SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., March 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.
Contract revenue in the fourth quarter of 2009 was comprised of a $750,000 milestone payment from Daiichi Sankyo for the designation of the first lead compound related to the ligase oncology collaboration. There was no contract revenue reported in the fourth quarter of 2008.
For the twelve months ended December 31, 2009, Rigel reported a net loss of $111.5 million, or $2.73 per share, compared to a net loss of $132.3 million, or $3.67 per share, for the same period of 2008.
In February 2010 Rigel announced the signing of a worldwide license agreement with AstraZeneca AB for certain of its oral Syk inhibitors, including the Company's lead compound R788. Upon effectiveness of the agreement, Rigel will receive an upfront payment of $100 million and expects to receive an additional $25 million in milestone payments in 2010. AstraZeneca is responsible for all development, regulatory filings, manufacturing and global commercialization activities for products in all of the licensed indications. Rigel anticipates that AstraZeneca will begin a global Phase 3 clinical trial program in rheumatoid arthritis in the second half of 2010.
Other recent news:
Rigel will be hosting an investor day on March 25, 2010 in Boston, Massachusetts to present an updated clinical and research pipeline. Details of the event will be announced shortly.
Rigel is a clinical-stage drug development company that discovers and develops novel, small-molecule drugs for the treatment of inflammatory/autoimmune diseases and metabolic diseases. Our pioneering research focuses on intracellular signaling pathways and related targets that are critical to disease mechanisms. Rigel's productivity has resulted in strategic collaborations with large pharmaceutical partners to develop and market our product candidates. Rigel has product development programs in inflammatory/autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, thrombocytopenia and asthma, as well as in cancer.
CONTACT: Ryan D. Maynard of Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-650-624-1284,
invrel@rigel.com; or media, Susan C. Rogers, of Alchemy Consulting, Inc.,
+1-650-430-3777, susan@alchemyemail.com, for Rigel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Web site: http://www.rigel.com/
