UPDATE: Amgen Sells Products to Swedish Drug Company

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Amgen Inc. said Monday it had agreed to sell two of its smaller drugs and license a third to Swedish drugmaker Biovitrum AB in a deal valued at $130 million.

Stockholm-based Biovitrum will acquire Kepivance, which treats cancer-related mouth sores, and Stemgen, which increases the number of stem cells in the blood and most often is used in conjunction with Amgen’s infection-fighting drug Neulasta. It also will also receive an exclusive worldwide license to market Kineret, a rheumatoid arthritis drug developed by Amgen that had never sold as well as Amgen’s Enbrel.

Kineret, Kepivance and Stemgen generated combined sales of nearly $70 million in 2007, said Thousand Oaks-based Amgen.

The financial terms of the deal include an upfront payment of roughly $130 million, consisting of $110 million in cash plus Biovitrum shares currently valued at $20 million. The agreement includes existing inventory of the three products.

The sale enables the biotech, which has struggled to maintain growth following safety concerns about its anemia and arthritis drugs, to devote resources to more promising products. Amgen later on Monday released the first head-to-head comparision data for its widely anticipated treatment for bone loss. The company said patients treated with denosumab achieved significantly greater gains in bone mineral density than those using a currently approved Merck drug called Fosamax.

Amgen shares closed down 68 cents, or 1 percent to $62.19 in Nasdaq trading.

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