>>NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Wyeth Inc. became free to sell as much as 20 million shares of Amgen Inc. (NasdaqNM:AMGN - News) Wednesday, according to Wyeth's most recent 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Wyeth, which owns almost 98.3 million shares, or 7.7% of Amgen's common stock, was a big holder in Immunex Corp. before Amgen closed its acquisition of the company on July 15.
Wyeth owned around 223.4 million shares of Immunex stock, which under the terms of the acquisition, was exchanged for 0.44 shares of Amgen common stock and $4.50 in cash.
Wyeth and Amgen agreed to a 90-day lockup period which barred Wyeth from selling any of its stake. The lockup period ended on Wednesday.
Wyeth cannot sell more than 20 million Amgen shares a quarter, according to the agreement, the Aug. 8 filing said.
Wyeth officials weren't immediately available to comment if the company has shed any of its Amgen stake in the last two trading sessions.
Amgen's trading volume on Wednesday reached almost 20.4 million, higher than the average daily volume of 17 million shares. On Thursday, 17.2 million Amgen shares crossed the tape.
Wyeth and Amgen continue to co-promote arthritis drug Enbrel in the U.S. and Canada. Wyeth holds exclusive international rights to the drug.
-By Hollister H. Hovey, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5287; hollister.hovey@dowjones.com<<
Cheers, Tuck |
