Exhibit 99.1
DURECT Corporation Announces $15 Million Registered Direct Offering Priced
At-The-Market Under Nasdaq Rules
CUPERTINO, Calif., July 20,
2023 / PRNewswire / DURECT Corporation (Nasdaq: DRRX) (DURECT), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing its epigenetic regulator program for the treatment of acute organ injury and chronic liver diseases, today announced
that it has entered into definitive agreements for the purchase and sale of an aggregate of 2,991,027 shares of common stock and accompanying warrants to purchase up to 2,991,027 shares of common stock in a registered direct offering (the
Offering) priced at-the-market under Nasdaq rules. The shares of common stock and accompanying warrants are being sold at a combined purchase price of $5.015
per share and accompanying warrant. The warrants will have an exercise price of $4.89 per share, will be immediately exercisable and will expire five years from the date of issuance.
The closing of the Offering is expected to occur on or about July 21, 2023, subject to customary closing conditions. The gross proceeds from the Offering
are expected to be approximately $15 million, before deducting fees to the placement agents and other estimated offering expenses payable by DURECT. DURECT intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for general corporate purposes, which
may include clinical trials, research and development activities, capital expenditures, selling, general and administrative costs, facilities expansion, and to meet working capital needs.
H.C. Wainwright & Co. is acting as exclusive placement agent for the Offering.
The Offering is being made pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File
No. 333-258333) previously filed by DURECT with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) on July 30, 2021 and declared effective by the SEC on August 16, 2021. The Offering is being made only by means of a
prospectus, including a prospectus supplement, forming a part of the effective registration statement. The prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to, and describing the terms of, the Offering will be filed with the SEC. You
may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus can be obtained, when available, from H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC at 430
Park Avenue, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10022, by phone at (212) 856-5711 or e-mail at placements@hcwco.com.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these
securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.
About DURECT Corporation
DURECT is a biopharmaceutical
company committed to transforming the treatment of acute organ injury and chronic liver diseases by advancing novel and potentially lifesaving therapies based on its endogenous epigenetic regulator program. Larsucosterol (also known as DUR-928), DURECTs lead drug candidate, binds to and inhibits the activity of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs), epigenetic enzymes which are elevated and associated with hypermethylation found in
alcohol-associated hepatitis (AH) patients. Larsucosterol is in clinical development for the potential treatment of AH, for which FDA has granted a Fast Track Designation; non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)
is also being explored. In addition, POSIMIR® (bupivacaine solution) for infiltration use, a non-opioid analgesic utilizing the innovative SABER® platform technology, is FDA-approved and has been exclusively licensed to Innocoll Pharmaceuticals for development and commercialization in the United
States.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press
release contains forward-looking statements, including statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, relating to: the Offering, statements regarding the completion of the Offering and
the expected use of proceeds from the Offering, our plan to report topline data in the fourth quarter of 2023, the potential FDA approval of larsucosterol for the treatment of AH, the ability of a positive outcome in the AHFIRM trial to support a
New Drug Application (NDA) filing and our ability to expedite the NDA process using the Fast Track Designation granted by the FDA, larsucosterols potential to be the first FDA- approved