OmniAb (NASDAQ:OABI) outlined progress in expanding its partner base and advancing partner programs while reporting lower 2025 revenue and reduced operating expenses, according to management’s comments on the company’s financial results and business update conference call held March 4, 2026.
Partner growth and program activity in 2025
President and CEO Matt Foehr said the company sustained momentum throughout 2025 in broadening both its roster of partners and the number of active programs enabled by its discovery technologies. OmniAb ended 2025 with 107 partners running 407 active programs, which management framed as supportive of future milestone and royalty opportunities as programs progress.
Active programs increased by a net 44 in 2025. Management said the company added 84 programs during the year, with a “significant share” originating from newer technology offerings. Attrition remained part of the normal portfolio dynamic, with 40 program terminations and four program regression events during 2025.
Foehr said more than 98% of active programs include contracted future economics for OmniAb. Management reported over $3 billion in total contracted milestone payments for active antibody programs, with an average royalty rate of 3.4% across the portfolio.
Pipeline progression and notable partner updates
Management highlighted program maturation across the partner pipeline in 2025, reporting 25 advancement events during the year. According to Foehr, 16 programs advanced from discovery into preclinical development, four moved from preclinical into phase I clinical trials, and “a couple” advanced into each of the later clinical phases. One program reached the registration stage during 2025.
OmniAb ended the period with 32 active clinical programs and approved products (net of attrition). Foehr also pointed to the first program derived from the company’s OmnidAb single-domain platform entering human clinical testing, less than two years after OmnidAb was introduced. He said OmniAb anticipates the potential for multiple new entries into clinical development for novel OmniAb-derived programs in 2026, including additional OmnidAb programs. Management said the active clinical programs carry over $350 million in remaining contracted milestone payments.
Foehr cited several partner program developments and upcoming events disclosed by partners:
- Immunovant: The company’s next-generation anti-FcRn candidate IMVT-1402 has a potentially registrational trial in difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis that is fully enrolled, with top-line data expected in the second half of the year. Top-line data from a lupus proof-of-concept trial are also expected in the second half. Immunovant expects top-line data from two phase III studies of batoclimab in thyroid eye disease in the first half of the year. HanAll reported preparations for an NDA submission in Japan for batoclimab in myasthenia gravis.
- Teva: Teva announced a funding agreement with Royalty Pharma of up to $500 million to accelerate development of its anti-IL-15 antibody TEV-’408 for vitiligo, with top-line results from a phase 1b trial expected in the first half of the year and top-line results from a phase 2a trial in celiac disease expected in the second half.
- Merck KGaA: Based on phase I data, Merck KGaA indicated it plans to advance M9140 directly to phase III trials in metastatic colorectal cancer, with the phase III study anticipated to start in the first half of the year.
Foehr characterized the company’s calendar of near-term partner events as the “strongest in recent memory,” and said early views suggest 2027 may also feature important events for certain programs.
Technology updates: OmniUltra and xPloration
OmniAb highlighted two recent technology launches that management expects to support growth. In mid-December, the company introduced OmniUltra, which it described as the first transgenic chicken platform to express ultra-long CDRH3s on a human antibody framework. Foehr said OmniUltra is designed to access binding pockets not reachable with other antibodies or modalities and could enable “picobodies,” which management described as roughly one-third the size of a nanobody.
On the call, Foehr said the OmniUltra launch was “going fantastically well,” adding that the company performed extensive validation before launch and presented data across a broad array of targets. He said there were three partner programs progressing at launch and that the number has increased, with expectations for continued growth. He also pointed to interest tied to trends such as smaller binding units for multispecifics, radiopharmaceutical opportunities, and what he described as a new entry point into peptide therapeutics.
OmniAb also discussed its xPloration Partner Access program, launched in May, which brings high-throughput single B-cell screening capabilities into partner labs. Foehr said xPloration includes an instrument, proprietary single-use consumables, and annual software subscriptions and maintenance contracts, creating the potential for multiple revenue streams. He said two instruments were deployed as of the end of 2025 and described strong interest and demand for demos. In response to questions, management said the program is being kept “lean,” with instruments built to order and no large incremental staffing investment required.
Financial results and 2026 guidance
Chief Financial Officer Kurt Gustafson reported fourth-quarter 2025 revenue of $8.4 million, down from $10.8 million in the same period of 2024. He attributed the decline primarily to lower license revenue, partially offset by increased milestone revenue. Gustafson said royalty revenue increased due to a prior-year period adjustment to reconcile royalties to actual product sales, and noted a small contribution from xPloration in the quarter.
Fourth-quarter operating expenses decreased to $24.1 million from $26.7 million, which Gustafson said largely reflected lower personnel costs and lower outside service costs related to reduced spending on legacy small molecule ion channel programs. The quarter included a non-cash impairment charge of $3.9 million tied primarily to certain small molecule ion channel property and equipment. Net loss for the quarter was $14.2 million, or $0.11 per share, compared with a net loss of $13.1 million, or $0.12 per share, in the prior-year period.
For full-year 2025, revenue was $18.7 million versus $26.4 million in 2024, driven by declines in license and milestone revenue and lower service revenue following completion of certain small molecule ion channel programs. These were partially offset by approximately $800,000 of xPloration revenue. Full-year operating expense decreased to $87.6 million from $100.9 million in 2024, reflecting lower R&D and G&A costs, according to Gustafson. Net loss was $64.8 million, or $0.57 per share, compared with $62.0 million, or $0.61 per share, in 2024. Excluding the impairment charge, Gustafson said 2025 earnings per share would have been $0.54. He also said the company implemented workforce reductions of 22 employees during 2025.
OmniAb ended 2025 with $54 million in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments. For 2026, management guided to:
- Revenue of $25 million to $30 million
- Operating expense of $80 million to $85 million
- Cash operating expense of $50 million to $55 million
- Year-end cash balance of $30 million to $35 million
Gustafson said the revenue outlook is based on information partners disclosed to OmniAb and publicly about their programs, and reiterated that milestone-driven revenue can be “lumpy.” Management said the effective tax rate is expected to be approximately 0% due to a full valuation allowance against the income tax benefit associated with net losses.
Discussing longer-term goals, Gustafson said OmniAb expects revenue to transition from milestone-driven to more royalty-driven over time, emphasizing the scalability of the model and the absence of cost of goods or selling costs tied to milestone and royalty streams. Management said it is on a trajectory toward positive cash flow but did not provide a specific timing for reaching break-even.
About OmniAb (NASDAQ:OABI)
OmniAb, Inc (NASDAQ: OABI) operates as a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery and development of therapeutic antibodies. The company’s integrated antibody discovery platform combines proprietary transgenic animal models, in vitro screening, and in silico engineering to accelerate lead identification and optimization. OmniAb offers both fee-for-service collaborations and license agreements, enabling biopharmaceutical partners to leverage its suite of technologies for programs spanning oncology, immunology, and other therapeutic areas.
Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, OmniAb went public in May 2021.
