Tag Archives: Merck

Schering-Plough to Merge with Merck for $41.1 Billion

Merck’s Richard T. Clark Image via Wikipedia Merck announced, a little over an hour ago, that it had signed an agreement with Schering-Plough’s board of directors to merge the two companies under the Merck name. The stock and cash transaction is worth over $41 billion with Schering shareholders receiving $10.50 per share in cash and 0.5767 of a [...]
Posted in Deals | Also tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Pharma Layoffs Continue

It’s been another tough few weeks for pharma employees as four more companies handed out pink slips in an effort to trim bottom lines. Elan cut 14 percent of its global work force last Wednesday as a part of an ongoing strategic review process. The company announced that it would postpone biologics manufacturing, redesign R&D in [...]
Posted in Strategy | Also tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

JP Morgan Healthcare Conference:
It’s All About "Money…Rather the Economy!"

JP Morgan’s Healthcare Conference has always been about financing, but money has never been the main focus like it is at this year’s annual gathering in San Francisco. The hallmark of this investment meeting has been innovation, with companies passionately pitching their new product or technology and management team’s capability to execute on a [...]
Posted in Events | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

FDA Declares: Keep Taking Your Vytorin

It’s official. Vytorin (ezetimibe/simvastatin) still does what it’s supposed to do—significantly decrease LDL cholesterol. FDA, yesterday, released its assessment of the now-notorious ENHANCE trial—which tested whether Vytorin was better than simvastatin alone in reducing arterial plaque in a group of patients with severe genetic high cholesterol. It wasn’t, and publication of the study set off a [...]
Posted in Regulatory | Also tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Merck to Axe 7,200 Positions

Not much in the way of good news at Merck this morning. The pharma giant announced that it is revising its financial guidelines through 2010, and eliminating 7,200 positions by 2011. The move is expected to save the company $3.8 billion to $4.2 billion through 2013. The layoffs will be staggered throughout different parts of the [...]
Posted in Sales, Strategy | Also tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment