KV and Hologic alter Gestiva terms, extending deal and adding up to $120M in payments

KV Pharma, Hologic change terms of Gestiva sale

ST. LOUIS — KV Pharmaceutical Co. said Monday it altered the agreement that gave it the rights to Gestiva, a drug intended to prevent premature birth.

In 2008, KV agreed to buy Gestiva from Hologic Inc. in a deal worth $82 million. It paid $7.5 million to Hologic, but the Gestiva assets were not transferred to KV. KV would have been able to terminate the agreement in mid-February. Under the new deal, KV paid Hologic $70 million and worked out a series of other payments worth a total of $120 million.

Gestiva is intended to prevent premature birth in women who are pregnant with a single fetus and have experienced spontaneous premature birth before.

In afternoon trading, KV Class A shares slipped 12 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $3.28, and shares of Hologic, based in Bedford, Mass., were unchanged at $14.97.