Investors don't seem to be all that excited about Merck's
They're wrong -- or at least very short-sighted.
Unlike Pfizer
Many of the jobs Merck plans to cut will be on the administrative side. When you integrate a $40 billion company, there's bound to be quite a bit of overlap. The company has already eliminated 12,500 positions since acquiring Schering-Plough, although it's hired for 6,000 new positions over that time as well.
The expanded restructuring program is expected to yield savings of $4 billion to $4.6 billion annually. That's a lot of money that can be used to buy or license new drugs from biotechs. Small companies such as BioSante Pharmaceuticals
Dividend investors might rather see that cash returned to shareholders than reinvested in the company. Looking at the long-term stock chart, they have a decent argument; shares are down 44% over the last 10 years.
But adjusted for dividends, investors fared much better. What's paid for all those dividends? New drug launches created by research and development.
Not convinced? Here are 13 more high-yielding stocks you can buy today.