--- title: "Protalix has about a year of cash on paper. The second year is less clear. |" url: "https://aibio.space/analysis/protalix-has-about-year-cash-paper-second-year-less-clear/" publisher: "aibio.space (Biotech Investor Relations News)" date: "2026-10-28" tickers: "AMEX:PLX" summary: "Two approved drugs and an early pipeline. The company has $40.7 million and says that lasts 12 months, but its own filing lists 24 months of cash needs." --- By aibio.space [Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. (DE) company page](https://aibio.space/companies/protalix-biotherapeutics-de/) 2026-10-28 # Protalix has about a year of cash on paper. The second year is less clear. Two approved drugs and an early pipeline. The company has $40.7 million and says that lasts 12 months, but its own filing lists 24 months of cash needs. [PLX](https://aibio.space/companies/protalix-biotherapeutics-de/) Mixed view The March quarter did most of the first-half cash work, the June quarter used cash, and the filing lists 24 months of needs against a 12-month claim. Protalix BioTherapeutics sells two approved drugs for rare diseases and is trying to build new candidates on its plant cell platform. At June 30, 2026, the company had [$40.7 million in cash and short-term bank deposits](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926094444/plx-20260630x10q.htm). It says that covers at least 12 months. We think the claim is plausible, but the first half's operating cash came from one strong quarter. ## What the company does and where it is Protalix describes itself as a commercial stage biopharmaceutical company focused on rare diseases. The [annual report](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926029858/plx-20251231x10k.htm) says the company is the first and only one to gain FDA approval for a protein made this way in suspension. Elelyso, approved by the FDA in May 2012, is now approved for marketing in more than 40 markets. Pfizer has the global marketing rights, excluding Brazil. Elfabrio, approved in the EU and the US in May 2023, is commercialized by Chiesi. In 2025, Protalix sold $18.2 million of Elelyso to Pfizer, $11.1 million of BioManguinhos sales to the Brazilian Ministry of Health, and $22.5 million of Elfabrio to Chiesi. PRX-115, a PEGylated uricase for uncontrolled gout, finished a Phase 1 study of 64 adults, and its Phase 2 RELEASE study has randomized its first patients. The filing says the company is turning toward early-stage candidates, including renal diseases. The [annual report](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926029858/plx-20251231x10k.htm) says the Phase 1 study of PRX-115 was a single-ascending-dose study in volunteers with elevated uric acid, not in gout patients, and that further studies are needed to confirm long-term safety and efficacy. The two approved gout uricases, Krystexxa and Elitek, carry black box warnings for anaphylaxis, so safety will be a test for PRX-115 too. Elfabrio entered a Fabry disease market where Replagal and Fabrazyme are already sold. Operations in Israel add risk: the filing warns that military, political and economic conditions there may hurt results, and the company stores drug substance in several places to reduce the risk of loss. We think a shift to new early-stage programs adds to future cash needs. ## Cash and burn The balance sheet shows [$27.4 million in cash and cash equivalents](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926094444/plx-20260630x10q.htm) at June 30. The rest of the $40.7 million is short-term bank deposits. The chart below plots only the cash and cash equivalents line, the narrower measure. The chart's title says cash and short-term investments, but the balance sheet shows the $27.4 million is cash and equivalents alone. Operating cash swung sharply. The March quarter brought in $22.0 million. The June quarter used $10.4 million, the only quarter of 2026 so far with an outflow. Over the four quarters to June 30, operations used cash in two and produced it in two, for a net inflow. The four-quarter average is a net inflow of $2.5 million a quarter, so it is not a burn rate. For the half, the 10-Q shows operations provided $11.6 million. In the chart below, a negative bar means cash came in. The half-year inflow is not a sign of strength in the core business. Six-month license and R&D services revenue was $26.4 million, and the 10-Q says the company received a $25.0 million milestone from Chiesi in 2026 after the EMA approved the every-four-weeks dose. If that $25.0 million arrived in the half, then without it operations used about $13.4 million in six months (our subtraction: $11.6 million inflow less $25.0 million). We think that is the cleaner burn figure. Our runway test sets total liquidity against the cash used in operations in the latest quarter. The $10.4 million is operating cash used in the June quarter, not an expense or a loss. At that pace, $40.7 million lasts about a year, close to the company's 12 months. Our clock starts on June 30, but the company's starts in August, so to support its claim it must expect less spending than in June, or cash coming in. We think the likeliest source of cash is working capital. In the first half, accounts receivable and other assets rose $8.6 million and inventories rose $6.6 million. If those turn into cash, the burn falls. The text we read describes no financing after June 30. ## What management says about its cash The company believes its cash will cover its capital needs for at least 12 months from the date of its [August 12, 2026 quarterly report](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926094444/plx-20260630x10q.htm). The same report lists material cash needs for the next 24 months, including the RELEASE study and manufacturing expansion. It states cover for only 12. We think the gap between those two statements matters more than the claim itself. A sales agreement with H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC leaves $15.7 million of stock available under it, with agent fees of up to 3.0%. The company sold about $7.0 million of stock in the first half of 2025 and none in the first half of 2026. We covered the renewal in August 2025, and the [filing behind that story](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465925081913/tm2523989d1_424b5.htm) sets out the terms. The text we read has no going-concern warning, but it says raising more money may be difficult given the volatility of its stock price. We think the 12-month statement is defensible but not conservative. In our view the stock program is a backstop, and each share issued under it dilutes existing shareholders. ## Where the money goes Research spending has been fairly steady, between $4.4 million and $5.6 million in each of the last four quarters, against $6.0 million in the June 2025 quarter. Selling, general and administrative costs rose to $6,162 thousand in the first half of 2026, from $5,227 thousand a year earlier. Six-month license and R&D services revenue was $26,399 thousand, against $336 thousand a year earlier, and the June quarter contributed only $68 thousand. We would not count on revenue of that size repeating. ## The bull case Protalix received a $20.0 million milestone after the FDA approved Elfabrio and a $25.0 million milestone in 2026 after the EMA approved the every-four-weeks dose. The 10-Q says it remains eligible for up to $270.0 million more from Chiesi outside the United States and up to $740.0 million in the US, subject to regulatory and commercial milestones. Those are ceilings, not forecasts. The company had net income in three of the last four quarters and operating income in the June quarter, and it made no stock sales in the first half of 2026. If the Chiesi payments arrive, the company needs the stock program less. We think that is the strongest part of the story. ## The bear case The bear case is about timing. Revenue went from $9.1 million in the December quarter to $33.8 million in March, then fell to $19.9 million in June. The filing warns that sales to Chiesi [may not reflect patient demand](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926029858/plx-20251231x10k.htm), because Chiesi has placed bulk orders. The June quarter used $10.4 million, and growth in receivables and inventory absorbed cash in the first half. The 2025 sales the annual report names came from three buyers, Pfizer, Chiesi and the Brazilian ministry, and a milestone that has been paid cannot be paid again. We think the first half flattered the cash position, and the text we read does not show how the second year is funded. ## Our view Our view is mixed. We find the bear case stronger, but only beyond the next year. Our concern is that the first half's operating cash came from one quarter that also held nearly all of the license revenue, and the June quarter used cash. For the next 12 months, the company's claim and our arithmetic roughly agree. ## What to watch, and what would change our mind Watch receivables and inventory, and whether operating cash turns positive without license revenue. Watch Chiesi's orders against patient demand, and any use of the stock program, which has $15.7 million left. What would change our mind: a statement that cash covers the 24 months of needs, or two quarters of operating cash inflow that do not depend on license revenue. ## Sources - [Form 10-Q filed August 12, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926094444/plx-20260630x10q.htm) - [Form 10-K filed March 18, 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1006281/000110465926029858/plx-20251231x10k.htm) Every figure comes from the documents above. Chart values come from the company's financial statements as tagged in its SEC filings; derived values are labelled. If you find an error, [tell us](https://aibio.space/reputation/#update). --- Source page: https://aibio.space/analysis/protalix-has-about-year-cash-paper-second-year-less-clear/. Facts in aibio.space stories are checked against company filings and releases; opinion is labelled. Cite as: aibio.space, "Protalix has about a year of cash on paper. The second year is less clear. |", 2026-10-28, https://aibio.space/analysis/protalix-has-about-year-cash-paper-second-year-less-clear/