AstraZeneca sees revenues down in Q3 -UPDATE

27th Oct 2011 07:21

AstraZeneca, the FTSE 100 pharmaceuticals giant, has seen revenues fall 2% at constant exchange rates to $8,213m (Consensus: $8,187m) in the third quarter compared to the same period of 2010.On the back of these revenues, core operating profit was also down 2% at $3,177m (Consensus: $3,099m), with a margin of 38.7% (down 0.3 percentage points), versus the 37.8% forecasted by analysts.Investors in Astra will note, however, that core earnings per share in the third quarter have risen 12% from $1.50 to $1.71 (Consensus: $1.67) on the back of a share repurchase programme and beneficial tax rates.Analysts had been focusing on the nine month or "year-to-date" figures for Astra. Against the expectations of Credit Suisse, the company does OK with core earnings per share growth at the predicted 7% although at constant exchange rates it comes in just short at 6%. No disaster there.Revenues for the nine months were ahead of Charles Stanley's forecast of $24,694m, in fact coming in at $24,935m. Core operatig profit also beat expectations of $10bn, finishing at $10.628bn.Analysts at Citi for their part are this afternoon pointing out that, "key growth products Crestor, Symbicort and Seroquel all witnessed strong growth at +21%, +18% and +7% yoy respectively, matching or beating consensus expectations." Also of interest nonetheless, these analysts point out that AstraZenaca´s raised EPS guidance for the full year is largely 'Fx-related'. In fact, group sales and margin guidance (pre-R&D margin at top of long-term 48-54% planning range) are unchanged. Some analysts also have a favourable view of the fact that the firm has increased its spending on R&D as a percentage of sales, as opposed to some of its competitors.Commenting on the results David Brennan, AstraZeneca's Chief Executive said: "We have delivered a third quarter revenue and Core earnings performance in line with our expectations, against the backdrop of anticipated generic competition and government price interventions. Our disciplined execution continues to generate strong cash returns, with dividends and net share repurchases well ahead of last year. We have also increased our Core EPS target for the full year." BS