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Biotech / Medical : wla(warner lambert) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (453)	1/25/1999 8:26:00 AM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 942

Warner-Lambert 4th-Qtr Profit Rises to 40c-Shr: Instant Insight Bloomberg News January 25, 1999, 7:15 a.m. ET Expected Market Reaction Limited. Warner-Lambert Co., one of the world's most profitable drugmakers, said fourth-quarter net income rose 45 percent to $341 million, or 40 cents a share, from $236 million, or 28 cents a share, a year earlier. Results matched the 40-cent average estimate of analysts polled by First Call Corp. Sales rose to $2.9 billion from $2.3 billion. Behind the Numbers Two drugs are most responsible for boosting Warner-Lambert's profits, the cholesterol reducer Lipitor and the diabetes pill Rezulin. Both were introduced in 1997. Lipitor has been one of the most successful new products in the U.S. drug industry. Lipitor sales more than doubled to $2.2 billion in 1998. Working with Pfizer Inc. as a marketing partner, Warner-Lambert has taken the lead in a market where two of the world's biggest drugmakers already were competing. Merck & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. can make more claims about the benefits of the cholesterol drugs in reducing heart disease because they have concluded studies of their pills in large patient populations. Still, many doctors prefer Warner- Lambert's Lipitor because it appears to reduce cholesterol more at lower levels. Rezulin has been more controversial. The first of a class of new drugs that may help some diabetics avoid starting insulin shots, Rezulin has been found to cause serious liver damage and more than 30 deaths. As a result, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration intends to review use of the drug. Rezulin is used by about 800,000 people in the U.S. Even worse for Warner-Lambert, rival drugmakers SmithKline Beecham Plc and Eli Lilly & Co. could have on the market within a year similar diabetes pills that may have fewer side effects. SmithKline today said U.S. regulators have given its diabetes pill Avandia ''priority review,'' meaning it could be cleared for sale by the end of May. What the Experts Say ''Rezulin sales are growing, but they are not as strong at Lipitor,'' said James Keeney, an analyst with ABN Amro. Previous Market Reaction Warner-Lambert fell 1 3/16 to 72 3/16 on Oct. 19 after reporting that third-quarter profit rose 49 percent to $295.5 million. Market Performance Morris Plains, New Jersey-based Warner-Lambert declined 5.9 percent since reporting earnings on Oct. 19 amid concerns about Rezulin. --Kerry Dooley in the Princeton newsroom (609) 279-4016 /mfr/jjs