Aurora's quarterly results announced today. A little disappointed that they are putting so much into R&D that they expect breakeven years for '01 and '02 as well. The business plan had previously called for profitability by now. Wonder what the Street will think of this, since the stock has already taken a beating of late. I hadn't realized they owned a chunk of Maxim, and that explains a lot, since they had to write it down this Q:
siliconinvestor.com
>>Aurora Biosciences Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2000 Financial Results
- Annual Revenues Reach All-time High -
SAN DIEGO, Feb 15, 2001 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Aurora Biosciences(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: ABSC chart, msgs) today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2000. Net income for the fourth quarter 2000 was $2.2 million, or $0.10 per share on a diluted basis, excluding a write-down of its investment in Maxim Pharmaceuticals. Including the write-down of the Company's Maxim investment, the fourth quarter resulted in a net loss of $0.9 million, or $0.04 per share. These amounts compare to fourth quarter 1999 net income of $6.5 million, or $0.34 per share on a diluted basis. Revenue was $16.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2000 compared to $19.9 million for the fourth quarter of 1999.
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2000, net income was $5.7 million, or $0.26 per share on a diluted basis, excluding the write-down of its investment in Maxim. Including the net loss on investment, fiscal year 2000 resulted in net income of $4.4 million, or $0.20 per share on a diluted basis. These amounts compare to a net loss of $0.2 million, or $0.01 per share, in fiscal year 1999. Revenue increased 26% to $63.8 million in fiscal year 2000 from $50.5 million in fiscal year 1999. All financial results have been consolidated to reflect the acquisition of Quorum Sciences.
Revenue in the fourth quarter included amounts generated from an exclusive collaborative research and license agreement with Senomyx focused on the discovery of consumer products enhancing taste and olfaction, a licensing agreement with Deltagen, an agreement with Greiner Bio-One to commercialize our proprietary consumables, an ion channel technology agreement with GlaxoSmithKline and the Company's continuing collaboration with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. In addition, Aurora recognized revenue under other existing collaborations.
Total operating expenses increased 18% in the fourth quarter of 2000 compared to the same period in 1999, due in part to a 35% increase in the number of full-time employees over the fourth quarter of 1999. Research and development expenses increased 72% over the prior year fourth quarter, as much of the recent growth of the company has been focused in this area. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 23% over the fourth quarter of 1999, due in part to merger and acquisition related expenses. Net interest and other income increased due to interest income resulting from a $71 million private placement of common stock in February 2000, which was offset by a loss from the write-down of the Company's Maxim investment.
Accomplishments in the fourth quarter
-- Technology platform expansion -- announced merger with PanVera
Corporation
Aurora announced in November that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with the PanVera Corporation of Madison, Wisconsin. Under the terms of the agreement, Aurora will merge with PanVera, a biotechnology company engaged in the expression, purification and marketing of protein drug targets and drug screening assays for high-throughput screening. The merger is expected to close during the first quarter of 2001.
-- Senomyx discovery collaboration
Aurora announced a collaboration with Senomyx, Inc. focused on the discovery of consumer products enhancing taste and olfaction. Aurora will employ its ion channel technology platform, proprietary green fluorescent protein (GFP) and beta-lactamase reporter technologies to develop screening platforms for Senomyx, and may conduct high-throughput screening using its 500,000 compound library. Aurora will use its integrated suite of technologies to identify the function and conduct screening on up to 400 G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) which are chemosensory gene targets.
-- Completion of the Ultra High-Throughput Screening System Platform
(UHTSS(R) Platform)
In December Aurora announced the successful installation of Module 3 of the UHTSS platform at Bristol Myers Squibb, completing the first UHTSS system for a collaborator. The validation and acceptance of this system by BMS culminates four years of collaborative research and development efforts aimed at setting a new standard for discovery technology. Aurora completed the integration of its own UHTSS system in October of 2000. The Company expects to integrate the remaining collaborators' UHTSS platforms throughout 2001.
-- Ion channel technology agreement with GlaxoSmithKline
The Company entered into a second ion channel technology agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). Aurora will provide GSK with global access to its ion channel technology platform for drug discovery and target validation. During the three-year term of the agreement, GSK will utilize Aurora's current and next generation assay technologies within the field of ion channel discovery with Aurora providing ongoing technical support.
-- Quorum Sciences acquisition
In October Aurora acquired Quorum Sciences of Iowa City, Iowa. Quorum Sciences is a leader in the emerging field of quorum sensing and biofilm formation. This acquisition provides a proprietary antimicrobial discovery platform to address a significant unmet medical need. This platform also builds on the Company's collaborative drug discovery efforts with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
-- Deltagen licenses Green Fluorescence Protein (GFP) technology
Aurora entered into a license agreement with Deltagen for GFP technology. Deltagen was granted non-exclusive rights to use Aurora's GFP technology in transgenic organisms, including knockout mice, within the United States.
-- Agreement with Greiner Bio-One to commercialize proprietary Aurora
consumables
The Company signed an agreement with Greiner Bio-One to develop, manufacture and commercialize Aurora's proprietary consumables. Aurora and Greiner Bio-One will also collaborate on the development and commercialization of new products. This agreement includes an up-front technology access fee, as well as royalties on net sales of licensed products, including new products developed under the collaboration.
Financial Outlook
The statements made within our "Financial Outlook" section are forward-looking statements. It is important to note that the Company's financial targets are not predictions of actual performance. Forecasts are inherently estimates that cannot be predicted with precision, and the Company's performance has at times differed from its targets. Aurora often does not know what the actual results will be until after a quarter has ended. Consequently, the Company will not report or comment on Aurora's progress during the quarter. Any statement made by others with respect to the Company's progress mid-quarter cannot be attributed to Aurora.
The Company anticipates revenues of around $90 million in 2001, including revenues from PanVera, once the merger has closed. Of this target, about 85% is expected to come from Aurora and about 15% from PanVera. Aurora expects revenue of around $17 million for the first quarter of 2001.
Aurora intends to reinvest its profits by increasing its research and development (R&D) budget by over 60% in 2001. The increased R & D expenditures will be used to hire additional scientists and acquire and screen drug targets. In light of this financially disciplined reinvestment of profits, Aurora is targeting approximately break-even performance in 2001, although individual quarters may be subject to fluctuations.
Aurora expects to see similar revenue growth for fiscal year 2002. The Company plans to reinvest profits into research and development and anticipates approximately break-even performance in 2002, while individual quarters may vary with regard to profit or loss.
Web cast of conference call
As previously announced, investors can access a live web cast of Aurora's fourth quarter earnings conference call through a link that will be posted on the Company's web site at www.aurorabio.com. The conference call begins today at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time and will be available for replay through March 1, 2001.<<
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Cheers, Tuck |
