Nektar, Royalty Pharma sales and marketing update
Nektar agreed to sell its royalty rights to anemia drug Mircera methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta and autoimmune drug Cimzia certolizumab pegol to Royalty Pharma for $124 million. Nektar said it will use the money to repay part of its $215 million in convertible debt. The company received $8.3 million in total royalties from sales of the two drugs last year. Royalty Pharma is eligible to receive payments of up to $3 million in 2013 and $7 million in 2014 if worldwide sales of Mircera do not reach an undisclosed threshold. Morgan Stanley advised Nektar.
Nektar receives royalties on the products under a pair of deals from 2000. UCB Group (Euronext:UCB, Brussels, Belgium) markets Cimzia in the EU and U.S. for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and in the U.S for Crohn's disease. Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY, Basel, Switzerland) markets Mircera in Europe to treat anemia associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (Tokyo: 4519, Tokyo, Japan), which is majority owned by Roche, markets Mircera in Japan. ...