Merck Profits Plunge
Merck And Company had a 90-percent drop in its third-quarter profit this year, compared to the same period last year.
It was a little over $341 million this year, down from more than $3.4 billion a year earlier. The drop is due largely to big charges from its $41.1 billion acquisition of the Schering-Plough Corporation late last year and a legal reserve set aside because of a federal investigation.
