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First Horizon Provides Guidance for Second Quarter 2002 and Second Half of 2002
2 Jul 2002, 07:34am ET
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/FROM PR NEWSWIRE NEW YORK 800-776-8090/
[STK] FHRX
[IN] BIO MTC
[SU] ERP CCA
TO MEDICAL AND BUSINESS EDITORS:

First Horizon Provides Guidance for Second Quarter 2002
and Second Half of 2002

Highlights:

-- Second quarter revenues expected to reach between $25 million and
$26 million; EPS expected to be between $.00 and $.02 (excluding
charges related to amortization and write-off of debt fees)

-- The Company issued guidance of revenues between $60 million and
$65 million and EPS between $.20 and $.22 for the six months ended
December 31, 2002 excluding certain one-time charges

-- Primary contributing factor for shortfall resulted from greater than
expected erosion from knock-off products that compete with Tanafed
Suspension and Prenate GT.

ALPHARETTA, Ga., July 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
First Horizon Pharmaceutical Corporation (NASDAQ:FHRX), a specialty
pharmaceutical company, today announced guidance for its second quarter ended
June 30, 2002 and for the six months ending December 31, 2002. For the second
quarter of 2002, the Company expects to report revenue between $25 and
$26 million and earnings per share between $.00 and $.02, excluding a
previously announced charge of $2.2 million, or $.04 per share, related to the
amortization and write-off of the remaining debt fees in the second quarter
associated with the acquisition of Sular.
First Horizon reported that the primary contributing factor for the
shortfall resulted from greater than expected erosion of sales in the second
quarter of its Tanafed Suspension (pediatric liquid cold & allergy product)
and Prenate GT (prescription prenatal vitamin) products to knock-off products.
Another contributing factor for the shortfall was the distraction arising out
of the realignment of the sales force, which was completed in the second
quarter of 2002.
Tanafed DM, a new line extension introduced in January 2002, has been
increasingly adopted by physicians and accounted for 34% of the total Tanafed
line prescriptions for the first five months of 2002. However, the
performance of Tanafed DM was offset by pharmacists substituting prescriptions
for Tanafed Suspension with knock-off products. This substitution rate
increased substantially during the second quarter of 2002.
During the second quarter, Prenate GT became the number one prescribed
prenatal vitamin in the United States, according to IMS Health. However, like
Tanafed Suspension, pharmacists have substituted Prenate GT with knock-off
products and these substitution rates have substantially increased during the
second quarter. Despite this negative impact, Prenate GT continues to grow
market share.
Mahendra G. Shah, Ph.D., Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
commented, "We are executing a plan to address the issues surrounding these
two products. Tanafed is a very important brand to First Horizon. Subject to
completion of our development program for the Tanafed line, we plan to launch
line extensions in the second half of the year that we believe have unique
properties and could mitigate future pharmacy substitution."
Dr. Shah added, "For Prenate GT, we will continue to implement strategic
education programs highlighting points of product differentiation. We plan to
utilize a recently completed market study that demonstrates patient
preferences for Prenate GT over its competitors. In addition we have now
successfully completed the sales force expansion and realignment of the field
force thereby transitioning our sales professionals into their new
territories."
The Company expects to complete its accounting for its second quarter and
announce second quarter operating results at or about August 5, 2002. The
Company`s expectations on what it will report for revenues and earnings per
share for the second quarter are tentative pending completion of the Company`s
accounting of second quarter results.

Revised Guidance For Second Half 2002
First Horizon issued guidance of revenues between $60 and $65 million and
earnings per share of between $.20 and $.22 for the six-month period ending
December 31, 2002. This guidance excludes possible one-time charges estimated
at $5 million associated with the anticipated launch of the Tanafed line
extensions. First Horizon plans to provide guidance for 2003 later this year.

Conference Call Information
The Company will hold a conference call at 1:00 PM eastern time on July 2,
2002. You may participate in the call by visiting the Company`s website,
http://www.firsthorizonpharm.com and entering the Investor Relations page.
You may also dial in to the conference call. The dial-in numbers are
888-572-2018 for domestic callers and 706-679-5683 for international callers.
A replay of this conference call will be available by dialing 800-642-1687 for
domestic callers and 706-645-9291 for international callers. All callers
should use reservation number 4787123 to gain access to the replay. The
replay will be available through July 7th.

First Horizon Background
First Horizon Pharmaceutical Corporation is a specialty pharmaceutical
company which markets prescription products across four therapeutic areas
including cardiology, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics and
gastroenterology. With seven key prescription and 17 branded products on the
market, the Company promotes its products through its nationwide sales and
marketing force targeting high-prescribing physicians. First Horizon employs
over 200 people and reported revenue of $69 million in 2001.

Safe Harbor
This press release contains statements which constitute forward-looking
statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, without
limitation, statements concerning forecasted revenues and earnings per share
for 2002, statements regarding the timing and success of the planned launch of
Tanafed line extensions and the amount of charges related to these line
extensions are subject to certain factors, risks and uncertainties that may
cause actual results, events and performance to differ materially from those
referred to in such statements. In evaluating all forward-looking statements,
you should specifically consider various factors that could cause actual
results to vary from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Risks
affecting the Company are identified in the Company`s Prospectus dated April
19, 2002 previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the
"Risk Factors" section under following headings: "We expect our operating
results to be substantially dependent upon our results of operations from
Sular, and any factor adversely effecting sales of Sular could have a
materially adverse effect on our sales and profits," "We may have difficulty
maintaining or increasing sales of Sular, Prenate and Furadantin and
successfully integrating these products into our business," "The costs we may
incur to sell our new products may be disproportionately high relative to
their expected revenues," "The potential growth rate for Sular may be limited
by slower growth for the class of drugs to which Sular belongs," "We have no
experience selling Sular, have only limited experience selling Furadantin and
the Prenate products and there is no established market for Prenate GT," "The
regulatory status of prenatal vitamins makes Prenate products subject to
increased competition," "Our level of debt could reduce our growth and
profitability," "Our growth will suffer if we do not acquire rights to new
products and integrate them successfully," "We may encounter problems in the
manufacture of our products that could limit our ability to sell our
products," "Part of our growth strategy is to acquire businesses, which
subjects us to additional risks," "We face generic and other competition that
could lower prices and unit sales," "Strong competition exists for our
products, and competitors have recently introduced new products and therapies
that could make our products obsolete," "A small number of customers account
for a large portion of our sales and the loss of one of them, or changes in
their purchasing patterns could result in reduced sales," "If our products
under development fail in clinical studies, if we fail or encounter
difficulties in obtaining regulatory approval for new products or new uses of
existing products, or if our development agreements are terminated, we will
have expended significant resources for no return," "We or third parties may
violate government regulations," "If third-party payors do not adequately
reimburse patients for our products, doctors may not prescribe them," "We
depend on highly trained management, and we may not be able to keep current
management or hire qualified management personnel in the future," "Product
liability claims and product recalls could limit sales and increase costs,"
"We expect to require additional funding, and if we cannot obtain it, our
sales, profits, acquisitions and development projects could suffer,"
"Competitors could offer a product competitive with Sular," "If we do not
secure or enforce patents and other intellectual property rights, we could
encounter increased competition that would adversely affect our operating
results," "Our products could infringe the intellectual property rights of
third parties, which could require us to pay license fees to defend litigation
that would be expensive or prevent us from selling products," "The regulatory
status of some of our products makes these products subject to increased
competition and other risks," "We face risks under one of our development
agreements because the other party to the agreement is a related party,"
"Pohl-Boskamp can terminate our rights to Nitrolingual Pumpspray," and "We
have no experience selling products in other countries." We do not undertake
to update our forward-looking statements to reflect future events or
circumstances.

[Cyberfrank]

und im Oktober hatte die Dirma noch über 100 Mio USD Cash...das entspricht ja schon fast die aktuelle Marktkapitalisierung..entweder die Insider wissen noch mehr, oder aber die Aktie ist ein Kauf..hab jedenfalls selbst eine Position aufgebaut...