Immunomedics Inc. sold 200,000 shares of convertiblepreferred stock to international investors for $10 million,giving the company two years worth of operating cash.

Ilex Oncology Inc., a fledgling San Antonio, Texas, firm,attracted $10.9 million in its first private placement sinceforming in 1994.

Immunomedics, of Morris Plains, N.J., is developingdiagnostics and treatments for cancer and infectiousdiseases. Investors who purchased the non-dividend-paying preferred stock can convert to common shares atdiscounts of up to 9.75 percent of the market tradingprice.

Based on the $7.13 closing price Monday ofImmunomedics (NASDAQ:IMMU), the 200,000preferred shares would be worth up to 1.5 millioncommon shares at the maximum discount. Thecompany's stock ended the day off 25 cents.

The financing is similar to a $10 million transaction thecompany completed in January 1995. (See BioWorldToday, Jan. 19, 1995, p. 1.)

Amy Factor, executive vice president, saidImmunomedics has $28 million in cash, enough to keepoperating for two years. Prior to the preferred stockoffering, the company had 32.5 million common sharesoutstanding.

Immunomedics has a hearing this month with an FDAadvisory panel for review of its product licenseapplication (PLA) for CEA-Scan, a colorectal cancerimaging agent. In September, Phase III trial results of thecompany's LeukoScan showed the infectious diseaseimaging agent was as good as or better than conventionaldiagnostics in detecting osteomyelitis in long bones andin patients with diabetic foot ulcers. Both CEA-Scan andLeukoScan are monoclonal antibody fragments labeledwith technetium-99.

Ilex, a privately held company, was a spin-off of the SanAntonio-based Cancer Therapy & Research Center, anon-profit outpatient treatment organization.

Timothy Williamson, Ilex's senior vice president, saidHambro America Biosciences, of New York, led hiscompany's financing with $2 million. Other investors inthe $10.9 million private placement included thefollowing: The Upjohn Co., of Kalamazoo, Mich.;Advent International and Boston Capital Ventures, bothof Boston; and Bioven Partners, McCombs Enterprisesand Trinity University, all of San Antonio.

Ilex's most advanced drug is mitoguazone, a syntheticsmall molecule, designed to kill lymphoma cells. Thecompound is in Phase II trials for AIDS-relatedlymphoma in patients who don't respond to conventionaltherapy. Williamson said results of the studies will beused to file a new drug application in 1996 formitoguazone. Paris-based Sanofi-Chimie has worldwidemarketing rights to the compound. n

-- Charles Craig

(c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.