Fusion Antibodies dives as revenues falter

Fusion Antibodies' shares plummeted on Monday after the company warned of failing revenues due to uncertainty surrounding the timing of "a number of potential substantial orders".

The antibody engineering specialist said revenues for the year ended 31 March are now expected to be materially below current market expectations, though they are expected to come in above £2.1m after trading improved during the second half of the year.

While Fusion Antibodies admitted that trading in the first half was "disappointing", the second half of the year is expected to yield record half-year revenue and saw total orders received of over £1.9m, up from £0.8m in the same period of the year before.

However, £1.1m worth of these orders will not be fulfilled or recognised until the next financial year.

Paul Kerr, chief executive of Fusion Antibodies, said: "Despite the lower than anticipated revenues to date, I am encouraged that since October 2018 we have seen significantly stronger order intake which is likely to lead to record six-month orders and revenues."

Meanwhile, a laboratory expansion has resulted in a significant increase to the AIM traded company's cell line development capacity in order to support growth, while new staff have been added to the marketing and business development teams.

"The expansion of our facilities is complete and, together with the expansion of our team, we are now able to meet the increasing demand. I am also excited about the initial interest we are seeing from potential customers in our new RAMPTM technology, which will enable customers to improve the performance of many of their antibody based drugs," said Kerr.

Fusion Antibodies said it has received one initial order and is in late discussions with several potential customers for its RAMPTM technology, leaving the directors confident in the product.

Fusion Antibodies' shares were down 24.32% at 28.00p at 1028 GMT.