Pfizer Inc. (LON:PFE) shares have rallied this morning, following talks with President Trump and an agreement to defer its scheduled price increases.
The pharmaceutical giant is one of many firms that implements incremental drug price hikes every half year. However, after being singled out among “others” in a tweet by President Trump on Monday, the firm’s CEO Ian Read has since had “extensive” talks with the President.
Trump’s tweet stated that price rises were companies, “[…] merely taking advantage of the poor and others unable to defend themselves, while at the same time giving bargain basement prices to other countries in Europe & elsewhere.”
Despite Pfizer’s share price rising 0.5 percent in Monday’s early afternoon trading following the tweet, the company were eager to publicly address the President’s concerns, promising to revert the price rises that came into effect on the first of July.
A Pfizer spokesperson said they would revert prices, ” […] as soon as technically possible, and the prices will remain in effect until the earlier of when the president’s blueprint goes into effect or the end of the year – whichever is sooner.”
The plan is to freeze prices alongside President Trump’s healthcare policy, Pfizer shares the vision of the President’s ‘Trump Care’ and hopes the price reversal will provide, “an opportunity to work on his blueprint to strengthen the healthcare system and provide more access for patients.”
“Pfizer shares the President’s concern for patients and commitment to providing affordable access to the medicines they need,” said Pfizer CEO Ian Read.
Following the discussions with Ian Read, President trump took to Twitter once again, this time to praise Pfizer, “We applaud Pfizer for this decision and desire other companies do the same”.
The firms’s share price is up $0.27 or 0.73 percent this morning, to $37.43 a share. Analysts from Morgan Stanley have reiterated their ‘Buy’ stance on Pfizer stock.