The Week in PR

How’s the Wind Blowing? With crises, you never know. Three examples. Earlier in the month we reported former Wall St darling Valeant was in the dumps ( PRN, Apr 4), due in part to a press release that said 2016 earnings would be $6.6 billion and a CFO who told investors a few hours later the figure would be $6 billion ( PRN, Mar 21). Shares in the Canadian pharma was down 90% since August, CEO Michael Pearson was out and it was seeking breathing room from creditors to avoid default. But two weeks ago creditors budged, giving Valeant hope. Shares responded, rising 36% for the week, closing late April 7 at $35.51. Even better, an internal probe related to the botched press release and other things found nothing alarming. Some analysts were saying the company, which also came under investigation from the SEC and Congress for precipitous drug price increases, could see shares rise to $65. Not bad, but still a long way from their August 5 value of $262.