The outlook for Aerie Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s (Nasdaq: AERI) two glaucoma drugs appears to be good—Rhopressa received Food and Drug Administration approval in December, and the company said its other late clinical-stage drug, Roclatan, is on track for approval in the second quarter.
The Irvine-based ophthalmic pharmaceutical company also added to its dry powder, securing $74 million through a public offering of about 1.3 million shares of common stock, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
Shares of the company currently trade at $56 each for a $2 billion market cap. The closing price of Aerie’s common stock on Jan. 23, prior to its announcement of the public offering on Jan. 24, was $61 per share.
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. is the sole bookrunner. It has a 30-day option to purchase an additional $11 million of the stock, or roughly 190,000 shares.
Proceeds will “fund expansion of its commercialization program in North America for both Rhopressa and Roclatan,” according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, as well as support other general corporate purposes, such as research and development, and construction of a 30,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Ireland.
Aerie plans to launch Rhopressa by the middle of the second quarter. The company bulked up its commercialization team in January, naming Nils Hauptmann director of regulatory affairs and pharmacovigilance and Tim Swan director of sales and transparency operations. It also appointed Julia Williams, who previously served as senior director of medical at Allergan PLC, director of medical affairs to help launch the drug.
Anti-Aging Supplement
Irvine-based ChromaDex Corp. added another big name to its team, appointing Mark Friedman general counsel and corporate secretary. He joined from global nutrition company Herbalife Nutrition, where he served as executive vice president, general counsel and counsel to the executive chairman since 2013. He filled similar roles at frozen yogurt franchise Pinkberry.
ChromaDex President and Chief Operating Officer Robert Fried said Friedman has experience at companies in consumer products and nutraceuticals and that his “wide-ranging expertise [in] food, retail and consumer law, international joint ventures, securities and complex litigation … [makes him] a very valuable addition to our team.”
In October, it added former Mattel Inc. executive Kevin Farr as chief financial officer.
ChromaDex makes TruNiagen, a supplement it says has anti-aging benefits. TruNiagen is now available in Asia—Hong Kong and Singapore—following a $25 million investment last year by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing. Li’s multinational conglomerate, CK Hutchison Holdings, owns A.S. Watson, the largest beauty and pharmacy chain store in Europe and Asia.
The company also received $23 million last year through private placement following Li’s investment. The financing is led by multifamily office ICONIQ Capital LLC in San Francisco. The exclusive members-only fund has an elite client base, including Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
ChromaDex has a $287 million market cap.
Separately, it said the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied Elysium Health Inc.’s challenge to its patent protecting nicotinamide riboside, the key ingredient in TruNiagen. The ingredient is licensed from Dartmouth College.
New York-based Elysium also sells a nicotinamide riboside-based supplement. It filed the petition last July.
Robotic Moves
Newport Beach-based Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian ups its robotic game with ExcelsiusGPS, which offers real-time 3-D-guided navigation for surgeons performing minimally invasive spinal surgery. Hoag is one of three hospitals in the U.S. to get the technology, along with Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Md., and St. Mark’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Benefits include accuracy and faster recovery time, as well as limited radiation exposure of the patient, surgeon and staff, according to Dr. Burak Ozgur, chief of service for the neurosurgery spine program at the Pickup Family Neuroscience Institute at Hoag.
Hoag received a $15 million gift for the center in October from the local Pickup Family Foundation. Richard “Dick” Pickup is an equities investor and real estate developer. He and his family co-own, Balboa Bay Club & Resort and Newport Beach Country Club.
Pharmacy Rising?
Irvine-based software company PrescribeWellness said more Americans are transferring prescriptions to local pharmacies instead of hospitals, according to a recent in-house survey.
The company polled more than 1,000 adults over age 40 online in December. The results were weighted against the U.S. census for age, gender, region and income.
The survey showed an increased number of consumers want healthcare services, including over-the-counter treatments, blood pressure checks and vaccines, at more convenient locations.
PrescribeWellness provides a digital communications platform connecting local pharmacies and consumers.
