Glaukos Corporation Reports Strong First Quarter 2025 Financial Results, Driven by Record Glaucoma Sales and Sustained Pipeline Progress
Glaukos Corporation (NYSE: GKOS), a leading ophthalmic pharmaceutical and medical technology company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of glaucoma, corneal disorders, and retinal diseases, today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2025. The company posted record revenue growth and demonstrated continued progress across its strategic initiatives and product pipeline.
Financial Highlights for Q1 2025
Glaukos delivered a particularly strong performance in the first quarter of 2025, achieving record net sales of $106.7 million, representing a 25% year-over-year increase on a reported basis and a 26% increase on a constant currency basis. This robust growth reflects continued momentum across the company’s glaucoma franchise and steady progress in global execution.
Revenue from the glaucoma portfolio reached a new milestone, with record net sales of $88.1 million, up 31% year-over-year. Within the U.S. market, glaucoma sales reached $59.1 million, marking a 41% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024. These figures underscore Glaukos’ deepening market penetration, strong customer adoption, and expanding procedural volumes in the U.S. and internationally.
Glaukos also reported a gross margin of approximately 77% in Q1 2025, up slightly from 76% in the same period last year. On a non-GAAP basis, gross margin was approximately 82%, compared to 83% in the prior-year period. These stable margins reflect strong pricing discipline, continued manufacturing efficiency, and a favorable product mix.
CEO Commentary
“Our record first quarter results reflect a strong start to the year and sustained growth acceleration in our business driven by successful global execution of our key strategic plans,” said Thomas Burns, Glaukos chairman and chief executive officer. “We continue to successfully advance our robust pipeline of novel, dropless platform technologies designed to meaningfully advance the standard of care and improve outcomes for patients suffering from chronic eye diseases. Our results reinforce our confidence in the long-term trajectory of our business as we pursue new innovations to serve patients and providers worldwide.”
Expense Overview and Operational Efficiency
During the first quarter of 2025, selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses totaled $70.7 million, representing a 14% increase compared to $62.0 million in the same period in 2024. On a non-GAAP basis, SG&A expenses also increased 15% year-over-year. The increase reflects investments in commercial infrastructure, salesforce expansion, and continued support for international operations and product launches.
Research and development (R&D) expenses, both on a GAAP and non-GAAP basis, rose 5% to $32.4 million in Q1 2025, compared to $30.7 million in Q1 2024. This increase underscores Glaukos’ continued commitment to innovation and its expanding clinical development programs targeting multiple chronic ophthalmic diseases.
Despite higher operating expenses to support growth and development, Glaukos significantly improved its operational loss profile. The GAAP loss from operations narrowed to $20.7 million in Q1 2025 from $39.1 million in Q1 2024. On a non-GAAP basis, the operating loss was $15.2 million, compared to $32.8 million in the prior-year quarter. These results reflect the company’s increasing leverage as sales expand and investments begin to yield operational efficiencies.
Net Loss Narrows as Performance Improves
Glaukos reported a net loss of $18.1 million, or ($0.32) per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2025, compared to a net loss of $40.8 million, or ($0.82) per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2024. On a non-GAAP basis, the net loss was $12.6 million, or ($0.22) per diluted share, compared to a non-GAAP net loss of $34.6 million, or ($0.70) per diluted share, in the prior-year period.
It’s important to note that first-quarter 2024 results included a significant acquired in-process research and development (IPR&D) charge of $11.7 million, which added approximately ($0.24) per diluted share to the non-GAAP loss in that period. The absence of a similar one-time expense in the first quarter of 2025 contributed to the year-over-year improvement in earnings.
Healthy Balance Sheet with No Debt
Glaukos exited the quarter with a strong liquidity position. As of March 31, 2025, the company reported approximately $303.4 million in cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and restricted cash, with no outstanding debt. This healthy balance sheet provides Glaukos with the flexibility to continue investing in strategic growth initiatives, including R&D, commercial expansion, and potential business development opportunities.
Reaffirmed Full-Year 2025 Revenue Guidance
Glaukos reaffirmed its previously issued full-year 2025 net sales guidance of $475 million to $485 million, reflecting continued confidence in the company’s growth trajectory and commercial execution. This guidance is based on current foreign exchange rates and includes anticipated contributions from existing and expected product launches.
Beyond the strong financial performance, Glaukos continues to make significant strides in advancing its innovative pipeline. The company is focused on developing a range of dropless therapeutic platforms, targeting chronic diseases such as glaucoma, corneal ectasia, and dry eye disease. These platforms aim to improve patient compliance and clinical outcomes by eliminating the need for daily eye drop regimens.
Key pipeline candidates include iDose TR, a micro-invasive intraocular drug delivery system for the treatment of glaucoma, and GLK-301, a novel investigational treatment for keratoconus. Glaukos is also expanding its global regulatory and clinical efforts to bring these novel therapies to additional markets, including Europe and Asia-Pacific.
“Our mission remains clear – to transform the treatment of chronic eye diseases through groundbreaking science and patient-focused innovation,” Burns added. “We are encouraged by the reception our technologies are receiving from clinicians, and we are energized by the opportunity to help millions of patients who are underserved by traditional treatment approaches.”
Investor Communications and Webcast Details
To discuss the results and provide further insights into the company’s strategic outlook, Glaukos will host a conference call and webcast today at 1:30 p.m. PT (4:30 p.m. ET). Interested parties may access the live webcast on the Investor Relations section of the company’s website at http://investors.glaukos.com. To participate via telephone, U.S. callers can dial 800-715-9871, and international participants can dial 646-307-1963 using Conference ID 5255602.
A replay of the webcast will be available on the company’s website shortly after the conclusion of the call.
Quarterly Summary Resource
Glaukos has also released a companion document titled “Quarterly Summary”, which is available on the company’s Investor Relations webpage under the “Financials & Filings – Quarterly Results” section. This summary is intended to serve as a convenient reference for investors, providing key financial metrics, strategic updates, and outlook commentary.
Notably, Glaukos has shifted the format of its quarterly conference calls to prioritize a Q&A-driven session, with the goal of enhancing the clarity and efficiency of its earnings communications. Management encourages stakeholders to review the Quarterly Summary document prior to the call for optimal engagement.
