Meitav cuts Teva rating on growth concerns

Without a very large acquisition in the coming year, Teva is liable to find itself with low single-digit growth by the first half of 2011.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) opened trading on Nasdaq with gains, but later fell slightly by less than 1%, as investors were apparently disappointed by management's conference call after the company published its financial report for the third quarter yesterday.

Following the acquisition of Ratiopharm GmbH, Teva raised its full-year revenue guidance from $16 billion to $16.4 billion, but reiterated its non-GAAP earnings per share guidance. Ratiopharm contributed $315 million in the third quarter, so that a $400 million guidance revision, which includes both the third and fourth quarters, effectively indicates that, without Ratiopharm, Teva will not meet its original full-year guidance.

Teva has a market cap of $45.7 billion.

Meitav Investment House Ltd. today cut its recommendation for Teva from "Outperform" to "Market perform". Analyst Gilad Alper is worried by Teva's organic growth ability. He warns that without a very large acquisition in the coming year, Teva is liable to find itself with low single-digit growth by the first half of 2011.

Teva's share price rose 1.1% in early trading on Nasdaq to $51.50, after rising 2.6% on the TASE to NIS 187.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 3, 2010

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2010

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