Monday, November 19, 2007

BMS - Christmas cuts?

Bristol-Myers Squibb is poised to announce job cuts and plant closings as part of a major cost-cutting initiative, according to an analyst who introduced a short-term "buy" rating on the shares ahead of the drugmaker's meeting with analysts next month.

In a research note on Monday, UBS analyst Roopesh Patel predicted that Bristol-Myers would soon announce a 10 percent to 20 percent cut in head count over three years.

Patel also projected that Bristol-Myers would consolidate its manufacturing by closing or selling off more than half of its current 38 sites.

The company declined to comment on the figures cited in the UBS note, but it did acknowledge that cost cutting was in the offing.

Reuters

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