Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (TEVA)

[genisi]

Teva may make acquisition in first half of 2010

Oct. 27, 2009 Bloomberg , THE JERUSALEM POST

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., the world's biggest maker of generic drugs, probably will purchase a company in the first half of 2010 to boost long-term growth, Bank Hapoalim Ltd. said.

"Teva's growing cash box, along with the global financial crisis that led some companies to sell parts of their businesses, creates an opportunity for Teva to acquire companies around the world," Gilad Sarig, an analyst at Bank Hapoalim in Tel Aviv, wrote in a report published on Tuesday.

Teva is probably examining the market to find the best candidates to keep growth going as 2011 could be a challenging year for the company, Sarig said.

Teva, which bought Barr Laboratories Inc. for $7.4 billion last year, is ready for another "major" acquisition and may look beyond generic drugs for the purchase, Chief Executive Officer Shlomo Yanai said on June 18.