Executive Summary

Q4 2024 capped a transitional year as NextCure pivoted to its B7-H4 ADC program: FDA accepted the LNCB74 IND in December, first patient was dosed in January 2025, and cohort 1 was cleared in February 2025, putting the program on a visible clinical path .
Operating discipline continued: FY24 R&D fell to $41.5M (from $47.9M) and G&A to $15.7M (from $19.7M), narrowing FY net loss to $55.7M (vs. $62.7M in FY23) .
Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $68.6M at 12/31/24; management reiterated runway “into the second half of 2026,” consistent with prior-quarter commentary .
Key catalysts shift to execution in early clinical development (LNCB74 dose escalation and planned backfill cohorts in 2H 2025) and partnering for non-oncology/NC410 assets; no Q4 earnings call transcript was published, so narrative relies on 8-K/press releases .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

IND acceptance for LNCB74 (Dec 2024), first patient dosed (Jan 2025), and cohort 1 cleared (Feb 2025) — rapid start that underpins 2025 clinical momentum; management plans backfill cohorts in 2H 2025 .
Cost management drove lower FY opex: R&D $41.5M (vs. $47.9M) and G&A $15.7M (vs. $19.7M), reducing FY net loss to $55.7M (vs. $62.7M) .
Management re-focused the portfolio on the ADC program and highlighted differentiating preclinical data for LNCB74 (binding, internalization, DAR4, conjugation/linker stability, tolerability up to 10 mg/kg in monkeys) . Quote: “We…reprioritized our resources to advance our [ADC] program…We look forward to additional progress in 2025” – Michael Richman, CEO .

Cash declined to $68.6M (12/31/24) from $108.3M (12/31/23), reflecting continued funding of operations, though runway remains into 2H 2026 .
NC410 progress is contingent on external support; the company plans to conclude the current trial and seek a partner, limiting internal advancement near term .
Restructuring/asset impairment of $2.5M in FY24 underscores portfolio realignment and cost actions taken during the year .

Quarterly P&L snapshot (derived Q4 from FY vs 9M; dollars in $USD Millions; EPS in $):

Metric	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
R&D Expense ($mm)	$12.42	$8.77	$8.90
G&A Expense ($mm)	$4.08	$3.73	$3.55
Restructuring & Impairment ($mm)	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Loss from Operations ($mm)	$(16.49)	$(12.50)	$(12.46)
Other Income ($mm)	$1.09	$0.96	$0.85
Net Loss ($mm)	$(15.40)	$(11.54)	$(11.60)
Diluted EPS ($)	$(0.55)	$(0.41)	$(0.41)

Liquidity (quarter-end cash, cash equivalents & marketable securities):

Metric	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Cash & Equivalents ($mm)	$86.44	$75.31	$68.62

Full-year comparison:

Metric	FY 2023	FY 2024
R&D Expense ($mm)	$47.93	$41.49
G&A Expense ($mm)	$19.71	$15.72
Restructuring & Impairment ($mm)	$0.00	$2.54
Net Loss ($mm)	$(62.72)	$(55.65)
Net Loss per Share ($)	$(2.25)	$(1.99)
Cash & Equivalents at YE ($mm)	$108.30	$68.62

Notes:

There is no segment revenue to report; company-provided tables focus on operating expenses and losses typical of a clinical-stage biotech .
Q4 figures are derived from FY24 minus 9M24; each Q4 cell cites both sources .

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Cash Runway	As of Q3 2024 vs Q4 2024	Fund ops into 2H 2026	Fund ops into 2H 2026	Maintained
LNCB74 (B7-H4 ADC)	IND/Clinical Start	IND filing planned by YE’24	IND accepted (Dec 2024); 1st patient dosed (Jan 2025); cohort 1 cleared (Feb 2025); backfill cohorts planned 2H 2025	Raised/advanced milestones
NC410 (LAIR-2 fusion)	Development Path	Conclude current trial; seek partner	Seeking partnership/third-party financing; focus resources on LNCB74	Maintained focus shift
Non-oncology (NC181, NC605)	Next Steps	Seek partner or financing; potential INDs 12–18 months if funded	Seeking partners; potential INDs 12–18 months if funded	Maintained

(Company did not publish a Q4 2024 earnings call transcript; themes reflect disclosures across Q2–Q4 releases.)

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q2 2024)	Previous Mentions (Q3 2024)	Current Period (Q4 2024)	Trend
ADC focus (LNCB74)	GLP tox completed; IND by YE’24	IND by YE’24; SITC preclinical data preview	IND accepted (Dec); 1st patient (Jan); cohort 1 cleared (Feb); backfill 2H’25	Positive acceleration
NC410 strategy	Additional ovarian cohort enrolled; ASCO data	Conclude trial; seek partner	Emphasis on ADC; partnering implied	De-prioritized internally
Cash/runway	Into 2H 2026	Into 2H 2026	Into 2H 2026	Stable
Regulatory milestones	—	SITC data planned	IND accepted; clinical initiation	Positive
Non-oncology pipeline	NC181, NC605 seeking partners; pre-IND work	Seeking partners/financing	Preclinical data highlighted; INDs possible 12–18 months if funded	Funding-dependent

“In 2024 we reprioritized our resources to advance our [ADC] program and recently completed cohort 1 of the Phase 1 study evaluating LNCB74… We look forward to…initiating backfill cohorts in the second half of the year.” – Michael Richman, President & CEO .
“We plan to file an IND in the fourth quarter of this year and advance into Phase 1, shortly following receipt of an FDA safe-to-proceed letter.” – Michael Richman (pre-Q4 timing statement, achieved by Q4) .
On LNCB74 differentiation: “preclinical data…reinforce its promise as a potential best-in-class therapeutic…advantages over other B7-H4 ADCs.” – Michael Richman .

N/A – No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was published; management’s disclosures are sourced from 8-Ks and press releases .

Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) for Q4 2024 EPS and revenue was not available via our S&P Global access at the time of analysis; as a result, we cannot assess beat/miss versus consensus for this quarter.

The ADC pivot is executing: IND accepted (Dec), first patient dosed (Jan), cohort 1 cleared (Feb); 2H’25 backfill cohorts provide near-term catalysts tied to clinical signals .
Cost controls are visible: FY24 R&D (-$6.4M YoY) and G&A (-$4.0M YoY) lowered burn, narrowing FY net loss to $55.7M; expect continued spend concentration on LNCB74 .
Liquidity is adequate for planned milestones: $68.6M cash at year-end and runway into 2H 2026 reduce near-term financing risk as the Phase 1 program advances .
NC410 and non-oncology assets (NC181, NC605) are leveragable via partnerships; external funding could pull forward IND timelines (12–18 months) on non-oncology programs .
Trading implications: stock likely sensitive to early LNCB74 safety/tolerability and any preliminary activity signals in dose-escalation/backfill cohorts; partnering updates could be incremental catalysts .
Risk balance: execution and clinical risk as an early-stage ADC; continued cash burn with no product revenue; partnering outcomes and clinical data cadence are key drivers .

Supporting detail and sources:

Q4/FY press release and 8-K (Item 2.02 and Exhibit 99.1) with full-year results and LNCB74 clinical start .
Q3 and Q2 8-Ks for sequential trending (quarterly and 9M tables) .
Q4 press releases on IND acceptance and preclinical data .