Aerovate Therapeutics, which is developing an inhaled formulation of imatinib for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), raised $122 million by offering 8.7 million shares at $14, within the range of $13 to $15. The company originally planned to raise $100 million by offering 7.2 million shares. At pricing, Aerovate commands a market value of $347 million.
Aerovate's initial focus is on advancing AV-101, a dry powder inhaled formulation of imatinib (marketed as Gleevec tablets) for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Imatinib is an oral kinase inhibitor approved as a treatment for leukemia. Aerovate has completed a Phase 1 study in healthy volunteers and AV-101 was generally well-tolerated with no serious adverse events reported. It anticipates initiating a Phase 2b/3 trial of AV-101 in PAH patients in the 2H21.
The Boston, MA-based company plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol AVTE. Jefferies, Cowen, and Evercore ISI acted as joint bookrunners on the deal.
