IREC Challenge/Opportunity

Company E was a mid-cap biotechnology company that had launched a new product within the last 12 months. The product’s launch was very successful and had captured the attention of momentum, event, and other “fast money” investors. While the increased trading activity created liquidity, it also exacerbated share price volatility. Company E wanted to create a more stable shareholder base, specifically looking to add investors with longer-term horizons.

Strategy

  • Identify investors with longer-term orientation appropriate for investment in the Company
  • Educate investors about the long-term value of the Company, its product, and its business model
  • Reinforce the Company’s messaging to both the buyside and sell-side communities

Tactics

  • Conducted broad, quantitative targeting analysis to identify investors with >$100 million in biotechnology assets most likely to purchase shares in the Company based on a number of comparative criteria
  • Conducted outreach to targeted investors to introduce and familiarize them with the Company
  • Customized messaging to manage the investment considerations of targets
  • Pursued select investment banking conferences to help reinforce messaging to the broader investment community

Results

  • Over the course of a one year period following the initiation of targeting-based outreach, 8 of the investors the Investor Relations & External Communications team targeted initiated positions in the Company
  • During the same time period, 8 investors the Investor Relations & External Communications team identified as underweight in the Company relative to a group of its peers subsequently increased their positions in the Company
  • More than 12 million shares were placed with investors targeted by the Investor Relations & External Communications team over the one-year time period since targeting was initiated