Zealand trims proposed IPO

Zealand Pharma A/S (Glostrup, Denmark) now hopes to raise up to DKK447.5 million ($81.8 million) in its IPO on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange and a private placement after lowering the number of shares and the upper end of the price range. Zealand previously hoped to raise about DKK671.3 million in the offering. The biotech said that as a result of the reduction in expected proceeds from the offering it now plans to out-license danegaptide, an IV formulation of which has completed Phase I testing for atrial fibrillation. The orally available gap junction modifier had been partnered with Wyeth but Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) returned rights after acquiring Wyeth. Zealand also said it will "re-prioritize" an early stage gastrointestinal program.

The first day of trading had been expected to be Friday, and is now slated for Tuesday. The company cut the number of shares to up to 6 million from up to 7.8 million, and narrowed the range to DKK86-DKK90 from DKK86-DKK120. If sold at the new midpoint of DKK88, the company would be valued at DKK2.1 billion ($381 million) based on 23.7 million shares outstanding. Danske Markets and Jefferies are joint global coordinators, while Bryan, Garnier and SEB Enskilda are co-lead managers for the offering. ...