solid deal...they're building a company...

All good...

Personally, I would have preferred to see the strike price set at 2c given recent "managed" trading just above this...but none the less, I am glad it is finally resolved. I guess, given the volume of shares in this placement, they wanted as big a margin between strike-price and potential value-price as possible.

All up, I see this as a very solid result, and indicative of a Company going about its business appropriately, with the view to maximising shareholder value.


One gets the feeling we are seeing the first stages of a process that will take ANP out of the micro-minnow category.

Several key points for me from this CR and SPP;

1. Strategically, ANP is no longer vulnerable to being forced to accept opportunistic offers to progress ATL1103 (ie, from the large pharma doing DD, or anyone else)...this is of major significance for retaining future value for shareholders from Phase 2 trials. Phase 2 trials are where the real value sits with ATL1103...and we can now get there ourselves!

The market should (in time), bring a measure of success in these trials forward (to current prices). The proven transferability of Antisense (Gen2) results through each phase should add to the market's confidence in this regard.

As noted in the announcement...

"We have attracted significant interest in our development programs and in particular in our ATL1103 project, with investors recognizing the value that can be added by moving it into Phase II clinical trials.

The business has advanced significantly over the last twelve months and we have established a number of positive initiatives for progressing and adding value to the other compounds in our product pipeline being ATL1102 for multiple sclerosis, asthma and stem cell mobilization and ATL1101 for prostate cancer."

There is much interest around the antisense technology space presently with our technology partner in the US, ISIS Pharmaceuticals Ltd. together with Genzyme due to file their submission for US approval for their cholesterol lowering drug mipomersen (KYNAMROTM) this month, and potential EU approval in the second half of this year. If approved, mipomersen would become the world’s first marketed, systemically administered antisense drug, an event that would provide tremendous clinical validation for the whole antisense technology platform.”

How many times have we said this? It's nice to see it being highlighted in this way by the Company itself!

Plenty of confidence in the language used if you ask me...I suspect they are pretty happy with themselves to have put this CR away so well.

2. Expect some argy-bargy on-market during the "Pato Period"...I recommend people do a quick study of their typical MO in relation to these sorts of raisings. This will not be all that bad for holders mind you, as the ANP CR has a few extras in there to make this one stand out compared to several other recent examples.

This CR and SPP has more of an "IPO" or "investment" tone about it!

The appearance of a US institution and not just sophs is an important aspect, so too the options "sweetener" being much less than many may have expected on face value...but I suspect it will end up being very sweet indeed.

3. Regarding this US institutional investor...I suspect this will result in buying interest when their identity is revealed. Importantly, it flags ANP's gradual penetration into the serious US investor market...in time, this may snow-ball, thanks to Isis' growing profile, especially this year!

4. Timing has been carefully planned, and if I may say so, appears to have been somewhat expedited. All up, start-to-finish...everything sorted within 6 weeks (including EGM), which is pretty amazing really. This suggests to me this whole process has been arranged with one eye on the options. I personally think we are in for a major surprise in the months leading up to options expiry.

5. Let's not forget, the oppies are already in the money, and if it were not for the CR "antics", would have been well and truly in the money come expiry...so that dilution was always going to happen in my view, which would have taken the register to 1.1billion after options conversion.

Based on this, the new CR (360m shares & 50m options), equates to about 37% dilution.

Interestingly, I notice the Company's "3B" has allocated 60m options...so where are the other 10m going? Perhaps, whilst the SPP does not include options for participants, shortfalls picked up in the underwriting will?

Anyway, I suspect any Pharma's looking to do a JV with ANP on ATL1103 would have been looking at +50% as a starting point to fund Phase 2...in fact, "free carry" to 20% is often considered a good deal for micro-biotechs at phase 2 stage.

I am happy effectively retaining 63%!

So...it appears we will end up with 1.5 billion shares and some $8.5m cash (or 0.006/share), leaving an enterprise value of just $18m (1.2c/share) when the stock is 1.8c...which I doubt we will soo too often.

For this we get ATL1101, ATL1102 and the big one, ATL1103...all in active clinical trials, or about to be!

I think we have managed a pretty good deal all up...and suggest, we have enough going on to support a market cap in the $80m range by years end...if not more...and will likely see the stock test the high-ground above this at some point bewtween then and now.

Perhaps sooner than some might expect?

Happy shareholder here.

Cheers!