Bristol Myers Squibb Reports 2Q Loss as Covid-19 Drags on Sales

By Matt Grossman

Bristol Myers Squibb Co. swung to a second-quarter loss but reported a larger-than-expected adjusted profit, as the coronavirus pandemic damped sales.

The New York City-based pharmaceutical company reported a loss in the latest quarter of $85 million, or 4 cents a share, compared with a profit of $1.43 billion, or 87 cents a share, in the same three-month period a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, Bristol Myers Squibb earned a profit of $1.63 a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had estimated the company's adjusted profit would be $1.48 a share.

Revenue was $10.13 billion, up from $6.27 billion a year earlier. The revenue growth reflected the addition of results from Celgene Corp., which Bristol Myers Squibb acquired in a deal that closed last fall.

On a pro-forma basis that estimated the company's revenue trend had last year's second quarter included Celgene revenue, sales were roughly flat.

Bristol Myers Squibb estimated that the Covid-19 pandemic reduced sales by roughly $600 million in the quarter. The pandemic's impact stemmed from inventory work-downs from the first quarter, as well as fewer patient visits to doctors for non-Covid-19 health complaints as people avoided social settings.

Write to Matt Grossman at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 06, 2020 07:32 ET (11:32 GMT)

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