Breaking Down Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors

You're looking at Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) and wondering if the clinical upside outweighs the financial reality, and the short answer is that this is a classic biotech tightrope walk, where scientific progress is defintely battling a deeply stressed balance sheet. For the latest quarter, the company reported a net loss of -$3.37 million on revenue of just $0.21 million, a cash burn that's simply unsustainable without new financing, especially after the March 2025 announcement of plans to delist its common stock from The Nasdaq Stock Market. The stock price, sitting around $0.699 as of November 21, 2025, reflects this volatility, even with the promising new clinical results for their lead candidate, pepinemab, in head and neck cancer treatment presented at ASCO 2025. Your investment here is a binary bet on a Phase 2/3 trial success in Huntington's disease or a major partnership, so we need to map out precisely how long their current cash runway lasts before the next capital raise forces a decision.

Revenue Analysis

You need to understand that for a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company like Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX), revenue isn't about product sales yet; it's about validation and funding for the research pipeline. Their revenue is minimal and highly volatile, coming almost entirely from non-product sources.

The most recent full-year figure, the Trailing Twelve Months (TTM) revenue as of late 2024, which serves as our proxy for the 2025 fiscal year data, stood at only $601.00K. This is a tiny number, honestly, and it tells you their main financial driver is capital raises, not commercial operations.

Here's the quick math on their recent growth: Vaccinex, Inc. reported a year-over-year revenue increase of about 5.44% for the 2024 fiscal year compared to 2023. While any growth is technically positive, this figure is highly unstable given the low base and the nature of their revenue streams.

Vaccinex, Inc.'s revenue is primarily generated from a single segment: Service Revenue from Collaboration Agreements. This is the lifeblood of a pre-commercial biotech. It breaks down like this:

• Collaboration Agreements: Revenue is recognized from research and development (R&D) services performed under agreements with partners.
• Proprietary Platform: They intend to use their proprietary drug discovery platform, ActivMAb®, to secure future collaborations and pipeline expansion.

For example, in the third quarter of 2024, the company reported service revenue of $52,000, a notable increase from $20,000 in the same quarter of the prior year, directly attributed to these collaboration agreements. What this estimate hides is the lumpy, non-recurring nature of this income; it's not a reliable, scalable sales engine yet.

The core of Vaccinex, Inc.'s business is its lead drug candidate, pepinemab, which targets the Semaphorin 4D (SEMA4D) pathway for neurodegenerative diseases and oncology. Until a drug like pepinemab is successfully commercialized or licensed for a significant upfront payment, the revenue line will remain marginal.

To be fair, a small revenue base is typical for a company focused on Phase 2/3 clinical trials in areas like Huntington's disease and Alzheimer's disease. You are investing in the pipeline, not the current cash flow. For a deeper dive into who is betting on this pipeline, you should check out Exploring Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

The table below summarizes the latest annual revenue data leading into 2025. It's a clear picture of a company still in the R&D funding phase.

The significant change in revenue streams is the continued, near-total reliance on collaboration and service agreements, with no meaningful product sales. This means the revenue line is entirely dependent on the success of their R&D platforms and the willingness of partners to fund specific projects.

Profitability Metrics

You need to understand that for a clinical-stage biotechnology company like Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX), profitability is not measured by positive margins yet. Their financial health is about cash runway and pipeline progress, but we still have to break down the margins to see their burn rate and cost control. The near-term view, using Trailing Twelve Months (TTM) data for the end of the 2025 fiscal year, shows significant losses, which is typical for a company focused on research and development (R&D) before a drug is commercialized.

Here's the quick math on their TTM profitability ratios, which we'll use as the most current proxy for 2025 performance:

• Gross Margin (TTM): -1,987.35%
• Operating Margin (TTM): -3,117.3%
• Net Profit Margin (TTM): -3,100.5%

A negative Gross Margin of almost -2,000% tells you VCNX's revenue is dwarfed by its Cost of Revenue, which for a biotech often includes costs related to clinical trial materials and manufacturing development. This is defintely a red flag on a traditional business model, but it's the cost of doing business in Phase 2/3 trials. The small revenue, for instance, was only $0.6 million in FY 2024, against a Cost of Revenue of $12.55 million in the same period.

Profitability Trends and Operational Efficiency

The trend in profitability over the last few years shows a persistent, large net loss, which is the core story for VCNX. The company is in a capital-intensive phase, burning cash to advance its lead candidate, pepinemab, through trials for neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. You can see the consistent net losses below (in millions USD):

The operational efficiency analysis, looking at the jump from Gross Margin to Operating Margin, shows the massive impact of Selling, General & Administrative (SG&A) and R&D expenses. For FY 2024, the Operating Income was -$18.74 million. This loss is essentially the company's operating expense base, mainly R&D, which is the engine of a biotech. The question isn't about cutting costs right now; it's about whether the R&D spend will pay off with a blockbuster drug. For more on their long-term goals, you should read their Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX).

Industry Comparison: A Sobering View

When comparing VCNX's TTM margins to the broader Biotechnology industry, the picture gets a little more nuanced. While the industry average for profitability is also often negative due to the number of pre-revenue companies, VCNX's negative margins are significantly steeper in some areas. The TTM industry average Gross Margin is around -104.89%, while VCNX is at -1,987.35%. This means VCNX's costs relative to its minimal revenue are much higher than the average pre-commercial biotech. This points to a very low revenue base and/or a high cost of goods sold for its small revenue stream.

However, the TTM Net Profit Margin for VCNX at -3,100.5% is actually slightly better than the industry average of -3,179.89%. This suggests that while their Gross Profit is worse, their non-operating expenses (like interest and taxes) are relatively lower, or the industry average is skewed by other companies with even greater net losses. Still, both numbers are deeply negative. The takeaway: VCNX's profitability profile is typical for a clinical-stage firm, but its Gross Margin efficiency is particularly poor, which you should watch as they scale up any early revenue-generating activities.

Debt vs. Equity Structure

The capital structure of Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) is highly unusual and signals significant financial distress. You should know right away that the company's debt load is minimal, but its shareholder equity is deeply negative, which is a far more serious concern for a clinical-stage biotech.

As of late 2024, and continuing into 2025, Vaccinex, Inc.'s balance sheet shows a near-zero reliance on traditional borrowing. The company's total debt is a minuscule $25.0K (US$25,000). This tiny figure means the company has virtually no long-term debt, and its liabilities are almost entirely current obligations, like accounts payable and accrued expenses. Here's the quick math on their liability structure:

• Total Debt (Short-term and Long-term): $25.0K
• Total Liabilities (2024 Fiscal Year): $5.08 million
• Long-Term Debt: Effectively $0 (negligible)

So, the company isn't burdened by interest payments or principal repayments on major loans. That's a good thing, but it hides the real problem.

The true risk lies in the company's equity position. Vaccinex, Inc. has a negative shareholder equity of $-26.6 million as of November 2025. This means its total liabilities exceed its total assets. When a company has negative equity, the Debt-to-Equity (D/E) ratio becomes a strange, but still telling, metric. The reported D/E ratio is approximately -1%.

To be fair, the average Debt-to-Equity ratio for the Biotechnology sector is around 0.17. A ratio of 0.17 means the average biotech uses 17 cents of debt for every dollar of equity. Vaccinex, Inc.'s negative ratio is not a sign of superior financial health; it's a red flag indicating a capital deficit. A biotech firm should defintely be financing its long, risky research and development (R&D) timelines, but this company has simply burned through its capital.

Vaccinex, Inc.'s financing strategy has been overwhelmingly focused on equity funding (selling stock) to keep the lights on and fund clinical trials for its lead candidate, pepinemab. For example, the company announced a $9.6 million public offering of common stock and warrants in late 2023. This is the typical path for a clinical-stage biotech, but it results in significant shareholder dilution. They are using equity to survive, not to strategically grow. This is why the company announced plans to delist its common stock from The Nasdaq Stock Market in March 2025.

The company avoids debt, but that's because, as a micro-cap with negative equity, taking on significant debt would be prohibitively expensive or simply impossible. The market sees the risk. You can read more about this complex situation at Breaking Down Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

Next Action: Before investing, track VCNX's quarterly cash burn rate against their cash on hand (which was $1.11 million at the end of 2024) to determine their cash runway in months. If the runway is less than 12 months, expect another highly dilutive equity raise.

Liquidity and Solvency

You need to know if Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) has the cash to keep the lights on and fund its clinical pipeline, and the short answer is that its liquidity position is tight and heavily reliant on external financing. The core issue is a low Current Ratio and significant cash burn, which are typical for a clinical-stage biotechnology company but still represent a high-risk profile.

Current Ratios and Working Capital Trends

Vaccinex, Inc.'s short-term liquidity, measured by its ability to cover immediate obligations, is weak. As of the most recent data, the company's Current Ratio-which compares current assets to current liabilities-stands at a concerning 0.5. A ratio below 1.0 means the company's current assets would not cover its current liabilities if they all came due today. This isn't a surprise for a biotech, but it's a clear red flag.

The Quick Ratio (or acid-test ratio), which is even stricter as it excludes less-liquid inventory, is just 0.38. This confirms that even after stripping out any potential inventory, the liquid assets are insufficient to meet short-term debt. Here's the quick math on the working capital (current assets minus current liabilities): for the fiscal year 2024, the company recorded negative working capital of approximately -$2.55 million ($2.53 million in current assets minus $5.08 million in current liabilities). This negative trend shows an ongoing structural deficit in short-term financial health.

• Current Ratio: 0.5 (Weak short-term coverage)
• Quick Ratio: 0.38 (Very low liquid-asset coverage)
• Working Capital: -$2.55 million (Structural short-term deficit)

Cash Flow Statement Overview

The cash flow statement for Vaccinex, Inc. clearly maps the company's funding strategy. The latest nine-month period ending September 30, 2024, shows a substantial cash drain from operations, which is the primary driver of its liquidity challenge.

The company used $12.254 million in cash for its operating activities, primarily funding research and development for its lead candidate, pepinemab. This burn rate is the critical factor. To offset this, the company brought in $13.647 million from financing activities, mainly through private placements of common stock and warrants. This reliance on external capital to fund day-to-day operations and R&D is the definition of a capital-intensive, pre-revenue biotech model. As of September 30, 2024, the company's cash and cash equivalents stood at $2.9 million.

Potential Liquidity Concerns and Strengths

The primary liquidity concern is the company's dependence on its ability to raise capital. Without consistent, large-scale financing rounds-like the recent private placements-the current cash runway is short given the $12.254 million annual operating cash usage. The low current and quick ratios mean any unexpected delay in financing or a sudden increase in liabilities could trigger a crisis. You should also be aware that the company faced a delisting notification from Nasdaq in late 2024, which adds another layer of financial instability and risk to future fundraising efforts.

The main strength is the company's core asset: its proprietary drug discovery platform, ActivMAb®, and its lead candidate, pepinemab. Positive clinical data, such as the promising results reported at ASCO 2025, are what defintely Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX). keeps the financing door open. This is a binary investment: liquidity is a constant risk until a major partnership or drug approval provides a non-dilutive revenue stream.

Valuation Analysis

You are looking at Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) and trying to figure out if the stock price of around $0.699 as of late November 2025 is a bargain or a trap. For a clinical-stage biotech like Vaccinex, Inc., traditional valuation metrics are often distorted, but they still tell a story about market sentiment and financial health. The quick takeaway is that the stock is trading near its 52-week low, and its valuation ratios reflect its pre-revenue, loss-making status.

The stock has had a brutal year, with the price decreasing by approximately -89.02% over the last 52 weeks, falling from a high of $4.73 to a low of $0.250. This massive drop reflects the high-risk nature of biopharma development, especially given the company's plan to delist its common stock from The Nasdaq Stock Market earlier in the year. The current market capitalization is small, at about $1.87 million.

Key Valuation Ratios: The Biotech Reality Check

When a company is in the research and development phase, profitability ratios are almost always negative, and Vaccinex, Inc. is no exception. For the trailing twelve months (TTM) ending in November 2025, the company reported losses of -$18.63 million.

• Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio: The P/E ratio is effectively negative, or N/A, because the company has negative earnings. One calculation shows a P/E of -0.07x. This number is mostly meaningless; it just confirms the company is losing money as it funds its pipeline, like its lead asset, pepinemab.
• Price-to-Book (P/B) Ratio: The P/B ratio stands at approximately -0.75. A negative P/B ratio means the company has a negative book value (shareholders' equity), which is a serious red flag indicating liabilities exceed assets.
• Enterprise Value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA): The Enterprise Value (EV) is about $2.45 million, and the TTM EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) is a loss of -$18.64 million. Here's the quick math: $\frac{\$2.45 \text{ million}}{-\$18.64 \text{ million}} \approx \textbf{-0.13}$. This negative ratio confirms the company is not generating positive operating cash flow before non-cash charges.

What this estimate hides is the cash position; the company has about $1.11 million in cash as of the latest data, which is a critical metric for a biotech with a small market cap.

Dividend Policy and Analyst View

As a clinical-stage company, Vaccinex, Inc. does not pay a dividend. The dividend yield is 0.00% and the payout ratio is 0.00%. Your returns will come entirely from stock price appreciation, not income. This is defintely standard for this industry.

The analyst consensus is cautious. Based on the limited coverage available as of late October 2025, the consensus rating is a 100.00% Hold from the single analyst providing a rating. This suggests a wait-and-see approach, which is sensible given the high volatility and the binary nature of clinical trial results. The stock is a hold candidate right now.

This is a high-risk, high-reward bet on the success of their clinical pipeline, particularly their Phase 2/3 study for pepinemab in early Huntington's disease, and its use in oncology.

If you want to dive deeper into the clinical milestones that will actually move this stock, you can read the full analysis at Breaking Down Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors.

Next Step: Review the Q3 2025 financial statements to confirm cash burn rate against the $1.11 million cash balance to project runway.

Risk Factors

You need to understand the core reality for a clinical-stage biotech like Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX): the risks are concentrated and binary. The direct takeaway is that the company faces severe financial and liquidity risks, compounded by the inherent uncertainty of its single lead drug candidate, pepinemab, which creates a high-stakes, all-or-nothing investment profile.

Acute Financial and Liquidity Risk

The most immediate and pressing concern for Vaccinex, Inc. is its financial runway. The company's cash position is tenuous, and its burn rate is high. For example, as of September 30, 2024, the company reported cash and cash equivalents of only $2.906 million. Compare that to the cash used in operating activities for the third quarter of 2024 alone, which was a staggering $12.254 million. That's a quick math problem that shows a very short window before needing fresh capital.

This financial strain led directly to a major strategic risk: the delisting from the Nasdaq Stock Market. In December 2024, Vaccinex, Inc. received a delisting notification for failing to maintain the required minimum of $2.5 million in stockholders' equity, leading to its move to the OTC Markets Group (PINX). This shift reduces liquidity, makes the stock less accessible to institutional investors, and defintely increases the cost of capital.

• Maintain minimum stockholders' equity.
• Secure new financing or collaboration deals.
• Manage cash burn rate aggressively.

Clinical Development and Operational Hurdles

Vaccinex, Inc.'s valuation is fundamentally tied to the success of pepinemab, its lead drug candidate, which targets both neurodegenerative diseases (like Alzheimer's and Huntington's) and oncology. This reliance on a single asset is a classic biotech risk.

The operational risk is evident in the recent clinical trial status. Despite reporting promising data for pepinemab's mechanism in enhancing immunotherapy at the 2025 ASCO and AACR meetings, the company had to wind down its Phase 1b/2 SIGNAL-AD trial and pause enrollment for the head and neck cancer trial in late 2024, which reduced Research and Development expenses to $3.165 million from $4.355 million year-over-year. This signals a strategic pause or redirection that carries significant risk. If the next phase of trials (e.g., a Phase 3 study for Huntington's disease) does not meet its endpoints, the company's value drops to near zero.

To mitigate this, the company is actively seeking collaborations and leveraging its proprietary ActivMAb® drug discovery platform to create future pipeline expansion opportunities. They also successfully raised capital in late 2024 via a private placement of $2.15 million and warrant exercises of approximately $6.2 million, which temporarily bolstered their cash position.

External Competition and Regulatory Environment

The markets Vaccinex, Inc. is targeting-Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, and immuno-oncology-are among the most competitive and challenging in the pharmaceutical industry. Large pharmaceutical companies with massive research budgets and established sales channels are constantly developing competing therapies. Any positive clinical results from a competitor could immediately reduce the commercial potential of pepinemab. Also, the regulatory path to market for novel biotherapeutics is notoriously long and expensive. Even with strong Phase 2 data, a drug must navigate the rigorous and costly Phase 3 trials and gain final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Here is a snapshot of the company's financial state as of the most recent data points, highlighting the sheer scale of the challenge:

If you want to dive deeper into who is betting on this high-risk, high-reward profile, you should read Exploring Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Your next step should be to monitor the company's Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 financial reports (when released) for an updated cash runway projection and any new collaboration announcements.

Growth Opportunities

You're looking at Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX) and trying to figure out where the growth comes from, which is the right question for a clinical-stage biotech. The short answer is that their future revenue hinges on a single, high-stakes asset: pepinemab. This isn't a slow-burn growth story; it's a binary event one.

The core growth driver is pepinemab, a monoclonal antibody that blocks semaphorin 4D (SEMA4D), a protein believed to drive neuroinflammation and suppress the immune system in tumors. This drug is a two-pronged opportunity, targeting both neurodegenerative diseases and oncology. For neurodegeneration, the focus is on advancing a Phase 3 trial in Huntington's Disease (HD), which is actively being planned. Plus, the positive Phase 1b/2 data from the SIGNAL-AD trial in early Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is a huge catalyst, especially since AD affects an estimated 6.5 million Americans.

When it comes to future revenue, you need to be a realist. As a clinical-stage company, Vaccinex, Inc. does not have a commercialized drug, so traditional revenue and earnings projections are defintely tough to pin down. For the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024, the company reported a trailing 12-month revenue of only about $601K, primarily from their platform technology deals, not drug sales. Analyst consensus for 2025 revenue is generally not available because the numbers are so small and dependent on unpredictable partnership deals or grants. The real 'earnings' will come from a major partnership, not product sales, in the near term.

Here's the quick math: A successful partnership or licensing deal for a Phase 3-ready asset like pepinemab could bring in a substantial non-dilutive upfront payment, which would dwarf any current revenue. That's the entire financial thesis right now.

The company's strategic initiatives are laser-focused on securing a major development partnership for pepinemab, especially in the Alzheimer's market, which would greatly reduce their operating expenses going forward. This is an essential move, given the company's planned delisting from Nasdaq in March 2025 due to financial shortcomings. They are also leveraging their proprietary ActivMAb® platform for strategic collaborations, which has already resulted in multiple project deals as of late 2024.

Vaccinex, Inc.'s competitive edge rests on two proprietary technology platforms. The first is the SEMA4D antibody platform, which offers a unique mechanism of action for treating complex diseases that involve both neuroinflammation and immune suppression. The second is the ActivMAb® discovery platform, which allows them to generate novel antibody candidates for internal development and external partners, creating a secondary revenue stream.

• Pepinemab's dual focus (neuro/oncology) diversifies risk.
• ActivMAb® platform generates non-dilutive cash flow.
• A Phase 3 HD start is the next major clinical milestone.

For a deeper dive into the company's long-term vision, you should review their Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Vaccinex, Inc. (VCNX).

What this estimate hides is the significant financial risk; with cash at only $2.9M as of September 2024, a partnership needs to materialize soon to fund the expensive Phase 3 trials.

Your next step is to track news releases for a major partnership announcement-that's the only news that fundamentally changes the valuation here.