aibioAbsci cash rises to $201 million after June raise; Lilly invests $40 million
Tickers ABSI
The company extended its runway into the second half of 2028. Lilly's stake carries no rights to the ABS-201 antibody.
Key facts
- Company
- Absci Corporation (NASDAQ: ABSI)
- News type
- Financings
- Primary source
- Absci
Absci reported a second-quarter 2026 net loss of $33.2 million on Aug. 11, up from $30.6 million a year earlier, and said a June stock sale lifted cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities to $201.1 million at June 30, from $125.7 million at March 31.
The company now expects its cash to fund operations into the second half of 2028. In May it had guided to the first half of 2028. The balance includes $93.6 million in net proceeds from the June offering, Absci said.
The details
Revenue from partner programs was $0.3 million, against $0.6 million in the second quarter of 2025. Research and development expense rose to $22.6 million from $20.5 million, and selling, general and administrative expense rose to $9.2 million from $8.5 million, per the release. For the first six months, the net loss was $62.8 million.
Eli Lilly made a $40 million strategic equity investment, Absci said. The collaboration is tailored to ABS-201's clinical development and gives Lilly no rights to the program. A Lilly representative joined Absci's endometriosis advisory board. The June offering release lists Lilly among the buyers, alongside Adage, BVF Partners, Columbia Threadneedle, Invus and Redmile.
Absci also listed ABS-202, a preclinical PRLR antibody for an undisclosed inflammation and immunology indication.
Context
ABS-201, an antibody against the prolactin receptor, is in the phase 1/2a HEADLINE trial in Australia, which plans to enroll 227 participants. Single-dose data in June showed no serious adverse events in 32 healthy adults and an estimated half-life of at least 65 days, which Absci said could support two or three doses over six months, according to the company.
Founder and CEO Sean McClain said interim results "have the potential to demonstrate ABS-201's regenerative mechanism," per the release. In May he called the drug a candidate to be "the first new mechanism of action in androgenetic alopecia in nearly three decades," Absci said.
What it means for investors
The quarter was about funding, not operations. Spending is rising as ABS-201 moves through the clinic, and revenue from partner programs has dropped to a few hundred thousand dollars a quarter. The June raise more than covers the gap for now. At a quarterly loss near $33 million, $201 million lasts well past the hair loss readouts.
The Lilly investment matters more as a signal than as cash. A large drugmaker putting $40 million into the stock without taking program rights suggests outside interest in the PRLR approach. It does not guarantee a later deal. The risk is concentration: Absci's value now rests mostly on one antibody in two indications, and the hair loss efficacy question has not been answered.
What to watch
Interim proof-of-concept data from HEADLINE in pattern hair loss are due in the second half of 2026, with the full 26-week readout in early 2027. Absci has since moved its endometriosis phase 2 start to mid-2027.