After shares had skidded from $7.49 in October to as low as $3.20 last month, Agenus Inc. (NASDAQ:AGEN) is seeing some upward pressure in Thursday trading following the immuno-oncology company releasing results from the latest quarter and providing a corporate update.
Agenus doesn't have any commercialized products, but does have a high profile partner in Incyte Corp. (NASDAQ:INCY). The two companies got in bed together back in early 2015, agreeing to work jointly on developing the antibodies INCAGN1876, an anti-GITR agonist, and INCAGN1949, an anti-OX40 agonist, to fight cancer. Agenus also has two applications pending with regulators in the U.S. and internationally regarding commercializing QS-21 Stimulon as an adjuvant for shingles and malaria.
The original agreement originally was worth $60 million in cash to Agenus, with another $350 million in payments if certain milestones were met. The companies revamped the pact in February, eliminating splitting costs and sales (if ever achieved), instead making Incyte responsible for development and granting Agenus royalties on global net sales if one or both products get approved.
Agenus also got a payment of $20 million with the retooled deal and still had the potential to pull in over $500 million upon specific milestones being met. Incyte further boosted the cash infusion to Agenus through the purchase of 10 million shares of AGEN at $6 each.
The investments gave Agenus revenues of $29.96 million for the quarter. Net loss was $17.15 million, or 18 cents per share, compared to $31.83 million, or 37 cents per share, in the year prior quarter. Agenus ended the quarter with $124 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments.
Shortly after announcing the new deal with Incyte, Agenus said it was reorganizing to better focus its immunotherapy initiatives. This included plans to this year shutter its Basel, Switzerland facility and shuffle key functions to Cambridge, U.K.
Agenus today unveiled an I-O cell therapy discovery program that it has been advancing over the last year and a half. The plan is to pursue these cell assets through forming a new business entity majority owned by Agenus and funded externally.
Shares of AGEN closed Wednesday at $3.42 and are currently trading at $3.88 (+13.5%) around 1:30 EDT today after running as high as $4.18 in morning action.
