Novartis’s CEO Has No Plans for a Major Merger

Novartis CEO Daniel Vasella said in an interview Monday his company has no plans for a major merger with another large pharmaceutical company. It was speculated Novartis was targeting Bayer last month (full story), but Vasella says a merger is "not the answer." Novartis has recently faced some difficulty after the suspension of its constipation drug Zelnorm, and increased generic competition in some key drugs. Vasella also provided an outlook on the company, saying 2007 would be a record year, but pharmaceuticals would be weaker from this quarter until July 2008. After that, pharmaceuticals would again climb back into double-digit growth. "We have 12 months to reorganize ourselves and optimize our cost base and investments," Vasella said. Novartis ADRs are down 0.07% to $54.30 in pre-market trading, and Bayer ADRs are up 0.31% to $78.13.

Sources: Reuters, CNN
Commentary: Teva's Generic Famir Victory Overshadowed by Novartis' Emergency Injunction • Will Novartis Move Funds Intended For India to China?
Stocks/ETFs to watch: NVS, BAY. ETFs: PPH, MKH

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