Apnimed IPO raises $192m, as three other biotechs set terms
Sleep apnoea drug developer Apnimed has completed its IPO on the Nasdaq, following the trend of the year for biotechs by comfortably exceeding its fundraising target.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company expects to make around $192 million from the listing, well above its expectation of $150 million, with the sale of 12 million shares at $16, the top of its anticipated range. The stock is due to start trading on the Nasdaq today under the APMD ticker symbol.
The total could go up if underwriters decide to exercise an option to buy another 1.8 million shares, according to Apnimed, which will use the proceeds to prepare a potential commercial launch of Oxnimbi (AD109), a once-daily pill combining the novel antimuscarinic drug aroxybutynin and selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (sNRI) atomoxetine, which was filed with the FDA as an obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) therapy in April.
An FDA decision is due in February and, if approved, Oxnimbi could become the first broadly usable treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA), which affects millions of people in the US. Eli Lilly's injectable GIP/GLP-1 agonist Zepbound (tirzepatide) became the first prescription drug to be approved for OSA in 2024, but only in people with obesity.
Meanwhile, three other biotechs in the Nasdaq IPO queue – Braveheart Bio, Attovia, and Vogenx – have also set terms for their market debuts this week.
San Francisco, California-based Braveheart plans to raise around $300 million by offering 18.8 million shares at a price range of $15 to $17, seeking funds for a phase 3 programme for BHB-1893, a cardiac myosin inhibitor licensed from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharma last September, in obstructive and non-obstructive forms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). If it reaches the market, it would compete with Bristol Myers Squibb's Camzyos (mavacamten) and Cytokinetics' Myqorzo (aficamten), currently approved for obstructive HCM only.
Attovia – based in San Carlos, California – is looking to raise around $182 million from an offering of 12.5 million shares for $15 to $17 apiece, with the proceeds earmarked for its pipeline of immunology and inflammation (I&I) drug candidates led by ATTO-1310, an IL-31-targeted fusion protein that is being developed for conditions associated with itching (pruritus). It hopes to raise enough to take the drug through phase 2 testing in chronic pruritus of unknown origin (CPUO) and atopic dermatitis (AD), its two lead indications.
Finally, Vogenx has set terms for its IPO at 6.3 million shares at an offer price of $11 to $13, targeting $75 million in proceeds for the development of a small-molecule SGLT1 inhibitor, mizagliflozin, which it licenses from Japan's Kissei Pharma. The Raleigh, North Carolina company – which is reportedly running out of cash – is developing mizagliflozin initially for post-bariatric hypoglycaemia (PBH), the low blood glucose levels that can occur after eating in some patients who have surgery for weight loss.
