Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. (NASDAQ:OHRP) Files An 8-K Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement
Item 1.01

Merger Agreement

On January 2, 2019, Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Ohr” or the “Company”), Ohr Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ohr (“Merger Sub”), and NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“NeuBase”), entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization (the “Merger Agreement”), to which, among other things, subject to the satisfaction or waiver of the conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement, Merger Sub will merge with and into NeuBase, with NeuBase becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company and the surviving corporation of the merger (the “Merger”). The Merger is intended to qualify for federal income tax purposes as a tax-free reorganization under the provisions of Section 368(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

Subject to the terms and conditions of the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the Merger (the “Effective Time”), (a) each outstanding share of NeuBase common stock, including shares of NeuBase capital stock issued in, or issued upon conversion, exercise or exchange of securities issued in, the NeuBase Financing (as defined below), will be converted into the right to receive the number of shares of the Company’s common stock (the “Company Common Stock”) equal to the exchange ratio described below; (b) each outstanding NeuBase stock option that has not previously been exercised prior to the Effective Time will be assumed by the Company; and (c) the warrant to purchase shares of common stock of NeuBase will be converted into and become a warrant to purchase shares of Company Common Stock.

Under the exchange ratio formula in the Merger Agreement, as of immediately after the Merger, the former NeuBase securityholders are expected to own approximately 80% (the “NeuBase Allocation Percentage”) of the aggregate number of shares of the Company Common Stock issued and outstanding following the consummation of the Merger (the “Post-Closing Shares”), and the stockholders of the Company as of immediately prior to the Merger are expected to own approximately 20% (the “Ohr Allocation Percentage”) of the aggregate number of Post-Closing Shares. NeuBase anticipates that it will issue and sell not less than $4,000,000 (the gross proceeds received by NeuBase, the “NeuBase Proceeds”) of its equity securities (including securities convertible, exercisable or exchangeable into such equity securities) prior to the Effective Time (the “NeuBase Financing”). The NeuBase Allocation Percentage will be increased by 0.1% for every $100,000 that the NeuBase Proceeds exceeds $4,000,000, and the Ohr Allocation Percentage will be decreased by 0.1% for every $100,000 that the NeuBase Proceeds exceeds $4,000,000.

Immediately following the Effective Time, the name of the Company will be changed from “Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc.” to “NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc.” The Merger Agreement contemplates that, immediately after the Effective Time, the Board of Directors of the Company will consist of five members, all of which will be designated by NeuBase. The executive officers of the Company immediately after the Effective Time will be designated by NeuBase with NeuBase’s Chief Executive Officer, Dietrich Stephan, being the Company’s Chief Executive Officer.

The Merger Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and covenants made by the Company and NeuBase, including covenants relating to obtaining the requisite approvals of the stockholders of the Company and NeuBase, indemnification of directors and officers, and the Company and NeuBase signing the Merger Agreement and the closing of the Merger. Consummation of the Merger is subject to certain closing conditions, including, among other things, approval by the stockholders of the Company and NeuBase. The Merger Agreement contains certain termination rights for both the Company and NeuBase, and further provides that, upon termination of the Merger Agreement under specified circumstances, the Company may be required to pay NeuBase a termination fee of $250,000 or NeuBase may be required to pay the Company a termination fee of $250,000.

In accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, (i) the officers and directors of the Company have each entered into a support agreement with the Company and NeuBase (the “Ohr Support Agreements”), and (ii) the officers, directors and certain affiliated stockholders of NeuBase have each entered into a support agreement with NeuBase and the Company (the “NeuBase Support Agreements,” together with the Ohr Support Agreements, the “Support Agreements”). The Support Agreements place certain restrictions on the transfer of the shares of the Company and NeuBase held by the respective signatories thereto and include covenants as to the voting of such shares in favor of approving the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement and against any actions that could adversely affect the consummation of the Merger.

Concurrently with the execution of the Merger Agreement, the officers and directors of the Company, and the officers, directors and certain stockholders of NeuBase, each entered into lock-up agreements (the “Lock-Up Agreements”) to which they have agreed, among other things, not to sell or dispose of any shares of Company Common Stock which are or will be beneficially owned by them at the closing of the Mergeruntil the date that is 90 days after the Effective Time.

The Merger Agreement, form of Ohr Support Agreement, form of NeuBase Support Agreement, and form of Company and NeuBase Lock-Up Agreements have each been filed as an exhibit to this Current Report on Form 8-K to provide the Company’s stockholders and investors with information regarding their terms. The assertions embodied in the representations and warranties contained in the Merger Agreement are qualified by information in confidential disclosure schedules delivered by the parties in connection with the signing of the Merger Agreement. Moreover, certain representations and warranties contained in these agreements were made as of a specified date; may have been made for the purposes of allocating contractual risk between the parties to such agreements; and may be subject to contractual standards of materiality different from what might be viewed as material to the Company’s stockholders. Accordingly, the representations and warranties in these agreements should not be relied on by any persons as characterizations of the actual state of facts and circumstances of the Company or any other parties thereto at the time they were made and should consider the information in these agreements in conjunction with the entirety of the factual disclosure about the Company in the Company’s public reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Information concerning the subject matter of the representations and warranties may change after the date of these agreements, which subsequent information may or may not be fully reflected in the Company’s public disclosures. These agreements should not be read alone, but should instead be read in conjunction with each other and other information regarding the Company.

The preceding summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Merger Agreement, form of Ohr Support Agreement, form of NeuBase Support Agreement, and form of Company and NeuBase Lock-Up Agreements, which are filed as Exhibits 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, respectively, and which are incorporated herein by reference.

Slakter Retention Agreement

In connection with the Merger, on January 2, 2019, Ohr entered into a Retention Bonus Agreement with Dr. Jason Slakter, Ohr’s Chief Executive Officer (the “Retention Bonus Agreement”). Under the Retention Bonus Agreement, Dr. Slakter is eligible for a retention bonus payment of $75,000 upon the earliest to occur of the following: (i) Dr. Slakter’s continued service with the Company in his current position through and including the closing date of the Merger, or (ii) Dr. Slakter is involuntarily separated from service without Cause (as such term is defined in the Retention Bonus Agreement) by the Company prior to the closing date of the Merger. In the event Dr. Slakter voluntarily separates from service with the Company for any reason prior to the closing of the Merger, Dr. Slakter will not receive any retention bonus payment and the Company will have no further obligation to Dr. Slakter under the Retention Bonus Agreement.

The foregoing summary of the Retention Bonus Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text of the Retention Bonus Agreement, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 hereto and is incorporated herein by reference.

On January 3, 2019, the Company issued a press release announcing its results for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2018. This press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by reference.

The information in this Item 2.02, including the press release attached as of Exhibit 99.1, is being furnished under Item 2.02, but shall not be deemed “filed” for any purpose, including for the purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that Section. The information in this Item 2.02, including the press release attached as Exhibit 99.1 shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or the Exchange Act.

The information under the heading “Slakter Retention Agreement” in Item 1.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K is hereby incorporated by reference into this Item 5.02.

On January 3, 2019, the Company issued a press release relating to the Merger Agreement. A copy of the press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated by reference herein.

The Company will hold a conference call on Thursday, January 3, 2019, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss the proposed transaction. Interested parties may access the conference call by dialing 1-877-451-6152from the U.S., and +1-201-389-0879 from outside the U.S. and should request the Ohr/NeuBase conference call. A live webcast of the conference call will be available online from the Investors section of the Company’s website at http://public.viavid.com/index.php?id=132682. Replays of the webcast will be available on the Company’s website for 90 days.

The information furnished in Exhibit 99.2 to this Current Report on Form 8-K, which relates to NeuBase and its development programs, may be presented from time to time by NeuBase at various meetings with securities market participants. The Company has not independently verified the material in this presentation. The presentation shall not be deemed “filed” for any purpose, including for the purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that Section.

The information in this Item 7.01, including Exhibit 99.1 and Exhibit 99.2, shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act regardless of any general incorporation language in the filing.

By furnishing the information in this Item 7.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K, including Exhibit 99.1 and Exhibit 99.2, the Company makes no admission as to the materiality of such information. The information contained herein is intended to be considered in the context of the Company filings with the SEC and other public announcements that the Company makes, by press release or otherwise, from time to time. The Company undertakes no duty or obligation to publicly update or revise the information contained in this report, although it may do so from time to time as its management believes is appropriate. Any such updating may be made through the filing of other reports or documents with the SEC, through press releases or through other public disclosure.

Additional Information about the Merger and Where to Find It

In connection with the Merger, the Company intends to file relevant materials with the SEC, including a registration statement on Form S-4 that will contain a prospectus, joint proxy and information statement. Investors and security holders of the Company and NeuBase are urged to read these materials when they become available because they will contain important information about the Company, NeuBase and the Merger. The joint proxy statement, information statement, prospectus, and other relevant materials (when they become available), and any other documents filed by the Company with the SEC, may be obtained free of charge at the SEC web site at www.sec.gov. In addition, investors and security holders may obtain free copies of the documents filed with the SEC by the Company by directing a written request to: Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., 800 Third Avenue, 11th Floor, New York, NY, Attention: Corporate Secretary. Investors and security holders are urged to read the joint proxy statement, prospectus and the other relevant materials when they become available before making any voting or investment decision with respect to the Merger.

This Current Report on Form 8-K shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Subject to certain exceptions to be approved by the relevant regulators or certain facts to be ascertained, the public offer will not be made directly or indirectly, in or into any jurisdiction where to do so would constitute a violation of the laws of such jurisdiction, or by use of the mails or by any means or instrumentality (including without limitation, facsimile transmission, telephone and the internet) of interstate or foreign commerce, or any facility of a national securities exchange, of any such jurisdiction.

Participants in the Solicitation

The Company and its directors and executive officers and NeuBase and its directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of the Company in connection with the proposed transaction. Information regarding the special interests of these directors and executive officers in the Merger will be included in the joint proxy statement/prospectus referred to above. Additional information regarding the directors and executive officers of the Company will also be included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2018 and the proxy statement for the Company’s 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. These documents are available free of charge at the SEC web site (www.sec.gov) and from the Company, Attn: Corporate Secretary, at the address described above.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:

This Current Report on Form 8-K contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements regarding the structure, timing and completion of the proposed Merger; the combined company’s listing on Nasdaq upon the closing of the proposed Merger; the financial position and cash balance of the combined company; expectations regarding ownership structure of the combined company; expectations regarding an issuance and sale of securities or other financing by NeuBase and the expected proceeds thereof, the future operations of the combined company and its ability to successfully initiate and complete clinical trials and achieve regulatory milestones; the nature, strategy and focus of the combined company; the development and commercial potential and potential benefits of any product candidates of the combined company; that the proposed Merger will close and will enable the combined company to participate in the possible success of the combined company’s product candidates; that the product candidates have the potential to address critical unmet needs of patients with serious diseases and conditions; and the executive and board structure of the combined company. These forward-looking statements are distinguished by use of words such as “will,” “would,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “believe,” “designed,” “plan,” or “intend,” the negative of these terms, and similar references to future periods. These views involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict and, accordingly, our actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date of this Current Report on Form 8-K. Factors or events that we cannot predict, including those described in the risk factors contained in our filings with the SEC, may cause our actual results to differ from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Ohr and the combined company may not actually achieve the plans, carry out the intentions or meet the expectations or projections disclosed in the forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Because such statements deal with future events and are based on Ohr’s current expectations, they are subject to various risks and uncertainties and actual results, performance or achievements of Ohr or the combined company could differ materially from those described in or implied by the statements in this Current Report on Form 8-K, including: the risk that the conditions to the closing of the transaction are not satisfied, including the failure to timely or at all obtain stockholder approval for the transaction; uncertainties as to the timing of the consummation of the transaction and the ability of each of Ohr and NeuBase to consummate the transaction; risks related to the combined company’s ability to correctly manage its operating expenses and its expenses; risks related to the market price of Ohr’s common stock relative to the exchange ratio; unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the transaction; potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement or completion of the proposed Merger transaction; the combined company’s plans to develop and commercialize its product candidates, including NT0100 and NT0200; the timing of initiation of the combined company’s planned clinical trials; the timing of the availability of data from the combined company’s clinical trials; the timing of any planned investigational new drug application or new drug application; the combined company’s plans to research, develop and commercialize its current and future product candidates; the clinical utility, potential benefits and market acceptance of the combined company’s product candidates; the combined company’s commercialization, marketing and manufacturing capabilities and strategy; the combined company’s ability to protect its intellectual property position; and the requirement for additional capital to continue to advance these product candidates, which may not be available on favorable terms or at all, as well as those risks discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in Ohr’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K. Except as otherwise required by law, Ohr disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof, whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.

*The schedules and exhibits to the merger agreement have been omitted to Item 601(b)(2) of Regulation S-K. A copy of any omitted schedule and/or exhibit will be furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission upon request.

Ohr Pharmaceutical Inc Exhibit
EX-2.1 2 ex2-1.htm AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER AND REORGANIZATION     Ohr Pharmaceutical,…
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