Lexington, MA Biopharma Co. Reports Q1 2026 Financials, Makes R&D Plans

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1. Ownership and Share Structure Information

The information listed above was updated on the date this article was published and was compiled from information from the company and various other data providers.

Keros Therapeutics Inc. (KROS:NASDAQ) released Q1 2026 financial results on May 14, 2026. Keros is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel therapeutics to treat patients with disorders related to dysfunctional signaling of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß) family of proteins.

In the press release, the company's CEO and president, Dr. Jasbir S. Seehra, said: "Continuing to progress our pipeline remains our top priority, setting the stage for future catalysts and growth opportunities. In addition, we are excited that our partner, Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (TKPYY:OTCMKTS; 4502:TYO) ("Takeda"), plans to advance elritercept into a Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate elritercept as a treatment of anemia in myelofibrosis, broadening the indication opportunity beyond myelodysplastic syndromes."

Highlights from Q1 2026 include:

• A net loss of US$23.7 million in Q1 2026 compared to a net income of US$148.5 million in Q1 2025. The company said that this decrease is largely due to revenue recognized in 2025 due to Keros' license agreement with Takeda.
• Research and development expenses (R&D) came in at US$16.1 million, compared to US$48.7 million for the same time last year. Takeda took on much of the elritercept-related research and development expenses.
• General and administrative expenses were slightly down in Q1 2026, coming in at US$10.1 million compared to US$10.5 million in Q1 2025.
• The company's cash and cash equivalents equaled US$281.5 million as of March 31, 2026, compared to US$287.4 million at the end of 2025.

While Keros is focused on several therapeutic drugs, "Keros' lead product candidate, rinvatercept, is being developed for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy and for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Keros' most advanced product candidate, elritercept, is being developed for the treatment of cytopenias, including anemia and thrombocytopenia, in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome and in patients with myelofibrosis."

R&D Expenditures Declining

ALS and Muscular Dystrophy are genetic diseases causing skeletal muscles to progressively weaken and are fatal and incurable. In 2026, the U.S. government approved US$90 million for research into treatments and access to care for patients with ALS. While this is great news for patients, the pharma sector as a whole has slowed down on R&D spending.

\J. Edward Moreno of Sherwood News reported on January 14, 2026, that, "In 2025, announced global biotech deals totaled US$228.4 billion, up from US$132.3 billion in 2024, data from Dealogic shows . . . Just two weeks into 2026, US$9.2 billion in deals have been announced."

"As some of the most lucrative drugs lose exclusivity in the next few years, pharmaceutical giants are increasingly shopping around for biotechs to add to their portfolios — and they are more than happy to pay a hefty premium for the right company . . . For some Big Pharma companies, business development spending is now about equal to, or more than, research and development," Moreno went on to add.

Other news outlets are echoing this sentiment. On March 25, 2026, BioSpace's Annalee Armstrong reported that, "R&D spending at the top 16 pharmaceutical companies declined by 3.6% overall in 2025, as many aggressively cut spending and refocused pipelines."

Analysts Anticipate New Trial

A May 19, 2026, research report by Yun Zhong, Ph.D., for Wedbush gave Keros a "Neutral" rating, with a price target of US$16.00. Phase 2 of rinvatercept has been delayed from Q2 2026 to Q3 2026 due to operational and regulatory hurdles, causing Wedbush to pause on further evaluation. Zhong wrote, "We see rinvatercept as the main value driver for KROS, and we believe that the confirmation of a regulatory pathway forward will be needed for us to have stronger conviction in the long-term potential of the stock."

Andres Maldonado, Ph.D., of H.C. Wainwright & Co. chose to give the company a "Buy" rating on May 15, 2026. With a price target of US$20, Maldonado said, "The stock . . . needs a clean trial start, credible endpoint strategy, and early evidence that the body composition, bone, fat, inflammation, and functional biomarker changes can translate into patient-level benefit."

Maldonado went on to say, "We view Keros as having enough cash to execute through the next major value-inflection windows, but the equity story is now tightly levered to proving that rinvatercept's elegant biology can move beyond healthy volunteer pharmacology and generate interpretable patient-level benefit in neuromuscular disease."

Company Funded Through 2028

Keros expects that its cash and cash equivalents as of March 31, 2026, will enable the company to fund its operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements into the first half of 2028.

According to the company's investor presentation, a Q3 trial for rinvatercept is planned.

Ownership & Share Information¹

Keros Therapeutics Inc. has a market cap of US$196.14 million, with 19.79 million shares outstanding. The company's 52-week range is US$9.79-US$22.55.

Institutions own 96.39% of shares, while Strategic Investors own 1.27%.

Management & Insiders own 2.34% of shares.