Valeant Pharmaceuticals Slashes Revenue, Earnings Guidance

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. on Wednesday cut its revenue and profit guidance for the fourth quarter and the full year, ahead of its meeting with investors.

Valeant will reduce prices of its branded prescription-based dermatological and ophthalmological products by 10 percent.

“We’ve ignored the external factors and we’re continuing to grow, grow, grow”.

“We have been through a lot”, CEO Michael Pearson told investors during a four-hour webcast.

Since this past summer, though, the business has been hit with questions regarding its drug pricing, accounting, disclosures and overall business practices.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) shares traded up 16% on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The stock had soared past $260 to a new all-time high price as recently as August, but Valeant shares have largely plummeted since then.

It’s now aiming for between US$10.23 and US$10.33 per share of adjusted earnings for the full year, down from between US$11.67 and US$11.87. The specialty pharmaceutical company reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.06.

Chief Financial Officer Robert Rosiello said the 2015 forecast was hurt by an expected reduction of $600 million in revenue, or $1.45 per share. In the United States, more than 8,000 Walgreens pharmacies will cover Valeant’s medicines, including acne products Solodyn, Retin-A Micro, eye drop Alrex and toenail fungus drug Jublia. The company jacked up prices on both drugs shortly after buying them from Marathon Pharmaceuticals in February, tripling one and raising the other sixfold. The Laval, Quebec-based company also plans to extend the distribution model to other independent pharmacies. Cummings also requested a host of additional documents regarding the company’s compliance with federal securities laws. “We will have double-digit organic growth, not just next year, but the year after that and the year after”, Pearson predicted.

8 Beleaguered drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals Int’l (NYSE:VRX) inked a deal with Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) to sell drugs at a discount.

Malhotra said patients and insurers should end up paying slightly less for the drugs covered by the deal, but Valeant will compensate with rebounding volumes and its savings from not having to give drug wholesalers fees of roughly 7 percent of drug prices.

The drug deal comes six weeks after the company had cut ties with specialty online pharmacy Philidor. The stock’s slide worsened in the fall, when the Philidor allegations emerged, and shares fell to a low of barely $69.

Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland has sought documents about Valeant’s drastic price increases for two life-saving heart medications for months.