Aeon Biopharma, which is currently testing a botulinum toxin complex to treat migraines and other ailments, went public through a special purpose acquisition company, also known as a SPAC, on July 24.
Aeon uses the same ABP-450 toxin as Evolus Inc., whose flagship neurotoxin product, Jeuveau, competes with Allergan’s Botox in the aesthetics industry.
Last month was also a busy one for Evolus, with shares up 30% to $10.13 on July 27 after it boosted its annual forecast by $5 million to between $185 million and $195 million.
The neurotoxin market, split between therapeutic (58%) and aesthetic (42%) treatments, is expected to grow to $8.3 billion in the U.S. by 2026, according to a Fortune Business Insights report.
11-Year Road
Aeon’s shares reached as high as $11.88 on its initial day before falling as low as $5.64 two days later and then rebounding to $7.70 and a $165 million market cap as of Aug. 3.
Besides migraines, which affect about 1 billion people worldwide, making it the third most prevalent illness in the world, Aeon is also studying medication to treat cervical dystonia, where the neck and shoulders have painful twisting movements.
The company raised $125 million in funding, which should provide sufficient proceeds to support the company beyond its anticipated announcement this fall from its Phase 2 study of ABP-450.
It also expects to deliver topline data from the ongoing Phase 2 study for chronic migraines in 2024, and initiation of a pivotal Phase 3 study for cervical dystonia in 2024.
Aeon spun off in 2020 from Newport Beach-based Alphaeon, owned by local entrepreneur Robert Grant.
“An 11-year road to this moment since I founded this company,” Grant wrote about Aeon’s public debut. “Persistence, never give-up tenacity, resilience, sacrifice, countless hours and a lot of passion and belief ultimately made this major milestone achievement happen today.”
Aeon is headed by CEO Marc Forth, a former Allergan executive.
Evolus Gains
Both Aeon and Evolus license ABP-450 from Daewoong, a South Korean pharmaceutical manufacturer. Aeon received a $25 million investment from Daewoong about a year ago, and has gotten additional funding from the company.
Evolus was begun in 2012 by Grant, founder of growth equity firm Strathespey Crown LLC.
“Revenue growth this quarter accelerated by 10 percentage points over the first quarter, reflecting accelerated momentum for Jeuveau and the exceptional execution of our growth strategy by the entire Evolus team,” Evolus Chief Executive David Moatazedi said in a statement.
