"Sanofi-Aventis (SNY), a pharmaceutical products company, is a buy based on our 'Benjamin Graham value' model," says John Reese who assesses stocks based on the investment criteria of numerous "legendary" investors.

The editor of Validea, explains, "Indeed, the stock earns a 100% score, meeting all of the investment criteria we review in for this value-oriented screen.

"After releasing their 3Q financials. the stock price at Isis Pharmacueticals (ISIS) perked up as their large cash position and deep pipeline have attracted some new investors," notes biotech expert John McCamant.

The editor of The Medical Technology Stock Letter explains, "When investors investigate the ISIS story and all its parts, they come away with an appreciation for all the potential long-term value being created at the company.

"Because major U.S. pharmaceutical companies face patent expirations on blockbuster drugs, consensus earnings expectations for the group are modest," says Richard Moroney.

The editor of Dow Theory Forecasts explains, "One exception is Abbott Laboratories (ABT); Wall Street expects to increase earnings at a 10% annual rate over the next five years.

"Yet the market appears to discount that outlook, and the stock's price/earnings-to-growth ratio (PEG) of 1.2 is well below its peers.

"Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is an international giant, employing more than 115,000 people and operating in 60 countries," notes Gavin Graham.

The contributing analyst to Internet Wealth Builder explains, "The conservative stock is in a great business in an almost recession-proof field. Indeed, we see this an opportunity to buy a world-class stock at a reasonable price.

"It is a major provider of prescription drugs, including Remicade for arthritis and Procrit for red blood cell production.

"Our model portfolios are based on selecting stocks that meet the investing criteria of "legendary" investors," explains John Reese.

The editor of Validea continues, "Sanofi-Aventis (SNY), which is involved in pharmaceuticals and human vaccines, earns a Guru Score of 100% based on the value investing strategy of Benjamin Graham.

"In its pharmaceutical activity, the company specializes in six therapeutic areas: diabetes, oncology, thrombosis and cardiovascular, central nervous system (CNS), and internal medicine.

"Among our latest buy recommendations -- based on the value investing strategy of Ben Graham -- we like Gilead Sciences (GILD) and Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA)," says J. Royden Ward.

The editor of Cabot Benjamin Graham Value Letter explains, "Gilead is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and markets therapeutic treatments to combat viral, bacterial and fungal infections. Its shares undervalued at 9.7 times forward 12-month EPS.

"Teva, based in Israel, develops, makes and sells generic and proprietary-branded (store brand) drugs. Its shares are clearly undervalued at 10.6 times forward EPS. We consider both stocks to be very low risk.

"Foreign corporations have been on a mini buying spree in 2010. Not surprising, merger and acquisition activity has heated up a bit in the drug sector," says Chuck Carlson, editor of The DRIP Investor.

The dividend expert explains, " Global merger and acquisition activity topped $1 trillion in the first half of 2010, a 9.4% increase over the previous year. And Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY), recommend stock in our Editor's Portfolio, has been one of the more active participants.

"For years the health care sector had a well-deserved reputation for consistent returns and profitability regardless of broader economic conditions," observes Elliott Gue.

The contributing editor to Personal Finance explains, "But the past two years have challenged this reputation, and these stocks are out of favor. Some favorites, such as Novartis (NVS) are trading at their most attractive valuation in years.

"Although the sector faces undeniable challenges, markets often overreact to new regulation, providing attractive entry points for savvy investors and a low bar of expectations.

"New products are the life-blood of any pharmaceutical company. Unfortunately, blockbuster drug breakthroughs have been fairly rare in recent years, lowering valuations for pharmaceutical stocks," says Chuck Carlson.

The editor of The DRIP Investor, which focuses on dividend reinvestment strategies, explains, "The good news is that the lone drug stock in the Editor's Portfolio, Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY), has had a spate of good news recently on the drug-development front.

"The company recently announced that a mid-stage trial of an experimental arthritis drug had met its goal, supporting further development of the drug.

"Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) is a pharmaceutical group engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of health care products; the stock gets a 100% score in meeting the criteria for our investment screen based on d value investing criteria used by the legendary Benjamin Graham," says John Reese.

The editor of Validea newsletter explains, "The company's business includes two main activities: pharmaceuticals and human vaccines. The company is also present in animal health products.

"In its pharmaceutical activity, the Company specializes in six therapeutic areas: diabetes, oncology, thrombosis and cardiovascular, central nervous system), and internal medicine.

"Since 2001, I've avoided big-name stocks because I thought they were too expensive. But now, for the first time in my career, I'm finding value in some big U.S. stocks... particularly in one sector: pharmaceuticals," says Dr. Steve Sjuggerud.

The editor of Daily Wealth explains, "Big drug companies are record cheap, investors have given up on them, and we might be seeing a glimmer of an uptrend. Below, we consider the case of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).

"The share price is in the $50s today, like it was at its highs in 1999. But since then, the business has grown dramatically. Now, you get a whole lot more business for your investment buck.

"The stocks on our Validea Hot List are chosen because they meet the investment criteria of numerous "legendary" investors, such as Ben Graham, Warrenn Buffett and Peter Lynch," explains John Reese.

The editor of Validea says, "Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) has been added to our buy list based on our Growth/Value Investor screen which assesses stock based on the strategy used by James P. O'Shaughnessy. The stock passes this screen with a 100% score."

A lot of investors think Amgen (AMGN) is a great next-generation biotech company. Wrong. Amgen was a decent last-generation biotech company.

It's terribly managed outfit living on EPO drugs for dialysis and oncology patients. True, it has a billion dollar (actually more) drug, Neupogen, but it could be subject to generic competition in the United States from TEVA within two years.

This declining company lost patent protection for its statin, Zocor. It has replaced some of these sales with three new drugs, but, in reality, they cannot make up for the lost revenue from Zocor.

Merck's (MRK) revenues are stagnant and the company has a very weak pipeline. Even if health care reform adds more patients, it will also bring increased pressure to cut prices.

Pfizer (PFE) was the darling of the 1990s. Well, so was Bill Clinton, and like Clinton, the company pops up now and again in the news, but none of it really matters.

Pfizer's premier product, Lipitor, comes off patent this year and will get hit by generic competition in 2011. This drug has $11 billion in sales, which will shrink to $4 billion or less, and with that could go $5 billion or so in profits.