German contractor Evotec has notched another milestone in its years-long arrangement with Boehringer Ingelheim, netting €1 million ($1.4 million) after moving a respiratory compound into preclinical study.
Evotec, which links risk-sharing alliances with its drug developer clients, has been working with Boehringer since 2004, forging a multi-target discovery alliance spanning CNS disorders, inflammation, oncology and other diseases. The long-running alliance pays Evotec for each discovery success and puts it in line for down-the-line royalties on any approved products, the company said.
"We have now achieved 23 milestones as part of the collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim," CEO Mario Polywka said in a statement. "The completed research phase of this alliance has led to significant potential clinical milestones and royalties for compounds that are already in preclinical and clinical development if they progress successfully."
Evotec splits its business into two halves: EVT Execute, which operates like a CRO, and EVT Innovate, which out-licenses internally developed candidates. The former half largely pays the bills, thanks to risk-sharing deals with the likes of Bayer, Johnson & Johnson ($JNJ) and Roche ($RHHBY), but Evotec has taken strides to build up its internal efforts, in March buying up a biopharma asset management company to bring in a pipeline of its own and get to work on some unpartnered assets.
Last quarter, Evotec brought in about $24.1 million in revenue on the quarter, good for about 3% growth. EVT Execute brought in $26.3 million, while EVT Innovate picked up $3.4 million. However, $5.5 million in intersegment eliminations--in which one business sold services to the other--brought down the revenue total.
The company took a $5.5 million net loss on the quarter, but Evotec considers itself in a strong position with about $124 million in cash and more on the way tied to near-term milestones from its many partnerships.
- read the statement