VALENCIA,
Calif. (AP) — MannKind Corp.,
which is seeking government approval for an inhaled insulin treatment, narrowed
its first-quarter loss as it cut its research and development costs.
The loss of $41.5 million, or 34 cents per share, compares
to a loss of $44.7 million, or 40 cents per share, in the same quarter a year
ago. Mannkind’s reported revenue of $50,000, compared with zero a year earlier.
Analysts were expecting a loss of 29 cents per share,
excluding one-time items, and no revenue, according to FactSet.
Valencia-based MannKind said it spent $26.3 million on
research and development in the quarter, a 14 percent decrease from the prior
year primarily due to the termination of an insulin supply agreement. The
company did not put a number on its adjusted earnings.
General expenses increased 16 percent to $11.8 million in
the quarter, largely due to severance payments. The company laid off 179
workers, or 40 percent of its staff, in February to conserve cash.
MannKind said Monday that it had $47.5 million at the end of
March, down from $70.4 million at the end of December.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration told the company to
run additional trials on its drug, Afrezza, in January. MannKind Chairman and
CEO Alfred Mann said Monday that the company recently held productive meetings
with the FDA and expects to initiate clinical studies in the U.S., Europe and Latin
America once it meets the FDA’s requirements.
MannKind shares fell 60 cents, or 13 percent, to $3.80 in
after-market trading after the company reported its financial results. They had
ended regular trading up 5 cents at $4.40.
