Gene therapy biotech Xenon Pharmaceuticals sets terms for $44 million IPO

Xenon Pharmaceuticals, an early-stage biotech with a gene therapy discovery platform for rare diseases, announced terms for its IPO on Monday. The Burnaby, Canada-based company plans to raise $44 million by offering 4.0 million shares at a price range of $10 to $12. At the midpoint of the proposed range, Xenon Pharmaceuticals would command a market value of $159 million.

Xenon has a number of collaboration and licensing agreements with large pharmaceuticals including Teva, Genentech and Merck for its preclinical research. The company's discovery platform was used to develop uniQure's Glybera treatment for orphan disease lipoprotein lipase deficiency, the first gene therapy approved in the EU. February IPO uniQure (QURE) priced above its range but ended the first day down 14% and now trades 40% below the IPO price. Xenon is eligible to receive mid single-digit royalties on net sales of Glybera.

Teva is in Phase 2 trials for a gene therapy discovered by Xenon that is being developed to treat osteoarthritis. Genentech was cleared to begin a Phase 1 trial for Xenon's pain treatment and Merck is in preclinical development for cardiovascular disease. Xenon also has a variety of preclinical therapies for both orphan diseases (such as Dravet Syndrome) and large-market conditions (including acne).

Primary shareholders include Medpace, Lipterx, InterWest Partners, Fidelity, Invesco and CEO Simon Pimstone. Collaboration partner Teva (TEVA) intends to purchase $10 million worth of shares on the offering (23% of float at the midpoint) and Genentech (owned by Roche) plans to invest $5 million in a concurrent private placement at the offer price.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals, which was founded in 1996, plans to list on the NASDAQ under the symbol XENE. Jefferies and Wells Fargo Securities are the joint bookrunners on the deal. It is expected to price during the week of October 13, 2014.