A heart-device startup braves the IPO waters
(UPDATED: See below.)
It’s been a rough few months for life-science IPOs, what with all the collapsed offerings and, often enough, miserable post-offering performance for those startups that have managed to inch their way across the finish line.
Yet the lure of the public markets remains strong, even with the Nasdaq down about 15 percent since the beginning of the year, and some startups simply will not be denied. That certainly seems to be the case with CardioNet,… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Feb. 28, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
RNAi developer PhaseRx gets $4M of a pledged $19M (Seattle Times)
TyRx Pharma, drug-device combo maker, raises $25M (release)
Agennix aims at $40M for cancer drugs (VentureWire)
Starr Life Sciences goes after $1.6M for small-animal vital-signs scanner (VW)
CardioNet sets IPO terms, aims to raise $96M (IPOhome)
RNAi developer PhaseRx gets $4M of a pledged $19M – Investor interest in RNA interference, an ancient cellular mechanism for silencing dangerous genes, continues apace. PhaseRx, a Seattle biotech, has raised $4 million… Continue Reading
IPO status board: The good, the bad and the pending
Now that the Bioheart IPO has doubly surprised everyone — first by happening at all, and second by coming out on such dreadful terms for the company — perhaps it’s time to take a closer look at exactly where the 2008 offering market for life-science companies stands. In fact, I’ll aim to make this a regular feature, because the IPO market is still a useful leading indicator for venture funding.
Data for the following analysis comes… Continue Reading
Bioheart: A new record for IPO futility?
The embattled cell-therapy startup Bioheart finally limped across the IPO goal line yesterday, but it was a Pyhrric victory. The startup, which once sought $70 million, ended up netting as little as $1.5 million. And almost half of that amount came directly from Bioheart founder Henry Leonhardt instead of outside investors.
Bioheart, of course, has had no shortage of problems, which we’ve chronicled over at VentureBeat Life Sciences. For the latest installment, see here.
Three yards and a cloud of dust: Bioheart limps across the IPO goal line, but with little to show for its struggles
The New York Giants they ain’t, but the team at embattled cell-therapy startup Bioheart still managed to defy long odds and successfully dragged their company into the IPO endzone earlier today. No doubt football great Dan Marino — one of the Sunrise, Fla., biotech’s backers — fired everyone up with a suitable locker-room pep talk.
Not for Bioheart was the easy dodge of yanking its IPO due to “unfavorable market conditions” — although conditions are, in… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Friday, Feb. 15, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Q Thera takes in $15M for neural stem-cell treatments (release)
Stroke clotbuster Concentric Medical withdraws IPO (IPOhome)
Avera recaps with $9M to relaunch human tests of GI drug (VentureWire)
Tissue repairer Nerites raises $5.7M (release)
Semafore Pharma aims for $7.5M to launch new cancer-drug trials (VentureWire)
Triage Wireless gets $6.7M for “cuffless” blood-pressure monitors (peHUB)
MAKO Surgicals prices IPO, falls in first day of trading (WSJ)
ImmunoCellular acquires assets of Molecular Antibody Technology (release)
Q Thera takes in $15M for neural stem-cell… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Arbor Surgical draws another $5.5M for heart-valve replacements (VBLS exclusive)
AstraZeneca spinout Albireo raises $27M for GI drugs (release)
Knee-implant maker MAKO Surgical slashes IPO price range (release)
eScreen takes in $8M for automated drug screening (peHUB)
GlucoLight gets undisclosed funding for glucose monitoring (release)
Oddo et al. order $4M for odor-sniffer Odotech (release)
Baird Capital Partners acquires med-device manufacturer Ellman Int’l (peHUB)
Cancer biotech BiPar names Hoyoung Huh as CEO (release)
AstraZeneca spinout Albireo raises $27M for GI drugs – AstraZeneca spun… Continue Reading
Levitation option still valid for Wile E. Coyote
Fresh from the Department of Whistling Past the Graveyard in today’s VentureWire:
Back in the real world, seven life-science IPOs have gone down in flames so far this year. An eighth startup, robotic-surgery maker MAKO Surgical, just slashed its offering price.
Life-science IPOs hit the skids
Last year was a tough one for IPOs, as Matt noted earlier, and so far this year looks even worse. Aptamer-drug maker Archemix today became the third life-science startup this month to withdraw or postpone an IPO, and the sixth so far this year. We take a closer look at the worsening IPO climate and the contrast with still-bullish venture funding in the sector, over at VentureBeat Life Sciences.
IPO roundup: Is the window slamming on life sciences?
It’s sure starting to look that way. News that Archemix, a Cambridge, Mass., developer of aptamer-based drugs, yesterday withdrew its $72.5 million IPO follows closely on the heels of several other recent several other IPO collapses, including those of implantable diagnostic maker Transoma Medical and biotechs Biolex Therapeutics and BG Medicine. (Our coverage is here, here and here.) Transoma, in fact, had set its offering terms just a few weeks earlier. Most everyone, of course,… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Monday, Feb. 4, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
PEAK Surgical takes in $21M for electrosurgical tools (release)
CellGate acquired by Australian cancer biotech ProGen for $2.5M (release)
Traversa raises $2M for RNAi-delivery technologies (release)
RemitDATA, Web-based healthcare-service co., takes in $5.5M (bizjournals.com)
Spinal-implant maker Archus Orthopedics gets $10M venture loan (release)
Promedior pulls down another $5.5M for fibrotic disease (release)
Acrongenomics takes 11 percent stake in Molecular Vision (release)
Hepatitis drug-developer Biolex withdraws IPO (IPO Home)
Employee drug screener eScreen gets Carlyle investment (release)
NovaMin raises $2.5M for dental-care products (VentureWire)
Cardious… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Friday, Feb. 1, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Taligen Therapeutics raises $65M for novel anti-inflammatory drugs (release)
Dental-implant maker Biohorizons acquires Implant Logic (release)
MAKO Surgical sets IPO terms, seeks $94M for knee implants and robots (Edgar)
Canada’s Medical Ventures acquires two Israeli device startups (release)
CRO Chiltern acquires Drug Development Solutions (release)
Taligen Therapeutics raises $65M for novel anti-inflammatory drugs –Aurora, Colo.-based Taligen Therapeutics, a biotech working on targeted anti-inflammatory drugs, raised $65 million in a second round of funding. The deal is one of the… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Friday, Jan. 25, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Health-info site HealthCentral Network pulls in $50M (paidContent)
BrightHeart Vet corrals $29M to acquire animal hospitals (release)
AviaraDx raises $8M for cancer diagnostics (peHUB)
Valor Medical aims for $15M for brain-aneurysm treatment (VentureWire)
IPC, inpatient-care provider, raises as much as $56M in IPO (IPO Home)
Phenomix, diabetes and hepatitis drug maker, files for $86M IPO (Edgar)
TVM Capital promotes Keiarasch “Kia” Parssanedjad to principal in life sciences (release)
BrightHeart Vet corrals $29M to acquire animal hospitals — BrightHeart Veterinary Centers, an… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Mauna Kea Tech raises $30M for in-vivo cellular imaging (release)
Knopp Neuro takes in $10M for Lou Gehrig’s drug (release)
Cardiovascular Systems, arterial-plaque device maker, files for $86M IPO (Edgar)
Diagnostics maker BG Medicine withdraws IPO (release)
Signature Genomics Labs sells stake to Ampersand Ventures (release)
Cambridge Temp raises £375K for new ovulation detector (release)
Mauna Kea Tech raises $30M for in-vivo cellular imaging — Mauna Kea Technologies, a Paris, France, developer of cellular-imaging technology, raised $30 million in a… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Friday, Jan. 18, 2007
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Ulthera receives $23M for cosmetic ultrasound devices (release)
Senexis raises £2.9M for Alzheimer’s drugs (PDF release)
Elixir Pharma postpones IPO (IPO Home)
Cancer Therapeutics names Randall Riggs as CEO (release)
Ulthera receives $23M for cosmetic ultrasound devices — Ulthera, a Mesa, Ariz., startup developing ultrasound systems for cosmetic procedures, raised $22.5 million in a second funding round. Investors included New Enterprise Associates and 3i.
Ulthera, whose Web site is still a stub, aims to use its ultrasound devices… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Jan. 17, 2007
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
TransEnterix gets $21M for minimally invasive GI surgery (release)
Stem-cell developer Bioheart’s IPO postponed (Forbes.com)
Medical-practice software provider AdvancedMD acquired by Francisco Partners (release)
Peptimmune draws $8.2M for MS drug trials (release)
Drug-delivery co. Talima Thera names Martin Babler CEO (release)
Alimera Sciences aims for autumn IPO to fund diabetic eye-disease drug (VentureWire, sub req’d)
TransEnterix gets $21M for minimally invasive GI surgery — TransEnterix (no Web site), a Research Triangle Park, N.C., device maker developing tools for “natural orifice”… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Drug-screening tool maker IonGate Bio raises €4.6M (release)
Protein-drug maker Molecular Partners gets $5M up front in Centocor deal (PDF release)
ProtaGen takes in €1M for protein biochips (PDF release)
China’s Sundia MediTech, a contract research organization raises second round (release)
Vital-signs implant maker Transoma Medical sets IPO terms, aims for $78M (Edgar)
UMD receives $1M grant for Baltimore biotech incubator (TechJournal South)
Drug-screening tool maker IonGate Bio raises €4.6M — IonGate Biosciences, a Frankfurt, Germany, developer of tools for… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2008
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Israel’s Alma Lasers files for $86M IPO (Edgar)
Allscripts acquires hospital-management software co. ECIN for $90M (release)
AgaMatrix, glucose-sensor maker, raises $24M (PE Hub)
Israel’s Alma Lasers files for $86M IPO — Alma Lasers, an Israeli maker of lasers for cosmetic procedures, filed to raise $86.3 million in an initial offering. The company, based in Caesarea, calls its products “energy-based aesthetic treatment systems,” and sells them to dermatologists for hair removal and wrinkle treatment.
Alma markets its products… Continue Reading
The storm over stents hits venture firms, as Devax yanks $85M IPO filing
Devax, a Lake Forest, Calif., maker of artery-opening stents, withdrew its filing for an IPO that the company estimated would raise $85 million. The company filed for its IPO in May, but until its withdrawal hadn’t filed any revisions to that preliminary document since.
The withdrawal is the latest bad news for stent makers. Big makers of the devices have been battered by a raft of sometimes contradictory studies that have nevertheless raised fears that stents… Continue Reading
Life sciences briefing: Thursday, Dec. 6, 2007
(UPDATED: Expanded items on LineaGen, BG Medicine. Pelikan Tech is described in a standalone item here.)
TODAY’S HEADLINES:
Pelikan Tech raises $69M for diabetes glucose tests (release)
Utah’s LineaGen draws $6M for genetic diagnostics (VentureWire, sub req’d)
Beijing’s IKang Healthcare gets $25M for medical-service centers (VW)
BG Medicine drops IPO price range, seeks up to $52M (Edgar)
Sepragen completes acquisition of Cyto Biologic Tech (release)
Utah’s LineaGen draws $6M for genetic diagnostics — LineaGen (no Web site), a Salt Lake City biotech focused… Continue Reading