ASX Quarterly Wrap: HTG sales momentum continues, Race Oncology appoints CEO

It’s the quarterly season again as the ASX market announcements page becomes increasingly flooded with update lodgements.

To save you the trouble of trudging through it all, we’ve wrapped up the highlights from some of the reports that caught our eye.

Harvest Technology Group (ASX:HTG)

Highlights:

Sales momentum continues ahead of AVRLive Cloud, the first version of NS2, release in February
AVRLive Cloud pilot confirmed for customer testing in real-world operational environments
Conducted a successful remote class survey for a prominent global dredging, maritime, and infrastructure services provider

HTG says during the December quarter it has amalgamated AVRLive into the Nodestream NS2 technology stack, which will be extended to form part of the full NS2 unified communications platform.

Planned updates to features and capability for Nodestream mobile applications were also completed.

HTG says Nodestream Enterprise (NSE) software has been fully implemented across Fugro Middle East’s remote operations enabling on-premise administration of groups, users and assets, and management, control and breaking of connections.

Fugro Australia are in the process of converting their RiS devices to the hybrid Nodestream/RiS technology as well as implementing NSE to facilitate an on-premise closed network of operations.

Following a successful remote class survey, the relevant class register has endorsed Nodestream as the exclusive method for full remote class surveys across the customer’s fleet of 600 vessels and floating equipment.

During the quarter HTG also completed successful integration of its Nodestream integrated devices into drones, trialled by the Japanese Self-Defence Force (JSDF). The successful trial led to the purchase of the trial equipment and ongoing discussions about future acquisitions.

HTG reported a cash balance of $634k on December 31, 2023. Operating cash outflow for the quarter was $1.77 million and overall net cash outflow for the quarter was $1.6 million.

In December, HTG underwent significant structural changes, resulting in a 24% reduction in total staff headcount and aimed at achieving substantial cost savings and moving the company toward cash neutrality.

Post the quarter’s end, HTG received a $1.67 million R&D tax incentive refund for FY23, used in January 2024 to fully repay the $1 million Radium Capital R&D loan advance secured against the RDTI rebate.

In January, HTG received two orders from a significant Five-Eyes defence customer valued at $380k, which will be reported as revenue in Q3 FY24.

The group recorded revenue of $520k and cash receipts of $490K in the December quarter, down 43.2% on Q1 FY23.

Race Oncology (ASX:RAC)

Highlights:

Dr Daniel Tillett appointed CEO and a funded clinical program focused on cardioprotection, m6A RNA and AML announced
RAC issued a 1 for 20 bonus and piggyback option series to existing shareholders to raise up to $36.6 million to fund clinical activities
Attentive Science and Agilex Biolabs contracted to complete GLP toxicology and safety pharmacology studies to support human clinical trials with RC220

In Q2 FY24 interim clinical results from an ongoing investigator-initiated Phase II trial of bisantrene in combination with fludarabine and clofarabine in relapsed or refractory Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (R/R AML) patients was shared in the quarter at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Conference.

This trial is running at the Sheba Medical Centre in Israel under the supervision of Professor Arnon Nagler.

RAC further announced it had successfully completed a series of preclinical animal and laboratory studies showing that its novel bisantrene formulation, RC220, prevents drug precipitation (crystallisation) and phlebitis (vein inflammation or damage) when infused into peripheral veins.

“The quarter has been an eventful one for both Race and myself,” Tillett says in an ASX announcement.

“I am excited to return to Race as the CEO and be involved in the development of the updated and funded corporate strategy which we released in November.”

Tillett says the company’s new bisantrene formulation, RC220, continues to advance through the GMP manufacturing and GLP testing process.

“I am looking forward to Race returning to the clinic in the second half of 2024,” he says.

“The opportunity for bisantrene continues to grow with the recent Sheba data again demonstrating that the drug can provide excellent patient outcomes in the modern clinical environment.”

RAC’s cash and cash equivalents totalled $13.72 million as of December 31, 2023.

Roots Sustainable Agricultural Technologies (ASX:ROO)

Highlights:

$288,266 purchase order from Silal Food and Technology LLC (Silal) for two root zone cooling projects at its berry operations in UAE
Shipment and installation completed in time for Silal’s greenhouse display ahead of COP28 in Dubai in November 2023
Orbia’s precision agriculture business Netafim makes ROO’s zone heating and cooling products available across its international network

CEO Boaz Wachtel says during the December quarter, ROO achieved several pleasing developments, exhibiting the potential upside of the company’s technology suite.

“The agreement with Netafirm has provided strong validation from a leading industry partners and the company will seek to leverage the group’s extensive international distribution network,” he says.

“We are confident this provides a key competitive advantage.

“The company now remains focused on providing its solutions to both Silal and Netafirm to unlock revenue growth.”

He says the board and management continue to pursue a number of near term opportunities and will provide updates as they materialise.

Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals (ASX:PAR)

Highlights:

First stage of harmonised Phase III trial shows PAR’s ability to enrol suitable participants through recruitment initiatives for global osteoarthritis study
Optimal dosing regimen determined to be 2mg/kg injectable pentosan polysulfate sodium (iPPS) twice weekly
$30.1 million capital raise, comprising fully underwritten $18m placement and $12m accelerated non renounceable entitlement offer

The clinical-stage biotech with a focus on treating osteoarthritis (OA) completed its Phase II trial, successfully achieved its primary endpoint of a change from baseline at Day 56 in one or more synovial fluid biomarkers. The trial met several secondary endpoints of objective (MRI) and subjective (patient reported) measures out to one year.

Furthermore, during Q2 FY24 PAR reported new Phase II data demonstrating improvements in patient-reported outcomes of WOMAC pain, function and patient global impression of change scores for participants receiving 2mg/kg twice weekly iPPS compared to placebo at Day 365 in the trial.

A six-week twice weekly course of subcutaneous iPPS was shown to increase cartilage thickness and volume and to reduce bone marrow lesions and synovitis from baseline on MRI follow-up at six months.

R&D costs for the quarter was $27.06 million, up from $21.9 million in Q1, which the company says was largely related to costs incurred during the prior quarter on the stage 1 dose finding activities of Phase III clinical trial, including recruitment, screening, dosing and follow-up of the final patients enrolled. Costs also includes activities related to the close-out of stage 1 of the Phase III clinical program.

Cash balance as of December 31, 2023 was $33.5 million, which PAR says provides sufficient runway for CY24, including starting stage 2 of the Phase III OA program.

PAR is also awaiting its R&D Tax Incentive refund of $7.2 million for FY23 and says aggressive cost containment measures have been implemented to ensure capital is being directed toward completion of the Phase II OA trial.

Forecast cash outflow for the Q3 FY24 is expected to be $8-$11 million (including R&D refund) and Q4 FY24 to be in the $6-$8 million range, which PAR says is inclusive of Phase II stage 2 restart costs.

The HTG, RAC, ROO & PAR share price today:

At Stockhead we tell it like it is. While Harvest Technology Group, Race Oncology, Roots Sustainable Agricultural Technologies and Paradigm Pharmaceuticals are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.