Pharmasset Reports Fiscal First Quarter 2009 Financi...( PRINCETON N.J. Feb. 9 /- Pharmasset I...)

PRINCETON, N.J., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pharmasset, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRUS), a clinical stage pharmaceutical company committed to discovering, developing and commercializing novel drugs to treat viral infections, reported operational highlights and financial results for the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2008.

Financial Results

Revenues were $0.5 million during each of the quarters ended December 31, 2008 and December 31, 2007 and reflect amortization of up-front and subsequent collaborative and license payments received from Roche.

Net cash used in operating activities was $15.3 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2008 as compared to $17.1 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2007. Pharmasset held $51.8 million in cash and cash equivalents and short term investments at the end of the fiscal first quarter.

Total costs and expenses for the quarter ended December 31, 2008 were $18.1 million as compared to $13.2 million for the same period in 2007. The increased operating expenses for the quarter ended December 31, 2008 were primarily the result of an increase in phase 3 registration clinical trial expenses for clevudine for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (HBV) infection, as well as increased preclinical development expenses for our second generation HCV product candidate, PSI-7851.

Pharmasset reported a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $18.3 million, or $0.78 per share for the quarter ended December 31, 2008, as compared to a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $12.2 million, or $0.57 per share for the quarter ended December 31, 2007.

Recent Highlights:

-- In November 2008, Roche initiated the INFORM-1 trial, a potentially ground-breaking study to investigate the activity of a com
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