UPDATE 2-Lundbeck appoints Wyeth executive as CEO
(Recasts with new quotes, updates share)
COPENHAGEN, April 29 (Reuters) - Danish drugmaker Lundbeck (LUN.CO) on Tuesday appointed Ulf Wiinberg as its new Chief Executive Officer and tasked him with finding a replacement for the company's blockbuster antidepressant Cipralex.
Patents for Cipralex, which is sold in the United States as Lexapro and had revenues of 6.7 billion Danish crowns ($1.40 billion) last year, expire between 2012 and 2014 in major markets.
Wiinberg, a Dane born and raised in Sweden, comes from Wyeth WYE.N, where he was president of the company's operations in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Canada, as well as responsible for its biopharma activities. He starts in his new position on June 1.
"We do have short term issues in terms of products that we need to get to the market," Lundbeck Chairman Per Wold-Olsen told journalists. "With Ulf's background and experience we believe that he will be a tremendous asset to this organization."
Wiinberg has experienced licensing new drugs at Wyath as well as patents' expiration on well-performing products. Wyath's own antidepressant Effexor loses U.S. patent protection in 2010, but the company was able this year to launch a derivative treatment, Pristiq.
He declined to say what drugs Lundbeck should try to license, saying he had not yet had a chance to thoroughly study the issue.
"If you come with a novel antidepressant that has a unique mode of action or an Alzheimer's drug that is effective and makes a big difference I see no reason why that could not be as big or bigger than Effexor," Wiinberg said. "For me it's a chance to join a company that has an aspiration to be the best CNS company in the world and that will live or die by its success in developing CNS product."
Lundbeck has said it plans to remain research-based and focused on diseases of the central nervous system, although it is considering expanding outside mental illness and into neuropathic pain or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). After Cipralex/Lexapro, its next most important product is Alzheimer's drug Ebixa, with sales of 1.7 billion crowns last year.
FOCUS ON NEW DRUGS
Lundbeck's previous chief executive, Claus Braestrup, abruptly resigned in March as investors grew uneasy about the company's drug pipeline, sending the company's shares to a three-year low.
"The reality is that we have a product that loses patent and we lost two products in phase III last year," Wold-Olsen said. "We do believe we have a rich early stage pipeline. How well we can get through 2012-2015 is truly a function of what products in phase III or regulatory review we can get our hands on over the next 12 months. That's the way it is."
Lundbeck shares closed up 0.2 percent at 117.75 crowns, while the Copenhagen top 20 index finished down 1.2 percent.
"(Wiinberg) comes with international experience, and the appointment reduces uncertainty around the company's shares," said Rune Dahl, an analyst at Sydbank. "It's positive that he can already start on June 1, I was worried that it could have taken as much as six months." (Editing by Erica Billingham; Editing by David Cowell)
