Big pharma Pfizer cuts 2016 outlook, as fourth quarter revenue beats expectations
Pharmaceutical firm Pfizer has posted better-than-expected revenue in the fourth quarter, with revenue up seven per cent to $14bn in the fourth quarter, ahead of analyst estimates of $13.56bn.
The company reported a profit of $613m, down from $1.23bn a year earlier.
A surge in profit came from increased demand for its pneumonia vaccine and the acquisition of rival Hospira, that it bought in September last year for around $15bn boosting its portfolio of injectable drugs and biotech medicines.
The US drug maker, which struck a $155bn deal in November to combine with Allergan that's expected to close in the second half of 2016, warned however that 2016 revenue and earnings is forecast to come in below analysts' estimates, blaming competition and a stronger dollar.
Shares in the big pharma firm fell 1.6 per cent in premarket trading.
Pfizer’s expecting revenue for the full year to come in between $49bn and $51bn, on analyst expectations of $52.49bn.
The guidance though excludes the effects of its inversion deal with Allergan, which would move Pfizer’s headquarters to Ireland.
Revenue from the company’s global vaccines division rose 45 per cent to $1.92bn.
The drug maker announced in December that it is closing one of its research sites in Cambridge.
The decision to shut the Neusentis facility at Granta Park was part of the company's wider plans to reduce its investment in pain research.