Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (MLNM) Message Board

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Biotech / Medical : Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (MLNM)

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From: Icebrg	10/13/2006 6:49:49 AM
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Millennium reviewing Genzyme bid for AnorMed, decision expected by Monday [Anormed's Chairman appears to prefer MLNM even if it means being paid partially with stock rather than cash. I wonder what kind of arrangements he has agreed with MLNM]. CRAIG WONG, Canadian Press VANCOUVER (CP) - Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:MLNM) will be hard-pressed to beat a rival all-cash bid for AnorMed Inc. (TSX:AOM), but could look to a combination of stock and cash to enrich its offer, an analyst said Thursday. Raymond James analyst Brian Bapty said Millennium will be limited by its balance sheet as to how much it will be able to improve the cash part of its offer for the Vancouver-based drug developer. "Our perspective is that it is getting close to fair value for AnorMed and the likelihood is at this point that Genzyme (NASDAQ:GENZ) will walk away a winner," Bapty said in an interview. "They may be able to provide an offer that is similar in kind or better with cash and stock, but if Millennium makes a move to get access to more capital maybe they could match the Genzyme bid or beat it." At June 30, Millennium had $626 million in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities on its balance sheet. AnorMed said late Wednesday that a sweetened takeover bid by Genzyme is a "superior proposal" to its friendly takeover deal with Millennium after it boosted its offer for AnorMed to US$13.50 per share in cash or about US$580 million. The offer topped Millennium's offer of US$12 per share. Millennium has until Monday to decide if it wants to increase its bid for AnorMed or take its US$19.5-million break fee and walk away from its friendly deal with the company and its lead drug Mozobil. "We're taking a look at our next steps and we're evaluating them, then we need to get back to AnorMed," Millennium spokeswoman Lisa Adler said. Shares of AnorMed have traded actively as investors speculated an all-out bidding war is in the making. On Thursday, AnorMed shares were down 16 cents at C$15.74 on the Toronto Stock Exchange and down 22 cents at US$13.86 on the Nasdaq market. AnorMed chairman and interim chief executive Kenneth Galbraith said an offer by Millennium of a combination of cash and stock might be attractive. "There's certainly circumstances where they can offer a cash-stock mix that would make it more attractive that US$13.50 cash for our shareholders," he said. "Our shareholders might be attracted to some Millennium stock where they can hold on to it and still participate in the success of Mozobil." Genzyme launched a hostile bid for AnorMed in August, prompting AnorMed to strike a friendly deal with Millennium. The Boston-area company increased its offer after reviewing AnorMed's latest data including work on Mozobil, the company's lead drug that triggers the movement of stem cells out of the bone marrow and into circulating blood. The company has said it expects to release initial data from two Phase 3 studies of Mozobil by the second quarter of 2007 and hopes to file a new drug application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration by the fourth quarter. channels.aol.ca

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