PALO ALTO, Calif.--The board of directors of genomic database company Incyte Pharmaceuticals here has approved a two-for-one stock split that will be distributed November 7 in the form of a stock dividend. Eligible for the split are shareholders of record as of October 17. The split will increase the number of outstanding shares in the company to approximately 24 million.
The move was made primarily to bring the stock's price into a range that would have greater appeal for investors, according to Roy Whitfield, Incyte's CEO. At the same time, the company reported net income of $3 million, or 25 cents per share, for the quarter ended September 30, and $6 million, or 51 cents per share, for the nine months ending on that date. For the same periods in 1996 Incyte lost $3.4 million and $7 million, or 33 and 69 cents per share, respectively.
Officials attributed the gains to a significant increase in the number of database collaboration agreements Incyte has signed this year. In the most recent quarter, the company has announced deals with SmithKline Beecham and Organon. Among Incyte's products are the widely used LifeSeq gene sequence and expression database, LifeSeq Atlas gene mapping database, PathoSeq microbial database, and LifeSeq FL database of full-length genes. The databases integrate bioinformatics software with both proprietary and publicly available genetic information. Incyte also offers the LifeTools line of bioinformatics software products.