Key Takeaways:
Attovia Therapeutics priced its upsized initial public offering at $17 per share, raising $289 million and valuing the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company at $731.5 million as biotech listings regain momentum.
Attovia said in a statement that all 17 million shares in the offering were sold by the company, with gross proceeds before underwriting discounts and commissions expected to reach $289 million. The registration statement was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 4.
The San Carlos, California-based company had earlier aimed to raise up to $212.5 million by offering about 12.5 million shares priced between $15 and $17 apiece. The upsized deal follows drug developers Latigo Biotherapeutics and BlossomHill Therapeutics launching their U.S. IPOs on Monday, part of a broader rebound in biotech listings. An entity affiliated with Goldman Sachs will own about a 5.7 percent stake in Attovia after the offering.
Attovia plans to use the IPO proceeds, along with existing cash, to advance development of its lead drug candidates, including ATTO-1310 for chronic pruritic diseases, ATTO-2306 for atopic dermatitis, and ATTO-1091 for inflammatory bowel disease. The company's common stock is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Market on August 5 under the symbol "ATTO," with the offering expected to close on August 6.
The company has granted underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 2.55 million shares at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. If fully exercised, the greenshoe would add roughly $43.4 million to gross proceeds, bringing the total potential raise to about $332 million. Morgan Stanley, Leerink Partners, Citigroup and RBC Capital Markets are acting as joint book-running managers, with LifeSci Capital serving as passive book-runner.
Founded in 2023, Attovia develops biologic therapies for immune-mediated diseases using its ATTOBODY biparatopic biologics platform. The platform uses an evolution-driven, high-throughput process that allows for rapid discovery of potential product candidates. Beyond its lead programs, the company is developing conditional "AND" gated bispecific immune cell survival blockers and multispecifics.
The successful pricing comes as the biotech IPO window reopens after a prolonged downturn. The $289 million raise provides Attovia with substantial cash runway to advance its pipeline through clinical development, while the stock's debut will be closely watched as a barometer for the broader biotech listing market. If ATTO trades well on its first day, it could encourage more clinical-stage companies to test the public markets before year-end. The last time biotech IPOs gained this kind of momentum was in early 2024, when a wave of clinical-stage companies successfully listed on U.S. exchanges before the window narrowed again in the second half of the year.
The company's focus on immune-mediated diseases places it in a competitive field that includes established players such as AbbVie and Eli Lilly, which have invested heavily in dermatology and inflammatory bowel disease treatments. Attovia's ATTOBODY platform differentiates it through biparatopic and multispecific formats that aim to improve efficacy and durability compared with conventional monoclonal antibodies. The company's lead candidate, ATTO-1310, targets IL-31 for chronic pruritic diseases, a market where Sanofi and Regeneron's Dupixent has established a significant presence.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
