DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Japanese drug maker Astellas Pharma Inc. (ALPMY, 4503.TO)
changed two director nominations for election to OSI
Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s (OSIP) board, a company it is targeting with
a $3.5 billion hostile takeover bid.
OSI has brushed aside overtures from Astellas for more than a
year, calling them too low, before Japan's second-biggest
pharmaceutical company by sales made its hostile-takeover proposal
earlier this month, which OSI rejected on Monday.
On Friday, Astellas said Jack D. Gilly and Margaret T. Monaco
would replace Jack Kaye and Heidi L. Steiger on the slate of
directors Astellas plans to nominate for election for OSI's coming
shareholder meeting, which it traditionally holds in June.
Astellas said it is "committed to providing an independent voice
for OSI stockholders who want its board of directors to consider"
the offer.
Gilly currently serves as an associate director at a federally
funded research and development center focused on oncology. He also
served as a director and chief operating officer at U.K.-based
Premier Research Group PLC, as well as president of that company's
U.S. operations for four years. Monaco is the principal of Probus
Advisors, a financial and strategic consulting firm and sits on the
board and is a member of the audit committee of Barnes & Noble
Inc. (BKS).
OSI's sole marketed product is Tarceva, which it sells with
Swiss drug giant Roche Holding AG (RHHBY, ROG.VX). The pill, used
to treat advanced forms of lung and pancreatic cancer, had
worldwide sales of $1.2 billion last year.
Astellas American depositary shares were down 1.5% to $36.93 in
after-hours trading, while OSI's stock fell a penny to $58.93.
-By John Kell, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2480;
john.kell@dowjones.com