Pfizer Earnings Not Enough for Investors

By Chris Lange Published Oct 31, 10:15AM EDT

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When Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) released its third-quarter earnings report before the markets opened on Tuesday, the results and guidance lived up to what analysts expected but weren’t enough to placate investors.

The pharma giant posted $0.67 in earnings per share (EPS) and $13.17 billion in revenue, while consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters had called for $0.65 in EPS on revenue of $13.17 billion. In the same period of last year, Pfizer said it had EPS of $0.61 and $13.04 billion in revenue.

Innovative Health (IH) revenues increased 11% operationally in third-quarter 2017, driven by continued growth from key brands, including Ibrance and Eliquis globally, the addition of Xtandi revenues in the United States resulting from the September 2016 acquisition of Medivation, as well as Lyrica and Xeljanz, both primarily in the United States. Global Ibrance revenues increased 59% operationally, while global operational revenue growth for Eliquis and Xeljanz was 43% and 49%, respectively.

At the same time, Essential Health (EH) revenues declined 11% operationally in the third quarter. Third-quarter 2017 EH revenues were also negatively impacted by a 22% operational decline from Peri-LOE Products, including declines in Pristiq in the United States, as well as Lyrica and Vfend, both primarily in developed Europe. EH revenues were also negatively impacted by a 12% operational decline from the Sterile Injectable Pharmaceuticals (SIP) portfolio, primarily due to legacy Hospira product shortages in the United States. These declines were partially offset by 67% operational growth from Biosimilars.

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In terms of guidance for the 2017 full year, Pfizer expects to see EPS in the range of $2.58 to $2.62 and revenues between $52.4 billion and $53.1 billion. Analysts in general expected $2.56 in EPS and $52.72 billion in revenue.

Chairman and CEO Ian Read commented:

We reported solid third-quarter 2017 financial results and raised the midpoint of the range for our 2017 Adjusted diluted EPS guidance. Innovative Health revenues grew 11% operationally, primarily driven by the performance of our key growth drivers, notably Ibrance, Eliquis, Xtandi and Xeljanz, all of which are products that are early in their patent-protected lifecycle in attractive therapeutic areas. While Essential Health revenues remained challenged primarily due to continued headwinds from products that recently lost marketing exclusivity and product supply, we had solid operational growth in emerging markets and in biosimilars.

Shares of Pfizer traded down over 2% at $34.30 early Tuesday, with a consensus analyst price target of $38.35 and a 52-week range of $29.83 to $36.78.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.