Apnimed eyes up to $160M IPO to prep for sleep apnea drug launch

News Business Apnimed eyes up to $160M IPO to prep for sleep apnea drug launch July 28, 2026 | 2 min read | Tristan Manalac Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Email Print If the offering closes, Apnimed will join the 2026 IPO class that has already far surpassed last year’s total. Sleep specialist Apnimed joins the throng of biotechs looking to make it big on the public markets with an initial public offering that will power the upcoming potential launch of a sleep apnea drug.Apnimed is putting 10 million shares of common stock up for sale, priced at $14 to $16 apiece, according to a July 27 prospectus. At the top of this range, the biotech stands to make about $160 million in gross proceeds—though after taking out discounts, commissions and other expenses, net earnings could come out to around $134 million.Apnimed is also offering underwriters the option to purchase up to 1.5 million shares at the IPO price, which if fully realized could bump up the net proceeds to $155.5 million. Once the offering closes, Apnimed will trade on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol APMD. The bulk of the IPO haul will go toward Apnimed’s lead and only clinical program AD109, an orally available drug being proposed to treat neuromuscular dysfunction in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The FDA earlier this month accepted AD109 for review, with a decision set to come out on or before Feb. 28, 2027. If approved, AD109 could be the first pill that specifically targets the “neuromuscular root cause” underpinning upper airway problems in patients with OSA. Apnimed has given the drug the brand name Oxnimbi, which the FDA has signed off on, as per the prospectus.Data from the Phase 3 SynAIRgy trial showed that AD109 lowered patients’ apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) by 55.6% from baseline to 26 weeks, an effect that was significantly better than placebo. The AHI measures the number of times breathing stops or slows during sleep and is a key measure of OSA severity. AD109 also significantly improved oxygenation and showed higher treatment response rates versus placebo.Aside from the proposed IPO, Apnimed in April signed a debt financing agreement with HealthCare Royalty Partners for up to $150 million—money that the biotech at the time said will help prepare for the launch of AD109.After a steep slowdown in 2025, the IPO tap seems to have reopened this year. Just in the first half of the year, 18 companies went public, more than doubling last year’s total of eight. Aside from Apnimed, at least six other companies this month have lined up to join this group: Kalohexis, Braveheart, Attovia, Vogenx, BlossomHill and Latigo. Last week, gene editing specialist Scribe Therapeutics added to the 2026 class with a $129 million Nasdaq debut. Business Biotech IPOs surge in H1 of 2026, shattering records and doubling last year’s total After a sluggish 2025, biotech IPOs have roared back to life. Fueled by resilient stock performances and improving market sentiment, the total number of public debuts so far this year has already eclipsed 2025’s total. July 15, 2026 · 2 min read · Gabrielle Masson Read more Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Email Print IPO Tristan Manalac Tristan is BioSpace‘s senior staff writer. Based in Metro Manila, Tristan has more than eight years of experience writing about medicine, biotech and science. He can be reached at tristan.manalac@biospace.com, tristan@tristanmanalac.com or on LinkedIn.