Alimera Acquires US Commercial Rights to Yutiq

Alimera Sciences has acquired additional commercialization rights for Yutiq (fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal insert, 0.18mg) for the treatment of chronic noninfectious uveitis affecting the posterior segment of the eye from EyePoint Pharmaceuticals.

Alimera now has exclusive global rights to Yutiq, excluding China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, where EyePoint has a pre-existing license with Ocumension Therapeutics.

Under terms of the agreement, Alimera made an upfront cash payment of $75 million at closing; an additional $7.5 million will be paid in equal quarterly installments in 2024. EyePoint will also receive potential royalties from 2025 to 2028 based on combined net revenues in the United States from Iluvien and Yutiq in excess of certain thresholds, beginning at $70 million in 2025 and increasing annually thereafter. Alimera will immediately assume control of all commercial activities related to Yutiq in the United States.

“This is a landmark transaction for Alimera, bringing critical mass to our revenue base and leveraging the commercial infrastructure we have built in the United States. We know this product very well, having marketed Iluvien for the uveitis indication in Europe and the Middle East for several years now. We believe there are immediate synergies in adding Yutiq to our portfolio that will be accretive to revenue, adjusted EBITDA and cash flow in the second half of 2023,” Rick Eiswirth, Alimera’s president and CEO, said in a company news release. “EyePoint has done a wonderful job growing Yutiq to almost $30 million in revenue in 2022. We believe that deploying a larger commercial team focused on both Iluvien and Yutiq will increase utilization of both products moving forward and expect Alimera to generate in excess of $100 million in net revenue and $20 million in adjusted EBITDA in 2024.”

Yutiq net product revenue increased 60% to $7.4 million in Q1 2023 compared with $4.6 million in Q1 2022. For the full year of 2022, Yutiq net product revenue increased 67% to $28.3 million compared to $16.9 million in 2021.

In conjunction with the transactions, Alimera has added Jason Werner to its Board of Directors, as a designee of Velan Capital. Prior to this appointment, long-term board member, Garheng Kong, resigned as director.