Carl C. Icahn has lost his campaign to elect a slate of dissident nominees to Biogen Idec’s board, an effort he hoped would eventually prompt a sale of the 30-year biotechnology firm to a major pharmaceutical company, the Associated Press reports.
Shareholders elected four company-backed nominees on Thursday rather than Mr. Icahn’s three candidates. One of the billionaire’s nominees said afterward, however, that Biogen Idec’s management had agreed to meet with him to discuss ways of improving the company’s prospects, including strengthening drug research and employee morale.
“We have heard from major shareholders and employees who think that things can be done better at Biogen,” said Alexander J. Denner, managing director of Mr. Icahn’s investment firm, Icahn Partners.
Mr. Icahn, who owns 4 percent of Biogen Idec’s shares, pushed the 4,000-employee company last fall to seek a buyer. The company ended the search two months later after no definitive bids surfaced.
The lack of bids surprised some analysts who had expected the company could fetch an offer far above its current market value of $17 billion from one of several large pharmaceutical companies that have few potential blockbuster treatments in development.
