Exhibit 99.1
BIOCRYST PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. |
| Contacts: | |||||
| BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | Euro RSCG Life NRP | ||||
| Michael A. Darwin | Sharon Weinstein (Investors) | ||||
| Chief Financial Officer | (212) 845-4271 | ||||
| (205) 444-4600 | Wendy Lau (Media) | ||||
| (212) 845-4272 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEBIOCRYST REPORTS FIRST QUARTER 2004 FINANCIAL RESULTSBirmingham,Alabama–April21,2004– BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq NM: BCRX) today announced financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2004. The Company reported revenues of $181,000 in the first quarter of 2004, compared to $308,000 in the first quarter of 2003. The net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2004 was $5,462,000, or $0.28 per share, compared to a net loss of $2,788,000, or $0.16 per share, for the same period last year. As of March 31, 2004, the Company had cash, cash equivalents and investments of $41.8 million. Interest and other income decreased 41.2% to $181,000 in the first quarter of 2004 compared to $308,000 in the first quarter of 2003. This decrease was due to a reduction in interest rates. Research and development expenses increased 100.2% to $4,983,000 in the three months ended March 31, 2004 from $2,489,000 in the three months ended March 31, 2003. The increase is primarily attributable to costs related to the clinical development of BioCryst’s lead drug candidate, BCX-1777 and the preclinical testing required for the potential clinical development of BCX-4208. General and administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2004 increased 8.7% to $660,000 as compared to $607,000 for the same period in 2003, the result of higher insurance costs and other professional fees. “We have made exciting progress in our oncology clinical trials with BCX-1777 during the past quarter,” said Charles E. Bugg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BioCryst. “We have initiated our Phase II trial for treatment of patients with T-cell leukemia and are nearing completion of our Phase I trials in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and hematologic malignancies. Results to date have been encouraging, and we are working diligently to meet our goal of initiating additional Phase II trials with BCX-1777 and Phase I studies with our second PNP inhibitor, BCX-4208, during the coming year.” |
The Company will sponsor a conference call at 10:00 am EDT on Wednesday, April 21 2004, which is open to the public. Interested investors can listen to the call live over the Internet from the investor relations website at www.biocryst.com or by dialing 1-800-395-0708, and providing the passcode number 145089. BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. designs, optimizes and develops novel drugs that block key enzymes essential for cancer, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases, and viral infections. BioCryst integrates the necessary disciplines of biology, crystallography, medicinal chemistry and computer modeling to effectively use structure-based drug design to discover and develop small molecule pharmaceuticals. BioCryst’s lead product candidate, BCX-1777, an inhibitor of purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP), is currently in a Phase IIa trial for patients with T-cell malignancies with additional Phase IIa trials planned for hematologic malignancies, and other refractory cancers. A second generation PNP inhibitor, BCX-4208, is in preclinical development with plans to file an IND during 2004. In addition, BioCryst has several new enzyme targets in drug discovery including tissue factor/factor VIIa and hepatitis C polymerase. For more information about BioCryst, please visit the company’s web site at www.biocryst.com. Thesestatementsinvolveknownandunknownrisks,uncertaintiesandother factorswhichmaycauseouractualresults,performanceorachievementstobe materiallydifferentfromanyfutureresults,performancesorachievements expressedorimpliedbytheforward-lookingstatements.Thesestatementsreflect ourcurrentviewswithrespecttofutureeventsandarebasedonassumptionsand subjecttorisksanduncertainties.Giventheseuncertainties,youshouldnot placeunduerelianceontheseforward-lookingstatements.Someofthefactors thatcouldaffecttheforward-lookingstatementscontainedhereinincludethat wemaynotbeabletoenrolltherequirednumberofsubjectsinclinicaltrials ofBCX-1777,thatthePhaseItrialsofBCX-1777fortreatmentofpatientswith T-celllymphomaandhematologicmalignanciesmaynotbesuccessfullycompleted, thatBioCrystmaynotcommenceasexpectedadditionalPhaseIItrialswith BCX-1777andPhaseIstudieswithBCX4208,thatBCX-1777oranyofourother productcandidatesmaynotreceiverequiredregulatoryclearancesfromtheFDA, thatPhaseIIaclinicaltrialsofBCX-1777maynotshowthedrugiseffective overthe6-weekperiod,thatwemaynotbeabletoobtainaSpecialProtocol AssessmentorotherwisebeabletocompletesuccessfullythePhaseIIbthatis currentlyplanned,thatwemaynotbeabletocontinuefuturedevelopmentof BCX-1777oranyofourothercurrentdevelopmentprogramsincludingBCX-4208, tissuefactor/factorVIIaandhepatitisCpolymerase,thatBCX-1777orourother developmentprogramsmayneverresultinfutureproduct,licenseorroyalty paymentsbeingreceivedbyBioCryst,thatBioCrystmaynothavesufficientcash tocontinuefundingthedevelopment,manufacturing,marketingordistributionof itsproductsandthatadditionalfunding,ifnecessary,maynotbeavailableat allorontermsacceptabletoBioCryst.PleaserefertothedocumentsBioCryst filesperiodicallywiththeSecuritiesandExchangeCommission,specifically BioCryst’smostrecentAnnualReportonForm10-K,whichidentifyimportant factorsthatcouldcausetheactualresultstodiffermateriallyfromthose containedintheprojectionsorforward-lookingstatements. # # # |
BIOCRYST PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. |
| Three Months Ended March 31, | ||||||||
| 2004 | 2003 | |||||||
| Revenues: | ||||||||
| Collaborative and other research and | ||||||||
| development | $ | 0 | $ | 0 | ||||
| Interest and other | 181 | 308 | ||||||
| Total revenues | 181 | 308 | ||||||
| Expenses: | ||||||||
| Research and development | 4,983 | 2,489 | ||||||
| General and administrative | 660 | 607 | ||||||
| Total expenses | 5,643 | 3,096 | ||||||
| Net loss | $ | (5,462 | ) | $ | (2,788 | ) | ||
| Net loss per share | $ | (0.28 | ) | $ | (0.16 | ) | ||
| Weighted average shares outstanding | 19,587 | 17,663 | ||||||
Balance Sheet Data (in thousands) |
| March 31, 2004 (Unaudited) | December 31, 2003 (Audited) | |||||||||
| Cash, cash equivalents and securities | $ | 41,814 | $ | 25,732 | ||||||
| Total assets | 45,953 | 30,096 | ||||||||
| Accumulated deficit | (110,122 | ) | (104,660 | ) | ||||||
| Stockholders’ equity | 43,428 | 28,447 | ||||||||