NEW YORK, March 7 - Lexicon Genetics on Thursday posted a 251 percent surge in total revenue in the fourth quarter, as a significant increase in R&D helped to widen net loss.
For the period ended Dec. 31, total revenue grew to $10.3 million from just under $3 million one year ago. Helping this increase was $3.1 million in subscription and license fees for LexVision-related partnerships; $3.8 million from collaborative research; and $3.4 million from sales of its chemical-compound libraries.
R&D in the quarter rose to $17.8 million, 101 percent from the $8.9 million Lexicon posted in the year-ago period. Driving this increase was a scale-up of the company's gene-knockout and functional analysis programs that hope to determine the function of some 5,000 genes over the next five years.
There was also the expense that Lexicon incurred from creating its new pharma division, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, following the company's acquisition of Coelacanth. As a result of this deal, Lexicon's total workforce swelled to 484 people, including 384 scientists, the company said. As of March 1 Lexicon employed 507 people.
The company also said that net loss in the current quarter grew to $11.0 million, or $.21 per share, from $7.5 million, or $.16 per share, year over year. Lexicon Genetics said it had roughly $166.8 million in the bank as of Dec. 31.