Dive Brief:
- California-based Corvus Pharmaceuticals priced its 4.7 million share initial public offering at $15 a share, at the low end of its target range. The immuno-oncology company recently teamed up with Roche's Genentech for a Phase 1/1b trial studying Corvus' lead checkpoint inhibitor CPI-444 combined with Roche's atezolizumab.
- Corvus' IPO follows the higher profile market launches of the gene editing company Editas, and another immuno-onoclogy company, Beigene. Both went public in February.
- The faltering market for biotech (Nasdaq's Biotechnology index is down nearly 29% from a year ago) has created new pressures for biotechs looking to IPO. Editas, however, has overcome those headwinds, shooting up to over $40 a share before falling down to around $30 this week. It listed for $16 at its IPO.
Dive Insight:
Corvus' approximately $71 million IPO comes in a little lower than Editas' $94 million IPO. The Chinese immunotherapy company Beigene priced higher than both Editas and Corvus, at $24 a share, and raised roughly $158 million in its IPO.
The offering will close on March 29, 2016, according to the company and the company will trade under the ticker "CRVS."
Although the current biotech market is not especially friendly, the three IPOs demonstrate some of the enormous interest in immunotherapies. Editas and Corvus are both likely years away from a commercial product.
But as The Street points out, Editas has strong support from large investors. Not only did initial offerings attract the likes of Google Ventures, and Bill Gates, but the hedge fund Viking Global Investors and Deerfield Management own significant chunks on the company's stock. This helps stabilize the share price.