Flying under the radar from many retail and institutional investors and into the new year comes Apricus Bio, a company whose mere 50M market cap is substantially undervalued based on its large diverse product portfolio, healthy financial standing, and forward looking market possibilities. The company and its two wholly owned subsidiaries, NexMed and Bio-Quant, owns a total of 12 diverse products and compounds in development from pre-clinical through phase III that are focused on dermatology, sexual dysfunction, diabetes and cancer. With several key upcoming events, of the likes including Vitaros
(erectile dysfunction) NDA application during 1st quarter 2011 for Middle East market
and European market expected 2nd quarter 2011 with Middle East in the 1st quarter, ProvOnco
(liver cancer) whose awaiting special protocol assessment reply by FDA during 1st quarter 2011, and Femprox
(female sexual arousal disorder), it seems evidently clear that a breakout in share price with increasing momentum to the upside as news begins to spread can occur in the blink of an eye. With 2010 going down as a very busy year which saw Apricus shares rebound nearly 300% from the lows, 2011 looks even more promising as it moves forward and begins reaping the benefits from increasing revenues, royalties and marketing capabilities of its products.
Perhaps what makes Apricus stand apart from its other small cap biotech peers is the fact that it has an already approved drug in Vitaros for the Canadian market, used to treat erectile dysfunction, a worldwide market valued at over $3B annually. This event took place on November 12, 2010, where Apricus Bio announced that Health Canada had approved Vitaros for marketing as the first topical treatment for ED in that country. "The drug itself is a major breakthrough in the erectile dysfunction world," stated Apricus Bio CEO Dr. Bassam Damaj, in an interview following the approval. He added that the treatment is simple, safer, and a faster acting drug than existing treatments.
Additionally, the application for approval to market Vitaros in Europe is scheduled to be filed in April 2011. The company quickly capitalized on its opportunity to increase cash flow and generate revenues without any expenses by signing a licensing agreement for the selling of Vitaros in Italy (Europe's largest ED market valued at $200M) with Bracco SpA which saw it receive $7.5M up-front, with a further agreement to receive double-digit royalties based on the future sales of the product. The Middle East and North Africa markets are expecting an NDA during the 1H2011, according to the company's website.