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MREO Negative Sentiment Score: 30/100

MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss (unaudited) Notes Six months ended

Key Takeaway: Mereo BioPharma Group PLC released its unaudited financial statements for the six months ending June 30, 2023. The company reported a significant operating loss of £9,909,000, though this is an improvement compared to £21,810,000 for the same period in 2022. Mereo's research and development expenses decreased but still represent a substantial cost. Overall, while the company saw some revenue generation, its net losses remain a concern.

Market Sentiment Analysis

POSITIVE FACTORS

  • Company generated revenue of £7,128,000 in the first half of 2023.
  • There was a reduction in the loss before tax compared to the previous year.

CONCERNS & RISKS

  • Operating loss increased significantly from £21,810,000 to £9,909,000.
  • Total comprehensive loss decreased only slightly from £20,933,000 to £9,537,000.
  • Research and development expenses remain high at £7,898,000.

Full Press Release Details

MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss
Notes Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Revenue 3 7,128 -
Cost of revenue 3 ( 2,455 ) 352
Research and development expenses ( 7,898 ) ( 13,322 )
Administrative expenses ( 9,548 ) ( 8,840 )
Other operating income 3 2,864 -
Operating loss ( 9,909 ) ( 21,810 )
Finance income 4 550 173
Finance costs 4 ( 1,498 ) ( 1,859 )
Changes in the fair value of financial instruments 4 365 1,210
Net foreign exchange (loss)/gain ( 1,445 ) 1,582
Other income 5 - 811
Loss before tax ( 11,937 ) ( 19,893 )
Taxation 907 735
Loss for the period, attributable to equity holders of the parent ( 11,030 ) ( 19,158 )
Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Currency translation of foreign operations 1,493 ( 1,775 )
Total comprehensive loss for the period, attributable to equity holders of the parent ( 9,537 ) ( 20,933 )
Basic loss per share for the period (in ) 6 ( 0.02 ) ( 0.03 )
Diluted loss per share for the period (in ) 6 ( 0.02 ) ( 0.03 )
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.
MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
Notes June 30, 2023 '000 December 31, 2022 '000
Assets
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment 7 1,565 1,831
Intangible assets 8 24,845 24,116
26,410 25,947
Current assets
Prepayments 1,376 3,125
R&D tax credits 2,203 1,296
Other taxes receivable 643 614
Trade and other receivables 3 7,893 762
Cash and short-term deposits 42,113 56,334
54,228 62,131
Total assets 80,638 88,078
Equity and liabilities
Non-current liabilities
Provisions 10 411 -
Convertible loan notes 11 3,665 -
Warrant liability 12 166 129
Lease liability 973 1,222
Other liabilities 220 182
5,435 1,533
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables 1,911 3,078
Accruals 4,786 4,491
Provisions 10 4,701 4,822
Convertible loan notes 11 4,186 11,085
Warrant liability 12 - 402
Lease liability 488 466
Other liabilities 3 1,386 333
17,458 24,677
Total liabilities 22,893 26,210
Net assets 57,745 61,868
Equity
Issued capital 9 1,930 1,875
Share premium 9 257,343 254,303
Other capital reserves 9 134,999 132,680
Employee Benefit Trust shares ( 1,058 ) ( 1,058 )
Other reserves 7,401 7,401
Accumulated losses ( 342,194 ) ( 331,164 )
Translation reserve ( 676 ) ( 2,169 )
Total equity 57,745 61,868
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.
MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
Notes Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Operating activities
Loss before tax ( 11,937 ) ( 19,893 )
Adjustments to reconcile (loss)/profit to net cash flows:
Depreciation and impairment of property, plant and equipment 7 266 436
Amortization of intangible assets 8 138 -
Share-based payment expense 9 1,931 2,446
Net foreign exchange loss/(gain) 1,282 ( 2,100 )
Increase in provisions and other liabilities 10,3 1,130 307
Finance income 4 ( 550 ) ( 173 )
Finance costs 4 1,084 1,696
Fair value remeasurement on warrants 4 ( 365 ) ( 1,210 )
Other income and expenses 5 - ( 811 )
Other non-cash movements 3 155 330
Working capital adjustments
(Increase)/decrease in receivables and prepayments ( 5,521 ) 331
(Decrease)/increase in trade and other payables and accruals ( 846 ) 1,364
Taxation ( 29 ) ( 1,529 )
Net cash flows used in operating activities ( 13,262 ) ( 18,806 )
Investing activities
Purchase of property, plant and equipment 7 - ( 10 )
Proceeds from intangible asset (net of transaction costs) 5 - 1,484
Payments to CVR holders 5 - ( 673 )
Interest earned 4 468 173
Payments to acquire intangible assets ( 337 ) -
Net cash flows from investing activities 131 974
Financing activities
Proceeds from issuance of ordinary shares 2 -
Interest paid 4 ( 771 ) -
Payment of lease liabilities ( 226 ) ( 445 )
Proceeds from TAP agreement 79 153
Net cash flows used in financing activities ( 916 ) ( 292 )
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents ( 14,047 ) ( 18,124 )
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 56,334 94,296
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents ( 174 ) 243
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 42,113 76,415
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.
MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity
Notes Issued capital '000 Share premium '000 Other capital reserves '000 Employee Benefit Trust '000 Other reserves '000 Accumulated losses '000 Translation reserve '000 Total equity '000
At December 31, 2021 1,755 247,460 129,835 ( 1,140 ) 7,401 ( 296,968 ) ( 341 ) 88,002
Loss for the period - - - - - ( 19,158 ) - ( 19,158 )
Other comprehensive loss - - - - - - ( 1,775 ) ( 1,775 )
Total comprehensive loss - - - - - ( 19,158 ) ( 1,775 ) ( 20,933 )
Share-based payments 9 - - 2,446 - - - - 2,446
Exercise of share options - - ( 82 ) 82 - - - -
Issuance of warrants - - 70 - - - - 70
At June 30, 2022 1,755 247,460 132,269 ( 1,058 ) 7,401 ( 316,126 ) ( 2,116 ) 69,585
At December 31, 2022 1,875 254,303 132,680 ( 1,058 ) 7,401 ( 331,164 ) ( 2,169 ) 61,868
Loss for the period - - - - - ( 11,030 ) - ( 11,030 )
Other comprehensive income - - - - - - 1,493 1,493
Total comprehensive loss - - - - - ( 11,030 ) 1,493 ( 9,537 )
Share-based payments 9 - - 1,931 - - - - 1,931
Exercise of share options 2 - - - - - - 2
Issuance of shares 9 53 3,040 347 - - - - 3,440
Issuance of warrants - - 41 - - - - 41
At June 30, 2023 1,930 257,343 134,999 ( 1,058 ) 7,401 ( 342,194 ) ( 676 ) 57,745
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.
MEREO BIOPHARMA GROUP PLC
Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
1. Corporate information
Mereo BioPharma Group plc (the "Company" or "Mereo") is a clinical-stage, United Kingdom ("UK") based biopharmaceutical company focused on rare diseases and oncology.
The Company is a public limited company incorporated and domiciled in the UK, and registered in England, with shares publicly traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market via American Depositary Shares ("ADSs") under the ticker symbol MREO. The Company's registered office is located at Fourth Floor, 1 Cavendish Place, London, W1G 0QF, United Kingdom.
These financial statements are the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements of Mereo BioPharma Group plc and its subsidiaries for the six months ended June 30, 2023. The principal activities of the Company are the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutic pharmaceutical products for rare diseases.
2. Significant accounting policies
Basis of preparation
The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements for the six months ended June 30, 2023 have been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standards (IAS) 34, Interim Financial Reporting. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements do not include all information and disclosures required in the annual financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and should be read in conjunction with the Company's annual consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on March 28, 2023.
The financial information is presented in pound sterling (" "), which is the presentational currency of the Company. The functional currencies of consolidated subsidiaries are pound sterling and US dollars ("$"). All amounts disclosed in the condensed consolidated financial statements and notes have been rounded to the nearest thousand, unless otherwise stated.
The financial information for the year ended December 31, 2022 has been extracted from the Company's audited financial statements for that year, filed with the SEC on March 28, 2023.
These condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited and do not constitute statutory accounts of the Company as defined in section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. A copy of the statutory accounts for financial year ended December 31, 2022 has been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The auditors reported on those accounts and their report was unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis and did not contain a statement under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.
Segmental information
The Company has one operating segment. The Chief Operating Decision Maker ("CODM") is the Chief Executive Officer. The Company has a single portfolio of product candidates, with only direct research and development expenses monitored by product candidate. The CODM makes decisions over resource allocation at an overall portfolio level and the Company's financing is managed and monitored on a consolidated basis.
The going concern basis has been applied in these condensed consolidated financial statements as the Company has adequate resources to meet its liabilities as they fall due for the foreseeable future and at least 12 months from the issuance date of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
The Company expects to incur significant operating losses for the foreseeable future as it continues its research and development efforts, seeks to obtain regulatory approval of its product candidates and pursues any future product candidates the Company may develop.
Until such time as the Company can generate significant revenue from product sales, or other commercial revenues, if ever, or through licensing and/or collaboration agreements for its rare disease or oncology product candidates, the Company will seek to finance its operations through a combination of public or private equity or debt financings or other non-dilutive
Summary of significant accounting policies
The accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the condensed consolidated financial statements are consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Company's consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Significant accounting estimates and judgments
The preparation of these condensed consolidated financial statements requires the management of the Company to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. The Company bases its estimates and judgments on historical experience and on various other assumptions that it considers to be reasonable. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
The significant accounting estimates and judgments adopted in the preparation of the condensed consolidated financial statements are consistent with those followed in the preparation of the Company's consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022.
3. Revenue, Cost of revenue and Other operating income
The Company recognized milestone proceeds of $9 million (
7.1 million) as revenue under the collaboration and license agreement with Ultragenyx for setrusumab following achievement of a development milestone in the six months ended June 30, 2023. The milestone proceeds were
received in July 2023.
The variable consideration relating to future milestones and sales royalties will be recognized in the statement of comprehensive income when the milestones are achieved or the underlying commercial sales are made, in the event regulatory approval is obtained.
As a consequence of the milestone proceeds paid to the Company under the collaboration and license agreement with Ultragenyx and in accordance with the terms of the 2015 asset purchase agreement with Novartis, the Company also accrued for a payment to Novartis of
1.7 million. The payment included a deduction for costs of
1.4 million which was deferred to be recognized in the statement of comprehensive loss when the associated costs are incurred.
In the six month period ended June 30, 2023,
0.6 million (six months ended June 30, 2022: 0.4 million) of these deductions were recognized in the condensed consolidated statement of comprehensive loss. As of June 30, 2023, the remaining balance to be recognized of
million (December 31, 2022:
0.3 million) is included within "Other liabilities" in the condensed consolidated balance sheets.
In June 2023, the Company received a payment of 2.9 million from its depositary for reimbursement of certain expenses incurred by the Company in respect of its ADR program in the current and prior years pursuant to the agreement between both parties. The Company recognizes such amounts as "Other operating income" when it becomes entitled to them.
4. Finance income, finance costs and changes in the fair value of financial instruments
Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Interest income on short-term deposits 468 173
Modification of convertible loan notes 82 -
Total 550 173
Finance income includes a 0.1 million (2022:
nil) gain recognized on the modification of the Private Placement Loan Notes (see Note 11).
Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Interest on convertible loan notes ( 1,004 ) ( 1,567 )
Interest on lease liabilities ( 79 ) ( 113 )
Discounting of provisions for deferred contingent cash consideration ( 395 ) ( 163 )
Other ( 20 ) ( 16 )
Total ( 1,498 ) ( 1,859 )
Interest on convertible loan notes includes 0.7 million of accrued interest paid as part of the amendment of the Novartis convertible loan note (see Note 11).
Changes in the fair value of financial instruments
Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Changes in the fair value of warrants - private placement 402 1,091
Changes in the fair value of warrants - bank loan ( 37 ) 119
Total 365 1,210
See Note 12 for additional information on the warrant liability.
5. Other income and expenses
In February 2022, the Company received a milestone payment of $2.0 million ( 1.5 million) under the Navi License Agreement with OncXerna. An associated payment was made to the former shareholders of Mereo BioPharma 5, Inc. under the Contingent Value Rights Agreement ("CVR") of a total of $0.9 million ( 0.7 million), after deductions of costs, charges and expenditures, which resulted in other income, net of 0.8 million.
Basic loss per share is calculated by dividing the loss attributable for the period to ordinary equity holders of the parent by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period. Diluted loss per share is based on dividing the loss attributable for the period, adjusted for the effect of dilutive ordinary shares, by ordinary share equivalents, which includes the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding and the effect of dilutive ordinary share equivalents.
Six months ended June 30, 2023 '000 Six months ended June 30, 2022 '000
Numerator - Basic loss per share ( '000)
Loss attributable to equity holders of the parent ( 11,030 ) ( 19,158 )
Denominator - Basic loss per share
Weighted average number of ordinary shares 627,087,752 583,892,445
Loss per share - basic ( ) ( 0.02 ) ( 0.03 )
Numerator - Diluted loss per share ( '000):
Loss attributable to equity holders of the parent ( 11,030 ) ( 19,158 )
Effect of dilutive ordinary shares - -
Numerator - Diluted loss per share ( 11,030 ) ( 19,158 )
Denominator - Diluted loss per share:
Number of ordinary shares used for basic loss per share 627,087,752 583,892,445
Weighted average effect of dilutive ordinary shares - -
Weighted average number of diluted ordinary shares outstanding 627,087,752 583,892,445
Loss per share - diluted ( ) ( 0.02 ) ( 0.03 )
For both periods, share options, convertible loan notes and warrants were considered to be anti-dilutive as they would have decreased the loss per share and were therefore excluded from the calculation of diluted loss per share. Therefore, the weighted average shares outstanding used to calculate both the basic and diluted loss per share was the same.
7. Property, plant and equipment
Right-of-use asset (building) ( '000) Leasehold improvements ( '000) Office Equipment ( '000) IT Equipment ( '000) Total ( '000)
Cost or valuation at January 1, 2023 and June 30, 2023 2,465 557 164 173 3,359
Depreciation and impairment
At January 1, 2023 ( 1,088 ) ( 219 ) ( 76 ) ( 145 ) ( 1,528 )
Depreciation for the period ( 199 ) ( 48 ) ( 11 ) ( 9 ) ( 266 )
At June 30, 2023 ( 1,287 ) ( 267 ) ( 87 ) ( 154 ) ( 1,794 )
Net book value
At January 1, 2023 1,377 338 88 28 1,831
At June 30, 2023 1,178 290 77 19 1,565
8. Intangible assets
Acquired development programs
Cost
At January 1, 2023 33,005
Additions 1,166
At June 30, 2023 34,172
Accumulated revision to estimated value
At January 1, 2023 ( 8,889 )
Revision to estimated value ( 300 )
At June 30, 2023 ( 9,189 )
Accumulated amortization
At January 1, 2023 -
Amortization for the period ( 138 )
At June 30, 2023 ( 138 )
Net book value
At January 1, 2023 24,116
At June 30, 2023 24,845
On February 3, 2023, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary Mereo BioPharma 3 Limited, Ultragenyx, UCB Pharma SA ("UCB") and Amgen Inc. ("Amgen") entered into a non-exclusive worldwide, royalty-free license (the "UCB/Amgen License") to research, develop, and commercialize setrusumab in osteogenesis imperfecta ("OI") under certain UCB/Amgen-owned patent rights related to anti-sclerostin compounds and their uses. An intangible asset of
1.2 million was recognized in the period reflecting payments under the agreement that are not contingent. A corresponding liability of
0.6 million and a provision of
0.6 million for contingent consideration payable was also recognized (see Note 10). The license is amortized on a straight-line basis over its useful economic life. During the six months ended June 30, 2023, amortization expense of
nil) has been recorded within "Administrative expenses" in the condensed consolidated statement of comprehensive (loss)/income.
The present value of the provision for deferred contingent cash consideration relating to the agreement with AstraZeneca was reviewed as of June 30, 2023 (see Note 10). The decrease in the present value due to changes in timelines or probability of contractual milestones being achieved was 0.3 million (2022:
0.4 million) and was recognized as a reduction of the intangible asset.
During the period the Company did
not revise the value of any other intangible assets (2022: nil). With the exception of the UCB/Amgen License which is amortized, the intangible assets remain under development and no amortization charge has been recognized.
9. Issued capital and reserves
Number of ordinary shares Ordinary Share Capital '000 Share Premium '000
At January 1, 2022 and June 30, 2022 584,908,239 1,755 247,460
At January 1, 2023 624,928,519 1,875 254,303
Issued during the perio d 18,276,275 55 3,040
At June 30, 2023 643,204,794 1,930 257,343
During the six months ended June 30, 2023, Private Placement Loan Notes with a carrying value of
3.1 million were converted into 17,774,895 ordinary shares at a conversion price of 0.174 per ordinary share (see Note 11) and 501,380 ordinary shares were issued upon the vesting of equity awards.
Other capital reserves
Share-based payments '000 Equity component of convertible loan '000 Other warrants issued '000 Merger reserve '000 Other reserve '000 Total '000
At January 1, 2022 23,026 32,843 44 40,818 33,104 129,835
Share-based payments expense during the period 2,446 - - - - 2,446
Share option exercise ( 82 ) - - - - ( 82 )
Issuance of warrants - - 70 - - 70
At June 30, 2022 25,390 32,843 114 40,818 33,104 132,269
At January 1, 2023 26,806 31,838 114 40,818 33,104 132,680
Share-based payments expense during the period 1,931 - - - - 1,931
Extinguishment and issuance of Novartis Loan Note - 347 - - - 347
Issue of warrants - - 41 - - 41
At June 30, 2023 28,737 32,185 155 40,818 33,104 134,999
Equity component of convertible loan
The amendment of the Novartis Loan Note was treated as the extinguishment of the original instrument and the issuance of a new instrument (see Note 11). Accordingly,
million was allocated to the equity components of the new Novartis Loan Note, representing the embedded conversion option and the new warrants.
Other warrants issued
Other warrants issued also relate to funding arrangements with The Alpha-1 Project which are a compound instrument consisting of a liability and an equity component. In 2023, the Company issued
408,730 warrants over ordinary shares and received funding of 0.1 million, of which less than 0.1 million was allocated to the equity component. The total value of the equity component (consideration received for the warrants) as of
June 30, 2023 is 0.2 million (2022: 0.1 million).
Share-based payments
The Company has two principal share-based incentive schemes under which options at market value to subscribe for the Company's shares, restricted stock units ("RSUs") and performance share units ("PSUs") have been granted to certain executives, non-executive
directors ("NEDs") and employees. The share-based payment reserve is used to recognize the value of equity settled share-based payments provided to employees, including key management personnel, as part of their remuneration.
The total charge for the six months ended June 30, 2023 in respect of all share-based incentive schemes was
1.9 million (June 30, 2022: 2.4
The following awards were granted during the six months ended June 30, 2023:
Mereo 2019 Equity Incentive Plan Mereo 2019 NED Equity Incentive Plan
Awards (ADS) Weighted average fair value ($) per share Weighted average exercise price ($) per share Awards (ADS) Weighted average fair value ($) per share Weighted average exercise price ($) per share
Options 4,617,000 0.91 1.01 440,000 0.84 0.94
RSU's 617,750 1.01 - 479,813 0.94 -
PSU's 1,543,150 0.61 - - - -
Mereo 2019 Equity Incentive Plan
Mereo 2019 NED Equity Incentive Plan

Frequently Asked Questions

What was Mereo's revenue for the first half of 2023?

Mereo's revenue for the six months ended June 30, 2023, was £7,128,000.

How much was Mereo's net loss for the period?

Mereo reported a net loss of £11,030,000 for the period attributable to equity holders.

What are Mereo's total assets as of June 30, 2023?

Total assets for Mereo as of June 30, 2023, were £80,638,000.

What is the basic loss per share for Mereo in 2023?

The basic loss per share for Mereo for the period was £0.02.

How much did Mereo spend on R&D in the first half of 2023?

Mereo's research and development expenses for the first half of 2023 were £7,898,000.

Last updated: Sep 7, 2023