Update: Autolus closes IPO

RNS Number : 6719S

Woodford Patient Capital Trust PLC

26 June 2018

 

Woodford Patient Capital Trust plc

Update: Autolus closes IPO

LONDON, 26 June 2018

·      Autolus IPO has closed

·      Represents a gain of $108.3m (238%) on total cash invested by WPCT

·      WPCT retains stake of 15.3% in Autolus

·      Autolus well-positioned to develop best-in-class next generation T cell therapies

Woodford Patient Capital Trust PLC (WPCT) notes that its portfolio company Autolus Therapeutics plc ("Autolus") has announced the closing of its previously announced initial public offering ("IPO") in the United States of 10,147,059 American Depositary Shares ("ADSs"), representing 10,147,059 ordinary shares, at an initial public offering price of $17.00 per ADS, which includes an additional 1,323,529 ADSs issued upon the exercise in full by the underwriters of their option to purchase additional ADSs. All of the ADSs were offered by Autolus.

Following the IPO, WPCT retains a stake of 15.3% in Autolus (amounting to 6,156,544 ordinary shares), which was valued at $153.9 million at the close of business on 25 June 2018. This represents a gain of $108.3 million (238%) on total cash invested by WPCT into Autolus.

WPCT first invested in Autolus in March 2016. Autolus, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, was founded in 2014 based on programs and technologies from the University College London laboratory of Dr Martin Pule.

Autolus now has over 100 employees, led by a highly experienced management team at its headquarters in West London. Employing next-generation programmed T cell therapies designed to target cancer, Autolus is seeking to develop best-in-class programmed T cell therapies that have the potential to offer cancer patients substantial benefits over the existing standards of care.

The portfolio manager of WPCT, Woodford Investment Management (Woodford), believes that Autolus has a compelling technological advantage over other current CAR-T businesses. Woodford believes that by using dual-targeting programmed T cell therapies for certain of Autolus' programs - engineering an immune cell to recognise two cancer cell-specific features, not just one -the treatment has the potential to reduce the likelihood of the cancer escaping and reoccurring, one of the most common reasons for the current CAR-T therapies to fail.

Autolus is also developing technologies designed to pharmacologically control T cell activity, including safety switches and tunable T cells. Safety switches are designed to selectively eliminate programmed T cells and are intended to be triggered in the event a patient suffers certain serious adverse events related to the T cell therapy. 

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with, and declared effective by, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities, and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of that jurisdiction.

The offering was made only by means of a prospectus. The final prospectus related to the offering was filed with the SEC.  Copies of the final prospectus can be obtained from Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Prospectus Department, 200 West Street, New York, NY 10282, or by telephone at [phone] or by email at [e-mail]; or Jefferies LLC, Attention: Equity Syndicate Prospectus Department, 520 Madison Avenue, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10022, or by telephone at + 1 877 821 7388, or by email at [e-mail]. For the avoidance of doubt, such prospectus will not constitute a "prospectus" for the purposes of Directive 2003/71/EC (and amendments thereto, including Directive 2010/73/EU, to the extent implemented in each relevant EU member state) and will not have been reviewed by any competent authority in any EU member state.

For further information, please contact:

Four Broadgate

Roland Cross / Jonathan Atkins

020 3697 4200

woodfordfourbroadgate.com

Notes to editors:

Forward-looking statements - this announcement contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to the portfolio of investments of WPCT. These statements and forecasts involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend upon circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements and forecasts. Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a profit forecast.

About Autolus:

Autolus is a biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation programmed T cell therapies for the treatment of cancer.

About Woodford Investment Management:

Woodford Investment Management Limited is an asset management company built on a founding philosophy of transparency and simplicity. Launched in May 2014, the company has more than £13bn assets under management and advice.

Woodford Investment Management Ltd

9400 Garsington Road Oxford OX4 2HN

[phone]

[e-mail]

Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority

Registered in England and Wales. Number 10118169

ENDS

 

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