Aeterna Zentaris Announces Closing of $7.0 Million Registered Direct Offering Priced At-The-Market

CHARLESTON, S.C., Aug. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aeterna Zentaris Inc. (NASDAQ: AEZS; TSX: AEZS) (the “Company”), a specialty biopharmaceutical company commercializing and developing therapeutics and diagnostic tests, announced today the closing of its previously announced registered direct offering with several institutional investors in the United States for 12,427,876 common shares, at a purchase price of $0.56325 per common share, priced at-the-market under Nasdaq rules. Additionally, the Company issued to the investors unregistered warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 9,320,907 common shares in a concurrent private placement. The warrants have an exercise price of $0.47 per common share, are exercisable immediately and will expire five and one-half years following the date of issuance. The gross proceeds to the Company from the offering totaled approximately $7.0 million, before deducting placement agent fees and offering expenses.

H.C. Wainwright & Co. acted as the exclusive placement agent for the offering.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of this offering for general corporate purposes, which includes, among other purposes, the funding of a pediatric clinical trial in the E.U. and U.S. for Macrilen (macimorelin), the investigation of further therapeutic uses of macimorelin and the expansion of pipeline development activities.

The common shares described above (but not the warrants or the common shares underlying the warrants) were offered by Aeterna Zentaris pursuant to a “shelf” registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-232935), which was previously declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on August 15, 2019. Such common shares were offered only by means of a prospectus, including a prospectus supplement, forming a part of the effective registration statement.

A final prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the registered direct offering was filed by Aeterna Zentaris with the SEC and may be obtained at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Electronic copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the registered direct offering may also be obtained by contacting H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, 430 Park Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10022, by telephone at [phone] or by email at [e-mail].