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Biotech / Medical : PFE (Pfizer) How high will it go? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (4040)	7/8/1998 5:41:00 PM
From: BigKNY3	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 9523

Breaking news on VVUS: BigKNY3 Vivus to Get Rid of Sales Operation, Take $6.5 Million Charge Mountain View, California, July 8 (Bloomberg) -- Vivus Inc. said it will eliminate its sales force and take a charge of about $6.5 million in a bid to return to profit after the April debut of Pfizer Inc.'s Viagra crushed demand for Vivus's Muse impotence treatment. Alza Corp., a drugmaker based in Palo Alto, California, will acquire Vivus's sales force and market Muse until the end of the year. In the meantime, Vivus will seek a licensing accord with a drugmaker that has a sales force big enough to market the drug to primary-care doctors, who now prescribe most impotence therapies. Mountain View, California-based Vivus said the moves will cut expenses to the point where it can post a profit as early as the third quarter of this year. Vivus reported a first-quarter loss after turning a profit during all of 1997. The new erectile dysfunction market necessitates the infrastructure of a major pharmaceutical company,'' said Vivus Chief Executive Leland Wilson in a statement. Viagra, the first pill to treat impotence, rocketed to blockbuster status within weeks of its April introduction. It is easier to use than earlier therapies, including Muse, a pellet that must be inserted through the urethra. Besides transferring its 74 sales representatives to Alza, Vivus will end an agreement with Innovex Ltd., a division of Durham, North Carolina-based Quintiles Transnational Corp., that gave it a contract sales force of 150. Alza said it will also acquire the Innovex reps. The second-quarter charge, which will be about 20 cents a share, will cover the cost of transferring employees to Alza and terminating the agreement with Innovex. Vivus also expects to cut ''a small number'' of positions among its headquarters staff of 80 employees, said company spokeswoman Nina Ferrari. Vivus shares fell 13/16 to 9 3/16. The company disclosed the moves after the close of U.S. stock markets.