Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation, founded in 2009 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington (operating as Adaptive TCR Corporation until its name change in December ...
Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation (NASDAQ: ADPT) is a pioneering force in the field of immune-driven medicine, with a mission to translate the genetic language of the adaptive immune system into actionable clinical insights. Founded in 2009 by Chad and Harlan Robins and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company has emerged as ...Adaptive Biotechnologies Corporation (NASDAQ: ADPT) is a pioneering force in the field of immune-driven medicine, with a mission to translate the genetic language of the adaptive immune system into actionable clinical insights. Founded in 2009 by Chad and Harlan Robins and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company has emerged as a leader in immunosequencing, offering a suite of products that span research, diagnostics, and therapeutic development.
At the core of Adaptive's technology is the immunoSEQ platform, a foundational immunosequencing tool that enables researchers to profile T-cell and B-cell receptors with high precision, facilitating the discovery of novel biomarkers and advancing translational research. The company's most prominent clinical product, clonoSEQ, is a FDA-cleared diagnostic for detecting and monitoring minimal residual disease (MRD) in patients with multiple myeloma, B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and is also available as a CLIA-validated test for other lymphoid cancers. For COVID-19, Adaptive developed T-Detect COVID, a test to confirm past infections, and immunoSEQ T-MAP COVID, which aids vaccine developers in assessing T-cell responses.
Beyond its commercial products, Adaptive is actively investing in a pipeline of next-generation diagnostics and therapies. A key strategic partnership with Genentech focuses on developing neoantigen-directed T-cell therapies for cancer, while a collaboration with Microsoft aims to create a universal blood test capable of detecting multiple diseases early by decoding immune responses.
As of the latest fiscal data, Adaptive reported a market capitalization of approximately $3.99 billion, with a stock price of $24.93. The company employs around 624 full-time staff and has experienced a notable reduction in workforce from 777 in 2023 to 624, reflecting operational adjustments. Financially, the company is pre-profit, with negative net income and operating cash flow, but it maintains a strong balance sheet with a current ratio of 4.795 and substantial cash reserves ($2.183 per share). The company's revenue per share is $1.954, and its gross profit margin is high at 75.4%, indicating efficient cost management in its core operations. However, heavy investments in R&D (28.6% of revenue) and SG&A (58.5% of revenue) have led to an EBITDA margin of -5.2% and a net profit margin of -20.7%.
Adaptive's strategic focus is on scaling its platform through collaborations, expanding clinical applications, and pursuing regulatory approvals in new indications. With a robust intellectual property portfolio and a pioneering role in immune medicine, the company is well-positioned to transform disease management, though it faces the challenge of achieving commercialization and profitability in a competitive biotech landscape.
YoYYoY means Year-over-Year. It compares the latest annual value with the previous annual value to show long-term trend strength.
QoQQoQ means Quarter-over-Quarter. It compares the latest quarter with the immediately previous quarter to show short-term momentum changes.
RevenueThe total money that came through the front door from selling things, before paying a single bill. Think of it as the grand total of every credit card swipe from customers. (YoY compares this year to last year's performance, while QoQ compares the current three months to the previous three).
$277.0M
+54.8%
+1.0%
Net IncomeThe absolute bottom line. If the company paid every single supplier, employee, banker, and tax collector, this is the actual money left in their pocket at the end of the day.
$-59.5M
+62.7%
-98.6%
Gross MarginThe basic markup. If they sell a $100 pair of sneakers, this percentage tells you how much of that price tag is profit right after paying for the rubber and shoelaces, but before paying for things like store rent or TV commercials.
+74.2%
+24.3%
-3.2%
Operating MarginThe 'day job' efficiency score. Out of every dollar a customer spends, this shows how many cents the company keeps after making the product AND paying for all the everyday corporate overhead (like salaries, marketing, and keeping the lights on).
-20.6%
+77.3%
+18.7%
Net MarginThe final take-home percentage. When you strip away every conceivable cost, tax, and interest payment, this is the exact number of cents the company truly gets to keep from every dollar in sales.
-21.5%
+75.9%
-96.7%
Free Cash FlowThe holy grail of corporate cash. It's the spendable, physical money left over after the business pays for its daily operations AND buys the big, expensive upgrades (like new factories or servers) it needs to survive. This is the 'free' money they can use to pay dividends or buy back stock.
$-48.9M
+50.5%
+26.6%
FCF MarginThe ultimate cash conversion rate. It shows how good the company is at turning regular sales directly into cold, hard, spendable cash. A high percentage means the business is an absolute cash-printing machine.
-17.7%
+68.0%
+27.3%
Debt / EquityThe financial risk gauge. It compares how much of the company's empire was built using borrowed money (loans) versus the owners' own money (shareholders). A high number means they are heavily leveraged and playing a riskier game; a low number means they are playing it safe.
128.2%
+190.8%
+198.5%
Current RatioThe 12-month survival check. It simply compares the cash they have right now (plus things they can quickly turn into cash) against the immediate bills they absolutely must pay this year. A score above 1 means they have enough in the wallet to cover the upcoming bills without panicking.
3.34x
+15.4%
+43.0%
Total AssetsThe absolute size of the company's empire. It bundles together absolutely everything of value they own—from the cash in the register and the inventory in the warehouse, to the software patents in the vault and the factories on the ground.
Operator: Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Adaptive Biotechnologies First Quarter Financial Results. [Operator Instructions] Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Karina Calzadilla, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.
Karina Calzadilla: Thank you, Anton, and good afternoon, everyone. I would like to welcome you to Adaptive Biotechnologies First Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. Earlier today, we issued a press release reporting Adaptive financial results for the first quarter of '26. The press release is available at www.adaptivebiotech.com. We are conducting a live webcast of this call and will be referencing to a slide presentation that has been posted to the Investors section in our corporate website. During the call, management will make projections and other forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws regarding future events and the future financial performance of the company. These statements reflect management's current perspective of the business as of today. Actual results may differ materially from today's forward-looking statements, depending on a number of factors, which are set forth in our public filings with the SEC and listed in this presentation. In addition, non-GAAP financial measures will be discussed during the call, and a reconciliation from non-GAAP to GAAP metrics can be found in our earnings release. Joining the call today are Chad Robins, our CEO and Co-Founder; and Kyle Piskel, our Chief Financial Officer. Additional members from management will be available for Q&A. With that, I'll turn the call over to Chad. Chad?
Chad Robins: Thanks, Karina. Good afternoon, and thank you for joining us on our first quarter earnings call. As shown on Slide 3, we're off to a strong start to the year with accelerating momentum in MRD and disciplined execution across the company. MRD revenue grew 53% year-over-year, reflecting broad-based strength across both clinical and pharma. We also recognized our first primary endpoint milestone this quarter, a meaningful proof point for MRD's expanding role in drug development. clonoSEQ clinical volumes increased 41% year-over-year, demonstrating strong continued adoption. We also delivered meaningful margin expansion with sequencing gross margin increasing 8 percentage points year-over-year to 70%, driven by scale and operational efficiency. At the same time, we maintained strong financial discipline, reducing cash burn and ending the quarter with approximately $222 million in cash. Given the strength we're seeing in the MRD business, we are raising our full year MRD revenue guidance to a range of $260 million to $270 million. Kyle is going to provide more detail shortly. Let's now turn to Slide 4 for a deeper look at the MRD business. Our clinical business continues to deliver strong growth with revenue up 54% year-over-year. clonoSEQ …
