Last close As at 05/08/2026
—
— 0.00 (0.00%)
Market capitalisation
—
Research: Investment Companies
On Sunday 16 April 2023, US major pharma company Merck (NYSE: MRK) announced that, through a subsidiary, it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Prometheus Biosciences (NASDAQ: RXDX) for $200 per share for a total cost of c $10.8bn. At 31 March 2023, Prometheus was RTW Venture Fund’s (RTWVF’s) largest holding at c 14.8% of NAV. The bid price represents a 75.4% premium to Prometheus’s closing price on Friday 14 April, therefore the deal, all else being equal, should represent a material uplift in RTWVF’s NAV. Subject to Prometheus’s shareholder approval, the deal should close in Q323. Prometheus is an example of RTW’s long-term, full life cycle investment approach, which supports companies ranging from newco formation to mid-stage venture to pre initial public offering (IPO) and public markets.
RTW Venture Fund |
Acquisition of largest holding at healthy premium |
Investment companies |
17 April 2023 |
Analyst
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On Sunday 16 April 2023, US major pharma company Merck (NYSE: MRK) announced that, through a subsidiary, it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Prometheus Biosciences (NASDAQ: RXDX) for $200 per share for a total cost of c $10.8bn. At 31 March 2023, Prometheus was RTW Venture Fund’s (RTWVF’s) largest holding at c 14.8% of NAV. The bid price represents a 75.4% premium to Prometheus’s closing price on Friday 14 April, therefore the deal, all else being equal, should represent a material uplift in RTWVF’s NAV. Subject to Prometheus’s shareholder approval, the deal should close in Q323. Prometheus is an example of RTW’s long-term, full life cycle investment approach, which supports companies ranging from newco formation to mid-stage venture to pre initial public offering (IPO) and public markets.
Prometheus is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering a precision medicine approach for the discovery, development and commercialisation of novel therapeutic and companion diagnostic products for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases. The company's lead candidate, PRA023, is a humanised monoclonal antibody directed to the tumour necrosis factor-like ligand 1A, which is a target associated with both intestinal inflammation and fibrosis. PRA023 is currently in Phase II clinical trials for inflammatory bowel disease.
We wrote about two of Prometheus’s positive clinical developments in our 9 December 2022 flash note. RTWVF, along with other funds managed by RTW, co-led Prometheus’s $130m crossover financing round in November 2020 and then supported the company’s IPO in March 2021.
Prometheus is the second of RTWVF’s portfolio companies to be acquired by a major pharma company this year. The acquisition of CinCor Pharma by AstraZeneca was completed on 24 February; the deal was at a 121% premium to its pre-bid share price based on upfront cash and at a 206% premium based on upfront and maximum potential contingent value payments. Roderick Wong, RTW’s managing partner and chief investment officer, expects sector merger and acquisition activity to accelerate given the inexpensive valuations of biotech companies and pharma companies’ significant cash positions and looming patent cliffs.
|
|
Investment Companies
Research: Metals & Mining
Notwithstanding the trials and tribulations that it has had to deal with in Ethiopia in recent years, KEFI believes that it is finally nearing the end of its approvals odyssey. Being first mover and also traversing the country’s turbulent swing to democracy has cost the company unpredictability, time and money. However, the new mining minister is reported to be serious – to the point of being enthusiastic – about developing KEFI’s Tulu Kapi project and the three substantive pre-conditions for final approval (the two banks having equal protections in the country, government installation of elevated security and the right for KEFI to administer its own banking and capital servicing arrangements) have been met or (in the case of the third) appear in the process of formalisation. With respect to security, KEFI reports that a disciplined formation of the Ethiopian Federal military has been deployed to secure mine sites throughout the country, including Tulu Kapi. In the meantime, the company has continued to upgrade and develop its assets in Saudi Arabia.