Nevro Announces Pricing of Public Offerings of Common Stock and Convertible Senior Notes

On April 2, 2020 Nevro Corp. ("Nevro") (NYSE: NVRO), a global medical device company that is providing innovative, evidence-based solutions for the treatment of chronic pain, reported the pricing of concurrent underwritten public offerings of (a) 1,625,000 shares of its common stock at a public offering price of $84.00 per share for gross proceeds, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering costs, of approximately $136,500,000 (the "common stock offering") and (b) $165,000,000 aggregate amount of its 2.75% convertible senior notes due 2025 (the "notes") (the "notes offering") (Press release, Nevro, APR 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234556114]). Nevro has granted the underwriters of the offerings a 30-day option to purchase an additional (a) 243,750 shares of common stock at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions and (b) $24,750,000 aggregate amount of notes, less underwriting discounts and commissions and solely to cover over-allotments with respect to the notes offering. All of the shares of common stock to be sold in the common stock offering are being offered by Nevro. The offerings of the shares and the notes are expected to close on April 6, 2020, subject to customary closing conditions.

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The notes will be senior, unsecured obligations of Nevro, and will bear interest at a rate of 2.75% per year. Interest will be payable semi-annually in arrears on April 1 and October 1 of each year, beginning on October 1, 2020. The notes will mature on April 1, 2025, unless earlier repurchased or converted. Nevro may not redeem the notes, and no sinking fund is provided for the notes. Holders of the notes will have the right to require Nevro to repurchase all or a portion of their notes upon the occurrence of a fundamental change (as defined in the indenture governing the notes) at a cash purchase price of 100% of their principal amount plus any accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the fundamental change repurchase date.

The notes may be converted at an initial conversion rate of 9.5238 shares of Nevro’s common stock per $1,000 principal amount of notes (which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $105.00 per share and represents a conversion premium of 25.0% to the public offering price of Nevro’s common stock in the common stock offering). Prior to the close of business on the business day immediately preceding October 1, 2024, the notes will be convertible at the option of the holders of the notes only upon the satisfaction of specified conditions and during certain periods. On or after October 1, 2024 until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day preceding the maturity date, the notes will be convertible at the option of the holders of notes at any time regardless of these conditions. Conversions of the notes will be settled in cash, shares of Nevro’s common stock or a combination thereof, at Nevro’s election.

In connection with the pricing of the notes, Nevro entered into privately-negotiated convertible note hedge transactions with one or more of the underwriters and/or their respective affiliates and/or other financial institutions (the "option counterparties"). These transactions cover, subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments, the number of shares of Nevro’s common stock that will initially underlie the notes, and are expected generally to reduce the potential equity dilution, and/or offset any cash payments in excess of the principal amount due, as the case may be, upon conversion of the notes. Nevro entered into separate, privately-negotiated warrant transactions with the option counterparties at a higher strike price relating to the same number of shares of Nevro’s common stock, subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments, pursuant to which Nevro will sell warrants to the option counterparties. The warrants could have a dilutive effect on Nevro’s outstanding common stock to the extent that the price of Nevro’s common stock exceeds the strike price of those warrants. The strike price of the warrants will initially be $147.00 per share, which represents a premium of approximately 75% over the public offering price of Nevro’s common stock in the common stock offering and is subject to certain adjustments under the terms of the warrant transactions.

If the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional notes, Nevro expects to enter into additional convertible note hedge transactions and additional warrant transactions with the option counterparties, which will initially cover the number of shares of Nevro’s common stock that will initially underlie the additional notes sold to the underwriters.

Morgan Stanley is acting as bookrunning manager for the offerings.

Nevro has been advised that in connection with establishing their initial hedges of the convertible note hedge and warrant transactions, the option counterparties or their respective affiliates expect to enter into various derivative transactions with respect to Nevro’s common stock concurrently with or shortly after the pricing of the notes. This activity could increase (or reduce the size of any decrease in) the market price of Nevro’s common stock or the notes at that time. The option counterparties or their respective affiliates may modify their hedge positions by entering into or unwinding various derivatives with respect to Nevro’s common stock and/or purchasing or selling Nevro’s common stock or other securities of Nevro in secondary market transactions from time to time following the pricing of the notes and prior to maturity of the notes (and are likely to do so during any observation period related to a conversion of the notes).

The potential effect, if any, of these transactions and activities on the market price of Nevro’s common stock or the notes will depend in part on market conditions and cannot be ascertained at this time, but any of these activities could adversely affect the value of Nevro’s common stock, which could affect the ability to convert the notes, the value of the notes and the amount of cash, if any, and the number of and value of the shares of Nevro’s common stock, if any, holders would receive upon conversion of the notes.

Nevro intends to use a portion of the net proceeds from the common stock offering and the notes offering to pay the cost of the convertible note hedge transactions (after such cost is partially offset by the proceeds to Nevro from the sale of the warrants). Nevro expects to use the remainder of the net proceeds from the common stock offering for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of its 1.75% Convertible Senior Notes due 2021 (the "existing convertible notes") at maturity and Nevro may use a portion of the remaining net proceeds to repurchase a portion of the existing convertible notes prior to their maturity. If the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional notes, then Nevro intends to use a portion of the net proceeds from the sale of additional notes, together with the proceeds from the sale of additional warrants, to enter into additional convertible note hedge transactions with the option counterparties and Nevro intends to use the remaining net proceeds from the sale of such additional notes as set forth above.

A shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (including a base prospectus) relating to the common stock offering and the notes offering was automatically declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). Preliminary prospectus supplements related to each of the common stock offering and the notes offering (together with such base prospectus, each a "prospectus"), have been filed with the SEC and are available on the SEC’s website located at www.sec.gov. Copies of the prospectus relating to the common stock offering and the notes offering may be obtained, when available, from: Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale, of these securities in any state or 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 jurisdiction.

GPB Scientific Announces $25.5 Million Financing from Vensana Capital and Amgen Ventures

On April 2, 2020 GPB Scientific, Inc., a developer of breakthrough technologies for therapeutic cell production and bioprocessing, reported a $25.5 million funding commitment (Press release, GPB Scientific, APR 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234556113]). The financing is led by Vensana Capital alongside strategic investor Amgen Ventures with ongoing participation by existing investors.

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GPB Scientific previewed its Curate Cell Processing System in January at the Phacilitate World Leaders / Stem Cell Summit, where it attracted high interest for its exceptional performance. The Curate system utilizes its proprietary microfluidic deterministic lateral displacement technology in an easy-to-use closed system that has demonstrated the ability to deliver high yield and quality to process CAR-T, stem, and other cells with the throughput and scalability required for cell and gene therapies.

"Vensana Capital looks to support entrepreneurs with medical technology products that can be scaled to have significant impact on healthcare. GPB’s Curate system can dramatically reduce the overall manufacturing cost, therapeutic yield losses, and process time for producing life-saving cell therapies for cancer and other diseases," said Justin Klein, M.D., co-founder and managing partner at Vensana Capital. "The enhanced cell quality and higher yield not only address current cell therapy manufacturing cost and challenges but also have the potential to enhance the therapeutic benefits for patients. With investment from our inaugural fund we will help GPB drive the clinical assessment, GMP production, and commercialization of the Curate system."

"The Curate system is poised to be transformative for cell and gene therapies," said Philip Tagari, Amgen Vice President, Therapeutic Discovery. "As the industry works to implement reliable, efficient and cost-effective systems for the global deployment of these breakthrough medical treatments, GPB has devised an elegant yet powerful solution for cell separation, washing and concentration. The broad potential of this innovation aligns with Amgen’s mission to partner with innovators in the fight against serious illness."

"We are grateful for the support and confidence that Vensana and Amgen Ventures have placed in GPB Scientific for the continued development and commercialization of our Curate system," said Mike Grisham, CEO of GBP Scientific. "Our company was founded with a commitment to apply the groundbreaking microfluidic technology we have developed to get people better, and the strength of this $25.5 million financing will ensure we achieve that goal."

Ligand Completes Acquisition of Icagen Core Assets, Partnered Programs and Ion Channel Technologies

On April 2, 2020 Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) reported the completion of its acquisition of the core assets of Icagen’s North Carolina operations (Press release, Ligand, APR 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234556112]). As previously announced, the purchase price was $15 million in cash, and Icagen is entitled to receive additional cash payments based on certain revenue achievements.

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"We are very pleased to add the Icagen technologies, partnerships and this profitable business to Ligand," said John Higgins, Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. "We all know how extremely challenging the current business environment is, and I want to commend the teams on both sides who worked together to get this deal done. It’s a fantastic acquisition that will enable Ligand to expand its services to current partners and drive new collaborations. We expect the Icagen ion channel capabilities will have particular synergy with our Vernalis and OmniAb antibody discovery platforms. We welcome our new Icagen colleagues to Ligand."

Higgins continued, "While we adjust to conducting business during the pandemic, Ligand’s balance sheet remains very strong, and we continue to generate positive cash flow. We have a successful track record of acquiring innovative companies, and subsequently growing revenue, increasing our partner portfolio, and leveraging technology and customer synergies. Given our significant financial resources and talented operating team, we are well positioned to pursue acquisitions and new opportunities to expand our business."

The acquisition of Icagen brings Ligand the following:

Technology Platform. Icagen’s extensive biological capability focused on ion channels, transporters and x-ray fluorescence, along with a strong track record in novel drug discovery from screening to lead optimization. Ion channels are key components in a wide variety of biological processes that involve rapid changes in cells and have broad therapeutic applicability including cancer, metabolic disease, pain, neurological diseases, infectious diseases and others.
Roche Collaboration to develop and commercialize therapies for neurological diseases. The collaboration provides research funding, potential milestone payments of up to $274 million and tiered royalty payments should a drug be commercialized.
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) Collaboration to discover therapeutics to treat patients with cystic fibrosis caused by specific genetic mutations. The CFF collaboration allows for up to $11 million in research funding, milestone payments of up to $59 million and tiered royalties on sales, should a product be commercialized.
Proprietary Service Unit to Drive New Collaborations and Revenue, including a 32-person R&D team based in Raleigh, N.C., now known as Icagen, a Ligand Company, focused on drug discovery of ion channels and transporters. Icagen provides Ligand with an East Coast operation to efficiently serve partners and brings a portfolio of current or recent/active collaboration agreements with over 30 biopharma companies plus an ongoing business development pipeline.
Novel, Unpartnered Programs that include six preclinical-stage assets applicable to a range of therapy areas including diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, pain and other disorders.

Cancer Vaccine Start Up, Calviri, Closes Successful Seed Funding Round

On April 2, 2020 Calviri, Inc., a biotech startup spun out of Arizona State University Biodesign Institute, focused on ending deaths from cancer, reported the closing of $2.25 million in seed round funding (Press release, Calviri, APR 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234556111]). The funding is from five private investors including Dr. Jacque Sokolov, a Calviri Board member, and Dr. Mitzi Krockover.

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Calviri was founded based on the discovery that tumors make frequent and recurrent errors in RNA transcription and processing that create highly immunogenic frameshift peptides (FSPs). Calviri has developed a manufacturing process that displays >400,000 FSPs on microchips; this enables patients’ blood to be simply screened for anti-FSP antibodies. This process is the basis for the design of off-the-shelf vaccines for any cancer, as well as diagnostics for the early detection of any cancer. Calviri holds exclusive rights, licensed from Skysong, to the diagnostic technology developed by the Biodesign Center at ASU.

Kathryn Sykes, VP of Research and Product Development, stated, "We will use the funding to demonstrate the strengths of this unique technology. We anticipate demonstrating an accurate predictive diagnostic for response to checkpoint inhibitors and a high sensitivity test for the early detection of breast and colon cancers."

Stephen Albert Johnston, CEO and founder, announced, "This funding is a vote of confidence for our ambitious goals. It comes at a time that will allow Calviri to meet some important valuation inflection milestones for both the diagnostics and vaccines."

Merrimack Divests Early Stage Asset for $2.25 Million; Provides Strategy Update

On April 2, 2020 Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MACK) [("Merrimack" or the "Company")] reported receipt of $2.25 million in connection with the closing of a transaction in which the Company sold certain assets related to its preclinical nanoliposome programs to Celator Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Merrimack will not receive any further contingent consideration or royalties as a result of this transaction (Press release, Merrimack, APR 2, 2020, View Source [SID1234556110]).

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Under the terms of the agreement for the transaction, Celator, in addition to paying the base purchase price of $2.25 million, reimbursed the Merrimack for certain specified expenses and assumed certain liabilities with respect to the acquired assets. Further, under the agreement, the Company assigned to Celator the previously disclosed intellectual property license agreement among the Company and Ipsen S.A pursuant to which Ipsen granted the Company licenses to certain patents, and Celator also granted the Company an exclusive license to certain specified know-how and patents related to specific nano-liposome projects which remain in the Merrimack portfolio.

Completion of this transaction is a continuation of Merrimack’s strategy of extending its cash runway into 2027 and preserving its ability to capture the potential $450 million of remaining ONIVYDE-related contingent milestone payments resulting from its 2017 asset sale to Ipsen as well as the potential $54.5 million of remaining contingent milestone payments resulting from its 2019 sale of certain programs to Elevation Oncology, Inc. (formerly known as 14ner Oncology, Inc.).

"This asset sale transaction reflects our ongoing strategic focus on both the monetization of our remaining preclinical assets and the further reduction of our operating expenses," said Gary Crocker, Chairman of Merrimack’s Board of Directors. "Ipsen recently publicly announced that ONIVYDE is in Phase 3 clinical trials in two additional indications which we believe could, if successful, support the attainment of certain milestones. The proceeds from the Celator transaction provide an additional operational buffer in the event of any potential unanticipated contingencies, and enhance our ability to focus on our top priority, which is to preserve our ability to collect milestones and to maximize returns to shareholders. As opportunities arise we will continue to look to distribute excess cash not essential to our minimal operations."