Drug making giant Pfizer Inc. (PFE) said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit came in slightly below expectations, and guided below analysts' view, sending its shares lower in premarket trading.
The New York City-based company reported fourth-quarter net income of $767 million, or 10 cents per share, compared with $266 million, or four cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding one-time items, adjusted profit was 49 cents per share.
Revenue jumped 34% from last year, to $16.5 billion.
On average, Wall Street analysts expected a slightly higher profit of 50 cents per share, albeit on lower revenue of $15.9 billion.
Looking ahead, the company forecast full-year 2010 earnings of $2.10 to $2.20 per share, which would miss analysts' current estimates for $2.27 per share.
The company also cut its 2012 revenue outlook to a range of $66 billion and $68.5 billion, down from a prior forecast for $70 billion.
Pfizer shares fell 56 cents, or 2.9%, in pre-market trading Wednesday.
The Bottom Line
PFE has been recommended since December, when the stock was trading at $18.24. The company has a dividend yield of 3.74%, based on last night's closing stock price of $19.24.
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) is a "recommended" dividend stock, holding a Dividend.com DARS Rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars.
