On November 9, 2017 Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) reported financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017, and provided an operating forecast and program updates (Press release, Ligand, NOV 9, 2017, View Source [SID1234521879]).

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"Ligand’s diversified business is performing well on all levels. In the third quarter, we posted strong financial results driven by royalties and significant contribution from Captisol. Of note, for the first nine months of 2017, royalties are more than 50% higher than those of the same period last year. This past quarter, we entered three new licensing deals and saw substantial news flow from our corporate partners as many pipeline programs advanced. We announced positive results for a major phase 2 trial for our diabetes drug candidate and are in discussions with partners for potential licensing," said John Higgins, Chief Executive Officer of Ligand. "Just after the quarter ended, we closed our acquisition of Crystal Bioscience providing a highly-complementary antibody technology to our OmniAb antibody drug discovery business. We now have three species for fully-humanized antibody discovery, four proprietary technology platforms driving licensing and more than 160 fully-funded Shots on Goal."

Ligand management will discuss third quarter financial and operational results during the Company’s upcoming Analyst Day presentation, which will take place next Tuesday, November 14 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Eastern time (1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Pacific time) in New York City. The event will be webcast live and can be accessed at www.ligand.com. As such, Ligand will not be hosting an earnings conference call this quarter.

Third Quarter 2017 Financial Results

Total revenues for the third quarter of 2017 were $33.4 million, compared with $21.6 million for the same period in 2016. Royalties were $21.9 million, compared with $15.7 million for the same period in 2016, an increase of 40%, primarily due to higher royalties from Promacta, Kyprolis and EVOMELA. Material sales were $7.7 million, compared with $4.2 million for the same period in 2016 due to the timing of Captisol purchases for use in clinical trials and commercial products. License fees, milestones and other revenues were $3.8 million, compared with $1.7 million for the same period in 2016.

Cost of goods sold was $2.4 million for the third quarter of 2017, compared with $1.0 million for the same period in 2016. Amortization of intangibles was $2.7 million in both periods. Research and development expense was $4.8 million, compared with $5.9 million for the same period of 2016. General and administrative expense was $7.0 million, compared with $6.6 million for the same period in 2016.

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Net income for the third quarter of 2017 was $8.4 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, compared with $1.1 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, for the same period in 2016. Adjusted net income for the third quarter of 2017 was $15.3 million, or $0.69 per diluted share, compared with $9.6 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, for the same period in 2016.

As of September 30, 2017, Ligand had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $202.3 million, or approximately $175 million after deducting the upfront cash paid in the recent acquisition of Crystal Bioscience. Cash generated from operations was $27.7 million for the 2017 third quarter.

Year-to-Date Financial Results

Total revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 were $90.6 million, compared with $70.8 million for the same period in 2016. Royalties were $60.4 million, compared with $39.8 million for the same period in 2016, an increase of 52%, primarily due to higher royalties from Promacta, Kyprolis and EVOMELA. Material sales were $14.3 million, compared with $13.4 million for the same period in 2016 due to the timing of Captisol purchases for use in clinical trials and commercial products. License fees, milestones and other revenues were $15.9 million, compared with $17.5 million for the same period in 2016, due primarily to the timing of milestones and license fees earned.

Cost of goods sold was $3.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, compared with $2.7 million for the same period in 2016 due to the timing and mix of Captisol sales. Amortization of intangibles was $8.1 million, compared with $7.9 million for the same period in 2016. Research and development expense was $18.3 million, compared with $14.8 million for the same period of 2016 due to enrollment costs of our Phase 2 GRA trial and non-cash stock-based compensation expense. General and administrative expense was $20.9 million in both periods.

Net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was $19.6 million, or $0.84 per diluted share, compared with $1.5 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, for the same period in 2016. Adjusted net income for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was $42.9 million, or $1.94 per diluted share, compared with $30.6 million, or $1.41 per diluted share, for the same period in 2016.

2017 Financial Forecast

Ligand updates guidance for 2017 revenue to be between $134 and $136 million. Adjusted earnings per diluted share is now expected to be between $2.95 and $3.00. Previous guidance was for revenue to be at least $134 million plus up to an additional $9 million in contract payments. Ligand previously noted that with $134 million of revenue, adjusted earnings per share would be $2.93.

Recent Acquisition

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In October 2017, Ligand acquired Crystal Bioscience and its OmniChicken antibody discovery technology for $25 million cash at closing, up to $10.5 million of success-based milestones and revenue sharing from existing licensees for a defined period. The acquisition initially added four Shots on Goal to Ligand’s portfolio, and the OmniChicken technology may be utilized by multiple current OmniAb partners as they seek to develop antibodies for difficult-to-address epitopes.

Third Quarter 2017 and Recent Business Highlights

Promacta/Revolade

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Novartis reported third quarter 2017 net sales of Promacta/Revolade (eltrombopag) of $227 million, a $59 million or 35% increase over the same period in 2016.
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Novartis announced long-term study results supporting the positive safety and efficacy of Revolade (eltrombopag) in adults with chronic/persistent (6 or more months from diagnosis) immune (idiopathic) thrombocytopenia (ITP) were published online in Blood. The EXTEND study found that a majority of patients maintained a substantial clinical response and many no longer needed concomitant ITP medications.

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Novartis highlighted the product in abstracts for the upcoming 59th American Society of Hematology (ASH) (Free ASH Whitepaper) annual meeting

Kyprolis (carfilzomib), an Amgen Product Utilizing Captisol

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On October 25, 2017, Amgen reported third quarter net sales of Kyprolis of $207 million, a $24 million or 13% increase over the same period in 2016. On November 6, 2017, Ono Pharmaceutical Company reported Kyprolis sales in Japan of approximately $13.1 million for the most recent quarter.
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On October 23, 2017, Amgen announced top-line results of the Phase 3 ARROW trial, which showed Kyprolis administered once-weekly at the 70 mg/m2 dose with dexamethasone allowed relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma patients to live 3.6 months longer without their disease worsening than Kyprolis administered twice-weekly at the 27 mg/m2 dose with dexamethasone.
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On August 30, 2017, Amgen announced that the FDA accepted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) based on the overall survival (OS) data from the Phase 3 ENDEAVOR trial demonstrating that Kyprolis and dexamethasone (Kd) reduced the risk of death by 21% and increased OS by 7.6 months versus Velcade (bortezomib) and dexamethasone (Vd) in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma. The FDA has set an action date of April 30, 2018.
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On July 12, 2017, Amgen announced positive results from final analysis of the Phase 3 ASPIRE trial, showing the study met the key secondary endpoint of OS, demonstrating that Kyprolis, lenalidomide and dexamethasone (KRd) reduced the risk of death by 21% over lenalidomide and dexamethasone alone.

Additional Pipeline and Partner Developments

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Sage Therapeutics announced positive top-line results from two Phase 3 trials of brexanolone in severe postpartum depression (PPD) and in moderate PPD. Sage plans to file a New Drug Application (NDA) with the FDA in 2018.
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Spectrum Pharmaceuticals reported third quarter 2017 net sales of EVOMELA of $10.5 million.
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CASI Pharmaceuticals announced that China’s Food and Drug Administration granted priority review for CASI’s import drug registration clinical trial application for EVOMELA.
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Melinta Therapeutics announced a merger with NASDAQ-listed Cempra, Inc. to form a company focused on developing and commercializing important anti-infective therapies including recently-approved Baxdela.
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Melinta Therapeutics announced that its commercialization and distribution agreement with Eurofarma Laboratórios for delafloxacin (Baxdela in the U.S.) had been expanded to include 19 countries in South America, Central America and the Caribbean.
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Zydus Cadila announced that it received approval to market its bevacizumab biosimilar in India and subsequently launched the drug, which is marketed as Bryxta.
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Exelixis announced that Daiichi Sankyo reported positive top-line results from a Phase 3 pivotal trial of esaxerenone in patients with essential hypertension in Japan and that a Japanese regulatory application is expected to be submitted in the first quarter of 2018.
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Retrophin announced that it presented new data from the open-label extension portion of the Phase 2 DUET study of sparsentan for the treatment of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) at the American Society of Nephrology Kidney Week 2017.
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Aldeyra Therapeutics announced positive results from a Phase 2a clinical trial of topical ocular ADX-102 in patients with dry eye disease.
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Aldeyra Therapeutics announced it will present data from its Phase 2 clinical trial in noninfectious anterior uveitis at the American Uveitis Society Fall Meeting.
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Viking Therapeutics announced enrollment completion in the ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial of VK5211 in patients who recently suffered a hip fracture.
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Viking Therapeutics announced results of gene expression analysis from its in vivo study of VK2809 in Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) and presented data at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.
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Viking Therapeutics announced presentation of data from an in vivo proof-of-concept study of VK2809 in Glycogen Storage Disease Ia at the 13th International Congress of Inborn Errors of Metabolism.

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Viking Therapeutics announced positive top-line results from a 25-week proof-of-concept study of VK0214 in an in vivo model of X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) and presented data at the 87th Annual Meeting of the American Thyroid Association.
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Sermonix Pharmaceuticals announced completion of a financing round to fund a Phase 2 clinical trial of lasofoxifene in Estrogen Receptor Positive (ER+) Metastatic Breast Cancer.
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Opthea announced further positive results from its Phase 1/2a clinical trial of OPT-302 for wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD).
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CStone Pharmaceuticals announced that it received Clinical Trial Application approval from the China Food and Drug Administration to conduct clinical trials in China with CS1001, an OmniAb-derived full-length anti-PDL1 monoclonal antibody.
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Aptevo Therapeutics announced that it had presented new preclinical data on OmniAb-derived APVO436 at the World Bispecific Summit and also at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper)-NCI-EORTC Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics 2017 annual meeting.
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HanAll Biopharma, an OmniAb partner, announced entering into a strategic collaboration with Harbour BioMed to develop novel biologic therapies in greater China.
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ARMO BioSciences, an OmniAb partner, announced a $67 million Series C-1 financing to fund their immunotherapy pipeline.
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Immunoprecise Antibodies, an OmniAb Contract Research Organization (CRO), announced recent success in conducting OmniAb antibody-generation projects for Aptevo Therapeutics and Tizona Therapeutics.
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A paper was published by Ligand scientists in the journal MAbs, entitled "Chickens with humanized immunoglobulin genes generate antibodies with high affinity and broad epitope coverage to conserved targets", highlighting the use of OmniChicken in antibody drug discovery.

Internal Glucagon Receptor Antagonist (GRA) Program

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In September 2017, Ligand presented positive top-line results from its Phase 2 clinical study evaluating the efficacy and safety of LGD-6972, as an adjunct to diet and exercise, in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) inadequately controlled on metformin monotherapy. The study achieved statistical significance (p < 0.0001) in the primary endpoint of change from baseline in hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) after 12 weeks of treatment at all doses tested, demonstrating a robust, dose-dependent reduction in HbA1c of 0.90%, 0.92% and 1.20% with 5 mg, 10 mg and 15 mg of LGD-6972, respectively, compared to a 0.15% reduction with placebo. LGD-6972 was safe and well tolerated, with no drug-related serious adverse events and no dose-dependent changes in lipids (including total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and triglycerides), body weight or blood pressure after 12 weeks of treatment.

New Licensing Deals

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Ligand announced receipt of a $2 million payment from WuXi Biologics subsequent to their licensing of exclusive rights to the anti-PD-1 antibody GLS-010 to Arcus Biosciences in North America, Europe, Japan and certain other territories. Ligand is also entitled to future milestones and royalties from this antibody.
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Ligand announced a commercial license and supply agreement with Amgen granting rights to use Captisol in the formulation of AMG 330, an anti-CD33 x anti-CD3 (BiTE) bispecific antibody construct. Ligand is eligible to receive milestone payments, royalties and revenue from Captisol material sales related to AMG 330.
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Ligand entered into Captisol Clinical Use Agreements with both Syros Pharmaceuticals and Vaxxas Inc.

Adjusted Financial Measures

The Company reports adjusted net income and adjusted net income per diluted share, in addition to, and not as a substitute for, or superior to, financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. The Company’s financial measures under GAAP include stock-based compensation expense, amortization of debt-related costs, amortization related to acquisitions, changes in contingent liabilities, net losses of Viking Therapeutics, mark-to-market adjustment for amounts owed to licensors, fair value adjustments to Viking Therapeutics convertible note receivable and warrants, unissued shares relating to the Senior Convertible Note and others that are listed in the itemized reconciliations between GAAP and adjusted financial measures included in this press release. However, other than with respect to total revenue, the Company only provides guidance on an adjusted basis and does not provide reconciliations of such forward-looking adjusted measures to GAAP due to the inherent difficulty in forecasting and quantifying certain amounts that are necessary for such reconciliation, including adjustments that could be made for changes in contingent liabilities, net losses of Viking Therapeutics, stock based compensation expenses, mark-to-market adjustments for amounts owed to licensors, effects of any discrete income tax items and fair value adjustments to Viking Therapeutics convertible note receivable. Management has excluded the effects of these items in its adjusted measures to assist investors in analyzing and assessing the Company’s past and future core operating performance. Additionally, adjusted earnings per diluted share is a key component of the financial metrics utilized by the Company’s board of directors to measure, in part, management’s performance and determine significant elements of management’s compensation.

On November 9, 2017 Prima BioMed Ltd (ASX: PRR; NASDAQ: PBMD) ("Prima") reported the presentation of new data from its TACTI-mel Phase I clinical trial in Australia investigating the use of eftilagimod alpha (LAG-3Ig or IMP321), the Company’s lead product candidate, in combination with pembrolizumab (KEYTRUDA) in unresectable or metastatic melanoma patients (Press release, Prima Biomed, NOV 9, 2017, View Source [SID1234521897]).

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The data will be presented in the poster titled "Pushing the accelerator and releasing the brake: testing the soluble LAG-3 protein (IMP321), an antigen presenting cell activator, together with pembrolizumab in unresectable or metastatic melanoma" (Poster Number P259) for the first time at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) (Free SITC Whitepaper) 2017 Annual Meeting, to be held on November 10-12, 2017 at the Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. Eftilagimod alpha, which is a soluble LAG-3Ig fusion protein, is an APC activator boosting T cell responses.

"The data to be presented at the SITC (Free SITC Whitepaper) meeting is very encouraging and demonstrates that anti-tumor activity was observed in patients following the administration of eftilagimod alpha in combination with pembrolizumab. Furthermore, it is important to note that prior to coming into this study, these patients were treated with pembrolizumab monotherapy and did not achieve a meaningful therapeutic benefit from this treatment," stated Dr. Frédéric Triebel, Prima’s Chief Scientific Officer and Medical Officer.
The patients eligible to participate in the TACTI-mel Phase 1 clinical trial are those that have either had a suboptimal response or had disease progression with KEYTRUDA monotherapy as a first-line of treatment. 12 patients from the first two cohorts of the trial were treated with 1 and 6mg doses of eftilagimod alpha respectively. The third cohort of patients, being treated with 30 mg doses, is ongoing.

Dr. Frédéric Triebel further commented, "The data also supports the hypothesis that there is a therapeutic synergy when administering an APC activator, which enhances anti-tumor T cell production, in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor, which releases the brake on the T cells."

The presentation at the SITC (Free SITC Whitepaper) conference includes the following results:

• Combination of eftilagimod alpha (1 and 6 mg) and pembrolizumab in advanced metastatic melanoma patients is safe and well tolerated;
• Anti-tumor activity (tumor reduction) was observed in 7/12 patients (58 %) in this study; prior to the study all of these patients either had a suboptimal response or had disease progression when treated with the pembrolizumab monotherapy;

• Data presented supports the hypothesis that combining an APC activator (IMP321) with a checkpoint inhibitor (pembrolizumab) results in a therapeutic synergy and a potential clinical benefit over a checkpoint inhibitor monotherapy;

• Data presented supports further investigation of IMP321 in combination with PD-1/ PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitors in different tumor types.

Marc Voigt, Prima’s Chief Executive Officer, added, "We believe the positive data, taken together with the excellent safety profile of eftilagimod alpha and data from our ongoing clinical trial in metastatic breast cancer, further validate the therapeutic utility of modulating the LAG-3 immune control mechanism. We are very pleased with the clinical progress of eftilagimod alpha and look forward to presenting additional data from the TACTI-mel clinical trial and exploring the potential therapeutic benefit of combining it with other checkpoint inhibitors in other solid tumors."
A copy of this SITC (Free SITC Whitepaper) poster presentation is available on Prima’s website in the Presentations section of the Investors tab at View Source

Bio-Path Holdings has filed a 10-Q – Quarterly report [Sections 13 or 15(d)] with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Filing, 10-Q, Bio-Path Holdings, 2017, NOV 9, 2017, View Source [SID1234521842]).

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Sophiris Bio has filed a 10-Q – Quarterly report [Sections 13 or 15(d)] with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Filing, 10-Q, Sophiris Bio, 2017, NOV 9, 2017, View Source [SID1234521888]).

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On November 9, 2017 ArQule, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQL) reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2017 (Press release, ArQule, NOV 9, 2017, View Source [SID1234521854]).

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For the quarter ended September 30, 2017, the Company reported a net loss of $6,666,000 or $0.09 per share, compared with a net loss of $5,817,000 or $0.08 per share, for the third quarter of 2016. For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2017, the Company reported a net loss of $21,443,000 or $0.30 per share, compared with a net loss of $15,898,000 or $0.23 per share, for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2016.

At September 30, 2017, the Company had a total of approximately $27,603,000 in cash, equivalents and marketable securities. In October and November 2017, the Company raised approximately $25 million in net proceeds from two equity offerings.

Key Highlights

· Miransertib (ARQ 092), lead AKT inhibitor, has met its primary endpoint of determining a biologically active dose in a phase 1 trial for Proteus syndrome lead by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH presented preliminary data from the ongoing phase 1 clinical trial for Proteus syndrome at the Proteus Syndrome Foundation Family Conference in September 2017. In five of the six patients, a reduction of a least 50% of phospho-AKT levels was reported. This met the primary objective of the study. Most significantly the NIH observed disease modification in the cerebriform connective tissue nevus (CCTN) lesions which are considered one of the hallmarks of the disease.

· Miransertib was granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Rare Pediatric Disease Designation. Under the FDA’s rare pediatric disease priority review voucher program, the sponsor may be eligible for a voucher that can be used to obtain a priority review for a subsequent human drug application.

· Miransertib continues to dose in the phase 1/2 trial for Overgrowth Diseases driven by PI3K and AKT mutations and opened its first U.S. clinical trial site. This trial is part of the company’s continued progress towards expanding its rare disease strategy in Overgrowth Diseases.

· ARQ 531, an orally bioavailable, potent and reversible BTK inhibitor, continues dosing as planned in a phase 1a/b trial. The trial is enrolling patients with B-cell malignancies, including B-cell lymphomas, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia, who are refractory to other therapeutic options, including ibrutinib. Up to 120 patients can be enrolled in the trial.

· Derazantinib (ARQ 087), a pan-FGFR inhibitor, in a registrational trial in FGFR2 fusion positive second-line intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) is recruiting with six active sites in the U.S. The trial is planned to enroll up to 100 iCCA patients and provides an opportunity for a conditional approval as part of a fast-to-market strategy and includes an interim analysis that will be performed after the first 40 patients have been enrolled and evaluated for response.

· Company raised approximately $29 million in capital through a private placement of $15.7 million of common stock, a private placement of $9.5 million of convertible preferred stock and an additional $4 million through unrelated business development activities and other sources. Net proceeds will be used to advance ArQule’s proprietary pipeline and for general business purposes, including working capital.

"The ArQule clinical pipeline is the strongest it has ever been, and the most recent positive developments are the compelling clinical data in Proteus syndrome and the granting of Rare Pediatric Disease Designation for miransertib in this indication," said Paolo Pucci, Chief Executive Officer of ArQule. "We are now well capitalized to see our pipeline assets through major inflection points."

"Based on the preliminary results from the phase 1 NIH-sponsored Proteus syndrome trial, miransertib is the first drug to demonstrate activity and achieve clinical proof of concept in this indication," said Dr. Brian Schwartz, M.D., Head of Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer at ArQule. "We are thankful to the NIH for their work in identifying the mutation driving the disease, conducting the first clinical trial and ultimately identifying potential clinical endpoints. We plan to engage regulatory authorities to define a clinical path to registration in this indication. In parallel and consistent with the regulatory interactions we will continue to enroll in our ongoing phase 1/2 trial in Overgrowth Diseases driven by mutations in the PI3K or AKT pathway, including Proteus syndrome, and provide the drug under compassionate policy."

Revenues and Expenses

Revenues for the quarter ended September 30, 2017, were zero compared with revenues of $1,223,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2016. Revenues in the nine-months ended September 30, 2017 were zero compared with revenues of $3,522,000 in the nine-months ended September 30, 2016. Revenue in the three and nine-month periods of 2016 is comprised of revenue from the Daiichi Sankyo tivantinib development agreement and the Kyowa Hakko Kirin exclusive license agreement. No further revenue is anticipated from these agreements.

Research and development expense in the third quarter of 2017 was $4,570,000, compared with $5,265,000 for the third quarter of 2016. Research and development expense decreased $0.7 million in the third quarter of 2017 primarily due to lower outsourced preclinical, clinical and product development costs.

Research and development expense in the nine-months ended September 30, 2017 was $14,747,000 compared with $13,800,000 in the nine-months ended September 30, 2016. The $0.9 million increase in research and development expense in the nine-months ended September 30, 2017 was primarily due to higher outsourced clinical and product development costs.

General and administrative expense was $1,762,000 in the third quarter of 2017 compared with $1,824,000 in the third quarter 2016.

General and administrative expense was $5,702,000 in the nine-months ended September 30, 2017 compared with $5,755,000 in the nine-months ended September 30, 2016.

2017 Financial Guidance

As a result of ArQule’s recent stock offerings and business development activities the company is updating 2017 guidance. For 2017, ArQule expects net use of cash to range between $25 and $27 million. Net loss is expected to range between $28 and $30 million, net loss per share is expected to range between $(0.38) and $(0.40) for the year. ArQule expects to end 2017 with between $47 and $49 million in cash and marketable securities.

Conference Call and Webcast

ArQule will hold its third quarter 2017 financial results call today, November 9, 2017 at 9:00 a.m. ET. The live webcast can be accessed in the "Investors & Media" section of our website, www.arqule.com, under "Events & Presentations." You may also listen to the call by dialing (877) 868-1831 within the U.S. or (914) 495-8595 outside the U.S. A replay will be available two hours after the completion of the call and can be accessed in the "Investor and Media" section of our website, www.arqule.com, under "Events & Presentations."