Pfizer Slashes Sales Force

In January, Pfizer plans to present its long-term outlook and its additional actions for restructuring the company. On Thursday, Pfizer will describe its research and development plans.

Kindler's announcement is part of a strategy that recognizes Pfizer will have no revenue growth through 2008 due to patent expirations of major drugs and the inability, so far, for sales of new drugs to outpace the eroding revenue from generic competition.

Pfizer expects to achieve its 2006 earnings guidance of approximately $2 a share, excluding one-time items. In October, the company forecast "high-single-digit" earnings-per-share growth in 2007 and 2008, excluding one-time items.

On Tuesday, Pfizer said it would still maintain "strong" sales support for its major products such as the cholesterol drug Lipitor, the arthritis treatment Celebrex and the schizophrenia medication Geodon. It also will devote a major effort to marketing what it considers promising drugs of the future, including the inhaled insulin Exubera, the stop-smoking treatment Chantix and the kidney- and stomach-cancer drug Sutent.

"The changes we are making today will better align our sales organization to our overall customer and business needs," said Kindler, who replaced Hank McKinnell as CEO in July. McKinnell will remain chairman until February.

"This is an important step toward making Pfizer a more agile and effective company," Kindler said in a prepared statement. "Our field force will now be in a much better position to adapt to changes in our product mix and capitalize on the growth opportunities we see for our innovative medicines."