Arbutus Biopharma Corp (ABUS) Reports Q3 2023 Financial Results
Arbutus Biopharma Corp (NASDAQ:ABUS) reported Q3 2023 financial results on November 7, 2023.
The company's cash runway has been extended into the first quarter of 2026.
ABUS is reducing its workforce by 24% as a result of recent pipeline optimization.
Multiple data presentations are upcoming at AASLD The Liver Meeting.
Arbutus Biopharma Corp (NASDAQ:ABUS), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, reported its third quarter 2023 financial results on November 7, 2023. The company continues to develop a cure for people with chronic hepatitis B virus (cHBV) infection. ABUS is looking forward to presenting preliminary data from the Phase 2a clinical trial at the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) The Liver Meeting 2023. The company is also reducing its workforce by 24% following recent pipeline optimization.
Financial Highlights
As of September 30, 2023, ABUS had cash, cash equivalents, and investments in marketable securities of $144.7 million, compared to $184.3 million as of December 31, 2022. The company used $68.6 million in operating activities during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, which was partially offset by $26.0 million of net proceeds from the issuance of common shares under its at-the-market offering program. ABUS expects its 2023 net cash burn to range from between $90 to $95 million, excluding any proceeds received from its at the market program. The company believes its cash runway will be sufficient to fund its operations into the first quarter of 2026.
Total revenue was $4.7 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to $6.0 million for the same period in 2022. The decrease of $1.3 million was due primarily to a decrease in royalty revenue because of a decrease in Alnylams sales of ONPATTRO.
Research and development expenses were $20.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 compared to $20.1 million for the same period in 2022. General and administrative expenses were $5.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to $3.5 million for the same period in 2022. This increase was due primarily to increases in employee-related costs, including non-cash stock-based compensation expense, and professional fees.
For the three months ended September 30, 2023, the company's net loss was $20.1 million, or a loss of $0.12 per basic and diluted common share, as compared to a net loss of $17.6 million, or a loss of $0.12 per basic and diluted common share, for the three months ended September 30, 2022.
Corporate Updates
ABUS has taken steps to streamline its organization and has reduced its workforce by 24%, effective November 6, 2023, primarily affecting its research function. As a result, the company will incur a one-time restructuring charge of approximately $1.1 million that will be recorded in the fourth quarter of 2023. The company remains committed to continuing discovery research in chronic HBV.
In a separate press release, ABUS announced that William Collier will be retiring as President and CEO, as well as a member of the Companys Board of Directors, at the end of 2023 and Michael J. McElhaugh, Arbutus Co-founder and COO, will serve as interim CEO and will join the Company's Board of Directors.
The company continues to protect and defend its intellectual property, which is the subject of the on-going lawsuits against Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech. The Company is seeking fair compensation for Modernas and Pfizer/BioNTechs use of its patented LNP technology that was developed with great effort and at a great expense, without which Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTechs COVID-19 vaccines would not have been successful.
Explore the complete 8-K earnings release (here) from Arbutus Biopharma Corp for further details.
This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
