Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc.

Greetings and welcome to the Collegium Pharmaceutical second quarter 2023 earnings conference call. At this time, all participants are on a listen-only mode. A question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. If anyone should require operator assistance during a conference call, please press star zero on your telephone keypad. Please note that this conference call is being recorded. I will now turn the call over to Christopher James, Vice President of Investment Relations at Collegium. Thank you. You may begin.

Welcome to Collegium Pharmaceutical's second quarter 2023 earnings conference call. I'm joined today by Joe Schifoni, our chief executive officer, Colleen Tupper, our chief financial officer, and Scott Dreyer, our chief commercial officer. Before we begin today's call, we want to remind participants that none of the information presented today is intended to be promotional and that any forward-looking statements made today are made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Your caution that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including and without limitation the risks that we may not be able to successfully commercialize our products, that we may incur significant expense, and that we may not prevail in current or future litigation pertaining to our business. These risks and other risks of the company are detailed in the company's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Our future results may differ materially from our current expectations discussed today. Our earnings press release on this call will include discussion of certain non-GAAP information. You can find our earnings press release, including relevant non-GAAP reconciliations, on our corporate website at collegianpharma.com. I will now turn the call over to our CEO, Joe Schifoni.

Thank you, Chris. Good afternoon, and thank you everyone for joining the call. Today we will discuss our progress towards achieving a banner year in 2023, our financial performance in the first half, and expectations for the remainder of the year. At Collegium, we are focused on building a leading, diversified specialty pharmaceutical company committed to improving the lives of people living with serious medical conditions. Our commitment includes supporting the communities where we live and work. During the second quarter, we launched a new partnership with the Boston Red Sox and Science from Scientists, a nonprofit organization leading STEM education initiatives for kids from low-income households. This partnership furthers Collegium's commitment to driving equitable access to educational resources that support the next generation of STEM leaders. I'd like to recognize my colleagues for their hard work and dedication to our organization and thank them for their commitment to people living with serious medical conditions and the communities that we serve. I am pleased to report that we are on track to make 2023 a banner year for Collegium Pharmaceuticals. At the beginning of this year, we committed to strong top and bottom line growth that would be achieved by maximizing the potential of our differentiated paying portfolio and leveraging our cost structure. We also said that we would generate strong operating cash flows that would enable us to rapidly pay down debt and position us to achieve our other capital deployment priorities. That is exactly what we have accomplished in the first half of this year. and what we will be focused on for the remainder of 2023. I am confident that we are on track to deliver on our strategic and financial commitments. Key accomplishments in the first half of 2023 include we delivered record revenue and adjusted EBITDA. In the first half of the year, we grew revenue 35% and adjusted EBITDA 51% compared to the first half of 2022. We generated strong performance in our pain portfolio. Belbuca is trending to achieve prescription growth on a full-year basis. Total prescriptions were up 3.5% in the second quarter compared to the first quarter. We continue to be encouraged by the trends that we are seeing. The week ending July 21st, Belbuca generated 9,376 total prescriptions, the highest level achieved since we acquired BDSI in March of 2022. We grew at Stamps ER revenue in the first half of the year by 38% year-over-year, driven by improvement in gross to net due to the successful completion of contract renegotiations last year. We delivered on our commitment that NuSyntha franchise revenue would be relatively stable year-on-year, In the first half of the year, Nuscenta franchise revenue grew 4%. We achieved an important step in the pursuit of a six-month pediatric extension for the Nuscenta franchise with FDA approval of both Nuscenta IR and Nuscenta Oral Solution for use in children ages six and older. We increased our cash and marketable securities balance to over $300 million, leaving us well positioned to execute on our capital deployment strategy. And our board has authorized us to enter into a $50 million accelerated share repurchase program. We believe that our stock continues to be significantly undervalued, and we are committed to leveraging our $100 million share repurchase program to opportunistically return cash to our shareholders. We are laser focused on our two-pronged strategy, of maximizing the potential of our differentiated paying portfolio and strategically deploying capital to create value for our shareholders. We believe that strong commercial execution is key to maximizing the potential of our paying portfolio. Xtamsa ER revenue is benefiting from gross to net improvement. Dalbuca prescriptions are expected to grow on a full year basis. And the Nuscenta franchise is exceeding expectations. Our capital deployment strategy is focused on creating long-term value for our shareholders, and business development is our top priority. We are actively pursuing differentiated commercial stage assets that we believe have peak sales potential of more than $150 million and exclusivity into the 2030s. Although business development is our top capital deployment priority, we are absolutely committed to being disciplined in our approach. Our strong financial position allows us to do so. For perspective, in our base case long-range plan, net of paying off our Pharmacon loan, we will have greater than $1 billion of cash on hand at the end of 2027. We are committed to leveraging our strong financial position to create value for our shareholders. 2023 is on track to be a banner year for Collegium Pharmaceutical. We delivered a strong performance in the first half of the year, and we expect to see revenue increase and expenses decrease for the remainder of the year. We are reaffirming our full year 2023 financial guidance, which includes growing adjusted EBITDA by approximately one and a half times the rate of revenue growth and two and a half times the rate of adjusted operating expenses growth. We believe that there is a meaningful disconnect between our share price and the intrinsic value of the company, and we'll be utilizing the board authorized accelerated share repurchase program to buy back $50 billion of our stock to deliver value to our shareholders. Our priorities for the remainder of the year are clear, and we are well positioned to achieve them. I will now hand the call over to Colleen to discuss the financials.

Thanks, Joe. Good afternoon, everyone. We remain on track to achieve our financial objectives in 2023. In the second quarter, we generated year-over-year double-digit revenue growth and grew adjusted EBITDA at twice that rate. We managed operating expenses and generated positive operating cash flows while paying down debt. Financial highlights for the second quarter include net product revenues were 135.5 million for the second quarter compared to 123.5 million for the second quarter of 2022. an increase of 10%. As expected, revenue in the second quarter tends to be lighter than the first quarter due to the higher coverage gap expense, also known as the donut hole in Medicare coverage. We expect quarterly revenue to increase in the remaining quarters of 2023. Belbuco net revenue was 43.1 million in the second quarter, an increase of 2% over the second quarter of 2022. Xamsa ER net revenue was $41.2 million in the second quarter, an increase of 24% over the second quarter 2022, and Xamsa ER gross to net was 63.5% in the second quarter. We expect full-year Xamsa ER gross to net to be between 61% to 63% in 2023. New Cintra franchise net revenue was $47.3 million in the second quarter, an increase of 8% over the second quarter of 2022. Gap operating expenses were $38.2 million in the second quarter, which decreased 7% compared to $41.3 million in the second quarter of 2022. Adjusted operating expenses were $31.1 million in the second quarter, which decreased 3% compared to $32 million in the same quarter of 2022. Net income for the second quarter was $13 million compared to a net loss of $5.2 million in the second quarter of 2022. Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA was $85.8 million for the second quarter compared to $71.2 million in the second quarter 2022, an increase of 21%. GAAP earnings per share was $0.38 basic and $0.34 diluted in the second quarter compared to GAAP loss per share of $0.15 basic and diluted in the second quarter of 2022. Non-GAAP adjusted earnings per share was $1.26 in the second quarter compared to $1.07 in the second quarter 2022, an increase of 18%. Please see our press release issued earlier today for a reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results. As of June 30th, our cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities increased to $325.5 million. During the second quarter, we paid down $45.8 million in debt related to our term note. We ended the second quarter at 1.2 times net debt to adjusted EBITDA and expect to end the year at approximately one time. We are reaffirming our financial guidance for 2023. We expect net product revenues in the range of $565 to $580 million, adjusted operating expenses in the range of $135 to $145 million, and adjusted EBITDA in the range of $355 to $370 million. As part of this financial guidance, we expect net product revenues in the second half of the year to exceed the first half of the year and adjusted operating expenses in the second half to be lower than the first half. Collegium is a financially strong organization well positioned to deliver on our capital deployment priorities. We remain focused on creating long-term value for our shareholders through our capital deployment strategy. Business development is our top priority and we remain and we remain committed to a disciplined approach. We are locked into rapidly deleveraging the balance sheet, paying down $162.5 million of debt in 2023, which would put us at approximately one times net debt to adjusted EBITDA at year's end. Our ability to delever quickly is a testament to our strong cash generation. We are also returning capital to shareholders through share repurchases. Our share repurchase program announced in January enables us to purchase up to $100 million worth of our shares this year. We believe in the long-term success of our company and that our stock at the current valuation represents a very attractive investment with a favorable return profile for investors. As such, we announced today that as part of our repurchase program, our board has authorized us to enter into a $50 million accelerated share repurchase program reinforcing our commitment to deliver to our shareholders through effective capital deployment. We see the share repurchase program as a high return use of our capital for the benefit of our shareholders. I will now turn it over to Scott.

Thanks, Colleen. We take pride in Collegium being viewed by pain specialists as the leader in responsible pain management. It's a testament to our highly differentiated and distinctly positioned pain portfolio and our talented and committed commercial organization. In the first half of this year, we've grown our portfolio share to 50% of the branded market. Our field force is at 100% capacity and focused on growing our differentiated pain portfolio. In the second quarter, we were encouraged to see an uptick in the Belbuca total prescription trend. Belbuca total prescriptions grew 3.5% versus the first quarter of 2023. And over the past several months, weekly prescriptions have been steadily increasing. The trends that we are seeing along with a favorable comparator in the back half of 2022, reinforce our expectation that Belbuca prescriptions will grow on a full-year basis. In addition to growing total prescriptions, our focus in the second half of the year will be on improving Belbuca's position within Medicare Part D for 2024. We're encouraged by the clinical and financial discussions that we're having with payers and are confident in our ability to grow Belbuca in 2023 and moving forward. Xtamsa ER revenues grew significantly year over year as a result of gross-to-net improvements from the successful contract renegotiations we completed in 2022. Prescription trends in the second quarter stabilized from the first quarter, but we did not see prescription growth in the first half of the year. This is due to pressure from the plans that represented about 10% of prescriptions within the contracts that we renegotiated last year, where Xtamsa was removed from formulary, and candidly, the need for stronger commercial execution where we maintained our position. To be clear, we're making progress within the plans where we maintained Xtamsa ER's formulary position, but not to the level that we anticipated. We're focused on building momentum for Xtamsa ER through the remainder of the year. In terms of managed care, we're focused on renegotiating contracts that expire this year, which represent an additional 30% of prescriptions, and winning new plans for Xtamsa ER. Our payer strategy will serve as a catalyst for growth in 2024, and we're forever committed to keeping gross to net below 65%. In November, we expect to provide an update on the status of our contract renegotiations, as well as any new wins we've secured for Belbuca and Xtamsa for 2024. Importantly, we're excited by the performance of the Nusinta franchise. The Nusinta franchise continues to deliver stable revenue and contribution. which was our commitment when we acquired it from Assertio in 2020. Our commercial organization and our market access team in particular has done an excellent job. The Nuscenta franchise serves an important role within pain management. Our differentiated pain portfolio is strong, with Bobuca, Xtamsa, and Nuscenta ER holding a combined 50% share of the branded ER market. We have a stable commercial organization committed to making a positive difference in the lives of people living with pain, and the communities that we serve. In September, we look forward to participating as a leading sponsor in Pain Week, the largest pain conference in the United States. We'll have a large presence and our medical team expects to present 10 posters supporting our pain franchise. We're focused on building momentum in the second half of the year and executing our market access strategy to position the pain portfolio for growth in 2024. I'll now turn the call back to Joe.

Thanks, Scott. We had a strong performance in the first half of 2023 and are on track to achieve our strategic and financial commitments. We are focused on growing our core business and creating long-term value for our shareholders through our capital deployment strategy. 2023 will be a banner year for Collegium. I will now open the call up for questions. Operator?

Thank you. At this time, we will be conducting a question-and-answer session. If you would like to ask a question, please press star 1 on your telephone keypad. A confirmation tone will indicate your line is in the question queue. You may press star 2 if you would like to remove your question from the queue. For participants using speaker equipment, it may be necessary to pick up your handset before pressing the start keys. One moment, please, while we poll for questions. Our first question comes from the line of David Amselin with Piper Sandler. Please proceed with your question.

Hey, thanks. So just have a few. So on Bill Bucca, you talked about looking to improve Medicare Part D access. I guess, can you help us understand on a broad level what your goals are in terms of percent covered lives over time, what you're looking for in terms of a gross to net range, Just how should we think about what that improved Part D access for the product could look like? So that's number one. And then number two on capital deployment, can you talk about how you're balancing buybacks versus BD activity? I know it's not an either or, but I guess the question is, do you expect to do even more buybacks down the road? And then lastly, just remind us how you're thinking about different therapeutic categories that you may or may not be interested in regarding business development. Thanks.

Okay. David, thanks for the question. I'm going to ask Scott to take the Belbuca MedD Colleen Capital Deployment, and I'll come back on the third question.

Yeah, thanks, David. So first in Belbuca and Medicare Part D, look, When you look at the profile and the access, very strong in commercial, only one real large plan in Part D. We're looking to improve it. I'm not going to get into guidance around gross to net and where we're heading other than saying we will always be looking to effectively manage gross to net and profitability. But the bottom line is with the profile of Delbuca and where it stands, we feel more patients in Part D should have access. We're encouraged by the clinical discussions we've had. We've submitted our bids, and now we're waiting to hear back from the plans, and we'll give you an update in November.

Thanks, David, for the question about capital allocation priorities. So as you recall, we've always been clear that our first priority is business development, and then secondly, rapidly paying down debt, and then also third, continuing to opportunistically return capital to our shareholders via the share buyback program. So as you can see from our track record in the past, in years with or without BD 2022 in mind, we have done share repurchases. So you know, we will in a typical year where BD is light, accelerate our buying of shares, but we're pleased to right now have in place for the full year what we announced in January was a $100 million share repurchase program. And then today, as part of that $100 million, we've announced that the board has authorized us to enter into a $50 million accelerated share repurchase program.

And then, David, with regards to BD, which is our top priority from a capital deployment perspective. Because of the current market conditions, we think it's important to be agile, so we're very open-minded in terms of therapeutic area. The next acquisition we do will be a pivot to a new footprint, a new infrastructure to the organization, so it will be a lower synergy deal than what it is that we've done historically. So what we're really anchored to are the fundamentals of a differentiated commercial stage asset with peak sales of greater than $150 million, in our opinion, with exclusivity into the 2030s, more so than any one particular therapeutic area.

If I may just sneak in a follow-up, what is the – the market look like in terms of asset prices? And you've talked a number of times about being disciplined here. Are asset prices at a place that you find more attractive, or do we still have a bit of a ways to go to a point where you feel more comfortable?

No, David, I appreciate the question. I think it's a great question. What I would say is, The noticeable difference this year, whether it's private, public companies, is the level of engagement, which is different than what it had been in previous years when access to capital was easier for people. Now, look, as we go forward, because we don't have to do a deal because of the financial strength of the company and the durabilities of our growth drivers, we're going to be disciplined. We're going to do the right deal for Collegium. And what I would say is in some instances, I suspect where we've been engaged, maybe companies need to see a couple more quarters or additional time before we can get to what we would see as a rational position or one that's the strike zone to getting a deal done. So what we're really focused on is executing against our core business, continuing to strengthen our the company financially, and what I am confident in is that we will find the right deal for Collegium Pharmaceutical that will create value for our shareholders. Okay.

That's helpful. Thank you.

Thank you, David.

Our next question comes from the line of Tim Lugo with William Blair. Please proceed with your question.

Hi, Tim. This is John. I'm for Tim. Thanks so much for taking our questions. Maybe just two from us. So on the BD front, can you talk a little bit more about maybe a potential overlap on the Salesforce that you might see and how you might manage that as you continue to focus on the growth of your existing franchises? And then maybe on Belbuca, I know in the past you said that's a little bit more of a complicated product requiring some additional education. Can you speak a little bit on how the ramp up of that education is progressing and how you expect those efforts to affect the growth trajectory of Bell Buca both in the near and the long term? Thanks.

Sure. John, this is Joe. I appreciate the questions. I'll take the beady one and Scott will comment on Bell Buca. So look, from a beady perspective and when you think about the organization, one, we take a lot of pride And I think we're able to say that we are the leader in responsible pain management. And we have a portfolio with Runway in front of it. So one of the key things when we think about BD is not doing anything that would be disruptive to that. And the good news is with what we're focused on, we'll be setting a new strategic BCHEC, which we're confident will enable us to not disrupt the focus and what we're setting out to do with the pain business. while also shifting the narrative of the company with an asset that we have a belief has that potential of 150 million plus peak sales. And then that becomes an infrastructure that will then be focused on leveraging with additional assets over time. And that's the approach that we're taking. And Scott, I'm Bill Bukin.

Yeah, thanks, John. So look, yeah, so We have talked about the complexity of the sale before, and we've put a lot of effort when we talk about execution into training our sales professionals upon acquisition of the product, practicing, rolling out new tools and resources. And by all means, I think that's a contributor to some of the momentum that we're starting to see build, and clearly that gives us confidence in our ability to continue to grow through the rest of the year. Thanks so much.

Thank you.

Our next question comes from the line of Serge Belanger with Needham & Company. Please proceed with your question.

Good afternoon. Just a couple questions from us. I guess the first one on growth to next, can you just tell us what kind of movement you saw in growth to next for the three major products over the second quarter, and what do you expect those growth to next to move into in the second half of the year? And then secondly, now that you've got the pediatric extension for Nucenta, maybe just an updated outlook for that product post-2025. Okay. Thanks, Serge. So Colleen on gross to net.

Hi, Serge. Thanks for the question. Great topic of interest here. So as expected, the second quarter gross to nets were higher due to the impact of the higher Medicaid coverage gap expense. That's really the same theme across all of our products to varying degrees, depending on how much of the business is Medicare Part D. But gross to net's generally more favorable in the first quarter of each year due to the lower coverage gap, also known as the donut hole. And then through the back half of the year, as patients are coming out of that, there is improvement in third and then more in fourth quarter, but not quite as good as the first. So We are right now in the height of Medicare coverage gap expense, as we would have expected, and we'll see improvement through the back half of the year.

And then, Serge, with the new SINTA franchise, we would expect to know whether we're going to achieve the pediatric extension in the first quarter of 2024. If we do, that would take us from a July 2025 to the full year 2025 in terms of exclusivity.

All right. Our next question comes from the line of Glenn Santadillo with Jefferies. Keith, we'll see what your question is.

Oh, yeah. Thanks for taking my question. Hey, Colleen, I just want to follow up on a couple of comments that you made. You know, first, did I hear in your prepared remarks that you said you expect to retire $100 million worth of debt in 2023 and finish the year with a leverage of one? Is that the goal?

That's right. We have per our debt payment reschedule paying over $160 million this year. And that will put it at the end of the year about one times net debt adjusted EBITDA. Okay, we're at 1.2 right now.

Yeah. And I apologize, I probably should know this, but you have the $100 million authorization out there. Now there's another 50 million accelerated share repurchase authorization. So is it 150 in total now?

No, the 50 accelerated share repurchase is part of the 100 for the full year.

Okay. All right. And so, I mean, just looking at your level of cash flow, would you expect that the $100 million in debt and $50 million of accelerated repo would probably be, you know, the aggregate of what you would return to shareholders this year?

So we have the authorization throughout the entire year to do up to $100 million in share repurchases. of which today's announcement is that we have the additional tool within that $100 million to do an accelerated share repurchase, of which we'll issue a press release as soon as that contract has been executed.

Okay. And, Joe, maybe I can just follow up on some of your comments, your previous question about, you know, what you're seeing in the M&A market right now. You said the level of engagement is different than previous years. Were you sort of implying that, there's a higher level of engagement or a lower level of engagement? And I guess what we're all trying to assess is, you know, the market now, are you seeing, you know, reasonable valuations or not? And, you know, would you be disappointed if we exited the year without a deal?

Yeah, so great question, Glenn. So what I'm focused on in that comment is that we are actively in pursuit of commercial stage assets, and there is a difference between in terms of receptivity of companies that perhaps we've reached out, engaged in the past that weren't in a mindset because of a different market dynamic to engage that now are. In terms of a deal, I'm not going to make any commitment from a timing perspective. To your question from valuation, if we were able to agree on valuation, then we would have a deal done. And, of course, as you know, that's the unpredictable part of you need two parties to come to a rational or a reasonable position to get that deal done. So we work with urgency while maintaining discipline, and we're afforded the luxury to do so because of the financial strength of the organization and the durability of the assets that we have.

So we'll find the right deal. Thanks for the comments.

You got it. Thank you.

Thanks.

Our next question comes from the line of Oren Livnat with HC Wainwright. Please proceed with your question.

Thanks. I have a few, if you'll indulge me. Just as I think about your full year guidance and where products are, I know you've, you know, previously committed to both Bell Buca and Xtamsa growing year over year total. And it looks like Bell Buca trends have improved nicely, but Xtamsa is still lagging. Yet you reiterated your full year guidance. So I just want to understand, you know, should we assume that maybe Nusenta franchise outperformance is the difference there in helping you get to your full year? Or are there other positive revenue offsets that I guess can make up for maybe potential lower volumes than you had hoped six months ago? And I have a couple of follow-ups.

Okay. So, Oren, the way I would think about, and as you know, we don't give product-specific guidance. As you said, we do expect to see Belbuca prescriptions to grow on a full-year basis. We've seen that acceleration in revenue of Xtamsa right out of the gate this year, and we expect to see that revenue will continue to grow. We do not need prescription growth with Xtamsa to achieve the guidance that we reaffirmed today. So what we've seen with Xtamsa is stabilization, which is an important step. We will be focused for the remainder of the year and trying to build from there, but we don't believe at this point that we could say with confidence that we'll see full year RX growth with Xtamsa. And as I said in my prepared remarks, and I'll emphasize here, we're really encouraged and NUSENTA is exceeding the expectation of relative stability that we had set at the beginning of the year. So the pain portfolio is performing in a manner where we're confident reaffirming the full year guidance.

Okay. And just to get an address to NETS, is it, I guess, cadence through the year or maybe a little bit different, I guess, for Colleen, than in the past. It looks like, at least on Xtamsa, maybe two Q growth tenets widened or grew a little faster from Q1 than I'd expected. But you guys are guiding to second half revenue growth. So besides Q4, which should improve, are we thinking maybe we got through the donut hole or getting to the donut hole a little faster this year? And perhaps you'll actually see an improvement in growth tenets even in Q3 for Xtamsa? Or am I misunderstanding? And then I guess just Big picture, when you think about gross to net, I know you keep promising the standard 65%, which is great. I'm just wondering, though, with all that volume that's still out there on extended release oxycodone that is in less safe products right now, how do you think about maximizing revenue? Is that 65% arbitrary, or is there any reason why you wouldn't next year say, hey, you know what, let's give a little bit more away than 65%, but there's a huge headroom that we can grow into volume-wise that will more than make up for it.

Okay. So thanks for the question, Jordan. I'll let Colleen go through some of the mechanics and gross to net, and then we'll come back to the question around our oxycodone market and how we think about the approach in it.

Thanks, Lauren, for the question on gross net. So as we expected Q2, the gross net sort of increases quite dramatically due to the Medicare coverage gap. That's most acute with extensa, as you noted. For the full year, we are still anticipating extensa ER will be within the range of 61% to 63%. So as you see generally across the board on the products, Q3 improved slightly and then a bit in Q4. But again, not quite as good as the first quarter.

Okay.

And then the other question, look, right now where Stamps is at in its life cycle, we have a really strong access position, a product that from a real-world data perspective is performing within the marketplace. We're committed to managing gross to nets to less than 65%. What you need to be mindful in how we'll approach this, the market as we go forward with what we accomplished last year in the renegotiations, along with another 30% up for renegotiation this year, we now have the headroom to add new wins if we're able to achieve them at a rebate level that we're comfortable with. So look at the end of the day, the mission of Collegium is anchored to putting together a differentiated portfolio that we believe can be a positive contributor. and making a difference to the opioid epidemic. We believe our products are relevant and that we're going to do everything we can to get access, and then we're going to educate around it to get the highest shares that we possibly can. Because at the end of the day, we believe that Belbuca and Schedule 3 should be used before Schedule 2 and Schedule 3 more broadly. And certainly, we believe that the case can be made that Xtamsa ER should eliminate oxycontin utilization. And that's what we're aspirationally trying to do. All right. Thank you. I appreciate it. Thank you.

And our next question comes from the line of Les Sawiski with Truist Securities. Good to see you with your question.

Good afternoon, guys. Thanks for taking my questions. Can you explain what happened with Expanse coming off of formularies on 10% of the contracts And, uh, what have been some of the headwinds to get this back online? Um, and second, I have a, I guess, I believe you took a price increase on the Thompson in January, which has been historically a bit lower. Is there a, is there a pricing event scheduled for the back half of the year? And I have a follow-up thing.

Okay. Well, Scott, we'll take the first and then Colleen, we'll talk about.

Yeah, thanks a lot. So first, uh, with the 10% that, uh, where extensive was removed from formulary. The bottom line there is those are still more profitable scripts right now. So we've seen script erosion, but the scripts we have have contributed to the profitability and net revenue increases we're seeing. What we were counting on is that growth where we maintained our formulary access would be greater than what we've seen. So we're seeing progress and growing in our other exclusive and parity positions, but not to the extent that we thought we would. And that's what's the headwind against the growth year to date. That's what we're focused on pushing through in the second half.

And less on price increases, particularly for extensa ER, as your question was. On January 1st, we took a 5% price increase for extensa, which we recognize and realize about 80% of that. Historically, we've taken about 9.9% annually on January 1st. The reason why it was lower this year was really taking into consideration the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act and optimizing where price should be.

Got it. That's helpful. And just to go back to the BD questions, what gives you confidence you can execute within a new vertical? You mentioned a new beachhead outside of pain. And in terms of quality of assets out there, are you gravitating towards perhaps underperforming assets that you can see from a carve-out from an operator that perhaps hasn't just been given the full marketing efforts? Or are you willing more to take up something that's high-performing and pay up a bit?

You know, great questions, Les. So the first thing I would say is what matters to us is that we have a belief that the asset has peak sales potential of at least $150 million and that it has exclusivity into the 2030s. And I think dependent upon the situation and what we always ask ourselves is why are we a better owner of that asset? And I think it depends. That's on an asset-to-asset basis, whether it's The company who has it is not able to make appropriate investments, whether it's the market access capabilities that we have, which I think we're demonstrating over the past several years, the level of capability that we have there or whatever it may be. That's the question we always seek to answer and I think is important whenever we do get that deal done that we're able to articulate. to everybody that is interested in or currently shareholders of Collegium of why that transaction makes sense.

Very helpful. Thank you.

Great. Thank you, Les.

And we have reached the end of the question and answer session, and I'll turn the call back over to Joe Schifoni for closing remarks.

Thank you. And thank you, everyone, for joining the call today. We look forward to updating you on our progress, and I hope that everybody has a great evening.

And this concludes today's conference, and you may disconnect your line at this time. Thank you for your participation.