Seeking IPO - Again: Targacept Files Again To Go Public

WINSTON-SALEM, NC — Biotechnology firm Targacept is seeking to go public - again.

Targacept said Tuesday it had filed for an initial public offering of stock. It did not publicize a price.

However, Private Equity Wire reported that Targacept is seeking $59.8 million.

That total is less than the more than $80 million Targacept sought in 2005. The drug development firm, which is focused on treatments of central nervous system disorders, planned to sell 6.25 million shares between $11 and $13 a share but pulled the IPO due to market conditions.

In a press release, Targacept said the number of shares and the price range had not been determined. The offering will be handled by Deutsche Bank Securities, Pacific Growth Equities, CIBC World Markets Corp and Lazard Capital Markets, according to Targacept.

According to Targacept's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Targacept shares will be listed on the Nasdaq under the symbol TRGT.

In late December, Targacept announced a drug development deal with AstraZeneca that could be worth as much as $300 million.

Targacept was launched in 1997 as a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. It became an independent company in 2000 and since then has raised more than $120 million in venture funding. It has 74 employees.