Equillium's IPO: What You Need To Know

Equillium is set to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol “EQ.”

The Details

Equillium will offer 4.6 million shares of common stock in a price range between $14 and $16 per share. The company intends to raise $70 million, according to the S-1 filing. At the midpoint of the range, the company’s enterprise value would amount to roughly $244 million.

The company said Friday morning it priced 4.67 million shares at $14 per share.

According to Visiongain, the global graft vs. host disease market was valued at $360 million in 2016 and is expected to reach $510 million by 2021 and $640 million by 2027. As of 2018, Equillium is worth $6.6 million in cash and $12.3 million in total liabilities, according to the report.

Based on the filing, Equillium intends to use $50 million of net proceeds to fund research and development and residual proceeds for working capital and other corporate expenses. Joint bookrunners include Jefferies, Leerink Partners and Stifel.

The Company

The biotechnology company develops products for severe autoimmune, inflammatory and immuno-inflammatory disorders with a high medical need. The company’s first product candidate, EQ001, is a clinical-stage monoclonal antibody that targets the immune receptor CD6.

“CD6 plays a central role in the modulation of effector T cells. Activated Teff cells drive a number of immuno-inflammatory diseases across therapeutic areas including transplant science, systemic autoimmunity, pulmonary, neurologic, gastrointestinal, renal, vascular, ophthalmic and dermatologic disorders.”

Equillium plans to begin the next phase of EQ001 for the treatment of acute graft vs. host disease as early as 2019. Competitors include Biogen Inc. BIIB, AbbVie Inc. ABBV and Amgen, Inc. AMGN.

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