Research and development expenses were $12.8 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, and $35.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $6.5 million and $15.2 million for the comparable periods in 2017, respectively. These increases were driven by increased preclinical and clinical development activities related to the advancement of the Company’s pipeline, as well as increased personnel-related costs resulting from an increase in employee headcount.
General and administrative expenses were $3.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2018, and $11.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $1.0 million and $3.2 million for the comparable periods in 2017, respectively. These increases were primarily due to an increase in employee headcount, consulting and professional fees related to the support of ongoing business operations as a publicly traded company, and the impact of stock-based compensation.
As of December 31, 2018, AVROBIO had $126.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, as compared to $6.0 million in cash and cash equivalents as of December 31, 2017. This increase was primarily the result of the completion of the Company’s initial public offering completed in June 2018, which raised net proceeds of $104.0 million, and the Company’s Series B financing completed in January 2018, which generated net proceeds of $58.3 million. Based on the Company’s current operating plan, AVROBIO expects its cash and cash equivalents as of December 31, 2018 will enable the Company to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements into the second half of 2020.
About AVROBIO, Inc.
AVROBIO, Inc., is a Phase 2 clinical-stage gene therapy company developing gene therapies to potentially cure rare diseases with a single dose. AVROBIO’s lentiviral-based gene therapies employ hematopoietic stem cells that are collected from the patient and then modified with a lentiviral vector to insert functional copies of the gene that is defective in the target disease. AVROBIO is focused on the development of its gene therapy, AVR RD 01, in Fabry disease, as well as additional gene therapy programs in other lysosomal storage disorders including Gaucher disease, cystinosis and Pompe disease. The Company’s plato platform is a proprietary vector system and automated, closed cell manufacturing solution designed to support worldwide commercialization. AVROBIO is headquartered in Cambridge, MA and has offices in Toronto, ON. For additional information, visit www.avrobio.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by words such as “aims,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “goal,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “possible,” “potential,” “seeks,” “will,” and variations of these words or similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding our business strategy, prospective products and goals, the therapeutic potential of our product candidates, the design, commencement, enrollment and timing of ongoing or planned clinical trials, clinical trial results, product approvals and regulatory pathways, the intended incentives conferred by orphan drug designation, potential regulatory approvals and the timing thereof, anticipated benefits of our gene therapy platform including potential impact on our commercialization activities, timing and likelihood of success, plans and objectives of management for future operations, future results of anticipated products, and the market opportunity for our product candidates, and statements regarding the Company’s financial and cash position and expected cash runway. Any such statements in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Results in preclinical or early stage clinical trials may not be indicative of results from later stage or larger scale clinical trials and do not ensure regulatory approval. You should not place undue reliance on these statements, or the scientific data presented.
