Neuren Pharmaceuticals has announced it will begin paying dividends to shareholders for the first time after a sharp increase in royalty income from the Rett syndrome treatment DAYBUE (trofinetide).
The company declared a fully franked interim dividend of 15 cents a share for the first half of 2026. It will be paid on 7 October to shareholders recorded on 16 September, with shares trading ex-dividend from 15 September.
The payment represents 90 per cent of Neuren’s $21.1 million available pool, calculated from after-tax royalty income and corporate costs. Under its new policy, Neuren said it intends to pay semi-annual dividends equivalent to between 70 per cent and 100 per cent of that pool, while retaining enough capital to fund development of NNZ-2591, its experimental treatment for a group of rare neurological disorders.
Neuren received US$23.3 million in royalty income during the first six months of 2026, up 29 per cent in US dollar terms on the corresponding period a year earlier. Converted at an exchange rate of A$0.702 to the US dollar, that equated to A$33.2 million. The company reported a profit after tax of A$4.9 million and held A$287 million in cash and short-term investments at 30 June.
Chief executive Jon Pilcher said the company’s income from DAYBUE, marketed by licensee Acadia Pharmaceuticals, allowed Neuren to fund its NNZ-2591 development programs while also improving returns for shareholders.
Acadia reported global DAYBUE sales of US$226 million in the first half of the year, a 25 per cent increase from US$181 million in the first half of 2025. Sales were supported by uptake of DAYBUE STIX, a powder formulation introduced more broadly in the United States in the second quarter. By the end of June, 40 per cent of US DAYBUE patients were using the formulation, with new or returning patients accounting for about 45 per cent of STIX demand in the second quarter.
Acadia has increased its forecast for 2026 global DAYBUE sales to between US$480 million and US$510 million. On that basis, Neuren expects full-year royalty income of US$52.6 million to US$56.2 million, or about A$75.1 million to A$80.3 million at an assumed exchange rate of A$0.70.
The European Commission granted marketing authorisation for DAYBU in the European Union on 24 August for neurobehavioural symptoms of Rett syndrome in adults and children aged five years and over.
The first European commercial sale would trigger a potential US$35 million milestone payment to Neuren. The licence agreement also includes potential European sales milestones of up to US$170 million, as well as tiered royalties ranging from the mid-teens to the low twenties as a percentage of European net sales.
Japan represents another potential source of value. Results from Acadia’s Japanese trofinetide trial are expected between September and November, with a regulatory submission anticipated in 2027 under orphan drug arrangements. A first commercial sale in Japan could trigger a US$15 million milestone payment for Neuren, along with possible sales milestones worth up to US$110 million and royalty payments on Japanese sales.
The company also retains a potential US$50 million North American milestone if annual net sales in the region exceed US$500 million for the first time. Acadia has reaffirmed its target of US$700 million in global DAYBUE sales by 2028.
The company is developing NNZ-2591, also known as ercanetide, for Phelan-McDermid syndrome, Pitt Hopkins syndrome, Angelman syndrome and hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, a brain injury affecting babies before or soon after birth.
Neuren is progressing its Koala Phase 3 trial in children aged three to 12 with Phelan-McDermid syndrome. The randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study is expected to enrol about 160 children and includes a 52-week open-label extension.
The company said the Phelan-McDermid syndrome development program remains fully funded, with total expected costs within its earlier guidance of US$80 million to US$90 million.
