BOSTON (AP) — Pharmaceutical research contractor Parexel International Corp. said Monday its profit fell 23 percent in the fiscal second quarter due to restructuring charges.
But it issued a strong outlook for revenue and adjusted earnings for the remainder of its fiscal year and its stock jumped more than 7 percent in aftermarket trading.
The company said its profit fell to $12.9 million, or 21 cents per share, from $16.8 million, or 28 cents per share. Parexel said it earned 23 cents per share if one-time costs are excluded. Those charges included $1.7 million in severance costs and $500,000 in facility-related expenses. Its service revenue grew 9 percent, to $333.2 million from $304.4 million.
Analysts expected Parexel to report an adjusted profit of 23 cents per share and $334.4 million in revenue, according to FactSet.
Over the three months ended Dec. 31, Parexel said revenue from its clinical research service business grew 7 percent to $247.9 million. Revenue from its consulting and medical communications business rose to $38.5 million from $32 million a year ago, and revenue from its perceptive informatics unit increased to $46.8 million from $41 million.
The company had a backlog of $3.74 billion in business at the end of the quarter, up 23 percent from a year ago.
The company narrowed its fiscal 2012 profit and revenue estimates, saying it now anticipates an adjusted profit of $1.09 to $1.17 per share on $1.36 billion to $1.38 billion in service revenue. Previously Parexel had called for a profit of $1.07 to $1.22 per share revenue of $1.36 billion to $1.39 billion. Parexel said it expects to report an adjusted profit of 30 cents to 32 cents per share in the fiscal third quarter, and revenue of $350 million to $358 million.
Analysts are forecasting a profit of $1.10 per share on $1.36 billion in revenue for the full year, and 31 cents per share and $347.4 million in revenue for the third quarter.
Shares gained $1.54, or 7.5 percent, to $22 in aftermarket trading following the release of the earnings report.