Third Security, LLC

Third Security, LLC is a venture capital firm based out of Radford, Virginia. The company was originally established in 1999 and has grown from its inception to now have locations in San Francisco, West Palm Beach, and Greenwich. Third Security is headed by CEO and Chairman Randal J. Kirk, who owns the controlling majority in the company, and operates with 22 employees of which 12 are investment professionals. The company has a wide evaluation perspective and focuses on emerging companies through late-stage investments in life-sciences and communications technology. Third Security focuses on maximizing absolute return and tries to find companies that have a strategic position in its field with the potential for both category dominance and financial return. The company invests almost exclusively in the health care sector, which alone makes up over 97% of its total asset allocations, and also invests in the energy, and utilities and telecommunications sectors to a lesser degree, in order of decreasing allocation. Third Security’s top holdings include Intrexon Corp., Halozyme Therapeutics Inc, Ziopharm Oncology Inc, Fibrocell Science Inc, and Synthetic Biologics Inc. The company’s top 10 holdings together make up almost all of its holdings, and the company has a turnover rate of approximately 17.6%. Third Security holds over $2.6 billion in total assets under management spread across 45 accounts, all of which are discretionary accounts. Although the company’s total number of accounts has been relatively staple in recent years with slight volatility, its total assets under management has increased significantly, growing from $1.5 billion back in 2012 to approaching twice that amount today. Third Security mainly caters to pooled investment vehicles, which alone makes up over three quarters of its client base, and also provides services to high net worth individuals, which makes up its remaining clientele. The company takes performance based fees and management fees based upon commitments and net invested capital.