TxCell Stock Surges On Deal To Be Bought By US-based Sangamo

(RTTNews) - Shares of TxCell S.A were surging around 150 percent in the morning trading in Paris after the company on Monday announced its agreement to be bought by US-based Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc. (SGMO).

In a statement, Sangamo said it will, following the completion of the contemplated acquisition of a majority stake of TxCell, file a simplified cash tender offer for the purchase of all then outstanding ordinary shares of TxCell, at a price of 2.58 euros per share in cash, or approximately 72 million euros, on a debt-free and cash-free basis.

Subject to satisfaction of closing conditions, Sangamo expects to complete the transaction in the fourth quarter of 2018.

TxCell is a leader in the emerging field of regulatory T cell or Treg development for immunological diseases. It is one of Sangamo's stated therapeutic areas of focus for its proprietary product candidate pipeline.

Sangamo expects that the proposed acquisition of TxCell would accelerate the Company's entry into the clinic with a CAR-Treg therapy. In 2019, Sangamo expects to submit a clinical trial authorization application in Europe for TxCell's first CAR-Treg investigational product candidate for solid organ transplant, and to initiate a Phase 1/2 clinical trial later in the year.

In addition, Sangamo intends to use its zinc finger nuclease or ZFN gene editing technology to develop next-generation autologous and allogeneic CAR-Treg cell therapies for use in treating autoimmune diseases.

Subject to obtaining at least 95% of the share capital and voting rights of TxCell upon completion of the simplified tender offer, Sangamo would launch a squeeze-out procedure. TxCell will be a subsidiary of Sangamo operating under the name Sangamo Therapeutics SA.

Following the completion of the squeeze-out procedure, Sangamo intends to delist TxCell. TxCell's operations will remain based in Valbonne, France.

In Paris, TxCell shares were trading at 2.30 euros, up 147.85 percent.