Maxygen plunges on potential Amgen patent dispute
Friday June 13, 10:55 am ET
Maxygen shares plunge as Amgen gets patent which threatens product launch, patent litigation
NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of Maxygen Inc. plunged 27 percent Friday, after the biotechnology company said it may be open to patent infringement litigation from rival Amgen Inc.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Maxygen said Amgen received a patent which appears to cover the company's drug MAXY-G34, which treats a common chemotherapy-induced blood disorder known as neutropenia. The drug is not yet on the market.
While Maxygen believes the patent will eventually be invalidated in court, it does give Amgen grounds to sue Maxygen, just as MAXY-G34 approaches marketing. If the company isn't able to overturn the patent, the drug's launch could be delayed by two years, estimated Cowen and Co. analyst Eric Schmidt.
While Schmidt notes that the news adds incremental litigation risk to Maxygen, he thinks the company's share price is cheap in relation to its protein engineering platform and drug pipeline.
Goldman Sachs analyst May-Kin Ho expected the news to pressure Maxygen shares, given that investors may now be uncertain about how the Amgen patent will affect potential partnership deals for MAXY-G34, launch timing and potential legal disputes which may take years to resolve.
In morning trading, Maxygen shares fell $1.30, or 27 percent, to $3.55 on 10 times average daily volume.
Maxygen warns of possible Amgen suit
Friday June 13, 11:24 am ET
Maxygen warns of possible Amgen patent-infringement suit
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Maxygen Inc. warned Friday that Amgen Inc. may sue the company for patent infringement relating to Maxygen's Maxy-G34 drug candidate.
Maxy-G34 is designed to be the improved version of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, or G-CSF, for the treatment of neutropenia, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Friday.
Neutropenia is an abnormally low number of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, in the blood. White blood cells help fight bacterial infections.
Maxygen, a Redwood City, Calif.-based biopharmaceutical company, said the U.S. Food & Drug Administration granted a patent to Amgen on June 3 with certain G-CSF claims.
Maxygen said it has been granted four patents related to Maxy-G34. Maxy-G34 is currently in Phase II clinical trials.
The company said its current activities related to Maxy-G34 are exempt from patent-infringement liability because these activities are limited strictly to obtaining information for regulatory approval.
Maxygen said that if and when its MAXY-G34 related activities extend beyond those related to seeking regulatory approval, such as the commercialization of MAXY-G34, Amgen might start an infringement action against the company based on this patent and/or other related patents that it may be granted in the future.
If Amgen elects to sue the company, Maxygen believes that it will have a viable defense to any such infringement lawsuit and plans to vigorously defend against any such claims, the SEC filing said.
Maxygen said the delay and cost to the company of any patent litigation or other proceedings, such as interference proceedings, even if resolved in its favor, could be substantial.
Shares of Maxygen tumbled $1.23, or 25 percent, to $3.62 in late-morning trading Friday.
However, Amgen shares climbed 76 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $43.98. The biotechnology company is based in Thousand Oaks, Calif.
surf's up......crikey
