Cor Therapeutics Inc. announced Friday that it has completed its follow-onoffering of 3 million newly issued shares of common stock at $15 a share.The South San Francisco, Calif., company grossed $45 million from theoffering.

The underwriting group, led by Robertson, Stephens & Co. L.P. andMontgomery Securities, has an overallotment option to purchase up to450,000 additional new shares. Except for these, Cor now has 20.3 millionfully diluted shares outstanding, according to Laura Brege, Cor's vicepresident and chief financial officer.

Even before it completed this latest financing, Cor (NASDAQ:CORR) hada substantial amount of cash on hand; as of Sept. 30, the company had$75.7 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. And itonly burned $5.4 million in the third quarter.

Cor had already earmarked much of its existing cash to support thecontinued clinical development of its lead compound, Integrelin (asynthetic peptide), Brege told BioWorld. In fact, Cor announced earlier thismonth that it has received the nod from the FDA to begin Phase III clinicaltrials to evaluate the compound's safety and efficacy as an anti-plateletagent to reduce to complications of coronary angioplasty.

Brege told BioWorld that Cor intends to apply the newly garnered funds toexploring the potentials of "other interesting compounds in development."These include a synthetic small molecule that could act as an oral anti-thrombotic for preventing heart attack and stroke and a growth factor (10A)to interfere with the synthesis of thrombin.

"This financing gives us more flexibility and enough cash to meet ourneeds," Brege added.

Cor's stock closed at $16.50 a share on Friday, up $1.50.

-- Jennifer Van Brunt Senior Editor

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