Seattle-based research device company NanoString Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: NSTG) is laying off about 50 employees.
The layoffs, disclosed in a Friday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, represent about 9% of the company's headcount, meaning NanoString has a little more than 500 employees left after the cuts. NanoString, which is currently fighting patent litigation against competitor 10x Genomics Inc. (Nasdaq: TXG), announced layoffs to about 110 workers in October.
"Over the last few months, NanoString, like many other life sciences companies, has made organizational changes and reduced our workforce," NanoString CEO Brad Gray said in a statement. "We are sorry to say goodbye to many talented people. These staffing changes reflect a challenging 2023 for us and our evolution toward becoming a leaner organization."
In its filing, the company said the job cuts would be "substantially complete" by March 31.
NanoString said it will incur about $2 million in costs between severance and other transition services. The company expects to finish the layoffs by the end of March.
In the Friday filing, NanoString also said it received notice from Nasdaq on Thursday that NanoString's stock had closed below $1 per share for the past 30 consecutive business days. NanoString has 180 days, or until July 2, to regain compliance by having its stock close at $1 or more for at least 10 consecutive business days. NanoString can appeal if it doesn't regain compliance in that time, or the company could qualify for an additional 180 days if it transfers its stock to the Nasdaq Capital Market.
NanoString was founded in 2003 and went public 10 years later. The company makes high-powered, high-tech imaging and research tools.
10x, which makes imaging, software and analysis tools, has sued NanoString in the U.S., Germany and the European Union’s Unified Patent Court (UPC), which oversees 17 member countries. The UPC in September issued a preliminary injunction blocking sales of some NanoString products in the 17 UPC countries while the case awaits a full hearing, expected in the summer.
NanoString also had an appeal date regarding the preliminary injunction with the UPC on Dec. 18. Although the court didn't issue a ruling, according to NanoString, the court indicated it will make a decision this year.
NanoString generated $48.1 million in revenue during the third quarter, up from $29.5 million during the same period in 2022. The company's stock closed at 54 cents per share Friday.
