Xencor Announces Q1 2024 Financial Results

PASADENA, Calif.-- Xencor, Inc. (NASDAQ:XNCR), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm specializing in engineered antibodies for cancer and other serious diseases, announced its financial results for the first quarter ending March 31, 2024, and reviewed recent clinical and business developments.

Dr. Bassil Dahiyat, Xencor’s president and CEO, highlighted the company’s focus on their XmAb® clinical pipeline, especially bispecific CD3 and CD28 T cell engagers, which are showing promising clinical validation. Xencor’s key oncology programs include XmAb819 for clear cell renal cell carcinoma, XmAb808 for prostate and other cancers, and XmAb541 for ovarian and other cancers, all of which are progressing in Phase 1 clinical trials. The company plans to select its next T cell engager IND candidate later this year. Additionally, Xencor’s Xtend™ antibody half-life extension technology continues to enhance patient outcomes, with notable accomplishments like the approval of Ultomiris® in the U.S. for NMOSD and new research showing an investigational antibody with Xtend was effective in preventing malaria.

Recent advancements include the dosing of the first patient in a Phase 1 study of XmAb541, a bispecific antibody targeting CLDN6-positive tumors like advanced ovarian cancer. XmAb541 is engineered to activate T cells for potent and specific tumor cell killing. The FDA approved Ultomiris® (ravulizumab-cwvz) in March 2024 for adults with NMOSD, marking it as the first long-acting C5 complement inhibitor for this condition. Ultomiris® is also approved in Japan and the EU for certain NMOSD patients. Furthermore, a Phase 2 NIH-sponsored trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated that a single dose of L9LS, which incorporates Xtend™ technology, was 77% effective in preventing malaria in Malian children for six months.

Xencor appointed Bart Cornelissen as the new senior vice president and chief financial officer. Cornelissen previously served as vice president of corporate finance at Seagen Inc.

Financially, Xencor expects to conclude 2024 with $475 million to $525 million in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable debt securities, and anticipates having sufficient funds to support research and development through 2027. As of March 31, 2024, Xencor had $646.7 million in cash and equivalents, down from $697.4 million at the end of 2023.

The company reported revenues of $12.8 million for the first quarter of 2024, a decrease from $19.0 million in the same period of 2023. The decline in revenue was primarily due to changes in non-cash royalty revenue from existing agreements compared to the previous year's milestone revenue from a collaboration with J&J.

Research and development expenses were $56.9 million for the first quarter of 2024, down from $65.6 million in the same period of 2023. This decrease reflects shifts in spending across multiple clinical programs and costs associated with terminated projects. General and administrative expenses were relatively stable at $13.8 million compared to $14.2 million in the first quarter of 2023.

Other expenses increased significantly to $10.8 million in the first quarter of 2024 from $0.02 million in the same period of 2023, mainly due to an impairment charge on equity investments, offset partially by interest income and an unrealized gain on other equity investments.

Xencor reported a net loss of $68.0 million for the first quarter of 2024, compared to a $60.8 million net loss in the same period of 2023. The average number of shares outstanding was 61,634,685 as of March 31, 2024, up from 60,381,600 a year earlier.

Xencor management will participate in the RBC Capital Markets Global Healthcare Conference on May 14, 2024, in New York City and the BofA Securities Health Care Conference on May 15, 2024, in Las Vegas. Live webcasts of these presentations will be available on the Xencor website.

Xencor is a biopharmaceutical company in the clinical stage of developing engineered antibodies to treat cancer and other serious diseases. It has over 20 candidates in clinical development and three marketed XmAb medicines through partners. Xencor's XmAb technology enables small structural changes to proteins, resulting in new therapeutic mechanisms.