Drug Formulation Developer Aerovate Therapeutics Kick Starts Trading Today With Upsized Debut

Just shy of a full year after emerging from stealth mode, Aerovate Therapeutics Inc AVTE is listing onto NASDAQ with an upsized offering.
The company priced 8.68 million shares at $14, the midpoint of a $13 to $15 range.
Last week, Aerovate said it would offer 7.2 million shares. But with the upsized offering, the company is planning to rake in about $121.5 million.
Aerovate launched out of RA Capital's incubator last August with a $72.6 million round to develop a dry-powder version (AV-101) of Novartis AG's NVS cancer drug Gleevec (imatinib).
AV-101 is under development for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension.
The company thinks it can improve the efficacy of imatinib in pulmonary arterial hypertension and curb some of the side effects by delivering the powder directly to the lungs via an inhaler.
Aerovate has earmarked $71.6 million of IPO funds to conduct a Phase 2b/3 trial for AV-101, which is expected to begin in the second half of this year.
Another $28.1 million is going toward chemistry, manufacturing, and controls work for AV-101, according to an S-1/A.
Another $10.4 million will be set aside to fund a commercial launch.
Price Action: AVTE is up 71.07% at 23.95 during the market session on the last check Wednesday.