Infectious disease testmaker OraSure Technologies is coming under additional pressure from investors, according to reports—with a potential fight brewing over its board of directors, following the rejection of a buyout offer earlier this year and a stock price that’s dropped about 20% during the last 12 months.
A story today from Reuters said Altai Capital Management recently increased its stake in the diagnostic developer, from a previous holding of 3% up to 5%, and that the hedge fund has its sights set on the seats of two directors up for reelection next year. The report added that one of its proposed candidates may be Altai founder Rishi Bajaj.
OraSure—with its portfolio of rapid home and point-of-care tests spanning COVID-19, hepatitis C, Ebola virus and sexually transmitted infections such as HIV and syphilis—previously received a separate, unsolicited cash offer from healthcare entrepreneur Ron Zwanziger.
Reuters reported late last month that the company had turned down a proposal over the summer of between $3.50 and $4 per share, while OraSure shares were previously trading around or less than $3. The stock was up about 3% to $3.35 as of this morning.
That story had said that Zwanziger sent a letter to OraSure saying he may pursue an “adversarial path” if they couldn’t come to a deal. Meanwhile, this week, Reuters confirmed that Zwanziger and Altai are not working together.
Other OraSure backers have been frustrated as well, with Cannell Capital’s Carlo Cannell telling Reuters that he proposed board changes at the company last year. As of June, Cannell Capital owns a 2.5% stake.
Within OraSure’s most recent earnings report in August, the company disclosed that second-quarter net revenues fell 43% year over year, down to $31.2 million from 2024’s $54.3 million.
“Our team is focused on advancing our innovation roadmap, as well as expanding our commercial reach and diversifying our client relationships in new segments under the leadership of our Chief Commercial Officer, Anne Messing, as we prepare to launch several new products,” President and CEO Carrie Eglinton said in a statement.
“We are also staying closely aligned with our customers as they navigate an environment with improving, but still elevated, levels of uncertainty related to funding for public health programs and research,” said Eglinton.
Late last year, OraSure acquired CRISPR-based test developer Sherlock Biosciences for $5 million in upfront cash—mainly for its combined test for chlamydia and gonorrhea, which is undergoing clinical testing; the company expects to put it up for FDA review by the end of 2025. That acquisition deal also included more than $20 million set aside for regulatory milestone payments and royalties, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings.