The pharmaceutical company Shire has reported a drop in sales of haemophilia drugs, its biggest source of revenue since the $ 32bn acquisition of US firm Baxalta was completed in June.
The London-listed company’s third-quarter results disappointed the City. Shire shares closed down 2.6% at £45.28, the second day of falls, as investors also worried about the future pricing of haemophilia drugs in the US.
On Monday, Express Scripts, the largest manager of prescription drug plans for US companies, said it was looking at ways to manage the rising cost of haemophilia medicines.
Hillary Clinton is expected to tackle drug pricing if she wins the US presidential election. The Democratic candidate has repeatedly lambasted high pricing – describing that of EpiPen, drug firm Mylan’s emergency treatment of anaphylaxis, as “outrageous” and accusing entrepreneur Martin Shkreli of “price gouging” vital medicines.
Shire’s chief executive, Flemming Ørnskov, admitted that firms that managed prescription US drug plans wanted to “manage a number of categories more tightly” including haemophilia.
“We live in an environment, certainly during a presidential campaign, where price is in high focus,” he said.
“We can expect for all our categories, not just haemophilia, tighter management, but we have the programmes in place to make sure this does not affect our patients and has limited impact on our overall business. I remain incredibly confident about the outlook for haemophilia.”
Ørnskov said existing patients would not be forced to switch haemophilia medications as this would be considered too risky.
The Danish businessman was upbeat about Shire’s new drug for dry eye disease. Launched in August, Xiidra has already taken a 16% market share in the US. The eye drop is expected to generate annual sales of more than $ 1bn by 2020.
Shire said its integration of Illinois-based Baxalta, which specialises in treatments for rare blood conditions, cancer and immune system disorders, was ahead of schedule.
Sales of haemophilia medicines, also acquired from Baxalta, fell by 6% to $ 884m in the three months to 30 September, which Shire blamed on the timing of some large orders.
Overall, sales more than doubled to $ 3.3bn after the acquisition, but this was slightly lower than analysts had expected. Excluding Baxalta, revenues rose 12%.
Costs related to the takeover were also higher than Shire expected, partly because it has accelerated some factory closures in the US.
Shire is based in Dublin for tax purposes and run from Boston. As announced in the spring, it is pushing ahead with the closure of its Basingstoke office, where 270 people work.
The company wants to open an office in the Paddington, London, as its UK commercial base, so it can be “closer to the heart of life science communities”. There has been speculation that some staff may be moved to Dublin.
Shire shares fall after reporting drop in sales of haemophilia drugs
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