NantKwest, which is developing cancer immunotherapies based on natural killer cells, raised $207 million by offering 8.3 million shares (100% primary) at $25, well above the $20-$23 range. The company offered 1.3 million more shares than originally planned. Its CEO Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and Franklin Templeton have indicated an interest in purchasing up to $10 million and $45 million, respectively, of the offering, while shareholder Celgene is investing $17 million in a concurrent private placement.
At its offer price, NanKwest commands a fully-diluted market cap of $2.6 billion, the largest ever for a biotech IPO. NantKwest will list on the Nasdaq under the symbol NK. BofA Merrill Lynch, Citi, Jefferies and Piper Jaffray acted as lead managers on the deal.
