That’s right—the multiples are higher because the cash-flow streams of Big Pharma’s businesses other than branded drugs in developed markets have longer durations. Moreover, when the cash-flow streams of such products eventually decline, they don’t fall off a cliff.
Although not explicitly stated in the WSJ article in #msg-74152545, branded generics in emerging markets are a very big part of this story (#msg-61960541).
“The efficient-market hypothesis may be the foremost piece of B.S. ever promulgated in any area of human knowledge!”