On the cusp of launching berotralstat as a treatment for hereditary angioedema in the U.S. and EU, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: BCRX) is planning to sell $100 million of stock in a secondary offering. The underwriters will have a 30-day option to purchase another $15 million, so the biotech could potentially gross $115 million in the offering. BioCryst ended the first quarter with $115 million in the bank, having burned through $23 million during the first quarter, so the capital raise shouldn't come as much of a surprise, although it could have waited until later in the year to do it. Of course, with shares up 142% since BioCryst announced last month that it was testing its antiviral medication galidesivir in patients with COVID-19, now seems like as good a time as any to grab some additional cash. Image source: Getty Images. BioCryst plans to use the capital for pre-launch and commercial activities for berotralstat. The Food and Drug Administration is supposed to make a decision about the marketing application on or before Dec. 3. And a decision in the EU is expected in the first half of next year. The company also plans to use some of the capital to develop BCX9930 for complement-mediated diseases and for post-approval studies for its flu medication Rapivab that regulators are making the company run. BioCryst was trading down 4% in after hours trading on the news of the secondary offering that will dilute shareholders by about 13%. The price of the shares being sold in the secondary offering hasn't been set yet. 10 stocks we like better than BioCryst PharmaceuticalsWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and BioCryst Pharmaceuticals wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of April 16, 2020 Brian Orelli and The Motley Fool have no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source