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

To: ratan lal who wrote (5705)	9/24/1998 4:09:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9523

Moody's affirms Pfizer Inc ratings Thursday September 24, 1:58 pm Eastern Time (Press release provided by Moody's Investors Service) NEW YORK, Sept 24 - Moody's Investors Service confirmed the debt and issuer ratings of Pfizer Inc. and the debt of its guaranteed entities following the announcement that Pfizer's board of directors authorized a new $5 billion share repurchase program. Moody's said proceeds from the divestiture of Pfizer's medical technology businesses and the prospect of strong internal cash generation gives Aaa-rated Pfizer the capacity to undertake a program of this magnitude and still maintain a very strong financial condition. Ratings confirmed are: Pfizer Inc. -- Aaa for industrial revenue bonds, issuer rating, and the company's Prime-1 for commercial paper. Pfizer Canada, Inc. -- Prime-1 for guaranteed commercial paper. Pfizer Specialty Minerals Inc. -- Aaa for guaranteed industrial revenue bonds. Moody's said that Pfizer's $5 billion in share repurchases represents approximately 3%-4% of its market capitalization at current market prices and that these repurchases are expected to be conducted over a multi-year time frame. Moody's believes Pfizer will be able to fund the repurchases over this period without reducing the company's financial flexibility. Proceeds from the sale of its medical technology businesses should provide more than $3 billion, and intermediate-term cash generation should continue to rise robustly in view of Pfizer's exceptional pharmaceutical product pipeline. Furthermore, while the share repurchases will cause nominal leverage to rise, Moody's expects Pfizer to maintain high liquidity relative to debt. The rating agency noted, however, the repurchases make Pfizer's ratings more sensitive to possible negative developments, and the rating confirmations are based on the expectation that management will maintain a financial profile consistent with a Aaa rating. Headquartered in New York City, Pfizer Inc. is a global health care company with leading positions in pharmaceuticals and animal health products.