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Biotech / Medical : NPSP NPS Pharmaceutical -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mopgcw who wrote (310)	7/15/2006 2:05:40 PM
From: tuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 363

>>Lerach Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP Files Class Action Suit Against NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Wednesday July 12, 6:00 pm ET SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 12, 2006--Lerach Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP ("Lerach Coughlin") (http://www.lerachlaw.com/cases/nps/) today announced that a class action has been commenced in the United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Division on behalf of purchasers of NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("NPS") (NASDAQ:NPSP - News) publicly traded securities during the period between August 10, 2005 and May 2, 2006 (the "Class Period"). If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from today. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel, William Lerach or Darren Robbins of Lerach Coughlin at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at wsl@lerachlaw.com. If you are a member of this class, you can view a copy of the complaint as filed or join this class action online at lerachlaw.com. Any member of the purported class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. The complaint charges NPS and certain of its officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. NPS engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of small molecules and recombinant proteins. The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, defendants made false and misleading statements regarding the Company's business and prospects, including the potential for success of PREOS, its full-length human parathyroid hormone (PTH) drug candidate being developed for the treatment of osteoporosis. As a result of these false statements, NPS stock traded at inflated levels during the Class Period, whereby the Company was able to sell 7 million shares of NPS stock for proceeds of more than $79 million. According to the complaint, the true facts, which were known by each of the defendants but concealed from the investing public during the Class Period, were as follows: (a) contrary to defendants' positive claims concerning the PaTH study on August 10, 2005, the results in fact evidenced that PREOS was no different from Fosamax in bone density and fracture results; (b) there was a very narrow market for PTH drugs (like PREOS and its competitor Forteo): namely, patients with severe spinal osteoporosis who had also suffered a fracture; (c) on or before August 2, 2005, defendants were notified that a major study performed by a lead researcher in the field who had reviewed all PREOS study results had concluded that further studies were necessary to determine the efficiency of PREOS, if any, in humans; (d) unlike other bone density drugs/products which can be used for hip fracture risk reduction, PREOS, assuming it received FDA approval, could not be prescribed for this use - a key market for bone density drugs; (e) the Center of Medicare Services of Health and Human Services had ruled that injectable drugs for osteoporosis, like PREOS's competitor Forteo, would be reimbursable only for patients who had suffered a fracture, which indicated that the market for a drug like PREOS was limited to a small subgroup of osteoporosis patients who had suffered a fracture while on an existing oral drug; (f) defendants were also aware that physicians would never recommend PREOS except in all but the rarest cases, since the Physician Desk Reference on drugs recommended Forteo (and hence, injectable parathormone drugs like PREOS also) for second line use in osteoporosis after failure of oral drugs like Fosamax and for a maximum of 24 months, which limitations on physician use narrow the medical indication for parathormone drugs like PREOS; and (g) the combination of these facts added up to a huge hurdle to market success for PREOS because the very drug that was the baseline precursor drug for osteoporosis, Fosamax, had already been shown to be as effective as PREOS in the PaTH studies. These facts about PREOS, including the limited reimbursement for the family of parathormone drugs, were critical to understanding the very difficult prospects for FDA approval and market success for the drug. Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of NPS publicly traded securities during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by Lerach Coughlin, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.<< snip This was the first of many. Cheers, Tuck

To: mopgcw who wrote (310)	10/9/2007 2:38:26 PM
From: tuck	Respond to of 363

>>NPS Sells Assets Related to mGluR Collaboration to AstraZeneca for $30 Million to Support Late-Stage Product Development Tuesday October 9, 9:00 am ET BEDMINSTER, N.J., Oct. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: NPSP - News) announced today that by mutual agreement it has ended its collaboration with AstraZeneca to discover and develop drugs targeting metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). AstraZeneca has agreed to pay NPS $30 million to acquire NPS's assets related to the companies' research collaboration to discover and develop the compounds. NPS intends to use the proceeds to support further development of its late-stage product pipeline. The two companies have been collaborating since March 2001 to discover and develop compounds that are active at these receptors and have identified several drug candidates currently in preclinical and Phase 1 studies. Under the terms of the agreement, NPS will no longer provide research support for or maintain interests in any drugs discovered, developed and commercialized under this program. Dr. Tony Coles, president and CEO of NPS, stated, "Monetizing our interests in the mGluR program at this time enables us to create greater near-term value for NPS shareholders. This strategic move creates investment flexibility for NPS and enables us to use the monies from this deal, the previously announced Nycomed GATTEX deal and the approximately $10 million in savings over the next two years from this transaction to support the further development of our late-stage pipeline products, PREOS and GATTEX, in specialty indications. We have had a very productive collaboration with AstraZeneca and wish them continued success with this program."<< snip Well, cuts the burn; the market likes that, as the stock is up 10%. But with PREOS a footnote in the osteoporosis market, NPS is very dependent on GATTEX now. Cheers, Tuck