Cepheid
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Preliminary prospectus is filed with the SEC for an initial public offering valued at up to $92 mil. The Sunnyvale, California maker of microfluidic systems for detection and analysis of nucleic acids plans to launch its first product, the Smart Cycler DNA amplification and detection system for life sciences research, by July 1. The GeneXpert system in development "is designed to integrate automated sample preparation with our amplification and detection technology in a disposable cartridge format," Cepheid explains. "Our systems will allow practitioners in the life sciences research, clinical diagnostics, industrial testing and pharmacogenomics markets to make use of the vast new libraries of nucleic acid sequences now being generated by genomics researchers." Proceeds from the offering will be used for R&D, expansion of manufacturing and other general corporate purposes. As of March 31, the firm had an accumulated deficit of $15.8 mil. Warburg Dillon Read, Prudential Vector Healthcare and Invemed Associates are underwriters for the offering