Herantis H2'25 preview: Blood-brain barrier passed and financial barriers lowered

Translation: Original published in Finnish on 3/1/2026 at 7:00 am EET.

Source: Inderes

Herantis Pharma will publish its 2025 result on Thursday, March 05, 2026, and the company's earnings release can be followed here at 10:00 am EET. We will pay particular attention in the report to the progress of preparations for the second phase of clinical trials of the HER-096 drug candidate. Funding for the upcoming trial has been secured through a recently announced share issue and EU grant. Any additional information on securing the remaining financing needs will also be a focal point of the report.

Scientific basis solid for the future

In October 2025, Herantis published the main results of the Phase I study. Based on these results, the Parkinson's disease drug candidate, HER-096, was deemed safe and well-tolerated in short-term dosing. The candidate also crossed the blood-brain barrier, reaching its target in the central nervous system. In January, the company supplemented the results with a biomarker analysis, which suggested that the candidate has biological activity as well. Overall, the results achieved the objectives of Phase I, creating a strong scientific basis for the next Phase II study. Herantis plans to initiate Phase II in H2’26.

Funding has already been partially arranged

Herantis’ financial position has recently shown positive development. The company has secured 8 MEUR in EU funding from the Horizon Europe program, which will cover a significant portion of the upcoming HER-096 Phase II trial costs as a grant. Additionally, the company collected 4.2 MEUR in gross assets from a directed share issue in February. These arrangements reduce the company's financial risk significantly and improve its position in ongoing partnership negotiations. We estimate the direct costs of the Phase II trial to be around 15–20 MEUR. In addition, the company will require funding for administrative expenses and potential R&D activities. According to our rough estimate, the company still needs around 8–12 MEUR in funding to carry out Phase II. We believe this is also achievable through equity financing without significant issues. The company is still aiming to secure financing through a partnership agreement during the spring, which we believe would be the most desirable option.

Cost-effective drug development

Herantis is an early-stage drug development company with no products on the market yet. The company's business model is based on developing drug candidates and increasing their value through clinical trials. Actual future revenue would consist of advance and milestone payments from potential partnership agreements or, later on, royalty income. We estimate Herantis’ H2 EBIT to be -2.6 MEUR. For the full year 2025, we expect adjusted EBIT to have settled at -5.5 MEUR. During the review period, expenses increased particularly due to the completion of the Phase Ib clinical trial of the HER-096 candidate and the publication of the biomarker analysis in January. We expect earnings per share of EUR -0.12 in H2. Although the result is negative, we believe the company's cost structure has remained very moderate relative to the progress of the drug development program.