SOUTH EASTON, Mass., March 31, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pressure BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq:PBIO) ("PBI" and the "Company") today announced financial results for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008 and provided a business update.
Total revenue for 2008 was $852,263 compared to $645,870 for 2007, an increase of 32%. Revenue from the sale of PCT products and services was $655,252 for 2008 as compared to $399,787 for 2007, an increase of 64%. This increase in revenue from PCT products and services was primarily the result of a 105% increase in the number of installations of the Company's PCT Sample Preparation Systems ("PCT Systems") -- the total number of PCT Systems installed during 2008 was forty-one (twenty-nine domestic) as compared to twenty (twelve domestic) in 2007. Also contributing to this increase in PCT products and services revenue was an increase in the number of PULSE Tubes (consumable processing containers) and ProteoSolve-LRS Kits sold, as well as revenue from PCT Systems under lease and the recognition of extended service contract revenue. The Company also recorded $197,011 of grant revenue in 2008 compared to $246,083 in 2007, a decrease of 20%.
Total operating costs and expenses for 2008 were $5,818,662 compared to $5,793,038 for 2007, an increase of less than 1%. Net loss for 2008 was $4,908,445 compared to a net loss of $1,155,661 for 2007. In 2007, the Company realized a gain of $2,028,720 from the liquidation of the Company's investment in Panacos Pharmaceuticals ($0 in 2008), $286,600 in interest income ($57,954 in 2008), $520,214 in income tax benefit ($0 in 2008), and $1,155,973 on the sale of net assets ($0 in 2008). As of December 31, 2008, the Company had cash of approximately $918,000, compared to cash of approximately $5.4 million on December 31, 2007.
Joseph L. Damasio, Jr., Corporate Controller commented: "During the second half of 2008, we instituted a number of cost reduction measures, including a comprehensive restructuring program to significantly reduce expenditures, centralize core operations, and refocus our business strategy in specific areas where our products had already found market acceptance. The initial, positive effects of these cost reduction initiatives were first seen in the fourth quarter of 2008, when total operating costs and expenses for the quarter were $1,234,141, compared to $1,472,046 for the fourth quarter of 2007, a decrease of 16%."
Mr. Damasio continued: "We plan to continue to focus on these and other cost containment measures throughout 2009. We expect that our operating costs and expenses will continue to decrease during the year, and that our resulting cash burn should be less than $600,000 per quarter, on average."
Richard T. Schumacher, President, and CEO of Pressure BioSciences, Inc. said: "We achieved a number of successes in 2008, the most significant of which include: (1) the release of novel, PCT-dependent methods for Systems Biology studies and for the significant enhancement of enzymatic activity in research samples; (2) the award of an $850,000 Phase II SBIR grant to develop a new PCT-dependent system for improved biomarker discovery, diagnostics, and drug development; (3) presentations at national and international meetings on the advantages and benefits of PCT by independent scientists from well respected research laboratories, including the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), Amgen, Harvard School of Public Health, NYU School of Medicine, Pacific Northwest National Labs (PNNL), University of New Hampshire, and the Commonwealth of Virginia Laboratories; (4) the release of new PCT products such as the Shredder and the diskless PULSE Tube; and (5) collaboration, licensing, and distribution agreements with USAMRIID, Omni International, PNNL, and the J. Craig Venter Institute. We also reported record revenue for the third quarter of 2008 (first quarter with revenue in excess of $250,000), only to report even higher revenue in the following, fourth quarter (first quarter with revenue in excess of $325,000)."
Mr. Schumacher concluded: "We recently announced the closing of a $1.8 million private placement and the expected filing for a refund of federal taxes of approximately $623,000. We ended 2008 with significant increases in revenue and decreases in cash burn as compared to the prior year same quarter, a trend that we believe will continue into 2009. We are on schedule to release the PCT-enhanced Protein Digestion System by the end of the second quarter of 2009, a cutting-edge PCT-based product that we believe will revolutionize the critical protein digestion step routinely performed in several thousand mass spectrometry laboratories in the U.S. alone. And we have made measurable progress on our goal to develop a strategic alliance with one or more marketing and distribution partners before the end of 2009. Yes, 2008 was a very challenging year for PBI, but we believe we successfully worked our way through it and that we are now well positioned to have a very successful 2009."
About Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
Pressure BioSciences, Inc. (PBI) is a publicly traded company focused on the development of a novel, enabling technology called Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT). PCT uses cycles of hydrostatic pressure between ambient and ultra-high levels (up to 35,000 psi and greater) to control bio-molecular interactions. PBI currently holds 13 U.S.
