Paladin Labs Inc. to Buy Labopharm Inc. for $20.5 Million
The transaction has been approved by the board of directors of Labopharm (the "Board"). The Board undertook a comprehensive review of the transaction, including seeking advice from its financial advisors and legal counsel and receiving a fairness opinion from Canaccord Genuity Corp. to the effect that, as of the date hereof, the consideration payable under the transaction contemplated by the Arrangement is fair, from a financial point of view, to holders of Labopharm common shares. The Board in turn determined that the Arrangement is in the best interests of Labopharm and its shareholders, has approved the entering into of the Arrangement Agreement and recommends that shareholders vote in favour of the Arrangement.
"The offer from Paladin provides compelling value, certainty and liquidity to our shareholders," said Santo J. Costa, Chairman of the Labopharm Board. "Following a comprehensive review of alternatives under the previously announced strategic review, the Board of Directors has concluded that this all-cash offer, which is at a significant premium to the trading price of Labopharm's shares, is the best way to maximize shareholder value."
"The acquisition of Labopharm represents a unique opportunity for us to further strengthen our pain franchise through the addition of an established revenue stream in international markets with the potential upside provided by several product candidates," said Jonathan Goodman, Paladin's CEO. "Moreover, Labopharm's emerging specialty pharmaceutical technology platforms offer longer-term potential in promising new drug fields. Labopharm's expertise and experience around its products and technologies, both in Canada and internationally, will complement our existing capabilities as we execute our growth strategy."
The completion of the proposed Arrangement is subject to a number of customary conditions, including the approval of the Superior Court of Quebec and the approval of 66 2/3% of the votes cast by Labopharm's shareholders present in person or represented by proxy at a special meeting (the "Meeting") to be convened for such purpose. It is currently anticipated that the Meeting will be held in early October 2011 and that proxy materials providing details of the Arrangement, including Labopharm's management proxy circular, will be mailed to shareholders in early September, 2011 and in any event no later than 21 days preceding the Meeting. Details concerning the record date for the Meeting, the mailing date and Meeting date will be announced in the coming days.
Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement, Labopharm is subject to customary non-solicitation covenants. In addition, Paladin has the right to match any unsolicited superior acquisition proposal which Labopharm proposes to accept in the exercise of its fiduciary duties after consultation with its legal and financial advisors. In certain circumstances where the Arrangement Agreement is terminated, including if the Board changes its recommendation or Labopharm terminates the Arrangement Agreement to enter into a superior proposal (in the event that Paladin declines to exercise its matching right), Labopharm has agreed to pay Paladin a termination fee of $750,000.
A copy of the Arrangement Agreement and the plan of arrangement relating thereto, the management proxy circular of Labopharm and other related documents will be filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and will be available for viewing on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) website at www.sedar.com.
In addition to the provision of a fairness opinion, Canaccord Genuity Corp. acted as financial advisor to Labopharm. Norton Rose OR LLP is acting as legal counsel to Labopharm. Davies Ward Phillips and Vineberg LLP is acting as legal counsel to Paladin. Shareholders should consult their own tax and investment advisors with respect to the Arrangement, details of which will be contained in the management proxy circular of Labopharm.
About Labopharm Inc.
Labopharm Inc. is focused on realizing value from its commercialized products and creating additional value by leveraging its emerging technology platforms to develop increasingly differentiated products. For more information, visit www.labopharm.com.
About Paladin Labs Inc.
Paladin Labs Inc., headquartered in Montreal, Canada, is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on researching, developing, acquiring or in-licensing innovative pharmaceutical products for the Canadian and world markets. With this strategy, a focused national sales team and proven marketing expertise, Paladin has evolved into one of Canada's leading specialty pharmaceutical companies. Paladin's shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol PLB. For more information about Paladin, please visit the Company's web site at www.paladinlabs.com.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements and predictions. These forward-looking statements, by their nature, necessarily involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Both Labopharm and Paladin consider the assumptions on which these forward-looking statements are based to be reasonable at the time they were prepared, but cautions that these assumptions regarding the future events, many of which are beyond the control of Labopharm/Paladin and their subsidiaries, may ultimately prove to be incorrect. Factors and risks, which could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations, are discussed in the annual report as well as in Labopharm's/Paladin's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2010. Labopharm and Paladin disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information or future events and except as required by law. For additional information on risks and uncertainties relating to these forward-looking statements, investors should consult Labopharm's/Paladin's ongoing quarterly fillings, annual report and Annual Information Form and other fillings found on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Contact:
Contacts:For Labopharm at The Equicom GroupLawrence ChamberlainMedia and Investor RelationsTel: (416) 815-0700 ext. 257lchamberlain@equicomgroup.comFrench:Joe RacanelliTel: (514) 844-7997jracanelli@equicomgroup.comAt Paladin Labs Inc.Samira Sakhia, CA, MBAChief Financial Officer, Paladin Labs Inc.514-669-5367514-344-4675 (FAX)info@paladinlabs.comwww.paladinlabs.com