Apr 15, 2014 (ACCESSWIRE via COMTEX) -- Elite Pharmaceuticals Inc. ELTP -7.52% announced Apr. 14 that it has entered into a common stock purchase agreement with Lincoln Park Capital Fund LLC ("LPC"), a Chicago-based institutional investor for up to $40 million.
Proceeds from the transaction will be used to develop the company's pipeline of products, including the abuse resistant opioids, and for general corporate purposes.
Will Help Develop Abuse-Resistant Opioids
Commenting on the new financing, Elite's President and CEO, Mr. Nasrat Hakim said, "This commitment from Lincoln Park helps Elite to develop our range of abuse resistant opioids on an accelerated pace. By investing in the clinical development of our abuse deterrent products, we expect to significantly increase the value of these products in anticipation of future product partnerships. There is a great interest in our technology and, as Elite has done since I started here last August, we will continue to aggressively scale up and complete the clinical studies necessary to file these products as soon as possible. Our first filing is expected to be by year's end."
Elite Pharmaceuticals has agreed to file a registration statement with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission ("SEC") covering the shares that may be issued to Lincoln Park Capital under the terms of the common stock purchase agreement.
After the SEC has declared the registration statement related to the transaction effective, the company has the right, at its sole discretion over a period of three years to sell up to an aggregate of $40 million of its common stock to LPC under the terms and amounts as set forth in the agreement.
Under the terms of the agreement, there are no upper limits to the price that LPC may pay to purchase Elite's common stock. Elite will control the timing and the amount of shares to be sold. LPC has no right to require any sales and is obligated to purchase common stock as directed by Elite.
Under the terms of the agreement, LPC has agreed not to cause or engage in any manner whatsoever, any direct or indirect short selling or hedging of Elite's shares of common stock. In consideration for entering into the agreement, Elite has issued shares of common stock to LPC as a commitment fee and will issue additional commitment fee shares in proportion to the amount of shares purchased by LPC under the agreement.
On Apr. 14, ELTP's share price closed at 37 cents, up 5 cents from the previous day's close of 32 cents a share.
Find out what could be the best investor's move when it comes to ELTP by getting the complete report here, or by cutting and pasting the following link in your Web browser:
http://www.sixfigurestockpicks.com
FDA Grants Extension on MannKind's Insulin Therapy Review
In other news, MannKind Corp. MNKD -4.69% announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has extended the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) date for AFREZZA by three months to Jul.15, 2014 in order to provide time for a full review of information submitted by MannKind in response to the FDA's requests.
About AFREZZA
AFREZZA (uh-FREZZ-uh) is a novel, ultra rapid-acting mealtime insulin therapy developed by MannKind Corporation to improve glycemic control in adult patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. It is a drug-device combination product, consisting of AFREZZA Inhalation Powder delivered using a small, discreet and easy-to-use inhaler. Administered at the start of a meal, AFREZZA Inhalation Powder dissolves immediately upon inhalation to the deep lung and delivers insulin quickly to the bloodstream. Peak insulin levels are achieved within 12 to 15 minutes of administration, compared to 45-90 minutes for injected rapid acting insulin analogs and 90-150 minutes for injected regular human insulin.
Analysts' Consensus
Of the 5 analyst firms covering MNKD, 1 rates it a "strong buy," 3 a "hold" and 1 an "underperform."
On Apr. 14, MNKD's share price closed at $6.29, down 12 cents from the previous day's close of $6.41 cents a share.