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Big pharma has a reputation for being one of the most dominant sectors in the American marketplace. With trillions of dollars in annual revenue – and some of the highest advertising budgets in the world – this industry is absolutely enormous. Of course, with great power comes great responsibility. Or so it should go.

But that isn’t always the case, as evidenced by too many consumer lawsuits over the years – including three times when Pfizer (PFE) specifically paid more than a billion out to consumers hurt by their products (all while denying any wrongdoing or mistakes made).

It and other major American drug companies have also been accused of everything from false claims to kickbacks. With so much money in play, it’s easy to see how feel they’re above the law. But one member of that group may have gone a little too far with such presumptions this time.

Amgen (AMGN), an international biopharmaceutical company out of Thousand Oaks, California, finds itself in a battle with the IRS over its international tax strategy. The Wall Street Journal reports:

“The IRS says that Amgen underreported its taxable income by nearly $24 billion from 2010 to 2015 by inappropriately attributing what the agency says should have been U.S. profits to a Puerto Rico subsidiary that oversees the manufacturing of the company’s drugs.

 “Amgen’s dispute with the IRS is the latest example of heightened government scrutiny of the international tax practices of pharmaceutical, technology, and other companies.”

 As a result, it might be on the hook for over $10 billion. Moreover, its tax rate could rise significantly if the IRS has its way. That would really hurt.

Because Amgen does so much of its manufacturing in Puerto Rico, it’s gotten away with having one of the lowest tax rates in the industry. This often helps it outpace analysts’ earnings estimates, which investors love. You’d better believe then that it doesn’t plan to take this case lightly. This battle will likely take years to resolve.

Though, we have to say, if we've learned anything from the likes of Al Capone and Enron, it’s that you don’t want to mess with the IRS. That’s especially true when Amgen may be the first target in an aggressive campaign to clamp down on international effective rates and tax havens. In which case, even big pharma will have to pay its fair share.

More Non-REIT News to Know About 

In this economy, everything from energy to the essentials is feeling the effects of inflation. The results is that many Americans are trying to be more frugal. In fact, many are now turning to dollar stores as a way to stretch their budgets.

Discount retailers like Dollar General (DG), Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree (DLTR) have seen huge revenue spikes as their pricier counterparts like Target (TGT) struggle to attract cash-strapped shoppers.

From October of last year until June 2022, average spending on food items in particular at these discount chains shot up 71%. So nearly 2,300 Dollar Generals across the U.S. are stocking up on fresh fruits and vegetables, according to a spokeswoman.

“While Dollar General isn’t a full-service grocer, we consider ourselves today’s general store by providing nearby and affordable access to daily household essentials, including the components of a nutritious meal,” she said. The company plans to expand its grocery offerings to over 10,000 stores in the next few years.

Meanwhile, at Dollar Tree, 16,162 locations offer frozen produce items, fruit juices, nuts, beans, whole wheat products, eggs, and milk. No doubt, that’s helped its stock soar 18% year-to-date. And Dollar General has gained 45 points in the last six months. If inflationary trends don’t change, they’ll probably go higher from there.

The World According to REITs 

Equinix (EQIX) is on my radar for a number of reasons. As one of the biggest names in the data real estate investment trust (REIT) industry, this California-based company manages an impressive portfolio of 240 data centers in 27 countries on five continents.

Equinix boasts a $3.10 dividend for this quarter, has a sound balance sheet, strong acquisitions, and a management roster that’s made up of some of the best names in the business. And recently, that bench got even deeper with the appointment of Scott Crenshaw for executive VP and general manager of digital services.

He’ll assume direct responsibility for product management and the associated software engineering teams supporting this side of the Equinix equation. Charles Meyers, president and CEO, said this of the hire:

“Scott brings a perfect blend of skills and experience to help us drive our customer-focused vision for digital services. Scott will help us envision and deliver the services we need to help customers transform and scale their infrastructure with speed, agility, reliability, and the cloud-optimized architectures they need to meet today’s business needs and capture tomorrow’s opportunities. Scott’s track record of innovation and success at Concourse, Red Hat, and Rackspace make him an ideal leader for this critical role.”

I certainly wish him luck as this incredible company continues to construct the data infrastructure our economy increasingly depends on.

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