Archive for the ‘Martin Mackay’ Category
May
21
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AstraZeneca R&D chief Martin Mackay isn't going to let something like the sudden departure of the CEO interfere with his busy deal-making plans. In an interview with the Financial Times, he trotted out a roster of activities on his to-do list, ranging from in-licensing more programs, buying small biotechs, partnering with rivals and possibly coming up with a few risk-sharing arrangements with private equity.
"I know we are doing the right things," insisted Mackay. Interestingly, he appears intent on following the example of Eli Lilly ($LLY), which did an R&D deal with Quintiles in which the big CRO agreed to jointly finance drug development work in return for a share of the revenue.
Mackay is under intense pressure to reverse the fallout that's resulted from a series of pipeline setbacks which have left the pharma company ($AZN) in dire shape as it faces the patent cliff. That scenario forced David Brennan from the top spot. But Mackay says the company is in a good position to execute on deals after culling out 40% of the projects in the pipeline since his arrival in 2010. He's still interested in spinning off assets. And he's hired 31 of the top 50 managers in R&D from outside developers.
Mackay wants to be judged by the results he gets over the next 6 months in drug development and approvals, new deals and a beefed up pipeline. His one key standard for success: Getting molecules "across the goal line."
In drug development, of course, 6 months is nothing. But it's plenty of time to forge new pacts. And that should encourage prospective partners holding on to some valuable assets.
- here's the article from the Financial Times
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Apr
24
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After AstraZeneca ($AZN) announced plans to buy Ardea for $1.26 billion, company officials quickly talked up plans to do more deals before the end of the year. Caught with one of the weakest late-stage programs in Big Pharma, AstraZeneca isn't even sticking with its disease focus. Promising drugs that can add some excitement and get the analysts to back off are welcome. "We're building some momentum here in R&D," Martin Mackay, head of research and development, told Bloomberg. "I would be disappointed if we didn't announce further deals by the end of this year. We've taken our hits but we're turning a corner." Story
Apr
13
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AstraZeneca ($AZN) has been in a race against time to fuel its pipeline with new drugs as its big-selling meds face generics competition, and some of the London-based drugmaker's investors have become antsy with calls for change at the highest levels of the organization. But AstraZeneca CEO David Brennan appears to be sticking to his guns, telling Bloomberg that he's undeterred by those challenging his leadership at the embattled company.
"I'm plugged in, my role hasn't changed a bit," Brennan told Bloomberg during the annual Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America meeting in Boston. "I read and hear and see lots of things, but we're here trying to change policy, make good decisions and execute our strategy."
Yet according to a Financial Times report earlier this week, some investors aren't too happy about the state of affairs over at AZ. The company has suffered a string of setbacks in clinical trials and delivered among the industry's worst returns on R&D dollars invested in recent years. Nevertheless, Brennan believes that the company won't quell the problems with a major merger or a steep increase in research spending. He and R&D chief Martin Mackay have touted a plan to make smaller acquisitions in the near term to build the pipeline.
Last week, AZ announced a partnership with Amgen ($AMGN) on inflammatory disease drugs that even Mackay acknowledged wasn't going to fix the problems at his company, Bloomberg reported. A series of deals appears to be in the offing, yet such bolt-on transactions are popular among big biopharmas and competition for the deals will be fierce.
"If it's about restructuring, we can do that without a big deal," Brennan told the news service. "Maybe somebody sees something different, but spending more money does not have a linear increase in the number of returns you get from a research and development perspective."
- get more in the Bloomberg article
Related Articles:
AstraZeneca scouts new drug deals to silence a chorus of critics
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Can AstraZeneca continue to swear off major M&A?
Apr
04
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The instant the news hit that Amylin had rebuffed a $3.5 billion buyout offer from Bristol-Myers Squibb ($BMY), analysts began to speculate that AstraZeneca might like to step in and make an offer the Amylin board couldn't refuse. The reasoning was simple: AstraZeneca ($AZN) CEO David Brennan needed to do something dramatic to demonstrate that he can strengthen a weak pipeline and add some significant revenue to the books. MedImmune, after all, hadn't performed to expectations. And Amylin's ($AMLN) Bydureon--for all the questions about its sales potential--could fit the bill.
AstraZeneca's next step, probably being choreographed for some months, was to partner up with Amgen ($AMGN) on 5 antibody programs, paying a modest $50 million upfront. And now AstraZeneca R&D chief Martin Mackay insists that AstraZeneca is scouting the market for small acquisitions and more deals like the $1.2 billion rheumatoid arthritis package--$100 million upfront--it tied up with Rigel a couple of years ago. He also harkened back 5 years to a deal the company completed with BMS.
"I like the deals we've got with Bristol, with Rigel and with Amgen, and we're looking to do more of these kinds of deals," Mackay told Reuters' Ben Hirschler, who penned a story that included references to the litany of development woes at AstraZeneca. "It can involve smaller acquisitions ... but the notion of a mega-deal is not part of our strategy." Later in the story he added that he would be "disappointed" if the pharma giant hadn't struck more deals by the end of the year. The same message, no doubt, has been underscored with more vigor to the company's business development team.
The deal structure he was referring to looks a lot like the kind of pact that AstraZeneca struck with Targacept ($TRGT) for their depression drug program--a $1.24 billion deal structure. But no one wants to talk about that since the two companies recently dumped the therapy after it failed four out of four late-stage studies, highlighting how little late-stage success AZ has had in recent years. Given the lengthy timelines on early- and mid-phase drugs, though, a string of similar deals won't stop the criticism that AstraZeneca has faced from analysts. While Mackay insists that a mega deal solution is not on the table, he also wouldn't respond to Hirschler's query about any possible interest in either buying Amylin or stepping in to replace Eli Lilly's ($LLY) position in a marketing pact.
That door might still be open.
- here's the story from Reuters
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Who's next to move on Amylin? Analysts say Big Pharma looms
Is an Amylin takeover inevitable after the BMS rejection?
Amylin shares rocket up on report of $3.5B buyout offer by Bristol-Myers