Asterand CEO Coombs buys 60,000 more shares in company

Human tissue and human tissue based research services supplier Asterand (AIM: ATD) said chief executive Martyn Coombs has increased his shareholding in the company, buying 60,000 shares at 15.9p per share. Coombs now holds approximately 400,000 shares, representing 0.35% of the company’s issued share capital.

Yesterday, the company reported its results for the full-year ended December 31 2009. For the coming year, Asterand said its outlook was positive, expecting its 2009 investments to set up a foundation for the company to “lead in the marketplace in 2010 and beyond".

With its headline financials inline with analyst expectations, Asterand’s results highlighted a 20% increase in base business revenue to £9.5 million, improved gross margins from 56% to 57% and made significant investments in the supply network, having signed agreements with East-West Bio of Paris and an Asian collaborator to add 22 new sites in Europe and Asia.

Revenues dipped from £15.2 million to £12 million, while last year’s profit of £3.9 million turned into a £1.1 million loss.  Cash resources as at December 31 2009 were at £4.2 million, down from £6.9 million a year earlier.

Also this month, Asterand’s BioSeek subsidiary signed a multi-year drug discovery collaboration agreement with Japanese research and development focused specialty pharmaceutical company Ono Pharmaceutical Co Ltd.

BioSeek’s human-cell based assay systems BioMAP are designed to replicate the intricate cell and pathway interactions that are present in inflammatory, autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases. Asterand said that BioMAP provides pharmaceutical companies with actionable data to guide their lead selection and optimisation programmes.

http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/15119/asterand-ceo-coombs-buys-60000-more-shares-in-company--15119.html