1 May 2015 16:15
1 May 2015
Horizon Discovery Group plc
("Horizon", the "Company")
Results of Placing
Horizon Discovery Group plc (LSE:HZD), the international life science company supplying research tools and services that power genomics research and the development of personalised medicines, is pleased to announce the results of the conditional Placing announced earlier today.
A total of 21,096,933 Placing Shares have been placed by J.P. Morgan and Panmure Gordon at a Placing Price of 190 pence per Ordinary Share for a total of approximately £40.1 million, consisting of 13,157,895 New Placing Shares placed by the Company and 7,939,038 Existing Placing Shares sold by certain Selling Shareholders. The New Placing Shares represent 16.4 per cent. of the Existing Ordinary Shares of the Company, raising gross proceeds of approximately £25.0 million (before fees and expenses) for the Company.
Completion of the Placing remains subject, inter alia, to the passing of the Resolutions at the General Meeting being convened for 18 May 2015, and on the Admission of the New Placing Shares to trading on AIM. It is expected that Admission will take place at 8:00 a.m. on 20 May 2015 (at which time the Placing will become unconditional) and that dealings in the New Placing Shares on AIM will commence at the same time.
The New Placing Shares will be issued credited as fully paid and will be identical to and rank pari passu in all respects with the Existing Ordinary Shares, including the right to receive all future distributions declared, paid or made in respect of the Existing Ordinary Shares following the date of Admission.
A Circular to Shareholders, including a notice convening the General Meeting, will be dispatched today, 1 May 2015, and will also be available on the Company's website at www.horizondiscovery.com.
In addition to the Directors, certain Shareholders have irrevocably undertaken to vote in favour, or procure the vote in favour, of the Resolutions, amounting to, in aggregate, 35,862,485 Ordinary Shares, representing approximately 44.7 per cent. of the Existing Ordinary Shares.
One of the Directors of the Company, David Smoller, has agreed to sell Existing Ordinary Shares pursuant to the terms of the Placing to satisfy tax liabilities arising as a result of the acquisition of Sage Laboratories Inc. by the Company, representing approximately 0.26 per cent. of the Existing Ordinary Shares. Details of David Smoller's sale of Existing Ordinary Shares in the Placing are shown below:
Name of Director | Number of Existing Ordinary Shares held as at the date of this document | Number of Existing Ordinary Shares held as at the date of this document as a percentage of Existing Ordinary Shares | Number of Existing Ordinary Shares sold | Resulting number of Ordinary Shares held immediately following Admission | Resulting number of Ordinary Shares held immediately following Admission as a percentage of the Enlarged Issued Share Capital |
David Smoller | 922,238 | 1.15 | 209,898 | 712,340 | 0.70 |
J. P. Morgan is acting as joint bookrunner and Panmure Gordon is acting as financial adviser, Nominated Adviser, broker and joint bookrunner in respect of the Placing.
Dr Darrin M. Disley, Chief Executive Officer of Horizon, said: "We are delighted to announce the success of this placement, which included demand from both existing and new institutional investors, a testament to the confidence in Horizon's growth strategy and potential.
"With additional funds now in place, we plan to accelerate growth through a clear strategy including organic investment that will see the Group increase the leverage of its products and services, enhance its global distribution channels and maintain its scientific leadership. We would like to thank our existing investors for their continued support and welcome our new investors, and look forward to working with them as we continue upon our strong growth trajectory."
ENDS
For further information from Horizon Discovery Group plc, please contact:
Consilium Strategic Communications (Financial Media and Investor Relations)
Amber Bielecka / Mary-Jane Elliott / Jessica Hodgson / Matthew Neal
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3709 5701
Email: horizon@consilium-comms.com
Zyme Communications (Trade and Regional Media)
Katie Odgaard
Tel: +44 (0) 7787 502 947
Email: katie.odgaard@zymecommunications.com
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited (Financial Adviser, Nominated Adviser, Broker and Joint Bookrunner)
Corporate Finance: Freddy Crossley / Fabien Holler / Duncan Monteith
Broking: Tom Salvesen
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7886 2500
J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Joint Bookrunner)
Nicholas Hall / James Mitford
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7742 4000
All defined terms used in this announcement are defined in the appendix to the Proposed Placing and Notice of General Meeting announcement made earlier today.