Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
What: Shares of Mylan (MYL), a hybrid biopharmaceutical company that develops branded and generic pharmaceuticals, jumped as much as 11% after the company reported its fourth-quarter earnings results before the opening bell this morning.
So what: For the quarter, Mylan delivered a 5% increase in revenue to $1.81 billion, with foreign currency translation weighing on its results by negative 2%. Mylan recognized a 45% year-over-year reduction in revenue from new product launches, but it had that more than made up by double-digit generic growth from its rest of world segment. Adjusted EPS for the quarter increased 20% from the prior year to $0.78. By comparison, Wall Street had been forecasting just $0.75 in EPS (the $1.81 billion in revenue matched expectations). Looking ahead, Mylan is projecting full-year fiscal 2014 revenue of $7.8 billion-$8.2 billion and EPS of $3.25-$3.60. The Street has been forecasting EPS of $3.43 and revenue of $7.73 billion. Also moving shares, as reported by Bloomberg, were comments made by CEO Heather Bresch in a meeting with analysts that the company may be on the acquisition hunt.
Now what: Chalk up another great quarter for Mylan and shareholders. Mylan continues to benefit from both worlds -- enjoying the higher margins associated with branded drugs while feasting off of the finite patent protection period of already approved therapies, which creates a nearly endless stream of generic possibilities. This hybrid pharmaceutical combination turns these companies into cash-flow machines. With double-digit growth expected in 2014 and Mylan valued at a mere 17 times forward earnings, I'd suggest there's a good chance its shares may head even higher.
