Bionomics gains after All Ordinaries rebalance

Shares in Bionomics (ASX:BNO) have been climbing since the company was added to the S&P All Ordinaries Index.

On Friday Standard & Poor's announced the March quarter rebalance of its ASX indices, including Bionomics' inclusion into the All Ordinaries list of the 500 largest companies on the ASX.

Bionomics (ASX:BNO) shares grew 3.37% on Monday and a further 8.7% on Friday in heavy trading relative to the month so far.

The shares were trading flat at $0.51 as of 11am on Thursday, giving the company a current market capitalisation of around $175.84 million. This compares to a 52-week high of $0.77 per share, and a 52-week low of $0.355.

On Tuesday, the company allocated 30,000 shares to employees, priced between $0.24 and $0.38, under the company's Employee Share Option Plan (ESOP). The company now has 344.9 million shares and 10.5 million unlisted ESOP options on issue.

Adelaide-based Bionomics is developing potential treatments for cancer, multiple sclerosis and anxiety.

Cancer candidate BNC105 is in phase II trials as a treatment for renal cancer and mesothelioma, and the company is also exploring its potential to treat ovarian cancers and all solid tumours.

The compound BNC210 is in phase Ib trials as a treatment for anxiety and depression, while MS treatment candidate KV1.3 is at the pre-clinical stage.

Last month, Bionomics entered the international stage for a patent application covering a method of improving memory in Alzheimer's sufferers.