Filing of Shelf Registrations by Biotech Companies Expected to Increase in 2002, Says Ladenburg Thalmann's Managing Director
36 biotech companies filed a shelf registration last year; that number may rise dramatically this year, as many investment bankers and lawyers are urging biotech clients to be ready for a market rebound
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 28, 2002-- Biotech companies are being urged to consider filing a shelf registration in a down market to take advantage of expected future market windows for equity takedowns, according to Joseph A. Smith, managing director of investment banking at Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc.
There were 36 shelf registrations by biotech companies in 2001 - nearly half of them occurring in the fourth quarter. Some industry insiders are expecting many more biotech companies to file shelf registrations this year, in anticipation of the market bouncing back - eventually.
``Erratic markets are actually making this a good time to file with the SEC, as a way to make ready for a future market turnaround, which we believe will certainly happen. We just don't know when,'' said Smith, who made his remarks recently to an audience of chief executive officers attending the ``CEO & Investor 2002 Conference'' sponsored by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).
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36? A safe prediction the number will increase. Will probably be 360 shelf registrations when the group is back in favor, with the new darlings pigging out on hundreds of millions mixed debt and c/s (but not for those who hogged it down in 2000 and have not put on any weight, like crgn + hgsi) while those who do not latch onto the new key marketing words in time will be left a little farther behind. |
