Scribe Posts $9.9 Million Third-Quarter Net Loss, Says Cash Runway Extends Into 2029
Key Facts
Scribe Therapeutics said on November 12 that it recorded a net loss of $9.9 million, or $0.68 per basic and diluted share, for the three months ended September 30, 2026. That widened from a $6.5 million loss in the second quarter ended June 30. The results come as the company’s available liquidity increased following its public offering and concurrent private placement in July. The company said its cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities would fund expenses and capital requirements through the first half of 2029 under its current operating plan. The stock closed at $16.86 on November 11, according to EL7 data.
Collaboration revenue was $1.6 million in the third quarter, compared with $1.9 million in the second quarter. Scribe attributed the decline mainly to lower research and development activity eligible for reimbursement under its collaboration with Eli Lilly. The revenue reflects collaboration activity during the period, while the company did not provide a comparison with analyst estimates in its statement. The reported comparison therefore focuses on the third quarter and the prior quarter, rather than external forecasts. The decline in revenue alongside the increase in net loss presents two aspects of the quarter’s financial results: lower collaboration income and a larger loss than in the prior quarter.
Research and development expenses fell to $8.3 million in the third quarter from $8.8 million in the second quarter. The company said this was related to lower employee-related costs and external research and development expenses, as well as recognition of California Institute for Regenerative Medicine grant funding as an offset to expenses. General and administrative expenses, meanwhile, rose to $4.2 million from $2.5 million. Scribe linked the increase to higher stock-based compensation, professional services fees and other costs associated with being a public company. The comparison shows that the decline in research and development expenses did not prevent general and administrative expenses from rising over the same period.
Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $174.2 million on September 30, compared with $43.0 million on June 30. Scribe said the increase resulted mainly from approximately $140.2 million in net proceeds from the public offering and concurrent private placement in July, partly offset by cash used in operations. The company ties this liquidity to its current operating plan, which it expects to cover expenses and capital requirements through the first half of 2029. This provides a disclosed timeframe for funding its activities as it recorded a larger quarterly loss than in the prior quarter. The stated funding runway remains an estimate based on the company’s current plan.
On development, the company said enrollment is ongoing in the first-in-human Phase 1 clinical trial of STX-1150, a treatment designed to lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol through epigenetic gene silencing. Scribe expects initial clinical data in the first half of 2027. In a nonhuman primate study, a single dose of 0.75 mg per kilogram reduced this type of cholesterol by more than 50%, with the effect lasting two years. The company said the treatment was designed to lower cholesterol without permanently changing DNA. The results from the reported dose remain preclinical, while the initial data expected from the human study represent the company’s next announced milestone.
In its collaboration with Sanofi, Scribe expanded the multiyear research agreement to include access to its ELXR epigenetic gene-silencing technology, alongside its XE gene-editing technology. It also extended Sanofi’s target nomination period. According to the company’s statement, the expansion adds another technology to the existing collaboration and broadens the options available to the partner under the agreement. The available information in the statement did not give a financial value for the amendment. Alongside the ongoing STX-1150 clinical trial, the development of the Sanofi collaboration is one of the development paths Scribe announced in its third-quarter results.