Aduro Biotech Reports Third Quarter 2018 Financial Results

BERKELEY, Calif., Oct. 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aduro Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADRO) today reported financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2018. Net loss for the third quarter of 2018 was $23.1 million, or $0.29 per share, and for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 net loss was $69.0 million, or $0.88 per share, compared to net loss of $24.5 million, or $0.33 per share, and net loss of $65.7 million, or $0.92 per share, respectively, for the same periods in 2017.

Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $278.6 million at September 30, 2018, compared to $349.7 million at December 31, 2017. 

“Our strong cash position enables us to advance our lead STING agonist, ADU-S100, and novel anti-APRIL antibody, BION-1301, toward maturing data from ongoing clinical studies. We look forward to presenting preliminary data on ADU-S100 at the upcoming Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer 33rd Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.,” said Stephen T. Isaacs, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Aduro.

Revenue was $3.1 million for the third quarter of 2018 and $12.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared to $3.8 million and $13.5 million, respectively, for the same periods in 2017. The decrease in revenue for both periods was primarily due to the adoption of the ASC 606 accounting standard on January 1, 2018, which resulted in a change in revenue recognition methodology for our Novartis collaboration revenue.

Research and development expenses were $18.7 million for the third quarter of 2018 and $58.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared to $24.5 million and $66.5 million, respectively, for the same periods in 2017. The decrease in research and development expenses for both periods was primarily due to lower expenses for our antibody programs, including contingent consideration and contract manufacturing related to ADU-1604 and BION-1301, respectively.  

General and administrative expenses were $9.1 million for the third quarter of 2018 and $27.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared to $8.5 million and $25.0 million, respectively, for the same periods in 2017. The increase in general and administrative expenses for both periods was primarily due to outside professional services and consulting costs as well as higher stock-based compensation expense. 

About Aduro

Aduro Biotech, Inc. is an immunotherapy company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies that are intended to transform the treatment of challenging diseases. Aduro’s technologies, which are designed to harness the body’s natural immune system, are being investigated in cancer indications, autoimmune diseases and have the potential to expand into infectious diseases. Aduro’s STING pathway activator technology is designed to activate the STING receptor in immune cells, which may result in a potent tumor-specific immune response. ADU-S100 (MIW815) is the first STING compound to enter the clinic and is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1 clinical trial as a single agent and in combination with ipilimumab and in a Phase 1b combination trial with spartalizumab (PDR001), an investigational anti-PD1 immune checkpoint inhibitor. Aduro’s B-select monoclonal antibody technology, including BION-1301, an anti-APRIL antibody, is comprised of a number of immune modulating assets in research and development. Aduro is collaborating with leading global pharmaceutical companies to expand its products and technologies. For more information, please visit www.aduro.com.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intentions or current expectations concerning, among other things, the potential for our technology, the timing of clinical data presentations and our ability to advance our drug development programs on our own or with our collaborators. In some cases, you can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may,” “will,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “could,” “project,” “expect” or the negative or plural of these words or similar expressions.  Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those anticipated, including, but not limited to, our history of net operating losses and uncertainty regarding our ability to achieve profitability, our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates, our ability to use and expand our technology platforms to build a pipeline of product candidates, our ability to obtain and maintain regulatory approval of our product candidates, our ability to operate in a competitive industry and compete successfully against competitors that have greater resources than we do, our reliance on third parties, and our ability to obtain and adequately protect intellectual property rights for our product candidates.  We discuss many of these risks in greater detail under the heading “Risk Factors” contained in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2018, to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statements that we make in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update our forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.

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