Full Press Release Details
Anika Therapeutics Reports First-Quarter Fiscal 2007 Financial Results
EPS and Net Income Increase 36%
WOBURN, Mass., April 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Anika Therapeutics, Inc.
(Nasdaq: ANIK) today reported financial results for the first quarter ended
Anika reported product revenue of $5,374,000 for the first quarter of
2007, compared with $6,266,000 in the same period last year. U.S. ORTHOVISC
revenue increased 159% in the quarter compared with last year's first quarter,
offsetting a decline in international sales primarily related to the
previously announced change in the Turkish government's reimbursement policy
for more than 100 drugs, including ORTHOVISC(R). The timing of orders
adversely affected revenue in the Ophthalmic business, which declined 22% in
the first quarter of 2007 over the same period in 2006. HYVISC revenue for
the first quarter decreased 37%, also due to order timing, but is expected to
rebound in future quarters. Licensing, milestone and contract revenue for the
first quarter of 2007 was $764,000, compared with $687,000 in the first
quarter of 2006. Total revenue for the first quarter of 2007 was $6,138,000,
compared with $6,953,000 in the first quarter of 2006.
Product Gross Margin
Product gross margin for the first quarter of 2007 increased to 53.6% from
51.4% in last year's first quarter. The increase in product gross margin is
due primarily to raw material price reductions and a more favorable product
Net income for the first quarter of 2007 was $1,201,000, or $0.11 per
diluted share, compared with $881,000, or $0.08 per diluted share, for the
same period last year. The increase in net income in the first quarter of
2007 was due to higher gross margin, lower operating expenses, and a more
favorable tax rate compared with last year's first quarter.
Total operating expenses excluding cost of product revenue were $2,422,000
for the first quarter of 2007, compared with $2,866,000 for the first quarter
of 2006. The savings reflects lower expenditures this quarter in the final
phase of our European study on ELEVESS, as well as legal fees incurred in last
year's first quarter related to the Galderma agreement.
Anika's cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments at March 31,
2007 were $47,300,000, compared with $47,200,000 at December 31, 2006. The
company has no short- or long-term debt.
First-Quarter Highlights and Outlook
"We made important progress in a number of key areas during the first
quarter of 2007," said Charles H. Sherwood, Ph.D., Anika's president and chief
executive officer. "The quarter was highlighted by regulatory approvals of
ELEVESS(TM), our injectable soft-tissue filler for facial wrinkles, scar
remediation and lip augmentation. ELEVESS was approved in January in Canada
and earlier this month we received the CE Mark for commercial sales in Europe.
Receiving CE Mark approval is a major milestone in our commercialization
efforts with Galderma, our worldwide distribution partner for ELEVESS and the
world's leading dermatology company. We currently are awaiting U.S. approval
of ELEVESS and expect a worldwide launch in the second half of this year."
"We also made progress with our joint health franchise during the
quarter," added Sherwood. "U.S. sales of ORTHOVISC increased significantly
over the first quarter of 2006 as our partner Mitek began capitalizing on the
unique reimbursement code we received for the product. Lower international
sales offset the domestic increase as we continue to face headwinds resulting
from last year's change in reimbursement policy in Turkey. We are hopeful
that new international distribution agreements, such as those that we signed
in the first quarter in Hungary and Switzerland, as well as product
registrations in process in India, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Brazil, and
Venezuela, will begin to contribute to revenue by year end. However, we
expect overall international ORTHOVISC sales in 2007 to be lower than 2006."
"We continued to make strides in our joint health clinical and product
development activities, including the study we began with Mitek in the fourth
quarter of 2006 to evaluate ORTHOVISC as a treatment for osteoarthritis pain
in the shoulder joint," said Sherwood. "The majority of our clinical sites
are now operational and enrolling patients."
"Looking forward, we are focused on the execution of our strategy and the
accomplishment of several key milestones for 2007. These include receiving
U.S. approval for ELEVESS and launching the product globally with our partner
Galderma Pharma, achieving significant growth in ORTHOVISC sales year-over-
year, receiving approval to market our first single-injection osteoarthritis
product in Europe, concluding enrollment in the clinical trial of ORTHOVISC
for osteoarthritis of the shoulder, and making progress on our relocation to a
larger, consolidated facility," concluded Sherwood.
Conference Call Information
The company will hold a conference call to review its financial results
and business highlights on Friday, April 27, 2007, at 9:00 a.m. ET. In
addition, the company may address during the conference call its business and
financial developments and trends, including those involving product lines and
business partners, and other business and financial matters affecting the
company, which may contain information that has not been previously disclosed.
To listen to the conference call, dial 800-706-7749 (International callers use
617-614-3474) and use the passcode 47268523. Please call approximately 10
minutes before the starting time and reference Anika Therapeutics. In
addition, the conference call will be available to interested parties through
a live audio Internet broadcast at http://www.anikatherapeutics.com. The call
will be archived and accessible on the same website shortly after the
conclusion of the call.
About Anika Therapeutics, Inc.
Headquartered in Woburn, Mass., Anika Therapeutics, Inc.
(http://www.anikatherapeutics.com) develops, manufactures and commercializes
therapeutic products for tissue protection, healing and repair. These
products are based on hyaluronic acid (HA), a naturally occurring,
biocompatible polymer found throughout the body. Anika products include
ORTHOVISC(R), a treatment for osteoarthritis of the knee available
internationally and marketed in the U.S. by DePuy Mitek and HYVISC(R), a
treatment for equine osteoarthritis marketed in the U.S. by Boehringer
Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. Anika develops and manufactures Amvisc(R) and
Amvisc Plus(R), HA viscoelastic products for ophthalmic surgery. It also
produces STAARVISC(TM)-II, which is distributed by STAAR Surgical Company and
Shellgel(TM) for Cytosol Ophthalmics, Inc.
The statements made in this press release which are not statements of
historical fact are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section
27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, including, without limitation, statements that may be identified