Jan 27 (Reuters) - Drug developer Maze Therapeutics said

on Monday it was targeting a valuation of as much as $728.1

million in its initial public offering in the United States.

The South San Francisco, California-based company is seeking

up to $132.6 million by offering 7.8 million shares priced

between $15 and $17 each.

The IPO could be one of the several offerings from the

biotech sector in the coming weeks as a clutch of pharmaceutical

companies look to test investor appetite towards the industry.

Drug developers Aardvark Therapeutics, Aurion Biotech, Sonna

Therapeutics, Metsera, and Odyssey Therapeutics are among the

IPO hopefuls that have filed their paperwork in recent weeks.

J.P. Morgan, TD Cowen, Leerink Partners, and Guggenheim

Securities are the underwriters for the offering.

Maze Therapeutics will list on the Nasdaq under the symbol

"MAZE".