Schrödinger Provides Update on Progress Across the Business and Outlines 2025 Strategic Priorities

Rhea-AI Summary

Schrödinger provided an update on its 2024 progress and outlined its 2025 strategic priorities. Key highlights include:

Expanded Collaborations: Schrödinger expanded its research collaboration with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., , and its agreement with Novartis, which includes a $150 million upfront payment expected in Q1 2025.

2024 Achievements: The company launched initiatives to enhance its computational platform and introduced LiveDesign Biologics. It published 29 peer-reviewed articles and advanced Phase 1 clinical studies for SGR-1505, SGR-2921, and SGR-3515. The FDA granted Fast Track Designation to SGR-2921.

Collaborations and Investments: Schrödinger announced a $150 million collaboration with Novartis, with potential milestone payments of up to $2.3 billion. Co-founded companies, including Morphic Holding and Ajax Therapeutics, made significant progress in their respective fields.

2025 Strategic Priorities: Schrödinger aims to increase customer adoption of its technology, advance predictive toxicology, and present initial Phase 1 data for SGR-1505, SGR-2921, and SGR-3515.

Schrödinger will release its Q4 and full-year financial results on February 26, 2025.

Positive

• Expanded collaboration with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co.,
• Novartis agreement includes a $150 million upfront payment and up to $2.3 billion in milestone payments.
• FDA Fast Track Designation for SGR-2921.
• Significant advancements in Phase 1 clinical studies for key proprietary programs.
• Launch of LiveDesign Biologics and enhanced computational platform.

Negative

• None.

Insights

Biotech Investment Analyst

The developments at Schrödinger demonstrate substantial progress in both their software and drug development segments. The $150 million upfront payment from Novartis, coupled with potential milestone payments of up to $2.3 billion, represents a significant cash infusion and validation of their platform technology. The expansion of the Otsuka collaboration further strengthens their partnership portfolio.

The company's three proprietary clinical programs (SGR-1505, SGR-2921 and SGR-3515) reaching the data readout stage in 2025 marks a important inflection point. The FDA Fast Track Designation for SGR-2921 could accelerate its path to market. The $48 million cash windfall from Morphic's acquisition by Lilly, plus retained royalty rights, enhances their financial position.

The successful progress of partner companies, particularly Structure Therapeutics' GLP-1 program and Nimbus's HPK1 inhibitor, demonstrates the platform's value in developing potentially lucrative therapeutic candidates. The Gates Foundation grant of $19.5 million for toxicology prediction capabilities adds a valuable new revenue stream and technological advantage.

Technology Platform Specialist

The launch of LiveDesign Biologics represents a strategic expansion into the rapidly growing biologics market, complementing their established small molecule platform. The publication of 29 peer-reviewed articles validates their scientific leadership and platform capabilities. The toxicology prediction initiative, supported by the Gates Foundation, addresses a critical industry need and could significantly reduce drug development costs and timelines.

The expanded Novartis software licensing agreement to "industry-leading scale" suggests substantial recurring revenue growth potential. Their computational platform's ability to support successful programs across multiple modalities and therapeutic areas - from GLP-1 agonists to cancer therapeutics - demonstrates its versatility and reliability in drug discovery.

Announces Expanded Research Collaboration Agreement with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

On Track to Report Initial Phase 1 Data from Three Proprietary Programs in 2025

Focus on Delivering Continued Software Growth and Increased Drug Discovery Revenue

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Schrödinger, Inc. (Nasdaq: SDGR) today provided an update on its progress across the business in 2024 and announced its strategic priorities for 2025.

“We are very proud of our accomplishments in 2024. We advanced the capabilities of our computational platform and leveraged the synergies in our business, which included signing a multi-target research collaboration and expanded software licensing agreement with Novartis. We are pleased another innovative pharmaceutical company is engaged with us through both large-scale utilization of our software and through drug discovery collaborations,” stated Ramy Farid, Ph.D., chief executive officer at Schrödinger. “We have a very important year ahead of us and are committed to driving growth in our software business, advancing our collaborative pipeline and reporting initial Phase 1 data from our three lead proprietary therapeutic programs.”

Additionally, today Schrödinger announced that it has expanded its research collaboration with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., to add another undisclosed target to the collaboration. The terms of the expanded collaboration are consistent with the previously announced agreement.

Schrödinger also announced that its research collaboration with Novartis has received regulatory clearance, and Schrödinger expects to receive the upfront payment of $150 million from Novartis in the first quarter of 2025.

2024 Achievements
Today Schrödinger highlighted several 2024 achievements, including the following:

Platform

• Launched its initiative to expand the company’s computational platform to predict toxicology risk early in drug discovery, which is being funded by $19.5 million in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Launched LiveDesign Biologics, an informatics solution for drug discovery teams designing biologics, which builds upon the company’s existing, small molecule-focused, LiveDesign offering
• Published 29 peer-reviewed articles in life sciences and materials science journals

Proprietary Pipeline

• Continued to advance its Phase 1 clinical study of SGR-1505, its MALT1 inhibitor, in patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell lymphomas and its Phase 1 clinical study of SGR-2921, its CDC7 inhibitor, in patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome
• Initiated a Phase 1 clinical study of SGR-3515, its Wee1/Myt1 inhibitor, in patients with advanced solid tumors
• Received FDA Fast Track Designation for SGR-2921 for the treatment of relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia
• Presented preclinical data on SGR-3515, its Wee1/Myt1 inhibitor, at the EORTC-NCI-AACR Symposium

Collaborators, Partners, and Co-Founded Companies

• Announced a multi-target research collaboration and license agreement with Novartis, including a $150 million upfront payment and up to $2.3 billion in milestone payments plus royalties, as well as an expanded software licensing agreement, which substantially increases Novartis’ access to Schrödinger’s computational platform to industry-leading scale
• Ajax Therapeutics, a company co-founded by Schrödinger, initiated a Phase 1 clinical trial for its lead program, AJ1-11095 and completed a Series C financing, in which Schrödinger participated as a continuing investor
• Morphic Holding, Inc., a company co-founded by Schrödinger, was acquired by Lilly for approximately $3.2 billion, resulting in approximately $48 million in cash for Schrödinger, with Schrödinger remaining entitled to low single-digit royalties on selected pipeline programs, including MORF-057, its orally administered α4β7 inhibitor
• Nimbus, a company co-founded by Schrödinger, presented updated Phase 1/2 data for NDI-101150, its HPK1 inhibitor, at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer Annual Meeting
• Structure Therapeutics, a company co-founded by Schrödinger, presented Phase 1b/2a data for GSBR-1290, its oral GLP-1 agonist, in obesity and diabetes at the Annual Meeting of the America Diabetes Association
• Structure Therapeutics also announced the selection of ACC-2671, its novel oral small molecule amylin receptor agonist for further development in obesity
• Copernic Catalysts, a Schrödinger research partner in materials science, raised an oversubscribed financing round, in which Schrödinger participated as a continuing investor

2025 Strategic Priorities
Today Schrödinger outlined the following strategic priorities for 2025:

• Drive increased customer adoption of its computational technology and enterprise informatics platform
• Advance the science underlying the platform, including progressing the predictive toxicology initiative
• Present initial data from the Phase 1 study of SGR-1505 in patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell lymphomas in the first half of 2025
• Present initial data from the Phase 1 study of SGR-2921 in patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome in the second half of 2025
• Present initial data from the Phase 1 study of SGR-3515 in patients with advanced solid tumors in the second half of 2025
• Advance proprietary and collaborative discovery portfolio

Schrödinger will report its fourth quarter and full-year financial results and provide 2025 financial guidance on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, after the financial markets close. The company will host a conference call and webcast at 4:30 p.m. ET.

About Schrödinger
Schrödinger is transforming molecular discovery with its computational platform, which enables the discovery of novel, highly optimized molecules for drug development and materials design. Schrödinger’s software platform is built on more than 30 years of R&D investment and is licensed by biotechnology, pharmaceutical and industrial companies, and academic institutions around the world. Schrödinger also leverages the platform to advance a portfolio of collaborative and proprietary programs and is advancing three clinical-stage oncology programs. Founded in 1990, Schrödinger has approximately 900 employees operating from 15 locations globally. To learn more, visit www.schrodinger.com, follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram, or visit our blog, Extrapolations.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to those regarding the potential advantages of our computational platform, our research and development efforts for our proprietary drug discovery programs and our platform, the initiation, timing, progress, and results of our proprietary drug discovery programs and the drug discovery programs of our collaborators, the clinical potential and favorable properties of our MALT1, CDC7, and Wee1/Myt1 inhibitors, including SGR-1505, SGR-2921, SGR-3515, and other compounds discovered with our platform, our ability to discover, identify and advance development candidates under our collaboration with Novartis, our ability to realize potential milestones, royalties or other payments under our collaboration with Novartis, the risk that we may not realize the expected benefits of our collaboration with Novartis, the clinical potential and favorable properties of our collaborators’ product candidates, including Ajax Therapeutics, Nimbus Therapeutics and Structure Therapeutics, and our ability to realize milestones, royalties, and other payments from our collaborative and proprietary programs, our plans to discover and develop product candidates and to maximize their commercial potential by advancing such product candidates ourselves or in collaboration with others, our plans to leverage the synergies between our businesses, our strategic priorities and plans, and our progress towards achieving our strategic priorities are forward-looking statements. Statements including words such as “aim,” "anticipate," "believe," "contemplate," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," “goal,” "intend," "may," "might," "plan," "potential," "predict," "project," "should," "target," "will," "would" and statements in the future tense are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views about our plans, intentions, expectations, strategies and prospects, which are based on the information currently available to us and on assumptions we have made. Actual results may differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements and are subject to a variety of assumptions, uncertainties, risks and factors that are beyond our control, including the demand for our software solutions, our ability to further develop our computational platform, our reliance upon our third-party drug discovery collaborators, the uncertainties inherent in drug development and commercialization, such as the conduct of research activities and the timing of and our ability to initiate and complete preclinical studies and clinical trials, uncertainties associated with the regulatory review of clinical trials and applications for marketing approvals, the ability to retain and hire key personnel and other risks detailed under the caption "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings and reports, including our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 12, 2024, as well as future filings and reports by us. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, we undertake no duty or obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events, changes in expectations or otherwise.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250113881096/en/

Jaren Madden (Investors)

jaren.madden@schrodinger.com

617-286-6264

Matthew Luchini (Investors)

matthew.luchini@schrodinger.com

917-719-0636

Allie Nicodemo (Media)

allie.nicodemo@schrodinger.com

617-356-2325

Source: Schrödinger

FAQ

What are Schrödinger's 2025 strategic priorities?

Schrödinger's 2025 strategic priorities include increasing customer adoption of its computational technology, advancing predictive toxicology, and presenting initial Phase 1 data for SGR-1505, SGR-2921, and SGR-3515.

What collaborations did Schrödinger announce in their recent update?

Schrödinger announced an expanded research collaboration with Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., , and a significant agreement with Novartis, which includes a $150 million upfront payment.

What is the significance of the Novartis agreement for Schrödinger?

The agreement with Novartis includes a $150 million upfront payment and potential milestone payments up to $2.3 billion, significantly impacting Schrödinger's financial outlook.

When will Schrödinger present initial Phase 1 data for its proprietary programs?

Schrödinger plans to present initial Phase 1 data for SGR-1505 in the first half of 2025, and for SGR-2921 and SGR-3515 in the second half of 2025.

What new products did Schrödinger launch in 2024?

In 2024, Schrödinger launched LiveDesign Biologics, an informatics solution for drug discovery teams designing biologics.

What were Schrödinger's major achievements in 2024?

Major achievements include launching LiveDesign Biologics, advancing Phase 1 clinical studies, publishing 29 peer-reviewed articles, and securing FDA Fast Track Designation for SGR-2921.

What impact does the FDA Fast Track Designation have on Schrödinger's SGR-2921 program?

The FDA Fast Track Designation for SGR-2921 facilitates the development and expedites the review process for treating relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia.