Annual General Meeting Trading Update
12 Sep 2005
Annual General Meeting Trading Update
Chippenham, UK, 12 September 2005 – The Annual General Meeting of Vectura Group plc (LSE: VEC), the drug development company, will be held in London today. The Company is providing the following trading update following on from the preliminary results announcement on 22 June 2005:
Operating Update
Vectura's product pipeline continues to make strong progress. Both our lead products are on schedule to complete Phase IIb studies in 2006; NVA237, which is partnered with Novartis for the treatment of COPD, and VR004 for the treatment of erectile dysfunction. We also continue to make good progress on our licensing discussions with third parties on our three inhalation technologies, Aspirair®, GyroHaler® and PowderHale®.
Financial update
Revenues for the five months ended 31 August 2005 were £2.9m, a 22% increase on the same period in 2004/05. Cash resources of £23.5m as at 31 August 2005 show a £5.1m improvement from the year-end cash position of £18.4m at 31 March 2005.
Dr. Chris Blackwell, Chief Executive of Vectura, said:
"We are delighted to welcome shareholders to our inaugural AGM since flotation in July last year and to report substantial progress on all fronts.
"Our most significant achievement with our product pipeline has been the signing of a landmark agreement with Novartis for our COPD therapy, NVA237. We believe that this product will play a major role in the expansion of the COPD market which is underserved today but set for dramatic growth over the coming decade. We have also progressed our rapidly acting therapy for erectile dysfunction, VR004, into Phase IIb trials and are about to commence trials with VR040 for Parkinson's Disease. VR776, our product for premature ejaculation, is also expected to enter the clinic in the coming months.
"Our pulmonary technologies continue to attract significant licensing interest following the conclusion of our first licensing agreement for Aspirair®, our high efficiency dry powder inhaler (DPI). The recent decision by the FDA Advisory Committee to vote in favour of Pfizer's Exubera®, a new inhaled insulin treatment for diabetes, is a positive regulatory endorsement for the use of inhalation to deliver drugs to the blood stream. We expect this decision will generate further opportunities for inhaled product development, which Vectura is well placed to exploit.
"Our licensing discussions on our respiratory DPI, GyroHaler®, progress positively and provide the potential for high value upside. We continue to work with GSK and other companies to evaluate the benefits of our PowderHale® formulation technology with their products.
"Finally, our improved financial situation includes the positive contribution from our Pharmaceutical Development Services business.
"We look forward to further strong news flow and progression of our strategy in order to continue to deliver on our business objectives."
Enquiries:
Vectura Group plc
Chris BlackwellChief Executive+44 (0) 1249 667 700
Anne HylandChief Financial Officer
Financial Dynamics
Sarah MacLeod+44 (0) 20 7831 3113
John Gilbert
Notes to Editors:
Vectura
Vectura's principal focus is the development of a range of inhaled drugs for the treatment of both lung diseases and other conditions where optimised delivery via the lungs can provide significant benefits, such as a rapid onset of action, improved efficacy and improved tolerability compared with current therapies.
Vectura's strategy is to combine its proprietary, innovative, pulmonary formulation and device technologies (PowderHale®, Aspirair® and GyroHaler®) with existing, off-patent drugs either for use in new indications or to provide inhalation as an improved route of administration.
The Company seeks to license its lead products to pharmaceutical companies with established sales and marketing infrastructures for the later stages of development and for commercialisation, typically prior to Phase III clinical development. The Company has development collaborations with a number of companies, including Novartis, GSK, SkyePharma and Chiesi.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements," including statements about the discovery, development and commercialization of products. Various risks may cause Vectura's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward looking statements, including adverse results in clinical development programs; failure to obtain patent protection for discoveries; commercial limitations imposed by patents owned or controlled by third parties; dependence upon strategic alliance partners to develop and commercialise products and services; difficulties or delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to market products and services resulting from development efforts; the requirement for substantial funding to conduct research and development and to expand commercialisation activities; and product initiatives by competitors. As a result of these factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statement. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Further enquiries:
| Vectura Group plc | Financial Dynamics |
| Chris Blackwell Chief Executive |
(corporate/financial media relations) |
| Anne Hyland Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary |
Sarah MacLeod/John Gilbert |
| Tel: + 44 (0) 1249 667 700 | Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7831 3113 |

