Digene Corp.

1201 Clopper Rd.

Year founded: 1987

Industry: Biotechnology

Post 200 Category: Top 125 Companies

Revenue: $90.16 Million

Net Income/Loss: $21.54 Million

Earnings per share: $1.04

Dividend: n/a

Stockholder equity: $86.06 Million

Auditor: Ernst & Young LLP

Stock: DIGE

Assets: $103.27 Million

Market capitalization: $385.04 Million

52-week high: 40.86 5/27/2004

52-week low: 18.5 11/4/2004

Chairman and CEO: Evan Jones

President and CFO: Charles M. Fleischman

Employees: 350

Local employees: 300

Description: Digene uses genetic information to develop new medical tests, particularly for cancer and sexually transmitted diseases.

Developments: Digene's HPV DNA test is the only approved test in the United States that screens for a virus that often causes cervical cancer. Digene started the year with good news about the test, announcing that Quest Diagnostics Inc., the nation's largest commercial laboratory, would sell it. Not long afterward, diagnostic test company Hoffman-LaRoche Inc. said it was planing to launch a competing product, possibly by 2006. The announcement depressed Digene stock and shadowed the company throughout 2004, even as it reported its first profitable year, earning $21.5 million. Digene hit some other bumps, too. It agreed to pay a New York biotechnology company at least $30.5 million to settle a patent-infringement lawsuit involving technology used in its HPV DNA test. Later in the year, Digene executives reported that sales of the HPV DNA test were growing more slowly than expected. They lowered revenue estimates for fiscal 2005 to a range of $115 million to $120 million from a range of $125 million to $130 million. Executives also said they would hire about 40 salespeople and launch an advertising campaign. Still, analysts downgraded Digene shares.