PFIZER

Pfizer Inc reported a better-than-expected first-quarter profit on Tuesday, as cost-cutting helped offset sharply lower sales of its Lipitor cholesterol fighter and its Chantix smoking-cessation drug.

Pfizer Inc reported a better-than-expected first-quarter profit on Tuesday, as cost-cutting helped offset sharply lower sales of its Lipitor cholesterol fighter and its Chantix smoking-cessation drug.

GlaxoSmithKline Plc is to buy privately owned Stiefel Laboratories Inc for up to $3.6 billion to diversify its business by adding treatments for acne, dermatitis and other skin complaints.

Pfizer Inc said on Tuesday it will have two research chiefs -- one in charge of traditional medicines and one in charge of biotech drugs and vaccines -- when the drugmaker completes its planned purchase of smaller U.S. rival Wyeth .

Results of a late-stage trial of MAP Pharmaceuticals Inc's inhaled migraine drug will represent a critical moment for the company given the recent failure of its other key drug to treat asthma in children.

Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG has secured more than 96 percent of shares in Genentech Inc , effectively completing its $46.8 billion buyout of the U.S. biotech group.

Stiefel Laboratories Inc, a privately held pharmaceutical maker, is considering selling itself in a deal that could be worth several billion dollars, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter. The potential sale has drawn interest from a number of major drug companies, including Johnson & Johnson , Novartis AG and GlaxoSmithKline PLC

By Leah Schnurr

Stocks fell on Thursday due to profit-taking in financials, a drag from the health-care sector and a bearish broker comment on 3M Co. Investors were also unsettled the the Federal Reserve's move to inject $1 trillion into the financial system could stir inflation in the long term.

Pfizer Inc may have to shed some of its animal-health business so that it can gain antitrust clearance for its planned purchase of Wyeth , the Wall Street Journal cited a Pfizer executive as saying on Wednesday.

Pfizer Inc, the world's largest drugmaker, launched a $13.5 billion debt sale in five parts on Tuesday, said IFR.

It is buying up less than half of Genentech Inc for a whopping $46.8 billion, but Switzerland's Roche Holding AG may have clinched the best of this year's three big drug deals.

A study of Pfizer Inc's Sutent was halted early after the medicine delayed progression of a rare form of pancreatic cancer affecting tens of thousands of people globally, including Apple Inc CEO Steve Jobs.

U.S. stocks fell in choppy trade and the Nasdaq slid to a fresh 6 and 1/2-year low on Monday as shares of the biggest drugmakers fell after Merck's proposed a $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

U.S. stocks fell in choppy trade and the Nasdaq slid to a fresh 6 and 1/2-year low on Monday as shares of the biggest drugmakers fell after Merck's proposed a $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

U.S. stocks fell in choppy trade and the Nasdaq slid to a fresh 6 and 1/2-year low on Monday as shares of the biggest drugmakers fell after Merck's proposed a $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

U.S. stocks fell in choppy trade and the Nasdaq slid to a fresh 6 and 1/2-year low on Monday as shares of the biggest drugmakers fell after Merck's proposed a $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

U.S. stocks fell in choppy trade and the Nasdaq slid to a fresh 6 and 1/2-year low on Monday as shares of the biggest drugmakers fell after Merck's proposed a $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

Stocks fell in choppy trade on Monday as gains in the energy and banking sectors were more than offset by a drop in pharmaceuticals after Merck's proposed $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

The Dow industrials and the S&P rose modestly while the Nasdaq dipped in choppy trade on Monday as gains by the energy and banking sectors were offset by a drop in pharmaceuticals after Merck's proposed $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .

The Dow industrials and the S&P rose modestly while the Nasdaq dipped in choppy trade on Monday as gains by the energy and banking sectors were offset by a drop in pharmaceuticals after Merck's proposed $41 billion takeover of Schering-Plough .