Health and Healthcare

What Boosted Horizon Pharma Q1 Earnings

Chris Lange

Published: May 9, 2016 9:35 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 9:42 am

Horizon Pharma PLC (NASDAQ: HZNP) reported its first-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Monday. The company had $0.34 in earnings per share (EPS) on $204.69 million in revenue, compared to consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters of $0.30 in EPS on revenue of $197.73 million. The same period from last year had $0.21 in EPS on $113.14 million in revenue.

In the first quarter, the sales growth of 81% was driven by each of the company’s business units: Orphan, Rheumatology and Primary Care. As a whole, the orphan medicines, Ravicti, Actimmune, Krystexxa and Buphenyl represented 40% of the total net sales for this quarter, versus 22% in the same period last year.

In terms of guidance the company confirmed its 2016 outlook. The company expects to have net sales of $1.025 billion to $1.050 billion and adjusted EBITDA in the range of $505 million to $520 million. The consensus estimates call for $2.30 in EPS on $1.00 billion in revenue.

On the books, cash and cash equivalents totaled $385.85 million at the end of the quarter, compared to $859.62 million at the end of 2015.

Timothy P. Walbert, chairman, president and CEO of Horizon, commented:

We achieved first-quarter net sales growth of 81 percent and we expect net sales, adjusted EBITDA and operating cash flows to increase sequentially as we progress through the year. With the completion of enrollment in our Phase 3 clinical trial for ACTIMMUNE in Friedreich’s ataxia, a life-shortening, ultra-orphan, neurologic disease that currently has no FDA-approved treatment options, we are on track to receive data in December of this year, and assuming positive results, target a first-quarter 2017 sBLA regulatory submission.

Shares of Horizon closed Friday down 8% at $13.41, with a consensus analyst price target of $32.27 and a 52-week trading range of $12.86 to $39.49. Following the release of the earnings report, the stock was up 11% at $14.88 in early trading indications Monday.