Alexion and Hedge Fund Elliott Management Agree to Collaborate on Identifying a New Board Member

Rare Daily Staff

Alexion Pharmaceuticals said today that its board of directors and shareholder Elliott Management have agreed to work collaboratively to identify a new member to join the Alexion Board. 

Elliot, a hedge fund that manages $34 billion in assets, has been pressing the rare disease drugmaker to take more aggressive steps to improve its financial performance. Alexion has been trying to recover from recent stumbles including its $8.4 billion acquisition of Synageva, which has been a bust, as well as an internal investigation into its sales practices, and a reorganization under new CEO Ludwig Hantson, the former Baxalta CEO who took the helm in March.

“This agreement is in line with our ongoing efforts to maintain active and constructive dialogue with all of our shareholders and to identify a new board member with a proven track record of building value,” said David Brennan, chairman of Alexion’s board of directors. “We have been actively working to expand and diversify our board, and we welcome input from Elliott to identify a strong director candidate to further strengthen Alexion’s Board.”

“We are encouraged by actions taken under Ludwig’s leadership to improve financial performance and re-set Alexion’s strategy,” an Elliot spokesperson said. “Enhancing the strength of the board is another step toward maximizing value creation for all shareholders.”

January 3, 2018

Photo: Alexion CEO Ludwig Hantson