Invitae (NYSE:NVTA) stock is in the spotlight today after the company announced a collaboration with Simons Searchlight. Simons is an international research program that focuses on rare genetic neurodevelopmental disorders. Through the collaboration, the two companies will share two sets of data.
Specifically, Invitae will share “longitudinal clinical data” through its Ciitizen platform while Simons will share its biospecimens. Simons has the “most established clinician-led registry in autism and related disorders.” Ultimately, the collaboration serves to advance research into rare neurodevelopmental diseases and save research and data collection time.
Shares of NVTA stock are down more than 70% year-to-date (YTD), so investors are hopeful that the collaboration will act as a positive catalyst.
NVTA Stock: Invitae Inks Partnership With Simons Searchlight
This collaboration expands on a pilot partnership for STXBP1 patients and the STXBP1 Foundation. Basically, consenting patients could link their anonymous Invitae Ciitizen data with Simon’s database via the pilot partnership with the goal of improving understanding of STXBP1. Now, the partnership has been expanded to other neurological disorders — such as SYNGAP1, SCN2A — in an attempt to advance treatment.
Simons Searchlight Senior Project Manager Jennifer Tjernagel, M.S. said the following about the news:
“Our partnership and the resulting datasets will help improve understanding, diagnosis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as STXBP1, SYNGAP1 and others. Having the support of Invitae’s Ciitizen platform will help pair patient-reported data with clinical information for in depth data analysis.”
This expanded partnership also serves as a positive for the cash-burning Invitae. From 2018 to 2021, the company’s business revenue grew by 212%, but gross profit only grew by 63%, according to The Street. Meanwhile, operating expenses grew by 302% while operating cash outflows grew by 507%.
In July, Invitae announced a major pivot, led by the replacement of CEO Sean George with COO Kenneth Knight. As part of the pivot, the company also announced a focus on core products, a reduced geographic footprint and the removal of about 1,000 employees. These actions are expected to “reduce annualized cash burn by $326 million.” For the full year, the company forecasts cash burn to be about $600 million. Beyond 2023, revenue growth is expected to be between 15% and 25% as well.
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On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
