NitroMed stock fell quite a bit so far today, thanks to a decision to sell stock at a price below yesterday’s close.

The struggling little pharma plans to sell 7.6 million shares to institutional investors at $2.60 each, which represents a 20 percent discount to Wednesday’s closing price of $3.27. Not surprisingly, shares are down 17 percent at midday.

What a way to reward investors.

In a statement, NitroMed discloses plans to use $18.3 million in proceeds for general corporate purposes, including marketing Bidil, a pill that treats heart failure in African-American patients, and the development of an extended release version of the drug.

Upon its debut, BiDil generated significant discussion about race-based medicine, but the pill never caught on, primarily because it was priced too high in the early going. The subsequent disappointing results have hindered NitroMed ever since.

NitroMed statement.[tags]BiDil, NitroMed[/tags]