Israel. For more information, please visit https://purple-biotech.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements and Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements in this press release that are forward-looking and not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements that are not statements of historical fact, and may be identified by words such as “believe”, “expect”, “intend”, “plan”, “may”, “should”, “could”, “might”, “seek”, “target”, “will”, “project”, “forecast”, “continue” or “anticipate” or their negatives or variations of these words or other comparable words or by the fact that these statements do not relate strictly to historical matters. Examples of such statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the completion of the offering, the satisfaction of customary closing conditions related thereto and the intended use of net proceeds therefrom.   You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements reflect our current views, expectations, beliefs or intentions with respect to future events, and are subject to a number of assumptions, involve known and unknown risks, many of which are beyond our control, as well as uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be significantly different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, among others, risks relating to: market and other conditions; the plans, strategies and objectives of management for future operations; product development for NT219, CM24 and IM1240; the process by which such early stage therapeutic candidates could potentially lead to an approved drug product is long and subject to highly significant risks, particularly with respect to a joint development collaboration; the fact that drug development and commercialization involves a lengthy and expensive process with uncertain outcomes; our ability to successfully develop and commercialize our pharmaceutical products; the expense, length, progress and results of any clinical trials; the impact of any changes in regulation and legislation that could affect the pharmaceutical industry; the difficulty in receiving the regulatory approvals necessary in order to commercialize our products; the difficulty of predicting actions of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or any other applicable regulator of pharmaceutical products; the regulatory environment and changes in the health policies and regimes in the countries in which we operate; the uncertainty surrounding the actual market reception to our pharmaceutical products once cleared for marketing in a particular market; the introduction of competing products; patents obtained by competitors; dependence on the effectiveness of our patents and other protections for innovative products; our ability to obtain, maintain and defend issued patents; the commencement of any patent interference or infringement action against our patents, and our ability to prevail, obtain a favorable decision or recover damages in any such action; and the exposure to litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory actions, and other factors that are discussed in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2023 and in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our cautionary discussion of risks and uncertainties under “Risk Factors” in our Registration Statements and Annual Reports. These are factors that we believe could cause our actual results to differ materially from expected results. Other factors besides those we have listed could also adversely affect us. Any forward-looking statement in this press release speaks only as of the date which it is made. We disclaim any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement or other information contained herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. You are advised, however, to consult any additional disclosures we make in our reports to the SEC, which are available on the SEC’s website, https://www.sec.gov.

CONTACTS:

Company Contact:
 
IR@purple-biotech.com

FAQ

What is the size of Purple Biotech's (PPBT) December 2024 registered direct offering?

Purple Biotech's registered direct offering is approximately $2.8 million, consisting of 472,668 American Depositary Shares at $6.00 per ADS.

How will Purple Biotech (PPBT) use the proceeds from its December 2024 offering?

Purple Biotech will use the net proceeds to fund the development of its oncology therapeutic candidates and for general working capital and corporate purposes.

When is Purple Biotech's (PPBT) December 2024 registered direct offering expected to close?

The offering is expected to close on or about December 4, 2024, subject to customary closing conditions.