Tucson-based artificial heart maker SynCardia Systems Inc. has withdrawn its $30 million initial public offering of stock in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The company gave no reason for withdrawing its offering in its request filed Tuesday, saying only that โit does not intend to pursue the contemplated public offering at this time.โ
SynCardia said it reserved the right to undertake one or more subsequent private offerings as allowed by law.
No date had been set for SynCardiaโs planned initial public offering on the mid-cap Nasdaq Global Market, but the offering was expected to take place soon.
SynCardia said it expected to raise up to $30 million by issuing 2.5 million shares of common stock at an initial offering price of $10 to $12 per share, minus an expected $2.1 million in expenses.
The offeringโs underwriting investment banks, led by Roth Capital, were to have the option to buy 375,000 additional shares for proceeds of $4.5 million.
SynCardiaโs temporary Total Artificial Heart is the only artificial heart approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a temporary bridge to transplant. The company is working to win FDA approval of the use of its heart as โdestinationโ therapy for patients who arenโt candidates for transplant and is developing a downsized heart to fit smaller patients, including women and youths.
Last year, SynCardia won FDA market approval for a smaller, portable pneumatic driver for its artificial hearts.
The company issued a voluntary recall of its Freedom driver in August after a patient briefly lost consciousness when his primary unit alarmed and it stopped pumping, quickly coming to when his caregiver switched to his backup driver.
No permanent injury was reported, and all affected units were quickly replaced, SynCardia said, blaming the problem on an unauthorized rework of a driver part by a supplier.
