MADISON, N.J., April 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- At today’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Wyeth , it was reported that stockholders had re-elected 12 current members of the Company’s Board of Directors and elected nominee Michael J. Critelli, 58, Executive Chairman of Pitney Bowes Inc. to the Board. This brings the composition of Wyeth’s Board to 13 members. Stockholders also ratified the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm for 2008, approved the amendment and restatement of the Wyeth 2005 Amended and Restated Stock Incentive Plan, and approved the adoption of the Wyeth 2008 Non-Employee Director Stock Incentive Plan.
In addition, stockholders rejected stockholder proposals regarding reporting on the Company’s political contributions and trade association payments; and the adoption of a by-law for the recoupment of incentive bonuses.
Also, at today’s meeting of the Corporation’s Board of Directors, a dividend of twenty-eight cents ($0.28) per share on the outstanding shares of Common Stock was declared payable on June 2, 2008, to stockholders of record at the close of business on May 13, 2008. Additionally, a dividend of fifty cents ($0.50) per share on the outstanding shares of Preferred Stock was declared payable on July 1, 2008, to stockholders of record at the close of business on June 13, 2008.
Following the business portion of the meeting, Bernard Poussot, President and Chief Executive Officer, summarized highlights from the past year, stating: “In 2007, our Company again delivered solid financial performance, with worldwide net revenue increasing 10%. Effective cost management added to the bottom line as pro forma diluted earnings per share increased 12%.” He attributed this performance to Wyeth’s position as a leading biotechnology company, the strength of its global business and growth across all three of the Company’s core businesses in 2007 - pharmaceuticals, consumer healthcare products and animal health products. Also, Wyeth’s pharmaceuticals business, for the first time in the Company’s history, achieved more than $1 billion in full-year net sales in each of seven major product franchises: Effexor(R), the Premarin(R) family, Enbrel(R), Prevnar(R), Protonix(R), Zosyn(R) and Wyeth Nutritionals, demonstrating the breadth and depth of Wyeth’s product portfolio.
In 2007, Wyeth received both U.S. and European approvals for Torisel(R), the first targeted therapy with a proven overall survival benefit in patients with advanced renal cancer. The Company also received U.S. marketing clearance for Lybrel(R), a low-dose combination contraceptive.
Mr. Poussot noted that, within the first four months of 2008, Wyeth has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for two therapies that bring unique benefits to patients. Pristiq(TM) was cleared for use in major depressive disorder, providing patients with efficacy at a once-daily dose and without the need for titration. Xyntha(TM), a recombinant factor VIII product for patients with hemophilia A, was approved for the control and prevention of bleeding episodes and surgical prophylaxis. In addition, Relistor(TM) in a subcutaneous form was approved in Canada for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation in patients with advanced illness receiving palliative care.
Also during today’s meeting, Emilio Emini, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, Vaccine Research and Development at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, and Jim Connolly, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Wyeth Vaccines, provided an overview of the Company’s vaccine pipeline. The scientific presentation focused on Prevnar, the first and only vaccine to prevent pneumococcal disease in both infants and young children, which is the world’s best-selling vaccine and is available in 87 countries.
In addition, information was presented about Wyeth’s vaccine pipeline, including Prevnar 13 for infants and young children, and Prevnar 13 for adults age 50 and over, which are scheduled for regulatory filings in 2009 and 2010 respectively. Prevnar 13 is a 13-valent pneumococcal vaccine that will add protection for six additional serotypes to the seven already present in Prevnar.
Wyeth is one of the world’s largest research-driven pharmaceutical and health care products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biotechnology products, nutritional products and non-prescription medicines that improve the quality of life for people worldwide. The Company’s major divisions include Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare and Fort Dodge Animal Health.
The statements in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, the inherent uncertainty of the timing and success of, and expense associated with, research, development, regulatory approval and commercialization of our products and pipeline products; government cost- containment initiatives; restrictions on third-party payments for our products; substantial competition in our industry, including from branded and generic products; emerging data on our products and pipeline products; the importance of strong performance from our principal products and our anticipated new product introductions; the highly regulated nature of our business; product liability, intellectual property and other litigation risks and environmental liabilities; uncertainty regarding our intellectual property rights and those of others; difficulties associated with, and regulatory compliance with respect to, manufacturing of our products; risks associated with our strategic relationships; economic conditions including interest and currency exchange rate fluctuations; changes in generally accepted accounting principles; trade buying patterns; the impact of legislation and regulatory compliance; risks and uncertainties associated with global operations and sales; and other risks and uncertainties, including those detailed from time to time in our periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our current reports on Form 8-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and annual report on Form 10-K, particularly the discussion under the caption “Item 1A, Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29, 2008. The forward-looking statements in this press release are qualified by these risk factors. We assume no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.
CONTACT: Media Contact: Douglas Petkus, +1-973-660-5218, or Investor
Contact: Justin Victoria, +1-973-660-5340, both of Wyeth
Web site: http://www.wyeth.com/
