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#5 - Biogen Idec



14 Cambridge Center
Cambridge, MA 02142
Tel: (617) 679-2000
Fax: (617) 679-2617
www.biogenidec.com



Headcount 3,750  
Year Established 2003  
Biopharma Revenues $2,592  +11%
Total Revenues $2,683  +11%
Royalty Revenues $86  -8%
Net Income $218  +35%
R&D Budget $718  -4%

Top Selling Drugs
Drug Indication Sales (+/-%)
avonex MS $1,707 +11%
rituxan NHL $811 +14%
tysabri MS $36 n/a

Account for 99% of total biopharma sales, up from 97% in 2005.

PROFILE

Biogen Idec is a victim of my revised approach to defining biopharmas. Instead of climbing to the #3 rank on our list with 12% revenue growth, it fell back to #5. BI narrowly stayed ahead of Gilead Sciences, but it's likely to be edged out next year.

Acquisitions

Target: Conforma Therapeutics
Announced: May 2006
What they said: "Conforma’s platforms . . . provide significant opportunities to develop drugs for a range of solid tumors."
--James C. Mullen, president and CEO, BI

Target: Fumapharm AG
Announced: May 2006
What they said: "This acquisition supports our goal of developing innovative therapeutic options for people living with MS."
--James C. Mullen

Target: Syntonix
Price: $44.4 million (plus $80 million in milestones)
Announced: January 2007
What they said: "Syntonix brings promising science and technology to areas of unmet medical need such as hemophilia."
--James C. Mullen
BI and partner Elan successfully rebooted next-generation MS treatment Tysabri in July 2006, and have been conducting post-market studies to make sure no new infections of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) occur. BI gained $36 million in Tsyabri revenues in 2006 and $30 million in 1Q2007 sales. In December 2006, BI and Elan submitted an sBLA for Tysabri as a treatment for Crohn's disease.

The company announced its “2015 Vision" strategy last year, intended to “capture the opportunities and navigate the challenges of the next decade." The stated goals are:

  • Grow core therapeutic areas
  • Advance into new therapeutic areas
  • Expand its global footprint
  • Further develop its people and culture
  • Bring valuable products to patients, "who are at the center of what we do"

The company's 2005 restructuring has freed up approximately $200 million for business development and external licensing, and it spent around half of that between May 2006 and January 2007 on a series of acquisitions and collaborations. BI is still heavily dependent on two therapies, so these initiatives are going to have to show some results in a hurry. The company is trying to balance these agreements with internal development and lifecycle management, including its efforts with Roche to get Rituxan approved to treat RA, MS and lupus.

If BI doesn't see some approvals in the next year or two, I'm afraid there may not be much of a vision of 2015.

For the full profile, including pipeline and patent information, download the PDF.