Innovative Eyewear, Inc. Announces Closing of Exercise of Warrants

Rhea-AI Summary

Innovative Eyewear (NASDAQ: LUCY), a manufacturer of smart eyewear brands including Lucyd, Reebok, Eddie Bauer, and Nautica, has announced the completion of warrant exercises and new warrant issuances. The company received $2.2 million from warrant exercises at $2.60 per share for 746,782 shares, and issued new Series I warrants for up to 2,240,346 shares. Additionally, over the past 30 days, the company received $2.6 million from separate warrant exercises for 986,532 shares.

The new Series I warrants were priced at $0.125 each, generating approximately $0.3 million in proceeds. These warrants have an exercise price of $2.60 per share and an 18-month expiration period. H.C. Wainwright & Co. served as the exclusive placement agent for the offering.

Positive

• Raised total gross proceeds of $4.8 million from warrant exercises
• Additional potential funding through new Series I warrants if exercised
• Strengthened balance sheet for working capital and corporate purposes

Negative

• Potential dilution from issuance of 746,782 new shares and up to 2,240,346 additional shares if Series I warrants are exercised
• New Series I warrants issued at significant discount ($0.125 per warrant)
• Company needed to incentivize warrant exercises through additional warrant issuance

Insights

Financial Analyst

Innovative Eyewear raised $4.8M through warrant exercises, strengthening its balance sheet while diluting existing shareholders.

Innovative Eyewear has successfully raised approximately $4.8 million through two warrant-related transactions. The company generated $2.2 million from a warrant inducement transaction involving 746,782 shares at $2.60 per share, while also collecting an additional $2.6 million from regular warrant exercises covering 986,532 shares at the same price.

This capital raising activity is significant for a small-cap company like Innovative Eyewear, as it substantially improves their liquidity position. However, this comes with notable dilution, as these transactions have added 1,733,314 new shares to the company's outstanding share count.

As part of the inducement structure, the company also issued new Series I warrants for 2,240,346 additional shares at the same $2.60 exercise price, valid for 18 months. Should these new warrants be exercised in the future, they would bring in another $5.8 million but would cause further dilution.

The company's decision to use warrant inducements indicates a strategic need to strengthen its balance sheet, with proceeds earmarked for working capital and general corporate purposes. For a company in the specialized smart eyewear market competing with much larger players, this capital infusion provides operational runway but comes at the cost of equity dilution for existing shareholders.

MIAMI, June 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovative Eyewear, Inc. ("Innovative Eyewear" or the "Company") (Nasdaq: LUCY), the manufacturer of smart eyewear under the Lucyd®, Lucyd Armor®, Reebok®, Eddie Bauer® and Nautica® brands, today closed the previously announced exercise of certain outstanding warrants to purchase an aggregate of 746,782 shares of the Company's common stock originally issued by the Company on April 14, 2025, at the current exercise price of $2.60 per share. The shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants are registered pursuant to an effective registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-287142).

H.C. Wainwright & Co. acted as the exclusive placement agent for the offering.

In consideration for the immediate exercise of the warrants for cash in the warrant inducement transaction, the Company issued new unregistered Series I warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 2,240,346 shares of common stock, at a purchase price of $0.125 per warrant, resulting in aggregate gross proceeds to the Company of approximately $0.3 million. The new Series I warrants have an exercise price of $2.60 per share. The new Series I warrants are exercisable immediately and will expire eighteen months following the effective date of the resale registration statement registering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Series I warrants.

The gross proceeds to the Company from the exercise of the warrants in the warrant inducement transaction were approximately $2.2 million, prior to deducting placement agent fees and offering expenses. The Company expects to use the net proceeds from the transaction for working capital and general corporate purposes.

In addition, over the last 30 days the Company has received aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $2.6 million from the exercise of certain warrants in the ordinary course by investors. Such investors exercised warrants to purchase an aggregate of 986,532 shares of the Company's common stock originally issued by the Company on April 14, 2025, at the original exercise price of $2.60 per share.

The new Series I warrants described above related to the warrant inducement transaction were offered in a private placement and, along with the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the new warrants, have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act"), or applicable state securities laws. Accordingly, the new warrants and shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of the new warrants may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an effective registration statement or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the 1933 Act and such applicable state securities laws. The Company has agreed to file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") as soon as practicable and within 30 days covering the resale of the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the new Series I warrants.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described herein, 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 Innovative Eyewear, Inc.

Innovative Eyewear is a developer of cutting-edge ChatGPT enabled smart eyewear, under the Lucyd®, Nautica®, Eddie Bauer® and Reebok® brands. True to our mission to Upgrade Your Eyewear®, our Bluetooth audio glasses allow users to stay safely and ergonomically connected to their digital lives and are offered in hundreds of frame and lens combinations to meet the needs of the optical market. To learn more and explore our continuously evolving collection of smart eyewear, please visit www.lucyd.co.

Forward Looking Statements

 This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including but not limited to, those relating to the the intended use of proceeds from the offering. Forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe-harbor for forward-looking statements. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking expressions, including, but not limited to, "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "estimate," "expect," "future," "intend," "may," "outlook," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "should," "will," "would" and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 10-K under the caption "Risk Factors."

Investor Relations Contact:

Innovative Eyewear, Inc.
Scott Powell
Skyline Corporate Communications Group, LLC
Office: +1 (646) 893-5835
Email: scott@skylineccg.com

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SOURCE Innovative Eyewear, Inc.

FAQ

How much money did Innovative Eyewear (LUCY) raise from recent warrant exercises?

Innovative Eyewear raised $4.8 million in total, with $2.2 million from induced warrant exercises and $2.6 million from ordinary warrant exercises over the past 30 days.

What are the terms of LUCY's new Series I warrants?

The Series I warrants were priced at $0.125 each, have an exercise price of $2.60 per share, and expire 18 months after the effective date of the resale registration statement.

How many new shares could be issued from LUCY's Series I warrants?

The Series I warrants allow for the purchase of up to 2,240,346 shares of common stock if fully exercised.

How will Innovative Eyewear use the proceeds from the warrant exercises?

The company plans to use the net proceeds for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Which investment bank acted as placement agent for LUCY's warrant transaction?

H.C. Wainwright & Co. acted as the exclusive placement agent for the offering.