Geron Corporation (NASDAQ:GERN) posted financial report for the first quarter closed March 31, 2017. Operating revenues came at $537,000 while operating expenses stood at $8 million as against $749,000 and $9.8 million, correspondingly, for the same quarter, a year ago.
Revenues for Q1 2017 and Q1 2016 comprised royalty and license cost revenues under different non-imetelstat license deals. Net loss for Q1 2017 came at $7.2 million versus $8.8 million for the comparable quarter in 2016. The company closed Q1 2017 with cash and investments of $121.7 million.
The highlights
As a product of the second internal report reviews that were done last month for the imetelstat clinical studies in myelofibrosis and myelodysplastic syndromes, both studies are continuing unchanged. For IMerge, the next measure is a decision pertaining the Phase III portion of the study. If Janssen move forward, they project the Phase III portion to be open to subject registration in Q4 2017.
For IMbark, they project Janssen to assess maturing report from the study during the imminent year, comprising an evaluation of overall survival. John A. Scarlett, M.D., the President and CEO of Geron, reported that they continue to be delighted by the dedication to imetelstat demonstrated by their associates at Janssen. This internal report reviews have demonstrated the professional development expertise and care they are applying to the innovative drug.
Geron reported that R&D expenses for the quarter closed March 2017 came at $3.4 million compared to $5 million in the same period, a year ago. It mainly reflects the firm’s proportionate interest of clinical development costs under the imetelstat deal with Janssen. Higher R&D costs in 2016 were mainly due to start-up expenses for the commencement of IMerge, the Phase 2/3 study in myelodysplastic syndromes being performed by Janssen.
G&A expenses for the quarter closed March 2017 were $4.7 million against $4.8 million in the same quarter, a year ago. This drop in G&A expenses mainly reflects lower consulting costs.