Illumina Inc.
ILMN,
disclosed Monday that it has begun laying off workers, as the DNA-sequencing company looks to cut costs amid a withering fight with activist investor Carl Icahn. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Illumina stated that it began laying off workers on June 21, and expects to continue the cuts into the third quarter. The company did not disclose the targeted number of cuts in the filing, nor when contacted by MarketWatch on Monday afternoon. “We believe these steps need to be taken to continue driving innovation, expand profitable growth for our shareholders, and put us in the best position to carry out our mission of improving human health by unlocking the power of the genome,” a spokeswoman said in an emailed statement. “We understand the impact this decision has on affected employees and their families, and we are committed to providing support to these employees in their transitions and treating them with gratitude and respect.” The company estimates that it will face charges of $25 million to $35 million through the end of the year related to severance and other costs associated with the layoffs, with the majority of charges being tallied on its second-quarter results. Illumina also plans to completely exit a San Diego location known as the “i3 campus,” and partially exit its facility in the Northern California city of Foster City. The moves are part of an effort to cut $100 million in annually recurring costs that was announced in the company’s last earnings report in April. Since then, Illumina’s chief executive and chairman have stepped down while being targeted by Icahn, who has led an activist fight centered on the company’s troubled $7.1 billion acquisition of Grail.
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