STADA ARZNEIMITTEL AG

Company Overview

Founded in 1895 and headquartered in Bad Vibel, Germany, Stada Arzneimittel AG is a Europe-based pharmaceutical company that specializes in the production and manufacture of branded, over-the counter (OTC) and generic drugs. Stada Arzneimittel reported annual sales of $3,841.0 million for the financial year 2021.

Stada Arzneimitel’s essential business sections are generics and branded products. The generics portion involves low-valued and active pharmaceutical products. The company operates in more than 30 nations with nearly 50 sales organizations. Its branded products include Grippostad (cold medicine), Aqualor (rhinitis), Ladival (sunscreen) and Covonia (cold medicine). Stada Arzneimittel produces one biosimilar that is used for chemotherapy-incited Neutropenia and another that is used for the therapeutic areas of oncology and nephrology. The company’s most important business is the production and manufacturing of affordable generic medicines.

Stada Arzneimittel extended its biosimilar portfolio in 2014 by authorizing a biosimilar for the first signs of osteoporosis. The company is continuously reviewing options for authorizing biosimilars in different indication areas, with the objective of expanding its biosimilars portfolio in the future.

The company has had licensing and collaboration agreements with Gedeon Richter plc since 2011 for the development and marketing of biosimilar products for two monoclonal antibodies, Rituximab and Trastuzumab. In August 2015, Stada and Gedeon Richter entered into a licensing and distribution agreement to commercialize Richter’s biosimilar Peg Filgrastim in Europe. As per the agreement, Stada got non-exclusive rights to market the product in Europe (excluding Russia), while Richter retained rights worldwide.
In the financial year 2019, the company’s sales in its generics segment increased by approximately 119% to $1.71 billion as compared to that of the previous year. The market share of generics in the global pharmaceutical market amounted to approximately 20.8%. Europe, Germany and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) were the strongest markets in terms of revenue generation in the generics segment.

The company’s branded products include the cold medicine Grippostal and sun protection product Ladival. Some other products are Apo-go, which is used for Parkinson’s disease; Snup, a nasal preparation; Zaldiar, a pain medicine; and Chondroxid, for the treatment of degenerative diseases.

The company aims to expand its generics core segment. To that end, Stada and its subsidiary BEFA (Beteiligungsgesellschaft für Pharmawerte mbH) signed a contract in the fourth quarter of 2015 to purchase the Argentinian generic drug producer Laboratories Vannier SA., which sells its products in niches that are subject to few price regulations, particularly for conditions related to the central nervous system (CNS), cardiology and diabetes. The purchase was completed in the first quarter of 2016.

In 2016, Stada signed a contract with mAbxience for the in-licensing of the monoclonal antibody bevacizumab biosimilar.

In January 2017, the EMA approved Stada Arzneimittel and Gedeon Richter’s biosimilar of the Eli Lilly osteoporosis drug Forsteo (teriparatide). The product, known as Movymia, is co-marketed by Stada and Richter-Helm Biotec GmbH Co. KG. In October 2014, both of the companies signed a licensing and sales agreement for the marketing of the Teriparatide biosimilar in Europe. While Stada got semi-exclusive distribution rights for Europe and nine non-European countries, Richter received the right to sell and market teriparatide in Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region. The drug is specifically indicated for the treatment of osteoporosis men and women.

In 2019, in terms of revenue, the company’s top five generic active ingredients were Epoetin zeta, Tilidin Naloxon, Atorvastatin, Omeprazol and Pantoprazol. Through December 2019, the company pursued more than 1,200 approvals including generics and branded products for over 160 active pharmaceutical ingredients as well as ingredient combinations for over 50 countries.

Financial Highlights (FY 2023)