These half-year results from Faron Pharmaceuticals (FARN) didn’t catch anyone off guard, but investors are still waiting to see initial data from a third-phase European trial for acute respiratory distress syndrome drug Traumakine at the start of 2018. Recruitment of around 300 patients for that trial won’t be complete until the fourth quarter, but early discussions with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have hinted that the company could enjoy an expedited regulatory process to get the medicine to market. The first set of data should look at mortality rates by the end of day 28, although this should be extended once further information emerges later in the year.
That isn’t all – data from a 120-patient third phase Japanese trial for the same drug is also due in 2018, which is being run in partnership with Osaka-based Maruishi Pharmaceutical. Recruitment should complete during the first half next year, and given the comparable variables across this and the European trial, Faron should have a convincing dataset to present to regulators.
The company should have enough cash in the bank to fund this work. Having raised an additional £5m in March 2017 through a placing of 1.4m shares, analysts at Panmure Gordon expect the group’s cash reserves to hold out until the end of 2018, when most of the data should start to trickle through.
| FARON PHARMACEUTICALS (FARN) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 728p | MARKET VALUE: | £203m | |
| TOUCH: | 715-740p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 820p | LOW: 250p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 34¢ | NET CASH: | €7.8m | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (€000) | Pre-tax profit (€m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
| 2016 (restated) | 419 | -3.7 | -16 | nil |
| 2017 | 7.0 | -7.2 | -26 | nil |
| % change | - | - | - | - |
| Ex-div: | na | |||
| Payment: | na |
