In the new year, the throw down between Amarin and activist investor Sarissa Capital Management has escalated, taking on a nastier tone with language rarely seen in public communications between companies.
On Thursday, Amarin responded to Sarissa’s most recent critique of its board refreshment process, which the investor had called a “sham."
For roughly a year—since the Connecticut-based investor became Amarin’s top shareholder—the drugmaker has resisted Sarissa’s increasingly public efforts to secure shareholder representation on its board of directors.
Amarin says it engaged an independent search firm to find six new board members that it added over the last year. The company noted that its board interviewed three of the five candidates Sarissa proposed—all employees of the investment firm.
“Throughout our engagement and during the interviews with their candidates, Sarissa never proposed a single idea to help advance the business,” Amarin wrote. “With no plan and no new ideas, Sarissa is not the answer.”
Amarin acknowledged its current problems in the release. The company’s value has taken a significant hit as sales of its lone commercial product, heart-helping drug Vascepa, have tanked in the United States because of generic competition. As a result, Amarin has had to slash its U.S. workforce by 90%.
Meanwhile, Amarin maintains its plan to expand to Europe and other markets around the world has been bolstered by the addition of its new board members who have brought “expertise in international pharma."
The company’s response came after Sarissa’s scathing statement from Wednesday. In its own communique, Sarissa pointed out that in 2022 Amarin’s stock lost more than two-thirds of its value and shareholders lost more than $840 million in equity.
“The European launch is behind schedule, reimbursement in Germany (typically one of the largest markets in Europe) appears imperiled, and spending mismanagement has weakened the cash coffers,” Sarissa said. “Yet the board has the audacity to state publicly, ‘the Company made solid progress in 2022, against its strategic objectives.’”
Last week, in an SEC filing, Sarissa reported a 6.2% stake in Amarin. The day before in a release, Sarissa blasted Amarin for adding a board candidate without its input and called for a special meeting of shareholders.
“After months of back and forth, it is clear to us that this board refreshment process was a charade led by Chairman Per Wold-Olsen,” Sarissa wrote as it called for his removal.
Sarissa has lots of experience investing in and grappling with healthcare companies. In 2021, it compelled Alkermes to allow it to name a new director of its board. Before that, Denner tussled with management at Ironwood, Biogen, Vivus, Allergan and Ariad.