Elan Initiates Formal Sale Process of Company

Article

The move follows rejection of Elan shareholders of certain key deals and withdrawal of Royalty Pharma bid.

Elan announcedon June 14, 2013, that it is proceeding with a formal sale process of the company and will invite Royalty Pharma, who had madean earlier $8-billion unsolicited takeover bid for the company to participate if Royalty Pharma wishes. On June 17, Elan shareholders voted in favor of a proposal to buy back $200 million in shares using the proceeds of Elan's sale of its share of multiple-sclerosis drug Tysabri (natalizumab). In response, Royalty Pharma withdrew its request for a judicial review of the Irish Takeover Panel’s decision requiring it to lapse its offer if Elan shareholders approved the share-repurchase program.

Although Elan shareholders approved the share repurchase at the company’s extraordinary general meeting held on June 17, they voted down three other transactions: a $1-billion deal with the US pharmaceutical company Theravance that was announced in May 2013; a proposed EUR-263.5 million ($350-million) acquisition of AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals, a Vienna-based pharmaceutical company focused on rare and orphan diseases; and the divesture of Elan’s ELND005, a drug in clinical development for treating separate indications of Alzheimer's disease and bipolar disease to Speranza Therapeutics. In the proposed Theravance deal, Elan would have paid $1 billion in a royalty-participation agreement in which Elan would receive a 21% stake in potential future royalty payments related to four respiratory programs in which Theravance is partnered with GlaxoSmithKline.

Recent Videos
Drug Digest: Challenges and Triumphs in Next-Generation Biotherapeutic Development
Industry Outlook 2025: The Rising Prominence of AI in Pharma
Leroy Hood, MD, PhD
Adam Sherlock, CEO of Qinecsa, discusses the changing political landscapes in the US and Europe and how that may affect the bio/pharma industry.
Related Content