The IPO Buzz: CG Oncology Sets Terms & Launches $200.6 Million IPO

Bladder cancer biotech CG Oncology (CGON Proposed) unveiled the terms and launched its $200.6 million IPO shortly before sunrise on Wall Street today – Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. CG Oncology is offering 11.8 million shares at $16.00 to $18.00 to raise $200.6 million. The California biotech plans to price its IPO next week – on Wednesday night, Jan. 24, 2024, to trade Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, on the NASDAQ. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Cantor are the joint book-runners. LifeSci Capital is the co-manager. CG Oncology, based in Irvine, California, is a Phase 3 clinical biotech focused on developing and commercializing its leading product candidate, cretostimogene, to treat patients with high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) who are unresponsive to BCG therapy, the standard treatment. (BCG stands for Bacillus Calmette Guerin, a treatment that is in such short supply that it must be rationed.) “There is significant unmet need for treatments in these patients, given the limitations of currently approved therapies and patient reluctance to under radical cystectomy, or the complete removal of the bladder,” the prospectus says. CG Oncology has completed enrollment for its Phase 3 clinical trial of cretostimogene as monotherapy for high-risk NMIBC patients who are unresponsive to BCG therapy, according to the prospectus. The company reported interim data in November 2023. It expects to report topline data by the end of 2024. “If successful, we believe that this trial could serve as the basis for a Biologics License Application (BLA) submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA),” the prospectus says. CG Oncology is also evaluating the use of cretostimogene in two other clinical trials:

• A Phase 2 clinical trial of cretostimogene in combination with FDA-approved pembrolizumab for this same patient population, and
• A second Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating adjuvant cretostimogene in intermediate-risk NMIBC patients after transurethral resection of the bladder tumor.

Like most biotechs, CG Oncology has no revenue from product sales. The company reported a net loss of nearly $58 million for the 12 months that ended on Sept. 30, 2023, according to financial statements in the prospectus. (For more information about these companies, please check the IPO Calendar and the individual IPO Profiles found on IPOScoop.com’s website.) Note: Never trade on proposed symbols. They have been known to change and you might buy something on the OTC Bulletin Board. To see what time the NASDAQ IPOs are expected to trade, please log in to: NASDAQTrader.com then scroll down to IPO Message. Disclosure: Nobody on the IPOScoop.com staff has a position in any stocks mentioned above, nor do they trade or invest in IPOs. The IPOScoop.com staff does not issue advice, recommendations or opinions. Disclaimer: A SCOOP Rating (Wall Street Consensus of Opening-day Premiums) is a general consensus taken, at press time, from Wall Street and investment professionals concerning how well an IPO might perform when it starts trading. The SCOOP Rating does not reflect the opinions of anyone associated with IPOScoop.com. The SCOOP ratings should not be taken as investment advice. The rating merely reflects the opinion of the professionals at the time of publication and is subject to last-minute changes due to market conditions, changes in a specific offering and other factors, such as changes in the proposed offering terms and the shifting of investor interest in the IPO. The information offered is taken from sources we believe to be reliable, but we cannot guarantee the accuracy.