MYL Mylan NV

Perrigo Co. trimmed its 2016 earnings outlook after swinging to a loss in the fourth quarter, dragged by legal fees and a disappointing performance in its new branded consumer health-care segment.

Shares slid 5.2% to $137.68 in premarket trading.

The Dublin-based company, principally a maker of store-brand versions of cold and allergy medicines, last year fended off a $26 billion takeover attempt from Mylan NV when its shareholders shot down the hostile offer. In the fourth quarter, Perrigo booked $71.3 million in fees stemming from its defense—an amount that surpassed the prior year's profit and offset a 33% jump in sales.

Since the conclusion of the eight-month battle, Perrigo has made a number of moves to grow its business, including the purchase of U.S. rights to Crohn's disease treatment Entocort from AstraZeneca PLC and the acquisition of a generic portfolio of the Retin-A acne treatment.

Perrigo has long used acquisitions to power growth; last summer, the company agreed to buy a portfolio of over-the-counter brands from GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare. On Thursday, Chief Executive Joseph Papa said the segment "did not meet our internal expectations," adding that "we are taking specific actions to address this performance."

Sales in that branded consumer health-care business were $325.7 million in the quarter. While that segment fell short of the company's target, prescription pharmaceutical sales slowed. Sales there inched 2.4% higher from a year earlier, to $283.2 million, after surging 34% in the third quarter and 10% in the second.

Following the December quarter's results, Perrigo pulled in the top end of its full-year profit guidance after lifting it last month. The company now sees $9.50 to $9.80 in adjusted per-share earnings, up from $7.59 a year earlier and versus its last projection of $9.50 to $10.10. Analysts have predicted $9.74 in earnings per share this year.

For the fourth quarter, Perrigo lost $107 million after earning $70.2 million a year earlier. On a per-share basis, the company booked a loss of 74 cents, down from a profit of $51 cents. Excluding certain items, earnings rose to $1.80 a share from $1.82 a share.

Revenue rose to $1.42 billion. Analysts expected $1.93 in adjusted earnings per share and $1.46 billion in sales, according to Thomson Reuters.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at lisa.beilfuss@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 18, 2016 08:25 ET (13:25 GMT)

Mylan NV (NASDAQ:MYL)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024

Mylan NV (NASDAQ:MYL)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024