Cue Biopharma to Participate in Fireside Chat at the Citizens Life Sciences Conference

On May 5, 2025 Cue Biopharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: CUE), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a novel class of therapeutic biologics to selectively engage and modulate disease-specific T cells for the treatment of autoimmune disease and cancer, reported that it will participate in a fireside chat at the Citizens Life Sciences Conference being held in New York, May 7-8, 2025 (Press release, Cue Biopharma, MAY 5, 2025, View Source [SID1234652521]).

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During the fireside chat, Cue Biopharma will discuss progress on its programs from the Immuno-STAT platform including the CUE-100 series, CUE-401, and CUE-501, which was recently partnered with Boehringer Ingelheim for T cell mediated targeted depletion of specific B cells to address autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Citizens Life Sciences Conference
Presentation Date: Thursday, May 8, 2025
Presentation Time: 11:00 a.m. EDT – 11:25 a.m. EDT
Presenter: Daniel Passeri, Chief Executive Officer
Webcast Link: View Source

A live and archived webcast of the fireside chat will be available in the News and Publications section of the Company’s website. The webcast will be archived for 30 days.

Certara Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results

On May 5, 2025 Certara, Inc. (Nasdaq: CERT), a global leader in model-informed drug development, reported its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 (Press release, Certara, MAY 5, 2025, View Source [SID1234652504]).

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First Quarter Highlights:
Revenue was $106.0 million, compared to $96.7 million in the first quarter of 2024, representing growth of 10%.
Software revenue was $46.4 million, compared to $39.3 million in the first quarter of 2024, representing growth of 18%.
Services revenue was $59.6 million, flat compared to $57.3 million in the first quarter of 2024, representing growth of 4%.
Net income was $4.7 million, a $9.4 million increase compared to a net loss of $4.7 million in the first quarter of 2024.
Adjusted EBITDA was $34.8 million, compared to $29.1 million in the first quarter of 2024, representing growth of 20%.
"We are pleased with the first quarter’s strong performance in both core biosimulation and the regulatory services businesses," said William F. Feehery, Chief Executive Officer. "The FDA’s recently announced roadmap for reducing animal testing in preclinical studies further demonstrates the vast opportunities ahead for Biosimulation. Certara is well positioned to support the continued adoption of Biosimulation by industry to gain important insights into new therapies. We continue to work closely with our customers as they explore new approaches to make the drug development process more efficient."

"Our first quarter performance reflected strong commercial execution from our team across software and services. Despite the challenges facing our customers in the biopharma industry, we are reiterating guidance for 2025," said John Gallagher, Chief Financial Officer.

First Quarter 2025 Results
Total revenue for the first quarter of 2025 was $106.0 million, representing year-over-year growth of 10% on a reported basis and on a constant currency basis. Total revenue included $5.9 million of Chemaxon revenue. The overall increase in revenue was primarily due to growth in our biosimulation software portfolio and contribution from M&A. Please see note (1) in the section "A Note on Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below for more information on constant currency revenue.

Software revenue for the first quarter of 2025 was $46.4 million, representing year-over-year growth of 18% on a reported basis and 19% on a constant currency basis. Software growth was driven by biosimulation software and contribution from M&A.

Services revenue for the first quarter of 2025 was $59.6 million, representing year-over-year growth of 4% on a reported basis and on a constant currency basis. Services growth was driven by biosimulation services.

Total Bookings for the first quarter of 2025 were $118.2 million representing a year-over-year growth of 12% on a reported basis. Total Bookings included $4.9 million of Chemaxon bookings.

Software Bookings for the first quarter of 2025 were $40.8 million, representing a year-over-year growth of 23%. The increase in software bookings was primarily due to strength in Certara’s core biosimulation software and contribution from Chemaxon.

Services Bookings for the first quarter of 2025 were $77.4 million, representing a year-over-year growth of 7%. The increase in services bookings was driven by demand for biosimulation and regulatory services.

Total cost of revenue for the first quarter of 2025 was $41.5 million, an increase of $2.3 million from $39.3 million in the first quarter of 2024, primarily due to an increase in software amortization expense.

Total operating expenses for the first quarter of 2025 were $56.9 million, which decreased by $1.8 million from $58.7 million in the first quarter of 2024. Lower operating expenses were primarily due to a $3.1 million decrease in the change in fair value of a contingent consideration, which was offset by higher sales and marketing expense and intangible asset amortization.

Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2025 was $34.8 million compared to $29.1 million for the first quarter of 2024, an increase of $5.7 million. See note (2) in the section A Note on Non-GAAP Financial Measures below for more information on adjusted EBITDA.

Diluted earnings per share for the first quarter of 2025 was $0.03, as compared to a diluted loss per share of $0.03 in the first quarter of 2024.

Net income for the first quarter of 2025 was $4.7 million, compared to a net loss of $4.7 million in the first quarter of 2024. The $9.4 million increase was primarily due to an increase in gross profit and lower operating expenses.

Adjusted net income for the first quarter of 2025 was $22.2 million compared to $16.5 million for the first quarter of 2024, an increase of $5.7 million. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the first quarter 2025 was $0.14 compared to $0.10 for the first quarter of 2024. See note (3) in the section A Note on Non-GAAP Financial Measures below for more information on adjusted net income and adjusted diluted earnings per share.

2025 Financial Outlook
Certara is reiterating its guidance for the full year 2025:

Full year 2025 revenue to be in the range of $415 million to $425 million.
Full year adjusted EBITDA margin to be in the range of 30-32%.
Full year adjusted diluted earnings per share is expected to be in the range of $0.42 – $0.46.
Fully diluted shares are expected to be in the range of 162 million to 164 million.
Please note that the Company has not reconciled adjusted EBITDA (including its related margin) or adjusted diluted earnings per share forward-looking guidance included in this press release to the most directly comparable GAAP measures because this cannot be done without unreasonable effort due to the variability and low visibility with respect to costs related to acquisitions, financings, and employee stock compensation programs, which are potential adjustments to future earnings. We expect the variability of these items to have a potentially unpredictable, and a potentially significant, impact on our future GAAP financial results.

Webcast and Conference Call Details
Certara will host a conference call today, May 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. ET to discuss its first quarter 2025 financial results. Investors interested in listening to the conference call are required to register online in advance of the call. A live and archived webcast of the event will be available on the "Investors" section of the Certara website at View Source

Immutep’s Efti in Combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) Drives Strong Overall Survival in Head and Neck Cancer with CPS <1

On May 5, 2025 Immutep Limited (ASX: IMM; NASDAQ: IMMP) ("Immutep" or "the Company"), a late-stage immunotherapy company targeting cancer and autoimmune diseases, reported an excellent median Overall Survival (OS) of 17.6 months has been achieved in Cohort B of the TACTI-003 (KEYNOTE-C34) Phase IIb trial (Press release, Immutep, MAY 5, 2025, View Source [SID1234652522]). This part of the Phase II study evaluates eftilagimod alfa (efti) in combination with MSD’s (Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) anti-PD-1 therapy KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab) as first line therapy in recurrent/metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (1L HNSCC) patients with PD-L1 expression below 1 (Combined Positive Score [CPS] <1).

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The mature 17.6-months median OS in evaluable patients (N=31) with a data cut-off of 31 March 2025 compares favourably to historical results from the two current standard-of-care approaches for 1L HNSCC patients with CPS <1 including 10.7-months from cetuximab + chemotherapy and 11.3-months from anti-PD-1 therapy + chemotherapy, as well as 7.9-months from anti-PD-1 monotherapy.1,2

Patients with CPS <1 in 1L HNSCC represent a treatment population with high unmet medical need. Up to 20% of 1L HNSCC patients have CPS <1 and despite immunotherapy’s progress in fighting cancer, anti-PD-1 therapy alone (without chemotherapy) is only approved for patients who express PD-L1 (CPS >1). Additionally, all available treatment options for patients with PD-L1 CPS <1 include chemotherapy.

Importantly, efti in combination with pembrolizumab continues to be well-tolerated with no new safety signals. This safety and mature OS data build on the encouraging high overall response rate with multiple complete responses achieved through combining these powerful immunotherapies in 1L HNSCC patients with CPS <1.3

"We are excited to see this strong survival benefit for head and neck cancer patients with such cold tumors. Combining these two complementary immunotherapies has led to a 7-fold increase in response rates and a more than doubling of median overall survival as compared to historical results from anti-PD-1 monotherapy. Driving durable responses that translate into clinically meaningful survival holds tremendous promise for these patients in need of more tolerable and efficacious therapies," said Marc Voigt, CEO of Immutep.

"There is a high unmet need in 1L HNSCC patients with cold tumors and PD-L1 CPS <1, due to the lack of an approved immunotherapy-only treatment regimen and a lack of competitor trials with chemotherapy-free approaches targeting this patient population. Given the strength of the efficacy and safety results generated to date with efti in combination with pembrolizumab, we will meet with regulators to discuss next steps and potential paths to approval," added Mr. Voigt.

Next Steps
Efti has Fast Track designation in 1L HNSCC and Immutep has requested a meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to discuss next steps including potential paths to approval for 1L HNSCC with PD-L1 CPS <1. Patient follow up, data collection, cleaning and analysis continue for TACTI-003, and the Company plans to provide a further update later this year.

About Eftilagimod Alfa (efti)
Efti is Immutep’s proprietary soluble LAG-3 protein and MHC Class II agonist that stimulates both innate and adaptive immunity for the treatment of cancer. As a first-in-class antigen presenting cell (APC) activator, efti binds to MHC (major histocompatibility complex) Class II molecules on APC leading to activation and proliferation of CD8+ cytotoxic T cells, CD4+ helper T cells, dendritic cells, NK cells, and monocytes. It also upregulates the expression of key biological molecules like IFN-ƴ and CXCL10 that further boost the immune system’s ability to fight cancer.

Efti is under evaluation for a variety of solid tumours including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), and metastatic breast cancer. Its favourable safety profile enables various combinations, including with anti-PD-[L]1 immunotherapy and/or chemotherapy. Efti has received Fast Track designation in first line HNSCC and in first line NSCLC from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Halozyme to Participate in the BofA Securities 2025 Healthcare Conference

On May 5, 2025 Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: HALO) ("Halozyme") reported that Dr. Helen Torley, president and chief executive officer, will present and host investor meetings at the BofA Securities 2025 Healthcare Conference (Press release, Halozyme, MAY 5, 2025, View Source [SID1234652523]).

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The presentation is scheduled for Tuesday, May 13 at 4:20pm PT / 7:20pm ET.

A live audio webcast will be available on the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website. Replays of the audio webcasts will be available for 90 days following the conference.

CORCEPT THERAPEUTICS ANNOUNCES FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL RESULTS AND PROVIDES CORPORATE UPDATE

On May 5, 2025 Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (NASDAQ: CORT), a commercial-stage company engaged in the discovery and development of medications to treat serious endocrinologic, oncologic, metabolic and neurologic disorders by modulating the effects of the hormone cortisol, reported its results for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 (Press release, Corcept Therapeutics, MAY 5, 2025, https://ir.corcept.com/news-releases/news-release-details/corcept-therapeutics-announces-first-quarter-financial-results-2 [SID1234652506]).

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Financial Results

"In the first quarter, we had another record number of prescriptions from new and existing prescribers, broadly distributed throughout the country. Growing physician awareness of hypercortisolism has resulted in increased screening and treatment of patients with this devastating disease. Our specialty pharmacy vendor began the quarter unable to fulfill this surge in demand, which negatively affected our first quarter financial results. Pharmacy operations improved substantially in March and April, with each month setting a record for tablets dispensed. We are reiterating our 2025 revenue guidance of $900 – $950 million," said Joseph K. Belanoff, M.D., Corcept’s Chief Executive Officer.

Corcept’s first quarter 2025 revenue was $157.2 million, compared to $146.8 million in the first quarter of 2024. First quarter 2025 operating expenses were $153.8 million, compared to $117.3 million in the same period last year. Net income was $20.5 million in the first quarter of 2025, compared to $27.8 million in the first quarter of 2024.

Cash and investments were $570.8 million at March 31, 2025, compared to $603.2 million at December 31, 2024. The balance at March 31, 2025 reflects the acquisition of $43.3 million of common stock in the first quarter pursuant to the company’s stock repurchase program, net exercise of employee stock options and net vesting of restricted stock grants.

Clinical Development

"Our New Drug Application (NDA) for relacorilant in hypercortisolism is progressing towards approval by the end of this year. We will submit our NDA next quarter for relacorilant in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. We expect that relacorilant will have a role in helping treat earlier stages of ovarian cancer and other tumors that express the glucocorticoid receptor and have already begun our next clinical trial, BELLA. Meanwhile, we are making progress in understanding the role of cortisol modulation to treat a broad range of other serious disorders, including ALS and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (MASH)," added Dr. Belanoff.

Hypercortisolism (Cushing’s Syndrome)

Relacorilant for patients with hypercortisolism – U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted NDA for filing; Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of December 30, 2025
GRACE – Pivotal Phase 3 trial of relacorilant in 152 patients with all etiologies of hypercortisolism – Results presented at Endocrine Society (ENDO) annual meeting and Heart in Diabetes (HiD) conference in June 2024
GRADIENT – Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 3 trial of relacorilant in 137 patients with hypercortisolism caused by adrenal gland pathology – Results will be presented at American Association of Clinical Endocrinology (AACE) annual meeting in May 2025
Phase 3 long-term extension study of 116 patients who completed the GRACE, GRADIENT or Phase 2 relacorilant studies – Results presented at World Congress on Insulin Resistance, Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease (WCIRDC) in December 2024
CATALYST Part 1 – Prevalence of hypercortisolism in patients with difficult-to-control type 2 diabetes – Results published in Diabetes Care in April 2025
CATALYST Part 2 – Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of Korlym in 136 patients with hypercortisolism – Results to be presented at the American Diabetes Association’s 85th Scientific Sessions (ADA) in June 2025
MOMENTUM – Enrollment continues in 1,000-patient trial examining the prevalence of hypercortisolism in patients with resistant hypertension – Results expected by year-end
"The positive results from our pivotal GRACE, GRADIENT, long-term extension and Phase 2 studies provide powerful support for the NDA for relacorilant in hypercortisolism. Patients in these studies experienced clinically significant improvements in a wide array of the signs and symptoms of hypercortisolism, without the off-target effects and toxicities that accompany currently available treatments. Relacorilant has the potential to become the new standard of care for patients with hypercortisolism," said Bill Guyer, PharmD, Corcept’s Chief Development Officer.

"CATALYST is a landmark study that will change the way physicians treat some of their sickest patients. Its findings are striking: One in four patients whose diabetes resists treatment with the best available medications have hypercortisolism; hyperglycemia in these patients responds powerfully to treatment with a cortisol modulator. We reached an important milestone with the publication of CATALYST’s prevalence phase results in Diabetes Care and look forward to presenting the full results of the study’s treatment phase at ADA next month," added Dr. Guyer. "Building on the insights from CATALYST, our MOMENTUM study will deepen physicians’ understanding of hypercortisolism as a cause of resistant hypertension."

Oncology

Relacorilant for patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer – NDA submission expected in the third quarter with submission of Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) in Europe shortly thereafter
ROSELLA – Primary endpoint of improved progression-free survival (PFS) met in pivotal Phase 3 trial of relacorilant plus nab-paclitaxel in 381 patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer (hazard ratio: 0.70; p-value: 0.008; median PFS of 6.5 versus 5.5 months); interim evaluation of overall survival (OS) (hazard ratio: 0.69; p-value: 0.01; median OS of 16.0 versus 11.5 months), with no increase in side effect burden – Results to be presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) annual meeting in June 2025
BELLA – Enrollment underway in Phase 2 trial of relacorilant plus nab-paclitaxel and bevacizumab in 90 patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer
Early-stage prostate cancer – Enrollment continues in randomized, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 trial of relacorilant plus enzalutamide in patients with early-stage prostate cancer, conducted in collaboration with the University of Chicago
"The ROSELLA results are an important advance for patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, a disease with few treatment options. The PFS and OS improvements demonstrated in ROSELLA, with no increase in safety burden, bring us closer to delivering a new standard of care for these patients. We look forward to presenting the full results from ROSELLA in a late-breaker session at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) and submitting our NDA next quarter," said Dr. Guyer. "We are building on the findings from ROSELLA with our BELLA study, which will examine whether combining relacorilant with two medications – nab-paclitaxel and bevacizumab – will offer patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer another potent treatment option."

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

DAZALS – In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 study in 249 patients with ALS, dazucorilant did not meet the primary endpoint of improvement in the ALS Functional Rating Scale-Revised (ALSFRS-R)
DAZALS – An exploratory analysis at the one-year mark shows that patients who received 300 mg of dazucorilant at baseline demonstrate significantly improved overall survival, compared to patients who received placebo and did not switch to dazucorilant in the long-term extension study (hazard ratio of 0.16, p-value: 0.0009)
DAZALS – Results to be presented at European Network to Cure ALS (ENCALS) annual meeting in June 2025
"ALS is a devastating disease. Patients who received dazucorilant did not show improvement in the ALS Functional Rating Scale-Revised (ALSFRS-R), which was DAZALS’ primary endpoint. An improvement in overall survival, first seen at the six-month mark, was also observed at year one of the study. An exploratory analysis determined that patients who received 300 mg of dazucorilant at the start of the study lived significantly longer than patients who received placebo and did not switch to dazucorilant in the long-term extension study, with a hazard ratio of 0.16 (p-value: 0.0009). This long-term extension study is on-going. We will immediately seek input from U.S. and European regulatory authorities on the next steps with dazucorilant," said Dr. Guyer.

Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (MASH)

MONARCH – Enrollment continues in randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 2b trial of miricorilant in patients with biopsy-confirmed or presumed MASH
"In our Phase 1b study, miricorilant reduced liver fat very rapidly, improved liver health and key metabolic and lipid measures and was well-tolerated. We look forward to building on these promising results in our MONARCH study. First results are expected by the end of next year," said Dr. Guyer.

Conference Call

We will hold a conference call on May 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (2:00 p.m. Pacific Time). Participants must register in advance of the conference call by clicking here. Upon registering, each participant will receive a dial-in number and a unique access PIN. Each access PIN will accommodate one caller. A listen-only webcast will be available by clicking here. A replay of the call will be available on the Investors / Events tab of Corcept.com.