This drop is just a lack of interest. The company is not profitable and for all practical purposes has no drugs on the market. Deutsche Bank Securities was the book-runner, and other underwriters were Piper Jaffray, Cowen & Co., and Merriman Curhan Ford.
The company is preparing to begin a pivotal Phase 3 clinical study named VISTA-16 (Vascular Inflammation Suppression to Treat Acute Coronary Syndrome – 16 Weeks). This is its lead product candidate, called A-002. The product is an oral sPLA2 inhibitor, in combination with HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, or statin, therapy for short-term (16-week) treatment of patients experiencing an acute coronary syndrome.
While its R&D expenses dropped nearly two-thirds in the last two years, there is effectively no revenue. Its loss applicable was $12.2 million in 2009. We do not have an accurate or set time-table to see how long it will be before an actual FDA approval process will start after a new drug application is filed.
The good news is that the pricing was low enough that it did not trade as a busted deal. Shares are actually up 3.5% at $7.25 and about 450,000 shares have traded hands since this opened for trading just over an hour ago.
Jon C. Ogg
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