CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of human viral diseases, today reported unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009. At December 31, 2009, Idenix’s cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $48.1 million.
Business Highlights
“We are pleased with the progress our partner, GlaxoSmithKline, has achieved with GSK2248761 and with our accomplishment of advancing three clinical candidates from major HCV drug classes to human testing. We look forward to GSK’s initiation of phase IIb studies with GSK2248761 and multiple data readouts from our HCV programs throughout the year,” said Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer of Idenix. “In 2010, as the profiles of our HCV drug candidates continue to emerge, we will seek to build a combination drug development strategy, both internally and with partners, to advance the future HCV treatment paradigm.”
Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 Financial Results
For the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009, Idenix reported total revenues of $3.0 million, compared to total revenues of $4.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2008. The company reported a net loss of $12.3 million, or a loss of $0.19 per basic and diluted share, for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared to a net loss of $13.9 million, or a loss of $0.25 per basic and diluted share for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2008.
For the twelve months ended December 31, 2009, Idenix reported total revenues of $12.6 million, compared to total revenues of $10.0 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2008. The majority of the increase was due to additional license fee revenue and royalty revenue recognized, related to our collaborations with GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis Pharma AG, as compared to the same period in 2008. The company reported a net loss of $53.2 million, or a loss of $0.87 per basic and diluted share for the twelve months ended December 31, 2009, compared to $70.2 million, or a loss of $1.24 per basic and diluted share for the twelve months ended December 31, 2008. The change in net loss was primarily a result of lower operating expenses in 2009 as compared to 2008.
2010 Financial Guidance
The company expects that its current cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities can fund operations through at least the next twelve months. This guidance assumes no milestone payments, license fees, reimbursement for development programs and no financing activities.
Conference Call and Webcast Information
Idenix will hold a conference call today at 4:30 p.m. ET. To access the call please dial (800) 471-3635 U.S./Canada or (706) 758-9475 International and enter passcode 54113451. To listen to a live webcast of the call, go to “Calendar of Events” in the Idenix Investor Center at www.idenix.com. Please log in approximately 10 minutes before the call to ensure a timely connection. A replay of the conference call and webcast will be available until March 11, 2010. To access the replay, please dial (800) 642-1687 U.S./Canada or (706) 645-9291 International and enter the passcode 54113451.
About Idenix
Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of human viral diseases. Idenix’s current focus is on the treatment of infections caused by the hepatitis C virus. For further information about Idenix, please refer to www.idenix.com.
Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, the statements regarding the company’s future business and financial performance. For this purpose, any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “will,” “estimates,” “projects,” “would,” “could,” “targets,” and similar expressions are also intended to identify forward-looking statements, as are express or implied statements with respect to the company’s clinical development programs or commercialization activities in HIV or hepatitis C, or any potential pipeline candidates and expectations with respect to additional milestone payments, future royalty payments and cash balances at the end of 2009. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to: there can be no guarantees that historical sales of Tyzeka(R)/Sebivo(R) (telbivudine) will in any way suggest future royalty payments or royalty rates owed to the company, or that the company will advance any clinical product candidate or other component of its potential pipeline to the clinic, to the regulatory process or to commercialization; management’s expectations could be affected by unexpected regulatory actions or delays; uncertainties relating to, or unsuccessful results of, clinical trials, including additional data relating to the ongoing clinical trials evaluating its product candidates; the company’s ability to obtain additional funding required to conduct its research, development and commercialization activities; the company’s dependence on its collaborations with Novartis Pharma AG and GlaxoSmithKline; changes in the company’s business plan or objectives; the ability of the company to attract and retain qualified personnel; competition in general; and the company’s ability to obtain, maintain and enforce patent and other intellectual property protection for its product candidates and its discoveries. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. These and other risks which may impact management’s expectations are described in greater detail under the heading “Risk Factors” in the company’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2009 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and in any subsequent periodic or current reports that the company files with the SEC.
All forward-looking statements reflect the company’s estimates only as of the date of this release (unless another date is indicated) and should not be relied upon as reflecting the company’s views, expectations or beliefs at any date subsequent to the date of this release. While Idenix may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, even if the company’s estimates change.
Idenix Pharmaceuticals Contact:
Teri Dahlman (617) 995-9905
CONTACT: Teri Dahlman, Idenix Pharmaceuticals, +1-617-995-9905
Web site: http://www.idenix.com/
