Circassia Pharmaceuticals PLC (LON:CIR) saw its pretax loss more than double in 2016 after a setback for its allergy division although it said it still looked to the future with optimism.
The main market-listed biotech firm last week saw phase IIb trials for its dust mite allergy treatment fail to meet the primary endpoint. That disappointment followed on from a failed trial of its key cat allergy treatment last June, which prompted the firm to halt further investment in its allergy portfolio.
READ: Circassia plummets on phase III trial miss
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That caused Circassia to book restructuring costs and impairments of £80.0mln in 2016 leading it to report a pretax loss of £144.9mln, up from a £62.8mln loss in 2015.
The loss came even as revenue more than doubled to £23.1mln, up from £10.8mln a year earlier, as the group stepped up its sales and marketing expenditure to £104.7mln from just £13.5mln.
Focus on its asthma management products
Circassia has been focusing on its asthma management products, promoting its COPD treatment Tudorza.
The COPD product is being developed under a "transformational" deal that was recently announced with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca PLC (LON:AZN), commercialising Tudorza in the US.
READ: AstraZeneca deal breathes new life into Circassia
Circassia’s chairman Francesco Granata said: “Following the setbacks of 2016, Circassia is looking forward with optimism as it builds its revenues and advances its pipeline of promising respiratory treatments.
“As a result, I believe the company is increasingly well positioned to achieve its ambition of becoming a world-class, self-sustaining specialty pharmaceutical company.”
In lunchtime trading, Circassia shares were nearly 1%, or 1p lower at 101p.