Wyeth (WYE) announced that the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas has overturned the verdict related to the hormone therapy drug, Prempro in favor of the company in the case of Jennie Nelson v. Wyeth.

The Jennie Nelson case, which was a "reverse bifurcation" phased trial, was first tried in October of 2006. Jennie Nelson of Dayton, Ohio had taken Wyeth's hormone replacement therapy drug, Prempro for five years before being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001.

In the first phase of the trial, in which the jury determined causation and compensatory damages, the Pennsylvania state court jury on Oct.4, found that Wyeth's hormone replacement therapy was a cause of the plaintiff's breast cancer and determined that the amount of compensatory damages would be $1 million for Jennie Nelson and $500,000 for her husband. The second phase, in which the jury was to determine liability and punitive damages, was scheduled to begin on Oct. 14.

Following a motion filed by Wyeth, the judge threw out the verdict of the first phase of the trial and declared a mistrial. The judge did not give a reason for declaring the mistrial. Since a mistrial was declared, the case did not proceed to the second phase and the couple did not receive any of the compensatory damages.

The retrial of Jennie Nelson case began on January 11, 2007 in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. The jury on Feb.20, 2007 found Wyeth liable for failing to provide adequate warnings about breast-cancer risks of Prempro and this time, awarded Jennie Nelson $2.4 million in damages and an additional $600,000 to her husband.

Wyeth had appealed the verdict and the company's attorneys, blamed Jennie Nelson's cancer on other factors, including her family history.

Wyeth's hormone replacement therapy drugs, Premarin and Prempro touted as "magic bullets" are indicated for the relief of hot flashes and night sweats, associated with menopause. After the U.S. government's Women's Health Initiative study found that healthy postmenopausal women enrolled in the study who were treated with the hormone replacement therapy drugs, Premarin and Prempro had increased risk of invasive breast cancer, stroke and blood clots, Wyeth came under fire. The study , which was to continue until 2005, came to an abrupt halt in early June 2002. However, the drugs continue to be in the market.

Wyeth won the first hormone therapy trial in September, 2006 in federal court in Little Rock, Arkansas. There are over 5,000 suits related to the drugs Premarin and Prempro.

Premarin has been in use since 1942 while Prempro was approved by the FDA in 1994. In late 2002, Wyeth added a boldface warning on Prempro and on Premarin. In 2003, the drugs' label sported the FDA's strictest black box warning.

Premarin and Prempro had combined sales of $2 billion in 2001. Following the study results, the sales of Premarin and Prempro took a beating, dropping to $1.3 billion in 2003 and $880 million in 2004. The drugs generated $910 million in 2005. However, last year, Wyeth's hormone-replacement drugs generated sales of $1.05 billion, an increase of 16% over 2005.

WYE is currently up 1.04% or $0.60 trading at $58.10 on a volume of 3.22 million shares.

Candover Investments To Sell Thule Group To Nordic Capital Fund VI For Undisclosed Terms - Update []

5/31/2007 12:35:47 PM European buyout firm Candover Investments plc on Thursday announced the sale of the Thule Group, engaged in sports utility transportation, to Nordic Capital Fund VI. While terms of the transaction have not been disclosed, the deal is expected to be completed in July 2007.

Candover led the management buyout of Thule in December 2004 for 465 million Euros. The sale now represents a return of 2.5 times Candover's original investment and an IRR of more than 40%, the company said.

The sale of Thule results in an uplift of 18.1 million pounds, in comparison with the 31 December 2006 valuation of Thule, which is equivalent to an increase of 83 pence per share in the net asset value of Candover on that date.

Thule's management team will reinvest in the new company. It will continue to be a significant owner in it.

Thule has about 4,000 employees spread across 30 production and sales locations in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. The company manufactures and markets rooftop boxes, roof rails, bike carriers, trailers, towing systems, motor home accessories and snow chains.

Commenting on the development, John Arney, Managing Director of Candover, said, "Thule's success has been built on a strategy of adding new categories to its portfolio of products designed for active consumers wanting to transport equipment safely, easily and in style. The company is now in excellent shape to continue its strong growth profile and meet its ambition of being a 1billion Euros turnover company by 2009.''