Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) reported its fourth-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Wednesday. The pharmaceutical giant said that it had $1.16 in EPS and $11.9 billion in revenue. That compared with consensus estimates of $1.15 in EPS and $11.98 billion in revenue. The same period of last year reportedly had $1.04 in EPS and $11.0 billion in revenue.
During the quarter worldwide sales increased by 8%, or 9% excluding foreign exchange. This was largely driven by Keytruda sales increasing 46% year over year to $3.11 billion. Also, the increase was driven by growth in oncology, partially offset by the ongoing impacts of the loss of market exclusivity for several products.
Animal Health sales totaled $1.1 billion for the fourth quarter of 2019, an increase of 8% compared with the fourth quarter of 2018. Excluding the unfavorable effect from foreign exchange, Animal Health sales grew 10%. Growth for the quarter was mainly driven by livestock products due to the Antelliq acquisition.
Looking ahead to the 2020 full year, Merck expects to see EPS of $5.62 to $5.77 and revenue of $48.8 billion to $50.3 billion. Consensus estimates call for $5.61 in EPS and $49.53 billion in revenue for 2019.
Kenneth C. Frazier, board chair and chief executive of Merck, commented:
As evidenced by our results and our 2020 guidance, Merck had an extraordinary year and is in a position of operational and financial strength. It is this position of strength, born of our focused execution, that gives us the confidence to spin off our Women’s Health, trusted Legacy Brands and Biosimilar products into a new company, which will position us to deliver even greater value to patients and shareholders.
Shares of Merck traded down nearly 3% early Wednesday to $85.77, in a 52-week range of $72.23 to $92.64. The consensus price target is $99.35.
24/7 Wall St.The Average American Has No Idea How Much Money You Can Make Today (Sponsor)
The last few years made people forget how much banks and CD’s can pay. Meanwhile, interest rates have spiked and many can afford to pay you much more, but most are keeping yields low and hoping you won’t notice.
But there is good news. To win qualified customers, some accounts are paying almost 10x the national average! That’s an incredible way to keep your money safe and earn more at the same time. Our top pick for high yield savings accounts includes other benefits as well. You can earn up to 3.80% with a Checking & Savings Account today Sign up and get up to $300 with direct deposit. No account fees. FDIC Insured.
Click here to see how much more you could be earning on your savings today. It takes just a few minutes to open an account to make your money work for you.
Our top pick for high yield savings accounts includes other benefits as well. You can earn up to 4.00% with a Checking & Savings Account from Sofi. Sign up and get up to $300 with direct deposit. No account fees. FDIC Insured.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.