Talon Therapeutics Inc (fka TLON)

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The Clever Bull making a good case about the potential of HANA with many catalysts coming with in the next few months.


Understanding Warburg Pincus strategy: (OTC:HNAB), (NASDAQ:ISPH), (NASDAQ:ALTH), (NASDAQ:ZGEN), (NASDAQ:EURX), (NASDAQ:ITMN), (NYSE:WX)

Written by Eric Sebastien
Oct 14, 2010


That might be a good time to look again at Hana Biosciences, as they have many catalysts and news to release before the end of 2010 that should drive shareholder value:
- Rolling NDA filling for Marqibo in Adult ALL (that means a PDUFA date and the classic run-up period)

- Top-line Menadione Topical Lotion proof-of-concept data
- Initiate Phase 2 Menadione Topical Lotion trial
- Phase 2 Study of Marqibo in Patients With Metastatic Uveal Melanoma with an estimated primary completion date of December 2010 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)

2011 might also be a very good year for Hana Biosciences, with the potential approval of Marqibo in Adult ALL and the start of Phase III studies for other indications with Marqibo ($5B market).

For a reminder and due diligence on Hana Bioscience you may take a look at their corporate presentation:
http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/HNAB/1031314646x0x234717/40046CB8-6148-43F6-87AC-D3194C86932C/HNAB_081408.pdf

Recently Hana Biosciences has signed a deal with Warburg Pincus for up to $100M financing. Many investors have had a problem to digest this deal although it is a fantastic step for the development of Hana Biosciences. As soon as the dilution word comes out, investors are scared, but we are talking here about a financing from Warburg, investors must see them as a partner for the long term, let me explain who is Warburg Pincus and what they do.
Warburg Pincus takes a different approach to investing. Private equity at Warburg Pincus means investing at all stages of a company?s life-cycle: From founding start-ups and fostering growth in developing companies to leading complex recapitalizations or large-scale buy-outs of more mature businesses.
Years of private equity experience, deep industry knowledge, and unparalleled networks of resources and contacts help their investment professionals identify opportunities, attract leading entrepreneurs and management teams, and ultimately grow businesses in today?s rapidly changing environment.
They definitely know how to move a company from something small to something much larger.
The firm?s unique, globally-integrated partnership ensures that all of their resources are committed to the success of each portfolio company. Regardless of an investment?s stage of development, industry focus or geography ? the right people, with the right experience, are available to every entrepreneur and management team.
So why Hana Biosciences is so undervalued now?
Rather than understanding the long potential, many investors have seen this financial agreement for something bad in the short term. How many small biotechs today would have loved this $100M of available funding? The answer,a lot!
The recent R/S has scared Hana?s investors but that was something necessary. If you look at the Warburg Pincus portfolio they have many public companies that actually trade on the Nasdaq. With some good news to come before the end of this year you can bet that Hana will trade back to the Nasdaq soon.
Warburg is now deeply implicated with Hana Biosciences, they own the majority and you can bet that they have an exit strategy that will benefit to everybody because their business is to make money and to unlock the potential of companies.
Many investors are now afraid to invest in Hana Biosciences because of the potential dilution, but you can be sure that Warburg is not here to dump shares after the first higher trend, if you look at their portfolio they are invested in companies for many years, for some as early as 2000. Their goal is to stay long and maximize their profit. Warburg manages over $30 billion in assets, they don?t need to sell Hana?s shares as soon as the convet price is reached, they will rather take Hana to the next level and maximize their investment. They may also keep their shares until a potential buy out.

Let me remind you that with the reverse split, the convert prices for the Warburg?s shares did increase as well and are now $0.74 for the first preferred serie A1 shares and $1.10 for the serie A2.

We believe Warburg will follow Hana Biosciences for 3 to 5 years or even more, go through the approval of Marqibo in adult Ph-ALL, go through the Phase III study for the Front-line Agressive NHL (market potential of around $5B) at this point we might see Hana with a $500M to $800M market cap which is the average market cap of the companies that Warburg is invested in!

?We are very pleased to be able to provide the financing necessary to advance Hana?s promising product pipeline,? said Jonathan Leff, a Managing Director of Warburg Pincus. ?We look forward to working closely with the company?s board and management team to address important unmet needs in oncology.?

Healthcare Portfolio of Warburg Pincus (public companies only):
http://www.warburgpincus.com/portfolio/PortfolioByIndustry.aspx
Headquartered in South San Francisco, California, Hana Biosciences, Inc. (OTCBB: HNAB) is a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel treatments in oncology. Its lead drug, Marqibo, is a novel formulation of the widely used cancer drug Vincristine. Hana has completed a pivotal clinical trial with Marqibo in adults with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (?ALL?), and the Company plans to file for Food and Drug Administration (?FDA?) approval in this indication. One of Hana?s other key development programs, Menadione, is completing Phase I studies for treatment of the serious skin toxicity caused by a major class of approved cancer drugs.
Market cap: $10M (with 20M shares)

Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISPH) based in Raleigh, NC, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing new treatments for diseases in the ophthalmic and respiratory areas. Founded in 1993 and publicly traded since 2000, Inspire currently markets three ophthalmology products and has two drugs in late-stage clinical development: Denufosol in Phase III for the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis and AzaSite for blepharitis.
Warburg Pincus led a private placement in Inspire in July 2007, and subsequently participated in a follow-on public offering in 2009. Since Warburg Pincus? original investment, Inspire has successfully completed one Phase III trial of Denufosol for the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis, launched AzaSite for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis, and announced positive Phase II trial results of AzaSite for the treatment of blepharitis. Additionally, in 2009, Warburg Pincus and the board recruited a new CEO in Adrian Adams, former President & CEO of Sepracor which he sold to Dainippon Sumitomo for $2.6 billion and former President & CEO of Kos which he sold to Abbott for $3.7 billion.
Market cap: $520M

Allos Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALTH) based in Westminster, Colorado, is a pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing small molecule drugs for the treatment of cancer. The Company?s lead drug, Folotyn, was approved in September 2009 as the first FDA-approved drug for the treatment of relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma, a rare cancer whose sufferers have a very poor prognosis. Allos continues to advance several additional clinical studies of Folotyn in a wide range of other cancer types.
Warburg Pincus led a private placement in Allos in 2005 and subsequently participated in a follow-on public offering in 2008. In 2006, Warburg Pincus and the board recruited a new CEO in Paul Berns, former CEO of Bone Care International which he sold to Genzyme for $600 million. Under Paul?s leadership, Allos has successfully developed and launched Folotyn.
Market cap: $450M

ZymoGenetics, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZGEN) based in Seattle, WA, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of protein therapeutics. The Company launched its first drug on the US market in 2008, and has a strong pipeline of additional product candidates in development with meaningful commercial potential.
Warburg Pincus has been a significant investor in ZymoGenetics since 2000, when the firm led the spinout of Zymo from Novo Nordisk A/S, a major pharmaceutical company based in Denmark.
Market cap: $840M

Eurand (NASDAQ:EURX) headquartered in Milan, Italy, is a leading specialty pharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and commercializes pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products. The Company operates from integrated research, development and production facilities in Italy, France and North America, and utilizes proprietary pharmaceutical technologies to develop novel products that have advantages over existing products or address unmet medical needs. Through collaboration arrangements with leading pharmaceutical companies, the Company has successfully applied its portfolio of existing and new technologies to drug products in a diverse range of therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, pain, nutrition and respiratory. Eurand is currently developing and commercializing its own portfolio of therapeutic products to address conditions associated with cystic fibrosis and gastrointestinal disorders.
In partnership with management, Warburg Pincus acquired Eurand from American Home Products, Inc., now part of Pfizer, in 1999. Warburg Pincus subsequently invested additional funds into the Company, primarily to fund a number of acquisitions. Eurand completed its initial public offering on Nasdaq in May 2007 raising gross proceeds of $112 million.
Market cap: $520M

InterMune, Inc. (NASDAQ:ITMN) based in Brisbane, CA, is an independent biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies in pulmonology and hepatology. The Company was founded in 1999 with a strategy of acquiring clinical-stage products that could benefit from increased development and commercial focus within targeted therapeutic areas. The Company?s pulmonology pipeline includes pirfenidone for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a progressive disease characterized by inflammation and scarring of the lungs. In hepatology, InterMune, together with its partner Roche, is developing a protease inhibitor, danoprevir (also known as RG7227 and ITMN-191), for the treatment of hepatitis C. InterMune also sells Actimmune, an interferon-gamma approved for the treatment of two rare congenital disorders.
Warburg Pincus led InterMune?s second round of private financing in 2000 to help fund product acquisitions and the execution of clinical trials for and commercialization of new product indications.
Market cap: $820M

WuXi (NYSE:WX) headquartered in Shanghai, China, is a premier contract research organization (CRO) with operations in China and the US. The Company was founded in 2000 as a provider of outsourced research chemistry lab services to the pharmaceutical industry, and has grown rapidly to become the global leader in this field. WuXi has expanded this core lab service business to include biology services, and has developed emerging capabilities in the related areas of clinical and commercial manufacturing and toxicology.
Warburg Pincus became a significant shareholder of WuXi beginning in 2008. Since Warburg Pincus? investment, WuXi has strengthened its management team, demonstrated strong operational performance despite macro-economic headwinds, and continued to expand its product offering into higher value-added services. In April 2010, WuXi announced a $1.6 billion merger with Charles River Labs to create the first global CRO offering fully integrated early-stage drug development services to clients worldwide.
Market cap: $1.17B

ev3 (NASDAQ: EVVV) headquartered in Plymouth, MN, is a leading global endovascular device company focused on the treatment of peripheral vascular and neurovascular disease. The company?s product portfolio includes a broad spectrum of over 100 products, including stents, embolic protection, PTA balloons and atherectomy devices for the peripheral vascular market, as well as embolic coils, liquid embolics, flow diversion, and access products for the neurovascular market.
Warburg Pincus founded ev3 in 2000, and has fostered the Company?s product development strategy by funding internal development programs and strategic acquisitions. Warburg Pincus also helped recruit a roster of highly talented managers with extensive experience in all aspects of the interventional devices business. ev3 completed an initial public offering in June 2005 and a follow-on public offering in April 2007. In October 2007, ev3 acquired FoxHollow Technologies, a developer of atherectomy devices for the treatment of peripheral vascular disease. In June 2009, ev3 acquired Chestnut Medical Technologies, a privately held company focused on developing neurovascular devices, including the Pipeline Embolization Device for aneurysms.
Market cap: June 1, 2010 ? Covidien plc (NYSE: COV) and ev3 Inc. (NASDAQ: EVVV) announced that they have signed a definitive merger agreement under which Covidien will acquire all of the outstanding shares of ev3 Inc. for $22.50 per share in cash, for a total of $2.6 billion, net of cash acquired.

Full Disclosure:
-Long position on HNAB
-The Clever bull has NOT been compensated in any way by Hana Biosciences or Warburg Pincus to promote or write this article.
The Clever Bull team.
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