Unilife Signs Long-Term Supply Contract for the Unifill Prefilled Syringe (UNIS)

Unilife Corp. (NASDAQ: UNIS) is an emerging medical device manufacturer with business segments that include pre-filled syringes for pharmaceutical companies to deliver injectable medications, sharps safety devices for healthcare facilities, and contract manufacturing of medical devices.

The company has announced the signing of a seven-year commercial supply contract with a pharmaceutical company for the Unifill® ready-to-fill (prefilled) syringe.

The press release addresses the target drug and market, exclusivity of supply, and projected revenue.

Mr. Alan Shortall, CEO of Unilife, stated,

"Pharmaceutical companies are actively seeking access to innovative, differentiated devices for delivery of their brand name, generic and biosimilar drugs. The long-term supply contract that we have signed today underscores this growing trend and demonstrates how our proprietary portfolio of innovative device technologies can enable and enhance their commercial strategies for injectable drugs. 

"Through the pairing of the Unifill syringe with their drug, this pharmaceutical customer can set a new benchmark for safety and functionality within this high-value therapeutic class, and turn compliance with needlestick prevention laws into a competitive market advantage. We look forward to building a strong relationship with this pharmaceutical customer to help them generate powerful differentiation and market demand for their drug."

He continued,

"While full terms of this long-term contract cannot be fully disclosed for commercial purposes, I am pleased that it contains multiple revenue-generating components, including exclusivity fees, an attractive unit price and significant commercial upside moving forward as other reserved international territories are added.

This is just one of many supply contracts that we expect to be generated for the Unifill syringe moving forward. We expect the Unifill syringe will be selected for a number of brand name and generic drugs targeted for use across a wide variety of therapeutic indications that are either approved and at various stages in their commercial lifecycle, or in clinical development. To best align ourselves with the commercial strategies of these pharmaceutical customers, and to drive shareholder value for Unilife, I expect these upcoming contracts will all vary in terms of size, scope and structure."

Read the full release at Unilife.com. 

Unilife CEO on Fox Business: "We Embraced U.S. Regulations" (Video) (UNIS)

A new trend is underway that is bringing jobs back to the US. But one company was ahead of the curve: Unilife Corporation, a developer, manufacturer and supplier of advanced drug delivery systems with state-of-the-art facilities in Pennsylvania.

In a Fox Business interview, Unilife CEO Alan Shortall explains that the company had outsourced its manufacturing operation to China around 2004-2005, but decided to move it back to the United States for a variety of reasons, not all of them intuitive. For example, the US's well-known and very stringent safety regulations, which make most businesses look elsewhere for manufacturing opportunities, were exactly what Unilife Corp was looking for.

As Mr. Shortall explains, "The US has a wonderful reputation for high quality medical devices, and the reason for that is because the regulations in the US are so stringent. Now I know we all complain about regulations, but this is one time when we actually embrace them, because it makes us better. And consequently, we can sell our products anywhere in the world because they're recognized as the best."

View the full interview below:

About Unilife Corporation

Unilife Corp. (NASDAQ: UNIS; Stock Twits: $UNIS) is a U.S. based developer, manufacturer and supplier of advanced drug delivery systems with state-of-the-art facilities in Pennsylvania. Established in 2002, Unilife works with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies seeking innovative devices for use with their parenteral drugs and vaccines. Unilife has developed a broad, differentiated proprietary portfolio of its own injectable drug delivery products, including the Unifill® and Unitract® product lines of safety syringes with automatic, operator controlled needle retraction. Unifill represents the world's first prefilled syringe technology integrating safety within the primary drug container. The products are ideally positioned to help pharmaceutical companies maximize the lifecycle of their injectable drugs and enhance patient care. Unifill syringes, together with other devices that are part of the Unilife technology platform, can either be supplied to pharmaceutical customers ready for use, or customized to address the specific requirements of targeted novel drugs.

Unilife Corp. (NASDAQ: UNIS; Stock Twits: $UNIS) is a U.S. based developer, manufacturer and supplier of advanced drug delivery systems with state-of-the-art facilities in Pennsylvania. Established in 2002, Unilife works with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies seeking innovative devices for use with their parenteral drugs and vaccines. Unilife has developed a broad, differentiated proprietary portfolio of its own injectable drug delivery products, including the Unifill® and Unitract® product lines of safety syringes with automatic, operator controlled needle retraction. Unifill represents the world's first prefilled syringe technology integrating safety within the primary drug container. The products are ideally positioned to help pharmaceutical companies maximize the lifecycle of their injectable drugs and enhance patient care. Unifill syringes, together with other devices that are part of the Unilife technology platform, can either be supplied to pharmaceutical customers ready for use, or customized to address the specific requirements of targeted novel drugs. 

Leerink Swann Analyst Rick Wise initiated coverage of Unilife Corporation with an “outperform” rating $UNIS

Leerink Swann analyst Rick Wise initiated coverage of Unilife Corporation (NASDAQ: UNIS) with an “outperform” rating and a $5-$6 valuation range, citing shares represent a compelling opportunity to participate in the potentially dramatic growth of a still young company that already has created a solid business platform.

Highlights from the Leerink report include:

• We are initiating coverage of UNIS with an Outperform rating.
• We see UNIS as well positioned in the current environment to sell its drug delivery systems to biopharmaceutical customers for life cycle extensions of injectable drugs and provide competitive differentiation for development stage biologics – all which we expect to be relayed at the upcoming analyst meeting (3/28).
• Despite what we view as a differentiated technology platform with numerous near-term catalysts, we also see a stock down ~40% since its last capital raise (Nov. 2011; versus S&P500) that reflects investor disappointment regarding timing of supply contracts; however, management has consistently pointed to the 2H‟12 as the likely timing for deal announcements.
• We recommend that long-term investors build a position as we believe UNIS offers (1) numerous near-term catalysts with potential for significant upside if a high volume deal is announced; (2) valuation is attractive even using management's most conservative forecast assumptions; and (3) a likely decision in 2Q to invest in a second manufacturing line because it will signal management‟s conviction for product demand. This is tempered by the inherent uncertainty of the licensing process and the need to generate near-term operating cash flow – current cash will last through 1Q'13 (F'3Q'13).
• Our $5-6/shr valuation for UNIS is supported by a discounted cash flow analysis and forward 2-year sales we expect UNIS to trade at 3.6x our 3Q'13 to 2Q'14 sales estimate of $110M.