OncoGenex has enough money for next year as it waits a mid-year merger with Achieve Life Sciences
February 24, 2017Vancouver-based drugmaker OncoGenex didn’t make any revenues in the fourth quarter 2016, and it finished the year with a net loss for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2016 of $5.8 million and $20.1 million, respectively.
However, the company says that based on current expectations, its cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments will be sufficient to fund its currently planned operations for the next year at least.
As of December 31, 2016, the company’s cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments decreased to $25.5 million from $55.2 million as of December 31, 2015.
The advanced reimbursement payment made by Teva, as part of the Termination Agreement, was deferred and recognized as collaboration revenue on a dollar for dollar basis as costs were incurred as part of the continuing research and development activities related to custirsen. The decrease in collaboration revenue in 2016 as compared to 2015 was due to the full recognition of the remaining amounts of deferred revenue in the first half of 2016, the company said.
In January 2017, OncoGenex, made a deal to buy a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company Achieve Life Science, Inc.. According to that deal, OncoGenex will acquire Achieve in an all-stock transaction. Upon completion of the proposed merger, Achieve’s stockholders are expected to own 75% of the combined company’s outstanding shares and current equityholders of OncoGenex are expected to own the remaining 25% of the combined company’s outstanding shares. Following completion of the merger, OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals will be renamed Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. The proposed merger is expected to close by mid-2017, subject to customary closing conditions.
