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Archive for March, 2009

NTII on the block; engages financial adviser

Posted in Activist Investors, Biotechnology Value Fund, Neurobiological Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:NTII), Stocks, tagged , , , on March 31, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Neurobiological Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:NTII) has engaged a financial adviser to explore a sale of the company or its major assets to determine “if there is a transaction more beneficial to our shareholders than a liquidation,” according to its CEO, William Fletcher. We’ve been following NTII (see our post archive here) because it’s trading at a [...]

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Carl Icahn says that financial crisis caused by laws that disenfranchised shareholders

Posted in Activist Investors, Carl Icahn, tagged , , on March 31, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

In an opinion piece for the New York Times titled, We’re Not the Boss of A.I.G., Carl Icahn argues that the legal “devices” that disenfranchise shareholders “can be found at the root of today’s financial crisis:” The legal landscape is filled with devices designed by state legislators and courts to prevent shareholders from influencing how [...]

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ACLS completes sale of SEN Corp interest to SHI

Posted in Activist Investors, Axcelis Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ACLS), Sterling Capital Management, Stocks, tagged , , , on March 31, 2009 | 2 Comments »

Axcelis Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:ACLS) has completed the sale of its 50% interest in SEN Corporation, its joint venture with Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. (SHI) to SHI for proceeds of $122.3 million. ACLS received around $35.9M in cash after applying $86.4M of the proceeds to meet obligations to the holders of the company’s 4.25% Convertible Senior [...]

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BVF fails to tip AVGN board

Posted in Activist Investors, Avigen (NASDAQ:AVGN), Biotechnology Value Fund, Net Cash Stocks, Stocks, tagged , , , , on March 30, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Biotechnology Value Fund (BVF) failed in its bid to remove Avigen Inc’s (NASDAQ:AVGN) board at Friday’s special meeting of stockholders, despite 58% of stockholders voting in favor of removing the board and only 12% voting in favor of retaining the incumbents. The outcome highlights the difficulties faced by stockholders in selecting rival slates of directors. [...]

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Network Engines Inc (NASDAQ:NENG) position exited for 47.4% gain

Posted in Activist Investors, Net Net Stocks, Network Engines Inc (NASDAQ:NENG), Stocks, Trinad Management, tagged , , , on March 27, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

We’ve decided to exit our position in Network Engines Inc (NASDAQ:NENG) at its $0.56 close yesterday. We opened the position on January 13, 2009 when it was trading at $0.38, so we’re up 47.4% in about two-and-a-half months on an absolute basis, which is a pleasing outcome. The S&P500 Index was trading at 870.26 when we [...]

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AVGN ends merger discussions; terminates CEO and other officers

Posted in Activist Investors, Avigen (NASDAQ:AVGN), Biotechnology Value Fund, Net Cash Stocks, Stocks, tagged , , , , on March 27, 2009 | 3 Comments »

Avigen Inc (NASDAQ:AVGN) has discontinued its merger discussions and terminated its Chief Executive Officer and President, Kenneth Chahine, its Chief Business Officer, Michael Coffee, and its General Counsel, M. Christina Thomson, ahead of the special meeting of stockholders to be held today. Stockholders are to vote on BVF’s proposal to remove the board of AVGN [...]

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VaxGen Inc (OTC:VXGN)

Posted in Net Cash Stocks, Stocks, VaxGen Inc (OTC:VXGN), tagged , , on March 26, 2009 | 15 Comments »

VaxGen Inc (OTC:VXGN) is a bread-and-butter play for us. The company is trading at a substantial discount to its net cash position, has ended its cash-burning product development activities and is now “seeking to maximize the value of its remaining assets through a strategic transaction or series of strategic transactions.” If the company is unable [...]

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Catalyst Investment Research on AVGN

Posted in Activist Investors, Avigen (NASDAQ:AVGN), Biotechnology Value Fund, Net Cash Stocks, tagged , , , , on March 25, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Hedge Fund Solutions, which produces The Official Activist Investing Blog, recently announced the launch of a new investment research product, Catalyst Investment Research, which is “dedicated to uncovering undervalued publicly traded companies that could have the potential to generate outsized returns due to an activist investor’s involvement.” Sounds like a good idea to us. Catalyst [...]

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AVGN to explore settlement with BVF

Posted in Activist Investors, Avigen (NASDAQ:AVGN), Biotechnology Value Fund, Net Cash Stocks, Stocks, tagged , , , , on March 24, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Avigen Inc (NASDAQ:AVGN) has authorized its CEO, Dr. Chahine, and RBC to contact Biotechnology Value Fund (BVF) to explore the possibility of negotiating a settlement between BVF and AVGN with respect to BVF’s increased $1.20 per share offer for AVGN. AVGN shareholders are to decide on BVF’s proposal to remove the board of AVGN and [...]

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Proxy Governance recommends AVGN shareholders support BVF

Posted in Activist Investors, Avigen (NASDAQ:AVGN), Biotechnology Value Fund, Stocks, tagged , , , , on March 24, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Proxy Governance, a proxy advisory firm, has recommended that Avigen Inc (NASDAQ:AVGN) shareholders vote to remove the board of AVGN and elect  Biotechnology Value Fund’s (BVF) slate of director nominees at the special meeting of stockholders to be held on March 27, 2009. We’ve been following AVGN (see archived posts here) because it’s a net [...]

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