PMV veers toward $100m IPO

PMV Pharmaceuticals, a US-based cancer drug developer exploiting foundational research from Princeton University, has filed for an initial public offering on the Nasdaq Global Market with a placeholder target of $100m.
The spinout has not yet fixed any of the terms for the proposed offering.
Founded in 2013, PMV Pharmaceuticals is developing cancer drugs that restore the efficacy of the p53 protein in suppressing cancerous cells while removing mutations in the mechanism responsible for sustaining tumours.
Tumour protein p53 was discovered by PMV co-founder Arnold Levine in 1979 while he was a professor in the biochemistry department at Princeton University. He has been professor emeritus at Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study since 2011.
The spinout’s pipeline includes PC14586, a therapy indicated for multiple solid tumour subtypes aimed at rectifying a specific genetically-driven p53 mutation known to affect the protein’s cancer-fighting properties.
PMV will use a share of the IPO proceeds to fund a phase 1/2 clinical trial of PC14586, and to progress pre-clinical and discovery-stage programs such as R273H, which targets a different mutation within the p53 gene.
Cash from the listing will also go to general R&D opportunities and servicing PMV’s working capital and corporate expenses.
PMV expects to seek additional funding at a later date as the IPO proceeds will be insufficient to sustain full development of its pipeline.
The announcement comes after PMV closed a $70m series D round featuring OrbiMed Advisors early last month, bringing its overall funding to date to $236m.
Avoro Capital, RA Capital Management, Wellington Management Company, Nextech Invest, Viking Global Investors and Boxer Capital, a biotech-focused fund run by Tavistock Group, also took part in the series D round.
PMV Pharmaceuticals closed a $62m series C round in November 2019 co-led by Nextech, Viking Global Investors and Boxer Capital, with participation from spinout-focused investment firm Osage University Partners (OUP), Topspin Partners, Euclidean Capital, InterWest Partners and OrbiMed Advisors.
Topspin’s Biotech Fund had led a $74m series B round for PMV in 2017 with commitments from OUP, Euclidean, InterWest and OrbiMed, which led the spinout’s $30m series A in 2014 with support from both OUP and InterWest.
InterWest holds the largest stake in PMV ahead of the listing with 20.5%, followed by OrbiMed Advisors (20.4%) and Euclidean Capital (13.4%). Nextech Invest owns 8.1%, while 6.7% is held by Viking Global Investors.
Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities, Evercore Group and Cowen and Company have been appointed as underwriters for the proposed offering.