Liquidia posts $236.3 million loss as quarter bears cost of legal settlement
Key Facts
Liquidia reported results on November 10 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, recording a net loss of $236.3 million that included a $389.7 million charge related to a legal settlement. The company said the loss was $2.64 per basic and diluted share, compared with a loss of $0.04 per share in the same period of 2025. The figures put the settlement charge at the center of the quarter’s accounting result, while product sales rose sharply year over year. The company also reported positive adjusted EBITDA, a separate measure from net income that does not change the fact that it recorded a net loss. LQDA shares closed at $47.87 on November 9, the eve of the results announcement.
Net product sales totaled $222.7 million in the third quarter, compared with $51.7 million in the third quarter of 2025, according to the company’s statement. Liquidia attributed the increase to higher YUTREPIA sales volume and said product sales growth drove the fifth consecutive quarter of higher non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA. The measure reached $140.5 million in the third quarter of 2026. The contrast between that figure and the net loss highlights the effect of the large settlement item on quarterly accounts. Historically, YUTREPIA recorded $51.7 million in net product sales in the third quarter of 2025, its first full quarter of sales, when the company said it had achieved profitability.
Liquidia said its base of YUTREPIA prescribers reached 1,300 by the end of October 2026, and that the number of first-time new prescribers in October exceeded the number in September. It also described patient shipments during October as the highest on a monthly basis since the product’s launch. The commercial indicators point to continued expansion in YUTREPIA use after the fiscal quarter ended, while the company linked quarterly sales growth to higher sales volume. At the same time, it said cash and cash equivalents totaled $396.1 million on September 30, before settlement agreement payments. The balance was $190.7 million on December 31, 2025, so the latest figure predates payment of the amounts covered by the agreements.
The settlement stems from a court ruling issued on September 30, 2026, which Liquidia said found certain claims of U.S. Patent No. 11,826,327 valid and infringed in a dispute involving inhaled treprostinil treatment for pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease. On October 13, the company entered into a comprehensive agreement with United Therapeutics to end the six pending lawsuits between them. Under the agreement, Liquidia said it will pay a net $380.7 million in installments in 2026 and 2027. Payment details included a net payment of $175 million to UTHR within 30 business days of the agreement, followed by $145.4 million in two equal installments of $72.7 million each. The first installment is due no later than January 31, 2027, and the second no later than April 30, 2027.
The company said the settlement ensures YUTREPIA remains available to patients without interruption and does not require any patient to stop using it. However, the settlement includes removal of the PH-ILD indication from the product label, according to the company’s account of the agreement developments. This means continued availability to patients coincides with a change in the product’s indication, as the company relies on sales growth to meet settlement payments. Chief Financial and Operating Officer Michael Kaceta said Liquidia expects to fund the payments from ongoing YUTREPIA sales and available cash. He added that the company expects to rebuild its cash balance and fund planned clinical studies without the need for additional financing.
In clinical development, Liquidia announced the first patient had been enrolled in the Phase 2 RE-WARM study and said it expects to complete the core study in the first quarter of 2027. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted the program Fast Track designation in September 2026. The research timetable places the planned studies among the company’s funding commitments, which it said it intends to cover with sales and available cash. This follows the reported cash balance of $396.1 million at the end of September, which predates settlement payments. The disclosed payments are scheduled across a date within 30 business days of the agreement and two installments due on January 31 and April 30, 2027.