After AstraZeneca ($AZN) announced plans to buy Ardea for $1.26 billion, company officials quickly talked up plans to do more deals before the end of the year. Caught with one of the weakest late-stage programs in Big Pharma, AstraZeneca isn't even sticking with its disease focus. Promising drugs that can add some excitement and get the analysts to back off are welcome. "We're building some momentum here in R&D," Martin Mackay, head of research and development, told Bloomberg. "I would be disappointed if we didn't announce further deals by the end of this year. We've taken our hits but we're turning a corner." Story