Did a mystery suitor try to disrupt the Pfizer/Wyeth deal? March 31, 2009

From rumblings across the industry (and in the WSJ), it appears there was the mystery suitor meddling in the late hours of the Pfizer/Wyeth deal. The details are in the SEC documentation filed just a few days ago.
Interestingly enough, the deal was originally proposed at $53 early last fall. Wyeth called the offer ‘deficient’. [...]

Will Roche & Genentech ‘lock horns’ or ride off into the sunset? March 27, 2009

The news today that Roche did, in fact, complete the final steps its acquisition of Genentech was saddening. While we have total confidence in Roche’s ability to move forward with the best of intentions, many are wondering what will be lost.   Specifically, the Genentech culture is locally seen as a joie de vivre that [...]

Is your CEO respected across the industry? March 25, 2009

So, who is the best CEO in the industry?
Barron’s has given us some fodder in their list of the 30 Most Respected Chief Executives. The team at Barron’s sought the input of investors, analysts, executives and others across the corporate world to determine which CEO’s are doing outstanding jobs of keeping their companies [...]

Life Sciences leading the ‘corporate stimulus’ March 23, 2009

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said he sees “modest signs” of an economic recovery. Dimon, speaking at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce economic conference, was quoted as saying: “There are modest signs of recovery and healing out there,” adding that the market just saw the two most active bond months ever.
What he forgot to mention [...]

Merck & Schering Plough: ‘A necessary combination’ March 15, 2009

While most were quick with the pen to publicize the Merck/Schering Plough merger, here are the details that Beaker found most intriguing about the combination toward the end of last week:

The deal was (strangely) done as a reverse merger to protect Schering Plough’s marketing rights to J&J’s Remicade internationally. As a result, from [...]

Roche Chairman’s message to Genentech employees (video) March 12, 2009

Kudos to Franz Humer & Severin Schwann from Roche for managing their playbook to perfection.  As they have with other recent acquisitions, Roche simply used the weight of their conviction to overcome the obstacles with Genentech shareholders.  Mr. Humer gave an exclusive interview to CNBC and spoke directly to Genentech employees.
In his commentary, he [...]

Sources: Obama makes pick for FDA Commissioner, deputy March 11, 2009

The Obama administration has settled on two candidates to fill top posts at the FDA, according to sources from the Wall Street Journal.
Peggy Hamburg is Obama’s pick for FDA Commissioner. And, Joshua Sharfstein (once thought to be the lead candidate for Commissioner) is expected to become deputy commissioner.
Dr. Hamburg’s background includes tenure as New [...]

President Obama speech on reversing Bush stem cell policy March 9, 2009

Today, as expected, President Obama reversed the Bush administration’s policies limiting the federal funding of research toward embryonic stem cell research.   The move is a win for the life sciences industry which has yet to decide the relationship it will have with the new administration.  This move, however, has been heralded [...]

Congress claims: ‘Headless chickens’ running FDA March 5, 2009

Every few months, the Food and Drug Administration goes under a heat lamp of scrutiny. Some say the FDA is broken, and others want to break it up — segregating the responsibilities for food safety and healthcare products.
“You’ve got an agency that quite frankly is either non-functional, or dysfunctional, or maybe all of the above,” [...]

A Day for the History Books in Life Sciences? March 2, 2009

Much of the industry is buzzing with the fundamental that Genentech is now worth more than Pfizer. As of late last week, Genentech’s market capitalization ($91 billion) exceeds that of much-bigger Pfizer ($84 billion).
A variety of explanations are being offered. Genentech’s shares are elevated because of the pressure from Roche. Pfizer’s value [...]