Sema4 announces name change to GeneDx
Sema4 (Nasdaq: Sema4 SMFR) today announced that it is changing its brand name Sema4 Holdings Corp. To GeneDx Holdings Corp. GeneDx (Nasdaq WGS) is a leader in improving health outcomes by utilizing clinical and genomic insights that is uniquely placed to increase the utilization of large-scale genomic and clinical data to allow precision medicine to be the standard of health care.
GeneDx’s leading exome and genomic tests are enhanced with Centrellis(r) an innovative Health Information Platform. Based on one of the largest rare-disease data sets with millions of medical data, Centrellis integrates digital tools with artificial intelligence to collect and synthesize genomic and clinical information. GeneDx is advancing greater understanding of the complex diseases than ever before. This results in faster diagnosis and more efficient treatment plans and improved discovery of drugs.
“For over 20 years GeneDx have earned continuous trust of the world’s genetics experts while also innovating and increasing the usage of its clinically-actionable exome and genome analysis. Through combining the best features of GeneDx as well as Sema4 to sustain our growth We are at the crossroads between data and diagnostics, combining years of experience in genomic interpretation with the unrivaled capability to analyze data from clinical studies at a scale. GeneDx now has the ability to bring together powerful genomic information together with clinical data to enhance the quality of healthcare for individuals and groups,” said Katherine Stueland the CEO and President of GeneDx.
Alongside changing the company’s name, the classes of Class A common stock will be traded with the ticker symbol “WGS,” in recognition of the role that the company played in the pioneering of Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS). The company anticipates that the shares in Class A stock to start trading on the NASDAQ Stock Market under the new name and ticker symbol on January 10, 2023.
What was the cause?
Sema4 Holdings’ shares Sema4 Holdings ( SMFR -1.28 percent) were sinking 17.7 percent as of 11.36 a.m. (EDT) on Tuesday. The decrease came shortly after the company that provides genomic and clinical intelligence platform company released its results for the second quarter after the close of trading on Monday.
So , what’s next?
Sema4 reported Q2 revenues at $46.9 million, which was up 56% over the previous year. Sema4 reported an operating loss of $45.4 million, higher than the losses of $32.1 million during the previous period. A lot of investors were looking forward to better results, such as the huge sale.
It’s been just a month since Sema4 was made public through an acquisition with special-purpose acquisition corporation ( SPAC) CM Life Sciences. When the merger was made public on February 1, CM Life Sciences’ board chairman Keith Meister said that Sema4’s revenues would rise between $200 and $500 million, and the gross margin would double by 2023.
Sema4’s CFO Isaac Ro thinks that revenue goal is feasible. He said “Volume growth is strong , and we are confident in our long-term plan to generate 500 million in revenue by 2023 through partnerships with health systems, broaden the scope of our offerings and grow the company.”
Perhaps the biggest issue for Sema4 is to increase their gross margin. Sema4 reported a loss of $2.8 million in the second quarter due to the higher cost of services.
What do we do now?
Sema4’s collaborations may be the primary thing to keep an eye on for the company in the next few years. Recently, Sema4 expanded its partnerships with NorthShore University HealthSystem, AdventHealth along with Avera Health.
