PROVENGE - Didn't meet expectations ??? Takeover?

FYI

http://mobile.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-25/provenge-drug-maker-dendreon-said-to-be-seeking-takeover-offers.html

Provenge Drug Maker Dendreon Said to Be Seeking Takeover Offers


Dendreon Corp. (DNDN), the drugmaker whose market value has shrunk by more than half since August, is seeking a buyer after sales of its prostate-cancer treatment failed to meet expectations, said people familiar with the matter.

Post Edited (Jerry L.) : 10/28/2013 2:52:19 PM (GMT-6)

At first blush I thought it was that the treatment didn't make expectations...and then I saw they were talking about sales....in any event I hope in remains a tool in the toolbox for PC guys.

Trials to allow for earlier use require a lot of money. Another company might not be willing to pay much for Dendreon considering its debts and sales.
It might even sell in bankruptcy some day.

I am hoping the treatment survives in the long run with a sale to a financially stronger parent company.

However, from a outsider business perspective, I have never understood how they could be successful with their business model. They have one product for one cancer. And within that cancer, it is only for a carefully segmented group of patients; castrate-resistant yet asymptomatic/minimally symptomatic. They have a high-cost drug delivery system (blood draws, processing, etc). They have new competitors (Xytiga, Xtandi, etc) for the same segment that have a low-cost delivery system (pills). Their competitors more reliably achieve a measurable cancer response (PSA reduction, scan improvements, etc). Their competitors have strong parent companies.

In the technology world, it is not always the first-to-market products that succeed in the long-run. I wonder if a newer generation of immune therapy drugs will be the ultimate success stores with Provenge having paved the way.

SC

Say it ain't so Joe. You put the misleading headline up after you read the article. The tendrils of new paradigms are long and far reaching…… Its a close one, but I gots to call it out , my friend….

Hope,
Why so cynical? On one end of the buy out spectrum are fast growing companies that just don't have the capital to continue to grow so they seek a partner with capital. These companies are usually paid well in excess of what they are worth. On the other end are companies that either through poor products or poor management have two choices, either go into bankruptcy and lose everything or sell to the highest bidder. Since in the later case the chances for failure are very high, as very few companies can be turned around successfully, the prices are rock bottom.
There are no conspiracies, just a business transaction between two parties who have free will and choices. Just how much would you pay for a failing business with negative cash flow and a lot of debt? I bet there are thousands of small businesses in just your area alone that would love to have a buyer before they shut down.
An item is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I guess that Ebay is a conspiracy because it has low bidders.

The real negative effect in 2007 was not from wall Street but from two renowned PCa docs that let a personal conflict of interest cloud their assessment. It then took another three years to get a consensus that persuaded FDA and Medicare approval.