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Source: Knight Therapeutics

Leading Independent Proxy Advisor, Key Shareholders, and More Analysts Back Jonathan Goodman’s Knight, Recommend Meir Jakobsohn Not be Re-elected to the Board

  • Independent proxy advisor ISS recommends Knight shareholders WITHHOLD on Meir Jakobsohn and against his plan to take control of the board
  • As momentum builds for Jonathan Goodman and nominees who support his vision for Knight, shareholders are reminded to vote the BLUE proxy in advance of the voting deadline of Friday, May 3, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. (EST)
  • Questions? Need help? Contact Kingsdale Advisors at 1-888-518-1552 or at contactus@kingsdaleadvisors.com

MONTREAL, April 25, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Knight Therapeutics Inc. (TSX: GUD) ("Knight"), a Canadian specialty pharmaceutical company, today announced that leading independent proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. ("ISS") has joined equity analysts and a growing number of key shareholders who are voicing their support for Jonathan Goodman and his team of experienced and qualified director nominees ahead of the upcoming 2019 Annual Meeting of Shareholders on May 7, 2019.

In its report, ISS states that Mr. Jakobsohn “has failed to make a compelling case for board control” and that his “go-forward plan” may expose Knight to significant risks. 

“Jakobsohn's agenda carries significant risk and does not appear to be aligned with the company's original strategy, and thus may not be aligned with shareholder expectations,” noted the report.  “The emergence of his campaign after an apparently uneventful three-year relationship between the two companies also raises concerns about his potential motivation – an issue that is compounded by the lack of public disclosure regarding Medison's financials.

They added that “Given the lack of disclosure around Medison’s financials, the board’s concern that [Mr. Jakobsohn] may be seeking to use Knight’s funds to support Medison does not appear unfounded.”

ISS also rebuffed Mr. Jakobsohn’s baseless conflict of interest allegations against Mr. Goodman and his related shareholder proposal.”

“The company has already established structures and policies for managing conflicts of interest that are in line with Canadian market practice,” noted the report.

In addition, more analysts continue to weigh in in support of Jonathan Goodman and the current direction of Knight, warning shareholders of the risks associated with Meir Jakobsohn and his approach.  Most recently, Bloom Burton Securities Inc. has joined the list by stating:

  • “We continue to believe that Knight’s disciplined deal-making, alternative capital preservation/growth strategies and its building of a pipeline at next to no cost, is a reasonable approach for the times – one which we continue to believe, should pay-off for investors over the long-term, with limited downside risk as the product portfolio build-out progresses… Overall, we believe that shareholders of Knight face a better risk/reward with current management’s plan.”
     
  • “Regarding the claim of conflict of interest: Knight’s in-licensing of 22 products since 2014 vs 6 publically disclosed in-license transactions for Pharmascience over the same period (Exhibit 2) supports that Knight management is not operating in a conflicted manner vis-à-vis the Pharmascience relationship in our opinion. In fact, we believe the potential for conflict of interest could be higher if Medison takes control of Knight.”

Bloom Burton adds to the unanimous view from analysts that Knight is on the right path and change is not warranted:

FirmAnalystVoteReason
Raymond JamesDavid Novak
david.novak@raymondjames.ca
BLUE“A vote for Knight’s recommended director nominees is in the best interests of stakeholders”
Paradigm CapitalRahul Sarugaser
rsarugaser@paradigmcap.com
BLUE“Mr. Goodman and his team remain the best stewards of GUD and its ~$800M in cash”
GMP SecuritiesJustin Keywood
jkeywood@gmpsecurities.com
BLUE“Knight is already on the right path”
Bloom Burton SecuritiesDavid Martin
dmartin@bloomburton.com
BLUE“Shareholders of Knight face a better risk/reward with current management’s plan”
National BankEndri Leno
endri.leno@nbc.ca
BLUE“Activist proposal lacks a management team”

“ISS and analysts are validating what we have been hearing loud and clear from shareholders: Knight is on the right track and benefits from the leadership of the current experienced and qualified directors who have track records of building successful companies,” said Knight CEO Jonathan Goodman.  “No one wants a Knight controlled by Meir Jakobsohn, his nominees who have no entrepreneurial pharma experience, and that will pursue his risky scheme to gamble with Knight’s cash.”

GROWING NUMBER OF SHAREHOLDERS ANNOUNCING PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR JONATHAN

Illustrative of the growing momentum for Jonathan Goodman and his team, key shareholders are also coming forward with public statements of support.

“We the undersigned shareholders of Knight Therapeutics… are in full support of Knight’s current leadership.”

Philippe Côté, M.Sc., CFA
Vice President and Portfolio Manager
Eterna Investment Management

“We will be voting on the BLUE proxy for management’s director nominees at the 2019 Annual Meeting on May 7.  We will not be voting for Meir Jakobsohn. We advise fellow shareholders to join with us.”

Carl Simard, President
Gestion de portefeuille stratégique Medici

PROTECT YOUR INVESTMENT - VOTE YOUR BLUE PROXY TODAY

Don’t risk your Knight investment to Meir Jakobsohn, his risky scheme and inexperienced director nominees.

We encourage shareholders vote the BLUE Proxy or Voting Instruction Form (VIF) FOR the Knight board nominees who are aligned with their interests and the original vision of Knight.

The deadline to vote is Friday, May 3, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. (EST). Shareholders with questions regarding voting the BLUE Proxy or VIF should visit Knight’s website or contact Knight's strategic shareholder advisor and proxy solicitation agent, Kingsdale Advisors, who can be reached by toll-free telephone in North America at 1-888-518-1552, by collect call outside North America at 416-867-2272, or by email at contactus@kingsdaleadvisors.com.

Advisors

Knight has retained Kingsdale Advisors as its strategic shareholder and communications advisor, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP as its legal advisor, and RBC Capital Markets as its financial advisor.

About Knight Therapeutics Inc. 

Knight Therapeutics Inc., headquartered in Montreal, Canada, is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on acquiring or in-licensing and commercializing innovative pharmaceutical products for the Canadian and select international markets. Knight Therapeutics Inc.’s shares trade on TSX under the symbol GUD. For more information about Knight Therapeutics Inc., please visit the company’s web site at www.gud-knight.com or www.sedar.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

This document contains forward-looking statements for Knight Therapeutics Inc. and its subsidiaries. These forward-looking statements, by their nature, necessarily involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Knight Therapeutics Inc. considers the assumptions on which these forward-looking statements are based to be reasonable at the time they were prepared, but cautions the reader that these assumptions regarding future events, many of which are beyond the control of Knight Therapeutics Inc. and its subsidiaries, may ultimately prove to be incorrect. Factors and risks, which could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations are discussed in Knight Therapeutics Inc.'s Annual Report and in Knight Therapeutics Inc.'s Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2018. Knight Therapeutics Inc. disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information or future events, except as required by law.


CONTACT INFORMATION:

Investor Contact:
Knight Therapeutics Inc.
Samira Sakhia
President & Chief Financial Officer
T: 514-678-8930
F: 514-481-4116
info@gudknight.com
www.gud-knight.com

Media Contact:
Kingsdale Advisors
Ian Robertson
Executive Vice President, Communication Strategy
Direct: 416-867-2333
Cell: 647-621-2646
irobertson@kingsdaleadvisors.com