Here's What's Behind Valeant Pharmaceuticals' 13% Drop

Here's What's Behind Valeant Pharmaceuticals' 13% Drop

Shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: VRX), the embattled drugmaker that's primarily grown through price hikes and acquisitions this decade, tumbled as much as 13% on Thursday after receiving a premarket rating downgrade from J.P. Morgan Securities.

The investment firm lowered its rating on Valeant Pharmaceuticals to "underweight," which is pretty much the equivalent of a "sell," from "neutral," which is where its opinion of Valeant had sat for more than a year. It there is a bright side here, J.P. Morgan did increase Valeant's price target by 20% to $12 from $10 (albeit the stock had climbed to north of $22 at yesterdays close).

Image source: Getty Images.

Source: Fool.com