Maybe I have this wrong, but Agouron is going to be a subsidiary of Warner-Lambert. They aren't going to stop what they are doing and all retire to an island in the Caribbean. They will get more respect and recognition which they deserve.
<<Agouron will continue to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner-Lambert and retain its current management structure, company spokeswoman Donna Nichols said.>>
<<Warner-Lambert officials said Agouron would face no job cuts and its headquarters would remain in La Jolla, California, if the deal is approved by Agouron shareholders.>>
What a difference a day makes, in the press' statements now about Agouron's pipeline, and their ‘blockbuster' drug Viracept.
Viracept is now <Agouron's wildly successful AIDS product.>
biz.yahoo.com
<<Agouron is one of the most successful and profitable U.S. biotech companies. It <developed and markets Viracept, the world's best-selling protease inhibitor against <the HIV virus that causes AIDS, and had company sales of $467 million for the <fiscal year ended June 30, 1998. >>
<<Wild said one of the most important drugs in Agouron's pipeline is AG-3340, a so-called matrix metalloprotease (MMP) inhibitor that is in Phase III trials for prevention of tumor growth in prostate cancer and non small cell lung cancer.
Dr. Peter Corr, a senior Warner-Lambert research executive, said AG-3340 could be launched by 2001 if successful, becoming one of the next drugs to emerge from Agouron's pipeline. >>
<<Wild said his company planned to expand trials of AG-3340 to treatment of breast cancer ''and possibly ovarian cancer'' if Agouron is acquired. >>
<<Wild said another very important product in Agouron's pipeline is Remune………'Remune's potential is enormous because if it works, it could be added to the drug regimens of every AIDS patient,'' Wild said. >>
Kind of ironic that I used to complain on this thread about all the accolades bestowed on Warner- Lambert for their successful launch of their anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor, as it took market share away from Merck and Bristol-Myers while Agouron got no respect nor attention for the most successful biotech launch ever.
Now they will get the respect, thanks to the Warner-Lampert deal. Viracept now has 36% market share, and is number one in the protease inbibitor market, over Merck, Abbot, Roche.
More power to them.
Hopefully Agouron will no longer have to deal with all the ignorance, the lies, distortions, the whiners.
I am tired of those whiners, who keep expecting the big Kahuna, who think every drug may displace Viracept, who think there must be something wrong with Remune, with AG3340, with ....
Interesting piece on thestreet by James Cramer last night:
<<You see, one thing I have learned over the years with great drug companies is that they are always aborting blockbuster trials. Heck, if every drug worked, they wouldn't even need trials -- they'd just give it to us with our cereal each morning! But, over time, drug stocks are like banks. They have these great annuity streams protected by patents. So, if one potential stream blows up, they probably have a whole bunch of other potential streams that they are working on. >>
<<This progression is particularly true with the majors like Merck. A few weeks from now MK 869 will be a memory, something that will remind people more of the last iteration of the World War II Messerschmidt than of a missed blockbuster. In my lifetime, only Syntex, which was a great drug company of the 80s, finally ran out of hot ones in the pipe, and it got a bid, making you pretty whole for the exercise. >>
I remember the over-reaction when Agouron discontinued their trials of Thymitaq.
I remember ICAAC of '97 and that article by you know who.
Yes that was a great article that Mike Head posted yesterday about Agouron's AG3340 and how well AG3340 seems to be working against prostate cancer, but did anyone notice that they did even mention Agouron one time? The article makes it seem like the drug is Folkman's.
Agouron is a great company. I will miss them, trading as Agouron.
But they will still be in San Diego, doing what they do so well, but under less pressure and with less risk.
And the stock price will probably appreciate more as part of a large pharma. Agouron's one year price target is $70.
Warner Lambert's 12 month price target is between $91 and $98.
I have learned a lot here Agouron, and from those on this thread who do know Jack ;-) especially John M, Richard, Izzie, Randy, Sam, Michael and all the rest…..
Thank you all.
From my understanding, the deal does not preclude other bids:
<Excerpted from 8-K filed on 01/19 by AGOURON PHARMACEUTICALS INC:AGOURON PHARMACEUTICALS INC rpts important event, financial statements & exhibits. Item 5. Other Events. Effective November 10, 1998, the Board of Directors of AgouronPharmaceuticals, Inc. (the "Company") amended its stockholder rights plan, to,among other things, (i) change the definition of an "Acquiring Person" to mean any person who becomes a beneficial owner of common shares representing twenty percent (20%) or more of the common shares then outstanding, and (ii) effect a two-for-one split of the rights with a corresponding adjustment of the purchase price therefor (reflecting the two-for-one split of the Company's common shares in August 1997) as more fully set forth (together with certain other modifications) in the form of the Amended and Restated Rights Agreement attached hereto as Exhibit 4.1.>>
The Shareholder's rights plan was supposed to be activated if someone acquired more than 15%. So if the deal does not go, Agouron will have to pay WLA $60 million, and WLA will have the right to buy 19.9% of AGPH.
$60 million is less than Agouron will end up paying for Remune.
There is a conference call at 8:30 AM with Warner-Lambert and Agouron.
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