Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Biotech / Medical : IVAX Insider Trading -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: flickerful who wrote (506)	2/1/1998 8:42:00 PM
From: Greger	Respond to of 756

When information is lacking I go to the professional on the street- in this case my pharmacist. I asked about prospects of compazine generics. He stated that the drug has been around for 30 years and has become very cheap. He thought that because there are at least two other competitors, that the bottom line would not be very much. Hopefully the magins on this drug (IVX version) will be worthy.

To: flickerful who wrote (506)	2/1/1998 10:43:00 PM
From: 5,17,37,5,101,...	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 756

Randy, find some pretty strong statements by Bethune: no more big losses. Really? Jackson ******************************************************************** Full Text COPYRIGHT 1998 Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News By Michele Chandler, The Miami Herald Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Jan. 24--Injured by declining prices and a lack of hot-selling new products,Miami-based generic drugmaker Ivax Corp. expects its losses for 1997 to exceed the $160.7 million loss the company posted in 1996. But the firm's fortunes will recover this year, said David Bethune, who took over as the company's president and chief operating officer six months ago. "I'm telling people, beginning now, that we are done with big old gigantic losses. We're not going to see those anymore," Bethune said Friday. "The first quarter of 1998 represents a new start." Earlier in the week, Bethune gave the same upbeat prediction to industry analysts and major investors at a health care conference in New York sponsored by the American Stock Exchange. The company's fortunes will improve, Bethune says, as a variety of measures designed to cut costs and boost efficiency begins to pay off. Those efforts include the sale of businesses not directly related to Ivax's core business of manufacturing generic and brand-name drugs. Most recently, Ivax sold its McGaw intravenous division for $320 million, as well as its specialty chemical division for $42 million. Those sales, plus other cuts, have left Ivax with a $210 million cash war chest. Other cost-cutting measures last year included ending a longstanding practice of offering rebates to customers, shuttering some manufacturing plants,laying off employees, merging its two drug distribution centers into one and licensing some products to outside firms. In 1998, the company wants to sell its Johnson Products cosmetics company and five underused manufacturing plants, including a soft gelatin capsule-making facility in Miami. The company also will focus on developing three types of drugs: treatments for cancer, drugs for respiratory troubles, and generic versions of proprietary drugs that are hard to formulate or have ingredients available only from a few suppliers. "The easier the drug is to make, the more likely you are going to have 14 competitors," Bethune said. Some industry analysts agree that a turnaround appears near. "It's very positive," said Hemant Shah, an analyst with HKS & Co. "I think they will make money this year. How much depends on how quickly they can turn the U.S. business around." Ivax received its first drug approval of the year on Friday. The Food and Drug Administration approved Ivax's generic version of Compazine, used to treat nausea and vomiting caused by psychotic disorders. Eight other generic drugs are pending approval, and company officials expect to file 15 additional applications this year. Last year, Ivax received approval for seven generic and one made-from-scratch medicine. In 1996, ruthless competition, excess inventory, bad debt and expenses associated with a failed merger contributed to a $160.7 million loss for Ivax, as contrasted with earnings of $114.8 million in 1995. The company's troubles lingered through last year. During the first three quarters of 1997, Ivax has posted losses of $133.9 million. Financial results for the fourth quarter and the year are expected to be released next month. Ivax shares, which traded as high as $13.50 last March, closed Friday at $7.93 3/4. In December, saying that its low stock price could spur an unsolicited takeover bid, Ivax adopted so-called poison pill measures. At that time, Ivax's founder and chairman Phillip Frost said no efforts, "hostile or otherwise," were under way to acquire the company. ----- Visit HeraldLink, the World Wide Web site of The Miami Herald, at herald.com ----- (c) 1998, The Miami Herald. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. IVX, -- End --