Genentech touts company's growth

03/10/2005 07:14:34 AM

Genentech touts company's growth
Report to investors provides overview of past achievements and future plans.
By Reporter Staff

Genentech Inc. officials recently presented an overview of the company's strategy and financial goals for 2005 and beyond at its investment community meeting in New York.

In addition, the company provided investors with an overview of recent developments, including highlights from its research, product development, commercial and manufacturing efforts.

Genentech, which has a manufacturing facility in Vacaville, is a leading biotechnology company based in South San Francisco that develops and manufactures biotherapeutics for significant unmet medical needs.

Drugs manufactured in Vacaville include Xolair, which treats acute asthma; Rituxan for non-Hodgkin's lymphomas; and Herceptin for breast cancer. Genentech's star product is Avistan, which targets cancerous tumors.

Genentech Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Arthur D. Levinson, Ph.D., reported the completion of an outstanding year of growth in 2004, and said the company is well positioned for 2005 and beyond.

The company expects to have substantive revenue progress, but achieving the goal of $500 million in new revenues from strategic alliances or acquisitions is uncertain since the company has changed its strategic focus to pursue earlier-stage opportunities.

Due to its focus on earlier-stage opportunities, Genentech has entered into more than 50 significant agreements and in-licensing agreements since 1999, which positions it well for future growth prospects. "Scientific research is our foundation and our future," Levinson said in a prepared statement. "We continue to build upon our strength in biology to find novel approaches to some of the most difficult medical challenges."