Piece by piece, AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) continues to divest the rights of Seroquel and Seroquel XR (Seroquel), a prescription drug for schizophrenia and bipolar, in various major markets. It used to be a big seller for the pharmaceutical giant over the years but has since declined considerably after the FDA approved a generic version of the drug in May 2017.
In 2017, Seroquel recorded sales of $332 million, representing a year-over-year decline of 55%. As a result, AstraZeneca has found buyers to take the drug off their portfolio. However, it also gives AstraZeneca the opportunity to focus on its three main therapy areas of oncology, cardiovascular, renal & metabolism, and respiratory.
The latest deal in that venture came this past week, where AstraZeneca sold the commercial rights to Seroquel in the United States and Canada to Cheplapharm Arzneimittel GmbH, a family-owned pharmaceutical company in Germany. AstraZeneca will get $35 million upfront with future sales-contingent payments of up to $6 million for the deal. In 2018, Seroquel generated sales of $115 million in the United States and Canada. AstraZeneca will continue to manufacture and supply Seroquel to Cheplapharm during a transition period.
If that deal gave you deja-vu, it’s because Cheplapharm bought the European and Russian rights to the drug in late October for $178 million. The drug lost patent protection in those markets as well.
Back in May 2018, Luye Pharma Group Ltd. (HKG: 2186) acquired the rights in the United Kingdom, China, Brazil, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, South Korea, Thailand, Argentina, Malaysia and South Africa. The deal will cost Luye $260 million upfront, with a total consideration of $538 million in upfront and potential milestone payments. In the fiscal year 2017, Seroquel generated annual sales of $18.8 million in the markets covered by this agreement.
