US-based biopharmaceutical company Verastem priced 5.5 million of its shares at $10.00 on Thursday for its initial public offering (IPO), raising $51.1m after underwriting expenses are taken into account.
Verastem’s shares opened at $11.00 on NASDAQ the day after, and finished at $11.90 at Friday’s close, up 10.9% from its opening price.
The range for Verastem’s shares were set between $9 and $11 on 13th January, as Verastem estimated it would raise $46m.
Shareholders in Verastem include venture capital (VC) firm Longwood Founders Fund, founded by Christoph Westphal, president of GlaxoSmithKline’s corporate venturing fund, SR One, as well as several additional institutional VC investors.
Additional investors include VC firms Bessemer Venture Partners, Advanced Technology Ventures and Cardinal Partners as well as private equity firm MPM Capital, through its MPM Bioventures subsidiary.
The IPO’s proceeds will be largely invested in the advancement, and completion of preclinical trials for two of its drug candidates. Verastem is the developer of a range of treatments that target cancer stem cells.