CV Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that its board of directors has thoroughlyreviewed and rejected the previously announced unsolicited proposal fromAstellas Pharma Inc. to acquire CV Therapeutics at a price of $16.00 pershare. After careful consideration of the proposal with its independent financialand legal advisors, the CV Therapeutics board concluded that the Astellasproposal significantly undervalues the company and is not in the bestinterests of CV Therapeutics and its stockholders. The board had previouslyrejected the same proposal on November 21, 2008, when Astellas approached thecompany privately. “CV Therapeutics has a strategic plan in place which we believe willenhance shareholder value. Moreover, we have always been, and remain,receptive to opportunities to further enhance shareholder value. Executing onour strategic plan enabled us to achieve outstanding results in 2008, withmultiple regulatory approvals, record revenues and two exceptional strategictransactions. This strong record of product approvals, which exceeds that ofmany pharma companies over the last several years, has allowed the company toestablish a solid cash position. The full promotional launch of the improvedU.S. Ranexa labeling is just beginning, the introduction of Ranexa in Europeis imminent, and Lexiscan is showing real growth in the marketplace.Accordingly, we expect 2009 to be another outstanding year, highlighted byincreasing revenues and pipeline advancement, for example with CVT-3619,” saidLouis G. Lange, chairman and chief executive officer of CV Therapeutics.
