Investors and analysts expected more out of Ariad Pharmaceuticals’ (ARIA) Iclusig in the second quarter and punished the stock when sales from the company’s only marketed drug came in at $11.9 million, shy of the $13.3 million anticipated. Iclusig generated $7.9 million in revenue domestically and $4.0 million in Europe. Ariad reported a net loss for the quarter ended June 30, 2014 of $56.9 million, or $0.30 per share. Analysts expected a $0.29 loss.
Ariad ended the quarter with $310 million in cash and equivalents following a $177 million private placement in June. Ariad anticipates operational cash use in 2014 to range from $165 million to $175 million.
Recall that safety concerns late last year prompted the U.S. FDA to ask Ariad to take Iclusig off the market. In December, the FDA allowed marketing to resume, though with a revised label to include warnings about Iclusig’s risk of blood clotting and heart failure. Iclusig is now limited to T315I-positive chronic myeloid leukemia patients, or T315I-positive Philadelphia chromosome positive (Ph+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Previously, it was approved for patients who had failed or couldn’t tolerate treatment with another tyrosine-kinase inhibitor.
Despite slim sales figures, ARIA continues to boast a $900 million market capitalization as many investors pin hopes on a wider label in Europe and the company’s ALK-inhibitor, AP26113. Ariad expects the Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee (PRAC) to complete a review and make final recommendations to the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) in October.
