Lilly’s profit, sales forecast falls

Eli Lilly and Co. met the profit forecasts of Wall Street analysts, but continued to disappoint them with its revenue.

The Indianapolis-based drugmaker predicted in an announcement Friday morning that its 2015 sales would come in about $1 billion less than analysts have expected..

Due to the strength of the U.S. dollar against foreign currencies, Lilly said its revenue this year would fall between $19.5 billion and $20 billion. Analysts had been expecting revenue of $20.7 billion, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.

Lilly’s fourth-quarter sales also disappointed, coming in at $5.12 billion versus analysts’ expectations of $5.20 billion. Lilly’s fourth-quarter sales were down 12 percent from the same period a year ago due to patent expirations on two blockbuster drugs—Cymbalta and Evista. Their sales have now been sapped by cheaper generic copies.

Lilly’s profit took a corresponding hit, falling 41 percent in the fourth-quarter to $428.5 million. Earnings per share came in at 40 cents, down from 67 cents a year ago.

But excluding $190 million Lilly spent on severance costs in the quarter, as well as other one-time charges and gains, Lilly’s profit held steady in the fourth quarter at nearly $978 million. Earnings per share were 75 cents, beating by one penny both Lilly’s results from a year ago and the forecasts of Wall Street analysts.

"Despite the loss of significant revenue for Cymbalta and Evista following the expiration of our U.S. patents, we saw strong performance from many other products,” said Lilly CEO John Lechleiter in a prepared statement.

The biggest growth for the quarter and for the year came from Elanco, Lilly’s Greenfield-based animal health subsidiary. Its sales grew 9 percent in 2014 to more than $2.3 billion. That growth will continue in 2015 after Elanco closed Jan. 1 on its $5 billion acquisition of Novartis Animal Health.

Lilly still expects its overall profit to rise this year to a range of $3.10 per share to $3.20 per share, excluding extraordinary items. On that basis, Wall Street analysts have been forecasting 2015 profit of $3.18 per share.

Shares of Lilly rose 1 percent in trading by early Friday afternoon, to $72.98 per share.