AMAG Pharma up 45% [Oct 1, 20] Covis Group (Belgium) and AMAG Pharmaceuticals announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Covis will acquire AMAG for [$498 million] on a fully diluted basis and approximately $647 million on an enterprise basis, including debt obligations expected to be assumed or repaid net of cash. [joint companies press release, Oct 1, 20]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals has completed the sale of its rights to vaginal pain relief drug Intrarosa to Millicent Pharma Limited. The sale is worth up to $125M. [company press release, May 21, 20]
AMAG Pharma Cuts 140 Jobs Amid Restructuring, COVID-19 Disruptions [xconomy.com, May 12, 20]
AMAG Pharma down 19% [Mar 16, 20]
AMAG Pharma down 18% [Jan 24, 20]
An FDA advisory committee voted 9-7 to recommend that the agency pull an AMAG Pharmaceuticals drug for preterm birth from the market. The injectable treatment, hydroxyprogesterone caproate (Makena), failed to beat a placebo in a post-marketing study. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Nov 1, 19]
AMAG Pharma down 22% [Oct30, 19]
AMAG Pharma up 14% [Aug 12, 19]
AMAG Pharma up 15% [Jun 21, 19] [FDA] approved a drug to treat low libido in women, and shares of the company slated to market the medication, ... AMAG licensed Vyleesi from Palatin Technologies Inc. PTN, +4.69% and under the terms of their agreement the FDA approval triggers a $60 million payment to Palatin, plus tiered royalties tied to sales milestones. [Claudia Assis, Market Watch, Jun 21, 19]
AMAG Pharma down 18% [Mar 8, 19]
Amag Pharma has struck a merger deal with Perosphere (Danbury, CT; no SBIR), adding an anticoagulant reversal agent in midstage trials to its emerging hematology business. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Dec 13, 18]
AMAG Pharma up 29% [Feb 15, 18] announced that [FDA] approved the Makena(R) subcutaneous auto-injector drug-device combination product as a ready-to-administer treatment to reduce the risk of preterm birth in women pregnant with one baby and who spontaneously delivered one preterm baby in the past. [company press release, Feb 14, 18]
AMAG Pharma up 10% [Jan 2, 18]
AMAG Pharma up 10% [Nov 3, 17]
AMAG Pharma down 20% [Nov 2, 17]
AMAG Pharma down 36% [Jan 9, 17] with Palatin Technologies announced they have entered into an agreement for exclusive North American rights to develop and commercialize Rekynda(TM) (bremelanotide), an investigational product designed for on-demand treatment of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in pre-menopausal women, that has successfully completed two Phase 3 trials. [company press release, Jan 9. 17]
AMAG Pharma down 13% [Aug 10, 16]
AMAG Pharma down 11% [May 4, 16]
AMAG Pharma down 14% [May 3, 16]
AMAG Pharma down 10% [Nov 19, 15]
AMAG Pharma down 23% [Nov 3, 15]
AMAG Pharma up 13% [Oct 23,15]
AMAG Pharma up 10% [Feb 26, 15]
AMAG Pharma up 28% [Sep 29, 14] will buy the maternal health business [of drug maker Lumara Health (no SBIR)] for $675 million in cash and stock to help diversify its drug portfolio. Lumara’s flagship drug is Makena, which is used to reduce the risk of preterm birth in pregnant women. [Market Watch, Sep 29]
AMAG Pharma up 12% [Jul 29, 14]
AMAG Pharma down 15% [Jan 9, 14]
AMAG Pharma< down 14% [Sep 25, 13] /p>
AMAG Pharma down 10% [May 31, 13]
AMAG Pharma down 11% [May 22, 13]
AMAG Pharma down 15% [May 10, 12]
Amag Pharmaceuticals said that its iron deficiency treatment has gotten a positive review from a panel of European regulators, raising the possibility that the drug could go on the market in Europe later this year. [Boston Globe, Apr 20]
AMAG Pharma up 11% [Mar 8, 12] said that its anemia drug Feraheme worked as well as a standard treatment in a late-stage clinical trial.[AP, Mar 7]
AMAG Pharma down 10% [Jan 9, 12]
Amag Pharmaceuticalsis in line to receive a $3 million milestone payment under a licensing agreement for its iron-replacement drug. The drug is Feraheme, and it has been available in the United States for more than two years. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Dec 12, 11]
AMAG Pharma up 18% [Nov 4, 11] said that president and chief executive has resigned, effective immediately. The company also unveiled a restructuring plan that includes a 25 percent reduction in positions. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Nov 4, 11]
AMAG Pharmadown 13% [Aug 8, 11]
a New York-based fund specializing in long-term strategic investments in health care and biotechnology, has made an unsolicited bid to acquire AMAG Pharmaceuticals for $378 million, to block the proposed merger between AMAG and Allos Therapeutics [Julie Donnelly, Mass High Tech, Aug 5, 11]
AMAG Pharmaceuticalsup 11% [Aug 3, 11]
Shares of Amag Pharmaceuticals jumped today in premarket trading, after the drugmaker said it received an unsolicited buyout offer worth $381 million from MSMB Capital Management. [Boston Globe, Aug 3, 11]
AMAG Pharmadown 14% [jul20, 11] announced plans to merge with Colorado company Allos Therapeutics in a stock-for-stock deal worth approximately $686 million. [Mass High Tech, Jul 20, 11]
AMAG Pharma up 10% [May 31, 11]
AMAG Pharma up 11% [Apr 25, 11]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals said it has reached an agreement with the Food and Drug Administration regarding an update to the product label for Feraheme, an anemia drug..... said recently that it would slash 24 percent of its workforce due to declining sales and safety concerns tied to Feraheme [Boston Globe, Nov 30, 10]
AMAG Pharma up 13% [Nov 29, 10]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals has announced a plan to cut its workforce by 24 percent to lower operating expenses. [Mass High Tech, Nov 1, 10]
AMAG Pharma up 12% [Sep 30, 10]
AMAG Pharma down 15% [Sep 21, 10]
AMAG Pharma down 13% [Jul 29, 10]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals and Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. today jointly announced that the companies have entered into a license, development, and commercialization agreement related to the drug Feraheme, which is approved in the United States for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia in adult patients with chronic kidney disease. [Boston Globe, Apr 1, 10] ... will bring it $60 million in upfront payments and could yield up to $280 million total. [Mass High Tech, Apr 1]
AMAG Pharma down 16% [Feb 4, 10] after an analyst downgraded the stock on concerns that kidney disease patients treated with the company's intravenous iron replacement therapy Feraheme are ending up in the hospital with severe allergic reactions. [thestreet.com]
AMAG Pharma up 20% [Jan 11, 10] besting Wall Street expectations.
Robbery Snatch/1938hrs/24th & L. Street AMAG Pharma up 12% [Oct 29, 09] third-quarter loss narrowed on higher sales of the anemia drug Feraheme. [AP, Oct 29]
AMAG Pharma up 11% [Mar 23, 09]
AMAG Pharma down 12% [Mar 2, 09]
AMAG Pharma down 15% [Feb 26, 09] said that its fourth-quarter loss widened on higher costs as the company sets up operations for the eventual marketing of its anemia drug Feraheme. [Boston Globe, Feb 27]
AMAG Pharmaceuticalssaid the FDA asked for more information on the anemia drug candidate ferumoxytol before considering it for approval. [Boston Globe, Dec 23, 08]
AMAG Pharma down 11% [Dec 1, 08] On a stock bloodbath day
AMAG Pharma doubled [Nov 13, 08] after going one step closer to getting its anemia drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The agency declared a response for more information to be complete, allowing the biopharmaceutical company to recover some of the value that had been lost over the past three months amid concerns about the fate of its treatment for iron-deficiency anemia. [Wall Street Journal, Nov 14]
AMAG Pharma down 12% [Nov 12, 08]
AMAG Pharma down 19% [Nov 10, 08]
AMAG Pharma down 14% [Nov 4, 08]
AMAG Pharma down 12% [Oct 20, 08] received a letter from the FDA asking for more information on its iron-replacement drug ferumoxytol. The company said it should be able to respond quickly to the request without conducting any more clinical trials. [Wall Street Journal, Oct 21]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals said the FDA granted Fast Track designation to a diagnostic agent that can be used during vascular-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging procedures. The agent, called ferumoxytol, improves the assessment of peripheral arterial disease in patients with known or suspected chronic kidney disease, or CKD, the company said. [Boston Globe, Aug 21, 08]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals fell 13% after [a broker] recommended investors sell shares of the Cambridge, Mass., biopharmaceutical company, saying it believes development of the company's drug to treat iron-deficiency anemia won't get FDA approval without an additional trial. [Wall Street Journal, Apr 10, 08]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals up 10% [Mar 24, 08]
AMAG Pharmaceuticals down 10% [Jan 30, 08] after reporting that mortality rates for patients taking the experimental iron deficiency treatment ferumoxytol were lower compared with those taking oral iron pills.
Amaranth Medical (Mountain View, CA; no SBIR), which develops devices used to treat coronary artery disease, raised $20 million in Series B funding. ... to support continued development and the upcoming clinical trial of Fortitude, a bioresorbable scaffold used to treat coronary artery disease. .... was spun out of Nanyang Technological University in Singapore in 2005. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Oct 8, 13]
a new heavyweight competitor now has its sights set on the [image processing system-on-chips (SoCs)] sector. Qualcomm, the largest mobile chipmaker in the world, recently started selling SoCs for action cameras and drones as well. Could that move throttle Ambarella (Santa Clara, CA; no SBIR)'s growth in both markets? ... As for drones, Qualcomm has several advantages over Ambarella. In February, it acquired KMel Robotics (Philadelphia, PA; no SBIR), a startup which develops multi-rotor drones which can coordinate with one another in "swarms". Neither Ambarella nor Intel (which has drone ambitions of its own) owns this type of technology [The Motley Fool, Sep 26, 15]
AmberWave Systems (Salem, NH; one SBIR) is partnering with the University of New Hampshire after receiving a "Granite State Technology Innovation Grant" from the New Hampshire Innovation Research Center (NHIRC). Amount unstated founded in 1999, has raised more than $91M in private funding . ...The NHIRC grant combines funding from the state of New Hampshire with federal dollars from the National Science Foundation's Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research - EPSCOR, a program designed to hand money to the "have-not" states. So, why does a company that attracts $91M private capital need, or accept, a tiny "have-not " grant? Any free dollar is a good dollar even if it diverts attention from the serious business of making a profit in the competitive markets?
Amber Wave (Salem, NH) settled all its strained silicon patent infringement lawsuits against Intel. [Mass High Tech, Mar 6]
AmberWave Systems (Salem, NH) raised another $21M in VC money to bring its total to $66M. If all goes as planned, Amber Wave will bring its strained silicon for semiconductors to a profitable market. Back in the late 90s, during the IT bubble, Amber Wave got one SBIR for $1M from BMDO (now MDA) although not for strained silicon. If any company, like Amber Wave, wanted similar SBIR money this summer, it would have a hard time finding any DOD topic open to broad impact technology like semiconductors. DOD wants ready-to-go projects that produce a hard product (or some vague math model) for a specific program. What happened to all the broad thinkers?
Ambiq Micro (Austin, TX; one SBIR), maker of low-power semiconductors that work in wearables, chip cards and IoT devices, reported raising $55.8M in new equity funding, per an SEC filing. [Brent Wistrom, Austin Inno Dec 2, 20]
Ambiq Micro (formerly Cubic Microchip, Austin, TX; no SBIR, founded 2012, 11 employees), a microcontroller developer, reported raising a $90,000 financing. ... develops energy-efficient microcontrollers ... In November 2014, the startup completed a $15.6 million Series C round [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, May 29, 15]
Ambiq Micro (West Lake Hills, TX; no SBIR, founded 2010 as Cubiq Microchip) a microcontroller developer, has reported completing a $15.6 million financing. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Nov 7, 14]
A regulatory filing reveals that 30 investors participated in the $10 million Ambiq Micro ( West Lake Hills, TX; no SBIR, 11 employees) Series B round .... develops energy efficient microcontrollers [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Aug 21, 13]
3-year-old startup Ambiq Micro (Austin, TX; no SBIR) has plans to take it all a step further by creating a new generation of ultra-low-power chips that are expected to enable products with even longer battery lives. [Austin Americam Statesman, Aug 19, 13]
Ambit Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) which is expected to hold its [IPO] this week, cut its price but increased the number of shares it plans to sell ]for the same $65 million]. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, May 15, 13]
Ready for the Factory Floor. Another MBE SBIR, one of a gazillion in 15 years, says it is preparing for the factory floor. AMBP Technology (Buffalo, NY), a spin off from the University of Buffalo, got a BMDO Phase 2 SBIR to combine laser heating and MBE to deposit thin metal films at a market price. The Buffalo News story March 19 says the academic types will get financing from NJ businessman Gary Tompa (who has had SBIRs in at least two other companies), now company president. While the technology sounds wonderful, - as they all do - MBE has usually been too expensive for market-competitive cost chips. Says founder Jim Garvey, There's really no technology hurdles I anticipate. Tompa must have told the two academics that BMDO wasn't going to fund their nice research in their 1997 SBIR Phase 1. Either find a credible commercialization route, or apply to some other SBIR program. After a couple of years (BMDO gives the Phase 1s whatever time is needed) to round up a credible story, they got $900K Phase 2, no doubt with the usual contingency clauses about co-investment and continuing technical credibility. SBA will probably gnash its bureaucratic teeth at the co-investment clause that guarantees that SBIR money has market attention.
One of the most promising startups working on new types of grid-scale batteries, Ambri (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR, founded 2011), has revealed disappointing test results for its novel technology, forcing it to lay off one-quarter of its staff, and push back commercial deployment indefinitely. ... Ambri is one of a clutch of startups working to develop advanced batteries that will succeed lithium-ion batteries—particularly for storing energy from intermittent renewable sources, such as wind and solar. [Richard Martin, technologyreview.com, Sep 30, 15]
Progress being made by battery startup Ambri (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR, founded 2007) suggests that the market for long-duration grid energy storage is finally taking shape. .... said it has raised a $35 million series-C round to fund the production of prototype batteries from an existing factory and finance construction of a commercial-scale plant. The company intends to test prototypes in the field this year and produce full-size batteries for paying customers by 2016. .... At its existing manufacturing plant in Marlboro, Massachusetts, Ambri assembles its cells with robots normally used in the auto industry [Martin LaMonica, technologyreview.com, May 5, 14]
Ambrx (San Diego, CA; no SBIR), a clinical-stage biopharma focused on the development of innovative protein therapeutics and BeiGene, (China), a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative molecularly-targeted and immuno-oncology drugs for the treatment of cancer, announced a global research and development collaboration. ... Ambrx will receivean upfront payment of US$10 million to fund the initial discovery and research activitiesand additional upfront payments of up to US$19 million if BeiGene elects to initiate additional programs. [company press release, Mar 6, 19] prior funding $147M [crunchbase.com]
Ambrx (San Diego, CA; no SBIR), a developer of protein therapeutics, has filed to raise up to $86 million in an [IPO] .... makes antibody-drug conjugates, which use antibodies to selectively deliver drugs to a target. These are typically chemotherapy agents. .... has signed several partnerships with large pharmaceutical companies, including three deals with Bristol-Myers Squibb, one worth up to $300 million with Astellas Pharma, and one potentially worth more than $300 million with Merck. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, May 2, 14]
Merck
has made
a major investment in
San Diego
County's science industry, creating a drug discovery partnership with
Ambrx (La
Jolla, CA; no
SBIR) in a deal that
could be worth
more than
$300 million. Merck will pay La Jolla-based Ambrx $15 million
up
front for help in developing molecules that show potential promise for
the treatment of a wide variety of diseases, from cancer and
cardiovascular problems to auto-immune disorders and inflammation.
Ambrx says it can earn an additional $288 million if it meets certain
milestones, as well as royalty fees [Gary
Robins,
utsandiego.com, Jun 18, 12].
Bristol-Myers squibb will pay drug developerAmbrx (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) at least $24 million to develop and commercialize drugs derived from a protein targeting type 2 diabetes and a hormone that has shown promise for treating heart failure, the companies said. .... the fourth strategic partnership signed by Ambrx since 2007. It gives Bristol-Myers worldwide rights to research, develop and sell drugs that come out of the Ambrx programs. [Keith Darce, signonsandiego.com, Sep 22, 11]
Myriad Geneticsis suing competitors[Ambry (Viejo, CA; no SBIR) and Gene by Gene (Houston, TX; no SBIR)] that have begun to offer genetic testing for breast cancer risk after the Supreme Court’s ruling last month that human genes cannot be patented. .... saying their tests infringed some of the more than 500 other patent claims that were not invalidated by the Supreme Court [Andrew Pollack, New York Times, Jul 10, 13]
Ambys Medicines (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) started up with a $60 million Series A and an unusual, broad alliance with Japanese pharma Takeda to develop an array of drugs for liver diseases. [Ben Fidler, Aug 9, 18]
Amendia (Marietta, GA; no SBIR, a few employees in 2012, founded 2007) will invest up to $50 million to commercialize a biomedical spinoff that focuses on implant technology and stem cell therapies. The new venture, Vivex Biomedical Inc., is developing implant technology to help stimulate bone regrowth. Vivex has also licensed a highly adaptive adult stem cell line, known as MIAMI (Marrow Isolated Adult Multi-lineage Inducible) cells. [Urvaksh Karkaria, Atlanta Business Journal, Apr 12, 13]
American Bionics (Canton, OH; no SBIR, no website), using technology developed at Johns Hopkins University for prosthetics, is working on an interface that gives warfighters the ability to send and receive signals from machines, including armaments, from hundreds of feet away. The company is readying a prototype for assessment. If successful, this technology could revolutionize the soldier-weapon interface. [Tim Greef, NextGov, Apr 30, 18] Greef's piece indicts DOD for "losing the innovation battle" by focusing on Silicon Valley that has a only a tiny fraction of fast growing American startups. SBIR is not mentioned despute the billions already "invested" over three decades.
Montgomery County [MD, a competitor for America's richest county] will dole out $500,000 to investors in 10 life sciences companies through its coveted biotech tax credit, a fifth of which will go to backers of diagnostics company DioGenix (Gaithersburg, MD; no SBIR) ... piggybacks on the $3.5 million in tax credits from the state to those same 46 investors. The incentives are tied to a total $7 million in private biotech investments in the county last year. Also receiving the credits are backers of 20/20 GeneSystems (Rockville, MD; $4.6M SBIR, incl one of $3.3M), Alper Biotech LLC, American Gene Technologies International Inc., BeneVir Biopharm Inc., ConverGene LLC, Creatv MicroTech (Potomac, MD; $11.6M SBIR)., Rafagen Inc., Sequella (Rockville, MD; $10.3M SBIR). and SynAm Vaccine. [Bill Flook,Washington Business Journal, Feb 28, 14]
start-up Amionx (Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) said it has launched new technology aimed at making lithium ion batteries safer by shutting down faulty cells before they catch fire. The start-up calls its patented technology Safe Core. It recently spun out of American Lithium Energy (San Marcos, CA; $1.6M SBIR) , a long-time supplier [Mike Freeman, San Diego Union Tribune, Mar 14, 17]
Endo International, which has owned American Medical Systems (Minnetonka, MN; no SBIR) since 2011 will pay $830 million to settle thousands of lawsuits from women claiming a mesh it produced for use in pelvic surgeries degraded afterward, causing pain and other problems. .... about $40,000 each to claimants in about 20,000 lawsuits. Women who required multiple corrective surgeries after the product, called a vaginal mesh, was implanted can seek more money, under the settlement terms. .... Johnson & Johnson, the largest maker of health care products in the U.S., stopped selling several lines of vaginal inserts last year. [Steve Alexander , Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 2, 14]
American Science & Engineering (Billerica, MA; $3.8M SBIR) up 14% [Jun 21, 16], a leading worldwide supplier of innovative X-ray inspection solutions, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by OSI Systems forapproximately $269 million. ... OSI Systems, Inc. is a [30-year-old] vertically integrated designer and manufacturer of specialized electronic systems and components for critical applications in the homeland security, healthcare, defense and aerospace industries, [AS&E press release, Jun 21, 16]
American Science & Engineering up 10% [May 10, 16]
Al Najaf International Airport in Iraq has entered into a five-year agreement to use American Science and Engineering's X-ray technology to scan for weapons and explosives. [Boston Business Journal, Apr 7, 16]
American Science
& Engineering
down 27% [Feb 9, 16] after reporting quarterly financials
American Science & Engineering down 14% [Aug 7, 15] on quarterly results
American Science & Engineering down 13% [Apr 27,15]
American Science & Engineering down 16% [Nov 11, 14] company reported lower revenues
American Science & Engineering said that "escalating global volatility" will force it to incur a quarterly loss and cut 10 percent [30 or so employees] of its workforce. ... “The escalating global volatility negatively impacted our quarterly results with shipment delays for orders already recorded in backlog,” said [CEO] Chuck Dougherty [David Harris, Boston Business Journal, Sep 30, 14]
American Science and Engineering said that it has received an order for 28 of its ZBV mobile screening systems that will be used for law enforcement and security applications in several countries in the Middle East. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jan 10, 14]
American Science and Engineering Isaid it has received a $6.2 million order to provide security measures at a “high-profile summit in the Middle East.”[Boston Globe, Oct 28, 13]
American Science & Engineering>won a security contract by the U.S. government. will initially receive $4.2 million to support what explosive detection technology or what the company says are “critical security initiatives.” ....If AS&E exercises all of its options, the value of the contract could hit $12.4 million. [Patricia Resende, Boston Business Journal, Sep 10, 13]
American Science and Engineering received a $3.5 million order for its x-ray detection technology to help secure the site where a new planned community will be built outside Baghdad> [Don Seiffert, Boston Business Journal, Jul 11, 13]
American Science and Engineering is replacing its retiring CEO and whacking 10% off employment. ... makes innovative X-ray inspection systems, including its patented Z Backscatter technology, Radioactive Threat Detection, high energy transmission and dual energy transmission X-ray. [Don Seiffert, Boston Business Journal, Mar 18, 13]
American Science & Engineering down 24% [May 15, 12] as revenue, earnings, and margins shrank
American Science and Engineering up 13% [Feb 10, 12]
American Science and Engineering said it has received an order for five of its Z Backscatter Vans from a law enforcement agency in South America. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jan 6, 12]
American Science and Engineering said that it has received a $17.5 million order for cargo X-ray inspection systems from a Middle East client. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Nov 7, 11]
American Science & Engineering down 14% [Aug 5, 11]
American Science and Engineering said it has been awarded a contract with a potential value of up to $248.5 million to provide the US Department of Defense with inspection systems that can screen cargo and people. [Chis Reidy, Boston Globe, Jum 29, 11]
American Science and Engineering announced today the receipt of a $16.3 million order for Z Backscatter Vans that make use of the detection technology. [Boston Globe, Feb 22]
American Science and Engineering won a $14 million contract from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security [Mass High Tech, Jan 18, 11
American Science and Engineering said it has received a $5.5 million order from Abu Dhabi Customs Administration for some of its products. [Boston Globe, Jan 12, 11]
American Science and Engineering said it has received a $3.8 million government order for military trailers equipped with its detection gear. [Boston Globe, Dec 22]
American Science and Engineering has been awarded an additional order valued at $4.9 million under its US government contract for Z Portal vehicle screening systems. [Boston Globe, Dec 9, 10]
American Science and Engineering announced the receipt of a $10 million order from the US government for the service and maintenance of military trailers that use the company's screening technology. [Boston Globe, Sep 16, 10]
American Science and Engineering said it has received a $42.2 million service and maintenance renewal order from the US government to extend support of the screening systems that the company provides to the government. [Boston Globe, Sep 10, 10]
American Science and Engineering said it has landed a $5.3 million follow-on order for its X-ray-based Z Backscatter Vans for a customs agency in an unnamed Latin American country. [Mass High Tech, Jul 26, 10]
American Science and Engineering said it has received a $23 million order for a significant quantity of its SmartCheck Inspection Systems that will be used by an "undisclosed government agency." [Boston Globe, Jul 22, 10]
American Science and Engineering < said it received a $7.3 million order from the US government for vans that provide mobile screening systems. [Boston Globe, Jul 16, 10]
American Science and Engineering said that it has received a $8.3 million award for its Z Backscatter Vans from a Latin American customs agency. [Boston Globe, Jul 8, 10]
American Science and Engineering received a $6.7 million order from the U.S. government for its ZBV military trailers. [Mass High Tech, Jun 28, 10]
American Science and Engineering said that US Customs and Border Protection has terminated a $11.8 million contract. [AP, May 21, 10]
American Science and Engineering announced the receipt of a $13.9 million order from the US government for its Z Backscatter Van X-ray screening systems. [Boston Globe, May 10, 10]
American Science and Engineering announced today the receipt of a federal order for its ZBV military trailers that could be worth up to $48.8 million. [Boston Globe, Apr 23, 10]
American Science and Engineering said it received a $2.5 million service and maintenance order for X-ray systems from the US government. ... to support the Z Backscatter Van (ZBV) X-ray inspection systems for "strategic missions in harsh environments." [Boston Globe, Mar 29, 10]
American Science & Engineering reports it has brought in $8.2 million for cargo inspection systems from an unnamed customer. [Mass High Tech, Mar 22, 10]
American Science and Engineering reports it has landed $5.8 million from an unnamed Middle Eastern customer for cargo inspection equipment. [Mass High Tech, Jan 5, 10]
American Science and Engineering rose 5.3% after an unnamed government agency placed a $39.7 million order for cargo X-ray inspection systems to screen cargo and vehicles for explosives at border crossings. [Wall Street Journal, Jan 5]
American Science & Engineering reports it has landed $7.3 million for its parcel inspection systems. Under the deal, AS&E will provide its Gemini parcel inspection systems to an unnamed Middle Eastern customer. [Mass High Tech, Dec 22, 09]
American Science and Engineering received a $9.1 million order from U.S. Customs and Border Protection to supply its cargo and vehicle inspection systems. [Mass High Tech, Oct 27, 09]
Forbes's 2009 list of best 200 small companies includes Aerovironment, American Science and Engineering (paying a dividend and with nearly $600M market cap), Argon ST, Hittite Microwave, II-IV, Meridian Bioscience, Neogen, NVE, and Synaptics.
American Science and Engineering reports it has landed $18.2 million from a Saudi Arabian company for vehicle inspection systems to be used at customs stations in Saudi Arabia. [Mass High Tech, Oct 1, 09]
American Science and Engineering announced the receipt of a service contract award for up to $28.2 million from the US government to provide service and maintenance for the company's Z Backscatter Van X-ray inspection systems. [Boston Globe, Sep 16, 09]
American Science and Engineering won an $11.5 million renewal order from the U.S. government to handle service and maintenance on the company’s Z Backscatter Vans and ZBV Military Trailers — two systems used in counterterrorist measures. [Mass High Tech, Aug 20, 09]
American Science and Engineering landed an $8.6 million follow-on order of Z Portal X-ray screening systems for Abu Dhabi Customs Administration [Mass High Tech, Jul 9, 09]
American Science and Engineering reports it has won a patent infringement suit against three New Jersey companies. [Mass High Tech, Jun 15, 09]
American Science and Engineering which also declared a regular dividend landed $2.2 million from an unnamed European customs agency for service and maintenance on cargo X-ray inspection systems. [Mass High Tech, May 14, 09]
American Science and Engineering reports it has landed $4.7 million from an unnamed law enforcement agency for its cargo screening vans. [Mass High Tech, May 4, 09]
American Science and Engineering reports it has landed $4.4 million from an unnamed U.S. government agency for maintenance on its cargo inspection vans. [Mass High Tech, Apr 27, 09]
American Science and Engineering won a $6.3 million follow-on order from an unnamed client in the Middle East for an unspecified number of its Z Portal cargo and vehicle screening systems. [Mass High Tech, Apr 2, 09]
American Science and Engineering said it has received a $2.9 million order for its Z Backscatter units. [Boston Globe, Feb 21, 09]
American Science and Engineeringannounced today the receipt of a $67.1 million order from the US government for ZBV military trailers. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jan 15]
American Science & Engr up 11% [Jan 8, 09]
American Science & Engineering up15% [Nov 11, 08] after the company reported a 63 percent rise in its fiscal second-quarter earnings. [Boston Globe, Nov 12]
American Science & Engineering said its profit climbed 63% in the fiscal second quarter. [Boston Globe, Nov 10, 08]
American Science and Engineering announced the receipt of a multi-year $12.5 million service order to provide service, maintenance, training, and spare parts for multiple cargo systems. [Boston Globe, Sep 17]
American Science and Engineering said that the company has received a $22M order from the USG. .... for 22 Z Backscatter Vans, or ZBVs, a mobile X-ray screening system, the company said. [Boston Globe, Aug 25, 08]
American Science and Engineering got a $2.6 million order for its mobile X-ray detection system from a Middle East government agency [Boston Globe, Jul 31]
American Science and Engineering reports it has landed a $15.5 million contract from the U.S. government for service on its x-ray systems. [Mass High Tech, Jul 28, 08]
American Science and Engineering reports it has won $55 M from a customs agency in the United Arab Emirates for its X-ray detection systems, including its OmniView, Z Portal and Z Backscatter Van detection systems. [Mass High Tech, Jul 2, 08]
The U.S. government has awarded American Science and Engineeringa $3.4 million service, support and maintenance order for AS&E’s Z Backscatter Vans, completing the multi-year contract totalling $46.2 million . [Mass High Tech, Jun 24]
American Science and Engineering , a maker of X-ray inspection systems, said it received a $9.2 million contract to supply a Latin American customs agency. [Boston Globe, May 14]
American Science and Engineering got a $3.4M contract for X-ray technology from a unnamed Middle Eastern customer. [Mass High Tech, Oct 2, 07]
American Science and Engineering says it is developing X-ray systems for a secret undisclosed government agency in Africa, which if AS&E is lucky will pay its bills from the proceeds of its customs bribery.
American Science and Engineering won a $5.9 M contract with an undisclosed agency of the U.S. government for service and maintenance work on AS&E's mobile screening systems, known as Z Backscatter Vans. [Mass High Tech, Sep 12, 07]
American Science and Engineering got a $10.8M contract from the TSA for the lease of five of the company's SmartCheck screening systems, with an option to acquire an additional 75. [Boston Globe, Aug 9, 07]
American Science and Engineering got a $17M government order for detection systems [Mar 07]
the best chance for investors to cash in on the security trend is with the pure-play small fry (albeit ones with commercial applications, too). His favorites have market caps of $2 billion or less ... a lot of customers for American Science & Engineering Peters likes its X-ray technology, called the Z Backscatter, which goes beyond traditional security X rays because it can pick up nonmetallic objects. ... The company, which is profitable, has a large order backlog [Forbes, Mar 26, 07]
TSA has begun testing American Science and Engineering Inc.'s SmartCheck personal screening system at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, [Mass High Tech, Feb 23, 07]
American Science and Engineering got a $2.2M government contract to deliver a 'ruggedized' Z Backscatter Van X-ray-based explosive detection system. AS&E reported an annual net income of $30M.[Mass High Tech, Nov 6, 06]
American Science and Engineering got a $13M deal from NATO for x-ray inspection of cargo, parcel and personnel. [Nov 06]
Hate Nasty Surprises. American Science and Engineering said fiscal first-quarter earnings fell as expenses for stock options and a higher tax bill cut into the bottom line. The results badly missed Wall Street expectations, sending the company's shares tumbling. Down 17%.[AP, Aug 9, 06]
Targazyme (formerly America Stem Cell, Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) is one example of a problematic startup [funded by Texas Emerging Technology Fund] that is chronicled. On paper, the San Antonio-based startup is developing stem-cell breakthroughs with 14 employees and the help of $1.25 million in state funds. But the rural address listed for its Texas headquarters [Floresville, TX] is actually a weedy horse pasture. During a recent visit by a reporter, the ex-husband of the CEO was warning his guest to watch for rattlesnakes, according to the AP. Targazyme founder Lynnet Koh said her company is moving forward but that she left Texas because Perry’s office withheld additional funding, a complaint echoed by other recipients. She now lives in California and said many of the jobs created by the company were short-term hires outside Texas, none of which is mentioned in the fund’s 2013 annual report. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Jul 25, 14]
American Superconductor down 29% [Aug 2, 2023]
American Superconductor (Ayer, MA; $28M SBIR) up 60% [Aug 1, 2023]
American Superconductor (Ayer, MA; $25M SBIR) up 16% [Jul 18, 2023] announced $34 million of new energy power systems orders. This includes orders for enclosed capacitor banks, harmonic filters, voltage controllers, rectifiers, sag mitigation solutions, and volt var optimizers. [company press release, Jul 18, 2023]
American Superconductor (Ayer, MA; $24M SBIR up 20% [Feb 6, 2023]
American Superconductor down 23% [Nov 2, 2022] announced quarterly financial results
American Superconductor (Ayer, MA; $24M SBIR) up 21% [ug 31, 21] ComEd, one of the nation's largest electric utilities and AMSC, a leading system provider of megawatt-scale power resiliency solutions that orchestrate the rhythm and harmony of power on the grid(TM), today announced the successful integration of AMSC's REG system, which utilizes high-temperature superconductor wire to enhance the reliability, resiliency and performance of the electric power grid. [joint companies press release, Aug 31, 21]
American Superconductor up 37% [Jun 4, 21] announced over $19 million of new energy power system orders. [company press release, Jun 2, 21]
American Superconductor down 18% [Jun 6, 19]
American Superconductor up 14% [Dec 28, 18]
American Superconductor down 21% [Dec 20, 18]
American Superconductor up 26% [Nov 1, 18] announced that it has entered into an agreement with ComEd, which delivers electricity to more than 4 million customers in northern Illinois, to deploy AMSC's high temperature superconductor technology which is expected to make the electric grid even more reliable for ComEd customers. [joint companies press release, Oct 31, 18]
American Superconductor down 10% [Sep 20, 18]
American Superconductor up 16% [Sep 20, 18] announced the successful commissioning of AMSC's D-VAR VVO(TM) system as part of United Power's voltage optimization and energy efficiency program. [company press release, Sep 19, 18]
Ameican Superconductor up 12% [Aug 1, 18]
American Superconductor down 16% [Jul 5, 18]
American Superconductor up 10% [May 10, 18]
American Superconductor up 11% [Mar 16, 18]
American Superconductor up 15% [Mar 12, 18]
American Superconductor down 10% [Feb 6,18]
American Superconductor up 12% [Jan 24,18]
American Superconductor down 11% [Nov 8, 17]
American Superconductor up 16% [Sep 15, 17]
American Superconductor up 10% [Aug 21, 17]
American Superconductor up 11% [Aug 9, 17]
American Superconducor down 14% [Jul 21, 17]
American Superconductor down 18% [May 5, 17] announced that it has priced its underwritten public offering at $4.00 per share [for] gross proceeds of $16M [company press release, May 5, 17]
American Superconductor down 23% [Aug 9, 16]
American Superconductor down 10% [Feb 11, 16]
American Superconductor up 10% [Jan 15, 16]
American Superconductor up 40% [Dec 17, 15] announced several agreements with Inox Wind Limited (Inox) that strengthen the collaboration between the two companies. ... aggregate value of these agreements is approximately $210 million over the next three to four years [comapny press release]
American Superconductor up 15% [Dec 10, 15]
AMSC up 17% [Aug 31, 15]
American Superconductor up 12% [Aug 25, 15]
American Superconductor up 10% [Nov 30, 15]
American Superconductor down 10% [Nov 3, 15]
Shares of AMSC were down 30% percent last Friday after the company announced a public offering of 4 million shares and that it suffered a setback in an intellectual property case against Beijing-based Sinovel in a Chinese court. [David Harris, Boston Business Journal, Apr 27, 15]
American Superconductor down 31% [Apr 24,15]
American Superconductor up 13% [Apr 22,15]
American Superconductor up 19% [Apr 21,15] announced that the U.S. Navy created a sole source solicitation notice for AMSC's high temperature superconductor (HTS) equipment. [company press release]
AMSC, which has shed $142 million in stock value in less than a year, is at risk of being delisted from NASDAQ ... received a letter from Nasdaq notifying it that the company is not in compliance with the exchange's minimum bid price of $1 per share. ... filed [SE] paperwork to engineer a reverse stock split, [Sara Castellanos, Boston Business Journal, Jan 26, 15]
AMSC said it signed three new contracts in Canada, the United Kingdom and the U.S. ... financial terms of the contracts were not disclosed. [Boston Business Journal, Sep 30, 14] May the work be profitable.
American Superconductor down 14% [Aug 4,14]
American Superconductor surged after the company announced it had signed a $60 million agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to install superconducting cables around Chicago to avoid power disruption caused by terrorism or bad weather. ... Chicago is the first city to use AMSC's cables and means that if one of the transmission lines or substations is affected by an outage, that part of that city can be powered by a nearby substation. [David Harris, Boston Business Journal, Jun 16, 14]
AMSC announced that it had received a $40 million order for wind turbine electrical control systems (ECS) from Inox Wind Limited, part of India's Inox Group of Companies [David Harris, Boston Business Journal, Jun 5, 14]
AMSC, (formerly American Superconductor) announced it would cut its workforce by 5 to 10 percent in Massachusetts by the end of the year, part of a series of changes at the company. ... also said it will close its facility in Middleton, Wisc. and move that unit to Massachusetts as part of its consolidation with Gridtec Solutions. All of those affected workers are expected to be offered jobs in Devens. [David Harris, Boston Business JournalMar 19, 14]
[SEC] charged a former executive of American Superconductor with insider trading in 2011, ahead of a steep dive in the company’s stock price, and reaping over $80,000 in profits. [Beth Healy, Boston Globe, Aug 12, 13]
American Superconductor up 13% [Jun 28, 13]
a federal grand jury indicted Chinese wind turbine maker for stealing key technology from [American Superconductor]. [Erin Ailworth, Boston Globe, Jun 27, 13]
American Superconductor down 11% [Jun 14, 13]
American Superconductor down 11% [May 22, 13]
American Superconductor up 11% [May 21, 13]
American Superconductorup 11% [Feb 11, 13].
AMSC (American Superconductor>said that it is supplying high temperature superconductor wire for an ambitious project in Germany that seeks better ways to distribute electricity in major cities. The project in Essen, Germany, is called AmpaCity, and it looks to replace the existing distribution system with new technology. Plans call for AMSC’s wire to be used in a surge protector needed to connect the new system to the power grid. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jan 29, 13]
American Superconductor has teamed up with cable supplier Nexans to unveil a new product for the North American market that is designed to make power grids more resilient. The product is called a medium voltage superconductor fault current limiter, and it makes use of AMSC’s Amperium superconductor wire, which is able to conduct about 200 times the electrical current of copper wire of similar dimensions. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Dec 5, 12]
American Superconductor cut 25 percent of its workforce and will consolidate its offices, a move that will save AMSC $10 million, the company said. ..... The cuts come one year to the day after AMSC cut 150 jobs or 20 percent of its workforce after it abandoned plans made in March 2011 to buy The Switch Engineering Oy for $265 million [Patricia Resende, Mass High Tech, Nov 28, 12]
American Superconductor up 21% [Aug 2, 12] reported a first-quarter net loss of $10.3 million, compared with a $37.7 million loss for the same quarter a year ago. [Boston Globe]
American Superconductorsaid it has been selected to provide its high temperature superconductor wire, also known as HTS wire, to a project in Europe that is looking to design electric ships. [Boston Globe, Jul 17, 12]
American Superconductor up 13% [May 23, 12]
American Superconductor raised $25 million of a $56 million offering, according to [SEC report] [Mass High Tech, Apr 20, 12]
AMSC(a.k.a American Superconductor) raised about $25 million in gross proceeds through the sale of convertible notes and warrants. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Apr 4, 12]
American Superconductor up 11% [Feb 8, 12]
American Superconductor up 12% [Feb 3, 12]
American Superconductor up 27% [Jan 18, 12]
American Superconductor up 16% [Dec 20, 11]
American Superconductorsaid it has reduced its workforce by more than 20 percent in order to lower the company’s cash usage as it works toward a return to profitability. That amounts to more than 100 jobs. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Nov 29, 11]
American Superconductoris seeking more than $1.2 billion in damages and payments for contracted shipments from its once-largest customer, a Chinese wind turbine maker accused of stealing the Devens firm’s technology.[Erin Ailworth, Boston Globe, Nov 10, 11]
American Superconductordown 10% [Nov 10, 11]
American Superconductor canceled a deal to buy Finland’s The Switch Engineering Oy, citing “adverse market conditions.” [Bloomberg News, Oct 31, 11]
American Superconductor renaming itself to AMSC. When it launched nearly 25 years ago [in the burst of HTSC start-ups], the company’s sole focus was superconductors. It has since branched out into other related fields, such as providing wind turbine designs and wind turbine components. Its footprint, once largely confined to the US, now has global reach. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Oct 17, 11]
At the end of a week when reported annual and quarterly losses, the company’s largest investor bought up almost a million shares. ... [to] just over 23 percent of AMSC’s stock[James Connolly, Mass High Tech, Oct 5, 11]
American Superconductor down 13% [Oct 3,11]
American Superconductor down 12% [Sep 30, 11]
American Superconductor up 15%[Sep 29, 11]
A second-generation superconductor wire made by American Superconductor has been switched on in Korea’s electricity grid. ... [AMSC] said that this is the longest second-generation superconductor cable to be in use in a grid anywhere in the world. According to AMSC, its superconductor power cable systems can conduct up to 10 times the amount of power of conventional cables made with copper wire. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Sep 29, 11]
American Superconductor up 14% [Sep 23, 11]
A former employee of American Superconductor was convicted in Austria on criminal charges in a corporate espionage case linked to China's biggest manufacturer of wind turbines. .... had been selling Sinovel components and software that control the productivity and power quality of wind turbines, as well as licensing its turbine designs. It began to suspect something was awry when Sinovel earlier this year rejected a large shipment of control components, company officials said. [Rebecca Smith, Wall Street Journal, Sep 24, 11]
American Superconductor down 11% [Sep 16, 11]
American Superconductor down 15% [Sep 15,11]
American Superconductor is filing both criminal charges and civil complaints against its one-time largest customer, China’s Sinovel Wind Group Co. Ltd. over alleged theft of AMSC’s intellectual property about its wind turbines, stemming from a corporate espionage case. [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Sep 15, 11]
American Superconductor up 14% [Aug 23, 11]
American Superconductorreceived a notice from the Nasdaq stock exchange warning the company that it is in danger of being dropped from the exchange because it failed to file quarterly financial statements< [Mass High Tech, Aug 22, 11]
American Superconductor up 12%[Aug 12, 11]
American Superconductorsaid that it has reduced its global workforce by about 30 percent following issues with its largest customer.[Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Aug 11, 11]
American Superconductor up 12% [Aug9, 11]
American Superconductordown 10% [Aug 4,11]
American superconductor disclosed that it expects to restate its results for two recent quarters, reducing its expected revenue by 35 percent for the quarters. [Mass High Tech, Jul 12, 11]
American Superconductorsaid it has been granted more time to secure financing for the planned $265 million acquisition of a Finnish power technologies firm ..faced financial upheaval since its largest customer, Chinese wind power firm Sinovel Wind Group Co., refused to accept shipments of wind turbine components in April. [Mass High Tech, Jul 1, 11]>
American Superconductor down 24% [Jun 1, 11] after it disclosed late yesterday that it did not file its 10K for the fiscal year ended March 31 by the SEC-mandated May 31 deadline; it has filed with the SEC requesting an extension. American Superconductors said it needs more time due in part to “a review of certain revenues associated with shipments to customers in China” in Q2, Q3 and Q4. The company said it expects to reverse recognition of a “material amount of revenue” it had included when estimating in an April 5 press release that revenue would be less than $355 million. In other words, even $355 million now looks too high. [Eric Savitz, Forbes, Jun 1]
American Superconductor down 42% [Apr 6, 11] after its largest customer [Beijing-based manufacturer Sinovel Wind Group] refused to accept a shipment [Randall Hackley and Marc Roca, Bloomberg, Apr 6]
American Superconductor’s largest investor, a wealthy telecommunications businessman, continued his string of major buys in the company with a $5.2 million stock purchase this week. [Mass High Tech, Mar 25, 11]
American Superconductorsaid it plans to acquire The Switch Engineering Oy, a power technologies firm based in Finland, for 190 million Euros (about $265 million) in cash and stock [Gregory Huang, xconomy.com, Mar 14, 11]
American Superconductor said it has received initial orders for a wind turbine electrical control system from China’s third largest wind turbine manufacturer. [Mass High Tech, Mar 2, 11]
American Superconductor up 10% [Feb 1, 11]
Confidence and long-term view. Wealthy investor Kevin Douglas bought $8.5 million in shares of American Superconductor last week as he continued to add to his holdings [to 14%] [Wall Street Journal, Jan 26, 11] Also, American Superconductor said it has received a $9 million follow-up order for the supply of wind turbine electrical control systems from a customer in India. [Boston Globe, Jan 25]
American Superconductor said it has received orders from a British company building wind farms. [Boston Globe, Jan 18, 11]
American Superconductor said it licensed wind turbine designs to a new customer in China, marking the company’s sixth customer in the country. [Mass High Tech, Jan 11, 11]
American Superconductor expects to raise about $155.1 million for "general corporate purposes" through a public offering of common stock [Mass High Tech, Nov 11, 10]
American Superconductor said that it has received an order from a South Korean firm for more than $10 million in wind turbine electrical control systems. [Kyle Alspach, Mass High Tech, Jan 4, 11]
American Superconductor up 12% [Nov 2, 10] on news of higher sales, profits, and future
One large insider of American Superconductor bought $38M in shares and the CEO sold $9M. [Wall Street Journal, Oct 16, 10]
American Superconductor said it has received the world’s largest order for high-temperature superconductor wire in a deal with a South Korean firm. ... the Amperium wire is the company’s second generation of superconductor wire, and can conduct more than 100 times the electrical current of copper wire of the same dimensions. [Kyle Alspach, Mass High Tech, Oct 6, 10]
American Superconductor is expanding deeper into India with an order from a new Indian firm for wind turbine electrical control systems. The order – for 17 systems that will be deployed in 2-megawatt, doubly-fed induction wind turbines [Mass High Tech, Aug 24, 10]
American Superconductor acquired a 25% stake in Blade Dynamics Ltd.,a U.K.-based designer and manufacturer of wind turbine blades, the company announced for $8 million in cash [Mass High Tech, Aug 17, 10]
American Superconductor said that first-quarter net income was $9.2 million compared with net income of $1.8 million for the same quarter a year ago. [Boston Globe, Jul 29, 10] Ultimately, subsidy programs like SBIR have to be judged on profits and taxes that result from government investment in untried technology. Yakking about jobs as a criterion gets enmeshed in counting jobs paid for by the subsidy. Most of the hype about SBIR, as practiced for nearly three decades, as a job engine is bunk.
American Superconductor issued a press release that claims that nearly 10 percent of the world's wind-generated electricity is "powered by AMSC." [Boston Globe, Jun 15, 10]
American Superconductor has expanded its alliance with a South Korea-based company to jointly develop a 5-megawatt turbine to be used primarily in offshore wind farms. [Mass High Tech, Jun 11, 10]
American Superconductor received a $445 million order for its turbine electrical systems from Sinovel Wind Group Co. Ltd. in China. [Erin Ailworth, Boston Globe, May 18, 10]
American Superconductor says it will develop the world’s highest-capacity wind turbines, hoping to capitalize on an expected boom in offshore wind farm construction. [its] SeaTitan turbine will use high-temperature superconductor wire manufactured at its plant in Devens, which employs 200 people. American Superconductor officials said they anticipate the offshore market for large-capacity wind turbines to reach $1 billion by 2016. [Boston Globe, May 5, 10]
American Superconductor furthers its reach into the Asian markets with a $20 million initial order for electrical control systems wind turbines from India’s Ghodawat Energy Pvt. Ltd. .... will start shipping parts under the deal in the middle of this year, officials said. [Mass High Tech, Apr 6, 10]
American Science and Engineering announced the receipt of a $11.8 million order from US Customs and Border Protection for cargo and vehicle inspection systems. [Boston Globe, Apr 2, 10]
American Superconductor said it has received an order from an Australian company for a large grid interconnection system. [Boston Globe, Apr 1, 10]
A director of American Superconductor bought $2.6M of stock which is down 32% for the YTD despite many reports of new sales. [Wall Street Journal, Mar 27, 10]
American Superconductor said it has received another order from China’s largest wind turbine manufacturer. .. To date, it said it has received more than $700 million in orders from Sinovel. [Boston Globe, Mar 22, 10] Wall Street's analysts also expect it to make big profits in the next few years. Also said it is expanding its alliance with LS Cable Ltd., a power cable manufacturer headquartered in South Korea. [Boston Globe, Mar 24, 10]
ompanies to Watch in personalized medicine. Affymetrix, Life Tech, Illumina, Helicos Biosciences, Metabolon. Among the fifty most innovative: A123 Systems, American Superconductor, Alnylam, Illumina, iRobot, Novomer, BIND Biosciences. [MIT Tech Review, M/A10]
American Superconductor reports it has landed $10 million from a Chinese company for electrical components for wind turbines. [Mass High Tech, Mar 8, 10]
American Superconductor down 10% [Feb 2, 10]
American Superconductor won a $70 million initial order from China’s Shenyang Blower Works (Group) Co. Ltd. for full wind turbine electrical control systems, to be used in wind turbines that were co-developed with its subsidiary AMSC Windtec.[Mass High Tech, Feb 1, 10]
American Superconductor said that it has received a follow-on order for $10 million worth of wind turbine core electrical components from CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive Research Institute Co. Ltd. in China. [Boston Globe, Nov 17, 09]
American Superconductor up 23% [Oct 29, 09] posted better-than-expected quarterly results, powered by a booming Chinese wind industry, a key growth driver for the company. [Reuters, Oct 29]
American Superconductor has been chosen to supply its superconducting powerline “pipeline” technology to the Tres Amigas Project, the first renewable energy market hub in the country that, for the first time, interconnects the three major U.S. power grids. The company has also take a minority stake in the entity that runs the hub, Tres Amigas LLC, for $1.75 million in cash and AMSC stock. [Mass High Tech, Oct 13, 09]
American Superconductor up 10% [Sep 30, 09]
merican Superconductor said that it has signed a $100 million-plus contract with Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corporation Limited. ... to supply core electrical components that the Chinese company will use for wind turbines. [Boston Globe, Sep 30, 09]
American Superconductor said in a press release that it has formed AMSC Korea to serve South Korea rapidly growing wind energy and power grid markets. [Boston Globe, Sep 24, 09]
American Superconductor down 12% [Sep 21, 09] after a broker cut its investment rating on the company's stock to "hold" from "buy." [Wall Street Journal, Sep 22]
American Superconductor said it has formed a unit called AMSC India to serve India’s rapidly growing wind energy and power grid markets. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Sep 09, 09]
American Superconductor said that it has received its second order for a D-VAR system to meet dynamic reactive compensation requirements for a power grid in China. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Aug 26, 09]
American Superconductor reports that Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corp. Ltd. increased the size of its contract to more than $470 million to meet greater demand for its wind turbines in China. That and other deals pushed AMSC to its second profitable quarter in a row. [Mass High Tech, Jul 30]
American Superconductor said it has received $12 million in U.S. Department of Energy [so-called stimulus] funding for work on smart grid demonstration projects. ... to develop a 138 kilovolt fault current limiter using the company’s superconductor wires. ... also received $7.6 million to fund the second phase of its superconductor power cable project with the Long Island Power Authority. [Mass High Tech, Jul 21, 09] Whether it's stimulus or pork depends on whether you got the money.
American Superconductor said it reported its first quarterly profit in company history, [Boston Globe, May 15,09]
American Superconductor received an order worth more than $10 million from ACCIONA Energy, a division of Spanish wind developer ACCIONA SA, for its newly released Dynamic VAR Ride Through (D-VAR RT) product. [Mass High Tech, May 13]
American Superconductor down 14% [May 7, 09]
American Superconductor up 10% [May 4, 09]
American Superconductor up 10% [Apr 22, 09]
American Superconductor landed a new deal for its 344 Superconductor Wire from LS Cable Ltd. of South Korea. ..... ordered 80,000 meters (50 miles) of AMSC’s proprietary brand of second-generation (2G) high-temperature superconductor [Mass High Tech, Apr 20, 09]
American Superconductor said it received a new order from Shanghai Electric Cable Research Institute for its high temperature superconductor wire. [Boston Globe, Apr 1, 09]
American Superconductor up 12% [Mar 26, 09]
American Superconductor up 15% [Mar 10, 09]
American Superconductor up 13% [Mar 4, 09]
American Superconductor down 10% [Feb 27, 09]
American Superconductor down 11% [Feb 23, 09]
American Superconductor reported a loss for the latest quarter that was 6%greater than a year ago. ... reported a burgeoning backlog: $602 million, up from $168 million a year ago ... expects to post a net loss for the full fiscal year of $17 million [Boston Globe, Feb 3, 09] All those sales don't necessarily mean self-sustaining profits. Which is the problem with SBIR's trumpeting follow-on sales as a measure of economic success. You can sell a lot of stuff if you're willing to mark the price down to where you will eventually go bust.
Job Stimulus Beneficiaries? Asia. A recent study by the Renewable Energy Policy Project in Washington, D.C., found that each megawatt of wind capacity installed in the U.S. creates 4.85 full-time jobs, of which 3.4 come from making components -- which is done mostly outside the U.S .... The American Wind Energy Association said this past week that wind suppliers expanded or added 55 facilities last year. But that increase has been outstripped by growth abroad. American Superconductor designs wind turbines and licenses its designs to other companies, then helps them build manufacturing facilities. In recent years, it has inked deals with a dozen companies, none of them American. One customer, South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., is "specifically targeting the U.S. market," said Greg Yurek, chief executive of American Semiconductor. Korea's government said last week it is investing $4.37 billion to help Korean companies close the technology gap in 15 energy-product areas including wind, solar and battery technology. [Rebecca Smith, Wall Street Journal, Jan 31]
American Superconductor has received a new order for 100 sets of its wind turbine core electrical components from China [Mass High Tech, Jan 22, 09]
American Superconductor up 11% [Jan 15, 09]
American Superconductor said the US Navy successfully tested a 49,000 horsepower ship propulsion motor that includes the company's technology. [Boston Globe, Jan 13, 09]
American Superconductor said that it has received its first order for a D-VAR system to meet dynamic reactive compensation requirements for a 220 kilovolt power transmission grid in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, China. [Boston Globe, Jan 7, 09]
American Superconductor up 10% [Dec 16, 08]
American Superconductor down 10% [Dec 11, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Dec 8, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Dec 5, 08]
American Superconductor expects revenues will grow to a range of $175 million to $185 million in its fiscal 2008 from approximately $112 million in fiscal 2007. The company also maintained its net loss guidance of $13 million to $15 million ... For fiscal 2009, the company expects to grow revenues to more than $225 million with gross margin in the range of 28 to 30 percent. The company also expects to be profitable on a GAAP basis for full year fiscal 2009." [Boston Globe, Dec 4, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Dec 2, 08]
American Superconductor down 16% [Dec 1, 08] on a stock bloodbath day
American Superconductor up 20% [Nov 26, 08]
American Superconductor up 21% [Nov 24, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Nov 21, 08]
American Superconductor said it has agreed to help a Chinese manufacturer become a wind-turbine supplier. ... has signed an agreement with Shenyang Blower Works Co. Ltd., a Chinese industrial equipment manufacturer with about $1 billion in annual sales. [Boston Globe, Nov 18]
American Superconductor down 12% [Nov 14, 08]
American Superconductor up 10% [Nov 13, 08]
American Superconductor down 14% [Nov 12, 08]
American Superconductor down 10% [Nov 6, 08]
American Superconductor up 17% [Nov 4, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Oct 30, 08]
American Superconductor said that it has received an order for four systems that will be used to improve pumping-station performance for a major crude-oil pipeline. [Boston Globe, Oct 30]
American Superconductor down 11% [Oct 27, 08]
American Superconductor down 12% [Oct 23, 08]
American Superconductor down 13% [Oct 22, 08]
American Superconductor up 15% [Oct 16, 08]>
American Superconductor continues to make deals around its wind power technology, reporting that it has licensed a pair of its proprietary wind turbine designs to industrial giant Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. of South Korea. [Mass High Tech, Oct 15, 08]
American Superconductor down 13% [Oct 15, 08]
American Superconductor up 24% [Oct 13, 08]
American Superconductor down 12% [Oct 7, 08]
American Superconductor down 19% [Oct 6, 08]
American Superconductor down 12% [Oct 2, 08]
American Superconductor reports it has manufactured and shipped approximately 17,000 meters (56,000 feet) of its proprietary second-generation, high-temperature superconductor (HTS) wire for use in Project HYDRA, in New York. According to company statements, the shipment is the single largest shipment of 2G HTS wire by any company worldwide. [Mass High Tech, Oct 2, 08]
American Superconductor down 19% [Oct 6, 08]
American Superconductor reports it has manufactured and shipped approximately 17,000 meters (56,000 feet) of its proprietary second-generation, high-temperature superconductor (HTS) wire for use in Project HYDRA, in New York. According to company statements, the shipment is the single largest shipment of 2G HTS wire by any company worldwide. [Mass High Tech, Oct 2, 08]
American Superconductor up 12% [Sep 29, 08]
American Superconductor up 13% [Sep 19, 08]
American Superconductor up 21% [Sep 18, 08]
American Superconductor doubled for the first half of 2008. The business is young and hasn't returned a profit yet, but Jesup & Lamont says sales from the wire could be profitable as early as 2010. [Roya Wolverson, Smart Money, Sep 08]
American Superconductor down 10% [Sep 9, 08]
American Superconductor down 10% [Jul 23, 08]
Twenty years later, the [superconducting] cables are snaking into commercial settings. ... American Superconductor supplied three to a Long Island Power Authority site in Hauppauge, N.Y. The lines are only about 600 meters long, but can move 50 times as much electricity as like-sized conventional cables. Expensive superconductors make the most sense in high-cost areas. Next up: New York City, where such cables may soon be used in Consolidated Edison's overstuffed manholes. [Adam Aston, Business Week, Jul 17, 08]
American Superconductor up 19% after it said it received a $450 million follow-on order to supply core electrical components for wind turbines from Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corp, [Reuters, Jun 10]
American Superconductor licensed one of its proprietary wind turbine designs to TECO Electric & Machinery Co. Ltd. of Taiwan. [Boston Globe, Jun 6, 08]
American Superconductor up 10% [May 28, 08]
American Superconductor up 33% [May 8, 08] as its fourth-quarter loss narrowed 84 percent on wind power and electric utility sales. Net loss dropped to $1.8 million or 4 cents per share from $11.4 million in 2007. Sales more than doubled to $38.4 million from $19.1 million. [Boston Globe, May 8]
As part of an ongoing relationship with Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corp. Ltd., power systems company American Superconductor received a new order from the wind developer worth more than $18 million, officials say. [Mass High Tech, Apr 2, 08]
American Superconductor got two new orders, one in Mississippi and one international, for its D-VAR voltage control products. Although revenues keep rolling in they can't keep up with expenses and the double-digit millions losses keep rolling also. [Feb 12,08]
American Superconductor claimed $3M in orders for its wind turbine components.
American Superconductor said it received a Department of Homeland Security contract for a project that aims to improve Manhattan's power delivery network. ... will provide up to $25 million in total funding for the $39 million project [Boston Globe, Jan 24, 08]
American Superconductor down 12% [Jan 17, 08] It was up 178% last year.
American Superconductor down 11% [Dec 17, 07]
American Superconductor is responding to growing demand in China with the formation of a new division known as "AMSC China" in Suzhou [Mass High Tech, Oct 30, 07]
American Superconductor is partnering with Texas-based TECO-Westinghouse Motor Co. to co-develop high-temperature superconductor (HTS) wire and related technologies for high-power wind generators for offshore wind farms. The 30-month research partnership is being funded in part with $3.4 in tandem funding from the National Institute of Science and Technology's Advanced Technology Program, which represents approximately half an estimated $6.8 million project price tag, according to the companies. [Mass High Tech, Oct 3, 07]
Congressional investigators have asked American Superconductor to hand over documents and communications as part of their probe into one of the firm's government contracts [Wall Street Journal, Aug 28]
American Superconductor up 17% after getting a BUY rating. [Aug 8, 07] Meanwhile, Motley Fool is projecting a 24% stock dilution soon.
Windborne. American Superconductor got a follow-on $70M order for wind turbine electrical systems from Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corp.
On the eve of tapping the public markets for as much as $100M , American Superconductor disclosed that one of its key government contracts is under investigation for potential violation of government contract-award rules. ... Shares have soared more than 55% since the May 21 announcement that it had been awarded the contract to develop technology for structurally secure power grids in New York in partnership with ConEd. [Karen Richardson, Wall Street Journal, Jul 23]
American Superconductor filed to raise $100M by selling stock. [Jun 07]
American Superconductor to be buried in New York, as ConEd installs superconducting electrical cable in midtown Manhattan largely funded by the DHS to harden the electrical infrastructure of critical national assets. Regardless of how many red states vote against evolution, the sine qua non assets are in the coastal metropoli. AMSC CEO said "We hope this breaks the logjam," as he smiled over the federal funding that he doesn't have to find the money for since everything is free from the government. Isn't it? Of course, ConEd will be raising its rates to pay for its share of the project. AMSC stock jumped 18%.
American Superconductor's Austrian subsidiary made an $8M wind power deal with China. [Mar 07]
Investors go hot and cold on alternative energy. But the wind isn't going away, nor is the emerging world's booming growth. Steven Syre [Boston Globe, Mar 8] has a friendly piece on prospects for American Superconductor after years of steady losses.
American Superconductor down 11% [Mar 5, 07]
American Superconductor got enough new orders from wind farm operators to boost its stock 16% [Feb 28, 07]
American Superconductor up 10% [Feb 26, 07]
South China Wind. American Superconductor made a $30M deal with a South China utility for a wind energy system made by AMSC's new formerly Austrian subsidiary. Last week it made a deal with a Korean maker of electric drive systems. [Mass High Tech, Jan 23]
American Superconductor signed a strategic business alliance with China's Shanghai Electric Cable Research Institute (SECRI) aimed at developing and promoting the use of its high temperature superconductor (HTS) power cables in China [Mass High Tech, Oct 31]
Not surprisingly the Navy is giving American Superconductor $5M to help get it AMSC's just produced super-duper HTSC propulsion motor into the fleet. The contract is the first in what AMSC expects to be a series of contracts from the U.S. Navy aimed at optimizing the motors and power electric drives for use in future surface combatants and other classes of naval ships, according to Greg Yurek, chief executive officer and founder of AMSC. [Mass High Tech, Oct 25]. SOP for new high tech stuff.
American Superconductor reports $4.6 million in new orders for voltage regulation systems at English-speaking wind farms in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
American Superconductor jumped 25% when it announced a nearly Holy Grail - commercial levels of electric current for the first time in long lengths of second generation (2G) high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire.
American Superconductor jumped 13% on news of booking orders for more than a mile of HTS wire. [Jan 06]
American Superconductor got a $10M add-on to its original $70M Navy contract for a 36.5 megawatt high temperature superconductor propulsion motor for electric warships to be delivered to the Navy in Philadelphia in September 2006. The USAF also chipped in $13M for costs associated with a high-temperature superconducting factory planned for Devens. AMSC is not a life-style company. American Superconductor got a $5.35 M DOD Title III contract to scale-up of its manufacturing of second generation high temperature superconductor wire [Dec 05]
American Superconductor lost $4M even though backlog grew superbly.
Growing: Sales, Technology, Shares, Losses. American Superconductor lost another $5.6M in the quarter and saw shares increase 20%, which drives (earnings) per share in the wrong direction.The shrinking number of Wall Street analysts don't see any profits next year either. The company's press release said, Prospects for new orders for industrial and wind farm D- VAR® systems and the substantial likelihood of one or more new U.S. Navy contracts for HTS rotating machines, in addition to our current revenue visibility, continue to point to a stronger second half than first half. We are also encouraged by the imminent signing of the Energy Bill into law, which should give rise to additional orders and contracts. When your biggest customer is wind farms, you hope fervently that government subsidies to those farms will continue.
Madden:American Superconductor is a pioneer in HTS technology, with 395 patents to its credit. HTS is potentially disruptive in nature for applications that currently use copper wires such as power cables, generators, you name it. A long-term chart shows that AMSC is trading at the same levels it did at its inception in 1991. ... The [in-process energy bill] bill provides for $100M for each HTS-grid solution, or high-temperature-superconductivity solutions, which American Superconductor provides. As the only HTS play, AMSC is positioned to capture the lion's share, which is meaningful, given that last year its sales were $58 million. Also, the bill stipulates for the enforcement of higher reliability standards that were absent during recent blackouts in our country. The change in regulation bodes wells for American Superconductor, as they have established products that allow utilities to be compliant. [Barron's, Jul 25]American Superconductor fired its president after an employee complaint. But Monday it led the percentage gainers at 23%. [Jun 05]
Power from Wind and Cold. American Superconductor got an order for two voltage regulation systems for a 150-megawatt wind farm in Saskatchewan that will blow enough zero-emission energy to serve 64,000 homes. [Nov 04]
American Superconductor says it will start prep to scale-up to full pilot production after satisfying its benchmarks for a second-generation HTS wire. It says its wire reached 330 amps, 10% over DOE (the government)'s specs for 2G HTS wires. [Mass High Tech, Jul 27] DOE chimed in with happy words in the administration's efforts to promote US manufacturing (especially in the swing states of the fall election)
American Superconductor's projected loss for the first quarter offset any glee from a doubled revenue for the fourth quarter, and the stock took a 24% dive.
American Superconductor got a sub-contract of unstated value to develop an ignition system for electro-thermal chemical (ETC) guns, an advanced weapon technology for future artillery, battle tank and infantry fighting vehicle (a dream machine for DOD weaponeers) The firing system uses pulsed power to ignite the propellant used by an ETC gun. [Mass High Tech, Nov 24] The big problem is that the Army has a huge capital investment in solid propellant guns and is unlikely to abandon it in favor of a completely new type with a marginal advantage and a huge logistcal problem.
American Superconductor will raise $50M in a public offering this week [Nov 03]
American Superconductor got a $400K award from DOD and Energy (DOE) for the first phase of a cost-sharing program of manufacturing scale-up for second generation (2G) high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire. If all goes well, Congress would pony up $10M for three year main course of a manufacturing plant. [facts from Mass High Tech, Oct 1] Why would an anti-industrial policy government build a commercial plant? There's a big election coming next year. That award is on top of a potential $2.5M award last week from DOE for the same wire.
American Superconductor>won a contract to support remote power - voltage support to the electric power grid for Scotlands Orkney Islands. The idea is to protect the Orkney Islands' power supply from disasters like the loss of underwater power cables to the islands or too much variation in the wind power generation. [Mass High Tech, Sep 22] The Orkneys are a windswept group of islands an hour-plus ferry ride off Scotland's north coast. The Orkneys were the source of a lot of the workers for the Hudson Bay Company in the 19th century and a haven for gazillions of nesting seabirds (puffins, etc) in the spring and summer. Remote they are, although a mere stepping stone to their cousins the Shetlands even farther out, about half-way to Norway.
American Superconductorsigned non-binding letters of intent to raise$50M including a five-year loan of up to $30M provided by a corporate finance company and several institutional investors. AS says it will use the money for working capital, general corporate purposes and scale-up of pilot manufacturing for the company's second generation (coated conductor composite) high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire.
Shares of American Superconductor jumped 20% yesterday when the company said it got a $70M Navy contract, its largest contract ever, for a prototype electric ship motor.
Not so Super Conductor Yet. American Superconductor sprang a leak in its plan to demonstrate HTSC cable in Detroit. Leaks in the thermal insulation system in the HTS cables point up a downside of the marvel of HTSC - an expensive maintanance system for cable temperature, especially 70K. CEO Greg Yurek put the best face on it, While a lot has been learned during the course of this project ... So goes high promise high tech in getting to actual profitable business.
Steady As She Goes.American Superconductor won a contract to supply electrical line stability with its D-VAR gizmo at a town in mid British Columbia. Start small, succeed, and maybe the world will copy. Says the company, The D-VAR system maintains steady-state voltage levels on transmission and distribution lines and also protects against other externally caused voltage disturbances -- such as those caused by large motors in manufacturing facilities. The D-VAR system is a mobile power reliability resource that utilizes AMSC's proprietary PowerModule(TM) power electronic converters to inject precise amounts of continuous and instantaneous reactive power (measured in VARs) into transmission grids to solve voltage regulation and dynamic voltage stability problems that otherwise may result in blackouts and brownouts. The traders were not impressed on the day Pres Bush said that he would frown on any company executive who does what he did on inside trading. AMSC still trades at a fourth of its 12-month high.
American Superconductoris laying off a fourth of its workforce, 100 workers as it combines Wisconsin units into one, which will make magnetic energy storage systems. Last month it won an $8M Navy contract for the first HTS motor for ship propulsion.
More Shipboard Power, Please(Mar 7) American Superconductor says it got a $2.9M Navy (ONR) contract to develop architecture for onboard ship propulsion and other electrical components that will be required for the future all-electric Navy.CEO Greg Yurek said The Navy is looking for the fastest way to incorporate new technology into its next-generation ship propulsion and weapons systems, Of course, itf the Navy really wants it, why is the contract from ONR which is merely the research arm? Oh, never mind: money is money.
American Superconductor took a 13% hit on top of 11% the previous day as it reported larger losses than investors want to tolerate. Emcore dropped 17% in the soggy semiconductor industry. On the plus side, Embrex has held up well as better earnings are being reported in an industry not selling information technology.ViaSat got hit 17% despite a $2.5M DOD contract this month.
What's Uncool About the Money?After American Superconductor was listed as a participant in an $18M superconductor cable project from DOE, its stock plunged for two days. Down 16% the first day and 8% more the second day to a low price not seen since late 1998.
Revenues Hit, Stock Downgrade. American Superconductor reported halved revenues for the quarter and two brokers downgraded the stock. ``Our results for the first quarter were in line with our expectations,'' said Greg Yurek, chief executive officer. ``Taking into account the downturn in the economy and the regulatory confusion in the utility industry, we stated in April that we expected to achieve revenue in the range of $20 to $30M this fiscal year. We maintain that expectation.'' The temporary euphoria over HTS faded when California didn't run out of power this summer and energy prices tumbled.
Paul Grant, a superconductivity expert at the Electric Power Research Institute in Palo Alto, California points out that nobody in the superconductivity business is making money yet. Indeed, American Superconductor lost about $20M last year, and will probably not make a profit for at least another two years. Superconducting-wire technology has, though, made enormous progress. Manufacturers have increased the lengths of the wires they can produce many times over during the past few years, and have reduced the price considerably. Superconducting cable used to cost around $1,500 per kiloamp per metre, the standard industry measure of conducting capacity. Now, AMSC sells wire for $200 per kiloamp per metre, and expects to reduce the cost to about $50 per kiloamp per metre when it opens a new production plant next year. Reaching $25 per kiloamp per metre, the cost of copper cable, will take a little longer. The problem is no longer the cost of the ceramic itself, but of the metal casing. This is one cloud that is caused by its silver lining. [The Economist, Jul 14]
All is wellsays American Superconductor,'s press release. American Superconductor is very well positioned with advanced, cost-effective solutions to meet critical power grid needs today. And we have a foundation in place to address significant growth in investment in the grid over the next 10 to 20 years. As the events of the last year have proven, the market is moving with greater speed in our direction. The solutions we offer - based on high temperature superconductor wire and solid-state power electronic switches - are timelier than ever. Alas, the market seems not to have understood as AMSC dove 5% after the release and remains about 60% below its last year's high.
Keeping Cool by Keeping Cold. American Superconductor got a 26% boost when it announced that Houston wants two more D-SMES units to keep cool in summer 2002. It already has two units for keeping cool in 2001. SMES is AMSC's patented means of storing prodigous amounts of electricity in a superconducting electromagnetic coil. California needn't pant after the stored electrons since Texas is pretty much an electric island outside any national scale grid. One Yahoo netster pooh-poohed, Face it folks, today's press relaease is not news but rather just another example of Yurek's spin machine. in that the two 2002 units had been announced earlier. Another wag notes, SMES would have a negligible effect on bulk transmission capability. It's just a little toy for low voltage transmission (115kv or less) or for distribution level stuff. Secondly, it will only help to increase power transfers for voltage (or angular) stability limited situations - which comprises a small fraction of existing limitations. With all that extra power, perhaps Houston can find a way to thin the traffic congestion on I-610.
American Superconductorcut its estimates of revenues and the traders cut their estimates of the stocks value. The company said it expected revenues for the fourth quarter of $2.5M, down from previous expectations of $5.5- 9M. For the fiscal year ended March 31, AMSC said it expected revenues of $16.8 million, and for fiscal 2002, it said it expected revenues of $20-30M.
American Superconductorkeeps drifitng lower despite a recent apparent breakthrough in superconducting materials. Says AMSC, Superconducting magnesium diboride is a very brittle intermetallic compound. Thus, just as with HTS ceramic oxides, which are also inherently brittle materials, it will be a challenge to find ways to cost effectively manufacture flexible, durable wires from superconducting borides. ``American Superconductor is known for its world leadership in creating manufacturing methodologies to cost effectively produce usable wires out of inherently brittle materials - that is, to create ways to bend the unbendable, '' Yurek stated. ``Our scientists have been applying the company's knowledge base in HTS wire manufacturing - developed over 14 years - to the borides, and they are inventing new ways to manufacture boride-containing wires. We expect some of these manufacturing methodologies to be extensions of our existing, proprietary wire manufacturing techniques developed for HTS oxides, and we expect to protect the application of these and other wire-making methods with patents.'' AMSC is down to a fourth of its 12-month high and has had three broker downgrades in the last five weeks. The high promise of 1987 for HTSC is still high promise.
Ames Technology (Portland, OR) a device to help stroke patients regain mobility by helping their brains form new neural connections. He had developed and tested the device for 10 years when the technology transfer office at OHSU helped persuade him to commercialize it. The money: $1 million in NIH grants before starting the company, then about $150,000 from Cordo's savings, and $2.2 million from a donor and three private investors. The plan: To have the first commercial product by 2011 and annual revenue of $60 million by 2016. His fear: That the recession will make it impossible to raise the money needed to bring the product to market. [The Oregonian, Dec 13]
Amgen up 11% [Jun 2, 10]
Amgen up 14% [Jul 8, 09
Amgenup 10% [Nov 21, 08]
Amgenup 12% [Oct 23, 08]
Amgen up 11% [Oct 13, 08]
Amicus Therapeutics (Cranbury, NJ; no SBIR, IPO 2007) announced that [FDA] has granted accelerated approval of Galafold™ (migalastat) 123 mg capsules. Galafold is an oral, precision medicine for the treatment of adults with a confirmed diagnosis of Fabry disease and an amenable galactosidase alpha gene (GLA) variant based on in vitro assay data. [company press reease, Aug 10, 18]
Epidermolysis bullosa is a rare, debilitating skin disease with no approved treatments, and unfortunately, that isn’t going to change anytime soon. Amicus Therapeutics [Cranbury, NJ; no SBIR) reports this morning that an experimental drug it has been developing for the condition failed a Phase 3 trial. The won’t invest in future studies. Amicus said that SD-101, a drug it acquired when it bought Scioderm (Durham, NC, no SBIR, founded 2012) [for about $224 million in cash and stock], failed all of its primary and secondary goals in the 169-patient study. The drug actually fared worse than a placebo on a few different measures. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Sep 13, 17]
Amicus Therapeutics (Cranbury, NJ; no SBIR) plans to submit a new drug application (NDA) to the U.S. FDA for the oral precision medicine migalastat for Fabry disease in the fourth quarter of 2017. Based on a series of discussions with and written communication received from the FDA, the Agency has informed Amicus that it may now submit an NDA for migalastat. [company press release, Jul 11, 17]
start-up Amionx (Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) said it has launched new technology aimed at making lithium ion batteries safer by shutting down faulty cells before they catch fire. The start-up calls its patented technology Safe Core. It recently spun out of American Lithium Energy (San Marcos, CA; $1.6M SBIR) , a long-time supplier [Mike Freeman, San Diego Union Tribune, Mar 14, 17]
EMD Millipore, which sells products such as lab filtration equipment to biotechs, pharmaceutical companies, and academic research labs, said that it has agreed to buy Amnis (Seattle, WA; $1.7M SBIR) as EMD Millipore looks to strengthen its bioscience business. [Chris Reidy, Bosotn Globe, Aug 30, 11]
AMO Pharma (UK and Wayne, PA; no SBIR), a biopharmaceutical company, raised $25 million in a [UK] venture financing deal. ... company’s drug development efforts are focused on myotonic dystrophy, a disorder that causes skeletal and muscle weakness and dysfunction, and Fragile X syndrome, a disorder that is the most common cause of autism and intellectual disabilities. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Sep 30, 15]
Amphivena Therapeutics (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) private clinical stage immuno-oncology company developing T cell engager therapeutics for cancer, announced today the closing of a $62 million Series C financing [to]to study the therapeutic impact of selective MDSC removal in both hematologic and solid cancers and to advance AMV564 and our novel T cell engagement portfolio to the forefront of immuno-oncology.” [company press release, Sep 24, 19] prior funding $73M [crunchbase.com]
Amphora Medical (Minneapolis, MN; no SBIR), a developer of medical devices to treat overactive bladder (OAB), announced the closing of a $35.5 million Series B financing. ... to fund the U.S. pivotal study for its Selective Bladder Denervation System in women with OAB. [company press release, Jul 20, 17]
startupAmphora Medical (Maple Grove, MN; no SBIR) developing medical technology to treat overactive bladders has wrapped up a $12.8 million [Series A] round of funding that will go toward clinical trials. ... developing a device that uses radio frequency energy to treat overactive bladder, which causes patients to urinate frequently. ... co-founded by serial med-tech entrepreneur Danny Sachs. [Katharine Grayson, Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal, Jul 21, 15]
Ampio Pharmaceuticals shares plunged 78 percent after the company disclosed that the FDA wants it to run another trial of its osteoarthritis drug Ampion before filing for U.S. approval. [Ben Fidler, Aug 9, 18]
Ampio Pharma down 14% [Apr 10, 18]
Ampio Pharma down 14% [Feb 16, 18]
Ampio Pharma down 17% [Jan 4, 18]
Ampio Pharma down 14% [Jan 3, 18]
Ampio Pharma down 15% [Jan 2, 18]
Ampio Pharma up 16% [Dec 28, 17]
Ampio Pharma up 22% [Dec 26, 17]
Ampio Pharma up 25% [Dec 18, 17]
Ampio Pharmaceuticals (Englewood, CO; no SBIR, 21 employees), reported that the Phase 3 clinical trial of Ampion™ met its primary endpoint with 71% of Ampion™ treated patients meeting the OMERACT-OARSI responder criteria, which exceeds the physician reported threshold of 30% for a meaningful treatment in severe osteoarthritis of the knee (p < 0.001). Responders experienced, on average a 53% decrease in pain as measured by WOMAC A and a 50% improvement in function as measured by WOMAC C and a 45% improvement in quality of life as measured by Patient Global Assessment (PGA). [company press release, Dec 13, 17]
Advent Healthcare Ventures, a Boston healthcare and life sciences investment firm, has funded and taken in another biotechnology firm – most recently, per federal documents, supporting the $1.5 million equity funding of stealthy firm Ampla Pharmaceuticals (LaJolla, CA; no SBIR)
February under-the-radar deals. Catadon Systems(Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) A maker of towers for elevating wind turbines Equity $689,500; Aethlon Medical (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) A developer of a medical device to treat infectious diseases Debt* $600,000 ; Ampla Pharmaceuticals (La Jolla, CA; no SBIR) A stealthy biotech company Equity $295,271; Cibus Global (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) A developer of environmentally friendly technology for producing crop traits Equity* $201,132 *includes some options and warrants[Erin Kutz, signonsandiego.com, Apr 6, 10]
NextCure (Germantown, MD; no SBIR, founded 2015) raised $67 million from Eli Lily and Pfizer, among other investors, in hopes of producing its immune-therapy treatment. The company, formed from a partnership between a Yale University cancer physician and biotechnology company Amplimmune executives, does not currently have any drugs in development. However, NextCure does have a first-rights research and development deal in place with Yale. [Aaron Gregg, Washington Post, Jan 8, 16]
A wide-open window for biotech initial public offerings had Amplimmune (Gaithersburg, MD; no SBIR) weighing an IPO prior to its acquisition by MedImmune last year [for $500M], CEO Michael Richman said. ... a Johns Hopkins University spinout focused on immune-based biologics targeting cancer and autoimmune diseases ... Amplimmune's reasoning for staying private? Said Richman: "At the end of the day, our board felt that even if we had gone public — and let's say we had raised $100 million — we still wouldn't be able to have the necessary means to compete with the large pharmaceutical companies [Bill Flook, Washington Business Journal, Jun 10, 14]
MedImmune(Gaithersburg, MD; $3.5M SBIR) announced the acquisition of Amplimmune (Gaithersburg, MD, no SBIR), the Johns Hopkins University spinout [focused on immune-based biologics] .... will pay an initial $225 million for Amplimmune, and possibly another $275 million if certain development milestones are reached. ... buyout is designed to strengthen MedImmune's early-stage oncology pipeline .... The move fits into parent company AstraZeneca's new vision for MedImmune as a center for biologics research [Bill Flook, Washington Business Journal, Aug 26, 13]
Two years after Pfizer acquired Amplyx (San Diego, CA; $11.5M SBIR), the Big Pharma has sold the lead antifungal asset from that deal to Basilea Pharmaceutica. [James Waldron, Fierce Biotech, Nov 13, 2023]
Amplyx Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; $11M SBIR) a biotech company developing innovative therapies for debilitating and life-threatening diseases in patients with compromised immune systems, announced it has closed a $53 million Series C extension, which brings the Series C round to over $90 million [to] advance the clinical development of the company’s product candidates, fosmanogepix and MAU868. [company press release May 19, 20]
After completing an early stage evaluation of its broad-spectrum anti-fungal drug, Amplyx Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) said it has raised $67 million in a Series C financing ... said it has raised $118.5 million in total venture capital, and secured more than $10 million in NIH grants for its drug discovery and development programs. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Aug 2, 17]
Amplyx Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2006) increased the amount raised in a venture capital funding round to $49.2 million, up from $40.5 million announced in November. ... preparing to launch a Phase 1 clinical trial in the second quarter of this year of a drug that belongs to a new class of antifungals. Called APX001, the broad-spectrum antifungal is to be used to treat invasive fungal infections. ... Founded as a spinoff of Stanford University [Bradley Fikes, San Diego Union Tribune, Feb 10, 16]
San Diego County
companies that
raised the largest amount of venture capital in the fourth quarter of
2015
Sapphire Energy
($200K SBIR)
$91 million; Effector
Therapeutics: $40 million; MD Revolution:
$22.45 million;
AltheaDX:
$20.1 million; Elcelyx
Therapeutics: $20
million; Amplyx
Pharmaceuticals:
$20 million; Astute
Medical:
$20 million; Glysens
($6.8M SBIR): $20 million; Crinetics
Pharmaceuticals ($200K SBIR): $18
million; Enlibrium:
$15 million Source:
MoneyTree Survey by
PricewaterhouseCoopers and the NVCA with data from Thomson Reuters
[xconomy.com]
Amplyx Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2006) raised $40.5 million in [VC] the antifungal drug developer said ... is preparing to launch a Phase 1 clinical trial of APX001, which belongs to a new class of antifungals, next year. It's to be used to treat life-threatening infections. ... a spinoff of Stanford University. ... Another San Diego company developing an antifungal drug is Cidara Therapeutics (no SBIR), whose CEO, Jeff Stein, also headed Trius. ... The company is based at JLABS, Johnson & Johnson's life science incubator in La Jolla [Bradley Fikes, San Diego Union Tribune, Nov 11, 15]
start-up Amprius (Sunnyvale, CA; no SBIR), a maker of lithium-ion batteries that grew out of Stanford, announced that it has raised $30 million in a third round of venture funding. [Dana Hull, San Jose Mercury News, Jan 6, 14]
Albany Molecular Research (Albany, NY; $800K SBIR), a leading global contract research, development and manufacturing organization serving the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries, today announced that it is changing its name to Curia, effective July 12, 2021. The new name reinforces the company’s strategic positioning as an end-to-end global CDMO, applying its scientific expertise and extensive capabilities from research and development (R&D) through to commercial manufacturing to enable its pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers to advance important new products that improve lives. [company press release, Jul 12, 21] .... announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire LakePharma biologics drug discovery, clinical research, development and manufacturing organization with operations in California, Massachusetts, and Texas. [company press release July 14, 2021]
Shareholders of Albany Molecular Research (AMRI) approved the sale of the pharmaceutical research company to affiliates of private-equity firms based in Chicago and Washington, D.C. [Robin K. Cooper, Albany Business Review, Aug 18, 17]
Contract drug manufacturer and research company Albany Molecular Research (Albany, NY; $800K SBIR) said it had agreed to be taken private by buyout firms Carlyle Group LP and GTCR LLC for about $922 million in cash. [Divya Grover, Reuters, Jun 6, 17]
AMRI up 12% [May 9, 17]
Drug manufacturer Albany Molecular Research [AMRI] is looking at a $1 billion sale, according to Bloomberg News. ....It is best known for discovering the active ingredient in the allergy medication Allegra. It has expanded its portfolio to include more than 240 active pharmaceutical ingredients. [Shannon Sweeney, Albany Business Review, Apr 26, 17]
AMRI up 10% [Apr 25, 17]
HarkerBio (Buffalo, NY; no SBIR, founded 2014) Hauptman-Woodward spinoff raised $1.3 million in equity financing to support operations and growth [Dan Miner, Buffalo Business First, Apr 20, 17] ... Two years ago Albany Molecular Research (aka AMRI) announced that it has signed a collaborative agreement with HarkerBIO LLC to co-market their structure-based drug discovery services to global pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. [Harker press release, Jun 1, 15]
AMRI down 12%[Feb 21,17]
Albany Molecular Research’s purchase of an active pharmaceutical ingredient heavyweight has been completed, the company announced. The purchase of Prime European Therapeuticals S.p.A., or Euticals, was first announced in May. Euticals, which has more than 200 APIs in its product portfolio, makes APIs in Italy, Germany, France and the U.S. AMRI’s purchase, valued at about $350 million. [AMRI] employs about 600 people in the [NY] Capital Region. [Lindsay Ellis, Albany Times-Union, Jul 11, 16 ]
AMRI announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire all outstanding shares of Prime European Therapeuticals S.p.A., also known as "Euticals", in a transaction valued at approximately $358 million (EUR 315 million), consisting of shares of AMRI common stock, cash, and a seller note. Euticals is a privately-held company headquartered in Lodi, Italy, specializing in custom synthesis and the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). It operates a network of API facilities primarily in Italy, Germany, U.S. and France. [company press release, May 5, 16]
Albany Molecular Research signed a collaboration agreement with the New York Center for Nanomedicine Research (NYCNMR) to co-market their nanotechnology services to global pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. [Tracey Drury, Buffalo Business First, Jan 14, 16]
Albany Molecular Research (AMRI) drug development firm has purchased Whitehouse Laboratories (Lebanon, NJ; no SBIR) life sciences testing business. ... for $54 million in cash and potentially $2 million in shares. It's the latest acquisition for AMRI, which bought Spanish pharmaceutical company Gadea in July and two Aptuit facilities in the U.K. and Indiana. [Marie J. French, Albany Business Review, Dec 15, 15]
AMRI may seek to get up to $90 million in financing for capital expenditures, debt restructuring or acquisitions. ... has made three acquisitions this year, including one of Spanish pharmaceutical company Gadea that was financed in part by issuing shares of AMRI to the owners and assuming Gadea's debt. [Marie J. French, Albany Business Review, Oct 6, 15]
AMRI announced that it has acquired a private drug development company Gadea Pharmaceutical Group in Spain for $174 million. ...., which develops active pharmaceutical ingredients. .... AMRI's third acquisition this year [Megan Rogers, Albany Business Review, Jul 16, 15]
Albany Molecular Research announced a collaborative agreement with biotechnology companyHarkerBio LLC (Buffalo, NY; no SBIR) to co-market their structure-based drug discovery services to global pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients. As part of the three-year agreement, AMRI gains access to HarkerBIO's uniquely differentiated high-resolution, structure-determination expertise and capabilities. AMRI is a partner in The Buffalo Medical Innovation and Commercialization Hub at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus is part of a 10-year, $1 billion public-private research and development initiative announced by New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in December 2012. AMRI, a recognized leader in drug discovery, development and manufacturing services, is a partner in this initiative. [AMRI press release, Jun 1, 15] provides services to rapidly and cost effectively advance the development of pharmaceuticals. ... We integrate atomic-resolution structures in therapeutic R&D pipelines to dramatically shorten the timeline to clinical trials. [Harker website]
HarkerBio LLC (Buffalo, NY; no SBIR) signed a new [three-year] agreement with Albany Molecular Research to co-market drug discovery services on a global scale. ... HarkerBio spun off late last year from Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute. The company helps pharmaceutical and research clients hasten their drug discovery process using X-ray crystallography and specialized protein testing available at HWI. [Tracey Drury, Buffalo Business First, Jun 1, 15]
A state nanotechnology-based economic development entity [called the Fort Schuyler Management Corp] paid about $9.3 million to acquire some building space tied to Albany Molecular Research plans to open a drug development operation in Buffalo, New York. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Feb 3, 15]
State Subsidy. As a prelude to Albany Molecular Research moving into its permanent home within the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, a state nanotechnology-based economic development agency has officially purchased the space it needs for the Buffalo Medical Innovation and Commercialization Hub [James Fink, Buffalo Business First, Jan 30, 15]
Albany Molecular Research received a federal contract worth about $37 million [contract, which will span 10 years] as the drug developer pursues another big money maker product and other plans to expand its business. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Jan 20, 15]
Albany Molecular Research with about 1,300 employees, spent $60 million to acquire two businesses in Glasgow, United Kingdom and West Lafayette, Indiana. ... follows an active 2014 for AMRI, which paid $151 million to acquire two separate companies. That includes $110 million for a New Mexico business [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Jan 15, 15] Aptuit LLC, announced that Aptuit has divested its aseptic clinical manufacturing site in Glasgow, UK to [AMRI], and has entered into a definitive agreement with AMRI to acquire the West Lafayette, Indiana solid-state chemistry business for a total consideration of $60 million [Aptuit press release, Jan 9, 15]
Albany Molecular Research., a drug developer with about 1,300 employees, has announced a plan to sell up to $50 million worth of its stock and related securities. ... The news follows an active 2014 for AMRI, which paid $151 million to acquire two separate companies. That includes $110 million for a New Mexico business connected to a recent federal lawsuit. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Decx 10, 14]
AMRI down 27% [Nov 4, 14] investigation opened on potential claims on behalf of investors ... concerning possible violations of federal securities laws. The investigation is focused on the Company's operations and financial performance. [Wall Street Journal, Nov 5, 14]
Investors who backed Albany Molecular Research are seeing a major payoff - doubled in six months. ... after on July 1 announced it completed a $110 million acquisition of Oso Biopharmaceuticals Manufacturing (Albuquerque, NM; no SBIR). ... it nearly imploded a few years ago. Between 2009 and 2012, the company's stock fell from $20 a share to near $2. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Jul 8, 14]
Before Albany Molecular Research started buying competitors this year, the drug company addressed a series of federal safety violations that provided an early glimpse at the investment strategy.AMRI announced a $110 million acquisition of another drug manufacturer this week, following a separate but similar $41 million deal in March.But in October 2013, the company resolved a warning letter issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that is connected to the recent spending, which boosted AMRI stock prices.Among the FDA safety violations was a failure by AMRI to sufficiently investigate contamination found in a drug product. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Jun 4, 14] Moves made by AMRI so far this year could play a key role in preparing for 2015, when the company is expected to open a new operation as part of the $250 million economic development project on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. [David Robinson, Albany Business Review, Jun 3, 14]
Albany Molecular Research — slated to be an anchor in a major state-funded project on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus — announced Wednesday it is closing its 45-employee Research Center in Syracuse and shifting those operations elsewhere. ... The state is spending $50 million to build a high-tech laboratory which will initially be used by AMRI, and which is intended to pull other pharmaceutical players to Buffalo with the promise of expensive equipment and institutional “clustering.” [Dan Miner, Buffalo Business First, Apr 16, 14]
AMRI up 11% [Apr 9, 14]
AMRI (1300 employees) has $180.5 million cash on hand [following a November bond offering], ready to spend -- more than six times the cash AMRI had available at the end of 2012. .... [CEO] Marth, 58, [said] most of AMRI's cost-cutting is over. His focus is adding revenue and raising the company's profile. Acquisitions will do both. .... Marth came to AMRI from one of the world's largest generic drug companies, Teva Pharmaceutical (Israel) ... ran the company's North American and South American operations [Adam Sichko, Albany Business Review, Feb 13, 14]
AMRI down 15% [Nov 19, 13] announced Proposed Private Offering of $100 Million Cash Convertible Senior Notes
Albany Molecular Research (aka AMRI) down 10% [Aug 12, 13] said partner Bristol-Myers Squibb Co would stop developing their experimental depression therapy. ... said Bristol-Myers stopped two mid-stage studies of the drug after it failed to show superiority over two other antidepressants. [Reuters, Aug 12]
AMRI down 14% [May 7, 13]
AMRI up 12% [Apr 25, 13]
AMRI up 11% [Apr 22, 13]
AMRI down 13% [Mar 15, 13]
Albany Molecular>up 16% [Feb 12, 13].
Albany Molecular Research plans to open a research center and labs in Buffalo as part of an effort that could create 250 jobs. [Adam Sichko, Business Review (Albany), Dec 4, 12]
A business park in Hungary has sued Albany Molecular Research, accusing of skirting $6.5 million of lease payments. [Adam Sichko, Business Review (Albany) Nov 30, 12] Ah, the temptations of oreign operations.
Albany Molecular Research>said it has been selected by Melbourne, Australia-based Biota Holdings Limited to further develop and manufacture Biota’s influenza antiviral drug laninamivir. AMRI said it would provide these services to support a New Drug Application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Biota is seeking to have the drug manufactured in the United States and approved in clinical trials for adults and children. AMRI said it potentially could be chosen to manufacture the drug for commercial use. [Eric Anderson, Albany Times-Union, Apr 17, 12]
AMRI up 16% [Oct 27, 11]
AMRIdown 15% [Oct 26, 11]
Albany Molecular Research won an NIH contract that could be worth up to $43 million over five years. ... will provide chemistry and other drug discovery technologies to support efforts by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), an arm of the NIH, to develop pre-clincal drug candidates to treat diseases of the central nervous system.[Barbara Pinckney, The Business Review (Albany), Aug 19, 11]
AMRI down 14% [Aug 8,11]
Albany Molecular Researchhas formed an alliance with a German company. Proteros Biostructures GmbH, a privately held company based in Martinsried, near Munich, offers structural biology services, such as protein crystallization and X-ray structural analysis. These services complement Albany, New York-based AMRI’s drug discovery capabilities. The two companies will now serve some biotechnology and pharmaceutical clients jointly. [Business Review (Albany), Jun 28, 11]
Drug-discovery firm Albany Molecular Research is laying off 20 local workers in response to dropping customer demand for some chemistry services. ... AMRI employs 640 workers in the Capital Region, about 45 percent of its global work force of 1,400 people. [The Business Review (Albany), Mar 25, 11]
The head of Albany Molecular Research said the drug-discovery company is “turning a corner” as it released mixed earnings results ... Net losses grew during the year and totaled $62.9 million [The Business Review (Albany), Feb 7, 11]
AMRI gave Genentech an exclusive license to commercialize potential products spawned from AMRI’s work to develop antibacterial compounds. AMRI will collaborate with Genentech in a new research program, and also receive royalties from worldwide sales of any compounds that Genentech commercializes. [Business Review (Albany), Jan 4, 11]Terumo BCT
AMRI announced a plan to buy back up to $10 million of outstanding shares of Terumo BCT. [The Business Review (Albany), Jun 21, 10] graduated from SBIR in 2003. Recently bought Hyaluron (Burlington, MA; no SBIR) drug manufacturer for $27M - [The Business Review (Albany), Jun 15, 10]
Albany Molecular Research (a.k.a. AMRI) has bought a drug manufacturing company in Massachusetts for $27 million, ... acquired Hyaluron, (Burlington, MA; no SBIR) ... Last month, AMRI said it was closing a lab in Rensselaer and cutting 50 local jobs in response to slow domestic demand. Meanwhile, the company is spending $30 million to renovate overseas facilities, adding 180 foreign jobs. AMRI has about 650 employees in the Capital Region. Worldwide, employment is 1,350. [Adam Sichko, The Business Review (Albany), Jun 15, 10]
Albany Molecular Research has sued a consultant for at least $5 million, alleging the man gave away proprietary information to a competitor in the pharmaceutical industry. ... According to the lawsuit was [while consulting for AMRI] also employed as a consultant with [a foreign] company [that] AMRI beat in its bid for development work on the drug. [Adam Sichko, Business Review (Albany), Feb 25, 10]... AMRI also paid $19 million to acquire a chemical development company in Wales. [Business Review (Albany), Feb 18, 10]
AMRIdown 13% [Aug 5, 09]
AMRI up 11% [Mar 23, 09]
AMRI down 10% [Mar 5, 09]
AMRI up 10% [Mar 4, 09]
AMRIdown 10% [Mar 2, 09]
AMRI up 10% [Dec 16, 08]
AMRI up 10% [Dec 2, 08]
Albany Molecular Research has settled a patent dispute with two rivals regarding generic versions of the antihistamine Allegra. [Business Review (Albany), Nov 19, 08]
AMRI up 13% [Nov 13, 08]
Albany Molecular Research has expanded its manufacturing capacity in India. ... has had operations in Aurangabad, India, for about two years. It has expanded a manufacturing facility in that city to include a multipurpose pilot plant that can provide non-GMP manufacturing services up to a 1,000 liter scale. [The Business Review (Albany), Oct 29, 08]
AMRIup 20% [Oct 13, 08]
AMRIup 12% [Sep 16, 08]
Albany Molecular Research is in line to receive another $1.5 million milestone payment from Bristol-Myers Squibb .... because a second compound being developed under its research agreement with Bristol Myers will proceed into preclinical development. [The Business Review (Albany), Sep 8]
AMRIofficials said Wednesday that revenue should top $200 million this year for the first time in the 17-year history of the contract drug discovery and development company. [Albany Times-Union, Jun 5, 08]
Albany Molecular Research up 15% after the company topped its own first-quarter profit outlook and raised full-year guidance. [AP, May 5, 08]
Federal regulations that limit the output of a controlled substance contributed to delays that crimped AMRI's fourth-quarter performance, company officials said [Albany Times-Union, Feb 12, 08]
AMRI down 11% on lower revenue forecast.[Jan 29, 08]
AMRI up 11% [Jan 23,08]
Outsourcing Beneficiary. AMRI will expand its work force further this year as it projects significant growth, the company's chief executive said this week. ... formerly known as Albany Molecular Research... The expansion comes as larger pharmaceutical companies, with fewer promising drugs in the pipeline, lay off chemists. [Eric Anderson, Albany Times-Union, Jan 11]
Albany Molecular Research took a 29% hit [Nov 6, 07] after reporting profits way below Street estimates.
Albany Molecular Research< made a deal with Achaogen (no SBIR) to provide high throughput screening capability to test samples from its natural product libraries for activity against targets of interest in Achaogen's $25M DOD contract against anthrax and other baddies. [Jun 07]
Controlling expenses companywide, pursuing less expensive sources of raw materials overseas and emphasizing lean manufacturing techniques are among the steps Albany Molecular Research plans as it focuses on boosting profit margins. [Eric Anderson, Albany Times-Union, Jun 5, 07]
Albany Molecular Research will buy two drug manufacturing plants near the city of Mumbai (formerly called Bombay) in India for $11 million in cash. ... will buy more land in Aurangabad and will invest up to $15 million to expand capacity there in the next three years. ... also has operations in Hungary and Singapore. [Alan Wechsler, Albany Times-Union, May 22, 07]
Albany Molecular Research up 23% for the week ending May 10, 07.
Albany Molecular Research will shrink an unprofitable plant and the operation will be redesigned to be more "nimble and agile," Profit for the quarter also shrank thanks to shrunken royalty revenues. [Albany Times-Union, Nov 10,06]
Albany Molecular Research says it will start advanced preclinical testing for a compound that has been effective in killing cancer cells. The drug candidate is among a class of drugs that kill cancer cells by preventing them from dividing, and in preclinical tests it has performed better than those on the market. [Eric Anderson, Albany Times-Union, Oct 31, 06]
A generic competitor to Allegra cut royalty payments to Albany Molecular Research by more than $8M in the second quarter, and the drug discovery company posted a $353,000 loss. A year ago, it earned $7.3M. ... The company also took a $2.2M charge for the closing of its research center in Mount Prospect [IL]. [Albany Times-Union, Aug 3]
Albany Molecular Research will manufacture the active pharmaceutical ingredient in a promising new treatment for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in a multi-year contract with New River Pharmaceuticals (Radford, VA). The drug still needs FDA approval. [Albany Times-Union, Jul 25,06]
Albany Molecular Researchled in NASDAQ losing percentage with -23% after a broker downgraded its prospects. Is that fair? There is no "fair"; there is only the balance between buyers and sellers in an open marketplace. [Sep 05]
Albany Molecular took an 18% stock price hit when it reported less than expected profits. Note the difference between SBIR where doing good government work is sufficient, and the stock market where making profits matter and doing good work is merely a necessity. On the other hand, if you're one of the few SBIR entrepreneurs who can make growing profits, you can get seriously rich, whereas doing government work, you merely draw a decent salary. [Feb 05]
Albany Molecular Research will continue its seven-year deal with Eli Lilly to do fee-for-service chemistry research on projects in strategic therapeutic areas identified by Lilly. The company also is opening a wholly owned subsidiary in Singapore. [Jan 05]
Seventh Downgrade. Albany Molecular Research got hit with its seventh downgrade in two years when it reported less than stellar earnings. The stock price dropped 25% in two days from its 12-month high. To get back to its hey-day bubble high, it would have to quadruple from here. [2004]
Albany Molecular Research took a 20% stock hit when it lowered its estimates for profits by a third.
Albany Molecular got a plaudit from USA Today's financial gurus as a good contrarian bet with a five-year record of 73% revenue growth rate, 80% profit growth rate, and 38% return on equity. Latest quarterly profits were up 18%.
Help Merck Discover (July 8) Albany Molecular Research got a three-year medicinal chemistry drug discovery research contract with Merck to identify and develop small molecule drug candidates for a proprietary Merck target. Albany gets milestone reward on top of the usual scientific labor for any great news discovered which could be multimillion-dollars per compound. Last year Albany made $34M profit on $98M revenue, 40% of which was royalties.
Albany Molecular Research announced the signing of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the National Cancer Institute to develop anti-cancer compounds.Under the terms of the five-year agreement, scientists from both AMRI and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) will select available, non-proprietary compounds for biocatalytic derivative synthesis from the NCI's repository.
A price dive also happened after good earnings hit Albany Molecular Research after the chemistry outsourcing company cut its 2002 earnings forecast due to uncertainty about a contract with major customer DuPont Pharmaceuticals, which Bristol Myers Squibb recently acquired.
ARMO BioSciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) is emerging from stealth mode with powerful science, leaders and funders..... launched by a trio of former employees at the legendary DNAX Research Institute in Palo Alto, is playing off the boom in cancer immunotherapy research and drugs. ... started in December 2012 with a $20 million Series A commitment [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Nov 25, 13]
Amunix Pharmaceuticals (Mountain View, CA; $2.4M SBIR), a biopharmaceutical focused on developing prodrugs to bring the promise of potent immune-activating biotherapeutics to patients with solid tumor cancers, announced the successful completion of an oversubscribed $73 million Series A financing ... focused on advancing a pipeline of novel T cell engagers (XPATs) and cytokines (XPACs) that are selectively activated in the tumor microenvironment and are designed to overcome toxicity and immunogenicity challenges common to both therapeutic classes. [company press release, Mar 4, 20]
Amunix Pharmaceuticals (Mountain View, CA; $2M SBIR) biopharmaceutical company focused on developing pro-drugs to enable the promise of potent immune-activating biotherapeutics in solid tumors, today announced that it has provided a technology license to F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd and Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. to utilize Amunix’s technology platform, XTEN, to discover and develop non-oncology therapeutics against certain undisclosed targets. This agreement builds on Amunix’s previous technology assessment with Roche focused on using XTEN, a proprietary unstructured polypeptide, to extend drug half-life. [company press release, Jan 10, 20]
Amylin Pharma up 13% [Oct 20, 11]
Amylin (San Diego, CA; $500K SBIR) was 198th on the new Deloitte Fast 500 list of fastest-growing technology companies [Mike Freeman, signonsandiego, Oct 21, 10]
Amylin Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; $500K SBIR) has laid off about 60 employees, or 4 percent of its workforce, in recent weeks as part of an effort to make the company more efficient, ... has cut its global workforce by one-third in recent years through a series of layoffs. [Keith Darce, San Diego Union Tribune, Jun 18, 10]
Amylin Pharmaceuticals rose 16% after the FDA issued a complete response letter that rejected immediate approval of a long-acting version of diabetes treatment Byetta, being developed with Eli Lilly and Alkermes. The FDA's response removed the worst-case scenario—the need for additional clinical trials. Alkermes advanced 15% [Wall Street Journal, Mar 16, 10]
Amylin Pharmaceuticals< plunged 25% as the biotechnology concern reported four more deaths among users of its Byetta diabetes drug, which it markets with Eli Lilly. [Wall Street Journal, Aug 28, 08]
Amylin Pharmaceuticals fell 13% after the FDA received reports of two deaths potentially related to pancreatic side effects of a diabetes drug. [Wall Street Journal, Aug 19, 08]
Amylin Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; one Phase 2 SBIR) said yesterday that patients in a 24-week trial of its obesity therapy pramlintide lost an average of 25 pounds. [San Diego Union Tribune, Nov 16]
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) focused on developing new treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, announced it has closed an oversubscribed $30 million Series B financing. [company press release, Jul 1, 20]
drug developer, Amylyx Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) received a $5 million Series A financing to take its nerve cell-targeting treatment, AMX0035, into a Phase 2 trial for ALS patients. The treatment is a combination of sodium phenylbutyrate, a drug commonly used to remove ammonia from the body, and tauroursodeoxycholic acid, a derivative of stomach bile acid. ... funding was ]partly] provided by former Genzyme CEO Henri Termeer. Since selling Genzyme to Sanofi for $20 billion in 2011, Termeer has been an active investor and advisor to startup biotechs, including Moderna Therapeutics, Lysosomal Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR), Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) , and X4 Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR). [David Holley, xconomy.com, Aug 22, 16]
Amyris Biotech (Emeryville, CA; $900K SBIR) up 20% [Aug 19, 19]
Amyris (Emeryville, CA; $900K SBIR as Amyris Biotechnologies, founded 2003) up 73% [Feb 5, 19] announced that it has signed a binding term sheet for a planned cannabinoid development, licensing and commercialization partnership valued at up to $255 million (not including significant royalties once the products are commercialized) with a confidential partner. [company press release, Feb 5, 19] total funding $518M [crunchbase.com]
Amyris (Emeryville, CA; $700K SBIR, 440 employees, market cap $116M) up 14% [Nov 17, 17] Royal DSM (Netherlands), a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials and Amyris, the industrial bioscience company, announced that they have enhanced their strategic alliance through the sale of Amyris Brasil Ltda to DSM and the establishment of a long-term manufacturing partnership for Amyris' high-volume products. [DSM press release, Nov 17, 17]
Amyris up 12% [May 23, 14]
Isis Pharma up 11% [May 23, 14]
Amyris up 11% [May 9, 14]
Amyris up 19% [Apr 1, 14]
Amyris (Emeryville, CA; $700K SBIR, founded 2003) up 26% [Feb 26, 14]
Amyrisup 13% [Jun 20, 12] (formerly Amyris Biopharmaceuticals, Albany, CA; $700K SBIR, founded 2003, 453 employees) an integrated renewable products company, provides alternatives to a range of petroleum-sourced products used in specialty chemical and transportation fuel markets worldwide. The company uses its industrial synthetic biology platform to modify microorganisms, primarily yeast, to convert plant-sourced sugars into a variety of hydrocarbon molecules that serve as flexible building blocks to be used in a range of products. [Yahoo finance]
The U.S. Navy said that it will buy 450,000 gallons of advanced biofuels from two companies, includingSolazyme (South San Francisco, CA; one SBIR) It's the government's largest biofuel purchase to date, and will allow the Navy to test how well bio-based versions of jet fuel and marine distillate fuel perform in a variety of ships and aircraft. .... Meanwhile, Amyris (Emeryville, CA; $700K SBIR) formed a joint venture with French oil giant Total to bring renewable diesel and jet fuel to the global market. [David Baker, San Francisco Chronicle, Dec 6, 11]
Sunlight companies. >Joule Unlimited (formerly Joule Biotechnologies, Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) said it was the first company to patent an organism that secretes hydrocarbon fuel made continuously, directly from sunlight. Other companies, including Amyris Biotechnologies (Emeryville, CA; $700K SBIR), and LS9 (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR), are working on organisms that will make fuel if fed sugar from corn or cellulosic sources, but Joule’s bacterium does not require any sugar. Another company, Aurora Algae (Alameda, CA; no SBIR), said that it had developed an algae-based platform for production of fuel, pharmaceuticals and other valuable chemicals. [Matthew Wald, New York Times, Sep 14, 10]
Amyris Biotechnologies (Albany, CA; $700K SBIR) has raised $47.8 million from the Singapore government. Tamasek Holdings, which owns and manages direct investment by the Singapore government, made the investment into the Emeryville biofuels startup. Jeri Hilleman, chief financial officer of Amyris, said Tamasek has a strong interest in Brazil where Amyris is opening its first commercial plants that will turn sugarcane into renewable transportation fuels that can be used in today’s fueling infrastructure. [Lindsey Riddell, San Francisco Business Times, Apr 2, 10]
Amyris Biotechnologies (Albany CA; $700K SBIR) raised $70 M to produce bio-based fuels using genetic technology it used to make low-cost malaria drugs. [Wall Street Journal, Oct 29]
AN2 Therapeutics (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR) a newly-formed biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development, and commercialization of novel medicines targeting infectious diseases, announced that it has raised $12 million in a Series A financing ... to advance AN2's lead clinical-stage program, involving a therapeutic agent with a novel mechanism-of-action, as well as several earlier stage programs. [company press release, Nov 21, 19]
Anacor Pharma up 11% [Dec 4,13]
Anacor Pharma up 14% [Apr 19, 13]
Anacor Pharma down 12% [Apr 25, 13]
GlaxoSmithKline paid Anacor Pharmaceuticals (Palo Alto, CA; no SBIR) $15 million to exercise an option to exclusively license to develop and commercialize an experimental antibiotic to fight gram-negative infections. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Aug 2, 10]
II‐VI (Saxonburg, PA; $4.3M SBIR) announced that it signed agreements to acquire two businesses that will expand its technology platforms and production capacity for semiconductor lasers with a scalable 6‐inch epitaxial growth and wafer fabrication platform. These acquisitions will further position the company to serve fast‐growing markets addressed by Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs). ... EpiWorks (Champaign, IL; $2.4M SBIR), global leader in high volume epitaxial growth of compound semiconductor wafers .... ANADIGICS (Warren, NJ; $600K SBIR) a high volume foundry unmatched in the production of 6‐inch gallium arsenide (GaAs) wafers. [II-VI press release, Jan 19, 16]
Anadigics up 11% [Jun 10, 13]
Anadigics down 10% [Feb 21, 13]
Anadigics (Warren, NJ; $600K SBIR 25 years ago, 540 employees) down 14% [Feb 20, 13]
Anadigics down 13% [May 3, 11]
Anadigicsup 10% [Mar 24, 11]
Anadigics up 10% [Oct 22, 10]
Anadigics up 21% [Jun 17, 10]
Anadigics up 11% [Dec 18, 09]
Anadigicsup 13% [May 27, 09]
Anadigicsdown 31% [Oct 23, 08]
Anadigicsup 10% [Oct 13, 08]
Anadigics down 38% [Aug 8, 08]
Anadigics down 32% [Jul 23, 08] on gloomy outlook. second-quarter net income more than tripled, but the company said it expects a decline in its wireless division on lower customer demand. [WSJ, Jul 24]
Anadigics up 13% [Jul 16, 08]
Anadigicsdown 16% [Jul 14, 08]
Anadigics up 30% [Apr 22, 08] after reporting a sweet profit.
Anadigicsup 14% [Mar 18, 08]
Anadigics down 16% [Mar 3, 08]
Anadigics down 14% [Feb 13, 08]
Anadigics up 14% [Feb 11, 08]
Anadigicsdown 19% after the cell phone chip maker posted a third-quarter profit below its own forecast. [Oct 24, 07]
Anadigics up 17% as it made a surprise profit [Jul 25, 07]
Anadigics surged 17% after an investment fund manager, in an interview with Barron's magazine, said profit at the chip maker is poised to explode.[AP, Feb 5, 07] The manager owns 11% of the stock.
After Switzerland’s Roche paid $230 million in cash to buyAnadys Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; $1.4M SBIR) in 2011, Anadys CEO Steve Worland ... began talking prominent academic researchers about hot areas of research and development. ... led him to UC San Francisco and scientists Kevan Shokat and Davide Ruggero. Together they founded Effector Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) to develop new small molecule drugs that target translation, a process in the cell for synthesizing proteins. ... raised $45 million in Series A financing, which should be enough to fund the lead candidate through proof-of-concept studies. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, May 21, 13] Successful entrepreneurs attract VC like a magnet.
Anadys Pharmaceuticals raised $12.5 million through a registered stock offering [Luke Timmerman, signonsandiego,com, Jun 9, 10]
Anadys Pharmaceuticals< ,developer of a treatment for hepatitis C, said today it has raised $12.5 million through a registered stock offering [Luke Timmerman, signonsandiago, Jun 3, 10]
Anadys Pharma down 12% [Dec 17, 09]
Anadys Pharma up 44% [Jul 31, 09] after the company said regulators approved the design of a study of a potential hepatitis C treatment
Anadys Pharma down 11% [May 14, 09]
Anadys Pharma down 12% [May 13, 09]
Anadys Pharma up 33% [May 11, 09]
Anadys Pharma down 17% [Apr 24, 09]
Anadys Pharma down 40% [Apr 23, 09] after it reported that three patients got rashes during a 14-day, 30-patient Phase I study of its hepatitis-C drug ANA598. [Wall Street Journal, Apr 24]
Anadys Pharma up 12% [Mar 17, 09]
Anadys Pharma up 14% [Feb 18, 09]
Anadys Pharma up 115% [Jan 8, 09]
Anadys Pharmaceuticals down 12% [Jun 24, 08]
Anadys Pharma up 18% [May 16, 08] and still down 29% over 52 weeks.
Anadys Pharmaceuticals up 11%. [Aug 7, 07]
Anadys Pharmaceuticals down 11% [Aug 1, 07] after saying it would it was cutting its workforce by a third and discontinuing further development of ANA380, its drug to treat hepatitis B virus infection.
Anadys Pharmaceuticals down 29% [Jul 27, 07] after ending development of a hepatitis C drug with Novartis, more than a year after the program was suspended over safety concerns.
Anadys Pharmaceuticals down 13% after doubling its quarterly loss. [Feb 23, 07]
Anadys Pharma up another 20%. [Nov 21, 06]
Anadys Pharmaceuticals up 25%. [Nov 14, 06]
BioAdvance, operator of the Biotechnology Greenhouse Corp. of Southeastern Pennsylvania, said it made commitments of $2.4 million to seven new life science companies: RMH Sciences (Philadelphia, PA; no SBIR) which is developing antibacterial agents for the treatment of resistant gram negative and gram positive infections; Ossianix (no SBIR), which is developing single domain antibodies based on the shark VNAR structure to treat immunological, inflammatory, musculoskeletal, neurologic, and other disorders; Merganser Biotech (Newtown Square, PA; no SBIR) which is developing hepcidin peptides for the treatment of hemoglobinopathies such as sickle cell anemia and diseases of iron overload; Anakim Biologics (Exton, PA; no SBIR) which is developing efficiencies and improvements in biologics manufacturing; Enzium (Philadelphia, PA; no SBIR) which is developing highly sensitive biosensor methodologies for the testing of proteases and other enzymes; Imiplex (Newtown, PA; two SBIRs) which is developing the TriPol platform, engineered from proteins, designed to provide a flexible system for constructing diverse nanostructures; Cool-Bio (Wayne, PA; no SBIR) which is developing platelet-inhibiting technology geared specifically to activation during the cooling process of cardiac bypass. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Jun 20, 12]
A recent Indiana University graduate [Gregory Mattes] has won a $100,000 technology prize that will finance his new startup company devoted to improving hearing aids and prosthetics. ... the third annual Building Entrepreneurs in Software and Technology contest that includes a $100,000 prize for startup funding. .... He'll serve as president and CEO of the startup Analog Computing Solutions, which will operate out of IU's business incubator, called the Hoosier Hatchery. [AP, Aug 20, 14]
Analogix Development (ADC)dba Axelo (Austin, TX; no SBIR, founded 2007), developer of highly advanced sensing technologies [with] multiple military-related applications ..... $250,000 through the Texas Emerging Technology Fund in 2009 [company website] ... [when] former Dell executive Denis Tracey invested in Axelo Inc., his goal wasn’t about making a profit. Tracey, who has made multiple investments in Austin companies since retiring from the computer giant, said he just wants to see the company succeed. .... hopes its technology can lessen brain injuries [Lori Hawkins, Austin American Statesman, Jan 31, 14] Whatever "succeed" means to him.
The Engine, a new VC fund in Cambridge, MA aims to bridge that [long lead time] gap by investing in breakthrough technologies that require extensive time and funding. Its [announced] first round of investments consists of seven startups (Analytical Space (Boston, MA, laser satellite data links w former Gen Pete Worden as advisor), Baseload Renewables (co-founded by Professor Yet-Ming Chiang who co-founded A123 Systems), C2Sense (Cambridge, MA; patented chemiresistive sensing C2Sense is able to selectively target gases unable to be sensed through other methods ), iSee (next generation of humanistic artificial intelligence technology for human and robotic collaborations), Kytopen (better genetically engineer cellsby developing technology that modifies microorganisms 10,000 times faster than current state-of-the-art methods ), Suono Bio (Cambridge, MA, ultrasonic therapeutics), and Via Separations (industrial separation processes, sonme SBIR) in sectors including aerospace, advanced materials, genetic engineering, and renewable energy. .... a for-profit, public-benefit corporation and a fund that’s separate from MIT ... MIT also contributed $25 million to your first investment fund of $200 million. [Elizabeth Woyke, technologyreview.com, Sep 19, 17]
Anaptys Bio up 16% [Jun 19, 20]
Anaptys Bio up 19% [May 4,20]
Anaptys Bio up 15% [Mar 2, 20]
Anaptys Bio (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) down 72% [Nov 8, 19] announced topline data from its ATLAS trial, a Phase 2b randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multi-dose study in approximately 300 adult patients treated with etokimab in moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis. Each of the etokimab dosing arms failed to meet the primary endpoint of the trial. [company press release, Nov 8, 19],
Anaptys Bio up 10% [Sep 24, 18] has positive data for its lead pipeline drug etokimab in a third indication, adding asthma to its earlier wins in peanut allergy and atopic dermatitis. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Sep 24, 18]
Anaptys Bio up 11% [Jul 25, 18]
Anaptys Bio (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, 49 employees) up 101% [Oct 10, 17] developing first-in-class antibody product candidates focused on unmet medical needs in inflammation, announced positive proof-of-concept data for ANB020, its investigational anti-IL-33 therapeutic antibody, in an ongoing Phase 2a clinical trial in adult patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis. [company press release, Oct 10, 17] IPO Jan 2017
Anaptys Bio up 12% [Sep 18, 17]
Anaptys Bio up 12% [Feb 10, 17] two weeks after IPO
AnaptysBio (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) raised $75 million in [IPO] ... is developing anti-inflammatory drugs for conditions such as dermatitis, peanut allergy and a form of asthma. It has one drug in clinical trials, ANB020, that is being tested against these three conditions. [Bradley Fikes, San Diego Union Tribune, Jan 26, 17]
AnaptysBio (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, one contract ith DARPA, 40 employees, founded by 2008) could get up to $324 million in addition to $17 million upfront, under a cancer drug development agreement [to] develop cancer drugs in three programs for Tesaro, a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Mar 13, 14]
Presage Biosciences (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) has been named one of FierceBiotech ’s “Fierce 15” of 2013. ... a spinoff company of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center .... patented a novel method for simultaneously analyzing multiple cancer drug candidates and drug combinations within a single tumor while that tumor is still in a patient. .... FierceBiotech evaluates hundreds of private companies from around the world each year before selecting the 15 it considers the most innovative, creative and promising. The other Fierce 14 are: Acetylon Pharmaceuticals; AnaptysBio; CytomX (Santa Barbara, CA; $500K SBIR); FibroGen (South San Francisco, CA; $1.3M SBIR); Immunocore; Jounce Therapeutics; Kala Pharmaceuticals; MacroGenics (Rockville, MD; $2.6M SBIR) ; Moderna Therapeutics; Nimbus Discovery; Scioderm; Ultragenyx; UniQure; and Visterra. [Valerie Bauman, Puget Sound Business Journal , Sep 24]
AnaptysBio (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) said it has established strategic alliances with Novartis and an undisclosed pharmaceutical company. The company plans to use its proprietary technology to discover and develop new therapeutic antibodies with multiple cancer-related therapeutic targets. AnaptysBio said the two deals provide global rights to develop and commercialize a limited number of antibodies against each cancer target that AnaptysBio generates [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Jan 12, 12]
AnaptysBio(San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2005) could receive up to $1.5 million from [DARPA] to improve sensors the military would use to detect biological attack. ... creates heat-stable antibodies [Gary Robbins, San Diego Union Tribune, Jul 13, 10] the leader in the use of somatic hypermutation, or SHM, for antibody discovery and optimization. [company website]
Six companies have received seven contracts [worth $270M] from NASA to build inflatable aerodynamic decelerator systems for spacecraft entry, descent and landing operations and aerocapture missions. Five of the six have previously won SBIR awards: Anasphere (Manhattan, MT; $5M SBIR); CFD Research (Huntsville, AL ; $250M SBIR); Miller Scientific (Flagstaff, AZ; one SBIR); Ryzing Technologies (Staunton, VA; $1.6M SBIR); Jackson Bond Enterprises (Dover NH; $1M SBIR) [Jane Edwards, govconwire.com, Sep 30, 2022]
Anavex Life Sciences up 21% [Jun 16, 21]
Anavex Life Sciences down 17% [Jun 15, 21]
Anavex Life Sciences up 35% [Jun 14, 21] reported that ANAVEX(R) 2-73 (blarcamesine) and ANAVEX(R) 3-71 (AF710B) are featured in a new peer-reviewed publication in the journal of Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets, titled "The emerging role of the sigma-1 receptor in autophagy: Hand-in-hand targets for the treatment of Alzheimer's".
Anavex Life Sciences down 35% [Nov 6, 20] announced additional details on and presented the results from the proof of concept Phase 2 controlled trial evaluating the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of ANAVEX(R) 2-73 (blarcamesine) in patients with Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD) [company press release, Nov 6, 20]
Anavex Life Sciences up 21% [Jun 18, 20]
Anavex Life Sciences up 16% [Feb 18, 20]
Diamedica Thera up 16% [Feb 18, 20]
Anavex Life Sciences up 44% [Jul 3, 18] announced that the Company has received approval by the Australian Human Research Ethics Committee to initiate its Phase 2b/3 double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, 48-week safety and efficacy trial of ANAVEX(R)2-73 for the treatment of early Alzheimer's disease.[company press release, Jul 3, 18]
Anaxex Life Sciences up 32% [Jun 4, 18]
Anavex Life Sciences down 11% [Jan 16, 18]
Anavex Life Sciences up 13% [Dec 21, 17]
Anavex Life up 14% [Sep 27, 17]
Anavex Life Sciences up 14% [Aug 14, 17]
Anavex Life Sciences down 13% [Dec 13, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 12% [Dec 12, 16]
Ophthotech (New York, NY; no SBIR) down 86% [Dec 12, 16] announced that the pre-specified primary endpoint of mean change in visual acuity at 12 months was not achieved in its two pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials investigating the superiority of Fovista(R) (pegpleranib) anti-PDGF therapy in combination with Lucentis(R) (ranibizumab) anti-VEGF therapy compared to Lucentis(R) monotherapy for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD). [company press release, Dec 12, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 13% [Dec 8, 16]
Anavex Life Sci up 10% [Nov 23, 16]
Eli Lilly said that solanezumab, an experimental Alzheimer’s drug, failed a long-anticipated, high-stakes Phase 3 trial known as “Expedition 3.” The drug failed to slow the cognitive decline of patients with mild dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease, adding to the long list of major clinical failures over the past decade, even as the financial and social impact of the disease looms ever larger. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Nov 23, 16] Micro cap Anavex Life Sciences is up 4% premarket, albeit on only ~4,500 shares, on the heels of Eli Lilly's (NYSE:LLY) failure with Alzheimer's disease (AD) candidate solanezumab. Anavex's lead candidate is Anavex 2-73, an orally available sigma-1 receptor (S1R) agonist in development for the treatment of AD and Parkinson's disease. S1R plays a key role in modulating neurotransmission. [seekingalpha.com, Nov 23, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 10% [Nov 1, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 32% [Sep 28, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 23% [Sep 22, 16]
Anavex Life Sci up 23% [Aug 12, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences down 21% [Jul 28, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences down 40% [Jul 27, 16] efficacy data through 31 weeks from the ongoing ANAVEX 2-73 Phase 2a study in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's patients [company press release]
Anavex Life Sciences up 10% [Jul 7, 16]
Anavex Life up 16% [Jun 30, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 16% [Apr 25, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences down 14% [Feb 9, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 13% [Jan 25, 16]
Anavex Life Sciences up 11% [Nov 19, 15]
Anavex Life Sciences (NYC, NY; no SBIR) up 63% [Nov 18, 15] announces that it is moving forward with the development program for ANAVEX 2-73. Guidance received from the FDA confirms the Company's strategy to advance ANAVEX 2-73 for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease in a larger double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled Phase 2/3 trial. [company press release, Nov 18, 15]
Anchor Therapeutics stands to receive up to $480 million from New Jersey-based Ortho-McNeil Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. (OMJPI), related to a collaborative research and licensing deal associated with Anchor’s pepducin technology. [Mass High Tech, Sep 9, 10]
Anchor Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) (formerly Ascent Therapeutics) closed on $10 million in a Series B funding round ... focused on developing peptide drug candidates, called pepducins, that modulate G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) [Mass High Tech, Aug 20, 10]
NIH awarded a $530,000 Phase 1 SBIR grant to Ancora Pharmaceuticals(Medford, MA; $3.6M prior SBIR) to research a vaccine to prevent malaria anemia. [Mass High Tech, Jun 3, 09]
Disruptive innovation has become the single biggest worry for many firms. Setting up VC arms is a way to identify life-threatening changes to their business early, so that they can adapt or, better yet, get in on the act, says Ben Veghte of America’s National Venture Capital Association, whose membership has mushroomed in recent years. ... Intel Capital, the venture-capital VC unit of the American technology giant, is not quite sure yet but it wants to find out. It recently announced it was taking stakes in 16 startups, including the firms making these products. Intel has been in the venture-capital business for over 20 years, and has invested in more than 1,300 companies in 56 countries. Over that time corporate enthusiasm for venture capital has waxed and waned—but has seldom been greater than it is now. [The Economist, Nov 12, 14] Included in Intel's investment are: Netspeed Systems (Mountain View, CA; no SBIR) has developed a system-on-chip design platform and advanced on-chip network solutions. It says this lets system-on-chip designers create smaller and more power-efficient chips more quickly than usual; AnDAPT (Santa Clara,CA; no SBIR) stealth-mode company working on hardware for multifunction sensor integration and integrated system power management. The aim is to lower power consumption and cost while providing high reliability. [Intel said] we expect to invest a total of $355 million this year. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Nov 4, 14]
The U.S. Air Force has tentatively selected over 500 companies for contracts worth $550M combined as part of an initiative launched with its AFWERX innovation arm and [SBIR]. The service said the AFVentures effort includes a strategic financing initiative where the firms will get a total of over $200M in government funding as well as $350M in private funds. [Brenda Marie Rivers, govconwire, Mar 16, 20] almost half going to the following 21 companies: Aerial Applications, Analytical Space ($3M prior SBIR), Anduril (one prior SBIR) , Applied Minds ($8M prior SBIR), Elroy Air, Sentient ($3.2M prior SBIR) , Icon, Enview ($700K prior SBIR), Edgybees ($700K prior SBIR) , Falkonry (one prior SBIR), Swarm Technologies ($1M prior SBIR) , Orbital Insight (one prior SBIR), Orbital Sidekick ($800K prior SBIR), Virtualitics (one prior SBIR) , Wickr (one prior SBIR), Tectus Corp (one prior SBIR), Valulytics, Shift.org, Pison ($1M prior SBIR), Revacomm. One other company hasn’t been named yet. These “big bet” companies are slated to receive four-year, fixed-price contracts worth a combined $550+ million through AFVentures’ Strategic Financing (STRATFI) program. This amount includes $100+ million in SBIR funds, $100+ million in Air Force funding and $350+ million in private investment. Roper said he believes future rounds of funding will be bigger. [AF Press release , Mar 13, 20]
Anello Photonics (Santa Clara, CA; $250K SBIR, founded 2018) which [former Intel researcher] Mario Paniccia founded, is using photonics technology to send or collect data — to make chip-based gyroscopes. Its chip is designed to replace fiber-optic gyroscopes in vehicles, drones and consumer electronics devices. Anello got an affirmation of its approach when it announced it had closed a $28 million Series A round, [Cromwell Schubarth, BayAreaInno, October 21, 2021]
Anew Optics (Newton, MA; no SBIR)has pulled in $952,000 of a planned $2 million equity offering, according to [SEC] filing ... does not yet have a website, appears to be involved in the development of an intraocular lens, made thin and lightweight to allow for more light transfer and greater comfort, according to a patent application [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Aug 10, 10]
Anexon (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) reports it has raised $7 million in new venture financing, naming the prestigious Mayo Clinic as an investor. [Mass High Tech, Oct 20, 10]
Angeion (Vadnais Heights, MN; one SBIR) said it is changing its name to MGC Diagnostics ... makes diagnostic systems that monitor a person's breathing and heart rate, ... "Our new corporate identity better communicates to our customers and our other stakeholders what we bring to the market – the leading-edge cardio-respiratory diagnostic technology that our MedGraphics brand is known for throughout medical institutions worldwide," company CEO Gregg Lehman said [Ed Stych, Minneapolis St Paul Business Journal, Aug 16, 12]
AngioDynamics down 11% [Sep 27, 18]
A new medical treatment developed at the University of Minnesota to kill cancer cells and uterine fibroids has been snapped up by a company interested in buying the full rights if the technology does well. EmboMedics (Maple Grove, MN; no SBIR, 10 employees, founded 2012) developing the minimally invasive technique invented at [UMinn], signed an exclusive licensing deal with AngioDynamics (Latham, NY; no SBIR). The buyer is a $350 million device firm. [Joe Carlson, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Apr 10, 15]
AngioDynamics's purchase of a small [Vortex Medical (Norwell, MA; no SBIR)] will give it ownership of a product CEO Joseph DeVivo said could become “the gold standard of care” with the potential for up to $50 million in sales.... for $15 million in cash and 10 years’ worth of annual payments based on sales of Vortex’s AngioVac System. [Barbara Pinckney, The Business Review (Albany),Oct 12, 12]
AngioDynamics(Queensbury, NY; no SBIR) a medical device manufacturer paid $1.75 million for the assets of a similar, smaller company in California. ... the assets of FlowMedica (Fremont,CA; no SBIR), backed by venture capitalists. FlowMedica, founded in 2002, is developing ways to deliver drugs to kidneys to keep the organs functioning after certain medical procedures. [The Business Review (Albany), Jan 13, 09]
If You Don't Own It, You Can't Sell It. AngioDynamics (no SBIR) paid $2M to the co-inventor of its recently introduced NeverTouch technology and will pay an additional $1 million after the product meets an unspecified milestone, the medical instruments manufacturer disclosed in a filing with regulators on Wednesday. AngioDynamics was forced to stop selling an earlier laser treatment for varicose veins after a federal court judge in Boston ruled it infringed on the patents of a competitor, Andover, Mass.-based (no SBIR).... The move comes as AngioDynamics appeals the decision in the Diomed case and defends itself in a patent-infringement case brought by VNUS Technologies Inc. of San Jose, Calif. [Eric Anderson, Albany Times Union, Jan 10]
AngioDynamics fell 21% as a jury found against it in a patent suit. [Wall Street Journal, Mar 29, 07]
Angiologix (Mountain View, CA; no SBIR) is a medical diagnostic device company whose products diagnose the first sign of cardiovascular disease — endothelial dysfunction. Angiologix says it has developed a diagnostic system that detects cardiovascular disease earlier than any other existing test. The diagnostic system has a cuff, which is placed on the patient’s arm, a hardware box and software with algorithms to detect the earliest sign of cardiovascular disease. [Mass High Tech, Aug 21, 09]
Angion Biomedica (San Francisco, CA; $60M SBIR) down 56% [Oct 27, 21] on news that its kidney transplant hopeful ANG-3777 has failed a phase 3. [Ben Adams, Fierce Biotech, Oct 27, 2021] Federal agency using SBIR for a long term project that precludes hundreds of early innovation trials for new compnies and ideas. A problem that Congress ignores as long as the agencies spend the mandated amount on small business in this "fair share" political program.
AngioScore (Fremont, CA; no SBIR), which makes catheters used to treat cardiovascular and peripheral artery diseases, is being acquired for $230 million by Spectranetics (Colorado Springs, CO, three SBIRs by 1993). [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, May 28, 14]
Pioneer Surgical Technology(PST) of Marquette, Mich., reports it has purchased Angstrom Medica (Woburn, MA; $1M SBIR) for an undisclosed amount. Angstrom is the first company to obtain U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for a nanotechnology device. [Mass High Tech, Oct 24]
G3 (Global Graphene Group, Dayton, OH), a holding company for subsidiaries Angstron Materials ($150K SBIR) , Honeycomb Battery (no SBIR) and Nanotek Instruments ($3M SBIR), announced that it has secured the first $10 million of a Preferred Series A investment ... with conditions for a second close of an additional $13 million for a total $23 million Series A investment. G3 is engaged in commercializing graphene raw materials, and graphene-enabled applications including nanocomposites, thermal interface materials, and advanced batteries. [Roni Peleg, www.graphene-info.com, Jul 20, 16]
Angstron Materials (Dayton, OH; one SBIR in 2009) attracted $5 million to boost its commercialization efforts.... to increase manufacturing capacity and bring key technologies to market. Angstron makes graphene, a material that is strong, lightweight and a considered one of the best conductors of heat and electricity. ... touts itself as the world’s largest volume producer of graphene, with a capacity of 300 metric tons per year. Angstron and its sister company, Nanotek Instruments ($3M SBIR), have about 20 employees and operate in 22,000 square feet. [Joe Cogliano, Dayton Business Journal, Jul 28, 15]
Angstron Materials (Dayton, OH; no SBIR) will get [cost-shared] $1.5M federal help [from NIST] to develop nanotechnology ... toward developing processes for mass-producing special nano materials, especially for the energy industries.[Dayton Business Journal, Dec 16, 09]creator of nano graphene platelets (NGPs), is the only company in the world now able to provide pristine graphite and single layer graphene. [company website]
Animetrics (Conway, NH; no SBIR) recently introduced a new server-based facial recognition technology which provides investigators with a powerful biometric tool for improving facial resolution in photos or video surveillance footage. The new technology has been made available to law enforcement and intelligence agencies in a new software application named ForensicaGPS. [Jim Schakenbach, Mass High Tech, Junl 5, 12]
The
BioMaryland Center has
awarded nearly $1 million in grants to five life sciences firms. The
companies received up to $200,000 each and will use the funding for
research. ... part of the Maryland Department of Business and
Economic Development. The recipients:
Animetrics (Conway, NH; no SBIR) a developer of advanced 3-D facial recognition and identification technology, has rolled out a new facial recognition system for law enforcement agencies. .... launched ID-Ready, a subscription-based online service that takes grainy, partial view 2-D images and corrects it making it read for any facial recognition system. [Patircia Resende, Boston Business Journal, May 8, 13]
ANIPharmaceuticals(Baudette, MN; no SBIR) that makes branded and generic drugs.is merging with BioSante Pharmaceuticals (Lincolnshire, IL; $200K SBIR) that develops pharmaceutical products intended to treat sexual dysfunction in women. [Ed Stych, Minneapolis /St Paul Business Journal, Oct 5, 12]
Technologies from Arizona State University and University of Arizona are being licensed to a startup to create a food safety vaccine used in chickens. Anivax (Tucson, AZ; no SBIR) signed licensing agreements with both state universities, taking a bit of technology from each of the schools to create a Campylobacter food safety vaccine. ... will use Curtiss' Salmonella delivery system, combined with certain genes that UA professors have identified. [Angela Gonzales, Phoenix Business Journal, Apr 30, 15]
Karyopharm Therapeutics and Anivive Therapeutics (Orange, CA, no SBIR), focused on innovations in the veterinary drug and bioinformatics space, announced their entry into a licensing agreement whereby Anivive licensed from Karyopharm exclusive worldwide rights to research, develop and commercialize verdinexor (KPT-335) for the treatment of cancer in companion animals. [company press release, May 3, 17]
Annexon (Brisbane, CA; $1.4M SBIR) down 59% [May 25, 2023] announced topline results from its ARCHER Phase 2 trial of ANX007 in patients with geographic atrophy (GA), the leading cause of blindness worldwide, demonstrating a statistically significant, dose-dependent preservation of visual function. [company press release, May 24, 2023]
Annexon (Brisbane, CA; $1.4M SBIR) down 34% [Jan 5, 22] announced interim data from its ongoing, open-label Phase 2 clinical trial of ANX005 in patients with Huntington’s disease (HD) who completed the 24-week treatment period. Annexon is developing ANX005, its lead monoclonal antibody candidate, for the treatment of a range of complement-mediated disorders, including HD. [company press release, Jan 4, 22]
Annexon Biosciences (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR, founded 2014) [raised] $100 million to move its two clinical-stage programs along and to continue advancing its preclinical pipeline. [Sarah de Crescenzo, xconomy.com, Jul 1, 20]
Biotech startup Annexon Biosciences (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR, founded 2011 spinout from Stanford) pioneering the development of classical complement pathway inhibitors to treat neurodegenerative disorders, announced that it has closed a $44 million Series B financing.[company press release, Jun 23, 16] leading the development of therapeutic products that halt the progression of CMND. Our antibody pipeline is based on breakthrough research involving the classical complement pathway and the unique role of its initiating molecule, C1q, in triggering the loss of nerve connections and inducing inflammation in neurologic and ophthalmic disorders. [company website]
Biotech startup Annexon Biosciences (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR, founded 2011) a biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of classical complement pathway inhibitors to treat neurodegenerative disorders, announced that it has closed a $44 million Series B financing. [company press release, Jun 23, 16] closed a $34 million Series A in 2014
Fresh perspective on a protein that could gum up the brain and lead to Huntington's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative and autoimmune disorders won a $34 million investment for a Stanford University spinout. Annexon Bioscience (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) founded by Stanford neurobiology professor Ben Barres and Rinat Neuroscience co-founder Arnon Rosenthal, said that the Series A-1 round was led by the venture arm of [Swiss] drug-development giant Novartis AG .... Annexon's lead drug, ANX-005, is a humanized monoclonal antibody designed to block the early stages of an immune response called the complement cascade. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Dec 15, 14]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 29% [Dec 22, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 28% [Dec 22, 2023] no press release
Annovis Bio down 19% [Oct 31, 2023] announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 1,250,000 units consisting of (i) one share of its common stock and (ii) an accompanying warrant (each warrant to purchase one share of common stock). The combined offering price to the public of each share of common stock and accompanying warrant is $6.00. [company press release, Oct 31, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $1M SBIR) up 18% [Apr 11, 2023] announced that in the last week it has raised aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $8.7 million [company press release, Apr 11, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $1M SBIR) down 21% [Apr 3, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $1M SBIR) down 23% [Mar 31, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 19% [Oct 19, 2023]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn PA; $900K SBIR) up 26% [Sep 9, 22] released a letter to stockholders advocating how one drug can be so broadly applicable. [company press release, Sep 9, 2022]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 27% [Jun 8, 2022]
Annovis Bio up 20% [Aug 2, 21] said it is pleased by the positive interim results released on July 28 from Phase II clinical trials of its lead compound, ANVS401 (Posiphen). [company press release, Jul 30, 21]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 27% [Jun 1, 21] announced the notable finding that in a test that measures speed, AD and PD patients both respond with a statistically significant increase in correctly coded fields after 25 days of treatment with ANVS401. The test was part of the Company's ongoing Phase 2a study in AD and PD patients. [comapany press release, Jun 1, 21]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR) up 127% [May 21, 21] announced new results from a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of ANVS401, its lead drug candidate for the treatment of AD and PD. Patients treated with ANVS401 for 25 days showed statistically significant cognitive improvement as measured by the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale 11 (ADAS-Cog11). The 11-part test is one of the most frequently used tests to measure impaired cognition in clinical trials for AD. [company press release, May 21, 21]
Annovis Bio up 77% [Jul 7, 20]
Annovis Bio up 26% [Jun 16, 20]
Annovis Bio up 18% [Jun 5, 20]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn, PA; $900K SBIR, IPO Jan 2020, founded 2008) up 23% [Apr 15, 20] develops drugs for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases and other neurodegenerative disorders. It offers posiphen compound for mild cognitive impairment and early stage Alzheimer's disease ... was also awarded a $1.7 million [NIH] grant for the Company’s long-term toxicology studies [company press release, Feb 27, 20] and an Army grant of $3M in 2013.
Annovis Bio down 27% [Jan 30, 20]
Annovis Bio (Berwyn. PA; $800K SBIR) up 60% [Jan 29, 20] raised $12M in IPO; a clinical-stage, drug platform company addressing neurodegeneration, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's in Down Syndrome (AD-DS).
Kinex Pharmaceuticals (Buffalo, NY; $1.1M SBIR) is suing a longtime executive in a case that involves trade secrets and billionaire entrepreneurs from California. The financial implication of the situation is symbolized by Kinex’s demand for compensation from the defendants: nearly $3 billion. .... [former co-founder Dyster] is now defending herself along with the companies for which she worked as a consultant — Fulgent Therapeutics (Temple City, CA; no SBIR) and ANP Technologies (Newark, DE; $3.5M SBIR). [Dan Miner, Buffalo Business First, May 5, 15]
Ansa Biotechnologies (Berkeley, CA; $1.2M SBIR) raised $68 million to further develop its DNA synthesis technology to help biotech customers conduct research. The technology involves pairing a polymerase enzyme with a nucleotide, which results in a synthesizing method that is faster and more accurate than traditional methods, according to a news release. [Sonya Herrera, Bay Area Inno, April 14, 2022]
Ansoft up 30% [Mar 31, 08] after large-cap Ansys agreed to buy the Pittsburgh electronic-design automation software producer for $832 million in cash and stock [Wall Street Journal, Apr 1]
Ansoft down 11% [Feb 15, 08]
Fraud penalty. Ansun Biopharma (formerly known as NexBio, San Diego, CA; $9M SBIR including one for $6M) biotech company developing a flu treatment has agreed to pay the federal government $2 million in settlements because its executives doctored timesheets on grant and contract work for the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. ... has received at least $73 million in grants and contracts from the federal agency since its start in 2003, according to agency records and a 2009 report from the San Diego industry group Biocom. That includes a $50-million contract in 2006 to develop Fludase, a powdered inhaler treatment designed to block a receptor that all flu virus strains use to enter cells in the airways. [Kristina Davis, utsandiego.com, Jan 8, 14]
biotech startup Antegrin Therapeutics (St. Louis, MO; no SBIR) merged with a similar Cascadia Therapeutics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) to form Indalo Therapeutics (St. Louis, MO) - a biotechnology company dedicated to developing novel therapies to treat fibrotic diseases. ... unites Antegrin’s robust portfolio of small-molecule integrin antagonists with the strong drug-development expertise, seasoned executive experience, and proven track record of success of Cascadia. [Indalo press release, Oct 17, 16]
Antheia (Palo Alto, CA; $1.6M SBIR) a startup using synthetic biology to produce medicines currently sourced from plants, has raised $73 million in new venture-capital financing. [Brian Gormley, Wall Street Journal, Jun 30, 21]
Anthera Pharmaceuticals <(no SBIR) hopes to net $47 million by selling more than 6.6 million shares ... developer of cardiovascular and autoimmune disease drugs [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 3, 11]
Anthera Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR), an unprofitable company that hasn't obtained regulatory approval for any of its treatments, rose one cent to $7.01 in their debut. ... restructured its offering after failing to debut last week;. [Wall Street Journal, Mar 2, 10]
Blackstone Life Sciences, the biopharma investing arm of private equity firm Blackstone Group, has made its first strike. It has joined with Novartis to start a new biotech, Anthos Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA), backed with $250 million in cash and rights to an experimental drug originally discovered by the Swiss firm. [Ben Fidlar, xconomy.com, Feb 27, 19]
Aperiomics (Sterling, VA). has teamed up with biotech Antibody Biopharm (Gaithersburg, MD) to offer a rapid antibody test for Covid-19. The Loudoun County diagnostics startup has used its existing testing platform — the same tech involved in its own testing kits — in its Northern Virginia lab to validate and, now, begin offering the test to other laboratories that meet Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments, or CLIA, requirements. But the partners still need a nod from the FDA to administer the test as a point-of-care diagnostic given by doctors and other health care providers, which Aperiomics said it expects within two months. [DCInno, May 21, 20]
Antigenics (New York City; $600K SBIR) up 23% after it said its treatment for kidney cancer received regulatory approval in Russia, the first authorization in any country for the cancer vaccine. [Wall Street Journal, Apr 9, 08]
Antigenics(Woburn, MA; $700K SBIR) has spent between $400 million and $500 million to conduct two Phase 3 trials on its potential cancer vaccine. But the Lexington-based company never plans to send it to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for approval. “Not unless the agency significantly changes. The Western regulatory bureaucracies are too rigid to know how to deal with our product,” CEO Garo Armen said. [Julie Donnelly, Mass High Tech, Jan 22, 10]
Antigenics (Woburn, MA; $700K SBIR) said it will not seek approval for a potential kidney cancer treatment after a European advisory committee recommended against approving the drug candidate. [Boston Globe, Nov 20, 09]
In a tale of biotech snapback, Forbes [Matthew Herper, Oct 16, 09] notes that BioCryst Pharma is up 1014% from its 52-week low. Antigenics (Woburn, MA; $700K SBIR) is up 1032%.
Antigenics(Lexingtom, MA; $700K SBIR) sold 5 million shares for $10 million.... will use the proceeds from the sale to fund commercial and regulatory efforts, including sales of its cancer drug Oncophage in Russia, Europe, and elsewhere. [Boston Globe, Jul 31, 09]
Hemi Thaker, age 43, has done this before ... he is back with another promising communications startup, Anue Systems (no SBIR) was among the 12 Austin firms that recently made Inc. magazine's annual list of the 500 fastest-growing companies in the country. ... "We can take our technology and apply it to different places, and all the sudden, the available market becomes much larger," he said. "We are going to morph into something that is no longer a niche company." [Kirk Ladendorf, Austin American-Statesman, Sep 11]
Anulex Technologies (Minneapolis, MN; no SBIR), a startup developing devices used to repair soft tissue in the spine, has closed on about $18 million in venture capital.[Katharine Grayson, Minneapolis/St Paul Business Journal, Jun 3, 10]
damg writes Anybots, which is three guys led by Trevor Blackwell, has developed the first robot that walks like we do, by dynamically balancing itself rather than being pre-programmed for walking like Asimo. The video shows the robot walking and being pushed by another 'bully' robot to demonstrate that it can't easily be pushed over." [slashdot.org, Feb 27]
AOBiome Therapeutics (formerly Nitrocell, Cambridge, MA; no SBIR), a clinical-stage life sciences company advancing patented microbiome-targeted therapies for systemic and local inflammatory conditions, announced positive efficacy and safety findings from the Phase 2b clinical trial of the Company's Ammonia Oxidizing Bacteria (AOB) product candidate for the treatment of mild-to-moderate acne vulgaris. [company presss release, Oct 23, 17]
Biometrics startup Tascent (Los Gatos, CA; founded 2015, about 1000 employees) raised $18.5 million in Series A funding to develop its iris recognition systems for airport and high-level security .... already has customers around the world, including Dubai International Airport, London Gatwick Airport and a few high-security facilities in the United States. ... The company recently acquired the AOptix Technologies Identity Solutions(Campbell, CA; $1.7M SBIR) business unit, which grants Tascent access to AOptix intellectual property, biometrics and iris recognition technology. [Gina Hall, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Sep 17, 15]
AOptix Technologies (Campbell, CA; $1.6M SBIR) said that it has won an $11.4 million contract to deliver wireless air and ground optical terminals for [DARPA] [Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal, Dec 17, 10]
AOptix Technologies (Campbell, CA; $2M SBIR) raised $15M. It develops iris-recognition systems and ultra-high bandwidth laser communication technologies. [San Jose Mercury News, Jun 6]
Aortica (Kirkland, WA; too soon for SBIR) announced it has raised $7 million in a series A funding round, setting the young company on its way to complete a crucial FDA study for future commercialization. ... product, which is so new it doesn't even have a name yet, will supplement a surgically inserted graft device that has been used for years to treat these aneurysms. ... By using CT scans of patients and 3-D printing, Aortica is developing a sort of template for that graft, so that it can be used in more people by allowing their blood vessels to continue delivering blood to the arteries. [Annie Zak, Puget Sound Business Journal, Dec 1, 14]
APA Enterprises (formerly APA Optics) broke the buck after falling 13%. [Nov 13, 07]
Changing of APA Guard. Founder Anil Jain has resigned from APA Enterprises as the company also made "additional staff reductions." APA lost $2.1M for the year and has had a continual struggle to turn the technology supported by SBIR in the 1980s into a profitable enterprise. Jain will buy the company's India operation for $500K. [story Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jun 29]
APA Enterprises lost 10% after reporting yet more loss. CEO Jain explained: We are very pleased with the increased revenues as well as substantial decrease in losses both for the 3rd quarter and the first 9 months of fiscal year 2007. Extrapolating these figures to an annualized basis, we believe that the yearly projected losses represent more that 50% improvement over the losses of the last several fiscal years dating back to fiscal year 2000. Clearly, the consolidation steps taken during the last two years are in the right direction. [MarketWire, Feb 13,07]APA is actually an SBIR success story in that after 16 Phase 2s for II-IV electronic materials 1986-1995 it struck out on its own and has survived, albeit struggling for profitability, for another decade. Jain has led it for the entire two decades. SBIR's goal should be more APAs wherein private capital picks up and runs with technology nurtured in its infancy by government. Whether the company ultimately survives or not, SBIR has done its job.
Watch That Sun. APA Optics says it is shipping sun monitors that sound an alarm when you have over-sunned. Betting on a fickle consumer product market, APA tries to make another profitable product from the GaN technology it developed with SBIR money in the mid 80s. Its last Phase 2 was 1996 as it shifted to making product especially in a new manufacturing plant in South Dakota. Whatever the outcome, APA clearly hopped off the SBIR pram to risk life as an adult. The other advertised optics products have apparently fizzled as losses continue. Making money is a lot harder than making commercialization strategies that the government will accept for SBIR awards. But then, the government doesn't have to make an ROI, only to pass out the money as directed by the SBIR law.
APA Doubles Loss. (Nov 2)APA Optics doubled its quarterly loss to $1.4M from higher cost of goods sold, reduced interest income, and the slowing economy. ``Our financial results reflect the impact of the current economic slowdown, particularly in fiber optic communications, and performance issues with our Dense Wavelength Divisional Multiplexers (DWDMs) related to environmental specifications, ... We continue to work toward automated production of DWDMs for increased production capacity, performance uniformity and lower production costs. said CEO Anil Jain. Too slow, too variable, and too costly; "performance issues" is a euphemism for the product didn't do what the customer wants. Lesson for SBIR companies: manufacturing only looks like a great way to build your business.
Customer said too slow (Aug 14) After a customer cancelled a half-million dollar order APA Optics stock tanked 15%. A lesson for wannabe commercializers: it is one thing to fluff your wonderful technology to the government SBIR folks; it is quite another to get customer spec hardware to the customer on the customer's schedule. For a company that has been making steady losses since switching from research to production in a remote spot (South Dakota), such a loss does not help stock valuation.
Expect Further Losses (Aug 6) says APA Optics which is having a hard haul toward profitability after ditching SBIR as a way of life in the late 90s. Our net loss in fiscal 2001 was $2.9M compared to $3,8M in fiscal 2000. The decrease in the loss was primarily a result of increased revenues and significantly higher interest income from the investment of cash raised during the fiscal year. Further losses can be expected until revenues from production increase, or operating costs decrease, sufficiently to produce positive cash flow. Of course the swoosh from the info-tech bubble didn't help a company trying to sell new DWDM devices. Optimists are still hanging around; the company market cap is still $100M, off about 60% from a year ago's optimism.
APA Optics lost $3M for last year, less than the $3.8M in 1999, Revenues doubles for the year. CEO Anil K. Jain said he welcomed the continued progress in revenue growth.
APA Gets Hit Again (Nov 28)APA Optics dropped another 16% yesterday which puts it down 90% from its spring high. Earlier in the month it reported yet another loss despite optimistic words about sales volume of DWDM equipment. (It still has lots of cash on hand from the secondary issue. In five years it has lost $7.5M on revenues of $8M. Ibis also took a big hit (21%) to get to 13% of its spring high. At least the earnings estimators think Ibis will earn a decent profit next year and three brokers follow it. ATMI is down 70% from its high but that puts it at only 10 times next year's earnings as six brokers follow it. It's consistent with the cycles in the semiconductor industry where even stalwarts like Cypress and Xilinx took big hits yesterday.
APA Opticswhich seems to be having lots of trouble making money fell another 8% to 15% of its 52-week high. SatCon another steady money loser, is down almost half from where it was six weeks ago. A third non-profit firm, Spire is up 150% from just a few weeks ago without any exhilirating news.
APA Optics Dumps Again(Sep 28)We are making significant progress in product development, manufacturing and marketing, said CEO Anil K. Jain, as APA Optics lost another $900K for the first quarter, just like last year. Plenty of cash still on hand, though, thanks to a secondary stock issue. Traders are getting antsy as the string of losses continues as in standard living dead companies. The price is down over 80% (15% yesterday) from the May high even though (or because) the listing moved to the NASDAQ National. APA was a promising beneficiary of SBIR in the 80s and claimed to be on the road to economic success with a plant in South Dakota. The world is still waiting for revenues and profits that smell like success.
APA Afire (Feb 7) APA Optics shot up 75% last week on news that it was shipping a new single-mode fiber dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) product that provides narrow channel spacing, permitting greater utilization of a given wavelength band. The Company reported that it is shipping the new multiplexer/demultiplexer research unit to a major international supplier of fiber optic networking systems. The product, featuring 50 gigahertz, or 0.4 nanometer, wavelength spacing, is currently available in 8 and 16 channels. APA got some help from SBIR with $6.8M of Phase 2 money 1987-1996 for mostly materials work and almost all from DOD ($6M). That was a huge chunk of APA's revenues until it started in manufacturing mode. If the government had taken an equity position consistent with its "capital investment" over those years it would own something like 15% of APA today, a value of $40M.
APA Optics still rocketing - up another 15% Thursday. Doubled in a week with no official news. The Yahoo message board yakkers speculate about a Lucent buyout and an estimated value of $1.2 per share, far below the $16.4 trading price. Says one, Read their 10Q. The co. is deluting [sic] stock value to raise operating cash. They are near insolvency. Ah well, that's why we have stock markets and horse races and elections.
APA MUX/DEMUX (Feb 26) APA Optics (Blaine, MN) rolled out the world's most compact dense wavelength division (DWDM) Multiplexer/Demultiplexer unit at the OFC '99 Conference in San Diego, an international meeting. Compact means a 90% shrinkage in size. Word must not have reached the market which budged the stock merely 1/16. APA still has to make any noticeable profit after 15 years in business and 15 Phase 2 SBIRs 1986-1996.
APA Loses Again (Feb 22) APA Optics (Blaine, MN) lost money and bled cash, a loss of $616K for the quarter on revenues of only $134K. CEO Anil Jain said that APA is moving forward with an aggressive marketing campaign which he hopes will lead to higher revenues. "We have some of the most advanced products available today in the fiber optic communications area and will be very active at the global conference later this month in California," he said, especially for its ultra Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexer (DWDM). "The outlook for significant orders still appears promising, but we must continue to focus on the marketing challenges. The cash balance at December 31 of $3.5M dropped from $5.2M on March 31. APA got a lot of SBIR in the 80s for its nitride materials.
APA Loses Again (Nov 17) APA Optics (Blaine, MN) lost $660K in the second quarter, more than the $178K loss last time. Revenues were down to $246K from the $653K. CEO Anil Jain said the increased loss was a result of planned reductions in government contract research work, coupled with the costs incurred in establishing its fabrication and marketing operations. APA recently shipped WDM evaluation units to three large companies and 35 more companies have placed orders for qualification units of APA's new Gallium Nitride ultraviolet detector. Jain also said that APA has sold these new Schottky UV detectors to a wide range of customers for diverse applications, has 2,000 of these detector units on hand as well as enough working capital to sustain operations.
APA Optics Grins (Jul 16) APA Optics (Blaine, MN) said it believes it has adequate resources to maintain operations through fiscal 1999 and beyond. The quarterly loss of $1M raised the usual questions to which APA grinned through its teeth that it has a backlog in research contracts as it moves forward in the 1999 fiscal year and was accepting orders for its new South Dakota manufacturing line. The stock price has held a reasonably constant range. APA has had about $9M of SBIR from DOD over the last decade. [Dow Jones, Jun 24]
MD to SD. (Mar 27)APA Optics (Blaine, MN) induced a key engineer of newly public Ciena (Savage, MD) to emigrate to Aberdeen SD as VP of APA's Aberdeen Products Division. Could be pretty isolated in a prairie blizzard as British educated Jim Pooladdej will find as many Brits did in their 19th century cattle investments. APA is still struggling at break-even after a decade of SBIR. APA also reported that its technical leader for that SBIR decade, Dr Asif Khan is leaving for an academic post in South Carolina. Readers can infer what they will on why the technical leader of a company about to break into profitability would decamp for a university.
APA Enjoys Government (Feb 18) APA Optics continues to enjoy a substantial backlog of uncompleted government contracts. Says CEO Anil Jain about losing $40K for the quarter in Blaine, MN.
APA'sWDM Line The new line of optical communications products are "outgrowths of the company's pioneering efforts in single laser WDM technology". The announcement by APA Optics (Blaine, MN) of its new WDM optical modulator line never mentioned the millions poured in by SBIR. APA, like dozens of other photonics hopefuls banks on the growth of the WDM market from $100M today to $12.1B by 2005 (as if anyone could see in three significant figures a decade ahead). Now APA has its chance to show profits instead of perennial zero profits that typify R&D houses. The government awaits the news. APA Optics Modest Loss Final development work on the South Dakota factory dropped APA Optics (Blaine, MN) into the red from the black it would have seen had it just plodded along on government-funded research, says its quarterly report. It lost just $63K on revenues of $540K. APA says its new optoelectronic product will have "wide application in the giant fiber optic communications industry". Those government agencies who poured millions of SBIR money into APA, and who care about commercial success, hope for a South Dakota miracle. Meanwhile the market is hopefully evaluating APA stock at about 20 times revenues. (Grammarians note adverbial use of "hopefully", the only use fully approved by Miss Grigsby - everyone's eighth grade English teacher.)
A Different Story Another opto-electronics company has a different history. APA Optics (Blaine,MN) reported another small yearly loss blamed in the fourth quarter "on the result of the one government contract", says the Business Wire story. If ever a company knew how handle a government contract, it should be APA Optics with its nearly $7M in SBIR money over the past decade. That's probably half the company's revenues over the decade. And what's the government's ROI on the $7M? Wait though; maybe, just maybe, some return will show up soon. APA Optics has made a deal with the South Dakota for a $5.5M assistance to match APA's investment of $2M for manufacturing optical modulators for Wavelength Division Multiplexing. What and when will be South Dakota's return?
Apellis Pharmaceuticals (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) a global biopharmaceutical company pioneering targeted C3 therapies, today announced that it had entered into subscription agreements with a number of institutional investors for a private placement of $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of 3.500% convertible senior notes due 2026 [company press release, May 7, 20]
Apellis Pharmaceuticals (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) announced positive results from the Phase 3 PEGASUS study evaluating pegcetacoplan (APL-2) in adults with paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH). also announced that it has commenced an underwritten public offering of 7,000,000 shares of its common stock. [company press releases, Jan 7, 20] works better than a blockbuster Alexion Pharmaceuticals medicine that is currently the standard of care. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy,com, Jan 7, 19]
Apellis Pharma up 21% [Mar 1, 19]
Apellis Pharma up 18% [Dec 3, 18]
Apellis Pharma down 17% [Oct 18, 18]
Apellis Pharma down 12% [May 21, 18]
Apellis Pharma down 17% [Apr 17, 18] announced that it has commenced an underwritten public offering of common stock [company press release, Apr 16, 18]
Apellis Pharma up 12% [Apr 16, 18]
Apellis Pharma up 11% [Apr 10, 18]
Apellis Pharma up 10% [Apr 4, 18]
Apellis Pharma up 10% [Jan 30,18]
Apellis Pharmaceuticals (Crestwood, KY; no SBIR, founded 2009), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapeutic compounds to treat disease through the inhibition of the complement system, announced the pricing of its [IPO] for total gross proceeds of approximately $150 million [company press release, Nov 8, 17]
Aperion Biologics (San Antonio, TX; no SBIR) is taking another step toward American commercialization of its flagship medical device. ... is seeking to carve out its niche in a $2 billion human tissue products and technology market, has filed a Regulation A public offering to raise $20 million ... has developed and patented a technique to make animal-tissues usable for human applications without causing rejection. [W. Scott Bailey, San Antonio Business Journal, Sep 24, 15]
Aperion Biologics (San Antonio, TX; one SBIR as Crosscart (San Francisco, CA) is only weeks away from rolling out its initial product. ... also launched a new $10 million funding round to support its growth plans ... seeking to carve out its niche in a $2 billion human tissue products and technology market. In April, the company received the CE Mark for its Z-Lig ligament reconstruction device, which is based on a bone tendon construct. The regulatory approval clears the path for European commercialization. [W. Scott Bailey, San Antonio Business Journal, Dec 4, 14]
Aperion Biologics (San Antonio, TX; no SBIR) medical device company has finally garnered approval to sell its lead product in the European Union and other countries that accept the CE Mark..... seeks to address needs for alternatives for human tissue grafts in the sports medicine market. The company has a patented process for sterilizing and “humanizing” animal tissues so they can be used as graft material in humans without the fear of rejection. [Mike Thomas,San Antonio Business Journal, Apr 22, 14]
Apexigen (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR) Apexigen revved up its pipeline with a $73 million venture round that allowed it to move its lead immuno-oncology candidate into clinical trials. Now, it’s rolling out early data from that research that are turning heads at the annual American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) meeting in Atlanta. [Arlene Weintraub, Fierce Biotech, Apr 1, 19]
biotech Apexigen (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR, founded 2010) announced the successful completion of its Series B and Series C financings in which it raised a total of $73 million. [company press release, Aug 8, 18] advancing a pipeline of novel product candidates with the potential to address life-threatening and difficult to treat diseases [with] total funding $93M [crunchbase.com]
Epitomics (Burlingame, CA; $1.2M SBIR) is spinning out an antibody development company aimed at cancer and immuno-disorder treatments for humans and animals.... the new company, Apexigen, was split off to Epitomics shareholders. ... Epitomics for years has sold to drug developers humanized rabbit monoclonal antibodies, which it calls RabMAbs, as a backup system to antibodies derived from mice. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Aug 13, 10]
(Woburn, MA;$6.7M SBIR) is due $2.4 million over two years to create a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, courtesy of a Phase 2 SBIR.... focuses on developing treatments for some cancers, infectious diseases and central nervous system disorders. It also works on a platform for drug development, nanotechnology drug delivery and pathogenic drug safety. [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Jan 24, 12]
Aperiomics (Sterling, VA; $900K SBIR) sold its technology, which pinpoints causes of unsuccessfully diagnosed infections, to industry giant Labcorp in late 2021. [DCInno, Feb 15, 2022]
Aperiomics (Sterling, VA). has teamed up with biotech Antibody Biopharm (Gaithersburg, MD) to offer a rapid antibody test for Covid-19. The Loudoun County diagnostics startup has used its existing testing platform — the same tech involved in its own testing kits — in its Northern Virginia lab to validate and, now, begin offering the test to other laboratories that meet Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments, or CLIA, requirements. But the partners still need a nod from the FDA to administer the test as a point-of-care diagnostic given by doctors and other health care providers, which Aperiomics said it expects within two months. [DCInno, May 21, 20]
biotech Aperiomics (Sterling, VA; $900K SBIR) announced it is offering test kits for the novel coronavirus. Aperiomics, which specializes in test kits for pathogens that are historically hard to diagnose, says its coronavirus tests are now available nationwide and that it is able to process 1K tests per week. The company promises results within 48 to 72 hours of receiving a sample back. [Brent Wistrom, DCInno, Mar 20, 20]
Aperiomics A; SBIR) announced the close of its Series A funding round of $1.8M, taking long strides toward detecting under-diagnosed infections. The startup’s testing kits use genomic sequencing and machine learning to identify pathogens that generally are difficult to diagnose. Doctors send a sample to Aperiomics, which extracts genetic information, identifies the bacteria or virus within the sample and sends back a report. [Kieran McQuilkin, DCInno, Aug 22, 19]
Apic Bio (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) which is developing cures for patients with genetic diseases, raised $12.1M in equity in a $46.1M funding round, per an SEC filing. [Rowan Walrath, BostInno, Nov 12, 20]
Apic Bio (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR, founded 2017) receiving $40 million in Series A financing. startup is working on gene therapies for a genetic form of ALS, and a rare lung and liver disease called Alpha-1. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Jan 7, 19] prior funding $11M [crunchbase.com]
The [FDA] has given Apieron (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR) the OK to sell its Insight eNO system for helping detect airway inflammation, a key symptom of asthma, .... The private, venture-financed company formed in 2001, said the device is designed to be easily used in doctors' offices and to provide results in less than a minute. When a patient breathes into the gadget, a sensor can detect traces of nitric oxide molecules, which are known to be indicators of respiratory inflammation. [San Jose Mercury News, Mar 17]
Apnex Medical (Roseville, MN; no SBIR), a med-tech startup that had raised more than $50 million in venture capital, has shut down after early results of a clinical trial proved disappointing. .... was developing an implantable device for treating obstructive sleep apnea. [Katherine Grayson, Minneapolis / St Paul Business Journal, Aug 2, 13]
Apnex Medical (Roseville, MN; no SBIR) has closed on $10 million in venture capital, which it will use to fund an ongoing clinical study of its device for treating sleep apnea. ..... developed an implantable medical device, called the Hypoglossal Nerve Stimulation System, that treats obstructive sleep apnea. The condition causes patients to periodically stop breathing during sleep. [Katherine Grayson, Minneapolis / St Paul Business Journal, Sep 28, 12]
Apnex Medical(St Paul, MN; no SBIR) said it received [FDA] approval to test its device on 132 patients with a common sleep disorder that causes breathing difficulty. ... founded in 2006. It has 25 employees. [Wendy Lee, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Aug 2, 11]
Medical device company ApniCure (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) raised $15.8 million toward a $17.4 million round to further a sleep apnea treatment that doesn’t require a mask. [Gina Hall, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Mar 21, 16] a proprietary platform technology called Oral Pressure Therapy (OPT) for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and other sleep related disorders. ApniCure has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its Winx® Sleep Therapy System in the United States for home-use treatment of OSA. - See more at: http://apnicure.com/about-apnicure/#sthash.C0dH89XV.dpuf [company website]
ApoCell (Houston, TX; no SBIR) biotechnology company has expanded into Europe to capitalize on opportunities for new clients. .... established offices and laboratories in Leipzig, Germany. The bio-marker detection and analysis company has formed a collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology, a nonprofit German research institute, to further develop ApoCell’s proprietary circulating tumor cell isolation technology — ApoStream. .... founded in 2004 [Emily Wilkinson, Houston Business Journal, Nov 13, 13]
Apogen Biotechnologies (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) topped off its Series A round with $4 million, led by the venture arm of drug maker Merck KGaA. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Aug 24, 18]
Seattle startup
creator
Accelerator launched its latest new company, ApoGen Biotechnologies, a startup that plans to develop
cancer
drugs that can overcome the resistance tumors develop to other
treatments. ApoGen has raised a $7 million Series A to get going.
Investors participating in the financing include AbbVie
Ventures,
Alexandria Venture Investments, ARCH
Venture Partners, Eli Lilly, Johnson
& Johnson
Innovation,
Watson Fund, L.P.,
WRF Capital, and WuXi
PharmaTech.
[Frank Vinluan,
xconomy.com, Dec 12, 16]
ApolloDiamondCVD diamond is news again. After a decade from the mid 1980s of finding it too expensive for real world applications, Apollo Diamond (17-year old company near Boston) attracted a Business Week story [Feb 12] with a picture of CEO Bryant Linares (son of Bob Linares, whose face appears on the website, of Linares Management that got some SBIR for it back then).
Medical device maker Apollo Endosurgery (Austin, TX; no SBIR) reported raising $60.7 million ... which employed 35 local workers in 2012, develops therapeutic endoscopy devices designed to enable minimally invasive and scarless surgical procedures. .... incubated by PTV Sciences and initially funded through a seed grant from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in 2006. ... Earlier this month, Apollo Endosurgery completed the $110 million acquisition of the obesity intervention division of Allergan Inc., the developer of a weight- loss product called the LapBand [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Dec 17, 13]
Apollo Endosurgery (no SBIR) a leading developer of medical devices and endoscopic surgical procedures, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the obesity intervention division of Allergan, for up to $110 million [company press release Oct 29, 13] .. In 2006, Apollo Endosurgery,was founded to commercialize the Group’s inventions and innovations in the areas of NOTES (Translumenal Surgery) and Therapeutic Endoscopy (Intralumenal Surgery). [company website]
Medical device maker Apollo Endosurgery (Austin, TX; no SBIR) has received $5 million of a planned $11.6 million financing.[Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Jul 3, 13]
Apollo Endosurgery (Austin, TX; no SBIR) raised $47.6 million for the commercial launch of its flexible surgical tools.Founded in 2006, Apollo develops tools for minimally invasive, scarless surgical procedures performed through the body's natural orifices. Apollo makes surgical devices that fit onto standard flexible endoscopes, allowing surgeons to cut and sew tissue from inside the gastrointestinal tract, instead of having to cut through the skin to access a surgery site. [Lori Hawkins, Austin American Statesman, Feb 6, 12]
Apollomics (previously CBT Pharmaceuticals, Foster City, CA and China), an innovative biopharmaceutical company committed to the discovery and development of oncology combination therapies, announced that it has raised $100 million in a Series B financing., Foster City and China), an innovative biopharmaceutical company committed to the discovery and development of oncology combination therapies, announced that it has raised $100 million in a Series B financing. [company press release, Jan 14, 19]
Applied Biomolecular Technologies (Athens, OH; no SBIR, founded 2006) is owned by three former Battelle biotech researchers and an entrepreneur pursuing a private path to getting research out of academic laboratories and into the marketplace. ... One of their newest subsidiaries, Lattice Biotech LLC (no SBIR), is trying to raise $5 million to advance technology it licensed from Nationwide Children’s Hospital to make antibodies that weaken protective films around infectious bacterial colonies. But that’s just one of a half-dozen biotech ventures it’s developing ... [also own] Burr Oak Therapeutics LLC (no SBIR), whose product is under wraps for now. In February 2014 it acquired and expanded an Athens company it renamed Binding Protein Technologies LLC (formerly Athens Research ($1M SBIR). ... Last month Applied Bio Ventures invested in but did not acquire a fellow commercialization engine, Brainstage (Carnegie, PA; no SBIR), which itself has six biotech companies in its portfolio. [Carrie Ghose, Columbus Business First, Apr 1, 15]
Life Technologies up 8% as Thermo Fisher agreed to buy diagnostics equipment maker Life Technologies in a $13.6 billion deal that will significantly expand Thermo Fisher and establish it as a major force in the emerging personalized medicine market. [Robert Weisman, Boston Globe, Apr 15, 13] formed in 2008 by the merger of Invitrogen ($4M SBIR) and Applied Biosystems (no SBIR); acquired AcroMetrix (one SBIR) in 2010; acquired Ion Torrent (no SBIR) in 2010; won a $45 million Army contract in 2012.
L3 Technologies announced it acquired Applied Defense Solutions (Columbia, MD; $6.8M SBIR), a leading aerospace engineering, software development and space situational awareness company ... for approximately $50 million. [L3 press release, Jul 2, 18]
Applied DNA Sciences up 40% [Aug 4, 2022]
Applied DNA Sciences (Stony Brook NY; $1.2M SBIR) up 46% [Aug 2, 2022] announced that its wholly-owned clinical laboratory subsidiary, Applied DNA Clinical Labs, LLC (“ADCL”), has initiated analytical validation of a Company-developed, PCR-based monkeypox virus test that is specific for the genetic signature of the monkeypox virus. [company press release, Aug 3, 2022]
Applied DNA Sciences up 23% [Jan 15, 21]
Applied DNA Sciences down 24% [Jan 11, 21]
Applied DNA Sciences (Stony Brook, NY; $1.1M SBIR) up 105% [Jan 8, 21] a leader in Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-based DNA manufacturing, announced that [FDA] published a safety communication (the "Communication") that identifies the Company's Linea(TM) COVID-19 Assay Kit (the "Assay Kit") as one of only two tests marketed under the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) that are potentially able to identify certain SARS-CoV-2 mutations, including a mutation found in the U.K. variant of SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.1.7). [company press release, Jan 8, 21]
Applied DNASciences (Stony Brook, NY; $1M SBIR) down 72% [Nov 13, 19] Announced Pricing of Upsized $12.0 Million Underwritten Public Offering [company press release [Nov 13, 19]
Applied DNA Sciences (Stony Brook, NY; $1M SBIR) up 332% [Nov 12, 19] a leader in large-scale Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)-based DNA manufacturing, announced the successful DNA tagging of leather at one of the world's largest tanneries based in Asia. The work follows a successful research project undertaken within the UK that demonstrated SigNature(R) DNA could be successfully used to trace the hide of an animal from a farm to the product in a store. [company press release, Nov 11, 19]
Retinal-disease-focused Applied Genetic Technologies ($1,2M SBIR) has opted for a $23.5 million sale to investment fund Syncona. [James Waldron, Fierce Biotech, Oct 24, 2022]
Applied Genetic Technologies up 31% [Feb 16, 21] announced financial results for the quarter
Applied Genetic Tech down 19% [Feb 6, 20] announced pricing a $32M stock offering
Applied Genetic Tech down 15% [Jan 23, 20]
Applied Genetic Tech down 25% [Jan 22, 20]
Applied Genetic Tech (Alachua FL; $1M SBIR, funded 1999) up 123% [Jan 9, 20] reported positive interim six-month data from its ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical program in X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (XLRP). The results show that patients treated centrally with its product candidate demonstrated durable improvement in visual function six months after dosing. [company press release, Jan 9, 20] total funding $38M [crunchbase.com]
Applied Genetic Tech up 24% [Dec 24, 29]
Applied Genetic Technologies up 17% [Sep 6, 19]
Applied Genetic Tech down 47% [Dec 13, 18] reported topline interim six-month data from its Phase 1/2 clinical trial of rAAV2tYF-CB-hRS1, an investigational AAV-based gene therapy delivered via intravitreal injection for X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS) due to mutations in the RS1 gene. Results [showed] no signs of clinical activity observed at six-months. .... also announced that the company will regain full rights to the XLRS and X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (XLRP) programs and the three other partnered discovery programs following Biogen's termination of the collaboration agreement [comapny press release, Dec 12, 18]
Applied Genetic Tech up 13% [Sep 27, 18]
Applied Genetic Tech up 26% [Sep 25, 18]
Applied Genetic Tech up 10% [Jul 3, 18]
Applied Genetic Technologies up 10% [Apr 13, 18]
Applied Genetic Tech down 18% [Sep 13,17]
Applied Genetic Tech up 11% [Aug 4, 17]
Applied Genetics Tech down 10% [Apr 21, 17]
Applied Genetic Tech up 10% [Feb 27,17]
Applied Genetic Technology up 11% [Feb 16,17]
Applied Genetic Technologies up 30% [Nov 9, 16] recorded net income of $3.6 million, compared to a net loss of $9.1 million in the same period of 2015. [company press release, Nov 8, 16]
Applied Genetic Tech down 32% [Sep 13, 16] after a disappointing update of a clinical trial prompted an analyst to swing to a bearish stance from a bullish one. The biotechnology company said that patient enrollment for an early-stage trial for its treatment of retinoshisis--the separation of the retina into two layers--has been slower than planned. [MarketWatch]
Applied Genetic Tech up 12% [Apr 4, 16]
Applied Genetic Tech down 11% [Sep 11, 15]
Applied Genetic Tech down 10% [Sep 9, 15]
Applied Genetic Techologies up 17% [Jul 2, 15]
Applied Genetic Tech down 16% [May 4,15]
Applied Genetics Tech up 10% [Feb 5, 15]
Applied Genetic Tech up 21% [Nov 7, 14] announced the publication of data that further validate the safety of the company's proprietary method for manufacturing adeno-associated viral (AAV) vectors. ... was developing effective methods for removing any helper virus that could replicate or cause infection from the final AAV product [Wall Street Journal, Nov 7, 14]
Applied Genetic Tech up 10% [Aug 14, 14]
Applied Genetic Tech up 19% [Aug 11, 14]
Applied Genetics Tech up 15% [Jul 25, 14]
Applied Genetic Technologies down 11% [Jun 27, 14]
Applied Genetics Tech up 11% [Jun 9, 14]
Applied Genetics Technologies (Alachua, FL; $7M SBIR) up 10% [Jun 5, 14]
Applied Genetics Technologies (Alachua, FL; $7M SBIR) up 44% [Jun 2, 14]
Applied Genetic Technologies (Alachua FL; one SBIR) down 12% [Apr 7, 14]
Applied Genetic Technology (Alachua, FL; $500K SBIR) up 23% [Mar 27, 14]
The U.S. Air Force has tentatively selected over 500 companies for contracts worth $550M combined as part of an initiative launched with its AFWERX innovation arm and [SBIR]. The service said the AFVentures effort includes a strategic financing initiative where the firms will get a total of over $200M in government funding as well as $350M in private funds. [Brenda Marie Rivers, govconwire, Mar 16, 20] almost half going to the following 21 companies: Aerial Applications, Analytical Space ($3M prior SBIR), Anduril (one prior SBIR) , Applied Minds ($8M prior SBIR), Elroy Air, Sentient ($3.2M prior SBIR) , Icon, Enview ($700K prior SBIR), Edgybees ($700K prior SBIR) , Falkonry (one prior SBIR), Swarm Technologies ($1M prior SBIR) , Orbital Insight (one prior SBIR), Orbital Sidekick ($800K prior SBIR), Virtualitics (one prior SBIR) , Wickr (one prior SBIR), Tectus Corp (one prior SBIR), Valulytics, Shift.org, Pison ($1M prior SBIR), Revacomm. One other company hasn’t been named yet. These “big bet” companies are slated to receive four-year, fixed-price contracts worth a combined $550+ million through AFVentures’ Strategic Financing (STRATFI) program. This amount includes $100+ million in SBIR funds, $100+ million in Air Force funding and $350+ million in private investment. Roper said he believes future rounds of funding will be bigger. [AF Press release , Mar 13, 20]
Inflammatory disease biotech Applied Molecular Transport [South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) aims for $100M IPO to bring its lead program, an oral IL-10 agonist, into phase 2 studies. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, May 19, 20] total funding $73M [crunchbase.com]
Applied Nanotech Holdings (Austin, TX; no SBIR) got an $175K NIH SBIR to conduct tests and research on a technology that can detect the early presence of pressure ulcers, or bed sores, in bed-ridden patients. .... has worked with the University of California Davis for nearly four years. [Chad Swiatecki, Austin Business Journal, Oct 22, 13]
Applied Nanotech (Austin, TX; $7.8M SBIR) received a $1.6 million federal clean technology grant to help build a local manufacturing facility. ... one of 33 companies across the nation to receive grants, which are administered by [DOE] as part of the Small Business Phase III Xlerator program. ... funded in part by the $787 billion federal stimulus [Austin American Statesman, Sep 16, 10] Those Texans sure hate the federal deficit and regulation, but will take the federal money.
for stories after Dec 20, 2015 see Applied NanoWorks (Malta, NY; no SBIR) has changed its name to Auterra . ... second move in less than three years. The company moved to the East Campus in 2006 after outgrowing space at the Watervliet Innovation Center, located in the Watervliet Arsenal. That move more than quadrupled its space. The firm, which is still in the development stages, has 10 employees. [Pam Allen, The Business Review (Albany), Apr 16]
Applied Optoelectronicsup 11% [Apr 13, 17]
Dayton celebrates NASA Phase II SBIR awards: Spectral Energies (Dayton, OH; $8M SBIR) two awards; Cornerstone Research Group (Beavercreek OH; $35M SBIR) two awards; Nu Waves (Middletown, OH; no SBIR); Applied Optimization (Dayton, OH; $4M SBIR); Mound Laser & Photonics Center (Miamisburg, OH; $4.6M SBIR). [Joe Cogliano, Dayton Business Journal, Apr 20, 15] So NASA handed $5M to a group of firms that have already had $50M of the nursery money. Dayton and the Dayton CODEL love it, but the American economy will see no growth spurt.
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugar Land, TX; $5M SBIR) up 24% [Dec 1, 2023] no press release
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugar Land, TX; $4.3M SBIR) down 20% (Sep 13, 2023]
Applied Optoelectronics ($200K SBIR) up 21% [Aug 21, 2023]
Applied Optoelectronics ($200K SBIR) down 22% [Jul 27, 2023]
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugarland, TX; $5.5M SBIR) down 20% [Jun 21, 2023]
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugar Land, TX; $54M SBIR) down 32% [Nov 5, 21] reported third quarter finncial resuls
Applied Optoelectronics down 17% [Feb 26, 21]
Applied Optoelectronics up 16% [Jul 21, 20]
Biomerica down 24% [Jul 21, 20]
Applied Optoelectronics down 17% [Feb 28, 19]
Applied Optoelecronics down 13% [Sep 28, 18]
Applied Optoelectroincs down 10% [Sep 27, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics down 11% [Sep 4, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics up 10% [Aug 8, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics up 15% [May 31, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics up 14% [May 30, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics up 12% [Apr 19, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics up 14% [Apr 11, 18]
Applied Optoelectronics down 20% [Feb 22, 18] announced lower quarterly revenue
Applied Optoelectronics up 15% [Nov 8, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics down 20% [Oct 13, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics up 14% [Sep 18, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics down 34% [Aug 4, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics down 12% [Jun 9,17]
Applied Optoelectronics up 12% [May 22, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics up 20% [May 5, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics down 13% [Apr 5, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics up 23% [Feb 24,17] after reporting quarterly results
Applied Optoelectronics up 31% [Jan 12, 17] announced certain preliminary unaudited financial results for its fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. "We delivered a strong fourth quarter with top and bottom-line results expected to exceed our guidance," said [CEO] Dr. Thompson Lin. [company press release, Jan 11, 17]
Applied Optoelectronics up 14% [Sep 7,16]
Applied Optoelectronics up 16% [Aug 25, 16]
Applied Optoelectronics up 15% [Aug 5, 16]
Applied Optoelectronics down 17% [May 10, 16] first quarter revenue was up 67% year-over-year driven primarily by continued demand for our market-leading datacenter products. Our datacenter segment generated its fourth consecutive record quarter, with $39 million in revenue. Unfortunately, during the quarter we experienced some operational challenges in our China factory that impacted our gross margin, and we significantly ramped our R&D spend to accelerate cost-reduction efforts and address these challenges. [company press release, May 9, 16]
Applied Optoelectronics down 27% [Apr 19, 16] after announcing quarterly results
Applied Optoelectronics down 10% [Nov 4, 15]
Applied Optoelectroincs up 10% [Oct 15,15]
Applied Optoelectronics up 11% [Sep 30, 15]
Applied Optoelectronics up 10% [Aug 6, 15]
Applied Optoelecronics up 18% [Jul 13,15]
Applied Optoelectronics up 15% [May 26,15]
Applied Optoelectronics up 12% [Feb 26, 15]
Applied Optoelectrronics down 25% [Nov 11, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugar Land TX; $5M SBIR) up 10% [Oct 14, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics fiber-optic networking products manufacturer revealed that it is rapidly amping up its manufacturing capacity in Houston and Taiwan. Growing demand for Applied Optoelectronics’ new data center product line, which it first introduced at the end of 2013, is the main reason for the expansion, explained Willis Chen, a company spokesman. [Molly Ryan, Houston Business Journal, Feb 14, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics up 23% [Feb 28, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics up 15% [Feb 21, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics up 20% [Feb 20, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics up 10% [Feb 19, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics (SugarLand, TX; $5.3M SBIR) up 11% [Feb 14, 14]
Applied Optoelectronics up 10% [Dec 6, 13]
Applied Optoelectronics (SugarLand TX; $5.2M SBIR) up 10% [Ot 29, 13]
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugarland, TX; $5.2M SBIR) up 17% [Oct 21, 13] on brokerage buy recommendation
Applied Optoelectronics (Sugar Land, TX; $5M SBIR) fiber-optics communications products company, set the terms of its IPO ... expects to net $44M .... most of its employees and manufacturing operations are located overseas in China and Taiwan. Only 194 of its 927 employees are based in the U.S. [Molly Ryan, Houston Business Journal, Sep 11, 13] Government subsidy helped create more jobs in Asia than the US.
More VCSEL Investment (Aug 14) Even with the big telecoms swimming in billions of red ink, another tiny VCSEL firm has attracted a second round of investment. Applied Optoelectronics (Sugarland, TX (home of right-wing fire-breather Tom DeLay)) got $10M of private equity financing, on top of a previous $7M round, both slugs from a Dallas area VC firm. AOI calls itself a vertically integrated optoelectronics company that designs, grows, processes and packages advanced semiconductor optoelectronic components, including lasers and photodetectors, primarily for the biosensing and telecommunications markets. Having started life as a NASA spin-off in 1997 at NASA's Space Commercialization Center, it has since built and moved to a 24,000 sq.ft semiconductor manufacturing facility. It has had at least $2.7M of SBIR from DOD (including a Phase 2 from BMDO) plus three Phase 1s from NASA last year.
scientist Bill Nunnally described an EMP suitcase to U.S. Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, and Michael McCaul, R-Austin. The congressmen visited Applied Physical Electronics (Spicewood, TX; $5.5M SBIR) to learn about the usefulness of the company's technology in improving border security. For example, the EMP gear can be used to disable the electrical system in a smuggler's vehicle. [Tim Eaton, Austin American Statesman, Jun 1, 10]
Applied Physical Sciences landed $8.4 million from the U.S. Navy for research and development on stealth technology, ... develop advanced analytical, numerical and experimental methods used in stealth technologies ... founded in 2002 and provides specialized research and engineering services to the Navy [Brendan Lynch, Mass High Tech, Dec 23, 09] SBIR made the government smarter.
RareCyte (Seattle, WA; no SBIR, founded 2011, 30 employees) Completes $30M Private Financing [to] advance its commercial sales efforts and build companion diagnostics (CDx) programs with strategic partners. [company press release, Aug 29, 17] RareCyte was spun out of Applied Precision (no SBIR) in 2011, shortly after General Electric acquired API. [Clare McGrane, geekwire.com, Aug 29, 17]
Diagnostics developer Applied Proteomics (La Jolla, CA; no SBIR) said it has raised $28 million in VC. .... partly to commercialize its blood test for warning signs of colorectal cancer. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiwego.com, Aug 19, 13]
Five years ago, a group of Duke University scientists developed a pioneering gigapixel camera to provide long-range surveillance for the U.S. Navy through a sponsorship from the Pentagon. The technology, never picked up by the U.S. government, is now being used by Chinese police to identify people from nearly a football field away, after lead Duke researcher David Brady moved to China in 2016 to kick-start his business Aqueti (spinoff of Applied Quantum Technologies ($2M SBIR), Durham, NC; no SBIR). .... The Treasury Department is proposing to block Chinese firms from acquiring advanced U.S. technology, using laws designed to deal with national-security emergencies ... Mr. Brady, who remains Aqueti’s biggest shareholder, said he has no qualms about aiding China’s surveillance system, which critics claim leads to humans-rights abuses. [Wenxin Fan, Wall Street Journal, Jun 11, 18]
Solar cell developer Applied Quantum Technology (Santa Clara, CA; no SBIR) said it raised $10 million in venture funding. ... focuses on copper-indium-gallium-diselenide thin-film cells. [Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal, Apr 7, 10]
Applied Research Associates (Albuquerque, NM; $21M SBIR) won a potential 10-year, $582 million contract to provide operational support to the Defense Threat Reduction Agency’s research and development directorate [Naomi Cooper, govconwire.com, August 8, 2022]
Applied Research Associates (Albuquerque, NM; $25M SBIR) won a potential 10-year, $240M contract to provide operational support tools to aid the Defense Threat Reduction Agency in countering risks from weapons of mass destruction. The cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract will include research, development, decision support analysis and technical reachback operational support, the [DOD]said. Work will take place at multiple agency-run facilities within Fort Belvoir in Virginia. [Nichols Martin, GovConWire, Aug 20, 19] If SBIR's advocates wanted SBIR to protect local jobs, do they now applaud a company's big contract in Virginia? Will a lot of smart New Mexicans abandon the state for Virginia?
Applied Research Associates (Albuquerque, NM; about $20M SBIR) was one of five entities who won spots on a potential six-year, $100M other transaction agreement to develop expeditionary warfare technology protoypes for the Naval Sea Systems Command. [Brenda Marie Rivers, GovConWire, Jun 26, 19]
A new $131 million contract that Applied Research Associates (Albuquerque, NM; $8M SBIR) won will result in a few more jobs here. Bryan Milligan, ARA's southwest division manager, said the new contract will mean up to 30 new employees for the division in some parts of the country. The new contract is to develop unmanned, underwater vehicles for [US Navy]. ... The contract is a "Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity" contract, Milligan said, which means the company will bid on additional components which could mean that, in total, the value could reach $221.6 million. [Dan Mayfield Reporter, Albuquerque Business First, Jul 9, 15]
[DOD's DTRA] selected Applied Research Associates ($3.5M SBIR in various places, last award 2001) as one of seven awardees for the 10-year, $4B, Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction Research and Technology Development (CWMD) Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract. (an open shopping account) ..... continues ARA’s 35 year commitment to providing innovative solutions and support to DTRA. [company website, Dec 3, 13]
Applied Research Associates< (Albuquerque, NM; $8M SBIR) sold its wholly-owned subsidiary, Geo-Marine Inc., to Versar .... acquired Geo-Marine, a global project management firm, in 2009. The two companies, however, will maintain a subcontracting and teaming relationship. .... a 34-year-old employee-owned research and engineering firm [Dan Mayfield, Albuquerque Business First, Sep 5, 13]
Applied Research Associates (Albuquerque, NM; $12M SBIR) is a homegrown engineering behemoth on track to reach $1 billion in revenue by 2020. Since forming in 1979, the company has been in stealth mode, given that nearly two-thirds of its work is with the [DOD]. ... employs nearly 1,500 in the U.S. and Canada [Kevin Robinson-Avila, Albuquerque Business Journal, Dec 9, 10]
MKS Instruments which claims to be the number one supplier of gas process control instruments said it would acquire Applied Science and Technology(Wilmington, MA) the number one supplier of reactive gas solutions. Other MKS acquisitions this year have included Compact Instruments, Telvac, Spectra International, and DIP. Agreement: Founded in 1987 and SBIR-involved shortly afterwards, ASTeX has been public since 1993, coming out about the same time as ATMI whose history sounds like MKS's. The value of the transaction is about $300M in MKS stock at late September prices (half that now). ASTeX grew despite several SBIRs 1991-1997 in diamond films which wrecked several other companies over the SBIR years. Only one small Phase 2 (all NSF ever gave then anyway) in 1992.
defense titan Raytheon plans to spend $490 million in cash to purchase signal and communications technology companyApplied Signal Technology (Sunnyvale, CA; $1M SBIR) [Mass High Tech, Dec 20, 10]
Applied Signal Tech up 13% [Oct 22, 10]
Applied Signal Technology (Sunnyvale, CA; $1M SBIR) which makes intelligence and reconnaissance products, up 10% [Wall Street Journal, Sep 2, 10] The company with 790 employees, makes a healthy profit, pays a good dividend, is buying back stack recently. Why was DOD's Special Operations Command putting SBIR money into such a company? Because DOD never heard of "market failure" and has no recognizable standards for what SBIR is for.
Applied Spectra (West Sacramento, CA; $6M SBIR) awarded $1.3 million [more] SBIR to develop uses for its laser ablation technology, which can be used for chemical analysis while affecting only a tiny bit of material. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Inno, December 23, 2021]
engineering firm Applied Technology Associates (Albuquerque,NM; lots of SBIR) now part of a larger company, continues to win large government contracts. On Dec. 3, the company won a $29 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with the U.S. Air Force. The contract provides for onboard spacecraft sensing, and autonomous operations capabilities for tactical and strategic missions, according to the Department of Defense. [Collin Krabbe, Albuquerque Business First, Dec 14, 2020]
Applied Technology Associates (Albuquerque, NM; $39M SBIR) wins $100M in Air Force contracts [Collin Krabbe, Albuquerque Business First,Oct 9, 20] Well, as long as it is paid for with R&D funds, the agency can fund any SBIR-qualified firm as much as it wants as often as it wants. And as long as the SBIR firms get the total annual mandated amounts, Congress will not intevene after three decades.
Applied Therapeutics (New York, NY; no SBIR), is aiming to raise $86 million [IPO] to bankroll a trio of assets through the clinic, advance three drugs that target aldose reductase, an enzyme that converts glucose into sorbitol, a sugar alcohol involved in multiple diseases including complications of diabetes. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Apr 15, 19]
AppThwack (Portland, OR; founded 2012) startup raised money and formed a partnership with In-Q-Tel, a nonprofit venture capital firm backed by an array of U.S. government intelligence agencies, including the CIA. ..... provides a lab of mobile devices for developers to remotely test apps on to minimize software bugs. It counts Intel, Symantec and Mozilla among its enterprise clients. [Mason Walker, Portland Buusiness Journal, Sep 17, 13]
Aprea Therapeutics (Boston, MA and Sweden; no SBIR) up 32% [Oct 3, 19] focused on developing and commercializing novel cancer therapeutics that reactivate mutant tumor suppressor protein, p53, today announced the pricing of its [IPO] to raise $85M [company press release, Oct 3, 19]
Aprea Therapeutics (Boston, MA and Sweden; no SBIR) biotech focused on cancer therapies, filed to raise $86M in an IPO. It has yet to post a revenue and posted losses of $15.5M in 2018 [Rowan Walrath, BostonInno, Sep, 9, 19]
Aprecia Pharmaceuticals (Langhorne, PA; no SBIR, founded 2003) a commercial stage pharmaceutical company developing, manufacturing and marketing fast melt formulations of high dose pharmaceuticals, today announced that it has entered into an up to $30 million debt financing agreement with Hercules Capital, ... manufactures its products using its proprietary ZipDose ® technology platform, that utilizes three dimensional printing (3DP) to formulate fast melt pharmaceutical products, which incorporates significantly higher amounts of active pharmaceutical ingredient than any other fast melt technology on the market. [company press release, Jul 5, 16] has already received $20 million under the debt financing agreement [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Jul 6, 16]
Aprecia Pharmaceuticals (Langhorne, PA; no SBIR) is seeking to raise a total of $52 million, according to[SEC] filing ... using three-dimensional technology to make drugs that are easier to swallow has raised $38.75 million through a debt sale ... raised $25.7 million in an equity financing in 2011 and $14.9 million in a debt sale in 2013. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Sep 1, 15]
[FDA] approved Aprecia Pharmaceuticals (Langhorne, PA; no SBIR, founded 2003) plan to create the first 3D-printed drug product. SPRITAM levetiracetam is manufactured by Aprecia and is used to help prevent seizures in children and adults with epilepsy. [Tatum Hunter, Cincinnati Business Courier, Aug 3, 15] Aprecia will be bringing new jobs to the City of Blue Ash [OH]thanks to the Ohio Jobs Creation Tax Credit.The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 55%, 8-year job creation tax this morning for Aprecia Pharmaceuticals which will bring 150 new jobs to Blue Ash. Aprecia is a pharmaceutical company built upon a new and innovative three - dimensional printing (3DP) technology platform Utilizing this cutting -edge technology , the company develops and manufacture s quick -dispersing pharmaceutical products on a commercial scale ... Aprecia plans to invest $25million [company press release, Feb 23, 15]
Aprecia Pharmaceuticals [Lasnghorne, PA; no SBIR) raised $14.9 million in a debt financing, according to [SEC]documents ... developing precision drug-delivery systems and products. Its ZipDose delivery system, in development for the past decade, provides for the rapid dispersion of a variety of therapeutic products. .... raised $25.7 million in an equity financing 2007. Among the company’s early investors is the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Dec 13, 13]
Aprecia Pharmaceuticals (Langhorne, PA; no SBIR) raised $4 million in a private stock sale this week, according to [SEC] documents ... focused on the development of precision drug-delivery systems and products, is seeking to raise a total of just under $8.6 million. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Nov 20, 12]
Apricus Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, 35 employees, $100M market cap) transformed from a biotechnology company that develops drugs into a pharmaceutical firm that also sells them by acquiring the U.S. subsidiary of Denmark’s Topotarget. [Gary Ribbins, signonsandiego, Dec 17, 11]
European officials granted a patent to Apricus Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) to its experimental nail fungus medicine MycoVa that will protect the therapy until 2024, the company said. [Keith Darce, signonsandiego, com, Mar 1, 11]
Aiming to maximize the potential of bovine colostrum to benefit global health, PanTheryx (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, founded 2007) is announcing two major acquisitions that make it the world’s premiere manufacturer of nutrient rich colostrum. In separate purchases, PanTheryx has acquired the two leading producers of colostrum and related nutritional products, APS BioGroup (Phoenix,AZ; no SBIR) and La Belle Associates (Bellingham, WA; no SBIR). In March of 2016, PanTheryx announced that it entered into a $53 million financing with Pegasus Capital Advisors. ... The terms of the acquisitions were not released. [company press release, Feb 14, 17]
Apse (St Louis, MO; one SBIR) raised $464K seed capital. [crunchbase.com, Jun 5, 17] developed technology that will allow the cost efficient production of RNA for broad acre topical RNAi uses in agriculture. [company website]
Apse (St. Louis, MO; no SBIR) startup that has developed technology to mass produce RNA (ribonucleic acid), has raised $667K, according to [SEC]documents ... headquartered in the BioGenerator inside the Center for Emerging Technologies in Midtown .... one of 33 startups to receive an investment from the Missouri Technology Corporation’s Missouri Innovation, Development and Entrepreneurship Advancement (IDEA) program in April, when it received $50,000. [Brian Feldt, St Louis Business Journal, Oct 29, 13]
NuMedii (Palo Alto, CA; no SBIR) startup looking to convert pages of drug safety data into faster drug-development times, lined up $3.5 million in a Series A [overscribed] round.... data-into-gold approach rolls a wide range of data — from public scientific journal data bases and other sources — into an algorithm to predict if a compound will translate into a drug. The company already has won converts, namely Aptalis Pharma (Alabama and Montreal; no SBIR)., which is trying to find new treatments for gastrointestinal disorders and cystic fibrosis. NuMedii and Aptalis signed their deal in October 2012. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 26, 13]
Aptevo Therapeutics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) down 30% [Nov 24, 21]
Aptevo Therapeutics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) up 132% [Nov 23, 21]
Aptevo Therapeutics up 35% [Nov 10, 20]
Aptevo Therapeutics up 38% [Nov 9, 20]
Aptevo Therapeutics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) down 22%, [Aug 1, 16] marking the separation of spinoff from Maryland-based Emergent Biosolutions. Emergent announced in December it would spin off Aptevo, focused on developing treatments for cancer and blood diseases. Aptevo has four products available on the market, more than many biotechs have. ... technology uses dual-ended molecules to attack cancer cells, with each end of the molecule designed to attack cancer cells in a slightly different way. [Rachel Lerman, Seattle Times, Aug 1, 16]
Next year Seattle will have a new publicly traded biotechnology company Aptevo Therapeutics (no SBIR) with four products on the market — a lot more than most local biotechs can claim. .... to be spun off in mid-2016 by Maryland-based Emergent Biosolutions (no SBIR, current market value of $1.5 billion), has a product candidate for prostate cancer in Phase 1 clinical trials. [Rami Grunbaum, Seattle Times, Dec 22, 15]
Aptima (Woburn MA) got five DOD SBIR Phase 2s worth $3.74 M for: a simulation tool to predict the reactions of culturally diverse groups; a computing architecture based on human neurology, to enable future software applications such as natural language understanding, concept-based internet search, natural human-computer interfaces, cognitively based data-mining, and image analysis; a resource to help engineers better design and incorporate 'cognitive' capabilities into newly designed systems; how to organize the flow of information and the tools used as the military moves to an increasingly network-centric architecture; and a predictive tool that helps determine the relationship between simulator design and training effectiveness. According to officials, Aptima plans to expand these technologies to business, law enforcement, and industrial settings. [Mass High Tech, Jun 6] So say they all who get DOD contracts for knowledge.
AptamiR Therapeutics (Austin, TX; no SBIR, founded 2012) completed a $3 million funding from a lone investor. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Sep 21, 15]has created an innovative model of virtual and outsourced Drug Research & Development to cure human obesity by developing microRNA-based treatments that target peripheral adipose tissues (fat cells) [company website]
Aptimmune Biologics (Champaign, IL; no SBIR), biotech startup raised $2.75 million ... has developed swine vaccines for porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and the influenza virus. [Brian Feldt, St. Louis Business Journal, Jul 9, 15]
Aptinyx (Evanston, IL; $2.4M SBIR)'s pain prospect flunks 3rd midphase trial. Having flunked a phase 2b painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy trial in April, the candidate has now missed the mark in a fibromyalgia study. [Nick Paul Taylor, Fierce Biotch, Aug 12, 2022]
Aptinyx up 19% [Jul 1, 20]
Neurological drug developer Aptinyx (Evanston, IL; $2.7M SBIR) has stopped enrollment in three of the four mid-stage trials it is conducting due to impacts from the coronavirus pandemic. [Sarah de Crescenzo, xconomy.com, Mar 30, 20] total funding $170M [crunchbase.com]
Aptinyx down 66% [Jan 16, 19] reported that NYX-2925 did not achieve statistically significant separation from placebo on primary endpoint [company press release, Jan 16, 19]
Aptinyx up 14% [Sep 10, 18]
Aptinyx (Evanston, IL, $2.6M SBIR, founded 2015) up 14% [Sep 5, 18] total funding $08M [crunchbase.com]
Aptinyx up 11% [Jun 27, 18]
Aptinyx (Evanston, IL, $2.6M SBIR) signaled its intent to go public..... working on drugs that target the NMDA receptor on neurons. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, May 25, 18]
Aptinyx (Evanston, IL; at least $3M SBIR, founded 2015) raised $70 million. The series B equips the biotech, which spun out of Naurex following its takeover by Allergan, to advance three drugs against neurologic disorders deeper into the clinic. ... wrapped up a $65 million series A in 2016 ... positions Aptinyx to continue an active phase 2 trial of NYX-2925 in neuropathic pain associated with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, [Nick Paul Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Dec 18, 17]
startup Aptinyx (Evanston, IL, at least $3M SBIR, founded 2015 with the team behind psychiatric drug-maker Naurex launching a new startup, fresh on the heels of getting acquired in August by Allergan for $560 million (press release, Sept 2015), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing transformative therapies for challenging neurologic disorders, is announcing the completion of a $70M Series B financing ... will provide fuel for our growing pipeline as we continue to develop our innovative and differentiated NMDA receptor modulators for the treatment of a variety of neurologic disorders with high unmet medical need ” said [CEO]Norbert Riedel [company press release, Dec 18, 17]raised $65M Series A in May 2016
Aptose Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) looks set to have two of its drugs at the clinical trial stage this year and has just found a partner [Ohm Oncology ] for a third candidate in a deal that could earn it more than $125 million in milestones. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Mar 7, 18]
Aptus Endosystems (Sunnyvale, CA; no SBIR) said it raised $15 million in new funding.... medical device company is developing advanced technology for endovascular aneurysm repair. [Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal, Aug 30, 10]
water purifications startup Aquaback Technologies (Nashua, NH; no SBIR) has landed $735,000 of a planned $1.3 million financing round ... an executive and director of Aquaback is William Zebuhr, founder and CEO of ZanAqua Technologies (Hudson, NH, no SBIR) and also a water purification company [Mass High Tech, Dec 16, 10]
Aqua Bounty Tech down 26% [Mar 11, 19]
AquaBounty Technologies (Maynard, MA; no SBIR) up 118% [Mar 8, 19] focused on enhancing productivity in the aquaculture market and a majority-owned subsidiary of Intrexon, announces the [FDA] lifting of the Import Alert, allowing the Company to start farming AquAdvantage Salmon in Indiana. ... Approximately 350,000 tons of Atlantic salmon are consumed in the United States with more than 95% of it imported. FDA's actions will allow for production and sale to begin here in the U.S., bringing opportunity for investment in rural America [company press release, Mar 8, 19]
AquaBounty Technologies (Maynard, MA; no SBIR) inked a deal to raise funds by selling securities to synthetic biology company Intrexon (Germantown, MD), its largest shareholder. ... will raise $25 million to keep operating for two years as it charts a course to bring its FDA-approved [GM] salmon to market. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Nov 7, 16]
A fast-growing salmon developed by AquaBounty Technologies (Maynard, MA; no SBIR) has become the first genetically modified (GM) animal to get [FDA] blessing. ... for the animal, which grows twice as fast as non-GM Atlantic salmon thanks to the overexpression of a growth hormone. FDA's green light marks the end of a nearly 20-year-long struggle for the right to sell the fish in grocery stores. [Science, Nov 27, 15]
The genetic engineers at Aqua Bounty (Waltham, MA; three SBIRs) have taken a different route [to GM fish species] using a different species. They are trying to grow supersize salmon by tinkering with the genes for growth hormone. ...a fish that reaches marketable size in 18-24 months, as opposed to 30 months for the normal variety. ... says it has been petitioning [FDA] for more than a decade and which published guidelines for approving genetically engineered animals in 2009. [The Economist, Jun 12, 10]
They Still Speak English. Ross Kerber [Boston Globe, Jan 28] notes that four Boston area companies have gone public recently by listing on the London AIM exchange. Of the four, fuel cell developer Protonex Technology had about $1M in SBIR, and fish farmer Aqua Bounty had just one Phase 1.
[Badger Meter acquired] start-up, Aquacue (Los Gatos CA; no SBIR, founded 2009 by a software engineer from Adobe) [for $14M], which had developed a smartphone app that allows homeowners to monitor their water use in real time — with hourly, weekly or monthly analysis of temperature and precipitation, and even warnings if water use spikes or a leak is detected. .... Badger appears to be the first water meter maker with a smartphone app [John Schmid, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Aug 6, 14]
AquaHarmonics (Oregon City, OR; no SBIR) grand-prize winner of the Wave Energy Prize [$5M] — a [federal] Energy Department-funded public competition to increase the energy capture potential of wave energy devices—will build a larger version of its winning device for open-ocean testing. regon-based AquaHarmonics won the Wave Energy Prize competition by demonstrating a five-fold improvement in energy capture per unit structural cost. The company will seek to upscale its device while maintaining low costs. runner-up California Wave Power Technologies (Berkeley, CA; no SBIR) will upscale its WEC technology for open-ocean testing. ... CWPT's device demonstrated more than a three-fold improvement in energy capture per unit structural cost. Through testing, the alifornia-based company will validate and update estimated costs for a full-scale version of its technology. [press release, USDOE, Jun 15, 17] total money to all four winners: $12M
Aqua Metals (no SIR) up 18% [Feb 24, 21] announced it has filed a provisional patent for recovering high-value metals from recycled lithium-ion batteries. [company press release, Feb 24, 21]
Aqua Metals up 20% [Mar 5, 19]
Aqua Metals up 16% [Feb 22, 19]
Aqua Metals up 12% [May 21, 18]
Aqua Metals up 10% [May 18, 18]
Aqua Metals up 22% [May 2, 18]
Aqua Metals up 19% [Apr 27, 18]
Aqua Metals up 12% [Feb 16, 18]
Aqua Metals up 36% [Feb 13, 18]
Aqua Metals up 12% [Jan 2, 18]
Aqua Metals (Alameda, CA; no SBIR, 67 employees, market cap $54M) down 25% [Dec 8, 17] announced that it has priced its underwritten public offering of 7,150,000 shares of its common stock at a public offering price of $2.10 per share. Aqua Metals expects the gross proceeds from this offering to be $15M [company press release, Dec 6, 17]
Aqua Metals down 16% [Nov 14, 17]
Aqua Metals down 18% [Oct 23, 17]
Aqua Metals up 18% [Sep 28, 17]
Aqua Metals up 12% [Sep 11,17]
Aqua Metals down 11% [Sep 7, 17]
Aqua Metals down 14% [Aug 16, 17]
Aqua Metals down 24% [Aug 10, 17]
Aqua Metals (Alameda, CA; no SBIR, founded 2014) has developed a more environmentally friendly and cheaper way to recycle lead acid from batteries using a low-temperature, water-based process. ... inventing a technology called AquaRefining, which recycles lead batteries without producing additional waste that ends up in landfills. Recycled batteries are broken apart by machines that separate the plastic from the lead. The plastic is recycled, while an electrochemical process rids the lead of impurities. .... IPO in 2015 raised $36 million. ... In February, Aqua Metals announced a global licensing and operation agreement with Johnson Controls, the largest lead acid battery company in the world. [Melissa Hellman, San Francisco Business Times, May 17, 17]
Aqua Metals down 26% [May 10,17]
Aqua Metals down 11% [Mar 14, 17]
Aqua Metals up 11% [Mar 13, 17]
Aqua Metals up 42% [Feb 9, 17] Johnson Controls finalized an agreement covering North America, China and Europe for a cutting-edge electrochemical battery recycling technology. Under terms of a multi-faceted deal, the company is investing in Aqua Metals. ... will acquire just under 5 percent of Aqua Metals outstanding shares [Johnson press release, Feb 9, 17]
Aqua Metals down 10% [Jul 14, 16]
Aqua Metals up 12% [Jun 1, 16]
Aqua Metals up 11% [May 23, 16]
Aqua Metals (Alameda, CA; no SBIR) up 29% [May 19, 16] which is commercializing a non-polluting electrochemical lead recycling technology called AquaRefining(TM), today announced the signing of definitive agreements with Interstate Batteries. Interstate Batteries is the No. 1 replacement battery brand [company press releaase, May 19, 16]
AquaMost (Madison, WI; two SBIRs) a water-technology [water purification system] start-up that sprang from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said it raised a total of $1 million from early-stage venture investors ... formed in 2006 and employs five people [John Schmid, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Jan 13, 11]
AquaMost (Madison, WI; one SBIR), a start-up company based on University of Wisconsin-Madison technology and licensed from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) and Encotech, (Eighty Four, PA; probably no SBIR), a provider of products, systems, and services for the environmental remediation industry, announced that they have been awarded a $100,000 SBIR Phase I [NIH] grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop and commercialize an advanced water purification device [photoelectrocatalytic oxidation]capable of removing organic pollutants and pathogens from water. [company press release, Jan 12, 10]
Six start-ups will be recognized for making strides to commercialization at a biotech industry summit in October. ... part of a one-day Biotechnology Vision Summit 2009 that is being run by BioForward, an organization that represents Wisconsin's biotech industry. AquaMost LLC (Madison, WI; one SBIR) , Echometrix (Madison,WI; no SBIR), Flex Biomedical Inc(Madison, WI; one SBIR), Semba Biosciences (Madison, WI; no SBIR), Invivosciences LLC (Wauwatosa, WI; no SBIR), and Rapid Diagnostek Inc (Hudson, WI; no SBIR). [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Sep 22, 09]
Other [Wisconsin] companies the MoneyTree report showed raising venture funding in the second quarter were: Aquarius Technologies (Port Washington, WI; no SBIR) developer of wastewater treatment technologies, $4 million; NeuWave Medical (Madison, WI; no SBIR) medical device company, $2.63 million; ProCertus BioPharm (Madison, WI; $1.6M SBIR) drug developer, $1.7 million; and Zurex Pharma (Madison, WI; no SBIR) drug developer, $1 million. [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Jul 19, 11]
Aquestive Therapeutics (Warren, NJ; no SBIR) down 19% [Nov 20, 18]
AeroVironment announced it received a $3.2M [DOD] contract to provide RQ-20B Puma AE II small unmanned aircraft systems, training and support to an allied nation in the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command area. [company press release, Nov 6, 18]
In its third round of venture funding, AqueSys(Irvine, CA; no SBIR) raised $35 million. ... makes implanted devices to treat glaucoma. [Stephen Brown, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 29, 10]
Five years ago, a group of Duke University scientists developed a pioneering gigapixel camera to provide long-range surveillance for the U.S. Navy through a sponsorship from the Pentagon. The technology, never picked up by the U.S. government, is now being used by Chinese police to identify people from nearly a football field away, after lead Duke researcher David Brady moved to China in 2016 to kick-start his business Aqueti (spinoff of Applied Quantum Technologies ($2M SBIR), Durham, NC; no SBIR). .... The Treasury Department is proposing to block Chinese firms from acquiring advanced U.S. technology, using laws designed to deal with national-security emergencies ... Mr. Brady, who remains Aqueti’s biggest shareholder, said he has no qualms about aiding China’s surveillance system, which critics claim leads to humans-rights abuses. [Wenxin Fan, Wall Street Journal, Jun 11, 18]
Aquion Energy (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR) is providing the storage and battery for a new nanogrid system that opened at the Illinois Institute of Technology's Keating Sports Center. A solar array designed by Azimuth Energy (St Louis, MO; no SBIR) is in place at the center using alternating and direct current loads and charging the Aquion Energy-produced Aspen batteries, all at the same time. [Paul J. Gough, Pittsburgh Business Times, Sep 12, 16]
Aquion Energy signed a deal with a Hawaiian estate to provide a microgrid battery system that will help make the estate solar-power sufficient. Aquion said the 1 megawatt-hour battery will be part of a microgrid system being deployed by Renewable Energy Services Inc. for the Bakken Hale private residential estate by Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) founder Earl Bakken on the Kona coast of Hawaii. [Paul J. Gough, Pittsburgh Business Times, Jan 8, 15]
Aquion Energy (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR) raised $36.8 million [Series E financing round] from a combination of new and previous investors, including Microsoft Founder Bill Gates and the corporate venture capital arm of Royal Dutch Shell ... Aquion's aqueous hybrid ion batteries are specifically designed for multi-hour solar applications. The company unveiled its next generation of AHI battery technology, which delivers energy gains of up to 40 percent, late last month. [Patty Tascarella, Pittsburgh Business Times, Nov 18, 14]
Aquion Energy (no SBIR), a company spun out of Carnegie Mellon University, recently delivered the first of its batteries to operators of small power grids, or “microgrids,” that can operate independently of the centralized grid. ... use sodium ions from saltwater as their electrolyte ... cost about as much as lead-acid ones, which are sometimes used now, but they last twice as long, effectively cutting the long-term costs in half. Other long-lived batteries exist, but they cost far more than lead-acid batteries. [Kevin Bullis, technologyreview, Nov 14, 14]
Aquion Energy (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR) raised $24.6 million from investors, according to [SEC] filing ... developer of next-generation [Aqueous Hybrid Ion (AHI™) battery] energy storage units. In January 2014, it announced that it raised$55 million from investors [Patty Tascarella, Pittsburgh Business Times, Sep 30, 14] Our founder, Professor Jay Whitacre, discovered a simple and elegant solution that is a twist on a 200 year-old technology: saltwater batteries - composed of a saltwater electrolyte, manganese oxide cathode, carbon composite anode, and synthetic cotton separator. [company website]
Aquion (no SBIR) is about to start full-scale production of the batteries [expected to last twice as long as lead-acid batteries and cost about the same to make] at a new factory in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania. .... uses inexpensive manufacturing equipment repurposed from the food and pharmaceutical industries. [Kevin Bullis, technologyreview.com, Feb 26, 14]
Aquion (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR) has started production of a low-cost sodium-ion battery aimed at making renewable energy viable. .... finished installing its first commercial-scale production line at [a four-year vacant Sony] factory, and is sending out batteries for customers to evaluate. It recently raised $55 million of venture capital funding from investors including Bill Gates. .... will need to compete with companies such as GE and Fluidic Energy, which are also manufacturing novel batteries for the grid [Kevin Bullis, technologyreview.com, Jan 23, 14]
The FDA rejected an inhalable version of antibiotic ciprofloxacin that Aradigm (Hayward, CA; $1M SBIR) developed to treat chronic lung infections. The regulator told the , company it needs to conduct another Phase 3 study before reapplying. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Feb 1, 18]
Aradigm down 34% [Jan 12, 18] announces that the FDA committee did not recommend approval for Linhaliq(TM) as a treatment for non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFBE) patients with chronic lung Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. [company press release, Jan 11, 18]
Aradigm down 38% [Jan 9, 18]
Aradigm up 16% [Dec 28, 17]
Aradigm up 11% [Dec 13, 17]
Aradigm up 22% [Nov 30, 17]
Aradigm up 10% [Nov 7, 17]
Aradigm (Hayward, CA; $1M SBIR) up 19% [Oct 10, 17] announced that it received notice from The NASDAQ Capital Market ("NASDAQ") indicating that the Company has regained compliance under NASDAQ Listing Rule 5550(a)(2) for continued listing on The NASDAQ Capital Market [company press release, Oct 10, 17]
Aradigm up 21% [Sep 28, 17]
Aradigm (Hayward, CA; $1M SBIR) down 11% [Sep 27, 17]
Biotech research firm Aragen Bioscience (Morgan Hill, CA; no SBIR) has agreed to sell a [65%] stake in the company to India-based GVK Bioscience for an undisclosed amount. .... offers services for cell line development, molecular biology, process development, cell-based assays and animal testing. [Sarah Drake, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Jan 30, 14]
Metacrine (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2014, 14 employees) biotech said it raised $36 million [VC]. ... working on drugs for diabetes, liver disorders and other metabolic diseases.... founded by a team including two well-known figures in San Diego biotech: investor/entrepreneur Richard Heyman and Salk Institute researcher Ron Evans. ... Evans has founded many companies, including Ligand Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; one SBIR) He's noted for the discovery of nuclear hormone receptors, molecules that respond to steroid hormones, Vitamin A and thyroid hormones. His lab also discovered that a modified form of vitamin D appears to inhibit pancreatic cancer. ... Heyman is most noted for two enormous financial successes. He was behind Aragon Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR), sold in 2013 for up to $1 billion, including $650 million cash upfront, to Johnson & Johnson. From assets of Aragon that he didn't sell, Heyman founded Seragon Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR), sold in 2014 to Roche subsidiary Genentech for up to $1.7 billion, including $725 million upfront in cash. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Aug 5, 15]
Roche Holding AG says its U.S.-based biotech company Genentech has agreed to acquire American biotechnology firm Seragon Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2013) for up to $1.725 billion in cash and contingency payments. [AP, Jul 2, 14] focused on developing new treatments for estrogen-driven cancers based on its Selective Estrogen Receptor Degrader (SERD) platform. Seragon was spun out of Aragon Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR) [which was] acquired by Johnson & Johnson in August, 2013 for $650 million in cash up front along with $350 million in contingent development milestone payments, and is staffed by scientists from Aragon. [Seragon website]
More capitalism competition - for new ideas. How J&J and Dr. Lebowitz homed in on the California prospect and recruited its maker, Pharmacyclics (Sunnyvale, CA; one SBIR in 1995, market cap $10B) reflects a shift in how big drug companies find new medicines. .... the scouting kicked into higher gear. J&J scientists would get to know counterparts at companies on their Bullseye charts, building relationships at medical meetings and other venues. Sometimes, a J&J scientist might talk with a prospect for months—even years—before raising the issue of a deal. .... its drug hunters flew to Europe to woo the drug [daratumumab]'s [Danish maker. .... in 2013, it bought Aragon Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR), which has a potential prostate-cancer treatment that is in clinical trials. [Jonathan Rockoff, Wall Street Journal, Mar 9, 14]
Aragaon Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) says it has obtained $42 million in Series C financing to continue developing drugs meant to fight breast and prostate cancer. [Gary Robbins, utsandiego.com, Mar 5, 12]
Venture capitalists are placing a big bet on a San Diego startup’s new approach to treating cancers by targeting certain hormones. Aragon Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, launched in May 2009) reports that it plans to use $22 million raised in its Series B round of funding to advance its lead drug for prostate cancer into an initial clinical trial. [Ryan McBride, xconomy.com/san-diego, Apr 22, 10]
Aratana Therapeutics (Leawood, KS; no SBIR) announced [FDA] approved Entyce for appetite stimulation in dogs. [company press release May 17, 16] granted licensing rights to Eli Lilly and Co.'s animal health division to develop, manufacture, market and commercialize Aratana's first [FDA]approved drug Galliprant globally [with] will upfront payment of $45 million. [Dora Grote, Kansas City Business Journal, Apr 25, 16]
Arbor Biosciences ((acquired two weeks ago by Chiral Technologies (part of DAICEL CORPORATION, West Chester, PA)), Ann Arbor, MI; no SBIR) focused on next-generation-sequencing target enrichment and synthetic biology, has a new partnership with the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium, an organization developing a “gold-standard reference genome for bread wheat,” Arbor said in a press release. The partnership will focus on the Chinese Spring variety of wheat. [Sarah Schmid Stevenson, xconomy.com, Jan 29, 19]
Arbor Biotechnologies (Ann Arbor, MI; no SBIR, founded 2016) emerged from the shadows with $15.6 million in funding and a CRISPR enzyme that targets RNA. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Mar 16, 18]
Arbor Pharmaceuticals (Raleigh, NC; no SBIR) that sells drugs to treat ear infections and other ailments in children has been bought by an investment group for an undisclosed sum. ... raised about $750,000 from private investors in early 2009 [Raleigh News & Observer, Apr 14, 10]
Arbovax(Raleigh, NC; no SBIR) raised the first half of a $1.5M VC round. ... commercialize vaccine for preventing insect-borne viruses. the technology was developed at n.c. state university by dennis brown and raquel hernandez, both scientific advisers to arbovax, which has three employees.[Raleigh News& Observer, Jun 20]
Arbutus Biopharma (Canada and Warminster, PA; no SBIR), an industry-leading hepatitis B virus (HBV) therapeutic solutions company, and Gritstone Oncology (Emeryville, CA; founded 2015) , a leader in personalized cancer immunotherapies, today announced a collaboration and license agreement. Arbutus is deploying its proprietary lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technology to deliver Gritstone’s RNA-based neoantigen immunotherapy products. [joint companies press release, Oct 18, 17]
Canadian drug company Arbutus BioPharma expects to begin human testing of four potential hepatitis B treatments during the first half of next year. Doylestown-based researcher Michael J. Sofia — inventor of Gilead Sciences’s multibillion-dollar drug Sovaldi, used to cure hepatitis C — is the chief scientific officer of OnCore BioPharma (no SBIR) that is set to rebrand itself as Arbutus BioPharma. ... Company officials said the name change “affirms the successful integration” of OnCore BioPharma — which is based at the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center of Bucks County — and Tekmira Pharmaceuticals (Vancouver, BC.) [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Jul 31, 15]
ARCA Biopharma [Westminster, CO; no SBIR, 13 employees) Announces Submission of IND [FDA] Application [to] evaluate the use of one of Arca Biopharma's drugs, AB201, as a treatment for patients hospitalized with Covid-19. [company press release, Sep 23, 20]
Arca biopharma down 27% [Jun 1, 20]
ARCA biopharma (Westminster, CO; no SIR) up 386% [May 28, 20] announced a new development program to evaluate AB201 (rNAPc2), a potent, selective inhibitor of tissue factor (TF), as a potential treatment for COVID-19 associated coagulopathy (CAC) and the related inflammatory response. CAC is one of the most serious adverse effects seen in COVID-19 patients. AB201 has previously undergone clinical testing through Phase 2 in more than 700 patients for other indications, generating substantial safety data, which the Company believes may enable more rapid development. [company press release, May 28, 30]
ARCA Bio up 27% [Jun 2, 19]
ARCA Biopharma up 20% [May 8, 19]
ARCA Biopharma down 14% [May 3, 19]
ARCA Biopharma up 23% [May 2, 19]
ARCA Biopharma (Westminster, CO; no SBIR, founded 1992) up 99% [May 1, 19] announced that the paper "GENETIC-AF: Bucindolol for the Maintenance of Sinus Rhythm in a Genotype-Defined Heart Failure Population" was published in JACC: Heart Failure, a journal of the American College of Cardiology. ... developing genetically-targeted therapies for cardiovascular diseases through a precision medicine approach to drug development. ARCA's lead product candidate, GencaroTM bucindolol hydrochloride), is an investigational, pharmacologically unique beta-blocker and mild vasodilator being developed for the potential treatment of atrial fibrillation in heart failure patients with mid-range ejection fraction. [company press release, May 1, 19] total funding $90M [crunchbase.com]
ARCA Biopharma (Westminister, CO; no SBIR, founded 1992) applying a precision medicine approach to developing genetically-targeted therapies for cardiovascular diseases, announced that it has received [FDA] guidance following an End-of-Phase 2 meeting regarding the Phase 3 program for ARCA’s pharmacologically unique beta-blocker Gencaro as a potential genetically-targeted treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF) patients with heart failure (HF). [company press release, July 31, 2018] total funding $90M [crunchbase.com]
ARCA Biopharma (Westminster, CO; no SBIR) announced results from a phase 2 study, GENETIC-AF, evaluating Gencaro (bucindolol hydrochloride) for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) in heart failure patients with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (HFrEF). Analysis: The data showed that treatment with Gencaro failed to show a treatment benefit over and above the active control metoprolol succinate. [seekingalpha.com, Feb 26, 18]
Arca Biopharma (Broomfield, CO; no SBIR) biotech drug research company, will have its experimental heart drug tested in clinical trials involving health care giant Medtronic .... will test its heart drug Gencaro as a preventative treatment for atrial fibrillation in about 200 patients whose heart rhythms will be measured by implants made by Medtronic. ... raised $5 million toward the atrial fibrillation trial in 2011 and has been looking a partner to help bring it to fruition. [Greg Avery, Denver Business Journal, Apr 22, 13]
Founded in Davis 21 years ago as an agricultural research company, Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $5.2M SBIR) appears to have moved its headquarters to Dallas. Launched as a scientific venture to commercialize techniques to increase crop yields, Arcadia (now bills itself as a producer of branded plant-based health and wellness products. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Inno, November 01, 2023]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $5.3M SBIR) down 23% [Mar 3, 2023]
Arcadia Biosciences ($9M SBIR) down 17% [Mar 25, 22]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $5M SBIR) announced it has acquired the assets of Agrasys SA, a food ingredients company based in Barcelona, Spain. The transaction includes the physical and intellectual property assets to enable Arcadia to commercialize Tritordeum, a proprietary cereal grain that was developed at the Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible — Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, (IAS-CSIC) the largest public institution dedicated to agricultural research in Spain [company press release, Apr 19, 21]
Arcadia Biosciences, a leader in science-based approaches to enhancing the quality and nutritional value of crops and food ingredients, announced it has entered into a binding term sheet with Industrial Seed Innovations (ISI), an Oregon-based industrial hemp breeding and seed company, to acquire its commercial and genetic assets, including its seed varieties, germplasm library and intellectual property. [company press release, Jun 10, 20]
Arcadia Biosciences down 17% [May 14, 20]
Arcadia Biosciences partnered with Grow West and Buttonwillow Warehouse Co. to sell and distribute its GoodHemp brand seeds to California farmers. [company press release, Mar 19, 20]
Arcadia Biosciences down 27% [Nov 7, 19] reported quarterly results
Aerie Pharmaceuticals down 27% [Nov 7, 19] reported quarterly results
Arcadia Biosciences up 19% [Nov 5, 19] announced it has secured its first purchase commitment for its high-fiber bread wheat for 2020 [company press release, Nov 5, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 25% [Oct 14, 19] Expanded its cultivation footprint on Hawaii by 3x, from 10 to 30 acres, through partnerships with two new license holders. Archipelago is seeding the new acreage this month and expects to employ both permanent and seasonal staffers locally to execute the research plan involving crop management and harvest of several new varieties. [joint venture press release, Oct 15, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA) said it raised $9.2 million from a direct offering of its stock to institutional and accredited investors. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Sep 10. 19]
Arcadia Biosciences down 23% [Aug 27, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 52% [Aug 26, 19] announced a binding term sheet agreement with Arista Cereal Technologies and Bay State Milling Company for commercialization of its high fiber resistant starch wheat in key wheat markets, including North America, Europe and parts of Asia. [company press release, Aug 26, 19]
Arcadia Biosiences up 24% [Aug 21, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences down 18% [Aug 16, 19] reported quarterly financial results
Arcadia Bio up 15% [Aug 15, 19]
Arcadia Bio up 16% [Aug 13, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 54% [Aug 12, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 124% [Aug 9, 19] Verdeca, a joint venture between Arcadia Biosciences and Bioceres Crop Solutions, announced it has successfully completed the regulatory review process and received approval from USDA for its HB4(R) drought tolerant soybeans, which will allow for commercialization in the U.S. market. [company press release, Aug 8, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences raised $6.9M, to invest in hemp research and commercialize its low-gluten and high-fiber GoodWheat product. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Jun 18, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences down 32% [Jun 12, 19] announced that it entered into definitive agreements with several institutional and accredited investors for the purchase of its common stock [company press release, Jun 12, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 20% [Jun 12, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 49% [Feb 28, 19] announced the company will apply its expertise to a new crop: cannabis. With the establishment of Arcadia Specialty Genomics(TM), the company is dedicating a first-of-its-kind strategic business unit to the optimization and standardization of cannabis plant content, quality, climate resiliency and yield. [company press release, Feb 28, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 14% [Feb 13, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences up 20% [Feb 5, 19]
Arcadia Biosciences down 18% [Dec 21, 18]
Arcadia Biosceinces up 16% [Dec 10, 18]
Arcadia Biosciencesup13% [Aug 17, 18]
Arcadia BioSci up 11% [Jul 19, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA) and Farmer’s Business Network, the independent farmer-to-farmer network, announced a partnership to expand the grower base of Arcadia’s family of specialty wheat varieties, GoodWheatTM. This new collaboration enables the FBN DirectSM inputs platform to distribute Arcadia’s identity-preserved GoodWheat seeds to growers in its network, aiming to increase farmer profitability over commodity wheat. [company press release, Jun 27, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA) and Farmer’s Business Network, the independent farmer-to-farmer network, announced a partnership to expand the grower base of Arcadia’s family of specialty wheat varieties, GoodWheatTM. This new collaboration enables the FBN DirectSM inputs platform to distribute Arcadia’s identity-preserved GoodWheat seeds to growers in its network, aiming to increase farmer profitability over commodity wheat. [company press release, Jun 27, 18]
Arcadia BioSciences down 10% [Jun 12, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences up 21% [May 15, 18]
Arcadia BioSciences up 18% [May 14, 18]
Arcadia Bioscience down 12% [May 10, 18]
Arcadia BioSci down 16% [May 3, 18]
Arcadia BioSci down 10% [May 1, 18]
Arcadia Biosci down 19% [Apr 24, 18]
Arcadia Bioscience down 18% [Apr 23, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences down 15% [Apr 13, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences up 24% [Apr 12, 18]
Arcadia Bio up 10% [Apr 11, 18]
Arcadia BioSci down 15% [Mar 28, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences down 14% [Mar 26, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; about $5M SBIR, founded 2002) announced asecurities purchase agreements with institutional investors for a private placement of $10 million of shares and the official launch of its GoodWheat™ consumer brand, a non-transgenic (non-GM) platform that enables food manufacturers to differentiate their consumer-facing brands. [company press releases, Mar 19. 18]
Arcadia Biosciences down 16% [Mar 20, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences up 311% [Mar 14, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences up 23% [Mar 12, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $300K SBIR, founded 2002, market cap $13M) up 66% [Mar 9, 18]
Arcadia BioSci up 11% [Mar 8,18]
Arcadia Bioscience up 11% [Mar 2, 18]
Arcadia Bio down 12% [Feb 28, 18]
Arcadia Bio down 12% [Feb 28, 18]
Arcadia Bioscience up 10% [Feb 26, 18]
Arcadia Bio up 14% [Feb 14, 18]
Arcadia Bio down 11% [Jan 29,18]
Applied Genetic Tech up 11% [Jan 29,18]
Arcadia Biosciences up 18% [Jan 26, 18]
Arcadia Biosciences announced 1:20 reverse split [Jan 25, 18]
Seeking to expand its reach into the nation's largest grain market, Arcadia Biosciences announced a partnership with a major seed company Beck’s Hybrids [which] would bring a high-yield, stress-tolerant corn seed to market. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Mar 31, 16]
Arcadia Bio up 11% [Mar 4,16]
Arcadia Biosciences down 12% [Feb 5, 16]
Arcadia Biosciences obtained a $25 million loan from Silicon Valley Bank, which will allow the company to consolidate all its debt. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Dec 31, 15]
Arcadia
Biosciences announced
a collaboration with Dow Chemical to develop beneficial genetic
traits for
corn.
The combined companies'
joint effort
can play off their individual strengths. Arcadia has depth in
developing stress-resistant strains of plants and Dow has its own
science, as well as expertise in regulatory approvals and
commercialization of products. [Mark Anderson,
Sacramento
Business Journal, Dec 2, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences up 11% [Nov 20, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences up 38% [Nov 19, 15]
Arcadia Bio up 10% [Nov 18, 15]
Arcadia Pharma up 15% [Nov 2, 15]
Arcadia Bioscience down 16% [Oct 29, 15]
Arcadia BioSci up 19% [Oct 28, 15]
Arcadia Bio down 12% [Sep 30, 15]
Arcadia Bio up 10% [Sep 17, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences up 12% [Sep 15, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences says the [FDA] completed an early evaluation for the company’s genetically modified soybean trait and found it safe to plant for more research. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Aug 28, 15]
Arcadia BioSci up 13% [Aug 17, 15]
In its first earnings report, Arcadia Biosciences reported its revenue declined and losses increased in the first half of the year. ... founded in 2002, went public in May. Including a second stock sale in June, the company raised $68 million. ... develops traits in plants to survive drought salinity as well as to increase crop yields and crop quality. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Aug 10, 15]
Arcadia Bio down 10% [Jul 20,15]
the regulatory agency for Canadian agriculture, has awarded emergency approval of the use of a Marrone Bio Innovations product to ward off a devastating hops fungus in order to save the country's beer. ... creates an instant new market for Marrone to sell into. The fungus, called downy mildew, attacks the hops plant, cutting yield and quality. In extreme cases, the highly transmittable fungus can cause the death of the vines. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Jul 17, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences said it is working with a Brazilian company to develop a stress-tolerant soybean. The deal could someday lead to big business in South America. Over many years, Arcadia developed a stress-tolerant trait in soybeans, called HB4, with Bioceres of Argentina. That trait is now going to be developed with Tropical Melhoramento e Genética Ltda, a major seed company in Brazil. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Jul 8, 15]
Arcadia Bio up 10% [Jun 26, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $300K SBIR, founded 2002, IPO 2015) said it has won [FDA] approval to sell a byproduct of its genetically modified safflower product as livestock feed.... opens up a potentially large market of cattle and poultry producers [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Jun 24, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA) priced its initial public offering [to] raise $65.6 million. ... is developing a portfolio of crop productivity traits for genetically modified plants. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, May 15, 15]
Biotech Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $300K SBIR, founded 2002, more than 100 employees) set terms for its initial public offering of stock seeking to raise about $100 million. No date is set ... has one product on the market, Sonova Ultra GLA Safflower Oil. The genetically modified safflower oil has a high concentration of omega-6 fatty acid otherwise known as gamma linolenic acid or GLA, which benefits skin health, weight management and women’s hormonal balance. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, May 1, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; three SBIRs) reported field trials for its nitrogen-efficient rice produced an average of 27 percent higher yield. Rice is a staple crop for half the world’s population, and the world's most valuable food crop. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Mar 25, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $300K SBIR, founded 2002, 100+ employees) told the [SEC] it plans to raise up to $86 million through an [IPO] ... develops biotechnology to increase crop yields, crop quality and other beneficial traits for world food crops. ... Last year, the company raised $33 million in a round of equity financing. With completion of that financing, Arcadia's equity investment totaled $101 million. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Feb 17, 15]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $300K SBIR) introduced a powder version of its safflower oil supplement. The dried form has a longer shelf life and is more practical for manufacturers to use, the company said. .... In May of this year, Davis-based Arcadia closed a $33 million round of equity financing. With completion of the May financing, Arcadia’s equity investments total $101 million. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Aug 21, 14]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $250K SBIR) is launching its product Sonova Ultra GLA Safflower Oil [genetically modified], which contains 55 percent of the omega-6 fatty acid that benefits skin health, weight management and women’s hormonal balance. ... In May, Arcadia announced it closed a $33 million round of equity financing. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Jun 17, 14]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA: $300K SBIR) announced it closed a $33 million round of equity financing. .... equity investments now total $101 million. .... an agricultural technology company that works to make healthier foods available at a lower cost. It works, for example, to develop plants that are more water efficient, salt, heat and herbicide tolerant. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, May 8, 14]
Illumina the smartest. Almost 25 years after the Human Genome Project launched, and a little over a decade after it reached its goal of reading all three billion base pairs in human DNA, genome sequencing for the masses is finally arriving. It will no longer be just a research tool; reading all of your DNA (rather than looking at just certain genes) will soon be cheap enough to be used regularly for pinpointing medical problems and identifying treatments. This will be an enormous business, and one company dominates it: Illumina (San Diego, CA; $10M SBIR). ... sells everything from sequencing machines that identify each nucleotide in DNA to software and services that analyze the data. In the coming age of genomic medicine, Illumina is poised to be what Intel was to the PC era—the dominant supplier of the fundamental technology. [Eilene Zimmerman , technologyreview.com, Feb 18, 14] Other SBIR companies among 50 smartest: Cree (Durham, NC; $10M SBIR), Qualcomm (San Diego, CA; $1.5M SBIR), Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA, $200K SBIR).
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; three SBIRs) announced it was granted a key U.S. patent for its technology that allows for the efficient use of nitrogen in crops such as wheat, rice, corn and others. [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Feb 5, 14]
Arcadia Biosciences (Davis, CA; $250K SBIR) and global giant DuPont Pioneer announced they will collaborate to develop technologies in sorghum crops (the world’s fifth-largest cereal crop). [Mark Anderson, Sacramento Business Journal, Nov 21, 13]
Arcadia Pharma down 11% [Mar 21, 18]
Connecticut Innovations announced today that it has committed $450,000 from its Pre-Seed Fund to three startups in the life sciences sector. The quasi-public agency, which is focused on technology and innovation, said the funds are going to Arcantatura (Groton, CT; no SBIR), C8 Sciences (New Haven, CT; no SBIR), and Medical Device Logistics (Stonington, CT; no SBIR). According to Connecticut Innovations, each of the companies has secured matching funds from private investors. [James Connolly, Mass High Tech, Aug 25, 11]
Arcellx (Gaithersburg, MD; no SBIR) announced it has raised $85 million in an oversubscribed Series B financing [to] advance the Company’s ARC-T + sparX programs, including clinical development of a bivalent BCMA-targeted cell therapy in multiple myeloma, and a CD123-targeted therapy in acute myeloid leukemia. The Series B will also fund earlier stage ARC-T + sparX programs for patients with solid tumors and diseases outside oncology. [company press release, Oct 3, 19]
Baxter International said that it will pay as much as $285 million to buy a hemophilia drug candidate and other assets from Archemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) [chicagobusiness.com, Nov 19, 10] gives the company all of Archemix's hemophilia assets, including an early-stage drug candidate called ARC19499. [Bloomberg Business Week] The company has collaboration agreements with Merck Serono; Pfizer, Inc.; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited; Elan Pharma International Limited; Nuvelo, Inc.; Antisoma plc; Regado Biosciences, Inc.; OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; SomaLogic, Inc.; and Isis Pharmaceuticals, [company website]
teaming up to collaborate on some research-and-development work ... areArchemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) focused on commercializing aptamer therapeutics, and Dicerna Pharmaceuticals (Watertown, MA; no SBIR) seeking to use RNAi gene-silencing technologies to develop novel drug treatments [Boston Globe, Jul 21, 09]
GlaxoSmithKline PLC and Archemix said they will work together to develop drugs for inflammatory diseases in a deal that could be worth as much as $1.4 billion. [San Diego Union Tribune, Dec 23, 08]
NitroMed<, the Lexington company that became known for marketing a heart medicine for blacks called BiDil, is attempting to reinvent itself. The company -- which recently unveiled plans to sell the rights to BiDil, its only approved drug -- today said it will merge with Archemix a small, privately-held Cambridge biotech company developing drugs for blood-related diseases. [Boston Globe, Nov 19, 08]
Archemix(Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) signed an agreement with Eli Lilly & Co. regarding research-and-development evaluation of aptamer therapeutics and access to intellectual property. [Boston Globe, Oct 21, 08]
Archemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) granted a Japanese bio-venture company intellectual property rights in developing aptamers, short nucleic acid sequences. The agreement with Tokyo-based Ribomic Inc. will give Archemix an upfront payment of $6 million. [Boston Globe,Aug 8, 08]
Archemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) announced that one of its product candidates [ARC1779 is an anti-platelet agent] has received orphan drug designation from European regulators. [Boston Globe, Jul 8, 08]
Archemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) pulled its IPO [Feb 8, 08]
Archemixlanded a $1M milestone payment from Nuvelo. ... triggered by Nuvelo's Phase 1 study of NU172, a thrombin-inhibiting aptamer, developed by Archemix. [Mass High Tech, Jan 30, 08]
Archemix (Cambridge, MA; $2M SBIR) filed for a $69M IPO. [Jul 07]
Archemix($2M SBIR) reports receiving a total of $35.8M in payments and investments from two business alliances related to its aptamer technology. [Mass High-Tech, Jun 11]
Archemix ($1M SBIR) says it got two patents in Europe that cover methods to identify aptamers for use in therapeutics. [Mass High Tech, Mar 8].
Archemixsays it has signed up with Merck KGaA on a multi-year, multi-target program that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of aptamer-based therapeutics to treat cancer. [Mass High Tech, Jan 18] Nearly $2m SBIR.
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO; no SBIR) files IPO for up to $100 million [Jensen Werley, Denver Business Journal, Jun 9, 20] offers a robust platform for detecting variants associated with cancers and inherited diseases. [company website]
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO, no SBIR), a molecular technology company dedicated to developing breakthrough solutions that advance the application of personalized genomic medicine, announced the closing of an up to $60 million Series B financing round [company press release, May 15, 19]
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, founded 2013) a molecular technology company dedicated to developing breakthrough solutions that advance the application of personalized genomic medicine, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Baby Genes (Golden, CO; no SBIR) focused on empowering individuals to take charge of their health through genetic insights. [ArcherDX press release, Jan 30, 19] total funding $30M [crunchbase.com]
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, founded 2013) a molecular technology company dedicated to developing breakthrough solutions that advance the application of personalized genomic medicine, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Baby Genes (Golden, CO; no SBIR) focused on empowering individuals to take charge of their health through genetic insights. [ArcherDX press release, Jan 30, 19] total funding $30M [crunchbase.com]
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, founded 2013), a molecular technology company dedicated to developing breakthrough solutions that advance the application of personalized genomic medicine, announced that [FDA] granted a Breakthrough Device designation (formerly Expedited Access Pathway program) for ArcherDx’s companion diagnostic assay application. [company press release, Jan 9, 19] total funding $35M [crunchbase.com]
ArcherDX (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, founded 2012) the leader in NGS-based gene fusion detection assays, announced a $35 million Series A Preferred financing [to] to support the rapid commercial growth of its targeted sequencing assays, including expanding its domestic salesforce, increasing its international commercial operations, scaling its oncology-focused CDx co-development program and continuing to invest in its in vitro diagnostic (IVD) pipeline. [company press release, Mar 20, 18]
Yield Lab, an agribusiness accelerator based in Creve Coeur [MO], has chosen six software and ingredients companies for its spring class. ... includes two firms from the St. Louis area, three from elsewhere in the United States and one from Argentina. Each gets a $100,000 investment and participates in a business development program at Yield Lab's headquarters. ... Arch Innotek (St. Louis, MO; $300K SBIR) uses a fermentation process to produce natural ingredients. ... VakSea (Baltimore, MD; no SBIR) sells immune-boosting proteins for shrimp aquaculture. [David Nicklaus, St Louis Post Dispatch, Feb 28, 19]
Arch Grants, a linchpin of the St. Louis innovation community, has awarded 11 new startup companies from around the world with $50,000 non-equity grants. Six of the 11 startups were lured to St. Louis because of Arch Grants, which to date has invested $3.8 million into 76 companies. About half of Arch Grants’ portfolio was founded outside of St. Louis. ... Two are SBIR candidates (risky tech, high payoff) for which $50K is peanuts: Arch Innotek (St. Louis, MO; no SBIR) is developing technology to produce natural carotenoids by a lost cost fermentation-based process. Hemadvance (St. Louis, MO; no SBIR) is developing next generation bio-therapeutic molecules to diagnose, manage and treat the onset and progression of coagulation disorders. [Brian Feldt, St. Louis Business Journal, Nov 12, 15] The rest are business risk stuff that should not be a target for a free-market government.
Arch Oncology (Brisbane, CA and St Louis, MO; no SBIR), a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on the discovery and development of best-in-class anti-CD47 antibody therapies, today announced a successful $50 million Series B financing. The Company plans toadvance its anti-CD47 antibody AO-176’s ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial in select solid tumors, as well as its pipeline. [company press release, Mar 25, 19]
An entrepreneur, a doctor, and a team of researchers at MIT are trying to make surgery less bloody. ...surgeons spend about half their time in the operating room trying to manage bleeding ... An MIT researcher, Rutledge Ellis-Behnke, had a eureka moment in 2001. He was trying to develop a substance that would help foster the regeneration of damaged nerve tissue, using protein fragments known as peptides. But during one surgical procedure, Ellis-Behnke noticed that the animal stopped bleeding after he applied the substance. He and his colleagues assumed the animal died; they were wrong. They soon realized that the transparent peptide gel had an interesting side effect: It seemed to halt bleeding within a few seconds, and then break down safely once an incision had healed. ... Until Arch Therapeutics(originally Clear Nano Solutions, Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) can show that its gel works in larger animals - and eventually in humans - many investors will regard it skeptically; another nifty science fair project that requires more real-world proof. [Scott Kirsner, Boston Globe, Jun 29]
A startup based in Cambridge, MA, says that it plans to soon begin clinical trials of a nanostructured material that stops bleeding almost instantly. Arch Therapeutics (founded in mid-2006; no SBIR) has licensed the technology from MIT and is developing manufacturing processes for making it in large amounts. The new material can be poured over a site and will stop the bleeding almost at once. [Kevin Bullis, MIT Tech Review, May 12]
Japan’s Murata Manufacturing has acquired Arctic Sand Technologies (Burlington, MA; no SBIR, MIT spinout founded in 2010), and plans to combine Arctic Sand’s low-power semiconductor technology with its subsidiary, Peregrine Semiconductor (San Diego, CA; $3.7M SBIR) . The purchase price was $68 million, according to a Peregrine spokeswoman. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Mar 21, 17]
Arctic Sand Technologies (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR), an MIT spinoff which produces semiconductors for power management in electronic devices, said it's closed its Series A round at $9.6 million. [Kyle Alspach, Boston Business Journal, Jan 14, 13]
Arcturus Therapeutics down 45% [Nov 9, 20]
Arcturus Therapeutics up 17% [Jun 15, 20]
Arcturus Thera down 29% [May 27, 20]
Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) up 35% [Apr 27, 20], a leading clinical-stage messenger RNA medicines company focused on the discovery, denovelopment and commercialization of therapeutics for rare diseases and vaccines, announced positive immunogenicity data from its preclinical study for the Company's COVID-19 Vaccine. These data for LUNAR-COV19 were measured by Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore. [company press release, Apr 27, 20]
Arcturus Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2013) said a leading RNA medicines company, announced that it has entered into a research agreement with Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics Inc. (CFFT), the nonprofit drug discovery and development affiliate of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in which CFFT will pay up to $3 million to advance LUNAR-CF, a novel messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutic formulated with Arcturus' LUNAR™ delivery technology. .... The company owns LUNAR™ nanoparticle delivery and unlocked nucleomonomer agent (UNA) technology including UNA Oligomers, which are covered by its patent portfolio (80 patents and patent applications, issued in the U.S., Europe, Japan, China and other countries). [company press release, May 30, 17]
Startup Arcturus Therapeutics (La Jolla, CA; no SBIR, 13 employees), formed last year in the Janssen Labs biotech incubator, has moved to larger headquarters as the San Diego biotech expands operations. ... Janssen Labs, part of Johnson & Johnson, was established in 2011 to bring the pharmaceutical giant closer to the sources of innovation in San Diego's large biotech sector. ... is in preclinical development of its LUNAR-101 drug to stop heart damage from a genetic disease called transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Nov 3, 14]
Arcus BioThera up 13% [Mar 15, 18]
Arcus Biosciences (Hayward, CA) raised $120 million in [IPO]. Proceeds will finance clinical testing of two lead cancer immunotherapies. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Mar 15, 18]
Mere months after bagging $107 million in its series C round, Arcus Biosciences is teeing up for a $100 million IPO [which] will enable the immuno-oncology player to fund clinical studies for AB928 and AB122 into 2020, but not support the candidates through regulatory approval. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Feb 21, 18]
Arcus Biosciences (Hayward, CA; no SBIR, founded 2015, 75 employees) announced the completion of a $107 million Series C financing led by GV (formerly Google Ventures) [company press release, Nov 13, 17] founded by Terry Rosen and Juan Jaen to discover and develop innovative cancer immunotherapies based on known but under-exploited biology. Prior to starting Arcus, Terry and Juan founded Flexus Biosciences (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR), which in February 2015 sold its preclinical-stage IDO inhibitor to Bristol-Myers Squibb for $800M upfront and $450M in milestones. The inhibition of IDO is now viewed as one of the most promising immuno-oncology mechanisms in late-stage development. [company website] entered into an option and license agreement with Taiho Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., for the potential development and commercialization of product candidates in Arcus’s portfolio in Japan and certain other territories in Asia (excluding China). [company press release, Sep 19, 17]
Terry Rosen and Juan Jaen brought Flexus from inception to buyout [by Bristol Myers for $1.25B] in less than two years. They're building their new cancer immunotherapy company Arcus Biosciences (Hayward, CA; no SBIR expected, founded 2015) for the long haul. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jul 27, 16]
Arcutis Biotherapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) raised about $159 million from its IPO, ... with four product candidates in its pipeline, all topical non-steroidal treatments being developed for seven dermatological indications. [xconomy.com, Jan 31, 20]
for $3.7 billion in cash ... Hologic of Bedford, Mass., said it is buying Gen-Probe (San Diego, CA; three 1989 Phase I SBIRs), a 29-year-old company known worldwide for its diagnostic tests and equipment. Gen-Probe recently won FDA approval for Progensa, a test that determines if men who have prostate cancer need a biopsy. .... only a week after Ardea Biosciences (San Diego; no SBIR) was purchased by British drug maker AstraZeneca for $1.2 billion. AstraZeneca is moving to replenish its drug pipeline and wanted a diabetes therapy that Ardea developed. [Gary Robbins, utsandiego.com, Apr 30, 12]
Ardelyx (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) down 15% [Dec 4, 19]
Ardelyx (Fremont, CA; no SBIR), a specialized biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative first-in-class medicines to improve treatment for people with cardiorenal diseases, today announced that [FDA} has approved IBSRELA® (tenapanor), a 50 mg, twice daily oral pill for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) in adults. [company press release, Dec 3, 19]
Ardalyx up 15% [Sep 9, 19]
Ardelyx down 15% [Sep 4, 19]
Ardelyx (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) up 71% [Sep 3, 19], a specialized biopharmaceutical company focused on developing first-in-class medicines to improve treatment for people with cardiorenal diseases, reported positive results from AMPLIFY, a pivotal Phase 3 study of tenapanor in combination with phosphate binders in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) on dialysis whose hyperphosphatemia was not previously controlled with binders alone. [company press release, Sep 2, 19] total funding $300M [crunchbase.com]
Ardelyx up 13% [Nov 21, 17]
Ardelyx up 10% [Jul 2,14]
Ardelyx up 11% [Jul 1, 14]
Ardelyx (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) raised $60 million in an IPO .... develops small molecule treatments for kidney and gastrointestinal disease. It has raised about $35 million in funding since it was founded in 2007 ... It got $35 million upfront from AstraZenica in October 2012 for a Phase II-ready drug that excretes sodium through feces instead of urine. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Jun 19, 14]
Ardelyx (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) filed plans to raise up to $69 million in an IPO as it works on small molecule biotech treatments for kidney and gastrointestinal disease. .... has raised about $35 million in funding since it was founded in 2007 .... In February, drug giant Sanofi said it would pay up to $198 million in milestone payments for a portfolio of drugs from Ardelyx that treat patients with kidney disease. The deal was the second closed by Ardelyx in the past 18 months. It got $35 million upfront from AstraZenica in October 2012 for a Phase II-ready drug that excretes sodium through feces instead of the urine. That licensing arrangement could pay Ardelyx more than $237 million in development, launch and commercialization milestones. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, May 20, 14]
Big company, big cost of failure. Medtronic wrote off $236 million in assets behind a disappointing hypertension treatment. .... The tech stemmed from its $800 million purchase of Ardian (Mountain View, CA; no SBIR) in 2010. [Jim Hammerand, Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal, Feb 18] Not to worry, Medtronic is capitalized for such happenings that are natural in medical R&D. Ardian’s windfall comes about one week after it presented some eye-opening clinical trial results in The Lancet, and at the American Heart Association’s scientific meeting. [Luke Timmerman, xconomy.com, Nov 23, 10]
Arena Pharma up 22% [Nov 15, 18] will get $800 million cash upfront in a mammoth global drug commercialization deal. The San Diego biomedical company licensed its lung disease drug, ralinepag, to North Carolina’s United Therapeutics. In addition to the upfront payment, Arena is eligible to get up to $400 million in milestone payments as the drug proceeds through clinical trials toward approval. [Bradley Fikes, San Diego Union Tribune, Nov 15, 18]
Arena Pharma down 11% [Apr 2, 18]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Mar 21, 18]
Arena Pharma up 29% [Mar 20, 18]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Jan 3, 18]
Arena Pharma up 41% [Jul 11, 17] after the company announced positive results from a drug study. ... said that a phase 2 study of a drug targeted at pulmonary arterial hypertension, a disease that causes high blood pressure in the lungs, showed "a statistically significant absolute change from baseline." [Dow Jones Newswire, Jul 11, 17]
Arena Pharma up 12% [Jun 20,17]
Winding down its unsuccessful efforts to make money off its weight-loss drug Belviq, Arena Pharmaceuticals has sold off its rights to the medication and plans to focus on other products now under development. [Bradley Fikes, San Siego Union Tribune, Jan 4, 17]
Boehringer Ingelheim (Germany) and Arena Pharmaceuticals announced today that they have signed an exclusive agreement to conduct joint research to identify drug candidates targeting an undisclosed G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), which belongs to the group of orphan CNS receptors. [joint companies press release, Jan 12, 16]
Arena Pharmaceuticals said it plans to shelve some clinical trials related to lorcaserin (Belviq), its flagship weight-loss drug, and lay off about 80 employees, or 35 percent of its U.S. workforce. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Oct 30, 15]
Arena Pharmaceuticals will shelve some trials related to its weight-loss drug and lay off about 80 employees, or 35 percent of its U.S. workforce, to cut costs and focus on other drugs under development. [Reuters, Oct 27, 15]
Arena Pharmaceuticals will shelve some trials related to its weight-loss drug and lay off about 80 employees, or 35 percent of its U.S. workforce, to cut costs and focus on other drugs under development. [Reuters, Oct 27, 15]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Sep 29,15]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Jan 21, 15]
Arena Pharmaceuticals successfully completed an early phase clinical trial of a potential autoimmune drug, the biotech company said ... It plans to launch further studies of the medication for the purpose of treating ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Arena’s shares surged 76% on Jan 7. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com (corrected), Jan7, 15]
Arena Pharma (one SBIR in Y2K) up 76% [Jan 7, 15]
Shares of Arena Pharmaceuticals dropped 9.4 percent [Jul 7, 14], after its top executive sold nearly 40 percent of his holdings ... Arena makes the weight-loss drug Belviq. Sales started in June of last year by the company's marketing partner, Japan's Eisai. Sales had been modest to disappointing ... Belviq may soon face rivalry from another weight-loss drug, Contrave, from San Diego's Orexigen (San Diego, CA; no SBIR). [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Jul 9, 14] Apparently weight-loss by chemistry sells better than that by discipline, with no shortage of pushers.
Arena Pharma up 11% [Nov 11, 13] Arena’s marketing partner, Japan-based Eisai, has expanded its agreement to sell Arena’s weight-loss drug Belviq. The expanded agreement gives San Diego-based Arena $60 million up-front. In addition, Arena can get up to an additional $176.5 million in milestone payments and $1.56 billion in one-time purchase price payments for sales in the countries covered in the expanded agreement. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Nov 11]
Arena Pharma up 17% [Nov 8, 13]
Arena Pharma up 11% [May 7, 13]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Jan 22,13 ] after the company said the European drug regulatory agency listed unresolved health issues with its weight-loss drug, Belviq. [utsandiego.com, Jan 22]>
Arena Pharma up 10% [Jan 8, 13]
Arena Pharma up 10% [Nov 9, 10] announced plans to offer shares of its common stock for sale to the public [Wall Street Journal]
Arena Pharma up 14% [Aug 14, 12]
Arena Pharma down 11% [Aug 1, 12]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Jul 18, 12]
Arena Pharma up 13% [Jul 5, 12]
Arena Pharma down 10 % [Jun 28, 12]
Arena Pharma up 29% [Jun 27, 12]
Arena Pharma down 15% [Jun 22, 12]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Jun 21, 12]
Arena Pharma up 12% [Jun 18, 12]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Jun 12, 12]
Arena Pharma up 74% [May 11, 12] FDA advisory committee recommended the agency approve a drug [by Arena Pharmaceuticals] to treat obesity, the second time this year agency advisors have backed a fat-fighting medication. [Wall Street Journal, May 11, 12]
Arena Pharma up 26% [May 8, 12]
Arena Pharmaceuticals said today it has raised $35.5 million through a stock offering. The San Diego-based company, which failed to win FDA approval of a new obesity drug in October, said it will use about half the money to pay off debt that comes due in June 2013. [Luke Timmerman, xconomy.com, Mar 29, 11]
Arena Pharma up 44% [Dec 20, 10]
Arena Pharma down 47% [Sep 17, 10] said an FDA advisory committee voted against approval of its lorcaserin weight loss drug. [Forbes,Sep 17] With one SBIR in Y2K, Arena attracted a pile of private investment to take a chance on a product with a big payoff if it worked and a big loss if it didn't work. A good use of SBIR for national economic gain. Now the SBIR advocates want to block any companies who have such potential but already have VC participation on grounds that the VCs would thereafter own SBIR because of their tremendous advantage in SBIR competition. Instead the advocates want to save SBIR for the mediocre companies that have no potential to make any economic difference even if they succeed technically. Which puts the question before Congress: just what do you want from SBIR?
Arena Pharmaceuticals plunged 40% after briefing documents for a Thursday Food and Drug Administration panel review of the drug company's obesity treatment, lorcaserin, raised serious questions about the drug, including a previously unknown potential risk for cancer. The FDA also noted that the San Diego, Calif., company's drug's effectiveness met the agency weight-loss guideline, but only barely. [Kristina Peterson, Wall Street Journal, Sep 15, 10]
Arena Pharma< down 10% [Aug 2, 10]
Arena Pharma up 10% [Jul 29, 10]
Arena Pharma up 13% [Jul 19, 10] continued gaining ground after last week’s negative recommendation by [FDA] advisory panel against competitor Vivus. [AP, Jul 19]
Arena Pharma up 19% [Jul 16, 10] Of three diet drugs, Arena's lorcaserin is considered to have the strongest safety profile. [MarketWatch]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Jul 6, 10]
Arena Pharma up 16% after the company joined with Japanese drug maker Eisai to sell its experimental weight-loss drug lorcaserin in the U.S., assuming it is approved by the FDA. [Wall Street Journal, Jul 2, 10]
Arena Pharma, developer of an experimental obesity drug, said it has raised $35.5 million through an equity financing [Luke Timmerman, signonsandiego.com, Jun 17, 10]
Arena Pharmaceuticals said that it has applied to the FDA for approval of a weight-loss drug, putting it ahead of two potential competitors with drugs in the works. [San Diego Union Tribune, Dec 23, 09]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Dec 15, 09]
Arena Pharmaceuticals down 15% [Jul 8, 09] said it is raising $52.1 million through a public offering [San Diego Union Tribune]
Arena Pharma up 10% [Jun 15, 09]
Arena Pharma up 26% [Jun 8, 09] said its treatment lorcaserin helped patients lose a "highly significant categorical and absolute amount of weight" in their first year on the treatment and helped them keep that weight off in the second year. [Wall Street Journal, Jun 9]
Arena Pharma down 10% [May 12, 09]
Arena Pharma up 12% [Apr 30, 09]
Arena Pharma down 28% [Mar 30, 09] after it said its trial for an obesity treatment met its primary goal, but one result on weight loss fell short of an FDA guideline. [David Benoit, Wall Street Journal, Mar 31]
Arena Pharma down 22% [Mar 16, 09]as its late-stage study on lorcaserin, a treatment for obesity, is due by the end of the month and Canaccord Adams warned the Food and Drug Administration will be closely scrutinizing any side effects, given the history of obesity drugs. [Wall Street Journal, Mar 17]
Arena Pharmaup 11% [Mar 10, 09]
Arena Pharma down 10% [Feb 26, 09]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Feb 24, 09]
Arena Pharma down 11% [Feb 19, 09]
Arena Pharma down 15% [Feb 18, 09]
Arena Pharma up11% [Feb 5, 09]
Arena Pharma up 12% [Jan 27, 09]
Arena Pharma up 11% [Dec 18, 08]
Arena Pharma down 20% [Dec 1, 08] On a stock bloodbath day
Arena Pharma down 11% [Nov 12, 08]
Arena Pharma< down 10% [Oct 15, 08]
Arena Pharma down 11% [Oct 9, 08]
Arena Pharmaceuticals said an independent safety monitoring board found the company's experimental obesity drug, lorcaserin, was safe and did not cause any heart valve problems after 12 months. [San Diego Union Tribune, Mar 18, 08]
Arena Pharmaceuticals up 12%. [Jan 15, 08]
"We don't think there's any risk at all." Arena Pharmaceuticals (one SBIR ) CEO Jack Lief thinks he has a new weight-loss pill that will work. Called lorcaserin, it stimulates production of serotonin, the same brain chemical that fen-phen did. But Arena executives and obesity experts say it has none of the heart valve risks because it is targeted to the brain. .... The firm has become quite the diversified drug-discovery factory since its origin in 1997 [Kerry Dolan, Forbes, Oct 29] Longer term trials with larger populations often have surprising problems that small trials don't uncover. Arena Pharmaceuticals (Sorrento Valley, CA; one SBIR) down 15% this week despite a positive safety update on the company's weight loss drug. The company said an independent monitoring board did not find evidence of increased heart risks in patients who took the drug for six months. [San Diego Union Tribune, Sep 14, 07]
Stratatech (Madison, WI; $15M SBIR, 50 employees) maker of human skin substitute products, said it has been awarded a $247 million, five-year federal contract to further develop its full-thickness, human cell-based skin product for treating patients with severe burns. ... The [BARDA] agency is aiming to be prepared for potential radiological and nuclear threats, such as the detonation of an improvised nuclear device. Three other companies, all with products for treating severe burns, also received five-year contracts from the agency: Argentum (Geneva, IL; no SBIR), as much as $20 million; MediWound of Israel, as much as $112.8 million; and Avita Medical Americas LLC (Northridge, CA; no SBIR), as much as $79.5 million. [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Oct 6, 15]
Immune Control >(West Conshohocken, PA; no SBIR) and Arginetix (Baltimore, MD; no SBIR) said they are merging to form Corridor Pharmaceuticals which will develop novel treatments for vascular diseases with an initial focus on pulmonary arterial hypertension. In conjunction with the merger, Corridor Pharmaceuticals completed a $15 million Series A financing involving previous investors in the two companies. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Jun 17, 10]
Ford has acquired majority ownership of an artificial-intelligence startup [by two Carnegie grads] called Argo AI (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR, founded 2016) and plans to invest $1 billion in the company, the latest move in an auto-industry spending spree to develop self-driving car technology. ... founders Bryan Salesky, a former Alphabet executive, and Peter Rander, formerly with Uber Technologies, will keep equity in the startup, Ford said. [Tim Higgins, Wall Street Journal, Feb 10, 17]
Sierra Nevada (Sparks, NV; $1.3M SBIR) booked a five-year, $716.8 million contract to provide high-band aircraft sensor components to the U.S. Navy, international cooperative partners and foreign military sales clients. ... Boeing subsidiary Argon ST (Great Falls, VA; $100K SBIR) was awarded a $463 million contract in January to perform similar work. Argon ST produced the low-band MISD sensor suite while SNC developed the high-band version of the system. [Kacey Roberts, govconwire.com, February 3, 2023]
ArgonST up 40%[Jun 30, 10]
Boeing agreed to buy defense-equipment maker Argon STfor about $775 million, with the deal coming as the sector shuffles operations amid belt-tightening. [Wall Street Journal, Jun 30, 10]
ArgonST said that it will consider options including a potential sale, merger or acquisition. ... designs and develops sensors, computer systems and software used in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, mostly for the U.S. government. Founded in 2004, Argon ST has roughly 800 employees and reported annual sales in 2009 of $366 million<. [Washington Post, Jan 13, 10]
ArgonST up 12% [Jan 11, 10]
Forbes's 2009 list of best 200 small companies includes Aerovironment, American Science and Engineering (paying a dividend and with nearly $600M market cap), Argon ST, Hittite Microwave, II-IV,Meridian Bioscience ,Neogen , NVE, and Synaptics.
Argon ST down 12% [May 6,09]
Argonstup 13% [Dec 5, 08]
ArgonST down 18% [Dec 4,08]
Argon ST up 15% [Oct 16, 08]
Argon ST up 11% [May 8, 08]
ArgonST down 16% on poor profit news.[Aug 9, 07]
Argon ST up 11% [Jun18,07]
Argon ST got a $10M Navy contract for engineering support services for integrated submarine communications receiving systems. The company (now 600+ employees) is a combination of at least four companies: Argon Engineering Associates (several SBIRs), SenSyTech (3 Phase 1s), Radix (9 Phase 2s), San Diego Research Center (5 Phase 2s).
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) does not [now] believe that [Phase 3 ADAPT trial of Rocapuldencel-T in combination with sunitinib/standard-of-care for the treatment of newly diagnosed metastatic renal cell carcinoma] would achieve these endpoints if the trial were to be continued. .... has therefore decided to discontinue the trial and has informed the FDA of its decision. [company press release, Apr 19, 18]
Argos Thera (Durham, NC; no SBIR, 136 employees) down 66% [Feb 22,17] announced that the Independent Data Monitoring Committee (IDMC) for the company's pivotal Phase 3 ADAPT clinical trial of rocapuldencel-T in combination with sunitinib/standard-of-care for the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) has recommended that the study be discontinued for futility based on its planned interim data analysis. [company press release, Feb 22, 17]
Argos Thera down 17% [Jul 28, 16]
Argos Thera down 20% [Jun 13, 16]
Argos Thera down 13% [Jun 8, 16]
Argos Therapeutics up 29% [Jun 6, 16]
Argos Thera down 25% [Apr 20, 16] said it was laying off 13 percent of its staff in an effort to conserve cash and keep its drug development efforts on schedule. [John Murawski, Raleigh News & Observer, Apr, 20, 16]
Argos Therapeutics up 36% [Jan 26, 16]
drug developer Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) working on experimental treatments to fight HIV just secured a supply agreement for materials at the heart of its personalized disease-fighting technology.... signed a new supply agreement with a Wisconsin biotechnology company, Cellscript.(no SBIR) ... Argos pays Cellscript $4.6 million in fees to develop, manufacture and supply the ingredients behind Argos’ personalized immunotherapy platform, which Argos hopes has disease-targeting applications in everything from cancer to HIV. [Lauren K. Ohnesorge, Triangle Business Journal, Dec 29, 15]
Lummy Co. Ltd. (Hong Kong), a wholly owned subsidiary of Chongqing Lummy Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. bought $10 million in shares of Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR, founded 1999) that is developing a therapy that might help cancer patients fight their own cancers. In return, [Argos] licensed the therapy to the Chinese company and could receive up to $20 million in milestones and sell the investor another $10 million in shares. [Jason deBruyn, Triangle Business Journal, Apr 13, 15] On April 1, Argos announced that NIH approved $6.6 million for an investigator-initiated Phase 2a adult eradication study of AGS -004, the company's investigational fully personalized immunotherapy for HIV [company website]
Argos Therapeutics (no SBIR) is about to embark on a quest that has eluded medical science since the outbreak of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s. The small drug developer has been awarded $6.6 million in federal research grants to test experimental medications designed to eradicate the HIV virus that causes AIDS. [John Murawski, Raleigh News & Observer, Apr 1, 15] co-founded by (subsequent) Nobel Laureate Ralph Steinman, IPO in 2011 [company website]
drug maker Argos Therapeutics [Durham, NC; no SBIR, 100 employees] said it will receive $9.5 million in state and local incentives to hire 236 people and build a new manufacturing facility. ... spun off from scientific research on RNA molecules at Duke University. ... grossed $45 million in February in a public stock offering, and secured a $25 million loan this week. [John Murawski, Raleigh News & Observer, Oct 3, 14]
Argos Thera up 12% [Mar 4, 14]
Argos Therapeutics grossed $45 million from its IPO ... doesn’t yet have any drugs on the market. Shares dropped 11% in subsequent trading [Raleigh News & Observer, Feb 7, 14]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) last month filed plans to raise up to $60 million in an [IPO] ..... developing several experimental drugs – most notably a promising treatment for kidney cancer ... In August 2013, raised $42.5 million in venture capital .... tried going public in 2012 but withdrew its plans amid a lackluster market. [David Ranii, Raleigh News & Observer, Jan 21, 14]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) has extended its fund-raising streak by raising another $17.5 million in venture capital, pushing its total haul this year to $60 million. .... for further development of its promising experimental drug for kidney cancer. [David Ranii, RaleighNews & Observer, Nov 20, 13]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR, 90 employees) that is developing a promising treatment for kidney cancer, has defied a difficult fundraising environment by raising an impressive $42.5 million in venture capital. .... previously raised $114 million over four rounds of funding from outside investors .... the 90-employee company had to search far and wide for funding – all the way to Russia and South Korea. [David Ranii, Raleigh News & Observer, Aug 26, 13]>
Argos Therapeutics (Durham,NC; no SBIR), which last month withdrew its plans to raise money with an initial public offering of stock in the wake of a lackluster market, has rebounded by raising $25 million in venture capital funding. [David Ranii, Raleigh News & Observer, Apr 24, 12]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) is turning to Plan B after withdrawing plans to raise more than $75 million in cash with an initial public offering of stock.[Raleigh News & Observer, Mar 8, 12]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham,NC; no SBIR) scheduled a $74 million IPO with a market capitalization of $216 million ... biopharmaceutical company focused on targeted small molecule solutions, for cancer and infectious diseases.All product candidates are in Stage 1, 2 or 3 clinical trials [seekingalpha.com, Feb 29, 12]
Argos Therapeutics (Durham, NC; no SBIR) a drug development company, has raised $35 M. ... for further testing of ongoing clinical trials of cancer and HIV treatments. [Raleigh News & Observer,Apr 23, 08]
Two graduates from the University of Minnesota’s Medical Devices Center are leading a medical device business that aims to treat pulmonary hypertension. The men, graduates from the center’s innovation fellows program, have launched Aria CV<(St Paul, MN) The company plans to help patients affected by pulmonary hypertension, a disease caused by abnormally high blood pressure in the arteries of the lungs. [Wendy Lee, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jun 23, 11]
Ariad Pharma up 73% [Jan 9, 17] Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical said it would buy cancer drug maker Ariad Pharmaceuticals ($600K SBIR in mid 1990s) in a deal valued at $5.20 billion, to beef up its oncology pipeline. [Natalie Grover, Reuters, Jan 9, 16]
Ariad Pharma up 23% [Nov 9, 16]
Ariad Pharma down 10% [Oct 24, 16]
Ariad Pharma up 12% [Jul 28, 16]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; $600K SBIR) has been in the midst of a strategic overhaul under a new management regime, and today that effort has resulted in a big transaction. Incyte (Wilmington, DE; no SBIR) has just cut a deal to acquire all of Ariad’s assets in Europe, and some rights to the -based company’s flagship drug as well. Incyte , will pay Ariad $140 million up front for the rights to the company’s 125-employee division in Europe. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, May 9, 16]
Ariad Pharma down 17% [Sep 2, 15]
Ariad Pharma up 42% [Aug 28, 15] amid reports that Baxalta is interesting in acquiring Ariad to boost up its oncology exposure [Motley Fool]
Ariad Pharma up 11% [Feb 20, 15]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Feb 5, 15]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals is getting a much needed $77.5 million shot in the revenue arm under a new licensing agreement announced today with a Japanese company. Ariad, which was sent reeling last year when its leukemia-treatment drug was temporarily yanked off the market, has signed a deal with Japan's Otsuka Pharmaceutical to trade the rights to its cancer drug in ten Asian countries. Ariad also agreed to pay for the clinical trials of the drug, Iclusig, in Japan. [Boston Business Journal, Dec 23, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Nov 24, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 11% [Oct 2, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Jul 29, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 15% [Jul 23, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 11% [Feb 7, 14]
Ariad Pharma down 12% [Jan 27, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 20% [Jan 24, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 12% [Jan 23, 14]
Ariad Pharma up 16% [Dec 20, 13]
Seven weeks after Ariad Pharmaceuticals was forced to halt US sales of its leukemia drug, said that it has won [FDA] approval to resume selling the medicine with a more restrictive label and updated safety information. ... the drug, called Iclusig, for a narrower set of patients suffering from two forms of blood cancer—chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia chromosome positive acuse lymphoblastic leukemia—for whom other treatments aren’t working. [Robert Weisman, Boston Globe, Dec 19, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 20% [Dec 18, 13]
Ariad Pharma down 11% [Dec 6, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 36% [Nov 25, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 35% [Nov 22, 13]
Ariad Pharma down 44% [Oct 31, 13] temporarily suspending the U.S. marketing and distribution of Iclusig for patients with resistant or intolerant chronic myeloid leukemia and Philadelphia-chromosome positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. [Wall Street Journal, Oct 31]
Ariad Pharma up 15% [Oct 28, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Oct 22, 13]
Ariad Pharma down 41% [Oct 18, 13] will discontinue a late-stage study of its leukemia drug Iclusig because of patient heart attacks, strokes and blocked blood vessels caused by blood clotting in study subjects receiving the treatment. [Joseph Walker, Wall Street Journal, Oct 18]
Ariad Pharma up 11% [Oct 17, 13]
Ariad Pharma dowm 21% [Oct 11, 13]
Ariad Pharma down 66% [Oct 9, 13]
David Blech was the initial financial force behind the industry giant Celgene, the rare-disease specialist Alexion Pharmaceuticals ($1.8M SBIR), and the cancer-drug developer Ariad Pharmaceuticals ($600K SBIR), not to mention Icos (no SBIR), which developed the impotence pill Cialis. In the early 1990s, Blech was worth about $300 million and made the Forbes list of 400 wealthiest Americans. Now, however, he is about to begin a four-year prison term, is about $11 million in debt, and is mainly an afterthought to the industry he helped foster. [Andrew Pollack, New York Times, Sep 9, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Jul 12, 13]
Ariad Pharma up 12% [Jul 1, 13]
Ariad Pharma down 21% [Dec 14, 12] Federal regulators approved a drug developed by Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc. to treat two rare blood and bone marrow diseases, giving the Cambridge biotechnology company the green light more than three months ahead of schedule to sell the treatment in the United States [Robert Weisman, Boston Globe, Dec 15]
Ariad Pharma up 10% [Oct 4,11]
Ariad Pharma up 11% [Aug 23, 11]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals will be getting a $25 million milestone payment from partner Merck, as the bone cancer drug they are working on has moved further toward approval in the European Union [Rodney Breown, Mass High Tech, Aug 18, 11]
Ariad Pharma up 12% [Aug 9,11]
Ariad Pharma down 11% [Aug 8, 11]
Ariad Pharma down 14% [Aug 4,11]
ARIAD Pharma down 10% [Aug 2, 11]
Ariad Pharma down 11% [Jan 19, 11]
Ariad Pharma up 34% [Jan 18, 11] after the company reported early this morning that one of its drug candidates "met the primary endpoint" of a clinical trial. [Boston Globe, Jan 19]
Ariad Pharmaup 13% [Dec 20, 10]
ARIAD Pharmaceuticals said it will receive an upfront cash payment of $50 million and an additional $19 million for expenses as part of a plan to restructure a 2007 collaboration with a unit of Merck ... The collaboration involves ridaforolimus, an ARIAD drug candidate that is a potential cancer treatment, [Boston Globe, May 5, 10]
A federal appeals court has ruled against Ariad Pharmaceuticals in a patent dispute with Eli Lilly Ariad will not get the $65 million in damages that was awarded after a 2007 trial in the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts.[Mass High Tech, Mar 23, 10]
Ariad Pharma up 13% [Mar 23, 10]
Ariad Pharmaceuticalss said it will offer 17 million shares in a public offering. [Boston Globe, Aug 4, 09]
Ariad Pharma up 42% [Jul 27, 09]
Directors Revolt. Four of Ariad's nine board members formally stepped down in a Dec. 1 letter that left no doubt how they felt about Harvey J. Berger, the longtime chief executive of the Cambridge biotech company. "We have never before witnessed the egregious misbehavior in which you have engaged during recent weeks," they told him in the letter disclosed in a public filing last Friday. Berger had an answer for them in a conference call for stock analysts yesterday. The executive summary: Take a hike. [Steven Syre, Boston Globe, Dec 9, 08]
ARIAD Pharmaceuticals said it is in line to receive a $12.5 million milestone related to a collaboration with Merck. [Boston Globe, Oct 21]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals said that a federal judge has granted its request to permit an immediate appeal of the court's ruling against Ariad in a patent infringement case. [Boston Globe, Oct 6, 08]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals said that a federal judge has granted its request to permit an immediate appeal of the court's ruling against Ariad in a patent infringement case. [Boston Globe, Oct 6, 08]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals said today that it plans to pursue the "appropriate legal action" after a federal judge ruled against it in a patent dispute. ... a federal judge in the US District Court of Delaware granted Amgen's motion for summary judgment of noninfringement of seven claims of a US patent based on activities related to Enbrel. [Boston Globe, Sep 23, 08]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge MA; three SBIRs) said today that its second-quarter loss widened slightly on higher research and development costs. The company lost $17 M.3 million, or 25 cents per share, compared with a loss of $17 million, or 25 cents per share, during the same period last year. [Boston Globe, Aug 8, 08]
Drug developer Ariad Pharmaceuticals ($600K SBIR in the 19902) said it expects a higher net loss [$80M] in 2008 as it continues research and development and defers revenue from a Merck partnership. [Boston Globe, Jan 9, 08]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals says its global deal with Merck could top $1B after the initial $75M. A mighty return from a $500K 1994 SBIR after a 1991 founding. If the government had taken an equity share proportional to its $500K investment at nursery stage, it could claim some noticeable fraction of the present market value near $400M. And if NIH would study such a hypothetical return for its SBIR investments over the two decades, it might be able to show that SBIR is worth the money in terms of economic return to the US economy, at least as managed by NIH. The Congress should consider some such evaluation scheme to see whether SBIR is merely an administrative burden on the federal agencies with no showing of any economic benefit that wouldn't have happened anyway.
Ariad Pharmaceuticals (one Phase 2 SBIR) won a patent case against Eli Lilly for royalties on sales of the osteoporosis treatment Evista and the sepsis medicine Xigris. [Indianapolis Star, Jul 10]
Ariad Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; one Phase 2 SBIR) counterclaimed against Amgen Inc. and Wyeth for alleged patent infringement.
Tetraphase Pharma down 20% [Oct 2, 19]
FLIR Systems announced that it has acquired the intellectual property and certain operating assets of Aria Insights (previously known as CyPhy Works, founded in 2008 by iRobot co-founder Helen Greiner, $1.2M SBIR) Terms not disclosed. [Robotics Business Review, Oct 2, 19]
Arieca (Pittsburgh, PA; $400K SBIR) a local startup that spun out of Carnegie Mellon University in 2018, announced that it has raised $6.5 million in its Series A funding round ... also announced that it entered into a research agreement with ROHM Co. Ltd., which provides power semiconductor devices for the electric vehicle market ... produces liquid-metal based thermal interface materials for applications in high-performance computing and high-power semiconductor devices [Jordyn Hronec, Pittsburgh Inno, May 17, 2022]
Health care powerhouse Roche (Swiss) bought a startup [CAPP Medical (Palo Alto, CA; no SBIR, founded 2013)] led by a team of Stanford University oncologists and industry veterans, the company said ... deeper into the world of cell-free DNA technology to detect and monitor cancer or early insights into potential problem pregnancies. The technology developed by CAPP Medical finds a cancer signature and could help doctors select more-personalized cancer therapies and monitor tumor response and resistance to therapies via a simple blood draw, Roche said. ... Roche late last year bought Ariosa Diagnostics (San Jose, CA; no SBIR), which has focused on detecting genetic abnormalities, such as Down syndrome, from the maternal blood stream. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Apr 15, 15]
Roche today announced the acquisition [paying an undisclosed amount] of Ariosa Diagnostics (formerly Aria Diagnostics and Tandem Diagnostics, San Jose, CA; no SBIR, founded 2010) .... a molecular diagnostics testing service provider that provides a highly targeted and accurate non‐invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) service through their CLIA laboratory using cell‐free DNA (cfDNA) technology. [Ariosa press release, Dec 2, 14] raised $52M in Jan 2012.
Plans to take Ariosa Diagnostics (San Jose, CA; no SBIR, employs 157) public appear to have taken another turn [as] Illumina said it had filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Ariosa, which is both a customer and a competitor. ..... One of Ariosa's co-founders, Arnold Oliphant, was vice president of scientific operations at Illumina from 2000 to 2005. He has been chief scientific officer at Ariosa since 2010. .... orginally known as Tandem Diagnostics when it was founded in 2008. It raised about $53 million in funding [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Apr 29, 14]
Ariosa Diagnostics (San Jose, CA; no SBIR) a developer of molecular diagnostics and prenatal tests, filed to raise up to $69 million in [IPO] ... posted $53 million in sales for the fiscal year .... develops Harmony — a prenatal genetic test that assesses the risk for chromosome conditions such as Down syndrome. The test also has an option for an analysis of fetal sex and sex chromosome conditions. [Sarah Drake, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Mar 25, 14]
Venture Capital investments in San Diego 3Q2016. Ostendo Technologies (Carlsbad, CA; one SBIR) $42 million; Tealium ( San Diego; no SBIR) $35 million ; Singlera Genomics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $20 million; Avelas Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $20 million ; Fortis Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $18 million ; Histogen (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $16 million ; Medsphere Systems (Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) $15 million; CellSavers (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $15 million; Progenity (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $12 million; AristaMD (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $11 million. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Oct 11, 16]
The University of California, San Diego, this week plans to announce that it has installed an advanced optical computer network [known as Prism] that is intended to serve as a “Big Data freeway system” for next-generation science projects in fields including genomic sequencing, climate science, electron microscopy, oceanography and physics. The new network, which is funded in part by a $500,000 grant from the National Science Foundation and based on an optical switch developed by Arista Networks (Santa Clara, CA; no SBIR), a start-up firm founded by the legendary Silicon Valley computer designer Andreas Bechtolsheim, is intended to move from an era where networks moved billions of bits of data each second to the coming age of trillion-bit-per-second data flows [John Markoff, New York Times, Mar 25, 13]
ARIZ Precision Medicine (Davis, CA; no SBIR) cancer drug startup raised $2.7 million [Sacramento Business Journal, Dec 20, 18] a combination of biological and nanotechnologies that stop cancer at the root cause, preventing cancer growth and metastasis [compamy website]
Cree announced its acquisition of Arkansas Power Electronics (Fayetteville, AR; $8M SBIR) .... APEI manufacturers power modules and power electronics applications [Angelica Lieth,Triangle Business Journal, Jul 9, 15]
Arkis BioSciences (Knoxville, TN; no SBIR, founded 2013), a leading innovator in minimally invasive surgical instrumentation, has obtained FDA clearance of its new external ventricular drainage catheter, CerebroFlo™. [company press release, Sep 20, 17] $3.4M Series A investment in 2016
Arkuda Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA) leveraging new insights into progranulin and lysosomal biology to develop medicines to change the trajectory of neurodegenerative disease, announced the completion of a $44 million Series A financing. [company press release, Nov 7, 19]
coondoggie writes "NASA said it will this week award $1.65 million in prize money to a pair of aerospace companies that successfully simulated landing a spacecraft on the moon and lifting off again. NASA's Centennial Challenges program, which was managed by the X Prize Foundation, will give a $1 million first prize to Masten Space Systems (Mojave, CA; no SBIR) and a $500,000 second prize to Armadillo Aerospace (Mesquite, TX; one SBIR) for successfully completing the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge." [slashdot.org, Nov 3, 09]
Armata Pharmaceuticals down 27% [Jan 29, 20]
Armata Pharmaceuticals (Marina del Ray, CA; no SBIR) up 74% [Jan 28, 20] focused on precisely targeted bacteriophage therapeutics for antibiotic-resistant infections, and Innoviva, with a portfolio of royalties that include respiratory assets partnered with Glaxo Group Limited, today announced that they have entered into a securities purchase agreement pursuant to which Innoviva will purchase, upon satisfaction of certain closing conditions, approximately $25 million in Armata common stock [to] to support the ongoing advancement of its bacteriophage development programs, including the expected first in human studies related to Armata's lead phage candidate, AP-PA02, targeting Pseudomonas aeruginosa, as well as AP-SA02, its phage candidate targeting Staphylococcus Aureus. [joint companies press release, Jan 28, 20]
Armetheon (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR) said it has raised $24 million in a Series B round to fund a Phase 3 trial for its anticoagulant tecarfarin, which the company wants to show can outperform the standard of care warfarin in a subset of patients. [[Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Feb 12, 15]
Armetheon (Menlo Park, CA, no SBIR) said it has raised a $24 million Series B round ... toward a pivotal trial of its anticoagulant tecarfarin. [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Feb 6, 15]
Biopharmaceutical startup Armetheon (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR, founded 2011) brought in $7 million in [Series A round] funding to continue testing Tecarfarin, the company's late-stage oral anticoagulant or blood thinner. ... develops treatments for cardiovascular diseases. Budioarone, the company's second small molecule drug, was created to treat patients with atrial fibrillation. [Sarah Drake, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Aug 29, 14]
ARMO BioSciences up 67% [May 10, 18] Eli Lilly has agreed to acquire ARMO BioSciences for $1.6B cash. ..... ARMO's lead drug is pegilodecakin, a PEGylated IL-10, in Phase 3 development for pancreatic cancer and earlier-stage development for lung cancer, renal cell cancer, melanoma and other cancers. [seekingalpha.com, May 10, 18]
ARMO Biosciencesdown 10% [Apr 6, 18]
ARMO Biosciences up 11% [Feb 16, 18]
ARMO Biosciences up 14% [Feb 15, 18]
ARMO Biosciences up 10% [Feb 5,18]
ARMO Biosciences up 11% [Feb 2,18]
ARMO Biosciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) up 75% [Jan 26,18] after $128M IPO. a late-stage immuno-oncology company that is developing a pipeline of novel, proprietary product candidates that activate the immune system of cancer patients to recognize and eradicate tumors. The Company's lead product candidate, AM0010 (pegilodecakin), is being evaluated in an ongoing Phase 1/1b clinical trial as a therapy for pancreatic cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, renal cell carcinoma, colorectal carcinoma and melanoma. [company press release, Jan 25, 18]
ARMO BioSciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR), a late-stage immuno-oncology company, announced the successful completion of a $67 millionprivate financing [to] initiate phase 2/3 studies with ARMO’s lead immunotherapy agent AM0010 in non-small cell lung cancer and renal cell cancer and to support an ongoing pivotal phase 3 clinical trial in advanced pancreatic cancer. [company press release, Aug 29, 17] announced the successful completion of a $50 million Series C private financing. [Feb 10, 16]
Armo BioSciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR), a clinical-stage biotechnology company, today announced the successful completion of a $50 million Series C private financing. ARMO intends to use the proceeds from the financing to support the clinical development of its lead product candidate, AM0010 for the treatment of advanced solid tumors, and its pipeline of immunotherapies, including cytokines and an anti-Programmed Cell Death Protein(anti-PD-1) monoclonal antibody checkpoint inhibitor. [company press release, Feb 10, 16]
ARMO BioSciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) launched just 17 months ago to exploit the body's immune system to attack a broad range of diseases, including cancer, raised $30 million in a Series B round. .... company was started by a trio of former employees of the DNAX Research Institute in Palo Alto [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, May 29, 2014]
ARMO BioSciences (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, started December 2012) is emerging from stealth mode with powerful science, leaders and funders. ... launched by a trio of former employees at the legendary DNAX Research Institute in Palo Alto, is playing off the boom in cancer immunotherapy research and drugs. But its focus on an extended-play version of the cell-signaling protein interleukin-10, or IL-10, could quickly expand as well into fibrotic diseases, such as the lung-scarring idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, high cholesterol and inflammatory diseases. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Nov 25, 13]
Gov. Susana Martinez announced that Armonica Technologies (Albuquerque, NM; no SBIR), focused on building its proprietary long-read DNA sequencing technology, will receive $1.5 million from the state's $40 million Catalyst Fund, which is meant to help seed and early-stage companies in New Mexico. [Rachel Sapin, Albuquerque Business First, Aug 21, 17]
Armorworks (Chandler, AZ; $3M SBIR) won a [$7M] contract to help protect U.S. Marines in battle. ... Enhanced Small Arms Protective Inserts ... cover a soldier’s chest and back from gunfire. Armorworks has been providing such inserts to the military for most of this decade. [Phoenix Business Journal, Jun 23, 09]
molecular diagnostics company Exact Sciences acquired Armune BioScience Armune BioScience; no SBIR, founded 2008), a cancer diagnostic startup. Terms not disclosed. “Armune is scaling down,” says [CEO] David Esposito. “Exact Sciences acquired all of our intellectual property and assets underlying our technology. For all intents and purposes, we have ceased marketing our products.” [xconomy.com, Jan 26, 18]
Aro Biotherapeutics (Philadelphia, PA; no SBIR, founded 2018) reels in $3.5M [Philadelphia Business Journal, Apr 17, 19] focused on the development of a new protein drug platform called Centyrins, designed to achieve better efficacy and safety profiles for patients with cancer and other serious diseases. Centyrins are small, non-antibody protein scaffolds that can be expressed as multi-specifics with novel therapeutic mechanisms of action. prior funding $13M [crunchbase.com]
A pair of former Janssen R&D leaders founded Aro Biotherapeutics (Philadelphia, PA; founded 2018) early this year to develop centyrins—small proteins that could potentially work like antibodies without the accompanying challenges. Now, Aro has raised $13 million to build its team and advance its centyrin pipeline, which includes a candidate for non-small cell lung cancer. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Dec 11, 18]
Aronora (Portland OR; $33M SBIR) secured an investment from NYBC Ventures, the New York Blood Center’s venture fund. [Elizabeth Hayes, Portland Inno, October 13, 2023]
Aronora (Portland, OR; $24M SBIR, founded 2007) developing first-in-class treatments for life-threatening diseases, announced that [FDA] has granted Fast Track designation for proCase (E-WE thrombin, AB002), an enzyme that is intended to reverse blood clot formation without increasing the risk of bleeding. Despite currently approved treatments, over one million people still die from blood clots every year in the U.S. [company press release, Sep 26, 18]
Gene by Gene [Houston, TX; no SBIR) said it acquired startup company Arpeggi (Austin, TX; no SBIR, founded 2012), hoping to accelerate the availability of affordable genetics testing and diagnostic services. Gene by Gene Ltd. sells and processes mail-in test kits for people interested in tracing their ancestry. [Bayan Raji,Houston Business Journal, Aug 7, 13]
ArQule (Woburn, MA: no SBIR) cancer therapeutics firm, is planning an IPO for $40M [Mass High Tech, Jan 20, 11]
Woburn biotechnology company ArQule which focuses on cancer therapies, said today that its second-quarter loss widened on higher clinical development costs. [Boston Globe, Aug 11, 08]
Arrakis Therapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR, founded 2015) pioneering the discovery of a new class of small-molecule medicines that directly target RNA, has completed a $75 million Series B financing [company press release, Apr 18, 19] prior funding #38M [crunchbase.com]
new startup, Expansion Therapeutics, announced a $55.3 million Series A investment round [to] fund the development of chemical-based drugs for a group of genetic diseases that are caused by dysfunctional RNAs with a specific kind of mutation. .... Expansion now joins Arrakis Therapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR, founded 2015), in the race to find a pill for RNA. Arrakis, headed by veteran biotech leader Michael Gilman, snagged $38 million in Series A funding early last year. [Corie Lok, xconomy.com, Jan 3, 18] Arrakis announced that it has entered into an exclusive license agreement with the University of Pennsylvania to access intellectual property and technology related to small molecule drug candidates that directly target RNA. [company press release, Dec 13, 17]
microbiome company Arranta Bio (Watertown, MA: no SBIR, founded 2019) announced the completion of an $82 million funding round and a strategic partnership with Thermo Fisher Scientific. (company press release, Oct 30, 19]
Array BioPharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR) up 57% [Jun 17, 19] Pfizer and Array BioPharma announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Pfizer will acquire Array, a commercial stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of targeted small molecule medicines to treat cancer and other diseases of high unmet need. Pfizer has agreed to acquire Array for $48 per share in cash, for a total enterprise value of approximately $11.4 billion. [joint companies press release, Jun 17, 19]
Array Biopharma up 23% [May 21, 19]
Array Biopharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR) melanoma treatment gets FDA approval [Ben Miller, Denver Business Journal, Jun 29, 18]
The FDA approved the combination of Array Biopharma drugs encorafenib (Braftovi) and binimetinib (Mektovi) for skin cancer that either can’t be treated by surgery or has spread to other parts of the body. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Jun 29, 18]
Array BioPharma in [SEC] filing revealed that it had contributed intellectual property, inventory, equipment, clinical trial data and other material about its experimental cardiomyopathy drug to a subsidiary it’s calling Yarra Therapeutics. The oral drug, known only as Array 797, is being developed to treat “lamin A/C-related dilated cardiomyopathy,” which is caused by a specific gene mutation. The disease is estimated to occur in about 6,000 to 10,000 U.S. patients, the company said. [Denver Busines Journal, Dec 27, 17]
Array BioPharma (no SBIR) announced that it has entered into a clinical trial collaboration agreement with Pfizer to investigate the safety and efficacy of several novel anti-cancer combinations, including Array's MEK inhibitor, binimetinib, with Pfizer's investigational PARP inhibitor talazoparib, and avelumab*, a human anti-PD-L1 IgG1 monoclonal antibody. [Array press release, Dec 19, 17]
Array BioPharma up 10% [Aug 9, 17]
Amgen (Thousand Oaks, CA; $600K SBIR in 1980s) and Array BioPharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR) announced a collaboration agreement for the discovery and development of novel drugs for autoimmune disorders. The undisclosed target and lead inhibitors were discovered through Array's proprietary platform that leverages Array's expertise in chemistry and early lead development. [joint companies press release, Jul 18, 17]
Array Biopharma will get $31.6 million up front in a deal with Ono Pharmaceutical for partial rights to two of the Boulder, CO, biotech’s cancer drugs. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Jun 2, 17]
Array BioPharma and pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb will test the effectiveness of Array’s drug binimetinib in combination with a Bristol-Myers’ immunotherapy drug as a treatment for some kinds of colorectal cancer [Greg Avery, Denver Business Journal, May 30, 17]
Array Biopharma up 20% [May 10,17]
Array BioPharma down 16% [May 2, 17]
Array BioPharma announced that it has withdrawn from [FDA] two its new drug application (NDA) for binimetinib monotherapy for the treatment of NRAS-mutant melanoma, a rare, mutationally-driven subset of skin cancer.[company press release, Mar 19, 17]
Array Bio up 17% [Feb 9, 17]
Array BioPharma up 81% [Sep 26, 16] and French pharmaceuticals firm Pierre Fabre said their melanoma therapy met its primary endpoint in a late-stage trial. [Dow Jones Newswire, Sep 26, 16]
AstraZeneca announced [disappointing] results from the Phase III SELECT-1 trial of the MEK 1/2 inhibitor, selumetinib [by Array Pharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR)], in combination with docetaxel chemotherapy as 2nd-line treatment in patients with KRAS mutation-positive (KRASm) locally-advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). .... the trial did not meet its primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS), and selumetinib did not have a significant effect on overall survival (OS). The adverse event profiles for selumetinib and docetaxel were consistent with those seen previously. ... AstraZeneca acquired exclusive worldwide rights to selumetinib from Array. To date, Array received $26.5 million in up-front and milestone payments and is entitled to potential additional development milestone payments of approximately $70 million (with $30 million specific for selumetinib) and royalties on product sales. [AstraZeneca press release, Aug 9, 16]
Array Biopharma down 23% [Aug 9, 16]
Array Biopharma up 13% [Aug 1, 16]
Array Biopharma up 11% [May 20, 16]
Array BioPharma announced its decision to discontinue the MILO study, a Phase 3 trial of binimetinib for the treatment of patients with low-grade serous ovarian cancer. The decision to stop the study was made after a planned interim analysis showed that the Hazard Ratio for Progression Free Survival (PFS) crossed the predefined futility boundary. Top-line results from the study had been expected in 2017. [company press release, Apr 1, 16]
Array BioPharma and Asahi Kasei Pharma (Japan) announced a strategic collaboration to develop and commercialize select Tropomyosin receptor kinase A (TrkA) inhibitors, including Array-invented ARRY-954, for pain, inflammation and other non-cancer indications. Array retains the right for all compounds for all indications outside of Asia. Within Asia, Array retains the right to cancer indications for all compounds, excluding those compounds being developed by Asahi Kasei Pharma, including ARRY-954. [company press release, Mar 31, 16]
Array BioPharma up 21% [Dec 16, 15] said its experimental drug helped patients with a form of melanoma live longer without their cancer progressing, in an ongoing late-stage study. ... Array in March regained the rights to the compound from Novartis AG. It had granted the Swiss drugmaker the license to develop and market binimetinib in 2010. [Natalie Grover, Reuters, Dec 16, 15]
Array Biopharm up 13% [Oct 2,15]
Array Biopharma up 13% [May 4,15]
Array BioPhrma up 41% [Jan 23, 15] announced that it has reached a definitive agreement with Novartis Pharma AG to acquire worldwide rights to encorafenib (LGX818), a BRAF inhibitor currently in Phase 3 development. This agreement is conditional on the closing of transactions announced by Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) on April 22, 2014, which are expected to close in the first half of 2015, and the agreement remains subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals. [company press release]
Array BioPharma up 10% [Dec 5, 14]
Array Biopharna up 14% [Dec 4, 14]
Array Biopharma up 11% [Jul 23, 14]
Array Biopharma down 10% [Jul 7,14]
Array BioPharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR, 265 employees, $550M market cap) will try to identify novel autoimmune and inflammatory disease drugs in a new partnership with Biogen Idec. [Greg Avery, Denver Business Journal, May 28, 14]
Array BioPharm down 16% [Dec 9, 13]
Array BioPharma (Boulder, CO; no SBIR), a biotech drug research company, has inked a partnership deal with startup Loxo Oncology (New York City,; no SBIR) under which Array will work on potential new cancer drugs and receive up to $434 million in payments if the research hits certain milestones. [Denver Business Journal, Jul 13]
Array BioPharma down 14% [Nov 9, 10]
Biopharmaceutical company Array (Boulder, CO; no SBIR) gained 33% after reaching an agreement with large-cap drug maker Novartis AG to develop its cancer treatment. ... will get $45 million in upfront payments and up to $422 million in additional payments, as well as royalties. [Wall Street Journal, Apr 21, 10]
Future Army contracts. The Army revealed a new roster of industry partners under a potential $37.4B contract that covers knowledge-based professional engineering support services to command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance programs. SBIR companies: Artel (now big, $300K); Dynetics (now big, 31 awards); Macaulay-Brown (now big, 23 awards); NetCentric (now big, $900K); Scientific Research (Now big, $16M); Array Information Technology (one SBIR); Bennett Aerospace (21 SBIR awards); Envistacom (one SBIR); Fibertek (127 SBIRs); Future Technologies ($1M); Fulcrum ($1.2M); LinQuest ($1M); Manufacturing Techniques (One SBIR); Navmar Applied Sciences (68 awards); Peerless Technologies ($2.6M); Research Innovations (one SBIR); Sonalysts (128 awards); SURVICE Engineering (50 awards); Truestone (one SBIR).[GovConWire, Oct 19, 18]
Gilead Sciences has agreed to acquire Arresto Biosciences (Palo Alto, CA; no SBIR) for $225 million and potential future payments, the companies said ... working on medicines that target enzymes involved in the synthesis of the extracellular matrix. [San Francisco Business Times, Dec 20, 10]
Arrien Pharmaceuticals (Ansonia, CT; no SBIR) drug discovery startup, has closed on a $2 million Series A funding round stemming from founders' contributions, the company reported ... has developed a drug discovery platform, called Fragment-Field Drug Design (FFDD) technology, that uses a scaffold-based design to create new protein kinase drug candidates [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Sep 13, 11]
Arrivo BioVentures (Morrisville, NC; no SBIR) raised $49 million from Jazz Pharmaceuticals and other investors to look for drugs already in development and ripe for licensing. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, May 27, 16]
Arrowhead Pharma up 13% [Feb 26, 18]
Arrowhead
Pharmaceuticals
(Pasasena, CA; no SBIR) announced
the
pricing of an
underwritten public offering[for]proceeds of
Arrowhead Research (public, 58 employees) announced today the sale of its majority-owned subsidiary, Aonex Technologies (Pasadena, CA; one SBIR), to AmberWave Systems (Windham NH; one SBIR). ... for $7.95M in earn-out payments, plus a running royalty on sales of solar products incorporating Aonex’s technology. Aonex Technologies was launched in 2004 by Arrowhead and Caltech Professor Dr. Harry Atwater to commercialize a materials integration technology developed in Dr. Atwater’s lab for high efficiency solar cells. [Business Wire, May 7, 08] Two other Arrowhead sub also had SBIR: Calando Pharma (one Phase 1) and Insert Therapeutics ($1M).
Arsanis up 33% [Jan 3, 19]
Arsanis up 21% [Nov 29,18]
Arsanis down 26% [Nov 28, 18]
Arsanis (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) announced its entrance into a definitive merger agreement with X4 Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR). X4 Pharmaceuticals will merge with a subsidiary of Arsanis. X4 will focus on the development and commercialization of X4's lead product candidate, X4P-001, and the advancement of X4's pipeline of treatments for rare diseases of the immune system and rare cancers." [Hannah Genig, Benzinga, Nov 28, 18]
Arsanis down 19% [Aug 13, 18] reported financial results
Arsanis up 11% [Aug 7, 18]
Arsanis (Waltham, MA and Austria; no SBIR) down 78% [Jun 28, 18] announced the discontinuation of its Phase 2 clinical trial of ASN100 for the prevention of S. aureus pneumonia in high-risk, mechanically ventilated patients following the completion of a planned interim analysis of unblinded trial data by an independent data review committee (DRC). [company press release, Jun 28, 18]
Arsanis up 15% [Jun 22, 18]
Arsanis up 15% [Apr 30, 18]
Arsanis down 25% [Apr 16, 18]
Arsanis up 10% [Jan 8, 18]
Arsanis (Waltham, MA; no SBIR, founded 2010) filing for [IPO] that would raise cash to support a drug that combines two monoclonal antibodies with the goal of preventing pneumonia infections. ... after the company raised $45.5 million in a Series D investment round to finance Phase 2 studies of that lead drug, ASN100. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Oct 23, 17]
Arsanis (Waltham, MA; no need for SBIR, 80 employees, founded 2010) biotech co-founded by scientist and entrepreneur Tillman Gerngross to develop treatments for bacterial and viral infections, has raised a $45.5 million [Series D]investment led by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to finance a mid-stage clinical trial for its lead drug program. [David Holley, xconomy.com, Apr 27, 17] closed $20M Series B in 2013
Biotech startup Arsanis (Lebanon, NH; no SBIR) has raised $9.6 million in a new round of funding, according to federal documents. Arsanis is another creation of Tillman Gerngross and Errik Anderson, both of Lebanon’s Adimab Inc. ... Gerngross, an engineering professor at Dartmouth College, previously founded the biotech company GlycoFi Inc., which he sold a couple of years ago to Merck & Co. Inc. for over $400 million. [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Feb 8, 11]
ArsenalBio (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) is launching with an $85 million Series A round of funding. ... is developing technology that adds capabilities to a cell therapy similar to the way a software programmer stacks new functions on a computer program. Improving the way a therapy finds its cancer target is one way Arsenal could “program” a cell, [CEO]Drazan says [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Oct 17, 19]
biotech Arsenal Medical (Watertown, MA; $1.8M SBIR) raised just over $6M according to an SEC filing. [Rowan Walrath, BostonInno, Jun 7, 19]
NIST TIP winners $22 million in funding for nine research projects targeting innovative manufacturing technologies in fields ranging from biopharmaceuticals and electronics to renewable energy sources and energy storage: Isogenis (Aurora, CO; $4.8M SBIR); ActaCell, (Austin, TX; no SBIR); Engineered BioPharmaceuticals (Manchester, CT; no SBIR); Arsenal Medical (Watertown, MA; no SBIR); Kent Displays (Kent, OH; $2.6M SBIR); Precision BioSciences (Research Triangle Park, NC; $340K SBIR); Ginkgo BioWorks (Boston, MA; one SBIR); Sinmat (Gainesville, FL; $4.4M SBIR); Polyera (Skokie, IL; no SBIR). http://www.nist.gov/tip/tip_121510.cfm
Arsenal Medical (Watertown, MA, formerly WMR Biomedical; no SBIR)., a developer of targeted therapies for patients with chronic conditions, has raised $2.05 million in debt financing from nine investors, [Mass High Tech, Jan 21, 10]
Arsenal Medical (formerly WMR Biomedical; Watertown, MA; no SBIR) has raised $8.2 million of a $12.2 million Series C round, according to documents filed last month with federal regulatory authorities. ... operates in stealth mode out of Watertown offices. ... founded in 2005 ... last raised $13.2 million in early 2008 [Mass High Tech, May 5, 09]
Arstasis (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) disclosed it has raised $16.5 million .... makes self-sealing catheters used by cardiologists and interventional radiologists to get access to the body's circulatory system. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Nov 18, 13]
Medical device company Arstasis (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR). won a $25.5 million investment from undisclosed investors in a Series E financing. .... allow it to complete the launch of the Axera Access Device and continue development of products in its pipeline. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 7, 11]
Future Army contracts. The Army revealed a new roster of industry partners under a potential $37.4B contract that covers knowledge-based professional engineering support services to command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance programs. SBIR companies: Artel (now big, $300K); Dynetics (now big, 31 awards); Macaulay-Brown (now big, 23 awards); NetCentric (now big, $900K); Scientific Research (Now big, $16M); Array Information Technology (one SBIR); Bennett Aerospace (21 SBIR awards); Envistacom (one SBIR); Fibertek (127 SBIRs); Future Technologies ($1M); Fulcrum ($1.2M); LinQuest ($1M); Manufacturing Techniques (One SBIR); Navmar Applied Sciences (68 awards); Peerless Technologies ($2.6M); Research Innovations (one SBIR); Sonalysts (128 awards); SURVICE Engineering (50 awards); Truestone (one SBIR).[GovConWire, Oct 19, 18]
Arteriocyte (Cleveland, OH; at least two STTRs), which has a manufacturing and distribution facility in Hopkinton, MA announced it had received $1.9 million from DARPA) for one of its projects. The DARPA initiative, dubbed the Blood Pharming program, seeks to establish an automated set of processes and technologies to create and package a donor-less supply of universal red blood cells. These red blood cells are the most crucial component of blood and the most transfused blood product used in traumatic care at the battlefield, stated Arteriocyte. [Mass High Tech, Nov 12]
Arteriocyte (Cleveland, OH; $1.4M SBIR) launched a new 6,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution facility in Hopkinton, MA in September ... Arteriocyte’s stem cell technology was developed at Case Western Reserve University, which then spun out the firm in 2004. The university seeded Arteriocyte with a mere $250,000 and the Hopkinton-based biotech raised $29 million through a combination of grants, state award programs and private investments. [Stephen DeSantis, Mass High Tech, Oct 17, 08]
Arteriocyte (Cleveland OH; one SBIR) and Utah-based DW Healthcare Partners have started Arteriocyte Medical Systems Inc. with a $10 M growth capital investment from the two partners ... to develop and market medical products to improve patient outcomes in cardiac, orthopedic and vascular surgeries. [Mass High Tech, Oct 26]
GE Healthcare is now about to go to market with the new magnetic resonance imaging technique. But it took several extra layers of technology, and a collaboration with startup Arterys (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) to make that possible. That’s because GE Healthcare, by tweaking its traditional MRI scanners, was capturing so much raw data on the heart that on-site hospital scanners and computers couldn’t assemble it into images that doctors could intuitively interpret. To solve that problem, Arterys tapped into technologies used to develop three-dimensional video games like “Super Mario 3D World.” [Bernadette Tansey, xconomy.com, Oct 19, 16]
ArthroCare (Austin, TX; no SBIR, founded 1993) has an agreement to acquire property in Costa Rica for a new manufacturing facility. ..... develops surgical products designed to enable minimally invasive procedures. The company employs 1,700 workers. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Jul 22, 13]
ArthroCare completed its acquisition of/span> ENTrigue Surgical (San Antonio, TX; no SBIR) for $45 million in cash, the companies said .... develops implants, disposables and instruments for sinus surgery. [Kirk Ladendorf, Austin American Statesman, Jul 2, 13]
In a series of stunning disclosures, Austin medical device company ArthroCare (no SBIR). said Friday that it had discovered "accounting errors and possible irregularities" in reporting revenue, that it would restate its financial performance for eight years and that it had received grand jury subpoenas in Florida related to an investigation of a controversial subsidiary. The company, which makes minimally invasive surgical devices, said its chief financial officer and two other senior executives had resigned as a result of the revenue reporting issues. ... The disclosures sent the stock down 64 percent to close Friday at $5.92. In the past 12 months, the stock has lost almost 90 percent of its value. [Austin American Statesman, Dec 20, 08]
Arthrosurface (no SBIR) raised another $4 million to make a total of $31 million in equity financing. The medical devices company, which develops joint resurfacing systems, said the financing was funded by Boston Millennia Partners and unnamed private investors. ... Arthrosurface's HemiCAP systems consist of a range of contoured articular prosthetics and instrumentation intended for the repair of significant lesions and cartilage damage in the major joints. [Mass High Tech, Feb 29]
Artisan Pharma (Waltham, MA; founded 2006) focused on treating blood clotting disorders, has raised $9.4 million of a proposed $11.8 million round, according to a federal filing. ... founded with $39 million in funding led by NGN Capital LLC [Mass High Tech, May 15, 09]
Artiva Biotherapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR for the stealthy), an oncology company focused on developing and commercializing allogeneic natural killer (NK) cell therapies, announced today the launch of the company with the close of a $78 million Series A financing [to] develop off-the-shelf universal NK cells for use in combination with monoclonal antibody therapy and tumor targeting CAR-NK cell therapies. [companyp press release, Jun 26, 20]
Artizan (New Haven, CT, no SBIR, founded 2016) aims to turn its research about disease-causing microbes into a pipeline of new microbiome drugs. ...announced it completed a Series A round, bringing its total venture capital haul to $12 million. [CEO] Rosen says his company could start human testing within two years. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Jun 10, 19] prior funding $3m [crunchbase.com]
Artrility Medical (Madison, WI; no SBIR, founded 2017), which is developing a medical device to diagnose and treat heart arrhythmias, raised $310,000 in debt funding [Jeff Buchanan, xconomy.com, Apr 18, 18]
Aruna Bio (Athens, GA; no prior SBIR, founded 2003), a leader in the development of neural exosomes for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, announced the company has been awarded a $4.5 million [NIH SBIR] to support research and development leading up to an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the use of neural stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles (“neural exosomes”) for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke. [company press release, Oct 10, 19] prior funding $24M [crunchbase.com]
ArunA Bio (Athens, GA; no SBIR) a leader in the development of neural exosomes for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, announced the completion of a $13 million common stock financing [that] will use the funding to support the development of its neural exosome delivery platform and neural exosome therapies for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS, Huntington’s Disease and stroke. [CEO] Mark Sirgo said the new funding brings ArunA Bio’s total raised to nearly $24M. [company press release, Jul 24, 19]
Arvegenix (St. Louis, MO; no SBIR, founded 2013) agtech startup developing Pennycress, an annual energy crop grown over winter when land is idle, giving farmers another revenue crop, has raised $2.5 million from a group of investors ... was one of five companies to get a commitment of up to $100,000 from The Yield Lab, the agtech startup accelerator ... The St. Louis Arch Angels, according to a release, invested about $500,000 in the deal. [Brian Feldt, St. Louis Business Journal, May 8, 15]
Arvinas (New Haven, CT; $1M SBIR) up 31% [Dec 6, 2023] Arvinas and Pfizer announced clinical data for vepdegestrant (ARV-471), a novel oral PROteolysis TArgeting Chimera (PROTAC®) estrogen receptor (ER) degrader, in combination with palbociclib (IBRANCE®). Interim results from the Phase 1b combination cohort demonstrate encouraging clinical activity in heavily pre-treated patients with a median of four lines of therapy across disease settings with locally advanced or metastatic ER positive/human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2) negative (ER+/HER2-) breast cancer. [joint companies press release, Dec 5, 2023]
Arvinas (New Haven, CT; $1M SBIR) is pushing ahead with plans to expand development of its prostate cancer prospect ARV-766 into earlier-line settings. The biotech linked the protein degrader to declines in the PSA biomarker and partial responses in a phase 1/2 trial, providing early hints of its ability to overcome resistance mechanisms. [company press release, Jun 8, 2023]
Bayer (Germany) is committing $115 million to Arvinas (New Haven, CT; $1M SBIR) in a partnership focused on turning the biotech’s technology for getting rid of harmful proteins into new products for both human health and agriculture. [Bayer] will pay Arvinas more than $60 million. ... Arvinas could earn more than $685 million in milestone payments [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Jun 4, 19]
Arvinas (New Haven, CT; $1.1M SBIR) filed to raise up to $100 million in its IPO to get its lead assets through the IND stage and into phase 1. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Aug 31, 18]
biotechnology company Arvinas (New Haven, CT; $1M SBIR) raised $55 million to advance its first two cancer drugs into clinical trials and expand its early-stage pipeline for new cancer treatments, the company said. ... has now raised a total of $110 million. ... spun out of research done at Yale University, is on track to begin its first human clinical study in late 2018 of an oral treatment for castration-resistant prostate cancer, president and CEO John Houston said [Rebecca Lurye, Hartford Courant, Apr 4, 18]
Arvinas LLC (New Haven, CT; no SBIR, founded 2013) focused on creating a new class of drugs based on protein degradation, announced today a research collaboration and license agreement with Pfizer for the discovery and development of drug candidates using Arvinas’ proprietary PROTAC (PROteolysis TArgeting Chimeras) Platform, a novel technology used to create small molecule therapeutics aimed at degrading disease-causing cellular proteins. The multi-year agreement covers the discovery and development of potential PROTAC clinical candidates designed to degrade several key disease-causing proteins in multiple therapeutic areas. Arvinas will drive discovery efforts, and Pfizer will be accountable for clinical development and commercialization of any products that may result from this collaboration. Under the terms of the agreement, Arvinas may receive up to $830 million in upfront and potential development and commercialization milestone payments upon achievement of specified preclinical, clinical and commercial milestones. [Arvinas press release, Jan 4, 18]
Arvinas (New Haven, CT; no SBIR, founded 2013) biotech that came out of Yale research, has signed a licensing agreement with biologics giant Genentech to work on drugs for several diseases. ... if Arvinas meets development milestones in coming years, it could receive more than $300 million. If the products become commercially available, Arvinas can also share in royalties. ... is working on small molecules that target harmful proteins inside cells to eliminate them. The approach convinces the body to do the work to eliminate the proteins, rather than using chemicals to inhibit the proteins. ... launched with $15 million in [VC], including $1 million from Connecticut Innovations, as well as $3.25 million in state subsidized loans. [Mara Lee, Hartford Courant, Oct 2, 15]
Arvinas (New Haven,CT; no SBIR), a biotech company based on research done at Yale University [by Craig Crews, a Yale professor in both biology and chemistry] is launching with loans and a venture capital investment from the state. ..... raised $15 million in venture capital to cover its early operating expenses, including $1 million from Connecticut Innovations ... The Department of Economic and Community Development is lending the company $2.5 million. Connecticut Innovations, in addition to its equity investment, is lending the company $750,000. .... in the process of hiring 25 workers [Mara Lee, Hartford Courant, Sep 26, 13]
A high-tech computer software company has been sued by the state's economic development agency to repay a grant from the 21st Century Research and Technology Fund. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. filed the lawsuit seeking $1.94 million plus penalties from Arxan Technologies, which is accused of taking the money nearly four years ago and leaving Indiana without fulfilling all of its promises or creating the promised jobs in the state. [Bruce Smith, Indianapolis Star, Dec 22, 10]
Aryx Therapeutics (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) terminated all of its employees Dec. 15 to save money. .... will spend about $750,000 for the layoffs and related restructuring charges. It is waiting for guidance from the Food and Drug Administration about naronapride, a drug in late stage testing aimed at various gastrointestinal disorders [SEF Brown, San Francisco Business Times, Dec 21, 10]
Aryx Therapeutics (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) tumbled 48% said its recent partnership discussions on its antiarrhythmic treatment had fallen apart, leading it to explore other options and make its second job cut in four months. [Wall Street Journal, Feb 20, 10]
Aryx Therapeutics (Fremont, CA; no SBIR) slid 44% as its tecarfarin anticlotting drug showed efficacy in a late-stage clinical trial, but didn't meet its primary goal [Wall Street Journal, Jul 9, 09] incorporated in 1997, IPO 2007, $21M private placement in 2008, raised $26M in 2002,
Arzeda (Seattle, WA; $3.5M SBIR) the industry-leading Protein Design Company™, announced today that it has closed a $33 million investment, in a Series B round of funding. [company press release, Mar 30, 22]
Arzeda (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) startup, which designs custom-made enzymes on computers, has pocketed [an NSF SBIR] to see if it can create an enzyme that can turn plant biomass into one of the key ingredients in synthetic rubber tires. ... in July, Arzeda clinched a two-year partnership with the Pioneer-Hi Bred International subsidiary of chemical giant DuPont ... company has its roots in the lab of University of Washington biochemist David Baker, who uses pooled computing power from around the world to help design brand new enzymes that don’t exist in nature. [Luke Timmerman, xconomy Seattle, Dec 8, 09]
More Buffalo subsidy. Asana Medical (Miami Lakes, FL; no SBIR)., an early-stage medical device company that was founded in Florida, expects to create two new jobs. [Dan Miner, Buffalo Business First, Jan 28, 15] focused on providing physicians with the first-in-class non-pharmacological, non-surgical treatment option for patients suffering from Ulcerative Colitis. ... parlaying its $250,000 award from the 43North competition into a much larger investment round, ultimately seeking another ... [company website]
Asante Solutions (Sunnyvale, CA; no SBIR), which makes disposable insulin pumps for diabetes patients, increased the amount it hopes to raise in an upcoming IPO to as much as $60 million. ... plans to use the proceeds to streamline production of the Asante Snap Insulin Pump System, a device approved by [FDA] for adults on intensive insulin therapy. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Jan 23, 15]
Johnson & Johnson Innovation said it has formed alliances with six Massachusetts-based life science and research companies to further innovation in pharmaceuticals, medical devices and diagnostic and consumer healthcare. .... • Minerva Neurosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR)– Partnering with Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V., Johnson & Johnson Innovation and the Janssen neuroscience therapeutic area, Minerva has begun a program that will focus on the treatment of patients with primary and secondary insomnia and potentially treating other related neuropsychiatric disorders. • Rodin Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR)- With initial investment from Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, Rodin’s will work in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation in studying the inheritable changes in gene activity for the treatment of cognitive disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease. • Energesis Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) - Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Johnson & Johnson Innovation have established a collaboration with biotechnology company Energesis to identify biological compounds that stimulate the formation of brown fat for use in treating metabolic diseases. The company’s approach is a novel strategy, leveraging recent scientific insights in BAT biology to increase the body’s ability to burn stored fat and lower insulin resistance. • Navitor Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) - Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation has made an equity investment in Navitor, which will work in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation to develop highly-specific modulators to regulate a cell’s response to nutrient availability, including cell growth and function. • Ascelegen Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR)– With an equity investment from Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, and in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Ascelegen is working on developing novel therapies for cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure. Ascelegen’s work builds on research conducted at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital. • Padlock Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) – With an investment from Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, and in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation, Padlock is developing new therapies targeting a protein that mediates how protein conversions lead to rheumatoid arthritis and how it drives inflammation and immune complex formation in active autoimmune disease. [Boston Business Journal, Jun 19, 14]
Ascension Orthopedics (Austin, TX; no SBIR) said it has raised $21M in VC to ramp up its growth... has raised $46M since its 1996 inception. [Lori Hawkins, Austin American-Statesman, Jan 23]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1.8M SBIR) down 63% [Sep 28, 2023] announced the launch of a “best efforts” public offering of 3,572,635 units (“Units”) at a price of $2.88 per Unit, [company press release, Sep 28, 2023]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1.8M SBIR) down 20% [Sep 18, 2023]
Ascent Solar Technologies down 25% [Oct 24, 2022] no press release
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1.8M SBIR) up 57% [Oct 20, 22] no press release
Ascent Solar Technologies (Littleton, CO; $900K SBIR) said it received a government contract from the General Services Administration, which it said would allow federal customers such as the military "to easily purchase a range of Ascent Solar products." ... and its stock soared 50% (from a way-under-a-buck base) [Ben Miller, Denver Business Journal, Dec 2, 15]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $900K SBIR) whose shares have been trading below $1 since last October, said it plans a reverse stock split [1:10] in hopes of boosting its share price. [Mark Harden, Denver Business Journal, Aug 25, 14]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1M SBIR) said it is raising money from private investors and will issue $32 million in senior secured convertible notes and warrants. [ Cathy Proctor, Denver Business Journal, Jul 21, 14]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1M SBIR, founded 2005, 114 employees) manufacturer of thin-film photovoltaic modules, recently raised $6 million that will help the cash-strapped company continue operations, according to recent SEC filings. ..... manufactures copper-indium-gallium-selenium (CIGS) photovoltaic modules on flexible and lightweight plastic films. ... Last year the company announced a deal with the Chinese city of Suqian that will help it build a new factory. putting up about $32.5 million to develop the factory. [Michael Davidson, xconomy.com, Jun 4, 14]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1M SBIR) a manufacturer of flexible, thin-film solar power panels, has closed on a previous announced $10 million in additional financing. .. flexible thin-film photovoltaic panels that are integrated into its EnerPlex product line, which includes portable solar chargers and cases for phones and other mobile devices that can charge the devices using sunshine. [Cathy Proctor, Denver Business Journal, Feb 11, 14]
Ascent Solar (Thornton, CO; $900K SBIR) raising $10 million to fund retail, product expansion .... by direct offering of preferred stock .... makes flexible thin-film photovoltaic modules that it attaches to its EnerPlex products, including portable solar chargers and cases for phones and other mobile devices. [Denver Business Journal, Oct 30, 13]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Littleton, CO; $1M SBIR) designer and maker of thin-film photovoltaic technology, announced it has entered into an agreement with the Chinese city of Suqian [population five million] that could lead to a total of $500 million in investments that would benefit Ascent. [Michael Davidson, xconomy.com, Jul 12, 13]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $900K SBIR), maker of thin-film photovoltaic technology, announced it has entered into an agreement with the Chinese city of Suqian that could lead to a total of $500 million in investments that would benefit Ascent. ..... manufactures copper-indium-gallium-selenium photovoltaic modules on flexible and lightweight film [Michael Davidson, xconomy.com, Jul 12, 13]
Ascent Solar said it has received a warning notice from the Nasdaq Stock Market saying that it no longer complies with listing requirements on the Nasdaq Global Market. [Denver Business JournaL, Oct 13, 11]
Ascent Solar Technologies (Thornton, CO; $1M SBIR) developer of flexible thin-film solar modules, has signed a direct-supply agreement with Goal Zero LLC. ... will supply up to 30,700 units of its "Premier" modules through 2010. [Denver Post, Sep 23, 09]
Ascent Solar Technologies, (Littleton, CO; two SBIRs in 2007), a developer of CIGS photovoltaics, got a Phase 2 SBIR for tandem solar cells in a stack in which the top one collects only the blue light of the spectrum, and the bottom collects the remaining wavelengths. Since 1995, AFRL funded the development of flexible CIGS at ITN Energy Systems ($12M SBIR). Now, it continues the funding the technology development, but at Ascent Solar which is a manufacturing creation of ITN. [Compound Semi News, Oct 17]
Anchor Therapeutics< (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) (formerly Ascent Therapeutics) closed on $10 million in a Series B funding round ... focused on developing peptide drug candidates, called pepducins, that modulate G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) [Mass High Tech, Aug 20, 10]
Ascent Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) announced a $19 million Series A round of funding ... develops Pepducin drugs, originally invented in the Tufts Medical Center laboratories, to treat inflammation, cancer, CNS disorders and cardiovascular disease. The drugs are designed to target G-protein coupled receptors on the cell membrane. [Mass High Tech, Nov 18, 08]
AsclepiX Therapeutics (Baltimore, MD; $3.5M SBIR), biopharmaceutical company that uses computational biology to identify potent peptide regulators of vascular homeostasis for the treatment of retinal and other important diseases, announced that it has closed a $35 million Series A financing [which] will fund Phase 1/2a clinical trials of AXT107, the Company’s lead investigational drug, for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME), wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD) and macular edema secondary to retinal vein occlusion (RVO). [company press release, Jun 24, 20]
AsclepiX (Baltimore, MD; $2M SBIR, founded 2011) focused on developing vital new therapies based on a novel peptide platform, announced that it has raised $5 million in Convertible Note funding ... will accelerate development of AXT107, its innovative treatment for two leading causes of adult blindness: diabetic macular edema (DME) and wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD) [company press release, Nov 13, 18]
With help from Hopkins’ tech transfer office and the Maryland Innovation Initiative [$100K], a state grant fund that invests in research projects with commercialization promise, the pair’s biomedical research is now a company — AsclepiX Therapeutics. ... developing a better way to treat eye conditions caused by blood vessel abnormalities. Macular edema, which is common among people with diabetes and can lead to blindness, is an example. [Sarah Gantz, Baltimore Business Journal, Aug 1, 14]
Aseptia (Raleigh, NC; no SBIR) plans to announce that it has raised $18 million in new funding to continue the expansion of its food-processing business in rural Montgomery County. ..... operates as Wright Foods, uses patented technology [rapid heating and rapid cooling in order to quickly kill bacteria] invented by food scientists at N.C. State University to produce packaged foods, such as sauces and soups, that it says are better-tasting. Aseptia’s latest round of funding actually totaled $28 million. [David Ranii, Raleigh News & Observer, Mar 3, 14]
Lured by state incentives, a small medical technology firm spun off from an Indiana company said Monday it will locate in Madison, WI. Zurex Pharma is developing products to help patients avoid infections from catheters and in surgical sites, said [CEO] Carmine J. Durham. Durham will run the company from offices in University Research Park, with help from four other investor-owners. All of them were involved with Zurex's parent company, Ash Access Technology (Lafayette, IN; $2.7M SBIR) .... Stephen Ash, a kidney doctor with Clarian Arnett Health in Lafayette, Ind., and a founder of Ash Access Technology."To get (these products) to market takes the kind of experience and enthusiasm that Carmine has," said Ash, who has invented more than 50 medical devices. ... Zurex is applying for Wisconsin's investor tax credits and for other incentives, such as low-interest loans the state Commerce Department offers for young technology companies, [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Aug 9, 10]
Editas Medicine began a collaboration with Asklepios Biopharmaceutical (RTP, NC; $3.2M SBIR) to explore gene-editing medicines for neurological diseases. No financial terms were disclosed. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Oct 18, 19]
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $18M SBIR) up 18% [Dec 19, 14]
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $19M SBIR, founded 2001) maker of highly-efficient insulation, filed plans this week to go public.... to raise a total of $86.3 million .... has raised more than $55 million, all of it in debt financing. .... to pay for expenditures necessary for the design, development and construction of its third production line in its East Providence, R.I., facility; to repay amounts outstanding under its revolving line of credit, which is payable in July 2014; and for "general corporate purposes," which will include funding a portion of the design, development and construction of a planned second production plant in Europe or Asia. [David Harris, Boston Business Journal, May 1, 14]
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $19M SBIR) which develops extremely lightweight material that has thermal insulation properties, has raised $10 million in debt, options and warrants out of a $15 million offering from 18 investors, according to federal filings. .... Founded in 2001,... markets aerogel technology for insulation in a variety of markets, .... brings the total the Northborough-based company has raised in the last year to more than $55 million, all of it in debt financing. In October 2010, it had raised a $21.5 million round of funding ... filed its [IPO] intentions worth up to $115 million in June 2011, but has yet to hold the offering. [Don Seiffert, Mass High Tech, Jun 27, 11]
With a pending initial public offering,Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $17M SBIR) raised $15 million in debt, options and warrants, with a planned top end of $25 million, according to a regulatory filing. ... founded in 2001, develops and markets as aerogel technology used for insulation products in a variety of markets, including oil and gas; building and construction; outdoor gear and apparel; solar thermal; appliances; and transportation. [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Dec 22, 11]
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $19M SBIR) has raised $30 million in a round of non-equity financing, according to a . ... says its aerogel technology is used for insulation products in a variety of markets, including oil and gas; building and construction; outdoor gear and apparel; solar thermal; appliances; and transportation. [Kyle Alspach, Mass High Tech, Jun 16, 11]
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $17M SBIR) supplier of nanoporous aerogel insulation products, has raised a $21.5 million in an investment round.... from a global chemical company based in Germany [Boston Globe, Oct 8, 10]>
Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $13M SBIR over six years) got a $37M investment from Atlanta-based investor, Arcapita. [Boston Globe, Jun 26]
After an investment of $30M, executives at materials company Aspen Aerogels (Northborough, MA; $13M SBIR) report the firm has tripled its production capacity with a newly opened, 150,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in East Providence, RI [Mass High Tech, Apr 7]
Pharmaceutical start-upAspenBio Pharma (no SBIR) slid 54% after saying it will likely delay applying for FDA clearance of its test for acute appendicitis. [Wall Street Journal, Jun 8, 10]
Aspen Neuroscience (San Diego, CA; no SBIR), developing the first autologous neuron replacement therapy to treat Parkinson disease, announced the close of its Series A funding round of $70 million. [company press release, Apr 1, 20] total prior fundng $6.58M [crunchbase.com]
Aspen Neuroscience (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) announced it raised a seed round of $6.5 million to support its work. Aspen’s lead drug candidate, which is in preclinical testing, is intended to replace neurons in the brains of people with the disease, which causes those cells to become damaged or die. [Sarah de Crescenzo, xconomy.com, Dec 12, 19]
Aerodyne Research (Billerica, MA; 199 SBIR Phase Is and something like $80M total SBIR) will receive five $1-million DOEnergy [SBIR Phase II] grants, and Radiation Monitoring Devices (Watertown, MA; 404 SBIR Phase Is and something like $150M SBIR) will receive three $1 million grants, the department said. ... Other local companies in line to receive Energy Department grants: Conispire (Boston, MA: no SBIR) , Aspen Products Group (Marlborough.MA; $5.6M SBIR), Capesym (Natick, MA; $5.3M SBIR); Nova Scientific (Sturbridge, MA; $9M SBIR); Beacon Power (Tyngsborough, MA; $1M SBIR), the department said. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jun 29, 12]
Aspen Technology (Burlington, MA), a maker of software for oil and chemical companies, for fumbling its filings.
Aspinity (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR, founded 2015), a pioneer in ultra-low-power analog machine learning processors, today announced that it has raised $5.3 million in Series A funding [to] to dramatically improve battery life in smart electronic devices that are always on and always sensing the environment for acoustic, vibrational, or other ambient triggers. [company press release, Sep 2, 20]
Aspyrian Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) closed $15.1M as part of a Series B-1 financing to support the advancement of its proprietary precision targeted therapy, RM-1929, to late stage clinical development and the progression of new proprietary immune oncology assets into the clinic. [company press release, Jul 9, 17]
Nationwide, VCs raised $5.3 billion in the third quarter of this year, a sharp drop from the $10.9 billion they raised the quarter before, according to the Venture Monitor report [Marisa Kendall, San Jose Mercury News, Oct 11, 17]
Aspyrian Therapeutics, (San Diego, CA; no SBIR, founded 2010) to advance technology that uses near-infrared light to activate an immune response targeting certain types of tumors, has raised almost $8.5 million from investors, according to a recent SEC filing. ... Their approach uses near-infrared light to activate a toxic dye attached to monoclonal antibodies that bind to the surface of certain tumor cells. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Jan 25, 15]
Assembly Biosciences (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) down 69% [Nov 6, 20] reported disappointing scientific trial results
Assembly Biosciences (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing innovative therapeutics targeting hepatitis B virus (HBV) and diseases associated with the microbiome, announced that the Company will regain worldwide rights to all microbiome gastrointestinal programs licensed under its collaboration agreement with AbbVie (formerly Allergan pre-acquisition). AbbVie has decided to terminate the research, development, collaboration and license agreement. This decision was not based on any efficacy, safety, or other data related to the collaboration programs. ... As of March 31, 2020, Assembly had cash, cash equivalents and investments totaling $249 million. [company press release, Jun 18, 20]
Venture capital backers of the Mayo Clinic-related biotech startup, Assurex Health (Mason, OH; no SBIR), were afforded a return on investment this month with its purchase by Myriad Genetics for $225 million in upfront cash and potentially $185 million more in performance-based milestones. One of those early investors was the Mayo Clinic itself [Don Jacobson, Twin Cities Business, Aug 17, 16]
Astek Diagnostics (Baltimore, MD; $250K SBIR) closed a $2 million funding round that it hopes will help launch a device to give patients with urinary tract infections a quick route to recovery. [Matt Hooke, bizjournals.com, Jun 5, 2023]
The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation reports that it has awarded $500,000 each in grant funding to a pair of Cambridge-based companies, Aileron Therapeutics (no SBIR) and Astex Therapeutics (no SBIR), for cancer therapy research. [Mass High Tech, Mar 2, 09]
Asthmapolis (Madison, WI; no SBIR) company with a mobile app for chronic respiratory disease, said Tuesday it has changed its name to Propeller Health. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Sep 10, 13]
Asthmapolis (Madison, WI; no SBIR) said it has raised $5 million from a Silicon Valley firm in a deal that represents the Madison company's first venture capital-level funding. .... makes a sensor that attaches to short-acting and preventive asthma inhalers [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Apr 4, 13]
One of the fathers of GaN LEDs, Jacques Pankove, retired from Astralux (Boulder, CO), his company that convinced many DOD techies to spend SBIR on his science. The Compound Semiconductor piece (Dec 23) says Astralux is essentially a cutting edge hothouse. .. What Astralux does is what it has always done, leverage its core expertise in research and development and help young companies grow and successfully spin out from Astralux, as they did with their first company, PowerSicel. The piece lists many government contracts without enumerating any economic success therefrom. Astralux has hauled in at least $6M SBIR over a decade to support a handful of employees. Maybe one or more of the several funders in DOD can explain how DOD got any return beyond more knowledge about GaN technology. But such accounting will not happen until Congress insists on an economic accounting since the agencies do not accept the idea that attracting capital into new technology gives them development they don't have to pay for. Powersicel's web site says it raised $2.5M and an ATP award in 2003 and an unspecified amount in the last boom year Y2K.
Astrobotic (Pittsburgh, PA; $11M SBIR) announced that its Peregrine lunar lander has successfully completed its entire flight acceptance campaign. Peregrine is now ready to be shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida when Astrobotic’s rocket provider, United Launch Alliance (ULA), gives the green light to receive it. [company press release, Jan 25, 2023]
Astrobotic (Pittsburgh, PA; $200K SBIR) pulled out of the competition for Google’s $20 million Lunar XPrize for the first commercial operation to land on the moon, according to TribLive. ... said the deadlines were too demanding. [Patty Tascarella, Pittsburgh Business Times, Jan 4, 2017]
Astrobotic Technology ($200K SBIR, founded 2007), in partnership with Carnegie Mellon University, has been awarded $375,000 in [STTR] contracts from NASA ... Last April, Astrobotic was one of three companies selected by NASA for a partnership that allows it to access NASA expertise while they attempt commercial unmanned lunar landings. .... is pursuing the $30 million Google Lunar XPRIZE in partnership with CMU. [Justine Coyne, Pittsburgh Business Times, May 1, 15]
Astrobotic Technology (Pittsburgh, PA; $800K SBIR) [spun out of Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute in 2008] is among five teams that have passed a more advanced round of tests for the Google Lunar Xprize, receiving $1.75 million to help the startup land on the moon in 2015. [Paul J. Gough, Pittsburgh Business Times, Feb 19, 14] The other teams are Moon Express, Team Indus, Hakuto, and Part-Time-Scientists [Google Lunar Xprize website]
robotics start-up Astrobotic Technology (Pittsburgh, PA; no previous SBIR) has landed a second NASA contract, this time as a [$600K] Phase II [SBIR] to develop a moon mining robot. .... a Carnegie Mellon University spin-out that is working toward a private mission to the moon. In doing so, the company is after the Google Lunar X Prize and aims to deliver payloads and collect data for space agencies, researchers and aerospace companies. [Malia Spencer, Pittsburgh Business Times, Oct 20, 10]
Cool pork for Wisconsin. Astronautics Corp. of America (Milwaukee, WI; no SBIR) will work to develop a next-generation air-conditioning system using magnetic refrigeration technology, under a $2.9 million energy research grant funded through the federal stimulus package. ... now moving into a civilian application for the technology ... Astronautics has been conducting research into magnetic refrigeration technology for U.S. Navy ships for years, with the aid of federal funding. U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) has supported $7.5 million in funding in recent years, said Bill Murat, Baldwin's chief of staff. Another $4 million earmark remains pending. [Thomas Content, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Jul 13, 10]
AstroPower's Final Repose? While GE is expanding solar module production using cells from outside suppliers, does this event mark the end of the both recycled wafer and APex™ Silicon-Film™ solar cell technologies developed by solar industry pioneer AstroPower? Ed Gunther's blog Gunther Portfolio (Aug 06) tells a lot of the decline story. In a long saga, AstroPower got a lot of SBIR money (14 Phase 2s) for its silicon solar technology and its Liquid Phase Epitaxy process research in the 1980s and 1990s, and then eventually went bankrupt in 2003. It qualifies as an SBIR economic success story in that it exploited the SBIR investment to bring in public capital for its manufacturing and world-wide sale of silicon cells. Remember that SBIR's role is not to guarantee market success of its investments, but to give new technology with market potential a boost in its early R&D phase. Bringing new technology to market is NOT a government function. Like all venture investments, they are ventures, not Treasury notes. Thanks to Duane Zieg of MDA's excellent Tech Applications uncovering the latest story.
The remains of bankrupt Astro Power will remain in Newark DE under its new owner GE Energy.
AstroPower lost 90% of the remaining 5% of its high price when it declared bankruptcy and sold some of its assets to GE. Its auditor also called a foul. AP got a huge hand from SBIR in its heavy R&D days in the 80s and early 90s. The silicon solar cell technology sold a lot of hardware all over the world into a competitive market. The other technologies, mostly III-V semiconductors based in liquid phase epitaxy, never made much commercial splash. But then hardly any SBIR supported semiconductor research graduated to the big time. Is that because the government has a hard time picking winners and ignores market signals on what would even be viable if it succeeded technically? The SBIR advocates want just such a situation to continue because it allows mediocre companies to keep feeding at the trough. Politics trumps economics every time when government is involved.
AstroPower says it is laying off workers to exploit new productivity. The stock price has doubled in a week from under a buck to over a buck, still miles below its price in the thirties. [Jan 8, 04]
AstroPower stock took a swan dive when it announced that it is being de-listed from NASDAQ for failing to file required reports.
One bad thing leads to another. AstroPower got another nastygram - delisting notice for failure to file - from the SEC. The company says it can't file the second report until it straightens out the first one for which it got the first nastygram. The stock price jumps around in the lower reaches of price per share but at least staying above the magic buck below which it might get yet another delisting notice.
AstroPower must have been too much for the big shareholders. They convinced founder-builder-CEO Allen Barnett to go down with his stock, to resign along with a couple of other top management.
Solar Power Bounce. AstroPower led the NASDAQ list of percentage losers Friday, down 11% in continuation of its severe bouncing of the last month.
Even though Value Line lists AstroPower as its leading bargain basement stock, it lost another 13% yesterday. Just to get on VL's list of covered stocks is quite an achievement for the four SBIR stocks, APWR plus Cree, ATMI, and Surmodics.
If you're looking for AstroPower, look for APWRE, the temporary symbol. AWPR got a nastygram from the NASDAQ of delisting for not filing its annual report on time. It is also received a hailstorm of lawsuits alleging deceptive pronouncements.
When another legal jackal joined the pack of suers, AstroPower dropped another 14% to a market cap under $100M. As SBIR companies go, such a market cap is still in the top 1%.
Bill Lerach vulture lawyer to man is now afterAstroPower for being optimistic. The suit alleges that APWR claimed that it was well positioned to take advantage of the increasing demand for solar power products. (the usual puffery of even SBIR proposals) but because of capacity limits ( the problem all companies want) it was in fact losing ground to more effective competitors. Another firm filed a similar suit as the jackals hunt in packs
AstroPowerskidded on another icy patch when it said it would delay announcing earnings. A Yahoo finance posting expounds: AstroPower's shares hit a 4 year low on heavy trading volume after the company delayed its previously scheduled March 5, 2003, earnings announcement "pending receipt of confirmation of certain contractual agreements with two government customers". It is highly unusual for a company to delay its earnings announcement for any reason, especially on the day before their scheduled release. We, at StockDiagnostics.com, suspect that the delay is due to a lot of "gnashing of teeth" going on behind closed doors as AstroPower's management is most likely having difficulties in convincing its auditor, KPMG, that its receivables are legitimate. We again are reiterating our OPS Warning on AstroPower. Its shares should be avoided at any price. Believe what you will at your own risk.
AstroPower took a 17% hit when it reported less profit than Wall Street was hoping for. Profit was down 44% as revenues rose 25%.At least it made some profit, which is infrequent among SBIR public companies lately.
AstroPower Bombs on Wall Street (Aug 5,02) After AstroPower reported lower profits, a stampede of brokerage house downgraded their recommendations on the stock. Whammo - half the already well declined market cap dissolved. Even though it still made money, profits dropped 80% even though revenue rose 27%.
Go Ahead, Pick a Number. A brokerage lowered its target price for AstroPower from $38 to $27 as the present price sinks below $14. Such targets are mere fantasies that pretend to issue from analytical research. No one, particularly brokers who need buyers and sellers regardless of the price, knows what the market climate will be for companies with struggling earnings and a high PE multiple. The whole market PEs look awfully high and the energy market into which APWR sells its solar power is in disarray as the traders like Dynegy and Mirant crater.
Cheap Solar Power Maybe. A Canadian company claims it will halve the cost of solar power with a new technology to be in production next year. A Canadian company said on Wednesday it has developed solar cells that will slash the cost of solar power, holding out the possibility of a revolution in the generation of clean, renewable energy. A press release says that Spheral Solar Technology will use tiny silicon beads bonded in an aluminum foil that use a fraction of the silicon in current solar cells. It does claim that Energy experts said the technology could make huge strides in lighting up parts of the developing world. AstroPower stock price showed no reaction to the news although it had already sunk below half its 2001 highs.
Pessimists abound on AstroPower at least as measured by the short interest. As of early April,the 4M share short initerest was 30 days of trading at the average daily volume and an estimated 35% of the floating share total. And since the stock price has fallen 15% in the last month, there probably hasn't been much short covering.
The recently resurgent interest in solar power has been a boon to AstroPower , the largest pure play in the sector. AstroPower has posted impressive growth rates although that growth has actually been restrained by limited manufacturing capabilities.The company is set to open an additional plant, which should sharply boost output; AstroPower will lurch into the number three spot worldwide when the new plant becomes fully operational, predicts Salomon Smith Barney analyst David Smith.To find customers for that additional output, AstroPower has inked agreements with almost a dozen homebuilders, as well as Home Depot (HD). The company expects its solar power cells to be in 70 Home Depot stores by the end of the year. "I think that program could be huge," says Smith, adding that it could, "more than double AstroPower's revenues by 2005." Multex Investor, Apr 24]
AstroPower doubled its quarterly profit but reported a 15% decline for its fiscal year. The traders booed and dropped the price 40% below its highs despite the fact that the sun always shines and fossil fuel energy still costs money.
more, more, or else (Nov 13) After AstroPower reported 50% higher earnings, the market beat the stock down for failure to meet the street estimates. It fell 15% to only 236 times earnings. The culprit? Goldman Sachs 2002 earnings estimate by 20% in light of the company's disappointing third-quarter results. And just after Value Line highlighted AP as one of its two weekly picks on Oct 28.
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Record earnings not good enough. Even though AstroPower upped revenue 35% and profits nearly doubled (albeit from a low base), the stock price tumbled 14%. Meanwhile AP will acquire Aplicaciones Tecnicas de la Energia, S.A., commonly known as Atersa, a private Spanish company, and Atersa's 50% equity stake in AstraSolar, a Spanish solar cell manufacturing joint venture between Atersa and AstroPower. Atersa is a leading manufacturer of solar electric power modules and balance-of-system components, The price will be 4,000 million pesetas ($21M) in a stock and cash.
Unlike fuel cells or microturbines, solar power is a proven technology, and it is becoming cheaper to produce. And AstroPower, a maker of solar cells, modules and panels, is a rarity in the sector: a profitable, stand-alone, publicly traded company. It can meet only about 60% of demand for its rooftop systems and is adding manufacturing capacity as fast as it can. "Our consumers know we are getting a little respite right now, but they really want to have control over their energy," said Allen M. Barnett, an electrical engineer who is the founder and chief executive of AstroPower. Solar energy has been promoted as a clean solution ever since the energy crisis of the 1970's. But as prices of gas and oil fell and generally stayed low through the late 1990's, the solar alternative found only limited use.But a confluence of forces has expanded the market for solar power in the last two years, and various companies are pushing ahead, sensing the dawn of a big business. [ABBY SCHULTZ, New York Times, Jul 29]
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Irrational Exuberance? AstroPower hangs in there at 1000 times earnings as yet another broker starting covering it with a BUY recommendation. It takes a strong constitution and lots of faith to ride 1000 PE stocks.
Allen Barnett interview on CEO Cast on the growth of AstroPower. Highlights: the president will propose a tax incentive of $2000 per house for solar power; we are a semiconductor-like company selling in the power industry; we cannot meet the voracious demand for another 18 months; we sell power for about 25 cents per KWHR, the national average is about 10 cents, New York cost is about 20 cents and Cliifornia up to 25 cents; if you install our solar unit in your house we guarantee electricity for the circuits that you name, forever.
The Government Got It (May 8)Well, it would have been a nice profit growth except for the nasty government grabbing $3.5M in a settlement over an overhead rate dispute in the 90s. Anyway, AstroPower lost $1.5M when it would have made a record $1.1M profit on a 40% growth in revenue for the quarter.
AstroPower has been growing product revenue at 50% a year for the last five years to a revenue of $50M in calendar year 2000. We have been growing pretax income at 89% a year for the last four years. We need to accelerate the growth rate. The premise for AstroPower is making more products so that we can satisfy demand. Our only problem today is that at a 50% growth rate, we cannot satisfy the demand of our current customers. [The Wall Street Transcript interview with Allen Barnett, CEO of AstroPower, May 2]
Spain Loves Solar Power (May 1) AstroPower shot up another 15% yesterday on Friday's news that AP's Spanish joint venture, AstraSolar, will supply advanced solar cells for a 13MW solar electric power plant to be built in Spain. When completed, the power plant will be approximately four times larger than any photovoltaic power plant currently in operation, and will cover an area equivalent to 57 soccer fields. A PE-ratio of 135 is a rich price in a market that has been beating up the NASDAQ. AP now trades at six times its IPO price.
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Power for the Water AstroPower says its solar cells will help power the world's largest hybrid-solar/wind power system in Hawaii. 225-kWac solar/wind hybrid system generates 24 hours per day for Parker Ranch, one of the largest cattle ranches in the United States. 475 AP Panels are the largest UL-approved solar power panels commercially available. During the day a tracker keeps the cells pointed at the sun and after sunset, the wind takes over. With that kind of power, the cattle ranches can try to pump the aquifer dry as ranches do in the CONUS Southwest.
Investment [in energy technology] has been flooding in: Britains Impax Capital, Switzerland’s Sustainable Asset Management, America’s Nth Power and even financial giants such as Merrill Lynch and J.P. Morgan now have big funds investing in this area. Despite the bleak market for public offerings, ET firms including Capstone, which makes microturbines, and AstroPower have found it relatively easy to float their shares. ... Two years ago, few investment banks, let alone ordinary punters, even knew ET existed. As word got out that information-technology gurus such as Paul Allen and Bill Gates were putting money into the sector, the big banks began to take it more seriously. ... California has been a giant wake-up call for investors, says Paul Lancaster of Ballard Power Systems, a Canadian fuel-cell pioneer. Interest has grown in technologies that bypass the grid altogether, such as micropower. [The Economist, Apr 21]
Invest in Your Customers(Apr 12 ) AstroPower will be the first corporate investment in the $30M Solar Development Capital (SDC) private equity fund.that funds solar businesses located in developing countries. Although founder and CEO Allen Barnett is noted for his charitable work, including the first Humanitarian Award from the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, this investment has practical use for making buyers for AstroPower's main product - silicon solar cells. Something like a third of the people in the world aren't plugged into an electric grid, a lot of them would probably like the gift of electricity if only a local enterprise could find some capital to start a solar-power business. Allen said We have dedicated operations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America which enable us to meet the needs of local entrepreneurs and communities. . SDC is a subsidiary of Solar Development Group, a joint project of the World Bank and some private charities. AP is one of those increasingly rare SBIR economic success stories. Real economic success, not soft stories of a few sales.
AstroPower reported more demand than profit. ``We continue to experience demand that far outstrips our ability to supply product,'' said CEO Allen Barnett. Profit was only $761K, down 22%, even though revenue was up 38%. Excess demand is a problem most companies would like to have.
AstroPower reported slashed profits, down 15%. Concurrently, the stock price dropped to only 135 times earnings. If you believe that stock prices should be around a PEG ratio of 1.0, you'll need faith that AP can continue its annual doubling of earnings despite such reverses.
AstroPower to S&P600 AstroPower to S&P600 (Dec 29) AstroPower got the normal boost 8% from being named to the S&P Small Cap 600 index. It also is high up on the list of short interest ratios at 8 when the average is below 2. Lots of traders have shown pessimism to get the ratio up to 8.
Government Sues AstroPower (Oct 24)Eight Years Later, Taking It Back. A federal auditor has decided to pursue AstroPower for using federal R&D funds to foster commercialization of solar power R&D for which the Energy Department was bragging about how important its R&D funding was to the development of commercial alternative power. Double standard? Sure smells like it. Says CEO Allen Barnett, The basis of it is a single individual in the Department of Defence audit agency...whose position has been that the government does not fund commercial development. We're the third-largest of the five largest U.S.-based companies (in solar research and development.) Of the five, three have been purchased by European companies, and the fourth has licensed its technology to Japan and Europe. They get help from their governments, we get sued by ours. ... The government had previously audited and accepted our overhead rate structure for 1991-1993, but has apparently reversed its position. Still, the one auditor managed to parlay his investigation into a suit by the Justice Department, which does act lightly in such situations. Accept a structure in 1993 and reverse it in 2000? How is a company to believe anything the government says in a contract? A warning to all those companies who believe the government's promises about fostering commercialization. Take that money at your peril of a zealous auditor years later who has the power to simply take back the government's money. The charge against AstroPower is in that vague area of what is a valid indirect cost. Your case would be just as vague and often in the eye of the beholder.
As a German I can tell you that APWR is in a hot future market anyway.Legislation especially in Germany is very challenging and in favor of new technologies like those APWR is offering, but also wind etc. Government is paying big money to make such solutions interesting for the people/businesses.Maybe APWR looks somewhat expensive now - but in 10 years everybody will wonder about the low value 10 years ago. I'm absolutely sure about that. Conclusion: Don't assess on APWR based only on the US-markets. [a professed German on Yahoo msg board]
AstroPower Convention Power(Sep 1). The convention centers in LA and Anaheim will be powered partly by AstroPower solar panels during peak demand periods when the electricity supply is most scarce and, consequently, most expensive. Not that solar power is cheap, but the astronomical marginal rates that the partly deregulated utilities paid this summer make solar look real cheap. Says AsstroPower's press release, The first phase of the LA Convention Center project, a 120 kW system, was installed in time to provide power for the Democratic National Convention. The system has over 2,000 solar panels, and is designed to blend in with the Convention Center architecture. Panels are mounted on a highly visible curving wall overlooking the busy Harbor Freeway in downtown Los Angeles.The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power designed the support structure and installed the power system as part of a 1.8 MW contract with AstroPower valued at $6 million. When the next phase is completed this fall, the LA Convention Center will be the largest solar-powered facility in North America.The Anaheim Convention Center project will use over 900 AstroPower panels, and will be rated at 100 kW. The NASDAQ traders liked the news, upping the stock price 20% in a week.
Money Manager Likes AstroPower. Says a press release from The Wall Street Transcript: Lorenzo Villalon, General Partner of Versant Partners, examines portfolio management strategies In a valuable review of investing strategies, Lorenzo Villalon explains his approach to managing money and offers specific stock recommendations. Villalon reports, ``We have a conservative approach to investing. We have a well-diversified portfolio (typically 25-35 companies on the long side), with no single name accounting for more than 5%-6% of the total. We also typically carry anywhere from five to 15 names on the short side and are able to move quickly into a defensive posture when market conditions warrant.'' Villalon continues, ``Capital preservation is one of our stated priorities. We have a very low tolerance for losses and, as we tell our clients, when quick decisions are called for to protect the portfolio, we move 'without emotion or delay,' whether in cutting losses, increasing our short exposure, or increasing our cash reserves.'' Villalon highlights AstroPower , ``We are very impressed with their solar panel technology and with their financial success. They are growing revenues at 50% and are quite profitable.'' To obtain this insightful 2,600-word report, call 212/952-7433 or see http://www.twst.com/info/info142.htm
AstroPower Profit Doubles(Aug 3) AstroPower reported doubled quarterly profit on revenue up 50% from more demand from Asia, South Africa and US rooftops.Per share profits didn't grow as much because the number of shares went up a quarter.Still, a per share profit growth of 60% is in line with a PE multiple of 75 (for those who swear by unity PEG ratios as a measure of investment sanity).
Capacity Constrained. One problem a company would like to have is too much business for the plant. So, CEO Allen Barnett of AstroPower reports We continue to be capacity-constrained, in spite of more than tripling our manufacturing capacity over the past three years,. Bang, down goes the stock 25%. Although AstroPOower plans to expand to meet the demand, Barnet said revenues and earnings wouldn't grow until the new capacity came on line. Another high tech stock had the same problem this week, Agilent, the old economy fragment of HP.
LA Buys AstroPower Power(Jun 19) The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the largest municipal utility in the nation, will pay AstroPower $6M contract to supply solar electric power modules. This contract is the largest single award for solar power since utility deregulation was introduced in the US 7 years ago. The contract represents only the first phase of an ambitious 4-year, $38M program to provide clean solar power. The green-leaning Democratic convention will showcase the panels.
| Sunlight Into Earnings (June 12)What makes AstroPower an interesting member of that jet set(of alternative power) is that it is the only name in the group to actually post profits. After being bludgeoned for the better part of three months, fuel cell stocks are starting to warm up again, and not surprisingly, AstroPower is drawing a lot of the heat. Last Thursday, Robertson Stephens initiated coverage on the company with a buy recommendation. The new institutional interest and some apparent short covering sent big blocks of stock across the tape on Friday, pushing the shares up more than 15% on double the normal volume to close at $25. Although its shares can clearly trade with the best momentum stocks, it is AstroPower's growth prospects that ultimately make this a compelling story. AstroPower is currently the largest American-owned solar electric power component manufacturer in the U.S., and the fourth largest in the world. The company derives about 75% of its sales overseas. In Germany and Japan. However, evidence is mounting that more of this "grid-connected" business is ready to migrate to the United States. [Luciano Siracusano, Individual Investor, June 12] |
Says Robertson-Stephens to its customers AstroPower - Buy. We are initiating coverage of AstroPower, the dominant public 'pure play' in the global solar electric power (photovoltaic or PV) products market, AstroPower has consistently grown at rates far exceeding the robust growth of the Photovoltaics' industry as a whole. We estimate that AstroPower is trading at a significant discount to its growth rate. One caution: the whole securities industry depends on buy recommendations overwhelming sell recommendations. The bias is spectacular. |
AstroPower makes the best residential solar panel for generating electricity. They are also by far the most profitable company in the space. They have actual revenue that went up 47% this year over last. You'll see AstroPower solar panels on the roofs of houses in your neighborhood in no time. When you see your heighbors having power when you don't, you'll get one too.
Yesterday's other zoomer was AstroPower up 27% to a market cap of $420M. That's a company in which BMDO would have a tidy equity profit
Recruit or Die?. Most good high-tech companies say they cannot get the help they need. It's a tough competition in a world of declining birth rate and political resistance to immigration. A few suggestions from Washington Technology. It also embarasses the SBIR advocates who are put in the dilemma of complaining about encouraging more high-tech jobs while being unable to fill the ones they already have. Not to worry, though, for the pseudo-entrepreneurial companies with merely good scientists who depend on government contracts, politics is built on such contradictions. SBIR will go on despite the evaporation of any national economic need for it.
AstroPower Does New York (Feb 15)AstroPower (Newark, DE) rose 15% on news that New York State picked it to increase residential solar electric power to NY consumers. NY will provide $500K to AP, who will match that to market solar electric systems to homeowners at a reduced cost. NY will provide an income tax credit - up to $3,750 - along with assurances that homeowners will be able to connect their solar power to the electric grid and get credit for electricity fed back into the grid. Normally, the utilities put roadblocks in front of such co-generation payments and do so only under state coercion.
AstroPower said it has been selected as one of the 25 most successful small manufacturers by Industry Week in its November 1999 issue. Industry Week is a publication that explores the personalities and enterprises that anchor the U.S. industrial base, those manufacturing firms with fewer than 500 employees....The IW Growing Companies 25 honors successful small manufacturers representing the vitality of U.S. manufacturing;small public and private companies that are laying a foundation of ``best practices'' which will ensure that they are well positioned for sustainable and profitable growth.
AstroPower, a leading supplier of solar electric power products, today announced the formation of a European joint venture company, AstraSolar. The new venture will be jointly owned by both AstroPower and Atersa (Applicaciones Technicas de la Energia, S.A.), a leading Spanish solar electric power module manufacturer and systems integrator.The packaging of solar cells into finished solar electric power modules is increasingly being performed by regional module assembly companies (MODCOs) worldwide. AstraSolar plans to manufacture APex(TM) solar cells using wafers supplied by AstroPower, and market the cells as well as a comprehensive package of associated products and services to these independent MODCOs, which are located close to the regional markets they serve. [company press release]
Exiting AstroPower (Sep 10) AstroPower (Newark, DE) filed to sell 2.75M common shares, 2.025M for AP and 725K for certain stockholders plus 412K for the underwriters. The company's net proceeds (around $30M) will go to expand manufacturing capacity, working capital and other general corporate purposes, including possible acquisitions. The early investors thus reap a huge profit and will redeploy their money to more start-ups where the returns can be astronomical. Good solid companies like AstroPower should continue to grow and provide a handsome return but not with the thrills and get-rich potential of startups (except those startups doing mere government research and kidding the gullible government about economic potential). Look for those investors; they're rich and they like to play. You can ask CEO Allen Barnett how to deal with them.
AstroPower to Power California AstroPower to Power California (Sep 9)GreenMountain.com the nation's leading brand of cleaner electricity, announced that it has entered into an agreement with GPU Solar and Real Goods to build the first commercial solar plant in California directly resulting from customer choice. GPU Solar, a joint venture between AstroPower, Inc. (Newark, DE) and GPU International, will build, own and operate the solar plant which will provide clean power to the California electric grid. ... AstroPower is currently the largest US-owned manufacturer of photovoltaic (PV) solar power cells and panels. GPU International is a worldwide developer of independent power plants. California's competitive electrical power regime is changing the way power investment is made. [Greenmountain Press Release, Sep 8]
Profit from the Sun Profit from the Sun (Aug 5) AstroPower (Newark, DE) netted $445K from record revenue of $8M, up 48% from the 1998 second quarter. Almost all the revenue came from products shipped. CEO Allen M. Barnett said We are very pleased with our continuing ability to produce record results. AP also just opened a new West Coast office to service the growing domestic solar power market. AP was a big SBIR user for a decade and still uses it for advanced products too technically risky for real money
Utility
Buys Into AstroPowerUtility Buys Into AstroPower
(Jun 22) AstroPower (Newark, DE) says GPU - a big New Jersey
utility - will cooperate in the development of products and services
for electric industry restructuring, like one of the biggest - customer
choice. To get in, GPU will buy $7M of APWR stock $14 1/2 plus a two
year warrant for the purchase of 120K more at $18.85 per share (now
trading around $16). APWR develops, manufactures, markets and sells
photovoltaic (PV) solar cells, modules and panels for generating solar
electric power. SBIR? Oh, yes, AstroPower has had a lot but didn't
reach GAO's top 25 list.
The
Government Took It The Government Took It
(May 7) While AstroPower (Newark, DE) made more gross profit,
it made less net profit because its tax rate skyrocketed from 5% to
30%. Product sales was up by half and gross profit up 38%.
Manufacturing productivity improved and demand for on-grid residential
and commercial rooftop systems improved. But the government's take
improved faster than any of those. Still, the stock has been riding
well at 2.5 times its IPO price and 46 times earnings. Eventually, AP
will pay back to the government in taxes a decent return on the many,
many SBIR dollars invested - one of the few Multiple Award Winners to
do so.
AstroPower Hot AstroPower (Newark, Del) is up 150% in six months on two factors: it makes rising money and BancBoston likes it as a beneficiary of electrical de-regulation. Lots of states, notably California, are either introducing competition (and not just between the regulated monopoly and the PS commission) that will change a lot of rules for the industry. AP is one of those tiny few MAW (Multiple Award Winners) of SBIR that turned the investment into a growing public company. Most MAWs have to mumble and search for non-economic rationales for government subsidy in a program that billed itself as a technology economics program. (Bah, it was a handout to an interest group and will be re-authorized in 2000 on the same basis.)
AstroPower Makes $2.4M
(Feb 25) For 1998, AstroPower's (Newark, DE) product sales were
a record $20.2M, up 54% from 1997. Total revenues were $23.2M which
includes SBIRs. Profit was $2.4M, up 270%.(but $1M was an income
tax benefit) CEO Allen Barnett, said, ``We are very pleased once
again". What is AP? AP
sells
photovoltaic (PV) solar cells for
solar electric power which is used off the electric utility grid for
many applications in the communications and transportation and in
remote villages and homes. AP also sells conventional single-crystal
silicon solar cells and modules world-wide, and is also developing
specialty photovoltaic devices and detectors. Currently the largest
US-owned PV manufacturer, AstroPower is one of the world's fastest
growing PV companies. SBIR can claim AP as a success and
its
economic numbers would help make a case for SBIR. Although AP has had a
LOT of SBIR, it finally went public in 1998 and created a growing
manufacturing operation for real products.
Sunshine Talk Charge your cell phone battery with sunshine (in the daytime) with a charger from AstroPower (Newark, DE). R&D overseer Lou Dinetta says the crystalline silicon cells could do an hour's talk and indefinite daylight standby mode. The monolithic connection that makes the compression possible comes from a 1994 BMDO Phase 2 SBIR at AstroPower which went public this year and makes money. The stock trades around 30% over its IPO price. [technical story from Technology Review, Jan 99]
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AstroPower
Profit AstroPower Profit
(Aug 6) Astropower Inc. (Newark, DE) APWR) reported a quarterly profit
of $200K on sales of $5.3M and said that it continues to ramp up the
volume in its new Silicon-Film manufacturing factory while increasing
the power generated by each solar cell toward its goal of tripling
production capacity. [Dow Jones, Aug 5]
New AstroPower Plant Ships New AstroPower Plant Ships (Jul 2) AstroPower (Newark, DE) began shipping Apex solar cells and modules from its new manufacturing plant which will enable it to increase its solar cell output at a lower manufacturing costs. The plant's capacity is 9-megawatts of Apex products per year, three times AstroPower's previous production capacity also in Newark. [Dow Jones, Jul 1]
AstroPower Profit (May 7) AstroPower (Newark, DE) reported a $300K profit on sales of $4.9M for the quarter. The stock price hovers around $10, up 67% from its February IPO price. Says the company's PR Currently the second largest US-owned PV manufacturer, AstroPower is one of the world's fastest growing PV companies. AP has had a ton of SBIR market cap.
AstroPower Makes Money (Feb 27) Newly public AstroPower (Newark, DE) reported a profit of $650K for the year as against losing $2.4M in 1996. Revenues were up to $16.6M from $10.6M. That's a lot better than most SBIR companies.
AstroPower Goes Public (Feb 16) AstroPower (Newark, DE), a maker of photovoltaic solar cells, went public raising $16M by selling 2.7M shares at $6, a price considerably below the expected $8-10 a share. It will trade on NASDAQ as APWR. AstroPower got a looot of SBIR and a loooot of that from BMDO.
AstroPower IPO This Week (Feb 9) Among 25 IPOs expected this week is AstroPower (Newark, DE) to raise about $25M. AstroPower, a big user of SBIR, would use the money for its production of silicon solar cells and continue to rely on SBIR for its high-risk opto-electronic developments. Such a raising of public capital makes SBIR look good, like something more than just a dole to companies best able to compete for government R&D contracts in a set-aside.
astropower (Newark, DE) for being elected a Fellow of the IEEE. Allen says that "SBIR + DOE got us here, which is a very good place". While such money helped, AstroPower merits its IPO by making and selling silicon solar cells.
More AstroPower Story (Dec 23) AstroPower (Newark, DE), which filed for IPO last week, has had 37 SBIRs for $11M from DOD over the years of DOD's database, 3/4 of that from BMDO. The rest come from the Energy Dept into which any solar power company must have a subsidy tap, from NASA which will pay almost anything for efficient space cells, and NSF which thinks it knows commercializable technology (but won't invest enough to expect a company to enable any commercialization). (Actually, most agencies have the same policy inconsistency.) AP's revenues for the first none months of '97 were $12M from which it made $0.5M profit. Full year for '96 were $10M sales and a $2M loss. [financial data from EDGAR] AP's write-up by SBTC (the lobbying organization) claims AP got $11M of private capital on top of the $11M SBIR. Clients are original equipment manufacturers (OEM) worldwide, Niagara Mohawk Power and General Public Utilities (NJ). Foreign customers have been in Germany, India, Spain, Japan, Australia and Mexico. Why did I gave all that SBIR money to AstroPower? Because Allen Barnett smelled like the kind of entrepreneur who would go for the big hit of a public company.
AstroPower Files for IPO (Dec 22) AstroPower (Newark, DE) filed to raise $24M in an IPO for a third of the company. Says IPO Central, AstroPower hopes investors take a shine to its proprietary solar cell manufacturing process. Its Silicon-Film process operates at continuous high speeds, produces large crystalline silicon sheets used in cells, and uses a cheaper silicon in its production. AstroPower plans to use the capital generated from its IPO to triple production capacity. AstroPower has been a regular SBIR user, about $10M from Defense and Energy, since before its liberation from AstroSystems, its original backer. IPO date still uncertain, not surprising for a company with an Asian exposure. CEO-founder Allen Barnett has grown the company from its original three to 150 employees with that $10M and a lot of help from private capital including a recent infusion from glass-monster Corning and an earlier minority position by Dow Chemical. Much of the recent SBIR has gone not to the cash-cow silicon cells but to advanced electronic materials especially made by Liquid Phase Epitaxy. A few years ago the company graduated from a cramped former middle school outbuilding (where one of my kids went to middle school) in the heart of the University of Delaware grounds to a modern factory next to Amtrak's mainline.
Barnett's
Cherry Award
Allen Barnett, CEO/founder of AstroPower
(Newark, DE)
received IEEE's annual Cherry Award to a leader in photovoltaics.
Allen's acceptance speech related his experience with installing a 4 KW
version of his technology on his own house, from wifely reluctance (he
called it her birthday present) to Big Electric's installing a new
meter that didn't give him so much credit. Allen says about half the
development money for the profitable solar-power silicon technology
came from SBIR. He acknowledged that if consumers have the same trouble
he did with the power company and the technology, widespread adoption
is still a ways off. His speech pointed out the systems considerations
that technologists often assume away.
Data Through the Air. The fibers ends were 1.5 miles apart but still carried 2.5 billion bits per second error free, says Business Week Nov 23, of AstroTerra (San Diego, CA) technology derived from Star Wars investment in direct talk between satellites by laser. The curious could have seen a demo at the TechEast 98 in Boston where SBIR and Photonics combined forces.
Free Space Laser Rider(Feb 27) Photonic answers to a designer's dilemma says the lead in to a Photonics Spectra story on free space lasers. The lasers would be part of a optics communication system without the fibers. Ground to airplane to spacecraft or between any two. The transceiver is built by ThermoTrex (a subsidiary of Hatsopolous's micro-conglomerate) with BMDO money and parts from SBIR companies SDL (San Jose, CA) and Astroterra (San Diego, CA). So far it's something only a government could love but the PS authors, one from ThermoTrex and the founder of AstroTerra, blather on about commercial potential. Commercially, SDL is doing fine with a $300M market cap; AstroTerra, still private, schmoozes the government technical experts into funding the development with SBIR despite a feeble prospect for commercialization. It's a classic case of a program's being captured by the bureau which merely requires that the favored technology company blather about commercialization. Then the tech transfer people write glowing prose about the potential for things like potential commercial market for intersatellite links in low earth orbit global constellations such as Teledesic. Such words could be safely uttered about almost every technology on the drawing board because no one has to prove them in the present. And unless the government discriminates wishing from investing, SBIR will be just another government R&D program driven by government needs.
SolarBridge(Austin, TX; no SBIR) and AstroWatt (Austin, TX; no SBIR) have received Department of Energy grants to boost solar power technology. SolarBridge was awarded $2.3 million to develop a more robust and efficient production of solar energy. SolarBridge makes microinverters that efficiently manage the power from solar electric panels and convert it to electricity that is usable in homes and on the public electric grid.... AstroWatt received $1.5 million for its research on low-cost, high-efficiency, think silicon-based solar cells. The grants were made under the Department of Energy's SunShot initiative. [Austin American Statesman, Sep 6, 11]
Astrum Solar (Howard County, MD; no SBIR, 240 employees) has been acquired by energy provider Direct Energy (Houston, TX) in a deal worth $54 million. ...Astrum landed on Inc. Magazine’s fastest growing companies lists in 2013 and 2012. [Sarah Gantz, Baltimore Business Journal, Jul 29, 14]
San Diego County
companies that
raised the largest amount of venture capital in the fourth quarter of
2015
Sapphire Energy
($200K SBIR)
$91 million; Effector
Therapeutics: $40 million; MD Revolution:
$22.45 million;
AltheaDX:
$20.1 million; Elcelyx
Therapeutics: $20
million; Amplyx
Pharmaceuticals:
$20 million; Astute
Medical:
$20 million; Glysens
($6.8M SBIR): $20 million; Crinetics
Pharmaceuticals ($200K SBIR): $18
million; Enlibrium:
$15 million Source:
MoneyTree Survey by
PricewaterhouseCoopers and the NVCA with data from Thomson Reuters
[xconomy.com]
Astute Medical (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) which makes diagnostic tests, raised $40.4 million in its third round of venture funding. .... working on tests for acute medical conditions that need to be diagnosed quickly. It's focused on abdominal pain (which can be caused by many things, such as appendicitis, diverticulitis, colitis, gallstones and irritable bowel syndrome), acute coronary syndromes, stroke, kidney injury and sepsis (whole body inflammation from infection). [Steven EF Brown, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 7, 12]
Astute Medicales for treating infectious disease and cancer, says the [FDA] has approved the company’s request to export its “Hemopurifier†device to India. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com/sandiego, Mar 10, 11]
Mirna Therapeutics (Austin, TX; $700K SBIR) raised $34.5 million to carry out human drug trials of its cancer-fighting treatments.... a five-year-old spinoff of Asuragen(no SBIR), which develops molecular diagnostic tests for cancer and other diseases. Both companies were founded by Austin biotech veteran Matt Winkler. [Lori Hawkins, Austin American Statesman,Oct 2012]
Asuragen (Austin, TX; no SBIR) said it won more than $3.8 million in federal grants to further its development of molecular diagnostic tests for cancer and genetic diseases. Founder Matt Winkler spun the company off from Ambion Inc. when he sold Ambion to Applied Biosystems in 2006. Since then, Asuragen has received more than $12 million in federal grants to support its research. The new money is slated to help pay for research into developing diagnostic tests for pancreatic, cervical and some lung cancers and melanoma, among other initiatives. [Austin American Statesman, Oct 8, 09]
"So we cured four mice of cancer," Winkler said. "Kind of exciting." Winkler is Austin's leading biotech entrepreneur and the CEO of Asuragen , which he started in 2006 after selling his first company, Ambion ($13M SBIR), for $273M [to Applied Biosystems]. The company is announcing today that it has received a new investment of $18.5M. That's on top of the $49M raised to launch the company, which included $35M from Winkler himself. [Austin American-Statesman, Dec 10]
Atacama (San Francisco, CA; no prior SBIR) won an NSF SBIR to integrate microfluidics into textiles, [whereby] Atacama can create activewear that feels more comfortable because almost all of the fabric remains dry. ... created by a group of UC Davis researchers [Catherine Shu, Techcrunch, Jun 30, 17]
Atara Biotherapeutics (Brisbane, CA; no SBIR) up 10% [ Oct 17, 14] after the day it priced its IPO well below its target range, raising $55 million, and dropped by as much as 12 percent in its Wall Street debut. ... launched two years ago by Amgen Inc. and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers with six drugs that Amgen licensed to the company that targeted kidney diseases, cancer and other conditions. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Oct 16, 14]
Amgen spinout Atara Biotherapeutics (Brisbane, CA; no SBIR, founded 2012) already has its eye on a $50 million [IPO] .... raised $52 million in a Series B round in January [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 23, 14]
Loaded with two former Amgen drugs, $38.5 million in fresh cash, and a unique structure — and with a sentimental nod to its CEO’s late mother — year-old Atara Biotherapeutics (Brisbane, CA; no SBIR) is speeding ahead with plans for its first clinical trials. .... In all, Atara has raised more than $58 million since its founding in fall 2012 .... initially will allow Atara to take PINTA-745, its experimental treatment for protein energy wasting in chronic kidney disease patients, into a Phase II pilot trial of about 40 patients [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Dec 17, 13]
Biogen Idec is targeting a yet-untreated disease that affects 150,000 Americans while seeking to expand its business of producing drugs for neurological disorders by investing in a biotechnology startup. ... said that it has joined Cambridge venture capital firm Atlas Venture in a $17 million investment in Ataxion (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) a year-old company that is seeking a treatment for ataxia, a disease that causes difficulties walking, speaking, and performing daily activities and can lead to immobility and a reduced lifespan. [Kyle Alspach, Boston Globe, Mar 17, 14]
Atea Pharmaceuticals (Boston, MA; no SBIR), a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of next-generation therapeutics for severe human viral infections, today announced a $215 million Series D financing [company press release, May 20, 20]
Athenen Therapeutics (Boston, MA; no SBIR) raised $7M in equity in a $15M funding round, according to an SEC filing. [BostInno, Sep 8, 20]
Athenen Therapeutics (Boston, MA; no SBIR) raised $7M in equity in a $15M funding round, according to an SEC filing. [BostInno, Aug 3, 20]
Athenex down 55% [Mar 1, 21]
Athenex up 36% [Nov 19, 19]
Athenex up 20% [Oct 22, 19]
Athenex down 20% [Aug 7, 19] announced Positive Phase III Results on Oral Paclitaxel plus Encequidar and Increased Product Sales Guidance [company press release, Aug 7, 19]
Athenex up 28% [May 6, 19]
Athenex up 16% [Dec 26, 18]
Athenex announced that both Phase 3 studies, KX-AK-003 and KX-AK-004, had achieved their primary endpoint of 100% clearance of actinic keratosis (AK) lesions at Day 57 within the face or scalp treatment areas, with each study achieving statistical significance (p<0.0001). Statistical significance (p<0.001) was achieved for both face and scalp subgroups as well. [company press release, Jul 26, 18]
The FDA OK’d the cystic fibrosis medicine ivacaftor/lumacaftor (Orkambi), from Vertex Pharmaceuticals for the estimated 1,300 children between two and five years old who have the most common form of the disease. The drug is already approved for adults. [Ben Fidler, Aug 9, 18]
Athenex is picking up $100 million, licensing a cancer-fighting enzyme and launching a new Chinese joint venture built around T-cell receptor tech. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Jul 2, 2018]
Athenex is broadening its scope [in] picking up a $100 million investment licensing a modified cancer-fighting enzyme and launching a new Chinese joint venture built around T-cell receptor (TCR) technology. ... $50 million in equity and $50 million in debt. [ Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, Jul 2, 18]
Athenex up 18% [Mar 27, 18]
Athenex down 11% [Jan 23,18]
Athenex (Buffalo, NY; $1.1M SBIR as Kinex, founded 2003) up 10% [Dec 12, 17]
Athenex (Buffalo, NY; $1.1M SBIR as Kinex, founded 2003), a global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer, today announced that its Chinese subsidiary submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application to the Chinese FDA for Oraxol, an oral formulation of Paclitaxel. The application has been accepted by Chinese FDA for review [company press release, Jul 7, 17]
Athenex up 13% [Jun 27,17]
Athenex up 14% [Jun 14,17] after raising $66M in IPO to devote mostly to a pair of cancer drugs in late-stage clinical development. [company press release]
Athenex (Buffalo, NY; no SBIR) hopes to raise about $72 million in IPO [Buffalo Business First, Jun 6, 17]
Athenex (formerly Kinex Pharma $1.1M SBIR, Buffalo, NY and Hong Kong, founded 2003) filed with the [SEC] announcing that it plans to go public. [Dan Miner Buffalo Business First, May 13, 17] funded from inception by approximately $200 million in private financings and public-private partnerships with an estimated aggregate value of $375 million. ... dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer. [company website] announced it has received [FDA] allowance to proceed into human clinical trials with the combination of oral topotecan and its proprietary P-glycoprotein (P-gp) inhibitor HM30181A. [company press release, Mar 24, 17] Governor Cuomo announced a major expansion of Athenex that will create 1,400 jobs throughout Western New York. ... made possible by a partnership with the SUNY Polytechnic Institute, includes a major expansion of Athenex’s North American headquarters in Buffalo, as well as the creation of a state-of-the-art, 300,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Dunkirk. The combined projects are expected to yield a $1.62 billion investment over ten years from Athenex, along with $225 million from New York State. [company press release, Feb 11, 16]
Athenex Pharmaceutical Division (Buffalo. NY; no SBIR) and SunGen Pharma LLC, DBA Peterson Pharmaceuticals (North Brunswick Township, NJ; no SBIR), a specialty pharmaceutical company located in New Jersey, today announced a joint venture agreement to launch and market 7 pharmaceutical products, both injectable and solid oral dosage, in the United States. Many of these products are therapeutically relevant to the Athenex proprietary pipeline of products under development. [Athenex press release, Oct 12, 16]
[NY] Governor Cuomo announced a major expansion of Athenex (Buffalo, NY; $1.1M SBIR as Kinex, founded 2003) that will create 1,400 jobs throughout Western New York. This announcement, made possible by a partnership with the SUNY Polytechnic Institute, includes a major expansion of Athenex’s North American headquarters at the Conventus Building in Buffalo, as well as the creation of a state-of-the-art, 300,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Dunkirk. The combined projects are expected to yield a $1.62 billion investment over ten years from Athenex, along with $225 million from New York State. in Dunkirk. .... [In January] received [FDA] allowance to proceed in the clinic with its proprietary oral form of Docetaxel. [company press release, Feb 11, 16]
Athenix (Research Triangle Park, NC; no SBIR) genetically engineering corn and soybeans to resist bugs and chemicals, is being bought by a bigger neighbor. Bayer CropScience will acquire Athenix, which was founded in 2001 and has about 65 employees. [Raleigh News & Observer, Aug 20, 09]
Applied Biomolecular Technologies (Athens, OH; no SBIR, founded 2006) is owned by three former Battelle biotech researchers and an entrepreneur pursuing a private path to getting research out of academic laboratories and into the marketplace. ... One of their newest subsidiaries, Lattice Biotech LLC (no SBIR), is trying to raise $5 million to advance technology it licensed from Nationwide Children’s Hospital to make antibodies that weaken protective films around infectious bacterial colonies. But that’s just one of a half-dozen biotech ventures it’s developing ... [also own] Burr Oak Therapeutics LLC (no SBIR), whose product is under wraps for now. In February 2014 it acquired and expanded an Athens company it renamed Binding Protein Technologies LLC (formerly Athens Research ($1M SBIR). ... Last month Applied Bio Ventures invested in but did not acquire a fellow commercialization engine, Brainstage (Carnegie, PA; no SBIR), which itself has six biotech companies in its portfolio. [Carrie Ghose, Columbus Business First, Apr 1, 15]
AtheroGenics fell 14% after saying that AstraZeneca will likely withdraw support for developing one of the company's heart drugs after it missed a goal in a recent trial. [Wall Street Journal, Mar 29]
AtheroGenics (no SBIR) down 61% when its heart drugs failed a clinical trial. [Mar 19, 07]
AtheroGenics (Alpharetta, GA; no SBIR) fell 35% after a broker said that a clinical trial of a diabetes drug showed only a small effect. [Wall Street Journal, Sep 6]
medical device maker Volcano (San Diego, CA; one SBIR) is paying at least $115 million to acquire -based AtheroMed (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR) and its Phoenix system for opening up narrowed coronary arteries, which was cleared for sale in the U.S. earlier this year. With AtheroMed’s technology in its portfolio, Volcano said it will gain a stronger presence in the global atherectomy market, estimated at $350 million to $400 million and growing 7 percent a year. [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, May 29, 14]
Athersys (Cleveland, OH; $7M SBIR) announced that its partner, HEALIOS K.K. (Healios), has reported topline results for its Japan ischemic stroke study, TREASURE ... The primary endpoint, Excellent Outcome at 90 days, did not reach statistical significance in this population. [company press release, May 20, 2022]
Athersys (Cleveland, OH; $7M SBIR) down 31% [Apr 2, 20]
Athersys (Cleveland, OH; $2.3M SBIR) down 36% [Apr 17, 15] stem-cell therapy, its only product to reach human trials, failed a mid-stage study testing it as a treatment for a type of stroke, wiping off more than 40 percent of the company's market value. [Reuters, Apr 17, 15]
Radius received $5 million in 2008 from the state-backed Ohio Capital Fund. ... has invested in biopharmaceutical developer Athersys (Cleveland, OH; $2M SBIR), so it has exceeded its requirement to invest at least half its $5 million infusion into Ohio-based companies.[Carrie Ghose, Columbus Business First, Jun 28, 13]
Athira Pharma (formerly M3 Biotechnology, Seattle, WA; no SBIR, founded 2011) plans to raise up to $170 million [IPO] ... is in late-stage development for its lead therapeutic candidate called NDX-1017. The drug could halt or reverse the nerve damage that causes Alzheimer’s disease and other illnesses including Parkinson’s and ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease. It uses regenerative technology that rebuilds connections between neurons. [Taylor Soper, GeekWire, Sep 14, 20]
ATI Industrial Automation (Apex, NC; no SBIR, 90 employees) robotic tools manufacturer is taking a big gamble on its exports business and, with a groundbreaking ceremony on its latest expansion .... Moving outside of the Triangle wasn’t an option, he says, because of the North Carolina State University talent pool it has come to rely on over the years. [Lauren Ohnesorge, Triangle Business Journal, Oct 14, 13]
ATI Industrial Automation (Apex, NC; no SBIR) will hold a groundbreaking ceremony today for a 20,000 square-foot expansion at its headquarters at Pinnacle Park in Apex. .... employs about 140 people in Apex and has added roughly 30 jobs since 2009. [Aliana Ramos, Raleugh News & Observer, Nov 3, 11]
Atlantia. the Gem of the Ocean. The company's only Phase 2 SBIR, from Energy in 1990 led to a half-billion dollar revenue stream in 9 years., says Dawnbreaker in plumping for its CAP that allegedly contributed to Atlantia's success. The SBIR developed a tension leg platform concept for deep water (10.000 feet) oil and gas drilling. since the company already had an established track record in the offshore platforms, specifically a platform product called the SeaHorse®, it would take a battery of lawyers and promoters to decide whether Energy just picked some low-hanging fruit that needed little or no government money anyway. The federal government will get a piece of the pie - $100M a year.royalties - which in the usual government scheme goes directly to the Treasury without passing through Energy's pockets. The government could actually make itself and SBIR look a lot better if it picked a lot more such projects at the lower risk margin with good money making potential. Only the hard-core free marketers and the SBIR losers would scream "corporate welfare". Their screams could be blown off by noting the huge ambiguity in assessing risk-reward.
ATMI up 25% [Feb 4, 14]. Entegris said it agreed to buy ATMI (first known as Advanced Technology Materials, Danbury, CT; lots of SBIR) for $1.15 billion in a deal that would combine two semiconductor industry suppliers in Entegris' bid to become a more global leader. [Erin McCarty, Wall Street Journal, Feb 4, 14]
ATMIup 10% [Oct 24, 12] said it's ready to sell commercially its technology that captures carbon dioxide molecules and separates them, attaching them to solid carbon for later reuse or disposal. [Hartford Courant, Jun 29, 12]
ATMI /span>up 10% [May 4, 09]
ATMI up 12% [Apr 9, 09]
ATMI up 11% [Mar 23, 09]
ATMIup 10% [Mar 10, 09]
ATMIup 17% [Feb 13, 09]
ATMIdown 10% [Jan 9, 09]
ATMIup 13% [Dec 16, 08]
ATMI up 11% [Nov 26, 08]
ATMI up 13% [Nov 24, 08]
ATMI down 10% [Oct 15, 08]
ATMI up 10% [Oct 13, 08]
Forbes 200 Best Small Companies list for 2008 had several "SBIR involved" companies: Hittite Microwave 12, II-IV 23, Synaptics 33, NVE 39, ATMI 114, Cymer 166.
ATMI cut its 2008 forecast again, saying market conditions have "significantly deteriorated" as semiconductor-product demand slumps. [Wall Street Journal, Sep 27, 08]
ATMI has won the 2008 R&D 100 Award, for "the first and only in-situ ion implant cleaning process. The ATMI AutoClean System saves time and money by dramatically increasing ion source life and time between preventative maintenance." [Reports Duane Zieg of MDA's Tech Applications] ATMI does more than collect attaboys for R&D niceties; it makes money, maybe more money as a multiple of its SBIR early contribution than almost every other SBIR recipient. Too bad that nobody knows whether that claim is politically extravagant in this season of extravagance because no one with authority in SBIR matters dares ask the question.
ATMI down 11% [Sep 4, 08] has delayed the launch of a number of new products due to its "new business model" and sees research and development expenses rising in the short term, sending its shares down to their lowest in more than three years. [Reuters]
ATMI down 16% [Jul 14, 08] after it said its second-quarter earnings and revenue will fall short of analysts' expectations amid shipment delays and lower memory sales. [Wall Street Journal, Jul 15, 08]
Forbes's annual list of the best 200 small companies had several SBIR awardees: Ceradyne #12, Flir Systems 37, II-IV 58, ATMI 69, ViaSat 90, Surmodics 105, Micrel 149, OPNET Tech 167.
ATMI hired former chief of the DARPA's Science Department, Dr. Lawrence H. Dubois, as Senior Vice-President and CTO. He was most recently Head of the Physical Sciences Division at SRI International and is also Chairman-Elect of the Defense Sciences Research Council. [press release, Sep 20, 07]
ATMI is teaming with Kinik Company Ltd., a leader in wafer reclamation technology, to provide wafer reclaim services for a major Taiwanese semiconductor foundry using ATMI's unique RegenSi(tm) silicon process technology. [ATMI press release, Jul 18, 07] From its start in the green garage, and some nursery SBIR, ATMI has a $1B market cap twenty+ years later. Oh, if SBIR had got a proportional piece of equity in Advanced Technology Materials when it had just its four founding employees, the profit would have covered a lot of the mediocrity that SBIR has bought over the years.
These biotechs riding the profitless volatility of low stock prices could look to a real SBIR winner that used SBIR in its infancy to develop new products. If the government would use some normalizer for measuring the value of its SBIR "investments", ATMI should be right near the head of the pile in Return on Investment by any reasonable measure. It is currently making $40M annual profit on $280M sales, being followed by 18 stock analysts, employing 700 bodies (the politicians like that), and paying $10M+ a year in taxes.
ATMIstock has again reached the thirties where it has peaked in cycles for the last five years in accord with Chairman Gene's observance that ATMI serves a cyclic industry. ATMI got a 12% boost when it reported fourth-quarter earnings up 32%.
Gene Banucci, the business guy among ATMI's four founders, who still be chairman after he surrenders his CEO role. Gene and ATMI could be the poster children for SBIR's highest goals - feeding innovation in its infancy, and only its infancy. One of Gene's favorite phrases was "SBIR junkies" as he served on countless panels.
The market loved ATMI's profit report as the stock rose 14% yesterday putting it in the top percentage gainers for the day. (Oct 04)
Main man Gene Banucci said: ATMI's third quarter is distinct directionally from those of many participants in the semiconductor supply chain. We expect pressures on the supply chain to continue in the fourth quarter as wafer start growth goes negative from essentially flat in the third quarter. Our best estimate at present is that wafer starts will shrink 7-10% during the fourth quarter and return to a growth mode in the first quarter of 2005. As far as ATMI is concerned, we anticipate that our copper wafer start-driven base of business will enable us to mitigate much of the impact of the global trend. on reporting $6M quarterly profits.
HouseCleaning. ATMI sold its semiconductor fabrication plant parts cleaning services business to Materials Support Resources Inc as part of its on-going sale of business lines.>
Copper Eggs. ATMI's annual report waxes as enthusiastic as public companies are allowed to wax on how copper from a copper goose is now the egg for ATMI's continuing success. Although revenues were $170M, profits were negative, and several business lines were spun off into larger businesses because they were too small to have a strategic impact by themselves. AMTI has made a huge gamble on copper interconnects, a technology that only recently came into view from work at IBM. Real companies in high-tech industries have no choice but to regularly bet the company. From four guys in a garage with a little savings and mortgages in the early 80s, plus a couple of SBIRs to start, Gene Banucci guided Advanced Technology Materials Inc through many SBIRs for ground-breaking technologies, into a public company in 1992, and a yo-yo profit cycle in sync with the intensely world competitive semiconductor industry. SBIR policy wonks who want SBIR to produce a noticeable ROI should study who in government supported ATMI and why over the 15 years from its inception to its out-growing both the qualification and need for SBIR. CEO Gene has offered lessons to the government as a regular contributor, at considerable expenditure of his time, to SBIR panels and studies. Unhappily, few in government seem to have listened.
Pilot-fish rides the whale. ATMI's CEO Gene Banucci credited the quarterly good profits to rising growth in the semiconductor industry that ATMI serves. It made $6M on $56M revenue. Still, in anticipation of the next cyclical swing in semiconductors, ATMI's stock price has dropped 20% in the last few weeks.
ATMI stock took a dive when it surprised Wall Street with a dour prediction of a big quarterly loss including a big write-down ($12M) from money-losing "technologies business" and outsourcing its entire manufacturing operations. Igor Greenwald in Smart Money opined that the party's over for ATMI whose stock hit a 52-week high a month ago amid indications of strong industry growth. .. But its equipment business isn't doing as well (as the materials business), forcing the company to write down the cost of two plants closed as part of a push to outsource equipment manufacturing.
ATMI acquires ESC, a manufacturer of copper and advanced interconnect cleaning materials; [Jul2003]
ATMIGene Banucci continues to give of his time, regardless of the press of business at an actively traded public company, tp, as he says, pay back for all ATMI got from SBIR. Unlike the other participating CEOs who plead for favored rules, Gene has no vested interest in the outcome since ATMI graduated by growth from SBIR eligibility.
ATMI, one of SBIR's best stories where the seed money went into real revenue producing future products, reported another annual loss from the tech bubble burst. Revenues are still respectable at $200M down from the golden year 2000 at $300M. CEO and co-founder Gene Banucci, one of the smoothest and smartest guys to get SBIR, notes that the semiconductor industry is transforming itself into a few really high-cost plants servicing an ant hill of fabless chip designers. That means less general business for fab support suppliers like ATMI..
while ATMI may have a 50% market share i... I think SDS is asymptotically approaching 100% share. You just have to wait until the installed based of older systems gets displaced, because all new systems are configured for SDS. And SDS is a very high-margin product, perhaps 70% gross profit margins in good times [Robert Sternat, Wall Street Transcript, Jan 7,03] SDS grew from an MDA (then SDIO) SBIR investment in the late 80s. Back when SDIO thought technological advance was good for everyone including the long term prospects for the steep tech advance needed to make Star Wars possible. The present MDA seems to believe that it already has all the technology it needs and lacks only a national political will to deploy it.
ATMI takes another hit in the soggy semiconductor business as it announces it lost $3M for the quarter plus another $22M to write down its gallium arsenide epitaxial services business. At least revenue was up to $52M, well over last year's quarter.
300th
Patent
(Sep10) Said Chairman Gene,Receiving
our 300th US patent in
our 16th year of business shows how important ATMI considers
intellectual property development. More important than the size of our
portfolio is how we translate our innovations into new commercial
products and how cost-effective our products are for our customers.
ATMI's 300th patent, "Gas Cabinet Assembly Comprising Sorbent-Based Gas
Storage and Delivery System," is part of our library of more than 40
sub-atmospheric gas delivery system patents, arguably ATMI's core
product line. As far as patent efficiency is concerned, we believe the
data indicates ATMI is one of the most efficient developers in the
world."
Just What Besides Copper?. With copper getting more play in chips, platers need to know what besides copper is in the bath and what else might escape into the effluent stream. ATMI's bid to be the major supplier of the answer got a boost as it bought Microbar's Copper 2.0 Suite Delivery and Waste Recovery System product line. Tom Talasek, Senior Product Line Director for ATMI said, "The Copper 2.0 delivery system joins ATMI's CuChem copper bath analysis tool in our overall strategy to create complete material management solutions, in this case, the copper electroplating process tool." ATMI says its CuChem product line is the newest addition to its proven line of on-line analytical instrumentation specifically developed to support the semiconductor industry.
As Intel lays off 4000 workers and ATMI reports a loss, one borker makes ATMI a strong buy as the trading price seems to level off after a 30% dive in recent weeks.
Our industry is cyclical - and when it cycles down, it can be nasty. So we went to work to do smart things that prepare great companies to grow when good times return, says Gene Banucci in ATMI's annual report that tells how ATMI lost $10M for the year after making $43M in 2000. Gene was always citing what he learned from Jack Welch and one of Neutron Jack's rules that in down times, invest in opening a lead over your nearest competitor for the next upturn. One evidence of that rules is that ATMI spent 15% of sales on R&D, 10% more R&D spending than the previous year despite sales being down 30%. The annual report has a climb-the-mountain graph of cumulative R&D and patents that would make a mutual fund manager proud. A good chunk of that R&D in the company's first decade came from SBIR.
Gene Banucci also notes that The semiconductor industry is rapidly consolidating those few manufacturers who can afford to build $3B plants.
ATMI lost $9.7M for the year after making $43.7M last year. President Doug Neugold blamed The semiconductor industry's worst-in-its-lifetime downturn, dissipated consumer demand, and the national recession all combined to create a difficult economic scenario. Market cap stays near the top of its 12-month range as traders must be looking for the next upswing in the cyclical semiconductor industry.
ATMI took a 50% hit in revenue and lost $1.6M. Palin speaking CEO Gene Banucci said, The industry is in the sharpest and most pervasive downturn I have ever seen. We reduced annualized expenses by $25 million earlier in the year, primarily through plant closings and staff reductions. It wasn't enough.
The worst downturn in history, said CEO Gene Banucci as ATMI warned of a coming hole in its profits with only $40M revenue for the quarter. The market drove the stock down 14% Friday to near its perigee over the last few year and a market cap of $470M.
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ATMI Sees Downturn (Jun 25)Dear Shareholder: ATMI's first quarter for 2001 was pretty good, given the circumstances. What are "the circumstances?" The semiconductor industry is in a severe downturn. No one quite knows where the bottom is. What is becoming increasingly clear is that this will be the industry's worst ever slump. End-user demand for semiconductors in the personal computer, telecommunications, and dot-com worlds has dropped precipitously. The first quarter of 2001 was the initial period to feel the effects of the downturn - when the industry has one this big, no company can escape feeling its wrath, including ATMI. Our next two quarters are going to be much weaker than we had originally hoped or forecast earlier this year. Nonetheless, a downturn is ATMI's opportunity to shine, showing the resiliency of our materials-based business model. We are doing everything we can to grow market share, add new customers, introduce new technologies, and expand our global presence. We have the ability, financial wherewithal, and people to take advantage of the opportunities that appear during downturns. [Gene Banucci, company press release]
We've said some things here about ATMI's future. Although we meant what we said when we said it, things can change. We can't control everything that changes. That's why the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 has a Safe Harbor provision, which is why we are writing this. [Gene Banucci, CEO] Maybe there's a connection between plain talk and an SBIR firm's paying $26M in income taxes last year.
ATMI's profit dropped 6% (only 6%) while quarterly revenues jumped again, 23% to $77M. ATMI also paid $4.5M in income taxes for the quarter. For those looking for evaluation criteria for SBIR commercialization (as opposed to softball stories about new technology), income taxes paid is an easy and direct measure for the US Treasury.
More Record Growth(Feb 9) ATMI announced that fourth quarter revenues rose 46% to $87M. Net income was $10.6M, a 54% increase. For the full year, revenues rose 48% to $300M. Net income, excluding one-time gains or expenses, increased 105% to $40M. Said Chairman Gene "We posted outstanding results for 2000 with revenues up nearly 50% and net income more than doubled. Contributors to the increase in our SG&A (selling, general, and administrative) costs included the accelerated implementation of a new worldwide enterprise system, intellectual property litigation-related legal expenses, and the continuing integration of acquired facilities. ... We have long indicated our belief that ATMI should grow at twice the rate of wafer starts, which we believe will be about 5% this year. That's the kind of talk and results that SBIR should be seeking from every company if it is to have any noticeable impact on American technological growth. Whereas banging away at government missions needs with contract R&D companies will produce no such growth potential.
ATMI Up but Down ATMI reports glowing results while the stock price tanks. Chairman Gene talks of expansive growth while the pundits moan about declining semi-conductors. Do they all inhabit the same world? A T M I's second quarter results were our best ever - in a year that should set new financial records. revenues up 41% to $69.4 million, and we almost doubled operating earnings per share to $0.32.Revenues grew 51% for the first half with operating earnings per share just five cents short of tripling. This year is another boom year for the semiconductor industry. Semiconductor manufacturers worldwide are running their factories at close to full capacity, trying to keep up with chip demand. The dual needs of keeping up with the latest, most efficient production technologies as well as expanding capacity to meet rapidly growing demand are also making this year the largest ever in the dollars earmarked for new chip making equipment. All of the A T M I customers we've talked to see continued growth and market strength throughout 2000 and into 2001 [company report Nov 16] Meanwhile the stock price is about the lowest it has been in two years at only 15 times earnings. One crude rule of thumb in the stock market is that a cheap stock is any company whose earnings growth rate is higher than its PE ratio.
ATMI traded at a 52-week low Friday despite making real money and a Dataquest report that semiconductor sales will show double-digit growth in the next three years as manufacturers find places for them in a variety of devices other than the personal computer, a new report finds. Sales of semiconductors are growing at a rate of at least 25 percent as electronics manufacturers put them in cellular phones, gaming consoles, cameras, set-top boxes, handheld electronic organizers and other devices .
ATMI registered a Japan subsidiary and opened an office in Tokyo to keep up with the Japanese semiconductor market. Duncan Brown, superb metalorganic chemist, one of four founders of ATMI will be President.
ATMI Profit Doubles Again (Sep 5). Second quarter revenues were up 41% $69M, operating earnings per share doubled to $0.32. Says Chairman Gene, This year is another boom year for the semiconductor industry. Semiconductor manufacturers worldwide are running their factories at close to full capacity, trying to keep up with chip demand. The dual needs of keeping up with the latest, most efficient production technologies as well as expanding capacity to meet rapidly growing demand are also making this year the largest ever in the dollars earmarked for new chip making equipment. All of the A T M I customers we've talked to see continued growth and market strength throughout 2000 and into 2001. As a result, we see A T M I continuing to flourish. More importantly, A T M I is continuing to grow faster than its competitors. More taxes to repay the large SBIR investment. How many others are doing the same payback, and how many contribute only the research the government paid for?
More Capacity Constraint. (Jul 28) UBS analyst Byron N. Walker said ATMI's "growth and margin expansion were curtailed by capacity constraints in certain key areas, as well as costly and time-consuming infrastructure upgrades." Walker also cut his 12-month price target to $51 from $55. As his comments dropped the stock price below $30 (60% below its high), his optimism must dim a little. Meanwhile, Emcore finished another capacity growth to handle the volume orders for photonics products, as its stock dropped also.
ATMI Sinks. Having reported record earnings, ATMI finds its stock priced pummeled 28% by a broker's downgrade. Business owners and investors will recall Keynes's dictum that the way to bet on a beauty contest is not on who you think is the best beauty but on who you think the judges will think the best beauty.This despite the semiconductor industry boom, up 57% on the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index and bright prospects for more.
Semiconductors and ATMI Booming. (July 20) ATMI boosted revenues 41% to $69M for the quarter as per share earnings rose to $0.32, from $0.17 (excluding one-time merger-related costs in the second quarter last year). Chairman Gene (Banucci) said, The semiconductor industry is booming,and we see this expansion continuing. ATMI's Technologies businesses --where capacity investment is a key driver -- turned in an excellent performance for the second quarter. Our Materials businesses -- driven by how many chips are being made -- are continuing to ramp, as process tools delivered over the last three to four quarters start to come on-line. Wanna make a great SBIR proposal? Emulate ATMI in making new products for a grwoiung industry. Maybe the only better industry at the moment is photonic components which is why SBIR-beneficiary (albeit minor) SDL is selling itself for $41B after much newer (and major SBIR-beneficiary) CoreTek sold itself for $1.4B.
ATMI Pays Heavy Taxes (Jun 15) There's an old saw that you should be happy to pay a lot of tax because it means you're making a lot of money. ATMI says it paid $7.6M in taxes last quarter because it made a huge profit. Says CEO Gene Banucci, The year 2000 will be a record year for the production of semiconductor chips - as a result, A T M I is growing rapidly. This year will also be a record setting one for the semiconductor equipment industry - meaning there will a lot more equipment for us to feed in coming years. As you might expect, A T M I's first quarter was our best ever - our revenues were up 64% to $61M. During the quarter we sold half of our investment in Xicor, which increased overall EPS to $0.47. (We invested in Xicor as a way to help develop our Emosyn smart card venture.) Our business, overall, is going great guns. Part of the reason we feel we're doing so well is because of our market expansion business strategy during the industry's darker days. The acquisitions we completed in 1998 and 1999 - at favorable prices in a down market - are now growing and thriving. They are doing well not only because of their own valuable product lines, but also because of the significant improvement they see by being associated with A T M I. There's more demand for these products as they are integrated with other A T M I products to create complete materials solutions for our customers. ATMI has just about paid back in taxes all the SBIR investment of the 80s and early 90s. Not many companies can make such a claim (mostly because the government didn't invest in companies and technologies that ever had much chance of creating tax revenue. Since the federal agencies gets no benefit from Treasury tax collections, they have no incentive to think large.
ATMI will expand its silicon epitaxial technology to enter the power discrete semiconductor market. The batch silicon epitaxy expansion at ATMI's Epitronics Services business -- the world's largest independent specialty epitaxial foundry -- is a key part of its on-going strategy to provide a comprehensive range of specialty epitaxial services to meet all customer requirements.
ATMI says it won first place "Award of Excellence" for mid-sized companies at the Connecticut Business & Industry Association's 11th Annual Safety Success Awards. ATMI also received an "Award of Commendation" third place recognition for mid-sized companies in CBIA's 3rd Annual Environmental Success Awards. CBIA sponsors this annual conference focused on important environmental, health, and safety topics. ATMI is one of the great SBIR success stories. It used SBIR to get started in the mid-80s with product development, not merely useful government science. It went public in 1993 and today has a $1.3B market cap.
Then, the Asian markets started coming back, Internet infrastructure investments accelerated, you bought a new PC, the wireless revolution kicked into high gear, ..... We're at the beginning of what experts say is going to be a multi-year boom cycle. ATMI is poised - with growing market share and technology portfolio - to take good advanatge of this upturn. Stick around and watch us grow. [Gene Banucci, CEO ATMI, annual report] Good work, Gene, you turned the world and the rising tide lifted your boat.Gene's partly right about multi-boom, but a lot of counter-arguing experts predict a funk. Gene has it right about a rich and varied technology portfolio - almost all seeded by SBIR - scrubbers, gas sources, III-V deposition, CVD diamond, SiC, ..... ATMI also made $10.5M net profit after paying aid $7.7M in income taxes.
ATMI Sixfold Not Enough (Apr 20) ATMI got hammered 19% yesterday when it reported a way cool sixfold increase in earnings. At its low for the day it was down a third. $13.5M iprofit and $7.9M income taxes. The government is getting its ROI for the SBIR investments in income taxes paid. Which is one measure the government could use to evaluate SBIR's economic effect. Nah, don't worry, the straphangers and the pandering politicians will scotch any hard evaluations.
If the chip industry’s in the middle of a big growth phase, then chip maker’s stocks should be hot right now. Or, a little further down the food chain, stock in companies that make the stuff chip makers use to make their chips. At the Online Investor Web site, James Hale profiles one such company ATMI supplies thin film materials, equipment and delivery systems. The stock has doubled in the last year. ... ATMI is also in a business that Hale cautions is notoriously cyclical, and although the chip industry looks like its in the beginning of a lengthy boom period, investors should be alert for signs of an end to that part of the cycle. Watch demand for the secondary offering. Hale says that will set the tone for ATMI stock.>
Cashing Out A Profit(Mar 9) Some early investors in ATMI will cash out. While the stock is at an all-time high, ATMI will offer 3M shares, half owned by individuals, and the other half by the company which will pick up another $75M or so ready cash for more acquisitions or whatever. If the government were such an equity investor, it would have a profit of tens of millions on its SBIR in the late 80s. Presumably, those early investors will see the value of linking their investment to SBIR in good new companies and will do it again. They do NOT sit on their profits.
ATMI (Danbury, CT and elsewhere) got a vote of confidence from Raytheon when Raytheon RF Components selected ATMI's Epitronics business to be its primary supplier of Indium Gallium Phosphide (InGaP) emitter Heterojunction Bipolar Transistor (HBT) epitaxial wafers (that's a mouthful). Use of HBT devices is critically important for making components that improve wireless communications equipment performance. Using InGaP materials enhances the benefits of HBTs over more typically-used materials such as Aluminum Gallium Arsenide (AlGaAs). Maybe ATMI can show Raytheon how to make money outside the defense markets where everyone is struggling in a post Cold War world. The announcement did nothing for ATMI's stock price.
RealResults From Real Companies. Dear Shareholder: A T M I's third quarter was a good one. The good results were triggered by both the significant growth of the semiconductor industry and A T M I's continuing gains in market share. From our vantage point, it certainly looks like the downturn of 1998 is over - in fact semiconductor industry experts foresee 2000 and 2001 to be very high growth years. ... At the end of the quarter, Taiwan had an earthquake that shut down all semiconductor operations. We are happy to report that none of our employees or customers were hurt. Taiwan has grown to be 11-12% of A T M I's overall business, and we only see that growing. Revenues $45.6M, profit $5.1M for the quarter [Gene Banucci, Dec 99]
Buy ATMI After the 40% air pocket, two investment houses recommend a "strong buy" on ATMI, which they say is capacity limited in its Ecosys and Epitronics business lines. That's every SBIR applicant's dream - oh, to be capacity limited.
ATMI Makes Money Again(Oct 21) A T M I (Danbury, CT) reported net income of $5.1M on $45.6 million in revenue for its third quarter on the back of a 55% revenue increase. Chairman Gene credited the revival of the semiconductor industry for its demanding ever more of ATMIs support products. ATMI also announced another acquisition, Newform, NV of Belgium, which will expand ATMI's presence in Europe and its specialty packaging business. Maybe the Belgian parliament will inquire how its small companies are being preyed upon by US companies who get government subsidy. Yes, SBIR is a subsidy under trade rules. But our Congress can conveniently look the other way, or throw brickbats at the WTO on demand, when we do what we complain about in others. No Belgian will be voting for any US member of Congress anyway.
Welcome to the semiconductor industry roller-coaster, says Gene Banucci to open his quarterly report of ATMI. As measured by his stock price and as measured by the near tripling of TJ Rodgers's Cypress Semiconductor, things are in the up-phase. Just whisper that news to Emcore and Implant Sciences whose stock prices have taken a dive in recent weeks.
ATMI either made $4M profit or a $1.5M loss depending on your view of a $5.5M one-time write-off of acquisition expenses. One should view reports of one-off write-offs carefully to see that they are not a mirage to cover continuous losses.ATMI Acquires Another (May 20) ATMI (Danbury, CT) will acquire Advanced Chemical Systems International (Milpitas, CA) because, CEO Gene Banucci says, ATMI's goal is to be the one-stop source for semiconductor specialty front-end materials. Adding ACSI and its products to our portfolio extends ATMI's reach - beyond chemical vapor deposition, ion implant materials, and specialty materials packaging - into photolithography and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) materials. ACSI's 85 employees make photolithography chemicals and offers the semiconductor industry novel high purity CMP materials that ensure greater surface planarity. ATMI stock jumped again, not on this news but in news that ATMI's most representative customer - Advanced Materials - had a healthy earnings surprise.
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ATMI Profit Down (Feb 12) For 1998 ATMI (Danbury, CT) made only $8.7M profit, down from $15M in 1997. Said CEO Gene Banucci, "We believe we have gained market share in each of our businesses during the year. We announced two new ventures - Emosyn for smart card devices, and Q4D for semiconductor process gas sensors. We completed our acquisition of NOW Technologies.
Smart Card (Nov 19) Emosyn, the fabless smart card venture of ATMI (Danbury, CT) announced its Rania(tm) Rapid Development Environment - a radical new approach to smart card solutions that can help streamline development cycles for smart card chips while allowing smart card developers to continually define, refine, and enhance smart card programs. It's a set of low-cost software development tools for smart cards - Simulation, Hardware Acceleration, and Instrumentation - designed to eliminate the need for extensive silicon-based testing. ATMI expects to next year by Emosyn's emerging family of Theseus(tm) smart card IC's, developed with EM Microelectronic. The Theseus architecture extends the existing technologies for density, speed, power, and memory partitioning. The Rania(tm) Rapid Development Environment is available to smart card manufacturers at US $750 (single user license) for the simulator module, and $3000 for the hardware accelerator module. {ATMI Press Release Nov 18] Can't sell semiconductor processing support equipment? Diversify into smart cards and compete in another tough game.
ATMI (Danbury, CT) quarterly revenues $21.7M, down 11% from the previous quarter with profit $1.1M, down from $1.7M. Which comports with Wood's analysis that world over-capacity has brought on the financial crisis. ATMI's growth depends on an expanding world capacity in semiconductors.
ATMI Gets 100th Patent. (Oct 8) ATMI (Danbury, CT) got its 100th United States patent. ATMI also has 16 patents allowed, more than 100 US patents pending, and many patent licenses and foreign patents. That's .22 patents per employee whereas patent champ IBM has .06 per employee, says ATMI's co-founder Glenn Tom.
Near the end of April, with no warning, demand disappeared, says Gene Banucci in ATMI's quarterly report. Gene spices his We are confident report with words like slump, overcapacity, worst decline, downturn, plummeted... and says there are more opportunities than ever for acquisitions. ATMI is just one victim of a mostly unforeseen shift in semiconductor industry caused by the Asian contagion and a US shift to cheaper computers. The era of Intel and the chippers making rising prices from rising crunch power is at a crossroads. The Wall Street Journal [Aug 21] notes that it is affecting strategies throughout the industry's food chain. The new Intel Celeron chips, targeted at chips costing around $900, still aren't suited for newer machines, pushing prices much lower. Which is good for lowball chippers but bad for the established quality chip makers and their suppliers. SBIR proposers of ever-greater technology will probably however, notice no shift in government's attitude. Icebergs crawl and the techno-wizards who run the SBIR programs won't accept such downshifting. But the ones who pay attention to commercialization prospects should notice that the commercialization plans will have even more fantasy than before.
New ATMI Products (Jul 13) ATMI (Danbury, CT) announced three new products for the semiconductor industry. 1) a point-of-use ultra-low water use environmental system, for CVD, etch, and epitaxy (epi) process tools which abates SiH4 without an additional heat source; 2) a small, in-situ dry scrubber that installs into ion implanter exhaust lines and removes fundamentally all acid and toxic gases, operates at room temperature, with minimal electrical demand; and 3) the industry's first three-stage effluent gas scrubber designed for multi-chamber CVD. Now if ATMI could just get Korea and Indonesia buying semiconductors again, the stock price could recover the 2/3 it has lost in the past year.
And So....ATMI Says Lower Earnings ATMI Says Lower Earnings (Jul 1) ATMI (Danbury, CT) expects earnings for its second and third quarters to be as much as 50% below earnings levels in the comparable quarters in 1997... Gene Banucci, CEO said, "The semiconductor industry seems to have shifted into a lower gear at the start of the second quarter.
ATMI Announces and Bounces ATMI Announces and Bounces (Jun 2) EcoSys, the environmental part of ATMI (Danbury, CT) announced a new way to treat hazardous fluorine gas emissions - essentially eliminates the risk of producing potentially lethal oxygen difluoride (OF2) by treating the corrosive fluorine gas with its non-caustic, liquid scrubbing solution. Dr. Jose Arno, Chief Technologist of EcoSys, said, "We improved F2 abatement by combining EcoSys liquid scrubbing technology with a unique injection system that uses an inexpensive, non-caustic chemical agent. This new solution eliminates caustic material use to reduce F2 corrosiveness." It will now be an integral part of the Vector(R) liquid scrubbing product line. EcoSys is presenting a technical paper covering the test results of this new solution at the PFC conference during SEMICON/West in July, where it will also introduce this new solution to customers. Simultaneous with the announcement the NASDAQ traders drove ATMI's stock further down another 15%, after the 24% drop Friday, while the NASDAQ was taking a beating generally. That's almost two-thirds down from its pre-Asian contagion high. ATMI bounced to close down 9% on a day the NASDAQ was down 2%.
Opinion Drops ATMI (Jun 1) If you buy and sell stocks on the bigger fool theory, you would join the crowd in marking down ATMI by 20% Friday when an analysts downgraded his opinion from "strong buy" to merely "buy". Said Needham, ATMI's underwriter, ATMI will likely see a revenue slowdown as Asian economic turmoil eats at demand, and will not see a rebound in equipment sales before 1999. [Needham] expects the company to earn 90 cents a share in 1998 and $1.44 a share in 1999. The 90 cents would make ATMI's PE ratio only 20 (after the 24% dip to $18). The S&P 500 sits at 27 times las12 months earnings. (PE students can read Gene Epstein's essay in Jun 1 Barrons.] If you buy and sell on prospects for a growing business, you would have to look deeper than an analyst's opinion. If you buy and sell on the discounted future dividends theory, you would likely have to wait a long time to see the dividend stream anyway .
| ATMI Opinion Boost (May 7) A big Wall Street firm issued a new list of semiconductor stock coverage in which it recommended ATMI as "outperform" (WS lingo for buy, buy!). Just look at Gene Banucci's smirk in the annual report to see his opinion. In that report, Gene credits three companies as sources of ATMI's strategy: 3M, GE, and Intel. Gene has come a long way from the "green garage up in New Milford" in 1986. [Note: Carl Nelson Consulting, Inc is not an investment adviser and may hold a financial interest or client relationship in companies discussed.] |
If you'd like to copy ATMI's success start with a couple of smart chemists, and savvy business guy, and an idea with market pull that just needs proving and development. Get an SBIR that can produce a prototype by the end of Phase 1 and go market it while you negotiate Phase 2. That means as much attention to the market economics as to the beautiful science. Then use SBIR to get other products started while you bring the cash cow to market. |
From a wildly successful SBIR president: 1997 was an incredible year for your Company. ATMI more than doubled in size. We achieved record operating profitability. We acquired ADCS and Lawrence Semiconductor. We filed more than three times the number of patents we have in any other year. Our market capitalization ended the year up almost 300%, at over $450 million. Most importantly for you: our stock price finished the year up over 40% on top of gains of 68% and 70% in 1995 and 1996. Now that ATMI (Danbury, CT) has outgrown SBIR, we can note that before that happened, ATMI paid more than $17M in income taxes. And a lot more to come. It is one of the few companies that can claim a net plus to the government from SBIR; the rest will have to do their best to claim "value received".
ATMI doubled profit, again.(Apr 29) ATMI (Danbury, CT) nearly doubled its quarterly profit over last year's quarter, making $4.46M. For such success, ATMI paid another $2.2M in income taxes, getting nearer and nearer to paying back all its zillions of SBIR dollars. The market still likes ATMI, trading it at 95 times earnings.
ATMI as a strong buy ATMI as a strong buy (Mar 30) Having announced its role in the secondary offering Hambrecht & Quist again recommends ATMI as a strong buy. As does Needham & Co. ATMI keeps growing; the pending merger of NOW Technologies (Bloomington, MN) will loose another 1.35 million common shares of ATMI. Now has a patented NOWPak system, for packaging advanced photoresist materials. NOW's 100 employees will just about push ATMI out of the SBIR program as one of the best examples of what SBIR could do. From 4 to 500+ employees and a $700M market cap in a dozen years.
ATMI Secondary (Mar 27) ATMI Inc will sell 4,720,000 shares of stock at $29.50 to raise $59M for the company and let some of the early investors cash out their handsome profit from the other $79M.
ATMI Repays SBIR> (Feb 12) ATMI Inc (Danbury, CT) paid $5.9M in taxes in 1997 and thus repaid the government for about its first six years of SBIR money. To pay that much tax, you gotta earn a nice profit. $102M revenues, a 15% rise over 1996, and profit of $13.4M. Few companies can make a claim to repay their SBIR money. The four guys in the garage in 1985 now have $30M cash and about a 4:1 current ratio (current assets to current liabilities).
A 33% ROI (Nov 26) If the government had taken an equity position in ATMI Inc (Danbury, CT) proportional to its SBIR over the last decade, it would have a 33% internal rate of return, says a calculation by ATMI. Of course it's hypothetical because the government doesn't take equity. But it is a measure that SBIR could use to evaluate itself. ATMI has had about $36M of SBIR and the present market value of the 8.5M shares the government would have acquired would have been $212M at $25 a share at the end of 1997.
ATMI-TI JV (Oct 21) Advanced Technology Materials said it formed a joint development program with Texas Instruments (TI) to develop high density non-volatile memory technology, specifically ATMI's process technology for the fabrication of ferroelectric memories, leveraging integration work from their recently completed "DRAM Consortium" with IBM, Micron Technology, and Varian. Before the consortium was a SDIO Phase 2 SBIR for CVD deposition of lead zirconium titanate (PZT) films, the basis of these new memories. Of note, SDIO also funded Nonvolatile Electronics (Eden Prairie, MN) to cover as many bets as there were market-driven small companies to bet on.
New Stock Symbol New Stock Symbol (Oct 20) Advanced Technology Materials Inc (Danbury, CT) is now ATMI Inc, trading on NASDAQ as ATMID, because it's now a holding company after gobbling up ADCS and Lawrence Semiconductor. Imagine that! An SBIR company does so well it becomes a holding company instead of a hobby shop. Not everyone liked the idea, though, as the stock dipped 20% last week. ATMI was also last year's fifth place winner in the SBIR derby with $5.9M. It's probably the only SBIR firm that can say it has returned anything like a competitive ROI for the SBIR money invested. Its market cap of $300M (down last week from $400M) makes something in the range of a 15% (or so) annual ROI on the $20M or so SBIR since 1986. We'll ask CEO Gene Banucci what is his effective ROI.
SDS for CVD (Oct 15) Said Karl Olander of ATMI's NovaPure, We expect the SDS(tm) Gas Source to be as successful in CVD applications as it is for ion implantation. The reasons are simple: enhanced productivity, superior tool performance, and increased safety compared with traditional high-pressure cylinders. The SDS(tm) Gas Source can be integrated inside, or next to, the process tool. This eliminates expensive remote gas cabinets and extensive double-walled piping. ... Peter Kirlin, ATMI Executive Vice President, (up from PI years ago) ATMI is aggressively looking to apply the SDS(tm) Gas Source technology to additional product markets. We are enthusiastic about the SDS(tm) Gas Source's future. It offers a new era in gas handling productivity and safety. The spread of the pure and safe gas delivery of very nasty gases that make very nice micro- electronics helsp propel Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) to its $400M market cap. [Source: ATMI Press Release Oct 14]
More Gas (Oct 6) More gas, says the industry, we need more SDS Dopant Gas to make all these semiconductors. Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) makes it and Matheson Gas Products (a subsidiary of Nippon Sanso) distributes it. ATMI says that 80% of US ion implanters, of which there are many, get SDS Gas.
ATMI Doubles Profits (Jul25) Advanced Technology Materials Inc. (Danbury, CT), had record revenues of $13.6M for the quarter and profit of $1.3M, double last year's second quarter. Profits also doubled for the first half. CEO Gene Banucci made the usual purring noises. Then the stock dropped 17% in two days. High expectations dashed?
ATMI Still Soaring (Jul 16) With the earnings of high-tech stocks driving the NASDAQ index up-up-up, like Intel's $1.65B for the quarter, one of the few SBIR companies making a decent profit and public is also flying - Advanced Technology Materials spurted yesterday to $31, triple its price just 15 months ago. Too many SBIR companies are the kind that need 20 gallons of kerosene to light a little fire, which the government seems happy to supply since it has no demand for fire anyway. ... And ATMI's partner got a patent for recycling nasty perfluorinated compounds. Praxair and ATMI are getting ready to evaluate industry's first such system at Texas Instruments
ATMI Gets Big Order (Jun 23) Advanced Technology Materials, got a $4.4 million order from Hyundai Semiconductor America, Inc. ATMI's EcoSys division is providing complete turnkey environmental equipment and extensive monitoring services for Hyundai's newest fabrication plant, in Eugene, Oregon. EcoSys is supplying Hyundai with point-of-use abatement equipment and services for its entire plant. This includes Novapure(r) dry scrubbers, Vector(r) wet scrubbers, and Guardian(r) thermal scrubbers. Under this new program, EcoSys establishes environmental management at the customer's site to service all the point-of-use abatement equipment at the plant. The equipment and ATMI got its start with two SBIRs from EPA and DOE in the mid-80s. ATMI's press release says that Hyundai is taking the lead in building memory chip plants, despite current low DRAM (dynamic random access memory) prices. Dataquest (San Jose, CA) projects more than $7 billion of capital expenditures by Korean manufacturers this year. They are shrinking time to market for new chip technologies. Nice deal for an ideal SBIR company.
ATMI Absorbs Another Firm (May 20) Advanced Technology Materials, Inc. (Danbury, CT; Nasdaq: ATMI), will merge with Lawrence Semiconductor Laboratories (85-employees in Mesa, AZ) in a $78M stock swap. ATMI will swap 4.2 million common shares for Lawrence. Monte Lawrence, the principal owner of Lawrence Semiconductor, would join ATMI's Board of Directors and consult to Lawrence. The President of ATMI's Epitronics subsidiary, Dr. Duncan Brown, (a co-founder of ATMI) would assume responsibility for the operations of Lawrence. Lawrence specializes in the manufacture of epitaxial or "epi" thin silicon films by chemical vapor deposition. ATMI's Epitronics subsidiary provides epi services for next generation materials such as gallium arsenide and silicon carbide. Lawrence's revenues grew in excess of 40% during calendar year 1996, to greater than $20 million. Net income for Lawrence Semiconductor made $4M in 1996. ATMI, one of the premier SBIR firms in return for money invested, just saw its market cap grow again in the direction of $400M. Lawrence has been a bit SBIR player
Danbury to Eugene to Asia (May 14) Matheson selected by Hyundai Electronic Industries to supply specialty gases for Eugene manufacturing facility. Included in the 30+ specialty gases to be supplied to Hyundai is the SDS Safe Delivery Source, an innovative source of dopant gases used in ion implantation. [press release] The SDS delivers clean toxic stuff like arsine at a respectable profit to ATMI (Danbury, CT and other places). It came from a late 80s SBIR whose Phase 2 was approved the same day received. It looked that promising even in its infancy
ATMI and ATCI Report
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ATMI, the Machine (Apr 17) Last week ATMI bought a company; this week a monster machine. Epitronics, a Phoenix subsidiary of Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) agreed to buy a high throughput multiwafer AIX 2600G3 MOCVD production tool from Aixtron GmbH to make heterostructures on 100 and 150-mm GaAs wafers. Epitronics claims leadership in the development of MOCVD to create the starting substrate for manufacture of components for wireless communications, direct broadcast satellite, and CATV systems. The new reactor would make 2500 100-mm wafers per month. Dr. Duncan W. Brown, President of Epitronics and a co-founder of ATMI, said that "Our mission is to be the world's leading supplier of advanced semiconductor materials." (Now, that's a tall order.) Aixtron is the leading worldwide manufacturer of high throughput production MOCVD reactors with over 200 installed systems. (Note that the SBIR-beneficiary ATMI did not go to the many claimants of great results from SBIR investment; it went to Germany.) Facts from press release; commentary from respect for a machine - ATMI.
The Market Loved It. ATMI's stock price rose $2 the day after its announcement to go from $200M market cap to $300M. For $92M in new stock it acquired ADCS which was already making more profit than ATMI.
Adding manpower to a late software project makes it later. Fred Brooks,Wired, Jun96
Atmi expanding again(Apr 8) Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) announced a $92 million merger of ATMI's NovaMOS business line with Advanced Delivery & Chemical Systems(Austin, TX). The two generic title Advanced companies will then have major (for them) operations in Danbury, Austin, San Jose, Phoenix, and Korea, all hot spots in the semiconductor industry. Gene Banucci's empire continues to grow from the four guys who grew from two SBIRs in a 1986 garage. Need a model, SBIR aficionados, of how to put government capital to work?
Buy ATMI Says Advest (Apr 7) Rating the rater while rating the company seems more popular. An Advest Group analyst said ATMI should go to $30 (from $17). The analyst was rated 1 of 3 in predicting the stock price movement of ATMI (not a widely held stock), and 2 of 3 in forecasting earnings.
ATMI Hits $20 (Jan 16) The NASDAQ traded Advanced Technology Materials Inc (Danbury, CT) across the 20 mark as the rising tide lifted yet another boat. ATMI struggled to IPO in late 1993 at $7.
ATMI Will Make It (Jan 14) The big guy will sell what the little guy makes. Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) rearranged its strategic partnership with Matheson Gas Products for oxymoronic safe toxic gas delivery for ion implantation and other semiconductor makings. The technology got started with a 1988 SDIO SBIR for arsine delivery. ATMI's press release danced around how nasty arsine is. ATMI's market success has almost doubled the market cap in the last year to $180M. ATMI's success in the electronic materials market also goes well beyond the typical DOD SBIR for materials which typically goes to technologically sweet dreams with a wave of hope for future market success for the company's better mouse trap.
ATMI Appoints Subsidiary Head From HP to Genus to Advanced Materials Technology Inc (Danbury, CT) comes James Burns to head the EcoSys subsidiary in San Jose. Burns came most recently from Genus a $60M maker of CVD equipment and before that a division manager in a $4B part of HP. EcoSys is the CVD plant scrubbing part of ATM whose start in that field came from two SBIRs for DOE and EPA back in the formative years of SBIR. Gene Banucci, CEO of ATMI, made the mandatory soothing noises in which, typical of Gene, he talked about the competitive advantages of EcoSys's customers. Gene's approach to life is a big factor in ATMI's rising market cap and he makes a convincing spokesman that SBIR can be done right. ATMI is the only large SBIR user whose market cap divided by its total SBIR funding amounts to a large number (about 15). Only one other top user even has a market cap and its number is close to 1/15.
Value Rising >Market cap is rising nicely at Advanced Technology Materials Inc (Danbury, CT) to $170M,about double its value a year ago. ATMI started in a "green garage in New Milford" in the mid-80s with two SBIRs on a scrubbing technology for CVD gases. It has since captured the dry scrubbing market, bought three companies and expanded operations into three states. Its R&D operations gather a lot of SBIR for its future products in silicon carbide, flat panel displays, and other chemistry-driven processes. Of the top 20 SBIR winners (each with at least $10M SBIR), ATMI is the only company to go public.
ATMI Profit A strong quarter for Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) of $975,000 profit on sales of $12M. The firm's officers made the usual bland explanations and disavowed any projections (in anticipation of California passing Prop 211). If 211 passes, CEOs will all have to turn around and look only backwards in public.
Shipped SIMOX to Semiconductor Shops. Epitronics/Nippon Steel shipped 8-inch SIMOX wafers to North American semiconductor makers. Nippon licensed the method from AT&T and Epitronics markets and distributes in North America. Epitronics is an Arizona subsidiary of Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT), a growing and profitable public firm which gets a lot of its R&D money from SBIR. SIMOX implants oxygen beneath the silicon surface to form an insulating layer of silicon dioxide which in turn saves about half the chip's power demands. It proved the technique on a 0.25 micron gate array ASIC. Although several SBIR firms have had DOD money to dabble in the technique, most seem all too ready just to spend the free SBIR money while promising good things someday. ATMI prefers its someday now.
(Apr 29) Epitronics, a subsidiary of Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) said it is shipping 100-mm AlGaAs hetero-structure bipolar transistor wafers to its best customers. It is the first throughput of Epitronics new big machine. Epitronics also said it can now make such wafers in InGaP and InP.
ATMI Profit Advanced Technology Materials (Danbury, CT) reported $1.1M profit for the first half. Which cuts its P-E ratio down to a respectable 30 or so. The market beat the stock price down anyway to 11.6 on a bad day for high-tech stocks (NASDAQ index down 3%). Companies like ATMI shouldn't worry about short-run stock vicissitudes as neither should serious investors in long-term prospects for growing companies. ATMI is a big user of SBIR, one of the 19 companies with over $10M of SBIR and one of the few of those to turn it into public profits.
ATMI-Siemens Joint Venture Advanced Technology Materials Inc (Danbury, CT) announced (May 13) a two-year joint development program with the German electrical giant Siemens to develop advanced non-volatile devices. The vaguely worded Business Wire story didn't mention the materials systems nor the specific devices. ATMI watchers can scan ATMI's $10M SBIR past for clues: ferroelectrics, bimetallic precursors, titanium reagants, ... ATMI may be the government's best large SBIR investment over the years with its $150M market cap starting from four people in "a green garage up in New Milford".
renewable energy firm Atmocean (Santa Fe, NM; no SBIR) has raised an additional $100,000. .... developing patented technology it says can turn wave energy into electricity. Kithil and engineer Phillip Fullam of Reytek Corp. have been working on the project for the last decade. The company teamed with Sandia National Laboratories' New Mexico Small Business Assistance program in 2013 to perfect the pumps that generate electricity from bobbing waves. The company's first installation is planned to open in March or April of 2015 off the coast of Peru. [Dan Mayfield, Albuquerque Business First, Dec 15, 14]
Atmospheric Glow Technologies< (Knoxville TN; $5M SBIR 2000-2005 and still growing) says it has been competitively chosen to participate in the NIH Commercialization Assistance Program (run by LARTA) to help bring additional applications of its patented plasma technology to market. [LARTA VOX, Oct 07]... calls itself a market driven science and engineering company with the usual generalities about a growth-stage technology company, leverage, unique, broad portfolio of products, diverse, high-growth markets, platform technology, changing market climate, and additional market opportunities for success. It claims a total of only about $400K in Phase 3 government awards. It has lots of awards: a seed investment from the state, a Tibbetts award, two R&D 100 awards, a DOE Dawnbreaker award for outstanding commercial achievement, and an ORNL subcontractor of the year award. [company website] ... a public company with 16 employees and a market cap of $8M. It recently announced a breakthrough with the use of its proprietary atmospheric plasma technology to sterilize medical instruments and devices ... "Being able to destroy all known microorganisms in the presence of organic debris in simulated-use tests is the goal of any sterilization process," said Dr. Kimberly Kelly-Wintenberg, AGT President. "By achieving this milestone, we believe AGT is a big step closer to initiating the 510 (k) submission process to seek FDA approval for our plasma sterilizer." [press release, Sep 26, 07] In the last year it had total revenue of $2M and a total loss of $2M. As of Aug 23 it was in default of a $200K 12% unsecured loan. [SEC Form 8-K] At the time of its first SBIR it reported only four employees. Its peak market price was 88 cents in 1999 and it now trades in single digits. Now, IF you were an SBIR decider who actually cared about "commercialization", what would you want to see in a new proposal from AGT for an application of its technology? Would you accept the company's claims about commercial potential? Or would you demand third party validation in the form of co-investment (not necessarily cost-sharing the R&D)? What credibility would you give the company's "success" in Dawnbreaker and NIH-CAP?
Atomate founder Brian Lim felt he’d found the perfect niche market: creating nanotech research tools rather than developing his own nanotech devices, or as he puts it, “selling the pans to the prospectors. So I was doubly astonished to find Lim practically hollering “Eureka†down the phone as he explained that his scientists may have struck their own “diamond mineâ€; they’ve discovered a new kind of nanowire that Lim hopes will boost silicon chips’ processing speed by “orders of magnitude.†Lim is already thinking ahead, toward Atomate’s transformation into an outright nanotech prospecting operation. [Joe Chung, MIT Tech Review, Nov 23, 04]
DARPA has chosen Microsoft , Atom Computing (Oakland, CA; $1.1M SBIR) and PsiQuantum to demonstrate concepts for designing quantum machines. The three companies were selected for the initial phase of the Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing program based on their proposed novel approaches to building a computer in less than 10 years, DARPA said. .... Atom Computing intends to use optically-trapped atoms to construct its highly scalable quantum computer. [Jamie Bennet, govconwire.com, February 1, 2023]
Atom Computing (Berkeley, CA; $1M SBIR in Cary, NC) has raised $60 million. [company press release, Jan 25, 2022] Last year, Atom unveiled a 100-qubit quantum computer with a coherence time of 40 seconds. [Raleigh News & Observer, Jan 22, 2022]
Atomic Medical Innovations (born 2013 in Tucson, AZ, moving to Buffalo, NY; no SBIR, 2 employees) developing a wound care material designed to heal complex, chronic abdominal wounds. The company is in the research and development phase, and is poised to begin product testing. .. will invest $3500. .... The NY lure: START-UP NY provides businesses that create net new jobs in New York State with the opportunity to operate 100 percent tax-free for 10 years, paying no state income tax, business or corporate state or local taxes, sales tax, property tax or franchise fees. The companies also partner with the higher education institutions they are sponsored by [press release, NY Governor, Mar 7, 16]
When startup FireFly LED Lighting (Austin, TX; no SBIR) was accepted into the Austin Technology Incubator two years ago, its LED bulbs were still prototypes. Since then, the company has launched its product line, signed customers including Kerbey Lane Cafe and the University of Texas and received $3.4 million from backers including the Central Texas Angel Network and the Texas Emerging Technology Fund..... Since its founding in 1989 by legendary business leader George Kozmetsky, ATI has worked with more than 200 startups, helping them raise nearly $1 billion in investment capital. [Lori Hawkins, Austin American Statesman, Jan 26, 12] Graduates: Agile Planet, Atomometrics, Axelo, Calxeda, Dorsan Biofuels, Famigo, GameSalad, Ideal Power Converters, Itzbig, Nitero, Notice Technologies, Open Algae, Qcue, RFMicron, RRE Solar, Savara Pharmaceuticals, Spredfast, Terapio ($500K SBIR), Unwired Nation, WiMax.com.
Atomwise (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR, founded 2012), which uses deep learning to shorten the process of discovering new drugs, has raised a $45 million Series A ... was founded in 2012, has now raised more than $51 million ... clients include four of the top 10 biggest pharmaceutical companies .... Now there is a roster of companies using artificial intelligence and machine learning to analyze molecules and fix bottlenecks in the drug discovery process, including Recursion Pharmaceuticals (Salt Lake City, UT, no SBIR, founded 2013), BenevolentAI (UK), TwoXAR (Palo Alto, CA; no SBIR, founded 2014), Cyclica (Canada), and Reverie Labs (Allston, MA; stealth mode). [Catherine Shu, TechCrunch, Mar 7, 18]
Atoptix LLC (State College PA; no SBIR) has been selected as a finalist in the $2.25M Nokia Sensing XCHALLENGE, a global competition to develop breakthrough medical sensing technologies that will ultimately enable faster diagnoses and easier personal health monitoring. Atoptix’s smartphone-based optical spectroscopic sensor enables tracking and monitoring of health conditions, effectively bringing “the lab to the patient.†This innovative, non-invasive technology is being developed to accurately detect blood hemoglobin and oxygen levels under the skin, both of which are critical for wellness monitoring and the early detection of diseases, including anemia, cancer and other ailments. [http://cnp.benfranklin.org, Oct 22, 14]
Atossa Genetics up 16% [Jun 26, 19]
Atossa Genetics up 23% [Apr 23, 19]
Atossa Genetics up 25% [Mar 18, 19]
Atossa Genetics down 50% [Mar 15, 19]
Atossa Genetics down 11% [May 8, 18]
Atossa Genetics up 11% [May 7, 18]
Atossa Genetics down 11% [May 1, 18]
Atossa Genetics up 30% [Apr 30, 18] developing novel therapeutics and delivery methods to treat breast cancer and other breast conditions, announced that it has received approval from the Swedish Medical Products Agency (MPA) to conduct a Phase 2 Study of its proprietary topical Endoxifen for the treatment of women with mammographic breast density, or MBD. Studies by others have shown that a reduction in MBD reduces the risk of developing breast cancer and may potentially improve the accuracy of mammography in finding cancer. [company press release, Apr 30, 18]
Atossa Genetics up 27% [Apr 24, 18]
Atossa Genetics down 19% [Apr 20, 18]
Atossa Genetics down 28% [Aug 31, 16]
Atossa Genetics down 16% [Aug 26, 16] after 1:15 reverse split
Atossa Genetics inked an agreement with [an] to purchase up to $10 million of Atossa common stock over 30 months. [Rachel Nielsen, Puget Sound Business Journal, Jun 6, 16]
Atossa Genetics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR, founded 2009, ten employees) recalled its breast health tests and shares plunged on the news. [Ben Miller, Puget Sound Business Journal , Oct 14, 13]
Atossa Genetics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) pulled its only product from the market late Friday, triggering a 50 percent plunge in its stock in after-hours trading. ..... seven months after the Food and Drug Administration issued Atossa a warning letter, and barely 11 months after the company completed its $4 million initial public stock offering. .... Atossa said the FDA letter expressed concerns about the company’s instructions, certain promotional claims, and the need for regulatory approval of certain changes in the fluid-collection process. [Rami Grunbaum, Seattle Times, Oct 4, 13]
Atossa Genetics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) which is developing breast cancer prevention products, said it's entered into a $30 million stock purchase agreement with Aspire Capital LLC. [Puget Sound Business Journal, Mar 28, 13]
Atossa Genetics< (Seattle, WA; no SBIR), developer of diagnostic tests and treatments for breast cancer, ... its public offering to raise $4 million. [Puget Sound Business Journal, Nov 9, 12]
Atossa Genetics (Seattle, WI; no SBIR) developer of diagnostic tests and treatments for breast cancer, said it offered 800,000 shares of its common stock at $5 per share in its public offering to raise $4 million. [Puget Sound Business Journal, Nov 9, 12]
Atossa Genetics (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) that's developing and marketing diagnostic tests for precursors to breast cancer, filed paperwork to raise about $6 million in an [IPO] ... to fund production, sales and marketing of its tests. [Drew DeSilver, Seattle Times, Feb 14, 12]
Arthritis-focused pharmaceutical startup Atreaon (Newton Centre, MA; no SBIR). has landed $8 million of a planned $20 million initial funding round, according to federal documents. [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Oct 27, 11]
Preclinical biotech Atreca (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, founded 2010) set a preliminary $100 million [IPO] target, which it says will finance development of its cancer immunotherapies. uses the immune system to guide researchers to discover pairs of antibodies and their targets. Atreca says that its technology has discovered more than 1,400 antibodies that bind to tumor tissue from patients who are not the source of the antibodies. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, May 28, 19] total funding $223M [crunchbase.com]
A tissue engineering company developing materials to heal wounds and grow new blood vessels has raised $4.1 million in a round led by a "startup nursery." ParaGen Technologies LLC (Columbus, OH; no SBIR) is a parent company for medical device subsidiaries that use its core microfilament technology for specific applications. The first four are for healing skin, treating sports injuries, growing blood vessels and repairing hernias. company is a joint venture of Nanofiber Solutions LLC ($150K SBIR), which invented the technology, and Ikove Capital Partners. [Carrie Ghose, Columbus Business Journal, Dec 15, 17] three subsidiary companies are RenovoDerm, Atreon Orthopedics, and Vascular Genesis. [ParaGen website]
The Isolator Bipolar RF Ablation System, developed byAtriCure (West Chester, OH; no SBIR) is showing promise in treating a serious heart condition ..... was showcased at a Prague physician’s trade show after physicians at Sana Heart Center in Stuttgart, Germany, found it had a significant success rate as a treatment for Atrial fibrillation, a common heart rhythm disorder. [Tristan Navera, Dayton Business Journal, Jun 28, 13]
AtriCure(Cincinnati, OH; no SBIR), a six-year-old medical device firm, is an example of how demand for new treatments for an aging baby boomer population and new technology are fueling the state's bioscience industry, says Dr. Tony Dennis, president of BioOhio, a Columbus-based nonprofit trying to spur bioscience industry in the state. "They have a dominant market share and a breakthrough technology," says Dennis. ... AtriCure grew out of a company called Enable Medical (West Chester, OH; $1M SBIR) that was founded by Mike Hooven, a medical device engineer who joined Ethicon Endo-Surgery (Blue Ash, OH; no SBIR) nearly 20 years ago with the aim of eventually starting his own company. [Mike Boyer, Cincinnati Enquirer, Nov 4]
Atrium Medical (Hudson, NH; no SBIR) a medical devices firm, has agreed to be bought for $680 million by Swedish company Getinge Group and its cardiovascular technology subsidiary Maquet Cardiovascular. ... Founded in 1981 .....employs 700 workers worldwide and about 450 in New Hampshire [Mass High Tech, Oct 3, 11]
Armed with two [NSF] Awards [representing represent up to $2.6 million in [SBIR]grant funding], specialty polymers maker ATRP Solutions (Hamar, PA; $600K SBIR) is not only continuing to develop its flagship product Advantomer [an ingredient in personal care products that allows for emulsifier-free formulations while still maintaining a thicker feeling], it’s also developing a product aimed at creating a new class of ingredients in shampoos and other personal care products. [Malia Spencer, Pittsburgh Business Times, Jan 29, 13]
Attune Pharmaceuticals (New York, NY; ?? SBIR, founded 2018) focused on the discovery and development of novel, orally-administered, small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of rare diseases, announced the completion of a $23 million Series B financing [to] to advance Attune’s pipeline, which includes the ongoing clinical development of ATN-249, a novel orally-administered plasma kallikrein inhibitor for the treatment of Hereditary Angioedema (HAE). HAE is a rare genetic condition that causes episodic, potentially life-threatening swellings that can affect any part of the body. [company press release, Jan 23, 19]
aTyr Pharma (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) raised $76 million [Series E financing], the company announced. ... is researching drugs based on its physiocrine technology to treat rare diseases. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Apr 1, 15]
aTyr Pharma (San Diego, CA; no SBIR), which is preparing for clinical trials of its protein-based drugs for autoimmune diseases, said it has raised $49 million from private investors. [utsandiego.com, Jul 29, 13]
Audentes Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) IPO ... $75 million raise will help fund clinical work it’s doing on rare diseases such as X-Linked myotubular myopathy, Crigler-Najjar Syndrome, and Pompe disease. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Jul 20, 16]
Gene therapy startup Audentes
Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) filed for an IPO that would
raise up to
$86 million.
... is working
on gene
therapies, including one for X-linked myotubular myopathy.
[Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Jan 4, 16]
Audentes Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) raised $65 million in a Series C round from new crossover investors and existing venture capital backers, the gene therapy company said, setting it up for an IPO as it explores potential one-shot cures for deadly rare diseases. ... uses an adeno-associated viral vector, or AAV, to deliver an experimental fix to a mutated gene that triggers X-linked myotubular myopathy. The muscle-weakening disease kills one in every 50,000 newborn boys by the time they reach two years old. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Oct 13, 15]
Audentes Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) committed to the development and commercialization of gene therapy products for patients with serious, rare diseases, announced the closing of a $42.5 million Series B financing. ... had Series A $30M in July 2013. [company press release, Dec 2, 14]
The EZ-IO device from Vidacare (San Antonio, TX; $1M SBIR), the company Dr. Larry Miller co-founded in 2001, is the Gold winner in The Wall Street Journal's eighth annual Innovation Awards competition. ... The Silver award went to Audience (no SBIR), a maker of voice processors, for a noise-suppression technology designed to block annoying background noise in mobile-phone calls. ... A team of scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory won the Bronze for their work in developing a microchip that, by analyzing DNA, is able to identify thousands of different varieties of bacteria that might be present in air, water, soil, blood or tissue samples. ...The PhyloChip [not currently available commercially. It is manufactured by Affymetrix], developed by staff scientist Gary Andersen and a team of researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif., won in [environment] category. ...Nanocomp Technologies (Concord, NH, no SBIR), the winner in [materials and other base technologies] category, has developed a process to create large sheets of fabric and lengths of yarn using carbon nanotubes -- synthetic carbon molecules prized for their exceptional strength and conductivity. [Michael Totty, Wall Street Journal, Sep 29, 08]
Biotech startup Augmenix (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) raised $3 million in a combined equity and debt offering ... founded in 2008 by Amar Sawhney, is focused on using the materials Sawhney is famous for developing — hydrogels — in medical devices that will be used specifically for radiation oncology and cancer surgery. [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Jan 3, 11]
Biotech startup Augmenix (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) has closed on a $6.1 million Series B financing ... focused on using the materials Sawhney is famous for developing — hydrogels — in medical devices that will be used specifically for radiation oncology and cancer surgery. [Mass High Tech, Oct 19, 09]
the latest startup by serial life sciences entrepreneur Amar SawhneyAugmenix (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) - has just landed $4.7 million of a planned $7.5 million funding round, according to federal documents. ... focused on using the materials Sawhney is famous for developing -- hydrogels -- in medical devices that will be used specifically for radiation oncology and cancer surgery, according to the company’s website. .... also the founder of I-Therapeutix Inc., also based in waltham, which is developing its I-ZIP Ocular Bandage also based on hydrogels. .... In June, I-Therapeutix raised $15 million in a Series C round of financing [Mass High Tech, Jul 25, 09]
AUM Cardiovascular (Northfield, MN; no SBIR, founded ca 2008) received European regulatory approval to sell a handheld device that can detect blockages in coronary arteries. ... CEO Marie Johnson, an engineer, started the company after her husband died suddenly from a heart attack at age 41 (in 2002 while she was getting her PhD). [Katharine Grayson, Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal, Jan 2, 15]
AUM Cardiovascular (Northfield, MN; no SBIR) is sponsoring a major pivotal study to prove its non-invasive technology can detect obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) just as well as a Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) nuclear stress test. .... Founded in 2008, AUM Cardiovascular has raised over $5 million from angel investors. [James Walsh, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jan 14, 14]
AUM Cardiovascular (Farmington, MN; no SBIR) , which boasts an economical, non-invasive device that identifies lethal coronary blockages, was named the top prize winner [$50K] in the annual Minnesota Cup entrepreneurial sweepstakes ... CEO Marie Johnson, a onetime General Motors manufacturing engineer, completed a doctorate in biomedical engineering from the U of M and spent several years working in the medical device field before starting AUM. [Neal St Anthony, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Sep 9, 11]
AUM LifeTech (Philadelphia, PA; no SBIR) has partnered with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania to employ next-generation RNA silencing FANA technology as a new approach to cancer immunotherapy designed to treat lung cancer. [company press release, Oct 10, 18]
Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) developing a new class of therapies to target and selectively destroy tumor cells, raised $10M in equity in a $17M funding round, according to an SEC filing. [Srividya Kalyanaraman, BostInno, Jul 10, 20]
Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR, founded 2007) a leader in the development of novel targeted therapies in ocular oncology, today announced that it closed a $40 million Series D financing. [company press release, Apr 2, 19]
Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) developing a new class of therapies to target and selectively destroy cancer cells using viral nanoparticle conjugates, announced that it closed a $30 million Series C financing. [company press release, Dec 21, 17]
drug developer, Amylyx Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) received a $5 million Series A financing to take its nerve cell-targeting treatment, AMX0035, into a Phase 2 trial for ALS patients. The treatment is a combination of sodium phenylbutyrate, a drug commonly used to remove ammonia from the body, and tauroursodeoxycholic acid, a derivative of stomach bile acid. ... funding was ]partly] provided by former Genzyme CEO Henri Termeer. Since selling Genzyme to Sanofi for $20 billion in 2011, Termeer has been an active investor and advisor to startup biotechs, including Moderna Therapeutics, Lysosomal Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR), Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) , and X4 Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR). [David Holley, xconomy.com, Aug 22, 16]
Genzyme founder Henri Termeer joined a group of several investors in a $21 million round of financing for [biotech] Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR). ... brings the company's total to date to $33 million since 2010 ... founded with the help of research originally funded by the National Institutes of Health on so-called viral nanoparticles, a protein shell which targets cancers. But the type of cancer Aura is targeting — those of the eye — is a little off the beaten path, and likely means the company will benefit from an orphan drug designation by [FDA]. [Don Seiffert, Boston Business Journal, Mar 5, 15]
Aura Biosciences (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) startup developing nanotechnology for drug delivery, has raised $2.95 million in its second funding round, federal documents show. Founded in 2009 by CEO Elisabet de los Pinos, a 2010 Mass High Tech , the company’s technology is called Nanosmart. The nanotech platform wraps therapies in a protein nanoparticle that can then deliver the drug to a specific, targeted tumor. [Mass High Tech, Aug 26, 11]
Aural Analytics (Tempe, AZ; $2M SBIR) was awarded a $1.4 million [NIH] grant [Jeff Gifford, AZInno, July 13, 2022]
Johnson & Johnson is eyeing robotic surgery maven Auris Health, and plans to purchase it above its $2 billion valuation, according to reports. [Conor Hale, Fierce Biotech, Jan 23, 19]
Robotic surgery platform developer Auris Health (formerly Auris Surgical Robotics, Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) has raked in another $220 million in equity financing, bringing its fundraising total to more than $700 million. .. to help the 2016 Fierce 15 winner transition to a commercial-stage company following the FDA approval of its Monarch endoscopic platform this past spring, as well as to fund the development of new robotic interventions. [Conor Hale, Fierce Biotech, Nov 30, 2018]
Auris Health (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, founded 2007) [raised Series E] $220 million to further bolster its commercialization efforts. Auris received [FDA]clearance to sell the first robotic bronchoscope offered on the Monarch Platform. [company press release, Nov 28, 18] prior funding $513M [crunchbase.com]
Auris Medical up 15% [May 2, 19]
Auris Medical down 21% [May 1, 19] Announces 1:20 Reverse Stock Split company press release, [Apr 30, 19]
The IPO window is still open, sort of, but life sciences companies are not getting through unscathed. Tobira Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) and Microlin Bio (New York, NY; no SBIR) postponed their offerings after T2 Biosystems (Lexington, MA; no SBIR) and Switzerland’s Auris Medical slashed the terms of their Nasdaq IPOs this week. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Aug 7, 14]
Auris Surgical Robots (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR for stealth) raised $280 million in a Series D round ... Auris last raised capital nearly two years ago, a $149.5 million round ..... has raised a total of $530 million. .... company [webite] says its first target is lung cancer. ... led by co-founder and CEO Frederic Moll, a serial entrepreneur who might best be known for his role with Intuitive Surgical he co-founded in 1995. Last year, Intuitive reported $2.7 billion in total revenue. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Aug 4, 17]
Stealthy startup Auris Surgical Robotics (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR) disclosed that it has raised $150 million ... the fourth robotic surgery business co-founded by Dr. Frederic Moll. He previously co-founded Intuitive Surgical ($2.5M SBIR) , Hansen Medical (no SBIR), Endotherapeutics (no SBIR), and Origin Medsystems (no SBIR) ....has now raised a total of $185 million. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Sep 24, 15]
Sunlight companies. Joule Unlimited (formerly Joule Biotechnologies, Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) said it was the first company to patent an organism that secretes hydrocarbon fuel made continuously, directly from sunlight. Other companies, including Amyris Biotechnologies (Emeryville, CA; $700K SBIR), and LS9 (San Carlos, CA; no SBIR), are working on organisms that will make fuel if fed sugar from corn or cellulosic sources, but Joule’s bacterium does not require any sugar. Another company, Aurora Algae (Alameda, CA; no SBIR), said that it had developed an algae-based platform for production of fuel, pharmaceuticals and other valuable chemicals. [Matthew Wald, New York Times, Sep 14, 10]
Governor Northam announced that Aurora Flight Sciences (lots of SBIR, now a Boeing company), a pioneer in unmanned aircraft and autonomous flight, will invest more than $13.75 million to expand its operation in Manassas [twice a Civil War battlefield] [Virginia state press release, Jul 26, 18].
DARPA and Boeing‘s Aurora Flight Sciences [lots of SBIR] subsidiary have agreed to transition aircraft technology developed through the DARPA-funded Vertical Takeoff and Landing Experimental Plane program to commercial applications. Aurora said its XV-24 subscale vehicle demonstrator reached key aviation milestones during the course of the VTOL X-Plane project. ... DARPA awarded the company an $89 million contract in March 2016 [Mary-Louise Hoffman, GovConWire, Apr 30, 18]
Aurora Flight Sciences (Manassas, VA; $25M SBIR) won a $48M Air Force contract to continue developing the force's Orion unmanned aircraft system after Boeing completed its acquisition of the company in November. ... an Orion aircraft that can be deployed anywhere in the world. [Washington Business Journal, Jan 4, 18]
Boeing plans to buy Aurora Flight Sciences (Manassas, VA; $24M SBIR), a leader in drone technology. Boeing executives say Aurora would bring it a cutting-edge research-and-development shop that it could apply to to both defense and commercial projects. The companies already work together on a hydrogen-powered drone called Phantom Eye (Aurora builds the wing and did engine development). Aurora also helped develop Boeing's new 777X jetliner. ... When [Greg Hyslop, Boeing's chief technology officer and senior vice president of Boeing Engineering, Test & Technology] was asked what the deal to buy Aurora might say about other types of technology might Boeing be looking to acquire? His response: "We're always looking at a lot of different things to acquire. He mentioned investment by the firm's VC arm HorizonX in Zunum Aero (hybrid electric aircraft, Kirkland, WA; no SBIR), SparkCognition (artificial intelligence, Austinm, TX; no SBIR), Upskill (augmented reality for manufacturing), and C360 (360° video and augmented/virtual reality, Marietta, GA; no SBIR). [Marcus Weisgerber, Defense One, Oct 4, 17]
The Navy is joining DARPA on a project that could ultimately result in military drones taking flight from smaller Navy ships. ... The first two phases of the program focus on preliminary design and risk reduction for the TERN system. Five companies were awarded contracts last fall for the first phase of the program, which focuses on development of a preliminary design: Northrop Grumman ; Aurora Flight Sciences (Manassas, VA; $24M SBIR); AeroVironment (Monrovia, CA; $15M SBIR); Maritime Applied Physics (Baltimore, MD; $7M SBIR); Carter Aviation Technologies (Wichita Falls, TX; one SBIR) [Jill R. Aitoro, Washington Business Journal, Jun 13, 14]
Aurora Flight Sciences(Manassas,VA; $25M SBIR), which has a research and development operation in Cambridge, was recently selected by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for the Phoenix program to explore development of a new satellite morphology through creation of ‘‘satlets’’ capable of harvesting key components from retired spacecraft in earth orbit. [DC Denison, Boston Globe, Aug 14, 12]
Aurora Flight Sciences (Manassas, VA (R&D in Cambridge, MA); $15M SBIR) to develop technology for a hot air balloon to operate on Saturn’s moon, Titan. [Brendan Lynch, Mass High Tech, Jan 18, 10] NASA and the SBIR advocates will no doubt continue to bleat about commercialization while the Centers fund R&D for outer space. The company's website does standard R&D spin for government-use stuff. It must be good stuff to get $15M and growing SBIR over twenty years from DOD and NASA. BTW: what would you consider a decent nursery period for small high-tech companies before they can compete on their own for government R&D work. What really happens is that the mission agencies won't let them compete for much of that work because the agency must put at least 3% of their outside work into SBIR. "Go get SBIR," say the agency managers to such companies.
What is SBIR for? Aurora Flight Sciences (Manassas, VA; at least $7M SBIR) reports it has landed a NASA Phase 2 SBIR to develop a method for conducting multiple-spacecraft maneuvers to more efficiently synthesize astronomical images. ... will share the grant with the MIT Space Systems Laboratory, and will collaborate with the lab. [Mass High Tech, Apr 21, 09] Says the company: For twenty years Aurora's entrepreneurial culture has created an environment where innovative ideas turn into reality in the form of new aerospace vehicles. And we have only just begun! The company websites boasts more than $80.6 million of SBIR-related work for government agencies. and Bell Helicopter selected Aurora as the airframe provider of the Bell Eagle Eye UAS. A month later, Aurora broke ground for a permanent Columbus, MS manufacturing facility at the Golden Triangle Regional Airport. The company currently has more UAS development projects underway than at any other time in its history. and in 2004 had 270 employees and growing. All of which raises the SBIR question: when does a company graduate from the nursery? Or is the government using SBIR to fund contracts in established companies that would easily compete for open procurement?
Aurora Imaging Technology (North Andover, MA; no SBIR, founded 1999) that has developed an MRI system specifically designed for 3-D breast imaging, announced an exclusive China distribution agreement with the SUMEC Group Corp., one of the largest import and export corporations in China. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jul 24, 12]
Aurora Spectral Technologies (Milwaukee, WI; no SBIR) start-up that is developing tools to help researchers capture images of proteins in living cells has raised $450,000 from individual investors. ... could help researchers develop new drugs and diagnostic tests, and might eventually help provide more insight into cancer and other diseases, said Brian Thompson, the UWM foundation's president. [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov 1, 10]
Aushon Biosystems (Billerica, MA; no SBIR) Lands $1,955,000 New Funding [xconomy.com, Dec 21, 11]
Auspex Pharma down 14% [Feb 28, 14]
Auspex Pharmaceuticals (LaJolla, CA; no SBIR) raised $35 million ($20M equity and $15M debt) for its drug development program, including a drug for a movement disorder associated with Huntington’s disease. .... More money is on the way. [as]Auspex filed on Dec. 20 to raise up to $69 million [in IPO] [Bradlay Fikes, utsandiego.com, Jan 8, 14]
Auspex Pharmaceuticals (La Jolla, CA; no SBIR) said it has raised $25 million from venture capital investors. ... developing drugs that incorporate deuterium, which prolongs the activity of some drugs. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Nov 8, 12]
Auspex Pharmaceuticals (Vista, CA; no SBIR) has raised $12 million from investors, according to a recent filing. ... developing deuterium-based analogs of clinically validated drugs in multiple therapeutic areas. ... previously raised almost $13.9 million [Bruce Bigelow, signonsandiego.com, Aug 5, 10]
Several life sciences startups in the San Diego area have received funding in recent weeks. Auspex Pharmaceuticals raised $3 million, Aethlon Medical raised $600,000, and Tocagen got $3 million. [Bruce Bigelow,signonsandiego.com, Mar 12, 10]
AusraAusra of Palo Alto has started building a manufacturing plant in Las Vegas, claiming it will be the first in the nation to produce parts for solar-power plants. Ausra said the Nevada plant will assemble reflectors, towers, tubes and other solar components, with the first parts to be used to construct a 177-megawatt solar-power plant in San Luis Obispo County. "We're going to make twice as much stuff in a year as the entire world solar industry is making today," said John O'Donnell, Ausra's executive vice president. [San Jose Mercury News, Dec 13.07]
Sunny Solar. Silicon Valley's solar boom continues with Ausra, a Palo Alto startup backed by venture capitalist heavyweights Vinod Khosla and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, filing an application to build a 177-megawatt solar power plant on California's Central Coast. ... In September, Florida utility FPL announced it would use Ausra’s technology for a planned 300-megawatt solar power plant. [CNN Money]
Store Sunlight as Steam. Solar-power startup Ausra (Palo Alto, CA) proposes solar-thermal-power plants that turn sunlight into steam and efficiently store heat for cloudy days. [MIT Tech Review, Sep 27] But sunlight doesn't produce all that much power and by the time it was converted to steam, stored, and thence into electricity, a lot of the power would have been lost to inefficiency.
Ausra,a Palo Alto CA start-up, raised $40 M to develop, build and operate solar power plants. The money comes from Silicon Valley venture-capital clean-technology heavyweights. [Matt Naumann, San Jose Mercury News, Sep 11]
Auterra (Schenectady, NY; one SBIR as Applied NanoWorks, 24 employes) will invest several million dollars to test technology that could lead to the first new process in the oil refining industry since the 1970s. The chemical startup will build a field test plant in Alberta, Canada next year to gauge the success of its technology for removing sulfur, nitrogen and other contaminants from oil. .... developed molecule using nanotechnology to form a catalyst that will allow major oil refiners to reduce production costs by approximately $5 a barrel. [Robin K. Cooper, Albany Business Review, Dec 21, 15]
Apple announced that its new iPhone 5S will include a fingerprint sensor that users can use to unlock the device. Apple’s upcoming Touch ID feature originated at AuthenTec(Melbourne, FL; no SBIR)AuthenTec raised more than $70 million in venture capital and had a successful initial public offering of stock .... Apple acquired AuthenTec last year for $356 million. [David Ranii, Raleigh News & Observer, Sep 10, 13]
AutoGenomics (Vista, CA; no SBIR) postponed a planned $46.6 million ... its [molecular diagnostic] instruments can increase efficiency by automating genetic analysis in clinical laboratories. [Bradley Fikes, utsandiego.com, Feb 17, 15]
AutoGenomics (Vista, CA; no SBIR, founded 1999) which sells a molecular diagnostics system for genetic testing in clinical laboratories, set the terms for its IPO . ... wants to raise $45 million in its second IPO attempt. [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Feb 6, 15]
Autolus Therapeutics (England) said it plans to create up to 170 jobs at its new U.S. headquarters and manufacturing facility in Rockville MD over the next three years and invest about $28 million in Shady Grove Life Sciences Center. .. will get a boost from a $200,000 Economic Development Fund conditional grant from the county, while the state of Maryland is providing a $525,000 "Advantage Maryland" conditional loan. [Washington Business Journal, Jan 14, 19]
Trelleborg (Sweden) signed an agreement to acquire Automated Dynamics (Niskayuna, NY; at least one SBIR), founded 1984) that specializes in the manufacturing of advanced composite components. Composites are a strategic, adjacent technology for Trelleborg with high potential in a multiple of industries. [Trelleborg press release, Jun 23, 17] grown to be a world leader in Automated Fiber Placement and Thermoplastic Composites technology [Automated Dynamics website]
Automated Dynamics (Schenectady, NY; $4M SBIR) annual sales will increase by one-third to $9 million this year [Robin K. Cooper, Albany Business Review, Mar 11, 16] specialize in the manufacturing of high-performance composite structures, development of advanced automation equipment, and solution-based engineering services. Through the use of a true out-of-autoclave (OoA) process [company website]
Automated Dynamics (Schenectady, NY; $3M SBIR, founded 1984, 32 employees) was awarded $400,000 [from the state’s Energy Research and Development Authority] to continue commercialization of a process that could improve the manufacturing of parts by 63 percent. [Troy Record, Feb 15, 13]
The first round of grants awarded under the Massachusetts-Israel Innovation Partnership, MIIP, were announced ... A total of at least $1.3 million ... SBH Sciences (Natick, MA; no SBIR) and Improdia (Israel) will work together toward the development and manufacture of a chronic inflammation-dependent immunosuppression prognostic kit. $400K .... Automated Medical Instruments (Needham, MA; no SBIR) will work with STI Lasers (Israel). They will develop new technology involving radio frequency energy to perform circumferential ablation of the pulmonary veins. $230K ... Lantheus (North Billerica); no SBIR and Check-Cap (Israel) will work on a novel 3-D imaging capsule that can be used to screen for polyps and lesions associated with colorectal cancer.$600K ... FloDesign Sonics (Wilbraham, MA; no SBIR) and Transbiodiesel (Israel) have been selected as the clean energy award winners. Their joint project will use FloDesign’s acoustic molecule separation technology to separate oil that can be used to create fuel from Transbiodiesel’s oil-generating algae. $75K. [DC Denison, Mass High Tech, Jun 19, 12]
Autonet,a closely held Larkspur, Calif., company, developed proprietary technology that converts the CDMA signal into a Wi-Fi one, allowing laptops and other electronic devices to connect to the Web. ... Passengers -- typically tourists -- who use the service surf the Web to find local restaurants or activities. ... American Airlines recently selected closely held AirCell LLC to provide a high-speed Internet connection to its airplanes by the first half of next year. AirCell, which has facilities in Itasca, Ill., will use spectrum specifically set aside for planes to connect them to the Internet. Cellular towers on the ground will have antennas pointed into the sky broadcasting CDMA signals that planes pick up and convert into Wi-Fi. [Roger Cheng, Wall Street Journal, Sep 4]
New protective coatings developed at the University of Illinois heal over their own scratches with no external intervention, protecting the underlying metal. The self-healing elements, enclosed in microcapsules that rip open when the coating is scratched, are compatible with a wide range of paints and protective coatings. The coatings, being marketed by Autonomic Materials (Champaign, IL; no SBIR), may be on the market in as soon as four months. [Katherine Bourzac, MIT Tech Review, Dec 12, 08]
Medical device company Autonomic Technologies (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, founded 2007) raised $38 million in Series D funding to perfect its technology to treat severe headaches. [Gina Hall, Silicon Valley Business Journal, May 12, 15]
Five Orlando technology entrepreneurs have launched a program aimed at helping grow other startup companies in Orlando. Starter Studio will be based in the 8,500-square-foot offices of Envy Labs LLC and Code School LLC [Bill Orben, Orlando Business Journal, May 23] If they need a model, they should look up Randy Frey who founded Autonomous Technologies and is now engaged in new enterprise after improving laser control in laser eye surgery. The new company is LensAR Inc, doing femtosecond laser cataract surgery.
Chocolate Bar with That Eye Surgery?(May 26) While Summit Autonomous got clearance to use its laser eye track surgery in Europe from Portugal to Finland, Nestle says it will buy the company for $19 per share (double the trading price before the leaks started) or about $900M. That would be the second Swiss connection after Autonomous got its first serious capital investment from Ciba-Geigy. Although the stock price has suffered with all the other competitors as a price war broke out, Summit has the only access to the laser vision that arose from BMDO SBIR funding for laser radar at Autonomous Technologies now a subsidiary of Summit.
A Boost from a Dump (May 5) Summit Autonomous got a 20% boost when it said it sold its Lens Express business for $31M cash plus a minority interest in the buyer. Summit wants to focus on the high return surgery business with its competitive advanatge of being the only owner (for now) of the eye-tracking technology that came from Autonomous Technologies' SDIO SBIR.
Summit Autonomous, a new name that recognizes the contribution of SBIR-helped Autonomous Technologies as price competition in the industry suddenly ate the dream of huge profits. Summit's stock price was up 21% on news that revenue had jumped 25% for the quarter even though it had to be written with $12M worth of red ink. It is still only a third of last summer's high.
Who's Got the Vision? While Bloomberg says that "Laser Vision Correction has become the nation's most common surgical procedure overnight", the sellers of the stock are beating the price down. Summit Technology, owner of Autonomous Technologies, has seen its stock knocked down more than half since mid summer with most of the decline in December. Market leader Visx the same story even though Bloomberg lists it number 36 among the top 100 gaining stocks for the past three years.
Patent Ruling Hits Eye Surgery Stocks (Dec 8) When the ITC ruled that a Japanese firm, Nidek, did not violate international patent rules with its laser, the eye US surgery stocks took a dive. Visx dove 41% and Summit 30%. More lawyers and appeals to follow. Meanwhile, several advisory services downgraded both stocks.
First Autonomous Eye Surgery(Oct 21) Summit Technology said that Marguerite McDonald, M.D performed the first customized laser vision correction in the United States using the Autonomous LADARVision(r) system and proprietary CustomCornea(r) wavefront measurement technology. Summit, which merged with creator Autonomous Technolgies said in a press release, Current laser vision correction techniques reshape the cornea to a standard spherical shape based on the patient's manifest refraction, which is the trial lens measurement technique used in determining a contact lens or spectacle prescription. This 100 year-old measurement technique relies on the subjective input of the patient rather than on objective scientific data. By using the CustomCornea(r) wavefront sensing measurement device developed by Autonomous, Dr. McDonald was able to objectively measure the unique optical aberrations in each patient's eyes and treat the patient with a customized ablation pattern to reshape the cornea. The customized ablation was applied to the cornea using the Autonomous LADARVision(r) System. The LADARVision(r) System is currently the only FDA approved laser vision correction system to utilize a narrow beam scanning laser and a sophisticated eye-tracker, which compensates for involuntary eye movement during the surgery. Customized ablations are intended to improve the outcome of laser vision correction surgery. The five patients treated underwent LASIK surgery this week for the correction of nearsightedness. Commenting after the surgery, Dr. McDonald stated, ``Today is a watershed moment in laser refractive surgery. This is probably as important a milestone as the development of laser surgery, it is that much of an improvement on current technology.'' Autonomous was launched with an SDIO SBIR in 1992, went public in 1996, and merged with Summit in 1999.
LadarVision is the next-generation eye laser Summit acquired through the purchase of Autonomous Technologies of Orlando, Fla., earlier this year. The device, which uses a tracking device to more effectively aim a very precise laser beam, has been approved to correct nearsightedness and astigmatism. The farsightedness indication approval is expected by year's end and laser surgeons are already clamoring for the device. Clinical studies have shown the device restores 20/20 vision in 70 percent of patients, compared to a 66 percent 20/20 outcome for Visx's leading laser. Summit recognizes the challenge of ramping up to deliver the new lasers. According to [CEO] Palmisano, the company has already increased production at its Ireland facility from three LadarVision lasers a month to six. It will double that production next year, shipping 150 new LadarVision lasers in 2000. That would be three times that amount of the systems installed this year. "The reality is we can place every unit we make," he said. [Judy Stringer, Mass High Tech, Sep6-12] Oops, made in Ireland. Nativists should arise to object to anyone outside the USA making money from an SBIR technology. Then those nativists can pull their blanket back over their heads and plug their ears against the roar of the global economy.
Legal Muscle Time (Aug 19) The laser eye surgeons want to deal out the cost of paying the inventors. A key legal case has VISX suing Nidek over refusing to pay the royalty becaue it claims that its laser did not fall under its patents. II Online says Theodore Huber of Advest Inc. expects the decision to have a huge impact on Visx's future. 'A big watershed will come from the Visx case,' he says. 'It's game set and match if they win this one.' Visx maintains over 50 U.S. patents in total and roughly 80% market share, with Summit Technology new acquirer of Autonomous Technologies most of the rest. VISX has lots of lawyers, though, and to improve its chances it sues the doctors who use Nidek's lasers. If you are an inventor, you probably like such stiff defenses, if not you hate lawyers suing everybody in sight. If you have a new technology with a big market potential (or at least you want to promise that to a gullible SBIR agency), you too will need a mess of lawyers when you start making money.
The FDA Giveth (Jul 27) The FDA's advisory panel recommends that Summit Technology's eye-surgery lasers be approved to treat a new wider range of symptoms and thus help Summit against market leader VISX which already uses similar lasers for the same purposes. The market loved it, driving Summit up 28%. Meanwhile, the FDA also spiked the prospects of Sunrise Technologies International (Fremont, CA) whose shares plummeted 75% by rejecting a laser technology to treat farsightedness. The FDA panel said it voted so because patients seemed to only show temporary vision correction. Patients in the study reported that their eyes reverted back to their original eyesight within two years after the surgery, which was designed to correct farsightedness in people over age 40 who wear bifocals. Summit stock was up 400% last year and the stockholders of Autonomous Technologies (the SBIR-aided Orlando company) did well in getting Summit stock in the merger. A few more of such winners and SBIR could be declared a success instead of just a handout to uncompetitive businesses. [Wall Street Journal, Jul 26]
Another $80M for the Eyes(Jul 21) It will take another $80M to get the eyeball tracking laser surgery to market, as Summit Technology the new parent of Autonomous Technologies files to sell 4M shares at about $20/share. SBIR proposers with hot ideas and no business plan should take notice of what it costs in the real world to bring an innovative product to market. If you don't intend to follow through with the real business you are just deceiving yourself and the gullible government with project dreams.
Momentum investors have had VISX in their cross hairs for some time (see story), and it ain't cheap. ... the company trades at 47 times 2000 calendar-year earnings on the promise of the growing popularity and profitability of the surgery, which is expected to be the most widely performed surgical procedure in the U.S. next year. ... legal battles could take years to resolve, but they're not going to slow the demand for laser eye surgery ... Everyone agrees that the market is exploding. This year laser eye surgeries in the U.S. should double to 980,000 procedures (eyes), costing between $2,000 to $2,500 per eye, according to Dave Harmon with Dallas-based market-research firm Market Scope. Harmon predicts that number will grow again to 1.3 million next year before topping out at 2.5 million around 2006. In other words, there will be plenty of money to be made ... For the moment it may not matter which business model has the edge several years into the next millennium. A growing market for relatively cheap, safe and effective eye surgery has been established and that isn't going away anytime soon. [Smart Money, Jun 18]
Eye Surgery Soars (Jun 7) A judge said forget it and the stocks soared. Visx and Summit were up 31% and 18% on the news that a federal judge had tossed out a patent suit. The FTC had charged the two with a monopoly practice of pooling patents and sharing the wealth instead of competing. The judge said the FTC failed to make a case. Any SBIR connection? Only that Autonomous Technologies was recently merged into Summit. Autonomous is a candidate for the best SBIR investment ever.
Laser Guided Stock From just before the Apr 29 merger with Autonomous Technologies Summit Technology has shot up to seven times its low for the last 12 months. A government 1992 hypothetical investment in Autonomous equal to the SBIR Phase 2 add-on of $500K would today have a value of about $80M. For that SBIR should take credit, and could take credit if program evaluation would adopt a VC approach instead of just pretending to be the VC for high-tech small business.
Although Autonomous Technologies may have disappeared as a separate entity, it seems it has linked its fortune to the smaller of the two dominant companies in the laser eye-surgery industry. The Boston Globe says Summit shares plunged from over 30 to below 4 in 1996 and stayed in that neighborhood for more than two years. Suddenly, the story changed and Summit stock has soared from 5 9/16 just six weeks ago to 16 7/16 yesterday.[which is what made the Autonomous deal so rewarding for Autonomous shareholder in a company that has never made a profit and barely any revenue] The sparks: improved performance benefiting from a hot market and a promising turnaround plan, completion of an important acquisition [Autonomous], and a broader following among investors. .. Summit reports the number of procedures performed with its lasers increased during the first quarter by 31 percent over the previous three months and by 81 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. .. The good news: Summit and just one other laser company own nearly all of the US market, and each one of them collects a fee of about $250 per eye. The bad news: Summit, once the leader in its field, is now a distant second. Competitor Visx Inc. controls about 75 percent of the market, leaving less than 20 percent for Summit. Visx shareholders have made out better than anyone amid the booming forecasts for procedure growth. Their stock has jumped from 21 last October to as high as 137 5/32. It closed yesterday at 121. [Boston Globe, May 5]
Autonomous Merged May 3) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) caught the fever in the past two weeks, rising to $14 from its year ago low of $3. Autonomous has now disappeared as a listed stock after merging into Summit. The merger left anyone who bought 1000 shares at IPO ($8000) with 730 shares of Summit (worth $12500) plus $3040 cash - a rough doubling in two years of a stock that has never made a dime's profit. If hypothetically, BMDO had taken a proportional share of Autonomous in return for its $500K SBIR Phase 2 extension in 1991-1992, it would today have a market value of something like $75M. Now that's an investment! And the opthamologists who invested in convertible preferred stock to prove Autonomous's claims of a commercial value have made an enormous profit. Isn't that what we capitalists want from government - an opening that we can exploit? Doesn't government want capitalists to think that way and thus invest in infant technology that they would not touch otherwise? But, unfortunately, the government mostly disdains such policies (except in its theoretical blather). Oh, government would like the story but won't pay the up-front price of investing in risky technology in the hands of bold entrepreneurs. Better, it says, safe and predictable science.
Busy Yahoo message board on Summit and Autonomous. An opthamologist says in my 25+ yrs of investing, the BEAM/ATCI combination is probably the best M&A deal I've seen. Opthamologists as M&A experts? Says another discussant about Summit, By the end off 1999 they will have the edge over VISX in technology and approval with their ATCI laser for stuff that VISX will not. Plus BEAM's takeover of ATCI brings with it a partnership with CIBA a massive distributor of medical goods. This market is only getting bigger and better. And with ATCI BEAM is a powerhouse leader. You can't play these stocks you just have to hold and forget that you own them. I could sell ATCI for a 250% and beam for 200% gain but this puppy is just starting. With laser stock you just have to be very patients and wait for the big boom. It's very simple. A big success story brewing for BMDO SBIR gave birth to ATCI in pushing it from a ladar research house to a commercial product developer.
ATCI Booming (Apr 6) The boom in the stock price of Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) is driven by the conversion price of Summit Technology with whom Autonomous is about to merge. Summit posted the third largest percentage gain (151%) of 60 vision care stocks for the first quarter, says OptiStock.com's ``Top Performers'' report. The best-performing sector was laser vision correction, whose composite stock price increased by 59% in March alone. Autonomous was up 11% yesterday as Summit rose 20%. Autonomous says it had received a total of $3.5M in contract revenue through 1994 and then none thereafter. That was mostly SBIR which is a minor contributor (although critical in 1992) to the total of $45M spent developing the laser-tracking technology. An SBIR success story even if the product eventually flops. It is that sort of risk taking in technology infancy days in entrepreneurial companies where SBIR can make a contribution worth the micro-management of federal R&D for the benefit of a political class.
Eye Tracker Approved (Nov 9) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) got a Medical Device License from the Canadian Therapeutic Products Directorate for its LADARVision(R) System for visual correction between -1.0 and -10.0 diopters of nearsightedness and up to -6.0 diopters of astigmatism, a few days after announcing FDA approval. Autonomous will soon disappear as a listed company when it is acquired by Summit Technology for $87M or so (Individual Investor sees a 40% growth rate in the industry in its recent review.) BMDO's predecessor -SDIO- funded the technology with SBIR to track fast moving objects in space and took the view that a test of the moving eye would prove the technology just as well as a ve-e-e-ery expensive space test. What's more, the private sector would do most of the proving. [story from BW HealthWire, Nov. 6]
The quarterly loss of $4.6 million was in line with analyst and Company expectations as the Company continues to ramp up for commercial production of its LADARVision(R) System. [Business Wire, Nov 2]. Note that Autonomous weaned itself from government support as soon as it found a lucrative opportunity. It raised capital and devoted itself for about five years to the single-minded objective of an FDA-approved business.
Autonomous to Merge with Summit (Oct 2) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) will merge with a subsidiary of Summit Technology. Shareholders of Autonomous will get part cash and part stock in Summit in exchange for their Autonomous shares. Autonomous is engaged in the is developing next-generation excimer laser instruments for laser refractive surgery with laser radar eye tracking. Summit is a leading maker of ophthalmic laser systems to correct common vision disorders such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. In 1995, Summit was the first excimer laser company to receive FDA approval for its Apex excimer laser system for the correction of mild to moderate myopia. [Business Wire, Oct 1] Autonomous got into the eye surgery business when SDIO's SBIR refused to fund any more of its laser tracking technology unless and until a credible commercial outlet appeared. Founder Randy Frey found a way. The merger terms value Autonomous at $86M which is about twice its present market cap. The deal includes a $5M loan to Autonomous which suggests cash is running short as FDA approval drags out.
See the Patent Maneuvers (Oct 1) Autonomous Technologies claims a moderate victory in its two-year-old lawsuit against VISX which abandoned its motion to dismiss the Autonomous suit against it and filed a counterclaim. Autonomous brought this suit in October 1996 seeking a declaratory judgment that VISX's L'Esperance U.S. Patent No. 4,718,418 (`418) was not infringed, was invalid and that all VISX's patents that were pooled in the Pillar Point Partners were unenforceable based upon fraud and inequitable conduct before the United States Patent Office (PTO). By filing a counter claim in this suit VISX has also now enabled Autonomous to directly seek the invalidity and unenforceablity of the L'Esperance U.S. Patent No. 4,665,913 (`913) as well. Randy Frey, CEO said, "Finally, we will be able to get these VISX patents before a Court of law. [BusinessWire, Sep 25]
Autonomous Loses $4M (Aug 12) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) lost $4.2M in the quarter (versus a loss of $3.1M last year's quarter). The company says the loss was expected. The Company has been preparing for the launch of its LADARVision(r) product in the U.S. once the anticipated pre-market approval (PMA) is received.
One Eyeblink Closer (Jul 30) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) said that premarket approval application (PMA) is approvable. (Bureauspeak for one step closer.) Final PMA approval awaits FDA's blessing of manufacturing facilities, methods and controls. Randy Frey, CEO said, ``This news brings Autonomous one step closer to the starting line for commercialization in the highest growth laser vision correction market: the United States. The Autonomous team is on track and prepared for its upcoming manufacturing inspection which is the final hurdle in the FDA approval process.'' Meanwhile the stock stays around 60% of the 1996 IPO price.
Autonomous Raises $3M (Jul 1) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) raised $3M more in a European private placement and got FDA clearance to conduct "LASIK Hyperopic Astigmatism trials for up to +6 Diopters of Sphere and up to -6 Diopters of Cylinder". CEO Randy Frey said that LASIK has become the preferred method of performing refractive surgery in the U.S. Investors, though, seemed unimpressed as the stock price dawdles nearly half below the 1996 IPO price.
ATCI Loses $3M (May 5) Although Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) lost another $3M in the latest quarter, NSF should take note of what can happen with co-investment as an add-on to a Phase 2 SBIR. Autonomous has its $60M market cap today because Star Wars in 1992 offered to match private sector money for a laser radar company that until then was just another struggling laser radar research house for government.
Autonomous Raises $24M (Apr 18) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) arranged a total of $24 million in financing as part of its ongoing plan to enable it to participate in the U.S. laser vision correction market later in 1998. A financial institution will provide a $15 million credit facility to support the U.S. commercial placement its LADARVision(R) Systems for at least one year. This credit facility provides cash to the company about equal to the manufacturing cost of each system shipped and accepted under a per-procedure placement contract between Autonomous and the physician. [Dow Jones, Apr 17] And $9M in preferred stock. The stock trading price remains under $6 where it has been almost since the IPO at $8 in 1996.
ATCI Eyes the Future (Apr 17) PaineWebber said Autonomous Technologies was expected to be the third company entering the laser equipment market by the end of this year. Laser eye treatment stocks rose (not ATCI yet) when VISX reported earnings. PaineWebber estimated that 70,000 people were treated in the United States in 1996, rising to 200,000 in 1997, with further growth to an estimated 350,000 this year, and to 500,000 to 550,000 in 1999.[Reuters, Apr 15]
Maybe a Price Break. Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) could benefit from an anti-trust action against the two big suppliers of the lasers. who dominate the booming laser eye-surgery - Summit Technology and Visx . Says the Wall Stret Journal (mar 24), The procedure, which is relatively low-risk and in many cases corrects myopia and other vision problems, is surging in popularity. It will be performed on more than 300,000 people this year, up from just 70,000 in 1996. A typical patient today is a young man active in sports for whom wearing glasses or contact lenses was a hassle. Autonomous got its technological and financial start with SBIRs from NASA and BMDO for laser radar, a technology that neither agency is falling over itself to adopt. Without the swerve into eye surgery, Autonomous would be just another roadkill on SBIR highway. Any price reduction following from breaking the two laser makers market control would help Autonomous AFTER it gets FDA approval, especially if the market is price sensitive. (Note: not all markets are price sensitive. The rich will pay almost anything to get the elixir of life or at least another year of breathing.)
Another Autonomous Step (Feb 18) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) moved another step toward the market in gathering FDA advisory board recommendation to approve LadarVision for nearsightedness (not the bureaucratic kind) and astigmatism. LadarVision arose from SBIR by NASA and SDIO with a matching funding deal with SDIO to expand a Phase 2 in 1992. It uses laser radar technology to track the eyeball during laser surgery and thus provide a certain knowledge to the surgeon as to where the eyeball center is in relation to the cutting laser. Yes, lasers cut. The news pushed Autonomous stock (ATCI) up 9%.
Autonomous Loses Another Bundle (Feb 10) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) lost another $9M, about in line with expectations for the technology still in FDA clinical trials. The $20M in the last two years ate up the IPO proceeds. Which means new capital needs if revenues don't start flowing soon.
FDA Says Go to Next Step (Oct 22) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) got an FDA OK for filing an application encompassing correction of up to minus 10 diopters of myopic refractive error. One step at a time and approval for each separate procedure. Investors have taken note of the progress and bid the stock back up to 7.
Hyperopia Treatment (Sep 9) If you can see the future better than the present, you're not only fooling yourself, you're suffering from hyperopia - farsightedness. If it's only in your eyes, though, maybe Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) will one day help you by carving your eyes. AT began FDA approved clinical trials, just the trials are approved, of its T-PRK system in hyperopia.
Laser Vision in Toronto (Aug 27) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) installed its T-PRK laser vision correction technology at the Vision Sculpting Center in Toronto. Through ATC's affiliates program, a physician pays Autonomous Technologies on a per-procedure basis, and the procedure fee includes ongoing service, maintenance, and technology and software upgrades. Anything that brings in revenues will be welcome to the stockholders who have endured a halving of last year's IPO price. FDA clinical trials are ongoing as a prelude to US use.
More Staff, No Revenue, at ATC (Aug 5) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) said it upped its staff and its clinical trial activities, to get ready to submit a medical device application to the Food and Drug Administration by the end of 1997 for its laser eye-tracker surgery. But without revenues, it takes a quarterly loss of $3M.
Autonomous Raises $9M More(Jun 18) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) announced a private sale of $9M stock at $3 a share to accredited investors (already rich) for more clinical trials. Selling stock at declining prices (IPO price was $8) shows how tough it is for a start-up to launch a company on a technology that needs FDA approval.
FDA Chasing Unapproved Eye Lasers (Jun 10) Not all innovation is allowed on the street. A Florida company got a visit from US marshals to collect eye lasers the had not yet been approved by FDA as safe and effective. The competition just got better controlled, good news for companies like Autonomous Technologies (also Orlando, FL) which is undergoing FDA trials before trying to sell anything. [Facts from Wall Street Journal, Jun 10]
(Apr 29) The American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery heard Autononous Technologies (Orlando, FL) report crossing the threshold of enough patients tested in clinical trials to met FDA standards for its T-PRK system. Final judgment, though, on post-op patient vision must await Mother Nature's year or so to reach steady state. CEO Randy Frey called it the most critical milestone to date.
Autonomous Still Needs Surgery (Apr 24) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) is still heading to the starting line for profitable operations. Its first quarter showed a capital investment (i.e., loss) of $2.6M, about twice the loss of a year ago. Clinical trials for eye surgery don't come cheap.
Extra-USA License (Apr 2) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) made an exclusive licensing deal with VISX for all the territory outside the US for use of the UV lasers in eye surgery. VISX had been in a patent fight with almost everyone it seems and the fight was not doing AT any good. AT's scheme uses laser radar developed in great part with BMDO SBIR to keep the surgeon's laser aligned with the eye. UK and Canada courts will be relieved to dismiss the ongoing suits. CEO/founder Randy Frey is the luncheon speaker at today's National SBIR Conference.
A Recommendation and a Boost (Mar 3) Autonomous Technologies (Orlando. FL) got a stock price boost when Hambrecht & Quist started following the stock and recommending it as a buy. The stock is still 25% below the IPO price and could stay there until profits come into view.
The Silent Tracker The two pageBusiness Week (Jan 27) story on eye surgery, that discussed PRK as one of three still risky boutique methods, omitted any talk of the Tracker Assist for PRK by Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL). Such silence won't pump AT's stock back up to the IPO price. People apparently still go a long way to avoid spectacles - first contact lenses and now surgery. The ignore one of Nelson's Rules of Conservatism: don't touch the one pair of eyes you get issued.
Astigmatism Open Season The Food and Drug Administration gave the green light to Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) to attack more severe astigmatism and myopia. (Not in government agencies who revel in their vision impairment.) It had been testing its tracker-assisted PRK on low level myopia with success since October 1995. Now if the stock traders can fix their myopia that keeps the stock at half its IPO price.
Strong Eyesight, Weak Stock All patients got to 20/32 or better and 90% got to 20/20, says Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) about the Phase II clinical trials of its T-PRK system. The tests were six months after the procedure (a surgeon's euphemism for carving). Now if the company could only raise the price of its stock which is at half its IPO price.
Legal War on the Eyeway Although the ideal world would be free of litigation, ATCI entered this industry aware that some competitors could resort to unfounded accusations in an attempt to prevent our superior technology from reaching the marketplace." [Randy, drug dealers have a litigation-free world.] Thus Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) sues its competitors who were using legal tactics rather than market competition to block entry of "the only eye tracker capable of tracking saccadic movements during excimer laser surgery." The competition Pillar Point Partners is already under attack for anti-competitive practices to protect the markets of laser makers VISX and Summit. Autonomous got into the eye surgery business when SDIO told it to get a life and stop relying on government contracts for laser radar. One of the best SBIR stories around.
Developer Gone The move marks a bitter end for Dr Muller, who developed a groundbreaking laser to treat vision disorders but failed to turn the innovation into a profitable business. His departure comes amid huge financial losses, a precipitous stock decline and an ugly dispute with archrival...Sound familiar? Wall St Journal (Sep 6) shows a smiling Muller illustrating the story of Summit Technology firing its founder. It's a story that most SBIR companies would encounter only after the government had rightfully declared commercial success. Warning: founders need more than SBIR money and government smiles and R&D100 awards to succeed financially. The clanging of the government door at the founder's back should not be the first recognition of a need to survive in the marketplace.
Autonomous Drops Again The trading price of Autonomous Technologies (Orlando, FL) dropped again to 3 1/2 after a spurt back above 5 presumably on the bad news coming from the laser surgery company, Summit Technology, of firing its CEO/founder (see story below). Laser steerers have to have something to steer and great new technologies have a place to fit in a going market. Else they become museum curios.
PRK - Promotion, Recriminations, and Keratectomy< Fixing eyes by PRK has turned nasty. The two makers of the excimer lasers are at each other's throats instead of at the patient' eyes. Today's Wall St Journal (July 29) carries the sordid tale of accusations, mudslinging, leaks, and investigations. No wonder Autonomous Technologies stock is taking a beating. If the laser makers can't build market confidence, how is an auxiliary supplier to thrive? Even the opthamologists are complaining about the business practices (and the $250 per use fee) of Visx and Summit Technology.
The Eyes Lose It The fall of Autonomous Technology stock price by 40% from its May 1 issue price is partly explained by today's Boston Globe (July 12) story on Summit's layoffs after low sales. If the eye-shaping laser isn't selling, then the laser steerer shouldn't do so well either.
Eyes on the Front Page Randy Frey says the phone rang off the hook after he was one of BMDO SBIR firms getting a notice on the front page of The Wall Street Journal June 6. See Randy's story below in "Autonomous Goes Public". SBIR firms don't get many front page stories (however brief). The other firm was Xinetics which has had two BMDO Phase 1s. The story was drawn from the BMDO Tech Applications newsletter Update.
Collusion Barrier?Autonomous Technologies may be slowed while the Justice Department pursues the excimer laser makers whose beams would be directed by the eye-tracking technology. Today's (June 28)San Jose Mercury News reports a price-fixing action against Visx and Summit who have a patent sharing arrangement.
Autonomous Goes Public May 1, 1996 Autonomous Technologies Corp (Orlando, FL) sold $20M worth of stock (37% of the equity) in an IPO to continue US clinical trials and to get sales going overseas. (CEO) Randy Frey's road to IPO started in 1993 when he raised private capital to match a BMDO SBIR expansion of his Phase 2. Then he quit any thought of dependency on SBIR for his growth into a serious national competitor. From 1993 to 1996 he raised $6M, mostly from Ciba-Geigy, the Swiss firm. The concept uses laser radar (once an intense SDIO interest) to track the eyeball in laser surgery so the surgeon always has a reference between the carving laser and the center of the eye. Even if the patient cannot hold the eyeball steady. Could you?
Johnson & Johnson and the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) are teaming up ... to boost innovation and “amplify” scientific and technological advancements to prepare for potential health threats—starting with COVID-19. They've picked seven startups from J&J’s global JLABS network [to] receive up to $500,000 in support, as well as mentorship from BARDA and J&J to help them navigate R&D challenges and regulatory pathways and get medicines and tools to patients and healthcare workers as soon as possible. Startups are: Houston-based 7 Hills Pharma and San Diego’s Persephone Biosciences, New York’s Autonomous Therapeutics ($1.5M SBIR), South San Francisco-based Epic Bio, Specific Biologics out of Toronto, Beerse, Belgium-based Genome Biologics, GabiSmartCare, also based in Beerse. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech. Aug 26, 20] A USG entity and supporting three foreign companies.
Autolus Therapeutics (England) said it plans to create up to 170 jobs at its new U.S. headquarters and manufacturing facility in Rockville MD over the next three years and invest about $28 million in Shady Grove Life Sciences Center. .. will get a boost from a $200,000 Economic Development Fund conditional grant from the county, while the state of Maryland is providing a $525,000 "Advantage Maryland" conditional loan. [Washington Business Journal, Jan 14, 19]
Auxilium Pharmaceuticals (Malvern, PA; no SBIR) earned a $30 million milestone payment Monday from its marketing partner Pfizer following the first sale of Xiapex in the United Kingdom. ... has now earned $45 million in regulatory milestones from Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) related to the drug’s Dupuytren’s contracture indication and is eligible to receive up to $30 million in additional regulatory milestone payments for the indication. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Apr 11, 11]
Avalanche Biotechnologies (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR) and Annapurna Therapeutics SAS (French) announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement providing for the acquisition of all outstanding shares of Annapurna by Avalanche ... the combined company’s pipeline will consist of Avalanche’s existing ophthalmic programs and four new gene therapy based programs, which are focused on Alpha1-antitrypsin (A1AT) deficiency, cardiomyopathy associated with Friedreich’s ataxia, hereditary angioedema and severe allergies. [joint press release, Feb 1, 16]
Avalanche Biotechnologies (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR), which is developing gene therapies for severe eye diseases, raised $102 million in its IPO .... [same day] shares were up another 65 percent .... Development partner and shareholder Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (Tarrytown, NY; no SBIR) has also agreed to buy $10 million worth of Avalanche stock at the IPO price [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Jul 31, 14]
Gene therapy developer Avalanche Biotechnologies (Menlo Park, CA; no SBIR, founded 2008) wants $86.25 million from investors in an initial public offering to pay for the final clinical trial of an experimental treatment for a blinding eye disease. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Jun 30, 14]
Avalyn Pharma (Seattle, WA; no SBIR) a biopharmaceutical company focused on development of improved therapies for life threatening pulmonary diseases,closed a $35.5 million Series B round to back Phase 2/3 tests of its aerosolized formulation of pirfenidone as a treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. [company press release, Apr 27, 20]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals up 14% [Dec 2, 14]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals (San Diego, CA; $1.3M SBIR 2000-2004) said it agreed to be acquired by a unit of Japan's Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd for about $3.5 billion. ... a 13% premium to the market cap [Reuters, Dec 1, 14] More evidence that NIH has been spectacularly successful at seeding new medicine with SBIR, because its SBIR is not lashed to technology that will be useful to the agency in the short run, as the mission agencies do.
Avanir Pharmaceuticals said Nov. 7 it was pessimistic that its migraine treatment AVP-825, a drug-device combination, would win FDA approval under the current deadline of Nov. 26. The FDA has raised questions about the company’s clinical data and is asking for more design work and testing, Avanir said. [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Nov 13, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 85% [Sep 15, 14]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals up 14% [Sep 10, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 46% [Apr 30, 14]
Avanir Pharma down 11% [Mar 6, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 16% [Mar 5, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 12% [Feb 26, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 14% [Jan 30, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 10% [Jan 13, 14]
Avanir Pharma up 20% [Dec 20, 13]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals down 30% [Dec 11, 13] reported soggy fourth quarter fiscal 2013 loss
Avanir Pharma down 11% [Oct 30, 13]
Avanir Pharma down 18% [Sep 13, 13]
Avanir Pharma down 13% [Sep 11, 13]
Avanir Pharma<< up 10% [Aug 14, 13]
Avanir Pharma ($2M SBIR) up 13% [Jun 5, 13]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals ; $2M SBIR), the onetime San Diego life sciences company bought a worldwide license to an experimental drug developed by Lexington, MA-based Concert Pharmaceuticals for neurological and psychiatric disorders. Avanir is making an undisclosed upfront payment, and could pay out more than $200 million for the compound. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Mar 2, 12]
Avanir Pharma down 11% [Jun 20, 11]
Avanir Pharma up 14% [Mar 9, 11] after a friendly piece by Bert Wilkison [seekingalpha.com]
Avanir Pharma down 15% [May 6, 10]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals ($2M SBIR) said it raised $10.6 million by selling 4.5 million shares of stock. [AP, Aug 27, 09]
Avanir Pharmaceuticals ($2M SBIR) up30%said late-stage clinical trials of its investigational drug Zenvia proved effective in reducing symptoms of pseudobulbar effect, a psychological disorder, in a 12-week study. Shares rallied 30%, . [Wall Street Journal, Aug 12, 09]
AVANT Immunotherapeutics, announced that, pursuant to a previously announced shareholder vote, the company will change its name to Celldex Therapeutics effective October 1, 2008. [Boston Globe, Sep 30]
Avant Immunotherapeutics up 15% [Sep 19, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics up 14% [Sep 12, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics down 11% [Jun 18, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics tacked on 28% ... reported robust midstage results of its brain-cancer vaccine, CDX-110, on which it has teamed up with Pfizer. [Wall Street Journal, Jun 3, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics up 12% [May 22, 08] said the Federal Trade Commission approved a deal to license the rights to a brain cancer vaccine drug to Pfizer. [AP, May 21]
Avant Immunotherapeutics down 13% [Apr 18, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics (Needham, MA; $1.5M SBIR) up 17%, will make at least $50 M thanks to a development deal signed with Pfizer for a potential brain cancer treatment. [St Louis Business Journal, Apr 18, 08]
Avant Immunotherapeutics ($1.4M SBIR) reports that British drug giant GlaxoSmithKline PLC won U.S. approval of a rotavirus vaccine that GSK licensed from Avant 11 years ago. [Mass High Tech, Apr 4] AVANT Immunotherapeutics announced the completed merger of Callisto Merger Corporation, its wholly-owned subsidiary, with and into Celldex Therapeutics (no SBIR) , resulting in the combined company which will continue to be named AVANT and trade under the NASDAQ ticker symbol AVAN. [company press release, Mar 7, 08]
Gotta Keep Up. Avant Immunotherapeutics reports being notified by Nasdaq that the company has failed to meet the minimum bid price of $1 per share on the Nasdaq Capital Market, and could be removed from the exchange. [Mass High Tech, Jan 10]
Avant Immunotherapeutics (Needham, MA; $700K SBIR) claims good results in early tests of a single vaccine for three acute diseases [Mass High Tech, Dec 5]
Avant Immunotherapeutics (Needham MA; $900K SBIR) plans to merge with a New Jersey biotechnology firm Celldex Therapeutics ... Avant, a developer of vaccines and treatments, reported a 2006 net loss of $20.4 million on revenue of $4.9 million. The firm employs 86 workers. [Mass High Tech, Oct 22, 07]
Vaccine developer Avant Immunotherapeutics (Needham, MA; $600K SBIR) may soon lose its NASDAQ listing for breaking the buck. [Mass High Tech, Jul 11] It lost $20M in 2006.
startup Avanti Metal, using [environmentally benign, direct electrolysis] technology developed at MIT, hopes to commercialize a process that drastically reduces the cost [down to $3 a pound] of producing [naturally abundant] titanium. ... The process, developed by MIT chemist Donald Sadoway [Neil Savage, MIT Tech Review
Avaxia Biologics (Lexington, MA; $300K SBIR) that is developing oral antibody drugs, has completed a $4.1 million Series A financing led by angel investors. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Feb 14, 12]
Avaxia Biologics (Wayland, MA; one SBIR) focused on the gastrointestinal tract, has won a federal contract worth $2.9 million to look into treatments for GI damage that follows radiation exposure, from such things as a nuclear accident. [Rodney Brown, Mass High Tech, Aug 3, 11]
Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) medical device and drug company, announced the completion of a $43 million Series D financing. ...to continue its aggressive research and development efforts. These are aimed at expanding the use of corneal crosslinking into applications such as cataract and refractive surgery, which represent billion dollar market opportunities.†[Boston Globe, Mar 4, 13]
Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) a laser vision technology company, has raised $13.3 million of a planned $15.5 million financing, according to a regulatory filing. ... developer of microwave-based surgery procedures intended to treat myopia without using surgical vision correction. The company was founded by David Muller ... in 2008, based on 2002 technology from Dartmouth College associate engineering professor B. Stuart Trembly. [Michelle Lang, Mass HIgh Tech, May 10, 11]
Laser vision technology startup Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) has added almost $1.7 million to a securities offering that brought the company $4.6 million in July ... has developed a microwave-based surgery procedure intended to treat myopia without using surgical laser vision correction. Muller is the founder and former chairman and CEO of Summit Technology (Watertown, MA; three SBIRs two decades ago), the original developer of Lasik technology. The company was founded in 2008 from technology created in 2002 by Dartmouth College associate engineering professor B. Stuart Trembly. [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Jan 6, 11]
Laser vision technology startup Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) has taken in $4.6 million in an offering ... according to [SEC] filing ... developed a microwave-based surgery procedure intended to treat myopia without using surgical laser vision correction. [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Aug 3, 10]
Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) raised a $10 million round of equity venture capital funding, according to a federal filing. .... started in 2002 using technology developed at Dartmouth College. It’s working on a microwave-based surgery procedure capable of treating myopia without using invasive laser vision correction. [Mass High Tech, May 11]
Medical device maker Avedro (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) raised $8M VC, [Mass High Tech, Feb 14,08]
Venture Capital investments in San Diego 3Q2016. Ostendo Technologies (Carlsbad, CA; one SBIR) $42 million; Tealium ( San Diego; no SBIR) $35 million ; Singlera Genomics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $20 million; Avelas Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $20 million ; Fortis Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $18 million ; Histogen (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $16 million ; Medsphere Systems (Carlsbad, CA; no SBIR) $15 million; CellSavers (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $15 million; Progenity (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $12 million; AristaMD (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) $11 million. [Bruce Bigelow, xconomy.com, Oct 11, 16]
Avelas Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) a clinical stage oncology-focused company dedicated to improving cancer patient care from diagnosis through treatment, announced it has completed a Series C financing which raised $20 million [company press release, Aug 17, 16] closed a $7.65 million Series A round in 2012 ... Avelas’ ACI technology allows for the real-time diagnosis of metastatic nodes, thus allowing surgeons to make a decision to remove additional nodes during the first surgery as opposed to waiting for pathology reports and undergoing a subsequent surgical procedure. [company press release, Dec 6, 2012]
Avelas Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) announced the closing of a $6.85 million tranche of a Series B financing round – bringing the total funds raised since inception to ~$14 million. The funds will be used to support ongoing development of the Avelas Cancer Illuminator (ACI) candidate, AVB -620, through first in-patient study. .... founded on technology from Nobel Prize winner Roger Tsien [company website, Sep 24, 14] series A financing in 2012
Aventa Technologies (Danvers, MA; SBIR) that makes machines used to manufacture a variety of products ranging from LEDs to solar film, has raised a $1 million Series A round. ..... Related persons on the filing include Sferlazzo and Gary Tompa, a director at the company whose name appears on a patent for an inline chemical vapor deposition system along with Sferlazzo. .... to strengthen the 3-year-old company’s product line for the high temperature superconductor market, and other markets. [Don Seiffert, Mass High Tech, Sep 13, 12] SBA lists Gary Tompa in 100 SBIR projects with a total of about $30M in the busy days of chemical vapor deposition.
Aveo Pharmaceuticals (no SBIR, formerly known as GenPath Pharma, 200 employees) said it will lay off 140 employees and halt efforts to win approval of its kidney cancer drug. [Robert Weisman, Boston Globe, Jun 4, 13]
Aveo Pharmaceuticals (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR), a cancer therapeutics company, has priced a public offering [at] about $100 million ... was founded in 2001 as GenPath Pharmaceuticals ... In May, the company said it would receive an initial $15 million and up to $540 million in milestone payments in an exclusive license agreement with Centocor Ortho Biotech Inc. for worldwide development and commercialization of Aveo’s antibodies targeting the Recepteur d’Origine Nantais (RON) receptor. And in February, Aveo formed a development and commercialization deal with Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo. The deal was expected to bring in $125 million upfront and up to $1.3 billion in potential milestone payments. [Michelle Lang, Mass High Tech, Jun 15, 11]
Aveo Pharmaceuticals Cambridge, MA; founded 2002 as GenPath Pharma; no SBIR) cancer-focused biotechnology firm, has filed a registration statement for an [$86.3 million IPO] [Mass High Tech, Dec 17, 09]
Six Arizona bioscience startup firms have been competitively selected by the Flinn Foundation to participate in its 2018 Bioscience Entrepreneurship Program, receiving $30,000 each in funding support and program services administered through a nonprofit partner. [azbigmedia.com, Feb 23, 18] :
AveXis (Bannockburn. IL; no SBIR, founded 2010, IPO Feb 2016, market cap $3.3B) is expanding trials of its gene therapy for children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) with a series of new trials as it plays catch-up with Biogen and Ionis, which claimed the first approval for an SMA drug. .... already has pivotal trials of its AVXS-101 candidate underway in two variants of the severe neuromuscular disease—types 1 and 2—but says it will now start studies in patients with SMA type 3, older children with type 2, and very young children (less than six weeks old) who have yet to develop symptoms. .... Biogen and Ionis’ Spinraza (nusinersen) was approved by the FDA near the end of 2016 and is still the only drug approved to treat SMA, which can affect up to 10,000 children around the world and is one of the leading causes of early death and disability in young children. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Jan 17, 18]
AveXis (Bannockburn, IL; no SBIR, founded 2013) drug development company that focuses on gene therapy to treat rare [severe genetic and orphan neurological] diseases has filed for a $115 million [IPO]. [Bill Hethcock, Dallas Business Journal, Jan 19, 16]
AveXis (Dallas, TX; no SBIR) is on the hunt for a treatment for spinal muscular atrophy, or SMA, and recently raised $10 million in venture cash to fund trials of its therapy candidate, ChariSMA. [Angela Shah, xconomy.com, Feb 2, 15]
AveXis (Dallas, TX; no SBIR) a biotechnology company focused on using gene therapy to transform the lives of patients with severe genetic and orphan diseases like Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), announced it has completed a $10 million financing round ... to further the development of the Company’s gene therapy product, chariSMA(TM), including additional support for the current Phase I clinical trial in SMA Type 1 infants. [company press release, Jan 6, 15]
Air Force (USAF) selected Sierra Nevada (Sparks, NV; $1M SBIR, founded 1963, 2500 employees) and its partner Embraer (Brazil) Defense and Security for its Light Air Support (LAS) program. ... deemed the A-29 Super Tucano aircraft, and the overall solution offered by SNC, to be the superior choice for this critical mission. The initial $427.5 million delivery order is to supply the USAF with 20 A-29 Super Tucano aircraft. ... for. light air support, reconnaissance and training capabilities to the Afghanistan military. As such, it is a vital element of the United States’ Afghan withdrawal strategy .. work will be in Jacksonville, FL [company press release Feb 27, 13] over the years it has gathered up companies: Space Dev (Poway, CA; $5M SBIR) ;MicroSat Systems (Littleton, CA; $11M SBIR) ; Straight Flight (Denver, CO; no SBIR) ; Waveband (Torrance, CA; $17M SBIR); Aviation Resources Delaware (no SBIR); Inter-4 (San Francisco, CA; no SBIR); Turtle Mountain Communications (no SBIR) ; Plano Microwave (Plano, TX; no SBIR) ; Spectral Systems (Beavercreek, OH; no SBIR) ;Advanced Countermeasure Systems (Sacramento, CA; no SBIR) .
AVI BioPharma (now Sarepta Pharma) (Bothell, WA; $1.6M SBIR) has renamed itself Sarepta Therapeutics and completed a 1-for-6 reverse stock split. [Seattle Times, Jul 12, 12]
Washington state’s biotech cluster, 83 local biotech companies were awarded grants worth a combined $34 million, Adaptive TCR, AVI Biopharma, Omeros, Proteotech, and Trubion Pharmaceuticals and 78 others. [Luke Timmerman, Seattle Times, Nov 3] Most were $245K, a little money for almost everyone. Too little money to make a big swing in effect. Just politics.
AVI BioPharma (Bothell, WA; $1.3M SBIR in Corvalis, OR) said it’s signed a deal with the DOD that could be worth up to $291 million [Puget Sound Business Journal, Jul 16, 10]
AVI BioPharma (Corvallis, OR; $1.5M SBIR) said it’s received an $11.5 million contract from the federal government for the development of its Junin virus infection drug; a virus the government believes could be possibly be used as a weapon of mass destruction. The funding comes from the [DOD] ... the latest $11.5 million contract is part of a potential total of $45 million in DOD funds earmarked to the company to develop drugs to treat Ebola, Marburg and Junin virus infections. [Portland Business Journal, Oct 5, 09]
What's this business really worth? That is the bad news for onetime highflier Avici Systems Inc., the Billerica maker of high-end telecommunications equipment that warned yesterday it would fall short of third-quarter financial forecasts. .. Avici's stock market value by the close of trading yesterday ..was only slightly more than the cash and marketable securities .. on the company's balance sheet. What does that tell you? Once upon a time, four years ago actually, Avici stock was worth 100 times its current value. Hardly any stock plunged harder and survived the fall once the bubble burst. .. Avici shares have fallen back to their current price because the company pulled the plug on its story about business growing 20 to 30 percent this year. The new story: Customers have delayed orders. Chief executive Steve Kaufman says nothing, but the timing has changed. [Steven Syre, Boston Globe, Sep 28]
AvidBiotics (South San Francisco, CA; $3.3M SBIR) decided that its two development programs in CAR-T and microbiome-driven antibiotics would do better as separate companies. ... said it will split in two, creating one company called Xyphos to focus on cell-based therapies for cancer and another—Pylum Biosciences—taking forward its Avidocin antimicrobial protein portfolio for resistant infections. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Nov 1, 17]
AvidBiotics (S San Francisco, CA; $3.3M SBIR) the developer of proteins focused on cancer and food safety, is closing in on a $15 million funding round ... developing proteins for DuPont's health and nutrition business to kill a strain of Escherichia coli, or E. coli, in meat processing plants. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Sep 18, 14]
AvidBiotics (South San Francisco, CA; $3.2M SBIR), the developer of proteins focused on cancer and food safety, is closing in on a $15 million funding round, according to [SEC] filing ... Additionally, the company struck a research collaboration a year ago with Full Spectrum Genetics of South San Francisco that centers on AvidBiotics-developed proteins for immuno-oncology and antiviral targets. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Sep 19, 14]
AvidBiotics (South San Francisco, CA; $3.3M SBIR) will have the right to develop and commercialize drugs spun out of a new research collaboration with neighbor Full Spectrum Genetics (South San Francisco, CA; no SBIR) ..... centers on a family of AvidBiotics-developed proteins that focus on immuno-oncology and antiviral targets. Those proteins, dubbed Micacides by AvidBiotics, detect and destroy cancerous or virus-infected cells. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Sep 10, 13]
Avidity Biosciences (San Diego CA; $200K SBIR) up 55% [Dec 14, 2022] announced positive AOC 1001 data from the preliminary assessment of the Phase 1/2 MARINA™ trial demonstrating the first-ever successful targeted delivery of RNA into muscle, a revolutionary advancement for the field of RNA therapeutics. [company press release, Dec 13, 2022]
Avidity Biosciences (San Diego, CA; $200K SBIR) up 58% [Jun 12, 20] announced pricing of its [IPO] to raise $259M [company press release, Jun 11, 20]
Six months after banking a $100 million venture round, Avidity Biosciences (La Jolla, CA; $200K SBIR) is heading to the public market. The company filed to raise up to $100 million in its IPO, which will push its lead muscle disorder program through IND-enabling studies and into the clinic in 2021. [Amirah Al Idrus, Fierce Biotech, May 26, 20]
Eli Lilly and Avidity Biosciences (San Diego, CA; no SBIR) signed a global licensing and research collaboration focused on the development and commercialization of new medicines in immunology and other select indications. Under the terms of the agreement, Avidity will receive an upfront payment of $20M, and an investment of $15M. Avidity is also eligible to receive up to ~$405M per target for development, regulatory and commercialization milestones, as well as tiered royalties ranging from the mid-single to low-double digits on product sales. [seekingalpha.com, Apr 19, 19] prior funding $16M [crunchbase.com]
Takeda Pharmaceutical (Japan) and a subsidiary have decided to invest in two San Diego biotech companies ... PvP Biologics (no SBIR) will get $35 million to develop celiac therapy, which breaks down gluten in the stomach before it reaches the intestine. Avidity Biosciences (no SBIR) has raised $16 million in a venture-financing round led by the subsidiary, Takeda Ventures. Avidity has invented a technology that delivers a class of RNA medications more widely throughout the body. [Bradley Fikes, San Diego Union Tribune, Jan 9, 17]
Eli Lilly completed its previous announced acquisition of Avid Radiopharmaceuticals. (Philadelphia, PA; $2.5M SBIR) biotechnology company Avid is developing a compound to diagnosis Alzheimer’s disease earlier than now possible. Under the terms of the agreement, Eli Lilly made an upfront payment of $300 million to Avid’s owners, who stand to receive an additional $500 million if Avid’s Florbetapir product achieves undisclosed regulator and commercial milestones. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Dec 22, 10]
Avid Radiopharmaceuticals (Philadelphia, PA; $2.5M SBIR) agreed to be acquired by Eli Lilly for $300 million up front and up to $500 million in additional payments. ... spun out of the University of Pennsylvania and develops molecular imaging products to enable early detection of pathology associated with neurodegenerative diseases [Peter Key, Philadelphia Business Journal, Nov 8, 10] NIH take a bow as a VC. Other agencies try to learn something about investing in new technology by market-driven firms. Forget the SBIR junkies who are going nowhere except back to your inbox.
results that showed his tiny start-up company Avid Radiopharmaceuticals might have overcome one of the biggest obstacles in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease. It had found a dye and a brain scan that, he said, can show the hallmark plaque building up in the brains of people with the disease. The findings, which will be presented at an international meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association in Honolulu on July 11, must still be confirmed and approved by the FDA [Gina Kolata, New York Times, Jun 24]
Avila Therapeutics (Bedford, MA; no SBIR) said it has agreed to be acquired by biopharmaceutical giant Celgene Corp., based in Summit, NJ., in a buy-out deal potentially worth $925 million if Avila is able to eventually win approval to market treatments for cancer and other diseases. Avila, a five-year-old privately held biotechnology company backed by Waltham’s Polaris Venture Partners, specializes in covalent drug chemistry, which allows molecules to bind to disease proteins and shut them down. [Robert Weisman, Boston Globe, Jan 26, 12]
Avila Therapeutics (Bedford,MA; no SBIR) biotechnology company developing drugs that treat diseases through protein silencing, said that it has achieved the first milestone in its alliance with Clovis Oncology --- a milestone that triggers a $4 million milestone payment to Avila. The alliance is working on a potential treatment for some forms of non-small cell lung cancer. [Chris Reidy, Boston Globe, Jan 23, 12]
Avila Therapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) will receive an upfront payment of $40 million from French drug maker sanofi-aventis, as part of a research collaboration aimed at developing cancer drugs that could net it a total of $800 million. [Julie Donnelly, Mass High Tech, Dec 20, 10]
Avila Therapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) raised $30 million in a Series B round of financing, according to the company. The round was led by the Novartis Option Fund, a new investor, which has entered into an drug development option agreement with Avila that could bring in more than $200 million to the company. [Mass High Tech, Jul 27, 09]
Avinger (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR) hit the middle of its IPO target range, raising $65 million.
Avinger (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, 100 employees), which makes catheters used to treat peripheral arterial disease, disclosed this week that it plans to raise up to $69 million in an IPO. ... has raised more than $115 million since it was founded in 2007. It has accumulated more than $138 million in debt in that time [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Dec 31, 14]
Avinger (Redwood City, CA; no SBIR, founded 2007 ) medical device company developing ways to help doctors see inside arteries in real time, has raised $34.8 million ... products include Ocelot, which drills through totally blocked leg arteries and allows doctors to visually navigate inside those arteries to treat peripheral artery disease. [Ron Leuty, San Francisco Business Times, Sep 15, 14]
Aviragen Therapeutics(formerly Biota Pharmaceuticals, Alpharetta, GA; no SBIR) a pharmaceutical company that is developing the next generation of antivirals, announced that it has entered into an exclusive, worldwide license and sponsored research agreement with Georgia State University Research Foundation (GSURF) to jointly develop and commercialize respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) replication inhibitors discovered by Professor Richard Plemper and his team in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences (IBMS) at Georgia State University. [company press release, Jul 5, 16] acquired Anaconda Pharma (France) [company press release, Jun 2015]
“Our jobâ€, says Jan Kemper, “is to make cells happy.†Ms Kemper works at MedImmune (Gaithersburg, MD), [now] a subsidiary of AstraZeneca. Her laboratory contains 40 bioreactors—fluid-filled tanks of about three litres’ capacity. ... Barack Obama directed federal agencies to take action against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A task-force, ordered to report in February, has been appointed. And the Department of Health and Human Services is putting up a $20m prize for a rapid, diagnostic test for such bacteria. ... MedImmune’s antibodies are aimed respectively at Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus and bind, in the former case, to bugs themselves and in the latter to human cells, shielding them from bacterial toxins. ... As Steve Projan, who oversees MedImmune’s antibody project, eloquently puts it, “I’ve been working on staph for 34 years. I’m ready to beat the bastard.†[The Economist, Nov 12, 14] founded 1988 as Molecular Vaccines, $3.5M NIH SBIR 1989-1998, became MedImmune in 1990, raised $24M in 1991 IPO, FDA approval for pediatric use of RespiGam, acquired US Bioscience (no SBIR) in 1999, acquired Aviron (Mountain View, CA; $3M SBIR 1995-2002) in 2002, formed a VC subsidiary in 2003, FDA approved FluMist in 2003, won $170M HHS award for cell-based flu vaccine in 2006, acquired by AstraZenica 2007, joint Chinese venture 2012. [company website]
Avisa Pharma (Santa Fe, NM; no SBIR, founded 2010) biotech startup raises millions ahead of product launch [Collin Krabbe, Albuquerque Business Journal, Jun 25, 19] Developer of a rapid, point-of-care breath test for the diagnosis of pulmonary infections designed to aid clinical decision making on use and choice of antibiotics. prior funding $7M [pitchbook.com]
Stratatech (Madison, WI; $15M SBIR, 50 employees) maker of human skin substitute products, said it has been awarded a $247 million, five-year federal contract to further develop its full-thickness, human cell-based skin product for treating patients with severe burns. ... The [BARDA] agency is aiming to be prepared for potential radiological and nuclear threats, such as the detonation of an improvised nuclear device. Three other companies, all with products for treating severe burns, also received five-year contracts from the agency: Argentum (Geneva, IL; no SBIR), as much as $20 million; MediWound of Israel, as much as $112.8 million; and Avita Medical Americas LLC (Northridge, CA; no SBIR), as much as $79.5 million. [Kathleen Gallagher, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Oct 6, 15]
Avitide (Lebanon, NH, no SBIR). focused on customized biopharmaceutical purification solutions collected $1.5 million in a Series A round [Patricia Resende, Boston Business Journal, Mar 27, 13]
Avnera (Beaverton, OR; no SBIR) said it has raised $8 million in a private equity offering ... developer of semiconductor technology for wireless audio .. in 2007 announced it had quietly raised $42 million in venture capital. ... founded in 2004 by Manpreet Khaira, the former founder of Bluetooth-Wi-Fi chipset company Mobilian Corp. before selling it to Intel [Portland Business Journal, Nov 16, 09]
Avivomed (Minneapolis, MN; no SBIR) medical device company, announced the completion of a Series A Preferred Stock financing of $32 million. ... The company said in a statement a "world-class syndicate of medical device investors" were involved in the round that will allow the company to develop neuromodulation technology that will treat patients suffering from chronic diseases. [company press release, Dec 1, 21]
AVROBIO down 20% [Aug 9, 21]
AVROBIO down 28% [Feb 16, 21]
The first Fabry disease patient treated with Avrobio (no SBIR) ’s plato gene therapy platform in a phase 2 trial has experienced the complete clearance of Gb3. [Nick Paul Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Feb 8, 21]
AVROBIO down 18% [Nov 20, 20] Announces Pricing of Underwritten Public Offering of $75 Million of Common Stock
Avrobio has licensed a Hunter syndrome lentiviral gene therapy from the University of Manchester in the U.K. The deal positions Avrobio to join Regenxbio and Sangamo Therapeutics in the race to develop gene therapies for use in patients with the rare disorder. Hunter syndrome, also known as mucopolysaccharidosis Type II, is driven by a mutation that limits a patient’s ability to break down sugar molecules generated as a byproduct of cell activity. [Nick Paul Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Oct 5, 20]
AVROBIO up 17% [May 11, 20]
AVROBIO down 32% [Mar 16, 20]
AVROBIO up 20% [Jul 17, 19] announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering [to raise] approximately $120million. [company press release, Jul 16, 19]
Avrobio up 22% [Feb 25, 19]
AVROBIO down 17% [Jan 8, 19]
AVROBIO up 15% [Oct 3, 18]
Avrobio down 19% [Oct 2, 18] after the company reported results from the first three patients on its Fabry disease gene therapy, even though one was able to be weaned off enzyme replacement therapy. Although there were signs of efficacy and a tolerable safety profile with AVR-RD-01, investors were spooked by steady declines in vector copy number (VCN) in peripheral blood in the months following one-off administration of the therapy. [Phil Taylor, Fierce Biotech Oct 2, 18]
Avrobio up 44% [Jul 18, 18] focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel therapeutics for rare endocrine diseases and endocrine-related tumors, announced the pricing of its [IPO to raise $102M] [company press release, Jul 17, 18]AVROBIO up 17% [Jul 18, 18]
Avrobio (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR, founded 2015) set a preliminary $86 million target for its IPO, according to its prospectus. ... The company’s lead drug, AVR-RD-01, is a gene therapy developed to treat Fabry disease, an inherited enzyme deficiency that leads to the buildup of a fatty substance throughout the body. Avrobio aims to treat the disease by fixing the genetic defect. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, May 25, 18] total funding $85M [crunchbase.com]
Avrobio (Cambridge, MA and Canada; no SBIR, founded 2016) a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing transformative, life-changing gene therapies for rare diseases, announced it has completed a $60 million Series B financing. Proceeds from the financing will be used to advance multiple gene therapies from AVROBIO’s proprietary lentiviral platform, including the company’s lead gene therapy, AVR‑RD‑01, currently in Phase 1 for Fabry disease, as well as three additional gene therapies for other lysosomal storage disorders, Gaucher disease, cystinosis and Pompe disease. [company press release, Feb 1, 18] $25M Series A
Avrobio (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) raised $25 million. Along with Bluebird Bio and U.K. startup Orchard Therapeutics, Avrobio is one of the few companies advancing an “ex vivo†gene therapy approach, which involves harvesting a patient’s own stem cells outside the body. [Ben Fidler, xcomomy.com, Aug 5. 16]
AVT Simulation (Orlando, FL; one SBIR in 2010) [a modeling and simulation firm] won a $10 million delivery order to upgrade helicopter trainers for the U.S. Army. .... part of the company's $45.8 million, five-year indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract to upgrade the U.S. Army Program Executive Office Simulation, Training & Instrumentation Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer Reconnaissance/Attack helicopter trainers. [Megan Ribbens, Orlando Business Journal, Jan 15, 14]
Aware down 11% [Feb 8, 17] announced decrease in revenue and operating income [company press release]
Aware down 13% [Jul 24,15]
Aware down 13% [Feb 11, 15]
Aware up 14% [Jun 27, 14]
Aware has been tapped by the U.S. Navy to supply the military branch with its biometrics technology. ... said the U.S. Navy will use a mobile biometric product provided by Aware as part of the Navy’s Identity Dominance Program. Aware’s product includes a hardware-agnostic software application that will operate on third-party ruggedized biometric capture devices that can be used in challenging environments, according to the company. .... Funding of the software application came via multiple phases of an SBIR contract initially awarded to Aware in 2010. [Patricia Resende, Boston Business Journal, Sep 15, 12]
Aware up 10% [Jun 28, 13]
Aware said that it is selling an unspecified number of patents related to DSL technology for $16 million, but co-CEO Richard Moberg said company is not getting out of the DSL business altogether. [Don Seiffert, Mass High Tech, Aug 24, 12]
Aware up 19% [Jul 25, 12]
Aware up 64% [Apr 27, 12] will sell some patents related to WiFi and 4G LTE to Intel Corp for about $75 million [Reuters, Apr 27]
Aware up 11% [Feb 16, 12]
Aware up 17% [Feb 13, 12]
Aware up 11% [Jul 7, 11]
Aware down 12% [Jun 23, 09]
Aware up 15% [May 15, 08]
Aware up 11% [Mar 5, 08]
Axcella Health (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) down 31% [May 9, 19] a biotechnology company pioneering the research and development of novel multifactorial interventions to address dysregulated metabolism and support health, announced the pricing of its [IPO] to raise $71M [company press release, May 8, 19]
startup Pronutria (Cambridge, MA; no SBIR) is now Axcella Health. When Pronutria raised a $39 million round in May 2015, CEO Robert Connelly said the company’s focus had become treating serious diseases with few or no treatment options. .. [Now] developing oral protein drugs meant to restore homeostasis to amino acid levels in diseased cells. ... but when Nestle Health put $42.5 million into the company in February, Nestle named PN-107, for unspecified muscle wasting conditions, as one of the company’s prospects [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com, Jun 7, 16]
startup FireFly LED Lighting (Austin, TX; no SBIR) was accepted into the Austin Technology Incubator two years ago, its LED bulbs were still prototypes. Since then, the company has launched its product line, signed customers including Kerbey Lane Cafe and the University of Texas and received $3.4 million from backers including the Central Texas Angel Network and the Texas Emerging Technology Fund..... Since its founding in 1989 by legendary business leader George Kozmetsky, ATI has worked with more than 200 startups, helping them raise nearly $1 billion in investment capital. [Lori Hawkins, Austin American Statesman, Jan 26, 12] Graduates: Agile Planet, Atomometrics, Axelo, Calxeda, Dorsan Biofuels, Famigo, GameSalad, Ideal Power Converters, Itzbig, Nitero, Notice Technologies, Open Algae, Qcue, RFMicron, RRE Solar, Savara Pharmaceuticals, Spredfast, Terapio ($500K SBIR), Unwired Nation, WiMax.com.
Connecticut Innovations today said it has invested $750,000 in Axerion Therapeutics (New Haven, CT; no SBIR), a Yale University spinoff that is developing treatments for neurological injuries and diseases. ... The investment is CI’s 11th in early-stage Connecticut technology companies since the fiscal year began in July. [Mass High Tech, Apr 6, 10]
Axial Biotech (Salt Lake City; no SBIR), a [venture-backed company founded in 2002] revolutionizing spine care through the development of molecular diagnostics and motion preserving technologies, announced today that it has met several major scientific milestones in its development of the first genetic prognostic test for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) and has closed a $6 million tranche of its Series B financing. ... led by Johnson & Johnson [PR Newswire, Mar 17, 08]
Axial Biotherapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR) announced a direct investment of $10M to fund the discovery and development of novel gut-targeted, small molecule approaches in oncology [Rowan Walrath, BostonInno, Jun 21, 19]
Axial Biotherapeutics (Boston, MA; no SBIR, founded 2016 with $19M) with roots at the California Institute of Technology raised $25 million in a Series B round. .... has licensed rights to central nervous system biotherapeutics from the Mazmanian Laboratory at Caltech. [Dana Bartholomew, LA Business Journal, Feb 27, 19]
Axial Biotherapeutics (Waltham, MA; no SBIR, founded 2016) dedicated to building a unique class of gut-targeted programs for neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases, today announced the completion of a $25 million series B equity financing. [company press release, Feb 27, 19] prior funding $19M [crunchbase.com]
Axial Biotherapeutics (Boston, MA; no SBIR), based on research by California Institute of Technology microbiology professor Sarkis Mazmanian, is emerging this morning with $19 million in Series A financing. ... Axial aims to delve into what’s known as the “gut-brain axis,†a kind of information superhighway that conducts signals between the microbes in our guts and our central nervous system. Tweaking those signals with a therapeutic might impact a variety of diseases. [Ben Fidler, xconomy.com. Nov 30, 16]
Axion BioSystems (Atlanta, GA; $2.5M SBIR, founded 2008) manufacturer of the Maestro multiwell microelectrode array (MEA) platform, is pleased to announce that the Company successfully closed a $6 million equity financing. The additional capital will accelerate the growth of Axion's core life science instrumentation product line. [company press release, May 17, 16]
In Axion’s (Pittsburgh, PA; no SBIR) new battery the negative electrode is replaced with one made from activated carbon, a material used in supercapacitors. Normal capacitors—those that power the flashguns in cameras for instance—can be charged and discharged rapidly, but cannot store much energy. Supercapacitors are meatier versions that are able to hold a reasonable amount of energy, and can take it in and release it quickly. Some, indeed, are already used in tandem with the lithium-ion batteries in electric cars to boost acceleration and recapture energy during so-called “regenerative†braking. Axion’s plan, therefore, is to have the best of both worlds by building a hybrid battery that is based on lead-acid/carbon (PbC) chemistry. [The Economist, Mar 7, 09]
lead-acid batteries are tried and trusted; they may just need a bit of pepping up. Axion Power (no SBIR) , a firm based near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has found that the ideal tonic is carbon. ... In Axion’s new battery the negative electrode is replaced with one made from activated carbon ... PbC batteries are durable and cheap to make because, according to Dr Buiel, they can be produced on existing lead-acid production lines. [The Economist, Mar 5, 09]
Meanwhile, subsdies in Minnesota. The state of Minnesota approved its first five grants worth $2.27 million to manufacturers as part of the new, $24 million Job Creation Fund. The fund hopes to attract scores of companies to Minnesota and to encourage firms here to stay and expand in the state. ... So far, the state has approved grants to Axis Clinicals (Dilworth, MN; no SBIR) ($779,988) an India-based clinical-trials laboratory that decided to open a new $12 million facility in Dilworth with 100 employees. , Heraeus Medical Components (White Bear Township, MN; no SBIR) ($498,100) Heraeus Medical is expected to add 55 workers. It plans to spend $7.8 million to renovate its existing plant, Bluegrass Proteins (Dawson, MN; no SBIR) ($650,000) Kentucky-based Bluegrass Proteins will bring 56 jobs, plans to invest $18.2 million to buy and retrofit the Associated Milk Producers’ raw milk plant, Harmony Enterprises(Harmony, MN; no SBIR) ($215,000), and Valmont Industries(Farmington, MN; no SBIR) ($129,000). an aluminum pole maker with operations in Minnesota, Indiana and Canada... makes waste compactors and recycling balers. Its plans include 14 new hires and a $1.1 million plant expansion. will add 15 workers. Combined, the five companies plan to add 240 jobs in Minnesota. [Dee DePass, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Apr 1, 14]
Axis Semiconductor (Marlborough, MA; no SBIR) a stealthy startup launched by veterans of Analog Devices Inc., has landed $1 million of a planned $2 million financing round, according to regulatory documents. [Mass High Tech, Jun 18, 09]
Filter maker Axium Nanofibers [Austin, TX; no SBIR] reported raising $1.2 million of a planned $15 million financing. .... founded in 2010, develops air and water filter products using nanofiber technologies. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Jan 2, 14]
Axium Nanofibers (Austin, TX; no SBIR) reported Wednesday it had raised $960,000 .... founded in 2010, develops air and water filter products using nanofiber technologies. [Christopher Calnan, Austin Business Journal, Oct 30, 13]
Axium Pharmaceuticals (High Point, NC; no SBIR) is seeking to raise as much as $5 million in [IPO] [Jessica Seaman, Triad Business Journal, Sep 13, 17] .... aimed at utilizing drug delivery innovations for developing improved novel formulations and alternative dosage forms of existing biologically active molecules for the treatment of acute isolated seizure, repetitive or recurrent seizures, and status epilepticus, these are all deemed medical emergencies [company website]
Axogen (Alachua FL; one SBIR) down 17% [Feb 25, 20]
Axogen down 23% [Jan 7, 19] provided a business update, including preliminary unaudited fourth quarter and full year 2018 results [company press release, Jan 7, 19]
AxoGen (Alachua, FL; one SBIR, spinoff of UFlorida), a medical devices manufacturer, purchased a Vandalia [OH] building and land for $5M for nerve graft work. [http://innovate.research.ufl.edu] [expected to] create 200 new jobs in Dayton area [John Bush, Dayton Business Journal, Oct 29, 18]
Axogen (Alachua, FL; one SBIR) down 11% [Sep 12, 18]
Axogen (Alachua, FL, $100K SBIR in 2007, market cap $995M) up 16% [Mar 1, 18] global leader in developing and marketing innovative surgical solutions for peripheral nerves, reported financial results with higher revenues, lower net loss [company press release, Feb 28, 18]
AxoGen (Gainesville, FL;one SBIR) up 11% [Jan 9, 17]
AxoGen up 15% [Nov 6, 15]
AxoGen (Gainesville, FL; one SBIR) up 12% [Oct 5,15]
AxoGen (Gainesville, FL; one SBIR) up 13% [Aug 27, 15]
AxoGen (Alachua FL; one SBIR) up 12% [Aug 11, 15]
Axogen (Gainesville, FL; one SBIR) up 15% [Oct 10, 14]
Axonia Medical (Kalamazoo,MI; no SBIR) raised its first million in seed financing from the Southwest Michigan First Life Science Venture Fund and expects to close on another $500,000 to $1 million in the next six months, bringing Axonia within reach of its goal of $3 million. .... produces living, functional tissue-engineered nerve grafts in the lab that can replace and repair damaged parts of the nervous system. [Sarah Schmid, xconomy.com, Jan 16, 11]
Axonics Modulation Technologies (Irving, CA; no SBIR, founded 2012, IPO Nov 2018) up 17% [Feb 20, 19], a medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of novel implantable Sacral Neuromodulation ("SNM") devices for the treatment of urinary and bowel dysfunction, disclosed today positive top-line results from the ARTISAN-SNM pivotal study, designed to gain marketing approval from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration ("FDA") for the Axonics r-SNM(R) System(1). [company press release, Feb 19, 19] total funding $146M [crunchbase.com]
Axonics Modulation Technologies (Irvine, CA, no SBIR, founded 2012) raised $120 million [IO] for its neural implant developed to treat overactive bladder and incontinence. [Alex Lash, xconomy.com, Nov 2, 18] total prior funding $146M [CRUNCHBASE.COM]
Axsome Thera down 15% [Jan 9, 19]
Axsome Therapeutics New York, NY; no SBIR, founded 2012) up 161% [Jan 7, 19] a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies for the management of central nervous system (CNS) disorders, today announced that AXS-05, a novel, oral, investigational NMDA receptor antagonist with multimodal activity, met the prespecified primary endpoint and significantly improved symptoms of depression in the ASCEND Phase 2 trial in major depressive disorder (MDD). .... also announced that today it raised approximately $23.3 million through the sale of [common] shares. [company press release, Jan 7, 19] total funding $7M [crunchbase.com]
Axsun Technologies (Billerica, MA ; one SBIR) developer of medical lasers and optical engines, has been sold to Volcano Corp. of San Diego for about $21.5 million in cash [Mass High Tech, Dec 23, 08]
Axsun Technologies> (Billerica,MA) a manufacturer of MEMS-based micro-optical spectrometers and optical channel monitors, has closed a $15 million Series D private funding, officials report. .. The round was led by Portland, Ore.-based Electro Scientific Industries Inc. (ESI), a maker of production laser systems for micro-engineering applications [Mass High Tech, Nov 8] One SBIR.
AXT down 21% [Oct 4, 22] announced a preliminary revenue range for its third quarter, .... AXT’s full financial results for the third quarter of 2022 are not yet available. [company press release, Oct 3, 2022]
AXT (Fremont CA; $2M SBIR) up 25% [Jul 29, 2022] announced financial results
AXT up 20% [Jun 14, 21]
AXT [formerly American Xtal, Fremont, CA; $2M SBIR) up 20% [Nov 17, 20] announced a strategic plan to access China's capital markets in order to enhance its ability to support at scale the strong, expected demand for strategic compound semiconductor materials and to continue to elevate its business and manufacturing operations in support of Tier-1 customer requirements, as well as to replenish its cash with minimal dilution and further strengthen its financial structure. [compaany press release, Nov 16, 20]
AXT down 18% [Nov 1, 18] reported quarterly results
AXT (Fremont, CA; $2M SBIR as American Xtal in 1990s, founded 1986, 730 employees) up 20% [Sep 29, 20]
AXT up 15% [Jul 11, 18]
AXT (Fremont CA; $2.5M SBIR, market cap $260M) up 19% [May 24, 18]
AXT down 18% [Feb 22, 18]
AXT up 12% [Nov 20, 17]
Acorda Thera (Ardsley, NY; $2M SBIR, market cap $910M) up 10% [Nov 20, 17] is scrapping its Parkinson’s disease drug tozadenant following patient deaths in its phase 3 trial. The action marks the end for an oral adenosine A2a receptor antagonist Acorda paid $363 million in cash for last year. [Nick Paul Taylor, Fierce Biotech, Nov 20, 17]
AXT up 16% [Jul 27, 17]
AXT up 14% [Apr 27, 17]
AXT up 12% [Mar 23, 17]
AXT down 11% [Mar 16, 17]
AXT down 11% [Mar 2, 17]
AXT down 12% [Feb 27,17]
AXT up 10% [Feb 23,17] reported a profitable year
AXT up 13% [May 3, 16]
AXT down 13% [Nov 2, 12]
AXT up 13% [Sep 21,12]
AXTI down 20% [Aug 2, 12]
AXTI down 20% May 3,12]
AXTI up 11% [Feb 24, 12]
AXTI down 22%[Oct 27, 11]
AXTI up 10% [Oct 24, 11]
AXT up 10% [Aug 23, 11]
AXT down 10% [Aug 18, 11]
AXT down 10% [Aug 8, 11]
AXT up 20% [Jul 28,11]
AXT down 11% [jul 12,11]
AXT up 11% [May 4, 11]
AXT down 15%[Feb 24, 11]
AXT down 14% [Feb 14, 11]
AXT up 17% [Oct 29, 10] doubled its profit in the third quarter, earning $5.6 million.
AXTI up 10% [Sep 1, 10]
AXT down 12% [Aug 11,10]
AXT up 19% [Jul 30, 10]
AXT up 11% [Jul 26, 10]
AXT down 11% [Jun 4, 10]
AXT up 11% [Jun 3, 10]
AXT up 11% [May 10, 10]
AXT up 10% [Apr 28, 10]
AXT won a five year contract with Germany’s Azur Space Solar Power GmbH.... will sell germanium substrates to Heilbronn-based Azur Space, which will used them to make solar cells. [San Francisco Business Times, Feb 2, 10]
AXT up 12% [Oct 19, 09]
AXT down 16% [Sep 17, 08]
AXT down 13% after an analyst downgraded the company, saying the stock is fairly valued following a 62% run-up in price since November. [AP, Jan 3, 08]
AXT (Fremont,CA;SBIR) struck a deal to supply IQE semi-insulating gallium arsenide (GaAs) substrates. The agreement to meet IQE's 2008 worldwide substrate requirements is valued at $15M. [Compound Semi News, Dec 18]
AXT down 18% [oct 26, 07] after reporting profit drop and a downgrade.
AXT up 10% [Sep 18, 07]
After sharpening its accounting pencils and sending all opto-electronics numbers down the history hole, AXT reported a nice profit for the quarter and a skinny profit (better than last year's loss) for the 2006 year. "2006 was a great year for AXT," said CEO Phil Yin
Roth Capital Partners initiated coverage on AXT, describing the company as a leading supplier of compound semiconductor substrates. The report includes an investment summary, a company overview, an industry overview, a product profile, customers, competition, a financial overview and analysis, a valuation analysis, and risks. (Discounted 50%) [Reuters, Oct 12, 06]
AXT reported its troubled quarterly finances as a newly optoelectronics-free company devoted to worldwide sales of LEDs made in China. It still expects gallons of red ink from a $2M+ loss on $8M quarterly revenues. Not long ago in the boom years, AXT was a poster child for SBIR as was appropriate for a company that attracted public capital for new technology. After all, that's what SBIR is supposed to do IF it is to have any economic national impact beyond a political handout to a vested interest constituency. Economically smart government agencies, a tiny population, would support of lot of new ideas with SBIR knowing full well that most will fail. In true investing, it's not the number of winners that counts; it's the growth of the capital pool. Government counts failures and capitalist count their money.
Can't Afford the Future. While the pundits glorify the optical chip and all other things photonic, small companies have to make money now while the future turtles toward them. Big companies, with deep capital assets, can afford the turtles, although they may have the wrong future when it arrives. AXT decided it could wait no longer and is cutting 165 folks in California and most of its unprofitable opto-electronics operations while claiming that its remaining substrate business is still on track AXT is no longer the SBIR company it once was with 1300 employees worldwide (300 in the US). How many of all those SBIR mills.with their plodding government-paid research can claim AXT's kind of success even if growth in volatile industries brings headaches? How many government SBIR deciders care? Meanwhile, AXT says that Cree's patent infringement suit is without merit - standard legalese for "naw; you don't mean it".
Photons on Hold. AXT will stop its US production lines of opto-electronics devices for two weeks this month as a cost-cutting measure to cope with sick demand Sick mostly with SARS. The stock price also got sick, down 14%. [May 14,03]
AXT says things are going to be a lot worse than the earnings estimators had been guessing (estimating). It now expects to lose 26 cents a share (before asset impairment charges) on quarterly revenue of $15M. The guessers had guessed only nine cents per share.
After an early-in-the-year dip in the cold bath of a 70% decline, AXT has crept back up near where it spent the year 2000, in the $800M market cap range. And it sells at only a high multiple of 27 times trailing earnings. AXT uses a proprietary vertical gradient freeze technique for high-performance compound semiconductor substrates.
AXT reported record revenues $40M for the quarter, up 80% and profit of $5M, up 150%. It also paid $2.8M in taxes as a measurable payback on SBIR investments.Nanophase took in $1M a 73% increase and paid out $3M for another quarterly loss. SatCon pulled a secondary offering for too low a stock price.
In its most recent quarter, AXT earned $0.20 per share on $37M revenue. The company had earned $0.14 in the previous quarter.The company's advantage stems from its proprietary Vertical Gradient Freeze (VGF) crystal growth technology. Most competitors use inferior crystals based on either the Liquid Encapsulating Czochralski (LEC) or the Horizontal-Brodgeman (HB) techniques. The VGF process produces crystals faster, with fewer defects at a lower cost. These crystals improve electrical characteristics and produce a stronger, smoother surface that is beneficial for epitaxial transistor implantation used in many "next generation" applications. The qualification process is repeated for each company, so it can be a costly, lengthy barrier to entry. Some customers are so impressed they will now only use VGF substrates. AXT's customers include Agilent s, RF Micro Devices, JDS Uniphase, Nortel, Motorola, and TRW. ... Revenue from GaAs grew 12% sequentially to $30.6M in the quarter. ... According to Hans Mosesmann and Brett Pollack of Prudential Volpe, Indium Phosphide (InP) is the next big compound substrate material. The material is adaptable to many applications beyond its current use in optoelectronic lasers. It can be used in chips for fiber optics, wireless power amplifiers and other electronics all with high-growth prospects. This substrate material is better suited than GaAs substrates for high bandwidth applications. [Individual Investor, Mar 29]
AXTsank again to $21, about half its 12-month high. It clouds a glowing recent recommendation at $45 by a leading Internet-based stock information site that provides covered call selections and investment strategies, recently highlighted AXTI in its Newsletter.. Insiders have a somewhat lower opinion, having sold about 1M shares (7% of the float) over the last year and bought none.
Cut and Run (Dec 28) AXT gave up competing in laser diodes and consumer items and took a multi-million dollar hit as it retreated to what it calls its core business in substrates and visible emitters. The market liked the action and boosted the stock price 16% to 75 times earnings. SBIR proposers take note: you cannot be all things to all people. One good product in a competitive market is far better than several losing propositions spread too thin. Even if the government wants to hear fantasies about multiple markets, don't fall for your own hype. Government guys keep their jobs whether you win or lose at business.
AXT Gets Big Order (Sep 18) AXT, a leading manufacturer of compound semiconductor substrates and opto-electronic devices, today announced that it has received its first major order for its recently announced cyan and green light-emitting diode (LED) products. The contract is a multi-million dollar agreement to provide green and cyan LEDs over a six-month period with the option for a continuation of the contract. Green and cyan LEDs are commonly used in cellular handset backlighting, full color indoor/outdoor displays, traffic signals, automotive instrumentation, the development of white lighting, as well as many consumer applications. AXT acquired the core technology for LED development through its Lyte Optronics acquisition in May 1999. The company began shipping green LEDs in limited quantities in April 2000. [company press release, Sep 15]
Make Those Numbers, Or Else (Mar 20) American Xtal felt the sting from not making expected profits. The stock that went from 11 to 50 over the winter dropped by half when it said it was not going to make the profits Wall Street expected and it will be re-stating earlier profits. Wall Street doesn't like re-statements.
Speaking of GaAs, American Xtal took a dive yesterday 24% on no news. But it is still kept much of the doubling it did last week. From 15 to 40 in a week can cause some indigestion as the import of the forces driving such leaps dawns more clearly.Smaller loss than gain? Remember a price that doubles goes up 100% but falling back to its start point is only a 50% fall. The fall yesterday is half the stock's price on Feb 1.
(Sep 9) SBIR success story American Xtal Technology (Fremont, CA) got hit by the fall in satellite markets. It will stop germanium wafer shipments to Hughes at Hughes's request, for about two months because of low demand in the satellite market. AXTI said that would slice revenue by about $1M a month which is a lot for a small company. [facts from Bloomberg Online, Sep 8] What should the government do? Nothing. Capitalism does have its risks to go with the rewards and it is not government's role to rescue private companies from the rain that capitalism brings.
American Xtal to China (Feb 23) American Xtal Technology (Fremont, CA) got a business license for a new 30,000 sqft production operation in Beijing, China, (Politicians, ready, rant!) Although the company's proprietary Vertical Gradient Freeze (VGF) crystal growth operation will continue to be housed in Fremont, Calif., all other manufacturing operations will take place at the new facility in Beijing. Says Xtal, "Our goal is to become the leader in GaAs, Ge and other compound semiconductor substrate manufacturing. We believe that our VGF technology produces the highest quality products and that our strong growth affirms both the industry's acceptance of our technology and the potential of the markets that we serve. The new facility in China will allow us to further reduce our costs so that we can be even more competitive, particularly in price-sensitive markets. Since the DOD had promoted Xtal as an SBIR success story, what position should the USG take on Xtal's moving the manufacturing jobs offshore? The broad view that I promoted at BMDO was that having the new product was better than the alternative of no new product wherever the market economics eventually takes it. Some agencies though still insist on some guarantee (usually unenforceable) that production will take place in the US.
American Xtal-TRW Deal (Oct 1) American Xtal Technology (Fremont, Ca) says it has renewed a three-year agreement with TRW to supply gallium arsenide (GaAs). The agreement renews a previous multi-year, multi-million dollar contractto provide GaAs wafers for use in TRW's line of products from satellites to cell phones, "AXT's Vertical Gradient Freeze technology produces GaAs substrates of higher quality and lower defect density than the traditional LEC process. This results in better yields, better epitaxy and better device performance," said Dr. Dwight Streit, manager of TRW's Microelectronic Technology Department. [Business Wire, Sep 24]
AXT (Fremont, CA) shot up 34% yesterday to $9 1/2 in a good NASADQ market (up 3%) where many small stocks were up and the Fed hinted (ever so subtly) of lower interest rates. But still a little below its 1998 IPO price. Yahoo reports consensus earnings at 42 cents this year and 61 cents next year.
Volatile American Xtal (Fremont, CA) had an exciting stock day. From being up 12% at the opening it finished down 15% on a day when the larger market started down and went to less down.
A Strong Buy (Jul 1) American Xtal (Fremont, CA) the GaAs company shot up 41% last week after a "Strong Buy" recommendation by a Wall Street broker. After its May IPO at $10, it idled around 10 until the recommendation when it shot up to 17.
(May 21) American XTAL raised $25M in an IPO yesterday. XTAL makes gallium arsenide substrates.
AXT (Fremont, CA) makes GaAs substrates for wireless and fiber-optic telecommunications systems, lasers, light-emitting diodes, satellite solar cells, and consumer electronics by include Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, and Sony. And 5% of sales for other substrates like InP and Ge. It registered Mar 17 for IPO to raise $22M for 20% of the company. Since lots of SBIR companies claim great commercial potential in the same business, did Xtal need SBIR to get to $25M sales? Not NSF, not NASA; they were funding Spire and Kopin and whoever else whose GaAs sales were going nowhere. One DARPA 1990 Phase 2 for GaAs growth when it has 15 employees and recently a 1997 BMDO STTR Phase 1 for 145 employees (now 246 employees) and AlN substrates with new technology from Kansas State Univ. If DARPA were alert it would use Xtal as an example of what seed money can do and do more of it.
The electronic-optical microprocessor, developed by a group of researchers at MIT, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Colorado, Boulder, integrates over 70 million transistors and 850 optical components. The system uses optical fibers, transmitters, and receivers to send data between a processor chip and a memory chip. In a demo, it runs a graphics program to display and manipulate a 3-D image, a task that requires using the internal optical connections to fetch data from memory and run instructions. ... [Chen Sun, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley] is optimistic. This May, he founded a company to commercialize the designs. Ayar Labs (Berkeley, CA; SBIR cannot move that fast) is developing products aimed at data centers and may be ready to bring a product to market in as few as two years, he says. [Katherine Bourzac, technologyreview.com, on December 23, 2015]
Ayasdi (Menlo Park, CA; $800K SBIR, founded in 2008 by three Stanford mathematicians), the only startup to spring from Stanford University's math department, raised $55 million to help it apply machine intelligence to complex data problems. ... has now raised more than $100 million. ... works with Fortune 1000 customers who include Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Siemens, Lockheed Martin and others in financial services, technology, health care, government and life sciences. It reported 400 percent growth in bookings and deal size in the fiscal year that ended in January, with the typical customer signing up for more than $1 million. [Cromwell Schubarth, Silicon Valley Business Journal, Mar 25, 15]
Cytori Therapeutics (San Diego, CA; $250K SBIR) is re-starting a San Antonio manufacturing facility it gained through its acquisition of Azaya Therapeutics (no SBIR) , a maker of nanoparticle-encapsulated generic drugs. The San Diego company plans to find a European distributor for a drug the San Antonio facility makes called ATI-0918, which is a formulation of generic chemotherapy drug liposomal doxorubicin. [Angela Shah, xconomy.com, May 9, 17]
biotech Azaya Therapeutics (San Antonio, TX; no SBIR) has been bought by Cytori Therapeutics in San Diego. Azaya shareholders are receiving $2 million in Cytori stock, although $500,000 of it is being held in escrow for 15 months. The deal also includes a $2 million cash payment to pay off costs associated with the construction of Azaya’s new manufacturing facility in San Antonio, where Cytori plans to continue manufacturing one of the drugs in the deal. [Angela Shah, xconomy.com, Jan 23, 17]
Azaya Therapeutics(San Antonio, TX; no SBIR, founded 2003), a clinical-stage oncology company, has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with CANbridge Life Sciences (Beijingm, China), which will develop and commercialize the company’s lead compound, ATI-1123, for non-small cell lung cancer in China, South Korea and Taiwan. [W. Scott Bailey, San Antonio Business Journal, Sep 11, 13]
The Texas Emerging Technology Fund will invest $1 million in Azaya Therapeutics (San Antonio, TX; no SBIR) to help the company commercialize a new treatment for fighting cancerous tumors. .... toward the development of its Azaya Liposome Encapsulated Radiation Therapy (ALERT). ALERT uses liposomes, or tiny bubbles made of cell membrane material, to deliver cancer therapy drugs through an injection directly in a tumor. [San Antonio Business Journal, Sep 29,09]
Azelon Pharmaceuticalwhich formerly operated as Zelos Therapeutics, has raised $2.4 million in a private stock sale. .... plans to use the proceeds to support its development of a nasal spray formulation of teriparatide for the treatment of osteoporosis. [John George, Philadelphia Business Journal, Mar 22, 12]
Azimuth (Riverside, OH; $1M SBIR, about 45 employees, the 25th largest defense company in the region) and the local office of General Dynamics were awarded a contract extension [a total of $23M] for work to protect pilots and aircraft systems from high-tech enemy threats. [Joe Cogliano, Dayton Business Journal, Jan 28, 14] Hug the flagpole, and sell them what they want. Profit today, and a chance for another government funded job tomorrow.
Azitra (Framington, CT; $1.8M SBIR), a microbiome company developing treatments for serious skin conditions, raised a $14 million Series A financing [to] expand its management team and begin clinical testing of its experimental medical dermatology products. [Frank Vinluan, xconomy.com, Oct 18, 19]
Aziyo Biologics (Silver Spring, MD; no SBIR) raised $10M from seven investors in a funding round ... focuses on regenerative medicine in cardiology, orthopedics and wound care. .. nearly doubling its funding total ... products are used mostly as implants for surgical procedures. [DCInno, Aug 7, 18]
Aziyo Biologics (Richmond, CA and Silver Spring, MD; no SBIR, founded 2015) raised $12 million in a recent funding round, [SEC] filing shows. [Tina Reed, Washington Business Journal, Jun 14, 17]
Azure Biotech (no SBIR,founded 2013) which is developing a product related to women's health, announced that it closed on a $355,000 funding round. ... [CEO] Makar said he couldn't specify that market at this point, but lasofoxifene has been used to treat osteoporosis and other diseases. The reformulation Azure is developing still needs to go through full-scale clinical trials. [Elizabeth Hayes, Portland Business Journal, Jan 8, 15] Ligand Pharmaceuticals announces the signing of a global license agreement with Azure Biotech for the development of a novel formulation of lasofoxifene targeting an underserved market in women's health. Under the terms of the agreement, Ligand is entitled to receive $2.7 million in potential development and regulatory milestones and a 5% royalty on future net sales. Also under this agreement, Ligand retains rights to the oral formulation originally developed by Pfizer [Ligand press release, Jul 22, 13]
AzurRx BioPharma (Brooklyn, NY scientific operations based in France; no SBIR, founded 2014) specializing in the development of non-systemic, recombinant therapies for gastrointestinal diseases, announced, in partnership with Mayoly Spindler, a European pharmaceutical company, that it achieved, in pre-planned analyses, both its primary and secondary endpoints with a statistically significant (p=0.002) improvement in the coefficient of fat absorption (CFA) of 21.8% (Per Protocol analysis), in its recent Phase IIa trial of MS1819-SD, a recombinant lipase, for the treatment of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) caused by chronic pancreatitis. [comapany press release, Sep 24, 18] total funding $6M [crunchbase.com]