Actavis posts 1Q loss on deal costs; lifts outlook

PARSIPPANY, N.J. (AP) -- Generic drugmaker Actavis Inc. said Thursday it took a loss in the first quarter on costs related to acquisitions.

Actavis combined with Watson Pharmaceuticals in October, and in January the company acquired Belgian drug developer Uteron Pharma to expand its women's health business. Actavis said it took $270 million in charges from those two deals during the first quarter.

If those charges are excluded, the company reported a larger-than-expected profit, and it raised its estimates for the full year.

Shares of Actavis rose $2.60, or 2.5 percent, to $106.99 in afternoon trading. Earlier the stock reached an all-time high of $110.50.

Watson Pharmaceuticals acquired Actavis, which was based in Switzerland, for $5.6 billion in a deal that closed Oct. 31. The company changed its name to Actavis in January. That month it acquired Uteron for $150 million upfront.

Actavis lost $102.8 million, or 79 cents per share, in the latest quarter. A year earlier it reported net income of $54.8 million, or 43 cents per share. Excluding one-time items the company said it earned $1.99 per share in the latest quarter. Revenue grew 24 percent, to $1.9 billion from $1.52 billion.

Analysts were expecting net income of $1.86 per share on $1.96 billion in revenue, according to FactSet.

The company is now projecting net income of $8.10 to $8.50 per share in 2013, up from $7.70 to $8.10 per share, on $8.1 billion in revenue.

Analysts are estimating income of $8.10 per share and $8.1 billion in revenue on average.