What Will Become of Valeant Pharmaceuticals?

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 11, 11:56PM EST · Published May 8, 9:05AM EDT

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What Will Become of Valeant Pharmaceuticals? — © Wikimedia Commons

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. (NYSE: VRX) released its most recent quarterly report before the markets opened on Tuesday. At the same time, the firm announced that it would also be changing its name sometime in the very near future.

In July 2018, Valeant will become Bausch Health Companies and it will trade under a new ticker BHC on the New York Stock Exchange. The firm will maintain its present symbol for trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

As for the earnings, the firm said that it had $0.89 in earnings per share (EPS) on $2.0 billion in revenue. That compares with consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters of $0.60 in EPS on revenue of $1.95 billion. In the first quarter of last year, Valeant said it had EPS of $0.78 and $2.11 billion in revenue.

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Valeant listed some quarterly highlights:

Reported revenue in the Bausch + Lomb/International segment decreased by 3% compared to the first quarter of 2017 primarily due to divestitures and discontinuations; revenue in this segment grew organically by 2% compared to the first quarter of 2017

Reported revenue in the Branded Rx segment decreased by 6% compared to the first quarter of 2017 primarily due to divestitures and discontinuations, and declines in the Ortho Dermatologics business; revenue in this segment grew organically by 8% compared to the first quarter of 2017

In terms of the outlook for the 2018 full year, the company expects to see revenues between $8.15 billion and $8.35 billion, with EBITDA in the range of $3.15 billion to $3.30 billion. The consensus estimates call for $3.13 in EPS on $8.23 billion in revenue for the year.

Joseph C. Papa, board chair and chief executive of Valeant, commented:

Our first-quarter 2018 results demonstrate that we are making significant progress in our turnaround. For the first time since 2015, the Company delivered overall organic revenue growth that tracked above expectations and was driven by our Branded Rx and Bausch + Lomb/International segments. As a result, we are raising our full-year revenue and Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) guidance ranges to reflect our strong performance in the first quarter.

Valeant delivered $438 million in operating cash, putting cash and cash equivalents at $909 million at the end of the quarter, an increase from $720 million at the end of the previous fiscal year.

Shares of Valeant closed Monday at $18.16, with a consensus analyst price target of $17.14 and a 52-week range of $9.71 to $24.43. Following the announcement, the stock was up over 7% at $19.50 in early trading indications Tuesday.

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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.