Ultrasound contrast developer Sonus Pharmaceuticals of Bothell, WA, reported net profits for both the fourth quarter and full year of fiscal 1999 (end-December 31), an unusual feat for a development-stage company with no products on the market. The company accomplished the trick thanks to licensing fees it received from Nycomed Amersham of Buckinghamshire, U.K.
For the year, Sonus recorded net income of $435,000, compared with a net loss of $11.2 million in 1998. The company's full-year revenues were $12.1 million, compared with revenues of $5.1 million in 1998.
For the quarter, Sonus notched a net profit of $3 million, compared with a net loss of $2.8 million in the same period the year before. The company had $5 million in revenues for the most recent quarter, compared with no revenues in the fourth quarter of 1998.
The Nycomed Amersham payments are the results of a licensing agreement that settled patent litigation between the firms over ultrasound contrast agent technology. The $5 million that Sonus received in the fourth quarter represents the last of the $10 million in payments Nycomed agreed to make as part of the settlement.
Sonus is awaiting final Food and Drug Administration approval for its EchoGen contrast agent. The company believes the FDA could sign off on the application by March.
By AuntMinnie.com staff writersJanuary 31, 2000
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