Poseida Therapeutics, which is developing targeted treatments for blood-based and other cancers, set the terms for its initial public stock offering expected this week, where it is seeking to raise $150 million.

The San Diego-based company has one drug advancing to Phase 2 clinical trials for multiple myeloma, a type of cancer that develops in certain cells in the bone marrow.

The company expects to file for investigational new drug authorization with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its myeloma treatment later this year.

It also is developing other cancer therapies, including treatments for solid tumors and prostate cancer.

Poseida Therapeutics looks to become the third San Diego life science company to go public in the past two months, joining Progenity and Avidity Biosciences. Its stock offering highlights that investor appetite for new biotech companies remains strong in the midst of stock market turbulence from the coronavirus pandemic.

At the end of March, the company employed 149 workers, including 86 with advanced college degrees.

Since its inception, the company has raised $334 million from life sciences institutional investors who support its drug development efforts, including $75 million from Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis.

Poseida set the price for its initial public stock offering at $14 to $16 per share. It plans to trade under the ticker symbol PSTX on the Nasdaq exchange. If its shares get out at the midpoint of that range, Poseida Therapeutics would achieve a market value of $890 million.

Founded in 2015, Poseida Therapeutics is making its own version of what are called CAR T cells immune cells genetically engineered to fight cancers. It is developing CAR T cell treatments made from cancer patients own cells.

The process produces stem cell memory T cells. These T cells stick around, both replenishing their population and creating more differentiated group of T cells to attack cancers. They can potentially resume activity if the cancer recurs. This persistence makes it possible to produce the activity needed to eradicate tumors, which up to this point has been beyond the reach of this type of therapy.

The company has its roots in Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals, which founder Eric Ostertag ran for 13 years. Poseida was spun out to pursue gene engineering technologies.

Other members of the companys management teams have worked in executive roles at San Diego biotech firms including Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Halozyme Therapeutics and Mirati Therapeutics.

In addition to Novartis, additional investors include Adage Capital, Aisling Capital, Boxer Capital, Fidelity, Longitude Capital, Malin Corp., Millennium Capital, Pentwater Capital, Perceptive Advisors, Schonfeld and Vivo Capital.

Bank of America Securities, Piper Sandler and William Blair are joint underwriters on the initial public stock offering.

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Poseida Therapeutics sets terms for upcoming IPO, aims to raise $150M for cancer treatments - The San Diego Union-Tribune