Steady revenue stream at LION bio

LION bioscience says that net sales for the first nine months of fiscal2001, ended December 31, 2000, increased 169% to 15.5 million euros ($14.6 million), while operating loss, excluding non-cash compensation charges, grew to 13.3 million euros compared to 9.4 million euros in like, year-earlier period. R&D expenses doubled to 22 million euros.

Revenue growth was mainly driven by the performance of LION's life science informatics unit, where sales increased to 14.2 million euros compared to 2.9 million during the same period of the previous year. However, revenues of the information-driven drug discovery unit fell 55.2% to 1.3 million euros, which the company said was consistent with its strategy of moving from fee-for-service projects to internal drug discovery on nuclear receptors.

LION said that it has expanded its client base in the USA, Europe and Japan, and this should increase further once its $35 million proposed merger with Trega Biosciences is completed (Marketletter January 1 & 8).