ITMN selling Infergen. I've been kinda following company because of heavy insider buying some months back. But not close enuf, I guess, 'cause I don't know if the following is good or bad. Seems kinda negative to me, at least on its face.
From Briefing.com:
5:43PM InterMune announces divestment of Infergen, reduces annual opex by ~$50 mln, to retains full ownership of HCV Protease Inhibitor program (ITMN) :Co announces that on Nov 28 it signed a definitive agreement with Valeant Pharma (VRX) to sell its United States and Canadian rights to Infergen in a cash transaction valued at up to approx $135.5 mln in cash. Co has also made the strategic decision to continue to advance its HCV protease inhibitor program, at least through Phase Ib development, without a development partner. Co also intends to reduce its annual operating expenses by approx $50 mln as a result of: 1) divesting Infergen and thereby eliminating associated expenses, 2) significantly decreasing investment in field-based IPF disease awareness activities, and 3) reducing overall headcount by approx 160 full time equivalents. After taking a restructuring charge associated with these operational changes, expected in the range of $6-10 mln, ITMN will finish 2005 with more than $200 mln in cash. Therefore, the co expects to fund its future business without the need for additional new capital in the near term. |
