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HomeHealthcareAlcon's $770M acquisition of Aerie Pharma boosts its glaucoma business again

Alcon’s $770M acquisition of Aerie Pharma boosts its glaucoma business again


Alcon is Acquisition of Aerie Pharma $770 million, the third deal in the past two years to bring a commercialized glaucoma product into the eye care giant’s portfolio.

Geneva, Switzerland-based Alcon will pay $15.25 per share in Aerie, a 37% premium to the stock’s closing price on Monday, according to financial terms released late Monday.Eagle’s Nest listed $10 per share in 2013. Its shares peaked above $73 in 2018, buoyed by sales expectations for its glaucoma drug. In the years since, however, the company’s shares have mostly fallen.

Glaucoma is an eye disease in which fluid builds up causing increased pressure in the eye, which damages the optic nerve. This damage can lead to loss of vision and eventually blindness. The damage cannot be reversed, but drugs can be used to slow the progression of the disease and prevent vision loss. Standard glaucoma treatments include prostaglandins, older drugs that increase fluid outflow and lower eye pressure.

Aerie, a Durham, North Carolina-based company that spun out of Duke University in 2005, tackles glaucoma in a different way. The company’s drug targets the trabecular meshwork, the eye’s main fluid drain. Netarsudil, the active ingredient in Aerie’s drug Rhopressa, is a small molecule designed to increase fluid flow from this drain. Doctors often prescribe this Aerie drug with a prostaglandin or non-prostaglandin analog drug to achieve greater reductions in eye pressure.

Launched in 2018, Rhopressa is a once-daily eye drop. Aerie’s second commercial product, another eye drop called Rocklatan, launched in 2019. It pairs Rhopressa’s active ingredient with latanoprost, a prostaglandin analog. Rhopressa and Rocklatan posted revenue of $112.1 million in 2021, up nearly 35% from the previous year. Aerie expects sales of its glaucoma drug to reach $130 million to $140 million in 2022.

The Aerie pipeline also includes AR-15512, which is being developed for the treatment of dry eye. The active ingredient in this drug candidate is designed to activate ion channels that regulate tear production and blink rate. The company says this approach can also reduce eye discomfort by promoting a cooling sensation. AR-15512 is currently in Phase 3 testing. Projects in the early stages of development cover retinal diseases and ocular inflammation. With the Alcon acquisition, Aerie will join a global eye care company with additional resources to market its glaucoma drugs and develop drug candidates in its pipeline.

“We have a 75-year history of focusing on the eye and bringing proven expertise in development and commercial execution,” Alcon CEO David Endicott said in a prepared statement. “Aerie is a natural fit with the market and pipeline products and R&D capabilities that provide the infrastructure needed to expand our ophthalmic drug business.”

Alcon, Novartis’ former eye care division, spun out Become an independent company in 2019. Its business is divided into two segments, Surgery and Vision Care. Last year, revenue from surgery was $4.7 billion, while sales of vision care, which includes products to treat glaucoma and other eye conditions, were $3.5 billion. Recent acquisitions of Alcon have focused on adding new eye drop products.

Alcon paid $355 million last year Acquired from Novartis In 2013, the FDA approved U.S. rights to Simbrinza, an eye drop used to treat glaucoma. The drug brings another approach to glaucoma by reducing the amount of fluid the eye produces. In May, Alcon agreed Buy Eysuvis, Kala Pharmaceuticals’ corticosteroids, which were approved by the FDA last year for the treatment of dry eye disease. Alcon paid $60 million upfront for the eye drops. Glaucoma is now also part of the company’s surgical division.Earlier this year, Alcon completed Acquired Ivantis for $475 milliona company that has commercialized the Hydrus micro-stent, an implantable device used to lower intraocular pressure and treat mild-to-moderate glaucoma.

The boards of directors of both Alcon and Aerie approved the acquisition. It still requires Aerie shareholder approval and customary regulatory clearance. The two companies expect to close the transaction in the fourth quarter of this year.

Photos by Flickr users Rakesh Rocky through Creative Commons license



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