Hinge Health (HNGE), a digital health platform for physical therapy, debuted on the New York Stock Exchange at $32 per share Thursday and rising shortly after trading to $39.
The company announced it would go public in March, marking the second time it would attempt to do so. It was valued at nearly $6.2 billion in 2022 when it first announced plans.
Hinge aimed for a $3 billion valuation on Thursday, offering 13.7 million shares on the market.
Hinge's initial public offering (IPO) is on the higher end of the range it provided, between $28 to $32 per share, to raise about $500 million.
The IPO comes amid uncertainty about the health of the overall stock market and after a years-long dry spell for healthcare IPOs. The industry peaked in the pandemic years, specifically in 2021, as demand for remote-based care options rose. That year, more than a dozen companies went public directly or through special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC).
Since then, it has been quiet; many of the public companies lost their value as remote services became less relevant. But Hinge is testing the waters, and investors are watching closely for signs of a revival of the industry.
Hinge launched a decade ago in its current form, transforming from its predecessor, UK-based Marblar Limited, which was a digital technology platform for scientists. Now it is a remote physical therapy platform, with an FDA-approved wearable to pair with services. It has been growing with the support of investors, including Tiger Global and Coatue Management.
The company now boasts almost half of Fortune 500 companies as clients — including Target (TGT), GM (GM), and Hyatt (H) — offering their employees zero-cost access to the platform. This, the company said in its S-1 filing, can save companies about $2,387 per member per year on average, compared to the cost of absences and costly surgeries or other interventions.
Hinge believes it is only serving 5% of its potential market and is “often the sole digital MSK [musculoskeletal] care provider offered” to employees through their employer. The company is also expanding into fully insured and Medicare Advantage plans, but says that is still in early stages, according to the company's filing.
“In most instances, we partner with clients’ health plans … or other ecosystem entities to reduce the friction of contracting, procurement, security and IT reviews, onboarding, and billing. We are also in the early stages of expanding to serve health plans’ fully insured and Medicare Advantage populations and federal insurance plans,” Hinge said.
