The deal gives Amryt a toehold in the United States with the previously approved Juxtapid, a treatment for the inherited cholesterol disorder homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia.
Ireland-based Amryt Pharma will expand its rare disease portfolio with the acquisition of Aegerion Pharmaceuticals to gain its two approved products, Lojuxta (lomitapide) and Myalept (metraleptin).
Amryt said the deal for Aegerion, a subsidiary of Novelion Therapeutics, will transform the company into a global player in the orphan disease market by providing it with toeholds in both the United States, as well as Europe. The deal also provides Amryt with $136.5 million of 2018 built-in revenues, the company said. Aegerion holds the U.S. rights to lomitapide, which is used to treat the inherited cholesterol disorder homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia,” Pharmaphorum reported. In the United States, lomitapide is marketed as Juxtapid. Amryt holds the European rights to lomitapide, where it is sold under the brand name Lojuxta.
The deal also brings Myalept into the pipeline of Amryt. Myalept is used for generalized lipodystrophy, a genetic disorder where the body is unable to produce and maintain healthy fat tissue.
In its announcement, Amryt said this morning’s deal will put the company “on the path to creating a rare and orphan disease company with a diversified offering of multiple commercial and development stage assets and will provide it with scale to support further growth.”
Amryt plans to raise $60 million in equity to finance the deal. Amryt said the acquisition provides a value of $190.7 million and $120 million for Aegerion and itself, respectively. The combined companies will maintain a global headquarters in Dublin and U.S. headquarters will be located in Boston. Aegerion’s balance sheet is to be restructured through a US Chapter11 process prior to Amryt acquiring Aegerion, the companies said this morning. Aegerion will continue to operate as normal during the Chapter 11 process. Aegerion had run into some trouble due to a criminal investigation of its marketing practices of Juxtapid. Aegerion’s drug had been approved to treat patients with a rare genetic disease called homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. However, the government charged Aegerion with urging prescribers to provide the drug to other high cholesterol patients who did not have HoFH. Between 2012 and 2015 the government said Aegerion pushed the drug as a treatment for high cholesterol. Additionally, the government charged that the company did not provide prescribers with information about the safety risks associated with the drug. The company agreed to pay $35 million to resolve criminal and civil charges.
Amryt Chief Executive Officer Joe Wiley said the company has a unique insight into Aegerion due to its European marketing of Lojuxta, as well as the fact that many members of its senior management team had previously worked with Aegerion.
“The acquisition of Aegerion accelerates our ambition to become a global leader in treating rare conditions to help improve the lives of patients where there is a high unmet medical need. By delivering two substantial revenue-generating products and an enhanced pipeline of promising development opportunities, this will significantly strengthen our growth in highly attractive markets globally,” Wiley said in a statement.
Wiley said the company can drive strong growth with Lojuxta on a global scale now that it has the U.S. rights. “This transformational deal provides Amryt with the financial flexibility to fully execute our medium-term growth plans, and is expected to deliver significant shareholder returns,” he added.
