US-based gene therapy developer RegenXBio, backed by pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), priced its initial public offering on Nasdaq at $140m, putting up 6.4 million shares at $22 each.
The company began trading yesterday and shares climbed to more than $30. RegenXBio had filed for a flotation last month, when it expected to secure up to $100m in proceeds.
The company was co-founded by research firm Foxkiser, University of Pennsylvania and James Wilson, who now serves as chief scientific advisor. RegenXBio is working on treatments for a variety of rare diseases, and has a pipeline of 23 candidates.
Proceeds from the IPO will go towards research and development of three drug candidates through phase 1 and phase 1/2 clinical trials, with part of the cash also supporting preclinical trials for a range of other treatments.
GSK obtained a 20% stake in RegenXBio in 2009 as part of a licensing agreement, though this had been diluted to 5.7% before the offering. GSK retains 4.4% following the flotation.
Venrock’s stake dropped from 9.5% to 7.4%, Brookside Capital’s from 9.2% to 7.1%, Deerfield Management’s from 6.1% to 4.7%, and Beacon Bioventures’ from 5.7% to 4.4%,
RegenXBio had raised more than $110 in funding. The company’s remaining backers include Janus Capital Management, Jennison Associates, Perceptive Advisors, QVT Financial, Tourbillon Global Ventures, Sectoral Asset Management, Cormorant Asset Management, Foresite Capital Management, RTW Investments and Fidelity Biosciences.
Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Piper Jaffray and Chardan Capital Markets served as underwriters for the offering.