Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pfizer Decides Not To Split Into Two Companies After Years Of Planning That Cost $600M
The Wall Street Journal: Pfizer Throws Out Plan To Split Into Two Companies
Pfizer Inc. said Monday it would remain a single company, deciding not to split into one business focused on patent-protected drugs and another on cash-rich older products. The decision means the New York City-based drug company would remain one of the industry’s largest. It projects at least $51 billion in revenue this year from a growing portfolio of cancer drugs and vaccines as well as a pipeline with copies of expensive big-molecule drugs. (Rockoff and Hufford, 9/26)
Bloomberg: Pfizer Opts Not To Split, Putting Focus On M&A And New Drugs
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Pfizer Inc. decided not to split in two separate companies, opting against what could have been one of the biggest breakups in the drug industry’s history after years of what it called an “extensive evaluation.” The decision follows the collapse of Pfizer’s attempted $160 billion merger with Allergan Plc in April, a deal that would have shifted the company’s tax address overseas and bulked up one of the units before a split. In recent months, New York-based Pfizer had signaled it might stay together. (Koons and Hopkins, 9/26)
In other pharmaceutical news —
The Wall Street Journal: Kite Pharma’s Lead Cancer Candidate Shows Promising Results
Kite Pharma Inc. said more than two-thirds of patients treated with its proposed lymphoma treatment responded to the therapy, with more than 40% showing a complete remission, according to an interim analysis of a mid-stage clinical trial. Shares of the biopharmaceutical company, down 11% this year, jumped 9% to $60 in after-hours trade. (Armental, 9/26)
