Boston, MA 06/23/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Kite Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:KITE) started trading Friday June 20, 2014, after its initial public offering on Thursday. The company is focused on the development and commercialization of cancer treatments.
It offered 7.5 million shares in the IPO after raising the IPO size from the originally proposed size of 6 million. The company priced its shares at $17 apiece. The shares soared to $29 apiece on Friday, indicating 70.59 percent gain. The shares opened the day 50 percent above the IPO price.
The IPO not only saw the company increase its offering size, but also saw it increase the offering price range. It originally expected to price the shares between $12 and $14 each but ended up pricing between $15 and $16 a share. The IPO was filed in May, 2014.
The IPO featured Cowen and Co. LLC, Jefferies LLC and Credit Suisse as acting joint-book running managers, while Stifel acted as a co-manager in the offering.
IPO Proceeds
Kite Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:KITE) generated $127.5 million in the IPO before expenses and discounts. It expects to obtain net proceeds of $106 million after the due deductions. Among other things, the company expects to use the funds from the IPO to fund clinical trials for its cancer treatments. A portion of the IPO proceeds will also be channeled to general operating expenses.
Financial performance
The company suffered a loss of $6.4 million in 2013, bigger than a loss of $2.6 million suffered in the prior year. The expanded loss last year was due to an increase of spending on research and development as the company seeks to enrich its product pipeline.
Founded in 2009, Kite Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:KITE) focuses on development and sale of cancer therapies whereby it utilizes the immune systems of the patients to destroy cancer cells.
Following the Friday gain, the company ended the week with a market valuation of $1.08 billion.
