Ferring plans to lay off 500 employees, or approximately 7% of its staff, as part of a streamlining effort, the company said in a brief statement.
The privately owned Swiss company added that it has informed staffers in “relevant locations” of the job cuts, which are designed to optimize operations and give it flexibility to “pursue new opportunities.”
The workforce shake-up will include some geographic relocations, which will reflect “strategic priorities,” Ferring said. While some roles could change, others will be eliminated.
The reductions are aimed at aligning Ferring’s operations with its new Enterprise Model, which it unveiled last month.
“Ferring is undertaking a company-wide initiative designed to sharpen strategic focus, improve cost efficiencies, flexibility, and free up resources for reinvestment in innovation, whilst promoting its financial stability and sustainable growth,” the company said Tuesday.
Alongside the introduction of its Enterprise Model last month, the company revealed the early retirement of its former chief medical and science officer Pierre-Yves Berclaz and the formation of a new Science, Medicine and Development Council. The council will provide advice and oversight for clinical development and medical and regulatory affairs, Ferring said.
Going forward, Ferring will continue to invest in modern technologies and “business development focused on mid- to late-stage opportunities," the company explained in this week's statement.
Last year, Ferring executed 134 layoffs, cutting 79 positions at its U.S. headquarters in Parsippany, New Jersey, and 55 roles at the company’s microbiome hub in Roseville, Minnesota. In 2023, Ferring shut down its research outlet in San Diego, with 89 employees losing their jobs.
Also last year, Ferring opened a new manufacturing facility in Kuopio, Finland, to help produce drug substance for Adstiladrin, which was approved by the FDA in late 2022 as the first gene therapy to target high-risk and non-muscle invasive bladder cancer in patients who no longer respond to therapy.
In April, the company reported that fiscal year 2024 sales reached 2.3 billion euros ($2.7 billion), with its reproductive medicines generating more than 1 billion euros in sales for the first time.