Drug company Indivior PLC (LSE:INDV)’s shares plummeted 13% after it set aside US$290mln for ongoing litigation in the US.
It covers “multidistrict antitrust class and state claims” and follows legal action over its tactics to delay competition to its best-selling product, Suboxone, which is used to treat addiction.
“The provision is the group's estimate at this time of a potential aggregate settlement,” investors were told.
“However, the group cannot predict with any certainty whether Indivior Inc. will reach a settlement with any of the plaintiffs, and the final aggregate cost of these matters, whether resolved by settlement or trial, may be materially different.”
This made the financial results something of a sideshow. Indivior reported 14% growth in revenue for the full year 2022, reaching US$901m, with fourth-quarter revenue up 9% at US$241m.
This performance was primarily driven by sales of the anti-addiction product SUBLOCADE, which grew 67% for FY 2022.
Adjusted operating profit for 2022 was US$212mln, up 13% from the previous year.
Indivior’s cash and investments totalled US$991mln at the end of 2022.
The company has announced guidance for 2023, with a total net revenue expected range of US$950mln to US$1,020mln.
In early trade, the stock was down 254p at 1,700p.