Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP Files Class Action Suit Against Incyte Corporation

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP (“Robbins Geller”) (http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/incyte/) today announced that a class action has been commenced on behalf of an institutional investor in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware on behalf of purchasers of Incyte Corporation (“Incyte”) (NASDAQ:INCY) common stock during the period between April 26, 2012 and August 1, 2012 (the “Class Period”).

“were [so] very advanced ... they would not have been eligible for the Phase III trial in which life expectancy had to be at least six months.”

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from today. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff’s counsel, Samuel H. Rudman or David A. Rosenfeld of Robbins Geller at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at [e-mail]. If you are a member of this class, you can view a copy of the complaint as filed or join this class action online at http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/incyte/. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.

The complaint charges Incyte and certain of its officers and directors with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Incyte is a pharmaceutical company that has obtained U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) approval for distribution and sale in the United States of its drug Jakafi (ruxolitinib), which is indicated for the treatment of patients with intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis.

The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, defendants made materially false and misleading statements concerning Incyte’s business and prospects, including about the demand for its myelofibrosis drug, Jakafi. Based on defendants’ reports of strong sales demand for Jakafi and their positive statements supporting the Company’s increased sales growth guidance for fiscal 2012, Incyte stock traded at inflated prices throughout the Class Period, reaching over $26 per share by July 10, 2012.

According to the complaint, however, Incyte’s reported fourth quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012 sales had been artificially inflated due to a large number of extremely sick, advanced-stage myelofibrosis patients being prescribed the drug initially upon FDA approval in November 2011, during the fourth quarter of 2011 and first quarter of 2012 – patients who had been too sick to participate in the clinical trials. Critically, many of these extremely sick, more advanced patients were discontinuing use of Jakafi during the second quarter of 2012, which was significantly diminishing Jakafi’s second quarter 2012 sales growth. And despite knowing that these more sickly patients had been precluded from participating in the FDA drug trials, defendants repeatedly assured investors they could rely on the drug dropout rates achieved during the clinical trials to determine the then-current dropout rates.

On August 2, 2012, Incyte announced the Company’s second quarter 2012 financial results for the period ended June 30, 2012, and disclosed that Jakafi sales growth had been much softer during the second quarter of 2012 than investors and certain stock analysts had been led to expect. Defendants also disclosed for the first time that many of the new patients prescribed Jakafi during the fourth quarter of 2011 and first quarter of 2012 “were [so] very advanced ... they would not have been eligible for the Phase III trial in which life expectancy had to be at least six months.” Defendants also conceded that while prescriptions to these patients had increased fourth quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012 sales revenues, those were not revenues that would continue for the three years on average that defendants had claimed during the Class Period the pre-approval clinical data had suggested patients would remain on Jakafi, because, as defendants were forced to disclose during Incyte’s August 2, 2012 conference call, “early on we had people discontinue because they died.” In response to these disclosures, the price of Incyte stock fell precipitously from its August 1, 2012 close of $24.92 per share to close at $19.57 per share on August 2, 2012, a 22% decline, on extremely high volume.

Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of Incyte common stock during the Class Period (the “Class”). The plaintiff is represented by Robbins Geller, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.

Robbins Geller represents U.S. and international institutional investors in contingency-based securities and corporate litigation. With nearly 200 lawyers in nine offices, the firm represents hundreds of public and multi-employer pension funds with combined assets under management in excess of $2 trillion. The firm has obtained many of the largest recoveries and has been ranked number one in the number of shareholder class action recoveries in MSCI’s Top SCAS 50 every year since 2003. According to Cornerstone Research, the firm’s recoveries have averaged 35% above the median for all firms over the past seven years (2005-2011). Please visit http://www.rgrdlaw.com for more information.