Atea Pharmaceuticals reports Q4 EPS (47c), consensus (51c)

Reports cash, cash equivalents and marketablesecurities: $578.1M at December 31 compared to $646.7M at December 31, 2022. “2023 was marked by strong operational execution, as evidenced by the rapid enrollment of our Phase 2 HCV combination study of bemnifosbuvir and ruzasvir and our ability to leverage global surges in COVID-19 to meaningfully advance our Phase 3 SUNRISE-3 study,” said Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, PhD, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Atea Pharmaceuticals. “Our clinical progress has led to exciting data for our HCV program. I am pleased to share that the 98% SVR4 rate was confirmed in the final results from the lead-in cohort of the Phase 2 combination study. Enrollment of the remainder of this study is ongoing with topline results anticipated in the second half of 2024,” continued Dr. Sommadossi. “In the US, it is estimated that there are 2.4 million individuals infected with HCV. Rates of new infections and reinfection exceed cure rates, leading to a continuing increase of prevalence. The key unmet needs identified by healthcare providers in market research recently conducted by Atea include shorter length of treatment with fewer contraindications, particularly drug-drug interactions, which we believe the combination of bemnifosbuvir and ruzasvir has the potential to address.” “Patient enrollment for SUNRISE-3 has correlated with the latest winter wave. Currently, more than 1,400 patients have been enrolled in the monotherapy population triggering our second interim analysis for safety and futility by the independent DSMB. For SUNRISE-3, we anticipate several upcoming events including the first interim analysis in March of 2024, the second interim analysis in the second quarter of 2024 and topline results during the second half of 2024,” said Dr. Sommadossi. “COVID-19 continues to be a threat worldwide and there remains an urgent need for new oral antiviral treatment options to protect those who continue to be the most vulnerable to severe outcomes from infection such as the elderly, immunocompromised and those with underlying risk factors.”