Aveo jumps into IPO game with plans to raise $86M

With an impressive list of pharma partners by its side, solid backing by VC investors and a late-stage clinical trial underway in renal cell cancer, Aveo Pharmaceuticals says it's time to go public.

In a filing with the SEC, the Cambridge, MA-based biotech laid out plans to raise $86.3 million, though it didn't detail how many shares it plans to sell or the price of the shares. Like most research-driven biotechs, Aveo has a long track record of losses. In fact, its losses for the first nine months of this year jumped to $33.4 million from $23.9 million for the same period a year ago. Its challenge, which is shared by other biotechs intent on prying open the rusty IPO window, is getting investors excited about its potential.

To do that, Aveo will tout its Phase III cancer study for tivozanib and partnerships in place with Merck, OSI and others. The developer--which has raised more than $100 million from venture capitalists--is jumping into the IPO game at a time when a growing number of biopharma companies are finding some keen interest in their offerings. The IPO window had been firmly shut for 18 months until new offerings began to make headway in the second half of this year. Success for Aveo is likely to signal plenty of more IPOs in the first half of 2010.

- here's the report from the Wall Street Journal
- here's the report from Mass High Tech
-
check out Aveo's SEC filing

Related Articles
Aveo grabs $20M in expanded OSI collaboration
AVEO Pharmaceuticals - Top 20 VC deals of 2007
OSI, AVEO sign small molecules pact
Biotech entrepreneur turns talents to venture fund