Welcome to Medicure's earnings conference call for the quarter ended March 31, 2025. My name is Jenny and I will be your operator for today's call. At this time all participants are in a listen only mode. Before we proceed, I would like to remind everyone that this presentation contains forward looking statements relating to future results, events and expectations which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause the company's actual results to differ materially from those in the forward looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, among others, those described in the company's most recent Annual Information Form and Form 20-F. Later we will conduct a question and answer session. Please note this conference is being recorded and today's date is May 22, 2025.
I would now like to turn the conference over to Dr. Albert Friesen, Chief Executive Officer of Medicure. Please go ahead, Dr. Friesen.
Thank you, Jenny and good morning to all on the call. We appreciate your interest and participation in today's call. Joining me today, excuse me, joining me today on the Q1 2025 financial statements call is Dr. Neil Owens, President and Chief Operating Officer, and Haaris Uddin, Medicure's Chief Financial Officer. The net revenue for Q1 2025 was CAD 5.5 million, a slight decrease from the previous year's net revenue which was CAD 5.7 million. The company recorded a net loss for Q1 of approximately CAD 694,000 or CAD 0.07 per share, compared to a net income of CAD 51,000 in the first quarter of 2024. The net loss in the current period was due in large part to significant R&D expenses of CAD 570,000, mainly for the MC-1 PNPO clinical trial, and a bit of a decrease in AGGRASTAT revenue, a decrease in ZYPITAMAG revenue from the insured channel, and amortization of the company's intangible assets.
Offsetting this was decreases in selling and general and administrative costs. In addition, higher revenue through Marley Drug, including higher sales of ZYPITAMAG through Marley Drug. The company has five focuses: AGGRASTAT sales and profits, holding them, growing ZYPITAMAG revenue and profit, growing the Marley Drug online pharmacy, including new pharmacies. We have recently added the development of MC-1 for PNPO deficiency and a new chemical entity related to Medicure's historic drug development with a very large market potential. I'd now like to turn the call over to our Chief Financial Officer, Haaris Uddin, to review and provide some color on the Q1 2025 statements.
Thank you Dr. Friesen. A couple of quick items to note before I start: all dollar figures are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted by each presenter. As a reminder, you can obtain a complete copy of our financial statements for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025 along with previous financial statements on the Investors page of our website. In addition, a copy of all financial statements and management's discussion and analysis can be obtained from sedarplus.ca. I will now provide some key highlights on our performance for the three month period ended March 31st, 2025. Total revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 were CAD 5.5 million compared to CAD 5.7 million for the quarter ended March 31st, 2024. Net revenues earned from AGGRASTAT during the current period totaled CAD 1.7 million, a decrease from the prior year where net revenue from AGGRASTAT was CAD 2.3 million.
The decrease in AGGRASTAT revenue during the current period is the result of a lower volume of units sold as a result of increased competition from generic tirofiban and hydrochloride. Net revenues earned from ZYPITAMAG through the traditional insurer channel during the current period totaled CAD 519,000, which is a decrease from the CAD 777,000 of net revenue earned during the same period in the prior year. The decrease in ZYPITAMAG revenue during the three month period ended March 31st, 2025 can be attributed to a decrease in utilization of the product through insurance formularies, specifically Medicare Part D. It is important to note that ZYPITAMAG sales through Marley Drug are excluded from this number. For Marley Drug, net revenue during the current quarter totaled CAD 3.1 million, an increase from the CAD 2.7 million earned from Marley Drug during the three month period ended March 31, 2024.
The increase in Marley Drug sales during the current period is due to an increased volume of products sold, including ZYPITAMAG. Net revenue attributable to ZYPITAMAG through Marley Drug was CAD 918,000 during the current period, an increase in the three month period ended March 31st, 2024, whereas the ZYPITAMAG sales were CAD 567,000 through Marley Drug. On March 11, 2025, the company acquired Gateway Pharmacy. Revenue for Gateway Pharmacy between the period of March 11, 2025 to March 31st, 2025 was CAD 175,000. The company intends on offering ZYPITAMAG through the pharmacy in subsequent quarters in addition to other product offerings which have increased revenue at Marley Drug. Moving to cost of goods sold, AGGRASTAT cost of goods sold for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025 totaled CAD 699,000, an increase from Q1 2024 where cost of goods sold totaled CAD 403,000.
The increase in cost of goods sold is attributable to insurance proceeds received by the company during the three month period ended March 31st, 2024 of CAD 281,000 for inventory which had been previously expensed during 2023. Normalizing for this, in addition to foreign exchange rate differences between the two periods, cost of goods sold for AGGRASTAT did decrease which is consistent with the lower revenue for AGGRASTAT recorded during the current period. The ZYPITAMAG cost of goods sold for the current quarter totaled CAD 244,000, a decrease from Q1 2024 where cost of goods sold for ZYPITAMAG through the insured channel for the quarter ended totaled CAD 315,000 for the current period. Included within cost of goods sold for ZYPITAMAG is CAD 82,000 relating to products sold to customers and CAD 162,000 of amortization of the ZYPITAMAG intangible asset.
The decrease in cost of goods sold noted during the current quarter is consistent with the decrease in revenue noted during the current period. Marley Drug cost of goods sold totaled CAD 1.6 million during the period ended March 31st, 2025, an increase from the period ended March 31st, 2024 where cost of goods sold totaled CAD 1.1 million. The increase in cost of goods sold during the current period is a result of a higher volume and the nature of products sold through both the mail order and e-commerce platform. Gateway Pharmacy's cost of goods sold during the three-month period ended March 31st, 2025 was CAD 110,000. The cost of goods are reported for Gateway Pharmacy only from its acquisition date of March 11, 2025 to March 31st, 2025.
Selling expenses totaled CAD 1.8 million for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025, a decrease from Q1 2024 where selling expenses were CAD 2 million. Selling expenses decreased in the current period as a result of lower consulting and marketing expenses incurred by the company. General and administrative expenses totaled CAD 1.1 million for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025 in comparison to CAD 1.2 million during Q1 2024. The decrease in general and administrative expenses in the current period is a result of lower legal fees in the current period in addition to lower share based compensation expense which is based on the vesting schedule of previously granted stock options to key employees and directors of the company. Research and development expenses for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025 totaled CAD 570,000 compared to CAD 680,000 during the same quarter in the prior year.
The decrease during the current period is primarily due to the timing of research and development expenditures relating to each development project the company is currently undertaking, which in the current period was primarily the development of MC-1. The company recorded finance income net of CAD 34,000 during the current period ended, in comparison to finance income net of CAD 51,000 during the three month period ended March 31st, 2024. The finance income recorded during the current period primarily related to interest income earned offset by bank charges, interest on the company's lease obligations, and non-cash accretion expense on the company's acquisition payable liability, which is in connection with the acquisition of Gateway Pharmacy. The company recorded a foreign exchange loss of CAD 35,000 during the quarter ended March 31st, 2025, in comparison to a foreign exchange loss of CAD 7,000 during the quarter ended March 31st, 2024.
The change in foreign exchange loss relates to changes in the U.S. Dollar exchange rate during the respective years. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter ended March 31st, 2025 was CAD 28,000 compared to an adjusted EBITDA of CAD 359,000 during the quarter ended March 31st, 2024. The decrease in adjusted EBITDA during the current period is due to a decrease in operating income which primarily relates to decreased revenues from the sale of AGGRASTAT and ZYPITAMAG through the insurer channel, offset by higher revenue through Marley Drug, including higher revenue of ZYPITAMAG through Marley Drug. In addition, the company also had lower selling expenses and general administrative and research and development expenses. As at March 31st, 2025, the company had cash totaling approximately CAD 7.2 million, consistent with the CAD 7.2 million of cash held as of December 31st, 2024.
The company does not have any debt on its book. I want to remind you that there will be an opportunity at the end of today's call for you to ask questions regarding the financial results of the company as a whole. With that, I would like to turn the call over to our President and Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Neil Owens, for some additional commentary regarding our operations.
Thank you Haaris and good morning everyone. I'd like to start with some updates on our ZYPITAMAG business. Sales of ZYPITAMAG sold through Marley Drug grew by 17% from CAD 770,000 in Q1 2024 to CAD 900,000 in Q1 2025. To grow sales further, we plan to continue to use a field based sales team as well as prescriber and consumer marketing. Patients still have challenges in accessing ZYPITAMAG through their insurance coverage, which is a reason why selling ZYPITAMAG through Marley Drug is such an effective approach. Similarly, due to wholesaler and coverage gap fees, low PBM reimbursement and product returns, selling through Marley Drug provides a much higher gross margin. We've also found that the adherence rate for patients taking ZYPITAMAG is more than 40% higher through Marley Drug compared to other retail pharmacies because of our customer service and engagement strategies.
This helps for reducing our attrition rate and increasing revenue. Net revenue through insured channels and the standard retail pharmacy model fell from CAD 777,000 in Q1 2024 to CAD 519,000 in Q1 2025. This is due to a decrease in purchasing from wholesalers and changes in the mix of our insured customers. Overall, ZYPITAMAG represents a priority for growth through efforts of our sales and marketing team. Further on our Marley Drug business, net revenue grew by 15% from CAD 2.7 million in Q1 2024 to CAD 3.1 million in Q1 2025. This is due to an increase in ZYPITAMAG sold through the pharmacy business as well as generic medication sales and notably the sale of Brenzavvy tablets which is an accessible alternative SGLT2 inhibitor to Jardiance and Farxiga. Medicure is working on leveraging Marley Drug's reputation for customer service, unique branded solutions and national distribution to continue to drive growth.
Challenges we faced include competition and an increase in cost of goods which impacts our margins. We plan to further invest in our e-commerce website to make it a best-in-class experience for customers. Recently, Medicure announced the acquisition of Gateway Pharmacy and signing of a definitive agreement with West Olympia Pharmacy. These additional pharmacy subsidiaries immediately grow our customer and prescriber base for both ZYPITAMAG and other branded products and will be adopted under the Marley Drug brand. Additional benefits of these acquisitions include faster shipping times and redundancy, growing our brand nationally, increasing our revenue and our cash flow positive. In terms of our AGGRASTAT business, net revenue fell from CAD 2.3 million in Q1 2024 to CAD 1.7 million in Q1 2025 due to generic tirofiban competition.
Medicure remains the only manufacturer of the 3.75 mg bolus vial format which is typically administered before the infusion unit. We continue to provide support to our U.S. hospital accounts and plan to remain price competitive in targeted ways. Medicure's R&D focus is primarily on its phase III study to seek approval of MC-1 as the first FDA approved therapy for patients with PNPO deficiency, which is a rare pediatric disease leading to seizures and is ultimately fatal if untreated. If successful, use of Medicure's legacy product MC-1 could lead to a priority review voucher which can be redeemed or sold and provides significant value. The FDA granted approval to start enrollment and so enrollment is ongoing with patients receiving treatment with MC-1. Medicure also recently announced fast track designation for MC-1 for its intended indication which will facilitate the review of Medicure's FDA new drug application.
Recently, the phase III study's first patient has completed the study enrollment period and has moved into a continuation phase post enrollment. Medicure recently announced that it has signed an asset purchase agreement for the acquisition of the patent and intellectual property related to the discovery of new chemical entities that can be developed for therapeutic use. We believe that these new chemical entities hold promise to provide improvements over existing lead compounds in alignment with treatment of diseases being targeted by Medicure and could provide significant long term value upon completion of all required preclinical and clinical studies and regulatory approval. Medicure has yet to announce the clinical therapeutic target, however, has started preclinical testing and API development of the lead compound. Overall net revenue in Q1 2025 was CAD 5.5 million compared to CAD 5.7 million in Q1 2024.
Despite an increase in Marley Drug revenue due to lower revenue from AGGRASTAT and ZYPITAMAG sold through insurance in part because of higher Marley Drug cost of goods and R&D expenses of CAD 570,000 in Q1 2025, we are reporting an adjusted EBITDA of CAD 28,000 and a net loss of CAD 694,000. Medicure remains debt free and to reiterate, the company's short term goals are focused on growing ZYPITAMAG, growing Marley Drug and our pharmacy business, maintaining AGGRASTAT sales, and development of new products. Short term, seeking the approval of MC-1 to receive a priority review voucher, and long term, the development of our new intellectual property for diseases with large market potential. With that, I'd like to turn the call back to Dr. Friesen for final comments.
Thank you, Neil. The overall revenue was consistent with last year. There were significant developments through the acquisition of additional pharmacies to our main one, Marley Drug, which we think strongly complements Medicure's business, including the sales and marketing of ZYPITAMAG. We are focused on growing the business and diversifying our revenue and asset base near term through acquisition and long term through R&D, carefully investing to grow our future profitability. My goal and that of our board, management, and staff is to continue to build this business with a stable long term outlook to generate value for our shareholders. I want to express my sincere appreciation to our outstanding team of employees that we are blessed with. Thank you, our shareholders, for continued support and interest. Now I'll turn it over to our moderator for Q&A.
Thank you very much. We will now begin the question and answer session. If you have a question, please press star one on your phone keypad. Now we ask that while you're posing your question, you please pick up your handset if you're listening on a speakerphone to provide optimum sound quality. Please wait a moment whilst we poll for any questions. Just a reminder, it's star one if you would like to ask a question. Okay. I'm not seeing anybody in the queue for questions. Just wait a little longer just in case. Okay, I can hand it back over to the management team for any remarks.
Thank you Jenny and thank you for all that were on the call. We look forward to updating you on our next Q call. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's conference. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.