Yelin Lapidot to invest NIS 20m in Clal Biotech

The investment will give Yelin Lapidot an 8% stake, and may persuade other concerns to invest in Clal Biotech.

Biomed holding company Clal Biotechnology Industries Ltd. (TASE: CBI) published an impressive presentation several weeks ago containing plans for Nasdaq offerings by four biomed companies over the next two years. It appears that this made an impression on investors. Clal Biotechnology today reported that investment house Yelin Lapidot had decided to buy an 8% stake in Clal Biotechnology at the market price, amounting to a NIS 20 million investment.

The Yelin Lapidot shares are blocked: one quarter of them will be released from the block every six months, starting six months from now and ending two years from now, making the investment a medium-term one at least.

The Clal Biotechnology share rose 4% on the news, pushing the fund's market cap up to NIS 491 million. Clal Biotechnology is listed solely on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), and has no plans for an overseas offering at this stage. Clal Biotechnology's CEO is Ofer Gonen. The main shareholders in Clal Biotechnology are Clal Industries (52%) and pharma company Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) (17%). Yelin Lapidot will now be the third largest shareholder.

Clal Biotechnology plans to hold offerings for Israel companies Gamida Cell and BioCancell Therapeutics Ltd. (TASE:BICL) and US companies Neon Therapeutics and Luc Therepeutics at company values in the hundreds of millions of dollars. All of these companies are developing drugs for treatment of cancer, except for Luc, which is developing drugs for treatment of the nervous system and the brain.

Luc, in which Clal Biotechnology has a 24% stake, has signed an agreement with Novartis enabling the latter to invest in it during the coming months at a value of $75 million. Neon, of which Clal Biotechnology holds 5%, recently raised $70 million at a $125 million company value. Clal Biotechnology owns 27% of BioCancell, whose market cap on the TASE is $30 million. Clal Biotechnology recently acquired Teva's shares in Gamida Cell at a company value of $120 million, giving it a 24% stake in the company.

Yelin Lapidot is a highly regarded investment house, and its investment is likely to convince other concerns to invest in the company, thereby encouraging trading in Clal Biotechnology and improving its chances of entering other indices. Clal Biotechnology is currently on the SME60, Biomed, High Tech, BlueTech, and AllShare Indices.

Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on April 9, 2017

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2017

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