Shares in Bristol-Myers Squibb were on the up again yesterday, as investor enthusiasm was given a further lift by news that the company has sealed a deal with Swedish group Medivir for the development and commercialisation of the latter’s HIV candidate MIV-170.
The move will allow B-MS to tap into yet another promising HIV programme, and will see the firms work together to develop MIV-170, a preclinical non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor, as part of an antiretroviral drug regimen for adults with HIV-1.
Medivir will receive an upfront fee of $7.54 million from B-MS, but also stands to gain up to $97 million from the deal in developmental and regulatory milestone payments, as well as double-digit royalties on sales of the product if it makes it to market. B-MS has assumed responsibility for the agent’s global development and sale for all countries except the Nordic region, where Medivir has retained the rights.
The US drugmaker’s shares closed up 2% at $24.81 on the New York Stock Exchange last night, after another good day for the group’s stock which had climbed almost 4% on previous day, following the announcement of Chief Executive Peter Dolan’s departure.
