On November 5, 2015 Geron Corporation (Nasdaq: GERN) reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2015 (Filing, 8-K, Geron, NOV 5, 2015, View Source [SID:1234508051]).

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For the third quarter of 2015, the company reported net income of $27.2 million, or $0.17 per share, compared to a net loss of $9.5 million, or $(0.06) per share, for the comparable 2014 period. Net income for the first nine months of 2015 was $8.5 million, or $0.05 per share, compared to a net loss of $26.7 million, or $(0.18) per share, for the comparable 2014 period. The company ended the third quarter of 2015 with $151.8 million in cash and investments.

Revenues for the third quarter of 2015 were $35.4 million compared to $160,000 for the comparable 2014 period. Revenues for the first nine months of 2015 were $36.2 million compared to $975,000 for the comparable 2014 period. Revenues for the three and nine month periods ending September 30, 2015 included the full recognition of the $35.0 million upfront payment from Janssen Biotech, Inc. (Janssen) as collaboration revenue upon the company’s transfer of the imetelstat license rights and completion of technology transfer-related activities outlined under the imetelstat collaboration agreement with Janssen. The upfront cash payment was received in December 2014 and recorded as deferred revenue at that time.

Total operating expenses for the third quarter of 2015 were $8.3 million compared to $10.1 million for the comparable 2014 period. Research and development expenses for the third quarter of 2015 were $4.1 million compared to $6.0 million for the comparable 2014 period. General and administrative expenses for the third quarter of 2015 were $4.3 million compared to $4.1 million for the comparable 2014 period.

Total operating expenses for the first nine months of 2015 were $28.1 million compared to $28.3 million for the comparable 2014 period. Research and development expenses for the first nine months of 2015 were $13.8 million compared to $16.4 million for the comparable 2014 period. General and administrative expenses for the first nine months of 2015 were $12.9 million compared to $11.9 million for the comparable 2014 period. Year-to-date operating expenses for 2015 also included restructuring charges of $1.3 million in connection with the company’s organizational resizing announced in March 2015.

The decrease in research and development expenses for the three and nine month periods ending September 30, 2015, compared to the same periods in 2014, was primarily the net result of lower costs for the manufacturing of imetelstat and reduced personnel-related costs resulting from the organizational resizing, partially offset by increased costs for the development of imetelstat for hematologic myeloid malignancies in collaboration with Janssen. The company expects research and development expenses to increase during the remainder of the year as the development of imetelstat continues in collaboration with Janssen. The increase in general and administrative expenses for the three and nine month periods ending September 30, 2015, compared to the same periods in 2014, was primarily the result of higher non-cash stock-based compensation expense and increased legal costs associated with the company’s patent portfolio.

Interest and other income for the third quarter of 2015 amounted to $187,000 compared to $91,000 for the comparable 2014 period. Interest and other income for the first nine months of 2015 was $481,000 compared to $273,000 for the comparable 2014 period. The increase in interest and other income for the three and nine month periods ending September 30, 2015, compared to the same periods in 2014, primarily reflects higher yields on the company’s investment portfolio. The company has not incurred any impairment charges on its investment portfolio.

Recent Company Events

● Two papers were published in the September 3, 2015 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) with results from two clinical studies in which imetelstat was shown to have disease-modifying activity thought to be associated with the selective inhibition of the malignant progenitor cell clones responsible for the underlying disease in two hematologic myeloid malignancies, essential thrombocythemia (ET) and myelofibrosis (MF). The papers are available online at www.NEJM.org.

● In September 2015, the first patient was dosed in the IMbark study, a Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate the activity of two dose levels of imetelstat in patients with DIPSS intermediate-2 or high-risk myelofibrosis who have relapsed after or are refractory to a JAK inhibitor. Multiple medical centers across North America, Europe and Asia are planned to participate in this clinical trial. For more information about the IMbark study being conducted by Janssen, please visit View Source

● Three abstracts describing clinical and non-clinical data on imetelstat were accepted for presentation at the 57th American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting and Exposition to be held in Orlando, Florida from December 5-8, 2015. The abstracts were published on November 5, 2015 on the ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) website at www.hematology.org.