Alexion Agrees to Work With Hedge Fund Elliott on Filling Board Seat
January 02 2018 - 6:18PM
Dow Jones News
By Aisha Al-Muslim
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Tuesday it will work with
hedge fund Elliott Management Corp. on filling an open board
seat.
The move comes as the rare-disease drugmaker has been facing
pressure from the activist investor, which has pushed for changes
in recent years at companies including aluminum parts maker Arconic
Inc. and Brocade Communication Systems, now part of Broadcom
Ltd.
The agreement between the board and Elliott is part of efforts
to "maintain active and constructive dialogue with all of our
shareholders, " Alexion Board Chairman David Brennan said in
prepared remarks.
The New York Times reported last month, citing two unnamed
sources, that Elliott had built a stake in Alexion and urged the
company to make changes to lift its stock price.
Alexion said in November that the company was searching for a
candidate to fill a seat on its board.
The company and Elliott declined to comment Tuesday on the size
of Elliott's stake in the firm.
The New Haven, Conn., drugmaker, founded in 1992, has had many
management changes during the past year, including hiring Chief
Executive Ludwig Hantson in March, after an internal investigation
showed senior management pressured staff to persuade customers to
order its flagship drug earlier than needed to meet financial
targets.
The company's primary product is a rare blood-disease treatment
named Soliris.
Under Mr. Hantson's leadership, much of the senior management
team was replaced. Alexion in September said it was cutting its
workforce by 20%, relocating its headquarters to Boston and closing
sites as it works to reduce its overhead. The moves were expected
to create $250 million in annual cost savings by 2019.
"We are encouraged by actions taken under Ludwig's leadership to
improve financial performance and reset Alexion's strategy," an
Elliott spokesperson said in prepared remarks.
Shares in Alexion, down nearly 12% in the past three months,
were unchanged at $124.05 in after-hours trading Tuesday. Alexion
had a stock market value of $27.71 billion as of market close.
Write to Aisha Al-Muslim at aisha.al-muslim@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 02, 2018 18:03 ET (23:03 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Alexion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALXN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Alexion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:ALXN)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024