UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16 UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the month of November 2018
Commission File Number: 001-32001
Aptose Biosciences Inc.
(Translation of registrant's name into English)
251 Consumers Road, Suite 1105 Toronto, Ontario M2J 4R3 Canada
(Address of principal executive office)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.
Form 20-F [ ] Form 40-F [ X ]
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1):
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7):
On November 6, 2018, the Registrant issued a press release, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.
(c) Exhibit 99.1. Press release dated November 6, 2018
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
Aptose Biosciences Inc. | ||
(Registrant) | ||
Date: November 6, 2018 | /s/ Gregory K. Chow | |
Gregory K. Chow | ||
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||
EXHIBIT 99.1
Aptose Reports Results for the Third Quarter Ended September 30, 2018
Conference call is scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, November 7th at 8:00 AM ET
SAN DIEGO and TORONTO, Nov. 06, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aptose Biosciences Inc. (“Aptose” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: APTO, TSX: APS), a clinical-stage company developing highly differentiated therapeutics that target the underlying mechanisms of cancer, today announced financial results for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and reported on corporate developments.
The net loss for the quarter ended September 30, 2018 was $5.5 million ($0.16 per share) compared with $2.6 million ($0.11 per share) in the quarter ended September 30, 2017. Total cash and cash equivalents and investments as of September 30, 2018 were $15.6 million, and subsequent to September 30, 2018, $3.7 million and $1.5 million was raised through the At-The-Market facility with Cantor Fitzgerald and the Common Share Purchase Agreement with Aspire Capital, respectively. Based on current operations, cash on hand provides the Company with sufficient resources to fund research and development and operations into Q4 2019.
“Our focus is squarely on the clinical development of our two well-differentiated agents for the treatment of patients with hematologic malignancies,” said William G. Rice, Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “APTO-253 is the only known clinical-stage molecule that can directly inhibit expression of the MYC oncogene, and we are happy that now we are screening patients for our Phase 1b clinical study of APTO-253 for the treatment of relapsed or refractory AML or high risk-MDS. Meanwhile, we are looking forward to getting our oral, first-in-class pan-FLT3/pan-BTK inhibitor CG-806 into patients as soon as possible. We are completing the preclinical testing necessary for the IND, which is on track to be filed early in 2019, and we believe that it has the potential to serve as a transformational agent for multiple hematologic cancers, including AML, CLL and others.”
Corporate Highlights
Financial Results
The results of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 are presented below:
Three months ended September 30, | Nine months ended September 30, | ||||||||||||||
(in thousands) | 2018 | 2017 | 2018 | 2017 | |||||||||||
Revenues | $ - | $ - | $ - | $ - | |||||||||||
Research and development expenses | 3,591 | 1,390 | 14,549 | 4,213 | |||||||||||
General and administrative expenses | 2,020 | 1,319 | 8,233 | 4,302 | |||||||||||
Net finance income | 89 | 69 | 178 | 142 | |||||||||||
Net loss and comprehensive loss for the period | ($5,522 | ) | ($2,640 | ) | ($22,604 | ) | ($8,373 | ) | |||||||
Basic and diluted loss per common share | ($0.16 | ) | ($0.11 | ) | ($0.71 | ) | ($0.40 | ) | |||||||
The increase in the net loss during the three months ended September 30, 2018 compared with the three months ended September 30, 2017 results mostly from higher research and development expenses related to our CG-806 and APTO-253 programs and $951 thousand in non-cash expenses related to stock-based compensation.
The increase in the net loss during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared with the nine months ended September 30, 2017 results mostly from $5.0 million in license fees paid to CrystalGenomics, Inc. (“CG”) for rights worldwide (excluding Korea), higher research and development expenses related to our CG-806 and APTO- 253 programs, higher professional fees related to regulatory filings in support of financing activities and from $2.7 million in non-cash expenses related to stock-based compensation. Excluding the $5.0 one-time upfront license fees payments, the net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 would have been $17.6 million ($0.55 per share).
Research and Development
Components of research and development expenses
The research and development expenses for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 are as follows:
Three months ended September 30 | Nine months ended September 30, | ||||||||||
(in thousands) | 2018 | 2017 | 2018 | 2017 | |||||||
License fees – CG-806 | $ - | $ - | $ 5,000 | $ - | |||||||
Program costs – CG-806 | 1,707 | 638 | 4,164 | 1,402 | |||||||
Program costs – APTO-253 | 1,066 | 379 | 3,075 | 1,554 | |||||||
Salaries | 502 | 321 | 1,448 | 1,064 | |||||||
Stock-based compensation | 307 | 43 | 826 | 168 | |||||||
Depreciation of equipment | 9 | 9 | 26 | 25 | |||||||
$3,591 | $1,390 | $14,539 | $4,213 |
The changes in research and development expenses in the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 as compared to the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 result from the following:
General and Administrative
Components of general and administrative expenses
The general and administrative expenses for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 are as follows:
Three months ended September 30, | Nine months ended September 30, | ||||||||||
(in thousands) | 2018 | 2017 | 2018 | 2017 | |||||||
General and administrative excluding salaries | $853 | $712 | $3,149 | $1,980 | |||||||
Salaries | 503 | 483 | 1,577 | 1,784 | |||||||
Shares issued Aspire share purchase agreement | - | - | 600 | - | |||||||
Stock-based compensation | 644 | 112 | 2,869 | 498 | |||||||
Depreciation of equipment | 20 | 12 | 38 | 40 | |||||||
$2,020 | $1,319 | $8,233 | $4,302 |
General and administrative expenses excluding salaries increased in the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared with the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017. For the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, the increase results from higher travel, investor relations, and higher office administrative costs in support of increased operations. For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2018, the increase is mostly the result of higher professional fees related to regulatory filings for the base shelf prospectus and two follow-on supplemental prospectus filings, higher investor relations, higher patent fees associated with our expanded IP portfolio, and higher office administrative costs associated with having additional employees.
In June 2018, we issued 170,261 shares to Aspire Capital as a commitment fee for entering into a $20 million share purchase agreement. We recorded $600 thousand in general and administrative expenses related to the issuance of these shares.
Salaries expenses in the three months ended September 30, 2018 were comparable with the same three-month period in the comparative year. Salaries expenses in the nine months ended September 30, 2018, decreased in comparison with the nine months ended September 30, 2017, due mostly to separation payments made in the period ended March 31, 2017.
Stock-based compensation increased in the nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared with the nine months ended September 30, 2017 mostly related to stock options granted in the three-month period ended March 31, 2018, of which 750,000 with a grant date fair value of $2.03 vested immediately, and also as a result of large forfeitures in the three months ended March 31, 2017. In addition, stock-based compensation is also higher in the current period related to 100,000 restricted share units issued in July 2018 with a three-month vesting term and a grant date fair value of $3.35.
Conference Call and Webcast
Aptose will host a conference call to discuss results for the three months ended September 30, 2018 tomorrow, Wednesday, November 7, 2018 at 8:00 AM ET. Participants can access the conference call by dialing (844) 882-7834 (North American toll free number) and (574) 990-9707 (International) and using conference ID # 6967538. The conference call can be accessed here and will also be available through a link on the Investor Relations section of Aptose’s website at ir.aptose.com. An archived version of the webcast along with a transcript will be available on the Company’s website for 30 days. An audio replay of the webcast will be available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the call for seven days by dialing (855) 859-2056, using the conference ID # 6967538.
Note
The information contained in this news release is unaudited.
About Aptose
Aptose Biosciences is a clinical-stage biotechnology company committed to developing personalized therapies addressing unmet medical needs in oncology, with an initial focus on hematology. The company's small molecule cancer therapeutics pipeline includes products designed to provide single agent efficacy and to enhance the efficacy of other anti-cancer therapies and regimens without overlapping toxicities. APTO-253, the only clinical stage agent that directly targets the MYC oncogene and inhibits its expression, is in a Phase 1b clinical trial for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or high risk MDS. CG-806 is an oral, first-in-class pan-FLT3/pan-BTK multi-cluster kinase inhibitor being developed to treat AML and certain B cell malignancies. For further information, please visit www.aptose.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian and U.S. securities laws, including, but not limited to, statements regarding the expected cash runway of the Corporation, the clinical development plan, the clinical potential, and favorable properties of APTO-253, the Phase 1b APTO-253 clinical trial, the CG-806 IND submission and development plan, patent protection and presentation of new data and statements relating to the Company’s plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements including words such as “continue”, “expect”, “intend”, “will”, “hope” “should”, “would”, “may”, “potential” and other similar expressions. Such statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties and are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements described in this press release. Such factors could include, among others: our ability to obtain the capital required for research and operations; the inherent risks in early stage drug development including demonstrating efficacy; development time/cost and the regulatory approval process; the progress of our clinical trials; our ability to find and enter into agreements with potential partners; our ability to attract and retain key personnel; changing market and economic conditions; inability of new manufacturers to produce acceptable batches of GMP in sufficient quantities; unexpected manufacturing defects; and other risks detailed from time-to-time in our ongoing quarterly filings, annual information forms, annual reports and annual filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should the assumptions set out in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our filings with Canadian securities regulators and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission underlying those forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and we do not intend, and do not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. We cannot assure you that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.
For further information, please contact:
Aptose Biosciences
Greg Chow
Senior Vice President, CFO
647-479-9828
gchow@aptose.com
SMP Communications Susan Pietropaolo 201-923-2049 susan@smpcommunications.com | LifeSci Advisors Michael Wood Managing Director 646-597-6983 mwood@lifesciadvisors.com |