his former company, Auxilium, was acquired last fall by Endo Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ENDP]]) in a $2.6 billion cash and stock deal. Prior to Auxilium, Adams held chief executive posts at Kos Pharmaceuticals, Sepracor, and Durham, NC-based Inspire Pharmaceuticals, leading each of those companies to acquisitions.
While Pozen wooed Adams, Adams was already in separate discussions with Tribute Pharmaceuticals about taking the helm of the Canadian company. Tribute had an interest in expanding in the United States and saw Adams as someone who could help, he says. As discussions progressed with both companies, he says the prospect of combining Pozen and Tribute emerged as an “exciting proposition.”
Tribute’s portfolio of commercialized products already includes cardiovascular drugs. The company’s business model has been to acquire or license products that are already approved, or are in late-stage development and close to commercialization. For example, Tribute added another drug to its portfolio in late May by acquiring U.S. rights to Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ fenofibric acid (Fibricor), a drug approved to reduce cholesterol in the blood.
Tribute is small, employing just 44, according to SEC filings. Pozen is even smaller, with headcount whittled to 12, down from a peak of 38 in 2005 when the company still spent heavily in research and development.
Don’t expect that R&D effort to return anytime soon. Although Pozen’s research ambitions once included aspirin-based cancer treatments, Adams says the near-term focus is selling the drugs in hand. Tribute brings to Pozen something the North Carolina company lacks: sales staff. Those employees will sell Yosprala (assuming it’s approved) in North America, while also selling Pozen’s migraine drug in Canada, where the company still holds commercialization rights.
Shortly after Pozen named Adams its new CEO, the company also announced the formation of an Ireland subsidiary. If Pozen and Tribute shareholders approve the transaction, the Ireland entity will become headquarters for the newly formed Aralez. Adams acknowledges that the move will give the company a lower tax rate. Those tax savings are secondary to having operations outside of North America that can support Yosprala’s global launch, he says.
The deal making is not done. The Tribute deal was accompanied by commitments of up to $300 million from a syndicate of investors led by investment firm Deerfield. In addition to supporting the Yosprala launch, that money is also designated for acquisitions of late-stage products or companies that fit the new cardiovascular focus.
Pozen plans on a 2016 Yosprala launch. The manufacturing issues that concern the FDA can be resolved, Adams says. But as a precaution, the company is lining up an alternate manufacturer. Adams says that combining Yosprala with Tribute’s cardiovascular drugs, plus acquiring new heart drugs, can make Aralez stand out as a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on cardiovascular treatments.
“I’ve run four other public companies before this, relatively successfully,” he says. “What I’ve learned is it’s always good to have an anchor therapeutic position.”
Photo courtesy of Flickr user cpradi via a Creative Commons license.
