TORONTO (Reuters) - Biovail Corp
But Canada's biggest publicly traded pharmaceutical company said it would not slow its hunt for acquisitions as it transforms itself into a company focused on treatments for central nervous system disorders.
Since announcing its new focus last year, Biovail has struck five deals and hinted more are in the works.
"We remain active on the business development front and are currently evaluating a number of opportunities within our target therapeutic area of specialty central nervous system disorders," Chief Executive Bill Wells said in a statement.
"With over $500 million in available liquidity at the end of the third quarter, we're well positioned to execute on one or more of these to further build a long-term growth engine for the company."
Earlier this year, Biovail struck a deal with Swiss biotech Santhera
The deal cut into Biovail's third-quarter results, as it was forced to absorb some research and development costs.
Biovail said it earned US$40.4 million, or 25 cents a share, in the quarter, down from $48.4 million, or 31 cents a share, a year earlier.
The 2009 quarter included R&D costs of $8.1 million related to the Santhera deal, and $2.4 million in restructuring charges related to the closure of Biovail's manufacturing facilities in Puerto Rico.
The 2008 quarter included $7.6 million in restructuring charges.
Third-quarter revenue rose 17 percent to $212.5 million.
($1=$1.06 Canadian)
(Reporting by Scott Anderson; editing by John Wallace)
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