Biocon shares up 6% after Co launches insulin glargine in US market

Shares of Biocon rallied 6 per cent to Rs 397 on the BSE on Tuesday after the company’s subsidiary Biocon Biologics India and its partner Mylan N.V. launched insulin glargine injection under the brand Semglee in the US market.

Biocon Biologics India and Mylan have launched the product in vial and pre-filled pen presentations in the US. It is approved to help control high blood sugar in adult and pediatric patients with type-1 diabetes and adults with type-2 diabetes, Biocon subsidiary said in a press release. 

Semglee, which received final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has an identical amino acid sequence to Sanofi’s Lantus and is approved for the same indications, it said.

Mylan, which is responsible for commercialisation in the US, would offer Semglee at a wholesale cost of $147.98 per package of five 3ml pens and $98.65 per 10ml vial, making it the cheapest brand of insulin glargine available in the US.

“While providing our product at the most competitive list price on the market is an important step towards ensuring that those who need insulin are able to access and afford it, we also know that there is still work to be done to ensure this access and affordability reaches patients at the pharmacy counter," Mylan chief executive officer Heather Bresch said.

Mylan and Biocon Biologic’s insulin glargine has received regulatory approval in more than 45 countries around the world and is the third product approved by the FDA through the Mylan Biocon Biologics collaboration.

Sanofi’s total IQVIA sales for the 12 months ending June 30, 2020, were approximately $1.64 billion for Lantus 100 Units/mL Vial and approximately $4.36 billion for Lantus SoloSTAR Pen, it said.

At 10:19 am, the stock of Biocon was trading 4 per cent higher at Rs 393 on the BSE. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 0.32 per cent at 38,753 points. The trading volumes on the counter more-than-doubled with a combined 5.32 million shares were changing hands on the NSE and BSE so far.