Veracyte, the South San Francisco, Calif.-based molecular laboratory, reported growing revenues for the third quarter, ending Sept. 30, but the company’s losses continued to mount as well. Revenue for the quarter was $5.6 million, up 74 percent from the $3.2 million reported for the third quarter of 2012. Veracyte’s net loss was $6.3 million, up 28 percent from the $4.9 million loss reported during the year-ago quarter. The company markets a single molecular-based test, the Afirma gene expression classifier, for patients suspected of having thyroid cancer. The assay uses a thyroid nodule fine needle aspiration to analyze the expression of 142 specific genes. In many instances, it allows patients to avoid diagnostic thyroid surgery in order to determine if a nodule is benign or malignant. Since mid-2013, Veracyte has been able to obtain positive coverage determinations from Aetna, Humana, and SelectHealth, a commercial payer subsidiary of Intermountain Health Care in Utah. Its test is marketed and sold through a venture with Genzyme, a division of the pharmaceutical giant Sanofi. “Our strong financial performance . . . reflects both growing physician adoption and increased payer coverage and reimbursement for our Afirma solution. The results demonstrate increasing recognition of the value our […]
Veracyte, the South San Francisco, Calif.-based molecular laboratory, reported growing revenues for the third quarter, ending Sept. 30, but the company’s losses continued to mount as well.
Revenue for the quarter was $5.6 million, up 74 percent from the $3.2 million reported for the third quarter of 2012. Veracyte’s net loss was $6.3 million, up 28 percent from the $4.9 million loss reported during the year-ago quarter.
The company markets a single molecular-based test, the Afirma gene expression classifier, for patients suspected of having thyroid cancer. The assay uses a thyroid nodule fine needle aspiration to analyze the expression of 142 specific genes. In many instances, it allows patients to avoid diagnostic thyroid surgery in order to determine if a nodule is benign or malignant.
Since mid-2013, Veracyte has been able to obtain positive coverage determinations from Aetna, Humana, and SelectHealth, a commercial payer subsidiary of Intermountain Health Care in Utah. Its test is marketed and sold through a venture with Genzyme, a division of the pharmaceutical giant Sanofi.
“Our strong financial performance . . . reflects both growing physician adoption and increased payer coverage and reimbursement for our Afirma solution. The results demonstrate increasing recognition of the value our product delivers in helping patients avoid unnecessary surgeries, while reducing health care costs,” said Veracyte Chief Executive Officer Bonnie H. Anderson.
For the first nine months of 2013, Veracyte’s revenue was $15 million, compared to $7.2 million for the first nine months of 2012, an increase of 110 percent. Its net loss for the first three quarters of the year is $19.7 million, compared to $13.8 million for the same period last year.
The company finished its initial public offering in late October, raising $65 million through the issue of 5 million shares at $13 apiece. After dropping to about $11.50 a share during the first week in November, Veracyte’s stock rose back close to its initial offering price after earnings were announced on Nov. 25.
Takeaway: Veracyte is another of the esoteric testing firms that is reporting rapid revenue growth but is nowhere near bottom-line profitability.
