Biotech Values

[DewDiligence]

Pfenex (PFNX) IPOs 9.58M* shares @$6.00 (way below the originally anticipated range of $12-14) and finishes first day of trading at $5.30, down 12%:

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/pfenex-inc-announces-pricing-initial-042500107.html

Pfenex Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company engaged in the development of high-value and difficult to manufacture proteins including biosimilar therapeutics. The company's lead product candidate is PF582, a biosimilar candidate to Lucentis (ranibizumab), for the potential treatment of patients with retinal diseases.

A Lucentis biosimilar strikes me as a dubious business proposition given the availability of dirt-cheap off-label Avastin. Perhaps that’s why PFNX’s enterprise value (<$100M) is so low.

*Assuming exercise of underwriter’s option.