(Reuters) – Valneva shares rose after reporting a net profit for the first six months of the year on Tuesday and reaffirmed its full-year outlook, saying it expected its cash burn to fall sharply in the second half.
At 07:47 GMT, the title was up 4.42%, leading the SBF 120 index which was up 0.23%.
The French biotechnology company posted a net profit of 34.0 million euros in the first half, supported in particular by the proceeds from the sale of the priority review voucher, compared to a loss of 35.0 million euros over the same period a year ago.
The company nevertheless reported a decline in its turnover to 70.8 million euros, against 73.7 million euros a year ago, but confirmed its financial outlook for the 2024 financial year.
“We expect to continue to benefit from the recovery in the travel industry, including ramping up sales of Ixchiq,” a vaccine against chikungunya, Valneva Chief Financial Officer Peter Bühler said in a statement.
In the second half, cash consumption should also show a “significant decline”, Valneva “having completed its contributions to the contractually predefined R&D expenses for the Phase 3 study on Lyme disease”, the group specifies.
“The lower cash burn forecast supports the current cash position of €131.4 million, which provides a sufficient buffer,” Kempen Daily analysts said, adding that the company’s “main asset, the Lyme disease vaccine candidate” could help support the stock over time.
(Written by Corentin Chappron and Elena Smirnova, edited by Kate Entringer)
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