LEXINGTON, Mass., March 14, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Agenus Inc.
(NASDAQ: AGEN), an immuno-oncology (I-O) company with a pipeline of
immune checkpoint antibodies, cancer vaccines and adoptive cell
therapies1, provided a corporate update and reported
financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2018.
"We are rapidly advancing with the discovery and clinical
development of our innovative I-O agents," said Garo H. Armen, Ph.D.,
Chairman and CEO of Agenus. "In the past year, we entered into an
important partnership with Gilead, delivered 6 INDs, and confirmed
benefit in the majority of
patients treated with our lead CTLA-4 and PD-1 antibodies. Our next
steps will target submission and commercial launch readiness for our first two antibodies."
- Achievements
-
- Strengthened balance sheet with the Gilead collaboration and
payments from milestones achieved with Incyte and Merck
-
- $150M payment from Gilead
- $21.5M additional milestones for
advancing LAG-3 (INCAGN02385), TIM-3 (INCAGN02390), ILT4 (MK-4830)
and FDA acceptance of the IND for AGEN1423, licensed to Gilead
- Advanced lead programs and reported clinical benefit in
majority of patients across multiple solid tumors, including
cervical cancer
-
- Ongoing trials in cervical cancer are designed to support BLA
via accelerated pathway
- We plan to expand PD-1 development in additional
indications
- Advanced new discoveries, which will enter the clinic this
year
-
- Next-Gen CTLA-4, AGEN1181
- First-in-class bispecific, AGEN1223 (a Gilead option
program)
- Revenues of GSK's Shingrix, containing our QS-21 Stimulon®,
exceed $1Bn (USD)
-
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation award Agenus ~$1M to develop novel technology for QS-21
- AgenTus Cell Therapy Business:
-
- 2019 INDs are on track
- Partnership and private financing discussions are underway
Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2018 Financial Results
We ended 2018 with a cash balance of $53
million followed by the $150
million received from Gilead in
2019.
For the fourth quarter ended December 31,
2018, we reported a net loss of $49
million or $0.40 per share
compared to a net loss for same period in 2017 of $35 million, or $0.35 per share. In the fourth quarter, we
recognized revenue of $6.5 million
which includes non-cash royalties earned.
For the year ended December 31,
2018, we reported a net loss of $162
million or $1.44 per share
compared to a net loss for the year ended 2017 of $121 million or $1.23 per share. The increased net loss
reflects reduced revenue during 2018 due to an accelerated
milestone received during 2017 from Incyte, the 2018 loss on early
extinguishment of debt and increased non-cash interest on our
liability related to the sale of future royalties.
Conference Call, Webcast and Prepared Statement
Information
Date: Thursday, March 14, 2019
Time: 8:30 a.m. ET
Domestic Dial-in Number: 1-844-492-3727
International Dial-in Number: 1-412-317-5118
Conference ID: Agenus
Live Webcast: accessible from the Company's website at
http://investor.agenusbio.com/presentation-webcasts or with
this link
https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/1556/29717
A replay will be available on the Company's website
approximately two hours after the call and will remain available
for 90 days.
About Agenus
Agenus is a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company focused on
the discovery and development of therapies that engage the body's
immune system to fight cancer. The Company's vision is to expand
the patient populations benefiting from cancer immunotherapy by
pursuing combination approaches that leverage a broad repertoire of
antibody therapeutics, proprietary cancer vaccine platforms, and
adoptive cell therapies (through its AgenTus Therapeutics
subsidiary). The Company is equipped with a suite of antibody
discovery platforms and a state-of-the-art GMP manufacturing
facility with the capacity to support early phase clinical
programs. Agenus is headquartered in Lexington, MA. For
more information, please visit www.agenusbio.com and our
twitter handle @agenus_bio. Information that may be important to
investors will be routinely posted on our website and twitter.
About AgenTus Therapeutics, Inc.
AgenTus Therapeutics, a subsidiary of Agenus, is a
preclinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the
discovery, development, and commercialization of breakthrough
"living drugs" to advance potential cures for cancer
patients. AgenTus employs naturally-derived and engineered
receptors, specifically T cell receptors (TCRs) and Chimeric
Antigen Receptors (CARs), designed to supercharge human immune
effector cells to seek and destroy cancer. AgenTus also aims
to advance adoptive cell therapy formats which would enable
off-the-shelf living drugs. AgenTus has locations
in Lexington, MA and Cambridge, UK. For more
information, please visit www.agentustherapeutics.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are
made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the federal
securities laws, including statements regarding Agenus and AgenTus'
clinical development and regulatory plans and timelines, the
expectation for Agenus to become a commercial company and expanding
beyond the initial targeted indication of cervical cancer and
partnership and financing plans for AgenTus. These forward-looking
statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause
actual results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties
include, among others, the factors described under the Risk Factors
section of our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Annual
Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, as well as the Risk Factors included in the Private
Placement Offering Memorandum for BEST. Agenus cautions investors
not to place considerable reliance on the forward-looking
statements contained in this release. These statements speak only
as of the date of this press release, and Agenus undertakes no
obligation to update or revise the statements, other than to the
extent required by law. All forward-looking statements are
expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary
statement.
Contact:
Agenus Inc.
Jennifer Buell, PhD
781-674-4420
Jennifer.Buell@agenusbio.com
1 Through AgenTus Therapeutics, a subsidiary of
Agenus
Select Financial
Information
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(in thousands, except
per share data)
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(unaudited)
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December 31,
2018
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December 31,
2017
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Cash and cash
equivalents
|
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$
53,054 *
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$
60,187
|
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Total
assets
|
|
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$
136,401 *
|
138,402
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* Excludes $150
million received in 2019 from Gilead
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Three months ended
December 31,
|
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Year ended December
31,
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2018
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2017
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2018
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2017
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Revenues, research
and development and other
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$
1,090
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$
8,354
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$
19,475
|
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$
22,877
|
Revenues, non-cash
royalty
|
|
|
5,361
|
|
-
|
|
17,309
|
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-
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Revenues, accelerated
milestone
|
|
-
|
|
-
|
|
-
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20,000
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Research and
development expenses
|
|
36,031
|
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31,872
|
|
124,600
|
|
116,125
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General and
administrative expenses
|
|
9,724
|
|
9,784
|
|
37,340
|
|
33,741
|
Other expenses,
net
|
|
|
|
9,423
|
|
5,043
|
|
27,456
|
|
16,891
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Loss on early
extinguishment of debt
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|
-
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-
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10,767
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-
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Non-cash contingent
consideration fair value adjustment
|
121
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(3,310)
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(1,335)
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(3,188)
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Net loss
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(48,848)
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(35,035)
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(162,044)
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(120,692)
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Net loss per
share
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$
(0.40)
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$
(0.35)
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$
(1.44)
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$
(1.23)
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SOURCE Agenus