Shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals plunged 7 percent Thursday after the company slashed its earnings and revenue forecasts.
The Canadian drugmaker now expects 2014 earnings to range between $7.90 and $8.10 per share, down from a forecast it made in April for $8.55 to $8.80 per share. It also dropped its revenue forecast to between $8 billion and $8.3 billion, down from $8.3 billion to $8.7 billion.
Wall Street had been projecting earnings of $8.67 per share on $8.37 billion in revenue, according to FactSet.
Executives with Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. told analysts Thursday that the company will lose revenue and earnings from a profitable facial injections business it sold earlier this year.
The company’s outlook overshadowed some strong quarterly earnings, also released Thursday.
Valeant’s profit swelled to $125.8 million, or 37 cents per share, from $10.8 million, or 3 cents per share, fueled in part by acquisitions. Adjusted earnings totaled $1.91 per share, which edged out analyst expectations by a penny.
Revenue jumped 86 percent to $2.04 billion, which was in line with Wall Street projections.
Valeant is in the midst of a takeover bid for Botox maker Allergan Inc., the latest offer worth more than $50 billion. Allergan has rebuffed the attempts, but Valeant said Thursday that it remains committed to pursuing a deal.
U.S.-traded shares of the Laval, Quebec, company dropped $8.81 to $117.02 in afternoon trading, with major markets all trading sharply lower.
