Icahn loses a big round with Biogen Idec

June 19, 2008 | By John Carroll

Carl Icahn's high noon showdown with the executive team at Biogen Idec ended in a rare defeat for the Wall Street spoiler. Icahn conceded the fight, saying his slate of proposed board members had failed to gain enough support from investors. But the New York Times notes that Icahn may ultimately win the war over a prospective sale of the company.

Icahn had claimed that Biogen Idec had only half-heartedly attempted to find a buyer for the company last fall. The biotech company took itself off the auction block in December, saying no one had offered enough money to justify a sale. Now, though, with the dollar in decline and the euro running hot, a new bidder may yet emerge with enough money to win over the reluctant executives left running the company.

- read the report from the New York Times
- see this release from Biogen