Antares Pharma, Inc. announced that it has entered into an amendment to its existing loan and security agreement with Hercules Capital, Inc. (HTGC), to increase the available debt capital by $25 million for a term loan of up to $50 million. The Company originally borrowed $25 million from Hercules under the existing loan agreement in June 2017.
At the same time Antares also provided notice of the termination of the At-The-Market (“ATM”) equity offering facility which will be effective on July 6, 2019. The Company has not sold any shares under the ATM offering facility since March 31, 2019 and will make no further sales under the ATM offering facility between now and the effective date.
“Today’s announcement of the amendment to the existing agreement with Hercules further enhances our cash position and provides us with additional non-dilutive capital to support current growth in both our proprietary and alliance business as well as to continue to invest in our strategic plan for what we believe will be sustained long-term growth,” stated Fred M. Powell, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Antares Pharma. “We are pleased that Hercules remains a supportive capital partner to Antares Pharma.”
“Hercules is pleased to expand and extend our financing partnership with Antares at this important stage as the Company continues to focus on the development of both its proprietary and partnered products,” said R. Bryan Jadot, Senior Managing Director and Group Head - Life Sciences at Hercules. “This growth investment in Antares provides another example of the breadth of our platform and our ability to finance life sciences companies through their growth stages. We are excited to continue our partnership with the Antares management team.”
The first tranche of $25 million was funded upon execution of the original loan agreement in June 2017. A new $15 million loan was funded upon execution of the amendment. Under the terms of the amended agreement, Antares has the option to draw up to an additional $10 million at the Company’s option commencing on January 1, 2020 and continuing through September 15, 2020. The term of the loan is three years and payments under the loan are interest only for the initial 24-month period, followed by equal monthly payments of principal and interest thereafter until the end of the three-year term. The interest-only period may be extended to 36 months contingent upon Antares achieving a certain milestone. The term loan maturity date may also be extended contingent upon satisfaction of certain loan extension milestones. The interest rate on the loan is equal to the lesser of the Prime Rate plus 4.5%, and 9.5%. There are no equity components to the amended agreement.