Finance Watch: CARGO Gets A Lukewarm Reception After Stock Market Debut

CARGO Therapeutics Inc. executed the 21st initial public offering in the US by a biopharmaceutical company in 2023 and the fifth-largest so far this year when it grossed $281.3m from an offering of 18.75 million shares at $15 each on 9 November. The offering went to market at the bottom of a proposed range of $15-$17 per share and CARGO fell slightly below its IPO price initially, closing at $14.69 on 10 November – its first day of trading – before edging back up into positive territory when it closed at $15.09 on 15 November.

With public biopharma company valuations sinking during the past two years, CARGO’s stock performance to date is not especially surprising. Among the 19 biopharma companies that went public during the first three quarters of 2023, the average return was -13.7% at the end of Q3 with only four companies trading above their IPO prices as of 31 October. CARGO’s 0