ArQule's 4th-qtr 2007 loss widens to $14.4M

In the three months ended December 31, 2007, US biotechnology firm ArQule's loss widened to $14.4 million from $12.8 million a year ago, while its loss per share narrowed to $0.33 from $0.36.

During the period, R&D revenues reached $2.5 million from $1.7 million. Full-year 2007 turnover was boosted by income from licensing Asian rights to investigational cancer drug ARQ 197 to Japanese drugmaker Kyowa Hakko Kogyo (Marketletter August 6, 2007).

ArQule's results disappointed investors. The analyst consensus estimate from a poll conducted by Thomson Financial was a loss of $0.31 per share, on turnover of $2.7 million. On the day of the announcement, February 7, shares in the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm fell 8.8% to $4.76.