Generics Giant Teva Shines

November 8, 2008

With another tough day in the market following the Presidential Election,  the word’s largest generic drug maker topped 3rd Quarter net profit forecasts. Teva [TEVA: 42.28, -0.70 (-1.63%)], headquarted in Israel, develops, manufactures, and markets generic and human pharmaceuticals. They also participate in the formation of active pharmaceuticals, or APIs, in North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Israel. Teva’s net profit for the quarter, excluding one-time items, was $599 million or $0.72 per diluted share, compared with $525 million, or $0.64 per share. Sales increased 20% to a record of Read more

The Bear’s Case for Genentech

November 7, 2008

Trading at $79.84, shares of Genentech [DNA: 80.36, -0.54 (-0.67%)] now trade more than 11% below Roche’s tender offer of $89.00 a share issued in July. At the time the bid was announced, shares of Genentech rose to $99.00, reflecting the market’s view that Roche would have to come back with a higher bid. Later that day, Genentech rejected the offer stating $89 per share did not reflect the true value Read more

The Bull’s Case for Genentech

November 6, 2008

This article is part of a two-piece segment brought to you by Bullish Bankers.  I will be presenting the bull case for the Genentech and Roche deal. Despite the recent credit turmoil, the Roche [RHHBY: 0.00, N/A (N/A)] and Genentech [DNA: 80.36, -0.54 (-0.67%)] deal has been in and out of  the news since it was first announced on July 21st of this year, and many analysts point towards the deal progressing towards a higher bid from Roche. The original bid by Roche came in at $89.00 per share to acquire the remaining 44.1% that they do not already own for a total of $43.7 billion.  DNA’s management saw this as significantly undervaluing the company, and the Board rejected the bid in August.  An August 13th press release quoting Dr. Charles A. Sanders, chairman of the special committee, said, “The special committee is confident in the company’s strong financial and clinical momentum and its uniquely productive Read more

Johnson & Johnson: Is it Too Late?

October 15, 2008

The markets cannot seem to catch a breather, find a glimpse of hope, or even come close to ending the day flat. Even Healthcare has been getting beaten up recently. Recessionary proof? I do not feel anything is recessionary proof in this current environment. The Healthcare Select Sector SPDR, [XLV: 25.20, -0.57 (-2.21%)], is down 22.54% year to date, not quite near the Financials SPDR, XLF down 47.18% (performance as of 10/08/2008), but still more than ever expected Read more

Johnson and Johnson Shines, Raises Full-Year Guidance

October 14, 2008

During a busy day for third quarter earnings, Johnson and Johnson [JNJ: 57.92, -1.63 (-2.74%)] kicked things off this morning by beating market expectations and sprinting out of the gates up 6% at the open. They reported sales of $15.9 billion up 6.4% from $14.97 billion a year ago and earnings per share of $1.17 per share up 7.6% Read more

5 Forward-Looking Trends in Healthcare

October 2, 2008

The healthcare sector is going through significant changes and many investors are worried about how a change in administration will affect healthcare companies. While the future of managed care and Medicare spending are uncertain, there are a few subsectors that should continue to experience rapid growth regardless of politics. Here is an introduction to 5 trends that could make Read more

Introduction to Healthcare Reform

September 22, 2008

Socializing our Financial System with a $700 billion dollar bailout of the mortgage industry has healthcare reformers scratching their heads.  This weekend Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson urged lawmakers to approve an unprecedented rescue plan to stabilize our financial system.  The plan would allow the government to buy troubled loans over the next few years and then sell them as they became profitable.  This would considerably raise our nation’s debt from about $10.6 trillion today to $11.3 trillion. Read more

Robotic Surgery: Meet Intuitive Surgical

September 18, 2008

In 1985 the PUMA 560 was released and was used to place a needle for a brain biopsy using Computed Topography guidance.  Many at first were quite skeptical, but it was a very exciting time for the healthcare medical industry. The long-term outlook looked promising; however, with a brand new concept coming into the market, were patients willing to leave their lives up to computers?   Read more

Thermo Fisher: Not Just a Dollar Play

September 16, 2008

Since 2002, investors have fallen in love with companies offering strong international exposure.  Foreign exchange benefits have helped the healthcare sector shrug off years of low single digit organic growth.  But the rest of the world is slowing down and the dollar has rallied in recent weeks.  European policy makers have made plans to follow the path of the United States by cutting lending rates.   This means a lot of companies with attractive international exposure will be thrown away as top-line gains become losses.  Read more

The Pros and Cons of Owning Mylan

September 10, 2008

Mylan Inc [MYL: 9.11, -0.81 (-8.17%)] announced on Monday 9/08/08 their plans to retain their specialty business Dey Inc. instead of selling it in a bidding process they expected to end by December. Last year Mylan bought Merck KGaa generics division in October for $7 billion in cash. Dey Inc, a specialty business focused on respiratory and allergy drugs was part of that deal. In February of this year, Mylan announced they were planning to sell Dey because their big drug Perforomist was not reaching Read more

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