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Drugmakers hit 4Q targets
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January 24, 2002: 1:34 p.m. ET
Bristol-Myers, AHP, Lilly, Schering-Plough and Baxter all meet forecasts.
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NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Five major drugmakers - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., American Home Products Corp., Eli Lilly & Co., Schering-Plough Corp. and Baxter International Inc. -- posted fourth-quarter earnings Thursday that met Wall Street's expectations for the period, although several see a tough first half of the year.
Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY: down $2.01 to $47.37, Research, Estimates) earned $1.16 billion, or 59 cents a share, excluding special items and the effects of the acquisition of DuPont Pharmaceuticals and investment in ImClone Systems. That's in line with the forecasts of analysts surveyed by earnings tracker First Call and up from the $1.07 billion, or 54 cents a share, it earned on the same basis a year earlier.
Revenue at the New York-based drugmaker excluding those transactions rose to $4.95 billion from $4.78 billion a year earlier, which put it slightly behind the First Call forecast of $4.97 billion for the most recent period.
The company warned that first-quarter earnings per share would decline 10 to 15 percent, or between 6 and 9 cents, from the 63 cents a share it earned a year earlier. That would put it below the First Call EPS forecast of 60 cents in the period. It also repeated earlier guidance that it expects full-year earnings per share of between $2.25 and $2.35, which will include the DuPont acquisition. First Call's forecast calls for EPS of $2.29 for the year.
American Home Products (AHP: down $0.03 to $64.50, Research, Estimates) earned $822.7 million, or 62 cents a share, from continuing operations excluding special items. That matched the First Call forecast, and was up from the $704.3 million, or 53 cents a share, it earned on the same basis a year earlier.
Revenue rose to $3.73 billion, just below the First Call forecast of $3.75 billion, but up from the $3.49 billion it posted a year earlier.
The Madison, N.J.-based company also issued guidance ranges for this year that included the current First Call forecast for each quarter, although its first-quarter guidance put the current forecast at the upper end of the range.
Eli Lilly, the Indianapolis-based maker of the anti-depressant Prozac, saw its sales and profit continue to fall due to the generic version of the drug that is now available from other companies.
Lilly (LLY: down $2.01 to $73.76, Research, Estimates) earned $656.2 million, or 60 cents a share, excluding special items. That matched the First Call forecast, but was down from the $767.3 million, or 70 cents, it earned on the same basis a year earlier.
Revenue fell to $2.83 billion, just below the First Call forecast and down from $2.98 billion a year earlier. The company said sales excluding Prozac gained 17 percent in the period.
The company warned that first-quarter EPS should be between 56 and 58 cents, below the First Call EPS forecast of 61 cents and the 74 cents a share earned a year earlier. For the year, EPS excluding special items should be between $2.70 and $2.80, the company said, compared with the $2.76 a share it earned on the same basis in 2001. First Call's consensus forecast calls for $2.73 a share in 2002.
Schering-Plough (SGP: down $0.41 to $33.44, Research, Estimates) reported earnings that hit lowered forecasts for the fourth quarter. The company earned $528 million, or 36 cents a share, excluding special items, down from $571 million, or 39 cents a share, posted a year earlier. Analysts had been looking for earnings of 41 cents a share before a Dec. 21 warning from the company.
Sales edged up to $2.47 billion from $2.42 billion, topping slightly the First Call forecast of $2.45 billion for the period.
Baxter International (BAX: down $2.41 to $52.65, Research, Estimates) earned $324 million, or 53 cents a share, in line with First Call's forecast and up from the $270 million, or 45 cents a share, it earned on the same basis a year earlier. Revenue rose 11 percent to $2.14 billion from $1.93 billion, which put it ahead of the First Call sales forecast. 
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