Actavis Not Done, Still Eyes "Couple Billion Dollar" Deals to Fill Pipeline
February 19, 2015
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
DUBLIN – Although Actavis plc is still digesting the $66 billion acquisition and merger with Allergan Inc. , CEO Brent Saunders said the company may still look to snack on a few smaller possible deals this year.
Any potential deal would have to fit the company’s current drug offerings, Saunders said. He did not say what companies may be on the menu. The deals would also be in the range of only a few billion dollars, rather than the ten of billions spent on Allergan or the $21.8 billion spent on acquiring Forest Laboratories, Inc. last year. In the past year Actavis has spent about $100 billion on acquisitions.
During a Wednesday conference call discussing the generic pharmaceutical manufacturer’s fourth quarter earnings, Saunders said revenue for the quarter increased 44 percent to $4.01 billion compared to the same quarter the previous year. Revenues for the year increased 48 percent to $12.8 billion. With the acquisition of Allergan set to be approved next month, Actavis is projecting revenues of about $15 billion for 2015.
Saunders said the company has nine pharmaceutical compounds in the areas of gastrointestinal, women’s health and anti-infectives that are expected to generate about $6 billion in sales. The compounds will fill “unmet medical needs” in specialty and primary care markets, Saunders said.
In portions of the company’s divisions, revenues increased as a result of previous acquisitions. North American revenues increased to $1.8 billion, up from $635 million the previous year, largely driven by the acquisition of Forest Laboratories, a company Saunders used to helm.
During its earning report Actavis also announced FDA approval of Namzaric, a fixed-dose combination (FDC) of memantine hydrochloride extended-release and donepezil hydrochloride for the treatment of moderate to severe dementia of the Alzheimer's. Additionally Actavis reported a positive recommendation by an FDA advisory committee for the anti-infective AVYCAZ. Actavis also filed a new drug application for the antipsychotic Cariprazine.
On Wednesday Actavis announced it will adopt the new corporate name of Allergan, following the acquisition of that company. The company will retain the Actavis name for select geographic regions and products, the company said. Saunders said uniting under the Allergan umbrella signals the “transformative” nature of the new partnership.
The Allergan deal will strengthen the Actavis pipeline in Ophthalmology, Neurology, Urology and Dermatology/Aesthetics, Saunders said during the investors call. He also said the company expects to spend about $1.7 billion on new research and development.
Allergan is the maker of Botox and other anti-wrinkle drugs, as well as its manufacturing of implants for breast augmentation. Sales of Botox were about $2 billion last year, one third of Allergan’s annual revenues and an increase of about 10 percent over sales in 2013.
In 2012 U.S-based Watson Pharmaceuticals bought Actavis and took the name of the acquired company. The company moved operations to Ireland from Switzerland in 2013 to take advantage of better tax rates.
BioSpace Temperature Poll
Will Job Cuts Continue? After a week that saw Quintiles, Sanofi and Actavis slashing almost a 1,000 biotech jobs, BioSpace wonders if the ax will continue to fall. Give us your thoughts about the sector's "streamlining" below.