Last close As at 05/08/2026
NZD4.75
▲ −0.03 (−0.63%)
Market capitalisation
NZD499m
Research: Healthcare
AFT Pharmaceuticals has announced the launch of Maxigesic IV, an intravenous form of its flagship pain relief prescription medicine, in the US market by licensing partner Hikma, under the brand name Combogesic IV. This is a major milestone given the market size (largest analgesic market, estimated at c US$7bn) and strategic importance in supporting management’s international growth plans. Commercial sales following the launch will trigger a milestone payment of US$6m from Hikma (65:35% split between AFT and partner Hyloris), which will be recorded (c NZ$6m) in FY24, sooner than our estimate of early FY25, and should provide a boost to management’s NZ$22–24m operating profit guidance.
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AFT Pharmaceuticals |
US maiden voyage with Maxigesic IV launch |
Commercial update |
Pharma and biotech |
8 February 2024 |
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Business description
Analysts
AFT Pharmaceuticals is a research client of Edison Investment Research Limited |
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AFT Pharmaceuticals has announced the launch of Maxigesic IV, an intravenous form of its flagship pain relief prescription medicine, in the US market by licensing partner Hikma, under the brand name Combogesic IV. This is a major milestone given the market size (largest analgesic market, estimated at c US$7bn) and strategic importance in supporting management’s international growth plans. Commercial sales following the launch will trigger a milestone payment of US$6m from Hikma (65:35% split between AFT and partner Hyloris), which will be recorded (c NZ$6m) in FY24, sooner than our estimate of early FY25, and should provide a boost to management’s NZ$22–24m operating profit guidance.
Year end |
Revenue (NZ$m) |
PBT* |
EPS* |
DPS |
P/E |
Yield |
03/22 |
130.3 |
18.9 |
19.2 |
0.00 |
20.0 |
N/A |
03/23 |
156.6 |
16.7 |
11.0 |
1.10 |
34.9 |
0.3 |
03/24e |
189.8 |
21.1 |
14.7 |
1.47 |
26.1 |
0.4 |
03/25e |
234.1 |
38.3 |
26.5 |
2.65 |
14.5 |
0.7 |
Note: *PBT and EPS are normalised, excluding amortisation of acquired intangibles, exceptional items and share-based payments.
Maxigesic IV (to be sold as Combogesic IV in the US) is a double-strength formulation of AFT’s traditional oral version (1,000mg paracetamol and 300mg ibuprofen), which has been licensed in more than 100 countries, approved in 46 and is currently marketed in more than 20 countries. Unlike the tablet version, the IV formulation, which received FDA approval in October 2023, specifically targets hospitals for the treatment of patients with post-operative pain, an area dominated by opioids. Although effective in managing pain, opioids tend to be highly addictive and, in light of the US opioid abuse epidemic, physicians have been faced with a lack of effective alternatives in addressing patients’ post-operative pain. Other available alternatives include IV paracetamol (the leading non-opioid analgesic) and IV ibuprofen, although we believe Maxigesic could provide superior efficacy, based on the data from a Phase III study, which demonstrated that it was well tolerated and offered faster onset of action and higher pain relief than paracetamol IV and ibuprofen IV alone.
The first commercial sales by partner Hikma in the US will tigger a US$6m milestone payment. This will be split 65:35% between AFT and partner Hyloris, with AFT netting US$3.9m or roughly NZ$6m. The company has indicated that it will recognise this payout in its FY24 results, which we believe could result in it upgrading its FY24 operating profit guidance from the current NS$22–24m (which does not include the flow-through impact of the milestone payment). Management intends to provide updated guidance for FY24 in the next fortnight, based on which we will update our longer-term estimates.
We maintain that the launch of Maxigesic IV in the US is a major milestone for AFT and should provide a strong foundation for its expansion efforts in the country. We believe that the next focus will be on Maxigesic Rapid, a prescription-only tablet already approved by the FDA. Management is in the process of finalising a distribution partner and we await further clarity on this.
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Research: TMT
discoverIE’s Q324 trading update confirmed a return to organic order growth, while the decline in organic revenue reflected the expected unwind of customer inventory. The company notes that margins remain robust and it anticipates meeting the board’s earnings expectations for FY24. We have reduced our revenue forecasts to reflect the strength of sterling versus a range of currencies but maintain our operating profit and EPS forecasts, resulting in a small uplift to operating margins in both years.