CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 07, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vericel Corporation (NASDAQ:VCEL), a leader in advanced cell therapies for the sports medicine and severe burn care markets, today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019, and recent business highlights.
First Quarter 2019 Financial Highlights
- Total net product revenues increased 21% to $21.8 million compared to $18.0 million in the first quarter of 2018;
- Gross margins of 60% compared to gross margins of 57% in the first quarter of 2018;
- Net loss of $2.8 million, or $0.07 per share, compared to $7.7 million, or $0.21 per share, in the first quarter of 2018;
- Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA loss of $0.4 million compared to a loss of $2.6 million in the first quarter of 2018;
- As of March 31, 2019, the company had $84.1 million in cash and short-term investments compared to $82.9 million as of December 31, 2018; and
- Full year 2019 revenue guidance for MACI® and Epicel® raised to $110 to $114 million compared to previous full year revenue guidance of $108 million to $112 million.
Recent Business Highlights
During and since the first quarter of 2019, the company:
- Announced an exclusive license agreement with MediWound Ltd. for North American rights to NexoBrid®, a biological orphan product for debridement of thermal burns;
- Deployed the expanded MACI sales force, which increased from 40 to 48 territories; and
- Reported publication of outcomes data from 954 burn patients treated with Epicel in the Journal of Burn Care and Research.
“We delivered another solid quarter of performance and the MACI sales force continues to increase its productivity even as we add new representatives, which speaks to the quality of our sales representatives as well as the demand for MACI,” said Nick Colangelo, president and CEO of Vericel. “Based on the strong underlying indicators of growth for the rest of the year we have raised our full year 2019 revenue guidance. Moreover, we believe that the addition of NexoBrid significantly expands our burn care target addressable market and will enable us to build a second significant commercial franchise to go along with our cartilage repair franchise, thereby enhancing the long-term growth profile of the company.”
First Quarter 2019 Results
Total net product revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 increased 21% to $21.8 million compared to $18.0 million in the first quarter of 2018. Total net product revenues for the quarter included $16.6 million of MACI® (autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane) net revenue and $5.2 million of Epicel® (cultured epidermal autografts) net revenue, compared to $12.1 million of MACI net revenue and $6.0 million of Epicel net revenue, respectively, in the first quarter of 2018.
Gross profit for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 was $13.2 million, or 60% of net revenues, compared to $10.4 million, or 57% of net revenues, for the first quarter of 2018. 
Total operating expenses for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 were $16.5 million compared to $14.7 million for the same period in 2018. The increase in operating expenses was primarily due to a $1.2 million increase in stock-based compensation, an incremental $0.6 million in MACI sales force expenses as a result of the sales force expansion in the second quarter of 2018, and a $0.6 million increase in selling expenses and patient reimbursement support services.
Vericel’s net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 was $2.8 million, or $0.07 per share, compared to $7.7 million, or $0.21 per share, for the first quarter of 2018.
Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA loss was $0.4 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 compared to a loss of $2.6 million in the first quarter of 2018. See table reconciling non-GAAP measures for more details.
As of March 31, 2019, the company had $84.1 million in cash and short-term investments compared to $82.9 million as of December 31, 2018.
Full Year 2019 Financial Guidance
The company now expects total MACI and Epicel net product revenues for the full year 2019 to be in the range of $110 to $114 million, compared to the previous full year revenue guidance of $108 to $112 million.