Drug maker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International said Thursday that it plans to review its business after posting weak fourth-quarter results.
The Aliso Viejo-based drug maker posted a narrower quarterly loss of $6.9 million from continuing operations, compared to a loss of $14.9 million a year ago.
Wall Street had expected Valeant to post a quarterly profit before charges of $19.1 million.
Sales fell 4% to $219.8 million. Within that number, Valeant’s international sales dropped 23% because of what the company said were continuing challenges in Mexico.
Analysts expected Valeant to have $245.7 million in quarterly revenue.
Chief Executive J. Michael Pearson said in a statement that the company would disclose its strategic review during the last week of March and that the fourth-quarter disappointment was “the direct impact from trying to operate in too many geographies, with too many businesses and too many products.”
The company agreed to sell business units and product rights in some of its Asian markets, including China, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore.
Because of the changes, Valeant declined to provide guidance for the current quarter, Pearson said on a conference call.
Pearson replaced Timothy Tyson as Valeant’s chief executive at the beginning of February.
