Second Quarter 2026
Filed Aug 11, 2026Achieve Life Sciences Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results and Provides Business Updates
Achieve strengthened liquidity through a private placement and advanced its U.S. manufacturing transition and commercial organization, but its cytisinicline NDA received a Complete Response Letter and the quarter included a $48.7 million non-cash warrant-liability fair-value charge.
Key metrics
as reported| Metric | Value | q/q | y/y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research and development expenseGAAP | 3,808 (In thousands) | – | – |
| General and administrative expenseGAAP | 14,584 (In thousands) | – | – |
| Total operating expensesGAAP | $18.4 million | – | – |
| Loss from operationsGAAP | (18,392) (In thousands) | – | – |
| Other incomeGAAP | (56,377) (In thousands) | – | – |
| Net lossGAAP | $74.8 million | – | – |
| Basic and diluted net loss per shareGAAP | $(0.80) | – | – |
| Weighted average number of basic and diluted common sharesGAAP | 93,510,544 | – | – |
| Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securitiesGAAP | $187.3 million | – | – |
| Current portion of convertible debtGAAP | 7,454 (In thousands) | – | – |
| Non-current portion of convertible debtGAAP | 7,458 (In thousands) | – | – |
| Warrant and pre-funded warrant liabilityGAAP | 183,379 (In thousands) | – | – |
Fourth quarter of 2026 and first half of 2027 outlook
- NoteThe Company intends to resubmit its NDA naming Adare as its finished drug product manufacturer for commercial supply in the fourth quarter of 2026.
- NoteAnticipates potential FDA approval in the first half of 2027, with U.S. commercial launch to follow.
What drove it
- The FDA identified no deficiencies related to the clinical efficacy or safety of cytisinicline.
- Achieve completed analytical method technology transfer, manufactured its first cytisinicline engineering batch, and fully qualified testing procedures at Adare’s facility.
- The Company added commercial, CMC, quality and board leadership, including Mark Zappia as Senior Vice President, Commercial, Jim Willis as Vice President of Sales and Sales Enablement, Ronald Dadino as Senior Vice President, CMC and Supply Chain, and Gloria Cosgrove as Senior Vice President, Global Quality.
- The ORCA-OL study presented 52-week safety data, and no new safety signals were identified by the independent Data Safety Monitoring Committee.
- The ORCA-2 and ORCA-3 analysis in participants with a baseline history of cancer reported numerically higher abstinence rates than placebo: 24.4% with 12 weeks of cytisinicline versus 15.8% with placebo.
Concerns
- The June 20, 2026 Complete Response Letter related to outstanding cGMP observations from an inspection of the Company’s prior third-party manufacturing facility and final product labeling that was not completed by the FDA’s action date.
- Potential FDA approval is anticipated in the first half of 2027 rather than being an achieved milestone.
- Net loss for the quarter includes a non-cash charge of $48.7 million related to the change in fair value of warrant liabilities issued in connection with the private placement.
- The balance sheet reported a warrant and pre-funded warrant liability of $183,379 (In thousands) as of June 30, 2026.
What to watch
- Planned NDA resubmission naming Adare as finished drug product manufacturer for commercial supply in the fourth quarter of 2026.
- Potential FDA approval in the first half of 2027 and the timing of the subsequent U.S. commercial launch.
- Execution of the finished drug product manufacturing transition to Adare.
- Use of private-placement proceeds for the ORCA-V2 Phase 3 trial, commercialization of cytisinicline, working capital and general corporate purposes.
- Exercise of milestone-based warrants exercisable prior to, and up to 20 trading days following, FDA approval of cytisinicline.
Balance sheet and cash flow
- As of June 30, 2026, the Company’s cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $187.3 million.
- Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities were $187,303 (In thousands) as of June 30, 2026, compared with $36,404 (In thousands) as of December 31, 2025.
- Current portion of convertible debt was $7,454 (In thousands) as of June 30, 2026.
- Non-current portion of convertible debt was $7,458 (In thousands) as of June 30, 2026.
- Warrant and pre-funded warrant liability was $183,379 (In thousands) as of June 30, 2026.
- Closed a private placement of up to $354 million ($180 million upfront; up to $174 million from milestone-based warrants exercisable prior to, and up to 20 trading days following, FDA approval of cytisinicline).
Analysis
Achieve remains a pre-commercial, late-stage pharmaceutical company focused on cytisinicline. The filing did not report revenue, product revenue, gross margin, or commercial segments. The operating result therefore reflects development, regulatory, manufacturing-transition and organizational activity. Total operating expenses were $18.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, including research and development expense of 3,808 (In thousands) and general and administrative expense of 14,584 (In thousands).
Management, verbatim
This quarter was about building Achieve to match the significant opportunity of cytisinicline. We added a commercial team, senior CMC and quality leadership, six new directors, and advanced the finished drug product manufacturing transition to the United States. The Complete Response Letter raised no question about the efficacy or clinical safety of cytisinicline. With the team and financing in place, our focus turns to resubmission and commercial readiness. Behind that work are millions of adults still looking for help to quit.
Andrew D. Goldberg, MD, Chief Executive Officer of Achieve
Not in the filing
stated, not guessed- Total revenue
- Product revenue
- Segment revenue
- Gross profit and gross margin
- Non-GAAP financial measures, including non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP EPS
- Operating cash flow
- Free cash flow
- Capital expenditures
- Share repurchases
- Dividends
- Formal financial guidance for revenue, gross margin, operating expenses or tax rate
- Prior-quarter comparisons for reported operating metrics
- Printed year-over-year percentage changes for reported operating metrics
- CFO commentary
AlphAI analysis generated from the company’s SEC earnings filing (Form 8-K Item 2.02, or Form 6-K for a foreign private issuer). Every figure was cross-checked against the filing text; consensus estimates, price targets and share-price reactions are not shown because they are not in the filing. AI-generated research, not investment advice.