MBX Biosciences raises $163.2 million in US IPO
(Reuters) -MBX Biosciences, which is developing peptide therapies for treating endocrine and metabolic disorders, including diabetes and obesity, said on Thursday it has raised $163.2 million in its U.S. initial public offering.
The biotechnology company priced its offering of 10.2 million shares at $16 apiece, at the high-end of its targeted range of $14 to $16 each.
The IPO valued the company at $482.5 million.
Newer weight-loss drugs, such as Eli Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, have caught the investors' attention after proving to be an effective obesity treatment and showing potential to reduce stroke or heart attack risks.
The sector's enthusiasm could boost the IPO-bound company as the broader market for new issues has been sluggish despite hopes of a meaningful recovery.
Wall Street estimates annual global sales of $150 billion for weight-loss drugs by the early 2030s.
MBX's lead experimental candidate, MBX 2109, is being developed to treat chronic hypoparathyroidism — a condition in which the body produces insufficient levels of parathyroid hormone that disrupts calcium levels in the blood and bones.
The company is also developing MBX 4291, an experimental therapy for the treatment of obesity. The therapy mimics the effect of two gut hormones, GLP-1 and GIP, and is currently in preclinical development.
Lilly's tirzepatide, sold as Zepbound for weight loss and Mounjaro for diabetes in the U.S., also mimics the function of these two gut hormones.
MBX will be listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "MBX".
J.P.Morgan, Jefferies, Stifel and Guggenheim Securities are underwriting the offering.
(Reporting by Manya Saini and Devika Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Alan Barona)
