Cancer biotech company Autolus Therapeutics has raised US$150mln in an initial public offering (IPO) of 8.8mln shares at US$17 each.
The London-based company, which is at a clinical stage in developing blood cancer therapies, is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market today.
The IPO price was at the upper end of the US$15 to US$17 range.
Clinical stage company
The funds raised in the flotation will aid Autolus in developing CAR-T treatments for targeting cancer and a commercial platform to support the rollout of its programmes.
The company was founded in September 2014 by healthcare company Syncona, which retains a 33.8% stake after investing US$24mln in the IPO.
“Autolus is now a globally differentiated, clinical stage company at the forefront of a potential revolution in cancer treatment,” said Syncona chief executive Martin Murphy.
“We look forward to our continued partnership as significant owners and strong supporters of the business as it executes its plan to deliver transformational treatments to patients.”
Woodford and Arix retain stakes
Star investor Neil Woodford’s Woodford Capital Trust PLC (LON:WPCT) has kept a 15.9% stake in Autolos. The fund management firm said the value of its holding has increased by 51% to US$104.7mln after the IPO.
Arix Bioscience Plc (LON:ARIX) owns an 8.2% interest in Autolus worth US$53.7mln, which is 73% higher than it was before the flotation.
“Since the inception of Autolus four years ago, the company has commenced 6 clinical trials in 5 programmes and added the capabilities needed to bring its next-generation T-cell therapies to market,” said Arix chief executive Joe Anderson.
“We believe Autolus is at the forefront of a revolution in cancer treatment and that its innovative approach to T-cell programming has the potential to offer life-changing therapies for patients, with both haematological and solid cancers.”
Goldman Sachs and Jefferies acted as joint book-running managers for the offering.