Lyell Immunopharma, a US-based immunotherapy developer which counts pharmaceutical firms GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Celgene as investors, raised $425m in its initial public offering yesterday.
The company issued 25 million shares on the Nasdaq Global Market at a price of $17 each, the mid-point of the offering’s $16 to $18 range. Its shares closed at $16.89 at the end of the day.
Founded in 2018, Lyell is developing cancer immunotherapies that reprogram T-cells, an integral component of the immune system, to make them more effective against solid tumours.
The company will use the IPO proceeds to put $130m each into advancing two cancer drug candidates – LYL797 and LYL845 – through phase 1 clinical trials. An additional $100m will go into research and development and $100m to the expansion of its manufacturing capabilities.
Venture capital firm Arch Venture Partners, investment firm Foresite Capital and a vehicle called Milky Way Investments Group participated in a $493m series C round for Lyell in March 2020, according to the IPO prospectus.
Lyell had raised $162m of series B financing from investors including Foresite Capital and a vehicle called Gemini Investments between March and May 2019 before GSK purchased about $205m of Lyell stock two months later through a collaboration and license agreement.
Arch Venture Partners had led the company’s $179m series A round, which featured Foresite Capital and Gemini Investments, in early 2019. It remains Lyell’s largest shareholder, with a stake diluted from 16.7% to 15% in the offering.
GSK has a 12.5% stake post-IPO, and other notable shareholders include Milky Way Investments Group, (7.2%), Gemini Investments (6.2%), Foresite Capital (5.5%), Celgene and Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (4.5% each).
Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley are serving as joint bookrunners for the offering. They have a 30-day option to buy just over 3.7 million additional shares, which would increase the size of the IPO to approximately $489m.