Amphion Innovations plc Interim Results Show 21 Percent Gain in Fair Value of Investments.NEW YORK New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of -- Amphion Innovations plc (LSE LSE - Language Sensitive Editor :AMP) ("Amphion" or "the Company"), the developer of technology and life sciences businesses, today announces its unaudited interim results for the period from 1 January 2006 to 30 June 2006. Financial Highlights --Revenues of US $455,377 --Net profit of US $1.8 million --Earnings per share of US $.02 --Fair value(1) of Amphion's investment portfolio increased 21 percent (US $4.4 million) from US $21.2 million to US $25.6 million --Net asset value per share grew by 8 percent from $.26 at 31 December 2005 to $.28 at 30 June 2006, but the corresponding increase in Sterling was a more modest 2 percent (14.98p to 15.28p) as a result of the adverse movement in the US Dollar against Sterling over the six-month accounting period. Operating Highlights (Pre-30 June) --Amphion announced a memorandum of understanding A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a legal document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action and may not imply a legal commitment. with Myconostica Ltd, a spin-out from the University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a university located in Manchester, England. With over 40,000 students studying 500 academic programmes, more than 10,000 staff and an annual income of nearly £600 million it is the largest single-site University in the United Kingdom and receives to become Amphion's next Partner Company --Supertron Technologies, Inc. successfully raised US $3.5 million in an over-subscribed Series C financing --Axcess International, Inc. raised US $2.3 million in a preferred stock Stock shares that have preferential rights to dividends or to amounts distributable on liquidation, or to both, ahead of common shareholders. Preferred stock is given preference over common stock. Holders of preferred stock receive dividends at a fixed annual rate. offering --Motif BioSciences, Inc. hired Zaki Hosny, former vice president of marketing, European, Middle Eastern and African operations for Merck, as chief executive officer --Amphion sold 132,500 shares of Beijing Med-Pharm Corp. for a total of US $585,886 prior to June 30 and has sold 171,400 shares for a total of US $696,000 since 30 June. The average sales price of US $4.21 represents a 3.66-fold increase over the original purchase price of US $1.15 Operating Highlights (Post-30 June) --Amphion raised GBP GBP In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the British Pound. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 1.04 million through an issuance of 4,010,769 ordinary shares at 26p. --FireStar Software, Inc raised US $2 million in a Series E-1 financing Amphion Chief Executive Officer Richard C. E. Morgan, said: "During this period we have seen tremendous momentum in the key areas of our business model, which is to develop thriving companies. "There has been significant activity in capital raising and we have continued to acquire groundbreaking intellectual property (IP) in life sciences. These are the key factors fuelling our underlying engine of growth as indicated by the 21 percent increase in fair value of our investment portfolio. The successful fundraisings, in excess of US $8 million, along with the acquisition of talent and IP, have underpinned our commitment to growth and are a true validation of our strategy to continue to grow our seven Partner Companies. The latest planned addition to our portfolio, Myconostica Ltd. shows our continued dedication to finding new commercial opportunities in the universities and adding one company to the Amphion portfolio per year, while maintaining a portfolio of 7 to 10 Partner Companies at any one time." Notes to editors About Amphion Innovations Working in partnership with universities and corporations seeking to commercialise their intellectual property, Amphion Innovations plc utilises a proven company creation and building process, staying deeply involved with its Partner Companies before seeing them through a public offering or trade sale. Amphion currently holds a significant stake in each of its Partner Companies, is continually evaluating new opportunities, and expects to add Myconostica Ltd as a Partner Company in 2006. On the Web: www.amphionplc.com Overview for 1 January 2006- 30 June 2006 Amphion has made excellent progress so far this year. We have seen successful fund raisings for Supertron and Axcess during the period ended 30 June 2006 and FireStar post 30 June 2006. Also, we have hired a new chief executive officer for our Partner Company, Motif BioSciences. In addition to our goal of developing thriving companies, part of our strategy is to liquidate our position once a company reaches a certain level of sustained growth and has generated a significant return on investment. For example one of our Partner Companies, Beijing Med-Pharm, has become a leading distributor of western pharmaceutical products in China. Since 1 January 2006, Amphion has sold 303,900 shares of Beijing Med-Pharm stock for US $1.28 million. Over the course of Amphion's two-year investment in Beijing Med-Pharm, it realised a 3.66-fold return on its original investment. We have also successfully begun the process of replacing our investment in Beijing Med-Pharm with an investment in Myconostica, a Manchester University spin-out that develops molecular probes Molecular Probes is a biotechnology company located in Eugene, Oregon specializing in fluorescence. The company was founded in 1975 by Richard and Rosaria Haugland in their kitchen in Minnesota, then moved briefly to Texas and finally to Oregon in the early 1980s. for diagnosing infectious diseases infectious diseases: see communicable diseases. . Currently there is no clinical solution on the market that allows for as fast and precise a diagnosis, and we look forward to adding Myconostica to our portfolio of companies. The fair value of Amphion's investment portfolio increased 21 percent for the period, signifying that Amphion is a company propelled by a strong underlying engine of growth. This continued growth allows Amphion to welcome one Partner Company per year to its portfolio while maintaining a portfolio of 7 to 10 Partner Companies at any one time. Amphion's steady growth is attributable to its proven ability to identify market demands and Partner Companies that are positioned to answer those demands. Amphion has addressed its capital needs with the close of a successful round of financing in August in which it raised gross proceeds of GBP 1.04 million. The Company continues to hold US $1.7 million in Beijing Med Pharm stock, which is available to the Company to supplement its capital needs. Partner Company Highlights -- WellGen, Inc. is a nutrigenomics company using proprietary technology to discover and develop food and dietary supplements from plants and foods to market into the health and wellness markets. A spin-out of Rutgers University Rutgers University, main campus at New Brunswick, N.J.; land-grant and state supported; coeducational except for Douglass College; chartered 1766 as Queen's College, opened 1771. Campuses and Facilities Rutgers maintains three campuses. , WellGen has the exclusive worldwide license to a proprietary technology that screens food and plant extracts for their impact on gene expression associated with the onset or proliferation of cancer, arthritis, obesity and other human diseases. WellGen's leading anti-cancer and obesity compound extracted from orange peel, has its patents pending. The anti-cancer/obesity product has completed a short clinical trial in human patients with high-risk for colon cancer colon cancer, cancer of any part of the colon (often called the large intestine). Colon cancer is the second most common cancer diagnosed in the United States. while a longer clinical trial is planned. Further pre-clinical and human studies of obesity and metabolic syndrome metabolic syndrome n. See syndrome X. Metabolic syndrome A group of risk factors for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. are being planned as well. There is a supply agreement in place for this product with Danisco, a Danish food ingredients company. Clinical trials for the black tea extract in combination with glucosamine glucosamine /glu·co·sa·mine/ (gloo-ko´sah-men) an amino derivative of glucose, occurring in glycosaminoglycans and a variety of complex polysaccharides such as blood group substances. , a nutraceutical known to slow the progression of osteoarthritis osteoarthritis or osteoarthrosis or degenerative joint disease Most common joint disorder, afflicting over 80% of those who reach age 70. It does not involve excessive inflammation and may have no symptoms, especially at first. , have been planned for 2006. The pilot studies will include 16 patients divided into three groups. Results of the trial are expected by year's end. During this period, we sadly reported the loss of WellGen's CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. , David Evans David Evans may mean:
All parties that have an interest, financial or otherwise, in a firm-stockholders, creditors, bondholders, employees, customers, management, the community, and the government. honour his memory through their commitment to pushing the company he built to new heights. -- Durham Scientific Crystals, Ltd. (DSC (1) (Digital Signal Controller) A microcontroller and DSP combined on the same chip. It adds the interrupt-driven capabilities normally associated with a microcontroller to a DSP, which typically functions as a continuous process. See microcontroller and DSP. ) is commercialising a patented process to produce single crystal wafers of the semi-conducting materials cadmium telluride Cadmium telluride (CdTe) is a crystalline compound formed from cadmium and tellurium with a zinc blende (cubic) crystal structure (space group F43m). In the bulk crystalline form it is a direct bandgap semiconductor. CdTe is also a strong solar cell material. and cadmium zinc telluride Cadmium zinc telluride, (CdZnTe) or CZT, is (as the name indicates) a compound of cadmium, zinc and tellurium or more strictly speaking, an alloy of cadmium telluride and zinc telluride. , which are used in digital X-ray cameras. In addition to medical use, DSC is targeting the security industry for the use of its process. The recent scare at Heathrow International Airport in London demonstrated the urgency for enhanced X-ray technology. Currently, enhanced X-ray machines use a process that produces crystals from a liquid base. This process is characterised by poor yield and thus high costs. DSC's process uses a vapour base, which achieves a higher yield, thus driving down the cost and allowing for widespread use. DSC is working with non-commercial partners to optimise its crystals with an electrode edge that makes it easier to integrate them into the electronic infrastructure of scanners. -- AXCESS International, Inc. is a leading provider of security and transportation logistics solutions that utilise radio frequency identification See RFID. (RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) A data collection technology that uses electronic tags for storing data. The tag, also known as an "electronic label," "transponder" or "code plate," is made up of an RFID chip attached to an antenna. ) technology. Its share price during the period increased US $0.45, from US $0.82 to US $1.27. The company raised US $3.5 million this year, including US $2.3 million during the period 1 January 2006 - 30 June 2006, and is using this capital for product development. -- Motif BioSciences, Inc. is a population genetics Population genetics The study of both experimental and theoretical consequences of mendelian heredity on the population level, in contradistinction to classical genetics which deals with the offspring of specified parents on the familial level. company focused on discovering genes causing common diseases by utilising human genetic data from the Persian Gulf Persian Gulf, arm of the Arabian Sea, 90,000 sq mi (233,100 sq km), between the Arabian peninsula and Iran, extending c.600 mi (970 km) from the Shatt al Arab delta to the Strait of Hormuz, which links it with the Gulf of Oman. region. During this period, Zaki Hosny, former vice president of marketing and operations for Europe, Middle East and Africa for Merck, was appointed chief executive officer of Motif. The company also established a joint venture with the Shafallah Centre for Children with Special Needs, located in Doja, Qatar. Motif is playing a key role in the development of a state-of-the-art laboratory for the study of genetics. The region's founder population (people descended from a small number of common ancestors) provides a unique resource for the discovery of disease-related genes. Motif is recruiting 120 individuals for a pilot study that will help it understand the genetic architecture of this population and, in turn, identify the genetic pathways through which common disease-causing genes (i.e. rare monogenetic mon·o·ge·net·ic adj. 1. Relating to or exhibiting monogenesis. 2. Having a single host through the course of the life cycle. 3. Produced under a single set of continuing conditions. Used of soil. diseases, type 2 diabetes type 2 diabetes n. See diabetes mellitus. , obesity and asthma) pass from generation to generation. Motif is also studying and comparing the genetic architecture of whole families that have a high prevalence of these disorders. -- FireStar Software, Inc. develops solutions that allow for the seamless automation of cross-platform transactions between multiple companies. FireStar's flagship product A primary product of a company, which is typically why the company was founded and/or what made it well known. For example, MS-DOS, Windows and the Microsoft Office suite have been flagship products of Microsoft. CorelDRAW is a flagship product of Corel Corporation. , EdgeNode, began shipping in December 2005. In August, FireStar raised US $2 million through an over-subscribed, Series E-1 preferred stock offering. It plans to use this capital to accelerate sales and marketing efforts for EdgeNode and for application development in payment systems, trading and health records exchange. In addition, the company is working to extract value from its intellectual property portfolio. -- Supertron Technologies, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets electronic components and systems for the magnetic resonance imaging magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), noninvasive diagnostic technique that uses nuclear magnetic resonance to produce cross-sectional images of organs and other internal body structures. (MRI 1. (application) MRI - Magnetic Resonance Imaging. 2. MRI - Measurement Requirements and Interface. ) industry. Its products are based on superconductors and are designed for use in pre-clinical, clinical and research settings, including neurological, orthopaedic, cardiac, drug and image guided therapies. Supertron's MRI coils, the scanner's "camera", have demonstrated that they are capable of dramatically improving the imaging capabilities of a MRI scanner. The company is developing a cryogenic coil that increases speed and allows for imaging of body parts in motion. The cryogenic coil also improves resolution, which enables doctors to see smaller structures. In July, Supertron closed on a US $3.5 million Series C financing, which was over subscribed. Outlook and Summary In 2006, Amphion has delivered strong progress in all of its Partner Companies, as is seen with the rise in net asset value and fair value. The year has shown successful investments of more than $8 million in the portfolio, and also Amphion has continued to build up Partner Company management teams with the hire of a new chief executive for Motif Biosciences. The latest planned addition to the portfolio of Myconostica Ltd. has shown Amphion's commitment in finding new and exciting opportunities within the universities and dedication to the strategy of continuing to invest in 7 to 10 companies. The strong start to the year has provided Amphion with a solid base to continue to deliver on its strategy, and the prospects look encouraging with strong newsflow and exciting developments coming from the Partner Companies and further investments expected. (1)Fair value refers to the aggregate value of Amphion's holdings based on the last quoted closing price for publicly held Partner Companies and the offering price on the most recently executed financing transactions for privately held Partner Companies. Of the US $4.4 million increase in fair value, $2.2 million was attributable to the increase in the offering price of Supertron Technologies, Inc. and $1.5 million was attributable to new investing activities. |
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