NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – CareDx reported after the close of the market on Thursday that its third quarter revenues rose 74 percent year over year, thanks largely to a 105 percent increase in testing services revenues.
For the three months ended Sept. 30, the diagnostics company said revenues rose to $21.2 million from $12.2 million in Q3 2017, beating analysts' average estimate of $18.5 million.
Testing revenues rose to $16.8 million from $8.2 million while product revenues rose 11 percent to $4.2 million from $3.9 million in the year-ago period. Collaboration and licensing revenue, meanwhile, dipped 27 percent to $114,000 from $156,000.
The firm said it provided 3,708 AlloSure kidney transplant test results to approximately 2,800 patients and 4,080 AlloMap heart transplant test results during the quarter. AlloSure is now being provided in 96 transplant centers in the US, supporting approximately 2 percent of the living kidney transplant patient population, and the number of standing order patients has increased to 2,736, cumulatively, the company added.
"The CareDx team delivered another record quarter, including 74 percent year-over-year revenue growth," CareDx President and CEO Peter Maag said in a statement. "The strong clinical value of AlloSure continues to resonate with the transplant community, and a year into the launch, we are 2 percent penetrated into this patient population. Our success to date positions CareDx as the leading provider of genomics-based information in transplantation."
On a call with analysts following the release of the earnings, Maag said that the 96 transplant centers where AlloSure is being provided represent a little more than 60 percent of the transplant volume in the US. He added that reimbursement was consistent with previous quarters, with 70 percent to 80 percent of AlloSure volume attributed to Medicare patients.
Driving adherence to the AlloSure routine testing schedule remains integral to the firm's strategy, Maag noted, and CareDx saw 1,260 new standing order patients added in Q3, which is up from 793 in Q2.
CareDx CFO Michael Bell also noted that AlloMap testing volume rose 6 percent from the prior year quarter, and that the firm will see an increase in the AlloMap Medicare reimbursement rate on Jan. 1 to $3,240 from $2,840.
CareDx's Q3 2018 net loss widened to $20.0 million from $14.3 million a year ago. However, its net loss per share narrowed to $.54 from $.63 a year ago. The company used 37.2 million shares to calculate its recent per-share loss figure compared to 22.5 million shares in Q3 2017. On an adjusted basis, the firm reported a net loss of $.01 per share for Q3 2018.
In October 2017, the Brisbane, California-based company sold about 5 million shares of its common stock to raised net proceeds of $18.4 million.
The company's R&D expenses for the quarter rose 30 percent to $3.9 million from $3.0 million in Q3 2017, and its SG&A costs rose 53 percent to $11.2 million from $7.3 million in the year-ago period.
CareDx ended the quarter with $26.2 million in cash and cash equivalents.
For full-year 2018, CareDx raised its guidance and now expects revenues of $74 million to $75 million. The firm had previously guided for revenues of $68 million to $70 million for the year. Analysts expect 2018 revenues of $69.3 million. On the call, Bell noted that the continued momentum of AlloSure is the main driver for higher expected revenues in 2018.
He added that while the company is not providing solid revenue guidance for next year, a previous aspirational guidance of $90 million to $100 million that CareDx had projected before the launch of AlloSure is very much in reach.
"I would say that our focus is still on the AlloSure commercialization. And based on our results to date, this aspirational $90 million to $100 million, I'd say we're very confident on our ability to hit that goal. So yes, we're feeling confident on that," Bell said.
The firm's shares rose 5 percent to $29.09 in Friday morning trading on the Nasdaq.