REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 04, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Avinger, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGR) (the “Company”), a leading developer of innovative treatments for peripheral artery disease (“PAD”), today reported results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2017.
First Quarter and Recent Highlights
- Announced an organizational restructuring, which is expected to reduce net cash use to approximately $7 million per quarter by the third quarter of 2017, a reduction of 48% from the average quarterly cash use for 2016
- Revenue of $3.5 million, a 23% decrease compared to the first quarter of 2016
- Added five Lumivascular™ accounts, expanding the installed base of the Company’s Lumivascular platform to 161 accounts
- Presented positive interim two-year clinical data from the pivotal VISION study for the Company’s Lumivascular technology, with the complete data set scheduled for presentation at the New Cardiovascular Horizons (NCVH) annual conference on May 31, 2017
- Received FDA approval to proceed with an in-stent restenosis (ISR) pivotal study for Pantheris under an investigational device exemption (IDE) designation
“We are pleased with how our organization has responded following our recent restructuring, and are making good progress on our core strategic initiatives,” said Jeff Soinski, Avinger’s president and CEO. “Our sales force is focused on driving utilization in our installed base to improve productivity in the near term and maintain a strong commercial presence in advance of our new product offerings. Our R&D and operations teams continue to implement improvements to our current Pantheris products and are rapidly advancing our two new Pantheris offerings, Pantheris 3.0, our next generation atherectomy catheter, and a lower-profile Pantheris device, toward 510(k) filings later this year. These two new product offerings are expected to meaningfully improve product reliability and usability and significantly expand our addressable market, as we re-position the Company for growth in 2018.
“In addition, we have recently received FDA approval of our IDE application for an in-stent restenosis trial for Pantheris. In-stent restenosis is especially challenging for physicians to treat, and we believe that Pantheris will prove to be an important new therapy in a segment estimated to represent approximately 20% of PAD procedures in the U.S. We expect to begin patient enrollment in the third quarter of this year.”
First Quarter 2017 Financial Results
Total revenue was $3.5 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2017, a 23% decrease from the first quarter of 2016 and a 25% decrease from the fourth quarter of 2016. Revenue from disposable devices was $2.9 million for the first quarter of 2017, a 12% decrease compared to the first quarter of 2016 and a 22% decrease from the fourth quarter of 2016. Revenue related to Lightbox imaging consoles was $0.6 million, a 50% decrease compared to the first quarter of 2016 and a 40% decrease from the fourth quarter of 2016.
Gross margin for the first quarter of 2017 was a loss of 17%, down from 26% in the comparable quarter of 2016 and down from 21% in the fourth quarter of 2016. The decreased gross margin was primarily attributable to $2.1 million in charges for excess, obsolete and scrapped inventories. Excluding these non-recurring expenses would have resulted in a gross margin of approximately 44%.
Operating expenses for the first quarter of 2017 were $13.2 million, compared to $16.2 million in the first quarter of 2016. This decrease was primarily attributable to higher sales and marketing expenses in 2016 as the Company expanded its commercial organization in conjunction with the commercial launch of Pantheris. Because the Company’s restructuring activities occurred after the end of the first quarter, expenses related thereto will be recognized during the second quarter of 2017.
