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1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California  94080-4990
(Address of principal executive offices and Zip Code)

(650) 225-1000
(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

            Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.  Yes [x]  No [ ]

            Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).  Yes [x]  No [ ]

            Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer's classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date.

            In this report, "Genentech," "we," "us" and "our" refer to Genentech, Inc. "Common Stock" refers to Genentech's common stock, par value $0.02 per share and "Special Common Stock" refers to Genentech's callable putable common stock, par value $0.02 per share.

            We own or have rights to various copyrights, trademarks and trade names used in our business including the following: Activase® (alteplase, recombinant) tissue-plasminogen activator; Avastin™ (bevacizumab) anti-VEGF antibody; Cathflo® Activase® (alteplase for catheter clearance); Herceptin® (trastuzumab) anti-HER2 antibody; Nutropin® (somatropin (rDNA origin) for injection) growth hormone; Nutropin AQ® and Nutropin AQ Pen™ (somatropin (rDNA origin) for injection) liquid formulation growth hormone; Nutropin Depot® (somatropin (rDNA origin) for injectable suspension) encapsulated sustained-release growth hormone; Protropin® (somatrem for injection) growth hormone; Pulmozyme® (dornase alfa, recombinant) inhalation solution; TNKase™ (tenecteplase) single-bolus thrombolytic agent; and Raptiva™ (efalizumab, formerly Xanelim™) anti-CD11a antibody. Rituxan® (rituximab) anti-CD20 antibody is a registered trademark of IDEC Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Tarceva™ (erlotinib) is a trademark of OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; and Xolair® (omalizumab) anti-IgE antibody is a trademark of Novartis AG. This report also includes other trademarks, service marks and trade names of other companies.

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            In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting only of adjustments of a normal recurring nature) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the three month period ended March 31, 2003 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2003. The Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2002 has been derived from the audit ed consolidated financial statements as of that date. For further information, refer to the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2002.

            The preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (or U.S.) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

            In June 2002, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (or FASB) issued FAS 146, "Accounting for Costs Associated with Exit or Disposal Activities," which addresses accounting for restructuring, discontinued operation, plant closing, or other exit or disposal activity. FAS 146 requires companies to recognize costs associated with exit or disposal activities when they are incurred rather than at the date of a commitment to an exit or disposal plan. FAS 146 is to be applied prospectively to exit or disposal activities initiated after December 31, 2002. The adoption of FAS 146 on January 1, 2003 did not have a significant impact on our financial position and results of operations.

            In November 2002, the FASB issued Interpretation No. 45 (or FIN 45), "Guarantor's Accounting and Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others." FIN 45 elaborates on the existing disclosure requirements for most guarantees, including residual value guarantees issued in conjunction with operating lease agreements. It also clarifies that at the time a company issues a guarantee, the company must recognize an initial liability for the fair value of the obligation it assumes under that guarantee and must disclose that information in its interim and annual financial statements. The initial recognition and measurement provisions apply on a prospective basis to guarantees issued or modified after December 31, 2002. The disclosure requirements are effective for financial statements of interim or annual periods ending after December 15, 2002. Our adoption of FIN 45 did not have a material impact on our results of operations and financial position. See Note 2, "Leases and Contingencies," below for a discussion of our exposure related to our agreement with Serono S.A. and our synthetic leases and the related residual value guarantees.

            In January 2003, the FASB issued Interpretation No. 46 (or FIN 46), "Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities." FIN 46 requires a variable interest entity to be consolidated by a company if that company is subject to a majority of the risk of loss from the variable interest entity's activities or entitled to receive a majority of the entity's residual returns or both. A variable interest entity is a corporation, partnership, trust, or any other legal structures used for business purposes that either (a) does not have equity investors with voting rights or (b) has equity investors that do not provide sufficient financial resources for the entity to support its activities. A variable interest entity

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often holds financial assets, including loans or receivables, real estate or other property. A variable interest entity may be essentially passive or it may engage in research and development or other activities on behalf of another company. The consolidation requirements of FIN 46 apply immediately to variable interest entities created after January 31, 2003. The consolidation requirements apply to older entities in the first fiscal year or interim period beginning after June 15, 2003. Certain of the disclosure requirements apply to all financial statements issued after January 31, 2003, regardless of when the variable interest entity was established. See Note 2, "Leases and Contingencies," below for a discussion of our synthetic leases and the expanded disclosures required by FIN 46.

            In December 2002, the FASB issued Statement No. 148, "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation - Transition and Disclosure." FAS 148 amends FAS 123 "Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation" to provide alternative methods of transition for a voluntary change to the fair value based method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation. In addition, FAS 148 amends the disclosure requirements of FAS 123 to require more prominent disclosures in both annual and interim financial statements about the method of accounting for stock-based employee compensation and the effect of the method used on reported results. The additional disclosure requirements of FAS 148 are effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2002. We have elected to continue to follow the intrinsic value method of accounting as prescribed by Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 25 (or APB 25), "Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees," t o account for employee stock options. Under APB 25, no compensation expense is recognized unless the exercise price of our employee stock options is less than the market price of the underlying stock on the date of grant. We have not recorded such expenses in the periods presented because we grant options at the fair market value of the underlying stock on the date of grant.

            The following information regarding net income and earnings per share prepared in accordance with FAS 123 has been determined as if we had accounted for our employee stock options and employee stock plan under the fair value method prescribed by FAS 123. The resulting effect on net income and earnings per share pursuant to FAS 123 is not likely to be representative of the effects on net income and earnings per share pursuant to FAS 123 in future periods, due to subsequent periods including additional grants and periods of vesting. The fair value of options was estimated at the date of grant using a Black-Scholes option valuation model with the following weighted-average assumptions for the three months ended March 31, 2003 and 2002, respectively:  risk-free interest rates of 2.8% and 4.4%; dividend yields of 0%; volatility factors of the expected market price of our Common Stock of 36.0% and 43.0%; and a we ighted-average expected life of the option of five years.

            The Black-Scholes option valuation model was developed for use in estimating the fair value of traded options, which have no vesting restrictions and are fully transferable. Option valuation models require the input of highly subjective assumptions including the expected stock price volatility. Because our employee stock options have characteristics significantly different from those of traded options, and because changes in the subjective input assumptions can materially affect the fair value estimate, in management's opinion the existing models do not provide a reliable single measure of the fair value of our employee stock options.

            For purposes of disclosures pursuant to FAS 123 as amended by FAS 148, the estimated fair value of options is amortized to expense over the options' vesting period.

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            The following table illustrates the effect on reported net income and earnings per share if we had applied the fair value recognition provisions of FAS 123 to stock-based employee compensation (in thousands, except per share amounts):

            We prepare estimates for sales returns and allowances, discounts and rebates based primarily on historical trends and experience and changes in customer financial conditions.

            In the first quarter of 2003, we made certain classification changes in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. A new caption titled "other income, net" was added to the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (see below for the composition of this new caption). The "contract and other" caption presented in prior periods was changed to "contract revenues" and the gains from the sale of biotechnology equity securities that were previously included in "contract and other" are now reflected in "other income, net." In addition, write-downs on biotechnology equity securities previously included in "marketing, general and administrative" expenses are now also reflected in the "other income, net" caption.

            The following table summarizes the components of "other income, net," for the first quarters of 2003 and 2002 (in thousands):

            As part of our strategic alliance efforts, we invested in debt and equity securities of certain biotechnology companies with which we have or have had collaborative agreements. "Other income, net" in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income includes realized gains and losses from the sale of certain of these biotechnology equity securities and write-downs for other-than-temporary declines in the fair value of certain of these biotechnology debt and equity securities. In addition, "other income, net," includes interest income and interest expense, net of amounts capitalized.

            Certain reclassifications of prior year amounts have been made to our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income and our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets to conform with the current year presentation.

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            We lease various real properties under operating leases that generally require us to pay taxes, insurance, maintenance and minimum lease payments. Some of our leases have options to renew. Four of our operating leases are commonly referred to as synthetic leases. A synthetic lease represents a form of off-balance sheet financing under which an unrelated third-party funds 100% of the costs of the acquisition and/or construction of the property and leases the asset to a lessee (Genentech), and at least 3% of the third-party funds represent at-risk equity. As the lessee, our synthetic leases are treated as operating leases for accounting purposes and as financing leases for tax purposes. (See also below regarding FIN 46). Under our synthetic lease structures, upon termination or expiration, at our option, we must either purchase the property from the lessor at a predetermined amount that does not constitute a purcha se at less than fair market value, sell the real property to a third-party, or renew the lease arrangement. If the property is sold to a third-party at an amount less than the amount financed by the lessor, we have agreed under residual value guarantees to pay the lessor up to an agreed upon percentage of the amount financed by the lessor.

            Three of our four synthetic leases were entered into with BNP Paribas Leasing Corporation (or BNP), who leases directly to us various buildings that we occupy in South San Francisco, California. Under certain of these leases, we are required to maintain cash collateral of $56.6 million, which we have included in our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as restricted cash.

            The most significant of our synthetic leases relates to our manufacturing facility located in Vacaville, California. In November 2001, we completed a synthetic lease transaction for this facility, which had previously been leased to us under a predecessor synthetic lease. This new synthetic lease is structured differently from our other synthetic leases. As the lessee, we lease the property from an unrelated special purpose trust (owner/lessor) under an operating lease agreement for five years ending November 2006. Third-party financing is provided in the form of a 3% at-risk equity participation from investors and 97% debt commitment. Investors' equity contributions were equal to or greater than 3% of the fair value of the property at the lease's inception and are required to remain so for the term of the lease. A bankruptcy-remote, special purpose corporation (SPC) was formed to fund the debt portion through the issuance of commercial paper notes. The SPC lends the proceeds from the commercial paper to the owner/lessor, who issues promissory notes to the SPC. The SPC loans mature in November 2006. The SPC promissory notes are supported by a credit facility provided by financing institutions and draws are generally available under that credit facility to repay the SPC's commercial paper. The collateral for the SPC loans includes the leased property, and an interest in the residual value guarantee provided by us. As the lessee, at any time during the lease term, we have the option to purchase the property at an amount that does not constitute a purchase at less than fair market value. Our off-balance sheet contingent liability under the residual value guarantees is summarized in the table below.

            Under all the synthetic leases, Genentech, as the lessee, is also required to maintain certain pre-defined financial ratios and is limited to the amount of debt it can assume. In addition, no Genentech officers or employees have any financial interest with regards to these synthetic lease arrangements or with any of the special purpose entities used in these arrangements. In the event of a default, the maximum amount payable under the residual value guarantee would equal 100% of the amount financed by the lessor, and our obligation to purchase the leased properties or pay the related residual value guarantees could be accelerated. We believed at the lease's inception and continue to believe that the occurrence of any event of default that could trigger our purchase obligation is remote.

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            Future minimum lease payments under operating leases, exclusive of the residual value guarantees, executory costs and sublease income, at December 31, 2002, are as follows (in millions). These minimum lease payments were computed based on interest rates current at that time, which are subject to fluctuations in certain market-based interest rates: