Biogen Idec, Icahn trade snipes

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Biogen Idec chief executive officer Jim Mullen has called statements made by investor Carl Icahn, who said Biogen did not do enough to find a potential buyer last year, “Monday morning quarterbacking,” according to the Boston Globe.

Though Mullen didn’t specifically say Icahn’s name, his comments came just a week after Icahn publicly blasted last year’s efforts as “flawed.” Icahn, who owns more than 4 percent of Biogen’s stock, last month nominated three people to sit on the company’s board, as part of his continuing efforts to pressure it to find a buyer. Recently, Icahn told CNBC that he continues to believe Biogen should be sold to a major pharmaceuticals company.

Mullen said the company would be open to considering takeover offers, but he said it needs to “get back” to running its business. “I don’t think the right way to run the business, for anyone’s sake, is to have a permanent ‘for sale’ sign out on the front lawn,” he said. Mullen also said that problems with the company’s multiple sclerosis drug Tysarbi, which was taken off the market in 2005 because of links to a rare brain disease before being reintroduced in 2006, has kept potential buyers drawn back.