NEW YORK – Autoimmune disease diagnostics firm Exagen went public today at $14 per share.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Vista, California-based company said it is offering 3.6 million shares of its common stock and expects gross proceeds of $50.4 million from the initial public offering.
Its stock is listed on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol "XGN." In mid-morning trading, no shares had been traded.
Exagen has granted the underwriters – Cowen, Cantor Fitzgerald, and William Blair– a 30-day option to buy an additional 540,000 shares of common stock at the $14 per share price.
Exagen's flagship test is Avise CTD, an autoimmune rheumatic disease test to help clinicians differentially diagnose systemic lupus erythematosus, and is commercializing additional tests under the Avise brand. The underlying technology of many of the company's tests is the Cell-Bound Complement Activation Products, or CB-CAPS, technology, which evaluates the activation of the complement system, a biological pathway associated with many autoimmune and autoimmune-related diseases, the company said in its preliminary prospectus filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
"Our goal is to enable rheumatologists to improve care for patients through the differential diagnosis, prognosis and monitoring of complex autoimmune and autoimmune-related diseases, including SLE and rheumatoid arthritis," the firm said in the Form S-1.
In July the company raised $22.6 million in a financing round led by healthcare equity investment fund HIG BioHealth Partners.
According to the Form S-1, Exagen posted $32.4 million in revenues in 2018 and a net loss attributable to its common shareholders of $18.5 million, or $1.60 per share. Its R& D costs were $2.1 million, while its SG&A expenses were $19.7 million.
In the first half of 2019, the company recorded $19.7 million in revenues. Its net loss attributable to its common shareholders was $19.8 million, or $.85 per share. It spent $1.1 million in R&D and $13.5 million in SG&A.
The company had $16.3 million in cash and cash equivalents as of June 30.