Dynavax reports 2nd-quarter loss, hurt by higher operating expenses, costs of stock offering

Dynavax posts 2Q loss, weighed down by expenses

BERKELEY, Calif. — Drug developer Dynavax Technologies Corp. said Friday that higher operating expenses, weak revenue and costs linked to a stock offering drove it to a second-quarter loss, reversing a year-ago profit.

Shares fell 14 cents, or 6 percent, to $2.07 in aftermarket trading, having closed the regular session flat at $2.21.

Dynavax said its loss totaled $28 million, or 34 cents per share, for the April-through-June period. In the same quarter last year, the company reported net income of $4.1 million, or 10 cents per share.

The company said it wrote down $11 million in costs related to a stock sale that helped it raise $44 million in April. Research and development expenses also jumped 52 percent to $14 million in the quarter. Meanwhile, revenue plunged 86 percent to $2.2 million from $15.9 million.

The 2009 quarter appeared stronger because it included deferred revenue recognized after the company’s hepatitis B vaccine development partnership with Merck and Co. was terminated. In the 2010 quarter, Dynavax’s results reflect a restarting of the vaccine clinical and manufacturing activities.

Dynavax said it spent $13.7 million in cash in the quarter to speed up enrollment and immunization of more than 2,400 people in a Phase 3 trial for its Heplisav hepatitis B vaccine candidate, and to invest in the devleopment of a universal flu vaccine.