(Reuters) – Endo International Plc said on Thursday it expects to launch its treatment for cellulite in the second half of 2020, a day after the company announced results from two late-stage trials testing the drug.
The generic drugmaker, which beat third-quarter revenue and profit estimates, has pushed into other segments of its business, such as medical aesthetics, to cushion the impact of large retail pharmacies gaining more negotiating power for generics pricing.
The company expects to apply for the drug’s approval in the second half of next year to treat cellulite – a condition that causes dimpling of the skin – in the buttocks, Endo executives said on a post-earnings conference call with analysts.
In the trials, patients treated with the drug, CCH, showed statistically significant levels of improvement in the appearance of cellulite, the company said on Wednesday.
However, analysts were expecting stronger data.
“That data was viewed as mixed with a variety of views around what the commercial opportunity could look like and whether or not Endo should plan to launch it on its own versus sell or partner it out,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Randall Stanicky said.
Endo already markets the drug in a different concentration under the name Xiaflex to treat a condition that causes painful erections as well as a disease that hinders finger movements.
Xiaflex sales rose 22.3 percent to $64.2 million in the latest quarter.
Endo also raised its adjusted profit forecast for the year on Thursday.
Shares were down 2.3 percent at $15.67 in premarket trading.
Reporting by Tamara Mathias and Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila