Comments
The stock of drug research company Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company (SPARC) has gained about 16 per cent last week. The stock has more than doubled since January this year. The approval of the company’s anti-epileptic drug by the US drug regulator aided the rally.
SPARC announced approval of its new drug Elepsia XR (extended release) by the US Food and Drug Administration. Elepsia XR, which is used to treat partial onset seizures in epilepsy patients aged 12 and above is an improvised version of the US-based UCB Pharmaceuticals’ Keppra XR. Elepsia XR, developed using SPARC’s proprietary Wrap Matrix technology, has been proved to be less toxic and, at the same time, more efficient than Keppra.
SPARC will leverage Sun Pharma’s large distribution network in the US to sell this drug. However, Elepsia XR being a novel drug, switching prescriptions from the off-patent Keppra may take some time. Elepsia XR’s peak annual sales is expected to be around $50 million. The company reported revenues of ₹113 crore for the nine-month period ended December 2014,9 per cent lower than the same period last year. Against a profit of about ₹33 crore recorded during the April-December 2013 period, SPARC reported a loss of ₹30 crore for the first three quarters of this fiscal.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.