Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: RPTP) saw its shares sink on Monday despite launching commercial sales for a product in Europe. The company announced its first commercial sale of Quinsair (levofloxacin inhalation solution) in Germany and Denmark.
Quinsair is approved in the European Union and Canada for the management of chronic pulmonary infections due to Pseudomonas aeruginosa in adult patients with cystic fibrosis (CF).
Also this is the first fluoroquinolone to be approved as an inhaled therapy for a pulmonary disease. The treatment is administered twice-daily, stored at room temperature and has a short administration time. Launches in additional EU countries and Canada are anticipated for this drug in 2016.
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Dave Happel, chief commercial officer of Raptor, commented:
Raptor is excited to offer a new, first-in-class inhaled antibiotic treatment option for the many patients and families living with cystic fibrosis and battling chronic bacterial lung infections. We are beginning the European launch of Quinsair in Germany and Denmark, and continue to pursue approval of Quinsair for CF patients in the United States.
He added:
We are confident that Quinsair will be an important growth driver for Raptor. We expect Quinsair to increase our revenue base and enhance our long-term growth profile while leveraging our commercial and development expertise and our existing global infrastructure.
Shares of Raptor Pharmaceuticals were trading down nearly 6% at $5.12 on Monday, with a consensus analyst price target of $7.33 and a 52-week trading range of $2.94 to $16.28.