Zoetis IPO caps strong month for life sciences financings, says Burrill & Co

Life sciences financing activity got a strong start in the New Year as companies raised $10.3 billion in January. The Pfizer animal health unit Zoetis was responsible for more than half the activity through a debt offering and the largest Initial Public Offering (IPO) since Facebook debuted in May 2012. The robust activity dwarfed the $4.2 billion raised during the same period a year ago, according to Burrill & Co, a California, USA-based global financial services firm focused exclusively on the life sciences.

Companies raised more than $6 billion during the month through debt offerings. This included Zoetis' heavily oversubscribed $3.7 billion bond deal ahead of its IPO. It also included nearly $1.3 billion in debt offerings from nine smaller therapeutics companies, as well as nearly $700 million raised in two medical device company financings.

The Zoetis IPO priced at $26, above its expected $22 to $25 range. Three other companies, LipoScience, an in vitro diagnostic company; Stemline Therapeutics, which is developing therapies that target cancer stem cells; and KaloBios Pharmaceuticals, a developer of next-generation antibodies, raised a combined $153 million through initial public offerings. That compares to $135 million raised through IPOs on US exchanges a year ago. Almost $1.6 billion was raised by follow-ons in January, tripling January 2012's total, and reflecting the improved environment for public therapeutics companies seeking to raise capital.