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| Incoming Takeda CEO Christophe Weber |
The downward spiral of the market capitalization of Japan's Takeda Pharmaceuticals may have bottomed out, if the latest reports are any indication. Nikkei said Takeda's market value now is pegged at $40.8 billion, a result of its first increase in seven years.
While Takeda's value was declining, it dropped from Japan's top spot, ceding it to Astellas Pharma. The Takeda phoenix-like return was attributed to foreign investors betting on the firm's pipeline of promising drugs.
Takeda's fortunes were not helped any by a U.S. court last year that levied a $36.8 million fine against the company for covering up the cancer risks of its Actos (pioglitazone) diabetes drug that still faces a slew of U.S. suits.
A Takeda official said the rush to buy Takeda stock began in January and reports of good sales with its Entyvio (vedolizumab) for ulcerative colitis, which launched in the United States last year.
Takeda officially announced on March 4 that President and Chief Operating Officer Christophe Weber would become chief executive officer staring April 1, replacing Yasuchika Hasegawa and pushing through a process started last year that drew some initial opposition over a non-Japanese executive running the storied firm.
- here's the story from Nikkei