ImmunoGen, Inc. IMGN reported adjusted loss of 30 cents per share (excluding restructuring charges) for the second quarter of 2018, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 29 cents. Moreover, the reported loss was wider than the year-ago loss of 10 cents per share due to lower revenues.
ImmunoGen’s shares were down 1.6% on Jul 27, after the results were announced. However, shares of ImmunoGen have significantly outperformed the industry so far this year. The stock has soared 52.8% against the industry’s decrease of 0.7%.
Revenues
Since ImmunoGen has no approved product in its portfolio, the company earns revenues through royalties, license and milestone payments plus research and development (R&D) support fees paid by its partners.
Revenues came in at $9.3 million in the quarter, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $14 million. Moreover, sales decreased substantially by 76.2% from the year-ago figure of $39 million. The revenue consists of $1.3 million in license and milestone fees and $7.2 million in non-cash royalty revenue. Revenues from R&D support and clinical materials were $0.4 million and $0.3 million, respectively.
License and milestone fees included upfront fees of $1 million and $0.3 million from Novartis NVS and privately-held Fusion Pharma, respectively, compared to $30 million in license fees from Sanofi SNY and $1 million in milestone payments from CytomX in the year-ago quarter.
Operating Expenses & Cash Details
Research and development expenses increased 9.6% from the year-ago level to $38.7 million, mainly related to continued progress in phase III FORWARD I study. Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses were down 2.1% to $8.7 million in the second quarter of 2018.
The company recorded net proceeds of $162.5 million from the sale of its common stock in June.
ImmunoGen’s cash and cash equivalents increased to $345.1 million at the end of June 2018 compared with $218.4 million at the end of March 2018. The company expects its current cash and estimated cash to fund its operations through the first half of 2020.
Pipeline Update
ImmunoGen has been progressing well with its pipeline product, mirvetuximab soravtansine, with FDA granting Fast Track designation in June. A phase III study (FORWARD I) is evaluating the candidate as a single-agent therapy for treating patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, whose tumors express high or medium levels of FR alpha. The company reached its enrollment target in April, two months ahead of schedule.
The company continues to expect top-line data from the study in first half of 2019.
The company is also developing mirvetuximab soravtansine in combination with Roche's Avastin and Merck's MRK Keytruda or carboplatin in a phase Ib/II FORWARD II study. A cohort is also evaluating the candidate in combination with Avastin and carboplatin.
Data announced in May from the arm evaluating Avastin doublet in a subset of patient population who have received up to three prior lines of therapy achieved a confirmed ORR of 43% and median PFS of 7.8 months. Updated data from the mirvetuximab plus carboplatin cohort showed a 71% confirmed ORR and median PFS of 15 months. These data support the continuation of triplet evaluation.
Apart from mirvetuximab soravtansine, ImmunoGen is working to develop a couple of other candidates in early stage studies including IMGN779 (relapsed or refractory adult acute myeloid leukemia) and IMGN632 (hematological malignancies including acute myeloid leukemia).
2018 Outlook Updated
The company maintained its revenues guidance in the range of $60-$65 million for 2018. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the metric is pegged at $64.24 million.
The company increased its expectation for cash and cash equivalents to the range of $265 million to $270 million from the previous expectation of $115 million to $120 million.
ImmunoGen however increased its operating expenses guidance for 2018. Operating expenses are now expected in the range of $215-$220 million compared with $200-$205 million expected previously.
ImmunoGen, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
ImmunoGen, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | ImmunoGen, Inc. Quote
Zacks Rank
ImmunoGen currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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