REG - Abingdon Health PLC - Update to Shareholder Concert Parties

Abingdon HealthAnnouncement

11/01/2024 07:15

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RNS Number : 2891Z  Abingdon Health PLC  11 January 2024

 

 

 

Abingdon Health plc

("Abingdon Health" or "the Company")

 

Update to Shareholder Concert Parties

 

York, U.K. 11 January 2024: Further to its announcement on 30 August
2023, Abingdon Health plc (AIM: ABDX), a leading international lateral flow
contract research (CRO) and contract development and manufacturing
organisation (CDMO), provides an update to its shareholder concert parties.

 

Under the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Code") published by the
Panel on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Panel"), a concert party arises where
persons who, pursuant to an agreement or understanding (whether formal or
informal), co-operate to obtain or consolidate control (as defined in the
Code) of a company or to frustrate the successful outcome of an offer for a
company.

 

Certain persons will be presumed, as set out in the Definitions in the Code,
to be persons acting in concert with other persons in the same category unless
the contrary is established, including shareholders in a private company who,
following the re-registration of that company as a public company in
connection with an initial public offering or otherwise, become shareholders
in a company to which the Code applies.

 

On 30 August 2023, the Company announced that it had agreed with the Panel
that the concert party that was put in place upon the Company's IPO on 15
December 2020 would be split in to three separate concert parties which are
distinct and independent for the purposes of the Code being:

 

1.    The Founder Group, comprising founders and associates which has an
aggregate interest of the Company of approximately 18.5%(1) (#_ftn1)

2.    The Duckworth Group, comprising certain investment vehicles associated
with Mr Max Duckworth which has an aggregate interest of the Company of
approximately 13.6%(1)

3.    The Drayson Group, comprising Professor Mark Drayson and associates
which has an aggregate interest in the issued share capital of the Company of
approximately 1.8%(1)

 

The Company has now agreed with the Panel that Brett Pollard should be removed
from the Founder Group concert party. The revised members of the Founder Group
and the members of The Duckworth Group and The Drayson Group (each of which is
unchanged in terms of composition), including their beneficial interests in
ordinary shares in the Company, are as follows:

 

 

 1.    The Founder Group

 Shareholder                    Number of Shares  % of ISC
 Chris Hand                     13,178,467        10.8%
 Chris Yates                    7,888,844         6.5%
 Chris Lewis                    640,000           0.5%
 Tracie Lewis                   481,500           0.4%
 Philip Hand                    248,496           0.2%
 Nicola Hand                    142,328           0.1%
 Total                          22,579,635        18.5%
 As at 10 January 2024

 2.    The Duckworth Group

 Shareholder                    Number of Shares  % of ISC
 Max Duckworth                  0                 0%
 Catenalucis LLC                7,088,488         5.8%
 Thornapple LLP                 6,113,124         5.0%
 Godstow Holdings LLC           1,780,068         1.5%
 Nicholas Properties UK Ltd     891,132           0.7%
 Humble Rogue Ventures LLC      709,180           0.6%
 Total                          17,081,992        13.6%
 As at 10 January 2024

 3.    The Drayson Group

 Shareholder                    Number of Shares  % of ISC
 Prof Mark Drayson              1,313,272         1.1%
 Prof Roy Jefferis              370,020           0.3%
 Dr Mark Cobbold                461,924           0.4%
 Total                          2,145,216         1.8%
 As at 10 January 2024

 

The individuals within these three groups can each acquire further shares in
the Company without triggering an obligation under Rule 9 of the Code to make
an offer for the whole of its issued share capital, provided such acquisitions
do not cause the aggregate interest of their respective concert party to reach
or exceed 30 per cent. of the Company's issued share capital.

 

Enquiries

 

 Abingdon Health plc                   www.abingdonhealth.com/investors/ (http://www.abingdonhealth.com/investors/)
 Chris Yates, Chief Executive Officer  Via Walbrook PR
 Chris Hand, Non-Executive Chairman

 Singer Capital Markets (Sole Broker and Nominated Adviser)                     Tel: +44 (0)20 7496 3000
 Peter Steel, Alex Bond (Corporate Finance)
 Tom Salvesen (Corporate Broking)

 Walbrook PR Limited                   Tel: +44 (0)20 7933 8780 or abingdon@walbrookpr.com
 Alice Woodings                        Mob: +44 (0)7407 804 654

 

About Abingdon Health plc

Abingdon Health is a leading lateral flow contract research (CRO) and
contract development and manufacturing organisation ("CDMO") offering its
services to an international customer base across industry sectors that
include clinical, animal health, plant health, and environmental testing.
Abingdon Health has the internal capabilities to take projects from initial
concept through to routine and large-scale manufacturing; from "idea to
commercial success."

The Company's CDMO division offers product development, regulatory support,
technology transfer and manufacturing services for customers looking to
develop new assays or transfer existing laboratory-based assays to a lateral
flow format. Abingdon Health aims to support the increase in need for rapid
results across many industries and locations and produces lateral flow tests
in areas such as infectious disease, clinical testing including companion
diagnostics, animal health and environmental testing. Faster access to results
allows for rapid decision making, targeted intervention and can support better
outcomes.

 

Abingdon Health's Abingdon Simply Test™ range of self-tests is an ecommerce
platform that offers a range of self-tests to empowers consumers to manage
their own health and wellbeing. The Abingdon Simply Test
(http://www.abingdonsimplytest.com) ™ ecommerce site offers consumers a
range of information to support them in making informed decisions on the tests
available. In addition, the site provides Abingdon's contract services
customers with a potential route to market for self-tests. The Abingdon Simply
Test range is also sold through international distributors and through other
channels in the UK and Ireland such as pharmacy chains.

 

Founded in 2008, Abingdon Health is headquartered in York, England. For
more information visit: www.abingdonhealth.com
(http://www.abingdonhealth.com/)

 1  (#_ftnref1) As at 10 January 2023

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