- Company is exploring fastest path to market for proprietary blood cancer program MOR208
- Working to secure a deal for proprietary blood cancer program MOR202
- Phase 1 data for MOR106 in atopic dermatitis expected very soon
- New early stage programs announced
- Ambition to bring one new compound into the clinic every 18 months
- Financial guidance for FY 2017 re-confirmed
PLANEGG/MUNICH, GERMANY, LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / September 5, 2017 / MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX; OTC PINK: MPSYY), a leader in the field of therapeutic antibodies, is today hosting its Capital Market Day in London. The Management of MorphoSys AG updated analysts and investors on the Company's growth and development strategy and confirmed its financial guidance for 2017.
"We're excited about the progress in our pipeline. The main focus of our attention is our blood cancer program MOR208, for which we have promising clinical data in DLBCL, a particularly aggressive form of lymphoma. We're working hard to identify the fastest possible path to market for this novel drug candidate", said Dr. Simon Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys AG in his opening remarks. "Based on the clinical data we've seen in our clinical trial L-MIND, MOR208 may offer an efficacious, safe, convenient, and affordable treatment to bring patients into remission and keep them there."
Beyond MOR208, MorphoSys is working to secure a deal for its second blood cancer program MOR202, now based on a data package from the phase 1b/2 trial. For MOR106, an antibody in joint development with Galapagos for atopic dermatitis, headline data from an ongoing phase 1 clinical trial is expected to be released soon. The Company's rights to MOR209, an immunotherapeutic for the treatment of metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer, which was in joint development with its originator Aptevo Therapeutics, were recently returned to Aptevo following a portfolio review.
Ambition to bring one new compound into clinic every 18 months
Based on its technological leadership MorphoSys aims to bring a new investigational drug into the clinic every 18 months. A constant inflow of new and innovative drug candidates will ensure that the Company's broad portfolio of proprietary clinical assets is sustained in the future. The focus on its own programs clearly demonstrates the company's firm goal to become a fully integrated bio-pharmaceutical company.
Announcement of new, early-stage programs
MorphoSys also highlighted its earlier stage programs, including a new immuno-oncology program aimed at reversing immunosuppression in cancer. The program is based on a proprietary MorphoSys antibody targeting the C5a receptor, which is intended to enhance patients' immune systems in eradicating tumor cells. The antibody will enter preclinical development this year and is expected to enter the clinic in 2019. Further, the Company revealed early progress in two antibody programs against tumor-associated MHC-peptide targets and announced two bi-specific antibody formats based on proprietary CD3 and 4-1BB antibodies.
Financial guidance for FY 2017 re-confirmed
For the financial year 2017, MorphoSys continues to expect Group revenues in the range of EUR 46 to 51 million. Proprietary R&D expenses were confirmed to be in a corridor of EUR 85 to 95 million. The Company confirmed its guidance for earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of EUR -75 to -85 million. This guidance does not include any additional revenue from potential future collaborations and/or licensing partnerships nor effects from potential in-licensing or co-development deals for new development candidates.
"With our strong cash position, we continue to drive forward our proprietary portfolio. In particular, we are focused on the pivotal development of our blood cancer candidate MOR208. Our maturing partnered pipeline is expected to generate increasing cashflows from royalties in the years to come. This will contribute to the funding of our proprietary development activities," said Jens Holstein, Chief Financial Officer of MorphoSys AG. "We see blockbuster potential for Janssen's TremfyaTM, not only for the US psoriasis market, but also in other jurisdictions and indications."
The Capital Markets Day is taking place in London on September 5, 2017 and in New York on September 6, 2017. Presentations and other information material given at the Capital Markets Day are available on our website: http://www.morphosys.com.
About MorphoSys:
MorphoSys's mission is to make exceptional, innovative biopharmaceuticals to improve the lives of patients suffering from serious diseases. Innovative technologies and smart development strategies are central to our approach. Success is created by our people, who focus on excellence in all they do, collaborate closely across disciplines and are driven by a desire to make the medicines of tomorrow a reality. Success benefits all of our stakeholders. Based on its proprietary technology platforms, particularly in the field of fully human therapeutic antibodies, MorphoSys, together with its partners, has built a therapeutic pipeline of more than 110 programs in R&D, around a quarter of which is currently in clinical development.
In its proprietary development segment, MorphoSys, alone or with partners, is developing new therapeutic candidates, mainly focusing on cancer and inflammation. In its partnered discovery segment, MorphoSys uses its technologies to discover new drug candidates for pharmaceutical partners and participates from the programs' further development success, through success-based payments and royalties. MorphoSys is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol MOR. For regular updates about MorphoSys, visit http://www.morphosys.com.
HuCAL(R), HuCAL GOLD(R), HuCAL PLATINUM(R), CysDisplay(R), RapMAT(R), arYla(R), Ylanthia(R), 100 billion high potentials(R), Slonomics(R), Lanthio Pharma(R) and LanthioPep(R) are registered trademarks of the MorphoSys Group.
Tremfya(TM) is a trademark of Janssen Biotech, Inc.This communication contains certain forward-looking statements concerning the MorphoSys group of companies.
The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgment of MorphoSys as of the date of this release and involve risks and uncertainties. Should actual conditions differ from the Company's assumptions, actual results and actions may differ from those anticipated. MorphoSys does not intend to update any of these forward-looking statements as far as the wording of the relevant press release is concerned.
For more information, please contact:
MorphoSys AG
Anke Linnartz
Head of Corporate Communications & IR
Jochen Orlowski
Associate Director Corporate Communications & IR
Alexandra Goller
Senior Manager Corporate Communications & IR
Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-404
[email protected]
SOURCE: MorphoSys AG