Basel, 25 March 2021 – Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) today announced that it has commenced a cash tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of common stock of GenMark Diagnostics, Inc. (NASDAQ: GNMK) at a price of $24.05 per share. The tender offer is being made pursuant to the previously announced merger agreement dated as of March 12, 2021 among Roche Holdings, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Roche Holding Ltd, Geronimo Acquisition Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Roche Holdings, Inc., and GenMark.
The tender offer period will expire at 12:00 midnight, Eastern Time, at the end of the day on Wednesday, April 21, 2021, unless the offer is extended.
Roche has filed a tender offer statement on Schedule TO with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Geronimo Acquisition Corp. is the acquirer in the tender offer. The Offer to Purchase contained within the Schedule TO sets out the terms and conditions of the tender offer.
GenMark has also filed a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement with the SEC on Schedule 14D-9, which includes the unanimous recommendation of the GenMark board of directors that GenMark stockholders tender their shares in the tender offer. Closing of the tender offer is conditioned upon customary closing conditions, including the expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, and there being validly tendered and not validly withdrawn a majority of the outstanding shares of GenMark common stock. The offer is not subject to any financing condition. Following successful completion of the tender offer, any shares not acquired in the tender offer will be acquired in a second step merger at the same price of $24.05 per share. The closing of the transaction is expected to take place in the second quarter of 2021.
The complete terms and conditions are set out in the Offer to Purchase, which was filed with the SEC today, March 25, 2021. GenMark stockholders may obtain copies of all of the offering documents, including the Offer to Purchase, free of charge at the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov) or by directing a request for the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement on Schedule 14D-9 to GenMark’s website at www.genmarkdx.com or the Offer to Purchase and the other related materials to MacKenzie Partners, Inc., the Information Agent for the offer, toll free at (800) 322-2885 (or please call (212) 929-5500 if you are located outside the U.S. or Canada) or via email at tenderoffer@mackenziepartners.com.
Before making any decision with respect to the Offer, investors are urged to read the Offer to Purchase and related documents, as well as the Solicitation/Recommendation Statement, because they contain important information about the Offer.
About GenMark Diagnostics
GenMark Diagnostics is a leading provider of multiplex molecular diagnostic solutions designed to enhance patient care, improve key quality metrics and reduce the total cost-of-care. Utilizing GenMark’s proprietary eSensor® detection technology, GenMark’s eSensor XT-8® and ePlex® systems are designed to support a broad range of molecular diagnostic sample-to-answer tests with compact, easy-to-use workstations and self-contained, disposable test cartridges. GenMark’s ePlex: The True Sample-to-Answer Solution™ is designed to optimize laboratory efficiency and address a broad range of infectious disease testing needs, including respiratory, bloodstream and gastrointestinal infections.
About Roche
Roche is a global pioneer in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics focused on advancing science to improve people’s lives. The combined strengths of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics under one roof have made Roche the leader in personalised healthcare – a strategy that aims to fit the right treatment to each patient in the best way possible.
Roche is the world’s largest biotech company, with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, immunology, infectious diseases, ophthalmology and diseases of the central nervous system. Roche is also the world leader in in vitro diagnostics and tissue-based cancer diagnostics, and a frontrunner in diabetes management.
Founded in 1896, Roche continues to search for better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat diseases and make a sustainable contribution to society. The company also aims to improve patient access to medical innovations by working with all relevant stakeholders. More than thirty medicines developed by Roche are included in the World Health Organization Model Lists of Essential Medicines, among them life-saving antibiotics, antimalarials and cancer medicines. Moreover, for the twelfth consecutive year, Roche has been recognised as one of the most sustainable companies in the Pharmaceuticals Industry by the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI).
The Roche Group, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, is active in over 100 countries and in 2020 employed more than 100,000 people worldwide. In 2020, Roche invested CHF 12.2 billion in R&D and posted sales of CHF 58.3 billion. Genentech, in the United States, is a wholly owned member of the Roche Group. Roche is the majority shareholder in Chugai Pharmaceutical, Japan. For more information, please visit www.roche.com.
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Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the statements contained in this communication are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding, among other things, the expected consummation and effects of the transaction, including the timing thereof, all of which involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including, the satisfaction of closing conditions for the transaction, such as regulatory approval and the tender of a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock of GenMark, the possibility that the transaction will not be completed, and other risks and uncertainties discussed in GenMark public filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, including the “Risk Factors” section of GenMark’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as the tender offer documents filed by Roche Holdings, Inc. (“Roche”) and its acquisition subsidiary and the solicitation/recommendation statement filed by GenMark. These statements are based on current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future statements. These statements are generally identified by words or phrases such as “believe”, “anticipate”, “expect”, “intend”, “plan”, “will”, “may”, “should”, “estimate”, “predict”, “potential”, “continue” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results and the timing of events may differ materially from the results and/or timing discussed in the forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on these statements. Roche and GenMark disclaim any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this communication.
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