Elan board gets €2m in shares ahead of possible buyout
Sunday February 15 2009
ELAN chairman Kyran McLaughlin chief financial officer Shane Cooke and other board members were awarded close to €2m worth of options and special shares last week, as speculation over the future of the pharmaceutical company continues to grow.
Last week, chairman McLaughlin was awarded 11,250 shares worth close to €66,000. Non-executive directors including CRH chairman Kieran McGowan, Anglo Irish Bank chairman Donal O’Connor and Paddy Power boss Patrick Kennedy were all awarded 7,500 shares each, these are worth about €45,000. These shares will vest when the directors retire.
Shane Cooke was awarded almost €730,000 worth of options and restricted shares.
Company secretary Liam Daniel was awarded almost €530,000 worth of options and restricted shares.
Elan has appointed Citigroup to advise it on strategic issues. This may involve the company being taken over or the sale of a large stake to a rival company. Giant Swiss drug firm Roche has been linked with buying a 19 per cent chunk of the Irish firm.
The options and restricted stock units kick in if an employee is sacked within two years of the company being taken over. Non-executive director awards only vest if the director has served more than six years on the board before retirement.
Last week, Elan reported annual losses of about €55m — down from €315m a year earlier.
