iTeos, a Cambridge, MA-based company, plans to raise $151 million by offering 8.9 million shares at a price range of $16-$18. Its fully-diluted market cap would be $579 million at the midpoint of the proposed price range.
iTeos a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on the discovery and development of a new generation of immuno-oncology therapeutics. The company claims to leverage its deep understanding of the tumor microenvironment and immunosuppressive pathways to design novel product candidates with an aim to improve the clinical benefit of oncology therapies. iTeos’ pipeline includes two clinical-stage programs targeting novel, validated immuno-oncology pathways designed to build on prior learnings in the field.
Its most advanced product candidate, EOS-850, is designed as a highly selective small molecule antagonist of the adenosine A2a receptor, or A2AR, in the adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, adenosine pathway, a key driver of immunosuppression in the tumor microenvironment across a broad range of tumors. The company is investigating EOS-850 in an open-label Phase 1/2a clinical trial in adult patients with advanced solid tumors for which it has received encouraging preliminary single-agent activity.
The company expects to report initial data from monotherapy and combination therapy expansion cohorts in the first half of 2021. Its lead antibody product candidate, EOS-448, is an antagonist of TIGIT, or T-cell immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domains, a checkpoint that has a role in both inhibitory and stimulatory pathways in the immune system. EOS-448 was also designed to engage the Fc gamma receptor, or FcgR, to promote antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, or ADCC, activity, including the elimination of tumor-infiltrating regulatory T cells, or Tregs. iTeos has recently initiated an open-label Phase 1/2a clinical trial of EOS-448 in adult patients with advanced solid tumors and expect to report initial data in the first half of 2021. According to the company, it retains worldwide rights to develop and commercialize all of our product candidates.
In recent years, the treatment of cancer has been reshaped by the promise of immuno-oncology therapies, particularly checkpoint inhibitors, or CPIs. Cancer cells have evolved the ability to evade recognition by the immune system, including by expressing immune checkpoints that inhibit the immune response. Therapies that target these checkpoint interactions have shown the ability to reactivate the immune response against tumors and have become a foundation of immuno-oncology regimens. While these therapies have provided significant therapeutic benefit in a number of indications, they have been shown clinically to have limited efficacy in a majority of patients with cancer. Furthermore, in patients where CPIs are initially efficacious, the long-term benefit has been shown to be limited as the majority of these patients eventually become resistant or refractory to therapy.
In the U.S., approximately 44% of patients are eligible for CPIs, and 20% to 30% of those patients actually respond to such treatment.
iTeos began its research and development activities as a spin-off of Ludwig Cancer Research. It has raised $177.1 million of capital from a group of leading life sciences investors, including MPM Capital, RA Capital Management, Boxer Capital, Janus Henderson, HBM Partners, RTW Investments and The Invus Group.
In April, the company raised $125 million in a series B2 financing (convertible preferred). Proceeds from the financing will support the company’s continued growth and advance the clinical development of its two lead product candidates, EOS-850 and EOS-448. The financing round was co-led by RA Capital Management and Boxer Capital, and included new investors Janus Henderson Investors, RTW Investments and Invus along with existing investors MPM Capital, HBM Partners, 6 Dimensions Capital, Curative Ventures, Fund+, VIVES Louvain Technology Fund, SRIW, and SFPI.
Image source: iTeos
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