The ratings on New York City-based Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. reflect the company's continuing position as one of the world's largest pharmaceutical firms, its diverse revenue base, and its solid cash flows. Bristol-Myers' pharmaceutical portfolio has nine products that each generate more than $150 million in annual sales. The portfolio is led by the cholesterol-lowering treatment, Pravachol, which produces nearly $2 billion in annual sales and competes in a rapidly growing therapeutic class. This diversity partially cushions the company from the effect of major patent expirations. The $8 billion acquisition of the DuPont Pharmaceuticals Co., which recorded annual sales of $1.5 billion in 2000, increases the diversity of Bristol-Myers' pharmaceutical business by adding products such as the anticoagulant therapy, Coumadin, and
