What Coherus Oncology (CHRS) Said on Its Q3 Earnings Call

Key Points

• Coherus plans to cut about 30% of its workforce, reducing headcount from roughly 140 to 100 and targeting $6 million to $7 million in quarterly savings. The company expects the cuts to lower the LOQTORZI quarterly sales needed to cover core costs to $25 million–$30 million.
• LOQTORZI sales were $14 million in Q3, below the company’s growth target, prompting it to lower its 2026 revenue outlook to $54 million–$57 million. Coherus had $83.6 million in cash and investments, and disclosed a cash runway of less than 12 months, excluding potential savings and other funding.
• Tagmokitug development will prioritize esophageal cancer, with Coherus planning FDA discussions in Q1 2027 on study design and a possible accelerated-approval path. Early results included confirmed partial responses in 3 of 9 evaluable second-line patients at the proposed dose; the company is also exploring partnerships to help fund development.

Coherus Oncology NASDAQ: CHRS plans to cut approximately 30% of its workforce and focus development of its experimental drug tagmokitug on esophageal cancer as it seeks to reduce spending and grow sales of its cancer treatment LOQTORZI.

On its third-quarter 2026 earnings call, management said the restructuring would lower recurring costs by an estimated $6 million to $7 million per quarter once implemented. The company also revised its full-year LOQTORZI revenue outlook after third-quarter sales growth fell short of its target.

Coherus ended the quarter with $83.6 million in cash, equivalents and investments, down from $105.3 million at the end of the second quarter. Chief Financial Officer Bryan McMichael said its cash runway was less than 12 months from the date of its quarterly filing, excluding potential cost savings, a divestiture milestone payment and proceeds from partnerships. The filing included going-concern disclosures.

Workforce cuts and sales targets

McMichael said the company expects to reduce headcount from about 140 to 100 full-time employees during the month, while preserving substantially all of its commercial organization. Coherus expects to achieve most of the projected savings rate within two quarters.

Chief Executive Officer Denny Lanfear said the cuts follow the selection of esophageal cancer as the priority for tagmokitug, the wind-down of transition services associated with the divested biosimilar business and the completion of a manufacturing transfer for toripalimab, marketed as LOQTORZI. The FDA action date for the drug-product portion of the transfer application is Nov. 30, he said.

After the reductions, Coherus estimates it would need $25 million to $30 million in quarterly LOQTORZI revenue to cover core costs, down from its previous estimate of $30 million to $35 million. Lanfear said the company aims to drive sales toward that threshold in 2027.

Third-quarter LOQTORZI net sales were $14 million, up 3% from the prior quarter and 25% from a year earlier. Chief Commercial Officer Sameer Goregaoker said sequential growth missed the company’s 10% to 15% target because of slower new-patient starts in a few territories.

Coherus revised its full-year revenue outlook to $54 million to $57 million and said it expects to reach a $15 million quarter in the fourth quarter. It reiterated its forecast for combined operating expenses of $170 million to $175 million for 2026.

Esophageal cancer development

Coherus plans to prioritize a study of tagmokitug combined with toripalimab in patients with previously treated esophageal cancer, including both squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. The company intends to discuss the dose and study design with the FDA, including whether the next study could support accelerated approval.

Chief Medical Officer Dr. Rosh Dias said three of nine evaluable second-line patients receiving the proposed 700-milligram dose had confirmed partial responses, while one had an unconfirmed partial response. That represented a confirmed response rate of 33.3%, or 44.4% including the unconfirmed response. The company reported no responses at the lower 300-milligram dose.

In an early first-line study combining tagmokitug, toripalimab and chemotherapy in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, eight of nine evaluable patients responded, Dias said. Four of 10 patients evaluable for safety discontinued because of adverse events. Dias cautioned that comparisons with other trials have limitations.

Chief Scientific and Development Officer Dr. Theresa LaVallee said Coherus is targeting FDA discussions in the first quarter of 2027. The company is considering a randomized phase 2 study against chemotherapy, but the design and potential approval path remain subject to regulatory discussions. LaVallee said more enrollment and durability data are needed for a productive discussion of a first-line study.

Lanfear said Coherus is engaging a financial adviser for potential partnerships covering rights to tagmokitug outside the United States. The company hopes upfront payments and partner funding could offset development costs, though it announced no agreement.

LOQTORZI growth and other funding

Lanfear estimated LOQTORZI’s share of the nasopharyngeal cancer market at approximately 20% to 22%. Goregaoker said the company is working with clinical organizations to identify eligible patients and with payers to establish treatment preferences for LOQTORZI. Where payer partnerships are already in place, the drug’s share of addressable patients is approximately double the national average, he said.

Coherus also plans to exercise its audit and other contractual rights after receiving a revenue report related to the UDENYCA divestiture. McMichael said reported sales came close to the threshold for a first $37.5 million milestone and that only a modest audit adjustment would be needed to reach it. The report for a second potential $37.5 million milestone is expected after the first quarter of 2027.

Management said it is continuing a study combining tagmokitug with pasritamig and has not deprioritized casdozokitug. Lanfear said the company could provide additional insight on the latter program in the first quarter as its data mature.

About Coherus Oncology (NASDAQ:CHRS)

Coherus Oncology, formerly known as Coherus BioSciences, is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused primarily on developing and commercializing medicines for cancer and other serious diseases. The company has built its business around biologic therapies, including biosimilars and innovative treatments intended to improve access to important medicines.

Its portfolio includes UDENYCA (pegfilgrastim-cbq), a long-acting treatment used to reduce the risk of infection associated with chemotherapy, and LOQTORZI (toripalimab-tpzi), an immuno-oncology therapy approved in the United States for certain patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

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