US IPO Weekly Recap: 4 IPOs Price, Led By Norovirus Biotech HilleVax

Renaissance Capital2022-04-30

Four IPOs raised $266 million this week, headlined by norovirus vaccine developer HilleVax (HLVX). The other three deals were micro-caps, an area of the IPO market that continues to see rapid price swings thanks to interest from momentum traders. Three SPACs also raised a combined $245 million, targeting Asian fintech, sustainable energy, and technology.

The week's biggest news came from Bausch + Lomb (BLCO), which set terms to raise about $800 million in the coming week at a valuation north of $8 billion.

HilleVax's upsized offering raised $200 million, making it the largest biotech IPO so far this year, out of nine total. The stock finished up 12%, bucking the recent sell-off in the biotech space. Backed by Frazier Healthcare Partners, HilleVax is in Phase 2 trials for a novel norovirus vaccine, which it licenses from former parent Takeda Pharma. While the company has just one clinical-stage candidate, it is going after a massive market, with the potential to be approved in routine infant vaccinations.

The week's three micro-cap IPOs included Chinese display supplier Ostin Technology Group, medical implant developer Tenon Medical, and retinal degeneration biotech Belite Bio. Ostin Technology soared an eye-popping 892% on its debut, the biggest IPO pop in about a year, before wiping out all of its gains later in the week.

The IPO Index fell to a 52-week low on Friday, a clear signal of the extremely challenging environment for US IPOs, especially growth names.

IPO Market Snapshot

The Renaissance IPO Indices are market cap weighted baskets of newly public companies. As of 4/28/2022, the Renaissance IPO Index was down 36.0% year-to-date, while the S&P 500 was down 9.7%. Renaissance Capital's IPO ETF (NYSE: IPO) tracks the index, and top ETF holdings include Uber Technologies (UBER) and CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD). The Renaissance International IPO Index was down 30.9% year-to-date, while the ACWX was down 12.3%. Renaissance Capital’s International IPO ETF (NYSE: IPOS) tracks the index, and top ETF holdings include Volvo Car Group and Kuaishou.

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