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RNS Number : 9179N Agronomics Limited 28 November 2024
28 November 2024
Agronomics Limited
("Agronomics" or the "Company")
Net Asset Value calculation as at 30 September 2024
Agronomics Limited (AIM:ANIC), a leading listed company focused on the field
of cellular agriculture, announces that its unaudited Net Asset Value ("NAV")
calculation as at closing on 30 September 2024 was 15.73 pence per share,
a 4.2% decrease from 16.42 pence per share at 30 June 2024. Net Assets
stand at £158 million, including investments of £147 million and
uninvested cash and short-term deposits of £12 million.
The share price of 4.94 pence at 30 September 2024 represents a discount of
68% to the NAV per share on the same date. The average discount to NAV per
share over the last 12-month period was 50%. Under IFRS, the Company's
unquoted investments are generally carried at cost or the most recent priced
funding round.
The Board notes the c £6.9 million decline in the Company's NAV during the
quarter which relates primarily to the following:
- An unrealised foreign exchange loss of £5.1 million across the
portfolio companies where we hold our investments in EUR and USD, due to
negative USD and EUR currency movements against the Company's reporting
currency of Pound Sterling in the quarter. A breakdown of the portfolio
companies invested currency is as follows:
EUR and USD, due to negative USD and EUR currency movements against the
Company's reporting currency of Pound Sterling in the quarter. A breakdown of
the portfolio companies invested currency is as follows:
The USD, EUR and AUD rates had the following movements during the three-month
period, contributing to the unrealised foreign exchange loss noted above:
30 June 2024 30 September 2024 % movement
USD:GBP 1.263 1.337 (5.9%)
EUR:GBP 1.159 1.201 (3.6%)
AUD:GBP 1.908 1.935 (1.4%)
- A reduction of £0.9 million in the value of the Company's holding
in Solar Foods Oy ("Solar Foods"). Solar Foods listed on the Nasdaq First
North Growth Market Finland on 10 September 2024 by way of an introduction,
and in accordance with Agronomics valuation policy is now marked to market and
reflects the volatility of the early trading in Solar Foods shares. This
results in a revised book value of £10.3 million;
- A full write-down of Agronomics' position in VitroLabs Inc of £0.42
million to conservatively reflect the continued uncertainty of additional
funding for this company; and
- Cash balance reduced by £0.4 million relating to ongoing running
costs.
The Board also notes the continued wide discount between the Company's NAV and
its share price and believes that this is not justified. The majority of the
Company's portfolio is carried at last round valuations and, since August
2023, eleven of the portfolio companies (representing 51% of NAV) have
undertaken a funding round, raising a total of ~US$ 300 million, including
funding from new shareholders in the majority of cases. Of these funding
rounds, only one represented a round at a lower valuation than the prior
round, reflecting the strong technological and commercial progress being made
by the portfolio. In particular, a number of the portfolio companies have made
substantial gains in reducing cost of production towards premium price parity
with their non cellular agriculture comparables and there is a growing
proportion of the portfolio that is at, or near to, early-stage
commercialisation.
During the period, no fees were payable or accrued in accordance with the
Shellbay Investments Limited Agreement.
Investment Portfolio review
During the 3-month period to 30 September 2024, four of Agronomics' portfolio
companies raised additional funding:
· On 18 July 2024, Onego Bio Ltd, a leading precision fermentation
company focused on commercialising egg proteins, secured €14 million in new
funding from the European Innovation Council Accelerator Program and an
additional Series A investor.
· On 4 September 2024, Galy Co, a novel cellular agriculture company
focussed on cotton production, closed an oversubscribed US$ 33 million Series
B financing led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures LLC, with additional
participation from new investors H&M Group Ventures and Industria de
Diseño Textil, S.A. (through Mundi Ventures).
· On 10 September 2024, Formo Bio GmbH, a producer of animal-free dairy
products through precision fermentation, secured US$ 61 million in its Series
B funding round, with investment from existing investors Foodlabs, EQT
Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Happiness Capital, Elevat3 Capital and Grazia
Capital. Formo also welcomed new investors Sazaby League, Seven Ventures,
Woodline Partners, The Nature Conservancy as well as the REWE Group, Europe's
second-largest retailer.
· On 24 September 2024, Meatable B.V, a Dutch cultivated meat company,
secured €7.6 million in funding under the Innovation Credit programme from
the Netherlands Enterprise Agency
(https://english.rvo.nl/subsidies-financing/innovation-credit) .
In addition, the following key milestones were achieved by portfolio companies
during the 3-month period:
· On 17 July 2024, Good Dog Food Ltd, trading as Meatly, became the
first company in the world to receive regulatory clearance for cultivated meat
to be sold as pet food, following approval from UK regulators including the
Food Standards Authority and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs. Meatly's cultivated chicken for pet food can now be sold in the UK.
· On 19 August 2024, Solar Foods Oyj unveiled two new Solein™-powered
products in partnership with the Japanese multinational food and bioscience
corporation Ajinomoto Co. Inc., to be launched in the Singapore following
approval from the Singapore Food Agency. Additionally, Solar Foods announced
that it obtained self-affirmed Generally Recognized as Safe status in the US
for the sale of its single-cell protein, Solein.
· On 10 September 2024, Solar Foods completed a listing of its shares
to trading on the Nasdaq First North Growth Market Finland, with its shares
trading under the ticker "SFOODS".
Corporate update
On 27 September 2024, the Company announced that Shellbay Investments Limited
("Shellbay"), the adviser to the Company providing portfolio management and
investment services, had appointed Dr Philip Boigner as its interim Chief
Executive Officer with immediate effect to replace Anthony Chow. Dr Philip
Boigner will continue to articulate to the market the immense value
opportunity that exists currently in the Company's portfolio, the enormous
strides that have been made by these companies recently, and the great
potential of their technologies.
Dr Boigner serves as a Director at New Agrarian Company Limited, an active
investor in cell agriculture and fermentation technologies which is an
affiliate of Agronomics, having portfolio companies in common, and is also
advised by Shellbay. As a result, Dr Boigner already has a strong
understanding of a number of Agronomics investments.
Shellbay is a related party of the Company, as Jim Mellon is indirectly the
sole owner of Shellbay and Denham Eke is the sole director of Shellbay. Both
are directors of Agronomics.
Jim Mellon, Executive Chair of Agronomics, commented: -
"While the market continues to navigate difficult macroeconomics headwinds,
which have adversely affected a couple of our smaller holdings, we continue to
take great assurance about the potential of the portfolio, which has gone from
strength to strength during the period. The portfolio has continued to
demonstrate notable progress this quarter, achieving multiple new financings
and collectively accounting for a substantial proportion of all fundraising in
the sector during the period.
"Highlights during the period include Galy's oversubscribed US$ 33 million
Series B alongside Formo's US$ 61 million Series B funding round, which
welcomed new substantial investors, and Onego's €14 million in new funding
and participation from established Government agencies. The is a testimony to
the portfolio's enduring attractiveness to both other existing investors and
new investors that such substantial levels of capital raising were achieved.
"We are also witnessing significant operational progress in our portfolio
companies - and we are optimistic that several of our more advanced portfolio
companies will bring product to market in 2025 which should position them well
to begin revenue generation in the following year.
Agronomics continues to have a strong cash balance and has no intention to
raise capital while trading at a discount to NAV."
Unaudited to 30 September 2024
£
Current Assets
Investments 146,930,278
Uninvested cash and deposits 11,869,573
Trade and other receivables 133,401
Current Liabilities
Trade and other creditors (121,976)
Net Assets 158,811,276
Capital and Reserves
Share capital 1,009
Share premium 136,169,365
Retained earnings 22,640,902
Net assets 158,811,276
Shares in Issue 1,009,411,584
Net Asset Value per share 15.73 pence
The quoted investments within the portfolio are valued under IFRS at bid
price.
This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014, as it forms part of UK Domestic
Law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the
publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to
be in the public domain.
About Agronomics
Agronomics is a leading London-listed company focusing on investment
opportunities within the field of cellular agriculture. The Company has
established a portfolio of over 20 companies in this rapidly advancing sector.
It seeks to invest in companies owning technologies with defensible
intellectual property that offer new ways of producing food and materials with
a focus on products historically derived from animals. These technologies are
driving a major disruption in agriculture, offering solutions to improve
sustainability, as well as addressing human health, animal welfare and
environmental damage. This disruption will decouple supply chains from the
environment and animals and improve food security for the world's expanding
population. A full list of Agronomics' portfolio companies is available at
https://agronomics.im/ (https://agronomics.im/) .
For further information please contact:
Agronomics Beaumont Canaccord Genuity Limited Cavendish Capital Markets Limited Peterhouse Capital SEC Newgate
Limited Cornish Limited Limited
The Company Nomad Joint Broker Joint Broker Joint Broker Public Relations
Jim Mellon Roland Cornish Andrew Potts Giles Balleny Lucy Williams Bob Huxford
Anthony Hughes
Denham Eke James Biddle Harry Pardoe Michael Johnson Charles Goodfellow
Charlie Combe
+44 (0) 1624 639396 +44 (0) 207 628 3396 +44 (0) 207 523 8000 +44 (0) 207 397 8900 +44 (0) 207 469 0936 agronomics@secnewgate.co.uk
info@agronomics.im
Nominated Adviser Statement
Beaumont Cornish Limited ("Beaumont Cornish"), is the Company's Nominated
Adviser and is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial
Conduct Authority. Beaumont Cornish's responsibilities as the Company's
Nominated Adviser, including a responsibility to advise and guide the Company
on its responsibilities under the AIM Rules for Companies and AIM Rules for
Nominated Advisers, are owed solely to the London Stock Exchange. Beaumont
Cornish is not acting for and will not be responsible to any other persons for
providing protections afforded to customers of Beaumont Cornish nor for
advising them in relation to the proposed arrangements described in the
announcement or any matter referred to in it.
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