Earnings Preview: King Pharmaceuticals

King Pharmaceuticals (KG) is expected to report Q3 earnings before market open Thursday, November 6, with a conference call scheduled for 11:00 am ET.

Guidance

Analysts are looking for a profit of 26c on revenue of $362M. The consensus is 23c to 29c for EPS, and $358.5M to $368.6M for revenue, according to First Call. In its Q2 earnings release, the company reported EPS of 30c compared to a consensus of 32c and Q2 revenue of $396.9M compared to a consensus of $397.28. Positive factors for this quarter include the recent patent settlement for Skelaxin and higher sales from Avinza. Negative risks to earnings is continued pressure from the loss of patent protection on Altace.

Analyst Views

On October 9, King Pharma was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Natixis.