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EXHIBIT 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMPANY CONTACTS: John A. Spears
President & CEO
Jim Mirto
Chief Operating Officer
NOVAVAX, INC.
301-854-3900
INVESTORS/MEDIA: Olga Fleming/Lisa Bradlow
SHANDWICK INTERNATIONAL
646-658-8000
NOVAVAX CLOSES $25 MILLLION CONVERTIBLE DEBENTURE FINANCING FROM
KING PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
- NOVAVAX AND KING TO COLLABORATE ON HPV VACCINES -
COLUMBIA, MD, DECEMBER 20, 2000 - NOVAVAX, INC. (AMEX: NOX), today announced
that KING PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (NYSE: KG) has agreed to make a $25 million
convertible debenture investment in Novavax. The note is convertible into
Novavax Common Stock at $10.00, an 18% premium to a 20 day trading average prior
to closing. The note carries a 4% coupon payable semi-annually in cash and
stock. As part of the transaction, Novavax received $20 million on December 19,
2000 and will receive an additional $5 million when Novavax files a New Drug
Application for its topical transdermal estrogen replacement therapy,
ESTRASORB(TM), expected to be filed in the first half of 2001. Novavax used a
portion of the funds to complete its acquisition of Fielding Pharmaceutical
Company, previously announced in October 2000 and will use the balance for
general operating purposes.
John A. Spears, President and Chief Executive Officer of Novavax, stated, "We
are very pleased that King is making an investment in Novavax at this time. We
have collaborated with King on several projects over the last several years and
they have been an excellent corporate partner. This transaction confirms my
belief that it has been and will continue to be, a mutually beneficial
relationship. This is the first significant investment in Novavax by a major
pharmaceutical company. The financing allowed us to close the Fielding
acquisition, which provides Novavax a proven 60 member sales force with an
established reputation within the obstetrical and gynecological community and a
robust sales and distribution infrastructure."
Novavax also announced that it has granted King an exclusive license to use its
proprietary cell line to develop and potentially commercialize recombinant human
papillomavirus (HPV) virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines. Novavax and King are
currently working together on manufacturing HPV-16 VLP vaccines being evaluated
by the National Cancer Institute in clinical trials. The vaccines are designed
to prevent and/or treat HPV-16 infection and associated cervical cancer. The
recombinant HPV-16 VLP vaccines were developed originally by Drs. Douglas Lowy
and John Schiller of the Laboratory of Cellular Oncology at the NCI. The HPV-16
VLP vaccines were developed further and manufactured as experimental clinical
vaccines by Dr. Robin Robinson of Novavax's Biomedical Service Division. In
September 2000, Novavax received a contract from the NCI to manufacture the
HPV-16 L1 VLP vaccine for a large scale clinical efficacy trial. The product
will be manufactured at King's Parkedale facility in Michigan utilizing Novavax
and Parkedale personnel.
-MORE-
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John M. Gregory, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of King, stated, "We are
excited to officially join forces with Novavax in the development of HPV vaccine
which, if successful, could provide an important breakthrough in the prevention
and/or treatment of HPV-induced cervical cancer. The Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention recently reported that nearly 18% of American women and 8% of
American men carry this strain of human papillomavirus which causes
approximately half of all cases of cervical cancer."
King, headquartered in Bristol, Tennessee, is a vertically integrated
pharmaceutical company that manufactures, markets, and sells primarily branded
prescription pharmaceutical products. King seeks to capitalize on niche
opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry created by cost containment
initiatives and consolidation among large global pharmaceutical companies.
King's strategy is to acquire branded pharmaceutical products and to increase
their sales by focused promotion and marketing and through product life cycle
management.
Novavax, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical drug delivery company engaged in the
research and development of differentiated drug products primarily in the fields
of women's health and infectious diseases. The Company is applying its
proprietary lipid vesicle encapsulation technologies, including Novasome(R)
lipid vesicles and micellar nanoparticles, to develop product candidates for the
topical and oral delivery of generic and non-generic drugs, peptides, proteins
and oligonucleotides. The Company's Novasome technology is also being developed
as an adjuvant delivery system for enhanced vaccine efficacy. Novavax's
Biomedical Services Division is engaged in contract research and development and
Phase I/II vaccine manufacturing of human vaccines for government laboratories
and other vaccine companies.
Statements made in this press release that state the company's or management's
intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are
forward-looking statements. The company's actual results could differ materially
from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Additional information
concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those in the forward-looking statements is contained in the company's SEC report
on Form 10K for the year ended December 31, 1999 incorporated herein by
reference. Statements made herein should be read in conjunction with the
company's Form 10K. Copies of these filings may be obtained by contacting the
company at 8320 Guilford Road, Columbia, MD 21046 Tel 301-854-3900 or the SEC.
