Zyprexa

in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, their biggest increase since March 8, 2000.

They have fallen 10 percent this year.

Shares of U.S.

drugmakers Merck & Co., Lilly and Bristol- Myers Squibb Co.

also soared.

Merck increased $2.24, or 7.5 percent, to $32.25, Bristol-Myers rose 47 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $22.49 and Lilly increased 93 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $57.59.

Bristol-Myers is facing a patent challenge to its Plavix blood-thinner medicine.

AstraZeneca Shares of AstraZeneca Plc, which is facing patent challenges to its Nexium ulcer drug and Seroquel for schizophrenia, gained as much as 4.3 percent.

Shares of Paris-based Sanofi-Aventis SA, which is facing patent lawsuits over its two best-selling medicines, increased as much as 4 percent.

The issue of generic medicine is also of concern to employers and pharmacy benefit managers, since the use of generic drugs can save them millions of dollars a year.

General Motors Corp., which is seeking to reduce costs that the company says puts it at a disadvantage to rivals, will spend about $5.6 billion this year on health care.

The shares of pharmacy benefit managers, including Medco Health Solutions Inc., and managed care companies, like WellPoint Inc., dropped today.

Yet, analysts said they were reluctant to blame the Lipitor ruling for the declines.

`Rea...

(Risinger or one of his associates own the shares of Pfizer and Merck; Merrill Lynch has investment-banking relationships with Pfizer, Merck, Eli Lilly, Schering-Plough and Wyeth.) Monday's gain couldn't quite lift Pfizer into the plus column for 2005.

Its shares had fallen 16% through Friday on declining sales of drugs like Celebrex for arthritis, and on concern over the company's thin research pipeline and looming patent expirations.

Pfizer will lose exclusivity on Zoloft in June 2006.

The antidepressant accounted for $2.7 billion in U.S.

sales in 2004, or about 5.1% of domestic revenue.

Pfizer also loses exclusivity on Xanax XR, an antianxiety drug, in January, and on Fragmin, a treatment for blood-vessel clotting, next December.

"Pfizer is becoming a value play," says Rauch.

"You're certainly not expecting a lot of growth in the future." The stock trades at 13 times Reuters Research's 2005 earnings consensus of $1.94, vs.

an average price/earnings ratio of 21 for drug makers.

The 2005 consensus stands 8% below the company's 2004 earnings of $2.12 a share.

In 2006 the company is expected to earn $2.03 a share.

Quote: "Part of what people were worried about was that historically generic companies were successful i...

in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, after rising as much as 12 percent earlier, the biggest gain in at least 25 years.

They had dropped 16 percent this year through Dec.

16.

The company's shares rose 10.3 percent on Oct.

21, 1987.

Shares of U.S.

drugmakers Merck & Co., Lilly and Bristol- Myers Squibb Co.

also soared.

Merck increased $2.24, or 7.5 percent, to $32.25, Bristol-Myers rose 47 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $22.49 and Lilly increased 93 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $57.59.

Bristol-Myers is facing a patent challenge to its Plavix blood-thinner medicine.

AstraZeneca Shares of AstraZeneca Plc, which is facing patent challenges to its Nexium ulcer drug and Seroquel for schizophrenia, gained as much as 4.3 percent.

Shares of Paris-based Sanofi-Aventis SA, which is facing patent lawsuits over its two best-selling medicines, increased as much as 4 percent.

The issue of generic medicine is also of concern to employers and pharmacy benefit managers, since the use of generic drugs can save them millions of dollars a year.

General Motors Corp., which is seeking to reduce costs that the company says puts it at a disadvantage to rivals, will spend about $5.6 billion this year on health care.

The shares of pharmacy benefit managers, including Medco Health Solutions Inc., and managed care companies, like WellPoint Inc., dr...