The six months to June 30 for biopharma Hutchison China MediTech Limited (LON:HCM, NASDAQ:HCM) charted significant progress, which included a sharp rise in commercial sales and a Nasdaq listing.
The group has seven candidates being tested across 25 clinical trials, including four pivotal Phase III studies, on which data is expected to be published through to the end of the first quarter of 2017.
In its commercial platform, Total group sales were up an impressive 48% to US$82.3 million, compared to US $55.6mln in the first half of 2015.
Total net income attributable to Chi-Med from its commercial platform was a up 12% to US$22.1 million (H1 2015: US$19.8m).
The group net income was US $0.5 million (H1 2015: $15.9mln, reflecting the big increase in clinical investment, on revenues which were 27% higher at US$104.5 million (H1 2015: $82.5mln.
The firm also completed a Nasdaq listing, raising net proceeds of US$95.9 million.
As at the end of June it had US$197.5mln in cash.
Yesterday, the firm revealed it had accelerated and expanded work on c-MET inhibitor candidate savolitinib through an amended license deal with AstraZeneca ($AZN) that covers a Phase III global trial.
Chi-Med chairman Simon To said today: "Chi-Med has once again made very considerable progress at both the operating and strategic levels.
"All aspects of our Innovation Platform's risk-balanced, innovative drug pipeline have moved forward, including progress in aligning with U.S. and European regulatory authorities in end-of-Phase II meetings on savolitinib and completing enrollment of our first Phase III study on fruquintinib.
"We have also made great progress in the clinic on sulfatinib, epitinib, HMPL-523, HMPL-689 and theliatinib, all of which are also potential global first-in-class or best-in-class drug candidates.
"The progress of our drug pipeline and strong cash position, resulting from our increased commercial profits and recent Nasdaq listing, have enabled us to renegotiate our collaboration agreement with AstraZeneca to take a greater share in the potential long-term economic value of savolitinib in return for increasing our investment in savolitinib's development.
"We believe this benefits both Chi-Med and AstraZeneca as it allows us to accelerate and broaden savolitinib's late-stage development in multiple oncology indications."