Elan to take a €45m hit on profits to cover class action lawsuit in US

ATHLONE-BASED pharmaceutical company Elan is to take a €45 million hit on profits to cover a class action lawsuit in the US and the anticipated costs of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation.

The company will take the €45 million charge in its first-half results. Goodbody Stockbrokers analyst Ian Hunter says the cost to the firm is as low as could be expected.

“Given that the company is in the final stages of negotiation with the SEC on the investigation and, we assume, is concurrently in contact with the lead plaintiffs in the class action, this reserve would imply a total settlement in the $100m-plus region.