Momenta shares drop as co loses patent lawsuit

Orlando, FL 6/25/12 (StreetBeat) -- Shares of Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc (Nasdaq:MNTA) slipped 22 percent on Monday after the company lost a patent lawsuit brought against it by bigger rival Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (NYSE:TEVA).

On Friday, a U.S. court upheld Teva's patents for its multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone well into 2015.

"Friday's negative ruling on Copaxone delays the potential launch of (Momenta's generic Copaxone)," Canaccord Genuity analyst Ritu Baral said and downgraded Momenta's stock to "hold" from "buy."

"While Momenta's Baxter-partnered biosimilars program and branded drugs have significant long-term potential, lack of near-term catalysts likely limits 12-month upside," Baral added.

Momenta said that it remained confident in its legal position and intended to appeal the decision.

"Timing of an appeals process can be hard to gauge and, although we have not seen the final ruling, historically, appeals have a low probability of success," analyst Baral added.

She said she does not expect Momenta's generic version to be launched until at least September 1, 2015.

Israel's Teva, which is also the world's largest generic drugmaker, had filed a lawsuit against Momenta and Novartis unit Sandoz as well as Mylan Laboratories (Nasdaq:MYL) and Natco Pharmaceuticals for infringement of multiple Copaxone patents.

Copaxone is a branded drug that is expected to generate $3.8 billion of Teva's total revenue of $20 billion to $21 billion in 2012.

Momenta shares were down 18 percent to $13.92 in morning trade on Nasdaq. They touched a low of $13.30 earlier in the session.

Mylan's shares were down 1 percent at $21.00 on the Nasdaq, while those of Teva were up 6 percent at $40.42 on the New York Stock Exchange.

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Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTA) Trading +24%

Tallahassee, FL 10/31/2011 (StreetBeat) --Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: MNTA) won a federal court ruling Friday that temporarily blocks other companies from selling a generic version of its anti-clotting drug. As a result, its shares surged in after-hours trading, and have continued to grow today. Currently, MNTA is trading at $15.17, up 24% or $2.93 for the day.

Since July 2010, Momenta has made the only approved generic version of Lovenox, a drug used to prevent deep-vein blood clots from forming in the legs of patients on bed rest, including those having hip replacement or knee replacement surgery.

The company claims that a version developed by Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Inc. and recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration infringes on a Momenta patent. The judge granted Momenta's request for an injunction blocking Amphastar, Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. and an Amphastar subsidiary, International Medication Systems Ltd., from selling their version until the end of the patent lawsuit.

Shares of Cambridge-based Momenta fell 6 cents to close at $12.24 but jumped $2.36, or 19.3 percent, to $14.60 after hours after the ruling was announced. Watson shares fell 21 cents to $69.35 in regular trading, and lost another 18 cents, to $69.17, in extended trading.

Momenta is slated to report its fiscal third-quarter results on Nov. 7. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for earnings of $1.29 a share in the September-ended quarter on revenue of $90.2 million.

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