After months of takeover speculation, MedImmune announced April 12 that it is exploring a possible sale. The company's board of directors authorized management to evaluate interest from third parties in acquiring the Gaithersburg, Md., biotech.

Despite rumors of a potential sale that increased in February when billionaire Carl Icahn announced he owned 2.8 million shares of the firm as of Dec. 31, 2006, MedImmune has publicly maintained that the best opportunity for the company to maximize shareholder value is to aggressively implement its existing business strategy independently.

"However, indications of interest by major pharmaceutical companies, coupled with recent expressions by certain stockholders of dissatisfaction with the company's short-term stock price performance, have led the board to authorize management to gather information regarding possible strategic interest in acquiring the company," MedImmune said in a statement.

The company has retained Goldman Sachs and Dewey Ballantine to assist in the process.

MedImmune's stock surged on the news, closing up 15.3 percent to 43.63 April 12. The firm has a market capitalization of over $10 billion.

As one of the largest independent biotechs with marketed products, including the influenza vaccine FluMist and the respiratory syncytial virus treatment Synagis (palivizumab), MedImmune could fetch a hefty price and is likely to catch the eye of several big pharmas.

Among those that have been ramping up their vaccines business are Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Wyeth and Novartis. Merck's human papilloma virus vaccine Gardasil , rotavirus vaccine Rotateq and herpes zoster vaccine Zostavax all cleared FDA last year, and the firm signed a deal with Idera Pharmaceuticals in December to incorporate the firm's toll-like receptor agonists in Merck's oncology, infectious diseases and Alzheimer's vaccines research (¹ Also see "Merck To Incorporate Idera’s TLR Agonists Into Vaccine Program" - Pink Sheet, 11 December, 2006.).

MedImmune already has relationships with Merck and GSK, which use the firm's "virus-like particle technology" in the production of Gardasil and Cervarix (GSK's vaccine candidate) and for which MedImmune receives a revenue stream.

MedImmune's pipeline is rooted in infectious disease, cancer and inflammatory diseases. Among the later stage development projects is Numax , a follow-on to Synagis - the firm's top-selling product. MedImmune plans to submit a Numax BLA by year-end. The company announced in February that it would hold off submitting the BLA to include additional data from a Phase III study involving Native American children (² Also see "MedImmune Delays Numax BLA Pending Additional RSV Trial Data" - Pink Sheet, 7 February, 2007.).

Other pipeline candidates include an H5N1 influenza virus vaccine, in Phase I development with NIH; a combination vaccine candidate against RSV and parainfluenza virus type 2; a monoclonal antibody targeting the IL-5 receptor in asthma; an anti-interferon-alpha program in lupus; an anti-IL-9 program in asthma; and an anti-CD2 program in T-cell lymphoma.

MedImmune reported 2006 revenues of $1.3 billion, including $1.1 billion in sales for Synagis and $36 million in sales of FluMist.

- Jessica Merrill (j.merrill@elsevier.com)

Citing Interest From Major Drug Makers, MedImmune Considers Sale

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