NEW YORK, April 24 - The Children’s Hospital Foundation,
the parent company of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia(R), and
Royalty Pharma announced today that the Foundation has sold its worldwide
royalty interest in respect of sales of RotaTeq(R) from and after October
1, 2007, to Royalty Pharma for $182 million in cash.
”With the addition of this royalty on RotaTeq(R), we further our
strategy of building a highly diversified portfolio of royalty interests on
leading biopharmaceutical products. We are pleased to add the first vaccine
to complement our royalties on products that treat a wide range of
diseases, including cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune
disorders, AIDS/HIV and neuropathic pain,” said Pablo Legorreta, Chief
Executive Officer of Royalty Pharma. “More important, we are partnering
with the world’s best research hospitals, universities and
biopharmaceutical companies, and providing them with critical sources of
financing that they can employ in further research and development
endeavors. This will result, hopefully, in continued innovation and
therapeutic alternatives for patients.”
“CHOP will use this money in the continual pursuit of advancing science
to benefit children,” said Steven M. Altschuler, MD, President and Chief
Executive Officer, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia(R).
RotaTeq(R) is a live, oral pentavalent vaccine indicated for the
prevention of rotavirus gastroenteritis. RotaTeq(R) was approved by the
United States Food and Drug Administration in February 2006, has been
approved in 70 other countries and has launched in 42 of these countries.
It is marketed by Merck & Co. Inc. RotaTeq(R) was created as a result of
research jointly performed by The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia(R)
and The Wistar Institute, Philadelphia, PA.
Morgan Stanley is acting as structuring advisor and Ropes & Gray LLP is
acting as the legal advisor to The Children’s Hospital Foundation for this
sale. Goodwin Procter LLP is acting as legal advisor and Baker Botts L.L.P.
is acting as intellectual property counsel to Royalty Pharma for this sale.
About The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia(R)
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia(R) was founded in 1855 as the
nation’s first pediatric hospital. Through its long-standing commitment to
providing exceptional patient care, training new generations of pediatric
healthcare professionals and pioneering major research initiatives,
Children’s Hospital has fostered many discoveries that have benefited
children worldwide. Its pediatric research program is among the largest in
the country, ranking third in National Institutes of Health funding. In
addition, its unique family-centered care and public service programs have
brought the 430-bed hospital recognition as a leading advocate for children
and adolescents.
For more information, go to: http://www.chop.edu.
About Royalty Pharma
Royalty Pharma is the industry leader in acquiring revenue-producing
intellectual property — principally royalty interests in marketed and late
stage biopharmaceutical products with approximately $5 billion in assets.
Royalty Pharma currently owns a diversified portfolio of royalty interests
in several high-quality blockbuster biopharmaceutical products, including
Abbott’s Humira(R), J&J/Centocor’s Remicade(R), Pfizer’s Lyrica(R), Amgen’s
Neupogen(R) and Neulasta(R), Genentech’s Rituxan(R), Gilead’s Emtriva(R),
Truvada(R) and Atripla(R), and Celgene’s Thalomid(R).
The company has an eleven year history of providing value to holders of
royalty interests, including its $700 million purchase of the Lyrica(R)
royalty from Northwestern University, its $650 million purchase of the
Remicade(R) royalty from New York University, its $700 million purchase of
the Humira(R) royalty from AstraZeneca plc following its acquisition of
Cambridge Antibody Technology, its joint $525 million acquisition with
Gilead Sciences of Emory University’s emtricitabine royalty interest and
its acquisitions of approximately 80% of Memorial Sloan Kettering’s U.S.
and international royalty interests in Neupogen(R) and Neulasta(R) for over
$400 million.
For more information, go to http://www.royaltypharma.com.
Contacts
The Children’s Hospital Foundation
Peggy Flynn,
Director of Media Relations
267-426-6080
Royalty Pharma
Pablo Legorreta, Chief Executive Officer
Susannah Gray, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Alexander Kwit, Executive Vice President and General Counsel
Mike Herman, Senior Vice President, Investments
212-883-0200
SOURCE Royalty Pharma