Cell Therapy News/Articles, page-80

Source: http://www.smh.com.au/business/markets-live/markets-live-asx-set-for-gains-20171024-gz7k6j.html

The chief executive of Mesoblast put on a brave face today after a $44 million selldown in the company by Israeli pharmaceutical giant Teva, saying it was no reflection on the future prospects of Mesoblast and appeared to be more about Teva's own tougher times.

Silviu Itescu told The Australian Financial Review he had never been more confident about Mesoblast and its portfolio of regenerative medicine and stem-cell therapy products going through trials in areas including treatment of heart failure and chronic lower back pain.

The Teva selldown of 29 million shares at a fixed price of $1.50wasn't damaging to the reputation of Mesoblast, Dr Itescu said.

"This doesn't reflect anything about anyone else. There's plenty of investors wanting to soak up the shares," he said on the sidelines of an AusBiotech conference in Adelaide.

Mesoblast shares have been crunched by 11 per cent today, sliding towards $1.44, which still left the company with a market capitalisation of $700 million. This came after the selldown on Tuesday night handled by Credit Suisse of 29 million shares held by Cephalon, whose stake has now dropped below 5 per cent.

Cephalon is a speciality drugmaker which acquired a 20 per cent stake in Mesoblast in 2010 but was itself acquired by Teva for US$7 billion in 2011 in a hostile takeover.

Dr Itescu said investors accepted that biotech was a volatile industry and that the risk and reward profile was different than for more staid industrial companies.

"I am very pleased with where we are. I believe we're in a better position now than we've ever been," he said. There was "blockbuster potential" in Mesoblast's portfolio.

Mesoblast's potential was large, with lower chronic back pain now receiving even more focus in the wider community after United States President Donald Trump said he would declare the opioid crisis a "national emergency in the United States. Dr Itescu said as much as 50 per cent of prescription drugs in the US were for painkillers for chronic back pain.

Silviu Itescu, the chief executive of Mesoblast. Photo: Luis Ascui