Achillion Pharma shares rises after company finds partner to market hepatitis drug in Asia

Achillion rises on hepatitis/HIV drug pact

NEW YORK — Shares of Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. advanced Tuesday after the company said it entered a partnership to develop and sell its hepatitis B and HIV drug candidate elvucitabine in China and other territories.

Late Monday, Achillion announced a marketing partnership with GCA Therapeutics. Terms were not disclosed, but the companies said GCA will have the right to develop and sell elvucitabine in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan through a joint venture with Tianjing Institute of Pharmaceutical Research.

The venture will handle all development and regulatory activity and cover the costs associated with that work. Achillion could receive milestone payments as the drug passes through testing and review, and royalty payments of more than 10 percent on sales in those areas.

Achillion has completed midstage tests of elvucitabine in both hepatitis B and HIV.

Shares of the New Haven, Conn., company rose 17 cents, or 7 percent, to $2.59 in midday trading.

In a note to clients, Wedbush Morgan analyst Y. Katherine Xu said she expects the stock to rise further if Achillion can find a partner to help develop its hepatitis C drug candidate ACH-1625. She believes that partnership would be more important than the elvucitabine agreement for now.

“Although China represents a large market for HIV and HBV, the impact of this deal to Achillion is not immediate,” she wrote.

Xu upgraded Achillion shares to “Outperform” from “Neutral.” She expects the stock to rise to $5 per share. The shares have traded between $1.10 and $3.89 over the last year, and last reached $5 in March 2008.