Drugs firm Elan has announced a worse-than-expected third quarter net loss of $117 million this morning, an increase from the $67 million on the same time last year.
This has been a critical quarter as it has seen the redistribution of its multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri for the first time since it was withdrawn in February 2005 over fears of its safety.
However, the company said its net loss for the nine months to the end of September was $240.8 million, a reduction of 26 per cent over the same time last year.
Total revenue for the third quarter to the end of September fell to $123.3 million from $128.6 million in the third quarter of 2005, which Elan said was as a result in lower revenues from its Maxipime drug due to temporary supply shortages from a third party supplier.
In the first nine months of 2006 however, total revenues increased 13 per cent to $394m from $349.9m the same time last year.
The company said since Tysabri was relaunched in July, sales in both the US and the EU reached a total of $8.1m
Commenting on Elan's third quarter financial results, Shane Cooke, Elan's executive vice president and chief financial officer, said, "We are pleased with the overall outcome for the third quarter. We successfully launched Tysabri for MS in a number of EU countries and re-introduced it in the US, marking an important step in our drive towards a return to profitability.
"Licence fees payable in relation to the expansion of our pipeline of innovative Alzheimer's therapeutics together with temporary supply shortages of Maxipime impacted our third quarter results and led to increased losses."