Novartis reported third-quarter core net income fell, missing analyst forecasts as the cancer portfolio acquired from GlaxoSmithKline and the Swiss company's newer products failed to offset continuing weakness at its eye-care business Alcon.
The stronger dollar also hurt results.
Core net income fell 2 percent to USD 3.06 billion, the world's biggest seller of prescription drugs reported, compared to the average analyst estimate of USD 3.128 billion in a Reuters poll. It rose 13 percent at constant currencies.
Sales fell 6 percent to USD 12.265 billion, compared to the poll average of USD 12.62 billion. They rose 6 percent at constant currencies.
Novartis still expects annual sales to grow at a mid-single-digit percentage rate, with core operating income growing at high single digits, stripping out currency effects, it said on Tuesday.
Reported net income fell 42 percent to USD 1.8 billion, mainly due to a prior-year gain from the sale of Idenix Pharmaceuticals shares to Merck & Co. and a provision of around USD 400 million for a legal settlement in a US specialty pharmacies case.
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