LENZ Therapeutics Q3 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• VIZZ momentum accelerated: Third-quarter product revenue rose 50% sequentially to $2.6 million, supported by more than 38,000 paid prescriptions. Telehealth contributed over half of incremental prescriptions, while national advertising helped drive consumer demand.
• LENZ is restructuring around consumer marketing: The company plans to reduce its workforce to approximately 40 employees, cut operating expenses by more than 50%, and target 2027 operating expenses of $70 million to $75 million, with most spending focused on consumer acquisition.
• Leadership transition and losses remain key developments: LENZ reported a third-quarter net loss of $31 million and ended the period with $197.3 million in cash and marketable securities. CEO Eef Schimmelpennink will step down on Dec. 1, with CFO Dan Chevallard becoming interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent successor.

LENZ Therapeutics NASDAQ: LENZ reported third-quarter 2026 product revenue of $2.6 million, up 50% sequentially, as prescriptions for its presbyopia eye drop VIZZ increased following the expansion of national advertising and the launch of a telehealth channel.

The company said it recorded more than 38,000 paid prescriptions during the quarter, a 51% increase from the second quarter. Total prescriptions and product revenue each grew by more than 50%, management said, while early fourth-quarter trends remained strong.

Chief Executive Officer Eef Schimmelpennink said consumer demand generation has emerged as a key driver of VIZZ adoption. LENZ expanded its “Tired of Reading Glasses” campaign to national television and introduced telehealth in July, providing consumers with an option to be evaluated by an independent licensed eye-care professional and, when appropriate, receive a prescription with home delivery.

Telehealth and advertising drive prescription growth

Chief Commercial Officer Shawn Olsson said the telehealth channel accounted for more than half of the incremental prescriptions added in the third quarter. He added that prescriptions increased across all distribution channels, including retail pharmacies and LENZ’s ePharmacy platform.

According to Olsson, television advertising had previously produced a four- to six-week delay before patients visited an eye-care office. With telehealth available, the company can now observe a correlation between advertising activity and telehealth prescriptions within a few days.

LENZ said VIZZ awareness among eye-care professionals exceeded 90%, with more than 15,000 prescribers. More than 75% of those prescribers have written prescriptions more than once, according to the company.

Since approval and launch through the third quarter, LENZ said it distributed more than 4 million VIZZ vials, including samples and commercial products, and sold about 110,000 packs. Based on 2026 prescription data from Symphony, the company said VIZZ held 94% of the U.S. presbyopia eye-drop market.

Management said telehealth users generally resemble patients using VIZZ through other channels. Olsson said telehealth patients are approximately evenly split between men and women and skew somewhat younger, toward the 45-to-55 age range. Most telehealth evaluations are completed asynchronously, after an initial screener is used to filter out patients considered unsuitable for the service.

On refill trends, Olsson said data from the ePharmacy channel, where LENZ has more than a year of experience, show that about 60% of patients purchase more than one month’s supply. Those patients purchased more than five packs annually on average, he said.

Company restructures around consumer marketing

LENZ announced a strategic reorganization that will shift its U.S. commercial emphasis toward consumer marketing while reducing its sales and medical teams. The company said the smaller teams will continue to support key opinion leaders, eye-care professionals and trade relationships.

Schimmelpennink said the reorganization reflects the company’s conclusion that physician awareness alone has not driven adoption at the pace it seeks, while consumer advertising paired with convenient access has produced the strongest growth response.

The company expects to reduce its organization to approximately 40 employees and lower operating expenses by more than 50%. LENZ is targeting 2027 operating expenses of approximately $70 million to $75 million, with more than 70% of projected spending allocated to consumer-driven sales and marketing.

Chief Financial Officer Dan Chevallard said substantially all restructuring activities are expected to be completed in the fourth quarter and are expected to result in approximately $5 million of one-time net restructuring charges. He said the full effect of the lower spending trajectory should be evident in the first quarter.

Olsson said LENZ will assess advertising investments based on consumer acquisition costs and returns across television, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and other channels. The company plans to increase spending in channels that demonstrate favorable returns while adjusting allocations where performance is weaker.

Third-quarter financial results and international activity

In addition to product revenue, LENZ recorded $800,000 in license revenue from recognition of a portion of an upfront payment received under its commercialization agreement with Arrotex Pharmaceuticals, signed late in the second quarter.

Cost of sales totaled $500,000 in the third quarter. The company said it continues to expect VIZZ to reach an approximately 90% product gross margin over time.

Selling, general and administrative expenses were $35.8 million, down 10% from the second quarter. Adjusted SG&A, excluding non-cash stock-based compensation and a $300,000 one-time non-cash charge, was approximately $31.5 million. Research and development expense remained zero.

LENZ reported a net loss of $31 million, or $0.99 per share on both a basic and diluted basis. It ended the quarter with approximately $197.3 million in cash equivalents and marketable securities.

The company said it has 11 regulatory submissions under review with commercial partners outside the United States and expects additional submissions and potential ex-U.S. regulatory approvals in coming months and quarters. Chevallard said LENZ is sharing lessons from the U.S. launch with international partners, while noting that commercial conditions vary by market.

CEO transition underway

Schimmelpennink will step down as president and chief executive officer effective Dec. 1, 2026, following nearly six years leading LENZ. He said the decision was personal and that he plans to remain involved as a strategic adviser.

Chevallard will become interim CEO upon Schimmelpennink’s departure. The board has begun a search for a permanent CEO, and Schimmelpennink said Chevallard is among the key candidates. The company did not provide a timeline for completing the search.

About LENZ Therapeutics (NASDAQ:LENZ)

LENZ Therapeutics, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing ophthalmic medicines for the treatment of presbyopia, the age-related loss of near vision. The company is headquartered in San Diego, California, and its programs are designed to provide an alternative to reading glasses and other corrective lenses.

LENZ's primary product candidate is aceclidine ophthalmic solution, developed under the names LNZ100 and VIZZ. The pupil-selective miotic is intended to improve near vision while preserving distance vision, without relying on the lens-shaping mechanism targeted by some other presbyopia treatments.

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