Dr.Reddy’s Labs turns jittery

Though it has recovered now, Dr.Reddy’s Labs was a big loser in the opening bell session. The stock lost over 2.5% at Rs.2290 and since then, it has recovered to Rs.2332.60.

There was much jubilation on Friday after it had announced that the final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) and was launching Buprenorphine and Naloxone Sublingual – a drug used for treating adults with opioid dependence/addiction.

Then on Saturday, it announced that a court in the U.S. retrained it from selling generic variant of Subaxone.

The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey received an emergency application from the plaintiffs in the current patent litigation for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against Dr. Reddy's. Pending a hearing and decision on the injunction application, the court has issued a temporary restraining order against Dr. Reddy's with respect to further sales and commercialization of Buprenorphine and Naloxone Sublingual Film within the U.S. The court order does not include a prohibition on commercial manufacturing of the product. The plaintiffs will be required to post a bond or other security totaling $18 million to satisfy any losses or damages incurred by Dr. Reddy's during the period of the temporary restraining order.

The court has scheduled an expedited hearing of the preliminary injunction for Thursday, June 28, and a ruling is expected soon thereafter. The proceeding only involves one patent.

Dr. Reddy's remains confident in its legal positions on this patent and believes it will prevail on the issues raised with respect to the application for injunction.

But for now, the market has become a bit jittery.