Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has posted a $452 million net loss for the second quarter, hit by charges connected to the $1.6 billion compensation it needs to pay Pfizer and Takeda for patent infringement of Protonix (pantoprazole).
Revenues dipped 1.4% to $4.92 billion, hurt by a decline in revenues of generic medicines in the USA and Europe, and exchange rate fluctuations elsewhere, primarily in Japan, which had a negative impact of $55 million on sales. The figures were also hurt by the absence of royalties related to Teva’s generic equivalent of Pfizer’s cholesterol blockbuster Lipitor (atorvastatin).
The Israeli company’s branded business was again dominated by Copaxone (glatiramer acetate) as the multiple sclerosis blockbuster brought in $1.07 billion, an increase of 9%. However, Teva is steeling itself for the prospect of generic competition although it is appealing a decision from a US court that last week invalidated certain patents.
That decision means generic versions of Copaxone, notably Momenta Pharmaceuticals and partner Sandoz’ copy, could hit the market in May 2014, a year sooner than expected. The company is also facing competition from oral MS drugs, notably Biogen Idec’s Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) but Teva is hoping that its three-times-a-week formulation of Copaxone will be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration early next year.
As for its other products, sales of Azilect (rasagiline) for Parkinson’s disease reached $87 million, down 8%, while generic competition hammered the sleep disorder drug Provigil (modanafil) as it sank 60% to just $19 million. Global respiratory revenues were up 8% at $226 million, while Teva’s women’s health business had turnover of $107 million, a decrease of 4%.
