IMS Health was the largest of six health care-based companies that submitted their first public IPO filings last week. All of the new filings, including a seventh from industrial goods company Fortress Transportation (FTII.RC), were for $100 million or less, but IMS Health is very likely to raise more than $500 million and possibly as much as $1 billion. Because of the shortened holiday week, no IPOs were priced, and no companies set terms for IPOs. Given recent filing activity, along with the performance of both IPOs and the broader equity markets in 2013, we expect deals to launch in earnest starting this week. The 69 new IPO filings in the fourth quarter of 2013 (45 of which are still active) were the most in the fourth quarter in at least ten years.
Taken private for $5.2 billion in 2010, IMS Health files for IPO
IMS Health (IMS), a provider of health care data and consulting services to the pharmaceutical and health care industries, filed on Thursday, setting a $100 million deal size as a placeholder. The company was acquired by TPG Capital, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Leonard Green for $5.2 billion in 2010. It has invested $587 million in 22 acquisitions since 2011, and sales, at $2.5 billion for the twelve months ended September 30, 2013, are up 15% since 2009.
Five biotechs submitted filings for relatively small deals. Revance Therapeutics (RVNC) has a topical Botox formulation in Phase 3 trials for crow’s feet, hyperhidrosis, migraines and allergic rhinitis. UniQure (QURE) develops gene therapies for the treatment of orphan diseases and has received approval in the EU for Glybera, a treatment for lipoprotein lipase deficiency. Dicerna Pharmaceuticals (DRNA), a developer of RNAi therapeutics for cancer and other diseases, expects to begin clinical trials on its lead drug candidate in the 1H14. Backed by Third Rock Ventures and Flagship Ventures, Eleven Biotherapeutics (EBIO) has a Phase 3 candidate for dry eye disease and allergic conjunctivitis. Argos Therapeutics (ARGS) revived IPO plans that were shelved in early 2012; it has a Phase 3 candidate for metastatic renal cell carcinoma.
The last new filer of the week was Fortress Transportation and Infrastructure Investors (FTII.RC), which owns and acquires transportation infrastructure assets. It is externally managed by private equity firm Fortress and was formed in 2013 to put some of Fortress' key assets in the aviation (e.g. jet engines), offshore energy (e.g. support vessels) and shipping industries in a single investment vehicle.
| New IPO filers (week of December 30, 2013) | |||
| Company (Ticker) | Business | Deal Size ($mm) | LTM Sales ($mm) |
| IMS Health (IMS) | Health care data and consulting services | $900* | $2,515 |
| Fortress Transportation (FTII.RC) | Transportation infrastructure assets | $100 | $12 |
| Revance Therapeutics (RVNC) | Enhanced formulations of botulinum toxin | $86 | $0 |
| uniQure (QURE) | Gene therapies for orphan diseases | $75 | $3 |
| Dicerna Pharmaceuticals (DRNA) | RNAi therapeutics for multiple diseases | $69 | $6 |
| Eleven Biotherapeutics (EBIO) | Protein therapeutics for eye diseases | $69 | $1 |
| Argos Therapeutics (ARGS) | Immunotherapies for cancer and HIV | $60 | $5 |
IPO market snapshot
The Renaissance IPO ETF, which trades under the symbol IPO, tracks an index that is up 51% over the past year. There have been 64 IPOs in the past 90 days, with total proceeds of $21.1 billion and an average return of 46%. The active IPO pipeline includes 102 companies looking to raise a total of $24.6 billion.
