Valeant stock falls further on WSJ report

Shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl (NYSE:VRX) opened at 75.92 on Monday. (VRX)’s stock now trading at about $84.97, lots of rating firms seem to have a target price set on the stock.

Its shares have fallen by more than 65 per cent since mid-2015. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Valeant has not completed its review procedures with respect to 2015 financial information or adjustments to 2014 financial information, and the information herein may be subject to change based on such review, including the subsequent identification of other adjustments. Analysts had expected Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.to report earnings of about $2.7 per share on $2.78B in revenue. “The agreement will enable consumers to conveniently access Valeant’s dermatology and ophthalmology products at a lower out-of-pocket cost from more than 8,000 Walgreens US retail pharmacy locations, as well as participating independent retailers”, the company reported in its press release.

Apart from the disruption caused by any financial restatement by a publicly traded company, Valeant is coping with a previous controversy that erupted last fall when questions were raised about its relationship with Philidor Rx Services.

The company “preliminarily identified certain sales to Philidor during 2014, prior to Valeant’s entry into an option to acquire Philidor, that should have been recognized when product was dispensed to patients rather than on delivery to Philidor”, Valeant said in a statement on Monday. The stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $150.83. The stock is down 25 per cent this year, as of Monday’s close. Added to this, it would also determine how much confidence the investors have in the company. Meag Munich Ergo Kapitalanlagegesellschaft MBH increased its stake in shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Ubben Jeffrey W sold 4.20M shares worth $925.01 million. The New York-based Pershing Square Capital Management L.P. has invested 29.95% in the stock. Credit Suisse AG now owns 1,540,396 shares of the specialty pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $156,584,000 after buying an additional 994,476 shares during the last quarter. They were worth less than $100 by November following a number of negative developments. The Company’s developed markets segment consists of sales in the United States of pharmaceutical products, OTC products, and medical device products.