Pozen reports smaller net lss in second quarter

Chapel Hill drug company Pozen reported a smaller net loss in the second quarter that beat Wall Street estimates.

Pozen reported a net loss of $5.1 million, or 17 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $6.4 million, or 21 cents per share, loss in the second quarter of 2011. Analysts had forecasted a loss of 22 cents.

Revenue for the quarter was $1.8 million, compared to $4.6 million during the same period a year ago. Operating expenses were down 37 percent in quarter, largely because of the completion of Phase 3 studies of Pozen's experimental drug PA32540.

PA32540 is an the easier-to-stomach aspirin that combines aspirin and a gastrointestinal medicine. Pozen is seeking approval to market the drug as a replacement for aspirin in the prevention of heart disease and stroke in patients at high risk for developing ulcers from aspirin use.

Pozen said it plans to file a new drug application for PA32540 and another dosage of the drug in the fourth quarter if the results of its upcoming meeting with the Food and Drug Administration are favorable.

Last month, Pozen announced that federal regulators had preliminarily decided the drug did not meet an approval milestone and recommended further study.

The company is seeking a strategic partner for PA32540 and has another experimental migraine drug in the pipeline, MT 400.

Most of Pozen's revenues come from Treximet, its migraine medication sold by GlaxoSmithKline, and its Vimovo arthritis pain reliever, sold by AstraZeneca.

Pozen shares closed Tuesday at $6.31. The stock is up 65 percent this year.