Mallinckrodt Amitiza to stay with branded business after spin-off

The company said that it believed the new generics company, which will be called Mallinckrodt Inc, would emerge with less debt than previously anticipated without the Amitiza drug. It also cited the generic unit’s strong performance.

U.S: Mallinckrodt Plc said on Tuesday it would spin off its generic drugs business as a separate unit and keep constipation medicine Amitiza as part of its specialty branded drugs business, which will be renamed as Sonorant Therapeutics Plc.

The company had said in December it was open to a sale of the generics business or would spin it off in the second half of 2019. It had said Amitiza would be part of the spun-off unit.

Shares of Mallinckrodt were down 6.3% in noon trading, as concerns related to its Acthar gel continued to weigh on the stock.

Mallinckrodt shares have lost about 30% of their value since the drugmaker said last week it was suing U.S. health agencies over changes to how Medicaid rebates are calculated for its Acthar gel, which is used to treat multiple sclerosis and infantile spasms.

“Acthar remains front and center to the Mallinckrodt debate and we believe that investors may be viewing the move of Amitiza back to brands as management looking to offset potential negative impact from an Acthar CMS ruling,” SVB Leerink analyst Ami Fadia said.

The company said on Tuesday it believed the new generics company, which will be called Mallinckrodt Inc, would emerge with less debt than previously anticipated without the Amitiza drug. It also cited the generic unit’s strong performance.

“While we understand this short-term protective move, this only aggravates the longer-term cliff for Specialty Brands — with Ofirmev and Amitiza seeing generic entry by 2021,” Stifel analyst Annabel Samimy said, referring to emerging competition for Amitiza and the company’s injection to treat pain.

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