Woburn, Massachusetts, USA
November 12, 2020
Yield10 Bioscience, Inc. (Nasdaq:YTEN), an agricultural bioscience company, today reported financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.
"We are very pleased with our strong progress across multiple fronts in the third quarter and beyond," said Oliver Peoples, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Yield10 Bioscience. “We completed harvesting for our 2020 field test program to evaluate novel yield and compositional traits in Camelina and canola conducted in the United States and Canada, and look forward to reporting data in the fourth quarter of 2020 through early 2021. We plan to evaluate seed yield, oil content, PHA content and other metrics of the traits which will also inform our priorities for trait evaluation in 2021.”
“We are very pleased to have recently announced our collaboration with Rothamsted Research for the advancement of technology that enables the land-based, sustainable production of omega-3 (DHA + EPA) oils for use in aquaculture. There is a significant market opportunity for the development of plant-based feeding solutions for the production of fish, particularly salmon, for human consumption. The technology has demonstrated the DHA + EPA omega-3 trait in Camelina and is highly complementary to our own Camelina Platform. The key objective is to support Rothamsted’s continued research as they further optimize the DHA + EPA omega-3 trait as a drop-in replacement for southern hemisphere fish oil and conduct field tests and feeding studies. Yield10 will develop a strategic business plan with an initial focus on South America.”
"In addition to executing our field test program and advancing our Camelina business plan, we also shored up our balance sheet in the third quarter with the closing of a public offering and concurrent private placement of common stock that raised $5.7 million in gross proceeds to Yield10. As we approach year end 2020, we remain focused on generating proof points for our traits in development and on advancing business discussions around our Camelina business plan," Dr. Peoples concluded.
Recent Accomplishments Towards Achieving 2020 Milestones
Advance the Camelina Business Plan. Yield10 recently signed exclusive research collaboration and commercial option agreements with Rothamsted Research to evaluate advanced technology for producing omega-3 nutritional oils in Camelina. The Rothamsted technology could enable the sustainable, plant-based production of DHA+EPA omega-3 nutritional oil that closely mimics the composition of southern hemisphere fish oil, an important ingredient in aquaculture feed for salmon and other species.
In the third quarter, Yield10 began field tests of internally developed double haploid varieties of winter Camelina as part of a program to develop Camelina as a commercial crop. Yield10 also harvested 50 acres of wild-type spring Camelina to begin building relationships with growers, developing agronomic guidelines for successfully growing Camelina, and producing Camelina oil and meal for sampling to potential customers.
Generate Proof Points for Novel Traits in Camelina and Canola. Yield10 completed the harvest of the Company's 2020 Field Tests to evaluate a series of traits in Camelina and canola. Key studies include the evaluation of C3004 in Camelina as well as tests of traits to boost seed yield and/or oil content in Camelina and canola. These studies, for the first time, include field testing of a novel trait to produce PHA in the seed of Camelina. The purpose of this activity is to determine the suitability of these first generation PHA Camelina lines for scale-up and PHA product prototyping in 2021. Yield10 expects that data from the studies will begin to become available in the fourth quarter of 2020 and into early 2021.
Advance the Corn Development Program. Continued to execute field work to create hybrid corn lines for field testing including the start of a second growth cycle in the third quarter for corn lines deployed with Yield10 traits. Yield10 plans to seek a research license partner for corn.
Manage its Financial Profile and Strengthen the Balance Sheet. Yield10's financial results for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2020 are on track with internal estimates. Yield10 strengthened its balance sheet in the third quarter of 2020 based on raising approximately $5.7 million in gross proceeds from the issuance of common stock in offerings completed on August 26, 2020.
COVID-19 Impact on Operations. The Company has implemented business continuity plans to address the COVID-19 pandemic and minimize disruptions to ongoing operations. To date, despite the pandemic, we have been able to move forward with the operational steps required to execute our 2020 field trials in Canada and the United States. It is possible, however, that any potential future closures of our research facilities, should they continue for an extended time period, could adversely impact our anticipated time frames for evaluating and/or reporting data from our field trials and other work we have planned to accomplish during 2020 and beyond.
THIRD QUARTER 2020 FINANCIAL OVERVIEW
Cash Position
Yield10 Bioscience is managed with an emphasis on cash flow and deploys its financial resources in a disciplined manner to achieve its key strategic objectives.
Net cash used by operating activities during the third quarter of 2020 was $2.1 million compared to $1.4 million used in the third quarter of 2019. Yield10 ended the third quarter of 2020 with $11.8 million in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. The Company continues to estimate total net cash usage during the full year 2020 within a range of $8.5 - $9.0 million.
The Company's present capital resources are expected to fund its planned operations through the end of 2021. Yield10's ability to continue operations after its current cash resources are exhausted depends on its ability to obtain additional financing, including public or private equity financing, secured or unsecured debt financing, and receipt of additional government research grants, as well as licensing or other collaborative arrangements.
Grant revenue for both the third quarter of 2020 and 2019 was $0.2 million, respectively. Research and development expenses were $1.3 million and $1.2 million for the third quarters of 2020 and 2019, respectively. General and administrative expenses increased to $1.1 million during the third quarter of 2020 from $1.0 million during the third quarter of 2019. The quarter-over-quarter increases in operating expense are primarily a result of the Company recording pro rata estimates for 2020 employee bonuses that are expected to be paid during the first quarter of 2021. In 2019, Yield10 did not accrue for bonuses until the fourth quarter.
Yield10 reported a loss from operations of $2.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2020 compared to a loss from operations of $2.0 million for the same quarter of 2019. The Company reported a total net loss after income tax expense of $2.2 million, or $0.87 per share for the three months ended September 30, 2020, in comparison to a total net loss after income taxes of $2.0 million, or $6.33 per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2019.
For the nine months ending September 30, 2020, the Company reported a net operating loss after taxes of $7.6 million, or $3.69 per share compared to a net operating loss after taxes of $6.1 million, or $20.64 per share for the nine months ending September 30, 2019. Year to date grant revenue earned through September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019 was $0.6 million and $0.7 million, respectively. Research and development expenses were $3.9 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2020, compared to $3.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2019, and general and administrative expenses were $3.7 million and $3.2 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, respectively. During the nine months ended September 30, 2020, the Company recognized $0.3 million in loan forgiveness income related to a Paycheck Protection Program Loan ("PPP Loan") issued to the Company under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act ("CARES Act"). Yield10 utilized the entire PPP Loan amount of $0.3 million for qualifying payroll and other expenses during the second quarter of 2020 and considers it reasonably certain that its application for loan forgiveness under the CARES Act will be approved.
Reverse Stock Split
Yield10 completed a 1-for-40 reverse stock split of its common stock on January 15, 2020, in order to regain compliance with the Nasdaq Stock Market minimum bid price qualification of $1.00 per share as required by Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2). In accordance with applicable accounting guidance, all share amounts, per share data, share prices and conversion rates set forth in the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements for the three and nine months ending September 30, 2020 and September 30, 2019, including those presented in this earnings release, have been retroactively adjusted to reflect the reverse stock split.
Conference Call Information
Yield10 Bioscience management will host a conference call at 4:30 p.m. (ET) today to discuss the third quarter 2020 results. The Company also will provide an update on the business and answer questions from the investor community. A live webcast of the call with slides can be accessed through the Company's website at www.yield10bio.com in the investor relations events section. To participate in the call, dial toll-free 877-709-8150 or 201-689-8354 (international).
To listen to a telephonic replay of the conference call, dial toll-free 877-660-6853 or 201-612-7415 (international) and enter pass code 13711239. The replay will be available until November 26, 2020. In addition, the webcast will be archived on the Company's website in the investor relations events section.
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