QLT considers possible sale in whole or in part

Canadian drugmaker QLT says that its board of directors has formed a special committee to review all strategic alternatives available to the company. Comprised of three independent directors, the team has appointed Morrison & Foerster as legal counsel to report directly to them. The committee has been charged, among other things, with the responsibility for exploring alternative ways to maximize shareholder value, including transactions involving the sale of all or part of the assets of the QLT. The board says it is currently reviewing proposals from several investment bankers and expects to appoint a financial advisor in the near future to assist the committee in the evaluation of strategic alternatives.

Boyd Clarke, QLT's chairman, said, "the board of directors believes that the net value of the assets of the company exceeds the value represented by the stock price. We had hoped to address that disconnect through the deployment of our current strategic plan. However, as the gap continues to widen we have decided that, other than as contractually required, making significant additional investments in all of our current products and technologies would be inconsistent with our objective of maximizing shareholder value. As a result, with the help of external financial advisors we are exploring all strategic options, which may include sale of all or part of the assets of the company."