On February 1, 2024, an indication will likely be positioned in entrance of 23andMe’s headquarters in Sunnyvale, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Photographs
Anne Wojcicki, CEO of 23andIhas filed a proposal to take the genetic testing firm personal as its inventory worth continues to hover under $1.
Wojcicki mentioned she was keen to amass all of 23andMe’s excellent widespread inventory in money for 40 cents per share, in keeping with a Wednesday submitting with the U.S. Securities and Change Fee. She expressed curiosity in buying the corporate in April, stating on the time that she “is not going to be ready to assist any various transaction.”
The proposed worth of 40 cents per share displays an 11% premium to 23andMe’s closing worth as of April. Wojcicki’s intention is to finish the transaction “as rapidly as attainable,” the submitting mentioned.
Shares of 23andMe closed at 40 cents on Wednesday.
The previous billionaire co-founded the corporate in 2006, and its at-home DNA testing kits, which goal to assist prospects perceive their household historical past and genetic profiles, helped it go mainstream. 23andMe went public in 2021 by way of a merger with a particular function acquisition firm, which valued the corporate at roughly $3.5 billion.
However the firm has struggled to generate secure recurring income as a result of prospects solely want to make use of the DNA product as soon as to obtain their outcomes. The corporate’s shares have fallen greater than 95% since its debut.
“Our expertise with the short-term focus of the general public markets has led me to consider that the corporate will likely be finest outfitted to hold out this mission as a personal entity, permitting us to get rid of sure prices and distractions from public corporations,” Wojcicki wrote within the proposal .
In November, the corporate obtained a deficiency letter from the Nasdaq Itemizing {Qualifications} Division, stating that the corporate had 180 days to get its inventory worth again above $1. The corporate’s board of administrators shaped a “Particular Committee” in late March to assist discover choices that would undermine the inventory.
The Particular Committee must approve or reject Wojcicki’s proposal to take the corporate personal, in keeping with Wednesday’s submitting.
23andMe declined to remark.
