Last close As at 05/08/2026
CHF50.70
▲ 0.20 (0.40%)
Market capitalisation
CHF681m
Research: Healthcare
Basilea has announced a preclinical antibiotic programme asset purchase agreement, aligning with management’s pre-emptive efforts to refill its pipeline with novel anti-infectives. This follows on the heels of three antifungal and antibacterial acquisitions/in-licensing, including fosmanogepix. As part of the agreement, Basilea will pay Spexis (SIX: SPEX) up to CHF2m, consisting of an upfront payment, an asset-transfer payment and a potential final milestone payment related to the availability of near-term funding to further develop the programme. Basilea will also assume the rights and obligations of Spexis, including potential low single-digit percentage royalties on sales. The programme is based on an Outer Membrane Protein Targeting Antibiotics (OMPTA) platform and the compounds have shown in vitro and in vivo activity against Gram-negative bacteria (GNB), including multidrug-resistant strains, several of which are listed as priority pathogens by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Basilea Pharmaceutica |
Antibiotic addition to further replenish pipeline |
Pipeline update |
Pharma and biotech |
17 January 2024 |
Share price performance
Business description
Analysts
Basilea Pharmaceutica is a research client of Edison Investment Research Limited |
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Basilea has announced a preclinical antibiotic programme asset purchase agreement, aligning with management’s pre-emptive efforts to refill its pipeline with novel anti-infectives. This follows on the heels of three antifungal and antibacterial acquisitions/in-licensing, including fosmanogepix. As part of the agreement, Basilea will pay Spexis (SIX: SPEX) up to CHF2m, consisting of an upfront payment, an asset-transfer payment and a potential final milestone payment related to the availability of near-term funding to further develop the programme. Basilea will also assume the rights and obligations of Spexis, including potential low single-digit percentage royalties on sales. The programme is based on an Outer Membrane Protein Targeting Antibiotics (OMPTA) platform and the compounds have shown in vitro and in vivo activity against Gram-negative bacteria (GNB), including multidrug-resistant strains, several of which are listed as priority pathogens by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Year end |
Revenue (CHFm) |
PBT* |
EPS* |
DPS |
P/E |
Yield |
12/21 |
148.1 |
(6.6) |
(56.9) |
0.0 |
N/A |
N/A |
12/22 |
147.8 |
12.3 |
104.1 |
0.0 |
32.9 |
N/A |
12/23e |
155.0 |
5.2 |
43.8 |
0.0 |
78.1 |
N/A |
12/24e |
183.3 |
35.1 |
293.1 |
0.0 |
11.7 |
N/A |
Note: *PBT and EPS are normalised, excluding amortisation of acquired intangibles, exceptional items and share-based payments.
The acquired preclinical programme is a novel class of drugs targeting GNB, which, due to their distinctive structure, are highly resistant to antibiotics and remain a cause of significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. The acquired assets work by targeting the lipopolysaccharide transport bridge within GNB, disrupting the integrity of the outer cell membrane and causing an accumulation of intracellular lipopolysaccharides that, in turn, kills the bacteria. This class of assets has shown bactericidal activity, both in vitro and in vivo, in preclinical studies conducted by Spexis. Activity has been demonstrated against Enterobacteriaceae, such as E. coli and K. pneumoniae, including strains resistant to beta-lactams (the most widely used antibiotics) and colistin (a last-resort antibiotic therapy). We note that the OMPTA programme was partially funded by Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator (CARB-X), which corroborates the potential of the novel antibacterial approach, in our view.
Antibiotic resistance is a growing global threat that Basilea is focused on addressing with its portfolio of antibacterial products. The most advanced of these is Zevtera for Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia, acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections, and community-acquired bacterial pneumonia; the FDA is set to make a regulatory decision by 3 April 2024. Basilea has also in-licensed tonabacase, an antibacterial therapy of the endolysin class; this asset will be investigated across a range of preclinical studies in 2024. The acquisition of compounds from Spexis’s OMPTA programme is a favourable transaction for Basilea in our view, with the potential to target nine of the 12 pathogens on the WHO’s priority list of bacteria for which new antibiotics are urgently needed. The transaction is subject to approval by the Western District Court of the Canton Basel-Landschaft; we expect an update from management on this front when the information is available.
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Research: Financials
Helios Underwriting reported FY24 expected underwriting capacity of £501.8m on 15 December 2023, a huge 69% increase over the past year. Capacity growth of £28m reported at H123 is followed by a further expected £177m of tenancy capacity, some only becoming active during H124. The large addition was made possible by a significant capital restructure where Helios raised US$75m in seven-year unsecured debt at a coupon of 9.5%. The syndicate underwriting operating result outlook has meaningfully improved on the back of this increased exposure, driving a strong upgrade in our FY25 earnings forecast, although FY24 was downgraded to allow for a sharp uptick in financing costs. After allowing for the additive impact of the company’s ongoing share buybacks, our FY24 EPS forecast has been cut by 5%, while our FY25 forecast has been lifted by 10% to 37.6p. This upgrade, combined with a sharp reversal in gilt yields, has resulted in an 11% increase in our valuation to 280p/share.