Pharmaceutical Executive Daily: Shah Capital's Plan to Vote Against Novavax Board Nominees

Welcome to Pharmaceutical Executive Daily, your quick briefing on the top news shaping the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry.

In today's Pharmaceutical Executive Daily, activist investor Shah Capital escalates its campaign against Novavax's board ahead of the company's annual meeting, a Louisiana federal judge declines to block mail-order access to mifepristone while leaving open the possibility of a future ruling against it, and a Q&A examines how the pharmaceutical industry is navigating the compounding pressures of the Iran war and tariff uncertainty on global supply chains.

Shah Capital, Novavax's second-largest shareholder with approximately 9% of the company, announced plans to vote against the re-election of board nominees and executive compensation proposals at Novavax's upcoming annual meeting, while stopping short of launching a formal proxy fight. In a letter to the board, the Shah Capital founder outlined a series of demands including a 30% reduction in senior management, a board reduction from eight to five members, opportunistic share repurchases, and the addition of a strategic long-term investor holding 10 to 20% of the company.

U.S. District Judge David Joseph of Lafayette, Louisiana declined to immediately block FDA rules that allow mifepristone to be dispensed through the mail, delivering a setback to Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill's effort to halt telehealth prescriptions of the abortion pill in states where abortion is banned. While the judge granted the government's request to pause the case pending an ongoing FDA review of mifepristone, he warned explicitly that the delay would not be indefinite and that he believes the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits.

Finally, Pharmaceutical Executive speaks with supply chain experts on the dual pressures now bearing down on pharmaceutical logistics: the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, which closed the Strait of Hormuz and disrupted Gulf air cargo hubs handling temperature-sensitive drug shipments, and the overlapping uncertainty created by new pharmaceutical tariffs. The Q&A explores how manufacturers are responding.

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