What happened
For a company operating in an area of great investor interest, even a mild quarterly earnings beat can really juice its stock price. That was the dynamic behind artificial intelligence (AI)-powered healthcare-solutions provider Exscientia's (EXAI -6.87%) more than 6% leap in share price on Wednesday. That made the stock quite an outlier, as the S&P 500 index slipped by 0.7% on the day.
So what
Exscientia, which harnesses AI in the discovery and development of pharmaceuticals, published its first-quarter results well before market open. The U.K.-based company earned $7.1 million in revenue for the period. While this was down notably from the $8.6 million it booked in the same quarter of 2022, it exceeded the average analyst projection of nearly $6.3 million.
As for the bottom line, Exscientia's net loss deepened considerably. It was $46.6 million for the quarter, or $0.38 per share, compared to the year-ago deficit of $19.1 million. Again, though, prognosticators following the stock were expecting worse -- specifically, an $0.40 per-share loss, on average.
The company provided a business update within its earnings release. It touted the progress it's making in the laboratory, quoting founder and CEO Andrew Hopkins as saying that, "With our sixth AI-designed compound reaching the clinical development stage plus two more in active IND/CTA-enabling studies, Exscientia's pipeline of wholly owned and partnered drug candidates is progressing rapidly."
Now what
Exscientia's focus is on oncology, and it reported that earlier this month, it dosed its first patient in a phase 1/2 clinical trial of EXS21546. This is an experimental drug that targets relapsed/refractory renal cell carcinoma and non-small cell lung cancer.
The U.K. company is clearly showing progress. Also, as it uses AI in a meaningful way to develop its medications while focusing on the ever-hot segment of oncology, it should continue to be a stock to watch for biotech investors.
