SomaLogic tops Wall Street estimates as merger looms

BOULDER — Biotechnology company SomaLogic Inc. (Nasdaq: SLGC) nearly halved its year-over-year third quarter sales, but still managed to beat Wall Street expectations as it prepares for a $1 billion merger with California-based Standard BioTools Inc. (Nasdaq: LAB).

SomaLogic develops platforms to read thousands of proteins in a patient’s blood or urine sample that may signal illnesses or future health conditions and suggest potential treatments via machine learning.

The company posted sales of $22 million, down 47% from $41.7 million in the third quarter last year. 

Still, the total was more than $1 million higher than the analyst consensus, sending SomaLogic’s stock soaring more than 14% in early trading Thursday. 

The company also trimmed its net losses in the third quarter to $22.2 million, an improvement over a loss of $32.9 million in the same period last year.

“We’re pleased to report another quarter of solid execution, marked by commercial and operational discipline throughout the organization,” SomaLogic interim CEO Adam Taich said in a prepared statement. “Momentum is building in our business, as highlighted by increasing commercial activity and newly expanded content with our 11K SomaScan launch. We remain excited about our ability to consistently deliver results in the attractive proteomics market.”

SomaLogic expects revenue for the full 2023 fiscal year to range from $82 million to $85 million.

Last month, the company announced that it would be merging with Standard BioTools in an all-stock deal that is expected to result in a combined company valued at more than $1 billion.

The deal, which was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, establishes a deal that will see SomaLogic shareholders receive 1.11 shares of Standard BioTools common stock for each share of SomaLogic common stock owned. When the merger is complete, SomaLogic shareholders will own approximately 57% of the combined company, and Standard BioTools shareholders will own the remainder. 

SomaLogic went public in early 2021 with a merger with a special purpose acquisition company that added about $651 million in new funding to the company’s books and valued it at $1.23 billion. 

The road toward the merger with Standard BioTools has been a rocky one, as SomaLogic has struggled to attain profitability. The company’s stock price has shaved off more than 80% of value since the SPAC deal.

In late 2022, SomaLogic laid off some of its employees. 

It is unclear what, if any, impact the merger will have on SomaLogic employees and facilities in Boulder. However, there could be some redundancies created — and likely eliminated in the future — by the deal. “The transaction is expected to generate $80 million in annual cost synergies by 2026,” SomaLogic and Standard BioTools said in October.

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