Altimmune, Inc. (ALT): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

What is Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) and how is this clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company positioning itself in the highly competitive obesity and liver disease markets as of 2024? This firm is sharply focused on developing novel peptide-based therapeutics, notably advancing its lead candidate, pemvidutide, through critical clinical trials aiming to address significant unmet medical needs. With key Phase 2b trial data reported and ongoing development efforts shaping its trajectory, understanding Altimmune's journey, structure, and strategy is crucial. Are you ready to delve into the specifics of its operational model and financial underpinnings?

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) History

Altimmune's Founding Timeline

The entity known today as Altimmune, Inc. has roots tracing back further, but its current structure solidified significantly later.

Year established

The company effectively formed in its current iteration through the merger of PharmAthene, Inc. and Vaxin Inc. in 2017. Vaxin itself was founded earlier, in 1997.

Original location

The company is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, a hub for biotechnology.

Founding team members

Given the merger history, pinpointing a single founding team is complex. Leadership evolved significantly post-merger, focusing on integrating assets and setting a new strategic direction.

Initial capital/funding

Following the 2017 merger, the combined entity continued operations, leveraging the existing capital structures and subsequent financing activities. Altimmune raised capital through public offerings post-merger to fund its clinical programs.

Altimmune's Evolution Milestones

Altimmune's journey reflects a dynamic adaptation within the demanding biotech landscape.

Altimmune's Transformative Moments

Several strategic decisions have profoundly shaped Altimmune's trajectory.

The 2017 merger itself was foundational, creating a public company with a broader technology base than either predecessor alone. This provided the platform for future strategic moves.

Acquiring Spitfire Pharma in 2019 represented a major pivot. It shifted the company's center of gravity from infectious disease vaccines towards the large and growing market for metabolic diseases, particularly NASH and obesity, with the addition of pemvidutide.

The subsequent strategic decisions to prioritize and heavily invest in the clinical development of pemvidutide, phasing out or deprioritizing earlier programs like NasoVAX and HepTcell, marked a significant transformation. This focus allowed concentration of resources on the asset perceived to have the highest potential value, shaping the company's identity and investment thesis through 2024. Understanding the company's evolving focus gives context to its Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Altimmune, Inc. (ALT).

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Ownership Structure

Altimmune operates as a publicly traded entity, primarily owned by large institutional investors, which significantly influences its governance and strategic direction. Understanding this distribution is key for potential investors and partners; Exploring Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why? offers deeper insights into investor motivations.

Altimmune's Current Status

As of the end of fiscal year 2024, Altimmune, Inc. is a public company. Its shares are listed and traded on the NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker symbol ALT.

Altimmune's Ownership Breakdown

The ownership structure is heavily weighted towards institutional shareholders, a common characteristic for clinical-stage biotechnology firms seeking substantial capital. Based on data available towards the end of 2024, the approximate breakdown is as follows:

Altimmune's Leadership

The company's strategic direction and day-to-day operations are guided by an experienced leadership team. As of the close of 2024, key figures steering Altimmune include:

• Vipin K. Garg, Ph.D. - President and Chief Executive Officer
• Richard Eisenstadt - Chief Financial Officer
• Scot Roberts, Ph.D. - Chief Scientific Officer
• Scott Harris, M.D. - Chief Medical Officer

This team oversees the development of Altimmune's pipeline candidates and manages its financial and operational activities.

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Mission and Values

Altimmune is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company driven by a clear purpose focused on developing treatments for obesity and liver diseases. Understanding their guiding principles offers insight into their strategic direction and corporate culture, factors often considered by those Exploring Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why?.

Altimmune's Core Purpose

The company's efforts center on addressing significant unmet medical needs through innovative therapeutic approaches.

Official mission statement

While Altimmune doesn't publish a distinct, standalone mission statement in easily accessible corporate materials as of early 2024, their consistent communication emphasizes the goal of developing next-generation treatments for obesity and liver diseases. Their actions and pipeline clearly point towards a mission centered on advancing patient care in these specific therapeutic areas through scientific innovation.

Vision statement

Altimmune aims to become a leader in the development and commercialization of novel peptide-based therapeutics. This vision underpins their focus on candidates like pemvidutide, targeting large patient populations with significant health burdens.

Company slogan

Altimmune does not appear to utilize a widely publicized company slogan.

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) How It Works

Altimmune operates as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company primarily focused on discovering and developing novel peptide-based therapeutics. Its core function revolves around advancing drug candidates through rigorous research and clinical trials to address significant unmet medical needs, particularly in obesity and liver diseases.

Altimmune's Product/Service Portfolio

Altimmune's Operational Framework

The company's value creation process is centered entirely on research and development as of the end of 2024. Operations involve significant investment in preclinical studies and multi-phase clinical trials to demonstrate safety and efficacy for its drug candidates like Pemvidutide. This requires substantial capital, primarily sourced through equity financing, reflected in R&D expenses which stood at approximately $108.9 million for the first nine months of 2024. Altimmune collaborates with contract research organizations (CROs) and contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) to conduct trials and produce clinical supply, managing complex regulatory interactions with bodies like the FDA. Success hinges on generating positive clinical data, securing regulatory approvals, and eventually partnering or building commercial capabilities, as the company does not yet generate revenue from product sales, reporting a net loss of about $125.6 million for the nine months ending September 30, 2024.

Altimmune's Strategic Advantages

Altimmune's competitive edge lies in its focus on differentiated therapeutic mechanisms, such as the dual agonism of Pemvidutide targeting both GLP-1 and glucagon receptors. This approach aims to provide potentially superior efficacy or tolerability compared to existing treatments in the highly competitive obesity and MASH markets.

• Targeting large, underserved patient populations creates significant market potential.
• Proprietary technology platforms could yield future pipeline candidates.
• Experienced management team navigates the complex drug development landscape.

The potential impact of Pemvidutide, if successful, attracts considerable attention. Understanding the financial backing and investor sentiment is crucial. Exploring Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Investor Profile: Who’s Buying and Why? provides deeper insights into the capital structure supporting these development efforts. Maintaining a strong cash position, reported at $176.8 million as of September 30, 2024, is vital to fund ongoing Phase 2 trials and future development activities.

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) How It Makes Money

As a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, Altimmune currently generates revenue primarily through collaboration agreements and government contracts rather than product sales. Its financial model relies heavily on securing funding to advance its pipeline candidates through research and development phases.

Altimmune's Revenue Breakdown

Altimmune's Business Economics

The core economic driver for Altimmune is the potential future value of its therapeutic candidates, particularly its GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist for obesity and NASH. Its business model is characterized by significant upfront investment in research and development, funded through equity offerings and partnerships. Profitability hinges entirely on successful clinical trial outcomes, regulatory approvals, and subsequent commercialization or lucrative licensing deals for its pipeline assets.

• Operating costs are dominated by R&D expenditures, covering clinical trials, preclinical studies, and manufacturing process development.
• General and administrative expenses support operations but are secondary to the substantial R&D spend.
• The company does not currently incur significant costs of goods sold, as it has no commercial products.

Altimmune's Financial Performance

Altimmune's financial health is assessed through its cash reserves, burn rate, and ability to raise capital, rather than traditional profitability metrics. For the fiscal year 2024, the company reported significant operating expenses, primarily driven by advancing its lead candidates in clinical trials. The net loss for 2024 reflected these substantial investments, a typical scenario for development-stage biotechs. Research and development expenses remained the largest cost component, estimated at over $100 million for the year. The company successfully raised capital during the period to extend its operational runway, ending the year with a cash balance sufficient to fund operations into late 2025 or early 2026 based on projected spending. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for evaluation; Breaking Down Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors provides deeper analysis.

Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Market Position & Future Outlook

Altimmune operates as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, its future heavily reliant on the successful development and potential commercialization of its pipeline candidates, particularly pemvidutide for obesity and potentially NASH. Its market position is currently defined by its developmental status rather than existing market share, facing significant competition but also targeting large, underserved markets.

Competitive Landscape

Opportunities & Challenges

Industry Position

As a clinical-stage entity, Altimmune is positioned as a developer aiming to disrupt large therapeutic areas like obesity and liver disease. Its valuation and prospects hinge entirely on clinical data progression and regulatory success, contrasting sharply with revenue-generating competitors. Understanding its financial footing is crucial; you can find more details by Breaking Down Altimmune, Inc. (ALT) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors. The company must navigate the complex path from development to potential market entry against well-entrenched incumbents, making its R&D execution paramount through 2025.