| Monday | ||||
Piper Sandler analyst… Piper Sandler analyst Adam Maeder raised the firm's price target on Apollo Endosurgery to $7 from $6 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares after the company received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for its Orbera Intragastric Balloon for treating non-cirrhotic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, with liver fibrosis in certain patients. While admitting "there's still more work to be done here," Maeder said the designation is "a nice endorsement" of the potential role Orbera could play in NASH with liver fibrosis patients and helps validate the product's broader utility beyond its current primary use for aesthetic weight loss. | ||||
Apollo Endosurgery… Apollo Endosurgery announced that it has received a breakthrough device designation from the FDA for the Orbera Intragastric Balloon, specifically for the indication for use in treating patients with BMI between 30-40 kg/m2 with noncirrhotic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, with liver fibrosis. | ||||
| Over a week ago | ||||
Piper Sandler analyst… Piper Sandler analyst Adam Maeder reiterates an Overweight rating on Apollo Endosurgery after the company announced that Charles McKhann will replace current CEO Todd Newton, saying that while the news comes "as a bit of a surprise," the transition was carefully planned and had been in the works for some time. Maeder believes McKhann's past experiences make him a strong fit to take the reins and continues to like the set-up, the analyst tells investors in a research note. | ||||
Apollo Endosurgery… Apollo Endosurgery announced a planned CEO change. Effective March 1, 2021, Charles "Chas" McKhann will become CEO and a member of the Board of Directors. Current CEO Todd Newton will help facilitate an effective transition to McKhann and has agreed to serve as a consultant to the company for up to 6 months following his transition. John Barr, Chairman of Apollo's Board of Directors, commented, "We are pleased to announce Chas' appointment, and we want to thank Todd for his excellent stewardship. While Todd's achievements are many, his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly notable. In the past year, Todd's timely decision making has resulted in a leaner company, with a materially stronger balance sheet. He has built a robust foundation for the next stage of Apollo's growth. On a path to profitability, driven by continued strong sales of OverStitch and Orbera, and with the recent approval and upcoming full commercial launch of X-Tack, we felt the time was appropriate to transition to a new leader." | ||||
New option listings for… New option listings for February 3rd include Artius Acquisition Inc (Class A Stock) (AACQ), ADiTx Therapeutics Inc (ADTX), AMCI Acquisition Corporation (Class A Stock) (AMCI), Apollo Endosurgery (APEN), Cabaletta Bio Inc (CABA), CITIC Capital Acquisition Corp (Class A Stock) (CCAC), Crescent Acquisition Corporation (Class A Stock) (CRSA), Diginex Ltd (EQOS), Evogene (EVGN), Evelo Biosciences Inc (EVLO), Experience Investment Corporation (Class A Stock) (EXPC), Fortress Value Acquisition Corp II (Class A Stock) (FAII), Foresight Autonomous Holdings Ltd (ADS) (FRSX), FS Development Corporation (Class A Stock) (FSDC), FinServ Acquisition Corporation (Class A Stock) (FSRV), Fusion Acquisition Corp (Class A Stock) (FUSE), Fusion Pharmaceuticals Inc (FUSN), IZEA (IZEA), Spark Networks Plc (ADS) (LOV), New Povidence Acquisition Corporation (Class A Stock) (NPA), NeuroBo Pharmaceuticals (NRBO), CC Neuberger Principal Holdings II (Class A Stock) (PRPB), Shoals Technologies Group Inc (Class A Stock) (SHLS), Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp (Class A Stock) (SOAC), Silver Spike Acquisition Corporation (Class A Stock) (SSPK), Thoma Bravo Advantage (Class A Stock) (TBA), Tuscan Holdings Corporation II (THCA), AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc (UAVS), Vanguard Long Term Government Bond (VGLT), Vanguard Emerging Markets Government Bond (VWOB), and Qualtrics International Inc (Class A Stock) (XM). | ||||
| Over a month ago | ||||
Virtual Meeting to be… Virtual Meeting to be held on January 28 hosted by Piper Sandler. | ||||
Virtual Meeting to be… Virtual Meeting to be held on January 28 hosted by Piper Sandler. | ||||
Apollo Endosurgery… Apollo Endosurgery announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 510k clearance of the X-Tack Endoscopic HeliX Tacking System. X-Tack is a new, through-the-scope, suture-based device designed specifically for closing and healing defects in the lower gastrointestinal tract with additional applications in the upper gastrointestinal tract. The X-Tack device enables physicians to easily address the challenges commonly encountered when closing large or irregularly shaped defects. The procedure involves suture-tethered HeliX Tacks, independently positioned into healthy tissue adjacent to a defect, then cinched to close the construct. X-Tack fulfills a long-expressed need for advanced closure devices to improve healing and address potential adverse events that can occur following colonic polypectomy and mucosal resections, such as delayed bleeding or perforation. Apollo plans to initiate a limited launch with select gastroenterologists beginning January 2021, to be followed by a full launch planned for late in the quarter of 2021. "The X-Tack System fills a substantial gap in the ability of endoscopists to close full thickness defects, particularly large or irregular colonic and small bowel resection sites. It has the potential for making a significant impact in other procedures as well," says, Stavros Stavropoulos, MD, Director of Endoscopy, NYU-Winthrop Hospital. "X-Tack is a highly versatile technology that has the potential to revolutionize our tissue approximation capabilities during endoscopic surgery. | ||||
Piper Sandler analyst… Piper Sandler analyst Adam Maeder says Apollo Endosurgery's agreement with Solar Capital to extend the interest-only period and maturity date of its existing term loan provides the company with additional liquidity and we think should be positively received by shareholders. The analyst says Apollo has sufficient cash to execute on its game plan in 2021, which he thinks is shaping up to be a strong year behind the positive underlying momentum in the business and the upcoming launch of X-Tack. The analyst made no change to his Overweight rating or $5 price target. | ||||
In a regulatory filing,… In a regulatory filing, Apollo Endosurgery disclosed that on December 4, the company and Solar Capital Ltd. entered into a seventh amendment to their loan and security agreement dated March 15, 2019, or the term loan facility. The amendment extends the interest only period available under the facility until March 1, 2022, or September 1, 2022 if certain revenue milestones are achieved, extends the maturity date of the facility to September 1, 2024, or March 1, 2025 if certain revenue milestones are achieved, and resets mandatory prepayment fees as of the date of the seventh amendment. In addition, in connection with the amendment, the final fee due at maturity and the additional fee due at the earlier of certain exit events or achievement of certain revenue milestones were increased by 2% and 1%, respectively, the company stated in a regulatory filing. | ||||