Shares of French drug maker Sanofi-Aventis fell in premarket trading Friday after a Swiss drug maker says it expects to receive approval to sell a generic version of Sanofi's anti-clotting agent Plavix.
Schweizerhall said it expects German regulators to approve its generic version of Plavix, which was developed by Sanofi and U.S.-based Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. The German ruling would go into effect in all European Union nations through a process called decentralized approval.
The company said it plans to begin selling its version of the drug before the end of June.
European sales of Plavix reached 461 million euros, or $712.4 million, in the first quarter.
The stock lost $2.02, or 5.2 percent, to $36.74 in premarket trading, down from Thursday's closing price of $38.76. Bristol-Myers shares slipped 78 cents, or 3.4 percent, to $22.01 from $22.79.
Citi Investment Research analyst Amit Roy said Schweizerhall is planning an at-risk launch, or a launch that occurs without a successful patent challenge. As a result, he said, Sanofi will try to stop the drug from being sold.
Plavix has European patent protection until 2013, Roy said, while the U.S. patents behind the drug will expire in 2011.
He said he is "very cautious" on Sanofi shares because Novartis AG is planning a generic version of another drug, the blood thinner Lovenox, and shareholders L'Oreal and Total SA may sell part of their stakes in the company.
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