Serono Shareholders Approve Resolutions at Annual General Meeting
April 26 2005 - 12:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
Serono Shareholders Approve Resolutions at Annual General Meeting
GENEVA, Switzerland, April 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Serono
(virt-x: SEO and NYSE: SRA) Serono announced that its shareholders
have approved all the resolutions at the Annual General Meeting of
shareholders, held today in Lausanne, Switzerland. Shareholders
approved the following main resolutions: - A cash dividend of CHF
131.1 million or $110.1 million [1] (2003: CHF123.9 million or
$96.8 million) - Gross dividend per bearer share of CHF 9.00 or
$7.56 (2003: CHF8.00 or $6.25) - Gross dividend per American
Depositary Share of CHF 0.23 or $0.19 (2003: CHF0.20 or $0.15625) -
Gross dividend per registered share of CHF 3.60 or $3.03 (2003:
CHF3.20 or $2.50) The dividend for bearer shares will be paid as of
April 29, 2005, net of the 35% Swiss withholding tax. The total
cash pay-out in Swiss Francs (CHF) represents an increase of 5.8%
for the financial year 2004 compared with 2003. The dividend
pay-out ratio in relation to earnings per share is 21.2% for 2004
compared to 24.3% for 2003. Shareholders approved the cancellation
of 962,435 bearer shares, with a par value of CHF 25.00 each,
purchased by the company under its second share buyback program,
announced on May 25, 2004. Shareholders approved the re-election
for one year of: - Mr. Georges Muller (Chairman) - Mr. Ernesto
Bertarelli (Vice Chairman and Managing Director) - Mr. Pierre E.
Douaze - Mr. Patrick Gage - Mr. Bernard Mach - Mr. Sergio
Marchionne - Mr. Jacques Theurillat Mr. Hans Thierstein did not
seek a re-election. Mr. Georges Muller, on behalf of the Board as a
whole, the employees and the shareholders of Serono SA, thanked him
very much for his remarkable contribution to the company during 25
years, in particular regarding its international development and
its listing on the Stock Exchange. Shareholders elected Mr. Alberto
Togni as a new member of the Board of Serono SA for a one-year
statutory term. Until 2004, Mr. Togni served as member of the Board
of the Swiss National Bank, delegated by the Swiss Federal Council,
and he is a member of an Advisory Board of the International
Monetary Fund. Mr. Togni was the Executive Vice Chairman of the
Board of Directors of UBS since 1998. He has stepped down from all
his functions within UBS on April 21, 2005. The annual report, the
accounts of Serono SA and the consolidated accounts of the Serono
group for the year 2004 were approved. [1] All dollar figures are
based on prevailing exchange rates. Final equivalent US$ amounts
may differ depending on exchange rates on the date of the payment.
Some of the statements in this press release are forward looking.
Such statements are inherently subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results,
performance or achievements of Serono S.A. and affiliates to be
materially different from those expected or anticipated in the
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on
Serono's current expectations and assumptions, which may be
affected by a number of factors, including those discussed in this
press release and more fully described in Serono's Annual Report on
Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on
March 16, 2005. These factors include any failure or delay in
Serono's ability to develop new products, any failure to receive
anticipated regulatory approvals, any problems in commercializing
current products as a result of competition or other factors, our
ability to obtain reimbursement coverage for our products, the
outcome of government investigations and litigation and government
regulations limiting our ability to sell our products. Serono has
no responsibility to update the forward-looking statements
contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances
occurring after the date of this press release. About Serono Serono
is a global biotechnology leader. The Company has eight
biotechnology products, Rebif(R), Gonal-f(R), Luveris(R),
Ovidrel(R)/Ovitrelle(R), Serostim(R), Saizen(R), Zorbtive(TM) and
Raptiva(R). In addition to being the world leader in reproductive
health, Serono has strong market positions in neurology, metabolism
and growth and has recently entered the psoriasis area. The
Company's research programs are focused on growing these businesses
and on establishing new therapeutic areas, including oncology.
Currently, there are approximately 30 ongoing development projects.
In 2004, Serono achieved worldwide revenues of US$2,458.1 million,
and a net income of US$494.2 million, making it the third largest
biotech company in the world. Its products are sold in over 90
countries. Bearer shares of Serono S.A., the holding company, are
traded on the virt-x (SEO) and its American Depositary Shares are
traded on the New York Stock Exchange (SRA). Reuters: SEO.VX /
SRA.N Bloomberg: SEO VX / SRA US http://www.serono.com/
http://www.seronousa.com/ DATASOURCE: Serono International S.A.
CONTACT: Corporate Media Relations: Tel: +41-22-739-36-00, Fax:
+41-22-739-30-85; Corporate Investor Relations: Tel:
+41-22-739-36-01, Fax: +41-22-739-30-22; Media Relations, USA: Tel:
+1-781-681-2340, Fax: +1-781-681-2935; Investor Relations, USA:
Tel: +1-781-681-2552, Fax: +1-781-681-2912
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