Iovance Biotherapeutics Couples Data Release With Stock Offering
Shares of Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ: IOVA) fell as much as 15.7% today after the company announced a proposed public offering of common stock. The development-stage biopharma is looking to raise up to $575 million in gross proceeds. Although pricing has yet to be announced, an offering of that magnitude would lead to a roughly 15% increase in the number of shares outstanding.
News of the proposed stock offering was coupled with the release of new clinical data for lifileucel in advanced melanoma. In the C-144-01 study, the first 68 patients in cohort 4 achieved an overall response rate (ORR) of 32.4% at a median follow-up of 5.3 months. In cohort 2, the median duration of response (how long patients maintain a response without relapse or death) had not been reached at 18.7 months of follow up. The ORR in cohort 2 was 36.4%.
Of course, investors are widely expecting lifileucel to earn regulatory approval in the near future, which helps to explain why the encouraging data didn't offset concerns of significant dilution from the stock offering. As of 12:42 p.m. EDT, the pharma stock had settled to a 13.7% loss.
Source Fool.com
