Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Nasdaq: TEVA is a global pharmaceutical company specializing in the development, production and marketing of generic and proprietary branded pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. Teva is among the top 20 pharmaceutical companies and among the largest generic pharmaceutical companies in the world.
With more than a century of experience in the healthcare industry, the Company enjoys a firmly established international presence, operating through a carefully tailored network of worldwide subsidiaries. Headquartered in Israel, 91% of Teva's sales, which totaled US$4.8 billion in 2004, are in North America and Europe. Teva has approximately 14,000 employees worldwide and production facilities in Israel, North America, Europe and Mexico.
History
Teva was founded in Jerusalem in 1901 as a small wholesale drug business, distributing medicines imported on the backs of camels and donkeys. The company was called Salomon, Levin and Elstein Ltd., after its founders, and this name still serves as the pharmaceutical marketing arm of Teva in Israel.
Through the 1930s, the pharmaceutical industry in Palestine grew with the immigration of pharmaceutical professionals from Central Europe. Among the medical and pharmaceutical businesses built were Teva, Zori and Assia, which later became part of Teva. The pharmaceutical industry gained further momentum during the Second World War, when these small companies became the sole source of drug supply for the local market, neighboring countries and the armies stationed in the region. Mass immigration following the founding of the state of Israel in 1948 resulted in rapid growth of the local drug market. As drug imports resumed, so local manufacturers began to seek export markets.
In 1951 Teva, as one of Israel's first industrial companies, raised capital through an initial public offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
A period of consolidation followed, aimed at greater efficiency and concentration in the areas of research and development, marketing and exports. In 1964, Assia and Zori merged and later acquired a controlling interest in Teva. In 1976 the three firms merged formally into one company – Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Israel's largest healthcare company, transforming Teva into a group of companies involved in a variety of fields. Assia's CEO Eli Hurvitz became Teva's CEO and President, a role he fulfilled until 2002. Today he is Teva's Chairman of the Board.
In 1980, Teva acquired the second largest Israeli drug manufacturer Ikapharm, together with Plantex, a manufacturer of pharmaceutical active ingredients. This acquisition enabled Teva to separate penicillin production and non-penicillin drugs, an essential requirement of international health authorities, paving the way for Teva's entry to the US market. In 1982 Teva was granted FDA approval for its Kfar Saba (Ikapharm) manufacturing plant. At the same time, Teva commenced trading its ADR on the NASDAQ.
In 1984 Teva acquired a 50% interest in Migada Ltd., a manufacturer of disposable medical equipment. In 1985, a joint company was set up between Teva and the US conglomerate W.R. Grace which in 1986 acquired Lemmon, a small generics manufacturer in Pennsylvania, thus allowing Teva to further penetrate the US market. In 1988 Teva bought Abic, the second largest Israeli pharmaceutical company, to become Israel's largest and most successful pharmaceutical company and a flagship of Israeli industry.
Through the 1990s Teva continued to expand and became a global generics company though an aggressive M&A strategy in the US. W.R. Grace's interest in the joint venture was bought out, followed by the acquistion of Biocraft. The strategy was replicated in Europe with the acquisition of GRY-Pharm (Germany), APS/Berk (UK), Biogal (Hungary), Pharmachemie and others. Also in the 1990s, Teva launched the first product of its own R&D: Copaxone®, a treatment for multiple sclerosis.
Growth has continued since 2000 with the acquisition of Novopharm (Canada), making Teva the largest generic pharmaceutical company in North America. European acquisitions have included manufacturing facilites purchased in France from Bayer and the acquisition of the Honeywell Fine Pharmaceutical Chemical plants in northern Italy.
In 2004 Teva acquired Sicor, combining Teva's oral dose generic drugs franchise with Sicor's generic injectable business. The Sicor acquisition also brought with it an Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) business and a biogenerics capability.
In 2006, Teva acquired Ivax Corporation, combining two of the world's largest generics manufacturers. Teva now operates directly in over 50 countries, and employs approximately 25,000 people and is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.