Oyster Point Pharma Inc. (OYST) to Implement Operating Expense Streamlining Plan

Oyster Point Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: OYST) today announced it will implement an operating expense streamlining plan that will include a reduction of employee and non-employee expenses across the organization. The Company plans to continue to drive the launch of TYRVAYA^® with approximately 150-200 field-based sales resources.

“Today’s announcement is part of a strategic plan aimed at maximizing the commercial potential of TYRVAYA (varenicline solution) Nasal Spray and creating value for Oyster Point stakeholders,” said Jeffrey Nau, Ph.D., MMS, president and chief executive officer of Oyster Point Pharma. “The plan is designed to prioritize launch expenses for TYRVAYA and its field-based sales resources, streamline corporate operating expenses to drive efficiencies, and strengthen our balance sheet, including seeking non-dilutive sources of capital. We believe this plan will continue to drive the TYRVAYA launch while reducing the total operating expenses required to achieve future profitability. I remain impressed by what the Oyster Point team has achieved, including approximately 7,000 unique TYRVAYA prescribers from launch to date as of June 22^nd, and I look forward to future milestones ahead. I also want to recognize affected employees for their contributions in furthering our mission to improve care for patients with ophthalmic disease.”

To reflect these strategic priorities, the Company is also announcing that Daniel Lochner, its current Chief Financial Officer, will take on additional responsibilities now serving in a dual role as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer and Chief Business Officer.

Michael Campbell, the Company’s current Vice President of Sales and Commercial Operations, will be promoted to Senior Vice President, Head of Commercial, and John Snisarenko, Chief Commercial Officer, will retire from the Company effective July 1, 2022. “I look forward to continuing to work closely with Dan and Mike and thank John for his partnership over the last 2 years,” said Jeffrey Nau, Ph.D., MMS, president and chief executive officer of Oyster Point Pharma.

The plan is expected to reduce operating expenses by approximately $6-8 million in the second half of 2022, net of severance costs, and reduce operating expenses by approximately $40-48 million in 2023. The reduction in operating expenses is expected to be primarily driven by lower non-employee-related general and administrative and research and development expenses, and to a lesser extent, by the reduction of up to 50 roles across the organization. Total operating expenses in 2023 are expected to be lower than total operating expenses in 2022.

The plan also includes refocusing the Company’s research and development efforts on OC-01 (varenicline solution) nasal spray to target Stage 1 Neurotrophic Keratopathy and Enriched Tear Film (ETF™) Gene Therapy to target Stages 2 and 3 Neurotrophic Keratopathy. The Company expects study results for the OLYMPIA Phase 2 clinical trial for Stage 1 Neurotrophic Keratopathy during the fourth quarter of 2022. The Company has submitted a Pre-IND meeting request to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding the ETF™ Gene Therapy program and expects to hold the Pre-IND meeting during the second half of 2022.

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