Biocept starts 2021 on a high with a profitable 1Q on revenue of $17.8M, driven by its coronavirus tests

Biocept Inc (NASDAQ:BIOC) (FRA:B003) started 2021 on a high with a profitable first quarter on revenue of $17.8 million, driven primarily by its coronavirus (COVID-19) tests.  For the period ended March 31, 2020, the San Diego-based company, which develops molecular diagnostic assays, posted revenue of $17.8 million, compared with $1.4 million for the first quarter of 2020.  The company chalked up $17.7 million in revenue to commercial test revenue, which consisted of $16.8 million from RT-PCR COVID-19 testing, $39,000 to development services test revenue, $62,000 in revenue from Target Selector RUO kits and CEE-Sure blood collection tubes, and payments from Aegea Biotechnologies for services to develop a COVID-19 assay.  READ: Biocept makes coronavirus testing available for California’s 116 community colleges The cost of revenue for the 1Q was $9 million, compared to $2.9 million for the same period a year earlier, with the increase due to COVID-19-related collection kits and consumable expenses. R&D spend for the quarter stood at $1 million, compared to $1.3 million for the 1Q of 2020. Significantly, net income for the quarter was $2.6 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, compared to a net loss of $8.3 million, or $1.06 per diluted in the same quarter a year earlier. Biocept had cash and equivalents of $14.2 million as of March 31, 2021. “We are reporting profitability for the second consecutive quarter on revenues of $17.8 million, as our dedicated Biocept team continued to serve our community with COVID-19 RT-PCR testing featuring exceptional customer service and rapid turnaround times,” Biocept CEO Michael Nall said in a statement. “These outstanding financial results support further advancements with our core oncology business and more specifically our focus on neuro-oncology as we build for a strong long-term future.” Nall noted that the full commercial launch of CNSide, the company’s cerebrospinal fluid assay detecting tumor cells and molecular biomarkers, is “transformational for Biocept.” CNSide is based on Biocept’s proprietary quantitative tumor cell capture and detection method paired with assays to identify actionable molecular treatment targets. “We developed CNSide to address a high unmet medical need by providing diagnostic testing that we believe exceeds the capabilities of the current standard of care, CSF cytology,” added Nall. “In early studies, CNSide has shown better sensitivity than CSF cytology in detecting patients with metastatic cancer involving the central nervous system.” Biocept is pursuing a clinical strategy to support CNSide as the new standard-of-care diagnostic for cancer that has metastasized to the central nervous system. “We also are expanding our reach to neuro-oncologists, medical oncologists and other physicians to build upon the positive reception our assay has received from early adopters,” said Nall. “Following our soft launch in early 2020, we have seen CNSide orders increase quarterly with many physicians ordering repeatedly. We recently hosted a highly informative webinar in which three neuro-oncology leaders using our CNSide assay in their practices cited multiple case studies with favorable patient outcomes,” he added. Nall said this is an “exciting opportunity” for Biocept to help patients with breast and lung cancers that have metastasized to the central nervous system — a US market pegged at over $1 billion annually. “I’m exceptionally proud of the Biocept team for stepping up to address the pressing public health need for COVID-19 testing,” said Nall. “Since we began offering this service in 2020, we have received approximately 390,000 samples, including about 140,000 samples during the first quarter.” The company has recently announced a partnership to make its service available to all 116 California community colleges including their 2.1 million students, as well as faculty and staff. “We expect COVID-19 testing will continue to be an important component of our business and provide meaningful revenues throughout 2021, noting our expectations might change as the pandemic evolves,” added Nall. Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive