Viela Bio (VIE) Down on Pricing for Secondary Offering
Shares of Viela (VIE) have taken a hit lately on news of a secondary offering of around $170 million, followed by the pricing announcement, which is placed at 47. The stock closed near 51.50 yesterday. From a technical perspective the stock also fell below its 25-day moving average line today, which may have triggered some additional selling.
The downside move isn’t welcome since we recently entered the position; however, it doesn’t change the fundamental story at all. It just dilutes ownership, but adds capital to the balance sheet to help advance the pipeline and commercial rollout of inebilizumab, which is still seen gaining FDA approval by the June 11 PDUFA date, with potential to become the leading front-line treatment.
Does the timing of the offering, before that date, imply bad news? I don’t think so. If management issued a secondary now with knowledge of any issues with the program, the lawsuits would pile up fast and furious. That said, we do typically see offerings after approval when a stock has moved materially higher on the news. Perhaps management believes shares are already factoring in approval and it’s better to strike sooner rather than later.
In any event, we should see shares stabilize once this offering is complete, after which we’ll be better able to gauge investor demand. In the meantime, I’m moving to hold, and we’ll evaluate once we see how the offering is digested. HOLD