Atara Biotherapeutics Announces $31 Million Royalty Interest Financing Agreement with HealthCare Royalty
21 December 2022 - 8:33AM
Business Wire
HealthCare Royalty Receives Specified
Milestones and Royalties for EbvalloTM in Europe in Exchange for
Upfront Cash Payment to Atara
Non-Dilutive Funding Further Extends Atara’s
Cash Runway
Incremental to $40 Million of Existing
Milestones from Pierre Fabre Following EbvalloTM Marketing
Authorization Approval and Filing for Application Transfer
Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATRA), a leader in T-cell
immunotherapy, leveraging its novel allogeneic Epstein-Barr virus
(EBV) T-cell platform to develop transformative therapies for
patients with cancer and autoimmune diseases, has entered into a
royalty interest financing agreement totaling $31 million with
HealthCare Royalty (HCRx) for Ebvallo™ in Europe and other
territories covered by Atara’s commercialization agreement with
Pierre Fabre.
“This strategic deal with HCRx, a top-tier investment firm,
contributes to Atara’s financial position and reflects our positive
momentum following the recent European Commission approval of
Ebvallo™ as the only approved therapy for EU patients with a rare
and potentially deadly cancer,” said Pascal Touchon, President and
Chief Executive Officer of Atara. “We share HCRx’s confidence in
Ebvallo™ and a vision of bringing a first ever allogeneic T-cell
therapy to market in collaboration with our European
commercialization partner Pierre Fabre.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Atara will receive a $31
million upfront payment from HCRx. In exchange, HCRx will receive
rights to specified royalties and milestones under the Pierre Fabre
commercialization agreement for Europe and other territories. The
total royalties and milestones payable to HCRx are capped between
185 percent and 250 percent of the total investment amount by HCRx,
dependent upon the timing of such royalties and milestones.
Additionally, Atara retains existing milestone payments from
Pierre Fabre of $10 million for Ebvallo™ approval in Europe and $30
million for Atara’s initiation of the EU Marketing Authorization
Application transfer to Pierre Fabre from the previously announced
commercialization agreement and subsequent update announced in
September 2022.
“We are proud to support Atara and have strong confidence in
their mission of helping transform the lives of cancer and
autoimmune patients through pioneering innovative science, proven
by rigorous data,” said Clarke Futch, Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer of HCRx. “Atara is a differentiated allogeneic T-cell
immunotherapy company, and we are pleased to support their efforts
at this pivotal moment for tabelecleucel development.”
About HealthCare Royalty HCRx is a leading royalty
acquisition company focused on commercial or near-commercial stage
biopharmaceutical products. HCRx has $6.3 billion in cumulative
capital commitments with offices in Stamford (CT), San Francisco,
Boston, and London. For more information, visit www.hcrx.com.
HEALTHCARE ROYALTY® is a registered trademark of HealthCare Royalty
Management, LLC in the U.S. and a trademark in other countries.
About Atara Biotherapeutics, Inc. Atara Biotherapeutics,
Inc. (@Atarabio) is a pioneer in T-cell immunotherapy leveraging
its novel allogeneic EBV T-cell platform to develop transformative
therapies for patients with serious diseases including solid
tumors, hematologic cancers and autoimmune disease. With our lead
program receiving marketing authorization in Europe, Atara is the
most advanced allogeneic T-cell immunotherapy company and intends
to rapidly deliver off-the-shelf treatments to patients with high
unmet medical need. Our platform leverages the unique biology of
EBV T cells and has the capability to treat a wide range of
EBV-associated diseases, or other serious diseases through
incorporation of engineered CARs (chimeric antigen receptors) or
TCRs (T-cell receptors). Atara is applying this one platform, which
does not require TCR or HLA gene editing, to create a robust
pipeline including: tab-cel for Epstein-Barr virus positive
post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (EBV+ PTLD) and other
EBV-driven diseases; ATA188, a T-cell immunotherapy targeting EBV
antigens as a potential treatment for multiple sclerosis; and
multiple next-generation chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T)
immunotherapies for both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.
Improving patients’ lives is our mission and we will never stop
working to bring transformative therapies to those in need. Atara
is headquartered in Southern California. For additional information
about the company, please visit atarabio.com and follow us on
Twitter and LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains or
may imply “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934. For example, forward-looking
statements include statements regarding tab-cel®: the development,
timing and progress of tab-cel®, the potential characteristics and
benefits of tab-cel®, and, including the timing thereof, the amount
and timing of potential royalties payable to HCRx or Atara by
Pierre Fabre, and the royalty cap threshold to which such payments
shall be subject. Because such statements deal with future events
and are based on Atara’s current expectations, they are subject to
various risks and uncertainties and actual results, performance or
achievements of Atara could differ materially from those described
in or implied by the statements in this press release. These
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties,
including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties associated
with the costly and time-consuming pharmaceutical product
development process and the uncertainty of clinical success; the
COVID-19 pandemic, which may significantly impact (i) our business,
research, clinical development plans and operations, including our
operations in South San Francisco and Southern California and at
our clinical trial sites, as well as the business or operations of
our third-party manufacturer, contract research organizations or
other third parties with whom we conduct business, (ii) our ability
to access capital, and (iii) the value of our common stock; the
sufficiency of Atara’s cash resources and need for additional
capital; and other risks and uncertainties affecting Atara’s and
its development programs, including those discussed in Atara’s
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),
including in the “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” sections
of the Company’s most recently filed periodic reports on Form 10-K
and Form 10-Q and subsequent filings and in the documents
incorporated by reference therein. Except as otherwise required by
law, Atara disclaims any intention or obligation to update or
revise any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the
date hereof, whether as a result of new information, future events
or circumstances or otherwise.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221218005048/en/
INVESTORS & MEDIA: Investors Eric Hyllengren
805-395-9669 ehyllengren@atarabio.com Media Alex Chapman
805-456-4772 achapman@atarabio.com
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