AstraZeneca Shares Fell Slightly on the $11M Milestone Payment

The AstraZeneca plc (LON: AZN) share price fell slightly after announcing that it had made an $11 million milestone payment to C4X Discovery Holdings plc, listed on the AIM market. The biotech firm has innovative approaches in Drug Discovery and has recently reported a substantial milestone achievement in its partnership with AstraZeneca.

The collaboration has reached a significant phase, resulting in C4XD receiving a milestone payment of $11 million due to the advanced preclinical progression of its NRF2 Activator program.

This recent financial infusion is part of a broader licensing agreement with AstraZeneca that was initially established in November 2022. As part of the agreement's terms, C4XD had already received an upfront payment of $2 million.

The agreement also stipulates the potential for C4XD to receive up to $400 million in additional payments. These payments are contingent on achieving various milestones throughout the preclinical, clinical development, and commercialisation stages. 

In addition to these milestone payments, the agreement includes provisions for C4XD to earn tiered mid-single-digit royalties on any future sales that result from the NRF2 Activator program.

AstraZeneca's involvement with the NRF2 Activator program focuses on developing an oral therapy to treat various inflammatory and respiratory conditions. The primary target of this therapeutic initiative is chronic respiratory disease, a prevalent and often debilitating set of conditions affecting a significant global population.

The collaboration between C4XD and AstraZeneca is a testament to the innovative potential of partnerships in advancing medical research and delivering promising new therapies to the market, aiming to improve patient outcomes in critical areas of unmet medical needs.

This milestone signifies a crucial step in bringing a new and effective treatment option to individuals suffering from chronic respiratory diseases.

Clive Dix, CEO of C4X Discovery, said: “This significant preclinical milestone payment marks the progress AstraZeneca has made in driving the NRF2 Activator programme forward. NRF2 is a challenging target, and this achievement further validates our ability to generate differentiated, quality molecules in immuno-inflammation. We believe that our unique approach can deliver transformative oral therapies for patients suffering from immuno-inflammatory diseases. This is a great start to our year, and we are confident of seeing further progress across our entire portfolio in 2024.”

AstraZeneca (AZN) share price. 

The AstraZeneca share price fell slightly on news of milestone payment to C4X Discovery.