Pharmaceuticals

Guest view: Consider a debt for vaccines program

9 Mar 2021

Such plans may help reduce currency mismatches in jab distribution, reduce the need for “new money” and avoid overloading balance sheets with unsustainable pre-existing debt. Epidemiologist Cristina Valencia and banker William Rhodes argue for piloting the idea in Latin America.

Arrival of J&J vaccine is sign of glorious spring

1 Mar 2021

Last March, the world realized in panic that lockdowns were here to stay. This month should unwind that reaction. The U.S. authorization of J&J’s new vaccine and rapid production increases by Moderna and Pfizer are good news for Americans, but also for everyone else.

Tax gains not enough for $12 bln drug-trial deal

24 Feb 2021

Icon is buying clinical-trials outsourcing rival PRA Health for a mix of cash and stock. The deal brings cost savings, expansion, and even tax savings on the combined business thanks to the acquirer's Irish abode. But at 5%, the return on investment still isn’t attractive.

Capital Calls: Pharma, Volvo delay, Hotels

24 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Big Pharma’s new popularity could give it leverage in Congress; China’s Geely can profit from Volvo IPO delay; and boutique hotels feel the heat.

Breakdown: Slaying virus Hydra is Herculean task

12 Feb 2021

Like the Greek serpentine monster, Covid-19 is mutating. Though vaccines are effective at defeating the original virus, their ability to protect against new variants is uncertain. Breakingviews explains why the world faces a prolonged fight to get back to normal.

Capital Calls: Third Point, Kraft Heinz/Hormel

11 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Dan Loeb’s hedge fund gets a good start in 2021, while Hormel Foods buys peanuts, but pays anything but.

Capital Calls: KKR, the investment bank

9 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The private equity firm run by Henry Kravis is building a useful capital-markets business, with almost half its deals last year for outside clients.

Corona Capital: McKinsey/opioids, Bumble IPO

4 Feb 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Consulting firm McKinsey settles over its role in the U.S. opioids scandal; and dating site Bumble boss Whitney Wolfe Herd looks smart to be holding back in the company’s initial public offering.

Regulatory jujitsu turns CBD into $7 bln deal

3 Feb 2021

It was a long slog for GW Pharmaceuticals to win official approval for an epilepsy drug derived from cannabis. This difficulty is now a moat, and has attracted a buyer willing to pay a 50% premium. Rivals will have to jump the same regulation hoops to earn a similar valuation.

GSK’s breakup fix exposes lingering ailments

3 Feb 2021

The $89 bln health group is pressing on with a plan to spin off its consumer drugs unit. But its shares are depressed by slow growth and competition in the core pharma division, requiring risky investment and M&A. A dividend chop at least gives CEO Emma Walmsley some elbow room.

Bubbly stocks risk painful vaccine puncture

29 Jan 2021

Drugmakers Pfizer and AstraZeneca are cutting deliveries of Covid-19 inoculations, the latest in a string of delays. Slower-than-expected rollouts and virus mutations may prolong lockdowns, hurting growth. Investors eyeing a rapid bounce-back this year could be disappointed.

Corona Capital: Vaccines, Dr. Martens

29 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Quantity matters with vaccines, while Permira gets an extra kick from the bootmaker.

AstraZeneca finds Covid-19 charity comes at a cost

28 Jan 2021

The pharma group’s shares have been hit amid a spat with the EU over its virus treatment, on which it isn’t making a profit. German scientists have now undermined the drug. Making vaccines in a crisis was never going to be easy. In future drugmakers may demand a higher price.

EU strikes oafish first blow in new vaccine fight

26 Jan 2021

Brussels attacked drugmaker AstraZeneca for low deliveries of Covid-19 jabs and will impose checks on exports from the bloc. The move masks flaws in Europe’s inoculation rollout, and may do little to speed it up. It could trigger a new battle for access to coronavirus treatments.

Activists kick open lab doors at pharma laggards

25 Jan 2021

AstraZeneca’s $39 bln takeover of Alexion highlights the growing influence of pushy shareholders such as Elliott in healthcare. Drugmakers are tricky targets, but waste and inefficient markets create opportunities. Medical technology groups, like Fresenius, could be next.

Even drug firms think they are overvalued

19 Jan 2021

At least that’s what deal data is saying. Healthcare firms raised over $20 billion in IPOs in 2020, twice as much as any other year in two decades. Yet the value of M&A, which drives growth for big firms, fell by nearly half. Stretched valuations may explain both trends.

Corona Capital: Inflation, Poshmark

14 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Breakingviews panel predicts the end of the free-money era; and Poshmark’s IPO looks overdressed.

Labelling vaccine hares and tortoises is premature

8 Jan 2021

The UK and Israel are rapidly inoculating against Covid-19, while France lags. Final success is likely to hinge on a disciplined rollout from a centralised hub to a receptive populace. Israel appears to have all three; investors may soon see that France, Britain and peers do not.

Corona Capital: Video rental stores, Conagra

7 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: A last surviving U.S. video rental chain shutters, Conagra’s boosted sales aren’t enough for investors.

Walgreens $6.5 bln deal is a mutual back-scratch

6 Jan 2021

AmerisourceBergen is buying the drug chain’s European distribution business, in what amounts to a relatively attractive way to expand internationally. Walgreens gets a slug of cash – and CEO Stefano Pessina gets one step closer to one day potentially taking the company private.