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Enzon Pharma To See Split
Company announces it will explore strategic alternatives for its specialty pharmaceuticals business.
August 12, 2008
Enzon Pharmaceuticals, the listed New Jersey company, is weighing strategic alternatives for its specialty pharmaceuticals business, including four marketed drugs.
The company will also spin off its biotechnology business into a separate, publicly-traded unit, which it had previously announced. The spun-off unit will be called Evivrus.
"During our efforts to spin-off our biotechnology business, it became clear that we should also explore attractive opportunities for Enzon's other businesses," said Jeffrey H. Buchalter, Enzon's chairman, president and chief executive. "Our decision to explore alternatives for our specialty pharmaceuticals business is an outgrowth of that thinking and has the potential to allow Enzon to focus exclusively on our novel biotechnology business as an alternative to our previously announced spin-off."
Among the brands Enzon is considering selling are its Oncaspar, DepyCyt, Abelcet and Adagen brands, as well as its Indianapolis manufacturing center.
Investor Carl Icahn holds about a seven percent stake in the company.
The move comes along what a Cowen & Co. report termed "better-than-expected" second quarter results; its analysts said "a sale of the Enzon specialty pharma franchise could be value-enhancing for… shareholders."
However, the report added, "valuation-enhancing milestones are not expected until 2009."
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