Debra Borchardt
Cannabis track-and-trace company BioTrack, which is owned by Forian (Nasdaq: FORA), filed a 13-D form with the Securities and Exchange Commission demonstrating that the company could be in play.
The 13-D form is filed with the SEC when a person or group acquires more than 5% of a single class of shares for a company. Forian’s document lists the following entities are acquiring shares:
- Larry Feinberg, founder of Oracle Investment Management is listed as having 5.42% of the shares
- Oracle Partners L.P. is listed as having 3.74%
- Oracle Institutional Partners L.P. as having 0.54%
- Oracle Ten Fund was 0.21%
- Oracle Investment Management, Inc. Employees’ Retirement Plan with 0.09%
- The Feinberg Family Foundation with 0.02%
- Oracle Associates, LLC with 4.47%
- Oracle Investment Management, Inc. 4.56%
According to the company’s website, Oracle Investment Management Inc. (OIM) is a fundamental research-driven investment management company that is exclusively focused on the global health care and bioscience industries.
The firm was founded by Larry N. Feinberg in 1993. Feinberg has been a leading investor and securities analyst in the health care industry for more than 30 years.
Forian stock had been on an upswing since the beginning of the year, but on Feb. 3 it began to slide, slipping from $3.70 to roughly $3.08. In the last two days, the stock popped back to close at $3.38 on Thursday.
In December, Forian announced that New York had selected BioTrack as the track-and-trace system for the New York Office of Cannabis Management’s seed-to-sale tracking system. BioTrack software will track cannabis from when it is first planted as a seed to the point of sale to the consumer.
The OCM said it plans to use the BioTrack seed-to-sale traceability system to monitor the movement of cannabis products in the state’s new adult-use cannabis market and continue monitoring in the state’s medical cannabis market.
In November, Forian reported revenue for the third quarter of $7.2 million, an increase of $2.2 million versus the prior year and 10% sequentially over the second quarter of 2022. The net loss for the quarter was $5.1 million, or $0.16 per share, compared to $7.0 million, or $0.22 per share, in the prior year. The adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was negative $2.2 million, compared to negative $4.1 million in the prior year. The company’s cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities at the end of the quarter were $20.6 million.
At the time, Forian CEO Dan Barton said, “Third quarter 2022 financial results continue to demonstrate significant revenue growth, especially in our healthcare information offerings. This strong revenue growth coupled with the consistency in our cannabis business and the success of our cost management efforts provide the blueprint to reduce Net Loss and become Adjusted EBITDA positive in the second half of 2023.”
The company hasn’t responded yet for a request to comment on the latest filing.
