MARLBOROUGH, Mass.,
May 14, 2019 /PRNewswire/
-- Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: PHIO), a biotechnology
company developing the next generation of immuno-oncology
therapeutics based on its proprietary self-delivering RNAi
(sd-rxRNA®) therapeutic platform, today reported its
financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 and provided a business
update.
Logo -
https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/786567/Phio_Pharmaceuticals_Logo.jpg
"Our financial results during the first quarter of the year
continue to remain consistent and in line with our projections for
2019. With an approximate $2 million
quarterly cash burn expected to continue for the remainder of the
year, the Company expects to have funding into the second half of
2020 while also providing us with the ability to significantly
advance and expand our pipeline projects. In parallel with
progressing our lead pipeline products, we have expanded our
collaborations to include a collaboration with Glycostem
Therapeutics and have increased our data output supporting the
broad applicability of our self-delivering RNAi platform in
various immune cell types and immuno-oncology applications, such as
adoptive cell therapy and direct intra-tumoral use of our
products," said Dr. Gerrit Dispersyn, President and CEO of Phio
Pharmaceuticals Corp. "By bringing new talent on board and
implementing improved R&D processes, we look forward to further
accelerating our R&D efforts within the financial expectations
and projected cash runway."
Quarter in Review and Recent Corporate Updates
- Leadership:
-
- Appointed Gerrit Dispersyn, Dr. Med. Sc. as the Company's
President and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Dispersyn succeeded
Geert Cauwenbergh, Dr. Med. Sc., who
retired as CEO of the Company and remains as a member of the
Company's Board of Directors.
- Appointed John A. Barrett, Ph.D.
as the Company's Chief Development Officer. Dr. Barrett joins Phio
from Ziopharm Oncology, Inc. where he served as the company's Vice
President of R&D and Translational Medicine. He has accumulated
over 25 years of experience working in research and development and
is an expert in developing cell-based immuno-oncology therapies.
Dr. Barrett will lead the development and execution of the
Company's preclinical and clinical strategy for our product
candidates.
- Entered into a research collaboration with Glycostem
Therapeutics BV to explore the potential synergies of using our
sd-rxRNA in combination with Glycostem's proprietary Natural
Killer-cell (NK-cell) generation technology (oNKord®).
The goal of the collaboration is to develop cellular
immunotherapies for cancer treatment with enhanced efficacy and/or
safety, resulting in further improvement of Glycostem's cellular
immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer patients.
- Presented a poster titled "Feasibility and efficacy using
self-delivering RNAi against TGFB1 to reduce TME immunosuppression"
at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual
Meeting 2019.
-
- Data from the poster demonstrated that an sd-rxRNA targeting
TGFB1 was efficiently taken up by cancer and immune cells resulting
in downregulation of target gene expression. The data further
showed that intra-tumoral injection of sd-rxRNA targeting TGFB1 can
reduce the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment and potentially
boost immune effector cell activity. Future clinical development
activities will explore the possible synergistic effects of this
approach in combination with adoptive cell therapy or other
oncology therapies.
- On May 14, 2019, the Nasdaq Stock
Market provided written notice and granted the Company an
additional 180 calendar days, or until November 11, 2019, to regain compliance with the
minimum bid price requirements set forth in the Nasdaq listing
rules. The written notice has no effect on the listing of the
Company's common stock at this time.
Select Financial Results
Cash Position
At March 31, 2019, the Company had
cash of $12.7 million as compared
with $14.9 million at December 31, 2018. The Company expects its cash
to provide funding into the second half of 2020.
Research and Development Expenses
Research and development expenses for the quarter ended
March 31, 2019 were $1.1 million as compared with $1.4 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2018. The decrease was primarily due to
a reduction in headcount and the payroll-related expenses, as well
as the completion of the Company's drug manufacture of RXI-762 in
the prior year period.
General and Administrative Expenses
General and administrative expenses for the quarter ended
March 31, 2019 were $1.1 million as compared with $0.9 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2018. The increase was primarily
due to an increase in stock-based compensation expense related
to the restricted stock issued to the Company's former Chief
Executive Officer in lieu of cash compensation.
Net Loss
Net loss for the quarter ended March 31,
2019 was $2.1 million,
compared with $2.2 million for the
quarter ended March 31, 2018. The
decrease was primarily due to changes in operating expenses, as
discussed above
About Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: PHIO) is a biotechnology
company developing the next generation of immuno-oncology
therapeutics based on its self-delivering RNAi
(sd-rxRNA®) therapeutic platform. The Company's efforts
are focused on developing sd-rxRNA therapeutic compounds to be used
in the context of immunotherapy by targeting checkpoints or other
gene targets, by local or intravenous injections. We aim to
maximize the power of our sd-rxRNA therapeutic compounds by
weaponizing immune effector cells to overcome tumor immune escape
providing patients with a powerful new treatment option that goes
beyond current treatment modalities. For additional information,
visit the Company's website, www.phiopharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor
assurances of future performance. These statements are based only
on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the
future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections,
anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future
conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the
future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and
changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of
which are outside of our control. Our actual results may
differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking
statements as a result of a number of important factors, including,
but not limited to, the safety and efficacy of our product
candidates, future success of our clinical trials and scientific
studies, expected duration of available cash runway, our ability to
enter into strategic partnerships and the future success of these
strategic partnerships, the availability of funds and resources to
pursue our research and development projects and general economic
conditions. Our Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q include detailed risks under the
caption "Risk Factors" that may affect our business, results of
operations and financial condition. Readers are urged to review
these risk factors and to not act in reliance on any
forward-looking statements, as actual results may differ from those
contemplated by our forward-looking statements. Phio does not
undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect a change
in its views, events or circumstances that occur after the date of
this release.
Contact
Phio
Pharmaceuticals Corp.
ir@phiopharma.com
PHIO
PHARMACEUTICALS CORP.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(Amounts in thousands, except share and per share data)
(Unaudited)
|
|
|
For the
Three
|
|
For the
Three
|
|
Months
Ended
|
|
Months
Ended
|
|
March 31,
2019
|
|
March 31,
2018
|
|
Revenues
|
$
21
|
|
$
23
|
|
Operating
expenses:
|
|
|
|
|
Research and
development
|
1,089
|
|
1,361
|
|
General and
administrative
|
1,078
|
|
901
|
|
Total operating expenses
|
2,167
|
|
2,262
|
|
Operating
loss
|
(2,146)
|
|
(2,239)
|
|
Total other income,
net
|
27
|
|
—
|
|
Net loss
|
$
(2,119)
|
|
$
(2,239)
|
|
Net loss per share: Basic and diluted
|
$
(0.10)
|
|
$
(0.90)
|
|
Weighted average shares: Basic and diluted
|
20,419,440
|
|
2,494,464
|
|
PHIO
PHARMACEUTICALS CORP.
|
|
|
|
|
CONDENSED
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
|
|
|
|
|
(Amounts in
thousands)
(Unaudited)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
March 31,
|
|
December
31,
|
|
|
2019
|
|
2018
|
|
ASSETS
|
|
|
|
|
Current
assets:
|
|
|
|
|
Cash
|
$
12,746
|
|
$
14,879
|
|
Restricted
cash
|
50
|
|
50
|
|
Prepaid expenses and
other current assets
|
117
|
|
221
|
|
Total current
assets
|
12,913
|
|
15,150
|
|
Right of use
asset
|
592
|
|
—
|
|
Property and
equipment, net
|
155
|
|
172
|
|
Other
assets
|
18
|
|
—
|
|
Total
assets
|
$
13,678
|
|
$
15,322
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
LIABILITIES AND
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
|
|
|
|
Current
liabilities:
|
|
|
|
|
Accounts
payable
|
$
721
|
|
$
550
|
|
Accrued
expenses
|
703
|
|
1,194
|
|
Lease
liability
|
92
|
|
—
|
|
Total current
liabilities
|
1,516
|
|
1,744
|
|
Lease liability, net
of current portion
|
500
|
|
—
|
|
Total
liabilities
|
2,016
|
|
1,744
|
|
Total stockholders'
equity
|
11,662
|
|
13,578
|
|
Total liabilities and
stockholders' equity
|
$
13,678
|
|
$
15,322
|
|
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/phio-pharmaceuticals-reports-first-quarter-2019-financial-results-and-corporate-highlights-300850234.html
SOURCE Phio Pharmaceuticals Corp.