What happened
Shares of Mylan N.V. (MYL +0.00%) are soaring today, up 16.4% as of 11:40 a.m. EST, after the drugmaker reported better-than-expected Q3 earnings following the market close on Monday. Mylan announced adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.25, up 13.6% year over year and above analysts' consensus estimate of $1.19.
So what
Anytime the narrative changes dramatically for a company, investors become excited. That appears to be what's happening for Mylan.
Image source: Getty Images.
Only three months ago, Mylan slashed its full-year 2018 outlook because of significant problems in the U.S. market. Sales for the company's EpiPen auto-injector dropped significantly in the wake of generic competition. Mylan experienced problems at its Morgantown, West Virginia, manufacturing facility, with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) uncovering numerous issues during a five-week inspection. And the company continued to run into a generally bleak pricing environment for generic drugs in the U.S.
Have all of these problems been resolved? Actually, no. Mylan's North American sales still fell 14% year over year in the third quarter. But Wall Street lowered expectations prior to the third quarter more than it probably should have.
As is often the case, the story for Mylan wasn't as bad as some might have made it out to be. Despite challenges in the U.S., the drugmaker has been consistently strong in international markets, especially outside of Europe.
Now what
The key for Mylan is to move past its problems in the U.S. and generate solid growth. One great way to do that is to achieve success with new products. CEO Heather Bresch noted in her Q3 comments that the company has launched close to 475 new products so far in 2018.
An important one for investors to watch is Hulio, Mylan's biosimilar to the world's best-selling drug, Humira. Mylan launched Hulio in Europe in October. Another key product to keep your eyes on is a generic version of another blockbuster drug, Advair. Mylan currently awaits an approval decision for the drug by the FDA.
