Bruce C. Cozadd - Jazz Pharmaceuticals Plc
Analyst · Stifel
Thank you, Kathy, and good afternoon, everyone. Thanks especially for your patience. For those of you who are still on the call 21 minutes in, we've got a lot to cover, so we'll get right to it. We've had a busy and productive start to the year. We began enrolling patients in multiple clinical studies, a Phase 3 study of JZP-258, evaluating cataplexy and excessive daytime sleepiness in narcolepsy patients. A Phase 3 study of defibrotide for the prevention of veno-occlusive disease or VOD in high risk and very high risk patients post-stem cell transplantation; and a Phase 2 study of JZP-110 evaluating excessive sleepiness associated with Parkinson's disease. We also completed the Rolling NDA Submission for Vyxeos at the end of March. We announced positive top line data for JZP-110 evaluating excessive sleepiness in both obstructive sleep apnea or OSA, and narcolepsy. We announced positive top line data for the Xyrem study evaluating cataplexy in pediatric narcolepsy patients ages seven to 17 and we settled the Xyrem patent litigation with Hikma, the first ANDA filer for a generic sodium oxybate product, which we believe was positive for our business and sleep franchise. I'll now provide an update on key commercial legal, regulatory, and clinical development activities, and highlight some key events that we expect in 2017. I'll then turn the call over to Matt to review our financial results for the quarter, and provide updated financial guidance. In our sleep therapeutic area, Xyrem delivered 9% sales growth during the first quarter. First quarter bottle volume growth for Xyrem was 1% compared with the same period in 2016. The average number of active Xyrem patients was 12,925 in the first quarter of 2017. The volume growth for Xyrem was negatively impacted by a decrease in government pay patients in the first quarter of 2017 compared with the same period in 2016, as well as the typical first quarter payer churn. The large majority of our business for Xyrem comes from commercial payers, where we continue to see a very high approval rate, while prior authorizations continue to slowly increase, as is the case with many specialty drugs. We expect Xyrem volume growth will improve over the balance of the year, and will be in the low-to-mid single-digits for 2017. Our Xyrem growth efforts continue to focus on increasing narcolepsy disease awareness and accelerating diagnosis, targeting sales force efforts on physicians with high narcolepsy patient volume and low Xyrem share, and reducing payer burdens through our field reimbursement team. Next, I'll highlight our R&D plans for Xyrem and other oxybate-related programs. Last month, we announced that our Phase 3 Xyrem study evaluating cataplexy and excessive sleepiness in pediatric patients demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in the primary and key secondary endpoints. The safety profile was consistent with Xyrem clinical studies in adults and in our post marketing experience. We continue to expect to submit a Xyrem supplemental NDA later this year, which will include data from the Phase 3 pediatric study and the study report for the pediatric written request. We also expect to present the data from this trial at the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, or APSS, meeting in June. We continued development of JZP-507, which has a 50% reduction in sodium content compared to Xyrem and has demonstrated bioequivalence to Xyrem in a pilot study. We expect to be in a position to submit an NDA by the first quarter of 2018. We initiated our global Phase 3 study of JZP-258 in narcolepsy patients last quarter, or in the first quarter. JZP-258 has a 90% reduction in sodium content compared with Xyrem. We expect to complete this study in the second half of 2018 to support a planned NDA submission in 2019. Turning to a brief legal and intellectual property update on Xyrem. As previously mentioned, we resolved our patent litigation with Hikma, granting Hikma's subsidiary West-Ward Pharmaceuticals the right to sell an authorized generic version of Xyrem in the U.S. under the Xyrem NDA commencing on January 1, 2023 or earlier under certain circumstances. This AG product will be distributed through the Xyrem REMS. The initial term of the AG arrangement is six months and West-Ward has the option to continue to sell the AG product for up to a total of five years. West-Ward was also granted a license to sell its generic sodium oxybate product under its ANDA at the end of the AG term. I'll remind you that we settled with two other ANDA filers, Wockhardt and Ranbaxy in the second quarter of 2016. Patent litigation continues against four other companies that have filed ANDAs for generic sodium oxybate. The consolidated patent litigation against Amneal, Par, Watson and Lupin is pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey and a trial could be scheduled for as early as the first half of 2018. Turning to JZP-110, we announced the TONES 2, TONES 3 and TONES 4 positive results over the past two months. And we're pleased with the robust efficacy and comparable safety profile to our previous Phase 2 studies in narcolepsy. We plan to submit an NDA late this year for excessive sleepiness in OSA and in narcolepsy. We look forward to presenting data from our three Phase 3 trials at the APSS meeting from June 3 to June 7 in Boston. We will also hold an investor event from APSS on Tuesday June 6, at 7 PM Eastern time at the Sheraton Boston, this will also be webcast. Now on to the hematology/oncology franchise. Erwinase sales were flat in the first quarter of 2017 compared with the same period in 2016. We continue to experience supply challenges on a global basis and expect temporary disruptions in our ability to supply certain markets including the U.S. In early March, Porton Biopharma Limited, or PBL the manufacturer of Erwinase, submitted its Compliance Action Plan to the FDA as a response to the warning letter PBL received in February. We are working diligently with PBL to resolve FDA concerns and consistently deliver high-quality products to the patients who need it. Now I'll turn to Defitelio where we saw strong worldwide growth in the first quarter with sales more than doubling over the same quarter in 2016. The launch of Defitelio in the U.S. continues to progress well with 131 accounts having ordered products since launch. These accounts represent approximately 79% of total U.S. transplant volume. We continue to observe growing demand with the addition of 14 new accounts in the first quarter and reorders from 84% of all accounts placing orders since launch. Our U.S. sales initiatives remain focused on educating healthcare providers for adult patients on recognition of the signs and symptoms of VOD, the diagnosis and treatment of VOD with multi-organ dysfunction, the clinical benefits of initiating Defitelio treatment in patients with renal or pulmonary dysfunction. And importantly, the urgency to treat patients in a timely manner once diagnosed. This remains an important growth opportunity in the U.S. In the EU, our team is focused on ensuring that physicians, key hospital administrators and pharmacists are aware of the clinical and health economic benefits associated with the administration of Defitelio. Now on to Vyxeos, we completed our Rolling NDA Submission on March 31. We expect to hear the status on the Priority Review Request later this month. I will remind you that Vyxeos has Breakthrough Therapy designation and Fast Track designation in the U.S. We continue to anticipate submitting our EU Marketing Authorization Application later this year, following the required pre-submission regulatory meetings. We are looking forward to the rest of 2017 as we prepare for multiple expected clinical development and regulatory milestones as well as other events, including presentation of the data from the Phase 3 JZP-110 TONES 2, TONES 3 and TONES 4 studies evaluating excessive sleepiness in OSA and in narcolepsy at the APSS Meeting in June, submission of the JZP-110 NDA to FDA by the end of 2017, presentation of the Xyrem pediatric data at the APSS Meeting, submission of an sNDA for Xyrem to include the pediatric Phase 3 study results and the pediatric written request in late 2017, potential approval and launch of Vyxeos in the U.S. Submission of the Marketing Authorization Application for Vyxeos in the EU in the second half of 2017, preparation of the JZP-507 NDA submission by first quarter 2018, potential approval of our NDS for Defitelio in Canada and potential corporate development transactions. We continue to focus on our growth strategy and sustainable business model. We're investing in our R&D pipeline and remain committed to bringing additional meaningful products into the portfolio through corporate development activities to further diversify and expand our commercial and development portfolio and to fuel future growth. Our strong balance sheet, increased priority on Xyrem longevity including through our oxybate molecules in late stage development, global approach to molecule development and growth prospects both commercially and through our expanding development portfolio provide significant opportunities for JAZZ to provide value to patients and to our shareholders. Matt, let me turn the call over to you.