Helix BioPharma Grants Stock Options and Cancels Previous Grant Amid Pipeline Progress
Helix BioPharma Corp. announced the grant of 1,297,000 stock options to directors, officers, employees, and consultants, while canceling 2,200,000 options previously granted to a director, as the clinical-stage oncology company advances its pipeline including L-DOS47 and other candidates.
Helix BioPharma Corp. (TSX: HBP, OTC PINK: HBPCD, FRANKFURT: HBP0), a clinical-stage oncology company focused on hard-to-treat cancers, announced Thursday that its board of directors has granted 1,297,000 incentive stock options to directors, officers, employees, and consultants under its equity compensation plan. Each option is exercisable at $1.63 per share for five years, subject to vesting provisions. Concurrently, the company cancelled 2,200,000 incentive stock options previously granted on July 19, 2024, to a director, which had an exercise price of $1.10 and were set to expire in 2029. The director did not receive any options in the new grant.
The stock option adjustments come as Helix BioPharma continues to advance its oncology pipeline. The company's lead candidate, Tumor Defense Breaker L-DOS47, is an antibody-enzyme conjugate designed to prime CEACAM6-expressing tumors for increased sensitivity to therapy. L-DOS47 has completed Phase Ib studies in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and shares its targeting foundation with next-generation bi-specific antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) currently in discovery. Helix also has two pre-IND candidates: LEUMUNA, an oral immune checkpoint modulator for post-transplant leukemia relapse, and GEMCEDA, an oral gemcitabine prodrug with bioavailability comparable to IV administration, aimed at expanding treatment options for advanced cancers.
The cancellation of the previously granted options may signal a strategic realignment of equity incentives, potentially tied to performance or corporate governance considerations. The new grant at a higher exercise price ($1.63 vs. $1.10) reflects the current market valuation and may better align management and director incentives with shareholder value. For investors, such moves often indicate management's confidence in the company's future prospects, especially as Helix progresses its clinical programs toward potential milestones.
Helix BioPharma is listed on the TSX under the symbol HBP, on OTC PINK as HBPCD, and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as HBP0. More information is available on the company's website at https://www.helixbiopharma.com/.
Forward-looking statements in the release are based on assumptions and subject to risks detailed in the company's filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The company does not undertake to update these statements except as required by law.