AbCellera (Nasdaq: ABCL), a technology company with a centralized operating system for next-generation antibody discovery, today announced financial results for full year 2021. All financial information in this press release is reported in U.S. dollars.

“In 2021 we made significant advancements in executing our long-term strategy by growing our portfolio, deepening our platform to unlock new modalities, and expanding our deal structures to add new ways to capture value,” said Carl Hansen, Ph.D., CEO and President of AbCellera. “We move into 2022 with momentum and a strong cash position to continue to grow our business and to make investments that will increase the speed, efficiency, and scalability of our platform.”

2021 Business Highlights

• Earned $375 million in total revenue, including $335 million in milestones and royalties, of which $138 million is in accounts receivable.
• Ended the year with over $720 million in cash, equivalents, and marketable securities.
• Generated $153 million in net earnings, up from $119 million in 2020.
• Started discovery on 26 programs, bringing the cumulative number of program starts to 78.
• Achieved a cumulative total of 156 programs under contract with 36 partners.
• Reached a cumulative total of five molecules in the clinic across oncology, infectious disease, animal health, and immunology, dermatology and gastrointestinal disease.
• Acquired TetraGenetics to expand capabilities for high-value transmembrane protein targets.
• Expanded the leadership team with the appointment of Neil Berkley as Chief Business Officer, Neil Aubuchon as Chief Commercial Officer, and appointed Andrew Lo, Ph.D., to the Board of Directors.

Key Business Metrics

AbCellera added 53 discovery programs in 2021 to reach a cumulative total of 156 discovery programs as of December 31, 2021 (up 51% from 103 on December 31, 2020), that are either completed, in progress, or under contract with 36 different partners (up from 27 on December 31, 2020). AbCellera started discovery on 26 programs in 2021 to reach a cumulative total of 78 program starts (up from 52 on December 31, 2020). AbCellera’s partners advanced four additional molecules into the clinic in 2021, bringing the cumulative total to five.

Discussion of 2021 Financial Results

• Revenue – Total revenue was $375.2 million, compared to $233.2 million in 2020, of which $327.3 million is attributable to royalties. The partnership business generated research fees of $19.1 million, compared to $19.8 million in 2020. Licensing revenue was $20.8 million.
• Research & Development (R&D) Expenses – R&D expenses were $62.1 million, compared to $29.4 million in 2020, reflecting continuing investments in the capacity and capabilities of AbCellera’s discovery and development platform.
• Sales & Marketing (S&M) Expenses – S&M expenses were $6.9 million, compared to $3.8 million in 2020.
• General & Administrative (G&A) Expenses – G&A expenses were $41.8 million, compared to $11.9 million in 2020, with the increase driven primarily by investments to support the growth of the company, non-cash stock-based compensation in line with publicly listed companies, and protecting intellectual property.
• Net Earnings – Net earnings were $153.5 million, or $0.56 per share on a basic and $0.48 per share on a diluted basis, compared to net earnings of $118.9 million, or $0.53 per share on a basic and $0.45 per share on a diluted basis in 2020.
• Liquidity – $723.0 million of cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities.

Q4 Highlights and Financial Results

• Started nine programs.
• U.S. shipments of bamlanivimab resumed.
• Added one program under contract with a new, undisclosed partner.

Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2021 was $139.3 million, representing 37% of the total for 2021. $134.5 million was generated in the quarter from royalties on net sales of bamlanivimab and $4.7 million from research fees, representing 41% and 25% of the respective totals for 2021.

Operating expenses totaled $57.8 million in the fourth quarter or 34% of the total for 2021 and include $21.9 million in royalty fees (48% of the total for the year).

Net earnings for the fourth quarter were $59.9 million, 39% of the total for 2021, or $0.21 per share on a basic and $0.19 per share on a diluted basis.

Conference Call and Webcast

AbCellera will host a conference call and live webcast to discuss these results today at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time).

The live webcast of the earnings conference call can be accessed on the Events and Presentations section of AbCellera’s Investor Relations website. A replay of the webcast will be available through the same link following the conference call.

About AbCellera Biologics Inc.

AbCellera is a technology company that searches, decodes, and analyzes natural immune systems to find antibodies that its partners can develop into drugs to prevent and treat disease. AbCellera partners with drug developers of all sizes, from large pharmaceutical to small biotechnology companies, empowering them to move quickly, reduce costs, and tackle the toughest problems in drug development. For more information, please visit www.abcellera.com.

Definition of Key Business Metrics

We regularly review the following key business metrics to evaluate our business, measure our performance, identify trends affecting our business, formulate financial projections, and make strategic decisions. We believe that the following metrics are important to understand our current business. These metrics may change or may be substituted for additional or different metrics as our business develops. For example, as our business matures and to the extent programs are discontinued, we anticipate updating these metrics to reflect such changes.

Number of discovery partners represents the unique number of partners with whom we have executed partnership contracts. We view this metric as an indication of the competitiveness of our technology stack and our current level of market penetration. The metric also relates to our opportunities to secure programs under contract.

Programs under contract represent the number of antibody development programs that are under contract for delivery of discovery research activities. A program under contract is counted when a contract is executed with a partner under which we commit to discover antibodies against one selected target. A target is any relevant antigen for which a partner seeks our support in developing binding antibodies. We view this metric as an indication of commercial success and technological competitiveness. It further relates to revenue from technology access fees. The cumulative number of programs under contract with downstream participation is related to our ability to generate future revenue from milestone payments and royalties.

Program starts represent the number of unique programs under contract for which we have commenced the discovery effort. The discovery effort commences on the later of (i) the day on which we receive sufficient reagents to start discovery of antibodies against a target and (ii) the day on which the kick-off meeting for the program is held. We view this metric as an indication of our operational capacity to execute on programs under contract. It is also an indication of the selection and initiation of discovery projects by our partners and the resulting near-term potential to earn research fees. Cumulatively, program starts with downstream participation indicate our total opportunities to earn downstream revenue from milestone fees and royalties in the mid- to long-term.

Molecules in the clinic represent the count of unique molecules for which an Investigational New Drug, or IND, New Animal Drug, or equivalent under other regulatory regimes, application has been approved based on an antibody that was discovered either by us or by a partner using licensed AbCellera technology. Where the date of such application approval is not known to us, the date of the first public announcement of a clinical trial will be used for the purpose of this metric. We view this metric as an indication of our near- and mid-term potential revenue from milestone fees and potential royalty payments in the long term.

AbCellera Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward-looking statements are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management. All statements contained in this release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our ability to develop, commercialize and achieve market acceptance of our current and planned products and services, our research and development efforts, and other matters regarding our business strategies, use of capital, results of operations and financial position, and plans and objectives for future operations.

In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the words “may,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “continue,” “ongoing” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the information expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors are described under "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and elsewhere in the documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. We caution you that forward-looking statements are based on a combination of facts and factors currently known by us and our projections of the future, about which we cannot be certain. As a result, the forward-looking statements may not prove to be accurate. The forward-looking statements in this press release represent our views as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements for any reason, except as required by law.

Source: AbCellera Biologics Inc.

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