Morning Roundup: December 21, 2023
At the SPAC of Dawn
December has been a good month for de-SPAC exits.
Two weeks ago today, AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) agreed to acquire neuroscience drug developer Cerevel Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CERE) for $45 per share three years after its combination with ARYA II, making it one of the most lucrative de-SPAC exits of all time.
Just one day before the month started, Nebula Caravel‘s 2021 target Rover (NASDAQ:ROVR) agreed to be acquired by Blackstone (NYSE:BX) affiliates for $11 per share and this morning’s latest addition brought returns to investors even faster.
Hammerhead Energy’s (NASDAQ:HHRS) take-private for $15.50 per share locked in 55% returns for Decarbonization Plus IV less than a year after it closed the combination in February. In fact, the two parties would normally have still been locked up at this point had the company not traded consistently above $12 since October, releasing both sides early over the past couple months.
The various duds that came out of the last few years’ big SPAC cycle have been well documented, but hopefully this late-year win streak can pick up similar note in the financial press.
News and Rumors
- PR: Hammerhead Energy (NASDAQ:HHRS) has agreed to be acquired by peer Crescent Point Energy in a take-private that values the company at $15.50 per share 10 months after it closed its combination with Decarbonization Plus IV.
- BloombergLaw: A federal judge barred plaintiffs from expanding an ongoing lawsuit against Virgin Galactic (NYSE:SPCE) to include claims that the space tourism venture misled investors about the safety of its flights as it de-SPAC’d from Social Capital.
International SPACs
- Frankfurt-listed SMG European Recovery SPAC SE (DE:RCVR) has signed a non-binding letter of intent to combine with Sircle Hospitality Group.
Non-Redemption Agreements
- Spree Acquisition Corp. 1 (NYSE:SHAP) has signed non-redemption agreements protecting 1,825,000 shares from redemption through its most recent extension vote. These represent the vast majority of Spree 1’s remaining public shares, which were reduced to 1,864,987 after 2,371,801 were redeemed in connection with the vote. Parties to the non-redemption agreements are to receive a distribution of 638,750 promote shares according to a ratio of 70,000 incentive shares for every 200,000 not redeemed.
Scheduling Notes
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Alphavest Acquisition Corp.‘s (NASDAQ: ATMV) meeting was convened on December 20, but adjourned in order to solicit additional votes on the matters listed in the notice of extraordinary general meeting and the proxy statement. The meeting has been adjourned to December 21, at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time.