AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) reported third quarter 2016 earnings of $1.21 per share, in-line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate but up 7.1% from the year-ago quarter.
Revenues increased 8.2% to $6.43 billion in the third quarter but missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $6.55 billion.
The Quarter in Details
Key drug Humira recorded growth of 11.3% with revenues coming in at $4.1 billion. Growth across all three major market categories – rheumatology, dermatology and gastroenterology – drove the upside. Sales in the U.S. increased 16.7% ($2.7 billion) while sales in the ex-U.S. market were up 4.5% to $1.4 billion. Growing awareness, favorable clinical data, additional indications and expansion into new markets should help the product to continue making significant contributions to the top line.
Other products that performed well include Duodopa ($74 million) and Creon ($187 million).
HCV product Viekira recorded sales of $378 million, up 32.5%. Sales were, however, down 9.8% sequentially.
AbbVie recorded Imbruvica U.S. sales of $437 million and $64 million of international profit sharing.
2016 Outlook Raised
AbbVie raised its 2016 earnings per share outlook to $4.80–$4.82 from the previous range of $4.73–$4.83. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $4.82 per share.
ABBVIE INC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
ABBVIE INC Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | ABBVIE INC Quote
Our Take
AbbVie delivered mixed third-quarter results with in-line earnings and lower-than-expected revenue. Humira and Imbruvica continued to perform well, while Viekira continues to feel the impact of additional competition and label update.
With several companies striving to bring Humira biosimilars to the market, AbbVie has been focusing on diversifying its revenue base and lowering its dependence on the product.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
AbbVie currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the healthcare sector include Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:INFI) , BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ:BMRN) and Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL) . Both, Infinity and BioMarin sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) while Exelixis carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Infinity’s loss per share estimates narrowed from $3.84 to $3.79 for 2016 but remained unchanged for 2017 over the last 60 days. The company has posted a positive surprise in all the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 67.62%.
BioMarin’s loss per share estimates narrowed from 28 cents to 25 cents for 2016 and from $1.16 to $1.11 for 2017 over the last 60 days.
Exelixis’ loss per share estimates narrowed from 71 cents to 63 cents for 2016 and from 19 cents to earnings of 2 cents for 2017 over the last 60 days. The company has posted a positive surprise twice in the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 9.1%.
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