Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd , the world's biggest generic drug maker, forecast 2017 revenue and profit that are below analysts' estimates.
Teva shares were down 3.3 per cent at $36.70 in premarket trading on Friday.
The Israel-based company said it expects earnings per share of $4.90-$5.30 on revenue of $23.8 billion-$24.5 billion.
Analysts on average were expecting a profit of $5.41 per share on revenue of $24.82 billion,
Launch delays for some drugs led Teva in November to trim forecasts for earnings and revenue for 2016. "2016 was a transition year for Teva. The entire healthcare sector has faced significant headwinds, and we have not been immune," chief executive Erez Vigodman said in a statement on Friday.
Teva also said the 40 milligram dose of its flagship multiple sclerosis drug, Copaxone, is not expected to face generic competition in the United States in 2017.
However, the entry of two generic competitors in the US in February could reduce revenues by between $1 billion and $1.2 billion, and hurt adjusted profit by 65-80 US cents.
– Reuters
