Auspex, Cara set IPO ranges
Rare neurology disease play Auspex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (La Jolla, Calif.) and pain company Cara Therapeutics Inc. (Shelton, Conn.) amended IPOs on Friday. Auspex now plans to sell 5.5 million shares at $10-$12. At the $11 midpoint, the company -- which is seeking to list on NASDAQ -- would raise $60.5 million and be valued at $231.3 million. Earlier this month, Auspex raised $20 million in a series E round after filing in December to raise up to $69 million in an IPO. Stifel; BMO Capital Markets; Baird; William Blair; and Ladenburg Thalmann are underwriters (see BioCentury Extra, Jan. 8).
Auspex's SD-809 is in the Phase III First-HD trial to treat chorea (sudden, rapid uncontrolled movements) associated with Huntington's disease. The compound is a deuterium-substituted analog of tetrabenazine, a vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2; SLC18A2) inhibitor. The company plans to submit an NDA to FDA in 4Q14. SD-809 is also in development for Tourette's syndrome and tardive dyskinesia. ...