Enzon Reports 1st Quarter 2011 Results

Enzon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ENZN) today announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2011.

For the first quarter of 2011, Enzon reported income from continuing operations of $431 thousand, or $0.01 on a diluted per-share basis, as compared to income from continuing operations of $20.8 million, or $0.29 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2010. First quarter 2011 results included a $5.0 million milestone earned upon the approval of a supplemental Biologic License Application (sBLA) for the manufacture of the active ingredient for Oncaspar. Included in the results of continuing operations for the first quarter of 2010 is revenue of $40.9 million from the sale of in-process research and development associated with Oncaspar and Adagen, two of the specialty products sold.

“We have had a productive start to 2011, as we completed our transformation to an R&D organization and successfully executed our strategy focused on the development of our high-value oncology pipeline,” stated Alex Denner, Chairman of the Board. “Our clinical progress, reflected in the initiation of our Phase I trial for our Androgen Receptor antagonist and the presentation of encouraging data from our portfolio of mRNA antagonists, was complemented by our continued commitment to return value to our shareholders through our share repurchase program.”

First Quarter 2011 and Recent Highlights

• At the 2011 American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting in April, Enzon presented data from preclinical and clinical studies of four investigational messenger RNA (mRNA) antagonists, demonstrating the compounds’ potential to inhibit key tumor targets that antibodies and small molecules have limited ability to control and access.
• In January, Enzon announced the FDA had accepted its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for its Androgen Receptor (AR) mRNA antagonist. Following this approval, the Company enrolled and treated the first patient in its Phase I trial of the AR antagonist in castration-resistant prostate cancer.
• In April, the Company received notice that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted firtecan-pegol (EZN-2208) orphan drug designation for the treatment of neuroblastoma. Orphan drug designation provides for marketing exclusivity for that indication in the U.S., an expedited review process, a reduction in associated application fees and certain other benefits.
• During the first quarter of 2011, Enzon repurchased 3.9 million shares of outstanding common stock, totaling $41.5 million. As of April 30, 2011, the Company had purchased a total of 5.7 million shares of outstanding common stock for a cumulative cost of $62.2 million.

Summary of Financial Results

Research and Development

The Company’s pipeline research and development expenses were $10.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2011, compared to $11.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2010. The pipeline consists of the following programs: PEG-SN38, Hypoxia-Inducible Factor-1α (HIF-1α), Survivin and AR mRNA antagonists, and additional mRNA antagonists utilizing the LNA technology. The expenses for the first quarter of 2011 included $5.6 million related to the ongoing Phase II and Phase I studies of PEG-SN38 and $4.6 million related to the development of the mRNA antagonists. This compared to $4.2 million and $6.4 million, for PEG-SN38 and mRNA antagonists, respectively, in first quarter 2010.

1 2 3 4 5 Next › Last »