TORONTO, July 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - ARIUS Research Inc., , a biotechnology company discovering and developing the next wave of antibody therapeutics, today announced its financial and operational results for the second fiscal quarter of 2008, ended May 31st, 2008.
“Throughout the second quarter, we maintained our focus on moving ARIUS’ anti-cancer antibodies towards human clinical trial. Most notably, our lead drug candidates received significant attention from the scientific community this quarter as five abstracts were presented at the AACR Annual Meeting in April, disclosing new findings about our CD44, Trop-2, CD59, and CD9 antibody programs,” said Dr. David Young, President and CEO of ARIUS. “Additionally, abstracts on our CD44 program were selected for publication at the ASCO Annual Meeting in May. The inclusion of ARIUS’ findings at these important conferences demonstrates the high quality of our research and reinforces the value of our lead drug candidates.”
For the six-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company recorded a net loss of $6,401,018 ($0.14 per share) compared to a net loss of $5,342,827 ($0.12 per share) for the six-month period ended May 31, 2007. For the three-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company recorded a net loss of $3,816,937 ($0.08 per share) compared to a net loss of $3,036,132 ($0.07 per share) for the three-month period ended May 31, 2007. This increase in net loss for both periods is primarily the result of higher research and development, and general administrative expenses, partially offset by higher revenues and foreign exchange gains.
For the six-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s revenue increased to $1,471,447 compared to $129,846 for the same period in fiscal 2007. For the three-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s revenue increased to $424,153 compared to $21,392 for the same period in fiscal 2007. The increase for both periods was primarily the result of the recognition of product and research contract revenue from the Takeda collaboration and the recognition of licensing fee revenue for an extension fee payment under the agreement with PDL Biopharma Inc.
For the six-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s interest income decreased to $176,512 compared to $381,407 for the same period in fiscal 2007. For the three-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s interest income decreased to $69,720 compared to $181,484 for the same period in fiscal 2007. The decrease for both periods was primarily the result of lower average cash and investment balances.
For the six-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s research and development costs increased to $5,933,367 compared to $4,059,931 for the same period in fiscal 2007. For the three-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s research and development costs increased to $3,337,461 compared to $2,102,603 for the same period in fiscal 2007. The increases were primarily the result of an increase in staffing levels related to an overall increase in activity as the Company is preparing three products for the clinic, accompanied by increased patent and licensing activity and an increase in stock option remuneration expense.
For the six-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s general and administrative expenses increased to $2,170,683 compared to $1,437,009 for the same period in fiscal 2007. For the three-month period ended May 31, 2008, the Company’s general and administrative expenses increased to $1,149,402 compared to $762,673 for the same period in fiscal 2007. The increases were primarily the result of an increase in staffing levels, consulting fees, legal expenses and stock option remuneration expense.
As at May 31, 2008, ARIUS’ cash and cash equivalents, and net working capital position were $8,543,124 and $5,807,638, respectively, compared with November 30, 2007 cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments and net working capital of $5,635,365, $6,825,190 and $9,088,712, respectively. The Company currently believes that it has adequate financial resources to continue into the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008 based on planned research and development expenditures and operating costs.
About ARIUS
ARIUS is a biotechnology company discovering and developing the next wave of antibody therapeutics. Established in 1999, ARIUS has built a proprietary technology platform, FunctionFIRST(TM), that rapidly identifies and selects antibodies based on their functional ability to affect disease. This antibody generation engine has enabled ARIUS to assemble a portfolio of more than 500 antibody candidates. In addition to the antibodies it is developing in-house, ARIUS has ongoing partnerships with key biotechnology and drug development companies. ARIUS is listed on the TSX under the symbol “ARI”. For further information, visit www.ariusmabs.com
Certain statements in this news release constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements in this release include, but are not limited to, ARIUS successfully advancing its new product programs as well as licensing opportunities. These statements are only predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. Factors that could cause such actual events or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by such statements include, but are not limited to: early stage of development; technology and product development; dependence on and management of current and future corporate collaborations; future capital needs; uncertainty of additional funding; no assurance of market acceptance; dependence on proprietary technology and uncertainty of patent protection; intense competition; manufacturing and market uncertainties; and government regulation. These and other factors are described in detail in ARIUS’ Annual Report, forthcoming news releases and other filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities available at www.sedar.com. Forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and ARIUS is not obligated to update such information to reflect later events or developments.
CONTACT: Warren Whitehead, C.M.A., Chief Financial Officer, ARIUS Research
Inc., (416) 862-2323 ext. 214, wwhitehead@ariusmabs.com,
contact@ariusmabs.com; James Smith, Investor Relations, (416) 815-0700 ext.
229, jsmith@equicomgroup.com
