Founder Of Biotech Firm Caris Life Sciences Becomes A Billionaire After IPO
Caris Life Sciences founder David Dean Halbert
The successful IPO of Caris Life Sciences makes its founder David Dean Halbert worth an estimated $3.3 billion.
David Dean Halbert acquired an early-stage life sciences company called Molecular Profiling Institute in 2008 to develop a blood-based platform for early disease detection. Today, that firm, greatly expanded and renamed Caris Life Sciences, went public on Nasdaq, raising about $494 million. At 3:45 pm ET, the company had a market valuation of $7.4 billion, making Halbert worth at least $3.3 billion by Forbes calculations. He owns nearly 44% of the company.
Caris Life Sciences, a cancer diagnostics company based in Irving, Texas, uses gene sequencing, AI and machine learning to detect and monitor disease. The company had revenue of $412 million last year and posted a net loss of $282 million.
Halbert, who is 66 and has a bachelor's degree in business administration from Abilene Christian University, has a long history in healthcare investing and startups. Back in 1987, he founded a pharmacy benefit manager called AdvancePCS that he sold to CareMark for $7.5 billion in 2004. He subsequently started an investment firm, called Caris Capital, where he bought and sold $1.2 billion worth of assets.
But even based on that background, Caris Life Sciences was a big deal. In May 2021, it raised $830 million in growth capital led by Sixth Street – one of the largest capital raises in precision medicine – at a valuation of $7.8 billion.
While today's IPO represents a slightly lower valuation for the company, it is also one of the largest life sciences companies to go public in a tough market this year. Shares of Caris were priced at $21 before the offering, opened at $27 and were trading at $26.50 a share as of 3:45 pm ET.
Halbert was not immediately available for comment.
MORE FROM FORBES
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
This Overlooked Utility Stock Delivers Impressive Dividend Growth
Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) is one of Best Dividend Stocks to Buy for Dependable Growth. Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) is often overlooked among utility stocks, despite having a strong track record of dividend growth. The company has increased its dividend for 20 consecutive years, averaging nearly 6% annual growth over the past five years. In addition, the stock has a dividend yield of 4%, as of June 17. It is one of the best dividend stocks. A power line stretching across a sunbathed landscape with rural homes in the foreground. Analysts expect this upward trend to continue, supported by a solid business outlook. In February, Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) revealed that its pipeline of large electricity customers, such as data centers, had grown to 11.2 GW, exceeding its current peak demand. To support this growth, the company raised its 2025–2029 capital spending plan by 8% to $17.5 billion. Earnings-wise, Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) reaffirmed its long-term adjusted EPS growth target of 4% to 6% through 2029, based on a 2025 midpoint of $4.02. Starting in 2026, the company expects to hit the higher end of that range. It also maintains a solid cash position, with trailing twelve-month operating cash flow exceeding $2 billion. The company currently offers a quarterly dividend of $0.6675 per share. Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ:EVRG) supplies electricity to 1.7 million customers across Kansas and Missouri through its subsidiaries: Evergy Kansas Central, Evergy Metro, and Evergy Missouri West. While we acknowledge the potential of EVRG as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: and Disclosure. None.
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
History Says the Nasdaq Will Soar: 1 Brilliant AI Stock to Buy Now, According to Wall Street
The Nasdaq Composite has advanced 11% annually during the last four decades, which hints at significant upside in the years ahead. The Trade Desk is the largest independent demand-side platform in the adtech industry, and the company is leaning into artificial intelligence (AI). Adtech spending is forecast to grow at 14% annually through 2030, meaning The Trade Desk's earnings can grow even faster if it continues to gain market share. 10 stocks we like better than The Trade Desk › Earlier this year, the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) dropped into market correction territory as investors reacted to the prospect of sweeping tariffs. However, the index has historically rebounded sharply following those incidences, producing an average 12-month return of 21% following corrections since 2010. More broadly, the Nasdaq Composite has returned 11% annually over the last four decades. That suggests the index is headed much higher in the future. Buying stock in The Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD) is a smart way for patient investors to lean into that possibility. Wall Street's median target price of $84 per share implies 23% upside from the current share price of $68. Here are the important details. The Trade Desk is an adtech company that operates the largest independent demand-side platform (DSP), software that helps businesses plan, measure, and optimize data-driven advertising campaigns across digital channels. The company has a particularly strong presence in two of the fastest-growing advertising verticals: connected TV (CTV) and retail media. The Trade Desk's independent business model -- meaning it does not own media content and has no reason to steer clients toward specific advertising inventory -- is an important advantage. It distinguishes the company from rivals like Alphabet's Google, Amazon, and Meta Platforms, all of which have an incentive to sell their own ad inventory to media buyers, whether or not it's the best option. Frost & Sullivan analysts recently recognized The Trade Desk as the most technologically sophisticated DSP on the market. The company has been building artificial intelligence (AI) into its software for years. Its 2023 launch of the Kokai platform introduced new AI features that let agencies manage budgets, prioritize ad impressions, and target consumers. CEO Jeff Green said Kokai adoption was "ahead of schedule" on the first-quarter earnings call, and he thinks all clients will be using the platform by year-end. The Trade Desk is monetizing AI in other ways as well. Its recent partnership with Rembrand will allow brands to use generative AI to create advertising content. That partnership expands its existing generative AI marketplace. Meanwhile, the company recently reorganized its sales teams to build direct relationships with larger brands rather than working solely with advertising agencies. It also restructured its engineering teams to ship smaller updates more frequently. Those changes have already had an impact on its financial performance. In the first quarter, the Trade Desk reported a 25% increase in sales and a 27% increase in non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings. Importantly, The Trade Desk stock fell sharply after the company missed its fourth-quarter revenue guidance. Investors worried that increased competition from Amazon could pose a serious problem for the company, but I think the market overreacted. The Trade Desk has built trust with clients due to its independent business model, something that Amazon lacks. Indeed, Baron Capital analysts believe the competitive landscape remains quite favorable for The Trade Desk, saying in the firm's first-quarter report: "The market has shown a strong preference for independent and objective platforms that are not vertically integrated with media owners. We believe large advertisers will continue to value The Trade Desk's independence, transparency, and neutrality." With that in mind, The Trade Desk is well positioned to grow its business. Adtech spending is forecast to increase at 14.4% annually through 2030, according to Grand View Research. That should translate into slightly stronger earnings growth as the company continues to gain market share, which makes the current valuation of 40 times adjusted earnings look reasonable. Before you buy stock in The Trade Desk, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and The Trade Desk wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $658,297!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $883,386!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 992% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Trevor Jennewine has positions in Amazon and The Trade Desk. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and The Trade Desk. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. History Says the Nasdaq Will Soar: 1 Brilliant AI Stock to Buy Now, According to Wall Street was originally published by The Motley Fool
Forbes
28 minutes ago
- Forbes
Forbes Unveils Its 13th Annual List Of The World's Most Influential CMOs
NEW YORK/CANNES – June 19, 2025 – Forbes today released its 13th annual list of the World's Most Influential CMOs List, recognizing the 50 chief marketers from around the world whose work is not only driving the trajectory of their brands and businesses, but often reshaping the cultural landscape as well. Marian Lee, Chief Marketing Officer of Netflix, tops the list for the second year in a row, with Chris Davis of New Balance and Asmita Dubey of L'Oréal Groupe making up the top three. The chief marketers featured on the 2025 Forbes World's Most Influential CMOs list represent companies with a combined market cap of nearly $14 trillion, as of the close of markets on June 6th, an increase of 28% compared to the previous year. The Forbes list is data-driven, analyzing 10 billion data points from the past 12 months to get from an initial eligible universe of marketers from nearly 3000 companies to the 50 chief marketers recognized. Alongside this annual list, and for the fourth year, Forbes is inducting six CMOs into its Forbes CMO Hall of Fame, recognizing those who would have appeared on the World's Most Influentials list five times. This year's inductees are Enrico Galliera, Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer of Ferrari; Carla Hassan, CMO of JPMorgan Chase; Greg ('Joz') Joswiak, EVP Worldwide Marketing of Apple; Alex Schultz, CMO and VP Analytics of Meta; Alicia Tillman, CMO of Delta; and William White, CMO of Walmart. The market capitalization of the companies represented by these six Hall of Fame CMOs, adds another $6.35 trillion to an aggregated valuation exceeding $20 trillion. 'These 50 CMOs are the ones who pull ideas, people, resources, and strategies into their orbit,' said Seth Matlins, Managing Director of the Forbes CMO Network. 'They shape decisions far beyond the traditional remit of marketing. They eschew the mere idea of marketing's traditional remit in times that bear no similarity to anything once, now quaintly, resembling the traditional.' Forbes also named Donald Trump as the 'Unofficial #1' on the 2025 list for his singular influence over and responsibility for global uncertainty and its consequences. Matlins commented: 'Regardless of your politics or nationality, it seems fair to say that no one and nothing is having a greater cause and effect relationship on what does or doesn't come next for global consumers, CMOs, and the companies they help steward, than the current American president.' You can see this story here. The Forbes list is data driven and along with the company's primary research partner, Sprinklr, and with essential supplemental data and analysis provided by LinkedIn. This year's honorees will be celebrated at Forbes' World's Most Influential CMOs Luncheon in Cannes, bringing together the global marketing community's most influential thinkers and doers. Adobe and Salesforce are the Partner sponsors of the World's Most Influential Luncheon. Acxiom, McKinsey & Company and Valtech are the Supporting Level sponsors. To see the full World's Most Influential CMO list, visit: The 2025 Forbes World's Most Influential CMOs List and for the complete Forbes CMO Hall of Fame list visit: Introducing The 2025 Forbes CMO Hall Of Fame Inductees. Forbes Media Contacts Christina Vega Magrini, cmagrini@ Feryal Nawaz, fnawaz@ Europe Media Contacts Charlotte Juckes, Johanna Pemberton,
