IPO News This Week: 8 Health Care Deals in Week’s 11 IPOs

June 17, 2018 by Paul Ausick

Last week’s initial public offering (IPO) calendar included seven firms looking to enter the public markets. Six were successful and raised a total of around $1.3 billion in new capital, about $100 million less than planned. The coming week includes 11 scheduled IPO’s looking to raise $1.4 billion in new capital.

The one scheduled IPO that did not reach the market last week was Adaptive Insights. The company was acquired by Workday Inc. (NASDAQ: WDAY) for $1.6 billion just two days before the scheduled IPO. That value was 151% above its proposed IPO market value.

Avalara Inc. (NYSE: AVLR) raised $180 million by selling 7.5 million shares at $24, above the expected range of $21 to $23. Shares got a first-day pop of 87% on the Friday offering.

Puxin Ltd. (NYSE: NEW) raised $122 million selling 7.2 million shares at $17 per share, the low end of the expected range. Shares popped 24% on the Friday IPO.

Verrica Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRCA) raised $75 million at $15, the midpoint of the expected range. Shares popped 17% on the Friday offering.

U.S. Xpress Enterprise Inc. (NYSE: USX) raised $289 million by selling 18.1 million shares at $16, below the expected range of $18 to $20. Shares closed the week up 4% following the Thursday IPO.

Far Point Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: FPAC.U) raised $550 million selling 10 million units at $10. Units closed the week up 2% following the Tuesday offering.

Charah Solutions Inc. (NYSE: CHRA) raised $88 million by selling 7.4 million shares at $12, well below the expected range of $16 to $18. Shares closed the week down 3% following the Thursday IPO.

Through the week ending June 15, IPO ETF manager Renaissance Capital reported that 83 IPOs have priced in the U.S. so far this year, up 26% year over year. Total proceeds raised through last week equaled $25 billion, up about 43% year over year.

For 2017, Renaissance Capital reported a total of 160 IPOs, up 52% year over year from 105 in 2016. Total 2017 proceeds amounted to $35.5 billion compared with a 2016 total of $18.8 billion. Renaissance Capital does not include “best efforts” or blank-check companies in its totals, nor does it include IPOs that raise less than $10 million.

Here are the 11 companies planning to tap the capital markets this week.

Eidos Therapeutics Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm developing an oral therapy for rare neurodegenerative diseases. The company plans to offer 6.25 million shares in an expected price range of $15 to $17 to raise $100 million at a market cap of $583 million. Underwriters are J.P. Morgan, BofA/Merrill Lynch, and Barclays. Shares are scheduled to price Tuesday and begin trading Wednesday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol EIDX.

Aptinyx Inc. is a clinical-stage biopharmaceuticals company developing novel small molecule therapeutics for neurological disorders. The firm plans to sell 5.33 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 to raise $80 million at a market cap of $509 million. Underwriters are J.P. Morgan, Cowen & Co., Leerink Partners, and BMO Capital Markets. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol APTX.

AVROBIO Inc. is a clinical-stage gene therapy company developing stem cell gene therapies to cure rare diseases. The company plans to offer 4.4 million shares in an expected price range of $16 to $18 to raise $75 million at a market cap of $405 million. Underwriters are Morgan Stanley, Cowen & Company, Wells Fargo Securities, and Wedbush Pacgrow. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol AVRO.

Essential Properties Realty Trust Inc. is a triple net lease REIT managing single-tenant commercial properties. The firm plans to offer 32.5 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $17 to raise $504 million at a market cap of $917 million. Underwriters include Goldman Sachs, Citi, Barclays, BofA/Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse, RBC Capital Markets, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Evercore ISI, and Ladenburg Thalmann. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol EPRT.

i3 Verticals Inc. provides integrated payment processing and software services to small and medium businesses. The company plans to offer 6.65 million shares in an expected price range of $11 to $13 to raise $80 million at a market cap of $307 million. Underwriters are Cowen & Company, Raymond James, and KeyBanc Capital Markets. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol IIIV.

Kezar Life Sciences Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing proteasome inhibitors to treat autoimmune diseases. The company plans to offer 4.67 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 to raise $70 million at a market cap of $295 million. Underwriters are Jefferies, Cowen & Company, Wells Fargo Securities, and William Blair. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol KZR.

LF Acquisition Corp. is a blank-check company targeting a commercial banking or fintech business. The firm plans to offer 13.5 million units at $10 to raise $135 million at a market cap of $169 million. Each unit includes one share of Class A common stock and one redeemable warrant for an additional share. Underwriters are B. Riley FBR and Raymond James. Units are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol LFACU.

Magenta Therapeutics Inc. is a biomedical firm developing novel therapies to make stem cell transplants more effective. The company plans to offer 6.67 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 to raise $100 million at a market cap of $538 million. Underwriters for the offering are J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Cowen & Company, and Wedbush Pacgrow. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol MGTA.

Xeris Pharmaceuticals Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company developing a novel formulation of an injectable hypoglycemia treatment. The company plans to offer 5 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 to raise $75 million at a market cap of $315 million. Underwriters are Jefferies, Leerink Partners, RBC Capital Markets, and Mizuho Securities. Shares are scheduled to price Wednesday and begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol XERS.

Autolus Therapies Ltd. is a U.K.-based biopharmaceutical company developing cancer therapies based on CAR-T cell technology. The company plans to offer 7.8 million shares in an expected price range of $15 to $17 to raise $125 million at a market cap of $620 million. Underwriters are Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, Wells Fargo Securities, and William Blair. Shares are scheduled to price Thursday and begin trading Friday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol AUTL.

Electrocore LLC is a commercial-stage medicine company selling a handheld nerve stimulation device for treating migraines. The company plans to offer 4.33 million shares in an expected price range of $14 to $16 to raise $65 million at a market cap of $419 million. Underwriters are Evercore ISI, Cantor Fitzgerald, JMP Securities, and BTIG. Shares are scheduled to price Thursday and begin trading Friday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ECOR.

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