NEW YORK (Reuters) – Forest Laboratories Inc’s (FRX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) showdown with activist investor Carl Icahn should be resolved on Thursday, when shareholders meet to pick the drugmaker’s new board of directors.

The company is in a stronger position to garner support for its entire 10-member slate after it won backing last week from influential proxy advisory firm ISS, although some say Icahn has a chance at securing a seat for one of his four nominees.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Forest Laboratories Inc (FRX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) won backing from proxy advisory firm ISS for all 10 of its board nominees, dimming the chances that billionaire investor Carl Icahn will win a significant presence on the drugmaker’s board.

The support for Forest comes after another proxy advisory firm, Glass Lewis, on Tuesday recommended shareholders support one of the four nominees put forth by Icahn. Still, ahead of the August 18 shareholder meeting, Icahn was gearing up for the fight, disclosing he had increased his stake in Forest to 9.2 percent.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Medco Health Solutions Inc (MHS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is trading far below Express Scripts Inc’s (ESRX.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) $27.5 billion offer to buy the company, as contract concerns for Medco and the shaky stock market compound worries that the deal will fail to pass antitrust muster.

The spread — or difference between Express Scripts’ offer price and Medco’s shares — stood at roughly 24 percent on Wednesday afternoon.

NEW YORK, Aug 10 (Reuters) – Medco Health Solutions Inc
(MHS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is trading far below Express Scripts Inc’s (ESRX.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)
$27.5 billion offer to buy the company, as contract concerns
for Medco and the shaky stock market compound worries that the
deal will fail to pass antitrust muster.

The spread — or difference between Express Scripts’ offer
price and Medco’s shares — stood at roughly 24 percent on
Wednesday afternoon.

NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) – Biogen Idec Inc (BIIB.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and
Abbott Laboratories Inc’s (ABT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) experimental once-monthly
injected drug for multiple sclerosis achieved the main goals in
a mid-stage trial, the companies said on Tuesday.

Analysts said the drug, daclizumab, showed effectiveness on
a par with some of the new medicines for the often disabling
neurological disease, but that some of the side effects, such
as infections, were worrisome.

NEW YORK, Aug 4 (Reuters) – Cigna Corp (CI.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted a
higher-than-expected second-quarter profit on Thursday on
strength in its main U.S. healthcare plans, and the insurer
raised its full-year forecast.

Several analysts described Cigna’s new 2011 forecast range
– which incorporates Wall Street’s target — as conservative.

NEW YORK, Aug 1 (Reuters) – Healthcare stocks sold off
broadly on Monday on fears that the debt-ceiling deal to be
voted on by the U.S. Congress would lead to cuts in healthcare
spending for federal programs such as Medicare.

Healthcare service providers that rely on Medicare
reimbursement fell sharply, and the shares of drugmakers such
as Pfizer Inc (PFE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and medical device manufacturers such as
Medtronic Inc (MDT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) were also off.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Health insurer Humana Inc (HUM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted a higher-than-expected second-quarter profit, helped by growth in its Medicare plans for senior citizens, and raised its full-year earnings forecast by about 11 percent.

Despite the strong report, shares of Humana and other health insurers fell on Monday on fears that the debt-ceiling deal in Washington could lead to cuts in Medicare and other federal health programs, analysts said.

NEW YORK, July 29 (Reuters) – Coventry Health Care Inc
(CVH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) failed to raise its profit forecast up to Wall Street’s
target on Friday, sending shares of the insurer down 5 percent
even as its second-quarter profit topped expectations.

Coventry’s report, combined with a significant earnings
miss from smaller Medicaid specialist Amerigroup Inc (AGP.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz),
sparked an initial sell-off among health insurer shares,
although many of the larger companies later recovered much of
those losses.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Boston Scientific Corp (BSX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) raised its full-year profit forecast on Thursday as it posted quarterly results above Wall Street’s target and the company reported optimistic trends for new heart stents.

The company also said it would buy back $1 billion of its shares and it plans to cut 1,200 to 1,400 jobs, or roughly 5 percent of its workforce. Its shares were up 8.5 percent at midday.