Fixing Pfizer

It's the kind of artwork I'm sure they weren't happy to see at Pfizer (PFE) headquarters Friday morning: The torn company logo on the front page of the Newark Star-Ledger business section above the headline, "Signs of Wear and Tear."

The piece rehashes some of the stuff I've been blogging and reporting about recently, like the drugmaker's stock price and how it's desperate to find something to replace the megablockbuster Lipitor before it goes off patent in a couple or three years.

But it also delves into the possibility of the company breaking itself up, or what I think is the more likely scenario of Pfizer and other big pharmas being forced into a megamerger.

Pfizer also found out Thursday that biotech Gilead Sciences (GILD) is launching a head-to-head study of GILD's Letairis versus PFE's Viagra for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. That's a rare, fatal lung disorder that strikes mostly women in their prime.

Pfizer sells Viagra under the name Revatio (reh-vah-tee-oh) for PAH and it recently bought Encysive Pharmaceuticals which has another PAH drug called Thelin. It's a small, but potentially lucrative market for the company that has the best, most widely-used product.

Pfizer gives me a good transition to some reader emails.

PFE annual meeting to split the jobs of Chairman and CEO that got 42 percent support. "This is a surprising result given that the same topic received an average of 26 percent support at major companies in 2007," Chevedden said.

Dr. Charles Barta sent an email regarding my recent post and on-air reporting about the back story to GE's (GE) earnings miss in its healthcare unit. Dr. Barta says he was involved with the development and marketing of CT scanners in the early 70s. "The problem with the entire (hospital) equipment industry is that the healthcare crisis will affect them on the downside, as much as increasing healthcare expenditures (much of it unnecessary) created the boom," he wrote.

The blog about MannKind (MNKD) and its continued pursuit of an inhalable form of inhalable insulin when everyone else has thrown in the towel generated a lot of emails. A few complained that I ignored Generex (GNBT). Actually, I did a short feature on it at last year's American Diabetes Association meeting. And, techinically GNBT's product is not an "inhalable" insulin--it's a spray that gets absorbed through the inside of your cheeks. A couple others disagreed with the claim by David Kliff, editor of "The Diabetic Investor" newsletter, that patients don't have as big a fear of needles as investors might think. Vittorio Nicosia, a Type-2 diabetic who is not insulin dependent, wrote "I HATE NEEDLES!!!" (Not my emphasis.)

The entry I wrote about the FDA's rejection of Merck's niacin-based cholesterol drug drew this anecdote from Gregory Hohenshil. "I took 500 mg pills of niacin daily for a few weeks in my 20s over 30 years ago and it definitely made (me) red, hot and tingly. Gave it to my brother as he did not believe me. Half-hour later he had the same issues."

Regarding my post Thursday on former Merck Chairman and CEO Dr. Roy Vagelos and his contention that big pharma needs to be more charitable, B. Ketcham sent in this response: "Talk about philanthropic. I recall that when Vagelos retired, Merck (MRK) GAVE (the caps are Ketcham's) him 500,000 shares as a retirement gift."

Comments

[Murph]

".... "I took 500 mg pills of niacin daily for a few weeks in my 20s over 30 years ago and it definitely made (me) red, hot and tingly. Gave it to my brother as he did not believe me. Half-hour later he had the same issues."...

Just a bit of an update regarding this issue...you can now get flush-free, timed-release niacin, which avoids this issue for most. I was put on Lipitor some years ago, which helped drive my genetically-high LDL down to the 190 range from the 290 range. Upon my older brother's advice, I started taking a 500 mg flush-free niacin capsule, plus a 1000 mg fish oil concentrate gel cap ( fatty acids ) every day ( in addition to continuing Lipitor ). My LDL has reached it's lowest level ever..in the 160 range.

[markanthony]

Mr. Mike Huckman,

I sure hope your perception of GNBT represent the same views as did another columnist from Seeking Alpha when he boasted about how Transmeridian (TMY) might be a good play. We all know what happened to TMY. Seeking Alpha mentioned TMY at a price of $ 1.85, today it's hovering around $ 0.50.

Since Seeking Alpha now has a negative view of GNBT that might be a very good cue for myself and others to start buying some shares!!! Especially when your investor GURUS only comment is that nobody is really afraid of needles, so why would GNBT's new invention be worthwhile!!! I work in in the medical community and I have seen first hand how even grown men, all 6 " 2" 220 lbs of them cringe at the very idea of needles! Now multiply that times 365 days per year!!

[Bugs]

Pfizer should concentrate on banking to keep the dividend safe.

[Bugs]

Warner - Lambert created Lipitor. Pfizer bought out Warner Lambert. Perhaps another huge buy out would be wise before my shares drop like a rock after bleeding slowly towards death. I'd prefer some sign of life from Pfizer's own research pipeline and shrewd banking.

[Bugs]

Perhaps Pfizer should pump 10 to 20 billion dollars into Washington Mutual and enter the retail banking business.

[garyc]

I have owned shares in gnbt for the past five years and I think it is a worthwhile effort to develop a form of insulin delivery other than the NEEDLE. Also I have bought and sold gnbt several times and made some money each time. That can't be to bad!

[Radiodoc]

I dont know if this is true...Pfizer is really looking into a lot of biotechs and I think it is on the right path. Tell me which other company pays such as nice dividend?

the business of medicine sucks, have patience

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