ANNAPOLIS, Md., Nov. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PharmAthene, Inc. , a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, today reported financial and operational results for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2008.
For the third quarter of 2008, PharmAthene recognized revenues of $10.7 million compared to $3.4 million in the same period of 2007. For the nine months ended September 30, 2008 and 2007, the Company reported revenues of $27.4 million and $8.7 million, respectively. These revenues consisted primarily of contract funding from the U.S. government for the development of the Company's medical countermeasures, Protexia(R), SparVax(TM) and RypVax(TM). As a result of the Avecia vaccines acquisition in the second quarter of 2008, and particularly the acquired U.S. government contracts supporting the development of the rPA anthrax vaccines and RypVax(TM) plague vaccine product candidates, revenues for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2008 were further boosted by $5.5 million and $8.9 million, respectively.
Research and development expenses were $9.4 million and $3.6 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2008 and 2007, respectively. For the nine months ended September 30, 2008 and 2007, research and development expenses were $26.5 million and $10.7 million, respectively. Expenses for the third quarter and nine months of 2008 resulted from research and development activities related to programs for Valortim(R) and Protexia(R) as well as expenses related to the Company's SparVax(TM) and RypVax(TM) programs, which were acquired in the second quarter of 2008. The increase in research and development expenses is primarily due to process development expenses, manufacturing activities and clinical development expenses related to the Company's programs.
General and administrative expenses for the Company were $4.8 million and $3.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2008 and 2007, respectively. For the nine months ended September 30, 2008 and 2007, general and administrative expenses were $14.7 million and $8.6 million, respectively. General and administrative expenses increased as a result of additional employee costs due to the increase in headcount following the Avecia acquisition, as well as increased travel expenses, non-cash stock compensation expense, and increased legal and consulting expenses.
For the third quarter of 2008 PharmAthene's net loss attributable to common shareholders was $4.3 million or $0.20 per share, compared to $1.0 million or $0.07 per share in the same period of 2007. For the nine months ended September 30, 2008, the Company's net loss attributable to common shareholders was $31.2 million or $1.41 per share, compared to $12.6 million or $2.44 per share in the same period of 2007.
As of September 30, 2008, available cash, cash equivalents and short term investments were $13.2 million, excluding restricted cash totaling $14.5 million and gross proceeds from the Panacea Biotec investment of $13.1 million received in October 2008.
"The past several months have been an extraordinarily exciting time for PharmAthene as we continue to execute successfully against our objectives and achieve significant milestones in each of our biodefense programs," said David P. Wright, President and Chief Executive Officer.
"The next several months will be a pivotal time for our organization as we transition from a development company to one potentially generating product revenues if we are awarded a procurement contract for SparVax(TM)," continued Mr. Wright.
"We also strengthened our balance sheet in October 2008, adding gross proceeds of $13.1 million as part of a strategic investment by Panacea Biotec Ltd. Together these achievements provide a solid foundation from which to continue to advance our business objectives and build value for our shareholders," said Mr. Wright.
Conference Call and Webcast Information
PharmAthene management will host a conference call to discuss the Company's third quarter and nine month results on November 13, 2008, at 4:30 p.m., E.T. The dial-in number for U.S. callers is 800-798-2801 and for international callers is 617-614-6205. The participant passcode is 81927054.
A replay of the conference call will be available for 30 days, beginning at approximately 6:30 p.m. E.T. on November 13, 2008 until approximately 11:50 p.m. E.T. December 13, 2008. The dial-in number for U.S. callers is 888-286-8010, and for international callers is 617-801-6888. The participant passcode is 74215682.
The webcast of the conference call can be accessed from the company's website at http://www.pharmathene.com. A link to the webcast may be found on the Investor Relations section of the website.
About PharmAthene, Inc.
PharmAthene was formed to meet the critical needs of the United States and its allies by developing and commercializing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical weapons. PharmAthene's lead product development programs include:
Statement on Cautionary Factors
Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements preceded by, followed by, or that include the words "potential"; "believe"; "anticipate"; "intend"; "plan"; "expect"; "estimate"; "could"; "may"; "should"; or similar statements are forward-looking statements. PharmAthene disclaims, however, any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties include risk associated with the reliability of the results of the studies relating to human safety and possible adverse effects resulting from the administration of the Company's product candidates, unexpected funding delays and/or reductions or elimination of U.S. government funding for one or more of the Company's development programs, including without limitation our bid related to SparVax(TM) under the DHHS Request for Proposals for an Anthrax Recombinant Protective Antigen (rPA) Vaccine for the Strategic National Stockpile, the award of government contracts to our competitors, unforeseen safety issues, challenges related to the development, scale-up, and/or process validation of manufacturing processes for our product candidates, unexpected determinations that these product candidates prove not to be effective and/or capable of being marketed as products, as well as risks detailed from time to time in PharmAthene's Forms 10-K and 10-Q under the caption "Risk Factors" and in its other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").
Copies of PharmAthene's public disclosure filings are available from its investor relations department and our website under the investor relations tab at http://www.pharmathene.com.
CONTACT: Stacey Jurchison of PharmAthene, Inc., +1-410-269-2610,
JurichsonS@PharmAthene.com
Web site: http://www.pharmathene.com/
