Targeting Incumbent Director’s M&A Record Reveals Poor Deal Track Record

Background

We were engaged by an activist investor that sought to remove certain incumbent directors from the board of an international biopharmaceutical company.

Our Work

We conducted a full review of the incumbent board, which helped our client identify the weakest prospects. More specifically, recognizing that the investor’s proposition for strategic change surrounded the company’s M&A activities, our research dove into the incumbent director’s past M&A record at the head of a peer company in the biopharma space.

Our research stressed previous unsuccessful acquisitions under the director, especially those which were characterized by the market as having been overpriced and failing to unlock value for the acquirer’s pre-existing drug pipeline.

Moreover, our research demonstrated a pivot to smaller transactions after this misstep, yet ultimately these later acquisitions similarly added limited strategic value to the company, as supported by the statements and moves of later company executives.

Results

Ultimately, while the company brought many drug candidates to clinic, our research highlighted the lack of drugs brought to market under the leadership of the targeted director, which equipped our client with supporting evidence for its thesis.