NEW YORK, May 14, 2026, 08:03 EDT
Shares of Precigen Inc. jumped early Thursday as revenue topped Wall Street forecasts, thanks to the company’s first full commercial quarter selling Papzimeos, which also slashed its loss.
Precigen shares climbed to $4.74 after hours—up 14.1% from Wednesday’s finish—according to MarketBeat at 08:02 Eastern. The company put up Q1 revenue of $23.25 million, topping analyst calls for $20.81 million. Loss per share landed at 2 cents, tighter than the expected 3-cent deficit.
Timing is key here. Precigen shifts gears—from its lengthy run as a development-stage biotech—into a live commercial test: can a single rare-disease therapy actually bring in enough cash to keep the company going before another capital raise looms?
Precigen reported net product revenue of $21.6 million for the quarter from Papzimeos, the gene therapy also known as zopapogene imadenovec-drba. Total revenue surged to $23.3 million, compared with just $1.3 million a year ago. Net loss came in at $7.9 million, sharply improved from last year’s $54.2 million hit. As of March, Precigen had $56.7 million in cash, cash equivalents, and investments, and projects that—when combined with anticipated Papzimeos inflows—will carry operations to cash-flow break-even by the close of 2026.
Chief Executive Helen Sabzevari called the PAPZIMEOS launch “thrilling,” pointing to strong revenue momentum. CFO Harry Thomasian Jr. echoed that, highlighting “continued strength in revenue growth” for Papzimeos in the second quarter. PR Newswire
Papzimeos is aimed at adults with recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP), a rare condition marked by recurring benign tumors inside the respiratory tract. Surgery has been the mainstay, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration points to a different biological mechanism for the drug. In crucial trial results, 51.4% of treated patients avoided surgery over the following year.
Unlike most launches, Precigen’s strategy doesn’t involve battling an established drug. Instead, the company aims to make repeated surgery obsolete as the standard approach for RRP. When Papzimeos got the green light, Reuters pointed out that it was the first therapy approved for this disease, which impacts roughly 27,000 adults in the U.S.
Right now, access stands out as the main focus. Precigen reported Papzimeos is covered for roughly 297 million people in the U.S.—that’s over 90% of the insured population. The drug landed a permanent J-code, J3404, starting April 1. With a J-code, doctors and outpatient providers can bill both commercial and government payers for administering physician-dispensed drugs.
Moves from analysts came fast. H.C. Wainwright bumped its price target on Precigen up to $11, previously $10, after boosting its 2026 Papzimeos sales outlook to $130 million from $113 million, according to Investing.com. StreetInsider pointed to Swayampakula Ramakanth at H.C. Wainwright as the analyst behind the hike.
Citizens bumped its price target on Precigen to $11 from $9, sticking with its Market Outperform call, Investing.com reported. The firm noted that first-quarter numbers topped both its projections and Street consensus, and pointed to Papzimeos exceeding its $19 million sales estimate.
Still, it’s early days for the launch. Precigen said turning patient-hub signups into actual treated patients is the current priority, with the company’s break-even goal tied to ongoing Papzimeos receipts. Any slowdown in site activation, reimbursement processing, or patient conversion would make the cash-flow picture tougher.
The next milestone for Precigen is both clinical and financial. The company plans to share fresh durability-of-response data for Papzimeos at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago, set for May 29 to June 2. Expansion into new geographies and pediatric indications is still on the horizon; those areas could add to growth down the line, but they aren’t contributing to the top line just yet.
