Syncona close to injecting funds in new prospects
By Oliver Haill
Date: Wednesday 13 Feb 2019
(Sharecast News) - Syncona, the healthcare investor, said it was in the "final stages" of agreeing funding for two new companies, though its net asset value dipped in the past quarter.
In the three months to 31 December, the third quarter of the FTSE 250 company's financial year, net assets fell to £1.3bn or 194.5p per share from £1.4bn ir 208.1p at the end of the first half. The life value science investment portfolio was valued at £889.7m, down from £945.7m, down 6% over three months but a 58.2% return over the nine months from positive increases from Autolus and Blue Earth Diagnostics.
The main reason for the drop in value was the near 38% drop in Nasdaq-listed Nightstar's share price, while fellow US-listed Autolus stock ended the period little changed.
The quarter ended with a capital pool of £412.4m, of which net cash was at £130.3m and funds investments at £282.1m.
Outside of the short-term market fluctuations, the group's investment made progress toward its long-term goals, with clinical developments at Nightstar including plans to initiate a phase 2/3 expansion study for X-linked retinitis pigmentosa, while Autolus and Freeline both reported encouraging early data.
Blue Earth sold 17% more units of Axumin for the treatment of prostate cancer in the US, generating cash, of which £10.8m was returned to Syncona during the period.
Martin Murphy, chief executive of Syncona Investment Management, said: "We continue to have a high-level of conviction in our companies' fundamentals having built them in partnership with their world-class founders and are focused on working closely with them to achieve our ambition of delivering transformational treatments for patients and generating value for our shareholders over the long-term.
"As we look forward, we continue to see a strong pipeline of exciting opportunities where we can continue to build globally competitive companies around exceptional science."
There were two new fund investments made in the quarter of £16.7m, while since the period end, an additional £13.9m has been redeemed, increasing our cash weighting and Murphy expects to see this trend continue as part of the strategy of transitioning the fund investments away from directionally biased funds.
Syncona was said to be in the final stages of agreeing funding for two new companies, which fit with the model "of building companies around exceptional science".
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