Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, which is developing RNAi therapeutics for the treatment of rare liver disease and cancer, kicked off a busy calendar of upcoming biotech IPOs with a record-breaking performance. The company’s shares soared 207% in its market debut, making it the best biotech first-day return since Antigenics gained 241% in February 2000. The company raised $90 million in an upsized IPO that priced at $15 per share, above the upwardly revised range. Now, at $46 per share (as of market close), Dicerna commands a market cap of almost $765 million, a lofty valuation for a company that has yet to enter clinical trials. Additionally, the company ranks second only to Baidu, which traded up 354% in its 2005 market debut, in first-day returns since 2000.
| Top five first-day returns since 2000 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Ticker | IPO Date | First-Day Return | Total Return* |
| Baidu.com | BIDU | 8/4/2005 | 354% | 5856% |
| Dicerna Pharmaceuticals | DRNA | 1/29/2014 | 207% | 207% |
| Youku.com | YOKU | 12/7/2010 | 161% | 133% |
| Qihoo 360 Technology | QIHU | 3/29/2011 | 135% | 571% |
| NYMEX | NMX | 11/16/2006 | 125% | 38%† |
