Concerned Vermillion Stockholders Announce Nomination of New Members to the Board of Directors of Vermillion, Inc.

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- George Bessenyei, Robert S. Goggin and Gregory V. Novak (the "Concerned Vermillion Stockholders" or "Group") on February 15, 2012 submitted to the Corporate Secretary of Vermillion, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRML) their notice of their intent to nominate two proposed directors to the board of Vermillion for election at the Vermillion 2012 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the "Annual Meeting"). The nominees are Gregory V. Novak and Robert S. Goggin. Both of these individuals are experienced investors, highly skilled in effective management, and long term stockholders of Vermillion. Gail S. Page ("Page"), the CEO of the company, and John F. Hamilton ("Hamilton") currently hold the two board seats that are scheduled to be elected at the upcoming Annual Meeting. The Concerned Vermillion Shareholders seek to replace Page and Hamilton as directors with Mr. Novak and Mr. Goggin.

"It is time for change and a fresh start. As we have all painfully witnessed, the company is on a downward spiral to certain self-destruction in the front of our eyes, plagued by gross mismanagement. Page and Hamilton have alternatively sat idle or actively caused a monumental damage to stockholder value; Vermillion's stock price has declined over 90% over the past two years. At the same time, these individuals collected $5.8 million combined in compensation as ostensible reward for this massive annihilation of value.  

The next chapter of the Vermillion story should be written by honest and capable persons, such as Robert S. Goggin and Gregory V. Novak. They will press for the necessary changes, and obliterate the self-serving policies and tactics that have eroded stockholder value. It is time to unlock the potential of Vermillion's assets.

Vermillion's OVA1 test has unmatched sensitivity and has already saved countless lives. The 15,000 tests sold in 2011 with a $650 list price have the potential of generating $10 million in revenue, once the reimbursement issues are ironed out. Even a conservative valuation based on existing levels of sales of OVA1 should place its value in the range of $50 million (or $3.35/share). Any future growth will simply provide upside to that.

Vermillion's other product in the pipeline, the Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) test, addresses a minimum $1 billion market opportunity, yet it is largely ignored by the investment community. Any other company, having such a blockbuster test in an advanced stage of development, would be valued north of $100 million (or $6.71/share), but the market is unwilling to put its trust in current management given their historic performance.

Simply put: the sum of all parts is likely 10 times higher than the current market capitalization of Vermillion, creating a unique opportunity for a turn around that can truly benefit shareholders.

The new board members will ensure (among other things) that capable management start renegotiating agreements, streamline operations to eliminate bloat, and accelerate the FDA approval process for PAD," said George Bessenyei, member of the Group.

Please stay tuned as we will detail our goals and proposals in subsequent announcements and filings. In the meantime, please be assured that we also have identified and started preliminary discussions with potential CEO candidates, in order to facilitate a smooth transition in management.

The biographies of Concerned Vermillion Stockholders' Nominees:

Nominee Gregory V. Novak

Gregory V. Novak, 50 years old, is a lawyer in private practice and Managing Partner and CEO of Novak Druce + Quigg, LLP, a law firm with offices in Washington, D.C., Houston, San Francisco, Silicon Valley and West Palm Beach. Mr. Novak serves as national intellectual property counsel to a number of publicly traded corporations. He also manages Novak Druce's industry-leading patent re-examination practice. In 2009, Greg Novak launched the Novak Druce Centre for Professional Service Firms at the University of Oxford's Said Business School. He earned an MBA from the University of Oxford where he was a member of Hertford College. In addition to sponsoring the Novak Druce Centre, Greg sits on the Business Advisory Council at Oxford, is a board member of the Said Business School, and is Chairman of the Global Said Business School Alumni Association. He is also an active alum of Rice University where he is a Community Associate at Will Rice College, sits on the Annual Fund Committee and is a Fundraising Challenge sponsor of two colleges. He also sits on the board of the Max Planck Foundation.

Novak's extensive knowledge in intellectual property management will be very valuable for Vermillion, where key assets are patents and know-how.

Nominee Robert S. Goggin

Robert S. Goggin, III, 48 years old, is an attorney in private practice and an owner and director of Keller & Goggin P.C., a law firm with offices in Philadelphia and Trenton, New Jersey. Mr. Goggin is a graduate of St. Joseph's University and Widener University School of Law. Mr. Goggin began his career in the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office in 1989. Among other clients, Mr. Goggin has represented various unions including correctional officers, tradesmen and laborers. This experience helped him refine his litigation, reconciliation and management abilities.

Goggin has been advocating for change at Vermillion since early 2011. Time has proven his ideas and concerns to be valid. He would be a board member representing long term stockholder's interest, something that clearly has been missing at Vermillion over the last two years.

THE PARTICIPANTS IN THE GROUP'S SOLICITATION OF PROXIES CONSIST OF ONLY MR. BESSENYEI, MR. NOVAK AND MR. GOGGIN (THE MEMBERS OF THE GROUP) AT THIS TIME. THE GROUP TODAY HAS FILED SOLICITING MATERIALS, INCLUDING THIS PRESS RELEASE, WITH THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION ON SCHEDULE 14A PURSUANT TO RULE 14a-12 OF THE RULES AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, AS AMENDED. STOCKHOLDERS OF VERMILLION CAN OBTAIN COPIES OF THIS FILING, WHICH CONTAINS THE REQUIRED INFORMATION UNDER SUCH RULE  REGARDING THE IDENTITY AND BACKGROUND OF THE MEMBERS OF THE GROUP, AND A DESCRIPTION OF THEIR DIRECT OR INDIRECT INTERESTS, BY SECURITY HOLDINGS AND OTHERWISE, AT NO CHARGE AT THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION'S WEBSITE AT HTTP://WWW.SEC.GOV.

SECURITY HOLDERS ARE ADVISED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT AND OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE SOLICITATION OF PROXIES BY MEMBERS OF THE GROUP FROM THE STOCKHOLDERS OF VERMILLION, INC. FOR USE AT ITS 2012 ANNUAL MEETING WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION, INCLUDING INFORMATION RELATING TO THE PARTICIPANTS IN SUCH PROXY SOLICITATION.  WHEN COMPLETED, A DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT AND FORM OF PROXY WILL BE MAILED TO STOCKHOLDERS OF VERMILLION, INC AND ALSO WILL BE AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE AT THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION'S WEBSITE AT HTTP://WWW.SEC.GOV.

Concerned Vermillion Stockholders

T: 561-444-8180

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Concerned Vermillion Stockholders

WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM?

440k+
Newsrooms &
Influencers

9k+
Digital Media
Outlets

270k+
Journalists
Opted In

GET STARTED