Acrux inks licensing deal with Eli Lilly
Aussie pharmaceutical company, Acrux Limited (ACR) said it had entered an agreement with US giant Eli Lilly to commercialise its male testosterone replacement drug, AXIRON. Under the terms of the deal, Acrux said it was in line to receive up to US$335 million in milestone payments, plus royalties on worldwide sales.
The agreement remains subject to US FDA approval of the drug, however Acrux’s chairman Ross Dobinson was upbeat on the company’s prospects.
“Acrux was founded as a spin-off from Monash University a decade ago, and can now anticipate profitability, dividends and a suite of products in global pharmaceutical markets’’ Mr Dobinson said.
In detail, for the rights, Acrux said it would receive an upfront payment of US$50 million, plus US$3 million for manufacturing assets. A further US$195 million is possible from royalty and milestone payments.
From this result, Acrux is forecasting a maiden profit after tax for the year ended 30 June 2010 of between $44 million and $48 million.
The pharmaceutical company also said that it was hoping to pay its maiden dividend this year.
At 1031 AEDT, Acrux shares were up a modest 4c to $2.42.
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