Sera Prognostics, Inc. (NASDAQ: SERA) is a leading women's health diagnostics company dedicated to improving maternal and neonatal outcomes through its innovative pregnancy biomarker tests and predictive analytics. The company's flagship product, the PreTRM® test, is the only broadly validated, commercially available blood-based biomarker test that provides an early, accurate, and individualized risk prediction for spontaneous preterm birth in asymptomatic singleton pregnancies.
Sera Prognostics has made significant strides in recent quarters to position the company for accelerated growth and increased market adoption of its PreTRM test. The company's strategic focus has been on building a robust portfolio of clinical evidence, enhancing its laboratory operations, and expanding access to its testing solutions.
Business Overview
Sera Prognostics was founded in 2008 with the mission of improving maternal and neonatal health by providing innovative pregnancy biomarker information to doctors and patients. The company has developed a proprietary proteomics and bioinformatics platform that enables the discovery and validation of key protein biomarkers found in blood that are highly accurate predictors of dynamic changes that occur during pregnancy.
The company's lead product, the PreTRM test, is designed to identify women at risk of spontaneous preterm birth, which is the leading cause of illness and death in newborns. Preterm birth, defined as any birth before 37 weeks' gestation, is associated with a significantly increased risk of major long-term medical complications, including learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, chronic respiratory illness, intellectual disability, seizures, and vision and hearing loss. The annual healthcare costs to manage the short- and long-term complications of prematurity in the United States were estimated to be approximately $25 billion for 2016.
The PreTRM test measures and analyzes proteins in the blood that are highly predictive of preterm birth. The test permits physicians to identify, during weeks 18 through 20 of pregnancy, which women are at increased risk for preterm birth and its complications, enabling more informed, personalized clinical decisions based on each woman's individual risk.
In addition to the PreTRM test, Sera Prognostics has a robust pipeline of innovative diagnostic tests and digital tools focused on the early prediction of other pregnancy-related complications, such as preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. The company's comprehensive approach aims to fully characterize one of the most important periods in the lives of women and their babies, helping to improve their well-being.
Financials
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, Sera Prognostics reported annual revenue of $306,000, a decrease from the prior year's revenue of $400,000. The company's net loss for the year was $36,242,000, compared to a net loss of $42,260,000 in the previous year. Sera Prognostics' annual operating cash flow was -$27,188,000, and its annual free cash flow was -$27,316,000.
In the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, the company reported net revenue of $0, compared to $100,000 in the same period of the prior year. The decrease in revenue was due to revenue adjustments made as part of the company's normal revenue recognition process, updating its expected collection amounts through periodic refinement of revenue estimates. Sera Prognostics' net loss for the first quarter of 2024 was $8,097,000, down from $10,565,000 in the first quarter of 2023.
The company's cash position remains strong, with $85.4 million in cash, cash equivalents, and available-for-sale securities as of March 31, 2024, an improvement of $5.5 million from the $79.9 million reported at the end of 2023. This increase was primarily due to a payment received from a strategic partner in January 2024, offset by regular cash operating expenses.
Operational Highlights and Strategic Priorities
Sera Prognostics has made significant progress in executing on its strategic priorities to drive increased adoption of the PreTRM test and advance its pipeline of innovative diagnostic solutions. Key highlights include:
1. Validation of Ambient Whole Blood Collection: The company has validated ambient whole blood collection for the PreTRM test, which is expected to provide several distinct advantages, including ease of collection, increased laboratory capacity, decreased turnaround time, and reduced cost of goods. Sera Prognostics has begun shipping its new whole blood collection kits to customers, and it expects to see these kits running through its laboratory in the coming weeks.
2. Laboratory Process Enhancements: Sera Prognostics has rolled out a newly validated laboratory process that leverages its proprietary antibodies used in mass spectrometry. This new technology is expected to provide an approximately fivefold improvement in sample processing capacity for a laboratory technician, a tenfold increase in throughput, and a 50% reduction in turnaround time. Additionally, the new process is anticipated to reduce material and labor costs, leading to an estimated cost of goods reduction of up to 60%.
3. Clinical Study Publications: The company is preparing to publish the results of its pivotal AVERT and PRIME clinical studies, which have demonstrated the health and economic benefits of the PreTRM test-and-treat strategy. The AVERT PRETERM TRIAL, published in the peer-reviewed journal Diagnostics, showed an 18% reduction in severe neonatal morbidity and mortality, a 7-day reduction in mean neonatal hospital length of stay, and a 28-day reduction in neonatal length of hospital stay for babies born before 32 weeks' gestation. The PRIME study, which was stopped early due to efficacy, is expected to provide additional evidence supporting the clinical and economic utility of the PreTRM test.
4. Awareness and Education Campaigns: Sera Prognostics has been invited to participate in two television programs, "Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid" and "Empowered with Meg Ryan," which are expected to reach over 100 million people in the United States. These campaigns, along with physician education initiatives, are aimed at increasing awareness of the PreTRM test and the company's mission to improve maternal and neonatal health.
5. International Expansion: Sera Prognostics is exploring attractive international markets for the PreTRM test, particularly in countries with a significant number of premature births. The company plans to engage with regulators and potential partners to assess the requirements for entering key international markets, leveraging its ambient whole blood collection methods and ELISA-based test processing to ease market access and promote accessibility.
Risks and Challenges
While Sera Prognostics has made significant progress in positioning the company for growth, it faces several risks and challenges that investors should be aware of:
1. Reliance on the PreTRM Test: The PreTRM test currently represents substantially all of the company's revenue, making it vulnerable to any setbacks in the commercialization or adoption of this product.
2. Need for Broad Scientific and Market Acceptance: Sera Prognostics must continue to demonstrate the clinical and economic benefits of the PreTRM test to achieve widespread adoption by healthcare providers and payers.
3. Concentrated Customer Base: In the near future, the company expects to rely on a limited number of direct customers, such as Elevance Health, for a significant portion of its revenue and cash flows, exposing it to customer concentration risk.
4. Regulatory Uncertainty: Changes in the regulatory landscape, such as the FDA's recent final rule on laboratory-developed tests, could impact the company's ability to commercialize its products and require additional investments in clinical studies and regulatory approvals.
5. Competition and Intellectual Property Challenges: Sera Prognostics faces competition from other companies in the life sciences industry, and its ability to protect its proprietary technology and market position is critical to its success.
Outlook
Sera Prognostics is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for innovative pregnancy biomarker solutions that can improve maternal and neonatal health outcomes. The company's strategic focus on building a robust clinical evidence portfolio, enhancing its laboratory operations, and expanding access to its testing solutions positions it for accelerated growth in the quarters and years ahead.
The upcoming publication of the AVERT and PRIME study results, coupled with the company's initiatives to increase awareness and education around the PreTRM test, are expected to drive increased market adoption and pave the way for broader reimbursement coverage. Additionally, Sera Prognostics' exploration of international markets and its advancements in ambient whole blood collection and laboratory process enhancements could further expand the company's addressable market and improve its financial performance.
Conclusion
While Sera Prognostics faces several risks and challenges, the company's strong cash position, innovative product pipeline, and commitment to improving maternal and neonatal health make it a compelling investment opportunity in the women's health diagnostics space.