MorphoSys AG Reports Results for the First Nine Months of 2014

Increased EBIT Guidance Confirmed


Conference call and webcast (in English) today at 2:00pm CET (1:00pm GMT/8:00am EST)

MARTINSRIED/MUNICH, Germany, Nov. 7, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment; TecDAX, OTC: MPSYY) today announced its financial results for the nine months ending 30 September 2014. Group revenues from continuing operations were EUR 46.9 million (9-months 2013: EUR 63.6 million). Revenues in the first nine months of 2013 were significantly influenced by one-time effects such as a license agreement with GlaxoSmithKline for MorphoSys's clinical antibody program MOR103 and a payment for a HuCAL license by Bio-Rad in connection with the sale of AbD Serotec. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) amounted to EUR -3.7 million (9-months 2013: EUR 14.6 million). On 30 September 2014, MorphoSys's liquid funds, marketable securities and financial assets amounted to EUR 364.3 million (31 December 2013: EUR 390.7 million).

In EURO million* 9-Months 2014 9-Months 2013
     
Continuing Operations:    
Group Revenues 46.9 63.6
Total Operating Expenses 51.1 49.1
Other Income/Expenses 0.4 0.2
Earnings Before Interest and Taxes - EBIT +/(-) (3.7) 14.6
Profit/(Loss) from Continuing Operations (2.0) 10.9
Profit from Discontinued Operations 0 6.0
Consolidated Net Profit/(Loss) (2.0) 16.9
Total EPS, diluted, in EURO (0,08) 0.68

* Differences due to rounding

Highlights of the Third Quarter 2014

  • MorphoSys and Emergent BioSolutions signed an agreement for the joint development and commercialization of MOR209/ES414, a bi-specific antibody targeting prostate cancer. Under the terms of the agreement, MorphoSys gains worldwide commercialization rights excluding the U.S. and Canada.
  • MorphoSys received a milestone payment from Novartis in connection with the initiation of a Phase 1 clinical trial in the field of diabetic eye diseases.
  • In October, MorphoSys announced the acquisition of Lanthio Pharma's lanthipeptide technology.
  • MorphoSys received a research grant of up to EUR 1 million from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), which will support development of antibodies against two G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs).
  • Clinical data for the MOR103 program from the phase 1b study in multiple sclerosis were presented in September at the ACTRIMS-ECTRIMS meeting. The completion of the study marks the complete transition of all further development to MorphoSys's partner GlaxoSmithKline.
  • MorphoSys provided an update on its proprietary portfolio including the clinical programs MOR208, MOR103 and MOR202. First clinical data for the MOR208 program from the phase 2 study in Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) will be published in Q4 2014. Results from the phase 2 study of MOR208 in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and from the phase 1/2a study of MOR202 in multiple myeloma are expected in 2015.
  • Shortly after the end of the third quarter 2014, MorphoSys received a milestone payment from its partner Janssen Biotech for the start of a phase 3 clinical trial with guselkumab.
  • As a result of these events, MorphoSys's partnered and proprietary pipeline currently comprises 94 therapeutic antibodies, of which 21 were in clinical development. This includes three partnered programs in phase 3 trials.

"In the third quarter we have made significant progress in building our pipeline of therapeutic antibodies", commented Dr. Simon Moroney, Chief Executive Officer of MorphoSys AG. "The agreement with Emergent BioSolutions brings us a very promising drug candidate for prostate cancer. Our successful collaboration with Novartis has produced yet another clinical program. Furthermore, the lanthipeptide technology we have acquired from Lanthio Pharma gives us a capability that complements our antibody platform and opens the way to adding even more differentiated product candidates to our portfolio."

"In addition to the successful expansion of our proprietary portfolio, we are very pleased to see that our long-term partnerships continued to pay off with two clinical milestone payments within the past few weeks. MorphoSys is well positioned to achieve its financial goals for the full year, which we have updated in October to reflect increased EBIT expectations," stated Jens Holstein, Chief Financial Officer of MorphoSys AG.

Financial Review for the First Nine Months of 2014 (IFRS)

Group revenues from continuing operations for the first nine months of 2014 amounted to EUR 46.9 million (9-months 2013: EUR 63.6 million). Revenues in 2013 were 26 % higher following two major one-time effects: The license agreement with GlaxoSmithKline for MOR103 and the license payment from Bio-Rad in connection with their acquisition of MorphoSys's AbD Serotec segment. Revenues in the Partnered Discovery segment comprised EUR 33.1 million in funded research and licensing fees (9-months 2013: EUR 37.5 million) and EUR 2.4 million in success-based payments (9-months 2013: EUR 3.0 million). The Proprietary Development segment recorded revenues of EUR 11.4 million (9-months 2013: EUR 23.0 million). These revenues were recorded in connection with the co-development agreement with Celgene.

Total operating expenses from continuing operations for the first nine months of 2014 amounted to EUR 51.1 million (9-months 2013: EUR 49.1 million). Total research and development expenses were EUR 40.8 million (9-months 2013: EUR 35.9 million). R&D expenses mainly consisted of personnel costs and costs for external lab services and included write-offs on patents, licenses and lab equipment in the amount of EUR 4.1 million (9-months 2013: EUR 0.7 million). Investment in proprietary product and technology development amounted to EUR 26.1 million (9-months 2013: EUR 24.1 million). Selling, general and administrative expenses decreased to EUR 10.3 million (9-months 2013: EUR 13.2 million) driven by lower expenses for personnel and for external services.

Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) amounted to EUR -3.7 million (9-months 2013: EUR 14.6 million). Partnered Discovery showed a segment EBIT of EUR 18.3 million (9-months 2013: EUR 22.4 million), while the Proprietary Development segment reported a segment EBIT of EUR -12.7 million (9-months 2013: EUR 2.4 million).

For the first nine months of 2014, MorphoSys showed a net loss from continuing operations of EUR -2.0 million compared to a net profit of EUR 10.9 million in the same period of the previous year. The resulting diluted earnings per share from continuing operations for the nine months ending 30 September 2014 amounted to EUR -0.08 (9-months 2013: 0.44 EUR). Group net loss amounted to EUR -2.0 million (9-months 2013: net profit of EUR 16.9 million). The resulting diluted Group earnings per share amounted to EUR -0.08 (9-months 2013: EUR 0.68).

On 30 September 2014, the Company held liquid funds and marketable securities, as well as other financial assets (reported in the balance sheet under cash and cash equivalents, available for sale financial assets, bonds available for sale and other receivables), in the amount of EUR 364.3 million, compared to EUR 390.7 million on 31 December 2013. The net cash outflow from operations in the first nine months was EUR 3.3 million (9-months 2013: net cash inflow of EUR 100.8 million). The number of shares issued at 30 September 2014 was 26,392,084, compared to 26,220,882 on 31 December 2013.

Third Quarter of 2014 (IFRS)

In the third quarter of 2014, the Company generated revenues in the amount of EUR 16.4 million, compared to EUR 15.4 million in the same quarter of 2013. Total operating expenses amounted to EUR 21.0 million in Q3 2014, compared to EUR 18.0 million in the same quarter of 2013. EBIT amounted to EUR -4.1 million (Q3 2013: EUR -2.7 million). Net loss from continuing operations for the third quarter 2014 was EUR 2.6 million, compared to a net loss of EUR 2.1 million in the third quarter of 2013.

Outlook for 2014

MorphoSys updated its EBIT guidance for 2014 on 22 October 2014, and now expects an EBIT in the range of EUR -5 million to EUR -8 million (from previously EUR -11 million to EUR -16 million). Reasons for the adjustment were the receipt of a milestone payment from Janssen, which directly affects the profit line, as well as a partial shift of proprietary development expenses to 2015. The Company's management expects revenues at the upper end of the previously communicated guidance range of EUR 58 million to EUR 63 million.

MorphoSys will hold a public conference call and webcast today at 02:00 p.m. CET (08:00 a.m. EST, 01:00 p.m. GMT) to present the Q3 Results 2014 and report on current developments.

Dial-in number for the analyst conference call (in English) at 02:00 pm CET; 01:00 pm GMT; 08:00 am EST (listen-only):

Germany: +49 (0) 89 2444 32975
For UK residents: +44 (0) 20 3003 2666
For US residents: +1 202 204 1514

Please dial in 10 minutes before the beginning of the conference.

In addition, MorphoSys offers participants the opportunity to follow the presentation through a simultaneous slide presentation online at http://www.morphosys.com.
A live webcast, slides, webcast replay and transcript will be made available at http://www.morphosys.com.
A replay and transcript will be made available at http://www.morphosys.com.

The complete 3rd Interim Report 2014 (January - September) is available on our website (HTML and PDF): http://www.morphosys.com/FinancialReports

About MorphoSys:

MorphoSys developed HuCAL, the most successful antibody library technology in the pharmaceutical industry. By successfully applying this and other patented technologies, MorphoSys has become a leader in the field of therapeutic antibodies, one of the fastest-growing drug classes in human healthcare.
Together with its pharmaceutical partners, MorphoSys has built a therapeutic pipeline of more than 90 human antibody drug candidates for the treatment of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's disease, to name just a few. With its ongoing commitment to new antibody technology and drug development, MorphoSys is focused on making the healthcare products of tomorrow. MorphoSys is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol MOR. For regular updates about MorphoSys, visit http://www.morphosys.com.

HuCAL®, HuCAL GOLD®, HuCAL PLATINUM®, CysDisplay®, RapMAT®, arYla®, Ylanthia® and 100 billion high potentials® are registered trademarks of MorphoSys AG.
Slonomics® is a registered trademark of Sloning BioTechnology GmbH, a subsidiary of MorphoSys AG.

This communication contains certain forward-looking statements concerning the MorphoSys group of companies. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgment of MorphoSys as of the date of this release and involve risks and uncertainties. Should actual conditions differ from the Company's assumptions, actual results and actions may differ from those anticipated. MorphoSys does not intend to update any of these forward-looking statements as far as the wording of the relevant press release is concerned.

For more information, please contact:
MorphoSys AG
Dr. Claudia Gutjahr-Löser
Head of Corporate Communications & IR

Mario Brkulj
Associate Director Corporate Communications & IR

Alexandra Goller
Specialist Corporate Communications & IR

Jessica Rush
Specialist Corporate Communications & IR

Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-404
investors@morphosys.com

Media Release (PDF) http://hugin.info/130295/R/1869405/657291.pdf
3rd Interim Report 2014 (PDF) http://hugin.info/130295/R/1869405/657293.pdf

HUG#1869405