Horizon Pharma to buy Raptor Phartmaceutical in $800m deal

Past year the company Raptor received regulatory approval for the expanded use of Procysbi (cysteamine bitartrate), the company’s delayed-release capsules used to treat children ages two to six with nephropathic cystinosis, a life-threatening metabolic lysosomal storage disorder that causes toxic accumulation of cystine in all cells, tissues, and organs in the body. Finally, Citigroup Inc. downgraded shares of Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp. from a buy rating to a neutral rating and increased their price objective for the company from $6.00 to $8.00 in a research note on Monday, August 8th.

The stocks average daily volume is 816,373 shares out of a total float 73,624,000 of and some 47,753,349 shares crossed the trading desk yesterday, 29 percent higher than normal. Horizon Pharma has a 12-month low of $12.86 and a 12-month high of $32.34. The corporation has a market capitalization of US$783.5 Million. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.12. As far as the returns are concern, the return on equity was recorded as -0.20% and return on investment was 3.00% while its return on asset stayed at -0.10%. Firm’s yearly sales growth for the past five year was 13.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 37.4% compared to the same quarter a year ago.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. The transaction should also bolster the Ireland-based pharmaceutical’s rare disease revenue, which in the first quarter accounted for 45% of the overall revenue.

The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, is still subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Highbridge Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Horizon Pharma by 2,861.5% in the fourth quarter.

With that in mind Raptor Pharmaceutical Corp.

That acquisition brought in the antibiotic Quinsair, adding to Raptor’s in-house rare disease drug Procysbi, indicated for nephropathic cystinosis.

PROCYSBI is a cystine-depleting agent to remedy nephropathic cystinosis, a rare metabolic disorder that usually leads to a awful set of symptoms culminating in kidney failure within the first 10 years of an afflicted child’s life.