Dive Brief:
- Endo International is slashing 90 full-time positions under a restructuring aimed at lowering costs and driving greater efficiencies and business alignment, the company said Jan. 26.
- The Irish pharma said its latest restructuring actions mainly will affect corporate functions and branded pharmaceutical R&D operations at its U.S. headquarters in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and in Chestnut Ridge, New York. The latter is home to generics-maker Par Pharmaceutical, acquired by Endo in 2015.
- Endo said it expects cost savings from the initiative, part of which it intends to invest into its core product franchises and new development for branded and generic products.
Dive Insight:
This is the latest of various shakeups at Endo in recent months, including senior-level marketing changes in early January and, before that, the naming of Endo’s own generics and OTC chief, Paul Campanelli, to succeed the outgoing CEO in September 2016. Some analysts saw the changes as signaling Endo’s shift from an acquisition strategy toward a stronger focus on the company’s roots in specialty brands and generics.
Also, amid the controversy surrounding opioid painkillers, in December 2016 Endo said it was eliminating 375 jobs in its U.S. branded sales force after ending a licensing agreement for pain drug Belbuca (buprenorphine). The company said that move to redirect resources is expected to trim its 2017 expenses by $162 million.
Endo latest actions will result in restructuring charges of roughly $15 million to $20 million. But the company anticipates getting between $40 million and $50 million in annual run rate pre-tax cost savings by fourth-quarter 2017.
In a statement, Campanelli said a competitive market is forcing "these difficult but necessary steps" as a way to strengthen the company and best position it for long-term success. He also described the latest restructuring actions as the culmination of a lengthy process.
"Last year, Endo completed the…restructuring of its generics business segment," Campanelli said. "In October, we introduced a unified operating model that streamlined our global supply chain organization to better support both our branded and generics businesses. Recently, we announced that our branded segment will focus on our specialty business, which led to the elimination of our U.S. branded pain field sales force and realignment of that business unit. All of these measures have led to today's announced restructuring actions, which address the last of the organizations to be impacted."
Endo has faced more than organizational challenges of late. On Jan. 23, the Irish pharma reached a deal with the Federal Trade Commission over pay-for-delay allegations.