Mylan's fiscal 4th-qtr hit by Matrix Labs charges

US generic drugmaker Mylan Laboratories swung to a loss in its fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31, 2007, due to charges related to its $736.0 million purchase of outstanding shares in India's Matrix Labs (Marketletter September 4, 2006). On the day of the news, May 24, shares in the firm slipped 1.4% to $19.96 in early trading.

Mylan's net loss totaled $71.3 million, or $0.31 per share, versus a profit of $57.7 million, or $0.27 per share, in the like, year-ago period. For the fiscal year, total revenues were $1.61 billion, a 28% increase over the year before, as net earnings for the current year reached $217.3 million.

Last month, Mylan signed a definitive agreement to buy the generics business of German pharmaceutical group Merck KGaA for 4.9 billion euros ($6.7 billion) in an all-cash transaction that will see it become the world's third-largest generic drugmaker (Marketletter May 14).