Pfizer's Ringo announces retirement as SVP; KV Pharma reaches $25.8M deal with Justice;

@FiercePharma: Avastin performs in ovarian cancer trial. Article | Follow @FiercePharma

> Pfizer SVP William Ringo has decided to retire as of April 30, to be replaced by Kristin Peck, who will become SVP of worldwide business development, strategy and innovation. Report

> KV Pharmaceutical reached a deal with the U.S. Justice Department under which its Ethex unit will plead guilty to criminal charges related to defects in certain drugs, and pay a fine of $25.8 million. Report

> Shares in the German pharmaceutical group Bayer plunged Friday after the group reported poor 2009 results amid what it called a difficult environment. Report

> Goldman Sachs raised its ratings on AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline to Neutral, and Shire to Buy, as it cut its rating on Merck KGaA to Neutral. Report

> Drugmakers in Thailand have urged the government to revoke the "special privileges" granted to the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation, claiming that these are unfair and destroying the domestic commercial industry. Report

Biotech News

 @FierceBiotech: Anthera delays IPO and sends a chilling message. Article | Follow @FierceBiotech

 @JohnCFierce: Lilly CEO says the company's R&D assembly line will make Porsches; investors predict Pontiacs. Follow @JohnCFierce 

> With an FDA expert panel review for Bristol-Myers Squibb's belatacept coming up at the beginning of next week, agency staffers got their chance to weigh in on the therapy's pros and cons, noting that kidney transplant patients taking the drug demonstrated better survival rates, improved kidney function and lower blood pressure. Report

> Arena gets 10/22 PDUFA date for lorcaserin. Story

> Newly-appointed Novartis CEO Joe Jimenez got his first chance to take the lead role at the annual shareholders' meeting today, and started to give the industry a better feel for just the kind of new acquisitions that will mark his tenure at the helm of the pharma giant. Article

> Rockwell shares plunge after renal drug fails IIb endpoint. Item

> Is Transgene closing in on a major collaboration? Report

> Anxious to expand into the biotech business, Thermo Fisher Scientific is reportedly considering bumping its $6 billion-plus-debt bid to buy out Millipore. Item

And Finally... Pfizer has put its New London, Conn., headquarters complex up for sale, now that it has moved everyone into nearby Groton. Report