CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MACK) today announced its third quarter 2020 financial results for the period ended September 30, 2020.
“We are pleased that both Ipsen Pharmaceuticals and Elevation Oncology continue to enroll patients in separate clinical stage programs which could result in milestone payments to Merrimack,” said Gary Crocker, Chairman of Merrimack’s Board of Directors. “We remain focused on conserving cash and reduction of our operating expenses to ensure that we have sufficient financial resources to capture future potential milestone payments from Ipsen and Elevation.”
Third Quarter 2020 Financial Results
Merrimack reported net loss of $1.0 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020, or $0.08 per basic share, compared to a net loss of $0.7 million, or $0.05 per basic share, for the same period in 2019.
No gain on sale of assets was recognized for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020 compared to $3.5 million for the same period in 2019.
General and administrative expenses for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020 were $1.0 million, compared to $4.3 million for the same period in 2019.
As of September 30, 2020, Merrimack had cash and cash equivalents and investments of $15.8 million, compared to $16.6 million as of December 31, 2019.
As of September 30, 2020, Merrimack had 13.4 million shares of common stock outstanding.
Updates on Programs Underlying Potential Milestone Payments
Ipsen
- On October 22, 2020 Ipsen released its third quarter financial results. As part of that update, Ipsen reported that it is continuing to study ONIVYDE® in Phase III clinical trials in first line pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and in second line small cell lung cancer.
Elevation Oncology
- On October 26, 2020 Elevation Oncology announced the presentation of preclinical data on its HER3 program. This announcement included confirmation that Elevation’s phase II CRESTONE study is currently enrolling patients.
About Merrimack
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts that is entitled to receive up to $450.0 million in contingent milestone payments related to its sale of ONIVYDE® to Ipsen S.A. in April 2017. These milestone payments would be payable by Ipsen upon approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) of ONIVYDE® for certain additional clinical indications. ONIVYDE® is already approved by the FDA in combination with fluorouracil (5-FU) and leucovorin (LV) for the treatment of patients with metastatic adenocarcinoma of the pancreas after disease progression following gemcitabine-based therapy. This existing approval is unrelated to any future potential milestone payments. Merrimack’s agreement with Ipsen does not require Ipsen to provide Merrimack with any information on the progress of ONIVYDE® clinical trials that is not publicly available. Merrimack is also entitled to receive up to $54.5 million in contingent milestone payments related to its sale of anti-HER3 programs to Elevation Oncology (formerly 14ner Oncology, Inc.) in July 2019. The Company is seeking potential acquirers for its remaining preclinical assets.
