Remember Lucira Health's 30 Minute Home Test Kit? Pfizer Just Bought the Bankrupt Company Via Winning Auction Bid

Lucira Health Inc LHDXQ has been acquired by Pfizer Inc PFE for $36.4 million through a bankruptcy auction. According to the SEC document, the asset sale closed on April 20.

The company filed for bankruptcy in February, just two days before receiving FDA Emergency Use Authorization for the first over-the-counter (OTC) at-home diagnostic test to differentiate and detect influenza A and B. 

COVID-19 & Flu Home Test is a single-use at-home test kit that provides results from self-collected nasal swab samples in roughly 30 minutes. 

In the SEC filing, it said Pfizer entered the winning bid in an April 6 auction for Lucira's assets.

Lucira Health snowballed over the past several years amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand for the company's COVID-19 test kits surged, and it posted positive net income in its 2022 first quarter for the first time since its inception.

Also Read: FDA's Regulatory Delay is The Reason For Novavax, Lucira Health's Failure: WSJ Report.

During filing for Chapter 11, the company said a protracted EUA process for its COVID-19 and influenza test had been costly without new revenue from the combined test kit during the 2022-2023 flu season.

FDA officials responded to the statements about a perceived lengthy EUA process, saying it had found Lucira's COVID-19 and flu test had contained a toxic substance in one of the test components.

Price Action: PFE shares are up 0.18% at $38.81 on the last check Friday.