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NEW YORK (AP) - Pfizer Inc. Chairman Henry McKinnell will have some good things to tell analysts and investors when he meets them on Friday to lay out the company's future — but what they really want to hear is a detailed strategy for growing sales.
Challenges abound at Pfizer. Major drugs have either lost or will lose patent protection soon, and analysts worry the near-time pipeline won't compensate for the disappearing revenue. Sales of key drugs are faltering and Pfizer's best selling medicine, cholesterol-lowering agent Lipitor, is expected to come under severe pressure this year from generic competition.
Pfizer has taken steps to reduce spending and boost shareholder value. Last year, it announced it would cut $4 billion in costs by 2008. This week it said it may sell its over-the-counter drug business, which could free up cash and energy for the high-margin prescription drugs arena.
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