Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions). You have a question from the line of Kim Lee of Pacific Growth Equities. Please proceed.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Good morning.
Steve Davis
Hi Kim.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Hi. A quick question, again, can you repeat what the weighted shares outstanding you expect to be in 2008?
Tom Pitler
It's 54 million.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
54 million, okay.
Steve Davis
Yes, that's for the full year, Kim.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Okay. So that's changed from the guidance previously of like 57 million, I believe?
Steve Davis
That may be correct. It will be a function of the time of the year that we convert the preferred shares that were issued into common, and we expect that to probably be in the middle of July. So that's correct. That's moved out by about a month, so.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Mid-July, okay. Mid-July is when you expect the conversion?
Steve Davis
That's correct.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Okay, great. And do you expect R&D to come down a bit from Q1 of this year?
Steve Davis
We do. Our expenses in the first quarter reflected, of course, getting two studies off the ground in Parkinson's and RLS, and I think for the full year, we'll expect R&D expenses probably to be more in the $40 million range for the full year. So, as you can tell, the first quarter will be somewhat higher than that.
Kim Lee - Pacific Growth Equities
Okay, great. Thanks a lot.
Operator
Your next question will be from the line of Russell McAllister of Merriman Curhan Ford.
Russell McAllister - Merriman Curhan Ford & Co.
Hi. Good morning. Thanks for taking the question. Steve, I was wondering, as you advance your four core programs, what you're thinking about in terms of potential licensing or partnership opportunities with those compounds down the road? At what point do you think you would be actively pursuing that, with whom, etcetera? Thank you.
Steve Davis
Yes, sure. Thanks, Russ. You know, I would say it varies from program to program, and of course, I hate to appear to be dodging the question, but it's really a matter of data that will drive that. But let me see if I can add a little bit of color to that.
So, on insomnia, we began talking to partners in earnest just after Labor Day of last year, after we had the Phase 2 data, and we've had discussions with a number of partners. The study that we set up to do is one that we would consider kind of a pivotal partnering study. It is the study that we think will enable us to define the full value of that program, and so, we'll certainly continue discussions on the insomnia front. We'll get data from that program and then determine whether we think that's an appropriate time to partner or not.
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