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ACIU Negative Sentiment Score: 30/100

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited) (In CHF thousands) As of March 31, December 31, Note 2023 2022 Assets Non-current assets Property, plant and equipment 5 4,011 4,259 Right-of-use assets 6 2,674 2,808 Int

Key Takeaway: AC Immune SA reported its interim consolidated financial results for the first quarter of 2023, showing a net loss of CHF 17,513,000, a slight improvement from the CHF 18,848,000 loss reported in the same quarter of 2022. The company experienced a decrease in total assets and an increase in accumulated losses, which reached CHF 280,105,000 as of March 31, 2023. Despite a higher cash balance of CHF 57,434,000 compared to December 2022, current liabilities and operating expenses remain significant concerns. Overall, the financial statements reflect ongoing challenges as the company continues its operations in developing treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.

Market Sentiment Analysis

CONCERNS & RISKS

  • Continued significant losses with a net loss of CHF 17,513,000 in Q1 2023.
  • Current liabilities remain relatively high at CHF 10,755,000.
  • Decline in total assets from CHF 185,938,000 in December 2022 to CHF 169,150,000 in March 2023.
  • Accumulated losses increased significantly by CHF 16,090,000 from the previous period.

Full Press Release Details

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)
As of
March 31, December 31,
Note 2023 2022
Assets
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment 5 4,011 4,259
Right-of-use assets 6 2,674 2,808
Intangible asset 8 50,416 50,416
Long-term financial assets 6 361 361
Total non-current assets 57,462 57,844
Current assets
Prepaid expenses 9 5,438 4,708
Accrued income 3 218 408
Other current receivables 598 392
Short-term financial assets 10 48,000 91,000
Cash and cash equivalents 10 57,434 31,586
Total current assets 111,688 128,094
Total assets 169,150 185,938
Shareholders' equity and liabilities
Shareholders' equity
Share capital 1,797 1,797
Share premium 431,365 431,323
Treasury shares 11 (124) (124)
Currency translation differences 2 10
Accumulated losses (280,105) (264,015)
Total shareholders' equity 152,935 168,991
Non-current liabilities
Long-term lease liabilities 6 2,115 2,253
Net employee defined benefit liabilities 3,345 3,213
Total non-current liabilities 5,460 5,466
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables 1,136 929
Accrued expenses 7 8,653 9,417
Deferred income 3 415 587
Short-term lease liabilities 6 551 548
Total current liabilities 10,755 11,481
Total liabilities 16,215 16,947
Total shareholders' equity and liabilities 169,150 185,938
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited).
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income/(Loss) (Unaudited)
(In CHF thousands, except for per-share data)
For the Three Months
Ended March 31,
Note 2023 2022
Revenue
Contract revenue 3 - -
Total revenue - -
Operating expenses
Research & development expenses (13,873) (15,123)
General & administrative expenses (4,106) (4,166)
Other operating income/(expense), net 3 408 459
Total operating expenses (17,571) (18,830)
Operating loss (17,571) (18,830)
Financial income 209 -
Financial expense (97) (154)
Exchange differences (51) 140
Finance result, net 12 61 (14)
Loss before tax (17,510) (18,844)
Income tax expense (3) (4)
Loss for the period (17,513) (18,848)
Loss per share: 4
Basic and diluted loss per share for the period attributable to equity holders (0.21) (0.23)
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income/(Loss) (Unaudited)
For the Three Months
ended March 31,
Note 2023 2022
Loss for the period (17,513) (18,848)
Items that will be reclassified to income or loss in subsequent periods (net of tax):
Currency translation differences (8) 10
Items that will not to be reclassified to income or loss in subsequent periods (net of tax):
Remeasurement gains on defined-benefit plans (net of tax) - -
Other comprehensive income/(loss) (8) 10
Total comprehensive loss, net of tax (17,521) (18,838)
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited).
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity (Unaudited)
Currency
Share Share Treasury Accumulated translation
Note capital premium shares losses differences Total
Balance as of January 1, 2022 1,794 431,251 (124) (200,942) - 231,979
Net loss for the period - - - (18,848) - (18,848)
Other comprehensive income - - - - 10 10
Total comprehensive loss - - - (18,848) 10 (18,838)
Share-based payments - - - 989 - 989
Issuance of shares, net of transaction costs:
restricted share awards - 2 - (2) - -
exercise of options 1 - - - - 1
Balance as of March 31, 2022 1,795 431,253 (124) (218,803) 10 214,131
Currency
Share Share Treasury Accumulated translation
Note capital premium shares losses differences Total
Balance as of January 1, 2023 1,797 431,323 (124) (264,015) 10 168,991
Net loss for the period - - - (17,513) - (17,513)
Other comprehensive loss - - - - (8) (8)
Total comprehensive loss - - - (17,513) (8) (17,521)
Share-based payments - - - 1,472 - 1,472
Issuance of shares, net of transaction costs:
restricted share awards 0 49 - (49) - 0
exercise of options - (7) - - - (7)
Balance as of March 31, 2023 1,797 431,365 (124) (280,105) 2 152,935
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited).
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
For the Three Months
Ended March 31,
Note 2023 2022
Operating activities
Loss for the period (17,513) (18,848)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss for the period to net cash flows:
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment 5 436 460
Depreciation of right-of-use assets 6 134 140
Finance (income), net 12 (59) (179)
Share-based compensation expense 1,472 989
Change in net employee defined benefit liability 132 183
Interest expense 12 97 151
Changes in working capital:
(Increase)/decrease in prepaid expenses 9 (737) 186
Decrease in accrued income 3 190 828
(Increase)/decrease in other current receivables (206) 162
(Decrease) in accrued expenses 7 (751) (5,128)
(Decrease) in deferred income 3 (172) (459)
Increase/(decrease) in trade and other payables 208 (1,493)
Cash used in operating activities (16,769) (23,008)
Interest received 67 -
Interest paid (97) (132)
Finance expenses paid (2) (3)
Net cash flows used in operating activities (16,801) (23,143)
Investing activities
Short-term financial assets, net 10 43,000 -
Purchases of property, plant and equipment 5 (200) (540)
Net cash flows provided by/(used in) investing activities 42,800 (540)
Financing activities
Principal payments of lease obligations 6 (135) (141)
Transaction costs associated with issuance of shares - (776)
Proceeds from issuance of common shares (6) 1
Net cash flows (used in) financing activities (141) (916)
Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 25,858 (24,599)
Cash and cash equivalents at January 1 31,586 82,216
Exchange gain on cash and cash equivalents (10) 218
Cash and cash equivalents at March 31 57,434 57,835
Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 25,858 (24,599)
Supplemental non-cash activity
Capital expenditures in Trade and other payables or Accrued expenses 5 - 15
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited).
Notes to the Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
(In CHF thousands, except share and per share amounts)
AC Immune SA was founded in 2003. The Company controls a fully-owned subsidiary, AC Immune USA, Inc. ("AC Immune USA" or "Subsidiary" and, together with AC Immune SA, "AC Immune," "ACIU," "Company," "we," "our," "ours," "us"), which was organized under the laws of Delaware, USA in June 2021. The Company and its Subsidiary form the Group.
AC Immune SA is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging our two proprietary technology platforms to discover, design and develop novel proprietary medicines and diagnostics for prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases (NDD) associated with protein misfolding. Misfolded proteins are generally recognized as the leading cause of NDD, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), with common mechanisms and drug targets, such as amyloid beta (Abeta), Tau, alpha-synuclein (a-syn) and TDP-43. Our corporate strategy is founded upon a three-pillar approach that targets (i) AD, (ii) focused non-AD NDD including Parkinson's disease, ALS and NeuroOrphan indications and (iii) diagnostics. We use our two unique proprietary platform technologies, SupraAntigen (conformation-specific biologics) and Morphomer (conformation-specific small molecules), to discover, design and develop novel medicines and diagnostics to target misfolded proteins.
The Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements of AC Immune SA as of and for the three months ended March 31, 2023 were authorized for issuance by the Company's Audit and Finance Committee on April 26, 2023.
Statement of compliance
These Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements as of March 31, 2023 and for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, have been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 (IAS 34), Interim Financial Reporting, as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), and such financial information should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements in AC Immune's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Basis of measurement
These Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention.
Functional and reporting currency
These Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes are presented in Swiss Francs (CHF), which is AC Immune SA's functional currency and the Group's reporting currency. The Company's subsidiary has a functional currency of the U.S. Dollar (USD). The following exchange rates have been used for the translation of the financial statements of AC Immune USA:
For the
Three Months Ended March 31, Year Ended December 31,
2023 2022 2022
CHF/USD
Closing rate, USD 1 0.923 0.932 0.933
Weighted-average exchange rate, USD 1 0.935 0.933 0.965
Critical judgments and accounting estimates
The preparation of the Company's Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements in conformity with IAS 34 requires management to make judgments, estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes, and the related application of accounting policies as it relates to the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, income and expenses.
The areas where AC Immune has had to make judgments, estimates and assumptions relate to (i) revenue recognition on Licensing and Collaboration Agreements (LCAs), (ii) clinical development accruals, (iii) net employee defined benefit liability, (iv) income taxes, (v) share-based compensation, (vi) right-of-use assets and lease liabilities and (vii) our IPR&D asset. Actual results may differ from these estimates. Estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognized in the period in which the estimates are revised and in any future periods affected.
Fair value of financial assets and liabilities
The Company's financial assets and liabilities are composed of receivables, short-term and long-term financial assets, cash and cash equivalents, trade and other payables, accrued expenses and lease liabilities. The fair value of these financial instruments approximates their respective carrying values due to the short-term maturity of these instruments, and are held at their amortized cost in accordance with IFRS 9, unless otherwise explicitly noted.
Accounting policies, new standards, interpretations and amendments adopted by the Company
The accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Company's annual consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022.
There are no new IFRS standards, amendments or interpretations that are mandatory as of January 1, 2023 that are relevant to the Company. Additionally, the Company has not adopted any standard, interpretation or amendment that has been issued but is not yet effective. Such standards are not currently expected to have a material impact on the entity in the current or future reporting periods and on foreseeable future transactions.
The Company believes that it will be able to meet all of its obligations as they fall due for at least 12 months from the filing date of this Form 6-K, after considering the Company's cash position of CHF 57.4 million and short-term financial assets of CHF 48.0 million as of March 31, 2023. Hence, these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared on a going-concern basis.
To date, the Company has financed its cash requirements primarily from its public offerings, share issuances, contract revenues from its LCAs and grants. The Company is a clinical stage company and is exposed to all the risks inherent to establishing a business. Inherent to the Company's business are various risks and uncertainties, including the substantial uncertainty as to whether current projects will succeed and our ability to raise additional capital as needed. These risks may require us to take certain measures such as delaying, reducing or eliminating certain programs. The Company's success may depend in part upon its ability to (i) establish and maintain a strong patent position and protection, (ii) enter into collaborations with partners in the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries, (iii) successfully move its product candidates through clinical development, (iv) attract and retain key personnel and (v) acquire capital to support its operations.
3.Contract revenue and other operating income
For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, AC Immune generated no contract revenues.
3.1Licensing and collaboration agreements
For a discussion of our licensing and collaboration agreements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, please refer to Note 13.1 "Licensing and Collaboration agreements" of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed on March 16, 2023.
As it relates to revenue recognition, there have been no significant events or transactions associated with our license and collaboration agreements that have occurred for the three months ended March 31, 2023.
Grants from the Michael J. Fox Foundation
For a discussion of our Grants from the Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, please refer to Note 13.2 "Grant Income" of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed on March 16, 2023.
In August 2022, the Company received follow-on grant funding as part of its joint arrangement with Sk ne University Hospital (Sk ne) in Sweden totaling USD 0.5 (CHF 0.5) million for the continued development of its alpha-synuclein PET imaging diagnostic agent. As part of this grant, AC Immune received USD 0.4 (CHF 0.4) million directly from the MJFF. Sk ne will receive USD 0.1 (CHF 0.1) million of the total grant directly from the MJFF duration of the grant period.
In February 2023, the Company was awarded a new grant from the MJFF totaling USD 0.5 (CHF 0.5) million to support the development of its TDP-43 PET tracer program.
For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company has recognized CHF 0.4 million in grant income, respectively. As of March 31, 2023, the Company has recorded CHF 0.3 million in deferred income.
For the Three Months
Ended March 31,
In CHF thousands except for share and per share data 2023 2022
Loss per share (EPS)
Numerator
Net loss attributable to equity holders of the Company (17,513) (18,848)
Denominator
Weighted-average number of shares outstanding used to compute EPS basic and diluted attributable to equity holders 83,625,826 83,486,354
Basic and diluted loss per share for the period attributable to equity holders (0.21) (0.23)
The weighted-average number of potentially dilutive securities that were not included in the diluted per share calculations because they would be anti-dilutive were as follows:
For the Three Months
Ended March 31,
2023 2022
Share options issued and outstanding 97,875 199,636
Restricted share awards subject to future vesting 1,236,774 521
5.Property, plant and equipment
The following table shows the movement in the net book values of property, plant and equipment for the three months ended March 31, 2023:
As of March 31, 2023
IT Lab Leasehold Assets under
In CHF thousands Furniture equipment equipment improvements construction Total
Acquisition cost:
Balance at December 31, 2022 285 1,909 9,765 1,640 3 13,602
Additions - 154 46 - - 200
Disposals - - - (12) - (12)
Transfers - - - 3 (3) -
Balance at March 31, 2023 285 2,063 9,811 1,631 - 13,790
Accumulated depreciation:
Balance at December 31, 2022 (159) (1,599) (7,017) (568) - (9,343)
Depreciation expense (14) (68) (288) (66) - (436)
Balance at March 31, 2023 (173) (1,667) (7,305) (634) - (9,779)
Carrying amount:
December 31, 2022 126 310 2,748 1,072 3 4,259
March 31, 2023 112 396 2,506 997 - 4,011
AC Immune continues to enhance its laboratory equipment to support its R&D functions and IT equipment. This effort has continued since the year ended December 31, 2022, with CHF 0.2 million invested in lab equipment, including the expansion of our leased lab space, and IT equipment, representing an increase of 1.7% from the beginning of the year in these categories.
6.Right-of-use assets, long-term financial assets and lease liabilities
AC Immune recognized no additions for its right-of-use of leased assets for the three months ended March 31, 2023.
Regarding lease liabilities, the amortization depends on the rate implicit in the contract or the incremental borrowing rate for the respective lease component. The weighted averages of the incremental borrowing rates are 3.5% for buildings, 5.3% for office equipment and 2.6% for IT equipment, respectively.
The following table shows the movements in the net book values of right-of-use of leased assets for the three months ended March 31, 2023:
Office IT
In CHF thousands Buildings equipment equipment Total
Balance as of December 31, 2022 2,708 74 26 2,808
Depreciation (124) (6) (4) (134)
Balance as of March 31, 2023 2,584 68 22 2,674
There are no variable lease payments that are not included in the measurement of lease obligations. All extension options have been included in the measurement of lease obligations.
For the three months ended March 31, 2023, and 2022, the impact on the Company's condensed consolidated statements of income/(loss) and the condensed consolidated statements of cash flows is as follows:
For the Three Months
Ended March 31,
In CHF thousands 2023 2022
Statements of income/(loss)
Depreciation of right-of-use assets 134 140
Interest expense on lease liabilities 24 18
Expense for short-term leases and leases of low value 298 174
Total 456 332
Statements of cash flows
Total cash outflow for leases 458 333
The following table presents the contractual undiscounted cash flows for lease obligations as of March 31, 2023:
As of
In CHF thousands March 31, 2023
Less than one year 636
1-3 years 1,222
3-5 years 1,038
Total 2,896
The Company also has deposits in escrow accounts totaling CHF 0.4 million for leases of the Company's premises as of both March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. These deposits are presented in Long-term financial assets on the Company's condensed consolidated balance sheets.
As of
In CHF thousands March 31, 2023 December 31, 2022
Accrued expenses 8,653 9,417
Total accrued expenses 8,653 9,417
Accrued expenses consists of accrued R&D costs, accrued payroll expenses and other accrued expenses totaling CHF 8.7 million and CHF 9.4 million as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.
AC Immune's acquired IPR&D asset is a clinically-validated active vaccine candidate for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. The asset is not yet ready for use until the asset obtains market approval and is therefore not currently being amortized. The carrying amount and net book value are detailed below:
As of March 31, 2023 As of December 31, 2022
Gross Gross
carrying Accumulated Net book carrying Accumulated Net book
In CHF thousands amount amortization value amount amortization value
Acquired IPR&D asset 50,416 - 50,416 50,416 - 50,416
Total intangible assets 50,416 - 50,416 50,416 - 50,416
In accordance with IAS 36 Impairment of Assets, the IPR&D asset is reviewed at least annually for impairment by assessing the fair value less costs to sell (recoverable amount) and comparing this to the carrying value of the asset. The valuation is considered to be Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy in accordance with IFRS 13 Fair Value Measurement due to unobservable inputs used in the valuation. The Company has determined the IPR&D asset not to be impaired as of
December 31, 2022. As of March 31, 2023, the Company did not identify any triggering events that could result in an impairment of the IPR&D asset.
Prepaid expenses include prepaid R&D costs, administrative costs and employee social obligations totaling CHF 5.4 million and CHF 4.7 million as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.
10.Cash and cash equivalents and short-term financial assets
The following table summarizes AC Immune's cash and cash equivalents and short-term financial assets as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022:
As of
In CHF thousands March 31, 2023 December 31, 2022
Cash and cash equivalents 57,434 31,586
Total cash and cash equivalents 57,434 31,586
As of
In CHF thousands March 31, 2023 December 31, 2022
Short-term financial assets due in one year or less 48,000 91,000
Total short-term financial assets 48,000 91,000
For the three months ended March 31, 2023, a net amount of CHF 43.0 million in short-term financial assets matured compared to no net maturation in the comparable prior period.
For a discussion of our at the market offering program with Jefferies LLC for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, please refer to Note 11 "Share capital" of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed on March 16, 2023.
As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the Company had 6,214,021 treasury shares remaining, respectively.
12.Finance result, net
For the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, AC Immune recorded CHF 0.1 million in net financial gains and less than CHF 0.1 million in net financial losses, respectively.
13.Subsequent events
Management has evaluated subsequent events after the balance sheet date, through the issuance of these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, for appropriate accounting and disclosures. The Company has determined that there were no other such events that warrant disclosure or recognition in these Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

Frequently Asked Questions

What were the total assets as of March 31, 2023?

The total assets were CHF 169,150 thousand.

What was the loss for the period ended March 31, 2023?

The loss for the period was CHF 17,513 thousand.

Which expenses saw a decrease from 2022 to 2023?

Research & development expenses decreased from CHF 15,123 thousand to CHF 13,873 thousand.

What is AC Immune SA's primary focus?

AC Immune focuses on developing treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.

When were the financial results authorized for issuance?

The results were authorized on April 26, 2023.

Last updated: Apr 28, 2023