Industry - Pharmaceuticals latest news

TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. (4502.TO) said Friday its tender offer for a U.S. biopharmaceutical company, Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc., was successful, with 91.9% of outstanding shares worth $7.5 billion offered. The Tokyo-based pharmaceutical company also said it plans to buy back up to 2.02% of its outstanding shares for Y100 billion between May 12 and June 23 to improve its shareholder returns.

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Shares in Swiss generics firm Schweizerhall Holding rallied 9.1% on Friday after it said that it expects to shortly receive approval in Germany for its generic version of Clopidogrel, which Bristol-Myers Squibb markets as Plavix and Sanofi-Aventis sells as Iscover. The firm said that it expects to launch Clopidogrel throughout the European Union when it obtains approval from Germany and is expecting to record sales from the drug in the current quarter. Sanofi-Aventis shares fell 4.3% in Paris.

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Warner Chilcott said it swung to a first quarter profit of $33.7 million, or 13 cents a share, with revenue up 5% to $229.5 million, on increased sales of Loestrin 24 FE, Doryx, Taclonex and Femcon FE. It lost $4.5 million in the year-earlier period. It would have earned 33 cents a share on an adjusted basis. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of 28 cents a share. For the year, it still sees revenue to be in the range of $935 to $945 million, but it expects adjusted earnings from $1.30 to $1.35 a share -- up a nickel on both ends -- on estimates of income tax provisions and falling advertising and promotional expenses. Analysts had forecast earnings of $1.29 a share.

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Drug stocks followed the broader market lower early Friday as shares of Plavix makers Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi-Aventis lost ground on news that Swiss drugmaker Schweizerhill Holdings AG was seeking to put out a generic version of the drug in Europe. The Amex Pharmaceutical Index slid 0.9% to 297.3 and the Amex biotechnology Index fell 1% to 740.3. Bristol-Myers shares were off 3% at $22.04 while Sanofi shares lost 6% to rest at $36.50.

Swiss generics firm Schweizerhall Holdings said it's on the verge of launching a generic version of Plavix, a move that, if successful, could ratchet up pressure on sales at Sanofi-Aventis and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Agilent Technologies Inc. announced the expansion of its nucleic acid active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing facility in Boulder, Colo. Agilent's Nucleic Acids Solutions Division is ...

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- French pharmaceutical Sanofi-Aventis said Friday that it's evaluating its legal and regulatory options after Schweizerhall Holdings said it's close to launching a generic version of platelet drug Plavix in Germany. Sanofi-Aventis said that Plavix still has E.U. regulatory data protection. Sanofi-Aventis shares fell 5.6% in Paris.

Robert Ross, School of Kinesiology and Health Studies, is one of eight Queen's projects to receive funding in the latest round of Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) funding. - Researchers stu... [WebWire - Friday, May 09, 2008]

A Leading Eye Care Professional Says Sunglasses Are Not Enough; Offers Advice on Comprehensive UV Protection for Eyes - - Jacksonville, FL . - Although both adults and children are subject to the effec... [WebWire - Friday, May 09, 2008]

SLEEKT and SAVVY® Long PTA Balloon Dilatation Catheters Available - - New Orleans, La .- Cordis Corporation (NYSE:JNJ) announced today the U.S. launch of the SLEEKT and SAVVY® Long PTA Balloon Dilatati... [WebWire - Friday, May 09, 2008]