The drug industry’s recent spate of deals got another shot in the arm Monday as Bristol-Myers Squibb announced plans to acquire a privately held drugmaker for up to $1.25 billion, a day after Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX) said that it will buy Salix Pharmaceuticals for $14.5 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) early Monday agreed to buy Flexus Biosciences, a San Carlos, Calif.-based biotech, to expand its line of anti-cancer
Three big pharmas reported strong fourth quarters but gave soft guidance Tuesday, as foreign-exchange rates continued to drag on expectations. Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) said its Q4 profit excluding one-time items was 46 cents a share, down 10% from the year-earlier quarter but 5 cents above analysts’ consensus, according to Thomson Reuters. Sales shrank 4% to $4.26 billion, beating consensus by about $200 million. For the year, earnings rose 2%
Cancer therapies and bullish earnings forecasts took the spotlight Monday at the opening of JPMorgan’s Healthcare Conference this week in San Francisco, one of the largest annual biotech conferences worldwide. Celgene (CELG) provided a bullish forecast for its cancer drug Revlimid, along with generally positive preliminary Q4 results and long-term financial outlook. Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) announced positive-trial results for