Healthy Skepticism Library item: 759

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Publication type: news

Two Drug Firms Set To Repatriate Profits
The Wall Street Journal 2005 Jan 17

Full text:

Two drug makers said last week that they would likely repatriate billions of dollars of overseas profits under a one-year tax break.

Eli Lilly & Co. Chief Executive Sidney Taurel said on Friday the company planned to repatriate between $8 billion and $9 billion. Mr. Taurel made his remarks on CNBC.

Earlier last week, company officials said Lilly, of Indianapolis, had $9.5 billion of unremitted earnings of foreign subsidiaries at the end of 2003. “The company’s more detailed analysis is under way, but on balance Lilly is pleased with initial guidance,” Edward Sagebiel, a Lilly spokesman, said Thursday. “Many of the permitted investments can obviously be used by the company,” Mr. Sagebiel said, including debt reduction, research and development, and capital investment.

At Johnson & Johnson, of New Brunswick, N.J., a spokesman said late Thursday, “based upon a quick review, it continues to be our intention to repatriate approximately $10 to $11 billion of our international cash holdings.” In October, the company had estimated that the cost of repatriating $7 billion to $10 billion would be between $350 million and $500 million in 2005.