On August 7, 2019 Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALLO), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of allogeneic CAR T (AlloCAR T) therapies for cancer, reported financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2019 (Press release, Allogene, AUG 7, 2019, View Source [SID1234538313]).
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"The second quarter was an important one on many fronts, from advancing our pipeline with the clearance of our second investigational new drug application, to designing our state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and the continued onboarding of highly-skilled employees who are passionate about bringing allogeneic cell therapy to patients," said David Chang, M.D., Ph.D., President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Allogene. "Our teams are focused on advancing our allogeneic platform, which includes our first company-sponsored clinical trial with ALLO-501 for patients with relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma. We are pleased with how this dose escalation study is progressing, which includes the use of our selective lymphodepletion strategy anchored around our proprietary anti-CD52 antibody, ALLO-647."
Recent Highlights
ALLO-501 (anti-CD19 AlloCAR T)
The ALLO-501 Phase 1 portion of the ALPHA trial for patients with relapsed/refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) was initiated in Q2 2019. The trial is designed to assess the safety and tolerability at increasing dose levels of ALLO-501 in the most common NHL subtypes of relapsed/refractory large B-cell lymphoma, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and follicular lymphoma (FL). Five sites with expertise in CAR T are open for enrollment. The company remains on track to release topline data from the ongoing Phase 1 ALPHA trial in the first half of 2020.
The Company continues to progress the planned second generation of ALLO-501, which is devoid of the rituximab off-switch, through preclinical development and plans to introduce this next generation prior to the start of the Phase 2 registrational study.
ALLO-715 (anti-BCMA AlloCAR T)
An Investigational New Drug (IND) application for ALLO-715, a wholly-owned CAR T product candidate targeting B cell maturation antigen (BCMA) for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, was cleared by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in May 2019. The Company remains on track to initiate a Phase 1 trial in the second half of 2019.
The Phase 1 ALLO-715 UNIVERSAL trial is designed to assess the safety and tolerability at increasing dose levels of ALLO-715 to identify an optimal dose of ALLO-715 for the potential Phase 2 study. This trial will utilize ALLO-647, the Company’s proprietary anti-CD52 monoclonal antibody, as a part of the lymphodepletion regimen. The trial also includes the potential for exploratory cohorts that will allow study of additional lymphodepletion regimens, including one that only uses ALLO-647 without fludarabine and cyclophosphamide.
Additional Pipeline Updates
UCART19 (Servier-Sponsored Program in Collaboration with Allogene) – Servier has re-initiated recruitment for the CALM and PALL trials in relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia. UCART19 is expected to be advanced to potential registrational trials in 2020.
Corporate Highlights
The Company recently announced the appointment of Rafael G. Amado, M.D. as Executive Vice President of Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer. In this new position, Dr. Amado will lead the Company’s clinical and research functions with the goal of rapidly advancing our pipeline of allogeneic CAR T therapies for hematologic and solid tumors. This appointment reunites Dr. Amado with many former colleagues, including David Chang, M.D., Ph.D., President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder.
Second Quarter Financial Results
As of June 30, 2019, Allogene had $650.2 million in cash, cash equivalents, and investments, compared to $721.4 million as of December 31, 2018.
Research and development expenses were $31.8 million for the second quarter of 2019, which includes $4.7 million of non-cash stock-based compensation expense, compared to $122.5 million for the second quarter of 2018. The second quarter of 2018 included a non-cash charge of $109.4 million related to in process research and development acquired as a result of the Pfizer asset acquisition.
General and administrative expenses were $14.2 million for the second quarter of 2019, which includes $6.7 million of on-cash stock-based compensation expense, compared to $12.5 million for the second quarter of 2018.
Net loss for the second quarter of 2019 was $41.2 million, or $0.41 per share, including non-cash stock-based compensation expense of $11.5 million, compared to a net loss of $134.9 million, or $43.82 per share for the second quarter of 2018.
The Company continues to expect full-year 2019 net losses to be between $200 million and $210 million dollars, including estimated non-cash stock-based compensation expense of $45 million to $50 million and excluding any impact from potential business development activities.
Conference Call and Webcast Details
Allogene will host a live conference call and webcast today at 5:30 AM Pacific Time/8:30 AM Eastern Time to discuss financial results and provide a business update. To access the live conference call by telephone, please dial 1 (866) 940-5062 (U.S.) or 1 (409) 216-0618 (International). The conference ID number for the live call is 4851687. The webcast will be made available on the Company’s website at www.allogene.com under the Investors tab in the News and Events section. Following the live audio webcast, a replay will be available on the Company’s website for approximately 30 days.