NPS Pharmaceuticals Secures $40 Million Committed Equity Financing Facility

BEDMINSTER, N.J., August 6, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) – NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: NPSP – News) today announced that it has secured a committed equity financing facility under which it may sell up to $40 million of its registered common stock to Azimuth Opportunity, Ltd. over an 18-month period. NPS is not obligated to utilize the facility and remains free to enter into other financing transactions (other than another committed equity financing facility). NPS did not pay a commitment fee or issue any warrants to secure this facility.

NPS will determine, at its sole discretion, the timing, the dollar amount, and the floor price per share of any draw under this facility, subject to certain defined limitations. When and if NPS elects to use the facility, the company will issue shares to Azimuth at a small discount to the volume weighted average price of NPS common stock over a preceding period of trading days. Any shares sold under this facility will be sold pursuant to a shelf registration statement declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 5, 2009.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sales of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any state.

About NPS Pharmaceuticals

NPS Pharmaceuticals is developing new treatment options for patients with rare gastrointestinal and endocrine disorders. The company is currently conducting two Phase 3 registration studies. Teduglutide, a proprietary analog of GLP-2, is being evaluated as GATTEX™ in a Phase 3 registration study known as STEPS for intestinal failure associated with short bowel syndrome and in preclinical development for gastrointestinal mucositis and other pediatric indications. NPSP558 (parathyroid hormone 1-84 [rDNA origin] injection) is being evaluated in a Phase 3 registration study known as REPLACE as a hormone replacement therapy for hypoparathyroidism. NPS complements its proprietary programs with a royalty-based portfolio of products and product candidates that includes agreements with Amgen, GlaxoSmithKline, Kyowa Kirin, Nycomed, and Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals. Additional information is available at http://www.npsp.com.

“NPS” and “NPS Pharmaceuticals” are the company’s registered trademarks. Preotact® is the company’s registered trademark in the U.S. All other trademarks, trade names or service marks appearing in this press release are the property of their respective owners.

Forward Looking Statements

Statements made in this press release, which are not historical in nature, constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on the company’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Risks associated to the company’s business include, but are not limited to, the risks associated with any failure by the company to successfully complete its preclinical and clinical studies within the projected time frames or not at all, the risk of not gaining marketing approvals for GATTEX and NPSP558, the risks associated with the company’s strategy, the risks associated with the company’s auction-rate securities, as well as other risk factors described in the company’s periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Form 10-Qs. All information in this press release is as of the date of this release and NPS undertakes no duty to update this information.

Contact:

NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Susan Mesco
smesco@npsp.com
(908)450-5516