Menlo Park, California-based Oruka Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ORKA) announced the pricing of an upsized underwritten public offering on April 28, 2026, raising USD 700.4 million in gross proceeds to advance its portfolio of extended half-life monoclonal antibody candidates targeting plaque psoriasis and related inflammatory conditions. The offering was upsized from an initial USD 500 million target, with all shares sold directly by the company, directing the full proceeds to Oruka's corporate and clinical development activities.
The offering comprised 9,660,000 shares of common stock priced at USD 72.50 per share. No warrants were included in the transaction structure. Underwriters were granted a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,449,000 shares at the public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions, which if exercised in full would increase total gross proceeds further. The offering was expected to close on or about April 30, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Leerink Partners, TD Cowen, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Stifel, and Guggenheim Securities acted as joint bookrunning managers. LifeSci Capital served as passive bookrunning manager. The press release does not identify specific institutional investors by name, nor does it indicate participation by company insiders.
Company overview and pipeline
Oruka is focused on developing biologics for chronic skin diseases, with plaque psoriasis as its primary indication. The company's pipeline is built on antibody assets engineered by Paragon Therapeutics, with which Oruka holds exclusive licensing agreements for its lead molecules.
The lead asset, ORKA-001, is an extended half-life monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-23 (IL-23), a cytokine central to the inflammatory cascade underlying plaque psoriasis. A Phase II open-label extension study in plaque psoriasis (NCT07449702) is currently recruiting. The program's extended half-life engineering is intended to support dosing intervals of once or twice per year, differentiating it from existing approved IL-23 inhibitors. Oruka formalized its exclusive worldwide license for ORKA-001 from Paragon Therapeutics in December 2024, covering all indications except inflammatory bowel disease, with milestone payments of up to USD 22.0 million.