Financings In Brief
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
VNUS Medical Technologies: Firm grosses $60 mil. via Oct. 20 initial public offering of 4 mil. shares at $15 each. An additional 1.4 mil. shares were sold by prior shareholders. One-third of the proceeds will go toward expansion of sales and marketing activities for the VNUS Closure minimally invasive venous reflux disease treatment. Cleared via 510(k) in March 1999, the device uses radiofrequency heat to close diseased saphenous veins. The next-generation RFG2 RF generator, which debuted Oct. 26, features continuous monitoring of vein wall temperature and impedance. The 154-employee firm generated revenue of $16.9 mil. for the first half of 2004, up 101% from a year ago. About 75% of revenue is derived from disposable catheters used with the RF generators. VNUS, which estimates the applicable U.S. market at 800,000 patients annually, has been profitable since Q4 2003 but has accrued losses of $43.2 mil. since its inception in 1995. VNUS planned to go public in August 2000 but withdrew its prospectus in April 2001 amidst broader market weakness (1"The Gray Sheet" Aug. 28, 2000, p. 13). The firm re-filed with SEC in July and now trades on Nasdaq as "VNUS." IPO underwriters include Banc of America, Piper Jaffray and William Blair & Company...
You may also be interested in...
Vnus To Double Closure Sales Force Following $57.5 Mil. IPO
Vnus Medical Technologies intends to spend at least $8 mil. of the proceeds from a proposed $57.5 mil. initial public offering on sales, marketing and reimbursement activities, the company disclosed in an Aug. 18 prospectus outlining the deal.
Abbott's ‘Bedrock Of Good Health’ Nutritionals Business Faces Mounting Infant Formula Litigation
Nutritional product business had 5.1% Q1 sales growth and is like Abbott’s other segments, “super well-aligned to the global demographics and trends in health care,” says CEO Ford. But as it defends complaints of damages from powder formulas made at facility found with unsafe levels of bacterial contaminants, Abbott’s also targeted in litigation alleging failure to warn about risk of infants born prematurely developing necrotizing enterocolitis if fed cow’s milk-based formula.
‘Core Pillars’ Of Safety And Innovation Take Center Stage In FDA Reports
The US FDA has issued a pair of reports focused on device safety and innovation. The reports describe recent steps the agency has taken to improve in the two areas, and what it plans to do next.