Mersana Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MRSN) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.97), $0.28 worse than the analyst estimate of ($0.69). Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.2 million versus the consensus estimate of $3.92 million.

• Collaboration revenue for the fourth quarter 2018 was approximately $1.2 million, compared to $3.3 million for the same period in 2017. The decrease was largely the result of a decrease in efforts to support partnered programs.
• Research and development expenses for the fourth quarter 2018 were approximately $19.8 million, compared to $14.6 million for the same period in 2017, driven primarily by an increase in clinical and regulatory expenses due to the progress of our XMT-1536 program and manufacturing costs to support the future clinical development of XMT-1536.
• General and administrative expenses for the fourth quarter 2018 were approximately $4.2 million, compared to $3.1 million for the same period in 2017, driven primarily by increased employee-related expenses due to an increase in headcount and increased professional fees.
• Net loss for the fourth quarter 2018 was $22.4 million, or $0.97 per share, compared to a net loss of $14.0 million, or $0.61 per share, for the same period in 2017. Weighted average common shares outstanding for the years ended December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, were 23,184,459 and 22,750,425, respectively.

“In 2018 we made significant progress with XMT-1536, our first-in-class ADC candidate targeting NaPi2b. We remain encouraged by the safety, tolerability, and early signs of activity seen in heavily pretreated, unselected patients in the dose escalation trial. Within the second quarter of 2019 we plan to report data from the dose escalation portion of the study, select a go forward dose and initiate the Phase 1 expansion cohorts,” said Anna Protopapas, President and CEO of Mersana Therapeutics. “More recently, we strengthened our balance sheet through an equity financing that provides us with the capital necessary to advance XMT-1536 and our potential next ADC candidate through to important future value inflection points.”

2019 Financial Update

• On March 5, 2019 the Company completed a public equity offering with gross proceeds of $97.8 million. The Company expects that its cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities will enable it to fund its operating plan into at least mid-2021.
• Associated with the discontinuation of the XMT-1522 program, the Company expects to recognize remaining deferred revenue under ASC 606 in the first quarter of 2019 to reflect termination of the Takeda agreement. Mersana announced the discontinuation of the development of XMT-1522 due to the competitive landscape and to prioritize its resources on advancing XMT-1536. In line with this decision, the Company and its partner, Takeda, have terminated their research and development partnerships.

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