Valeant Pharmaceuticals woos investors, stock dips

By Rod Nickel and Caroline Humer
Jan 13 (Reuters) - Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc (N:VRX)
VRX.TO VRX.N sought on Wednesday to win back investors,
pitching the beleaguered company's plans to grow revenues
internally and sell drugs through pharmacy chain Walgreens.
But Valeant's stock, already down about two-thirds since
August, extended losses during the company's presentation at the
JPMorgan (N:JPM) Healthcare Conference in San Francisco.
Shares fell 1.9 percent to $86.21 in New York as the company
avoided talking about sensitive areas such as former ties to a
specialty pharmacy and investigations into its drug price hikes.
Interim Chief Executive Howard Schiller, in his first public
presentation since taking over temporarily for ailing CEO Mike
Pearson (L:PSON) earlier this month, said there was no update on
Pearson's health.
Valeant has a promising roster of new drugs in development
and organic - or internally generated - growth amounted to 10
percent last year, the company said. Valeant has grown mainly
through acquisitions.
"We have a team that is unbelievably focused on delivering
the goods, doing what's right and restoring the trust and
confidence you have in us and the company," Schiller said.
Schiller and two other Valeant executives highlighted the
company's distribution deal with Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc
WBA.O pharmacies, announced last month to replace one with
mail-order pharmacy Philidor.
The Walgreens partnership includes two programs, one
focusing on dermatology products starting on Friday, and the
other aiming to sell about 30 brand-name drugs at generic
prices, starting mid-year, said Executive Vice President Ari
Kellen.
In October, shortseller Citron Research accused Valeant of
having inflated revenue, and several news outlets, including
Reuters, reported on how Philidor used aggressive tactics to try
to increase insurer reimbursement, mostly for dermatology drugs.
Valeant has denied the shortseller accusations and a board
committee is investigating the Philidor situation.
The company did not provide an update on the investigation.
Valeant is also under investigation by government
prosecutors in New York and Massachusetts and is the target of a
congressional inquiry over concerns about its drug pricing.