Lundbeck sales slide as generic competition bites
pharmafile | November 6, 2014 | News story | Sales and Marketing | Ebixa, Lundbeck, Q3, Xenazine, generic, onfi, sabril
Lundbeck’s sales fell dramatically in the third quarter of 2014 as it struggles with expiring patents, although several of its new products did see strong growth.
The Danish firm says that revenue was five million Danish kroner ($840,000) down from 267 million in the same period last year.
“Lundbeck is investing significantly in product launches and in the late stage development pipeline while being in the midst of a transition period,” the firm says in a statement.
“This is a period with an unusual number of variables which elevates the uncertainties for the company. These variables include market access processes in various countries for Lundbeck’s new products, launch uptake, timing of generic erosion as well as slope of erosion curves and development in exchange rates.”
Revenues fell by 8% to 3.18 billion kroner ($534 million), down from 3.44 billion, partly due to the loss of patents on Lundbeck’s biggest selling-drug, antidepressant Cipralex (escitalopram). Cipralex saw a 33% decline in sales from 1,464 million kroner to 983 million kroner.
Alzheimer’s treatment Ebixa (memantine) also saw its sales eroded by generic competition in Europe, falling by 60% to 136 million kroner in sales in the region.
This loss was partly offset by a 40% growth in the firm’s large range of new products. Key drivers included: Sabril (vigabatrin), up 42% in sales to 186 million kroner; Onfi (clobazam), up 40% to 219 million kroner; and Xenazine (tetrabenazine), up 27% to 440 million kroner.
However, Lundbeck notes that the increased launch costs of these new products also drove the decline in earnings. The firm’s president and chief executive Ulf Wiinberg, says: “In the period we have focused on successful execution of our new product launches in the US, Europe and in International Markets.
“We are in the middle of our most extensive launch efforts in the history of Lundbeck, and have until now had 25 launches of new products, and expect to have more than 50 launches during the next 12 months.”
The company is confident that its new schizophrenia drug brexpiprazole, co-developed with Otsuka and currently under review by the FDA, will be approved for sale in 2015. It is also hoping to launch Abilify Maintena (aripiprazole) and Carbella (Intravenous carbamazepine) next year.
Lundbeck says that it still expects full-year revenues to be around 13.5 billion kroner ($2.2 billion) for 2014, with new products continuing to offset generic erosion – although this will still be down from last year’s revenues of 15.3 billion kroner.
George Underwood
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