Tuesday, biotechnology company OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OSIP) reported a 17% increase in sales of its flagship product Tarceva in the United States and abroad during the fourth quarter, sending the share price up more than 5% on the Nasdaq.
Presently, Tarceva is approved for treating non-small cell lung cancer patients whose cancer has spread despite chemotherapy. It is co-marketed by OSI and Roche Holding AG (RHHBY.PK).
The company said fourth quarter sales of Tarceva in the U.S., as informed by its collaborator Roche, rose by about $20 million or 17% to about $137 million compared to the same period last year.
Quarterly net sales outside the U.S. were approximately $196 million, an increase of about 17% over the same period last year.
Global net sales of Tarceva for 2009 are approximately $1.2 billion, up 7% compared to the previous year. Net sales in the United States totaled about $479 million, while net sales outside of the U.S. amounted to approximately $724 million.
During mid-December last year, OSI Pharma and Genentech, Inc., a wholly owned member of the Roche Group, said that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended against approval of the daily pill Tarceva for first-line maintenance use in people whose cancer has not progressed following chemotherapy. The agency is expected to make a decision whether to approve Tarceva for the use by January 18, 2010.
For 2010, the Melville, New-York-based company currently expects overall revenue percentage growth rate to be in the mid-teens. Presently, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to record revenues of $470.96 million for 2010.
The company plans to announce full fourth quarter financial results in its year end earnings call.
The company presented its fourth quarter and year end Tarceva sales at the 28th Annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, California.
OSIP rose $1.62 or 5.06% and closed Tuesday's regular trading at $33.61 on volume of about 1.77 million shares. After hours, OSIP declined $0.91 or 2.71% and traded at $32.70. The stock has traded between $27.01 and $43.00 during the past year.
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