Silence Therapeutics PLC Partial Disposal of Arrowhead common shares (2187Y)
December 04 2017 - 1:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDMSLN
RNS Number : 2187Y
Silence Therapeutics PLC
04 December 2017
Partial Disposal of Arrowhead common shares
4 December 2017
Silence Therapeutics plc, AIM:SLN ("Silence" or "the Company") a
leader in the discovery, delivery, and development of novel RNA
therapeutics for the treatment of serious diseases with unmet
medical need, announces that it has sold part of its holding of
common shares in Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ARWR)
("Arrowhead").
As per an RNS dated 13(th) January 2017, Silence had purchased
6,831,359 common shares of Arrowhead for a total consideration of
$11.3 million (GBP9.2 million at an exchange rate of GBP1=$1.234),
then representing 9.21% of Arrowhead. At the Company's last balance
sheet date (30 June 2017) this shareholding was marked-to-market
and valued at GBP8.55 million as an available-for-sale financial
asset.
The Company has sold 2,036,046 shares on the open market for
$7.5 million (GBP5.6 million). The average purchase price per
common share was $1.65 and the average selling price of the
2,036,046 common shares recently sold was $3.68. The profit
recorded is therefore $4.1 million, or GBP2.9 million. The Company
will use the proceeds from the sale of the common shares to fund
the Company's working capital requirements.
Silence has determined it may be advantageous to liquidate
portions or all of its holdings of Arrowhead common shares from
time to time in an orderly manner consistent with prudent
management of its investment.
Ali Mortazavi, Chief Executive Officer of Silence Therapeutics,
commented:
"Our balance sheet has been strengthened by the addition of
GBP5.6 million in cash received from the partial sale of this stake
in Arrowhead. As a biotech company focussed on both our platform
and our developing pipeline, we believe that this cash receipt will
enable us to maintain our focus as we advance products towards the
Clinic.
The Company will invest the funds in low risk cash or cash
equivalent investments to safeguard the principal, using financial
institutions with a credit rating equivalent to, or above, the main
UK clearing banks."
Enquiries:
Silence Therapeutics plc Tel: +44 (0)20
Ali Mortazavi, Chief Executive 3457 6900
Officer
David Ellam, Chief Financial Officer
Peel Hunt LLP (Nominated Adviser Tel: +44 (0)20
and Broker) 7418 8900
James Steel/Oliver Jackson
Media Enquiries: Tel: +44 (0)
Optimum Strategic Communications 20 3714 1788
Mary Clark/ Eva Haas/ Hollie Vile
Notes to Editors
About Silence Therapeutics plc
Silence Therapeutics develops a new generation of medicines by
harnessing the body's natural mechanism of RNA interference, or
RNAi, within its cells. Our proprietary technology can selectively
inhibit any gene in the genome, specifically silencing the
production of disease-causing proteins. Using our enabling delivery
systems, we have achieved an additional level of specificity by
delivering our therapeutic RNA molecules exclusively to target
cells. Silence's proprietary RNA chemistries and delivery systems
are designed to improve the stability of our molecules and enhance
effective delivery to target cells, providing a powerful modular
technology well suited to tackle life-threatening diseases.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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