AI precision oncology platform Caris Life Sciences raised $494 million, soaring 33% on its first day of trading on the US stock market
Medical technology company Caris Life Sciences went public on Nasdaq on Wednesday Eastern Time, raising $494 million, with a first-day closing increase of 33% to $28. The company issued 23.5 million shares at $21 per share, with a market capitalization of $7.9 billion. The funds will be used to repay approximately $400 million in debt, and the company expects to achieve profitability this year. Caris was founded in 2008 and focuses on using artificial intelligence to analyze tumor data, with products including the tissue molecular analysis solution MI Profile and the upcoming blood molecular testing solution Caris Assure
According to the Zhitong Finance APP, medical technology company Caris Life Sciences (CAI.US) debuted on the Nasdaq market on Wednesday Eastern Time, raising $494 million in its initial public offering (IPO), with the issuance price exceeding the originally planned upper limit. The stock surged nearly 40% upon listing, closing up 33% at $28 on Wednesday.
Backed by Sixth Street Partners, Caris priced its offering of 23.5 million shares at $21 each, raising the price again from the initial range of $19 to $20. Based on the previously filed documents regarding circulating shares, the Texas-based company has a market capitalization of $7.9 billion.
Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers' affiliated institutions have expressed interest in subscribing to up to $75 million worth of shares at the issuance price. The company's founder, chairman, and CEO David Dean Halbert stated in an interview that the funds raised will be used to repay approximately $400 million in debt, and the company expects to achieve profitability this year.
The prospectus shows that Caris was founded in 2008 and uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to analyze oncology data to assist in cancer diagnosis and treatment monitoring, having completed over 6.5 million tests covering 849,000 cases.
Its product portfolio includes the MI Profile, which contributes the majority of revenue through its tissue molecular analysis solutions, and the Caris Assure blood molecular testing solution set to launch in the first quarter of 2024. Additionally, the company operates a drug discovery business that identifies potential drug targets and develops therapies using testing data and genomic datasets.
Financial data shows that in the first quarter of 2025, Caris generated $120.9 million in revenue with a net loss of $127 million; in the same period last year, it reported $80.7 million in revenue and a loss of $134.1 million, indicating a narrowing of losses.
The prospectus indicates that after the IPO, Halbert will hold 41.7% of the shares, while affiliated institutions of Sixth Street Partners and private equity firm JH Whitney Capital Partners will hold 9.8% and 6.8%, respectively.
This IPO is led by Bank of America, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup as underwriters, with the stock trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker "CAI."
