Apple's New iPhone, Novartis: Hot Trends

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Popular searches on the Internet Tuesday include Apple (AAPL). IPhone rumors are buzzing around the Internet, as the company is reportedly planning its thinnest version of the smartphone yet.

Rumors say the newest iPhone could end up being just 7.9 millimeters thick thanks to a thinner battery and a switch of the iPhone's case from glass to metal. The panel could be thinner as well, according to reports that say Apple is planning to use new display technology that will use a panel's touch sensors inside the color filters instead of above them.

Many speculate that the sixth-generation iPhone will be out this fall.

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Amgen's (AMGN) George Rathmann, the founding CEO of the biotech company, died at 84.

Rathmann had been fighting kidney problems for a numbers of years. He was recruited for Amgen by a group of venture capitalists in 1980, where he remained CEO until 1988. Rathmann remained chairman until 1990. By the time he stepped down as CEO, the company had two successful, multibillion-dollar drugs -- Epogen and Neupogen.

Rathmann went on to form biotechnology company ICOS, which was later acquired by Eli Lilly (LLY).

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Novartis (NVS) is another popular search. The company reported first-quarter profit fell 8% on slumping sales of its over-the-counter medicines and top-selling drug, Diovan.

The company reported net income excluding some costs of $3.09 billion, or $1.27 a share, down from $3.4 billion, or $1.41 a share, a year ago. Analysts were looking for profit of $1.28 a share.

Sales were dragged down by generic versions of Diovan that were released in Europe. Sales of the blood-pressure medication fell 15% to $1.2 billion, in line with analyst expectations. The drug's U.S. patent protection expires this September.

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The chatter on Main Street (aka Google, Yahoo! and other search sites) is always of interest to investors on Wall Street. Thus, each day, TheStreet compiles the stories that are trending on the Web, and highlights the news that could make stocks move.

-- Written by Brittany Umar.

Brittany joined TheStreet.com TV in November 2006 after completing a degree in Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers College. Previously, Brittany interned at the local ABC affiliate in New York City WABC-TV 7 where she helped research and produce On Your Side, a popular consumer advocacy segment.