Lantheus Holdings - Creating A Strong Image

(RTTNews) - Shares of Lantheus Holdings Inc. (LNTH) are up an impressive 53% year-to-date, way ahead of the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) index, which has gained only 20% during the same period.

Lantheus sells diagnostic medical imaging agents and products that assist clinicians in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular and other diseases.

The Company has 10 products in its portfolio - with DEFINITY, TechneLite, and Xenon being the lead products.

DEFINITY, an ultrasound contrast imaging agent, indicated for use in patients with suboptimal echocardiograms was launched in 2001. This imaging agent has been used in imaging procedures in more than 11.5 million patients throughout the world since its launch, and enjoys over 80% share of the U.S. segment for contrast agents in echocardiography procedures.

TechneLite is a self-contained system or generator of Technetium ("Tc99m"), a radioactive isotope with a six-hour half-life, used by radiopharmacies to prepare various nuclear imaging agents. It has approximately 40% share of the U.S. generator market.

Xenon Xe 133 Gas is a radiopharmaceutical gas that is inhaled and used to assess pulmonary function and also to image cerebral blood flow. The Company is currently the leading provider of Xenon in the U.S., with a 90% market share.

Lantheus' products are marketed in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Australia, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.

In addition to the 10 marketed products, the Company also has the following 3 products in the development stage.

-- Flurpiridaz F 18, a potential imaging agent used in PET myocardial perfusion. A second phase III trial was started in June 2018, and the last patient follow-up is projected to occur in the second half of 2020. Lantheus has a definitive license agreement with GE Healthcare for the worldwide development and commercialization of Flurpiridaz F 18.

-- LMI 1195, which has a potential in the diagnostic assessment of ischemic heart failure patients at risk of sudden cardiac death. The Company is currently in discussions with the FDA for a special protocol assessment for the phase III trial of LMI 1195 to demonstrate improved risk stratification of ischemic heart failure patients.

-- LMI 1174, a vascular remodeling imaging agent to identify vulnerable plaque located in the cardiovascular system, is in late preclinical development.

Financial Numbers - A look back and a look ahead

The Company's annual adjusted net income in 2018 was $44.72 million or $1.13 per share on revenue of $343.4 million. This compared with an adjusted net income of $36.98 million or $0.95 per share, and revenue of $331.4 million in 2017.

Looking ahead, for the first quarter of 2019, adjusted EPS is expected to be in the range of $0.23 to $0.25 on revenue of $85 million to $87.5 million. The adjusted EPS in the first quarter of 2018 was $0.22.

For the full-year of 2019, the Company has forecast adjusted EPS in the range of $1.14 to $1.17 on revenue of $358 million to $363 million.

The Company ended the year 2018 with cash and cash equivalents of $113 million.

Lantheus went public on the NASDAQ Global Market on June 25, 2015, at an offering price of $6.00 per share. The stock touched an all-time high of $25.12 in intraday trading on February 25, 2019.