Multi-specialty health care company Allergan Inc. (AGN: Quote) on Tuesday reported a profit for the third quarter that was flat with last year despite higher sales of its products, including anti-wrinkle treatment Botox. Earnings per share beat analysts' expectations, while revenues missed their estimates.
Looking ahead, Allergan forecast earnings for the fourth quarter mostly below Street view. However, the company raised the lower end of its full-year earnings outlook and tightened its forecast for revenues.
Quarterly sales of Botox increased 9 percent to $431.6 million, while sales of facial aesthetics edged up less than 1 percent to $89.1 million. Eye care pharmaceuticals contributed the maximum sales of $663.2 million in the quarter, up 8 percent from last year.
Irvine, California-based Allergan's third-quarter net earnings were $249.4 million, down slightly from $249.8 million in the prior-year quarter. However, earnings per share rose to $0.82 from $0.81 last year on lower number of shares outstanding.
Excluding items, adjusted earnings per share were $1.06, compared to $0.92 in the prior-year period. On average, 25 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $1.04 per share. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.
Revenues for the quarter grew 6 percent to $1.41 billion from $1.33 billion in the year-ago period, but missed analysts' consensus estimate of $1.43 billion.
Allergan's total product net sales rose 6.1 percent, or 9.4 percent on a constant currency basis, from the year-ago quarter to $1.39 billion.
Specialty pharmaceuticals net sales grew 8.1 percent, or 11.4 percent on a constant currency basis, while medical devices net sales declined 4 percent, or 0.3 percent on a constant currency basis from last year.
Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, Allergan forecasts adjusted earnings per share in a range of $1.18 to $1.20 and total product net sales between $1.470 billion and $1.545 billion. Analysts expect the company to earn $1.20 per share for the quarter on revenue of $1.51 billion.
For fiscal 2012, Allergan now expects adjusted earnings of $4.17 to $4.19 per share on total product net sales between $5.695 billion and $5.770 billion. Earlier, the company projected adjusted earnings of $4.15 to $4.19 per share on product net sales between $5.65 billion and $5.80 billion.
Analysts expect the company to report earnings of $4.17 for the year on revenues of $5.82 billion.
Allergan's board has declared a third-quarter dividend of $0.05 per share, payable on December 12 to stockholders of record on November 21.
AGN closed Friday's trading at $91.64, up $0.38 or 0.42 percent on a volume of 1.55 million shares.
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by RTT Staff Writer
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