What are some current events in your industry?

A very important current event was recently published on November 1, 2011.  The article that I chose talks about how Pfizer had higher profit and revenue than what was expected by Wall Street for the third quarter.  As I have previously talked about Pfizer is soon going to lose their patent for the cholesterol drug Lipitor.  The fact that Pfizer was able to come out with strong profits the quarter before the patent is to expire is a very good thing for Pfizer.  In a way Pfizer is proving to Wall Street and its competitors that they can beat expectations that others have set for them.  With the upcoming patent expiration Pfizer will try and do this again.

Pfizer needs to prove to people that although they are expected to lose a lot of money they will still be able to profit.  Right now there is a tough decision that shareholders need to make.  Do they sell or do they stay with the company.  Many people would say that with the expected loss that Pfizer is about to have that the smart thing to do would be to sell.  The fact that so much money was just made in the third quarter is making it hard for people to make this decision.  How could you sell a stock when it has just made you so much money?

Pfizer and its shareholders are in a tough position.  If Pfizer can find drugs to replace Lipitor than it is a good idea for people to stay with their shares, but if Pfizer does not find drugs to help with the Lipitor loss they are going to lose a lot of money and the price of their shares are sure to go down.        

Rachael Bieck

http://online.wsj.com/article/AP18b66033f28e487f8c3ca870409ac319.html?KEYWORDS=pharmaceuticals