20 days ago, , Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) announced that chairman, Eli Hurvitz would be absent on sick leave for three weeks. These three weeks will end tomorrow, and Teva will be due to update its investors again. The assessment on the capital market is that Hurvitz will not return to his position in the near future.
Meanwhile, sources close to Teva today rejected outright a report of a supposed initiative by vice chairman Dr. Phillip Frost to succeed Hurvitz and move the company's headquarters to the US.
The thinking behind the report is apparently that Frost, who was formerly CEO of Ivax, which was acquired by Teva, holds 1.6% of Teva, and is the largest private shareholder in it. But with a 1.6% stake, and in a company with a dispersed shareholding, it is hard to believe that even if Frost wanted to that he could organize a controlling interest that would eventually move Teva's headquarters to the US.
Moreover, Teva's bylaws state that its center of management will remain in Israel, unless a majority of 75% of the members of the board decides otherwise. As long as the management center is in Israel, the bylaws also state that the CEO will manage the company from Israel, that most members of the board of directors will be Israelis, and that board meetings and shareholders meetings will be held in Israel.
Changing these sections of the bylaws is possible, if 85%of the shareholders vote in favor of doing so at a shareholders meeting. Currently, Hurvitz's temporary replacement as chairman of Teva is Professor Moshe Many, president of The Ashkelon Academic College and a long-standing director of the company.
Pfizer moves into higher gear on Ratiopharm auction
Further news about Teva relates to the auction for the acquisition of Ratiopharm. Over the weekend, it was reported that Pfizer has moved into higher gear in its efforts to buy the German pharmaceutical company. Pfizer CEO Jeffrey Kindler reportedly met with senior Ratiopharm management, and it is estimated that the price Pfizer will pay should it win the auction will be about $4.1 billion. Meanwhile, Teva and Actavis are still in the picture in the auction.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 7, 2010
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