Capnia Inc. shares were halted in pre-market trade Tuesday on news that the company and privately-held Essentialis Inc. had agreed to merge. At the merger’s close, Capnia said it expects to issue stock priced at 96 cents-per-share, for gross proceeds of $8 million. The rare disease therapeutics company formed of the merger will focus on a diazoxide choline controlled release tablet to treat the rare disorder Prader-Willi syndrome. The syndrome, which causes unrelenting hunger and various metabolic, endocrine, cognitive and behavioral symptoms, currently has “no effective treatments,” Capnia’s chief executive officer, Anish Bhatnagar, said. The proceeds of the merger would help finance a mid/late-stage clinical trial for the drug in the second half of 2017, the companies said. Capnia shares have dropped 56.2% year-to-date, compared with a 10.8% rise in the S&P 500 . Shares were valued at 81 cents as of Friday’s close.
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