VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 31, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Intrinsyc Technologies Corporation (TSX: ITC and OTCQX: ISYRF) (“Intrinsyc” or the “Company”), a leading provider of solutions for the development of embedded and Internet of Things (“IoT”) products, today announced it has entered into an agreement (the “Arrangement Agreement”) with Lantronix, Inc. (NASDAQ: LTRX) (“Lantronix”), a global provider of secure data access and management solutions for IoT assets, pursuant to which Lantronix will acquire 100% of Intrinsyc’s issued and outstanding common shares in a cash and share transaction valued at approximately US$27 million (collectively, the “Transaction”). Under the terms of the Transaction, Intrinsyc shareholders (“Intrinsyc Shareholders”) will receive US$0.55 in cash plus 0.2135 of a Lantronix share for every common share of Intrinsyc (a “Common Share”) held (collectively, the “Consideration”). Based on the Lantronix closing price of US$3.38 on October 30, 2019 and an exchange rate of 0.75868, the Consideration is equal to Cdn$1.68 per Common Share.
The Transaction will continue to provide Intrinsyc Shareholders with direct exposure to the growth potential in IoT markets as Intrinsyc Shareholders will own approximately 16% of the stock of Lantronix post-Transaction.
“This transaction achieves our goal of increasing shareholder value by accelerating our strategic growth plan as we gain immediate scale and the resulting benefit of greater operational efficiencies through this Transaction. This arrangement also allows our investors exposure to continue to participate in the IoT marketplace while at the same time offering a measure of liquidity to shareholders,” said Daniel Marks, Chairman of the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of Intrinsyc.
Tracy Rees, Intrinsyc’s President and Chief Executive Officer, said “This transaction brings together Intrinsyc’s advanced technology solutions that enable the creation and commercialization of intelligent connected devices with Lantronix’s growing IoT platform to expand our product portfolio and market opportunities”.
Transaction Value Highlights for Intrinsyc Shareholders
The Company believes this is a highly attractive proposal for Intrinsyc Shareholders:
- Premium valuation: The Consideration represents a premium of 27.9% to the volume weighted average price of Intrinsyc common shares on the TSX for the ten trading days prior to the date of announcement.
- Cash component delivers immediate liquidity and value certainty: The Transaction provides a significant cash component of US$0.55 per Common Share which provides immediate liquidity and value certainty to Intrinsyc Shareholders.
- Potential to unlock significant value through combined entity: Intrinsyc Shareholders will benefit as the Transaction will be immediately accretive creating greater scale and expected synergies. By combining with Lantronix, the resulting entity will consist of a broad portfolio of products with a wider distribution model and a management team with a proven track record for creating value for Intrinsyc Shareholders. The board of directors of Intrinsyc (the “Intrinsyc Board”) sees significant potential upside for Intrinsyc Shareholders.
- Enhanced diversification and future growth: The combined entity will provide Intrinsyc Shareholders with continued exposure to the rapidly growing IoT industry through both the organic growth of the existing businesses and the potential for further strategic acquisitions.
Lantronix will host an investor conference call and audio webcast at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time (4:30 p.m. Eastern Time) on Thursday, October 31, 2019. To access the live conference call, investors should dial 1-844-802-2442(US) or 1-412-317-5135(international) and indicate that they are participating in the Lantronix Investor Update call. The webcast will be available simultaneously via the investor relations section of Lantronix’s website at lantronix.staging.wpengine.com
Terms of the Transaction
The Transaction will be carried out pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement under a court-approved statutory plan of arrangement (the “Arrangement”) governed by the Canada Business Corporations Act. Under the Arrangement Agreement, Lantronix will acquire all of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of Intrinsyc.
Intrinsyc Shareholders will receive a management information circular for a special meeting to be held to approve the Transaction, which will include further details about the Transaction, Lantronix and the combined company.
Other Matters
Intrinsyc’s Board established a special committee of independent directors (the “Special Committee”) to assist with an effort to accelerate strategic growth opportunities for the Company and to review and consider terms and conditions for potential transactions involving the Company. As a result of this mandate, the Special Committee has reviewed and overseen the negotiation of the Arrangement Agreement. The Special Committee and the Intrinsyc Board obtained a fairness opinion from TD Securities Inc. (“TD Securities”) (the “Fairness Opinion”) to the effect that, subject to the assumptions, qualifications and limitations contained therein, as at October 30, 2019, the Consideration to be received by Intrinsyc Shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement is fair, from a financial point of view, to such Intrinsyc Shareholders. The Special Committee unanimously recommended to the Intrinsyc Board that the Arrangement Agreement be approved.
The Intrinsyc Board has unanimously determined, based on, among other things, the recommendation of the Special Committee and the Fairness Opinion that the Arrangement is in the best interests of the Company and is fair to its Intrinsyc Shareholders and will recommend that Intrinsyc Shareholders vote in favour of the Arrangement. Directors and executive officers of Intrinsyc holding in aggregate approximately 14.5% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of Intrinsyc have entered into voting and support agreements with Lantronix, pursuant to which they have agreed to vote their shares in favour of the Arrangement.
The Transaction is subject to the approval of: (i) 662/3% of the votes cast by the holders of Intrinsyc’s common shares present in person or represented by proxy, and (ii) if applicable, a simple majority of the votes cast by the holders of Common Shares after excluding any votes that are required to be excluded under Canadian Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions, all at a special meeting of the Intrinsyc Shareholders expected to be held in December 2019. The Transaction is expected to close shortly thereafter following receipt of all shareholder, court, certain third-party and stock exchange approvals.
Pursuant to the terms of the Arrangement Agreement, Intrinsyc is subject to customary non-solicitation covenants and has the benefit of customary fiduciary-out provisions. In the event a superior proposal is made to Intrinsyc, Lantronix has a five (5) business day right to match such proposal, and under certain circumstances where the Intrinsyc Board changes its recommendation or the Arrangement Agreement is terminated, Intrinsyc has agreed to pay a termination fee of US$850,000 to Lantronix.
None of the securities to be issued pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement have been or will be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “U.S. Securities Act”), or any state securities laws, and any securities issued under the Arrangement are anticipated to be issued in reliance upon available exemptions from such registration requirements pursuant to Section 3(a)(10) of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable exemptions under state securities laws. This press release does not constitute an offer to buy any securities.
It is anticipated that post-closing of the Transaction, Lantronix will continue to be listed on the NASDAQ.
Advisors and Counsel
The Special Committee of Intrinsyc has engaged TD Securities as its exclusive financial advisor and Farris LLP as its legal advisor in connection with the Transaction. Lantronix has engaged Owen Bird Law Corporation as its legal advisors in connection with the Transaction. Intrinsyc Shareholders should consult their own tax and investment advisors with respect to the Transaction. A copy of the Arrangement Agreement will be filed on Intrinsyc’s SEDAR profile and will be available for viewing at www.sedar.com.