King says Cobalt plans to launch generic Altace

NEW YORK, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Cobalt Pharmaceuticals has told King Pharmaceuticals Inc (KG.N) that it intends to launch a generic version of King's top-selling blood-pressure drug Altace, according to King.

In a U.S. securities filing on Friday, King said that Cobalt on Oct. 12 sent King a 30-day written notice of its intent to launch its generic of Altace, known generically as ramipril.

"If Cobalt makes good on its stated intent, generic Altace could be on the market (Nov. 12)," CIBC analyst Elliot Wilbur said in a research note.

Investors have been bracing for generic Altace since a U.S. federal appeals court in September ruled that King's patent for the drug was invalid.

However, Wilbur said he expected generic Altace would hit in the first quarter of 2008. The earlier arrival of generics hurts King's strategy to retain some of the Altace franchise by switching the drug from capsule formulation to tablets, Wilbur said.

"The earlier-than-originally expected decimation of the Altace franchise has been in the cards for some time now with timing the only uncertainty," Wilbur said. "The potential imminent launch of generic Altace compromises ... King's strategy to switch Altace from capsule formulation to tablet."

(Reporting by Lewis Krauskopf)