Teva Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:TEVA) shares stood firm before hours today on first-quarter earnings that topped the consensus forecast.
The Tel Aviv, Israel-based company posted profits of $84 million, or 7¢ per share, on sales of $4 billion for the three months ended March 31, 2021, for a more-than tripled bottom-line despite a sales decline of -8.6%.
Adjusted to exclude one-time items, earnings per share were 63¢, 4¢ ahead of Wall Street, where analysts were looking for sales of $4 billion.
In a news release, Teva attributed some of the revenue decreases to changes in demand for certain products as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the world and our industry, our employees continue to work together to meet the needs of our customers and patients, all while we remain focused on our long-term goals and laying the foundation for future growth,” Teva president & CEO Kåre Schultz said in the release. “We have improved our profitability and reduced our net debt to $23.2 billion. We have also seen solid performance from our key growth drivers: the biosimilar Truxima increased its market share to 26%, Austedo continued its year-over-year growth, and Ajovy solidified its market share in the U.S. and continues to expand in Europe.
“Based on our results and expectations for the remainder of the year, we are reaffirming our guidance.”
Teva said it expects to log adjusted EPS of $2.50 to $2.70 for the full year and set its sales guidance for between $16.4 billion and $16.8 billion.
TEVA shares were unchanged in pre-market trading today at $10.37 per share.
