Shares of a satellite radio provider surged Friday after it reached an agreement to defer its debt payment, while a bank jumped on news of a private placement offering.
Stockhouse U.S. Small and Micro-cap Stock Report for Friday, September 19, 2008
TORONTO (SHfn) – Shares of a satellite radio provider surged Friday after it reached an agreement to defer its debt payment, while a bank jumped on news of a private placement offering.
Shares of Washington D.C.-based Worldspace Inc. (NASDAQ: WRSP, Stock Forum) soared more than 101% to $1.71 Friday after the satellite radio provider announced that it has reached an agreement in principle to defer its debt payment. The company says it reached an agreement with each of the four holders of its amended and restated secured notes and second amended and restated convertible notes to defer its obligation to pay $19.97 million in principal amount of the bridge loan notes until Sept. 25, plus accrued but unpaid interest due on the notes, which was payable on Sept. 15. The company notes that it is working on developing a comprehensive operational and financial restructuring plan to address its immediate and longer term financing requirements.
In acquisition news Friday, eTelecare Global Solutions (NASDAQ: ETEL, Stock Forum) said that it has entered into a definitive agreement by which affiliates of Ayala Corporation and Providence Equity Partners will start a tender offer in the Philippines and the United States to acquire the company. Ayala and Providence Equity partners will acquire up to all of the outstanding shares of eTelecare, and up to all of the outstanding eTelecare American Depositary Shares, for US$9.00 per share in cash. The total transaction value is approximately US$290 million. eTelecare Global Solutions provides business process outsourcing focusing on the complex, voice and non-voice based segment of customer-care services. Shares of eTelecare surged 65.7% to $8.45 Friday.
California-based Vineyard National Bancorp (NASDAQ: VNBC, Stock Forum) reported Friday that it intends to start a private placement offering of an aggregate of $250 million of units consisting of 10% convertible senior secured notes due in 2009 and common stock to be issued at the closing of the transaction. The gross proceeds to VNBC, the holding company of Vineyard Bank, from the offering are expected to be up to $250 million. The proceeds are expected to be used to strengthen VNBC and Vineyard's financial position, repurchase certain of VNBC's indebtedness, trust preferred securities and preferred stock, and provide a financial platform for the execution of the company’s strategic plans. Shares of Vineyard National Bank surged more than 60% to $1.99 Friday.
Shares of Opexa Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OPXA, Stock Forum) plunged more than 90% to 22 cents Friday after the company announced top-line data from its Phase IIb Tovaxin for Early Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis study. The company says results from the study demonstrated a positive trend in the reduction in annualized relapse rate for patients treated with Tovaxin as compared to placebo. However, it notes that the study did not achieve statistical significance with its primary endpoint; the cumulative number of gadolinium-enhanced brain lesions. Opexa says the study also demonstrated that Tovaxin was safe and well tolerated with no serious adverse events related to treatment.
The company noted that an initial data review showed that patients in the study’s Tovaxin arm, on average had a substantially greater number of MRI brain lesions and corresponding lesion volumes at baseline compared to the placebo group, which it believes may have contributed to the study not achieving its primary and secondary endpoints.
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