SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., March 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Poniard Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a biopharmaceutical company focused on innovative oncology therapies, today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.
“Picoplatin’s value proposition rests on establishing it as the preferred platinum,” said Ronald A. Martell, chief executive officer of Poniard. “With nearly 1,100 patients treated in clinical trials to date, picoplatin has already demonstrated clinically meaningful safety and efficacy in a variety of solid tumor indications as a single agent or in combination. We look forward to finalizing registration strategies in a number of these settings with our clinical advisors and the Food and Drug Administration, while simultaneously evaluating strategic opportunities, including potential partnerships, which we believe will enable us to unlock the full value of picoplatin.”
Recent Clinical and Corporate Developments
Picoplatin Clinical Update
Corporate Update
2010 Goals and Objectives
The Company will focus on the following goals and objectives in 2010:
Fourth Quarter 2009 Financial Results
The Company reported a net loss of $13.2 million ($0.36 diluted loss per share on a loss applicable to common shares of $13.3 million) for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared with a net loss of $13.9 million ($0.41 diluted loss per share on a loss applicable to common shares of $14.1 million) for the quarter ended December 31, 2008. The Company reported a net loss of $45.7 million ($1.31 diluted loss per share on a loss applicable to common shares of $46.2 million) for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared with a net loss of $48.6 million ($1.41 diluted loss per share on a loss applicable to common shares of $49.1 million) for the same period in 2008.
Total operating expenses for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, were $12.4 million compared with $13.4 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2008, and were $43.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared with $49.2 million for the same period in 2008. Total operating expenses for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2009 include charges of $1.5 million and $2.5 million, respectively, for the $1.5 million asset impairment loss on dedicated manufacturing equipment effective December 31, 2009, and for the $1.0 million restructuring and related asset impairment resulting from the Company’s implementation of a strategic restructuring plan to discontinue its in-house preclinical research operations and reduce its workforce by approximately 12 percent effective March 31, 2009.
Research and development expenses were $7.2 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared with $10.0 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2008. Research and development expenses were $25.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared with $33.7 million for the same period in 2008.
General and administrative expenses were $3.8 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, compared with $3.3 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2008. General and administrative expenses were $14.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared with $15.4 million for the same period in 2008.
Cash and investment securities as of December 31, 2009, were $43.4 million, compared with $72.8 million at December 31, 2008. The Company believes that its existing cash and investment securities, together with its projected operating and financing results, will provide adequate resources to fund the Company’s operations at least through the end of 2010.
Conference Call Details
Poniard’s management team will host a conference call and Webcast today at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time/5:30 a.m. Pacific Time. To participate in the call by telephone, please dial 866-543-6403 (United States) or 617-213-8896 (International). The passcode for the conference call is 50673823. In addition, the call is being Webcast and can be accessed on the “Events” page of the “News & Events” section of the Company’s Web site at http://www.poniard.com. A replay of the Webcast will be available on the Company’s Web site for 10 days.
About Poniard Pharmaceuticals
Poniard Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative oncology products. For additional information please visit http://www.poniard.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements describing the Company’s results of operations and financial condition, the Company’s 2010 goals and objectives, including its regulatory and partnering strategies focused on optimizing the potential value of picoplatin, and the adequacy of the Company’s resources to successfully implement and pursue these strategies. Actual results and events may differ materially from those indicated in these forward-looking statements based on a number of factors, including risks and uncertainties inherent in the Company’s business, including, but not limited to, the results and timing of the Company’s discussions with the FDA; the potential safety, efficacy and commercial viability of picoplatin; the risk that the Company’s additional analyses of data from clinical trials of picoplatin may produce negative or inconclusive results, or may be inconsistent with previously announced results or previously conducted trials; the Company’s anticipated future operating losses, need for future capital and ability to obtain future funding; the Company’s ability to retain key personnel and enter into strategic partnerships or other relationships to support the continued development of picoplatin on favorable terms, or at all; competition from third parties; the Company’s ability to preserve and protect its intellectual property rights; the Company’s dependence on third-party manufacturers, suppliers and other contractors; changes in technology, government regulation and general market conditions; the receipt and timing of any FDA and other required regulatory approvals, if any; and the risks and uncertainties described in the Company’s current and periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2009. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
(1) Tannock et al, NEJM 2004;351:1502-12.
CONTACT: Investors & Media, Susan Neath of WCG, +1-212-301-7182,
sneath@wcgworld.com, for Poniard Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Web site: http://www.poniard.com/
