Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Beats Up on Analysts Yet Again

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (NYS: VRX) reported earnings on Feb. 27. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Valeant Pharmaceuticals International beat expectations on revenues and earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue expanded significantly and GAAP earnings per share increased.

Margins improved across the board.

Revenue details
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International booked revenue of $688.5 million. The 15 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted a top line of $667.4 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 34% higher than the prior-year quarter's $514.6 million.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.94. The 16 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.85 per share on the same basis. GAAP EPS were $0.18 for Q4 versus -$0.10 per share for the prior-year quarter.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 73.2%, 440 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 21.2%, 770 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 8.1%, 1,410 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $796.4 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.95.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $3.31 billion. The average EPS estimate is $4.08.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 182 members out of 204 rating the stock outperform, and 22 members rating it underperform. Among 68 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 63 give Valeant Pharmaceuticals International a green thumbs-up, and five give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Valeant Pharmaceuticals International is outperform, with an average price target of $57.71.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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