Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY), WellPoint, Inc. (WLP) & Five Must-Watch Earnings Reports in the Health-Care Sector This Week

Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG) : Celgene’s CEO, Robert Hugin, made some very bold claims at the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference in January that his company would be able to triple revenue and double EPS growth by 2017 based solely on organic growth. Consider this quarter the first test of that assertion. Things have definitely moved in Celgene’s favor, with Abraxane gaining additional indications in cancer treatment and Revlimid sales running strong. However, it’ll need to gain approval of Apremilast to treat psoriasis if it hopes to achieve its lofty growth targets. Following Celgene’s huge first-quarter run, the company’s guidance here will be everything, so focus all of your attention on that, and any comments with regard to the advancement of Apremilast.

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALXN) : Having seen Affymax, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFFY) shares implode because of a recall, I’m always concerned about companies whose entire pipeline lives and dies off one drug. Alexion’s Soliris is a billion-dollar blockbuster, but its entire pipeline involves the use of Soliris in one indication or another. Therefore, my big focus in Alexion’s first-quarter report will be if it can top EPS expectations by double digits. Alexion’s previous four reports have all trumped estimates by a mile, and any less than a 10% beat given its lack of diversification could be enough to pummel its already lofty share price.

The article 5 Must-Watch Earnings Reports in the Health-Care Sector This Week originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. You can follow him on CAPS under the screen name TMFUltraLong, track every pick he makes under the screen name TrackUltraLong, and check him out on Twitter, where he goes by the handle @TMFUltraLong.The Motley Fool owns shares of, and recommends, WellPoint.

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