STATEN ISLAND, N.Y., Aug. 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Acurx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $(ACXP)$ ("Acurx" or the "Company"), a late-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of antibiotics for difficult-to-treat bacterial infections, announced today certain financial and operational results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026.

Highlights of the second quarter ended June 30, 2026, or in some cases shortly thereafter, include:

   -- In April 2026, the Company announced the closing of a registered direct 
      offering of 825,085 shares of its common stock (or pre-funded warrants in 
      lieu thereof) at a purchase price of $3.03 per share (or pre-funded 
      warrant in lieu thereof) priced at-the-market under Nasdaq rules. In 
      addition, in a concurrent private placement, the Company issued 
      unregistered short-term warrants to purchase up to 1,650,170 shares of 
      common stock. The short-term warrants have an exercise price of $2.78 per 
      share, and are immediately exercisable upon issuance and will expire 
      twenty-four months following the effective date of the registration 
      statement registering the resale of the shares of common stock underlying 
      the short-term warrants. This additional funding when coupled with the 
      remaining availability under our Equity Line of Credit ensures that the 
      Company has the financial resource to conduct the exploratory clinical 
      trial in recurrent C. difficile infection. 
   -- In April 2026, a scientific poster was presented at the 35th Congress of 
      ESCMID Global (European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious 
      Diseases) held in Munich, Germany from April 17-21, 2026 showing that 
      Acurx's orally absorbed DNA pol IIIC inhibitors in preclinical 
      development have the unexpected benefit of gut microbiome preservation 
      while demonstrating systemic antibacterial activity. Dr. Khurshida Begum, 
      Research Scientist, University of Houston College of Pharmacy presented 
      the poster demonstrating potentially therapeutic plasma levels, reduction 
      of MRSA tissue burden and maintaining a substantially higher gut 
      microbial diversity and community structure similar to baseline and 
      distinct from linezolid. 
   -- In July 2026, the Company's research and development team met with the 
      FDA for the purpose of seeking their guidance on our plan to conduct a 
      single phase 3 study and its acceptability as a pivotal trial for filing 
      a New Drug Application (or NDA), the favorable outcome of which we 
      provided in detail in our press release dated August 3, 2026. 
   -- In July 2026, presentation of scientific data was provided at the 18th 
      Biennial Congress of the Anaerobe Society of the Americas held at 
      Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City by Dr. Kevin 
      Garey and his team from the University of Houston. Data showed that 
      following treatment with ibezapolstat (IBZ), the beneficial 
      microorganisms in the gut will have the opportunity to repopulate the 
      microbiome in a beneficial way that prevents recurrence. In addition, IBZ 
      and fidaxomicin were superior in biofilm experimental models with IBZ 
      significantly more effective at killing C. difficile than vancomycin and 
      fidaxomicin. 
   -- In July 2026, we signed a continuation of our scientific partnership with 
      Leiden University Medical Center to advance development of Acurx's DNA 
      polymerase IIIC (pol IIIC) Inhibitors. This new partnership builds on the 
      previously reported successful results from the innovative research grant 
      received in November 2025 from Health-Holland to Leiden University and 
      Acurx. This new partnership will enable extending mechanistic research 
      into DNA pol IIIC inhibition to accelerate the development of novel new 
      agents that are systemically active against a range of Gram-positive 
      pathogens resistant to currently available antibiotics. This new research 
      also aims to generate the first-ever 3D structure of Pol C from 
      methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in complex with an 
      Acurx inhibitor to advance discovery of new compounds to treat this 
      high-priority clinical pathogen. 
   -- In August 2026, the Company received FDA Conditional Acceptance and USPTO 
      Trademark Allowance of its proprietary name for ibezapolstat for the 
      treatment and reduction of recurrence of C. difficile infection. 
   -- In August 2026, we announced that the Japan and Mexico Patent Offices 
      granted new patents, respectively, which cover DNA pol IIIC inhibitors 
      including compositions of matter, methods of use, and pharmaceutical 
      compositions, which further strengthen Acurx's intellectual property 
      portfolio and represents the most recent addition to our expanding series 
      of granted patents in the U.S. and internationally. To date, Acurx has 
      secured six U.S. patents and an additional ten patents internationally, 
      including Australia, Canada, Europe, Israel, India, Japan, Korea, and 
      Mexico, all of which protect key aspects of the Company's ibezapolstat 
      and the ACX--375C program targeting DNA Polymerase IIIC. Additional 
      country--level patent applications remain under review. 

Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results

Cash Position:

The Company ended the quarter with cash totaling $10.7 million, compared to $7.6 million as of December 31, 2025. During the quarter, the Company raised a total of approximately $2.5 million of gross proceeds through a Registered Direct Offering, as well as $0.8 million under the Equity Line of Credit.

R&D Expenses:

Research and development expenses for the three months ended June 30, 2026 were $1.1 million compared to $0.5 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025, an increase of $0.6 million. The increase was due primarily to an increase in manufacturing costs of $0.3 million, and an increase in consulting costs of $0.3 million as a result of costs associated with the new recurrent CDI trial program. For the six months ended June 30, 2026, research & development expenses were $1.4 million compared to $1.1 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025. The $0.3 million increase was due primarily to a $0.1 million increase in consulting fees and a $0.2 million increase in manufacturing costs as a result of costs associated with the new recurrent CDI trial program.

G&A Expenses:

General and administrative expenses for the three months ended June 30, 2026 were $1.2 million compared to $1.7 million for the three months ended June 30, 2025, a decrease of $0.5 million. The decrease was primarily due to a $0.3 million decrease in professional fees, a $0.1 million decrease in legal costs, and a $0.1 million decrease in share-based compensation expense. For the six months ended June 30, 2026, general and administrative expenses were $2.6 million compared to $3.3 million for the six months ended June 30, 2025, a decrease of $0.7 million. The decrease was due primarily to a $0.3 million decrease in professional fees, $0.2 million decrease in legal costs, and $0.2 million decrease in share-based compensation expense.

Net Income/Loss:

The Company reported a net loss of $2.3 million or $0.53 per diluted share for the three months ended June 30, 2026 compared to a net loss of $2.2 million or $1.89 per diluted share for the three months ended June 30, 2025. For the six months ended June 30, 2026, the Company reported a net loss of $3.9 million or $1.13 per diluted share, compared to $4.4 million or $4.01 per diluted share for the six months ended June 30, 2025, all for the reasons previously mentioned.

Conference Call

As previously announced, David P. Luci, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Robert G. Shawah, Chief Financial Officer, will host a conference call to discuss the results and provide a business update as follows:

Date: Friday, August 14, 2026

Time: 8:00 a.m. ET

Toll free (U.S.): 1-877-790-1503; Access ID: 13761686

International: Click here for participant international Toll-Free access numbers https://www.incommconferencing.com/international-dial-in

About Ibezapolstat

Ibezapolstat is the Company's lead antibiotic candidate preparing for advancement into international Phase 3 clinical trials to treat patients with acute C. difficile Infection (CDI) and it is also preparing for a ground-breaking clinical trial targeting the prevention of recurrent CDI (rCDI). If successful, ibezapolstat will change the treatment paradigm for CDI and rCDI by providing one therapy for the full spectrum of CDI and rCDI from first occurrence to multiply recurrent episodes.

Ibezapolstat is a novel, orally administered antibiotic being developed as a Gram-Positive Selective Spectrum (GPSS(R)) antibacterial. It is the first of a new class of DNA polymerase IIIC inhibitors under development by Acurx to treat bacterial infections. Ibezapolstat's unique spectrum of activity, which includes C. difficile but spares other Firmicutes and the important Actinobacteria phyla, appears to contribute to the maintenance of a healthy gut microbiome. As previously announced, the Company has received final EMA and FDA agreement for our ibezapolstat pivotal Phase 3 trials in CDI. Their advice included and confirmed the non-inferiority study design elements, the patient population, primary and secondary endpoints, and size of the registration safety database. Acurx also now has a clear international roadmap for conduct of its Phase 3 program in CDI and, if successful, requirements for US NDA submission and EU Marketing Authorization.