aibioCelldex closes $345 million raise and guides to funding through 2028
Tickers CLDX
First-quarter cash was $451.5 million before the April offering. Celldex then expected phase 3 hives data in the fourth quarter of 2026.
Key facts
- Company
- Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CLDX)
- News type
- Financings
- Primary source
- Celldex Therapeutics (SEC Form 8-K exhibit)
Celldex Therapeutics reported first-quarter results on May 7 and said cash on hand plus the proceeds of an April stock sale should fund planned operations through 2028. The company had $451.5 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at March 31, down from $518.6 million at the end of 2025.
In April, Celldex sold 11,896,750 shares in an underwritten public offering for gross proceeds of $345.0 million and net proceeds of about $323.9 million. Chief executive Anthony Marucci said the financing strengthened the balance sheet and supports "continued investments in our commercialization preparations and growing pipeline."
The details
Operations used $65.6 million of cash in the quarter. Research and development expenses rose to $73.0 million from $52.6 million a year earlier, mostly from barzolvolimab clinical trials, contract manufacturing and more staff. General and administrative costs were $11.4 million, up from $10.8 million, reflecting commercial planning.
The net loss widened to $78.7 million, or $1.18 a share, from $53.8 million, or $0.81 a share. Total revenue was zero, down from $0.7 million, after a drop in services work for Rockefeller University. Celldex had 66.6 million shares outstanding at March 31, before the offering.
When it launched the offering on April 1, Celldex said it planned to use the money for commercial readiness and the U.S. launch of barzolvolimab in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), if approved, and for clinical work on its pipeline and bispecific antibody platform.
Context
Barzolvolimab, an antibody against the KIT receptor on mast cells, was in two phase 3 CSU trials. Celldex said enrollment of 1,939 patients finished six months ahead of guidance, across 43 countries and more than 500 sites. At the time, it expected topline data in the fourth quarter of 2026 and a BLA filing in 2027.
The report listed other 2026 readouts: phase 2 data in prurigo nodularis expected in the summer, phase 2 data in atopic dermatitis in late 2026, and multiple-dose and subcutaneous data for the bispecific CDX-622 in the third quarter. A phase 3 trial in cold urticaria and symptomatic dermographism began in December 2025.
What it means for investors
Raising $345 million before a phase 3 readout is a common biotech move. It removes the risk of needing cash right after a disappointment and pays for launch preparation in advance. The cost is dilution: the offering added 11,896,750 shares to the 66.6 million outstanding at March 31.
Spending is rising as the company builds toward a launch, and quarterly R&D spending of $73.0 million is well above the year-earlier $52.6 million. The guidance through 2028 assumes the current plan. A broader launch or new trials would change that.
What to watch
Celldex expects phase 2 prurigo nodularis data in the summer of 2026, phase 3 CSU topline data in the fourth quarter, and phase 2 atopic dermatitis data in late 2026.