What happened
Shares of Lannett Company (NYSE: LCI) were jumping 12.1% higher as of 11:35 a.m. EDT on Thursday. The nice gain came after the drugmaker announced a deal to distribute Cediprof's levothyroxine sodium tablets.
So what
Lannett stated that it plans to start distributing Cediprof's generic drug in the U.S. market on Aug. 3, 2020. It's an interim agreement, though, which ends on July 31, 2022. At that point, a 10-year supply and distribution agreement between the two companies takes effect.
Image source: Getty Images.
How big is this distribution deal for Lannett? U.S. sales of the hypothyroidism drug, sold under the brand names Levoxyl and Synthroid, totaled around $2.3 billion during the 12-month period ending in May 2020, based on market data compiled by IQVIA. Sales of the generic version will be lower, but levothyroxine sodium should still boost Lannett's revenue by a significant amount.
The agreement with Cediprof provided much-needed good news for Lannett. Earlier this week, the company announced staff cuts of around 8.5% of its total workforce. The pharmaceutical stock was down more than 40% year to date prior to today's gain.
Now what
Lannett hopes to increase its revenue through new product launches. Today's announcement will help the company achieve this goal. Lannett also expects to file for approval of a generic version of respiratory drug Advair Diskus later this year.
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