Alumis Pursues Smaller IPO to Raise $250M for Immunotherapy

Alumis announced on Friday that it will proceed with its initial public offering (IPO), albeit with a smaller fundraising target than previously anticipated. The San Francisco-based biotechnology company plans to offer over 13.1 million shares of its common stock at $16 each. Concurrently, Alumis will sell an additional 2.5 million shares in a private placement to AyurMaya Capital Management Fund. Combined, these transactions are expected to generate $260 million in gross proceeds before deductions for underwriting discounts and commissions.

Alumis also stands to gain further financial support through a 30-day over-allotment option. During this period, underwriters have the option to purchase nearly 1.97 million additional shares of the company's common stock at the IPO price. The company is slated to debut on Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker symbol ALMS, with the IPO expected to close on July 1, 2024.

Morgan Stanley, Leering Partners, Cantor, and Guggenheim Securities will serve as the joint book-running managers for the IPO. Alumis had initially filed for its IPO earlier this month, revealing on Monday that it aimed to raise $274 million with a price range of $16 to $18 per share. The funds raised will primarily be used to advance their lead candidate, ESK-001, a second-generation TYK2 inhibitor designed for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

In addition to its IPO, Alumis will benefit from a $259 million Series C funding round, which closed in March 2024. This round was led by Foresite Capital, Samsara BioCapital, and venBio Partners. Shortly thereafter, Alumis released encouraging data from the Phase II STRIDE study. The study indicated that patients treated with ESK-001 were significantly more likely to achieve a 75% improvement on the Psoriasis Area and Severity Score, a validated method to gauge psoriasis severity. CEO Martin Babler mentioned that the company is now gearing up to advance ESK-001 into Phase III development.

With these promising results, Alumis aims to position ESK-001 as a strong competitor to existing treatments like Bristol Myers Squibb’s Sotyktu (deucravacitinib) and Takeda’s TAK-279. In its IPO filing earlier this month, Alumis noted that these first-generation TYK2 inhibitors have not achieved complete TYK2 inhibition, thereby limiting their therapeutic potential. The company believes ESK-001 can overcome these limitations by achieving maximal target inhibition.

Additionally, Alumis is developing another TYK2 inhibitor, A-005, which shows promise for treating neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative conditions due to its ability to penetrate the central nervous system. The biotech has recently initiated a Phase I study for A-005, focusing on its safety and tolerability in healthy volunteers.

With substantial financial backing and promising drug candidates, Alumis is poised for significant advancements in the biotech sector.