VIVUS, Inc.(NASDAQ:VVUS) Won Approval for Qsymia As Expected

VIVUS, Inc.(NASDAQ:VVUS) was another company to get an approval from the FDA for its obesity drug Qsymia, formerly known as Qnexa. Just three weeks ago, Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. was the first company to won an approval for weight loss drug.

Analysts are bullish on the prospectus of Qsymia with analysts on Bloomberg are expecting sales to reach $1.2 billion in 2016.

The FDA rejected the name Qnexa because too many other drugs ended in the same letters and it would have caused confusion, Vivus President Peter Tam said.

The company may beat to market Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ARNA) (ARNA) and Eisai Co. (4523), which had their weight-loss treatment Belviq approved by the FDA on June 27, Tam said. Vivus plans to begin selling Qsymia -- a combination of the appetite suppressant phentermine and the antiseizure drug topiramate -- in the fourth quarter. The Mountain View, California-based company is building its sales capacity to market the drug itself in the U.S., Tam said.

“We are talking to companies we believe that are capable of supporting our product outside of the U.S.,” he said in a telephone interview. “We are not interested in being acquired as we feel we can do a very good job in the U.S.”

Shares of VVUS slid 7% to $24.65 in after hours following a 7.82% fall in the regular session.