1 Company Diving off the Patent Cliff

The recent performance of some big pharma stocks might have some investors thinking that the patent cliff is nothing to worry about. It's easy to understand how that sort of attitude could exist. Take the performance of a stock likeÂ Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY ) as an example. Shares have risen some 35% in the past year despite the fact that two huge drugs come off patent next year.

In the following video, health care bureau chief Brenton Flynn runs through the situation, and outlines some recent news that could help the company offset these losses by taking share in the lucrative diabetes market.Â

While you can certainly make huge gains in biotech and pharmaceuticals, the best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. In our free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich," we name stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.

Jeff Fischer and team have demystified options. And they can rack up income like $1,030... $2,626... and $3,228 on a schedule you can set your watch by!
That's why we're glad to announce every single one of their closely guarded strategies is available to YOU during May and June – 100% FREE, no strings attached! Just enter your email address in the box below...

Brenton Flynn has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Comments from our Foolish Readers

Help us keep this a respectfully Foolish area! This is a place for our readers to discuss, debate, and learn more about the Foolish investing topic you read about above. Help us keep it clean and safe. If you believe a comment is abusive or otherwise violates our Fool's Rules, please report it via the Report this Comment icon found on every comment.

Report this Comment On October 23, 2012, at 6:19 PM, kurtdabear wrote:

LLY has had a bit of a run-up lately, but it should be remembered that LLY has been around well over a century, so presumably has been over the "patent cliff" a time or two without being killed by the fall. Also, while sales do fall off drastically when a compound comes off patent, they don't automatically go to zero, and I'm not aware of any law that would prohibit a brand-name manufacturer from competing on price with manufacturers of generics. Finally, LLY started taking steps years ago to refill its pipeline and has established some partnerships and made some strategic acquisitions to help it accomplish that.
I'd be more afraid of JNJ than LLY given the frequency with which JNJ has been screwing up of late. There's a limit to how many highly expensive product recalls and replacements that a company, even JNJ, can afford in a couple of years, before its treasury and public image suffer serious damage. (Long LLY)

updated 15 hours ago Sponsored by:
	DOW	15,303.10	8.60	0.06%
	S&P 500	1,649.60	-0.91	-0.06%
	NASD	3,459.14	-0.28	-0.01%

MRK	$47.16		-0.17	-0.36%
Merck & Co., Inc.		CAPS Rating:

NVO	$168.64		-0.28	-0.17%
Novo Nordisk		CAPS Rating:

LLY	$54.14		-0.60	-1.10%
Eli Lilly & Co.		CAPS Rating:

AZN	$52.17		+0.09	+0.17%
AstraZeneca plc (A…		CAPS Rating:

1

1 Company Diving off the Patent Cliff

Comments from our Foolish Readers

Report this Comment On October 23, 2012, at 6:19 PM, kurtdabear wrote:

Add your comment.

Compare Brokers

Report This Comment

Sending report...

Today's Market

Create My Watchlist

You don't seem to be following any stocks yet!

Related Tickers

BMY	$47.40		+0.40	+0.85%
Bristol-Myers Squi…		CAPS Rating: