MBRX another 40+% headcount reduction...
The November layoffs in CO did not get reported in this thread. I think they have about 55 employees left, almost all in San Diego. This latest reduction should give them about 5 or 6 quarters worth of cash to move their two best candidates along. The 8K is here: biz.yahoo.com
Oh, and last week, they replaced their CEO and presented some details of their Diabetes trial at JPM. There are lots of changes and info to digest here.
More color is here: finance.yahoo.com
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Metabasis Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: MBRX - News) announced today a corporate restructuring that will reduce its workforce by approximately 43%, or 38 employees. As part of the restructuring, Metabasis will focus on the company’s product candidates, MB07811 for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and MB07803 for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, as well as on advancing its glucagon antagonist program.
Estimated charges of approximately $1.4 million will be recorded in the first quarter of 2009 in connection with one-time employee termination costs, including severance and other benefits. The company will provide additional details on the longer-term financial benefits of these changes when it reports its 2008 annual financial results.
"While this type of action is always very difficult, we believe it is in the best interest of Metabasis stakeholders that we closely align our current resources with our strongest near-term opportunities for success," said Dr. Mark Erion, president, chief executive officer and chief scientific officer of Metabasis. "Given the tough market conditions, we have decided to refine our research and development focus and increase our efforts to monetize certain of our assets and/or form strategic collaborations. We continue to make progress toward recommending a glucagon antagonist for development and as such are optimistic that this program will result in a significant collaboration. We also expect to initiate efforts later this year to establish a strategic collaboration for MB07803, our second generation fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase inhibitor for type 2 diabetes. These efforts will begin after reviewing the results from the recently completed clinical trial in patients with type 2 diabetes, as well as after defining the appropriate population of patients that may derive clinical benefit from MB07803 and developing the corresponding regulatory path forward.”
Dr. Erion continued, “We also believe that the potential to realize the key value-driving events from our Phase 2 product candidate for hyperlipidemia, MB07811, will be enhanced by the cost savings incurred from the restructuring and the potential proceeds that may be gained through successful business development efforts, as well as from achievement of near term milestone payments from our discovery programs with Merck on AMPK activators for type 2 diabetes and with Roche on a HepDirect prodrug for hepatitis C.” |
