Pernix Therapeutics (PTX) Guides Q1 Revenue Below Expectations; Updates on FY15 Outlook

Pernix Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PTX) updated its full-year 2015 net sales guidance and business outlook.

The Company anticipates net sales for the three-months ended March 31, 2015, will be between $32 million and $35 million, compared with $19 million for the same period in 2014.

*** The Street sees Q1 revenue $49.5 million.

Results in the quarter were mainly impacted by lower Treximet® (sumatriptan/naproxen sodium) prescription volume, a reduction in channel inventory related, in part, to the lower prescription volume, adjustments to gross-to-net discounts, and delays in the delivery of Treximet patient samples to our field sales force.

The Company expects improvements will be driven by:

• Distribution of Treximet patient samples by the sales force starting the week of March 23, 2015. Over 27,000 Treximet samples have been distributed to physicians to date. We expect this will drive future prescription growth;
• Accelerating the roll-out of the Pernix Pharmacy Direct (PPD) program, which allows us to retain a higher percentage of total prescriptions and reduce the rate of script abandonment. We expect PPD will also contribute to the growth of Treximet, Silenor® (doxepin tablets), and other products by improving prescription fill rates. In December 2014, prescription fill rates improved by 25% in our initial PPD pilot territories;
• The acquisition of Zohydro® ER (hydrocodone bitartrate), which we believe will enhance the long-term growth profile of our company, with a synergistic impact on Silenor promotion through the addition of approximately 100 sales representatives;
• Expansion of managed care access, including the addition of more than 60 million covered lives for Silenor; and,
• Fulfillment of patient insurance deductibles that were reset at the beginning of the year.

The Company now expects net sales for 2015 to be in the range of $220 to $240 million (The consensus is at $237.5 million). This guidance includes and assumes the effect of:

• Anticipated first quarter results;
• Positive volume growth for Treximet beginning in 2Q 2015, the first full quarter of sampling;
• Continued volume growth for Silenor; reflecting the impact of approximately 100 additional sales representatives promoting the brand, who we expect to retain in connection with the acquisition of Zohydro ER; and,
• Eight months of Zohydro ER net sales after the closing of the acquisition of Zohydro ER.

“We expect Treximet to respond positively to our promotional efforts as the sampling launch commences in full force, similar to the success we achieved in re-launching Silenor. With the pending acquisition of the Zohydro ER franchise, we are building a strong portfolio of three strategically promoted brands, each in large markets, with significant growth potential. We are confident in our ability to build value for our shareholders from our current products and future portfolio additions,” stated Doug Drysdale, Chairman and CEO of Pernix.

The aforementioned anticipated results and projections are based on information available to management as of the date of this press release, and are subject to revision upon finalization of the Company's quarterly accounting and financial reporting procedures and completion of its audit. Pernix will report financial results for the first quarter of 2015 on Friday, May 1, 2015.

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