More bad news for Patheon shareholders
Shares of drugmaker
Patheon Inc. (PTI/TSX) fell 6.4% yesterday after investors received more bad news regarding the company’s MOVA Pharmaceutical unit.
MOVA’s CEPH International subsidiary received a warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Puerto Rico District office late Friday.
In a release, Patheon said the letter “claims that variations in assay, fill-weight, content uniformity and related issues for an oral powder for suspension product manufactured by CEPH indicate a failure to comply with current Good Manufacturing Practices of the U.S. Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.”
Further, it said that the letter was the result of an inspection in April, and that the company has 15 days to respond. But the company said it has already taken several actions, including the purchase of new equipment which is “currently under validation.”
Patheon fell 45¢ to $6.63 on about 1.3 million shares.
Earlier this month, Patheon’s shares took a hit after it reported disappointing third-quarter earnings, much of which was blamed on MOVA. The unit was purchased in December 2004, but encountered problems shipping products to two major customers due to various supply and inventory issues.