Pentixapharm has brought in almost 20 million euros ($22 million) from an IPO, with the German biotech earmarking the proceeds to push ahead with the clinical development of its two lead radiopharmaceuticals.
The Würzburg, Germany-based company’s offering consisted of 3.9 million shares, which Pentixapharm had been hoping to price somewhere between 4.7 euros and 6 euros apiece. The stock debuted on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange this morning at 5.10 euros, resulting in a market capitalization of 126.5 million euros ($139.6 million).
Top of the list of spending priorities when it comes to therapies is PentixaTher, a CXCR4 cytokine receptor in a phase 1/2 trial for patients with lymphoma affecting the central nervous system.
The biotech’s other clinical-stage asset is a Gallium-68-based diagnostic called PentixaFor, which is undergoing a phase 3 study for identifying lymphoma.
“The listing provides us with the flexibility to finance our growth in stages and to continually attract new investors who want to share in Pentixapharm’s long-term success,” Pentixapharm CEO Hakim Bouterfa said in an Oct. 3 release. “Through partnerships with leading companies in the biopharma industry, we aim to expand both our technological and commercial reach.”
Pentixapharm picked up fellow Germany-based Glycotope's target discovery unit in July for an undisclosed sum in order to double its pipeline via a portfolio of preclinical cancer antibodies. As well as the assets themselves, which Pentixapharm said could be turned into radiopharmaceuticals, the deal included taking ownership of Glycotope’s labs, cell banks and tumor target database as well as “the equipment needed to exploit the discovery platform, along with a range of patents, licenses and other tangible assets.”
Pentixapharm had been owned by Eckert & Ziegler (EZAG), a specialist in isotope-related components used for nuclear medicine and radiation therapy. But EZAG split from Pentixapharm as a necessary prelude to the biotech going public this morning.
As well as the IPO proceeds, Pentixapharm has additional funding from the issuance of a convertible bond worth 18.5 million euros ($20.4 million) to EZAG.