Merck Shares Down After Mixed 4Q Results

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Pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. (MRK) fell in morning market action after beating analysts’ earnings expectations and reporting sales that fell shy of forecasts.

At roughly $38.21 a share, the stock price has fallen 42 cents a share*or 1.09%.*

Merck posted profit of 97 cents a share, two cents a share higher than analysts’ projections. But at $12.29 billion, revenue grew slower than the Street expected, rising 1.7% over the same quarter last year.

Products like Januvia, Janumet, Singulair, Isentress and Gardasil contributed to sales. However, the strong performance of these products was partially offset by lower sales of Vytorin. Remicade sales also declined during the quarter. Still, a significantly better-than-expected gross profit margin, *lower R&D costs and a lower tax rate helped to make up for the weaker top line.

Merck plans to submit applications seeking regulatory approval for five major products between 2012 and 2013.

And this year, the company expects to earn between $3.75 a share and $3.85 a share. Consensus estimates among sell-side analysts stands towards the higher end of that range at $3.82 a share.



Original Article Source by Barrons.com