PhotoMedex raises $40M, files for Tel Aviv listing

30 Apr 2012

Developer of laser- and light-based dermatology systems hopes to raise profile of company among Israeli investors.

PhotoMedex, a US-based company that provides light-based systems for a variety of skincare applications, has raised $40 million in a new stock offering.

The Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania, company, which sells systems based on excimer lasers and narrow-band LEDs, says that it will use the net proceeds of the offering to invest in capital equipment, product development and sales and marketing.

It sold just over three million shares of common stock at $13.23 per share on April 27, with the company’s stock price closing at $14.78 on the same day.

PhotoMedex also announced plans to dual-list its stock on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), as well as the Nasdaq Global Select Market, where it is currently traded. The additional listing is a bid to raise the company’s profile in Israel, where the local investor community has a strong track record in advanced healthcare, and a number of other medical laser companies such as Lumenis are based.

Dolev Rafaeli, PhotoMedex CEO, said: “We believe that listing the company’s shares on the TASE will provide additional exposure to the Israeli investment community, and thus will increase interest in PhotoMedex among Israel’s large and sophisticated institutional investors, increase trading volume if PhotoMedex’s ordinary shares are included in the various TASE indices, as well as provide trading access for European investors during regular European business hours.”

Psoriasis and acne treatments
PhotoMedex’s products include the FDA-approved “XTRAC” 308 nm excimer laser system for psoriasis treatment, and the “Omnilux” LED-based platform, which is used for a variety of skincare applications, based on the effect of different wavelengths of light.

For example, with narrowband blue LEDs, the Omnilux is used to “neutralize” bacteria in the treatment of acne, while red emitters are used for their anti-inflammatory properties.

For 2011, PhotoMedex posted an annual operating loss of $2.65 million, despite a sharp year-on-year increase in sales revenues to $132.1 million. The new stock placement will help to boost the company’s balance sheet, which listed $16.5 million in cash as of the end of last year.

PhotoMedex is due to report its latest financial results, for the opening quarter of 2012, next week. The company is looking to expand its offerings in the home-use market, seen as a potentially lucrative growth area for vendors of light-based systems for aesthetic treatments in particular.