Shares in Allergan Plc (NYSE:AGN) edged higher in pre-market trading after the Botox-maker posted a forecast-busting set of quarterly results and upgraded its full-year revenue guidance as well.
Excluding items, the Dublin-based firm posted an earnings per share of US$3.35 for the first three months of 2017, 5 cents ahead of the Wall Street consensus.
Net revenues also came in ahead of forecasts and 5% higher compared to the same period of last year at US$3.6bn.
The Dublin-based group said higher demand for its facial aesthetics, eye care and newer products such as Vraylar and Viberzi were the main factors behind the solid results.
The improved performance from those products was partially offset by lower revenues from its Namenda Alzheimer’s franchise, the loss of exclusivity of its ulcerative colitis treatment Asacol HD and weaker sales from other older drugs.
“2017 is a pivotal year for Allergan, and we started with a solid, well-executed first quarter,” said chairman and chief executive Brent Saunders.
“Many of our key brands continued to deliver significant year-over-year growth, led by Botox, our Juvederm collection of fillers, our Regenerative Medicine business, Linzess and Lo Loestrin.”
Overall, Allergan posted a loss of US$906mln for the period, although this was mainly due to amortization and R&D charges.
Zeltiq acquisition to boost revenues this year
On top of the solid performance in first three months of the year, Allergan told investors that it was upping its 2017 revenue forecast to reflect its US$2.5bn acquisition of Zeltiq Aesthetics.
Allergan agreed to buy Zeltiq back in February in order to gain access to its device which uses cooling to kill fat cells.
The company raised its net revenue forecast to between US$15.8bn and US$16bn, up from the US$15.5bn to US$15.8bn previously stated.
The stock was up 1.5% to US$242 in pre-market trading.