The Motley Fool: Abbott Labs Stock Earnings: Why Steady Isn't Enough

The "hurry up and wait" goes on at Abbott Labs (NYSE: ABT  ) , as it does at many other large med-tech companies, but Abbott is at least showing some growth momentum and the comps for the second half of the year should lead to better reported results. Abbott has also been busying on the M&A front, recently announcing a deal with Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL  ) that shifts the company's Established Pharmaceuticals business firmly toward faster-growing emerging markets. What the company will do about its device business is still an open question and how management addresses it will be something to watch for the remainder of the year.

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Abbott Labs Stock Earnings: Why Steady Isn't Enough

The Motley Fool: Abbott And Mylan: Winners and Winners?

Sometimes companies find that they have overlapping needs, and such was the case recently in the drug world. Abbott Labs (NYSE: ABT  ) was looking to reinvigorate its branded generic drug business, while Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL  ) wanted to join the parade of companies that have redomiciled in Europe to avoid taxes. The two companies came together on Monday in a $5 billion deal that will see Abbott sell its developed market drug business in a stock transaction that also gives Mylan the European tax base it wanted.

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Abbott And Mylan: Winners and Winners?

The Motley Fool: A Smart Move for Endo International?

It's hard to find fault with Endo International PLC (NASDAQ: ENDP  ) . Management has done a great job of unwinding the mistakes of past management and has pursued an aggressive growth-by-M&A strategy that has the company well-positioned for the future and domiciled in low-tax Ireland. Over the past two months management has given investors another two examples of its ability to generate value – settling a large part of its vaginal mesh litigation and announcing another accretive M&A transaction.

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A Smart Move for Endo International?

The Motley Fool: Is Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd Turning a Corner?

Once a darling of the health care space (and a frequent member of "buy and hold forever" lists), Teva Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: TEVA  ) spent about three and a half years in the market's doghouse. Investors bailed out due to worries about competition in the company's lucrative MS franchise, the perception of a dwindling pipeline for major generics, and turmoil in executive leadership. Now it looks as though the company has shored up its MS franchise, rejuvenated its R&D efforts, and become more serious about driving better value in/from the business.

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Is Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd Turning a Corner?

The Motley Fool: Is Mylan a Good Buy?

As branded drugs have become more complicated and global growth has become more important to generic franchises, scale matters more than ever. That's a definite check mark in the plus column for Mylan (NASDAQ: MYL  ) , as it is among the largest generic drug makers in the world and one of the few with the scale and capability to operate not only efficiently, but to crack the code on hard-to-manufacture generics.

Wall Street is definitely keen on the shares right now. The stock has risen almost 80% over the last year, and more than 140% over the last two years, as investors have gotten excited about the potential for generic Lidoderm, Copaxone, and Advair, as well as the potential for additional value-creating M&A deals.

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Is Mylan a Good Buy?

Seeking Alpha: Endo Health Has A Lot Of Work To Do

How do you ruin a specialty pharmaceutical business? Take a ridiculously lucrative stream of free cash flow generated by a strong pain franchise and reinvest it badly-reasoned acquisitions in the device space. To be fair, though, "ruin" in the case of Endo Health Solutions (ENDP) still means a stock that has climbed almost 150% over the past ten years and left both the S&P 500 and drug companies like Teva (TEVA) and Mylan (MYL) in the dust.

The relevant question now is where Endo Health goes from here. The company's one-time fortress of pain medications is now due to erode away in the face of generic competition, while the company's device business has not only failed to generate good cash flows but has actually created potentially large product liability claims. New management has already laid out bold cost-cutting moves and explicitly intends to close multiple M&A transactions. At this point, then, this stock is basically a referendum on management - if you believe they can acquire a better future for Endo, you probably like the stock. If you believe Endo won't be able to acquire enough growth, it probably looks like a hold at best.

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Endo Health Has A Lot Of Work To Do

Investopedia: A Good Deal For Actavis, But Warner Chilcott Goes A Little Cheap

Confirming a pretty active recent rumor mill in the generic and specialty drug space, Actavis (NYSE:ACT) announced on Monday that it had reached an agreement to acquire Warner Chilcott (Nasdaq:WCRX) in an all-stock deal. This deal should bring real long-term value for Actavis, while giving the owners of long-struggling Warner Chilcott an honorable exit.

The Deal To Be
Assuming that the deal gets the request approvals and a rival suitor doesn't break things up, Actavis will acquire Warner Chilcott in an $8.5 billion all-stock deal that values Warner Chilcott at $20.08 a share – a roughly 5% premium to Friday's close, but closer to a 50% premium relative to where the shares were trading before spiking on M&A rumors.

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http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/052113/good-deal-actavis-warner-chilcott-goes-little-cheap-act-wcrx-vrx-myl.aspx

Investopedia: Teva Still Too Cheap, But Still Too Uncertain

The story on the generics giant Teva Pharmaceutical (Nasdaq:TEVA) really hasn't changed all that much over the past year. For investors who can just buy, ignore the volatility, and maintain a long-term perspective, the shares look too cheap. On the other hand, the generic drug business has clearly lost momentum, and it's uncertain if “bio-similar” and a more focused approach to drug development will deliver the promised returns for this company. Consequently, value investors have a lot to like here, but they have to accept that the Street is probably not going to share that enthusiasm for some time yet.

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http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/050313/teva-still-too-cheap-still-too-uncertain-teva-nvs-myl-act.aspx

Investopedia: Teva Likely To Tread Water Ahead Of New Strategy

It is perhaps a little ironic that generics giant Teva Pharmaceutical (NYSE:TEVA) finds itself in a position similar to what it helped create for many other pharmaceutical companies over the years. The company is facing increasing competition for its blockbuster MS drug Copaxone, while also having to deal with more pushback on pricing and a thinning pipeline for major generic releases. While Teva does have to face up to some near-term challenges, success with biosimiliars and a decision from management to double-down on internal efficiency and profitability would likely go a long way toward improving investor sentiment.

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http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2012/Teva-Likely-To-Tread-Water-Ahead-Of-New-Strategy-TEVA-MYL-PFE-SNY1105.aspx

Seeking Alpha: TPG's Bid For Par Reflects More Difficult Generic Environment

While the seemingly endless M&A process among generic drug companies means that the acquisition of Par Pharmaceuticals (PRX) isn't a complete surprise, it's an interesting deal all the same. Not only does this deal point to the cost of not having a truly global business, but it also seems to speak to the extent to which this sector could see pipeline-driven valuation worries in the coming years.

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TPG's Bid For Par Reflects More Difficult Generic Environment

Seeking Alpha: Expense Control Is Good, But Merck's Catalysts Lie Elsewhere

Biopharma investing a big exercise in "hurry up … and wait"; there's a lot of space to fill between the major pivotal clinical data releases and FDA decisions, and while earnings reports are not trivial, they don't often impact the long-term story all that much. In other words, if you liked Merck (MRK) before, there's no reason not to now (and vice versa).

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Expense Control Is Good, But Merck's Catalysts Lie Elsewhere

Seeking Alpha: Mylan Looks To Reap A Harvest Of Patent Expirations

In a world where doing a little bit of everything has become popular among drug companies, Mylan (MYL) has stuck to its guns. Unlike Teva (TEVA) and Sandoz (part of Novartis (NVS)), Mylan really is just about generic drugs and the opportunity to leverage one of the largest global franchises in that segment of the drug market. At the bottom line, Mylan is an interesting investment prospect, but really needs to deliver more to be a top choice.

Ending The Year In Line
Mylan did not offer a lot of surprises to close this fiscal year. Revenue rose about 7%, with generics up about 5% overall and the small (less than 10%) specialty business up almost 38%. The generics business was definitely a haves-and-have-not situation this quarter, as the North American business grew almost 13% on good volumes and strong pricing, while the European business saw revenue drop 12% on weak pricing.

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Mylan Looks To Reap A Harvest Of Patent Expirations

Seeking Alpha: With New Management, Teva Seeks To Reclaim Past Glories

To the credit of Teva Pharmaceuticals' (TEVA) board, if you underperform in the top spot there, you will be replaced. Recent years have seen the company struggle to deliver the sort of performance that shareholders had come to expect, and missteps in manufacturing and clinical development didn't help matters. Now the company has a new CEO, strong generic candidates, a growing branded business, and perhaps a chance to regain past esteem.

A Fairly Solid Q4
Teva's fourth quarter results were solid, if not radically ahead of expectations. Revenue rose about 29% as reported, with the inclusion of Cephalon adding a significant amount of revenue growth. Revenue from generic drugs and ingredients rose 12% overall, but were down 5% in the U.S. Branded drug sales rose 68% as reported or about 25% on an organic basis, with Teva's key multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone up 11%.


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With New Management, Teva Seeks To Reclaim Past Glories

Seeking Alpha: Merck Looks Likes A Name To Own In Drugs

Roche (RHHBY.PK) was a good name to own throughout 2011 in large part because so little was expected from the company. Investors still looking to position their portfolio for 2012 may want to consider Merck (MRK) for similar reasons. Not only does Merck have a pretty tolerable patent cliff over the next three years, but the company's pipeline may yet be undervalued and under-appreciated.

Q4 Results: Good Margins On So-So Sales
Merck's fourth quarter was more or less fine. Revenue grew 2%, but came in about 2% light of average Wall Street guesses. Januvia was quite strong (revenue up 42%) and Singulair did well for a drug that is long in the tooth (up 8%), but Remicade was a little weak and the company did have to swallow a 15% drop in sales of Vytorin. Animal health and consumer sales were up 7% and 5%, respectively, but are relatively small businesses for Merck.

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Merck Looks Like A Name To Own In Drugs

Seeking Alpha: Okay, ISTA Management, It's Time To Step Up

Successfully repelling an unsolicited bid is, and should be, a mixed blessing for any company. In the case of ISTA Pharmaceuticals (ISTA) and Valeant (VRX), it's pretty clear that Valeant was attempting to exploit investor fatigue and pessimism with a low-ball bid. Now that Valeant has retreated, it falls on management to show that they can deliver on that value that they claim Valeant (and, by implication, the broader stock market prior to the bid) failed to recognize.

Valeant Steps Away
Valeant had always said that its $7.50/sh bid for ISTA had a lit fuse attached (an expiration date of January 31), and management decided to pull it a day early. Management at Valeant claimed that this was due to a "lack of progress." But the reality is that ISTA was doing exactly what it said it would do - shopping around for a better offer.

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Okay, ISTA Management, It's Time To Step Up

Investopedia: Medicis May Not Stay Independent

There are a lot of interesting talking points to take from Medicis Pharmaceutical's (NYSE:MRX) latest earnings report. The company certainly does deserve praise for how it has managed potential generic threats to Solodyn, as well as arguably maximizing what it could from its LipoSonix business. Looking ahead, there is certainly the possibility that Medicis can become a more formidable competitor to Allergan (NYSE:AGN), but shareholders may want to consider the likelihood that Medicis will be folded into a larger pharmaceutical company in the not-so-distant future.

So-So Results for the Third Quarter  
Although there was no glaring problem area for Medicis, this quarter, it was still not all that strong. Revenue rose about 4%, and came in basically at the bottom end of the range. Growth in the core acne business was light (below 1%), while non-acne revenue rose 12% on strong unit sales of Restylane and Dysport.

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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/Medicis-May-Not-Stay-Independent-MRX-VRX-AGN-JNJ-WCRX-TEVA-SLTM-IPXL-MYL1110.aspx

Investopedia: VCA Antech Cut Down To Value

I have been writing about VCA Antech (Nasdaq:WOOF) for years, albeit not always on a consistent basis, and I clearly remember the baying, barking, and growling from longs when I used to question the company's valuation and business model. This was back when the stock traded in the $30s, mind you, and everyone believed that the veterinary practice roll-up model was bulletproof. Well, I wasn't short the stock then (nor am I now) and I wasn't being paid by hedge funds (nor am I now), but I was right - the business model couldn't support the valuation and investors who ignored the warning signs and hung on took a bruising. (To know more about stock valuation, check out: DCF Valuation: The Stock Market Sanity Check.)

Nowadays, though, it is a different story. I still do not believe that business models predicated on continual acquisitions can work (it's been tried over and over again in people-medicine), but the fact remains that VCA Antech now has a leverageable installed base and an undervalued cash flow stream.

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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/VCA-Antech-Cut-Down-To-Value-WOOF-PETM-IDXX-MWIV1031.aspx

Investopedia: Teva And Mylan Show Some Value Remains in Generics

Generic drug company stocks have been all over the map this year, with companies like Teva (Nasdaq:TEVA) struggling, companies like Watson (NYSE:WPI), and the likes of Mylan (NYSE:MYL) and Impax (Nasdaq:IPXL) falling somewhere in between. While the sector is still broadly benefiting from popular branded drugs going off patent, pressures from large buyers like AmerisourceBergen (NYSE:ABC) and Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) and declining patient-doctor visits are making for a more challenging operating environment. 

Mylan - Good Here, Not So Good Over There  
Mylan reported 15% revenue growth (10% in constant currency), with North American sales rising over 27%. Asia-Pacific sales also grew by 17%, but Europe was flat as reported and down double-digits on a constant currency basis due in part to government-mandated price cuts in many European markets. 


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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/Teva-And-Mylan-Show-Some-Value-Remains-In-Generics-TEVA-MYL-WPI-IPXL-HSP-ESRX-MHS0804.aspx

Seeking Alpha: The Storm Is Almost Over At Pfizer

It's almost hard to believe that Pfizer (PFE) carried a P/E ratio of more than 20 within the last decade. Generic competition has walloped many major pharmaceutical companies and Pfizer has responded in a pretty typical way – large-scale efficiency-driven acquisitions and significant internal cost-cutting efforts. And while it is true that no company on Earth has ever cost-cut its way into lasting prosperity, investors who may have once left Pfizer for dead as a no-growth has-been may want to take another look at this cornerstone member of Big Pharma.

Not Much Excitement In Q2
To be sure, there is not a lot going on in Pfizer's business today that should excite growth-oriented investors. Revenue was down about 1% as reported and down about 5% on a currency-adjusted basis as patent expirations and generic introductions continue to bleed away lucrative revenue. In fact, pharmaceuticals sales were down about 7% on an operational basis, with Pfizer's primary care business taking a 10% hit from generics.

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The Storm Is Almost Over at Pfizer

Investopedia: With Mylan, Maybe Smaller Is Better

Quite a lot of attention has gone to Teva (Nasdaq:TEVA) recently, as investors have tried to digest the impact of potentially greater competition in multiple sclerosis and the company's acquisition of Cephalon (Nasdaq:CEPH). While Teva has its own merits, investors may want to spend a little time on Mylan (NYSE:MYL), Teva's considerably smaller competitor. Though there is a risk that investors are underrating the patent challenges coming after 2013, growth and valuation may be more interesting here. 


A Solid Start to the Year
Most analysts seemed quite pleased with Mylan's results and that is something of a mixed bag itself - happy analysts are better than angry analysts, but Mylan is already a well-liked and widely-owned stock. Nevertheless, the company did report 12% overall revenue growth, with the company's small specialty pharmaceutical business adding a small above-trend kicker (up 14%). (For related reading, see Teva And Cephalon Solve Each Other's Problems.)

While U.S. revenue was up a very strong 22%, overseas performance was much more mixed. Growth of 10% (constant currency) was alright, but European revenue dropped 4% in constant currency. Mylan is presently suffering through some European government pricing cuts, and they are certainly not alone in this regard, but building overseas growth has often been something of a challenge here. 



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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/With-Mylan-Maybe-Smaller-Is-Better-MYL-TEVA-NVS-PFE-IPXL-WPI-IPCI0506.aspx