Conference call and webcast: today, May 20, 2026, 9:00 AM ET

REHOVOT, Israel, May 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Evogene Ltd. $(EVGN)$ (TASE: EVGN), a pioneering company in computational chemistry specializing in the generative AI design of small molecules for the pharmaceutical and agricultural industries, today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026.

Mr. Ofer Haviv, President & CEO of Evogene, stated: "Following the strategic transformation initiated in 2025, we are now focused on execution and advancing our tech engine for small-molecule discovery and optimization, ChemPass AI$(TM)$, and expanding our product pipeline in pharma and agriculture, through collaborations and continued progress in our internal programs.

ChemPass AI(TM)'s competitive advantage lies in its ability to generate novel molecules while optimizing multiple critical parameters from the earliest stages of design. We continue to enhance the platform through internal development and collaboration with tech companies. In February 2026, we were proud to announce a second collaboration with Google Cloud focused on integrating advanced AI agents into ChemPass AI(TM), aimed at automating the generation of unique datasets from complex scientific workflows, thereby enabling new capabilities in small-molecule discovery and optimization.

Our proprietary small-molecule candidates are designed to combine three key advantages: novel and diverse chemical structures, multi-parameter optimization from the earliest design stages, and high potency supported by targeted experimental validation.

In pharma, we significantly expanded our activity during the first quarter of 2026, announcing three new collaborations with biotech companies and academic institutions:

   -- Systasy Biosciences, together with LMU University Hospital Munich. The 
      collaboration focuses on developing novel therapies for 
      neutrophil-derived inflammatory diseases; 
 
   -- Queensland University of Technology (QUT). This collaboration is 
      advancing AI-driven therapeutic discovery in inflammatory diseases and 
      oncology; and 
 
   -- Unravel Biosciences. This collaboration is focused on a newly discovered 
      target for demyelinating disorders such as multiple sclerosis $(MS)$. 

These additions bring the total number of publicly disclosed collaborations in this domain to four.

In agriculture, our AgPlenus subsidiary continues to advance novel herbicide programs through our collaboration with Corteva. In parallel, our internal fungicide program has demonstrated strong progress and is advancing through lead optimization, highlighting the effectiveness of integrating AI-driven design with iterative experimental validation. Regarding our collaboration with Bayer, AgPlenus and Bayer have decided to discontinue their herbicide development project following determination that the target protein did not meet the required product criteria. Under the terms of the termination, all assets licensed to Bayer under the collaboration, including the APTH1 protein target and associated active molecules, will revert to AgPlenus."

"Looking ahead, we expect continued progress across all three of the Company's core business areas, supporting our growth trajectory and long-term value creation," said Mr. Haviv. "We are expanding technological collaborations to strengthen our ChemPass AI(TM) innovation capabilities, advancing our pharmaceutical and ag-chemical pipelines toward key milestones, establishing new strategic partnerships, and deepening relationships with leading industry players. Across all activities, we remain focused on execution, pipeline expansion, and long-term growth."

Financial Highlights:

   -- Status of Non-Core Subsidiaries - Consistent with our revised strategy, 
      we continue to manage the wind-down or transition of our non-core 
      business activities:- Lavie Bio - operations were discontinued at the end 
      of the first quarter of 2026, and the company expects to receive two 
      additional payments under the ICL transaction. During the first quarter 
      of 2026, Lavie Bio received court approval for the distribution of a 
      dividend in the amount of $4.25 million to its shareholders, of which 
      Evogene is entitled to approximately $2.9 million. The distribution 
      process is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026.- 
      Biomica - licensed its lead oncology candidate, BMC128, to Lishan 
      Pharmaceuticals and is currently completing a Phase 1 clinical trial. In 
      April 2026, Biomica received court approval for the distribution of a 
      $2.7 million dividend to its shareholders, of which Evogene will be 
      entitled to approximately $1.35. The distribution process is expected to 
      be completed in the second quarter of 2026.- Casterra - operations have 
      been significantly reduced and realigned to focus exclusively on Brazil; 
      we are conducting field trials and expect these activities to form the 
      basis for seed sales in the 2027 growing season. 
 
   -- Fundraising - In February 2026, Evogene entered into a warrant inducement 
      agreement with an existing investor for the immediate exercise of all 
      August 2024 Series A and Series B warrants, resulting in gross proceeds 
      of approximately $3.4 million, before fees and expenses. In consideration 
      for the exercise, the investor received, in a private placement, new 
      unregistered Series A-1 and Series B-1 warrants to purchase up to an 
      aggregate of 5,076,924 ordinary shares. The new warrants are immediately 
      exercisable at an exercise price of $1.25 per share.The Series A-1 and 
      Series B-1 warrants were classified as a liability in the consolidated 
      statements of financial position, initially recorded at fair value and 
      subsequently remeasured at each reporting date using the Black-Scholes 
      option pricing model. As of March 31, 2026, the warrants' liability 
      totaled approximately $1.7 million. 
 
   -- Cash Position - As of March 31, 2026, Evogene held consolidated cash, 
      cash equivalents, and short-term bank deposits of approximately $13.1 
      million. The consolidated cash usage during the first quarter of 2026 was 
      approximately $2.8 million. 
 
   -- Revenues for the first quarter of 2026 totaled approximately $0.3 million, 
      compared to approximately $2.3 million in the same period of 2025, 
      representing a decrease of approximately $2.0 million. The decrease is 
      mainly attributable to lower revenue recognized from Casterra, which in 
      the first quarter of 2025 included significant seed sales of 
      approximately $2.0 million. 
 
   -- Cost of revenues for the first quarter of 2026 was approximately $0.1 
      million, compared to approximately $1.5 million in the corresponding 
      period of 2025. The decrease in cost of revenues is consistent with the 
      decline in revenues during the quarter. 
 
   -- Research and development expenses, net of non-refundable grants, for the 
      first quarter of 2026 were approximately $1.8 million, compared to 
      approximately $2.5 million in the corresponding period of 2025, 
      representing a decrease of approximately $0.7 million. The decrease is 
      mainly attributable to lower R&D expenses in Biomica, Casterra, and 
      AgPlenus. The decrease in R&D expenses attributable to Evogene and its 
      subsidiaries was substantially offset by the impact of exchange rate 
      fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and the NIS of approximately $0.2 
      million. 
 
   -- Sales and marketing expenses for the first quarters of 2026 and 2025 were 
      approximately $0.4 million, with no material change between the periods. 
 
   -- General and administrative expenses for the first quarter of 2026 
      remained stable at approximately $1.2 million, compared to the 
      corresponding period of 2025. The decrease in G&A expenses attributable 
      to Evogene and its subsidiaries was substantially offset primarily by the 
      impact of transaction costs related to the warrant inducement transaction 
      and other legal expenses, totaling approximately $0.2 million, as well as 
      by exchange rate fluctuations between the U.S. dollar and the NIS of 
      approximately $0.1 million. 
 
   -- Other income, net, of approximately $30 thousand was recorded in the 
      first quarter of 2026, primarily attributable to the sale of fixed assets, 
      compared to other income of approximately $191 thousand recorded in the 
      first quarter of 2025, which was primarily related to the accounting 
      treatment associated with Evogene's sublease agreement. 
 
   -- Operating loss for the first quarter of 2026 was approximately $3.2 
      million, compared to approximately $3.0 million in the corresponding 
      period of 2025. The increase in operating loss is primarily attributable 
      to decreased revenues, partially offset by lower operating expenses, as 
      described above. 
 
   -- Financing expenses, net, for the first quarter of 2026 were approximately 
      $2.7 million, compared to financing income, net, of approximately $1.1 
      million in the corresponding period of 2025. The change was primarily 
      attributable to the accounting treatment of the pre-funded warrants and 
      warrants issued in the August 2024 fundraising and warrants issued in the 
      February 2026 warrant inducement transaction. As part of the February 
      2026 warrant inducement transaction, the Company recorded financing 
      expenses of approximately $3.8 million during the first quarter of 2026. 
      In addition, the Company recorded a financing income of approximately 
      $0.9 million related to the revaluation of warrants liability as of March 
      31, 2026. 
 
   -- Income from discontinued operations, net, for the first quarter of 2026 
      was approximately $14 thousand, compared to a loss from discontinued 

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