Encysive burns $25.5 million of cash reserve during Q3, looks to raise more

By Angela McDaniels

Seattle, Nov. 2 - Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments dropped to $49.9 million at Sept. 30 from $75.4 million at June 30 and $127.9 million at Dec. 43, 2005, according to a company news release.

The company said that due to the continuing delay in the U.S. approval of Thelin (sitaxsentan sodium), its current cash position and its expected cash requirements going forward, the company will need to raise additional cash and is exploring various financing options.

Thelin has received approval in the United Kingdom and Germany for the treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension, and Encysive is preparing to launch the product later this year.

Revenue for the third quarter ended Sept. 30 more than doubled to $6.3 million, compared with $3 million for the third quarter of 2005.

The company attributed the increase to higher royalties on sales of Argatroban by GlaxoSmithKline plc. Royalty income in the third quarter increased to $6.0 million from $2.6 million for the same period last year.

Revenue for the first nine months of 2006 rose to $13.6 million from $8.4 million for the same period last year. The growth in Argatroban royalty income, which was responsible for the year-over-year increase in revenues, was due to higher sales of Argatroban and a corresponding higher royalty rate, as cumulative sales reached a higher royalty tier within the agreement, according to the release.

The net loss was $25.5 million, or $0.44 per basic and diluted share, for the third quarter, compared with a net loss of $18.8 million, or $0.32 per basic and diluted share, for the third quarter of 2005.

The increased net loss was primarily the result of commercialization-related expenses in the United States and Europe, the company said.

The loss for the nine months ended Sept. 30 was $83.5 million, or $1.43 per basic and diluted share, compared with $55.5 million, or $0.96 per basic and diluted share, for the same period of 2005.

Encysive is a biopharmaceutical company based in Houston that develops small molecule compounds.

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