For those of you wondering when the day would come that Aeterna Zentaris
In an absolute shock, Aeterna Zentaris, a small-cap favorite of mine that currently has 11 compounds in its pipeline, reported a profit of $0.01 for the third quarter on revenue of $9.5 million. This compares with the consensus estimate that called for a loss of $0.09 on revenue of $6.8 million.
Helping the company report blowout results were higher sales of its hormone drug, Cetrotide, and favorable euro-to-dollar exchange rates. In addition, because of a change in the way the company values its warrant liability, the company pocketed a gain of $9.3 million as opposed to the $4.5 million it lost from the same warrants in the year-ago period.
Although I'm excited about this profit and the healthy cash position of $48.1 million that the company ended the quarter with, it's the pipeline update that really has me excited about Aeterna Zentaris' potential.
Perifosine, the company's lead cancer-drug candidate, completed patient enrollment in phase 3 clinical trials during the quarter. Already with "orphan drug" status and receiving a patent on the drug in Europe through 2023, the company appears to be marching toward a meeting with the FDA sooner than later. Even with perifosine licensed to Keryx Biopharmaceuticals
But, it isn't just perifosine that's stirring the pot. AEZS-130, the phase 3 experimental molecule designed to be the first oral drug to detect adult growth hormone deficiency, showed remarkable efficacy, and the company anticipates filing a new drug application with the FDA shortly. In addition, AEZS-108, a molecule designed to treat endometrial cancer, reached efficacy and safety goals in phase 2 clinical trials. This doesn't even take into account the positive data from the company's other pre-clinical drug candidates.
The reason I like Aeterna Zentaris (a lot) has to do with a simple numbers game. Back in April, I commented that relative to some of its peers, Aeterna Zentaris gets no respect. The company currently has 11 compounds under development and two in phase 3 clinical trials, yet it commands a market value of only $150 million.
Compare this with XenoPort
Consider this another successful quarter for Aeterna Zentaris in its quest to gain some respect from investors.