Vivus Plunges on Downgrade, Johnson & Johnson Ties Up Loose Ends, Pfizer Initiates a Spin-Off

Shares of Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Vivus were all on the move on Friday:

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE): Closing Price $26.54

Pfizer’s plan to spin off its animal-health business Zoetis is underway. The pharmaceutical company filed an amended registration with the SEC for an Initial Public Offering, outlining plans to sell 86.1 million shares at a price between $22 and $25. At the mid-point of this range, the business would be worth $11.8 billion.

Zoetis will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “ZTZ,” and the deal will be underwritten by JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), and several other financial firms.

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