Leerink Partners reiterated a Market Perform rating on Alere (NYSE: ALR), and cut the price target to $50.00 (from $55.00), following the company's 3Q earnings report. Revenue of $602.5M missed consensus by 7%. Adjusted EPS of $0.54 was also below the Street's projection by ~10%. Malaria sales to Africa were weak due to order timing and pricing pressure. Sales of CD4 analyzers also suffered, due perhaps to a recent guideline change de-emphasizing the importance of CD4 testing in HIV patient management.

Analyst Dan Leonard commented, "ALR reported a tough 3Q on soft international sales and weak sales in some non-core products. We did see positive signs from several growth drivers, including point-of-care molecular. Nonetheless, we have reduced our forward estimates, and price target to $50 (from $55) and maintain our Market Perform rating."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Alere click here. For more ratings news on Alere click here.

Shares of Alere closed at $46.80 yesterday.