Could this Be the Next Big Medtech IPO?

Last year's big medtech IPO was Nevro, the California company that treats chronic leg and backing pain using and implanted system and spinal cord stimulation.

The stock price jumped 90% the day it went public and the company raised nearly $145 million. On the drug delivery side, Catalent, a maker of oral, injectable and respiratory drug delivery technologies went public in July, according to Renaissance Capital, and raised $871 million. 

So what could be the next big medtech IPO?

Last week, Bedford, Massachusetts-based ConforMIS filed a registration system with the Securities & Exchange Commission and the orthopedics company intends to go public and raise $172.5 million. The company has not priced the range at which the the stock, to be listed as CNFS in the NASDAQ stock exchange, will go public, according to documents filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission. 

ConforMIS uses its iFit technology to create what it bills as the only true customizable knee implant. The company's technology converts a patient's CT scans into a 3-D model and that forms the foundation on which the customized knee implants are manufactured. Even the instruments are customized based on the patient's CT scan. 

Executives believe that fully customizable implants provide the best fit and recovery to patients, who would have been forced to use off-the-shelf implants. In 2014, the company had $39 million in revenue, a 39% increase from the same period in 2013. In the first quarter ended March 31, ConforMIS garnered $14.7 million, a 36% jump from the first quarter of last year.

In April, ConforMIS settled patent infringement lawsuits against Wright Medical by granting a license to the company as well as to MicroPort Orthopedics, which bought certain products that ConforMIS felt violated its patents.

Here is a video of the implant development and manufacturing process as described by the company.   

Arundhati Parmar is senior editor at MD+DI. Reach her at [email protected] and on Twitter @aparmarbb