Britain's BTP Climbs on Optimism Over Pfizer's Viagra
Bloomberg News
May 15, 1998, 8:55 a.m. PT
Britain's BTP Climbs on Optimism Over Pfizer's Viagra
London, May 15 (Bloomberg) -- BTP Plc shares rose 7 percent
on optimism over New York-based Pfizer Inc.'s Viagra impotence
pill, for which the British chemical company makes an
ingredient.
BTP, which produces a range of specialty chemicals,
including disinfectants, agrochemicals and brewing agents,
jumped 34 pence to 523.5. It's risen 24 percent during the past
10 trading days.
Sales of Viagra, which was introduced a month ago, are
likely to top $1 billion in the first 12 months, and may reach
as much as $2 billion in 1999, analysts have estimated.
''It's such a powerful story in terms of sentiment. You're
going to get a lot of publicity for Viagra,'' said Jeremy
Chantry, an analyst at Credit Lyonnais Securities. Chantry had a
''buy'' stance on the company even before news of Viagra's
potential was released.
Chantry said sales related to the pill could account for
about 3 percent of BTP's profit in a couple of years.
Traders and investors said Credit Suisse First Boston
analysts repeated their ''buy'' stance on the stock and set a
price target of 615p. No one at Credit Suisse was available to
comment. |
