Mr. Conover: I primarily cover the large pharmaceutical companies in the US and Europe, as well as what some consider diversified pharmaceutical firms like Abbott Labs and Johnson & Johnson.
TWST: In general terms, how has business been relative to what you had anticipated so far this year?
Mr. Conover: So far things have largely been on track with our expectations. I think there was some concern in the investment community that the recession that we are starting to come out of would have weakened some of the sales for pharmaceutical firms. Our expectations were that sales would largely hold up, and for the most part, that is something that we have seen through the first couple of quarters here.
TWST: Why the difference in expectations? Is it normal to see a slowdown in a weaker economy?
Mr. Conover: Typically investors look to health care as an area of safe haven during an economic downturn. But this time I think the economic downturn was potentially more significant than in the past. I think there was some concern that the threshold would have been passed, that even healthcare names would have been at risk with the downturn.
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