Aerovate Therapeutics (AVTE, Financial) has secured shareholder approval for its merger with Jade Biosciences, moving forward with all related propositions. The approval came during a special stockholders' meeting held on April 16, which included a reverse stock split of Aerovate’s common shares.
On April 18, the company's Board sanctioned a reverse stock split at a 1-for-35 ratio, aligning with the merger's anticipated completion. This adjustment is projected to reduce Aerovate's outstanding common shares from roughly 30.0 million to about 0.8 million shares. The authorized common stock remains unaffected by this split.
As part of the merger, shareholders agreed to double Aerovate's authorized common stock from 150 million to 300 million shares. They will also receive a cash dividend totaling $69.6 million, approximately $2.40 per share, based on holdings as of April 25, prior to the reverse stock split.
Upon finalizing the merger, the new entity, Jade Biosciences, Inc., will adopt the ticker “JBIO” and commence trading on Nasdaq from April 29, on a post-reverse split basis. The company’s total issued and outstanding common stock is expected to reach around 32.2 million shares, which could extend to 60.6 million on a fully diluted basis. Shareholders will also see adjustments to the exercise prices and share numbers of their existing equity awards, although the par value per share will remain unchanged.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast
Based on the one-year price targets offered by 3 analysts, the average target price for Aerovate Therapeutics Inc (AVTE, Financial) is $2.33 with a high estimate of $3.00 and a low estimate of $2.00. The average target implies an downside of 15.15% from the current price of $2.75. More detailed estimate data can be found on the Aerovate Therapeutics Inc (AVTE) Forecast page.
Based on the consensus recommendation from 4 brokerage firms, Aerovate Therapeutics Inc's (AVTE, Financial) average brokerage recommendation is currently 3.0, indicating "Hold" status. The rating scale ranges from 1 to 5, where 1 signifies Strong Buy, and 5 denotes Sell.
