ICN Shares Increase on Analyst’s Assessment

ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s shares moved up 11% Thursday after an analyst said the stock’s recent slump was exaggerated. The Costa Mesa drug maker’s stock had been retreating since ICN said it would take a charge of $172 million for money owed by a government agency in Yugoslavia, where the company generates one-third of its revenue. On Thursday, the stock moved up $2.88 to $29.69 after analyst Eugene Melnitchenko at Sutro & Co. continued a “buy” recommendation. ICN shares, which traded as high as $52.25 early in May, had dropped to half that this week. The analyst said the royalties ICN gets from sales of its hepatitis C treatment, ribavirin, alone would support a much higher stock price.