Telix abruptly pulled the plug on its initial public offering plans to begin trading Friday on the Nasdaq, saying the company “did not feel that the proposed discounts were aligned with its duty to its existing shareholders.”
Telix Pharmaceuticals on Friday announced that the company voluntarily withdrew its previously announced $200 million-plus initial public offering, shortly before it was set to debut on the Nasdaq.
The radiopharma developer in Friday’s announcement pointed to the “current market conditions” as its reason for pulling its initial public offering (IPO). “Given the proposed Nasdaq listing was not predicated on the need to raise capital, Telix’s management and Board of Directors have decided not to move forward with the transaction at the terms provided,” Telix said in a statement.
“The company did not feel that the proposed discounts were aligned with its duty to its existing shareholders,” according to Telix.
Based in Melbourne, Australia, Telix announced its IPO last week with plans to put up for sale 17 million American Depository Shares and targeting an overall offering value of more than $232 million, according to its filing. The biotech was expected to trade on the Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker symbol TLX. In anticipation of its U.S. debut, Telix asked the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) to halt trading of its stocks on Thursday.
Following its IPO withdrawal, Telix expected to resume trading on the ASX on Friday.
Christian Behrenbruch, Telix managing director and group CEO, said in a statement that Friday’s withdrawal “is not our desired outcome.” However, the company’s “strategic objectives must align with our duty to existing shareholders,” he said.
Telix is advancing a pipeline of targeted radiation products using its core technology that combines a targeting moiety—such as an antibody or a small molecule drug—with a radioactive isotope payload. The molecules arising from this platform are meant for therapeutic or imaging applications.
Telix’s lead candidate is TLX591, a radio antibody-drug conjugate (rADC) that targets the PSMA protein, allowing the investigational therapy to target prostate cancer. TLX591 is currently being studied in a Phase II/III trial. The Australian biotech is also advancing TLX250, another rADC that is being developed for metastatic kidney cancer. Proceeds from Friday’s IPO were supposed to help Telix run a Phase III study for TLX250.
Despite dropping its IPO plans in the U.S., Telix contends that its performance and prospects “remain strong,” according to its announcement. Since January 2024, the company said it has hit “a number of commercially significant milestones” including positive readouts and two product approval submissions to the FDA.
The company believes its balance sheet is enough to deliver on its key corporate objectives including continued growth in the U.S., particularly for its commercial team, to support the launch of certain products. Telix maintains it will also still be able to continue the clinical development of its pipeline assets.
Tristan Manalac is an independent science writer based in Metro Manila, Philippines. Reach out to him on LinkedIn or email him at tristan@tristanmanalac.com or tristan.manalac@biospace.com.
