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Market report: US drug addiction crisis gives 13% boost to Indivior

Indivior shares jumped after its strong first-half results
Indivior shares jumped after its strong first-half results

Amid the deluge of corporate results and with AstraZeneca under the microscope, another drug-maker managed to stand out from the crowd.

Shares in Indivior, which has treatments for opioid addictions, jumped 40.91p, or 13%, to 358.1p as its half-year results blew analyst forecasts out of the water.

Net revenues rose 4% to $553 million (£381 million) and adjusted net income leapt 25% to $169 million.

It attributed the performance to strong market growth in the US, where a well-documented opioid crisis has caused an increasing number of deaths.

The government has increased efforts to treat the problem and Indivior’s blockbuster numbers triggered an upgrade to full-year guidance.

It bumped up annual net revenue guidance by around $40 million to between $1.09 billion and $1.12 billion, and adjusted net income guidance is now $65 million higher at between $265 million and $285 million.

The results include a $242 million provision for a US investigation into whether the company — which spun out of Reckitt Benckiser in 2013 — drove up the cost of its Suboxone treatment to the detriment of addicts in need of treatment.

Broker Numis is upbeat about the outcome of the probe. “The US cannot afford the bear-case scenario where Indivior loses the patent… and fails to gain approval for the monthly depot,” it said.

A huge fall at drugs giant AstraZeneca (off 850p, or almost 17%, at 4263p), as a key cancer trial flopped knocked 40 points off the FTSE 100, which was 13.09 points lower at 7439.23.

Blue-chip pest-control firm Rentokil rose a creditable 12.6p to 287.4p, thanks to an eye-catching 637% surge in first-half pre-tax profits to £593 million.

Land Securities strengthened 25p to 1026p as it unveiled the sale of its 50% stake in the Walkie Talkie building for £641 million and plans to return £475 million to shareholders.

Among the mid-caps, Daily Mail owner DMGT dipped 3.44p to 642.5p as it stuck to full-year targets despite “challenging” conditions.

Bonmarché, the AIM-listed women’s clothing retailer prone to a profit warning, reassured investors with a 4.2% rise in like-for-like store sales in the 13 weeks ended July. Shares leapt 7.8p to 97.3p.