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Thursday, August 20, 2015

Valeant to purchase "female Viagra" maker Sprout Pharma, (NYSE: VRX), (TSE: VRX.TO)

Canada's Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc said on Thursday it would purchase Sprout Pharmaceuticals, whose drug this week became the first approved treatment for low sexual desire in women, for about $1 billion plus milestone payments.Sprout's controversial pink libido pill, Addyi, was approved on Tuesday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for pre-menopausal women, after being rejected twice over concerns about its effectiveness and side-effects. Addyi, popularly known as the "female Viagra", carries a strong warning about potentially dangerous low blood pressure and fainting, especially when taken with alcohol, raising some doubts about its commercial prospects.Raghuram Selvaraju, managing director of brokerage H.C. Wainwright & Co, has estimated peak sales of $100 million a year for Addyi. Viagra - a "blockbuster" in drug industry parlance - generated sales of about $1.7 billion in 2014.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company. Shares of VRX remained unchanged at $244.91. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $111.41 and as high as $263.81. On average, 1653760 shares of VRX exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 950.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company. Shares of VRX fell by 1.73% or $-5.65/share to $320.22. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $123.32 and as high as $347.84. On average, 418873 shares of VRX.TO exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 362965.



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