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Biotech / Medical : Pharma News Only (pfe,mrk,wla, sgp, ahp, bmy, lly) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (1552)	3/25/1999 9:05:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1722

03/25 20:01 Pharmacia & Upjohn's CEO seeks acquisitions By David Brinkerhoff NEW YORK, March 25 (Reuters) - U.S.-Swedish drug giant Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. <PHU.ST> <PNU.N> said Thursday it was looking to buy other drug companies as the next step in an ambitious turnaround program launched nearly two years ago. The New Jersey-based firm, maker of glaucoma drug Xalatan and Detrol, a treatment for overactive bladders, was prepared to acquire other companies after cutting costs, replacing top management and meeting its 1998 goal of double-digit profit growth, its chief executive, Fred Hassan, said Thursday. "We're seeking acquisitions," Hassan said at a meeting with analysts here. "We have an attitude of being very opportunistic and moving very fast." Hassan was hired in 1997 to rescue the company, formed by the 1995 merger of Sweden's Pharmacia and Michigan-based Upjohn, after a series of profit warnings. Hassan was brought over from rival American Home Products Corp. <AHP.N> where he had a reputation for acquiring other companies. Hassan said he was looking to buy firms that specialize in treatments for eye and bladder diseases, and cancer, areas where Pharmacia already makes drugs such as Detrol, Xalatan and Camptosar, but wants to increase its presence, Hassan said. He declined to name potential acquisitions but emphasized that the company was not looking to be bought or merged. His comments come on the heels of a flurry of European mergers, including Britain's Zeneca Group Plc <ZEN.L> and Sweden's Astra Ab <ASTRa.ST>, and in the United States, the announcement by Warner-Lambert Co. <WLA.N> in January that it would buy California-based Agouron Pharmaceuticals Inc. <AGPH.O>. Hassan, meanwhile, said he was confident the company would continue to deliver consistent growth in earnings per share of at least 10 percent, predicting sales growth this year in the "high single digits." In 1998 the company posted sales of $1.58 billion in the first quarter and $6.75 billion for the full year. Earnings per share were 36 cents in the quarter and $1.58 for the year. As part of its growth plans, the company said it would continue to make substantial investments in research and development and marketing and promotion to increase sales of its key products, including Xalatan and Detrol. In 1998 Xalatan sales totaled $332 million. Detrol, launched in April 1998, posted global sales of $125 million last year. Analysts' consensus earnings estimates for the company are 44 cents a share for the 1999 first quarter and $1.82 a share for the full year, according to the research firm First Call. A Pharmacia & Upjohn spokesman said the company was "not uncomfortable" with the estimates. "Through our actions to date, we have created a new P&U, a company that is on track to become a high-performance competitor," said Chief Executive Officer Fred Hassan. "We have now delivered four consecutive quarters of growth and double-digit earnings for 1998 -- exactly as promised. Our challenge now is to sustain the turnaround and build long-term growth." The company also reported substantial progress in reducing its tax rate to 30 percent during 1999 from 32 percent in 1998. It said the lower rate would align its tax position with that of its industry peers.