Webcasts Investor Day Meeting Today
VALLEY FORGE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 11,
2007--AmerisourceBergen Corporation (NYSE:ABC) today will reaffirm its
previous first quarter and full fiscal year 2008 guidance at its
Investor Day Meeting in New York City. The Company is hosting a
webcast of the meeting today beginning at 12:30 pm Eastern Standard
Time.
The Company continues to expect diluted earnings per share for
fiscal year 2008 to be in the range of $2.77 to $2.95. The diluted
earnings per share range represents an increase of approximately 13
percent to 20 percent over the $2.46 earnings per share from
continuing operations for fiscal year 2007, which excludes the $0.09
benefit from special items and the $0.08 contribution from PharMerica
Long-Term Care, a business spun off July 31, 2007.
Also unchanged are the key assumptions supporting the Company's
diluted earnings per share expectations for fiscal year 2008, which
are: operating revenue growth between 5 percent and 7 percent;
operating margin expansion in the Pharmaceutical Distribution segment;
and free cash flow in the range of $450 million to $525 million, which
includes capital expenditures of approximately $125 million. The
Company also anticipates spending $400 million to $500 million to
repurchase its common shares during fiscal year 2008.
AmerisourceBergen continues to expect diluted earnings per share
in the December quarter of fiscal 2008, its fiscal first quarter, to
be similar to the same quarter last fiscal year, which was $0.62,
excluding the impact of special items and the contribution from
PharMerica Long-Term Care, due primarily to the anticipated shift of
price increases by a major branded pharmaceutical manufacturer from
the December to the March quarter, as well as fewer generic launches
and a slower flu season compared with last year's December quarter.
Operating revenue growth in the December quarter is expected to be
below the 5 percent to 7 percent range expected for the entire 2008
fiscal year due to the negative impact from lower sales of anemia
pharmaceuticals, the loss of a large specialty customer because of its
acquisition by a competitor, and the Company's loss of a large retail
customer in January 2007.
AmerisourceBergen will webcast its Investor Day Meeting today
beginning at 12:30 pm Eastern Standard Time through approximately 3:00
pm. Participating in the meeting will be: R. David Yost, President and
Chief Executive Officer; Michael D. DiCandilo, Executive Vice
President and Chief Financial Officer; Terrance P. Haas, Executive
Vice President and Chief Integration Officer and Steven H. Collis,
Executive Vice President and President AmerisourceBergen Specialty
Group. To access the live webcast, go to the Webcasts section on the
Investor Relations page at www.amerisourcebergen.com. A replay of the
webcast will be available for 30 days.
About AmerisourceBergen
AmerisourceBergen is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical
services companies serving primarily the United States and Canada.
Servicing both pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers
in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Company provides drug
distribution and related services designed to reduce costs and improve
patient outcomes. AmerisourceBergen's service solutions range from
pharmacy automation and pharmaceutical packaging to reimbursement and
pharmaceutical consulting services. With more than $66 billion in
annual revenue, AmerisourceBergen is headquartered in Valley Forge,
PA, and employs more than 11,500 people. AmerisourceBergen is ranked
#29 on the Fortune 500 list. For more information, go to
www.amerisourcebergen.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain certain "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements
are based on management's current expectations and are subject to
uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary
materially from the expectations contained in the forward-looking
statements. The following factors, among others, could cause actual
results to differ materially from those described in any
forward-looking statements: competitive pressures; the loss of one or
more key customer or supplier relationships; customer defaults or
insolvencies; changes in customer mix; supplier defaults or
insolvencies; changes in pharmaceutical manufacturers' pricing and
distribution policies or practices; adverse resolution of any contract
or other disputes with customers (including departments and agencies
of the U.S. Government) or suppliers; regulatory changes (including
increased government regulation of the pharmaceutical supply channel);
government enforcement initiatives (including (i) the imposition of
increased obligations upon pharmaceutical distributors to detect and
prevent suspicious orders of controlled substances, (ii) the
commencement of further administrative actions by the U. S. Drug
Enforcement Administration seeking to suspend or revoke the license of
any of the Company's distribution facilities to distribute controlled
substances, (iii) the commencement of any enforcement actions by any
U.S. Attorney alleging violation of laws and regulations regarding
diversion of controlled substances and suspicious order monitoring, or
(iv) the commencement of any administrative actions by the board of
pharmacy of any state seeking to suspend, revoke or otherwise restrict
the ability of any of the Company's distribution facilities or
businesses to distribute or dispense pharmaceuticals in such state);
changes in U.S. government policies (including reimbursement changes
arising from federal legislation, including the Medicare Modernization
Act and the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005); changes in regulatory or
clinical medical guidelines and/or reimbursement practices for the
pharmaceuticals we distribute, including erythropoiesis-stimulating
agents (ESAs) used to treat anemia patients; price inflation in
branded pharmaceuticals and price deflation in generics; the inability
of the Company to successfully complete any transaction that the
Company may wish to pursue from time to time; fluctuations in market
interest rates; operational or control issues arising from the
Company's outsourcing of information technology activities; success of
integration, restructuring or systems initiatives; fluctuations in the
U.S. dollar - Canadian dollar exchange rate and other foreign exchange
rates; economic, business, competitive and/or regulatory developments
in Canada, the United Kingdom and elsewhere outside of the United
States; acquisition of businesses that do not perform as we expect or
that are difficult for us to integrate or control; any operating
problems and/or cost overruns that may be associated with the
implementation of an enterprise resource planning system; changes in
tax legislation or adverse resolution of challenges to our tax
positions; and other economic, business, competitive, legal, tax,
regulatory and/or operational factors affecting the business of the
Company generally. Certain additional factors that management believes
could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from
those described in forward-looking statements are set forth (i) in
Item 1A (Risk Factors) in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2007 and elsewhere in that report
and (ii) in other reports filed by the Company pursuant to the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
CONTACT: AmerisourceBergen Corporation
Michael N. Kilpatric, 610-727-7118
mkilpatric@amerisourcebergen.com
SOURCE: AmerisourceBergen Corporation