Pozen (NASDAQ:POZN) has sold the U.S. royalty rights for migraine drug Treximet to Canada’s national pension fund, CPPIB Credit Investments in a $75 million deal.
The terms of the deal give the Chapel Hill, North Carolina pharmaceutical company a 20 percent interest in any royalties received by the pension fund starting April 1, 2018, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Treximet is marketed in the United States by Pozen drug partner GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK). GlaxoSmithKline holds the license to develop and market Trexmet in the United States, and Pozen has the right to develop and market a lower dose of the drug outside the country, according to Reuters. Pozen also receives royalties based on net sales of Treximet from GSK and starting in January 2010, that royalty rate more than tripled to 18 percent, according to Pozen’s website.
When Investment Rhymes with Canada
Canada has a proud history of achievement in the areas of science and technology, and the field of biomanufacturing and life sciences is no exception.
For the first nine months of 2011, revenues from royalties on Treximet were of $12.2 million, according to the company’s third quarter earnings report, making it the best money earner in its drug arsenal.
Despite the end of regulatory exclusivity for the drug in April, Pozen has successfully fought numerous companies developing generic versions of Treximet in a court case against Par Pharmaceutical (NYSE:PRX), Alphapharm and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (NYSE:RDY), allowing Treximet to continue without generic competition until its patents expire; two expire in 2017 and one expires in 2025.
Pozen could not be reached for comment.
A spokeswoman for the pension fund said: “CPPIB’s acquisition of the royalty interest in Pozen Inc.’s prescription drug Treximet is part of an Intellectual Property strategy that the organization launched in 2010. Royalty investing can provide attractive risk-adjusted returns for our fund. To date, we have completed intellectual property transactions totaling approximately US$350 million. We will continue to look for investment opportunities in this area.”
