Compugen Monetizes Portion of Rilvegostomig Future Royalties to AstraZeneca for Up to $90 Million

Rhea-AI Summary

Compugen (NASDAQ: CGEN) announced that it will monetize a portion of its rilvegostomig future royalties to AstraZeneca in a non-dilutive transaction dated Dec 17, 2025.

Key terms include an $65 million upfront payment and a potential $25 million milestone payment tied to the next BLA acceptance milestone, while Compugen retains the majority of future royalties and remains eligible for tiered royalties up to mid-single digits plus up to $195 million of potential regulatory and commercial milestones (including the $25 million).

Management says proceeds are expected to extend cash runway into 2029 to advance Compugen's clinical-stage immuno-oncology pipeline and partnered programs.

Positive

• Upfront cash of $65 million received
• Potential additional $25 million tied to BLA milestone
• Retains majority of future royalty upside
• Expected cash runway extension into 2029

Negative

• Sold portion of future royalties, reducing some long-term cash flow
• Potential milestone and royalty caps total $195 million, limiting upside

Key Figures

Total potential proceeds $90 million Maximum consideration from royalty monetization with AstraZeneca

Upfront payment $65 million Immediate cash from monetizing portion of rilvegostomig royalties

Milestone payment $25 million Additional payment upon next milestone on BLA acceptance

Future milestones $195 million Potential future regulatory and commercial milestones including $25M above

Cash runway into 2029 Runway extension expected from non-dilutive transaction

Market Reality Check

$1.51 Last Close

Volume Volume 250,065 vs 20-day average 281,898 ahead of the announcement. normal

Technical Shares at $1.49 were trading below the 200-day MA of $1.55 and 43.98% under the 52-week high.

Peers on Argus

Key biotech peers like AVTX, INO and MOLN showed gains between 1.26% and 7.3%, while CGEN traded slightly lower pre-news, pointing to a more stock-specific setup.

Historical Context

Date	Event	Sentiment	Move	Catalyst
Nov 10	Earnings update	Neutral	+3.1%	Q3 2025 results, cash runway into Q3 2027 and pipeline update.
Nov 04	Conference participation	Neutral	-6.9%	Announcement of fireside chat at Stifel 2025 Healthcare Conference.
Oct 27	Earnings scheduling	Neutral	-5.0%	Notification of upcoming Q3 2025 results and conference call details.
Oct 17	Clinical trial data	Positive	-3.9%	Promising rilvegostomig combo data with high ORR and DCR in Phase 2.
Oct 13	Clinical trial data	Positive	+21.1%	Positive pooled COM701 Phase 1 analysis in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.

Pattern Detected

Recent history shows several divergences, including negative or muted moves around positive clinical updates, suggesting news flow has not consistently translated into supportive price action.

Recent Company History

Over the last few months, Compugen reported Q3 2025 results with $86.1M cash and runway into Q3 2027, alongside mixed financial performance. Multiple clinical updates, including promising COM701 and rilvegostomig data, alternated with conference-related announcements. Market reactions ranged from a 21.08% jump on positive COM701 data to declines after neutral conference and scheduling releases. Today’s royalty monetization and cash runway extension into 2029 follow this pattern of balance sheet and pipeline-focused developments.

Market Pulse Summary

This announcement details a non-dilutive monetization of part of Compugen’s rilvegostomig royalties, providing an upfront $65M and up to $25M more at BLA acceptance, with potential further milestones of up to $195M. Compugen expects this to extend its cash runway into 2029 while keeping most royalty upside. Investors may track progress toward BLA submission, subsequent milestones, and how this added capital supports internal immuno-oncology programs.

Key Terms

non-dilutive financial

"Non-dilutive strategic transaction expected to extend cash runway into 2029"

Non-dilutive describes funding or income that does not reduce existing shareholders’ ownership percentage. It matters to investors because it lets a company raise money or generate value—through grants, loans, licensing deals, or revenue—without issuing extra shares, so each existing share keeps the same claim on profits and control; think of adding toppings to a cake without cutting it into more slices.

immuno-oncology medical

"to advance Compugen's innovative immuno-oncology pipeline and to reach potential"

Immuno-oncology is a field of medicine focused on using the body's immune system to fight cancer. It involves developing treatments that help the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells more effectively. For investors, advancements in immuno-oncology can signal promising new therapies that may lead to improved patient outcomes and potentially significant commercial opportunities.

royalties financial

"monetize a portion of Compugen's rilvegostomig future royalties."

Payments made to the owner of an asset or intellectual property each time that asset is used or a product is sold, often calculated as a percentage of sales or a set amount per unit. Royalties matter to investors because they create predictable, ongoing income streams and affect a company’s cash flow and valuation—like a landlord collecting rent or an author getting a steady cut whenever a book is sold.

tiered royalties financial

"remain eligible for tiered royalties of up to mid-single digits on future"

Tiered royalties are a payment structure where the percentage of earnings paid as royalties changes based on different levels of sales or production. For example, a company might pay a smaller percentage on initial sales and a higher percentage as sales increase beyond certain points. This system encourages higher sales by adjusting payments, making it important for investors to understand how revenue sharing may vary as a product or project grows.

AI/ML technical

"predictive computational target discovery powered by AI/ML, today announced that"

AI/ML stands for artificial intelligence and machine learning, software systems that identify patterns in data and make predictions or automate decisions, improving performance as they process more information. Investors care because these technologies can boost revenue, cut costs and create competitive advantages — like a factory that learns to produce goods faster and with fewer mistakes — while also introducing execution, ethical and regulatory risks that can affect a company’s value.

AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.

• Non-dilutive strategic transaction expected to extend cash runway into 2029, to advance Compugen's innovative immuno-oncology pipeline and to reach potential key catalysts from internal and partnered programs
• Monetization includes an upfront payment of $65 million and a potential additional $25 million upon reaching the next milestone
• Compugen retains majority of royalties preserving potential significant long-term upside reflecting its belief in the potential of rilvegostomig

HOLON, Israel, Dec. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Compugen Ltd. (NASDAQ: CGEN) (TASE: CGEN) a clinical-stage cancer immunotherapy company and a pioneer in predictive computational target discovery powered by AI/ML, today announced that it has agreed with AstraZeneca to monetize a portion of Compugen's rilvegostomig future royalties. Compugen has amended the exclusive license agreement with AstraZeneca, previously entered into in March 2018, to strengthen Compugen's balance sheet and advance its innovative and differentiated immuno-oncology pipeline. 

Key Transaction Highlights:

• $65 million upfront payment and a potential additional $25 million upon the next milestone payment on BLA acceptance, for a portion of Compugen's existing royalty interest in rilvegostomig
• Compugen shall retain the majority of its future royalties and remain eligible for tiered royalties of up to mid-single digits on future sales and potential future regulatory and commercial milestones of up to $195 million (amount includes the $25 million stated above)

About Rilvegostomig:

• AstraZeneca is developing rilvegostomig, a first-in-class dual-checkpoint bispecific that delivers co-ordinated PD-1 and TIGIT blockade on the same immune effector cell, restoring antitumor immune activity and supporting the potential for durable, long-term outcomes. The TIGIT component of rilvegostomig is derived from Compugen's fully owned COM902 which is one of only two clinical-stage Fc-reduced anti-TIGIT monoclonal antibodies currently in development
• AstraZeneca is advancing rilvegostomig in a broad development program including 11 ongoing Phase 3 trials in patients with lung, gastrointestinal, and endometrial cancers

"This strategic agreement with AstraZeneca reflects the potential significant value of rilvegostomig and Compugen's differentiated Fc-reduced approach to TIGIT inhibition," said Eran Ophir, Ph.D., President and CEO of Compugen. "This non-dilutive transaction strengthens our financial position and is expected to extend our cash runway into 2029 assuming no further cash inflows. This agreement enables us to continue advancing our innovative and differentiated immuno-oncology pipeline, while retaining significant upside from rilvegostomig's potential success, representing a key long-term value driver for Compugen and our shareholders."

About Compugen

Compugen is a clinical-stage therapeutic discovery and development company utilizing its broadly applicable predictive AI/ML powered computational discovery platform (Unigen^™) to identify novel drug targets and biological pathways for developing cancer immunotherapies. Compugen has two differentiated Fc-reduced programs targeting TIGIT: COM902, a fully owned potential best-in-class Fc-reduced high affinity anti-TIGIT antibody in Phase 1 development and rilvegostomig, an Fc-reduced PD-1/TIGIT bispecific antibody in Phase 3 development by AstraZeneca through a license agreement for the development of bispecific and multispecific antibodies. The TIGIT component of rilvegostomig is derived from COM902. In Phase 1 development Compugen has COM701, a potential first-in-class anti-PVRIG Fc-reduced antibody and GS-0321 (previously COM503), a potential first-in-class, high affinity anti-IL-18 binding protein antibody, licensed to Gilead. In addition, the Company's therapeutic pipeline of early-stage immuno-oncology programs consists of research programs aiming to address new mechanisms to activate the immune system against cancer. Compugen is headquartered in Israel, with offices in San Francisco, CA. Compugen's shares are listed on Nasdaq and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol CGEN.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions of Compugen. Forward-looking statements can be identified using terminology such as "will," "may," "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "potential," "plan," "goal," "estimate," "likely," "should," "confident," and "intends," and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the milestones and expectations under the agreement; and statements to the effect that our cash and cash-related balances is expected to fund our operating plans into 2029. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of Compugen to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Among these risks: clinical development involves a lengthy and expensive process, with an uncertain outcome and we may encounter substantial delays or even an inability to begin clinical trials for any specific product or may not be able to conduct or complete our trials on the timelines we expect; the clinical trials of any product candidates that Compugen, or any current or future collaborators, may develop may fail to satisfactorily demonstrate safety and efficacy to the FDA, and Compugen, or any collaborators, may incur additional costs or experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete, the development and commercialization of these product candidates; Compugen's business model is substantially dependent on entering into collaboration agreements with third parties and Compugen may not be successful in generating adequate revenues or commercializing aspects of its business model; Compugen's approach to the discovery of therapeutic products is based on its proprietary computational target discovery infrastructure, which is unproven clinically; general market, political and economic conditions in the countries in which Compugen operates, including Israel; the effect of the evolving nature of the recent war in Israel; and Compugen does not know whether it will be able to discover and develop additional potential product candidates or products of commercial value. These risks and other risks are more fully discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of Compugen's most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as well as other documents that may be subsequently filed by Compugen from time to time with the SEC. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent Compugen's views only as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Compugen does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements unless required by law.

Company Contact:

Yvonne Naughton, Ph.D.
Vice President, Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Email: ir@cgen.com
Tel: +1 (628) 241-0071 

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/compugen-monetizes-portion-of-rilvegostomig-future-royalties-to-astrazeneca-for-up-to-90-million-302644468.html

SOURCE Compugen Ltd.

FAQ

What did Compugen (CGEN) announce on December 17, 2025 about rilvegostomig royalties?

Compugen monetized a portion of rilvegostomig royalties to AstraZeneca for an upfront $65 million and up to $25 million on the next BLA milestone.

How much cash will Compugen (CGEN) receive upfront from the royalty deal with AstraZeneca?

Compugen will receive an upfront payment of $65 million.

Does Compugen (CGEN) keep all future rilvegostomig royalties after the deal?

No, Compugen sold a portion but retains the majority of future royalties and remains eligible for tiered royalties up to mid-single digits.

What milestone would trigger the additional $25 million payment to Compugen (CGEN)?

The additional $25 million is contingent on the next milestone payment tied to BLA acceptance.

How will the royalty monetization affect Compugen's cash runway and development timeline?

Company expects the proceeds to be non-dilutive and to extend cash runway into 2029 to advance its immuno-oncology pipeline.

What is the total potential milestone and royalty pool mentioned in the Compugen (CGEN) transaction?

Compugen remains eligible for up to $195 million of regulatory and commercial milestones, including the stated $25 million.