EXHIBIT 99.1
Contact:
Stephen J. Mock
Vice President, Corporate Affairs
Pharmaceutical Resources, Inc.
(201) 802-4000

                     PHARMACEUTICAL RESOURCES, INC. RENAMED
                       PAR PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES, INC.

SPRING VALLEY,  NEW YORK, MAY 26, 2004 - At the Pharmaceutical  Resources,  Inc.
(NYSE:PRX) annual meeting held today,  stockholders approved an amendment to the
company's  certificate of incorporation to change the name of the company to Par
Pharmaceutical Companies, Inc. The name change will be effective on or about May
27, 2004, following the filing of the certificate of amendment with the State of
Delaware.

As a  result  of the  amendment,  holders  of  common  stock  of  Pharmaceutical
Resources,  Inc.  will own the same  number of  shares  of  common  stock in Par
Pharmaceutical  Companies,  Inc.  The  shares of Par  Pharmaceutical  Companies,
Inc.'s common stock will continue to trade on the New York Stock  Exchange under
the ticker symbol PRX.

"Our company has long been identified by our principal operating subsidiary, Par
Pharmaceutical,"  said Scott  Tarriff,  president and chief  executive  officer.
"Most of our employees  work  directly for Par and identify with that name.  Our
trade  customers,  strategic  partners  and our  surrounding  local  communities
already  recognize us as Par. By extending the Par identity to all our remaining
external  constituencies,  we  will  create  a  clearer  and  more  recognizable
corporate identity."

Par Pharmaceutical  Companies,  Inc. develops,  manufactures and markets generic
pharmaceuticals through its principal subsidiary,  Par Pharmaceutical,  Inc. The
company is also developing a line of proprietary  specialty  pharmaceuticals and
expects to market the first of these in 2005.  Through its FineTech  subsidiary,
Par also  develops  and  utilizes  synthetic  chemical  processes  to design and
develop intermediate ingredients used in the production of finished products for
the  pharmaceutical  industry.  Par currently  manufactures and distributes more
than 170 products  representing  various dosage strengths of 73 drugs. For press
release and other company information, visit http://www.parpharm.com.


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