Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Hebrew: טבע תעשיות פרמצבטיות בע"מ), NASDAQ: TEVA is an international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Petah Tikva, Israel. It specializes in generic and proprietary pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. It is the largest generic drug manufacturer in the world and one of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies worldwide.[1] In 2008, its sales totaled $11.08 billion, of which a major portion was in Europe and North America. After its acquisition of U.S. rival Ivax Corporation in January 2006, the company has about 28,000 employees in 50 countries. Teva's facilities are located in Israel, North America, Europe, and Latin America. Teva is now the tenth largest company by market capitalization on the Nasdaq just behind Gilead (feb 2009), and is a member of both the NASDAQ-100 and TA-25 Index (in which it represents 9.5% of the total Index value).
History
Teva's earliest predecessor was Salomon, Levin, and Elstein Ltd., a wholesale distributor based in Jerusalem that was founded in 1901. During the 1930s, new immigrants from Europe founded several pharmaceutical companies including Teva, Assia, and Zori. In 1951, Teva raised capital through the newly founded Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange.
In 1964, Assia and Zori merged and acquired a controlling interest in Teva. In 1976, these three companies merged into the modern Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. In 1980, Teva continued to follow its vision of becoming one of the world's biggest Pharmaceutical companies by acquiring Ikapharm, then Israel's second largest drug manufacturer. [2]
In 1982, Teva was granted approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Kfar Sava manufacturing plant, an essential milestone for marketing pharmaceuticals in the USA.
Teva's Innovative Research and Development has been granted approval for two innovative drugs: Copaxone (for the treatment of multiple sclerosis in the mid-1990s — now the world's best selling MS drug), and Azilect (sold as Agilect in some countries) for treatment of Parkinson's disease in the 2000s. Several innovative compounds are in the pipeline, but the innovative arm carries far less weight in Teva (when compared to generics) than in any other top 20 pharmaceutical company.[citation needed]
On June 23, 2006, Teva (through a former Ivax subsidiary) received from the FDA a 180-day exclusivity period to sell simvastatin (Zocor) in the U.S. as a generic drug in all strengths except 80 mg. Teva presently competes with the maker of brand-name Zocor, Merck & Co.; Ranbaxy Laboratories, which has 180-day exclusivity for the 80 mg strength; and Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, whose authorized generic version (licensed by Merck) is exempt from exclusivity.
In 2005, Teva opened a new, state-of-the-art pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Har Hotzvim, a technology park in Jerusalem. The plant received FDA approval in early 2007.
On December 24, 2007, Teva released an AB-rated generic alternative to Protonix.[3]
On December 23, 2008, Teva acquired Barr Pharmaceuticals for 7.5 billion USD, making Barr and Pliva (which Barr bought earlier) part of Teva.[4]
Products
Pharmaceuticals
Subsidiaries
- North America
- Barr Pharmaceuticals
- Teva Pharmaceuticals USA
- Plantex USA
- Teva Parenteral Medicines
- Teva Specialty Pharmaceuticals
- Teva Biopharmaceuticals USA
- Teva Neuroscience
- Teva Neuroscience Canada
- Teva Novopharm
- Teva Animal Health
- Latin America
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Curaçao N.V.
- Teva Mexico
- Ivax Argentina
- Laboratorio Chile
- Teva Brazil
- Corporacion Medco - Peru
- BTL Peru
- Europe
- Pliva Croatia
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe B.V.
- Teva Pharmachemie B.V.
- Plantex Chemicals B.V.
- Teva Pharma UK
- Teva UK Limited
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Ireland
- Teva Pharmaceutical Works Ltd.
- Teva Hungary Ltd.
- Teva Classics France
- Teva Group Germany
- Teva Pharma Italia S.r.I.
- Teva Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals S.r.I.
- Sicor Italy S.r.I.
- Prosintex - ICI
- Teva Belgium
- Sicor Biotech UAB
- Teva Pharmaceuticals CR, s.r.o.
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Slovakia, s.r.o.
- Teva Pharma AG
- Sicor Europe
- Teva Sweden AB
- Teva Finland Oy
- Teva API International Spain
- Teva Generics Spain
- Teva Pharma Portugal Ltd.
- Teva Bulgaria
- Teva Moscow
- Teva Belarus
- Teva Ukraine
- Teva Kazakhstan
- Teva Pharmaceuticals Polska (Poland)
- Asia
- Teva Singapore
- Teva Japan
- Teva API India Ltd.
- Africa
- Assia Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
- Teva Pharmaceuticals (Pty) Ltd.
Animal rights arrests
Two Israeli animal rights activists and a photographer were charged with "illegal gathering" in Petah-Tikva, Israel, after being arrested in December 2006 for holding a vigil outside TEVA's offices. The activists were protesting because TEVA is a client of Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS), which is the focus of an international animal rights campaign, Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty. [5]
References
See also
External links
