Zealand Pharma Announces Financial Results for the Full Year 2023
Company announcement - No. 9 / 2024
Zealand Pharma Announces Financial Results for the Full
Year 2023
Significant progress delivered across our obesity and rare
disease assets while building a solid financial position
- Positive results achieved for petrelintide in 6-week Phase 1
trial and clinical advancement of dapiglutide and petrelintide
towards obesity data readouts in 2024
- Positive results announced in Boehringer Ingelheim Phase 2
clinical trials for survodutide in obesity and global Phase 3
clinical program in obesity initiated
- NDA submissions for dasiglucagon in congenital hyperinsulinism
and glepaglutide in short bowel syndrome expected to support
regulatory decisions for rare diseases in 2024
- Private placement of shares to institutional investors,
European Investment Bank loan facility, undrawn committed RCF and
milestone payments from existing partners contribute to
strengthened financial position
Events after the reporting period
- Positive results announced in Boehringer Ingelheim Phase 2
clinical trial for survodutide in MASH and private placement of
shares to institutional investors contribute to extended cash
runway into 2027
Copenhagen, Denmark, February 27, 2024 –
Zealand Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ZEAL) (CVR-no. 20045078), a
biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of
innovative peptide-based medicines, today announced the annual
report for the year ended December 31, 2023, and provided a
corporate update.
Building momentum in 2024
“2023 was an extraordinary year for Zealand and I am proud of
our team’s performance to progress our business,” said Adam
Steensberg, President and Chief Executive Officer at Zealand
Pharma. “With the promising results for our long-acting amylin
analog, petrelintide, and the advancement of our dual GLP-1/GLP-2
receptor agonist, dapiglutide, in obesity, Zealand is well
positioned to achieve significant milestones in 2024. We look
forward to important clinical results for petrelintide and
dapiglutide in obesity that we believe will support advancing both
compounds into subsequent Phase 2b trials, and to progressing our
rare disease product candidates through the regulatory phase to
patients who need them.”
Key financial results for FY 2023
DKK million |
FY 2023 |
FY 2022 |
Revenue |
342.8 |
104.0 |
Net operating expenses1 |
-895.9 |
-941.1 |
Net operating result |
-572.2 |
-837.2 |
Net financial items |
-136.6 |
-134.9 |
Cash position2 |
1,633.1 |
1,177.8 |
Cash position including undrawn committed RCF3, EIB4 loan facility
(Tranche A, B and C) and January 2024 private placement5 |
4,104.0 |
1,177.8 |
Notes:
- Net operating expenses consist of R&D, S&M, G&A and
other operating items.
- Cash position includes cash, cash equivalents and marketable
securities.
- RCF = Revolving Credit Facility of DKK 350 million provided by
Danske Bank.
- EIB = European Investment Bank. The conditions for Tranche A
(EUR 50 million) have been met. Pay-out expected in Q1 2024.
Tranche B (EUR 20 million) and Tranche C (EUR 20 million) are
subject to predefined milestones being met.
- In January 2024, Zealand received gross proceeds of DKK 1.45
billion in connection with a private placement of new shares.
|
Maintaining a strong financial position.
- Revenue in 2023 of DKK 343 million was mainly driven by a EUR
30 million milestone payment from Boehringer Ingelheim associated
with survodutide and USD 10 million from a milestone payment from
Sanofi associated with lixisenatide.
- Cash position is DKK 4.1 billion including the undrawn
committed RCF, the EIB loan facility (tranche A, B and C) and the
January 2024 private placement of DKK 1.45 billion. Cash, cash
equivalents and marketable securities as of December 31, 2023, was
DKK 1.6 billion, including gross proceeds of DKK 1.5 billion from a
directed issue and private placement in April 2023.
- Under the current assumptions Zealand projects its existing
financial resources will be sufficient to fund operations into
2027.
Financial guidance for 2024
The solid financial situation enables Zealand to expand its
investments in the company’s wholly owned obesity assets and
continue investing in progressing the rare disease product
candidates through the regulatory phase while engaging in
partnership discussions.
DKK million |
2024 Guidance |
2023 Actual |
Revenue anticipated from existing and new license and partnership
agreements |
No guidance due to uncertain size and timing |
343 |
Net operating expenses5 |
1,100-1,200 |
896 |
Notes:5. Financial guidance based on foreign exchange rates as of
February 26, 2024. |
Recent R&D highlights and key events anticipated in
2024
Obesity – advancing the portfolio
- Petrelintide, a long-acting amylin analog. At
Obesity Week in November 2023, Zealand presented results from Part
1 of the Phase 1b MAD trial (NCT05613387), in which low doses of up
to 1.2 mg petrelintide administered once weekly for six weeks led
to reductions in body weight of up to 5.3% in healthy lean and
overweight participants (mean body weight of 82 kg and BMI of
25.4). Petrelintide was well tolerated in the trial with a mostly
mild adverse event profile. In the first half of 2024, Zealand
expects to report topline results from Part 2 of the MAD trial
designed to evaluate higher doses of petrelintide administered for
16 weeks in participants with overweight or obesity (eligible BMI
27.0–39.9). In parallel, Zealand is planning a Phase 2b trial of
petrelintide planned for initiation in the second half of
2024.
- Dapiglutide, a first-in-class GLP-1/GLP-2 receptor dual
agonist: In the first half of 2024, Zealand anticipates
topline results from the Phase 2a investigator-led DREAM trial
(NCT05788601) designed to evaluate the potential for weight loss
following 12 weeks of treatment with dapiglutide and gain key
mechanistic insights into effects on inflammatory markers. In the
second half of 2024, Zealand expects topline results from the Phase
1b 13-week dose titration trial (NCT06000891) designed to evaluate
dapiglutide in otherwise healthy participants with overweight or
obesity (eligible BMI 27.0–39.9). In this trial, higher maximum
maintenance doses are planned than were used in the prior 4-week
MAD trial and ongoing DREAM trial.
- Survodutide, a glucagon/GLP-1 receptor dual
agonist. In February 2024, Boehringer Ingelheim and
Zealand Pharma announced positive results from the Phase 2 trial of
survodutide in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis
(MASH), previously known as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
The topline results showed that up to 83.0% of adults treated with
survodutide achieved a biopsy-proven improvement in MASH (stages
F1, F2 and F3) after 48 weeks, versus 18.2% with placebo [response
difference: 64.8% (CI 51.1% - 78.6%), p-value (p<0.0001)].
Boehringer expects to present these results at a scientific
congress in the first half of 2024. In a Phase 2 trial in people
living with overweight or obesity, survodutide achieved up to 18.7%
mean weight loss from baseline after 46 weeks. The full data were
presented at the 2023 American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) 83rd
Scientific Sessions. Boehringer is currently evaluating
survodutide in Phase 3 clinical trials, including SYNCHRONIZE™-1
and SYNCHRONIZE™-2, enrolling people living with overweight or
obesity without and with type 2 diabetes, respectively, and
SYNCHRONIZE™-CVOT, a long-term cardiovascular safety trial in
people living with overweight or obesity with cardiovascular
disease, chronic kidney disease or with risk factors for
cardiovascular disease.
Rare diseases – progressing towards
patients
- Dasiglucagon in congenital hyperinsulinism
(CHI). In the first half of 2024, Zealand expects to
resubmit the New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) for the prevention and treatment of
hypoglycemia in pediatric patients seven days of age and older with
CHI for up to three weeks of dosing. The resubmission is in
response to a Complete Response Letter issued by the FDA in
December 2023 related to deficiencies identified at a third-party
manufacturing facility that are not specific to dasiglucagon. Also
in the first half of 2024, to support use of dasiglucagon beyond
three weeks, the company plans to submit additional analyses,
requested by the FDA, from existing continuous glucose monitoring
(CGM) datasets that were included as a secondary outcome measure in
the Phase 3 program. Zealand plans to make dasiglucagon available
to healthcare professionals and patients upon regulatory approval
and expects to identify a partner for future
commercialization.
- Glepaglutide in short bowel syndrome (SBS). In
December 2023, Zealand submitted an NDA to the U.S. FDA for the
treatment of adult patients with SBS dependent on parenteral
support. The company expects to receive notification of a PDUFA
date in the coming weeks following acceptance of the filing.
Zealand anticipates identifying a partner for future
commercialization of glepaglutide.
Chronic inflammation – initiating first-in-human
trials
- ZP10068, Complement Inhibitor. As part of the
discovery and development collaboration with Alexion, Zealand has
completed pre-clinical and CMC activities for the investigational
long-acting complement inhibitor. Subsequent regulatory, clinical
and development efforts will be led and conducted by Alexion.
- ZP9830, Kv1.3 Ion Channel Blocker. Zealand
expects to initiate first-in-human clinical trials in 2024.
Conference call today at 2 PM CET / 8 AM ET
Zealand’s management will host a conference call today at 2:00
PM CET / 8:00 AM ET to present results for the full year 2023
followed by a Q&A session. Participating in the call will be
Chief Executive Officer, Adam Steensberg; Chief Financial Officer,
Henriette Wennicke; and Chief Medical Officer, David Kendall. The
conference call will be conducted in English.
The live listen-only audio webcast of the call and accompanying
slide presentation will be accessible at
https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/6jgd3v24. To receive telephone
dial-in information and a unique personal access PIN, please
register at
https://register.vevent.com/register/BI7cc2120bbf334442986b5bd9d320475a.
Participants are advised to register for the call or webcast
approximately 10 minutes before the start. A recording of the event
will be available following the call on the Investor section of
Zealand’s website at https://www.zealandpharma.com/events/.
About Zealand Pharma A/S
Zealand Pharma A/S (Nasdaq: ZEAL) (“Zealand”) is a biotechnology
company focused on the discovery and development of peptide-based
medicines. More than 10 drug candidates invented by Zealand have
advanced into clinical development, of which two have reached the
market and three candidates are in late-stage development. The
company has development partnerships with a number of pharma
companies as well as commercial partnerships for its marketed
products.
Zealand was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Copenhagen,
Denmark, with a presence in the U.S. For more information about
Zealand’s business and activities, please visit
www.zealandpharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This company announcement and associated annual report contain
“forward-looking statements”, as that term is defined in the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 in the United
States, as amended, even though no longer listed in the United
States this is used as a definition to provide Zealand Pharma’s
expectations or forecasts of future events regarding the research,
development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products, the
timing of the company’s pre-clinical and clinical trials and the
reporting of data therefrom and the company’s Key Events
Anticipated and Financial Guidance for 2024. These forward-looking
statements may be identified by words such as “aim,” “anticipate,”
“believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,”
“intend,” “may,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “will,” “would”
and other words and terms of similar meaning. You should not place
undue reliance on these statements, or the scientific data
presented. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are
subject to risks, uncertainties and inaccurate assumptions, which
may cause actual results to differ materially from expectations set
forth herein and may cause any or all of such forward-looking
statements to be incorrect, and which include, but are not limited
to, unexpected costs or delays in clinical trials and other
development activities due to adverse safety events, patient
recruitment or otherwise; unexpected concerns that may arise from
additional data, analysis or results obtained during clinical
trials; our ability to successfully market both new and existing
products; changes in reimbursement rules and governmental laws and
related interpretation thereof; government-mandated or
market-driven price decreases for our products; introduction of
competing products; production problems at third party
manufacturers; dependency on third parties, for instance contract
research or development organizations; unexpected growth in costs
and expenses; our ability to effect the strategic reorganization of
our businesses in the manner planned; failure to protect and
enforce our data, intellectual property and other proprietary
rights and uncertainties relating to intellectual property claims
and challenges; regulatory authorities may require additional
information or further studies, or may reject, fail to approve or
may delay approval of our drug candidates or expansion of product
labeling; failure to obtain regulatory approvals in other
jurisdictions; exposure to product liability and other claims;
interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; unexpected
contract breaches or terminations; inflationary pressures on the
global economy; and political uncertainty, including the ongoing
military conflict in Ukraine and the uncertainty surrounding
upcoming elections in the US. If any or all of such forward-looking
statements prove to be incorrect, our actual results could differ
materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied by such
statements. The foregoing sets forth many, but not all, of the
factors that could cause actual results to differ from our
expectations in any forward-looking statement. All such
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this
company announcement and are based on information available to
Zealand Pharma as of the date of this announcement. We do not
undertake to update any of these forward-looking statements to
reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof.
Information concerning pharmaceuticals (including compounds under
development) contained within this material is not intended as
advertising or medical advice.
Contacts:
Adam Lange |
Investor
Relations Officer |
Zealand
Pharma |
Email:
ALange@zealandpharma.com |
|
Anna Krassowska,
PhD |
Vice President,
Investor Relations & Corporate Communications |
Zealand
Pharma |
Email:
AKrassowska@zealandpharma.com |
- Zealand Pharma_Annual Report 2023
- 549300ITBB1ULBL4CZ12-2023-12-31-en
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