Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Walgreens brings in powerhouse PE firms for talks
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA +3.9%) has been in talks with large private equity firms about the potential of stitching together a huge leveraged buyout of the retail chain, sources tell Reuters.
Evercore Partners is working with Walgreens on the exploratory process. If a deal was struck, it would likely be one of the largest leveraged buyouts in history based off Walgreens +$50B market cap.
Walgreens hasn’t issued a comment on the report.
Volume on Walgreens is over 4X normal activity with two hours of trading to go.
Walgreens spikes on report of go-private interest
Trading on Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA +5.4%) has been halted due to a volatility spike following a Reuters report indicating the company is exploring a potential go-private deal.
Neuronetics Reports Third Quarter 2019 Financial and Operating Results
Neuronetics, Inc. (NASDAQ: STIM), a commercial stage medical technology company focused on designing, developing and marketing products that improve the quality of life for patients who suffer from psychiatric disorders, today announced its financial and operating results for the third quarter of 2019.
Third Quarter 2019 Highlights
- Third quarter 2019 revenue of $16.0 million, an increase of 16% over the third quarter of 2018
- Third quarter 2019 U.S. treatment session revenue of $10.3 million, an increase of 11% over the third quarter of 2018
- Third quarter 2019 U.S. NeuroStar® Advanced Therapy revenue of $4.6 million, an increase of 18% over the third quarter of 2018
- Active installed base was 1,032, as of September 30, 2019, an increase of 20% over the prior year period
- Business OutlookFor the fourth quarter of 2019, the Company expects to report worldwide revenue between $16.7 million and $17.7 million, representing 7% and 13% year-over-year growth, respectively.For the full year 2019, the Company now expects to report total worldwide revenue between $62.0 and $63.0 million, representing 17% and 19% year-over-year growth, respectively, down from previous guidance of between $63.0 and $65.0 million.For the full year 2019, the Company continues to expect gross margins to be in the mid 70% range, in line with full year 2018 margins.For the full year 2019, the Company now expects operating expenses to be between $73.5 and $75.5 million, down slightly from previous guidance between $74.0 and $77.5 million.Webcast and Conference Call InformationNeuronetics’ management team will host a conference call on November 5, 2019 beginning at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Investors interested in listening to the conference call may do so by dialing (877) 472-8990 for domestic callers or +1 (629) 228-0778 for international callers, and referencing Conference ID: 3946759 approximately 10 minutes prior to start time. To access the live audio webcast or subsequent archived recording, visit the Investor Relations section of Neuronetics’ website at ir.neuronetics.com.
- https://www.biospace.com/article/releases/neuronetics-reports-third-quarter-2019-financial-and-operating-results/
Fulgent Genetics Q3 Revenues Up 84 Percent
Fulgent Genetics reported after the close of the market on Monday that its third quarter revenues rose 84 percent year over year driven by a strong increase in billable tests.
For the three-month period ended Sept. 30, the Temple City, California-based company posted revenues of $10.3 million compared with $5.6 million a year ago. The number of billable tests delivered in the quarter grew 272 percent to 20,697, Fulgent said.
“We continued to build on our momentum in the third quarter and once again posted very strong results,” Fulgent Chairman and CEO Ming Hsieh said in a statement. “Revenue and billable test volume reached new record highs in the third quarter, while cost per test continued to improve. Our strong top line results have been driven by the growing traction with our oncology and reproductive health businesses, as well as our sequencing-as-service offering.”
On a conference call following the release of results, Hsieh added that the next-generation sequencing-based genetic testing company benefited from its strategic investments and partnerships, as well as new commercial customers, and that oncology testing “is becoming a growing portion of our revenue.” Fulgent CFO Paul Kim noted that the US continues to be the primary growth driver for the firm, with US revenues growing 159 percent year-over-year and comprising 82 percent of total revenue in Q3.
Fulgent posted a net income of $1.5 million, or $.08 per share, up from a loss of $595,000, or $.03 per share, in Q3 2018. On an adjusted basis, the company reported net income of $.14 per share.
R&D spending in the quarter rose 21 percent to $1.7 million from $1.4 million, while SG&A costs rose 33 percent to $3.2 million from $2.4 million.
Fulgent finished the third quarter with $20.5 million in cash and cash equivalents, and $23.1 million in marketable securities.
Kim noted that Fulgent’s shelf offering filed during the third quarter allowed it to sell approximately 104,000 shares so far, generating cash of approximately $1.3 million, before offering costs.
He added that the firm anticipates Q4 revenues of approximately $8 million, and full-year revenues of approximately $32 million, representing year-over-year growth of approximately 50 percent for both periods.
On Tuesday, PiperJaffray upgraded shares of Fulgent to Overweight from Neutral and increased its price target to $12.30 from $9.50.
BeiGene teams up with Seattle Genetics to develop cancer candidate
BeiGene (BGNE -0.7%) inks an agreement with Seattle Genetics (SGEN +0.1%) aimed at developing a preclinical cancer candidate based on the latter’s antibody-based technology.
Under the terms of the deal, SGEN will retain rights in the Americas, Europe and Japan while BGNE will have rights in Asia, except Japan, and the rest of the world. SGEN will lead global development while BGNE will fund and manage the portion of global studies in its territories and will be responsible for clinical development and regulatory filings in its territories.
SGEN will receive an undisclosed upfront payment, up to $160M in milestones and tiered royalties on net sales from BGNE.
Takeda to sell portfolio of assets to Stada for $660M; shares up 4%
Following through on its plan to deleverage after the Shire merger, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company (TAK +3.6%) has agreed to sell a portfolio of over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription pharmaceutical products sold in Russia, Georgia and certain CIS countries to STADA Arzneimittel AG for $660M. The transaction should close this quarter.
The deal is the company’s fourth in the last six months as its advances toward its goal of divesting ~$10B in non-core assets.
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