Shire Executes Agreement to Divest DERMAGRAFT

Shire plc, the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, has entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which it has sold its DERMAGRAFT assets to Organogenesis Inc.

DERMAGRAFT is a living skin substitute indicated for use in the treatment of full-thickness diabetic foot ulcers and is approved for use in the US and Canada. Going forward Organogenesis will assume all financial and management responsibility for DERMAGRAFT.

Flemming Ornskov MD, Chief Executive Officer of Shire commented: “Following the new strategy we outlined during the first half of last year, Shire has had a renewed focus on operational discipline. As such, we have been prioritizing investments that are of the greatest strategic, clinical and commercial value to our company. DERMAGRAFT no longer meets these criteria and this divestment will allow us to focus our resources on other projects. Due to the recent Medicare ruling regarding reimbursement for DERMAGRAFT, the business environment has changed, and the prospects for the product have reduced significantly. We believe the best path forward for the patients who benefit from DERMAGRAFT is to transfer it to new ownership in order to provide continued care and availability of their treatment.”

Transaction Details

The DERMAGRAFT assets that have been sold to Organogenesis comprise the key operating assets relating to the development, manufacture and sale of the DERMAGRAFT product. These assets include intellectual property relating to DERMAGRAFT including patents, trademarks and know-how; regulatory filings and registrations relating to DERMAGRAFT; certain manufacturing plant, equipment and materials; DERMAGRAFT product inventory and accounts receivable. These assets had a value of $683 million in Shire’s 30 September 2013 balance sheet. Shire is generally retaining legacy liabilities relating to the DERMAGRAFT business, including the previously announced Department of Justice investigation relating to the sales and marketing practices of Advanced Biohealing, Inc (now known as Shire Regenerative Medicine, Inc.).

Shire will receive no upfront payment from Organogenesis but is entitled to receive up to $300 million cash in total milestone payments should Organogenesis meet certain annual net sales targets between now and 2018(1). Shire will record a loss on disposal and associated impairment charges of approximately $650 million in the fourth quarter of 2013, which will be excluded from Non GAAP earnings.

DERMAGRAFT operations will be reported as discontinued in Shire’s fourth quarter and full year earnings for 2013. The US GAAP operating loss from DERMAGRAFT operations in the 9 months ended 30 September 2013 amounted to $324 million including the impairment of goodwill ($192 million recorded in Q1 2013). On a Non GAAP basis for the same period the operating loss for Dermagraft operations was $81 million.

In advance of its Full Year 2013 earnings release scheduled for February 13, 2014 Shire will issue a further press release providing historical quarterly analysis for 2012 and 2013 restated to show the DERMAGRAFT operations as discontinued.

Lazard and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP acted as advisors to Shire.

Reference

(1) The annual net sales targets range from as low as $70 million in calendar years 2014 and 2015 to as high as $250 million.  For the purposes of determining the reported loss on disposal, the fair value of these contingent payments is estimated at approximately $30 million.