Merck KGaA 4th-qtr net income well below expectations, but sales and EBITDA beat

8 March 2016

German life sciences major Merck KGaA (MRK: DE) this morning posted financial results for 2015, showing that sales for the fourth quarter were up 16% at 3.46 billion euros ($3.80 billion, beating the average analyst estimate of 3.44 billion euros, the Bloomberg survey showed.

However, net income dropped 55% to 125.7 million euros in the quarter due expenses tied to the takeover of Sigma-Aldrich, and was well below the 280 million euros analysts were expecting. Merck’s shares fell as much as 2.7% and traded down 1.02% at 78.90 euros at 11.54 am in Frankfurt trading.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and excluding some costs, rose 6.3% to 933.4 million euros, the company said, which was higher than the 912.7 million-euro average of seven analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free. A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Try before you buy

Free

7 day trial access

Take a Free Trial

All the news that moves the needle in pharma and biotech
Exclusive features, podcasts, interviews, data analyses and commentary from our global network of life sciences reporters.
Receive The Pharma Letter daily news bulletin, free forever.

Become a subscriber

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now

Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription

The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK