Perrigo Co. (PRGO) has acquired the exclusive U.S. rights to
sell and distribute over-the-counter generic versions of the
popular allergy drug Allegra.
The store-brand pharmaceutical and nutritional products maker
didn't detail how it obtained the rights to sell the drug, and
Perrigo representatives weren't immediately available for
comment.
Perrigo said it now has the rights to sell and distribute
over-the-counter fexofenadine HCl 180-milligram and 60-milligram
tablets as well as fexofenadine HCl 60-milligram and
pseudoephedrine 120-milligram tablets--the generic versions of
Sanofi-Aventis SA's (SNY, SAN.FR) Allegra and Allegra D-12
products, which are used to treat seasonal allergies. Teva
Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA) currently has prescription
approval for those products.
The rights to many generic versions of blockbuster drugs are set
to come up for grabs soon as patents expire--a situation that has
left drug makers looking for ways to bolster their product
pipelines to replace lost revenue.
Perrigo in April said its fiscal third-quarter profit rose by
one-third as the company's sales and margins rose.
Shares of Perrigo closed at $59.30 on Monday and were inactive
premarket. The stock has more than doubled in the past year.
-By Nathan Becker, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2855;
nathan.becker@dowjones.com