Is Teva considering a jump to NYSE?

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries ($TEVA), the Israeli generics giant, is reportedly mulling over the idea of jumping to the New York Stock Exchange after three decades of trading on Nasdaq, Haaretz is reporting.

Apparently, the NYSE has been periodically trying to woo the generics powerhouse to make the move. And Teva Chairman Phillip Frost, who was named vice chairman of the AMEX exchange in 2005, has reportedly tried to sell incoming CEO Jeremy Levin on the idea. (AMEX was bought by the NYSE in 2008.)

Teva is widely considered a top company. Outgoing CEO Shlomo Yanai has predicted that by 2015 his feisty generics company can more than double its annual sales to $31 billion. Still, a lot of big companies, including Apple, are listed on Nasdaq.

And despite the purported prestige an NYSE listing could bring, a lot of pharma companies have shied away from making a move to the exchange. In fact, Teva rival Mylan ($MYL) went the other way, going from the NYSE to Nasdaq. Earlier this week, interestingly, The Motley Fool reminded readers that Mylan is actually predicted to grow at a faster rate than Teva over the next 5 years.

Teva was mum about the NYSE rumors, declining to discuss the story with Haaretz.

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