Shares of highly rated drugmakers Celgene (CELG), Lannett (LCI) and Akorn (AKRX) rose Monday, while a pair of small drug companies plunged on negative reports. Celgene and its partner Acceleron Pharma (XLRN) said the Food and Drug Administration granted fast-track designation to luspatercept to treat patients who have the blood disease beta thalassemia as a result of transfusions or other causes. The FDA’s fast-track status allows a company to
Top-rated drugmaker Akorn (AKRX) was down 20% in morning trading Monday as analysts weighed in on Friday evening’s news that it would again restate its 2014 earnings. Early Monday the company also announced a series of new executive appointments. The Street had assumed that the accounting problem, first revealed when the company filed for an extension of its 10-K report on March 2, had been resolved when Akorn issued a modest downward revision on
Akorn (AKRX) late Friday said it would have to restate its 2014 financials, estimating that it overstated revenue and pre-tax income from continuing operations by $20 million to $35 million. Akorn shares fell 14.4% to 47.28 in after-hours action. Akorn said the “errors related to the understatementments of rebates and other sales allowances,” mostly from companies and products acquired last year. The drugmaker also named Terry Allison to its board