UPDATE 1-Anika Therapeutics reaches settlement with activist investor Caligan
(Adds details on settlement, background)
By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
BOSTON, April 13 (Reuters) - Anika Therapeutics reached a settlement with Caligan Partners that includes adding one of the activist investor's proposed director candidates to its board.
The biotechnology company, which makes osteoarthritis knee pain relief injection treatments, said on Thursday it is appointing former Johnson & Johnson executive Gary Fischetti as a director and expanding the size of the board to eight members.
"We look forward to leveraging Gary's expertise as we execute on our next chapter of growth in pursuit of accelerated value creation for all stockholders," Chief Executive Cheryl Blanchard said in a statement.
Fischetti will join two existing board members on a newly formed capital allocation committee. Six new independent directors have been appointed to the board since 2018.
Caligan, which owns a nearly 5% stake in Anika, in February urged the company to consider strategic alternatives including a full sale. It nominated two director candidates, including Fischetti.
Anika also announced a $20 million share repurchase program, replacing a program announced in May 2019.
Under the new program, $5 million will be effected through an accelerated repurchase program and $5 million will be purchased in the open market over the next 12 months. The remaining $10 million will be purchased in the open market over the next 12 months, subject to the company generating positive cash flow.
Anika is best known for its viscosupplements, which are injected into affected joints to reduce pain. Its Monovisc and Orthovisc viscosupplement products are marketed by a unit of Johnson & Johnson.
The viscosupplement market is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, boosted by increased demand for non-surgical treatments.
(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss Editing by Bill Berkrot)
