A Medical Device Daily

Northstar Neuroscience (Seattle) reported the pricing of its initial public offering of 7.1 million shares of its common stock for $15 a share, thus seeking to raise somewhat more than $100 million.

The company's original filing set a price of $12 to $14 a share, or about $81 million for the total offering (Medical Device Daily, May 3, 2006).

Northstar also has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 1,065,000 more shares of common stock at the IPO price, less the underwriting discount, to cover over-allotments.

Northstar is focused on developing neurostimulation therapies for a broad range of neurological diseases and disorders. Its technology is designed to deliver targeted electrical stimulation to the outermost layer of the brain, called the cortex, in a process referred to as cortical stimulation.

Northstar's Stroke Recovery System, its initial investigational product, is designed to enhance recovery of hand and arm motor function in patients who have suffered a stroke. The company also is pursuing study of therapeutic applications for stroke-related aphasia and tinnitus.

Shares of Northstar's common stock will be traded on Nasdaq under the symbol NSTR.

Citigroup Global Markets and Cowen & Co. are the joint book-running managers of the offering. First Albany Capital and Leerink Swann & Co. are co-managers.

In other financing activity, Sonus Pharmaceuticals (Bothell, Washington) reported closing the sale of about $30.6 million of common stock, in accordance with a registered direct offering announced April 28. Under the terms of the transaction, the company sold roughly 6.1 million shares of company common stock at $5 a share to a group of new and current institutional investors.

All of the shares were sold in accordance with a shelf registration.

Needham & Co. acted as the lead placement agent and Punk, Ziegel & Co. and ThinkEquity Partners acted as co-placement agents for the offering.

Sonus is focused on the development of oncology drugs that provide better therapeutic alternatives for cancer patients, including improved efficacy, safety and tolerability, and are more convenient to use. The company's lead product candidate is Tocosol Paclitaxel, a ready-to-use, injectable formulation of the anti-cancer drug, paclitaxel. Tocosol Paclitaxel is currently in a Phase III pivotal trial for the potential treatment of metastatic breast cancer.