Abingdon Health in York warns over results as orders take longer than anticipated

Abingdon, alongside its UK Rapid Test Consortium partners, said it continues to make progress on commercialising its AbC-19 rapid coronavirus test both in the UK private sector and internationally.

The York-based firm said it is encouraged by ongoing commercial discussions while progressing the required regulatory approvals, and continues to advance its Tier 1 order pipeline.

It added that the pipeline of opportunities also continues to grow. In anticipation of these near-term opportunities, Abingdon continues to build AbC-19 rapid test stock alongside its consortium partners so that it can quickly satisfy demand as orders are confirmed.

While each of the opportunities remains in place and the pipeline continues to grow, the speed of adoption and therefore the receipt of orders is taking longer than the Abingdon's board originally anticipated.

Given the level of uncertainty on the timing of AbC-19 orders and subsequent delivery within the financial year, the board now anticipates that financial year 2021 revenue will be in the range of £11.4m to £17m, with an adjusted EBITDA range of a loss of £3.3m to £0.

Chris Yates, CEO of Abingdon Health, said: "Abingdon Health has made significant commercial progress across the Covid-19 and non-Covid-19 markets and the company expects revenues to more than double this year.

"The company continues to develop a strong pipeline of opportunities for its AbC-19 rapid test. As previously stated, the timing of antibody testing programme roll-outs around the world and future orders is difficult to accurately predict given the range of factors including the evolving regulatory processes, the impact of Covid-19 virus mutations and the rate of vaccination programs.

"We believe there are clear use cases for antibody testing which includes checking levels of immunity both prior to and after vaccinations and we are confident that over the coming months, the company's Tier 1 and other targets will convert.

"The company is continuing its manufacturing expansion, after the successful completion of the first phase, in order to meet market demand for lateral flow testing. This expansion is not only for the AbC-19 rapid test, but also for the expected demand from our contract service partners, both for COVID-19 and non-Covid assays.

"The lateral flow testing market is forecast to be worth $10.2bn by 2025, and Abingdon remains well-positioned to be the 'go-to' provider for high quality rapid tests."

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