argenx reports fourth quarter business update and full year 2017 financial results

News
February 28, 2018
  • Management to host conference call today at 3 pm CET / 9 am EST

Breda, the Netherlands / Ghent, Belgium– argenx (Euronext & Nasdaq: ARGX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing a deep pipeline of differentiated antibody-based therapies for the treatment of severe autoimmune diseases and cancer, today announced its fourth quarter business update and full year results for 2017.

The full year results will be discussed during a conference call and webcast presentation today at 3 pm CET/ 9 am EST. To participate in the conference call, please select your dial in number from the list included below, and use the confirmation code6683242. The webcast may be accessed on the homepage of the argenx website at www.argenx.com or by clickinghere.

2017 was a year of tremendous momentum for argenx as we made progress on our pipeline and increased value for our shareholders. As a result of this focused execution, we believe we are well-positioned to advance our pipeline through several key clinical milestones in the year ahead, commented Tim Van Hauwermeiren, CEO of argenx. In December, we announced positive clinical data from our Phase 2 trial of ARGX-113 for the treatment of generalized myasthenia gravis and plan to advance ARGX-113 to Phase 3 in this indication. This also marked the first dataset from our Phase 2 program aimed at evaluating the role of ARGX-113 in indications where the reduction of pathogenic autoantibodies may mediate disease. We continue to evaluate the asset in two additional Phase 2 indications, immune thrombocytopenia and pemphigus vulgaris, and expect to report data from both in the second half of 2018. We also advanced our lead oncology asset and reported interim data from our Phase 1/2 trial of ARGX-110 in acute myeloid leukemia, which we expect to transition into a Phase 2 trial this year. We feel that our achievements in 2017 have further validated our disciplined and differentiated approach to antibody development and look forward to providing updates on several important catalysts from our wholly-owned pipeline and strategic collaborations in 2018."

FOURTH QUARTER 2017 AND RECENT HIGHLIGHTS

  • Reported positive topline results from Phase 2 proof-of-concept trial of ARGX-113 (efgartigimod) in generalized myasthenia gravis (MG) showing a strong clinical improvement over placebo throughout the entire duration of the trial as well as a favorable tolerability profile consistent with Phase 1 data.
  • Launched Phase 1 trial with subcutaneous formulation of ARGX-113evaluating pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), safety and tolerability.
  • Presented updates on Phase 1/2 clinical trials of ARGX-110 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) during American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting.
  • Raised approximately $266 million in gross proceeds in an upsized U.S. public offering.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (as of December 31, 2017) (compared to financial highlights as of December 31, 2016)

  • Operating income of €41.3 million (December 31, 2016: €17.2 million).
  • Net loss of €28.1 million (December 31, 2016: €21.4 million).
  • Cash position of €359.8 million (cash, cash equivalents and current financial assets) allowing us to pursue development of our pipeline as planned.

Full press release - see download