WARRINGTON, Pa., Feb. 22, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Discovery Laboratories, Inc. (Nasdaq:DSCO) today announced that it has completed its previously announced public offering to sell an aggregate of 10,000,000 shares of its common stock and warrants to purchase 10,000,000 shares of its common stock under Discovery Labs' previously filed registration statement that was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 18, 2008. Each share was issued and sold as a unit, together with a five-year warrant to purchase 0.50 of a share of common stock and a fifteen-month warrant to purchase 0.50 of a share of common stock, at a public offering price of $2.35 per unit. The shares and warrants were immediately separable such that no units were issued.
The five-year warrants are exercisable for a period of five years at an exercise price of $3.20 per share. The fifteen-month warrants are exercisable for a period of 15 months at an exercise price of $2.94 per share. As a result of the offering, Discovery Labs has received net proceeds of approximately $21.6 million, after deducting underwriting discount and other estimated fees and expenses related to the offering. Lazard Capital Markets LLC acted as the sole book-running manager, and Boenning & Scattergood, Inc. and Global Hunter Securities, LLC, acted as the co-managers.
The net proceeds from the offering will be used primarily for general corporate purposes, including to support Discovery Labs' research and development activities, which include (i) expenses related to resolving the key remaining Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) issue that must be addressed to potentially gain U.S. regulatory approval of Surfaxin® for the prevention of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants, including completion of the ongoing comprehensive pre-clinical program, the filing of the Complete Response for Surfaxin and preparation for the potential approval of Surfaxin in the first quarter 2012; and (ii) limited investments in Discovery Labs' development programs for Surfaxin LS™, a lyophilized formulation of Surfaxin that is manufactured as a dry powder and reconstituted as a liquid prior to administration, and Aerosurf®, Discovery Labs' KL4 surfactant in aerosolized form based on Discovery Labs' proprietary capillary aerosolization technology.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. Copies of the final prospectus supplement and accompanying base prospectus relating to this offering may be obtained at the Securities and Exchange Commission web site at http://www.sec.gov, or from Lazard Capital Markets LLC, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, 60th Floor, New York, NY 10020 or via telephone at (800) 542-0970; from Boenning & Scattergood, Inc., 4 Tower Bridge, 200 Barr Harbor Drive, Suite 300, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2979 or via telephone at (610) 832-1212; or from Global Hunter Securities LLC, 777 Third Avenue, 36th Floor, New York, NY 10017 or via telephone at (646) 264-5600.
About Discovery Labs
Discovery Laboratories, Inc. is a biotechnology company developing KL4 surfactant therapies for respiratory diseases. Surfactants are produced naturally in the lungs and are essential for breathing. Discovery Labs' novel proprietary KL4 surfactant technology produces a synthetic, peptide-containing surfactant that is structurally similar to pulmonary surfactant and is being developed in liquid, lyophilized and aerosol formulations. In addition, Discovery Labs' proprietary capillary aerosolization technology produces a dense aerosol, with a defined particle size that is capable of potentially delivering aerosolized KL4 surfactant to the deep lung without the complications currently associated with liquid surfactant administration.
Forward-Looking Statements
To the extent that statements in this press release are not strictly historical, all such statements are forward-looking, and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. Examples of such risks and uncertainties, including those related to Discovery Labs' securities offering and its development programs, are described in Discovery Labs' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including the most recent reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, and any amendments thereto.
CONTACT: John G. Cooper, President and Chief Financial Officer 215-488-9490