ACLA Aclara Biosciences, (MM)

ACLARA Announces Third Quarter 2003 Financial Results MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Nov. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ACLARA BioSciences , today reported financial results for the three months ended September 30, 2003. Third Quarter 2003 Financial Results Revenue for the three months ended September 30, 2003 was $276,000, compared to revenue for the three months ended September 30, 2002 of $505,000. Revenue for the nine months ended September 30, 2003 was $860,000, compared to $1.8 million in the first nine months of 2002. Prior year revenue reflects discontinued microfluidics-related sources of revenue. Total operating expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2003 were $5.6 million, a decrease of $7.0 million, or 56%, compared to $12.6 million in the prior year period. Approximately $3.3 million of the $7.0 million reduction in expenses was due to the Company's cost reduction programs. The remaining $3.7 million of the reduction was due to the elimination of litigation settlement and restructuring expenses in the three months ended September 30, 2003, compared to those incurred in the same period last year. Third quarter 2003 expenses were lower by $415,000 than in the second quarter of 2003. Reflecting the continued reduction in expenses, net loss for the three months ended September 30, 2003 was $4.9 million, or a loss of $0.14 per share, less than half of the net loss of $11.2 million, or $0.31 per share, in the corresponding prior year period. Net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2003 was $16.3 million, or $0.46 per share, compared to a net loss of $30.1 million, or $0.84 per share, in the nine months ended September 30, 2002. Total cash resources, comprising cash and short-term and long-term investments, were $93.2 million at September 30, 2003, a reduction of $3.6 million from the end of the second quarter of 2003. Business Progress ACLARA reported that it continued to see a high level of customer interest in the application of eTag(TM) assays to the development of individualized medicines. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are increasingly looking for targeted therapies with high efficacy for specific patients, particularly with the new classes of targeted cancer therapeutics. eTag assays can provide unique insights to the existence of certain difficult-to-detect protein states that may facilitate the development of targeted drugs during clinical trials and their prescription in the market, once approved. Highlights of the Company's recent progress in developing eTag applications and customer relationships include: -- The accomplishment of a milestone and receipt of a related milestone payment under the previously announced collaboration with Genentech, Inc.; -- The execution of an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline ("GSK") under which GSK will have access to eTag assays for gene expression analysis; -- The establishment of an agreement with the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science (TMIMS) for the use of eTag assays in gene and protein expression analysis; -- The issuance of a U.S. patent covering the measurement of cell surface receptors; -- The launch of an expanded set of eTag gene expression assays, which are particularly useful for determining a potential drug's metabolism and toxicity; and -- The establishment of a Scientific Advisory Board comprised of leading experts in cancer and immune system disorders. Conference Call Details ACLARA will conduct a conference call with the investment community at 5 p.m. Eastern/ 2 p.m. Pacific, today, November 5, 2003 to discuss the third quarter 2003 results, review the company's progress and provide more specific guidance. Interested parties may participate in the conference call by calling 1-877-375-2162 domestic (international dial: 1-973-582-2737). The call will also be available via live audio broadcast over the Internet on the ACLARA Investor Relations website at http://www.aclara.com/ from the Conference Calls link. For those unable to participate on the live call, a 24-hour replay will be available for seven days after the call at http://www.aclara.com/ or by calling 1-877-519-4471 (international dial: 1-973-341-3080) and giving the following pass code: 4279563. About ACLARA ACLARA BioSciences, Inc. is commercializing its proprietary eTag Assay System for drug discovery research and to support preclinical and clinical development of specific targeted therapies. The eTag Assay System is a high performance, high throughput system for the simultaneous measurement of 10's to 100's of genes, proteins, and cell-based antigens across thousands of samples. The eTag platform makes it possible for researchers to measure multiple aspects of a complex biological system, enabling the study of gene expression, protein expression, cell signaling and pathway activation, protein-protein interaction, post-translational modifications and cell receptor binding -- all in the same sample and with the same platform. The system uses ACLARA's proprietary eTag reporters to multiplex the analysis of genes and/or proteins. Specific molecular binding events result in the release of electrophoretically distinct eTag reporters, which are then resolved by standard capillary electrophoresis to provide precise, sensitive quantitation of multiple analytes -- directly from cell lysates of cultured or primary cells, as well as fresh and fixed tissue samples. More information on ACLARA can be obtained on the Company's web site at http://www.aclara.com/. Forward-Looking Statements All statements in this news release that are not historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as amended. Such forward-looking statements are subject to factors that could cause actual results to differ materially for ACLARA from those projected. Those factors include risks and uncertainties relating to the performance of the Company's products, product development, development and commercialization efforts, successful establishment of and performance under collaborative and commercial agreements, adoption of the Company's technologies by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, the validity and enforceability of patents, the possible infringement of the intellectual property of others, technological approaches of ACLARA and its competitors, and other risk factors identified in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002 and Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2003 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Trademarks ACLARA BioSciences is a registered trademark and eTag and the ACLARA logo are trademarks of ACLARA BioSciences, Inc. ACLARA BIOSCIENCES, INC. (A Development Stage Enterprise) CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (In Thousands, Except Per Share Data) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2003 2002 2003 2002 Revenues $276 $505 $860 $1,768 Costs and Operating expenses: Research and development 3,847 5,516 12,264 18,576 Selling, general and administrative 1,714 3,318 6,122 9,229 Litigation settlement -- 396 -- 3,740 Restructuring -- 3,327 -- 3,327 Total costs and operating expenses 5,561 12,557 18,386 34,872 Loss from operations (5,285) (12,052) (17,526) (33,104) Interest income, net 364 860 1,234 2,966 Net loss $(4,921) $(11,192) $(16,292) $(30,138) Net loss per common share, basic and diluted $(0.14) $(0.31) $(0.46) $(0.84) Weighted average shares used in net loss per common share calculation, basic and diluted 35,681 36,148 35,564 36,020 ACLARA BIOSCIENCES, INC. (A Development Stage Enterprise) CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS (In Thousands, Except Share and Per Share Amounts) (unaudited) Sept. 30, Dec. 31, 2003 2002 ASSETS Current assets: Cash, cash equivalents and short term investments $67,050 $50,848 Restricted cash -- 34,125 Accounts receivable 302 469 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 557 422 Inventories 2,767 2,780 Total current assets 70,676 88,644 Long-term marketable investments 26,105 21,612 Property and equipment, net 6,153 7,098 Other assets, net 1,404 1,564 Total assets $104,338 $118,918 LIABILITIES & STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY Current liabilities: Accounts payable $623 $689 Accrued payroll and related expenses 1,099 1,023 Accrued expenses and other current liabilities 2,902 1,357 Deferred revenue 206 104 Restructuring -- 501 Current portion of loans payable 196 202 Total current liabilities 5,026 3,876 Loans payable, net of current portion 399 542 Deferred rent 459 414 Total liabilities 5,884 4,832 Stockholders' equity: Common stock, $0.001 par value: Authorized 150,000,000 shares; Issued and outstanding: 35,723,494 shares at September 30, 2003 and 35,391,018 shares at December 31, 2002 36 36 Treasury stock at cost (900,000 shares at September 30, 2003 and at December 31, 2002) (1,350) (1,350) Additional paid-in capital 259,110 258,798 Deferred stock-based compensation (108) (627) Accumulated other comprehensive income 126 297 Deficit accumulated during development stage (159,360) (143,068) Total stockholders' equity 98,454 114,086 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $104,338 $118,918 DATASOURCE: ACLARA BioSciences CONTACT: Alfred Merriweather, VP, Finance and CFO, +1-650-210-1200, or Web site: http://www.aclara.com/

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