VirtualScopics, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSCP), a leading provider of quantitative imaging solutions, today reported the financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2014. Awards outstanding and bookings signed during the 2014 first quarter more than tripled to $13.6 million as of March 31, 2014, as compared to $4 million recorded as of March 31, 2013. During the first quarter of 2014, VirtualScopics was engaged in 99 different projects as compared to 88 in the first quarter of 2013.
"We are very pleased with these year over year comparisons," said Eric Converse, interim president and chief executive officer. "Most importantly, the company's business activities in the first quarter of 2014 are indicative of the acute focus we have placed on strengthening our core business—Phase I, Phase II and Phase III clinical trials—and the investments we have been making in our people, infrastructure and systems to improve the quantitative imaging solutions we offer to our customers at some of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and contract research organizations (CROs)."
Revenues for the first quarter of 2014 were $2,353,000 compared to revenues of $2,533,000 reported in the first quarter of 2013, representing a 7% decline. This decrease in revenues is related to a slowdown in the amount of new projects awarded in 2012, the timing of the initiation of projects and the studies that ended during 2013 and in the first three months of 2014.
"It's important to remember that a project's revenue cycle depends on a number of factors, including the time it takes for a drug trial to begin, which varies due to the time required to set up trial sites and to recruit participants," explained Mr. Converse. "Also, during the life of a project, studies, not uncommonly, expand in size, which can increase our potential revenue. However, there are also situations when the sponsor doesn't recruit the number of participants or set up the number of sites originally budgeted for, or the drug simply fails and then a study could come to a premature end."
VirtualScopics reported a net loss for the first quarter of 2014 of $646,000 as compared to a net loss in the first quarter of 2013 of $1,113,000. The decrease in the net loss is primarily attributable to decreased operating expenses which were substantially higher last year due to professional fees to support our personalized medicine initiative during the first quarter of 2013 as well as other, one time higher costs. However, the company anticipates expenses to trend upwards through the remainder of 2014 due to increased investments for growth.
"I am encouraged by the increase in RFPs, awards, bookings and number of activities thus far in 2014 and the positive momentum created by everyone on the VirtualScopics' team and look to see this momentum continue," Mr. Converse said. "The international alliance we are pursuing with IXICO plc as announced on March 7, 2014, is an opportunity for both companies to expand and enhance their global capabilities and collective quantitative imaging solutions. By putting our combined technologies and expertise to work in clinical trials targeting a number of disease categories we believe we can continue to make an even greater contribution to diagnostic imaging and a difference in the field of healthcare."
Conference Call and Webcast Information
The company's management will host a conference call and webcast today at 8:30 a.m. ET to discuss the company's first quarter 2014 financial results and business outlook. The conference call dial-in information, webcast url and replay information is as follows:
- Domestic Callers: 877-407-8035
- International Callers: 201-689-8035
- Conference Call ID: 13581706
An accompanying slide presentation to enhance management's formal remarks, as well as a webcast of the call, can be accessed at:>
A replay and slide presentation will be available one hour after the conclusion of the conference call for 90 days, and can be accessed accordingly:
- Replay Domestic Callers: 877-660-6853
- Replay International Callers: 201-612-7415
- Replay Conference ID: 13581706
- Webcast and slide presentation: >
Older brains adapt to recognize music by reconfiguring neural activity