Full Press Release Details
Wave Life Sciences Reports Second Quarter 2019 Financial Results and Provides Business Update
Interim efficacy data from ongoing suvodirsen open-label extension study on track for 4Q 2019
Phase 2/3 DYSTANCE 51 global, placebo-controlled study of suvodirsen initiated
First topline data from PRECISION-HD clinical program expected by
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., July 29, 2019 Wave Life Sciences Ltd. (Nasdaq:
WVE), a clinical-stage genetic medicines company committed to delivering life-changing treatments for people battling devastating diseases, today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2019 and provided a business
Wave continues to make significant progress in advancing its pipeline and I am pleased to report that we are on track to deliver data from
our first two clinical programs by the end of the year. First, we expect to share dystrophin biopsy data from the ongoing open-label extension study of investigational suvodirsen for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients
amenable to exon 51 skipping, followed by the first clinical data for our differentiated, allele-selective approach to treating Huntington s disease, said Paul Bolno, MD, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of Wave Life Sciences.
For suvodirsen, the recent initiation of our Phase 2/3 DYSTANCE 51 trial marks a significant milestone towards our goal of bringing new therapies to patients living with DMD globally. Lastly, we are leveraging our PRISM platform to advance
several exciting preclinical programs in DMD, HD, ALS/FTD, and ophthalmology.
Wave is committed to building a fully integrated genetic medicines company led by its clinical and preclinical programs for the treatment of neuromuscular,
central nervous system and ophthalmologic diseases.
Neuromuscular Diseases
First clinical dystrophin data from the suvodirsen open-label extension study for DMD patients amenable to exon 51 skipping are expected in 4Q 2019
Initiated Phase 2/3 DYSTANCE 51 clinical trial, the results of which are
intended to support global regulatory filings for suvodirsen
Advancing an exon-skipping pipeline to address more patients living with DMD
Central Nervous System (CNS) Diseases
First topline results from the PRECISION-HD clinical program are anticipated by year-end and will be the first data for an allele-selective approach to treating Huntington s disease patients
Advancing several additional development programs for CNS diseases
Ophthalmologic Diseases
Second Quarter 2019 Financial Results and Financial Guidance
Wave reported a net loss of $41.9 million in the second quarter of 2019 as compared to $35.9 million in the same period in 2018. The increase in net
loss in the second quarter of 2019 was largely driven by increased research and development efforts and continued organizational growth to support Wave s corporate goals.
Research and development expenses were $41.6 million in the second quarter of 2019 as compared to $32.5 million in the same period in 2018. The
increase in research and development expenses in the second quarter of 2019 was primarily due to increased external expenses related to our suvodirsen clinical activities as well as increased investments in PRISM and other research and development
General and administrative expenses were $11.6 million in the second quarter of 2019 as compared to $8.9 million in the same period
in 2018. The increase in general and administrative expenses in the second quarter of 2019 was mainly driven by increases in employee headcount to support Wave s corporate goals.
As of June 30, 2019, Wave had $252.9 million in cash and cash equivalents as compared to
$174.8 million as of December 31, 2018. The increase in cash and cash equivalents was mainly due to the $161.8 million in net proceeds from the January 2019 follow-on offering, partially offset
by Wave s year-to-date net loss of $86.1 million.
that its existing cash and cash equivalents, together with expected and committed cash from existing collaborations, will enable Wave to fund its operating and capital expenditure requirements to the end of 2020.
PRISM is Wave Life Sciences proprietary discovery and drug development platform that enables genetically defined diseases to be targeted with stereopure
oligonucleotides across multiple therapeutic modalities. PRISM combines the company s unique ability to construct stereopure oligonucleotides with a deep understanding of how the interplay among oligonucleotide sequence, chemistry and backbone
stereochemistry impacts key pharmacological properties. By exploring these interactions through iterative analysis of in vitro and in vivo outcomes and artificial intelligence-driven predictive modeling, the company continues to define design
principles that are deployed across programs to rapidly develop and manufacture clinical candidates that meet pre-defined product profiles.
About Wave Life Sciences
Wave Life Sciences (NASDAQ:
WVE) is a clinical-stage genetic medicines company committed to delivering life-changing treatments for people battling devastating diseases. Wave aspires to develop
best-in-class medicines across multiple therapeutic modalities using PRISM, the company s proprietary discovery and drug development platform that enables the
precise design, optimization and production of stereopure oligonucleotides. Driven by a resolute sense of urgency, the Wave team is targeting a broad range of genetically defined diseases so that patients and families may realize a brighter future.
To find out more, please visit www.wavelifesciences.com and follow Wave on Twitter @WaveLifeSci.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning our goals, beliefs, expectations, strategies, objectives and plans, and other statements that
are not necessarily based on historical facts, including statements regarding the following, among others: the anticipated commencement, patient enrollment, data readouts and completion of our clinical trials, and the announcement of such events;
the protocol, design and endpoints of our ongoing and planned clinical trials; the future performance and results of our programs in clinical trials; future preclinical activities and programs; the progress and potential benefits of our
collaborations with partners; the potential of our in vitro and in vivo preclinical data to predict the behavior of our compounds in humans; our identification of future candidates and their therapeutic potential; the anticipated therapeutic
benefits of our potential therapies compared to others; our ability to design compounds using multiple modalities and the anticipated benefits of that model; the anticipated benefits of our proprietary manufacturing processes and our internal
manufacturing facility; our future growth and anticipated transition to a fully integrated commercial-stage company; the potential benefits of PRISM and our stereopure oligonucleotides compared with stereorandom oligonucleotides; the benefit of
nucleic acid therapeutics generally; the strength of our intellectual property; and the anticipated duration of our cash runway. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various
important factors, including the following: our ability to finance our drug discovery and development efforts and to raise additional capital when needed; the ability of our preclinical programs to produce data sufficient to support our clinical
trial applications and the timing thereof; our ability to continue to build and maintain the company infrastructure and personnel needed to achieve our goals; the clinical results of our programs, which may not support further development of product
candidates; actions of regulatory agencies, which may affect the initiation, timing and progress of clinical trials; our effectiveness in managing future clinical trials and regulatory processes; the effectiveness of PRISM; the continued development
and acceptance of oligonucleotides as a class of medicines; our ability to demonstrate the therapeutic benefits of our candidates in clinical trials, including our ability to develop candidates across multiple therapeutic modalities; our dependence
on third parties, including contract research organizations, contract manufacturing organizations, collaborators and partners; our ability to manufacture or contract with third parties to manufacture drug
material to support our programs and growth; our ability to obtain, maintain and protect intellectual property; our ability to enforce our patents against infringers and defend our patent
portfolio against challenges from third parties; and competition from others developing therapies for similar uses, as well as the information under the caption Risk Factors contained in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and in other filings we make with the SEC from time to time. We undertake no obligation to update the information contained in this press release to
reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances.
WAVE LIFE SCIENCES LTD.
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands, except share amounts)
| June 30, 2019 | December 31, 2018 | |||||||
| Assets | ||||||||
| Current assets: | ||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 252,906 | $ | 174,819 | ||||
| Current portion of accounts receivable | 20,000 | 10,000 | ||||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | 16,685 | 17,454 | ||||||
| Total current assets | 289,591 | 202,273 | ||||||
| Long-term assets: | ||||||||
| Accounts receivable, net of current portion | 30,000 | 50,000 | ||||||
| Property and equipment, net | 38,363 | 39,931 | ||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 18,937 | |||||||
| Restricted cash | 3,637 | 3,625 | ||||||
| Other assets | 5,019 | 111 | ||||||
| Total long-term assets | 95,956 | 93,667 | ||||||
| Total assets | $ | 385,547 | $ | 295,940 | ||||
| Liabilities, Series A preferred shares and shareholders equity | ||||||||
| Current liabilities: | ||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | 11,464 | $ | 13,089 | ||||
| Accrued expenses and other current liabilities | 11,632 | 14,736 | ||||||
| Current portion of deferred rent | 115 | |||||||
| Current portion of deferred revenue | 97,964 | 100,945 | ||||||
| Current portion of lease incentive obligation | 1,156 | |||||||
| Current portion of operating lease liability | 3,024 | |||||||
| Total current liabilities | 124,084 | 130,041 | ||||||
| Long-term liabilities: | ||||||||
| Deferred rent, net of current portion | 5,132 | |||||||
| Deferred revenue, net of current portion | 60,483 | 68,156 | ||||||
| Lease incentive obligation, net of current portion | 9,247 | |||||||
| Operating lease liability, net of current portion | 30,985 | |||||||
| Other liabilities | 1,897 | 2,142 | ||||||
| Total long-term liabilities | 93,365 | 84,677 | ||||||
| Total liabilities | $ | 217,449 | $ | 214,718 | ||||
| Series A preferred shares, no par value; 3,901,348 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 | $ | 7,874 | $ | 7,874 | ||||
| Shareholders equity: | ||||||||
| Ordinary shares, no par value; 34,266,260 and 29,472,197 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively | $ | 538,537 | $ | 375,148 | ||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 47,270 | 37,768 | ||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive income | 280 | 153 | ||||||
| Accumulated deficit | (425,863 | ) | (339,721 | ) | ||||
| Total shareholders equity | $ | 160,224 | $ | 73,348 | ||||
| Total liabilities, Series A preferred shares and shareholders equity | $ | 385,547 | $ | 295,940 |
WAVE LIFE SCIENCES LTD.
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
| Three Months Ended June 30, | Six Months Ended June 30, | |||||||||||||||
| 2019 | 2018 | 2019 | 2018 | |||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 7,628 | $ | 4,879 | $ | 10,654 | $ | 6,301 | ||||||||
| Operating expenses: | ||||||||||||||||
| Research and development | 41,605 | 32,547 | 81,718 | 61,743 | ||||||||||||
| General and administrative | 11,640 | 8,905 | 22,541 | 16,906 | ||||||||||||
| Total operating expenses | 53,245 | 41,452 | 104,259 | 78,649 | ||||||||||||
| Loss from operations | (45,617 | ) | (36,573 | ) | (93,605 | ) | (72,348 | ) | ||||||||
| Other income, net: | ||||||||||||||||
| Dividend income | 1,544 | 934 | 2,968 | 1,290 | ||||||||||||
| Interest income, net | 8 | 4 | 19 | 11 | ||||||||||||
| Other income, net | 2,123 | (259 | ) | 4,476 | 84 | |||||||||||
| Total other income, net | 3,675 | 679 | 7,463 | 1,385 | ||||||||||||
| Loss before income taxes | (41,942 | ) | (35,894 | ) | (86,142 | ) | (70,963 | ) | ||||||||
| Income tax provision | (172 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (41,942 | ) | $ | (35,894 | ) | $ | (86,142 | ) | $ | (71,135 | ) | ||||
| Net loss per share attributable to ordinary shareholders basic and diluted | $ | (1.22 | ) | $ | (1.23 | ) | $ | (2.58 | ) | $ | (2.49 | ) | ||||
| Weighted-average ordinary shares used in computing net loss per share attributable to ordinary shareholders basic and diluted | 34,260,298 | 29,144,466 | 33,433,322 | 28,535,149 | ||||||||||||
| Other comprehensive income (loss): | ||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (41,942 | ) | $ | (35,894 | ) | $ | (86,142 | ) | $ | (71,135 | ) | ||||
| Foreign currency translation | 30 | 36 | 127 | 85 | ||||||||||||
| Comprehensive loss | $ | (41,912 | ) | $ | (35,858 | ) | $ | (86,015 | ) | $ | (71,050 | ) |
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