Filed under: Company News , Healthcare , Pfizer , Merck It seems that for Pfizer ( PFE ), the saga of Prempro is just beginning. Barely a month after the world’s largest pharmaceutical company lost a case related to Wyeth’s Prempro hormone replacement therapy drug and was ordered to pay punitive damages on top of earlier compensatory damages, it lost the second pending case in the matter in Philadelphia on Monday. Initially, Pfizer was ordered in September to pay $3.75 million in compensatory damages. The punitive damages amount awarded a month later was sealed pending another verdict in a second similar case in the same courthouse. On Monday, the court revealed that Pfizer has been ordered to pay a total of $103 million in punitive damages in the two cases. The jury found the hormone drugs the two plaintiffs used for years contributed to their breast cancer. Including three other cases, so far Pfizer has been ordered to pay $165 million in punitive damages. Continue reading Prempro lawsuits: Pfizer hit with $103 million more in punitive damages Prempro lawsuits: Pfizer hit with $103 million more in punitive damages originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

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Prempro lawsuits: Pfizer hit with $103 million more in punitive damages

A reader asks this question: “I stumbled across some information on Vanguard’s Web site about what they call the ‘Investing Truths.’ One of them is about costs and shows that a 1.2% expense ratio would eat up 46% of an 8% return over 50 years. Can that be true?” The short answer is “yes”. Based on a hypothetical investment of $10,000, a fund with an expense ratio of 1.2% would yield $248,322 to the investor and a whopping $210,693 to the fund. Continue reading High fund costs can devour your returns High fund costs can devour your returns originally appeared on DailyFinance on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

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High fund costs can devour your returns

Filed under: Company News , Altria Group A Florida woman on Thursday won a $300 million judgment against Altria Group’s ( MO ) unit Philip Morris USA — the largest award yet among 8,000 lawsuits filed in the state against tobacco companies. Jurors took three hours to return the award to Cindy Naugle, 61, of Ft. Lauderdale, a former smoker who was given $56.6 million in compensatory damages and $244 million in punitive damages. Philip Morris is responsible for all of the punitive damages and for 90% of the compensatory ones. The jury found Naugle 10% at fault. Naugle says she started smoking at 20 in 1968 and made repeated attempts to quit, finally succeeding in 1993. Today, she has emphysema, requires a 24-hour oxygen and must travel in a wheelchair. Continue reading Philip Morris gets snuffed on a $300 million verdict for a former smoker Philip Morris gets snuffed on a $300 million verdict for a former smoker originally appeared on DailyFinance on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Email this | Comments

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Philip Morris gets snuffed on a $300 million verdict for a former smoker