Elan's asset sale to pay its huge debt grossed $370 million today with the disposal of an anti-fungal drug Abelcet for $370 million.
The sale was part of an overall plan for asset sales to raise $1.5 billion by the end of 2003.
A source close to the company said that Elan was weighing an exit from the pain treatment business in a possible sale of its four main pain treatment medications, Sonata, Skelaxin, Zanaflex and Naprelan.
Elan fell victim to the global accounting jitters after it was revealed it used special off-balance sheet entities for some of its operations. Elan has denied any accounting malpractice, but remains the subject of an investigation by the watchdog US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Analysts generally applauded the sale of Elan's hospital-use anti-fungal treatment to Enzon. They saw the announcement as timely after Elan's share price fell 34 per cent yesterday in Dublin, to hit an all-time low of €1.34.
The plunge came on the back of a trading statement which said Elan's third quarter revenues were expected to be down 46 per cent from the second quarter, and raised questions about the company's cash burn, which some analysts have said could take the company through its remaining $600 million in four quarters.
Elan shares were down almost 3 per cent at €1.30 in thin early trade in Dublin today.
NCB Stockbrokers in a research note by analyst Mr David Marshall said the price paid by Enzon was 5.3 times historic sales and "is well ahead of our expectation".