Sanofi Aventis "overweight"

03/01/06 - J.P. Morgan Securities

LONDON, March 1 (newratings.com) - Analyst Craig Maxwell of JP Morgan maintains his "overweight" rating on Sanofi Aventis (SAN2-EUR). The target price is set to €81.

In a research note published this morning, the analyst mentions that the approvable letter granted by the FDA for the company's Acomplia product is an encouraging development. Although the estimated time-span for the launch of Acomplia in the market has been delayed to 1Q07, the peak sales estimate for the drug is intact, JP Morgan adds. The analyst expects the increased sales of the Ambien franchise to offset any impact of the delay in Acomplia market launch on the 2010 sales.