Topic: Growth Stocks

Wall Street Stock Forecaster Hotline – Thursday, May 6, 2016

Article Excerpt

PFIZER INC., $33.58, New York symbol PFE, is one of the world’s leading prescription-drug makers. Its top-selling brands include Lyrica (epilepsy), Celebrex (arthritis pain) and Enbrel (plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis). The company also makes over-the-counter medications and supplements, including Advil (pain relief), Centrum (vitamins) and Robitussin (cough syrup). In the three months ended March 31, 2016, earnings jumped 30.0%, to $4.2 billion from $3.2 billion a year earlier. Due to fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share gained 31.4%, to $0.67 from $0.51. That beat the consensus estimate of $0.55. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs related to last year’s $16.1 billion acquisition of Hospira, a maker of biosimilars. Those drugs are close copies of biologic drugs, which are made from living organisms such as bacteria and yeast. Thanks to Hospira and strong sales of new drugs such as Ibrance (breast cancer treatment) and Prevnar 13 (a pneumonia vaccine), Pfizer’s revenue in the quarter rose 19.7%, to $13.0 billion from $10.9…