Indivior considers additional US listing

Indivior is exploring an additional US listing, as the London-listed drugmaker forecasts strong sales growth for its treatments for opioid use disorder and schizophrenia in the second half of the year.

Mark Crossley, Indivior’s chief executive, said the board believed a US listing was likely to be “beneficial to the group’s profile and visibility”. He added that it would consult “extensively” with shareholders before reaching a conclusion.

Indivior was spun out of consumer goods group Reckitt Benckiser in 2014 and listed on the London Stock Exchange. But its long-term future in London has since been questioned because the FTSE 250 company generates 80 per cent of its revenue in the US.

Shares in the pharmaceutical company have risen more than 170 per cent since July 2020, when it agreed a $600mn settlement with the US Department of Justice, pleading guilty to one count associated with the marketing of the opioid addiction treatment drug Suboxone.

Its shares in London rose nearly 8 per cent in early trading on Wednesday.

In 2022, Indivior expects stronger growth in the second half after the easing of Omicron coronavirus restrictions and Covid-19 staff shortages in the healthcare industry. It forecasts total sales will rise about 10 per cent to between $840mn and $900mn. Adjusted operating income is expected to be roughly flat year on year, at about $187mn.

Indivior reported fourth-quarter net revenue of $222mn, up 20 per cent from the same period the year before. Adjusted basic earnings per share were 3 cents, compared with 4 cents in the fourth quarter of 2020.

For the full year, total sales were $791mn, up 22 per cent year-on-year, with sales of Sublocade, an extended release injection for opioid use disorder based on buprenorphine, nearly doubling to $244mn.

The company is seeking to diversify, expanding the US sales force for its Perseris extended release injection for schizophrenia. Net revenue from Perseris rose 21 per cent year on year to $17mn in 2021.

Crossley, who took over as chief in 2020, said that with more than $1bn in cash on the balance sheet, the company would consider acquisitions to enhance growth.

“Our primary focus remains on reinvesting in the business, but we also have the potential for additive inorganic growth opportunities,” he said.