Glaxo to Talk Up New Vaccines This Week: The Sunday Times

(Bloomberg) --

GlaxoSmithKline Plc will work to convince investors of its strategy to become a standalone pharma business amid pressure from activist New York hedge fund Elliott Management, according to a report by the U.K.’s Sunday Times.

The FTSE 100 drugmaker is expected to tell investors on Wednesday that it has 20 new vaccines in development and 42 medicines in its pipeline, according to the newspaper. For Chief Executive Officer Emma Walmsley, it’s also a chance to defend her track record as she battles to prove she is the right person to lead Glaxo after it splits in two next year. Elliott, led by Paul Singer, has questioned whether the executive should lead the drug business after its separation, the Sunday Times said, without identifying sources.

The pharmaceutical giant faces mounting pressure from investors after its lack of a Covid-19 inoculation disappointed some analysts. It’s preparing to split in 2022, spinning off its consumer unit and leaving the remaining company focused on biopharma and vaccines.

Read More: Glaxo Pressing Ahead With Consumer Split, Unit’s Chief Says

This week’s investor day is a chance for Glaxo to outline plans for the standalone drugs and vaccines business. Each division could be worth roughly 50 billion pounds ($69 billion), the newspaper said. Glaxo will outline how it plans to prioritize vaccines and specialty medicines, including oncology, and how it plans to deal with the loss of patent protection on its HIV drug, dolutegravir, in 2027, according to the Sunday Times.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.