OmniAb drops after $30 mln equity financing

** Shares of biotech firm OmniAb OABI.O down 8.6% premarket to $1.69 after disclosing $30 mln equity raise

** Emeryville, California-based OmniAb announces it sold ~21.3 mln shares at $1.40 (or $1.85 for officer and director participation) in private placement for general corp purposes

** Financing included "top-tier new and existing investors" along with insider participation, co says

** OABI shares on Fri closed up 2.8% at $1.85, leaving them down ~48% YTD

** Co has ~122.7 mln shares outstanding for ~$227 mln market cap

** OmniAb's platform uses transgenic animals that have been genetically modified to produce human therapeutic candidates

** It went public in Nov 2022 after being spun off from Ligand Pharmaceuticals LGND.O and merging with SPAC backed by PE firm Avista Capital Partners

** All 8 analysts are bullish on OABI and median PT is $10, LSEG data reflects

** Leerink acted as sole agent for the private placement